A few days ago, I had a little banking scare. I got notice that there was a "fraud alert" on my account. After going in and double-checking everything, getting a new card and going over my accounts, everything turned out to be fine. But I did leave with some food for thought...literally. While going over my most recent debits to make sure everything was okay, I was a little chagrined as the banker read aloud the charges: Del Taco, Alberto's Mexican Food, In N Out, Taco Bell, Jack In the Box and McDonald's. Now, I didn't think we ate out that much but perhaps I've been in denial. I tend to look at fast food as a "treat" that I "deserve" because I'm home all day with the kids and just want to get out etc., etc....but between my "treats", my hubby's lunches during his workday and our splurges on the weekend, we were spending a fortune on food! And not healthy food either...we were spending our hard earned money on junk. So what a coincidence that at my last MOPS (Mother's of Pre-Shoolers...www.mops.org) meeting was a speaker on, wouldn't you know it, healthy eating on a budget. Wow. It opened my eyes and re-motivated me to get my butt back in gear and start cooking up some healthy meals and get some easy and nutritious ingredients on hand for lunches for my kids and I.
There were no excuses for the poor eating habits we had developed and for my being a poor example to my kids. Yes, I'm tired and no, there's not a ton of time to carve out for eyeing circulars, cutting coupons and meal planning in my house but I'm going to do my best. As our speaker, Jesse Brown of inthebrownbag.com reminded us, as a stay-home mom, I am the gatekeeper of what food comes in the home. Further, part of my job is to stretch my hubby's hard earned dollar as far as it will go! So I brought up a challenge to my hubby this morning: to spend $100 max a week on groceries, cut our eating out back to twice a week and see how much we can save in a month. He is on board! Starting Oct. 1st, I'm on a mission...feed my family healthy, tasty meals and save money in the process. I'll let you know how it's going.
What are your tips for saving more and eating better at the checkout line???
oh man i'm right there with you, and we only have half the people to feed!
ReplyDeleteCostco, duh! The basics are so much cheaper (ie butter, milk--we use soy milk--frozen fruit for smoothies, etc).
ReplyDeleteAlso, Henry's/Sprout's bulk bin AND keeping easy things on hand for snacks or quick meals. But I think you already know about that one!