Frugal Tips for Eating Healthy Meals from a Mother of Eight

Now, in 1982 when "Eight is Enough" was on the air, we were in a deep recession, business bankruptcies were rising to 50% from the previous year, and there were double digit mortgage interest rates. The annual inflation rate was under 5% which is pretty close to today's inflation rate. Boy, except for interest rates, that almost sounds like today. It's hard for a small family to survive today. So, how can a large family make it? Well, one family I know is not only surviving, but eats very healthy. The matriarch of this family is our own AC Producer, Lyn Vaccaro.

Lyn is well known for her nutrition advice in her articles. She used to own a health store. And because of this, she educated herself on how eating healthy with an 80% raw diet to 20% cooked foods not only gives you energy, but goes a long way in alleviating health issues - like infertility or severe menstrual cycles. This diet turned her life around. I think you will not only learn something from her regarding her frugal tips on making healthy meals, but also a perspective from someone who realizes 8 children can be a blessing and a challenge all in the same breathe.

Irene: How old are you and your husband? What are the ages of your children? And when did you have your first child?

Lyn: We are both 46. The kids are 16,14,12,10,9,7,4, and the baby is a year and a half. My first was born 3 weeks before my 30th birthday.

Irene: What is the common denominator in your method to run your household efficiently, effectively, and I don't know, maybe peacefully (ha, ha)?

Lyn: Jesus Christ and prayer. I couldn't navigate through life without these two important things being implemented into our family on a daily basis. My husband and I both strongly encourage implementing a sense of God in the kids. I think they need it to maneuver effectively through life now and after they leave the nest.

Irene: When people hear that you have 8 children, what are the types of comments do you hear and what do you say back to them?

Lyn: Oh!! I've heard so many!!! Recently someone said asked if I knew about the ways in which to avoid having more, to which I replied, "Yes, I'm completely aware of them, and steer clear of them at all cost, I can't imagine missing out on more blessings!"

One of my favorite comebacks is "Yeah, you know, when you enjoy sex as much as my husband and I do your bound to have a slip up right?" That one usually leaves people speechless.

Another comeback I use to reply to "your hands are full" is "Yep, full of love".

Irene: How do you ensure that all your children are getting the proper attention they deserve?

Lyn: I actually did an article on this very topic. It's called "From Cooking, to Laundry, to Playtime, Finding One on One Time in a Large Family".

I think people don't realize that you can achieve one on one time in a large family. It's not as hard as you might think when you include one of them in a task that you have to do anyway. The child learns how to do a task, and gets one on one time with a parent as well. It's a win/win!

My husband and I have some routine ways we go about getting this accomplished. One is by taking turns with the kids including one on an errand. Errands are a great time to talk and catch up. With the older girls, I love to hang the laundry outside with one or 2 of them. It's a great way to catch up with each other. I can get into their heads a bit and see what sort of directions they seem to be headed in.

I also will bake with one at a time. That's always a fun way to interact one on one with them.

None of the things we do to achieve these special moments take a lot of time or are really long and thought out. I guess you could say, it just comes naturally. It's including them in just everyday things that you'd be doing anyway, which makes it easy.

My husband and I are really getting an education with our sons. We didn't realize how different they are because all the girls came first. So, we're both getting used to cars, trucks, trains - lots of action, action, action!! Good Lord, we didn't realize how high energy these boys are! What's nice is that all six of the girls are in school and the boys aren't. So, I do a lot of activities with the boys all day; which I have to say I really enjoy because it's so different from what I've been used to. Don't tell the girls but I'm really sick of dolls!!

Irene: Explain this diet of 80% raw foods to 20% cooked. Is everyone in your family on it? I know when children get away from the home, temptation is around the corner. How do you handle giving out sweets or junk food when it comes to your children?

Lyn: Well, 80% of my diet is made up of raw fruit, veggies, and some raw nuts and seeds.

I'm at the point that I don't like cooked nuts and seeds at all. If I have some beans sprouted, I'll incorporate some of those in my diet as well. They can really be a satisfying addition.

The 20% left is generally food I eat with the family - the food I've cooked for lunches or dinners. Types of foods we are all familiar with like homemade breads that we make from scratch, eggs, casserole dishes.

I will eat some meat if my husband makes it on the grill; that seems to be the way I like meat best, however he has to grill it or I won't like it. It never was something I liked very much anyway.

All of these are things you'll see me eating, but if you look at the portions I have on my plate, you'll see why the cooked portion is 20% of my total diet. I keep my portions of cooked food down, but honestly, I'm not all that hungry after eating all the raw food.

I went on this diet to stop miscarrying and regain my fertility after turning 40. It's done a good job for me, because I've had two more healthy pregnancies that brought me 2 beautiful boys!

My kids aren't on this diet, but the older girls take it a little more seriously than the rest. They are runners in cross country and track and find that when they partake in veggie juice and more raw food while they're in training; they have more endurance.

When it comes to treats I'm not big on taking everything away. They received Easter baskets with chocolate, but they aren't allowed to just eat it all day long. I keep a tight grip on the sweets. My oldest daughter helps with this too, because like I said, she takes health more seriously. I'll hear her taking some sweet treat away after the kids have had enough.

Irene: How does this diet save you more money than if you were not on the diet?

Lyn: It probably saves most on meat. Meat is expensive and I really never ate meat during my health food store days. Once I started the family, I began eating some, but I've never been a big meat eater and now that I'm on the raw stuff, it's really next to never that I eat it.

Irene: Could you give some ideas of what a normal meal would be like in the Vaccaro's household? What is the balance you look for in each meal? Could you please give us some frugal tips on meal planning?

Lyn: Well, for instance this morning the kids ate some homemade pancakes made with a mix of whole wheat flour and whole oats. The balance I try to maintain is always with regard to whole food.

Are the kids getting whole grains, or stripped and processed stuff? I think if you stick to whole types of foods, you will always come out better nutritionally.
Always eat something the body can use for good. Processed bleached food is pretty void of nutritional value so I try to stay "whole".

With regard to frugal tips, I know that pasta is a big money saver for folks. You can get pasta in whole grains as well as with some veggies like carrots, beets and spinach powders mixed into it; however, that's not going to be cost effective.

I substitute pasta with beans. We still eat some pasta, but not on a daily or weekly basis. To keep cost down and nutrition up, I use beans.

One really great quick meal either for lunch or dinner is just some plain old cooked brown rice. Then, once cooked, add some whole pinto beans; or they could be the refried type. Lentil beans are fantastic with this as well. Serve it with some butter over it and a touch of salt and your good to go!

You can also vary what you put on it. Instead of butter, olive oil is good. I like that version. This is also very loaded with B-vitamins and fiber. Both the beans as well as the brown rice have good doses of B-vitamins, and are full of fiber; something that is stripped out of processed pastas and things of that nature.

Combining the whole grain brown rice and the beans also makes this a complete protein. Anytime you combine a whole grain with any bean the amino acids from each food will make a complete protein. So you're covering that base as well.

Irene: You mentioned to me about how you helped your daughter alleviate some of the pains she was encountering during her menstrual cycle and how the right diet can help menopause. Can you give me an example of this? I know you believe strongly on the importance of this diet, so please expand more on how you think other health issues can be controlled by this diet.

Lyn: Well, whole food in general is going to impact anyone's health positively. It just has all of the things God put into it - right there waiting for us to partake in.
I have personally been able to alleviate many menopausal symptoms by eating raw. The reason for that is the phytoestrogens that are in this food. They replace our own body's estrogen - alleviating many of the symptoms that go with decreased estrogen, like hot flashes, disruptive sleep patterns and many more. I have an article regarding this issue called "Combating Menopausal Symptoms with Raw Food", that talks more extensively with regard to this.

Upon the onset of my daughter's menses, she found she had lots of irregularity until she started drinking and eating more raw foods.

After a couple months she snapped out of that irregularity and move into more regular cycles. She's gained a newfound respect for these foods.

We were designed for this natural type of diet. Processed foods are void of nutrition. Not only does this 80/20 diet put a lot of women's health issues to rest, but it will prevent heart disease, cancer, and diabetes. All of these conditions and diseases can be improved and avoided with the right food and lifestyle changes.
I have lots of articles written regarding the fact that better eating as well as better digestion can improve these health issues, and make them non-existent; if you want to take it to that level. You must be committed to it though - really committed. This is what I love about eating and living healthier - it is so self empowering.
We have so much control over our own health, and quality of life. That's why I love this lifestyle. I have control over my health, not some pharmaceutical or doctor or anyone else - ME!

I'm in control, and everyone else is too, by way of diet and lifestyle. The medical and pharmaceutical fields don't want you to know that though. However, there are doctors like our very own Dr. Kristie, who are changing that with more of a preventative approach. Those are the type of doctors we need. You GO Dr. Kristie! There are more and more doctors in the medical field approaching health with a more preventative view, and that is very encouraging to see. O.K.! I'll stop now!! I'm sure you've had enough! Thanks for letting me rant!

Whether you have a large or small family, you are trying to find clever ways to become frugal with meal planning these days. However, one thing we must not do is to give good nutrition up for the sake of a cheap meal. It's just as important to maintain our health as we stay frugal; otherwise, you're going to pay the piper in the end - the doctor. You may or may not want to go Lyn's route of the 80/20 diet of raw foods to cooked; however, her point is well taken that we need to incorporate a balance of health in our diets. To view more of Lyn's articles, click "here".