Living simply: previews of things to come

This last weekend was really spectacular! After leaving family in North  Carolina, we drove north through Virginia to stay with some friends outside of Washington, DC. The plan had been to go to the National Zoo in the morning, but parking costs something like $20 and we didn't have that kind of money in the budget. Instead Ana and our friends' little boy played on the park while Zoë tried to nap, then it was off to DC to see family and meet new friends. We did get to stop in at the Air and Space Museum for a brief visit on Sunday afternoon, but not a whole lot of other sight seeing. Monday was spent entirely in the car taking the fastest roads north. We finally caught our breath Monday night, and work began for Caleb Wednesday morning. Summer is over already?

Starting in September, we're going to be taking part in the 2011 Locavore Challenge sponsored by NOFA-NY. We chose to take on the Meal Sized Challenge and are already gearing up for the month! We feel this is important to our goals and to this blog, because a lot of our life since taking Financial Peace University has been about taking control and being better stewards of what God has given to us. We already do many of these things and have found them cost-effective and our well-being has been positively affected by these choices. As we've said before: it's not about how much you make, it's about how you choose to use it.

Here are some things to be looking for here on Debt Free American Road Trip:

• Book reviews on titles including Simply in Season, The World at Your Table (written by a family friend), and In Defense of Food among other articles and books.
• Recipes we've tried using foods sourced within 250 miles from home.
• Menus and financial plans for paying for more local and organic foods.
• Ways that this project has helped us with our financial and personal goals

Happy reading!