Good morning! Remember my to-do list for the day that I talked about last night? Yeah….haven’t made a dent in it yet. And by haven’t made a dent in it, I mean I haven’t even started my to-do’s yet. :/ I think the cloudy morning has succeeded in affecting me and my energy levels. I tried to give myself some energy by some quick carbohydrates from a cinnamon raisin bagel (it actually packs 10 grams of protein, too!).
I’ve noticed as I go back and look at previous entries that I go through trends in my breakfasts. There was the time that I ate pumpkin oats for nearly every single breakfast for a couple weeks. I’ve enjoyed breakfasts of Quaker Crack (Oatmeal Squares) and other cereals way more than once, and I’ve had my share of almond butter decked toasts and apples (which would probably still be going on except that I’ve been out of almond butter for MONTHS!! Oh the travesty!). Lately I’ve been into toasting bagels. For some reason I used to hate toasted bagels. I think it was because I loved the doughy chewiness of an untoasted bagel. After one bite today though, I went back and toasted this bagel, just like I have for so many recent bagel consumptions. So interesting how our brains, bodies and preferences work and change!
To go with my toasted bagel, I also made a cup of this Morning Thunder tea that contains caffeine and is made with energizing healthy mate! Is this not the manliest tea packaging you’ve ever seen?
I think the packaging influenced my husband because he bought it. He confessed to me the other day that he’s been stopping at a gas station to pick up a bottle of energizing iced sweet tea every morning on his way to work. As he was admitting his habit, he told me that in light of our recent conversations about adjusting our budget again, he decided to buy this package of tea bags instead, so he could brew his own cup of tea every morning, or make a pitcher of it to leave in the fridge. I could have chosen to be upset about this (I mean 1. I don’t go to Starbucks every day, although it’s a 6 minute walk away, 2. I’ve made this suggestion to him MULTIPLE times, and 3. He was technically lying by omission) but instead I focused on the fact that he chose to actively assist in our budget and make a positive change. Sometimes people just need to figure things out for themselves! (I know that’s frequently the case for me!).
Now to continue this random post, I wanted to include with one more installment in my holiday series.
Frugal Holiday Tip #3
Make a budget and stick to it. Similarly how I tell brides not to try on a dress that’s outside of their price range, don’t look at gifts outside of your price range! If you can only afford $25 for a gift, don’t look at the $100 gift because you’ll probably fall in love with that awesome more costly gift. Just put it down and walk right away!
If you can only afford a $10 gift, don’t worry, that doesn’t mean you have to get a “crap” gift. Be thoughtful. Use that free tool, your TIME, that can transform some inexpensive supplies into a wonderful gift. Or, pool your resources. If you have two siblings who are on similar budgets, pool your resources and you can get a $30 gift for your mom instead of 3 small $10 gifts. 
Miss the other tips?
Now I’m off to go make a dent in some cleaning and errands! May the force be with me! 
Hey chickie, do you need some TJ’s supplies? I see you are out of almond butter!
Let me know!
I love you. Exchange away!!!!!!!!
Hey sweet girl!
Thanks so much for your beyond heartwarming comment on my last post. It truly means so much that you have been thinking/praying for me.
I love chewy bagles too, but I think there is just something about toasting a Cinnamon Raisin bagel that makes them so much better. Maybe it’s the smell that it takes on when it toasts? Soooo good!
Hope you are having a wonderful week love, and again, thank you from the very bottom of my heart!
A great and easy way to make tea is to fill a pitcher with water and put 2 tea bags of your choice in the container and then just let it sit in the fridge overnight. I love making mint fridge tea during the summer and then each morning I just pour some into my nalgene. It always seemed easier to have something already made in the morning.
I’ve had a massive craving for bagels lately so I’m going to have to get some. What brand do you buy?
I think the last brand were Lender’s? there are certainly better brands out there (I think even our generic store brand is better) but these were buy one get one free.
These tips are great! You really can have a fabulous holiday this year without breaking the bank. At Save-a-Lot we put together a holiday meal that will give families the opportunity to indulge without going over budget. For example, at Save-a-Lot you can get a 9 lb Sugardale Shank Portion Ham, 2 Lbs Fresh Jumbo Sweet Potatoes, Fresh Express Garden Salad Mix, 16 ounce bottle Portman’s Salad Dressing, 2 Cans Wylwood Canned Vegetables (corn, peas or green beans), 20 ounce can of Libby’s Pineapple, So-Cheezy Shells and Cheddar, Grissom’s Brown & Serve Rolls and a Mrs. Smith’s Apple or Cherry Pie all for $19.31. Plus with Save-A-Lot’s $5 off coupon, a holiday dinner for 4 is only $15. http://bit.ly/5X9TVH
Hi Meg – I appreciate all that you’re doing to make meals and the holidays affordable but I have two problems.
1. Do you realize this is a vegan blog? And you just recommended ham and cheesy shells and cheddar? Yeah, you should really read more about the blogs that your try to promote yourself on.
2. I’ve been in Save-a-Lots before, and unfortunately they’ve all been dirty and gross. I’m sure they’re not all like that, but I’ve been in enough to dissuade me from ever going to one again.
Going vegan is another great way to improve both your health AND save a few pennies, too!