Once a Week Cooking Recipes for Economical, Healthy 2 for 1 Meals

I am a Domestic Goddess Mama. My domain is kitchen efficiency. I am Empress of Living Simple, Tsarina of Tightwad , Duchess of DIY, Baroness of Budgeting. To achieve all those, I've created 2-4-1 recipes. Entrees are repurposed for several dishes, so I get twice the meals for half the work. I use once-a-week cooking strategies, doing the bulk of my cooking on Sunday when I have the most time, for the week ahead. Here's a weekly meal planner that serves six people with seven dinners. There are usually lunch leftovers. These recipes feature lighter calorie options and are nutritious, balanced and healthy. Once a Week Cooking Recipes for Economical, Healthy 2 for 1 Meals

Affordable Father's Day Gifts at All Price Ranges Dads Will Love

Father's Day shopping is tricky if you don't know what dad wants. And holiday gift-giving can get expensive, period. So you want the most bang for your shopping buck. Here are top 10 affordable Father's Day gifts in different price ranges. My husband enjoys these and your dad will love them too!  Affordable Father's Day Gifts at All Price Ranges That Dad Will Love

Green, Healthy Summer Picnic Diet Appetizer, Snacks Recipes

I've lost 100 pounds, dropped eight sizes. As summer picnic season nears, I'm considering eating plans to maintain weight loss. Open houses, potlucks, holiday cookouts, BBQs, grilling--great for feasting. Fasting, not so much. Here are green, healthy, diet appetizers and snacks recipes for Memorial Day and summer.  Memorial Day Summer Picnic Diet Appetizer, Snacks Recipes

Cut Graduation Costs, Budget Open House Tips

May and June are the season -- for senior prom, graduation and open houses. Parents, if you have a graduating senior or a student going to prom, be prepared: it's expensive. Here are ways to trim spending on prom dresses, tux, graduation supplies and open house. Lady Greenwise (that's me) has graduated three seniors and picked up some penny pinching tips along the way.  How to Trim Spending on Senior Prom and Graduation

Cut Grocery Bill in Half--Lose Weight, Eat Healthy Diet Food

I've lost almost 100 pounds gained from two stillbirths, early menopause and taking the antidepressant Paxil (known for causing weight gain, says Mayo Clinic). Left is 2011. Right photo is 2014.  I lost weight by following Dr. Oz's advice and swapping fatty, high-carb foods for healthy, fat-blasting foods. Lots of people tell me diet food is more expensive and they can't afford it. They're right--about the commercial kind. But not natural, healthy diet food. I save money--like 50-percent off my grocery bill--buying it.
Want to Cut Grocery Bill in Half? Eat Healthy Diet Food

Healthy Nutritous Diet Foods Grocery List

Living green means eating "green"--with  healthy, natural, locally-grown plant sources, vs. meat-based diets.  I've lost 96 pounds. I use several diet techniques including making healthy food swaps like the kind in Men's Health Eat This, Not That. Here's a grocery list of what should be in your shopping cart if you're trying to lose weight. It helps you save green, too! Healthy Diet Foods That Should Be in Your Shopping Cart

No-Sew Swag Drapes, Recycled Bed Sheet Curtains

Earth Day in April 22. But I celebrate it everyday. Frugal is my middle name. D, I and Y are my initials and resourceful is my main character trait. I'm always looking for ways to create expensive decor with recycled materials. Today's tip: reuse top sheets for no-sew swag curtains. When I buy a package of sheets or bed in a bag, I don't use the enclosed top sheets. For me, they are just something extra to wash and an extra step in the bed making process. So what do I do with all the extra top sheets? I have quite a few uses actually. Here's one.

DIY No-Sew Swag Drapes and Curtains with Recycled Bed Sheets 

Printable Vintage Easter Greeting Cards, Clipart

I love vintage clipart. You can make your own stationery and greeting cards and save a bundle with free printable images. Or you can make and send ecards. Save green and live green with Free Printable Vintage Easter Greeting Cards, Retro Nostalgic Clipart

Stations of the Cross Prayer Garden Plants, Shrubs, Bushes, Flowers

Prayer, meditation and devotion are not just cerebral activities. True prayer involves the whole person. Catholics use body gestures, sign of the cross. We kneel, we bow, genuflect and sometimes prostrate ourselves. Prayer is multisensory--we smell incense, hear chant, eat and drink the Precious Body and Blood of Jesus. The perfect setting for praying the Stations of the Cross is in a garden where you smell flowers, walk, kneel, hear birds. Here are suggestions to make a prayer garden. Lent and Easter Prayer Garden: Plants, Shrubs, Bushes and Flowers

Convert Old TV Aerial Antennae into a Wind Turbine

T here's not much my DIY husband can't do. A small-scale Renaissance guy. He's been researching alternative energy. He's always looking to repurpose and recycle. He shared an idea that was nothing short of genius: turn our old two story TV antennae into a wind turbine. And he wants to expand the wind farm to help our sister parish in Haiti. We May Convert Our Old TV Aerial Antennae into a Wind Turbine