Freezer Meals

So I like saving time. And I like saving money.

So when I saw this website about freezer meals via Pinterest, I decided to give it a try.

Website: http://aturtleslifeforme.blogspot.com/2011/06/freezer-meals-on-cheap.html

(This picture is from the website, featuring LOTS of different freezer meal ideas)

I only made the ground beef - just to try bulk cooking and freezing to see how I liked the results before spending a lot of money and time making the food. I've heard of freezer meals before, but have always been kind of weirded out about cooking and THEN freezing ... usually I just buy fresh meat, freeze, and defrost, THEN cook.

But, this idea of saving time sounded SO nice.

When I say that I made these "Freezer Meals," I didn't actually make an entire meal and freeze it. Just the ground beef portion that would end up going into making spaghetti sauce, tacos, casseroles, etc when it comes time to actually put the meal together. What a breeze it'll be just to have the thawed meat ready to add to whatever ... no mess of defrosting in the micro when I get home, waiting around, cooking, or cooking up the cooking pan and utensil.

I forget just how much I spent all together on the fresh ground beef, but I waited for it to be on sale for $2.19 a pound (down from the regular $3.19 a pound). It's the 80/20 ground beef, so no, not the healthiest, but we are on a budget (and I don't feel like waiting for ground chuck to go on sale ... for over $3/lb at the sale price - no thanks!) We also don't eat very much ground beef - maybe once a week - so oh well!

At the store, I found packs that were about 2 days away from the sell by date for $1.99 a pound, so I just got those. I only get my meat from a certain store (locally owned grocery store with an award winning meat department), so I was confident the meat would be just fine. I often times buy "Today's Special" meats with the sell by date the same as the date I buy, and they're always fine!

So all together, I'd say I got around 9-10 pounds of ground beef for roughly $18.50.

I also had to buy some green peppers, carrots, and onions to cook along with the beef to add in some extra bulk, moisture for freezing, flavor, and of course, nutrients!

$1.49 total: 3 lbs white onions

$0.75 total: 3 very nicely sized green peppers

$1.29 total: 2 lb bag of carrots

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= $3.53 for the veggies

However, I only used 2 onions + all the peppers + half of the carrots, so I am estimating out of the $3.53 for the veggies, I only spent around $1.75 (maybe even less) on the veggie portion.

The Bottom Line:

• Money Spent: In total, I think I got around 12-14 bags of ground beef meals out of the $20.25 spent on the supplies (roughly $1.55 for the "meat" portion of each freezer meal ... the veggies really help save $ and add bulk)

• Time Spent: About 1 hour: chopping and grating veggies, cooking the meat, letting cool, putting into freezer bags, etc. Not bad!

• Taste: My first bag I used, I let the bag unthaw over night in the fridge before using it the next day. I used it to make tacos. All I had to do is let the meat heat up in the pan, then add the taco seasoning and water, and I was DONE! I understand I am still using a pan I'll have to wash, but taking out the whole cooking of the meat time, I literally had dinner from the fridge to table in under 10 mins. YAY! And the best part? It tasted really good! It didn't taste like it had been frozen or anything. I think the veggies really add a lot of flavor and moisture. My hubby hates green peppers ... and he couldn't even tell there were ANY veggies in the meat. SCORE.

I can't wait for bone-in chicken breasts to go on sale for 99 cents (or less) a pound so I can try making the shredded chicken freezer meals, too!

Here We GO!

I'm usually pretty skeptical.

And you would think I would be after reading this book, front to back, in less than 24 hours and coming away with a life-changing revelation.

But I am not skeptical - at all.

I am 100% confident in our financial future, something I was NOT a mere 24 hours ago.

I am taking the Baby Steps seriously, and I am so excited to do this!

The Baby Steps:

Step 1: $1,000 in an emergency fund.
Step 2: Pay off all debt except the house utilizing the debt snowball.
Step 3: Three to six months of savings in a fully funded emergency fund.
Step 4: Invest 15% of your household income into Roth IRAs and pre-tax retirement plans.
Step 5: College Funding
Step 6: Pay off your home early.
Step 7: Build wealth and give.

We have Step 1 done. We have Step 3 half done. We started Step 2 today. I learned that we HAVE TO TAKE THE STEPS IN ORDER, even if it doesn't make sense. Thus, Step 3's funds we already have will go towards Step 2, but I am confident Step 3 will be done in no time at all. I am hoping 18 months.

Now, I wouldn't say we are in total NEED of a money makeover - we do not live paycheck to paycheck, and already have a good amount in savings. However, I learned that we are doing it all wrong! OF COURSE it's good that we have savings, but the book made me realize how dumb we've been to be SAVING when we could be using some of that money to pay off our debt and student loans (the student loans make up 75% of the debt). And to help with some minor marital issues, the book has taught me that our debt is debt, no matter who acquired it. My new frame of mind is, "Let's just get this stuff all paid off for good and start making money from our money!"

Inside the book is filled with stories of everyday people, most couples who are making less than $70,000 a year combined, many of them far less than that...who are debt-free and who are investing and on their way to being millionaires 20-40 years from now. MULTI-millionaires.

My Total A-Ha We Have To Do This Moment:

One story hit me hard, and was so unbelievably inspiring, because the people are my age, and they've already made huge, huge, HUGE, gains. A young married couple, ages 22 & 24, a pastor and a nurse, who now have no debt (besides their mortgage) who are already investing ... and at the age of 65 ... their investments will have reached $12 million dollars if they continue to contribute as much as they are now ... and of course they'll end up making more and investing even more - UM HELLO! ... we CAN and we WILL do this!

It's so simple!

(Side Note: I am not completely blind to the fact that our money situation will change a lot when kids some some day, but at least we'll be more prepared financially, and can start preparing and making our goals happen NOW!)

We might not make the income to reach $12 million in investments by age 65, but we sure are going to try! We have advantages, still being young and starting our investments early. I'd be happy retiring with $2 million.

I do not ever need to be RICH/WEALTHY/etc, that is not why I am choosing to take this journey ... but what I do need is financial security for my myself, husband, and future kiddos. All I desire is enough funds to design a life where finances don't hold me back, or cause trouble. And, of course, I'd like to have a LITTLE FUN!

I seriously, seriously, seriously cannot wait to take part in this journey! And I guess I already have started, because Step 2 is already started. As in, a check for the full amount of what we owe on one item of debt is sitting in a sealed envelope, with a stamp on it, ready to be mailed and officially paid off forever...FOREVER! AND in the next week or so, we'll get our monthly Best Buy statement. We have a great purchase plan for our TV, and only have to pay $X a month to pay off $Z until December 2012. Weellll, since I am on a roll, I'm just going to write a check for that full amount too!

LOVE IT! THE DEBT SNOWBALL HAS BEGUN!