I know I'm kind of a freak about this, but living on a limited income, I've tried to really budget my food spending. What I've come to realize is that with a little planning and storage, I can do pretty darn good for a family of 5 (soon to be 6 - yes this is the announcement for all you speculators. I've been in denial for quite a while - but can't ignore it now. Baby #4 is coming in March . . . or whenever he decides to get here) with not too much $$.
I try to keep my meals costing:
*Breakfast - 25 cents/person
*Lunch - 50 cents/person
*Supper - $1/person
**** That equals $8.75/day for my family ****
**** Average month of 30 days = $262.50 ****
Now I admit - I do cheat - I have a freezer full of meat and I do have a large storage room that I try to stock up on items when they are an excellent price, so I don't have to spend money on some things every month. But, in my monthly budget, I also try to pay for all of my diapers and (I used to until lately) buy my dog food with the same budget.
On lunches - my budget is kind of blown - Travis is at work - he usually takes lunch, but sometimes I send him to fend for himself. And Clay is at school. I usually pack him a lunch, too, but other times he eats hot lunch. So I try to make it all up other places. Also, myself and the two boys - we kind of rotate a few standards for lunch - leftovers, ramen (boys), can of soup, frozen pizza, hotdogs, macaroni and cheese, Spaghetti-o's - that's usually it for us, so I don't really "menu" that - I just kind of do whatever we feel like for the day.
I also only plan 20-25 days/month. There are usually so many days of leftovers, or going out, or visiting family, or other things that come up (ward dinners, parties, etc.) that it usually is sufficient. If not - that's what my storage room is for - Hamburger Helper, Baby! :)
As you can see, we don't eat out very often! :) And guess what - we don't really miss it. It is fun for special occasions to splurge and spoil ourselves - but usually we think, "I could have cooked that better or eaten more at home" and been more satisfied. But, we are kind of backwards and homebodies and in no way do we judge anybody else for their preferences . . .
Also, in my budget - I try very hard to keep my storage room stocked, so I try to add some good food storage to my list. Our RS President has challenged us to spend $20/week on food storage, but I have another little handout that helps me to add to my food storage on an average of $5/week - so being the cheap skate, guess which one I've gone with? :)
November's Food Storage Items:
*50 lbs. wheat
*6 lbs. macaroni
*20 lbs. sugar
*5 cans cream of mushroom soup
So, today, I'm letting you know my "plan" and tomorrow I'm going shopping and I'll tell you how I did at keeping in budget. And, you all try it to and let us know how it goes in the "comments" section.
P.S. - I tried to use lots of recipes from this site that I might not have ever tried before, so we'll see how it goes!
November:
*Sour cream cake Pumpkin Dinner
*Breakfast pizza Lasagna
*Pancakes Hawiian Haystacks
*Oven Omelet Porcupines
*German Pancakes Potato Santa Fe
*Crepes Fried Rice
*Cowboy Breakfast Burgers & Fries
*Caramel Baked French Toast Twice-Baked Potatoes
*Pancakes Pepperoni Pizza
*Peaches & Toast Enchiladas
*Egg Sandwiches Navajo Tacos
*Poppyseed Muffins Italian Chicken
*Oatmeal Goulosh
*Bacon & Eggs Souper rice & Hamburger
*Waffles Tator Tot Casserole
*Caramel Ring Spaghetti
*Fresh-Made Bread Baked potato Bar
*Cold Cereal Meat Loaf & Mashed Potatoes
*Pancakes Burgers & Fries
*Crepes Roast & Potatoes
*Egg-in-a-Basket Steak & Potato
*Cold Cereal Cowboy Corn
* Ham & Grits
* Pizza by the Foot
Shopping List:
Chopped pecans
Margarine
Sour cream (at least 40 oz)
Sausage (I have in my freezer)
Crescent refrigerator rolls
hash browns
cheese (5 pound brick)
5 doz. eggs (to start with)
ham (for cooking I use turkey ham because I'm cheap)
bread (sandwich & French)
Big bag pancake mix (to put in storage)
mapeline flavoring (for homemade syrup)
refrigerated rolls (4 pk)
butterscotch pudding
Rhodes rolls
green onions (2) (I have in my refrigerator - thank you garden!)
Salsa (2)
2 cans pinto or refried beans
lettuce
2 med. tomatoes
spaghetti sauce (2)
lasagna noodles
cottage cheese
crem of chicken soup (3)
chow mein noodles (have in my cupboard)
celery
green peppers (2)
pineapple
sunflower seeds
coconut
rice
tomato soup (4 or 5)
potatoes (have!)
chicken breast (6 or 8 pounds)
oil (have, but good to keep adding to storage)
corn (2 cans or frozen bags)
soy sauce
buns
pepperoni
tortillas (we have in our freezer for a while yet)
pork and beans (5)
red sauce (enchilada sauce)
olives
chilies
carrots
powdered Italian seasoning
16 oz cream cheese
tomato juice
macaroni (7 pounds - 1 for meal, 6 for food storage)
Minute rice
Cream of mushroom soup (7 - 2 for using this month, 5 for food storage!)
green beans
tater tots
garbanzos
kidney beans
lima beans
tomato sauce (2)
oats
chocolate chips
almond flavoring
Bananas
Fruit & Veggies (Usually about $20/month for snacking)
Baking Apples for Apple Pie
Pudding & J-ello
5 cartons Cool Whip
1 bag flour (food storage)
1 bag sugar (food storage)
Kool-Aid (drink mix)
Box of diapers
2 gallons of milk (to start out with)
All right - the challenge is on! The person who creates the best menu for the best price throughout the month gets . . . well, I don't know - a pat on the back or pin a rose on your nose, or ???? Good job.
Jessica
No comments:
Post a Comment