Thanksgiving and our family values: The Saturday Weekend Review #92

 IT’S TURKEY TIME…

 

This weekend we are celebrating Thanksgiving with our friends and family like many people around Canada.

I love cooking in the Fall because I am a big fan of sweet potatoes, potatoes, apples, beets, carrots, corn, squash and any other veg and fruits I can get my hands on.

I am a firm believer in eating for the season because you will get the best product around. The best part is you will also score better prices on seasonal products as well making your grocery budget that much lighter than buying out of season.

 

Meaning of Thanksgiving

 

What is the meaning of Thanksgiving?

Thanksgiving has a different meaning for everyone. Thanksgiving for me is a time where loved one’s come together to enjoy a festive Thanksgiving meal and give thanks for what they are thankful for in their lives.

I am a believer that we should give thanks every day rather than just one day a year but I often think that Thanksgiving Day is just a swift reminder for everyone to slow down in life.

Sometimes we get on the life bandwagon and we ride it at a million miles per hour letting things pass us by. All it takes is a simple gesture, phone call, letter, text or email to say thanks to someone. It may seem impersonal not to do it in person but when time is tight it’s better than saying nothing at all.

Just recently you all know that we welcomed our son into this world and to say life changing has been what the past month has been would be an understatement. Our son has brought us so much joy that we just sit and stare at him because we can’t believe our little miracle is here with us.

When he was born it made me think back to when I was a child and all the things my parents did for us. Now I know how difficult it must have been trying to juggle kids plus a business. My parents, siblings, relatives, close friends, wife and son are the most important people in my life.

Not only do I thank them as much a I can I extend thanks to people I don’t know. There is nothing wrong with saying thank-you to a stranger for doing something nice or for going above and beyond. If you ever want to make someone’s day say thank-you to them and if you know their name don’t hesitate to use it.

 

Thanksgiving Canada

 

Last week we managed to get some Fall photos of our baby boy since he is a Fall newborn which we will be handing out to our family and friends.

We are also heading home to my wife’s parents for Thanksgiving dinner. My mother-in-law called the other day asking for Thanksgiving menu ideas so I shared a few with her including a lovely roasted squash.

She typically will make the classic Thanksgiving menu of turkey, stuffing, gravy, beans, mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce with dessert being apple and pumpkin pie. She decorates the house with Fall decor and it really brings the meal together.

The last time I had turkey was over at my friend’s house but he didn’t make turkey the way I was used to in a roasting pan. Well, he did use a roasting pan BUT he roasted the turkey in a bag. It was a brilliant idea and although I was very skeptical the turkey turned out amazing and very juicy.

Needless to say I was happy to learn something new from a friend and very thankful it wasn’t me cooking the turkey. I haven’t cooked many turkey’s so it’s always a learning experience for me.

This year I will be making part of Thanksgiving dessert which will be my Pumpkin Spice Cake with brown buttercream (muffins). If you are a lover of pumpkin pie you will love this cake.

Thanksgiving dinner takes lots of planning if you want to execute it without too many problems but it’s those leftover turkey recipes that can get the creative juices flowing in the kitchen.

Some recipes you can try with leftovers are some of Nicola’s favourite’s which she shared such as roasted pumpkin and red lentil soup and turkey and pumpkin lasagna.

I was watching The Pioneer Woman on the Food Network today and I must say Ree Drummond is a brilliant cook. She shared recipes for her family Thanksgiving Dinner but it was the leftover turkey recipes that intrigued me the most.

Ree’s turkey rice wraps, turkey dinner panini and pumpkin smoothies all had me drooling. After watching I was desperate for a pumpkin smoothie but I must keep my one can of pumpkin for my pumpkin spice cake. I do want to try it though and Ree if you read this I enjoy your show and recipes!

On that note I wish you all a Happy Thanksgiving and a huge thank-you to all my fans for keeping me on my toes.

-Mr.CBB

 

Canadian Budget Binder blog news

 

It’s been another great week of guest contributions on Canadian Budget Binder. I want to shout out to all the personal finance bloggers who have went above and beyond to help me through this time with our new son.

It’s certainly been a transition for Mrs. CBB and I and writing has been difficult to factor in although I have managed the load I’ve given myself thus far.

There are many more guest posts coming up and if you would like to write for me I’m accepting posts from personal finance bloggers that I interuntil the end of 2014 only.

This is your chance to share your best piece here at CBB! Email me today with your pitch. On that note a huge thanks to Rob Carrick for sharing another CBB post at The Globe and Mail this week for Carrick on Money.

A guest contribution by Barry Choi on 10 Ways to Save Money on Travel was shared and has kept the blog very busy, so thanks Rob. I’m glad you enjoyed that piece as much as I did as I’m a huge fan of travelling as I’ve travelled to many countries around the world.

 

CBB blog posts this week

 

Just in case you’ve missed any of my blog posts this week I will link to them all below.

If you have a question that you would like to ask Mr.CBB fill out the contact Mr.CBB form on the Home Page and send in your questions. Mr.CBB will look in his mailbag weekly and pick a question to answer on the blog.

• To Take or Not Take Early CPP
• Should you really shop at a Bulk Store?
• 10 Ideas to Save on Travel
• Turtle Pie Oh My!

 

Fan deals and inspirations

 

Submit your Brag or Inspiration If you have a brag that you want me to share email me at canadianbudgetbinder (@) [yahoo] [.ca] or fill out my contact form by Friday each week to have your brag considered for the Saturday post.

This week CBB Fan Samantha emailed me some amazing savings that she scored while shopping! Check this out!
Hey Mr.CBB and Fans!

So here is the breakdown for the shop. I only have my one receipt because I buy things separate for my home daycare and I threw out the receipt for things that I can’t claim but I’ll try to remember the prices as best I can…

The prices are as follows…

Slap bracelets…$1
3x 8pk markers….$1 each
Sticky spiders…$1
2x gift bags…. 17 cents each
34x gift bags….29 cents each
11x gift bags…..30 cents each
6x gift bags…..59 cents each
3x tissue paper….29 cents each
2x wrapping paper….89 cents each
Halloween book…$1

Total $29.03  (the gift bags alone averaged $2 each (some more, some less) so originally would have been around $106!!

My other stuff was….

Owl lantern….$16.50 if I remember right
Corn syrup…$2.69 if I remember right
2x pots…59 cents each for sure
Fan….$2.40 for sure

Total $22.77 plus tax…was around $25 and then I had a $10 gift card so out-of-pocket I paid $15.

So the $15 plus the $29.03, I paid out-of-pocket approx $45

 

Making A Difference

 

If you know a personal finance blogger that is making a difference and want to nominate them please send me an email canadianbudgetbinder (@) yahoo.ca so I can reach out to them for a feature story.

I’d like to welcome my new personal finance blogger friend Nicola!

Hi Mr.CBB and Fans!

I’m Nicola from The Frugal Cottage! I started my blog as an outlet for my financial journey but now I hope to inspire people to live a more simple life whilst on a budget.

I hope to share resources and things to help out my readers, and to inspire them to join me on my journey. I hope to make a difference by showing how a simple life means a better life and that not falling into the trap of consumerism and wanting more is a good thing.

Modern society places a lot of pressure on people and I hope that I can show that there is an alternative journey through life which makes it simple and enjoyable.

Having a supportive network and inspirational leaders make the journey with money an exciting and sometimes challenging time but I hope to help people make positive changes in their life. My blog is a mixture of budget, lifestyle and food all mixed into one!” 

 

Top recipe

 

If you don’t already know I have a second Facebook page called The Free Recipe Depot where I share recipes from other Food Bloggers from around the world.

Once a week I pick one recipe that has been submitted as my Top Recipe of the week. Trust me when I say this is no easy task as some of these foodies can cook up a storm.

Since it is Thanksgiving this weekend I thought it would only be appropriate to share a homemade pumpkin pie called “The Humble Pie” created by Lorinda at The Rowdy Baker. Now this isn’t my recipe but it sure does look delicious. If you are looking for a basic pumpkin pie recipe this is a sure winner in the easy category.

 

Editor’s Pick

 

Every week I will pick a blog post of the week from around the web that I found interesting and want to share with you and an Editor’s top blog post pick.

Editor’s blog post pick of the week

This week Tonya from Budget and the Beach blew me away with another amazing post and one that I have touched on here at Canadian Budget Binder, “Should parents have a say in their child’s career choice?” which was a hot topic for many readers.

Tonya’s post titled “Silencing your Critics” talks about choices specifically career choices and how your toughest critics can sometimes be your family  members.

In this case it’s her father and she details just how difficult it can be having a parent who wants you to be successful and the pressures involved however keeping your cool and following your heart has led Tonya to be successful right from the start.

 

Google search terms

 

Every week I get thousands of people visit Canadian Budget Binder because they did a search online and found my blog. Keep in mind any spelling errors below are because I share with you the exact way they typed their search engine query to land on my blog.

• Gail Vaz Oxlade’s Personal Religion– What an odd thing to search for but it must be of importance to someone otherwise they wouldn’t be searching it.
• Best way to pay off nursing– Cash always works.
• I’m a new immigrant to Canada and need a credit card– I guess this need is different from the need to spend. There is one positive side to this need where I’m pretty sure it’s to build credit which is important for some people like it was for myself when I moved to Canada.
• How to get rid of $100,000 of debt– Pay it off! I know that sounds silly but sometimes the way people phrase what they are searching for makes me laugh although this much debt is no laughing matter. Start budgeting and talk to a professional.

Thanks for joining me for this edition of The Saturday Weekend Review #92. Join me here again for more crazy stories from around the web and at home!

Happy Thanksgiving to All!!

-Mr.CBB

 

 

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Photo Credit: Freedigitalphotos.net/nonpigmmy

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