I am going to be $10k richer!

So... if you haven't heard yet, I am on a mission to save $10,000 in 365 days! Starting April 1 I am going to be adhering to a strict budget to squirrel away $10k. I have planned out a budget, which I hope will be pretty realistic. As the budget goes right now I am going to be able to save just over $8500. My plan is to really pinch my pennies and scrape a few hundred more into the savings. Oh, and sell of some junk I have cluttering my house. And... maybe... just maybe... sell off my hot wheels collection. I know. This all sounds just crazy. But, I am going to do it! I even have a different blog in hopes that the fad catches on. It is in the beginning stages, but I hope to have savings info, cool links to savings sites... you know - the how to for those with no clue. Just like me!

Check it out at http://10kin365.blogspot.com! Wish me luck!

Millet is for the birds...

... and humans! Millet is an ancient grain. It is pretty bland, but done right it can be pretty good. I took a look at a recipe on the back of the millet bag and found that there was a recipe for a millet and corn dish with a sprinkling of gomaiso -which I made myself.

To the millet and whole kernel corn mixture (post cooking) I added a can of black beans, a handful of chopped cilantro, and a bit of gomaiso. I then stuffed the mixture into peppers, roasted it, and sprinkled the resulting dish with a bit more gomaiso and cheese. Yummy! Just needed a bit more heat (spice). James liked it enough to eat millet again with more seasoning.

I forgot to take pictures after the baking process. So you will just have to use your imagination!

Risotto, attempt #1

Tonight I decided to make risotto for dinner. Never made it before. I have never ate it before either! So this was going to be quite the adventure!

The before picture. Arborio Rice and the instrument of torture - the spoon.

Mid way through the cooking process.

Done!

Yes, I realize that this was probably not the healthiest dish to eat, but we made it together and it tasted good. Well, kind of good. The rice could have been cooked just a few more minutes and a bit more liquid. We adjusted the recipe to cut down on the amount of finished product and didn't have enough vegetable stock to get it done. We thought it would pass, but we just needed about 1 more cup for perfection.

Polished it off with fresh grated parm and a bit of butter and voila! C'est fini! Yes, I know there was 1/4 cup of cheese and 1 table spoon of butter in this, but I ate it. I had pizza and cake today at a bday party so I figured that eating some just about "expired" (there was mold on the other end) cheese and 1/3 table spoon of butter wouldn't kill the day.

James liked it. He even said that I should put some broccoli in it next time! YAY!

Grapefruit... My new best friend.

I used to hate grapefruit. I guess every kid hates grapefruit. When I was little I had to smother it with sugar and could only eat a few pieces before passing it on to my dad. Today is much a different story!

I LOVE grapefruit! Even better, I eat it the way it is most flavorful - sugar free! Alton Brown did have grapefruit on his show the other day. He put a thin layer of sugar on the grapefruit, torched it, then sprinkled sea salt on the top. I bet it is good, but not for me. I am really trying to eat food as close to its natural state as I can.

I have found that I can find grapefruit, large grapefruit, for a $1 each at one of my local grocery stores. Due to their size, I eat half of a grapefruit for breakfast - $.50 for breakfast! Yes, half a grapefruit is not a huge breakfast, but you don't need to eat a huge breakfast. I might have a healthy mid morning snack to follow my grapefruit but nothing dramatic (like half of a bagel that I posted the other day).

Cheap and healthy - a perfect match!

Lifestyle changes...

... I forgot to mention that I read a book titled Skinny Bitch on my trip. After reading this book I have decided to cut out as much animal products from my diet as I can. So far I have been pretty successful!

I have been doing research and there are many good reasons to not eat animal products - meat, dairy, eggs, etc. Not only do animal farms hurt the environment, make our drugs less effective, and tolerate inhumane treatment of animals, but our bodies are not designed to eat that much animal products.

It has been just over a month and I sleep much better, think more clearly, expel waste much more easily... and I have even lost about 15 pounds!

I try to eat fresh fruit every morning for breakfast to help keep things moving... but when I am super hungry or for a great mid morning snack (or lunch or dinner) I really enjoy whole wheat (egg free) bagels with hummus and tomato slices! It is filling, tasty, and pretty healthy!


I can't say that I have been 100% animal product free. I had calamari while in PA a few weeks back and I also had some salmon last night. Oh, and I did have some chicken tikka masala. I have learned that Dunkin Donuts does not have soy milk - therefore I have had some milk in a few coffees.

I am committed to trying new recipes and discovering new foods. So far I have done very well. I am proud of myself for my accomplishments thus far. Hopefully I will be keeping up with my challenge and it won't be a challenge any more, it will be normal!

The best vacation EVER!

So far. I am sure we have many great vacations coming our way, including our annual Town Fair Tire trip coming in May. Jamaica here we come!

But, this is about our trip to St. John, USVI. This was my 30fest. And what a 30fest it was! We left NH in cold, wet weather very early in the morning and arrived in paradise in the afternoon. It was totally amazing to see the clouds slowly disappear and have beautiful islands magically pop up from the deep blue water.

I have yet to edit the videos that we took with our Flip camera. But, I know most of you have been waiting to see some video. Once I figure out how to get the video from the Flip program on my computer to connect with bloggert I will let you know!