Pinching Pennies

     Our current situation (me in school full time and two kids) bought us a first class ticket to the poor house. I am grateful that we have a wonderful house over our heads and our bills get paid each month. Kade and I each have  vehicles that run and get us from A to B. So in the grand scheme of things, I can't complain. But, we lead a modest life. We don't have the best of the best, but we are happy...which is what really matters.

     Our tight budget has taught me how to be strict with our monthly budget. There have been many weeks where we were left with a small sum of $30 to live off of for the week. This includes our weeks worth of groceries and needed items around the house. This tight budget has FORCED me to be creative with our money! There are a few penny pinching tricks that I live religiously by! 

1.)Meal Planning**

Meal planning is one of the easiest ways to cut $$ off of your grocery bill! This is how I do my meal planning....

      I start with my meal data base that I've created over the past four years. Yes, I know I sound like a crazy lady...having a meal data base. All it consists of are all of the meals my family enjoys, separated into different categories. Recipes based around chicken go in the chicken category, hamburger based recipes in the hamburger category and so on. Each recipe has it's own recipe card in my box of recipes under the exact same categories. This part of my meal planning has taken me the longest, but soooo worth it in the end! Now when I find a new recipe I love, it goes on the database worksheet as well in the recipe box!

      Next pick out which recipes sound good to us for the week. I try to mix up the meat throughout the week, instead of eating 5 meals based off of hamburger. This is where those categories come in handy! I use this printable worksheet and lay my meals out. **Another tip is to take a peek into your fridge finding what produce/meat needs to be used before it spoils and pick meals that will use up those ingredients. 

     After I've figured out what meals we will be having, I grab the recipe cards and take a quick peek at the ingredients, and compare with whatever items I have on stock in my house. If I need an item, I put it on my grocery list on the right hand side of the meal planning worksheet mentioned above. 

      Kade gets paid on a weekly basis, so I do this each week before I go grocery shopping because I know what my weekly allowance is after I've paid my bills. Meal planning has made my life so much easier. I don't have a night where I find myself toying with that lingering question, "what to make for dinner tonight...." I know what we're having before the day begins!! Meal planning also helps you avoid having to run to the store throughout the week for that ONE item you need and don't have on hand. Those quick trips always end up being at least a $20 bill, those add up!!!

     -It doesn't hurt to throw in a leftover night every once in a while. MUST GO MONDAY'S, TAKE IT OR LEAVE IT TUESDAYS, GONNA THROW IT OUT THURSDAYS, ETC!

2. Stick with your grocery list!!!

My grocery list is based on my meals as mentioned above, which has really helped me avoid those impulse buys with food. I try my hardest to stick to those items necessary to make my meals, and that's it.

3. Buy in bulk......when you can

There are a few items that I always buy in bulk. Chicken breast, pork chops, flour, sugar, vingear, peanut butter being just a few of them. I buy up to 20 lbs, and seperate the chicken breast into meal portions in pint freezer bags and freeze away. Nonperishable items are usually cheapest bought in bulk, i.e. Toilet paper, paper towels etc. etc. 

Be careful, some items are not cheaper bought in bulk! Watch the unit price to make sure you are getting the best deals! 

4. Recycle your food!

This trick has taken me a long time to perfect. As mentioned above in meal planning, try to use produce that is nearing it's expiration date. There is nothing I hate more than throwing fresh produce away, mainly because it takes up a big chunk of my grocery allowance. 

Another way to recycle food is to invest in a dehydrator. This has helped me save a lot of my produce. When I have fruit that is getting close to going bad, I pop it in our dehydrator. Apples, bananas, strawberries, pineapple, grapes, and peaches all work great for dehydrating. Turner loves our homemade raisins, they turn out much bigger than the store bought. This dried fruits work great in homemade granola, oatmeal in the morning or even for baking!!!

Ok- There are my money saving tips when it comes to food. If our family of four can life off of $40/week for groceries, yours can too! I challenge you to set a budget each week and try your hardest to stick to it! Good luck!