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Target chit chat
July 25, 2007 at
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Welcome to the Target Chat thread. This thread is for everyone, and is for off topic chat. Which more often than not pertains to poop 
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I need CANNED pasta sauce for can-a-thon to go with the oodles of pasta for the foodbank. Hunt's is on sale at Publix this week...
When will you hear from the test?
any
Oh, you and me both! I am in a semi-depressed state, because my sister and I were supposed to do an awesome church sale tomorrow, but since its outdoors, its been rescheduled. For next week, when our church is doing a couples' conference and so we can't do it. grrrrr...
.
Since we don't get snow often, we always look forward to it..
they do other things
so what do you say, rabbit, you lookin' to be a babe?
I got a store model special on little metal swingset at WM and used some overage to pay for it.
DD had her jaw surgery. At her checkup, doc said it looked pretty good but this morning she told me she was having sharp pains like before and they were worse than the pain she remebers. I am hoping it's just because she's started some chewier foods and not that the darn surgery didn't take for the 2nd time. I have no idea what we'd do if it doesn't take this time.
GG - I've been trying to do some research on eating healthier and trying to figure out how to inspire my family to the same kind of thinking. My biggest issue (after getting family on board) is budget. We have an Earthfare nearby and a couple of local little shops, but no other "health" stores. What seems to be a reasonable cost per person to go toward more organic and less pre-packaged things? We had been doing well for a while, but seems like with the end of my pregnancy with Mavis and after we slipped into some bad habits. Just wondering if it's doable here.
cold, rain. supposed to snow later? i don't think i've ever seen snow b4 halloween.
i think we will have a nice bowl of soup for lunch!
i was up early for me after going to bed very late. but still not that early!
I've never seen snow before Halloween here! nuts!
I don't need you to call me babe
...
i've heard that love talk before - it just means you want to eat me up. not falling for it this time.
GG - I've been trying to do some research on eating healthier and trying to figure out how to inspire my family to the same kind of thinking. My biggest issue (after getting family on board) is budget. We have an Earthfare nearby and a couple of local little shops, but no other "health" stores. What seems to be a reasonable cost per person to go toward more organic and less pre-packaged things? We had been doing well for a while, but seems like with the end of my pregnancy with Mavis and after we slipped into some bad habits. Just wondering if it's doable here.
i'm in one of the most expensive areas of the country cost-of-living and real estate wise. and so you see that reflected in the prices.
on the flip side I have the benefit of Whole Foods buying things in large quantities and passing on the savings.
I think now eating organic we spend less than we did on conventional food - in part because I never couponed back then; in part because thanks to me cooking fresh, restaurant food just tastes oversalted and greasy and flavorless to us now, so we hardly ever eat out; in part because organic food deals have grown and prices come down; and in part because with a handful of ingredients I can make so many things that I don't have to keep buying boxes of things (like one bag of flour, sugar, some cocoa and vanilla, eggs and butter, will make me many more cakes for less than the cost of buying an equivalent number of organic cake mix boxes).
So here's what I've found from shopping organic:
1. Most grocery stores now carry some organic goods (atleast an aisle and a small produce area) and some things are cheaper in some stores and some in others. So it pays to shop around some and study the prices, so you can mentally know the best places for each. Before my accident I had finally learned which stores were the best to shop for what.
2. Organic produce is pretty consistently priced on some things - for example, organic cauliflowers. There are a handful of growers and suppliers nationwide. So whether I buy organic cauliflowers from Stop and Shop or Supervalu (two huge supermarket chains), or whether I get it from a small regional chain known for processed foods, or whether I get it from Whole Foods or Trader Joes, it is 3.49 a head everywhere. Ditto organic carrots. The small cut ones. Usually about 1.99 a bag. On the other hand, for something like organic mushrooms or organic herbs you see big price variations. I can get a big bunch of organic cilantro or organic parsley at Whole Foods for just 99c. At other stores you have to buy those little plastic boxes for 2.99 or some ridiculousness like that. organic mushrooms - I've seen them vary from 1.99 a box to 3.49 a box depending on the store. Obviously I like 1.99. So, once again it pays to look in your area to gauge the prices. I find that a lot of organic produce is about the same or maybe about 15-20c more than the conventional counterparts. For example conventional bananas run about 60c each in my area. And organic bananas about 79c each. Some organic produce items are cheaper than the conventional ones - herbs are a good example; organic berries I find are cheaper during special sales, and about the same otherwise and so forth.
3. From talking to people on the WF thread, I know that prices in my area are much higher than in many other areas of the country. Things that are 4.99 in their stores are 6.99 in mine.
4. You can get really great deals on boxed and jarred organic items - pasta, cereal, crackers, preserves, sauces etc. Often, with coupons and sales I can get those for free or near free. And so I'm always looking for good stock up opportunities on those pantry basics. I then use that money towards fresh produce and meats and dairy, and that really helps our budget. Also, buy in bulk. things like beans, rice, nuts etc You save a good deal that way. And I look for the beer rebates and send those off with my grocery receipts to get some money back. So that rebate money can add up to a few hundred dollars a year. Big difference. So all told, there are creative ways to really cut back on your costs.
5. earthfare is known to have some great deals and coupons. there are a few blogs that post earthfare matchups regularly. also, on facebook, there are some pages that alert you on coupon availibility for organic food coupons. most everything that is packaged (including salad greens) you can do well with coupons.
6. I would start slow, and without trying to convince your family.
So I would recommend first starting with trying to make things from scratch. So, for example, instead of canned soup, make soup at home. You can buy the beans/lentils, and some carrots, celery, tomatoes, plus dried herbs.
Or instead of bottles of salad dressing, make your own simple dressing at home. or your own cornbread. and so forth.
And then in all those foods, use organic ingredients where you can.
The taste difference in making from scratch is already huge, even without organic ingredients. Then once you pick organic produce, it just wakes up the dish like never before.
7. Here's how we started:
a) first I stopped using all canned food, after learning of BPA. that meant no soups, no canned corn, no canned pineapple or tomato sauce etc. so automatically i had to go to the fresh alternatives.
b) then i started buying organic for all thin-skinned fruits/fruits where you eat the skins. that meant berries, apples, pears, figs, stuff like that. those are the most heavily sprayed cos of high sugar content, perishability. organic milk and yogurt came along with this step.
c) then i stopped all frozen entrees that came in plastic containers. no kashi meals, no healthy choice etc. that once again meant buying more fresh alternatives. my tribe called me nuts, but now they say they can taste the plastic in the frozen food and can't eat any of it.
d) then i started buying organic veggies, greens and root veggies where we ate em with the skin or ate the greens. so carrots, celery, potatoes, tomatoes (big one), herbs, salad greens, cauliflower, asparagus, radishes, etc. organic, grass fed meats and eggs came along with this step.
e) then I switched away to organic corn and soy products to avoid GMO.
f) boxed and packaged organic foods came last, along with organic bread.
this transition for me was in part borne out of my own learning curve. i didn't have anyone to teach me what was in what, and what was bad. so i had to keep researching and learning. and every time i read something somewhere and learned more (BPA, GMO, food coloring, food preservatives etc) I made the shopping switch. but along the way I had to learn how to find the good deals, where to find coupons etc. So my order of transitioning was shaped in part by what I learned, and in part by what we used a lot. We ate a lot of fruits, and so I wanted to make that switch immediately. And from there I started prioritizing, because I started asking, what's in this food item that I don't know and wouldn't want in my body? research, deal-hunting and switching followed. Which is to say, you could do it in a different order. But I would definitely recommend doing it in steps. That will allow you to a) get used to preparing more from scratch b) help you learn prices c) help you learn where to find the coupons and savings d) help you learn what to avoid in terms of ingredients etc. It's definitely a big education, but once you absorb it, it becomes seamless and easy.
When I first started on SD in December 2009, there were hardly any organic coupons talked about, and almost no one that bought organic talked about looking for deals. I used to be laughed at, ridiculed and yelled at in grocery threads for mentioning it - people thought I was being elitist etc. Now, joyfully, the demand for organic has really grown (it's the fastest growing area of the grocery market - and the only sector of the grocery market that has grown in the recession), so you will have a much easier road in terms of finding discounts etc.
On SD you want to:
a) sign up for the Healthy and Environmental Deals thread as well as the Whole Foods thread. Even though you don't have a WF near you, you will find many kindred folks there, who routinely report coupons, as well as sales in their non WF stores. You might even ask folks there if there are any Earthfare shoppers and if they'd like a thread. that could really help you. The healthy deals thread has been slow to build momentum, but it is gradually gaining supporters. so it is worth posting there.
b) also on SD, it is worth setting up a Hot Deals deal alert for Amazon. Amazon sometimes has stupendous deals on large packs of organic/natural foods. and if you do Swagbucks or things like that, you can also use those dollars to buy organic/natural things from Vitacost, which has a store on Amazon. I did that last week.
c) on coupons.com and allyou.com you will regularly find coupons for a few particular organic brands - Muir Glen tomato products (they're owned by GM, so generally the best deals are at conventional grocery stores); Cascadian Farm (also owned by GM, same rules apply); Olivia's Organics (salad products and celery and such); Kashi cereals (usually Target has the best deals on these)
d) Mambosprouts.com offers organic coupons every month through their site. they also distribute coupon books at health food stores nationwide. I *think* earthfare carries their stuff. you can check on their website where you can find the coupon books near you. Their facebook page is very active and they're constantly doing great giveaways and such over there.
e) on FB, there is a page called Vegan Coupons. they constantly post alerts about different coupons available for printing. Mambo does that, too.
f) once you identify the major organic makers whose products you like: imagine, pacific, maranatha, santa cruz, arrowhead mills, etc etc et (there are many), it's worth checking their web pages and signing up for emails from them. Most of them have coupons on their sites and many will email you about new coupons. Many of them now have active facebook pages where they regularly post giveaways and new coupons. you can save big that way. For example, Nasoya (they make tofu products, as well as wonton wrappers and noodles), has a great coupon program. Sign up with them and they send you coupons by email every month.
g) from time to time, there are daily deals that pop up with good food discounts for buying organic groceries, or getting produce baskets or whatever. I remember last year they had great ones for nutsonline (which sells all kinds of bulk stuff) and also a place that had tons of cheeses and such. last week there was abe's market. there have been regional ones for meat and produce. if you go to dealradar.com you can sign up and specify what kind of daily deals you want to know about. dealradar scours all the daily deal sites for you, and lists the ones that may be of interest to you. very handy.
h) on SD, there is a thread on beer rebates. subscribe to it. people trade rebates there, but it's also a great place to just learn what rebates are available. and then you can look for them in your stores, or trade, or get on the bay. there are also coupons for organic products on the bay - major makers. so that's a good way to save, too.
If you made it this far, sorry for the novel!
please shout out any time I can specifically help you with anything - coupons, recipes, links to info on particular chemicals/ingredients, recommendations on products, deals, whatever. happy to share what I learned.
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It's be some time since I've set foot in a Target.
It's be some time since I've set foot in a Target.
Yay, still have my address?
You been waggin' much? I still
I actually stepped foot in a WM last night (not for overage). What was I thinking
If it wasn't for Publix (pink pan promotion for Breast Cancer Awareness) and an occasional Kroger 3 day sale, I'd be twiddling my thumbs.
I am frantically trying to use up my Olay Qs. I think I am gonna make it. I did put the CG Qs to good use!
Not much Waggin for me. Too much competition for less than stellar deals.
please shout out any time I can specifically help you with anything - coupons, recipes, links to info on particular chemicals/ingredients, recommendations on products, deals, whatever. happy to share what I learned.
Do you avoid food colorings? I think my 4 y.o. is reacting to red dyes. Her behavior escalates and she seems to be what I would consider hyperactive or unable to focus. It seems to be very bad after consuming things with red dye in them.
Funny how you mention the plastic taste of things. I have been noticing it more and more - and even a plastic smell. I have been slowly transitioning to things like glass containers, etc... but it's a lot slower than I would like. I think i need to be more patient!
Do you use microwaves at all? DH wants me to get one, but I've been hoping for a toaster oven. He's just not patient as far as waiting for things to cook/reheat.
I will sign up for mambosprouts, earthfare, and do some more research here on what is locally available. Thank you!
DD had her jaw surgery. At her checkup, doc said it looked pretty good but this morning she told me she was having sharp pains like before and they were worse than the pain she remebers. I am hoping it's just because she's started some chewier foods and not that the darn surgery didn't take for the 2nd time. I have no idea what we'd do if it doesn't take this time.
Just wondering if it's doable here.
I hope your daughter starts feeling better! I hate any issues having to do with the mouth, mainly because I hate the dentist/oral surgeon.
I got a pan of baked oatmeal prepped, ready to slip in the oven tomorrow morning. I'm kind of excited - all the reviews online of pretty much every baked oatmeal recipe I looked at just raved about how delicious it is and how much of a comfort food it is.
Hubby and I were at a youth activity this afternoon (we are youth workers for our church's youth group) and due to the weather, it was all in the gym. Dodge ball madness.
OK, time to hit the hay. 'Twas a lovely day of relaxing at home with the family, but then also getting out and socializing, AND I got to hit a RA real quick! A dream day for this girl.
'Night, all! Sweet dreams!
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Do you avoid food colorings? I think my 4 y.o. is reacting to red dyes. Her behavior escalates and she seems to be what I would consider hyperactive or unable to focus. It seems to be very bad after consuming things with red dye in them.
Funny how you mention the plastic taste of things. I have been noticing it more and more - and even a plastic smell. I have been slowly transitioning to things like glass containers, etc... but it's a lot slower than I would like. I think i need to be more patient!
Do you use microwaves at all? DH wants me to get one, but I've been hoping for a toaster oven. He's just not patient as far as waiting for things to cook/reheat.
I will sign up for mambosprouts, earthfare, and do some more research here on what is locally available. Thank you!
I just remembered that I have a few of those that need spending... oy.
you're welcome, sweets!
RED DYE:
so, red dye is a very common allergen. for example we're all allergic to it in my household. I pinpointed my allergy to red dye after taking Robitussin earlier this year - I threw up every single time. Just what you need when you're already unable to breathe and running a temp and coughing out your lungs.
There is extensive research on the impact of red dye in children, on how it causes hyperactivity, how it affects their brain chemicals, how it affects their hormones and growth patterns.
Simply put: it's nasty stuff. So, I'm not surprised at your 4yo's reaction.
Organic food, by its very definition, cannot have any artificial colorings, flavorings, preservatives or ingredients. They can't get the organic certification without that. Thus I don't have to make much of an effort to avoid red dye/artificial food colorings: we simply don't have artificial food coloring in any of our food.
We were consuming artificial colorings in some of the candy that made it into the house - things like starburst, gummies or M&Ms. No more. I stopped buying all of those after noticing the allergic reactions. I've never bought brightly colored cakes or cookies - I just can't bring myself to eat food that's turquoise or purple or whatever neon colored the baker's whim created.
And we feel much better. There are several organic and natural lines of candies that use vegetable food colorings. Wonka makes a line of gummies and sour gummies - no artificial food colorings, no HFCS. Yummy Earth makes organic lollipops (love them), hard candies and gummies - again veggie colors. There are several other companies that make natural and organic candies.
You can learn about the choices by doing two things:
a) go to amazon and under grocery > natural and organic> search for candy; you'll see all the choices
b) go to naturalcandystore.com and look through the choices there
Then you can always buy them with deals.
Wonka frequently puts out coupons. Amazon frequently has great deals on yummy earth stuff. The NaturalCandyStore has some great sales, coupons, and referral rewards.
Also, Thrifteh would be a good person to talk to about eliminating food colorings for kids via the Feingold Diet.
And, on amazon, and elsewhere (likely Earthfare, too), you can buy natural vegetable based food colorings, to use for icings, home made candy etc.
KITCHENWARE:
Yes, be patient with yourself. Albeit, I completely, completely relate to the impatience, because once I realized what was in those plastic, teflon etc kitchenware and what it did, and how it smelled/tasted, I just didn't want it in my home anymore, or put food in it anymore.
It took me about 8 months to do the major part of the transition, but I had to prioritize it.
Here's what I did:
1) First I got rid of all of our Teflon pans. At the time I had a few good quality stainless steel pans and I really liked em, but I couldn't afford a whole All-Clad or such set. So I got a set from macy's. Cuisinart Chef's Classic 17 piece set for 170. It's not triple-clad, it's just bottom clad, and so does get some hot spots. But, it still works great - I use it for all my cooking and my tribe hasn't abandoned me yet.
So you can of course do it many ways - get an affordable set and use that, and then get a few heftier pieces later.
Or, get a few hefty essential pieces and build on those. It's amazing how much better food tastes and turns out. We noticed the difference the very first week. And cooking became far less of a chore with good pans.
2) Next I took all our black OXO plastic cooking spoons and tossed em out. It meant I was forced to start making it a priority. Then using O from T, I got stainless steel Oneida cooking and servings spoons/spatula/ladles etc and using O from T, the Kohl's qs you gave me
3) Next up was cooking tools - stainless steel sieves, stainless steel colanders, glass chopping boards, things like that. I got those from Amazon using swagbucks dollars. Got rid of all plastic stuff.
4) When I threw out all Teflon, I also threw out all the tupperware containers. We never really stored much in them, but we used to use them for lunches etc, store in the freezer etc. I got rid of em. We cooked in our pyrex dishes and stored everything in the fridge in glassware - dinner bowls and mugs; or pyrex dishes all with saran wrap. Meanwhile I hunted for glass dishes that had glass lids and were freezer etc safe. I finally found em. Anchor Hocking makes what's called a bake and store dishes. Tempered glass dishes with tempered glass lids. They come in 3 sizes. They're oven, fridge, freezer, microwave and dishwasher safe. They look great to serve in on the dinner table. So I serve everything in them, and then just put a lid on it and put leftovers in fridge. We don't use saran wrap anymore. Or I make things and put in freezer as needed. I use em in the oven, and even with the broiler for a few minutes. I love them.
5) Several months ago, I bought some Lodge Logic cast iron from amazon. Like Anchor-Hocking, Lodge stuff is made in the USA, and is awesome. Their griddle is about 10 bucks on Amazon. Free Shipping with Amazon Mom Free Prime. We use the griddle all.the.time - for making pizza (tonight), for searing chicken or shrimp or meat or sausages, for pancakes, french toast etc, etc, etc. It has a bit of a lip around the edges, so you can put in marinaded meats and stuff, and the sauce doesn't leak onto the stovetop. Awesome!
so I now only cook in stainless, cast iron or glass. there are still things on my kitchen wishlist:
a) I want some more cast iron and enameled cast iron pieces
b) I want a glass blender jar and a stainless steel blender jar. the plastic one has BPA. until I get that I am only using the hand blender.
c) I want a food processor with a stainless steel bowl....
d) I want a cotton candy maker
e) I want some stainless steel cake pans and cookie sheets
f) I want a stainless steel roasting pan with rack (hello thanksgiving, you're bearing down on me!) ....
... the list goes on. it's a constant work in progress, as am I.
So yes, be patient, but also be determined and focused on changing those things (if that's what you want to do). You need the patience to get it all done and done right, but you need the urgency and drive to get it done. Without prioritizing, I know all those overage and swagbuck and paycheck dollars would have gone to other things.
MICROWAVE:
I have a microwave. I don't use it for any food. I don't like how food turns out in the microwave - unevenly heated, over heated, nutrients destroyed, burned in parts, soggy elsewhere, blah blah. Some of my tribal creatures loved the micro and used it all.the.time. And I really don't like knowing how bad it is for you. So, lately, after watching me, my tribe's habits have also changed.
We now use the microwave maybe once a month. We mostly just use it to tell time.
If/when this one dies, I won't get another one.
I really don't think it is essential.
I don't defrost anything in the microwave anymore. It invariably cooks the food. I just defrost on the countertop. Then again, I don't use a ton of frozen food. I prefer using it fresh.
But for example tonight I used frozen organic peas, cos fresh peas are hard to come by this time of year and fresh organic peas are hard to come by any time of year. I thawed them in a bowl of room temp filtered water. No big deal.
At any rate, if your DH would like one, check Craigs. people are constantly giving those away for free when they remodel kitchens or move out of apartments.
hope that helps! lovely to see you posting.