I knew that this new journey in life would impact our family budget especially groceries/meals. We didn’t eat out that often prior to our move but when we did it was based on “kids eat free” restaurants on particular days.. Ironically these past couple of weeks we’ve eaten out quite a bit since we visit places/events but we haven’t really spent any money 🙂 I know in your mind thinking now how is that possible – well both girls finished the Lexington Public Library summer reading program which came with quite a few meal rewards so not only have we gotten to try new restaurants BUT our meals were never more than $9.
Most know that I’m a coupon girl so always trying to match the deals with my coupons (get the 411 through various sites). I added Aldi to our stores to visit for they have core groceries and kid snacks at decent prices. Now I’m still spending money on my fruits/veggies which for the most part are bought at the local farmer’s market, and still purchase organic poultry/seafood from the local Trader Joe’s. All in all our food expenses have slightly decreased and hopefully within the next month I’ll see more another significant decline.
How can I decrease it further you ask?
Getting creative with our meals by making it from scratch (when I can) versus using the processed items which can be pricey.. In my mind I envision that not only will we save money but we will also be eating healthier and increasing our variety in meals. Trust me when I say I don’t have picky eaters so there really won’t be complaints on something new….
Today while we were at the library for a “FREE” educational event I went ahead and checked out some cookbooks for vegetarian/kid-friendly meals. (NOTE: I’m a seafood only vegetarian while the girls have the added poultry layer) I even found us a new meal to try tonight while skimming through Better Homes and Gardens Kid Favorites Made Healthy cookbook.
Check out the Triple-Decker Tortilla(page 120)
Not only was this thing healthy (only 219 calories) but it was Good partnered with some black corn chips. I’ve actually got quite a few meal ideas from this book so I’ll post pictures after we make them…
Till the next rambling…
Maranda's World 