by Hope
I’m writing this on the twins’ birthday. And I’m super proud of up-leveling their birthday cupcakes that were a last minute idea. I found a bunch of “muffin” mixes for $0.99 at our local Ingles. (Sidenote: I rarely grocery shop anymore in person. I have a list, I order from Walmart and I get it delivered. I just have no desire to leave the house.) But I stocked up on a variety of muffin mixes a few weeks ago, and I use them for quick breakfasts or treats when I am going to eat carbs.
I took one of those muffin mixes and created “birthday” muffins. I added milk (the only thing they call for), an egg, some homemade vanilla extract, and some sprinkles. And voila, birthday muffins. They were a hit! So birthday cupcakes for $0.99, this definitely adds to our new celebration on a budget.
Lately, I’ve been cooking almost every other day. And that schedule works really well for me. In order to to help the twins’ recover from some financial hardships, I’m feeding them on their workdays…I make them a lunch essentially. And it means I get to see them more often. So I cook, make enough to have left overs and create their lunches from those left overs. Win-win! On the days I don’t cook, I eat my previously prepared items like chicken salad or make a sandwich or just eat cheese, meat and crackers.
I like this routine. And I really enjoy feeding people who appreciate it.
My mom is on my mind a lot and all the questions I wish I could ask her now. She always HATED cooking. But now I’m wondering if it wasn’t a hatred of cooking, but a lack of appreciation on our (my siblings and I) part. Don’t get me wrong, feeding a family of 7, 3 meals a day is a CHORE. But it makes it much worse when those you are feeding do not appreciate the thought and effort behind those homemade meals. Or even worse actively complain about what they are being fed. So I’m hoping that once my mom gets to heaven, she can read this blog and know that now, now I really appreciate all those years of work she did for me (even when I didn’t like the food.) Tell whomever is feeding you “thank you”, like sincere thank you and show them how excited you are to have a meal with them that they took time to plan, prepare and serve to you.
Hope is a creative, solutions-focused business manager helping clients grow their business and work more efficiently by leveraging expertise in project management, digital marketing, & tech solutions. She’s recently become an empty nester as her 5 foster/adoptive kids have spread their wings. She lives with her 5 dogs in a small town in NE Georgia and prefers the mountains to the beaches any day. She struggles with the travel bug and is doing her best to help each of her kids as their finish schooling and become independent (but it’s hard!) She has run her own consulting company for almost twenty years! Hope began sharing her journey with the BAD community in the Spring of 2015 and feels like she has finally in a place to really focus on making wise financial decisions.
