(found this on msn.com and wanted to post it here - great info)

 

1. Whole wheat pasta: Make the switch to whole wheat pasta, a complex starchy carbohydrate, as an essential part of a cost-conscious healthy diet. You will be able to find some tasty brands with a bit of trial-and-error. You won’t miss your favorite white-flour pasta, and you’ll get more fiber as part of the switch. At $1.99 a pound bulk at most natural grocery stores, it’s slightly more expensive than rice. Pair with a classic tomato sauce or serve as a bed for vegetables, nuts and a measured amount of cheese.

 

2. Eggs: Here is a budget superfood, plain and simple. Nutrient-dense eggs are a relatively cheap source of protein, given that most meats and seafood are too expensive for an economizing budget. Eggs contain vitamin A, lecithin and biotin for boosts to both your muscles and brain. They’re also convenient to keep around and easy to prepare.

 

3. Nuts and seeds: At first, nuts and seeds—sesame, flax, almonds, walnuts and cashews and others—can seem expensive if you look at their cost per pound. But you can stay on the $7-a-Day plan if you watch for sales. For example, recently at a Whole Foods Market both almonds and cashews were on sale for $3.99 per pound. Nuts and seeds add flavor, healthy fats, protein and sometimes calcium. They’re great with all meals, including snacks. The key is to eat what you need, instead of absentmindedly stuffing a handful into your mouth. If you are hungry, a dozen almonds could be enough to keep you going until your next meal.

 

4. Potatoes: one of the more versatile and fun budget foods. Potatoes are another complex starchy carbohydrate essential to a healthy diet. Rich in fiber and minerals, they add texture and variety and fill you up. Be sure to eat the skins to gain the most nutritional value.  Try oven-baked “fries” using a bit of oil to coat, season with salt and pepper, then bake at 425 to 450 degrees until crispy brown.

 

5. Canned tomato sauce: Tomatoes contain vitamin C and are an excellent source of cancer-fighting lycopene. The tangy taste of tomatoes adds zest to the $7-a-Day plan diet. Fresh tomatoes (spotted in January at $3.99 per pound at a Whole Foods Market in Colorado) are too expensive. But a 14-ounce can of tomato sauce costs $1.69 and can be stretched to serve in soups and sauces.

 

6. Organic brown rice: Rice, especially brown rice, is an essential item for inexpensive yet healthy eating. At $1.39 to $1.49 a pound at most natural food groceries, it’s affordable and can stretch a meal. Brown rice contains complex starchy carbohydrates that are an important part of your overall diet. Plus, you get more fiber and a bit more protein than white rice. You also might like the heartier flavor.

 

7. Beans and tofu: When possible, look for organic bulk dried beans and tofu. Beans and tofu are an excellent source of protein, especially when you’re eating on a budget. Bulk beans are less expensive than canned beans. Depending on the type, bulk beans can be cheap as 30 cents a cup. You need to learn about proper soaking and cooking—ask supermarket bulk-section managers for tips. In any case, the plus side (along with the savings) is that one pot of cooked beans—say, Tuscan white beans—goes a long way, and can be part of  different meals (pasta, soups, tortilla wraps, dips and more). 

 

8. Beans and tofu: When possible, look for organic bulk dried beans and tofu. Beans and tofu are an excellent source of protein, especially when you’re eating on a budget. Bulk beans are less expensive than canned beans. Depending on the type, bulk beans can be cheap as 30 cents a cup. You need to learn about proper soaking and cooking—ask supermarket bulk-section managers for tips. In any case, the plus side (along with the savings) is that one pot of cooked beans—say, Tuscan white beans—goes a long way, and can be part of  different meals (pasta, soups, tortilla wraps, dips and more). 

 

9. Organic bulk oatmeal: This is a classic breakfast, and when you buy it in bulk at about 89 cents per pound it is much cheaper than the $2 per pound pre-packaged price tag. It’s a complex starchy carbohydrate that contains important vitamins and minerals, and is delicious and filling—especially when served with a few nuts, seeds and raisins. A power-packed idea: Buy flax seeds in bulk (less than $1 per pound at some stores), grind them in a coffee bean grinder (we can’t digest the whole seed) and mix a tablespoon into your morning cereal.

 

10. Bulk cornmeal: Look for organic when possible. Cornmeal makes a breakfast food high in B vitamins that is simple to prepare. Just add water and serve with a handful of raisins, sunflower seeds, flax seeds and perhaps a little molasses. At 59 cents per pound in the Whole Foods Market bulk aisle, it’s less expensive than oatmeal. And rotating it with oatmeal adds some variety.

 

11. Green veggies: The best picks here for healthy and cheap eating are kale, spinach, collards and other leafy greens. Also, look for broccoli on sale. Green veggies are rich in antioxidants, vitamins and minerals, especially calcium. They are a cheaper source of these nutrients than fruit. One suggestion that might take a bit of mindset recalibration: Green vegetables are an excellent choice for breakfast because they are naturally alkalizing, so they’ll help restore your body’s pH balance.

 

Jean Weiss is a freelance writer based in Boulder, Colo. She writes regularly about nutrition and healthy living.

*achoo!*

 

Well, my eyes are burning and I'm sneezing up a storm - so there must be alot of buds coming out on the trees and dust and pollens in the air. I love spring, I just don't like the "side effects." Woo.

 

This weekend the father-in-law stopped into the Casa de Tristan and spent the night. We went out for some great pizza and then played "Set" later on. Now THAT'S not the game to play at night when people are tired. You have to match like and unlike elements together to form a set. We stopped keeping score and just kept playing more as a teaching game. Was great to see him. He continued on this morning driving to Denver where they are all meeting later in the week for some extreme skiing.

 

Got more stitching done this weekend while watching the Cubbies play. Lily looked great but Wood... ahem. He pitched ONE inning and gave up three runs. We lost 3-2. Grrr. I think his change for the number 5 slot is fading away.

 

Lastly ... it is so WEIRD to see the cubbies play with no Dusty Baker managing. Really odd.

Posted one of Tristan sitting up for a treat. Enjoy!

First time I woke up last night was round 2am to thunder boomers and lightning. My back was in a bad way and pains in my legs. I got up and had to walk around for a bit. Tristan was quite confused and started asking for breakfast but told him he had to wait a bit. I downed 2 Aleve and headed back to bed. Woke up again around 3:30am and after some stretching I was able to fall back to sleep. Around 5am was another bad pain moment and had to walk a bit, but then back to bed. Dan slept through the storm as well as my wanderings.

 

Today I have pain in both legs, a very sore lower back, knots in my upper back and a bit of numbness in my outter legs. Grr. (thus the mood clock) This is getting so very, very old. I'm hoping that once this weather system makes its way through that things will go back to normal (meaning I can handle it without waking up nor taking medication). Bah!

Woke up to more snow this morning but it had melted off by early this afternoon. Went out to dinner at "Hu Hot" which is a mongolian stir fry place. Mmm... squid! Seriously, I love going there for the tons of veggies and the calamari. Dan loves it too but he'll stick with his beef and sausage vs the seafood.

We then headed to Bed, Bath and Beyond and got a bunch of those air tight containers for pasta, sugars, flour and such. One of those things we've been meaning to get and just haven't. Now we're about to clean more house as the kitchen looks pretty good.

Live Spaces has alot of themes - but not a single choice for us baseball lovers. Grr. I wish I could make my own to show my love for cubbie blue. A blue schemed page was just too boring and I like the spring look. Made myself a little banner of there in the sandbox just to make myself feel better for now.

 

Oh, and they need to seriously can pitcher Mark Prior and move Kerry Wood to closing. Just my 2 cents. =)

It's been awhile since I have put in some actual content on what is going on with us - so I thought that I'd fill everyone in on what's been going on in my life. So enjoy while you can because it might be awhile for inspiration to hit again. *grin*

 

Let's see... the back. Well, it's pretty much same ol same ol. I'm looking into a possible proceedure called the XStop that's only done in various places around the US. Closest is up at the Mayo clinic and so I'm looking at possbily going for an opion on if it might work for me. Basically they inject a little something into your back that will help correct the severe tilt I have due to Spondolothesis. (sp?) It is said to remove the pain down the legs and arms. Totally worth a shot if it would work ... but we'll see if it's a possibility.

 

The weather has been CRAZY here in the midwest recently. A week and a half ago we had a TON of snow and the world stopped for about 24 hrs. Ice underneath also made things interesting and the trees sagged with the added weight. This week, however, it's warmed up. We hit a high of 77'F yesterday, breaking the old 73'F record. *boggle* And then this morning it was back to posibility rain/snow and back cold again. Bah. Bring on spring!!

 

Scrapbooking like crazy and really liking it. I'm considering taking a class or two to expand my techniques and learn to get better at it then Angela. *grin* Another thing I've tossed around for almost a year now is learning how to decorate cakes. Wouldn't that be neat? And of course there's the stitching. Haven't done any in the past week as I've been letting my eyes relax when I get home as they've been somewhat irritated but they seem to be getting better.

 

So there ya go, don't you feel better knowing what's happening in my part of the world? =)

 

Oh... and it's less than 3 weeks to opening day for baseball!! Bring on those boys of summer - go CUBBIES!!

I hadn't looked at customizing my blog in quite awhile and didn't realize that they offered a plug-in for windows media player. Now that I have it I had to offer up the theme from "The Office." You'll have to ask it to play - I hate sites that catch you off guard. =)

 

I'm throwing around the idea of reading my blog entries but not all that sure as my voice isn't all that wonderful. *laugh* That "no-accent" kind of voice. Now if I had an English, Australian, German or some other accent ... that would be cool. What are your thoughts?

Posting new pages to my gallery along with the one here from when we got to see Kerry Wood pitch for the Iowa Cubs while he was rehabbing his shoulder. Be watching over there on the right in the scrapbook gallery for more. =)

Goran Visnjic To Hang Up His Scrubs on 'ER'

Well, when it rains it pours. The past week I've been having sore eyes which I felt would just go away. When it didn't I finally made an appointment and got in to have my eyes checked. I found out that my eyes are swollen and irritated and I will need to put drops in 3 times a day and also use a warm washcloth at night due to the fact that my "oil ducts" are plugged. To top it off, I'll be needing a new prescription for near-sighted activities (computer, reading and stitching) as that is where my headaches may be stemming from.

 

It's great, however, to know it's nothing serious that has been bothering me (at least in the eye department.)

Also finished a page dedicated to Tristan, "Our Bubba." =)

The one really cool thing I'm finding from scrapbooking really _is_ the fact that it brings back memories. It will be fun to look back through these pages at a later date. I just put together a page for when we went down to Kansas City to see a chiefs game "live" and in person. Was a really neat memory to think back on and the page was fun to put together. =)

Well, I have a new hobby - Scrapbooking. Last night I sat down and thought I'd give it another go and... I loved it. And I don't think my first pages came out bad at all. =)

 

Be watching my photo gallery over there for new pages and you are very welcome to share your tips and ideas with me.

We do. Lots and lots and lots of it. In fact today they had I-35 northbound closed from Des Moines to the MN border. And I-80 was closed westbound from Des Moines to Nebraska. Nasty weather out there. The wind is horrible. We were going to try to head to Dubuque this weekend but there's no way we're going to make that. Oh well... another weekend.

 

Working on some stitching. You'll have to check out my WIP (Work In Progress) gallery over there on the right. You can tell it's a bell now. Onto the birds... whew. Lots of metallic floss on this one. Not so nice. *shiver* I hate working with it ... but it will be worth it.

 

Otherwise things are pretty status quo. Back is "ok," hives are gone (whee!) and work is treating us both well.

 

We've gotten the "In like a Lion" out of the way... looking forward to the "Out like a Lamb" part. ;)