My First Visit to Costco

I've been meaning to check out Costco for a while now and have a few friends who absolutely love it.
So today I took myself and the kids off for a morning adventure to see what all the fuss is about.

Firstly, there's a $60 annual membership and you can't even walk in the door without one. Crazy no? My initial thought it a shop that makes you pay to shop there is basically ripping you off. But they offer a money back guarantee so I figured I could always get my money back if I wasn't impressed.

Secondly, it took me about 30 minutes to get there and I was there for about 1.5 hours even though I only did a very quick trip around the edges of the warehouse. It is massive to say the least and a lot of  my time there was spent manoeuvring around all the other people with my MASSIVE trolley that had fixed back wheels. And it is Monday today - supposedly one of the less busy days there. I can only imagine what a weekend would be like. I'm going to have to make some pretty big savings to make the effort worthwhile.

Thirdly, I have complete baby brain and forgot to take my price book with me so I couldn't compare prices before I bought. I did remember my list. I also have a weekly grocery budget of $150.00. I needed to get anything from Costco plus everything else on my list for the week and not go over budget.

So here is what I bought:

 

Item	Price at Costco	Current Price at Coles	My Savings
Tomatos - 12 x 400g cans	$7.29 (60c ea)	$1.58	$0.98/can - $11.76 total
Lemons - 1.36kg about 10 in the packet	$3.99 (40c ea)	$2.98/pkt6 (49c ea)	9c ea - $0.90 total
Greek Yoghurt - 2kg	$5.49 ($1.37/500g)	$5.87/kg ($2.93/500g)	$1.56/500g - $6.24 total
Lamb Rack - 0.668kg	$19.16 ($28.69/kg)	$37.99/kg)	$9.30/kg - $6.21 total
Deli Ham - 500g	$5.99 ($11.98/kg)	$16.50/kg	$4.52/kg - $2.26 total
Proscuitto - 150g	$5.39 ($35.93/kg)	$6.50/100g ($65.00/kg)	$29.07/kg - $4.36 total
Ricotta Cheese - 1kg	$5.69 ($1.42/kg)	$5.74/500g ($11.48/kg)	$10.06/kg - $10.06 total
Lebanese Pita Breads - 2 packets of 7 pieces	$1.89 (13.5c ea piece)	$3.90/pkt6 (65c ea piece)	51.5c/ea - $7.21 total
Whole Almonds - 1.36kg	$13.79 ($10.14/kg)	$10.84/500g ($21.68/kg)	$11.54/kg - $15.70 total
Rice Vermicelli - 4 x 375g packs	$4.79 ($3.19/kg)	$2.12/125g ($16.96/kg)	$13.77/kg - $20.65 total
Fresh Strawberries - 1.4kg	$9.49 ($1.69/250g)	$2.00/250g punnet	31c/250g - $1.73 total
Tuna in Springwater - 12 x 95g cans	$12.49 ($1.04/can)	90c/can	14c/can - $1.68 total

My Total Savings $88.76

Ok, so I am a bit shocked by the amount I've saved. I really didn't think it would be that much. So I have already made my annual fee back.

A couple of points though

• Some of these quantities are huge and I think we may have to work at eating it all. For example the yoghurt may go off before we finish it. Same goes for the ricotta.
• We don't eat that much tuna and I probably shouldn't have bought it there. Considering I haven't saved that much I would have been better buying it at Coles and not having to store the extra cans.
• The fresh food is in such large packs that most would end up going to the chooks. We might finish off a pack of apples but not 2kg of tomatos.
• I need to find out more about the meat. It didn't have free range or grass fed all over it. I did notice they had Lilydale whole chooks.

With a bit of planning and restraint I think going to Costco a couple of times a year could be worthwhile.

BTW - of I have made a gross error in my calculations please tell me. My brain hurts after all that.

Pinterest - Sewing Tutorials

One of the wonderful things about blog land is all the great sewing tutorials. People are so generous with their time (and talent).

Here are some great tutorials I've pinned on Pinterest. Some of them involve drafting your own pattern from your favourite clothes which is what I have just started to do whilst others have a printable pattern.

Click on the source underneath each image to go straight to the blog and the tutorial.

Source: craftinessisnotoptional.com via Emma on Pinterest	Source: marthastewart.com via Emma on Pinterest	Source: luvinthemommyhood.com via Emma on Pinterest
Source: noodle-head.com via Emma on Pinterest	Source: sewmamasew.com via Emma on Pinterest	Source: sewmamasew.com via Emma on Pinterest
Source: cluckclucksew.com via Emma on Pinterest	Source: skirtastop.wordpress.com via Emma on Pinterest	Source: danamadeit.com via Emma on Pinterest

20 Days to Organise & Clean your home Challenge – Day 8

Day 8 of the challenge was to tackle the craft room (or in my case the sewing room/study).

Originally this was only my sewing room but Mr Berry has been slowly moving in and using it as his study. The room is super tiny and there just ain't enough room for the two of us. And this was the result:

 

You probably can't tell in the photos but everything was super dusty. Cutting fabric and sewing creates heaps of dust. I think the dust bunnies had well and truly bred and created their own empire. So I removed everything I could out of the room and cleaned.

• windows
• light fitting
• shelves
• desk
• floors and skirting boards

Everything was put back in it's place and I burnt a lovely smelly candle whilst I was cleaning to make it all seem pretty.

 

Everyone was super impressed. I'd love to get some lovely baskets and wot not to make the shelves all pretty and magazine-like but honestly I have other things to spend my money on at the moment so it will have to stay as it is.

Want to check out the challenge? Head over to The Organised Housewife.

20 Days to Organise and Clean your Home - Back to Day 1

I  thought I would show you where I started on this challenge.

The first day of The Organised Housewife's 20 Days to Organise and Clean your Home started in the kitchen. The tasks were:

• to clean the kitchen (benches, sink, window and sill, walls, light fittings)
• clean the microwave
• clean cupboard doors
• clean tops of the cupboards
• declutter benches
• clean and organise under the sink

I felt like I'd spent all day cleaning the kitchen but the end result is well worth it.

Just to be clear, this is a before shot. I hadn't cleaned up after breakfast but let's be honest, it looks like this most of the time.

And After

I'd like to move the fruit bowl and have nothing on the main bench but then I'd just be adding something else to the dining table (which I am yet to tackle).

What I am super happy with though is under the kitchen sink.

Before 

After

I'd been meaning to clean it out for weeks now and it was filthy so it's great to finally get it done. I always feel better when my cupboards are clean and organised. It's like everything is right in the world if the insides are tidy.

Day 1 was a big day and by the end of the day I was really tired. The kitchen was a major job but now it's done maintaining it won't be so bad. Just a quick wipe here and there. The remaining days have been easier as I have a regular cleaning routine and always try to keep things in their homes.

If you're interested in checking the challenge out, it's here.

We're Quitting Sugar.

Talk about new things.

After a long discussion with my husband the other night we came to the conclusion that the health of our family is a top priority. And the best thing we could do for our children is to quit sugar.

For well over a year I have been reading and re-reading David Gillespies books Sweet Poison, The Sweet Poison Quit Plan and Big Fat Lies. I have also done my own research and I am convinced that sugar is giving us all kinds of grief and that there can be no such thing as moderation. (At least for us. We always seem to go nuts with sugary foods.)

So on the weekend we began the process of removing sugar from our lives. To help keep me motivated and to remind me of why I am doing this I've started a new blog How I Quit Sugar.

So why such an extreme move? I've known about the effects of sugar for a while now and I've must admit I hadn't really tried too hard to eliminate it. Lately I've realised how much sugar my kids eat. It's steadily growing. I've always battled with my weight and I've always said that I don't want my children to go through what I went through (and still go through). But the other day that really hit home.

We were at Miss Berry's kindergarten orientation and there was a performance from some of the older students. Four pairs were doing ballroom dancing and three of the girls were slim and one was on the chubby side. Actually a bit more then just on the chubby side. The poor girl stood out like a sore thumb on stage, especially in comparison to the other three who really did look like you would expect dancers to.

My heart went out to this girl and it brought back all the memories of myself at that age. I was the fat one at school and back then I was pretty much the only fat one in my class. I was always the last in the sport races, the last to be picked on the sporting teams and the first to get puffed when doing sport or running around in the playground. Growing up is hard enough, let alone when you are different and seeing this girl made me determined to do everything I can to make sure Miss and Mr Berry do not become that child.

And guess what? Sugar makes you fat. As well as leading to all sorts of illnesses including Type 2 Diabetes which is becoming more prevalent at even younger ages.

Interested in my journey or to know more? Please come over to How I Quit Sugar and join me as I break our addiction.

20 days to Organise and Clean Your Home Challenge by The Organised Housewife.

Over the past few weeks I have been giving the house a good spring clean. I think my nesting has kicked in early.

 

To help keep me motivated I've joined The Organised Housewife's 20 Day Challenge to Organise and Clean your Home.

I've been pretty slack on the whole house keeping thing over the past 18 months. I've had a cleaner doing the basics but I must admit I haven't really been doing much extra and the house is disorganised and somewhat cluttered. It finally came to a head when my cleaner told me she could no longer continue cleaning.

I've been doing the housework on my own for a little over a month now and the house is actually starting to look rather clean but it is far from tidy, and I admit there are a lot of things without permanent homes (unless the dining table or end of the kitchen bench count).

So to keep this spring clean on the go I'm going to do this challenge. If you want to, please join the challenge too and let me know. I'd love the company. Even if you're not doing the challenge, I'd recommend you check out the her website. It has tons of great ideas for running your household.

Time Has Flown

Wow, it's been almost 2 years since I have blogged. Things have been very busy here at the Berry Patch but honestly, I must admit that blogging has just not been a priority.

We have a new (or now not so new) addition to the Berry Patch.

Master Berry is 18 months and is just the cutest toddler ever. I love this age and would freeze time if I could. He is so mischievous and keeps up on our toes, but the things he does are so funny and cute. I love toddlers.

Miss Berry is almost 5 and over the last couple of months has really grown up. I keep wondering where the last 5 years have gone. She is starting school next year and she is so excited about it. I am a little sad about it but at the same time so very excited for her as she moves on to the next stage in her life.

And, we are expecting Berry number 3 in February. (Sorry, no picture. We will all have to wait.) The pregnancy is going smoothly and is similar to the other two, except that I am also running after a toddler and young child. As you can imagine I am somewhat tired.

Mr Berry and I were talking over the weekend about our goals for the family and I thought about my personal goals. Over the past year in particular, but I suppose it would have started two years ago, I have drifted from our simple, eco life. Rather then living deliberately I have been in crisis management and just trying to get through each day. Obviously with 2 children things do get hectic and I have been trying to do too much and also expecting too much of myself.

I must admit I have also been feeling pressure to contribute financially to the household. Not from Mr Berry but from myself and I think society in general.

As with any choice made as a mother, you are saying that I think my choices are better than yours(compared to those who choose different things that is). Because if you thought that their choice was the right thing to do then you'd be doing it too. I know we don't usually consciously think like that but I do think it is implied. Combined with the whole mothers guilt thing it can make people quite defensive in their decisions.

Think about any conversations you had about breast feeding vs bottle feeding, cloth vs disposable nappies, organic vs non organic foods or the big one - going back to work or staying at home. Some of these can get pretty heated and even if they don't, I have found that a lot of mothers seem to defend their choice to those that have made a different decision.

And I guess that is why I have felt I 'should' be working. People do define themselves by work. It is often one of the first questions someone asks you and I have received the 'oh' and then silence when I've told people I'm a stay at home Mum. Work is also a very common topic of conversation and when you are with a group of people who all work and are discussing (or complaining) about the trials of work I do feel left out and find myself internally justifying my decision. I know it sounds extreme but I think you are discounted in society because you don't go to work.

I think I had lost sight of why I am a SAHM (stay at home mum) and what I do contribute to this family. I also needed to really think about and define what gives me purpose in life. More money is not going to make us happier. It may not sound very ambitious but I do not need a career to make me complete. What I do want is to bring up our family so they can be well adjusted, successful adults. (successful in life, not necessarily in a career). If I can do that then I know my life will have had meaning and purpose.

Last weekends adventure. The Royal National Park.

So I am going to commit to continuing this blog to keep me on track and to help me remember why I have made the choices I have. I may not blog about serious environmental issues and I will admit our lifestyle can at times be full of materialist consumerism. But I will blog about our trials and tribulations as well as the joy of our family. I'll also keep you up to date with my home-making as I embrace my Stay-at-home-Mum-ness.

Fruit Mince

The kitchen smells divine - the very essence of Christmas.

As part of my Christmas preparation this year, I have made some fruit mince. I love Fruit Mince Pies but I think I am the only one in the family who does. But store bought pies? No Thanks. So I am taking matters into my own hands and am going to make my own. I also have plans to try a light fruit cake recipe I found that uses fruit mince.


The fruit mince recipe is from a Women's Weekly Christmas Cook Book and makes 7 cups.

375g sultanas
375g raisins, chopped
225g dried currants
250g seeded dates, chopped
250g seeded prunes, chopped
1 large green apple, peeled and grated
100g brown sugar
1 tbsp finely grated orange rind
1/2 tbsp mixed spice
1 tsp ground cloves
1/4 cup plum jam
3/4 cup brandy (I used sweet sherry because I have this on hand for the trifle)

Combine all ingredients in a large bowl, mixing well. Cover with plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator for at least 3 days before using. Will keep for up to 6 months, covered and refrigerated.

My Little Cook

Miss Berry loves to cook and for the past few months she has told me when she grows up she wants to be a chef and bake cakes. (And no, this is not because of MasterChef).

Personally, I am encouraging her cooking. I figure by the time she is 5, I can get her cooking most of our meals. A five year old can use an oven and cook top unsupervised right? Imagine all the spare time I would have to catch up on my web-surfing if I didn't have to cook dinner each night.

The cleaning of the kitchen may be another matter. Once we have done the cooking, Miss Berry suddenly finds the whole thing very boring and moves on to something else, only to return in time for the taste testing.

Here is Miss Berry being totally absorbed in Play School whilst I cleaned up the flour she managed to sift everywhere but into the bowl this afternoon.


But even though I have been demoted to kitchen hand, I am really enjoying the time we spend together in the kitchen. And so far, she seems to be a good cook. Here is the (little) cake she made today:

A carrot, zucchini and pineapple cake.

I made one too, although mine is a more grown up size. Miss Berry's is sitting on a saucer to give you the idea of the size. Mine is also iced in an equally grown up lemon cream cheese icing. Yum.

Thankfully this cake is a weight watchers recipe because we also made caramel slice. I think I have put on 5kgs just by inhaling the smell of the cooking caramel and the chocolate topping.

I am sure the two will balance each other out. Or perhaps they cancel each other out.

Today's Harvest - Friday 28th May 2010

It's definitely no longer summer. We have the ugg boots on (even during the day) and an extra quilt on the bed. It has rained for the last 3 weeks and the day time temperature is around the 20oC mark (or a bit below).


If it wasn't for the rain preventing me from getting into the garden more, I think we would still be really productive. Who would have thought I'd have tomatoes ripening on the vine at the end of May (this is my second crop planted at the end of summer).

Here is my harvest today:



3 x eggs
3 x beetroot
5 x radish (1 x purple and 4 x white)
Lots of tomatoes (I try to pick them as they start to ripen to prevent the bugs getting to them).
As well as some greens and herbs for lunch and dinner.

Earth Hour 2010

Just a very quick post as we prepare to turn off our lights (and power points) for Earth Hour.

I don't think I need to talk about what Earth Hour is about. What I want to do is show my support and add my voice to the many others participating.

So, how many others are joining in for Earth Hour and what are you doing in that time?

We are going to sit by candle light and chat. Things have been super busy this week and it will be nice spending time together.

For more information, check out the Earth Hour web site.

Lemon Iced Tea

I have been experimenting with iced tea lately. I love the Lipton Lemon Iced Tea but I don't want to be drinking so many unnecessary ingredients. (Mainly too much sugar!)

Here is the recipe I am using at the moment:

4 tea bags
1 cup of boiling water
3 and a bit cups of room temperature water
1/2 tbsp honey
3 or 4 tsp lemon juice

1. Steep the teabags in the boiling water for about 4 mins.
2. Remove tea bags and stir in honey til dissolved.
3. Add tea mixture to a 1L jug and add remaining water and lemon juice
4. Chill tea and serve with lots of ice, a slice of lemon and some mint.

Easy! And a lot cheaper than the bottles I have been buying.

What Are My Chances?

Miss Berry is now 26 months and we have been trying to coax her into toilet training and failing miserably. Our last try ended like this:

Mummy: "Honey, why don't you do a wee on the toilet?"

Miss Berry: "I don't want to do a wee in the potty, I want to do a wee in my pants".

Mummy: "Oh, OK."

That was about 2 months age. I did not want to force the issue in case she realised she was able to manipulate the household with toilet antics, so things have continued as normal. Also, I don't think you have any where to go to when your 2 year old gives you a straight up answer like that.

Anyhoo, we were at Montessori earlier in the week and the teacher handed out an article on toilet training using Montessori methods. Brilliant, new ideas to help get the ball rolling again. One point they make is to put the child in training pants so they can get the feeling of being wet or dirty. The idea is the child does not want to be wet and will thus be encouraged to use the toilet/potty.

So, good in theory huh? I thought so and decided to dive in with a lovely colourful purchase.


Even if the plan goes straight down the toilet (pun intended) at least the training pants look adorable drying on the line.

Accepting Nature into the Backyard - All of it.

We tidied an area along the side of the back yard on the weekend. We removed all the pots, swept and then re-arranged them to create a more open area of paving next to the BBQ area (which is on the right of the photo below).

We were hanging some wall pots to the lattice under the pergola and I look up and just above my head are two huge huntsman spiders.

After making a ridiculous noise and making sure I wasn't covered in spiders, Mr Berry and I move to the other side of the pergola and began to hang another pot. Just as Mr Berry lifts the pot up, an even bigger huntsman crawls up over the back of the pot and straight towards him.

To illustrate the magnitude of the situation, arrow 1 is pointing at the first huntsman incident. Arrow 2 is pointing at the pot involved in the second huntsman incident. I am sure you are not surprised that the second pot did not get hung.

Yep, ew.

I did not take photos, nor am I going to search the web for photos of a huntsman (you can do that yourself). I am still feeling all crawly just writing this. Seriously, they were huge. The one that came out of the pot must have been a girl spider. She was at least 50% bigger than the other two, especially in the body.

To lighten the mood and wait for the adrenaline rush to subside, Mr Berry and I discussed whether the two boy spiders were hanging around waiting for the girl spider to, you know..... Which then led to the question of whether girl huntsmans eat the boy huntsmans after doing the deed. Which then led to a series of other questions; are the boy huntsmans going to fight it out for mating privileges and if they do and she will eat the successful suitor, would the winner or the loser of the fight have to go forth and multiply? etc etc. Finally, we calmed down and the questions got a bit more mature. And we headed inside to our old faithful, Google.

We learnt that most web pages gloss over the actual mating ritual (who'd have thought?) but the girls are protective of not only the eggs but also the babies (how cute). Huntsman spiders will not kill you (contrary to our reaction, we did know this already) and won't usually bite, but if they do it will hurt like buggery but you'll be fine in a couple of days. Also, a lot of types of huntsman are pretty social and can hang out together.

The most important thing though, is the benefit huntsmans can have in your garden. They eat a lot of pests including cockroaches, and are eaten by lizards and birds. Which as much as my scalp is tingling at the thought of them, whether they are the eater or the eatee I win both ways.

In building our backyard, we hope to encourage local wildlife to visit. I love watching the little skinks, ladybirds, local birds and the many insects that are beginning to frequent our backyard, but I must admit that spiders were not on the list of things I wanted to encourage. But, without them there would be a gap in the food chain and one more reason for the birds and lizards to stay away. If I want the pretty feathered creatures than I must accept the horrible hairy ones too. Nature is both of those things and each is as important as the other.

So, before you get your fences sprayed and knock down every spider web in your yard. Think of the important role they can play and try to come to terms with accepting all of nature, not just the cute bits.

In the meantime, I am a long way off not panicking at the sight of a large spider and inside the house is still off limits to them. (Any found inside are met with a big, heavy shoe - although a shoe would've just bounced off these three.) And I am staying clear of that area of the yard for a while - perhaps till Christmas - who knows. It's one think to be accepting of nature, it's another to comfortably play alongside it.

This entire area is off limits until I no longer have the heebie-jeebies or unless someone is with me (Miss Berry doesn't count).

Spend-Free Days

Yes, it has been a long long time since I posted last. I have no excuses for being so slack (again) and I am not sure 'losing my blogging mojo' is the reason either. I have been very busy though, working on the house and garden.

Which brings me to the topic of today's post. I have dipped into our savings a bit too much lately and I need to rein in my spending. As you can imagine after buying the house, moving in, making repairs, laying turf, making the back garden and the odd furniture purchase, our savings are at a bare minimum. This makes me nervous. Christmas is just around the corner, the car needs servicing and there is bound to be something else around the house that needs repairing.

Some reasons for my spending lately - vintage school chairs picked up at Cobbitty Markets.

Ideally, I would like six months of essential living expenses in savings and we will slowly work back up to this. At a minimum, I feel comfortable with three months - as this is the waiting period for our income protection.

So, to get me in the spirit of reducing my spending, I am going to have two spend free days per week.

Another equally valid reason - My new toy shelf. Hopefully my lounge room will remain tidy for a bit longer.

Why spend free days?

I first heard of this idea from Frugal Trenches and I find it an excellent way to reinforce healthy finance habits.

• Firstly, you have to plan your spending. You have to anticipate when you will run out of milk and plan to buy some on a spend day.


• It also minimises impulse buys. If you want something and it is a spend free day you have to wait at least til the next day to buy it. Often you realise you don't really want/need the item and don't buy it.


• I seem to spend a lot less over the week with a couple of spend free days. When ever I go to the supermarket I always end up spending $30-$50 on a handful of items. By reducing the amount of times I go to the supermarket, I am buying less products and therefore spending less.


• It also helps you to remember your goals. I find that doing when I do the budget for the month it takes about 3-4 days after that for the motivation to wane and I forget about the budget and begin to increase my spending. By spacing out spend-free days, I am continually reminded to stay on budget and I remain motivated.

So, if you are trying to keep to your budget but are finding it hard, why not have a go at one spend free day a week?