Comments on: Kyle’s Coupons: Raising Healthy Kids Can Be Expensive

By: Nancy Coupe

Nancy Coupe — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 17:56:45 +0000

Growing up, my family had the usual 1/4 acre house in a subdivision. We had peach, apricot, apple, and cherry trees lining the back yard. Currently, there is a new apricot tree and the peach tree is still from when I was a kid. My dad, still plants tomoatoes, onions, peas, bell peppers, green beans, corn, and a whole host of other fruits & veggies that are alluding me at the moment.

I currently live in an apartment and can’t wait until I can plant a garden of my own. There is no comparison to fruits & veggies from your garden vs. what you buy in the stores.

By: Mandy

Mandy — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 12:13:58 +0000

I used to feed myself and my kids anything that was cheap and easy. I have three boys, the youngest has a neurological disorder. We noticed that by changing his diet to one that mimics that of early 1900s (before the addition of hydrogenated oils and preservatives), his motor planning abilties greatly improved and many symptoms of his disorder have disappeared.

We are a family of 5. My husband eats like a teenager. We are able to eat very heartily on an average of $80/week. It does, however, require me to plan and make most everything from scratch. We have NO milk products in our diet (which saves a TON at the store). For us, meal planning is the key. If I know ahead of time what I am going to make for dinners, I can soak beans the day before, I can make sure I have pitas made or biscuits for dinner. We had a bumper of strawberries this year and I canned many strawberry treats for later in the year.

By going natural and healthy, not only has my child with special needs blossomed, but my middle son’s behavior has improved, and my oldest, who was borderline overweight, is now lean and healthy.

By: BRJ

BRJ — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 23:55:43 +0000

What my wife and I have been doing to just saying to ourselves that we will not sacrifice our fresh fruits and veggies at the grocery store. We supplement with fruit smoothies using frozen fruit (which is cheaper, and then you don’t have to put in ice) and frozen vegetables as well. We try to make up the difference when the prices go up (like now) by getting sales on all our prepackaged stuff.

Nice post.

By: Kevin@ReturnToManliness

Kevin@ReturnToManliness — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 15:48:14 +0000

Love the post. We are new parents and have done everything we can to save money . I don’t want to succumb to the idea that kids can be SOOOOOO expensive. I know we can do it intelligently and with help like this, I know we can do it quite inexpensively. Thanks

By: Marci

Marci — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 15:37:56 +0000

I take all the free fruit and veggies offered. The surplus I blanche and freeze, or dry. My grandkids love dried fruit! Especially when they help make it!

By: Marci

Marci — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 15:36:33 +0000

I have a 4 yr project going on a “food not lawns” project…my city lot, 50×100 with the house on it, doesn’t leave much room for gardening. However, the lawn is quickly disappearing (now in year 2) and being replaced with veggie raised beds. The fencelines are being hedged with raised beds also for perennial veggies and edible flowers. So far I planted a 4 variety dwarf cherry tree and a semidwarf pear. I have hopes for apricots, apples, and loquats if room.

I’ve gathered a lot of info from the library, and from Edible Landscaping sights, Urban Homesteading, Square foot Gardening, and vertical gardening.

I buy bread at the Franz Bread Store, and produce at the Grocery Outlet – both help. And did you know you can freeze bananas? They look dark, but are still good and can be used for smoothies and breads.

By: Ashley @ Wide Open Wallet

Ashley @ Wide Open Wallet — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 14:37:57 +0000

We eat healthy and stay in budget by cooking. If you cook most of your foods rather than buying prepackaged foods you will do most of your shopping in the produce section, which is where the healthy foods are. If you watch the sales you can get raw meat fairly cheap.

By: Kyle

Kyle — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 14:20:45 +0000

Great advice Mandi and Penny. I love the idea of the postage stamp orchard. Not only when you save a ton of money by not having to water a lawn, but you will reap the benefits of having your own fruit and berries. Thanks for the book recommendation, I am going to check it out!

By: Penny

Penny — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 14:12:43 +0000

This summer, I’ve found that organic fruits go on sale for cheaper than non-organic produce periodically at my grocery store. The other day I bought organic grapes for 1/2 the price of their non-organic counterparts. I think this is because the organic fruit doesn’t sell very well in my area. So, my advice is to check out the organic section, you never know what you might find!

By: Mandi

Mandi — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 13:33:58 +0000

The orchard idea is great, but you don’t need a lot of land. There is a company out there which sells a “postage stamp” orchard. It only requires a 20′x 10′ area, because they are miniature dwarf trees. Blueberries, raspberries and blackberries are easy to grow. People may want to consider removing some of their ornamental landscaping or lawn and replacing it with edibles. A good book for learning about how to go about it is Food Not Lawns by H.C. Flores.