[Tina]

I would love to know what those of you with 2 or 3 kids are feeding them! It is just me, my husband andva big dog and I stay shocked at the totals!

We do all the frugal things, too. Just wondering how you are doing it! You have my respect!

[Sarah]

I have made a list of our regular purchase items and I have a list of the cost of those things at each store near me.

When she’s at school, I bounce from place to place and get it all instead of all at one place for convenience.

I have it down to the change knowing what I will spend at each store per week.

It’s exhausting and ridiculous, but I’m a single mom.. I have to make the most of every cent.

[Suzie]

I go to our local United Grocery Outlet for all my meats. Yesterday I got a 4# maple flavored ham, and just sliced, bagged up 8 half # bags for the freezer. Total cost was $16.00.

That was $1.99/#. Just me and hubs. I stretched out a pot of beef vegetable soup for the 4th meal adding macaroni.

I figured I spent about $8.00.

Make my own bread. Over a year ago, I decided to make my own when I got tired of spending $4.00 a loaf.

[Debbie]

I was a single mom with 3 sons which were all in sports. I was also working two jobs. So, I found quick meals, or those I could cook in a crock pot, that were inexpensive that the loved.

For example, hamburger casserole, chicken & rice casserole, crock pot smothered pork chops and mashed potatoes & green beans, oven pot roast with potatoes & carrots, spaghetti with sauce & garlic bread.

All were $10-$20 for the meal.

I prep planned the week’s meals according to our schedules and bought groceries accordingly.

[Darla]

1. I shop the perimeter for MOST of our foods.
2. Healthy Portion sizes per meal.

It took a health event for me to learn about nutrition.
I chose to be responsibly unmedicated so I take nutrition very seriously.

We were significantly overeating as a family. As the primary cook, I changed that!

* 3-4oz of LEAN protein
* 1/4 -1/2c cooked rice
* 1/2-1 c cooked pasta
* half plate of vegetables

3. No prepackaged drinks: soda/pop, juices, etc
4. No alcohol,

Tobacco products, candy, etc
5. Track your pet food, paper products, personal care, clothing, office supplies, decor etc separately so that you can see the change in grocery prices easier.

6. Meal plan for each week before you go to the store.

I went extreme and created (3) 30 day meal plans. This keeps our food variety on pace for our macros, daily caloric intake, and micronutrients.

It took me a month to do, but I no longer ask “What will I cook for dinner?” Because it’s already done for me.
7. Take inventory after you meal plan

8. Shop the online ads for digital coupons
9. Buy what you NEED.

Overbuying, even if it’s a great deal, can become costly because you are idling money on the shelf.

Getting a cost savings is great if you pay cash or pay your card off, but you can still BUST a grocery budget by overstocking because you buy more of what you don’t need now.

10. Prepackaged snack items are costly and can be over-portioned during consumption.

When we have taco flavored protein (chicken or beef) we don’t use taco shells or wraps. Instead, we use 5-6 crumbled store brand tortilla chips per person.

I don’t eat any because that not how I choose to eat my carbs.
11. Protein makes you full.

I was getting 1/3 of my daily protein needs BEFORE my health event.
This is the primary reason I was always seeking more food.

Now that I eat the proper amount of LEAN protein, I don’t get snack cravings or overeat at meals.

12. Condiments are costly and I think that they can be easily wasted which means buying more.

13. Ideology shift: make meal time about nutrition and spending time with family/friends and less about LARGE, unhealthy portions.

14. Hamburger, hotdog, rolls are unnecessary for sandwiches. We eat a lean cheeseburger/hamburger just like a steak!

15. HOLIDAYS can be budget busters. Make sure you increase your budget for those events. Have guests bring their favorite foods to offset your costs.

I elect to host Thanksgiving Day for 22-25 people. While I buy and prepare 99% of the food, guests do bring desserts, soda/pop, adult beverages, and special treats for the young kids.

Final note:
When I had a health event, I had to examine EVERYTHING I was consuming.
I relearned how to meal plan in a nutritious way without exceeding my budget.

This was 90% self taught. I did meet with a dietician AFTER I got my binders together.

If you save your old grocery receipts, look at it one week after you shopped!

It will reveal eating habits, overbuying, wasteful spending, unhealthy foods, foods that spoiled and weren’t eaten in time.
An overstocked pantry is money that is sitting on the shelf.

It’s also harder to manage if you have a small space.

We spend $400/month in NE Ohio on food items ONLY for 4 adults.

[Misty]

Buying stuff when it’s on sale. Unfortunately tho, I’m having to shop for just a little at a time after meal planning for the week.

Making packs of things like chicken and ground beef stretch. Instead of a lb per meal, it’s more like 3/4’s.

Utilizing leftovers and incorporating them into meal planning helps a ton.

Just buying meals and fruits, very little snacks. Moving to more generic than anything.

It’s just my daughter and I but we tend to eat healthier, lots of fresh veggies, fruits, non processed stuff so we cut where we can.

Also freezing water and grabbing a granola bar or crackers to bring with while we’re out and about helps save $ from buying overpriced snacks on the go.

[Vele]

When I was a kid the dog ate what ever scrapes the kids fed him under the table… Grits and eggs, corn bread, oatmeal, PJ sandwich, chicken bones, all of that is what my dog eats (her loves PJ sandwiches) and yesterday I saw him eating some squash from my garden.

My kids, on the other, hand eat like goats!

[Nancy]

Buy discounted food. Use meat as flavor. I love to make stuffed peppers with clearanced peppers. 3 parts rice, 1 part seasoned meat (with breadcrumbs, oats or TVP), oinions and cheese.

Cook, cool, wrap individually in saran wrap, then many in freezer bags.

Freeze. Make BIG freezer friendly meals, freeze individual servings.

I only cook about 6 times a month and we always have home cooked meals. SOUPS; like Tortilla are a cheap “use leftovers” meal. Find other “use leftovers” meals.

Only buy items on sale.
For hamburgers; make bread in 13 x 18 pan, cool cut into sandwich sizes. Excess bread is dried and crumbled.

1 lb ground beef 2-4 cups bread crumbs, 1 egg, minced onions, 2 t salt. Make 4 – 6 patties. Yum!

You can also add TYP or oats instead of breadcrumbs.

[Cris]

Lots of rice and beans, vegetables, I have wic that helps a lot with oatmeal, grits, multigrain cheerios, tortillas, also planting vegetables now, my son is not picky, I cook almost everything at home (working part time/dietary restrictions (migraines, diabetes) basic and less processed food

[Vicki]

Meatless Mondays, Taco Tuesdays…add beans, breakfast on Wednesday… make your own biscuits or pancakes. Use meat on sale then stock up.

Use a crock pot. Learn to make tortillas, sandwich bread etc….

Make soup every week. Pasta salads during the summer.

[Dorsey]

I had three big eaters boys athletes. I cut prepackaged food as much as possible and the impatience and grab and go mentality was the biggest challenge.

Refillable water bottles vs soda or juice boxes.

Home made apple sauce, get the sales on apples and skip sugar. Pasta and meatballs but make sauces from scratch.

A quick pan sauce with pasta or leftover veggies easy.

Substitute chicken thighs for breast meat and pound thin for fast cooking and stretching it for more servings. Start a garden now!

Honestly getting the kids out of the unboxing and the expensive individually wrapped servings of processed food was the hardest thing

[Sandy]

I shop the sales… I go to more than one store.. and then I fix meals based on what I found on sale!.

I also use an app called flash food… It’s where the store has something that either is an overstock or about to go out of date… And it’s half price..

I try to do the food bank at least once a month to supplement what I’m buying.

[Beth]

We do all the things top, shop 100% at Aldi or Costco (for things we buy in bulk like eggs, coffee, some clothing items, etc).

We eat vegetarian 1-2 days a week and eat leftovers often.

And we’re still topping $600-800 most months these days.

Our grocery budget even a year ago was under $500 a month. But inflation is killing us.

[Davis]

It’s the snacks that add up and overtake the budget. I buy fruit that’s in season. Often from the little tables selling outside of people’s homes.

I buy kids snacks whatever’s on sale each week. I make my own pancakes and small cakes.

I lay out my toaster, bread and various spreads for after school when my house is often full of neighbourhood kids.

If we go to the cinema or out where we need to eat I will take our own food and drinks.

The only takeaway my kids get is occasionally fish and chips after a day at the beach.

I sometimes drive through a burger place and get the soft serve ice cream cones at 50cents as a special treat.

I usually buy 4litre ice cream tubs always when on sale at half price.

So, it’s all about checking the supermarket catalogs each week and I’ll do a day when I shop at each supermarket to buy the specials.

I buy in bulk if I see something at half price and we use it often. Cereals especially.

I find if I prep veggies like carrot and celery sticks and leave them in the fridge they will get eaten.

I’ll make my own custard and jelly cups. The kids love it when I make fruit skewers with various chunks of fruit.

They seem to avoid apples the most so I use the spiral peeler/corer out on the bench and they spiral their own.

[Author]

Posts