Picky About Produce? Shop in-Season

You know by now how much I love shopping in-bulk. Here's my latest story:

I do most of my fresh produce shopping at the local farmer's market, the Chesterfield Berry Farm, from about May - September or October. They are closer than CostCo, they are in many instances cheaper than CostCo, and I'm supporting the local growers. Every week, CBF features a new crop, usually what is in-season. This week and for the next few weeks, it will be green (and yellow) squash.

As always I purchased the box, which is 13 pounds of zucchini for $10. Sometimes I am lucky and they'll mix up 1/2 squash and have zucchini but I have to wait a few more weeks, they told me. At present, zucchini is $1.89/pound. With all my zucchini I make:

• breakfast (sausage, egg, zucchini casserole - eat one and freeze one),
• lunch (zucchini soup, garden vegetable chilil, and sliced raw with ranch dressing),
• snacks (zucchini muffins -like bread but in muffin form),
• dinner side-dishes (grilled with olive oil or sauted with butter or simmered with tomatos and italian spices) and
• dessert (chocolate cake with shredded zucchini disguised in it)

One good thing - saving money.

Second good thing - eating healthy - my kids have no idea how much zucchini they eat and I know where the food is coming from

Third good thing - the produce lasts about TWO WEEKS in my fridge because it is farm-picked fresh.

And of course you're helping the local economy, a win-win for everyone.

If you want any of these recipes, just email me - they aren't mine to post but they are favorites that my whole family eats, especially the garden chili - towards the end of the summer, we make the whole thing solely from our garden. And because there are so many ways to eat zucchini (or other foods in-season, which gives me a whole 'nother idea for a set of blogs) we don't get tired of it. Finally when you are totally over zucchini, shred it and freeze it in 2-cup freezer bags and make fresh zucchini bread in the fall (but don't forget to add it to your freezer list so you don't forget about it).

Wes grilled it for me last night and I had it sliced with ranch this morning. Purchasing food at less than half price makes me so happy - it helps my food budget and I hope it gives you inspiration in the kitchen and within your own food budget!

Magazines - Have You Heard?

I love magazines. I mean I get a LOT of magazines - People, Us, Entertainment Weekly, Real Simple, Southern Living, Taste of Home, Scrapbooks ETC... more... and then Wes gets a bunch too. And that doesn't include what I trade with friends on the street.

DISCLAIMER
Magazines are an excellent place to save money. Don't buy them and don't subscribe to them if you're watching money. Read them at the library. But I don't like the library and don't like used paper products... so I cut somewhere else to get my magazine fix.

Have you heard about Maghound.com? A few months back I got an email about it and just can't figure out what's the catch! I've been a subscriber for a white now and am totally hooked. And I've hooked my family, too!

Here's how it works:

• Inventory all the magazines you subscribe to and all the ones you buy at the store (and if you're buying them, you should buy them at CostCo)
• Go to maghound.com and see if any of your regulars are listed (most of mine are)
• pick a plan of 3, 5, 7 or more and pay one monthly fee to maghound.com

There are 300 magazines to choose from. The weeklies have a small surcharge, but the bonus is that if you select a magazine published bimonthly, maghound gives you SUBSTITUTES for free (like getting two subscriptions for the price of one). You can update your choices AT ANY TIME. You can stop your membership AT ANY TIME. The only comment I have is that you don't get to select your substitues, so if Maxim doesn't arrive one month, there's no guarantee that Men's Health will arrive in its place (but I've emailed them my suggestion).

NOTE, subscriptions through maghound.com no not affect your current subscriptions so if you have one, call the publisher directly to cancel it immediately.

Here's how I rationalize saving money: 1 issue of Southern Living costs $4.99 - one issue at CostSo is $3.50; a subscription is $20 for 13 issues if I recall, or $1.66/issue. But where you get caught are RENEWALS! Those costs aren't cheap! Or if you're like me, you get mad because the issue is in the stores before it arrives on your doorstep.

I have selected the 7-magazine tier for $9.95/month but I get People, which has a surcharge because it is a weekly. For the cost of what I would pay for People at CostCo PER MONTH, I get 6 other magazines for free (or what my budget perceives as free).

If you're looking to save money, this isn't the best 'save' for you, but if you're saving money within your magazines budget (I have a line-item in my budget for EVERYTHING), I think maghound.com is the best deal around. And like I've said - this works for me and I hope it works for you, too!

Cheap or Not So Cheap - Buying & Selling Girls' Clothes

Today I have lots of posts stuck in my head because it has been a while since I've posted - sorry about that.

I want to share with you my morning's purchase. I hit the mother-load at Gymboree this morning.

• I used a coupon on top of a 30% off your entire purchase sale
• I bought sale items (not full-price, on sale for 30% off but clearance stuff)

You know I sell my girls' used clothes on eBAY - and I've said before, I get it all on eBAY. Gymboree dresses, hair accessories, and swimwear sell used for about as much as I often pay for them, between $10 to $15 (new, full price dresses retail for $32ish and swim $22ish). That makes dressing my girls in the summer close to zero-cost.

READ ME - I save 'here' to spend 'somewhere else,' so I buy things like jewelry, outfits and the occasional pair of sandals, which don't turn over as well but still sell used. (This is a case of do what I say and not exactly as I do.)

My point is that it doesn't always save more to spend less - there are super-cute things from Kohls and Target that last through the season and might last for hand-me-downs for the next child. But you don't get much back at a consignment store, yard sale, etc. I can spend about the SAME amount per outfit on Gymboree clothes that someone else spends at Kohls or Target, and the difference is that I get more money back.

I take the time to list my girls' clothes on eBAY and then take that money to buy their summer clothes. Another instance of time versus money - I have or make the time so I can have the money. In the month of April, I made $1138 selling mostly used Gymboree and Lilly clothes - eBAYers lose about 10 - 15% to fees, but that's still $1000 take-home. My friend has a PayPal debit card to help control spending, a bit like 'my' money and 'our' money. I transfer most of my eBAY earnings to my savings account and withdraw when the occasion calls - like this morning.

To illustrate my best finds:
seashell shorts $4.47 & matching clam tank $4.47
Full price = $25.50

pineapple tee $8.67 & pineapple shorts $9.37 pineapple sandals $13.15
pineapple ponytail holder $2
FULL PRICE $81.25

stripe short $6.71 & matching top $5.59
FULL PRICE $44.50

Of course, I bought dresses and hair accessories from the watermelon line, which at present is full-price, 30% off plus my 20% off coupon - but those aren't the best, best deals, shown above.

The prices for tops and bottoms shown above are right in line with what I saw at Target last night, except those are complete Gymboree outfits. As I said above, for girls' clothes, dresses sell the best. But I have had 2 -piece outfits sell between $5 - $15 used. And I never, ever sell the hair accessories with the outfit. Some people pay MORE than retail for USED hair accessories still on the card (my personal best is $11.50 for lemony fresh, from 2004, I think, for which I paid $3).

In sum, you don't always save more spending money on lower quality clothing. I recycle my same money summer after summer, selling my old Gymboree clothes to buy my girls new ones, rarely spending more than what I have. Hit the sales, use a coupon, and find the time to list and sell and ship your auctions - I think you'll fare better than if you shop Target/Kohls or consign.

This works best for me, and I hope it works well for you, too!!