Firstly, I want to mention that if you wouldn’t normally ask, and you’re having a tough time right now, please know that you don’t have to be in dire need to access our Aroha Basket food parcels. If you find that you just need a little extra support this week, give us a call on 021 0247 8003. Te Whai Community Trust supports all residents in Mangawhai.

We are on the lookout for fresh fruit, so if anyone has any extra falling from their trees, please give us a call or send a message on our Facebook page, we can collect.

We have wonderful community gifting groups and better living advocates right here in Mangawhai. A special mihi goes to the valuable efforts of the team at Mangawhai's Helping Hands who maintain such a high standard of service to the community. 

Keep in the loop with the Mangawhai Zero Waste Community Network, Plastic Free Mangawhai and Mangawhai Self Sufficiency Project Group who have some great ideas to help locals save money and our eco system while working together creatively.

Over in Bream Bay I was really excited to find Frugal Kiwi who's motto is 'Learn it. Do it. Live it'. Real-life, sustainable, simple living tips from New Zealand's beautiful Bream Bay.

Further afield there’s some great frugal Facebook pages like Cheaper Living ™ (NZ only!), Frugal and living Cheap in New Zealand and Budget Living Ideas NZ

Fabulous website like Love Food Hate Waste has a simple meal planner. The cookbook contains four weekly meal plans, with each week consisting of five dinner meals. Each meal will feed a family of six (two adults and four children under 10) or four adults and the ingredients for each week should cost approximately $65. 

And that's the segue into meal planning next week! Till then - aroha atu, aroha mai 💜