Claiming Simplicity | Simple Life, Natural Living, Cooking from Scratch, Intentional Living, Save Money, Simple Systems, Easy Recipes

• How I Started Saving Over $6000 a Year on Groceries in 2025

  Hello Friend!   I have had so many people asking me how we spend so little on food and the answer is actually pretty simple.  I have been posting on claiming simplicity on instagram about saving money on groceries the last few months and I have had so many people say they are struggling in this area and have no idea where to start, so this episode is going to get you headed in the right direction to saving money on food that you may not have thought of..   Yes, it is true…..once I learned how to spend very little on food (at the time was when I had 3 kids under 3 years old) and it was out of necessity with a very small food budget and no credit cards to go in debt with, I found out how easy it really was!  I remember looking through recipes that would be filling and I would look through cookbooks and figure about how much it would cost to make the recipe.  I actually had such a low food budget that I would bring my calculator to the store to make sure I didn’t go over because I certainly wasn’t going to bounce a check!  Yes, cookbooks is where it all started, so I am dating myself as it was nearly 30 years ago when I began this journey, but I still use this process today because I would rather spend money on assets than food.  It took me some work to figure it out, but over the years, I learned skills that make it even more possible.   If you want to save over $6000 on groceries this year and cut your grocery bill in half, you are in the right place.    The number one thing that people don’t realize is those unhealthy packaged snacks and meals are costing you nearly 10x more than they would be to make from scratch.  And no,  most of them are not difficult to make. Anything packaged is usually unhealthy and when you make homemade meals and items at home, you are only putting ingredients in them that you want in your body.  There are so many additives and unnecessary ingredients in them so once you start reading labels, you won't even want to put them into your body and certainly not your childrens bodies.  I’m working on a simple snack guide now that will give you simple easy snacks you can make from home on a budget and I know you are going to love it.  Watch for it on instagram!   Once you start making homemade meals, the next step for you will mostly likely be how to learn how to make all your own dressings, mayo, and mixes such as onion soup mix packet, ranch packets, or your own boullion which is another super simple way to cut food costs and add healthy options.  It really is a rabbit hole and once you learn how simple it is with such little time it takes, you will start making your own sour cream, yogurt, granola, vanilla, and pretty much everything in your kitchen!  You will not only save thousands of dollars every year, you will learn skills to be more self sufficient because you won’t need any started from the store once you make your own sour cream or yogurt and those type of items.     Another way we spend so much less on food is buying in bulk and cooking in bulk.  Not only will you save money, but you will have so much less waste and will more likely not to spend wasted money eating out.  It blows my mind, that people don’t think it is possible to spend less that $75/ week on dinners for a family of 4.  It really depends where you live, but I can’t definitely show you how to cut your grocery bill in half.  We now spend less than $100/month on food since we grow a garden and raise our own meat, mild, and eggs along with hunting, but the $75/ week, I teach people to do from the grocery store with the grocery price list from walmart or aldi and it is very doable. If you are thinking that you want to learn how to do this, here is the link to to a 1 week sample of the exact steps to how we save. https://stan.store/ClaimingSimplicity/p/weeks-worth-of-dinners-in-just-2-hours-under-75 Instagram -> https://www.instagram.com/claimingsimplicity/ Have a great week!  Love you friend! ~Monica

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• EP 208 // You Can Enjoy Slow and Intentional Living with ADHD When You Simplify These 3 Areas of Life

  Hello Friend!     We hit 100,000 downloads last week, so in appreciation, for everyone that adds a rating and review, I am going to put you in a drawing for $100 amazon gift card!!!  You just need to send me an email at [email protected] letting me know you left a review with your user name.  If you have already left a review, share with a friend and add me in your instagram stories and tag me and you will be entered in the drawing as well!  This podcast wouldn’t be as successful if it wasn’t for all of you, so I appreciate you all!     I really want to talk today about 3 areas where you can easily simplify your life to live more intentionally with ADHD.  As I have talked about a few times here, I have never been diagnosed with ADHD, but I have many characteristics and that is really why I had to simplify my whole life to live with more intention.  I really enjoy slow living with my family now and I wouldn’t have it any other way.  When I was working as a full time nurse with 5 kids at home and all the activities and sports, it was exhausting, but once I changed the way I lived, I was able to quit my full time nursing job which gave me so much freedom to how I spend my days & more time with family.     The first area you can simplify is your cooking, if you haven’t followed claiming simplicity on instagram, you should do that now.  A large portion of many family’s budgets goes to food, but it doesn’t have to.  I can show you how a family of four can eat dinners on $75/week and that is nutrient dense, healthy meals.  You don’t need fancy expensive meals and you certainly don’t need to buy convenience foods at the store but instead learn to cook simple homemade meals at home on a very low budget.   Next, declutter your home.  Living with less stuff really reduces stress.  You will also feel less overwhelmed when you have less stuff to care for - start with one room of you home and see the difference.  Always make sure you carefully think about each item you bring into your home.  I am going to do another declutter challenge, so email me if this is something you would like to be a part of.  It is for busy moms, so it will be steps you can’t quickly declutter in a short amount of time.   And lastly, you will want to reduce debt, living debt free can be rewarding in so many ways.  If you are spending more than you bring in, think about where you can make changes.  I will be doing another no spend challenge starting January first and this time I am going to do all audio.  If you are interested in joining, please reach out by email or DM me on instagram!   And with all of this, make sure you are putting Jesus at the center of it all!   Love you friend!  Have a blessed week ~Monica Instagram -> https://www.instagram.com/claimingsimplicity/ Email -> [email protected]  

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• EP 207 // 1st Steps to Take if You are Ready to Stay at Home with Your Kids and Become a Homemaker or Homeschool Mom

  Happy Fall Friend! If you haven’t visited claiming simplicity on instagram recently, you may not know that I have been teaching families how to eat dinners for less than $75/week and have taught over 3000 families so far after starting that in July and now I have expanded into a month of our favorite  crockpot dinners and am working on a snack guide to save money as well.  I love love love teaching people that you can eat healthy on a budget and it all started because that is what people were asking me. Now, I have people reaching out that want to live the lifestyle that we have, so I’m transitioning into showing them exactly how I was able to quit my full time nursing job to become a homesteader & homeschooling mom and it all started with knowing how to save money on groceries and then once I had that figured out, then I would reduce wasteful spending in other areas like making my own natural cleaning supplies that saved money and now I create an income just showing people how I did it because that is just how it has evolved!   I am very passionate about families raising their own kids and homeschooling….shaping them to be Jesus centered in everything they do is the ultimate goal in life.  You can’t take your home, your cars or material possessions to heaven with you, so why not chase something with eternal rewards and teach your children to do the same. Proverbs 22:6 Train up a child in the way he should go, even when he is old he will not depart from it. If you are ready, I want you and your spouse to talk about this and see if it is something you both want & pray together about it. Talk about how you want your life to look and feel. My husband was on board and he found out quickly how much easier. How much money do you actually need to live comfortably and where could you reduce expenses if you need to.  Figure out all of you bills and then you will need to figure out all the bills you won't have if you decide to be a SAHM or homemaker such as daycare, gas, convenience items, maybe even one less car or less insurance.  There are many ways to make it possible!   There is so much peace and joy in intentional and slow living, that you will probably not ever want to go back to the hustle.  The time with your family will be treasured forever.  You can’t ever get the moments and memories back, so live in the present every single day. Freedom & Time are much greater asset than money if you value memories.    If you have any questions about any of this, please send me an email or DM on Instagram, I would love to help you get started or even help you take next steps if you are ready!   Have a Blessed day!

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• 9-15-25 EP 206 // 5 Ways to Start Simplifying Your Life Without Feeling Stressed & Overwhelmed

  9-15-25 EP 206 // 5 Ways to Start Simplifying Your Life Without Feeling Stressed & Overwhelmed.   Hello Friend!    My life is very full with all of the things we choose it to be such as gardening and homesteading activities, but I make sure that I have time to just be, pray and think in the morning and that usually means getting up by 4:00 am. (Yes, I am in bed early at night so I get at least 7 hours of sleep)  It gives me time to see the sun rise, sit in silence  and just listen to what God is saying to me without any other disturbances.   Our lives are shaped mostly by how we create them.  If you know me at all you know that little simple things make me happy.  I don’t need to spend money to be happy, I enjoy the birds chirping, the rooster crowing, a fresh Fall breeze coming throught the open windows, the sun rising, walking in the woods and we are now living what we have created.  I could have continued to climb the ladder working for someone else just  to chase after more riches, but nearly 30 years ago, we made a life plan of how we wanted to live, raise our family and what was important to us……and guess what-not any of what was important to us was new cars or material items-it was Jesus, time with family and freedom to do what we want, when we want and it seems as if God has been just chasing us with blessing after blessing. Things have shifted slightly as God is giving us a new direction and so we will reveal where that is going as time goes on.  Right now, we are at the stage of really God?  You want us to do what?  So I don’t know any details right now, but I do know that He wants me to help you get back to the root of what is most important.    I want to give you 5 simple steps to get started on this simple living journey, and I will saved the #1 way to the end.   ~ 1st, Become so clear on what you value and make sure your time matches up with your values.  You say you want time with your kids, but then you spend all day at work, or you might say you value giving, but your pocketbook looks like you spend more on things for yourself.  It has to match up or you will not ever feel at peace or aligned.   ~ Next, Make your life plan-do you want to be a SAHM and homemaker, do you want to living in the country, want to homestead or learn to cook from scratch to save money?  What kind of house do you want to live in?  Be so clear that when you move to a house, you realize it was exactly what you handwritten out in detail many years prior.  Your life might not start out exactly as planned, but I can definitely tell you if you have a vision and a plan in written for, you will most likely get to that place!  I even put in my plan I wanted to be a Grandma that was available for my Grandkids whenever they needed me or had events and I am thankful to be able to spend time with all of them quite often and love it! ~After that you will want to make a plan you reduce your debt.  Maybe you need to sell a vehicle with a payment and get a used vehicle-there is certainly not anything wrong with having an older vehicle.  I was just trying to figure out the last time we had a car payment-probalby over 15 years ago!  Spend your money wisely and living a debt free live is so rewarding. Then you need to put your plan into action-just start-it is an incredible feeling to know what you are working toward!   And the absolute #1 step that is the most important is reading your Bible and putting Jesus first in everything that you do.  When you walk the narrow path, there are many rewards.  I’m not saying there will be opposition, because there certainly will be, but the rewards far outweigh it.    1 Start reading your Bible Become clear on your values  Create a written life plan of what you want your life to look like Make a plan to reduce debt Put your plan into action. I want you to send me a message and let me know how this is going for you and if I can help you in any way. Instagram -> https://www.instagram.com/claimingsimplicity/ Email -> [email protected]   Keep it simple and God Bless! Monica

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• 9-12-25 EP 205 // After Charlie Kirk”s Death all I Heard was to Go Out to all the Nations and Make Sure to Put God in the Center of Everything You are Creating

  Hello Friend! Here are a few of my thoughts about living boldly for Christ based on Charlie  Kirk's life.  We need to rise up and create a world movement as the time is getting closer to Jesus Christs return. See you next week! Monica

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