If you feel like the cost of food living is out of control, you’re not alone. What a time to be alive, especially as a woman. We’ve been told we can “have it all” but it seems like we just end up doing it all instead!
We’re expected to work, and have kids. Have a successful career, and clean up do the grocery shopping, arrange childcare, cook healthy meals, manage the family’s social calendar and appointments, and then call 30 minutes in a bubble bath “self-care”. Self-sacrifice is seen as a badge of honour, especially if you’re a mother. Have you noticed how people talk about their moms with such gratitude and admiration? “She gave up everything so I could (blank)”, “She went without (blank) so she could afford to send me to (blank)”, “She’s always thinking of/taking care of everyone else.” There’s a theme here.
Of course motherhood requires a shift in priorities, but society expects us to manage everything for everyone until we burn out (though thankfully that mindset is starting to change). We deserve to have time to ourselves, our own activities & interests, and real self-care.
I fell into the trap of trying to manage it all slowly over time. When I returned from my second maternity leave I was working more than full time while still doing most of the tangible work, and all of the mental work of managing a household. It took the added stress of a pandemic for it to finally crush me. I dropped almost all the plates I was spinning. The laundry piled up, the house got more and more cluttered and dirty, and I didn’t want to get out of bed most days. I would dream of moving to the country, to be somewhere quiet, to live a simpler life away from the city, the stress, and the high cost of living here–to the point of spending time actually looking at real estate as far away as the East coast –but it was an escape fantasy. We didn’t need to move accross the country to have a better, calmer, simpler life. We needed to make changes here, not move away.
It started with a different division of labour between myself and my partner, and shifting some of the time I was spending on things like laundry to doing things that brought me joy and fulfilment and also had the added benefit of saving us a lot of money, especially on our grocery bills.
It started with ditching the hustle, and adopting what I call homestead habits.
Homesteading doesn’t have anything to do with where you live, who you are, or how much land you own (or don’t own). It’s a state of mind, and a way of living. You can learn these simple habits at your own pace right where you are now. Not only will you never have to sweat over the receipt at the grocery store checkout again, you’ll start to feel different. Empowered. No longer dreaming of escaping from your own life.
1. Plan & Prepare
You know that old saying “those who fail to plan, plan to fail”? Think about going to the grocery store without a list; do you end up with the eggs and milk you need or a bunch of snacks, licorice, and a magazine instead? Planning and preparing makes those grocery trips more efficient, and will save you time and money.
Here’s a few examples of things you can do to plan and prepare ahead that will pay off in time and money savings:
- Plan your grocery trips around the sales to get the best prices
- Collect coupons so you can stack the savings of sales with the savings of coupons
- Plan meals around what you have already at home – use what you have first!
- Prep freezer meals for days when you’re pressed for time so you don’t resort to take-out
- Make larger batches on purpose, so you can prepare once but eat twice
2. Use What You Have
Making the most of what you have and reducing/avoiding waste as much as possible lowers your cost per use, and increases value & savings. A homestead mindset is a resourceful mindset.
Some examples of making the most of what you have:
- Save food scraps that would otherwise have been thrown away and turn them into something new/useful/delicious like soup stock/bone broth
- Mend & repair what you can, and see if there’s a repair cafe where you live
- Use what’s in your freezer and pantry before planning meals or going to the store
- Extend the usable life of what you have whether that’s fresh food, clothing, your vehicle, etc.
3. Grow & Forage Food
Growing and finding your own food might be one of the more obvious homestead habits, taking the phrase “eat local” to a whole other level.
Fresh fruit and vegetables are so beneficial and full of nutrients and vitamins, but they can be costly to buy, especially when not in season. Growing your own is one of the best, most cost-effective ways to get fresh, nutrient packed food. Not only is the food itself nutritious, but the process of growing is also nourishing you in several ways: spending time outdoors, moving your body, feeling connected to the earth, watching something grow, and sharing with others is good for your heart.
No land? No problem! There’s a lot you can grow in containers on a balcony, or even indoors. You can also check if your municipality offers community garden plots if you don’t have access to a yard.
Forage! There is food growing all around us. Yes, even in the city or suburbs — you just need to learn what to look for! Start with The Neighborhood Forager, a very beginner-friendly book on foraging, and look to see if there are any guided walks to learn about edible plants happening in your area!
You can train your eyes to see the food that is hiding in plain sight in your neighbourhood too.
See if your community has a local fruit harvest & share project like Not Far From the Tree (Toronto), or Fruitful Connections (Durham region) and sign up to volunteer!
4. Make it Yourself
For every step in the production process, every hand involved in making something that you eventually buy from the store, the cost to you goes up. When you make it yourself it costs less, it tastes better, and you have complete control over what goes into it.
Foods that may cost less to make than to purchase:
- Bread – making your own bread can save you money compared to buying it from the store, especially if you buy your flour in bulk. This goes for other baked good as well like bagels, muffins, and desserts.
- Sauces – start with basics like tomato sauce and you’ll soon find that making your own sauce is pretty straightforward and so delicious that you’ll be making your own cheese sauce, sweet & sour, and pesto in no time.
- Salad Dressing – store bought salad dressings often contain added sugars and preservatives. Making your own salad dressing is easy and you get to choose the ingredients. Start with a simple vinegarette – oil, vinegar, mustard, honey, salt & pepper. Use a blender to make flavourful creamy dressings with ingredients like avocado, herbs, and garlic.
- Soup Stock – making your own stock can cost next to nothing and can also be very hands-off for most of the process. It makes a great base for soups, stews, sauces, and more, and homemade broth is much more flavourful than storebought.
- Coffee – if going to the drive-thru for coffee is one of your “guilty” pleasures, far be it from me to take that away from you! –but if the habit is daily, and the cost is getting too costly, consider making your own fancy coffees at home (at least some of the time). With home brewed coffee and some simple syrups you can have all the flavour you love for pennies on the dollar.
- Granola & Granola Bars – not only are these more cost effective to make than purchase, you’re also reducing waste by not buying individually wrapped granola bars or boxes of granola cereal.
5. Spend With Intention
You know that feeling when you get a great deal? Yeah, it’s a rush, but if you’re anything like me sometimes the feeling of getting a great deal overrides an important question: do I need it? You’re not saving money when you’re spending it!
This is not to say we shouldn’t buy things that bring us joy, or that we should only have the bare necessities. When you start to spend with intention you will find ways to get the best price for the things you need. You’ll save on the things your family needs so that you have more to spend on the things you love. You’ll invest in things that will last, and in things that will save you money over time.
Important first steps include:
- Have a process for identifying needs vs wants
- Use a system to help you avoid impulse purchases
- Shop with a list and a plan
- Invest in quality: buy once and use for a lifetime
6. Preserve & Store
Take advantage of when things are inexpensive or free and preserve what you can’t use right away for later when those things might be more costly or scarce.
There are four main ways to preserve and store beyond just storing in the fridge or pantry for immediate use:
- Freezing – when meat is on sale or when you’re able to buy in bulk, you can take advantage of the lower cost if you have a large freezer. Portion for meals, and add a marinade to save yourself some prep time later too.
- Canning – canning is a great way to preserve fruits, vegetables, meats, beans, and even prepare whole meals to be stored without any refrigeration.
- Fermenting/Culturing – one of the oldest methods for food preservation, fermenting is a (seemingly) magical process where we introduce or encourage beneficial microbes to the exclusion of harmful ones and change the taste and texture of the food itself to create something new and delicious. These probiotic foods are tasty and so good for you!
- Dehydrating/freeze drying – this can be as simple as hanging herbs to dry, or you can use your oven on a very low setting ($), puchase a dehydrator ($$), or even a freeze-dryer ($$$$). It’s a great way to preserve foods for long-term storage at a variety of price-points.
Bonus: Build Community
People used to share the workload, help each other, and look out for one another. Community used to be the heart of everything, but nowadays we don’t get to spend much time getting to know our neighbours. Everyone is so busy just trying to make ends meet that there’s not much time left between commuting, working, sleeping, and taking care of our own responsibilities. If you truly want to hustle less, slow down, and live a fulfilling life, building community and mutual aid is essential.
Ways to get started:
- Plant a community garden – many hands make light work
- Get a few neighbours together and be the “hub” for CSA Farm share delivery for your community
- Connect with other parents you trust and take turns babysitting each others’ kids
- Set up a neighbourhood “buyers club” so you can split the cost of bulk purchases and save
- Put together a micro-bartering and sharing economy where goods and services and shared and traded instead of cash
- Set up a “Little Free Library” or “Little Free Pantry” on your property to make the neighbourhood feel more connected and cared for
When we build community, everyone benefits.