Good Summer Eatin’ On A Budget, part 2

Just a little warning- this post is kinda’ long.

The best way to stretch your budget during the summer months is to think creatively. Ask yourself what your children like to eat. Are they picky eaters or little eat-’em-ups? If they are like my children who eat anything, then stretching your budget should not be a problem. However, if you have picky eaters, it gets a little harder. It’s all about knowing your child and what they will or will not eat.

My teenage sons have very healthy appetites and they also love healthy foods. So, needless to say, they love to eat. Sometimes there is a gap between dinner and lunch. This is what I do, I make them a vegetable platter for only $4. At the .99¢ store you can buy cucumbers in packs of 3, a pack of carrots, a pack of cherry tomatoes & a pack of celery. This will make a vegetable platter for all four kids. Just put some ranch dressing on the side for dipping and you’ve bought yourself at least an hour.

Here’s a menu for a week for a family of six for less than $100.00.

I Like Myself by Karen Beaumont

I like myself, I’m glad I’m me. There’s no one else I’d rather be.

These are words from Karen Beaumont’s book, I Like Myself, illustrated by David Catrow. I love his work. What I love even more is the fact that the little girl in the book is brown like me and Phillise. When I was younger, I didn’t see a lot of characters that looked like me  on t.v., or as the starring character in a book.

Phillise requests this book over and over again. I’m glad that she does. When I first bought the book for her last year, I gave it to her to see what she would say.

She said, “Mommy look. The girl is brown like me.”

From the time that she was real little, I always stressed the fact that she was brown and that she is beautiful. My mother didn’t tell me stuff like this. When I was little, I had a bad self-image. I didn’t even like brown crayons. I thought that brown was one of the ugliest crayons in the box. I rarely ever used it. I never equated that with the dislike of my own brown skin.