3G project 2011 amended guidelines

let's recap. the purpose of this little 3G (Green = money, Green = organic/local, and Grocery = well, grocery) project is to try to feed me and the hubby on a weekly budget of $60 buying as much local and in season products as possible while trying to cut back on the amount of processed food that comes in the house and to see how much i can feed us out of my garden in the coming year. this is very similar to the project launched in october of 2008, but as i look back at the previous posts (a big whopping 5 of them) i am going to make a few changes to the guidelines of the project. this year i will focus more on local and unprocessed homemade foods. last time it was all about being organic. and as i think that being organic is important, not only in nutritional value, but also from an environmental standpoint, lately i'm all about a local point of view. also, the term "organic" has been tossed around so much in the last few years i think, unfortunately, folks are really sick of hearing about it. not to mention, that by putting an emphasis on organic foods one might inadvertently overlook their local farmer friends. getting certified organic takes big big bucks and many little farmers just can't afford that label even if they adhere to a natural and sustainable program. anyhoo, back to the guidelines. of course the big factor in this whole project is the weekly budget of $60 for food purchases and what that does and doesn't include. (if you want to know how i came up with $60 a week, read this post.) mainly the guidelines are about what is does not include. so here goes.

items not included in the $60 weekly budget 

(all because i say so)

1. beer, whiskey, or any other alcoholic beverage purchased/consumed either at a restaurant, bar, farmer's market, or bought at a store for home use.

2. dog food and treats.

3. eating out (which we don't really do much, but when we do, i'm gonna spend what i want to. so there)

4. things the hubby decides to purchase on his own (although "requested items" that i purchase during the regular food shopping will count). cause as i was told last time, this is my project, not his.

5. other non edible items one might purchase from a grocery store i.e. shampoo, cleaning supplies, femine items, etc. although i will try to included them in the weekly rundowns so i can keep a eye out on that as well.

6. the cost of my veggie garden supplies. although again i will try to keep record of those as well cause i am a firm believer that you CAN create a home veggie garden on the cheap.

7. the cost of any food item that is already in the house. (which, let me tell you, isn't much.)

there, we have it. now the weeks run from monday to sunday. any money left over from the previous week can carry over. however, the same reasoning may or may not apply to when i go over the budget. again, my project, my rules. we'll see how everything goes.

i'll try my best to keep on top of my posts and hopefully include more recipes and let you guys in on how i'm cooking the loot for me and the hubby. anyone who wants to join in on the project let me know. it would be great to see what and where different folks can get local foods. maybe then we could have some guest bloggers, set up some links, or something like that. also let me know if you visit any kind of farm and would like to share some info or photos. to all my gardener friends i welcome the same info on the veggies and such that you have growing in your space. (that includes you cousin valerie!!! you know i know your getting chickens and building some cold frames. we must have pictures!!) wouldn't that be fun to see all the different things folks are doing. if you don't have a blog and would like to share some stuff, let me know and we'll think of some way to get the info up. and finally, because what post would be complete without a dog picture, i give you the "muddy paw gang".....

let me out! must run in mud!