tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4342465696392045865.post5921218030925629177..comments2009-10-23T14:30:28.802-04:00Judyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14460225455700518314noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4342465696392045865.post-854777831767473802009-10-23T14:30:28.802-04:002009-10-23T14:30:28.802-04:00i also buy fruit by look for what is in season...ie summer=watermelon<br />fall=apples or if you go apple picking you get a lot of apples for a great deal, good idea for a field trip for the kids too:)<br />craft stuff=stock up when stuff on sale, dollar store, etc<br />other ideas for cheap crafts like you said is to use stuff around the house...milk cartons for bird feeders, water bottles/paper towel holders for music shakers, coffee filters can be decorated with bingo dabbers, markers, stickers and made into window decorations<br />Just have to be creative:)<br />I heard once from a teacher in college, with crafts focus on the process not the product<br />kids like to make a mess, so even if it is not something perfect to take home if they had fun, that&#39;s what counts!:)<br />momof2Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4342465696392045865.post-47470678334928893582009-10-22T09:59:49.724-04:002009-10-22T09:59:49.724-04:00Chili is a great one too! Grate in some carrot &amp; zuchini, with the tomatoes and beans, a little ground beef goes a long way.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4342465696392045865.post-81124066776848308302009-10-20T19:28:56.766-04:002009-10-20T19:28:56.766-04:00Thanks Judy, love the ideas here. Do I see a &quot;sub-blog&quot; coming titled: &quot;Nutritious and Delicious for under $5.00&quot;<br /><br />KimAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4342465696392045865.post-77171128488046046432009-10-20T09:35:01.072-04:002009-10-20T09:35:01.072-04:00Thanks Judy! I appreciate your post and the responses from other readers!! Hugs to all of us who are feeling the pinch and are wondering how to get thru the next bit of time. My hubby is laid off too, I&#39;m pregnant and we recently had to replace our well. <br /><br />MarilynMarilynnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4342465696392045865.post-54489608484597613482009-10-19T23:02:31.114-04:002009-10-19T23:02:31.114-04:00thanks for the input, I&#39;m always looking for lunch ideas at a cheaper cost, anything the kids can help with is great. They get to help and something gets done!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4342465696392045865.post-82049866774842044622009-10-19T17:37:25.384-04:002009-10-19T17:37:25.384-04:00I do lots of crock pot meals for our dinners and make enough for the kids lunch. kids love noodles, I dice up left over chicken or beef add a bit of frozen veggie mix and either sour cream, cream cheese or cottage cheese...it goes really fast. Or make mini pot pies, making pie shells is really cheap. I use lots of stuff from around the house or outside for crafts. Plastic bottles and egg boxes make great ghosts, all you need is white and black paint. The library has many books on recycled crafts for kids.<br />rsmomAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4342465696392045865.post-33368972653772203502009-10-19T15:20:40.327-04:002009-10-19T15:20:40.327-04:00I cook lots of beans/lentil (from dried beans) dishes for the kids. Cheap, healthy protein dishes. It is often soups that the kids help me prepare in the morning... they can get out the veggies, wash them, hand them to me at the chopping board, I cut them up and dump them into the pot. If any older kids are here (6 and up), I let them help me chop certain veggies. Add a bun, and lunch is ready.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4342465696392045865.post-36141048178184756302009-10-19T15:17:02.282-04:002009-10-19T15:17:02.282-04:00Ahhh Judy, your post is just in time. Great meal ideas. I&#39;ve been wondering how to cut costs not nutrition.CC-4noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4342465696392045865.post-28495518697707810312009-10-19T15:16:47.653-04:002009-10-19T15:16:47.653-04:00this post couldn&#39;t have come at a better time for me! My husband has been laid off for 6 mths now and just two weeks ago I got notice that one of my kidlets was leaving my care...three days later I found out I was pregnant!<br />I usually have a waiting list so full I have no problems filling it, but not this time! I have had a few requests, but mostly for siblings...and I only have one available spot.<br />Luckily I was able to do a &#39;big craft shop&#39; just before dh was laid off and I was smart and had saved a lot of money, but noe the crunch is on to fill a spot quickly before I start showing too much! <br />I am not a big fan of casseroles as I saw/served/ate too many cheaply made ones when I worked in a child care center, but I usually make a lttle extra of our dinner and serve it to the kidlets for lunch. As for fruit, in the winter I stock up on large jars/cans of fruit in water...just as nutritious, a variety and quite inexpensive. I also use muffin mixes and add left over canned/fresh fruit for quick, nutrious, and easy loaves and muffins.<br />Finally, I cut all of the kids drawing paper in half...as most times they don&#39;t fill the whiole paper up anyway when coloring. They can color &#39;more&#39; pictures for mom and dad and I spend 1/2 the money! Oh, and the dollar store has wicked craft supplies/odds and ends great for gluing!<br /><br />dmansmommyAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4342465696392045865.post-14763863715712981122009-10-19T14:57:58.873-04:002009-10-19T14:57:58.873-04:00I love MONEY! But, Judy, it&#39;s Monday and I am missing my more sarcastic blog....<br /><br />How about communal toilet flushing and cloth snot rags? (I do these)!<br /><br />But seriously, do you know that the Kandoo soap pumps can take about 15 squirts of your favourite hand soap and fill the rest with water. You get about 20 full bottles out of 1!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com