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kbfsc
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| Posted: Jan 31 2011 at 10:00pm | IP Logged
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I need some ideas and resources to help me become a better homemaker. I love a tidy house, so generally things are neat around here. But I struggle in two areas: keeping a good cleaning regimen and meal planning.
I hate cleaning! - the time it takes, the never-endingness of it, especially dusting. It's death to me. So I recognize that there is probably a laziness issue there for me... (I made it my Lenten commitment last year, but I'm not much better now than I ever have been. Sad.) I wonder if a good system would help kick start a better attitude and help me stick with it.
And meal planning! Our budget requires that I shop very carefully, following the sales and couponing like crazy. But I find that, when it's all said and done, I'm not very happy lately with the quality of the food I'm feeding my family. We're not junk food people by any means, but I'm struggling to find healthy, easy meals that are affordable to prepare.
Any resources or suggestions would be most appreciated!
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Kiera
happy mama of ds '02, dd '03, ds '06, dd '09 and little ones in heaven
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JodieLyn
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| Posted: Jan 31 2011 at 10:33pm | IP Logged
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One idea that I think helps is if you can break down the tasks to how often it needs doing.. for instance.. you probably don't HAVE to dush high shelves or wash ceiling fans every day.. at least.. I wouldn't.. but once a week wouldn't be too much.. plus then you know it's done until the next time. So like
on Tuedays you do the deeper cleaning in the living room, on Wednesday it's the kitchen and on Thursdays it's the bathroom.. etc.. that way you're not feeling like you have to do all of the house in one day.. and once it's done you don't have to think about it until the next week.
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Jodie, wife to Dave
G-18, B-17, G-15, G-14, B-13, B-11, G-9, B-7, B-5, B-4
All men who have turned out worth anything have had the chief hand in their own education.
-Sir Walter Scott
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guitarnan
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| Posted: Jan 31 2011 at 10:43pm | IP Logged
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I am not going to be helpful re: cleaning, because I dislike it, too! 
However, I might have some suggestions in the meal planning area. I can't tell whether you live near a commissary, but my first suggestion would be to do as much shopping there as possible. You can still use coupons and there are some great biweekly deals going all the time.
(Side note: I tried once to justify not using the commissary and even though we lived 1/2 hour away and I had to drag my young children, I found by making a price book that the savings were too huge to walk away from - typically 25 - 30 percent, even with the surcharge figured in.)
I think I'd start my meal planning by making a list of foods my family likes...at my house, beef is off the menu because dh can't eat it. Substitutes exist (like bison), but they are pricey, so we only eat them on special occasions. That leaves us with chicken, turkey, pork/ham, venison (hard to get here), fish (my kids hate it)...so we have a basic 3-4 meat rotation. We don't eat meat every day - this saves money and is healthier for us. (I make soups on non-meat days during the winter - lentil, minestrone, black bean, vegetarian chili.)
The other key part of the meal rotation is veggies everyone will eat. At my house that means we eat a LOT of broccoli and some green beans, carrots and peas. Everyone likes edamame but they are on the splurge list.
My library has some great cookbooks - this week I checked out the American Heart Association's Quick and Easy Cookbook and a Hungry Girl cookbook for some healthy, low-fat/cal ideas. I also Google recipes - today was "crockpot chicken fajita recipes" - Food.com's recipe was great, and is only 133 calories per serving (tortillas and toppings extra, but very healthy nonetheless).
My schedule is crazy (dd is a dancer) and so I rely on my trusty slow cookers to help me out. Lentil soup is one of my standby recipes...in fact, I make 90% of my soups in one or the other of my slow cookers. While I make lunch and clean up the dishes, I chop/prep dinner and throw it into the slow cooker. Other healthy, yet inexpensive ideas for the slow cooker are boneless pork shoulder roasts (there are many recipes out there), chicken/turkey chili - even more economical if you cook the beans yourself, and the quick method (where you bring the beans to a boil for 10 min., then let stand for an hour, then cook) is even better than the "traditional method" that involves an overnight soak.
So, to recap:
I try to cook foods my family likes, particularly meats and sides that are affordable;
I use a slow cooker on a regular basis. (You can even cook an entire chicken in a large slow cooker - good for 1-2 meals plus bones for making chicken stock later. It really works.)
I use beans and legumes in many recipes; they are inexpensive and healthy, especially if I cook the beans myself. (I cook them ahead of time and freeze them.)
I use the library, the Internet and my (embarrassingly huge) collection of cookbooks to find recipes my family will enjoy. If possible, I cut back on fat wherever possible. Lately I am paying more attention to fat grams and per-serving calories, and we are finding that we enjoy the new recipes I'm finding very much.
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Nancy in MD. Mom of ds (24) & dd (18); 31-year Navy wife, move coordinator and keeper of home fires. Writer and dance mom.
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dinasiano
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| Posted: Feb 01 2011 at 8:40am | IP Logged
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I am trying to make some schedules here for cleaning and meal prep as well!
For meal planning, I would recommend allrecipes.com. they have so many recipes there and they are all rated by people who have tried them. I am tired of getting cook books and only using one or two recipes. I am sure there are a ton of cooking sites you could check out. I just planned my week with allrecipes and i am making very simple meals.
Dina
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Lisbet
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| Posted: Feb 01 2011 at 8:59am | IP Logged
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Real quick, I am working my way out of postpartum survival mode, this is what is helping me:
Large Family Logistics
And Bridget's posts...
Oh and E- Meals
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Lisa, wife to Tony,
Mama to:
Nick, 17
Abby, 15
Gabe, 13
Isaac, 11
Mary, 10
Sam, 9
Henry, 7
Molly, 6
Mark, 5
Greta, 3
Cecilia born 10.29.10
Josephine born 6.11.12
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Bridget
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| Posted: Feb 01 2011 at 10:36am | IP Logged
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I just did a little meal planning post that might be helpful. Food for the largish family
Seems a lot of us are working on our 'systems' right now, it's an on going battle! 
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God Bless,
Bridget, happily married to Kevin, mom to 8 on earth and a small army in heaven
Our Magnum Opus
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4Real Forums : Our Lady's Loom, Larder, and Laundry
Topic: hoping for homemaking help!
