Pantry Staples for Quick Toddler Meals on the Cheap

Before my husband and I had our son, we would often resort to quick dinners consisting of dollar menu foods or take out pizza.  When we lived in a bigger city, we had several choices of fast food and casual dining restaurants and could get by without having to cook every night.  Not only was this lifestyle hard on our budget, it has taken a toll on our health over the years.

We moved back to our small home town last May and have very few dining options. My husband was not keen on the idea of moving back to our home town, even if it was only an hour north of where we were living last May.  His parents had an empty house as a result of moving to a new home in the country so it was a win win for the both of us financially.  We pay them rent and they don’t have the burden of two mortgages.  Not to mention all the perks of living in  house as opposed to townhouse with neighbors who play their music too loud.  Anyway….. where was I?  Oh yeah, food.

So when my son began eating solid foods, around 6-7 months, I started to be more conscious of the food I brought into our house.  Not only because I couldn’t just run around the corner to grab a few dollar menu items, but because I didn’t feel want to subject my son to our unhealthy eating habits.  Around about 9 months, my son started to eat more finger foods so I would purchase more fruits, cereal (generic Cheerios and such), and yogurt.  Oh how my son loves his yogurt.

When my son turned 1 year old, we started to feed our son what we were having so I had to start cooking healthier meals at home. That is not to say that we don’t still order take out occasionally or grab a quick meal at a fast food joint.  I am human and sometimes, after a long day of work, I really don’t feel like cooking.  However, when I do get in the mood to cook a healthy meal for my husband and son, it is nice to be able to go to my pantry and find some versatile pantry staples that can be thrown together quickly.

Some of my favorite go-to inexpensive pantry staples are

• Canned Beans  Oh the possibilities of beans.  I prefer to buy the vegetarian refried beans because I can just open a can, put it in a pan, and heat it up as a simple high protein side for Mexican dishes like fajitas.  You can always make your own refried beans for even less money but I prefer the convenience of canned beans.

• Whole Wheat Tortillas Store brand of course because we’re talking cheap here.  I use whole wheat tortillas for a quick cheese quesadilla for baby or, my favorite, bean burritos with aforementioned canned refried beans.  I make bean and cheese roll ups for my son all the time as a quick meal.

• Eggs Ok this goes without saying.  Everyone has eggs in their refrigerator but before we had a child, we had a hard time using a full carton before they went bad.  You can buy eggs for so cheap and make and freeze breakfast burritos, egg muffins, and french toast for a quick go-to meal.

• Peanut Butter  When my son refuses to eat, our go to food is peanut butter and it’s rich in protein.  A simple peanut butter and jelly sandwich on whole wheat bread is quick and easy to throw together.

• Bananas My son rarely refuses a banana especially with peanut butter!  I make homemade banana bread with overripe bananas and add flax meal to make it extra healthy.  I usually start with a basic banana bread recipe and add whatever mix ins I have on hand like blueberries, chocolate chips, or peanut butter.  Quick and simple banana muffins are a must have to satisfy your picky toddler.

• Dried Pasta Everyone has dried pasta in their pantry.  My favorite are the Barilla Veggie because I can sneak in veggies without my son our husband complaining.  I have at least 5 boxes of various different pastas on hand at any given time from rotini, linguine, rotini, bow tie, and penne.  Any time pasta goes on sale, I stock up so I have it on hand for a quick weeknight meal of chicken broccoli alfredo or spaghetti and meatballs.  I boil a whole box and store the extra cooked pasta in a quart size bag in the refrigerator for a quick go to baby meal.  Toss some cooked pasta with some cheese and mixed veggies and microwave for a quick baby dish!

Living in Ohio during the cold winter months, it is essential that I have a sufficiently stocked pantry because who knows when I’ll be able to make another trip to the store?  I do a LOT of shopping in bulk online through Amazon pantry so I don’t have to freeze to death in the cold.  Plus, as a mom, it’s hard to take a baby to the store who keeps fighting to get out of the cart.  If I could all my shopping online through Amazon, I would.

What are some of your go to pantry staples?

Frugal Cloth Diapering for Newbies

I don’t claim to be an expert on cloth diapering, however, I have picked up a few great tips over the year for cloth diapering on the cheap.  My husband is a stay-at-home dad and watches our 18 month old.  We are both college graduates and I recently earned my MBA and have been working from home until I can get my career on track.

Being the head of household and supporting my family on a single income, I try to save money everywhere we can and cloth diapers are a great way to keep our diaper budget on the low.  I had always wanted to do cloth diapering but thought it would be too messy or complicated.  While I was pregnant, I stocked up on disposable diapers when I could find them on sale.  After about of 6 months, my well-established diaper stash was starting to dwindle and I started to reconsider cloth diapering.

If you search Pinterest, you will find a plethora of cloth diapering tips.  All that knowledge is a little overwhelming to a first time cloth diaper newbie like myself and none of my three sisters with children had ever cloth diapered nor had my one friend with a child.

After searching Amazon for cloth diapers, I knew I didn’t want to pay $12-15 for just a diaper cover when, at that price, I could buy a few packages of disposable diapers.  After doing more research on cheaper options for cloth diapers, I found an Econobum trial pack for less than $12 that included 1 snap up adjustable diaper cover and 3 bamboo inserts.  Unfortunately, the price for an Econobum trial pack is now $17 but when you consider that you get 3 inserts, I still consider these a good buy for anyone wanting to try cloth diapering without spending a lot of money.

So my logic is that it’s like paying $11 for a diaper cover and getting 3 inserts for $2/piece

If you’re looking to invest a little more into your cloth diaper stash, Econobum also has a “Full Kit” which includes 3 covers, 12 bamboo inserts and 1 small wet bag for around $58

So it’s pretty much the same as if you were buying a trial pack if you think of it like this

$11 x 3 diaper covers =$33

$2 x 12 inserts = $24

$1 for a travel wet bag

I have never had any issues with these diapers and I’ve been using them for a little over a year.  They are basic white and I bleach them even though it says not to because I worry about how clean they’re getting in my wash.  I have purchased probably 6 trial packs and was gifted 1 Full kit for Christmas last year so I have quite a few inserts.

I can usually go a few days before I run out of diapers but I padded my stash with more covers from Kawaii Baby.

I stumbled upon these Kawaii Baby covers while I was deal searching and absolutely love them.

At only $4.90 per cover, I purchased 2 green, 2 light blue, and 2 yellow last year.  I like the velcro ones because they go on quick and my son refuses to let me change him laying down anymore…. He will scream every time I try to change his diaper these days so the quicker I can change him, the better.  I have used these covers for a year with my Econobum bamboo inserts and they work out really well.  No leak issues.  Only problem is I’m starting to see some wear on the stitching and have had to mend a few diapers by hand (because I’m sewing machine challenged)

At less than $5, if I had known about these covers sooner, I would have probably started my stash with several Kawaii Baby covers and just purchased some bamboo inserts separately online  but live and learn.  The Econobum bamboo inserts are really nice though and, when fold three ways, are super absorbent but a bit bulky.   I have trouble getting pants to fit over my son’s giant cloth diaper booty!

I also cut costs by using a trash pail and an old pillow case to store my soiled diapers.  I just throw the pillow case in with the wash and it makes for a great laundry bag to carry all those diapers up from the basement after it’s dry.

So these are my tips for getting started on cloth diapering.  It’s a a good investment and you’ll thank me if you buy just one trial pack when you run out of diapers on a freezing cold day and can’t make it out to the store for a package of disposables 🙂