Food is a tough topic to tackle for many, budget and other-wise. So much is affected by geography, dietary needs, weight issues, and family composition. Then there is the more personal issues of taste, religious and environmental beliefs, and how one views food in general. There are those who view food as fuel, a means to an end of giving your body the supplies it needs to flourish or at least keep breathing. Others view food as a social avenue, a way to bring families and communities together. Still others view food as entertainment in its own right, from foodies to cooking show addicts. It is a part of our lives so basic, and yet so complex.
Understandably, creating a budget line for something that spans both entertainment, community-building, and health and fitness can seem a bit daunting. My personal struggle is that I live in a culture where food is very much a social activity, but I’m super cheap and relatively health conscious which can often be at odds. I love the idea of a plate that is 70% fresh vegetables, but until I can get my plate size under control it's a bit to pricey (READ I ate like a whole bag of roasted zucchini $$$). SO frozen it is.
So, my family is in some debt from a variety of things. Some poor choices, some school, some circumstantial - a good variety. Fortunately the amount itself is not debilitating, however it does affect our purchasing power, and hence our grocery budget. I try to save where I can and still provide healthy meals we can enjoy. I typically spend around $200-280 each month on groceries for a family of three adults, two babies/toddlers and an Aussie. The range is a bit large due to holidays/cooking for friends/family and using a stockpile, but I would guess ballpark $250 if averaged throughout the year.
In case people are wondering what we are buying in that grocery budget, here are some details. Lots of sandwiches and leftovers for lunch, chicken, BOGO meat specials at WinnDixie. We shop largely Aldi, Winn Dixie and Walmart Pickup. No Kroger here sadly. Our family diet right now is NOT Keto friendly since I have more beans than anyone can possibly eat, and a healthy pantry stash of pasta and rice right now that we need to eat through. We also eat a ton of fruit. We also eat drive through "food" more than I like, due to traveling, schedule changes, and general exhaustion. So in an effort to change that I am trying something very popular in the Pinteresty/Bloggy/LiveYourBestLife community. Meal Planning.
Yes, I am a Meal Plan virgin, I am sad to say. Despite reading about the way of the Meal Plan for YEARS, I have only really implemented any type of real planning when it comes to trips or holidays. I downloaded a basic editable pdf meal plan template at random from Google results and went to town. I scheduled mainly dinners and weekends, since my husband and I both work outside the home and typically take leftovers or sandwiches to lunch. I shopped some BOGO meat sales and the month is tentatively planned around those meats. My idea for now is to do a tentative month at a time planning, then make changes as great local sales or our schedule dictates. Many families do weekly or biweekly, but I believe that I am more likely to stick to planning if it is monthly and flexible. For the items which needed recipes I put a (P) next to them for Pinterest, where I stored the recipes for this month.
I know several ladies for whom I have mad respect who do the 'meal prep' side of planning as well, where you make food for the week all at once. This is not that, I will be gradually cooking as the need or time arises. I have done meal prep occasionally myself, and while it can be a great time saver, it is rare I have a consistent time each week to prep large quantities of food and I'm not the girl who eats the same grilled chicken salad all week. Salad often makes me sad, I just prefer sandwiches or hot food when I can get it. Also, IMO microwaved chicken (that's not in a casserole etc) is gross. So no week long food prep for me right now. So here is what I assembled for this month, I tried to guesstimate when we would have leftovers but the planning is intentionally flexible.
I plan to follow up this post with updates over our grocery spending, and review the success (or lack of) of monthly meal planning. Since everything is better on a spreadsheet, I am merging my meal planning adventures with an attempt to more effectively track prices and our grocery spending.
My goals for attempting the monthly meal plan are as follows:
1. Reduce Stress concerning “what’s for dinner”
2. Get more nutrition for comparable spending
3. Reduce temptation to waste money on ‘cheap’ fast food
4. Reduce wasted food items due to poor planning
A couple of easy ways to reduce food costs that have not (yet) been successful in my family that you should definitely try:
1. Meatless Mondays (or any day) --- Still trying to trick my husband into this one!
2. Cooking a whole chicken at a time ---- I have issues with meat on the bone and 'animally' meat that I can't explain because even I know it's crazy. I really hope I can conquer this issue because it would save us some major $$$.
Internet ideas that HAVE worked for us:
3. Replacing 1/4-1/2 of the meat portion of a bake/soup/stew with a friendly legume. Basically tastes the same, saves $$, heart healthy.
4. The InstaPot. Oh how I LOVE you.
5. Making Double portions and freezing 1 meal for later ( I also typically do this whenever I 'take' someone a meal. I make a double batch or split a large single batch into two trays)
6. Having a special food night. Pre-dairy allergy, it was Pizza on Fridays for us. $6/$8 for a large deli pizza we get two meals out of for minimal effort. For around $2 a person per meal, it's hard to beat that price point for convenience and taste!
I estimate we spend $30-$50 a month on takeout purely out of poor planning and exhaustion. I want to know if I can fix that. SO here goes!
A wife of noble character who can find? She is worth far more than rubies. Her husband has full confidence in her and lacks nothing of value. She brings him good, not harm, all the days of her life. She selects wool and flax and works with eager hands. She is like the merchant ships, bringing her food from afar. She gets up while it is still dark; she provides food for her family and portions for her servant girls. She considers a field and buys it; out of her earnings she plants a vineyard. She sets about her work vigorously; her arms are strong for her tasks. She sees that her trading is profitable, and her lamp does not go out at night. In her hand she holds the distaff and grasps the spindle with her fingers. Prov 31
While I am not spinning wool or flax necessarily, the essential teaching here is in the value of homemaking, economy, and of planning for the future. God bestows value on the everyday, and in planning and providing care for your family. Which is great news, since so much of our time is spent on the 'ordinary'. Plan in grace,
Love, Charis
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