We are talking with Chelsea LeBlanc registered dietitian about tips for eating healthy on a budget! With the prices increasing at the grocery store, we know you will find these tips as helpful as we do!

Episode 85: Tips from a Dietitian on Eating Healthy on a Budget

This episode we are talking about how to shop healthy on a budget with our team registered dietitian Chelsea LeBlanc. Chelsea comes from a large family where eating healthy while watching your budget was important. She is pairing those skills along with her dietitian talent to bring you the best tips on how to shop on a budget. 

I love that Chelsea’s ideas and tips are based on her real life experience budgeting for a large family meshed with her professional experience as a registered dietitian. All of her tips are easy and applicable to all types of families.

Chelsea is a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist and owner of Chelsea LeBlanc Nutrition- a Virtual Private Practice and Nutrition Communications company.  She creates approachable recipes using simple ingredients to help her audience and clients save money, reduce food waste, and cook healthy meals that are fast, easy, and delicious!

Podcast Episode 85: Tips from a Dietitian on Eating Healthy on a Budget

Chelsea lives in Nashville, TN, with her husband. She enjoys spending time with family and friends, traveling, running, and trying new restaurants. You can follow her blog Chelsea LeBlanc Nutrition at chelsealeblancrdn.com or find her on Instagram and Facebook @chelsealeblancrdn.

Listen to Tips from a Dietitian on Eating Healthy on a Budget

What We Cover

Want to skip straight to a hot topic? See timestamps below. But of course, we recommend listening all the way through to get all the great tips and tricks!

1:25 An intro to dietitian Chelsea

1:48 Why budget-friendly meal planning was essential for Chelsea growing up

3:28 An easy tip to help you save on your groceries

5:47 Why you should check your fridge and freezer before making your list

8:41 Free  app you can use to help you generate recipes 

12:27 Examples of less expensive protein sources and how to use them

17:14 What kind of produce to prioritize on your grocery list and why

20:59 Common beliefs about canned or frozen produce and why it’s not true

22:26 How much salt you can remove by rinsing canned vegetables

27:27 The benefit of buying generic store brands for staples

29:31 The most important (and relatable) budget shopping advice of the episode

30:40 Strategies for avoiding entering the grocery store hungry

37:37 Where you can find Chelsea and connect with her

Watch it!

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Transcript for Episode 85

This transcript was produced by Otter.Ai. Please forgive any misspellings and grammatical errors.

Episode 85: Eating Healthy on a Budget

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Welcome to the Healthy Family Project podcast covering the hot topics in the world of health,

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food and family with a dose of fun.

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Hello everybody.

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Welcome to the Healthy Family Project podcast.

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This is our first video episode, so welcome.

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I’m doing it.

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I’m going to try it out.

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What do you guys think?

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Be sure to leave us some comments or a few comments in the comments section here.

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We do have audio episodes, 84 of those available on your favorite podcasting site.

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If you’d like to go back and catch up, we have lots of great topics.

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We cover tons of things around nutrition, food, we talk about mental health, teaching

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kids, financial stability and things in that nature, getting rid of clutter, anything around

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healthy lifestyle.

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We’ve covered it and we’re open to ideas on what to cover next.

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So please leave those in the comments as well.

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Today we are talking to a registered dietitian.

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She is actually part of our dietitian team here at Healthy Family Project, new this year,

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and wonderful person.

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We’re going to have her on today.

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She’s going to talk to us about eating healthy on a budget, how to grocery shop.

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I know right now things are kind of tough for all of us at the grocery store.

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We’re trying to make ends meet and things are expensive.

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There’s anyway, I always like to say, I love to travel.

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If I can save on something and put it to the travel fund, I am all for that.

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Hopefully, Chelsea’s going to help us today figure out how we can, whether it be travel

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or wherever else you want to move your money to be able to save a little bit and make some

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great choices while grocery shopping.

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So just a little bit of background on Chelsea.

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She is a registered dietitian.

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She has a virtual private practice and nutrition communications company, which we’ll link up

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to in our show notes.

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She creates approachable recipes using simple ingredients.

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Have that.

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That’s the way to go, busy life.

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She helps her audience and clients save money, reduce food waste and cook healthy.

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So that’s amazing.

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That’s kind of our goal today is to get all of that info.

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And don’t forget to join our Facebook group.

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We have the Healthy Family Project Facebook group.

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If you want to be part of that conversation, a continued conversation on this topic, Chelsea

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will be in that group as well as myself.

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We’d like to carry on the conversations over there.

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Make sure you bookmark healthyfamilyproject.com.

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We house all of our podcasts there as well as our recipes and blog posts and just all

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kinds of great nutrition information.

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If you need tips on different produce items, food tips, everything is over there.

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So be sure to bookmark that website and I guess I’ll quit talking here and we can jump

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in with Chelsea.

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Hi Chelsea.

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Welcome to the Healthy Family Project podcast.

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You’re on our first video recording.

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I’m so excited to be here.

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Thank you for having me.

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Well, I’m excited.

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I know we’ve been doing this podcast for quite some time now and we have done all audio.

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So here in 2023, you’re also our first guest in the new year.

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So happy new year to everybody.

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I feel like we need to like throw some confetti or something.

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But we will, which is just probably as great as throwing confetti is find out some tips

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on how to afford the price of groceries at this time.

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So I know we were just chatting about all the TikToks out there about the cost of eggs

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and the memes and everything else.

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So before we jump in, can you tell us a little bit about yourself?

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Yeah, of course.

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So I am a Nashville, Tennessee based registered dietitian nutritionist and I own Chelsea LeBlanc

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Nutrition, which is my nutrition communications company and virtual private practice.

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So I offer one on one nutrition coaching and meal planning to help families save money,

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reduce food waste and cook healthy meals that are fast, easy and delicious.

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So I grew up in a family of eight where budget friendly meal planning was essential and my

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parents were pros.

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I’m sure.

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It’s a lot, but my family’s were pros at getting healthy, balanced meals on the table.

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And so I learned a lot of tips and tricks from them.

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And yeah, so the rising cost of eggs and all groceries for that matter.

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Yeah, I’ve been just crazy.

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So I’m excited to kind of dive in and share some helpful tips with y’all.

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Wonderful.

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Well, it sounds like you definitely have the experience and it gives me a little bit of

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hope of all my budgeting and, you know, with my kids, I’m just like, did you even look

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at the price when I send them to go get something in the store and they come back and I’m like,

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okay, go back, look at this, let’s compare.

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So you give me hope knowing that you carried on that from what you learned at home.

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All right, so let’s get started with some tips for our listeners.

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So the scenario, I realize I’m spending way too much on my groceries and I want to make

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a switch but still keep to healthier selections, which I know there is a huge myth out there

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that eating healthy has to be really expensive.

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So what would you recommend are the first steps to kind of making those changes and

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getting on track?

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Yeah, for sure.

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So I kind of like to break it down into two parts.

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So you’ve got like the prep work that goes into it before heading to the store and then

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kind of what to look for whenever you’re at the store.

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So before heading to the store, I’ve got three tips.

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So the first one is going to be to make sure that you’re checking out grocery store loyalty

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programs and then downloading the app for most frequently shopped stores.

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So for example, I do a lot of our grocery shopping at Kroger and they’ve got a great

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loyalty program that will help to save you money on groceries and you can even earn fuel

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points.

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So for gas for every dollar that you spend.

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So like last year, I saved over $200 in groceries just by, you know, having their loyalty card.

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And I also usually because I don’t have to get gas all that often, would usually save

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like 10 cents on the gallon every time that I get gas.

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That’s great.

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I mean, you know, you’re saving money.

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Do they have because I know a lot of the grocery stores here where I am have also have the

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digital coupons in the app as well as so you get the perks.

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So you’re actually, you know, getting the rewards where every once in a while for me

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at Publix, I’ll get like $5 off your $70 purchase.

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I’m like, oh, cool.

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I didn’t even know that was there, but it’s.

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Yeah, it helps.

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And then the digital coupon.

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Some of the things the brands that we buy a lot of will pop in there.

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And I’m always excited for that.

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It’s the same thing for me.

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I guess they have like some type of system in their, I guess, program that kind of tailors

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their their coupons to what your purchase history is.

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And so that makes it super easy to clip the coupon because you’re like, oh, I already

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use it.

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Right.

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Fantastic.

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It knows me.

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It knows.

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Yeah.

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But yeah, so that just makes it a little easier.

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Plus, it’s nice to have the digital coupon.

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So that way you’re not like.

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In and out.

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And yes, I feel like I forget to like use the actual ones or leave them in the car or

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or something.

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So yeah, for sure.

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Yeah.

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So loyalty programs are a must.

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Yes.

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Loyalty programs.

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And then, of course, using the digital coupons within the app is a must.

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So my next tip is going to be making sure that you’re shopping your pantry, your fridge,

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your freezer and creating a list based off of that.

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So you want to make sure that you’re checking to see what you already have on hand and then

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making your grocery list.

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Because a lot of times we have stuff in our freezer pantry and fridge that need to be

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used or need to or is going to go bad, basically.

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And so if we’re not shopping and making our list based off of that or accumulating more

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food waste, because we’re eventually going to have to throw those things away.

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Right.

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And it’s nice, too, because it kind of gives you a starting point for your list as well.

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Then the other thing about having that grocery list whenever you’re shopping, it’ll help

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you to avoid impulse purchases that can really.

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I have a problem with that.

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Like, oh, that’s new.

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Right.

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Try it.

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Or I’m a sucker, though, especially my kids.

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If they see something that especially my younger daughter, she’s more selective eater.

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If she sees something, especially in frozen, I guess that, you know, something new that’s

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some muffin that’s plant based and full of nutrient nutrition, whatever.

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And she’s like, oh, can I try that?

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And I’m like, well, it’s nine dollars, but OK.

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Which I know.

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Yeah, so I have to I have to be careful with that.

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I found that doing grocery pickup for me, I’m such a I don’t say a penny pincher, but

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I definitely.

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Consider my budget.

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I love to travel, so it’s funny in my brain.

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I’m like, wait a second.

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That’s this much money that I could be putting aside for that trip to Greece.

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I want to take so like every little dollar.

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But so I do sometimes do the grocery delivery in a pinch.

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But grocery pickup has really helped me.

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On those impulse buys, because I do stick to my list and I have found time and time

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again when I do the grocery pickup, I am very surprised at what I do save.

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And looking at it like, wow, I must really be an impulse buyer because the cost savings

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is quite significant whenever I do stick to my list.

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Now, it makes a huge difference.

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And I love that you mentioned to the pickup just because that it’s the same thing for

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me.

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Like you’re not tempted by the exciting things or if you’re shopping with somebody else.

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That’s another thing, too.

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Like I think that it’s always really, really good to like get your kids involved or your

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family involved.

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But I do feel like sometimes it can make things a little challenging, because like even when

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my husband and I go to the grocery store, he’s like, oh, these look good.

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And I’m like, we don’t need those.

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Yeah, I know.

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Yeah.

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So that’s a big thing.

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And then to with using up the ingredients that you have on hand.

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So there are a lot of different different programs and software and apps and that kind

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of stuff.

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But I found a free it’s like a recipe generator.

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Basically, it’s on a Tesco Supermarkets website.

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So basically, if you have three ingredients, you can enter those three ingredients into

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their site and it’ll populate recipes for you.

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So for example, if I have yogurt and I don’t know whole wheat pasta noodles in my pantry,

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I can put those three ingredients in there and it’ll generate recipe ideas for me.

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So that can be a really fun way to, you know, kind of meal plan and make things things a

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little bit easier.

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I love that.

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And we’ll get that link and put it into the show notes for anybody that wants to find

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it.

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I consider myself a pantry chef.

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Yeah.

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So I didn’t realize this until I felt like it was like the pandemic.

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Also, I was like, hey, I’m a trendsetter because I already did this.

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Yeah, I already I so it wasn’t huge for me to not have to go to the store often because

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I do not like I like to go to the grocery store on Saturday or Sunday.

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And I really try not to go back the whole week, which is hard.

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But I do usually base my recipes less on recipes that I find, although I do find some great

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recipes out there, but more so looking at the pantry or looking at my fridge and then

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doing the search of what am I going to make with X, Y and Z instead of then going out

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and buying X, Y and Z. So that will be a good app for me or a good site.

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Yeah, for sure.

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It really helps.

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It helps with the food waste, too.

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So it’s like, you know, being mindful of that and also saving money.

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So it’s a win win for sure.

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All righty.

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And then the third tip kind of falls in line with the coupons, but it’s checking out the

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your weekly grocery stores app.

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So whichever grocery store that you go to, Googling and seeing their weekly ads.

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So that way you can see what’s on sale that week.

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This is a great way to give you some ideas for recipes that you might eat throughout

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the week.

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So I really like to check out the meat and fresh produce category because I feel like

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those two items are the ones that tend to be a little bit more expensive or pricey.

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So for example, this week on our weekly ad, our shrimp, raspberries and then salad packs

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were on sale.

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So I planned our weekly menu based on those things because they were there on sale.

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Right.

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No, that makes a lot of sense.

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I love those salad, the salad kits.

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My daughter, my older daughter, I just I buy those and I make wraps for her for her lunch

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to take to school.

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And it’s so easy and she loves them.

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And I’m telling you, it’s just so easy.

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Yeah, it was easy.

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And you’re not having to buy like all the separate.

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That’s it.

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Yes.

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That’s it.

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So it makes a really big difference.

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Yeah.

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And then when she moves out, she may live on the salad.

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She may be the salad.

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That’s all that’s going to be in her fridge is salad kits.

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Hey, high fiber, lots of vitamins, minerals.

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Like they are far worse things.

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Yeah, true.

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That is too funny.

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Yeah.

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So those are my three tips for before heading to the store.

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And then whenever you’re at the store, there’s a few things that you can kind of look for

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to help you save money too.

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So like I was saying, I feel like the like our protein categories are meat and then our

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produce a lot of times can be more expensive.

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So we want to try to look for less expensive sources of these things.

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So that first one is going to be look for inexpensive protein sources.

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So meat can often be the most expensive component of a meal.

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So trying to look for things like our beans, lentils, edamame, nuts, peanut butter, Greek

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yogurt, eggs, I know that there is going to say, I know is one of your tips to buy chickens.

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I know.

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Seriously, though, like it might be raising your own chicken and having your own eggs

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and all that kind of stuff.

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But even yeah.

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So even things like canned salmon or tuna, all of those things are great and they’re

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going to be a little bit less expensive than than our other portions of meat.

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I will say I’ve been seeing a lot on the canned salmon and canned tuna out there that just

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different recipes.

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I don’t know if maybe it was I don’t say like I don’t know what the word I’m looking for

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is.

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I don’t know, but like people were like, oh, canned fish or canned chicken or whatever.

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But I feel like there’s new life with that.

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And I love to make salmon burgers and I use canned salmon.

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I get the boneless because I am I cannot stand to pick the bones out of there.

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But they can’t they can’t salmon boneless check the can unless you want to pick bones

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out.

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So inexpensive.

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And it’s great, like you said, great protein.

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And you can really make a delicious meal with some of those things.

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Oh, yeah, for sure.

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And like, I’m not a big canned tuna or canned salmon person, like just having it out and

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putting it on something like.

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Yeah, I’ve always been a little a little weird about that.

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But there’s a ton of really like you were saying, great recipes that you can make with

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it like salmon patties or burgers or fritters or whatever you want to call them.

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So, yeah, it’s just getting you know, you’ve got to kind of like I know.

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Yeah.

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Yeah.

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Step outside.

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Step outside your brain for a minute there.

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Exactly.

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And then just get creative with it because it really can be a less expensive option,

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but really good and nourishing for you, too.

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So and it’s kind of the same thing with with beans.

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So beans are one of my favorites.

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They’re super affordable.

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They’re an excellent source of fiber, protein, key nutrients like iron, calcium, magnesium,

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phosphorus.

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And they are a really great way to like add more plant based protein source to your meal.

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But of course, saving money because you’re not having to use as much meat.

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Right.

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If you’re not ready to kind of like make that swap to having, you know, more of a full plant

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based meal, I would like to encourage people to do half.

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So maybe like if you’re doing tacos, like add in a little bit of black beans with those.

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Or maybe if you’re making burgers, add some lentils into your burgers.

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So that way you’re, you know, still getting that protein and that fiber, which will help

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to fill you up.

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But you’re also able to significantly cut the amount of animal protein that you’re using,

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which will help to save your brain, too.

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I know that our our vice president here at Healthy Family Project, she does a lot of

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with her taco meat, she blends mushrooms.

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So she does a lot of the blending with the taco meat, which I need to do more of because

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I feel like there’s a lot you could do there.

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Oh, my gosh.

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There’s so much.

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And like even like if you’re doing chicken, you could do like a white bean or chickpea

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or something like that.

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So that way it’s kind of a little bit more similar color wise.

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Something tells me you’ve interacted with people who are selective eaters.

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Oh, and a lot of it is we eat with our eyes.

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So like you want it to look kind of similar to what you’re used to.

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So that can be no matter what age you are.

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I’m telling you, I runs the it’s not just the kids.

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No, it’s not.

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I’m guilty of it, too.

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Like I thought I’ve got my weird thing, so I can understand.

328

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Yeah.

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00:20:17,880 –> 00:20:18,880

All right.

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So we kind of talked about that protein.

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So now we can move into the produce.

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So the first tip is going to be look for seasonal in season produce is typically less expensive

333

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because it’s more available.

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So more eco friendly and tasty, you all have a great guy.

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00:20:39,800 –> 00:20:44,240

We I’m telling you, it’s hilarious because I tell this.

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00:20:44,240 –> 00:20:49,680

My daughter loves my youngest love strawberries and there’s strawberries.

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We’re fortunate here in Florida.

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But to have we have two growing seasons.

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So besides like the heat of the summer, there’s always something growing here.

340

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But I tell her about strawberries.

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There’s a little time frame.

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I’m like, OK, first of all, strawberries are way too expensive right now and they’re not

343

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going to taste as good and they go bad really fast.

344

00:21:15,380 –> 00:21:20,440

So can you just wait until like mid January?

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And so it was funny that we’re talking about this because last night in my grocery order,

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I had two pints of strawberries and she was standing there and she goes, you are so right.

347

00:21:31,000 –> 00:21:33,400

She was like, these are the best strawberries.

348

00:21:33,400 –> 00:21:34,400

She’s showing me.

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Look at this.

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Look how beautiful they are.

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00:21:36,400 –> 00:21:42,360

And I said, yes, I told you if you could just wait two weeks, you know, she was like, makes

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all the like enamored, which I was just like, yes, this is when I tell you, she was like,

353

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looks where they’re from.

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And she’s like, oh, because where we’re located, she’s like, look, this is only like an hour

355

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away.

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And I’m like, yes, that’s awesome.

357

00:21:58,200 –> 00:22:01,840

Yeah, it really does make a difference.

358

00:22:01,840 –> 00:22:03,520

So that’s, that’s wonderful.

359

00:22:03,520 –> 00:22:09,000

I love the resource that y’all have to on the healthy project, family project page.

360

00:22:09,000 –> 00:22:13,040

You’ve got it broken down by months, which makes it super convenient.

361

00:22:13,040 –> 00:22:20,000

Well, and I think because things are accessible all year round, which for me growing up, it

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00:22:20,000 –> 00:22:29,560

was back in my day in the stone age, my kids like to think we really only had certain things

363

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at certain times of the year.

364

00:22:31,000 –> 00:22:33,800

Like they were, I was in Southwestern Pennsylvania.

365

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We you know, kind of a rural area too.

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So that added an extra element of accessibility to things.

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00:22:40,120 –> 00:22:46,560

But we really didn’t have the way that I think kids now go into the produce department and

368

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you see every almost everything every time you’re in there.

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And so it’s hard to decipher, you know, until you see the cost or if you really pay attention

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to the cost or you start really paying attention to the flavor or the, you know, country of

371

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origin or those types of things, not to stress anyone out and put too much work behind it.

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But I mean, it is, you know, just look at our, our, like you said, our graphic on our

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website.

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If you take a peek at that, you’ll be able to save money.

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And I know with selective eaters having, having one, if you’re going to give someone something

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to try for the first time, it’s better that it’s in season.

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Season’s peak, because you may not get that chance again.

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You know, if you get them to say, yes, I’m going to try this cantaloupe or whatever it

379

00:23:40,400 –> 00:23:45,000

might be, you’re going to want it to be, you want it to be good.

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00:23:45,000 –> 00:23:46,000

Yeah.

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Like I said, you may, you probably won’t get that chance again, or if you do, it’s going

382

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to be really hard.

383

00:23:50,960 –> 00:23:52,960

So that it’s like a first impression, right?

384

00:23:52,960 –> 00:23:57,680

You always say, you know, it’s hard to reverse a first impression.

385

00:23:57,680 –> 00:24:00,800

So I think that’s kind of aligns with that as well.

386

00:24:00,800 –> 00:24:01,800

Sure.

387

00:24:01,800 –> 00:24:02,800

Yeah.

388

00:24:02,800 –> 00:24:10,360

So we want to look for end season and then go with canned or frozen fruits and veggies.

389

00:24:10,360 –> 00:24:14,960

There’s nothing wrong with our canned or frozen produce.

390

00:24:14,960 –> 00:24:20,160

And it’s usually either canned or frozen at the peak of the season.

391

00:24:20,160 –> 00:24:26,080

So it is going to be, you know, better or sweeter or, or whatever, just because whenever

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00:24:26,080 –> 00:24:31,920

they pro or they process it, it is at its peak season.

393

00:24:31,920 –> 00:24:35,480

And it can save you a good bit of money.

394

00:24:35,480 –> 00:24:40,520

And it’s usually like, as long as you’re looking for ones, you know, that don’t have as much

395

00:24:40,520 –> 00:24:45,520

added salt to it or sugar or syrups or anything like that.

396

00:24:45,520 –> 00:24:52,920

A lot of times it’s just, you know, frozen berries or frozen green beans or maybe, you

397

00:24:52,920 –> 00:24:55,560

know, beans and water.

398

00:24:55,560 –> 00:24:58,560

So it’s basically the same thing.

399

00:24:58,560 –> 00:25:00,040

It’s just in a different form.

400

00:25:00,040 –> 00:25:02,480

And, but it’s so much less expensive.

401

00:25:02,480 –> 00:25:04,720

And so I feel like it can be a great option.

402

00:25:04,720 –> 00:25:11,120

You have tips on, cause I know we get this question a lot around the canned fruits and

403

00:25:11,120 –> 00:25:13,160

I guess the veggies too with the salt.

404

00:25:13,160 –> 00:25:20,720

So what I’ve heard is that by rinsing your canned veggies, you cut the salt in half.

405

00:25:20,720 –> 00:25:22,660

I don’t remember where I heard that or where I read that.

406

00:25:22,660 –> 00:25:27,560

So please no one call me out that I am sharing lies.

407

00:25:27,560 –> 00:25:30,360

Maybe Chelsea, you can like, I got expert.

408

00:25:30,360 –> 00:25:31,360

Okay, good.

409

00:25:31,360 –> 00:25:32,360

I got you.

410

00:25:32,360 –> 00:25:33,360

Back me up.

411

00:25:33,360 –> 00:25:40,040

So by rinsing your canned vegetables, it’ll actually get 40% of the salt off of it.

412

00:25:40,040 –> 00:25:41,040

I was close.

413

00:25:41,040 –> 00:25:42,040

I was super close.

414

00:25:42,040 –> 00:25:43,040

Yeah.

415

00:25:43,040 –> 00:25:44,040

40% of the salt.

416

00:25:44,040 –> 00:25:49,200

So, I mean, that’s significant because really like, whenever you look at it, you know, it

417

00:25:49,200 –> 00:25:55,480

might have 130, a hundred, like maybe, maybe let’s just say 200 milligrams of sodium on

418

00:25:55,480 –> 00:26:00,280

it, but by rinsing, you know, draining it and rinsing them, you’re significantly bringing

419

00:26:00,280 –> 00:26:01,280

that down.

420

00:26:01,280 –> 00:26:08,400

That’s nothing in comparison to so many other foods that have a much higher sodium content.

421

00:26:08,400 –> 00:26:10,520

So, so what about fruits?

422

00:26:10,520 –> 00:26:12,880

Is there something we should look for on the can?

423

00:26:12,880 –> 00:26:18,560

That’s like, I know some of them say in 100% fruit juice or whatever.

424

00:26:18,560 –> 00:26:19,560

Yeah.

425

00:26:19,560 –> 00:26:24,040

So I would look, I would first love to see if you can find ones that are canned in water,

426

00:26:24,040 –> 00:26:27,480

because you know that you’re not going to get any additional sugar from that.

427

00:26:27,480 –> 00:26:31,840

The next thing to look for if you’re not seeing the water is the fruit juice and its natural

428

00:26:31,840 –> 00:26:32,840

juices.

429

00:26:32,840 –> 00:26:37,640

Trying to avoid the ones that are canned in syrups or anything like that, because that’ll

430

00:26:37,640 –> 00:26:41,280

definitely add more sugar to those things.

431

00:26:41,280 –> 00:26:43,880

But once again, you can rinse them too.

432

00:26:43,880 –> 00:26:47,040

And it’s the same thing with the fruit juice and all that kind of stuff.

433

00:26:47,040 –> 00:26:51,400

You can rinse that off and that’ll help to cut back on some of the sugar.

434

00:26:51,400 –> 00:26:52,400

Okay.

435

00:26:52,400 –> 00:26:53,400

Perfect.

436

00:26:53,400 –> 00:26:54,400

Yeah.

437

00:26:54,400 –> 00:27:00,800

And I know too, that we were talking about before, before we started the podcast, just

438

00:27:00,800 –> 00:27:04,920

how different grocery stores in different places have different prices.

439

00:27:04,920 –> 00:27:05,920

Oh yeah.

440

00:27:05,920 –> 00:27:06,920

Yeah.

441

00:27:06,920 –> 00:27:15,040

I shop at, I think yesterday I was at three different grocery stores.

442

00:27:15,040 –> 00:27:16,040

Yeah.

443

00:27:16,040 –> 00:27:17,720

It really makes a difference.

444

00:27:17,720 –> 00:27:20,400

Like I know that you were saying you were doing a little bit of Aldi.

445

00:27:20,400 –> 00:27:21,400

Yeah.

446

00:27:21,400 –> 00:27:25,520

I was doing a little bit of an Aldi for my produce because it’s just significantly less

447

00:27:25,520 –> 00:27:26,520

expensive.

448

00:27:26,520 –> 00:27:29,320

Is that kind of what you found too?

449

00:27:29,320 –> 00:27:30,320

Yes.

450

00:27:30,320 –> 00:27:32,440

I do some shopping at Aldi.

451

00:27:32,440 –> 00:27:35,040

I can’t do my full list there.

452

00:27:35,040 –> 00:27:36,920

My family, they’re creatures of habit.

453

00:27:36,920 –> 00:27:39,560

There’s, I mean, there are certain things that they do like from there, but there are

454

00:27:39,560 –> 00:27:42,560

certain brands they like from other places.

455

00:27:42,560 –> 00:27:51,240

But I will say there’s also a Hispanic grocery store in our area as well that has amazing

456

00:27:51,240 –> 00:27:52,240

produce that.

457

00:27:52,240 –> 00:27:53,960

Oh, that’s awesome.

458

00:27:53,960 –> 00:27:54,960

Yes.

459

00:27:54,960 –> 00:28:01,480

I stopped in there to, they’re fairly new, but someone had told me they had a great hot

460

00:28:01,480 –> 00:28:04,880

bar and I was in a pinch.

461

00:28:04,880 –> 00:28:06,800

I was in a pinch for dinner.

462

00:28:06,800 –> 00:28:10,520

So I was driving, I’m like, you know what, I’m going to run in there and see what they

463

00:28:10,520 –> 00:28:11,520

have.

464

00:28:11,520 –> 00:28:13,440

And so of course I cruise through the produce department.

465

00:28:13,440 –> 00:28:14,680

I have to check it all out.

466

00:28:14,680 –> 00:28:19,000

And I’m like, Oh my gosh, these prices are really great.

467

00:28:19,000 –> 00:28:21,320

And really, I mean, quality produce.

468

00:28:21,320 –> 00:28:28,640

So I feel like that’s, I mean, it’s going to take a little bit of extra time, but again,

469

00:28:28,640 –> 00:28:30,600

if I can go to Greece, right.

470

00:28:30,600 –> 00:28:32,640

Like, yeah.

471

00:28:32,640 –> 00:28:33,640

Yeah.

472

00:28:33,640 –> 00:28:34,640

Yeah.

473

00:28:34,640 –> 00:28:40,360

So it’s kind of like a time versus cost thing.

474

00:28:40,360 –> 00:28:43,760

And like you said, like, I want to go to Greece too.

475

00:28:43,760 –> 00:28:48,280

So yeah, seriously, I know everybody needs to put like, whatever your goal is, maybe

476

00:28:48,280 –> 00:28:49,280

it’s not Greece.

477

00:28:49,280 –> 00:28:53,360

Maybe it’s just like, go, I don’t know, go to the beach or stay over.

478

00:28:53,360 –> 00:28:57,360

So, I mean, for me, it’s all about travel and going and seeing things, but whatever

479

00:28:57,360 –> 00:29:02,160

it is for you, I feel like, what is it worth?

480

00:29:02,160 –> 00:29:06,000

You know, it’s like, okay, save a little bit of money.

481

00:29:06,000 –> 00:29:10,440

And now I used to, when I would just go to one grocery store, I used to feel like, well,

482

00:29:10,440 –> 00:29:14,680

I can’t go anywhere else because I know this gross, like I can go exactly where I need

483

00:29:14,680 –> 00:29:15,680

to go.

484

00:29:15,680 –> 00:29:17,360

I’m like, I’m like a ninja in here.

485

00:29:17,360 –> 00:29:20,320

I could tell you like exactly where everything is.

486

00:29:20,320 –> 00:29:26,040

But I mean, once you step out of that and go somewhere new, you’re going to learn where

487

00:29:26,040 –> 00:29:27,040

you learn it quickly.

488

00:29:27,040 –> 00:29:28,040

Yeah.

489

00:29:28,040 –> 00:29:29,040

Yeah, it is.

490

00:29:29,040 –> 00:29:30,040

I do.

491

00:29:30,040 –> 00:29:35,800

I do know what you mean because it is a little like going somewhere new and you’re like,

492

00:29:35,800 –> 00:29:39,240

oh, I don’t know if they’re going to have this or whatever.

493

00:29:39,240 –> 00:29:40,580

You will crack up.

494

00:29:40,580 –> 00:29:42,120

This is the first time I’m sharing this.

495

00:29:42,120 –> 00:29:44,280

This is like a vulnerable moment for me.

496

00:29:44,280 –> 00:29:50,160

I have Googled in a grocery store because I feel like embarrassed to ask, which don’t

497

00:29:50,160 –> 00:29:51,400

feel embarrassed to ask people.

498

00:29:51,400 –> 00:29:53,080

This is just me and my own problems.

499

00:29:53,080 –> 00:29:59,560

But I have Googled like, where would I find the blank in a grocery store?

500

00:29:59,560 –> 00:30:03,480

And it’s like, actually, these are typically found near the whatever.

501

00:30:03,480 –> 00:30:05,000

And I’m like, okay, I know where those are.

502

00:30:05,000 –> 00:30:07,320

And I like, I go there.

503

00:30:07,320 –> 00:30:11,800

But yeah, ask your ask your people in the store because they’re super knowledgeable

504

00:30:11,800 –> 00:30:14,580

and can usually point you in the right direction.

505

00:30:14,580 –> 00:30:16,680

Or you can Google it like me.

506

00:30:16,680 –> 00:30:19,400

Hey, you know, either way works.

507

00:30:19,400 –> 00:30:23,880

Oh, my gosh, I love that.

508

00:30:23,880 –> 00:30:24,880

Oh, man.

509

00:30:24,880 –> 00:30:30,440

But but yeah, so we talked about the protein, we talked about the produce.

510

00:30:30,440 –> 00:30:34,400

The next step is going to be buying generic or store brand.

511

00:30:34,400 –> 00:30:40,560

Once again, nothing wrong with going with the generic options, especially for things

512

00:30:40,560 –> 00:30:44,840

like our salt, sugar, dried pasta, rice.

513

00:30:44,840 –> 00:30:45,840

Right.

514

00:30:45,840 –> 00:30:54,320

They literally have the same ingredients as you know, I know I, I had to learn this, my

515

00:30:54,320 –> 00:31:00,760

my husband would actually stand there and show me the you know, the ingredients and

516

00:31:00,760 –> 00:31:04,800

the nutrition labels and I’m like, okay, they are exactly the same, actually.

517

00:31:04,800 –> 00:31:09,680

I’m like, well, there has to be something added in there needs like, no.

518

00:31:09,680 –> 00:31:15,440

And now some things I like, I will say that there are some things that like, I taste the

519

00:31:15,440 –> 00:31:19,040

difference in generic versus the brand name.

520

00:31:19,040 –> 00:31:20,960

And so like, I end up getting the brand name.

521

00:31:20,960 –> 00:31:25,640

But there’s a lot that you just really can’t tell the difference.

522

00:31:25,640 –> 00:31:28,520

And I had a statistic somewhere.

523

00:31:28,520 –> 00:31:31,120

I think that it’s that American spend.

524

00:31:31,120 –> 00:31:34,640

I want to say it was like, don’t don’t pull me on this.

525

00:31:34,640 –> 00:31:37,760

I was gonna say be careful, Chelsea.

526

00:31:37,760 –> 00:31:38,760

I know.

527

00:31:38,760 –> 00:31:48,080

It was like billions of dollars extra, like on generic or on brand name foods versus just

528

00:31:48,080 –> 00:31:49,800

the generic product.

529

00:31:49,800 –> 00:31:53,160

And it’s like, yeah, why?

530

00:31:53,160 –> 00:31:54,160

Yeah.

531

00:31:54,160 –> 00:32:02,000

And like you said, I think it’s just all the case of trying it, comparing the labels and

532

00:32:02,000 –> 00:32:04,880

then deciding again, where’s your scale?

533

00:32:04,880 –> 00:32:10,800

You know, for us, there’s several yogurt brands, which I agree.

534

00:32:10,800 –> 00:32:12,120

I got to buy the brand.

535

00:32:12,120 –> 00:32:13,120

I am trying to.

536

00:32:13,120 –> 00:32:14,120

I do.

537

00:32:14,120 –> 00:32:15,120

I taste the difference.

538

00:32:15,120 –> 00:32:20,120

And I don’t really, the price, I’m like, you know what, it has to cut somewhere else because

539

00:32:20,120 –> 00:32:22,080

this is the yogurt we want to buy.

540

00:32:22,080 –> 00:32:27,000

But yeah, I think that you just kind of look at that and say like, what are my, like, these

541

00:32:27,000 –> 00:32:28,280

are the things here.

542

00:32:28,280 –> 00:32:32,000

And then these are the other things that can kind of go into this bucket.

543

00:32:32,000 –> 00:32:33,000

So, yeah, for sure.

544

00:32:33,000 –> 00:32:36,680

Sure.

545

00:32:36,680 –> 00:32:42,720

And then my final tip, and this might sound like a silly one at first, is don’t shop hungry.

546

00:32:42,720 –> 00:32:46,160

I just saw it over here on my screen.

547

00:32:46,160 –> 00:32:53,160

That is not a silly tip because I will tell you what shopping hungry will do.

548

00:32:53,160 –> 00:32:58,880

And it is not good shopping hungry alone or shopping hungry with my kids.

549

00:32:58,880 –> 00:33:01,120

It’s like, oh my goodness.

550

00:33:01,120 –> 00:33:02,120

Oh yeah.

551

00:33:02,120 –> 00:33:03,120

Yep.

552

00:33:03,120 –> 00:33:07,800

I feel like everything, you know, the chips, the cookies, everything just looks a lot more

553

00:33:07,800 –> 00:33:11,040

tempting whenever you’re hungry.

554

00:33:11,040 –> 00:33:12,040

Yeah.

555

00:33:12,040 –> 00:33:13,840

It really does.

556

00:33:13,840 –> 00:33:18,040

That candy bar looks delicious or oh my gosh, those cookies.

557

00:33:18,040 –> 00:33:21,000

Like, oh my goodness, I need those.

558

00:33:21,000 –> 00:33:28,040

We always get the two for one, two for a dollar smart food popcorn at the register gets me

559

00:33:28,040 –> 00:33:29,040

every time.

560

00:33:29,040 –> 00:33:32,680

I’m like, how many of these do I need?

561

00:33:32,680 –> 00:33:33,680

They’re a dollar.

562

00:33:33,680 –> 00:33:37,440

But at least you’re picking, you know, fiber filled options.

563

00:33:37,440 –> 00:33:40,440

So that’s good.

564

00:33:40,440 –> 00:33:47,840

But yeah, so making sure that, you know, it could be something as simple as like keeping

565

00:33:47,840 –> 00:33:51,760

like a pack of nuts or a protein bar or something like that in your purse.

566

00:33:51,760 –> 00:33:56,520

So that way, like if you enter into the grocery store and you’re like, I’m a little hungry,

567

00:33:56,520 –> 00:33:57,520

just snack on that.

568

00:33:57,520 –> 00:34:00,120

Yeah, that way it’ll help.

569

00:34:00,120 –> 00:34:03,160

I’ve been doing that actually.

570

00:34:03,160 –> 00:34:08,120

I am which this will be a little brand plug for them.

571

00:34:08,120 –> 00:34:10,080

But nature’s bakery.

572

00:34:10,080 –> 00:34:14,160

I grew up on Fig Newton’s, which I just I love Fig.

573

00:34:14,160 –> 00:34:15,840

I will always love Fig Newton’s.

574

00:34:15,840 –> 00:34:16,840

Yeah.

575

00:34:16,840 –> 00:34:23,080

But nature’s bakery, they make Fig bars that are delicious and they truly fill me up.

576

00:34:23,080 –> 00:34:28,440

Like there’s two two bars in a pack and I have been doing that.

577

00:34:28,440 –> 00:34:36,040

I actually have been keeping one in my car, one in my one in my bag, just so I am not

578

00:34:36,040 –> 00:34:37,960

like one.

579

00:34:37,960 –> 00:34:42,680

So I’m not like passing out hungry, but also so that I am not either going into the grocery

580

00:34:42,680 –> 00:34:49,960

store or making decisions on food purchases, you know, based off of me being hungry, because

581

00:34:49,960 –> 00:34:55,120

sometimes I feel like in life, just like, which is bad, but moving so quickly, especially

582

00:34:55,120 –> 00:35:01,320

for me, when I’m by myself and I don’t have anybody else to feed, I’m not often I’m just

583

00:35:01,320 –> 00:35:02,560

like, just keep going.

584

00:35:02,560 –> 00:35:03,560

You’re good.

585

00:35:03,560 –> 00:35:04,560

You’re good.

586

00:35:04,560 –> 00:35:05,560

You’re going to eat soon.

587

00:35:05,560 –> 00:35:06,560

Not.

588

00:35:06,560 –> 00:35:07,560

Don’t do that.

589

00:35:07,560 –> 00:35:13,120

Chelsea will tell you that’s not I will tell you I am working on it.

590

00:35:13,120 –> 00:35:18,160

It’s one of my New Year’s resolutions to keep myself feeling full.

591

00:35:18,160 –> 00:35:19,160

So.

592

00:35:19,160 –> 00:35:20,160

I’m not like I’m not getting married yet.

593

00:35:20,160 –> 00:35:25,880

Yeah, it’s important, but it’s hard to do like even me, I guess, a dietitian, like like

594

00:35:25,880 –> 00:35:28,680

you said, like you get busy and you’re you’re go, go, go.

595

00:35:28,680 –> 00:35:33,520

And then you’re like, oh, my gosh, it’s already two o’clock and I haven’t had lunch yet.

596

00:35:33,520 –> 00:35:38,920

And so, yeah, so keep them keeping snacks like that on hand is a really good way to

597

00:35:38,920 –> 00:35:39,920

make sure.

598

00:35:39,920 –> 00:35:42,320

Hey, this is going to be our next podcast episode.

599

00:35:42,320 –> 00:35:43,320

I know.

600

00:35:43,320 –> 00:35:47,280

I’m like, OK, we can segue into a whole new topic.

601

00:35:47,280 –> 00:35:48,280

I know.

602

00:35:48,280 –> 00:35:53,480

Seriously, I know my neighbor is a health and wellness coach and she’s on me all the

603

00:35:53,480 –> 00:35:55,320

time when I see her out walking the dog.

604

00:35:55,320 –> 00:35:56,840

She’s like, what do you eat for breakfast?

605

00:35:56,840 –> 00:36:05,880

I’m like, um, she’s like, you know, you need to eat every, you know, every meal and you

606

00:36:05,880 –> 00:36:09,200

need to have a certain amount of nutrients.

607

00:36:09,200 –> 00:36:10,880

Oh, no.

608

00:36:10,880 –> 00:36:11,880

OK.

609

00:36:11,880 –> 00:36:16,640

So I like trying to make it a point to get that food in.

610

00:36:16,640 –> 00:36:19,880

But, OK, so we covered a lot today.

611

00:36:19,880 –> 00:36:23,240

I think that we.

612

00:36:23,240 –> 00:36:24,400

Anybody listening can walk away.

613

00:36:24,400 –> 00:36:26,400

These are some really great tips.

614

00:36:26,400 –> 00:36:34,040

And I do honestly think that everybody can eat healthy and on a budget and it’s doable.

615

00:36:34,040 –> 00:36:36,280

Yeah, for sure.

616

00:36:36,280 –> 00:36:37,280

Definitely.

617

00:36:37,280 –> 00:36:38,280

OK.

618

00:36:38,280 –> 00:36:45,000

So before you go, I have to do a quick this or that with you.

619

00:36:45,000 –> 00:36:46,000

Yeah.

620

00:36:46,000 –> 00:36:47,480

My kids have been doing this.

621

00:36:47,480 –> 00:36:49,280

We’ve been doing this at dinnertime.

622

00:36:49,280 –> 00:36:54,920

Actually, it’s a fun, especially if you have older kids who are starting to talk less.

623

00:36:54,920 –> 00:36:56,240

I don’t have that.

624

00:36:56,240 –> 00:36:59,160

My kids became teenagers and everyone said they’re going to stop.

625

00:36:59,160 –> 00:37:01,120

They’re going to stop talking to you.

626

00:37:01,120 –> 00:37:03,240

And I’m like, when does that happen?

627

00:37:03,240 –> 00:37:05,240

Because it does happen.

628

00:37:05,240 –> 00:37:06,240

Yeah.

629

00:37:06,240 –> 00:37:12,400

Not that I’m not that I wish for them not to talk to me, but I’m also like, oh, my gosh,

630

00:37:12,400 –> 00:37:14,840

they’ve been talking for 16 years straight.

631

00:37:14,840 –> 00:37:16,960

I don’t know.

632

00:37:16,960 –> 00:37:17,960

So anyway, this is a fun.

633

00:37:17,960 –> 00:37:18,960

You might miss that.

634

00:37:18,960 –> 00:37:25,240

I know someday it’s going to be so quiet and I’m not going to know what to do.

635

00:37:25,240 –> 00:37:30,040

So I feel like this is a good fun thing to do with your kids at the dinner table.

636

00:37:30,040 –> 00:37:32,560

So I’m going to go through here and you’re going to tell you’re going to have to pick

637

00:37:32,560 –> 00:37:33,560

one of these.

638

00:37:33,560 –> 00:37:34,560

OK.

639

00:37:34,560 –> 00:37:35,560

OK, sounds good.

640

00:37:35,560 –> 00:37:36,560

So fun.

641

00:37:36,560 –> 00:37:37,560

All right.

642

00:37:37,560 –> 00:37:38,560

OK.

643

00:37:38,560 –> 00:37:39,560

Coffee or tea?

644

00:37:39,560 –> 00:37:40,560

Coffee, for sure.

645

00:37:40,560 –> 00:37:41,560

Mountains or beach?

646

00:37:41,560 –> 00:37:42,560

Beach.

647

00:37:42,560 –> 00:37:43,560

Tacos or hamburger?

648

00:37:43,560 –> 00:37:45,120

Tacos or hamburger?

649

00:37:45,120 –> 00:37:48,240

Oh, this one’s tough.

650

00:37:48,240 –> 00:37:53,640

I feel like I eat more tacos and make more tacos, but I love a good cheeseburger.

651

00:37:53,640 –> 00:37:54,640

So cheeseburger.

652

00:37:54,640 –> 00:37:55,640

All right.

653

00:37:55,640 –> 00:37:58,320

This is an interesting one.

654

00:37:58,320 –> 00:38:05,400

So are the cups in your cupboard right side up or upside down?

655

00:38:05,400 –> 00:38:08,520

They are.

656

00:38:08,520 –> 00:38:12,360

Right side up and my cupboard is super full.

657

00:38:12,360 –> 00:38:14,880

So there are cups within the cups.

658

00:38:14,880 –> 00:38:19,480

That’s an extra element of this, this or that.

659

00:38:19,480 –> 00:38:22,200

I got to add that for the next guest.

660

00:38:22,200 –> 00:38:23,880

All right.

661

00:38:23,880 –> 00:38:27,640

Do you prefer phone call or text?

662

00:38:27,640 –> 00:38:33,240

I prefer phone call, but I text more.

663

00:38:33,240 –> 00:38:35,280

And then pancake or waffle?

664

00:38:35,280 –> 00:38:36,280

Cake.

665

00:38:36,280 –> 00:38:37,280

OK.

666

00:38:37,280 –> 00:38:43,720

So my daughter was my youngest, I was sharing some of these with her and she was like, why

667

00:38:43,720 –> 00:38:46,440

didn’t you ask for French toast also in there?

668

00:38:46,440 –> 00:38:49,440

I’m like, OK, I’m sorry.

669

00:38:49,440 –> 00:38:50,440

Good.

670

00:38:50,440 –> 00:38:56,680

I still pick pancake, but yeah, those are so fun.

671

00:38:56,680 –> 00:38:57,680

I love that.

672

00:38:57,680 –> 00:39:02,480

What a fun thing to do at the dinner table, too, because there’s, I mean, so many different

673

00:39:02,480 –> 00:39:04,080

categories that you can.

674

00:39:04,080 –> 00:39:05,080

Yes.

675

00:39:05,080 –> 00:39:08,680

I was searching through because I wanted to start doing something fun like that on the

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00:39:08,680 –> 00:39:09,680

podcast.

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00:39:09,680 –> 00:39:14,840

And I thought, wow, there are so many things and so many questions like that that are so

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00:39:14,840 –> 00:39:15,840

fun.

679

00:39:15,840 –> 00:39:21,160

So well, thank you for joining me today to kick off the new year.

680

00:39:21,160 –> 00:39:24,080

And I know we’re heading into National Nutrition Month.

681

00:39:24,080 –> 00:39:29,040

So I think that shopping on a budget will be top of mind and shopping healthy.

682

00:39:29,040 –> 00:39:31,320

So thank you for all your tips.

683

00:39:31,320 –> 00:39:34,480

Now, can you tell everybody listening and watching?

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00:39:34,480 –> 00:39:37,200

I’m going to do a little bit of a background video now.

685

00:39:37,200 –> 00:39:40,080

Can you tell everybody where they can find and connect with you?

686

00:39:40,080 –> 00:39:41,080

Yeah, absolutely.

687

00:39:41,080 –> 00:39:43,600

Thank you so much for having me.

688

00:39:43,600 –> 00:39:49,560

So you can find me on Instagram and Facebook at Chelsea LeBlanc and then the letters are

689

00:39:49,560 –> 00:39:55,080

D.N. and then my website is just Chelsea LeBlanc, RDN.com.

690

00:39:55,080 –> 00:40:00,560

I also have a free budget friendly meal plan or meal plan on my website.

691

00:40:00,560 –> 00:40:02,800

And you are welcome to download that if you’re interested.

692

00:40:02,800 –> 00:40:06,240

Just to kind of help you get started with the meal planning.

693

00:40:06,240 –> 00:40:09,480

And it’s got some great recipes and a grocery list.

694

00:40:09,480 –> 00:40:11,960

I’ll make a little bit easier to.

695

00:40:11,960 –> 00:40:12,960

Yeah.

696

00:40:12,960 –> 00:40:18,320

OK, so we’ll definitely if you’re listening, not watching, we’ll I’m going to get used

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00:40:18,320 –> 00:40:19,560

to this.

698

00:40:19,560 –> 00:40:21,640

We will link to it in the show notes.

699

00:40:21,640 –> 00:40:25,760

But I guess if you’re watching, you’ll have the show notes somewhere here below.

700

00:40:25,760 –> 00:40:27,960

Oh, I got to start doing that.

701

00:40:27,960 –> 00:40:30,080

Check out the comments.

702

00:40:30,080 –> 00:40:36,440

So so now as we close out, please leave us a rating.

703

00:40:36,440 –> 00:40:42,280

If you like the Healthy Family Project podcast, please leave us a rating in a comment.

704

00:40:42,280 –> 00:40:46,640

It’ll only help us to continue to create a healthier generation.

705

00:40:46,640 –> 00:40:50,640

You can find me in the Healthy Family Project Facebook group.

706

00:40:50,640 –> 00:40:54,040

If you haven’t joined, please go ahead and join.

707

00:40:54,040 –> 00:40:59,600

And then you can find Healthy Family Project on all of the social media outlets out there.

708

00:40:59,600 –> 00:41:04,320

There’s a long list of them, so I’m not going to list them, but we’re on all of them.

709

00:41:04,320 –> 00:41:06,520

I love it.

710

00:41:06,520 –> 00:41:08,240

Well, thank you so much, Chelsea.

711

00:41:08,240 –> 00:41:09,760

It was great to talk to you today.

712

00:41:09,760 –> 00:41:10,760

Thank you.

713

00:41:10,760 –> 00:41:13,280

It was so great talking with you, Amanda.

714

00:41:13,280 –> 00:41:14,280

Be sure to subscribe.

715

00:41:14,280 –> 00:41:29,920

Talk soon.