Shortly after getting married, my husband and I worked on our very first budget as a couple. We are both very thrifty with our spending, but we knew we needed to sit down together and determine where our money was going and set a goal for how much we would spend each month. We had two tuitions to pay for at the time and only a part-time job to pay the bills. Needless to say, finances were tight!
As time passed, we quickly realized that each season of life brings with it new challenges (and new expenses). This was no exception when we had our son. The first couple of weeks we were blessed by our church family who graciously provided meals to help us get in a regular routine and adjust to life as new parents. However, those meals were eaten quickly and suddenly we were left with a whole new set of expenses and a new mouth to feed. We sat down to revise our budget, just as we often do, and came up with a plan to meet our financial goals. I realize that this task is not an easy feat for many families, and I am blessed to have a loving husband who serves the Lord and leads our family to be good stewards of what the Lord has entrusted to us. We are lucky in that we have the same financial goals and ultimately want to serve the Lord in all that we do, including how we manage our money. In our striving to make ends meet, we have come up with some ways that work for us and hopefully will help you feed your family on a budget.
Make a Menu
Sit down once every week and write out exactly what meals you plan to prepare for the week. We usually do this on Saturday, because that works for our family, but do what works best for you. We both grab our calendars and try to plan out which one of us will cook each night based on other events happening that week. (Sunday usually entails an easy meal after church, Wednesday we teach ESL at our church and have a church wide meal, Saturday we may be out of town or having someone over…you get the idea) we even created a cute “Menu” board in our kitchen to keep us on track.
Use your Menu to create a grocery list, and stick to it.
We make our menu every Saturday right before we head to the grocery store, this way we can create a detailed grocery list. We grab only the items on our list, which leaves us no room to “impulse buy” and also saves time at the store. If we are in a time crunch, we even make our grocery list based on the layout of the store (if you have a great memory like my sweet hubby).
Eat Leftovers/Don’t Eat Out
In order for us to actually be saving money by buying groceries, we need to limit the amount of fast food or takeout that we consume. I realize that we all have busy schedules, but that’s why you pull out the calendar when you are making your menu! You likely know what is happening for the next 7 days, or at least you have a good idea, and can plan quick meals or snacks as needed!
Buy in Bulk
We actually purchase all of our meats in bulk. When we get home, we sort them out into individually labeled ziplock bags by serving size for each meal. We always have different meats on hand just in case we decide to do something a little different than our scheduled menu! There are certainly many other items you can purchase in bulk, but we have found that meats are consistently cheaper in bulk so we do this every time! Also, we’ve found at most retail stores, diapers and formula are cheaper in bulk too!
There are so many ways to save money, but we all know feeding our families with young ones in the house can be tough. Using these tips, we have found a consistent schedule that works for our family and also saves us money. I hope this helps you to feed yours too! Leave us a comment about some ways you have found to stick to your meal budget!
