August 15, 2008
The Monthly Organizer
September 2008
Monthly Motivation
Stop procrastinating. Start working toward your goals, whatever they may be.I recently started reading a wonderful book entitled How to Use What You've Got to Get What You Want. It was written by Marilyn Tam, a Chinese woman who grew up with adversity, overcame her struggles and rose to success.
As this month's motivation, I would like to provide you with an excerpt from the first chapter of this book which I think is so simple and achievable, yet, for most people, may seem difficult and unattainable:
"You're Good Enough Just as You Are. You are good enough now. You don't have to wait for anything, anyone, or any situation before you can start making a positive change in your life. You don't have to wait until you get a new job, lose 15 pounds, move to a new house, get a new relationship, an existing situation improves, or hold out for any other reason. The time and place to begin working toward your goals is here and now."
Monthly Organization Tip
Create a bill chart. I have shown you my simple method to keep track of your household budget, but creating a bill chart is one more thing that you can do to be sure you always know exactly where you stand financially.I keep my bill chart on my computer. I simply created a table in a Microsoft Word document. I created on column for each month of the year with the months listed across the top and I created a row for each bill that I pay on a monthly basis with the payees listed down the left side of the table.
Each month, after paying a bill, I find the box that corresponds to that particular bill for that particular month and I put an "x" in it. That way, I always know, at-a-glance, which bills have been paid and which are still outstanding. This is very helpful information when you need to make a financial decision or simply plan the rest of your month.
Also, it is easy to forget about bills that are only paid a few times per year. If you have bills that you pay less frequently than once per month, like a water bill that is paid quarterly, for instance, add those to the bottom of your bill chart. This will help you to keep those bills in mind when budgeting.
Monthly Money Saving Tip
If you are like me, you are always on the lookout for ways to save money in the kitchen. Wasting food is something that bothers me. I am constantly striving to use, re-use and re-purpose food to use up every morsel. One of the biggest culprits of waste in my kitchen has been tomato paste. Tomato paste comes in very small cans, making it seem as though there will not be much waste, but most recipes only call for a tablespoon or two, leaving you with an opened, half-used can to store until you need more.
I thought I had solved that problem by purchasing tomato paste in a tube instead of in a can. I could simply squeeze out the amount that I needed, replace the cap and store the tube in the refrigerator until the next time I needed it. The only problem with that arrangement is that a 4.5 oz. tube of tomato paste costs $2.69. Compared with $0.49 for a 6 oz. can, that is not a very cost-effective solution.
Thanks to my mother's simple yet brilliant idea, I can now save money and my unused tomato paste. Simply open the can, use what you need and then scoop out the rest onto a sheet of plastic wrap. Form the paste into a log, wrap it up and store it in the freezer. The next time you are preparing a recipe that calls for tomato paste, simply eyeball the amount that you need, cut a slice from your frozen log and return the rest to the freezer. No waste and huge savings. It is the perfect, money-saving solution to wasted tomato paste.
Recipe of the Month
The city where I live recently started a Farmer's Market every Sunday morning. When visiting my local Farmer's Market this past weekend I came upon a recipe that I think is absolutely brilliant! It's called Garden Junk and it is a very clever way to use up anything that is leftover in your garden at the end of the season.
If you do not have a garden, it is also a great way to take advantage of end-of-the-season produce sales at your local grocery store and get yourself set up to enjoy a little taste of Summer even during the coldest Winter months.
Garden Junk
Ingredients:
- tomatoes
- any leftover vegetables and herbs from the garden
Create a 2 to 1 ratio of tomatoes and vegetables/herbs: twice as many tomatoes as vegetables/herbs.
Bring a large pot of water to a rolling boil. Using a sharp knife, cut a shallow "X" on the stem end of each tomato, slicing just deep enough to pierce the skin of the tomato. Place the tomatoes into the boiling water for 2 minutes. Remove the tomatoes to an ice bath. Peel the skin off of the tomatoes. After boiling and submerging into an ice bath, the skin should come off very easily.
Coarsely chop the skinned tomatoes and the vegetables and herbs. Place all of the produce into a large stock pot and stew them until the vegetables are soft but not soupy. Let cook.
Ladle the stewed mixture into freezer bags, placing approximately 2 cups into each bag, and freeze. Use the mixture as a base for soups, stews and sauces all Winter long.
Monthly Entertaining Tip
If you love getting together with friends but hate the work involved in preparing a meal fit for entertaining, try hosting just dessert. Invite some friends to enjoy dinner at a favorite local restaurant and then come back to your place for dessert and coffee. You can set the timer on your coffee pot before leaving home and choose a dessert that can be prepared that morning or even the day before.You still get to spend a wonderful evening enjoying the company of your friends without any of the stress. Plus, since you will be enjoying dessert in the comfort of your home rather than a restaurant you and your guests will feel much more at ease and the evening can last as long as you would like.