Monday, October 27, 2008

And a wee bit about frugal eating...

There is much celebration going on in my house right now. Why? Because I found an awesome new blog: $5 Dollar Dinners.

Many of you know that since we have become Dave Ramsey-converts, Jim and I have completely cut fast food and restaurants out of our lives. We live by a very strict weekly grocery budget now and have to find ways to make that money stretch. Beyond the money, now that we are no longer eating out, planning and preparation of all our meals has fallen on my shoulders.

I am by no means a good cook, but I like to think practice makes perfect. And that's what I do now, 7 days a week - practice. Along the way I've picked up some great skills and even better tools (like my crock pot!), and I find that I really enjoy cooking.

I have also put my impeccable planning skills to good use in the area of meals. Each week, I organize daily meals based on the foods I have on hand and plan a shopping list accordingly. I have been able to cut our weekly food budget down to $30-$40 per week, including all other groceries. Not only does this save us money, but the extra money allows us to do things we otherwise wouldn't have been able to. For example, we were able to attend the Liberty Christian School Fundraising Banquet with the extra money in our food budget. We were also able to participate in our church's annual Blessing Baskets by providing items for thanksgiving meals to families in need.

I have to admit, eating inexpensively is not always easy. I have found a few good inexpensive menu ideas, but eating the same meals over and over again gets boring. That is why I was so excited today to find $5 Dollar Dinner! There is a plethora of meal ideas on this blog that serve a small family on $5 or less. Check it out - you'll love it!

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