The cloth diaper experiment is going well. Since the Toddler/Preschooler is home for the summer break, we're not going as many places, and I can stick to cloth diapers during the day and disposables when the family's all at home for the evening (and overnight)

In the past week instead of going through 80+ disposables, we've gone through almost a package of 40. Only added two loads of diaper-laundry a week, and it's hung on the drying rack to save the electric. Sun-dried diapers also smell very nice.

Next payday I'm investing in another drying rack. Then I can do two loads of laundry at a time if I need to, and have them all dry at once. Right now it's getting only mostly dry by the end of the day, and I either bring it inside and run it through the dryer for five minutes or leave it out overnight and half of the next day risking pigeon droppings and small bugs taking up residence in the cool shade of our shirts.

Chicken Gravy with Rice and Carrots

brown 1 pound chicken thighs (boneless, skinless, I buy these in a 3pound bag in the freezer case). Sprinkle Mrs Dash to taste. After they're browned, simmer in white wine until it's cooked. Remove from pan and fork-shred. Stir a packet of gravy mix into the pan and continue simmering until thickened. Add back the chicken.

Serve it over rice and carrots on the side.

Cost of meal:
canned carrots- $0.75
rice- $0.25
gravy mix- $0.50
chicken- $2.00
total: $3.83
Serve 4 at $0.96 each

Note: I didn't factor in the cooking wine or the Mrs Dash- they are pantry staples for me, and the cost over several dishes comes out to pennies. Your mileage may vary.

Hamburger Helper is one of my favorite main-meals. It's the perfect one pot meal. Everything in one pot, cook, serve, less dishes and a fairly easy cleanup. The only problem is the price. Around here it runs around $2 a box, on sale. The generics are a bit cheaper, usually.

Here's my variation on the theme.

Cheeseburger Helper

brown and drain one pound of ground beef. Season to taste, I usually sprinkle the beef with seasoned salt as it's cooking. I drain the fat by pouring it into a colander and than rinsing the meat with cold water. This way I can use the cheap grades with the fat that makes it extra tasty and get rid of said fat without having it irritate my tummy.

Cook one box of mac and cheese, to the directions. Use whatever brand floats your boat- at the deep discount places I can get it three for a dollar.

Mix beef and mac and cheese, and add a can of peas/cup of thawed frozen peas. If you want, stir in a few handfuls of shredded cheddar and let it get all melty and happy.

This serves 6 people with normal helpings. Or me and the Boy for one hungry night. You can add the meat at a different proportion, if you want, or vary the vegetables. This is a very convenient alternative to the norm. I've seen other people do this, with their own twist on it, and I know it's not a new concept.

Be creative with the pantry. What's your all-time favorite dish that you only let yourself have once in a blue moon because it's too expensive? Is there any way you can substitute ingredients and make a more thrifty alternative? Stick with the stuff that you really want, and mix it up with the base or the toppings.

How could it be since February that I posted here???

Oh, right. I have a life. And another blog, which I've been faithful to. And two kids and husband, which really suck up the time I have. My blogging comes out of my sleep time, more often than not. This is right when I should be tucked up in bed for the night. Am I? I am not. I'm trying to get just one more thing done before the bedtime. I also need to wash my hair.

What have I been up to in the pursuit of a greener life? I've been cloth diapering, a bit, again. I've been scrubbing my kitchen floor with non-toxic cleaning solution every three days and it looks better than it has since we moved in. Three days seems to work out best with the foot traffic in there, and the spills, and the small children who (still) lick the floor on occassion. Please don't ask me why, I don't know, and it makes my brain hurt to think about it.

The food shopping is upon us this weekend- stay tuned for the adventures of my meal planning and food budgeting. It's going to get very interesting this summer.

Tonight featured ham, broccoli, caramelized onions, shredded mozzarella, and angel hair pasta. It was yummy. So yummy that I'm tempted to forget how tired I am, how much I ate for dinner, and go back in for seconds and thirds.

I also am craving chocolate tonight. No clue why. Is it the lactating thing? Is this a sign that my body might suddenly decide to give up more than it's currently doing? Should I just give up and let go of my hope to breastfeed this child altogether?

It's been nearly three months since I began to pump. Nearly three months of this, every time I wake up, every time I wake up in the night and think of going to pump and deciding that I'd rather get the rest than the milk. Watching drips turn to drops and back to drips. Never even coming close to filling a bottle. A 4oz bottle. I have absolutely no hope of ever filling an 8oz bottle.

I've done a good job. I'm hopeful that this will last a bit longer. Just a bit longer.

I've been trying to drink vegetable juice lately. About a cup a day. It's healthy, it's good for me, and I hate veggies. Maybe hate's a strong word. I just don't like it much. At all.

This leads me to wonder what the stuff tastes like. It doesn't look very appealing. But the juice seems okay; cold tomato soup. Cold, healthy, tomato soup.

I never thought that this would be the solution to drinking the stuff, but I serve it up in a small cup with a handful of saltines. Thinking of it as cold soup is the trick to get it into my stomach.

Who knew?

Am I the only woman here that gets the tax refund and rubs her hands in glee at being able to restock the pantry shelves with canned goods and paper products? I've got a serious trip to Costco to make in the next week. Serious. I mean, we're talking about cases of canned vegetables, flats of peanut butter, and all sorts of other stuff.

If I'm bringing home an infant in the next few days/weeks I'd better finalize some of those great plans I'd started running together in my brain. There are some library books to read, some menus to plan, some recipes to try out and freeze (once my freezer stops having to store lots and lots of bottles of breastmilk) and start planning ahead how we're going to arrange the car seats so that we can fit one more human in the back seat.

Speaking of fitting people in the car, we're also beginning to plan a small road trip. A day trip, to a national park, so my girl can hug a tree. She loves hugging trees. I'd shake my head wistfully, to be so young again, but then I'd not be her mother and I'd miss that more than a second childhood. Her daddy wants to show her snow, and I believe that this park is high enough to still have a decent chance of snow on the ground. I don't know how we'll manage all of that, but it's going to be fun.

Another weekend draws to a close. My tip for today: my family's version of tuna noodle is a box of mac'n'cheese, a can of tuna, and about a cup of peas (or a can of them). Did you know that if you're using frozen peas and want to make sure that they're fully thawed and heated through, you could add them to the boiling water when you're cooking the macaroni? Then just drain them together. Voila! Hot peas. Also: toss in a couple of handfuls of shredded natural cheese to counter the cheese powder/cheese stuff in the pouch. Extra cheesy. And me? I'm all about the cheese.