Super Saver Sunday!

On Sundays I would love for us all to share different ways that we stretch that dollar for our families. I know in these times of economic uncertainty sharing gems like this can be invaluable to all of us. If you have a super saver idea please e-mail me at coastiewivescorner@yahoo.com to share with us all.

Here's Mine

One of the best ways to save is to budget, writing down all of the places you want your money to go and then to write down all of the places that your money went is a great way to keep up with things. After all of that you may still feel a little discouraged at the need to cut corners a bit more tightly. Telling your money where to go is a really great step. Budgeting out every cent before it comes in is a great way to prepare.

One of the areas of budgeting that always got me was in the grocery area. Sure I could always find a great deal to make our money go further, but I really wasn't taking a true look at what I was buying and what plans I had for it. A great way to combat that is to plan your menus.

Now to do this first you should go to your freezer, pantry, or whatever and see what you have in stock and try to make as many meals from that. A great tool to use is www.allrecipes.com Here you can put in the ingredients you have and the ones your don't and it will give you a list of dishes that fit your list. That way you aren't running to the store everyday because you forgot something. If something you want to cook calls for an ingredient that you don't have, no need to panic just write out your shopping list then as you are planning your menu.

Now some people plan their menus for the month. Since a lot of my grocery allowance goes to an organic co-op that I belong to I cannot do that as the produce changes every order. I choose to make my menus a week ahead of time. That way if there is any really good sale on an essential at the store I haven't already budgeted out the money to something else. Here is our family menu for the week.

Breakfasts:
Cereal, Eggs, Pancakes

Lunch
Sandwich, Leftovers, Wed McDonalds $.59 cheeseburgers

Dinner
Navajo Tacos
Meat Loaf with Corn on the Cob
Twice Baked Potatoes
Grilled Chicken and Salad
Chicken Fried Rice
Fried Flounder with zucchini
Leftovers with cantalope

Out of all of that I only have to purchase 2 things from the store, my milk and my bacon bits for the potatoes. This way I already know that I won't need to spend too much this week (like maybe $5 at the grocery store) and hardly anything at McDonalds (with fries and drinks my kids and I usually eat for $5 total!!). As you can see it's always best to have a plan for your money, even your grocery money. So go plan out your menus and have a great week! Don't forget to have a photo shoot for your food too and send it in as we celebrate out first Family Dinner Friday this week!