Heavenly Homemakers

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5 Ways To Save Money While Becoming Healthier

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5 Ways to Save Money While Becoming Healthier

Remember how my healthy living journey started?

A decade ago, clipping and using coupons was one of my favorite hobbies. I got Hamburger Helper for 33¢ a box, Windex for 49¢, and cans of green beans for a dime. Cheap or free – that’s what I looked for when purchasing the food we ate, the cleaning products we used, and the tissues that wiped our noses. I was the Coupon Queen, and I rocked that job.

blueberry_streusel_muffin

Then, our fourth baby was born with chronic eczema. Suddenly our poptart-filled lives needed to change drastically.

We recognized right away that we could no longer use regular (cheap) laundry detergents as they caused major break-outs for Malachi. Anytime a spray cleaner was used, he would be even more miserable. Before he was a year old, we realized that everything we brought into our home – from food to cleaning supplies to medicine – needed to be changed.

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Dark Chocolate Almond Granola – Less Than $1 Per Serving

I’m thankful for the kick-start we received so that our whole family could become healthier, but it really was quite a difficult and discouraging time full of question marks.

A loving friend who knew I was trying to find better foods and cleaning supplies for my family handed me her health food co-op catalog. She said it helped her family save money. Excitedly, I started skimming the pages.

With one glance, I was soooo disappointed! These were the best prices to be found on healthy food and household products? Seriously? I was used to paying pennies for our food and cleaners. And what even was half of that stuff they listed in there? Kimchi, kombucha, coconut milk? Weird…and expensive.

Well, here we are, a million and a half life lessons and experiences later. Thankfully, I’ve learned the importance of investing in nourishing foods and non-toxic household items for our better health. I’ve also learned many new ways to save money – the healthy way. Isn’t God cool?  He always provides what we need – from finances to information to ideas to support.

chicken_pot_pie_5

Easy Chicken Pot Pie – Less Than $1 Per Serving

I still have a lot to learn. I don’t always practice these money saving methods perfectly. But I do my best to save money and be healthy at the same time. I’ll continue to share the great deals I find and the tips I come across. I know this journey can be hard, and I want to encourage you in any way I can!

You’ll want to be sure and check out our
entire section of real food meals for $1 per plate!

Here are five of my favorite ways to save money while striving for good health:

1. Make it Homemade

You already know this about me, so I’ll just briefly say – it saves our family hundreds of dollars every month when I make most of our simple meals from scratch. Here are some of the highest money-saving foods I make:

2. Skip it Altogether

While I used to have a specific cleaning product for every single cleaning need on the planet, I’ve found that it’s not necessary at all. Do I really need to spray chemicals from a can onto my dusting cloth before wiping down my furniture? Um…who knew a bit of water would work just as well if not better? (sometimes I amaze myself)

I use a great All-Purpose Cleaner from Tropical Traditions for tougher jobs. Otherwise, simple household items like baking soda, vinegar, and lemon juice are completely healthy, inexpensive, and pretty much amazing. A great way to save money is to make your own household cleaners (see #1 above).

3. Think Outside the Box

What if the way we’ve always done things isn’t necessarily the only way to do it? What if doing something different might be healthier and save money too? It’s hard to think outside the box sometimes – especially if anything outside of our norm seems foreign to us. But on your healthy living journey, you’ll find it’s great to save money by exploring new ideas.

For instance, I used to run my kids to the medical clinic for every sniffle or bump. The costs really added up, but what’s a mom to do? I am so thankful for what I’ve learned the past few years about treating my family at home when possible. Doctors and clinics are there for a reason, and we certainly use them when we need to. But home remedies, essential oils (I’m just digging into these and LOVE what I’m learning!), natural options for keeping on top of illnesses – these are keeping us healthier and saving us hundreds of dollars too.

4. Plan Ahead

While it isn’t possible to see into the future, there are a few constants in life we can prepare for. For instance:

  • You will always need toilet paper and laundry detergent.
  • We all need to eat three times a day.
  • Christmas is always December 25.

Planning for what I know will be needed saves my sanity and keeps us from spending money we don’t need to spend. Making meal plans each week has saved me so much money! You can see all my weekly menu plans here.

5. Use Online Resources

I continue to be amazed about the awesome deals I find online. Not only am I saving money on the items themselves, I’m saving all kinds of gas money and travel time. I love that I can shop at my convenience, and save time by having items shipped (usually, for free) to my door.

I always try to share great online deals with you here when I find them. You’ll find a button on my sidebar for our Amazon Deals page

Share with us – what are your best tips for saving money on your healthy living journey?

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Comments

  1. Dee says

    Ahh I remember my coupon clipping days! I’m so glad those days are long gone and I’ve really filled my kitchen with healthy, nutritious food.

    Reply

  2. R says

    Hi, my name is Bekah and I used to be a coupon clipper.
    I do dig a good sale, though, (and Sprouts has store coupons that can make healthy options cheap when combined with a sale). If something’s a really good price, I try to stock up on it.

    Reply

  7. Su says

    I try to shop at Aldi’s every month to get lots of fruit and vegetables. That store seems to have the most reasonable prices on fresh items. Thanks for the giveaway chance.

    Reply

  9. Sheila Laurence says

    I think exercise is a key to being healthy. I am always surprised at how seldom this is mentioned when people discuss healthy living. Even just taking a walk after dinner is a start.

    Reply

  10. Tara H says

    Great post! Right now I still coupon but have cut way back in order to feed my family healthier foods. Thanks for all you teach us here on your site!

    Reply

  12. Lori says

    I think one of the big things is to realize that fruits and vegetables (while they may be more “expensive”) are so much better for our bodies than the cheap things, and it will pay off over time with less health problems, etc. Thank you for your encouragement here; I appreciate your blog. God bless.

    Reply

  17. Lorinda says

    I would enjoy winning something from the MadeOn company.
    Learning to make homemade stock is one of the easiest and most practical items to start with on a healthier living journey. It makes other stocks from the store seem like water. I thought purchasing Aldi’s chicken stock would be better than Swanson….it was just yuck!
    Also, by making things homemade we make less trash, which means less trips to the dump and less buying of plastic bags.

    Reply

  20. michelle says

    Maybe not a healthy living tip, but last year we started a new Christmas tradition of homemade gifts. It was so awesome to give from our hearts. This year I have spent my summer buying fresh produce at the farmers market and canning it in various delicious ways to share with our family and friends for Christmas.

    Reply

  21. Cindy D says

    I love MadeOn products! My saving tip is to make your own broth/stock. I can’t tell you how much money I spent on buying broth. Not to mention the other unsavory ingredients that are often included.

    Reply

  24. Acmommy says

    Yes, that first time looking at “health food stuff” can be a shock after getting free-or-for-pennies “regular” food! :D. It’s so worth it, isn’t it, to learn a healthier way to live!!

    One little way I enjoy saving money and living healthier is making a cleaner – just glass jars that I fill up with citrus peels and vinegar and let sit for a month or so before using. I keep several glass jars, so a few batches are always “brewing” and it makes for a great all purpose cleaner!

    Reply

  25. Rae C says

    I like making my own laundry soap. I tried doing it out of curiosity, but I think it works way better than store bought, so I’ve kept doing it. It’s sooooo much cheaper.
    I’m excited to try made on if I talk myself into the bundle, and I’d love to have a bit more to spend there!

    Reply

  29. Amanda says

    I’d love to win! I guess my “tip” is to know and pay attention to prices. If I don’t know the unit price of the 42oz canister of oatmeal in the grocery store, I’ll never know if the online deal I’m looking at is better.

    Reply

  32. Julie says

    Would love to win MadeOn! Thanks for the great post. I also used to clip coupons and it was a very hard transition to buying whole foods. I’m hoping that I will be making a change to all of health in the future. I appreciate all you do and couldn’t make this journey without your wonderful blog :)

    Reply

  36. Ashley says

    I, too, used to be a serious couponer! Started making things from scratch b/c it was so inexpensive and have gradually shifted more and more to a priority on health.

    Reply

  40. Donna says

    I would love to try MadeOn products! My way to save money on things I need is to wait. Wait on the Lord to provide the true needs at prices I can afford.

    Reply

  45. Rachel Anna says

    Thanks for this giveaway! I think making your own natural cleaning supplies saves a lot of money. Ingredients like baking soda and vinegar are quite inexpensive and are the basis for many homemade, chemical-free cleaning products.

    Reply

  46. 5sweetviolets says

    Thanks for the giveaway! These are great money saving ideas, and another we use is bartering. That is how my son has piano lessons, and we’ve done a few other things that way.

    Reply

  47. Kate says

    I’m not entering the contest (not a US resident), but wanted to thank you for the tip to the Tropical Traditions sales going on right now!!!!! This is perfect timing for me as my husband is traveling to the states soon and can bring back our first gallon of palm shortening!!! I used to make killer pie crust with white flour and shortening. Since removing those items from my diet, I just cannot make a whole wheat-butter pie crust that tastes good enough to be worth the trouble:(

    I am hoping this palm shortening is the answer. With free shipping and 40% off, it finally fell into my price range!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I am so excited to try your quick mix and your pie crust recipe!!!!!!!!!! Thanks so much!!!!!!!!

    Reply

  50. Stephanie says

    I purchased the bundle (!) and am super excited to get the freebie offered by MadeOn! Would be fun to have an extra $25 to spend there :)

    Reply

  60. Noel says

    Just purchased my first order… amazing products!! I would love to put to use a gift certificate with a few of my wish list items!

    Reply

  66. Tracey says

    I have learned SO MUCH from you and your journey. Thank you for sharing. And thank you for this opportunity to win a Made On giveaway! Woo hoo! :)

    Reply

  77. Carolyn says

    The Bee Silk hard lotion from MadeOn is the best thing I have ever found for my dry heels, and seems to last forever. Would be a blessing to win as my bar is almost gone.

    Reply

  81. Adrian says

    Oh, you’r going to start making soap!? I love that. I’m only fifteen but I’ve been making goat milk soap for two years now and it’s so much fun (so long as you have everything at the right temperature to combine) but really, so many more possibilities with homemade soap than with store bought stuff that has all kinds of cancer causing chemicals and irritating scents in them. One warning to you that I learned the hard way. Never, I repeat NEVER use lye soap in an open wound, rash, bite, etc. This will drive you bozo with pain! Even scrubbing your face really hard with a wash cloth and then applying the soap is a no-no. Please beware!

    Reply

  82. Melissa says

    I’m on a journey similar to yours! It’s baby steps and I remind myself of that all that time. Would love to try the MadeOn skin yummies – hope you pick me! :)

    Reply

  84. Sarah Wright says

    I’ve been very curious to try their products after all of your good things to say about it. Would love it! Thanks!!!

    Reply

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