17 Days, Family O' 6, $3160.00 Budget**TRIP REPORT on pg 26**@Now with Pics!@

[pixiepower1971]

The ice cream social at the Garden Grill WAS great but it is no longer being offered.

 

[dismom9761]

we saw quite a few families sitting on benches eating lunches out of coolers when we went.I plan on doing this for me and my 4 kids on a few days.

 

[welovedis]

Wow, some of you do really great on your grocery bills and I am certainly envious. Even though we don't buy extras (only drink milk, orange juice or water in this house, cookies are always homemade-no store bought snacks for my house-my daycare is different) we always spend more than $100. We don't belong to a warehouse club because we've weighed the savings and here they just don't add up--we don't buy lots of brand name items anyway and those seem to be what is sold at our local BJ's & Sam's Club.

We don't have a salvage place here, I had not heard of such a thing until earlier this year when someone mentioned it on another board. Sounds like we could save a bunch that way--wish they had one locally. I shop at the bread outlet and get the loaves for 3 or 4 / $1.00 but we don't buy anything else there as the snacks are horrible for you. Occasionally DS gets a single serving size item for .25, but that's it. I don't stick to any certain brands, except for a few that I won't buy because we don't care for them (like Puffs brand tissues-too much fluff or something on them & they stick to DH's beard, lol!). I've checked out Saving Dinner (the website-last year) & the 2 person menus are just barely enough for the 3 of us, plus we spent MORE on those ingredients than we typically do on dinner when we plan it ourselves.

As far as Feed Your Family for $12/day, I have read the previous book by this author (Eat Healthy for $50/week) and found that many of the items she buys are pre-packaged, pre-made mixes and things that I simply cannot have because of food allergies. While it is an interesting idea, I also could never figure out how she could make a shopping list with no meat products and then cook a roast the following week with those groceries, it obviously was an omission but made the book seem a bit false.

As far as another poster mentioning the "not enough food issue" I can totally relate. Growing up we didn't have enough to go around at mealtime, but when my dad passed away my mother suddenly had a boatload of cash she had stored up each week from scrimping on groceries. After that I worked and bought my own food and went to the opposite extreme, gaining too much weight. Now that I am taking better control of my eating habits, losing weight & becoming healthier I realize my overeating was a partially a result of not ever being "full" when I was young, I had honestly only experienced that when eating at a friends house or at my grandparents occasionally. We never had snacks, fresh fruit (only canned), ice cream only on our birthday (no cake) and drank only powdered milk. I guess when you are in the midst of it you don't realize what else is out there but then as an adult it hits you that there are so many other choices out there.

Now I'm not trying to imply that this is the case with those who are mentioning their frugal lifestyles. I don't know that anyone here is doing that at all. I just feel that I have tried my best over the past few years to cut down on our bill and it hasn't worked. I thought perhaps there was something else out there that I wasn't "getting". I sincerely appreciate everyone's information and tips, I just wish they worked for our family.

To the OP I apologize for hijacking your thread and discussing the food issue so much, I certainly didn't mean for it to take things over in that respect. I wish you & your family the best and hope you have a terrific trip and thoroughly enjoy your time together.

 

[robinb]

We did bring peanut butter and jelly one day for the 2 little ones that were under 2 years but they didn't hold up as well.

We always bring PB&J into the parks for my DD. She is a very picky eater and is a vegetarian by choice, so she won't eat 90% of the kids meals. We pack our PB&J in a Glad disposable square container. I like the Glad brand because it's actually deep enough for two sandwiches and they don't get too squished. I also do the trick of smearing PB on each side of the bread and putting the jelly in the middle. That way the bread doesn't get soggy. I will also use the Glad containers for holding granola-type snack bars. I can access them easily and they don't get squished.

ETA: The containers may be "disposable", but I reuse them and don't throw them out! That wouldn't be frugal . Not that I am ... frugal, that is .

 

[Nini]

You are all so very thrifty! I am glad that I am not alone !

I shop for paper products, snack foods (99 cents a big bag), fruit (slightly bruised but kids don't care!), butter, some meats, frozen foods, and anything miscellaneous I might need at our local Price Rite discount supermarket! It has cut our grocery bill dramatically. Our grocery bill was approx. $100 per week for dd(now 3), dh and myself...now it is down to approx. $35 when I put forth the effort to get the bargains. We still have snacks as I don't believe in depriving us of some of the littlest pleasures, but I rarely pay more than $1.00 for them (including name brand fruit snacks).

I HAVE to stretch our money as far as possible as I am a sahm (I have just started working pt though for extra vacation money...my dad watches my dd3) and my dh only gets paid on 1st and 15th. That is the ONLY income we have depended on for three years AND for three years he never got even one raise!!!!

I would however, suggest that you try to budget a bit more for food. Although I like others here, know what it is like to just NOT have any extra money to budget. I usually can find some way like consigning clothing I don't want or use, I bring dd3 clothing to a local childrens consignment which gives money upfront for the clothing, return soda cans and we also put all spare change in a vacation jug...although I raid that periodically to "get by"

We have managed to plan a trip to Disney in October. This happened because we had plane tickets we needed to use from a prior trip that never happened. Thus, airfare was alread paid for. We are staying at a Value Resort POP and cannot wait for this vacation!!! It has been approx. 4 years since we have been there. We decided that we didn't want to worry about food and purchased the dining plan. Now, all we need to worry about is some breakfast or lunch along with souvies and extras we may want!!! I am totally excited!!! DH's extended family is coming along as well and the more the merrier! We are all used to vacationing together so it will not be a huge problem as we know when to give each other space and when to pitch in and give support .

Looks like you found a way to get a bit of the magic for you and yours!!! I am sending the positive vibes your way...GO SISTER!!!!!!!!

 

[jolee]

I few months ago I said to my husband that I would like to take the kids to Orlando for a few day. "No problem sounds like fun. Create a budget" The famous last words. I did alot of searching on the web including this forum. I did find a site that saved us a lot of money on the hotel, restaurant and dinner shows. The site www.ibidusa.com. I couldn't believe the savings. We are staying at a hotel in LBV by the Marketplace for 60% off retail and taking in a dinner show.

Jolee

 

[TNKBELL]

I just want to reassure everyone, that my children are very well fed, I can relate to those of you who grew up around meager portions, because I did too! I think when you experience that you want a different life for your own family. I admit that sometimes I am a pushover with my DKS and let them get a treat or pick out some of the snacks(a choice from my selections) You can still eat plenty and have plenty of snacks around and still be on a budget...really! As for Orlando food prices, I was curious and went to Publix website and found a store near our condos and looked at the weekly add to get an example and here are just a few things they had...Watermelon and Bananas.39 p/lb....Frozen veggies 4/2.00 (cheaper than I've seen at Dillons) Turkey Breast 1.19lb.... bread 2/1.85..cheese 3/5.00.. pasta 2/.97... tortilla chips 2/1.69. O.J. 2.29, Mangos 2/1.20... after looking through all 12 pages of this add I can honestly say that yes I could still stick to the budget! I know it's only for this week, but I know that there will comprable items when we are there. I always plan our menu around sale items. This makes for a somewhat varied menu(although DS6 is the pickiest child on the planet!) Upon our arrival I will post our budget and give an example of our daily eating so you can judge for yourselves if indeed there was enough food for everyone! Thanks for the encouragement!

 

[kathy carleton]

I am a school teacher in Alabama, and called yesterday. We do indeed qualify!! thanks a bunch for the info... good luck on your trip!!

 

[bengalbelle]

Tnkbell, this is my first post on your thread, but I've been following it from the beginning. I'd like to say that I admire your determination and the way you've been able to stay positive. What I understand from your posts is that your family doesn't care all that much to eat out, you're not park commandos so leaving the park to eat and swim at your hotel is not a sacrifice for you, from the look of your children in your signature picture they are not malnourished or wasting away , one thing that is very important to you is the trip to the beach, therefore you are willing to spend a little extra to do that, your kids aren't much into material things, therefore you don't need lots of money for souvenirs, you've been to WDW before, so you do understand the cost of things there, and most importantly, you do have extra money and/or a back-up credit card in case you do need to increase your food budget or have an emergency.

I have no doubt that your family will have a wonderful 17 days of vacation and will come home well fed and full of memories. Hope ya'll have a great time and I look forward to reading a trip report when you get home

 

[mommagoof]

I think tinks food buget is great, I have a feeling she is a hardcore couponer like I am. One thing is that after you have been using coupons for so long and buy 10 or 20 of an item when it is on sale and free or very cheap you aren't spending as much. After a while you only need to buy meat,milk,eggs,bread, fresh veggies to make your meals you already have everything else you need.

 

[cruisnfamily]

I am a school teacher in Alabama, and called yesterday. We do indeed qualify!! thanks a bunch for the info... good luck on your trip!!

What do you qualify for?

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

What do you qualify for?

Since she's off-line...I'll chime in...

I believe OP shared this website with everyone and it is for city, state, and federal employees:

www.getravelop.com

ETA: Qualifications from the website:

You are eligible to participate in the GETO if you are 21 or older and a:

Current or retired employee of a U.S. or Canadian governmental agency -- Federal, State, County, City, Provincial, Territorial or Municipality

 

[Cindy's Mom]

My DH and I are "saving" our "old" clothes to wear on the trip down and for the first few days we are there...and then throwing them out. No laundry for at least a week.

First off - Sorry to TINK for using her thread but I just had to comment on the above.....how much can you actually save by not doing a load of laundry, is it worth wearing OLD clothes (while on vacation) just to save $$ for detergent? One of my favorite parts of vacation is the "cute clothes" I bought and finally get to wear. oh well, different strokes I guess.....

 

[ladycollector]

I think what you're doing is great, we feed 3 at WDW on $50 a day and it works out pretty good for us. As long as you've got back up funds (which you do) I think it will be great!

Have a great time

 

[MrsPete]

My question is: When purchasing MYW tix, does that include the use of WDW transportation? I know if you are at Mk you can hop on the monorail and go to Gf or Poly or C. So my thinking is that if it is included(I like to be legal) than we could park at DTD and ride the buses to the parks,thus eliminating the park cost.

Even if it were allowed, it wouldn't be practical. Consider the morning commute: Pack the kids into the van, drive to DTD. Search for a parking spot -- let's assume you find one. Walk the kids to the bus shelter. Wait for the bus (DTD busses don't run as regularly as the resort busses -- you could wait 30 minutes). Good news: the DTD bus is usually close to empty. Choose the bus to the TTC -- Ticket and Transportation Center, which is across Bay Lake from the Magic Kingdom. No park busses connect directly to DTD; they assume that people only go from their resorts to DTD. From TTC, wait for the bus to the park of your choice. The wait at TTC should be very short (less than 10 minutes). It would probably take a full hour to get from your condo to the park. And you'd get to repeat the trek at the end of the day.

Here's another thing you hear people talk about sometimes: Plan a character breakfast at a resort (parking is free if you're eating), then use Disney transportation to go to the parks and leave your car all day. Disney caught onto this one. Now if you're eating at Chef Mickeys, for example, you have to give your name/PS number at the gate to the Contemporary -- and they do have the information to check. The gate people will give you a two hour parking tag for your car.

The bottom line: If you're staying off-site, you're going to have to pay to park. It's not practical to walk in, and Disney has effectively closed the loopholes on any potential free parking scams. Having your car towed would not be fun. Parking is not the place to skimp.

On the other hand, once you're in the parks, you are free to use Disney's transportation if you want to go to a different park. Park-to-park is considerably easier. DTD is sort of the "outpost" of the transportation system.

 

[MrsPete]

how much can you actually save by not doing a load of laundry, is it worth wearing OLD clothes (while on vacation) just to save $$ for detergent?

ALL my clothes are old -- if yours have been worn and washed once, they're old now too! I learned early in life that used clothing is a practical choice, and it's saved me literally thousands (especially since having children). By the way, it's ME that's cute -- not the CLOTHES!

 

[TNKBELL]

Even if it were allowed, it wouldn't be practical. Consider the morning commute: Pack the kids into the van, drive to DTD. Search for a parking spot -- let's assume you find one. Walk the kids to the bus shelter. Wait for the bus (DTD busses don't run as regularly as the resort busses -- you could wait 30 minutes). Good news: the DTD bus is usually close to empty. Choose the bus to the TTC -- Ticket and Transportation Center, which is across Bay Lake from the Magic Kingdom. No park busses connect directly to DTD; they assume that people only go from their resorts to DTD. From TTC, wait for the bus to the park of your choice. The wait at TTC should be very short (less than 10 minutes). It would probably take a full hour to get from your condo to the park. And you'd get to repeat the trek at the end of the day.

Here's another thing you hear people talk about sometimes: Plan a character breakfast at a resort (parking is free if you're eating), then use Disney transportation to go to the parks and leave your car all day. Disney caught onto this one. Now if you're eating at Chef Mickeys, for example, you have to give your name/PS number at the gate to the Contemporary -- and they do have the information to check. The gate people will give you a two hour parking tag for your car.

The bottom line: If you're staying off-site, you're going to have to pay to park. It's not practical to walk in, and Disney has effectively closed the loopholes on any potential free parking scams. Having your car towed would not be fun. Parking is not the place to skimp.

On the other hand, once you're in the parks, you are free to use Disney's transportation if you want to go to a different park. Park-to-park is considerably easier. DTD is sort of the "outpost" of the transportation system.

I quess you must have missed the part of my post where I said I like to be legal and would never dream of trying to "scam" Disney! I have never stayed off site before so I simply asked if transportation is included with a MYW tix. I have no intention of having our car towed. Please don't assume we are all scam artists, only budget artists!

 

[momxx5]

I believe the unlimited transportation is for Disney resort guests.

That said, I do believe that you can take the monrail to the resorts for meals, etc.
Maybe you can call to find out.

It would be very difficult and time consuming to get from DTD to any of the parks.


Also, SuperWalmart matches and other store sales in the area, as long as you have the flyer from the other stores. That saves alot of running around to various stores for sales. And they are good about taking coupons too.


Would you consider posting a separate thread lising how you were able to get all those groceries for so little money? I have always been facinated by that - I mean how can the food be virually free? We have no double coupon stores here, nor stores that offer rebates. Thanks in advance.

 

[kilee]

I've read this thread 2 times completely. Something about it keeps drawing me back. I can fully appreciate living on a strict budget. I can remember plenty of times when my son was younger and I had to roll pennies to buy milk that week. However, when I had to live on such a strict budget week to week and be the coupon queen (because I needed every penny we could get) we didn't take vacations. Much less 2+week vacations. I would think you could have an incredibly wonderful budgeted vacation for 1 week.

Growing up we went on 2 vacations, my parents just couldn't afford them. However, I remember them being special. We were still on a budget-- but it was better than what it was like at home. We got to eat out (that in itself was special), and get small souvineer's and do a handful of things. If you too grew up under meager circumstances, why don't you want to do better now? You'd save on lodging, tickets, and food by cutting this trip in half even. I'm not judging (but you did post this on a public forum and have to know it would get attention), so I'm wondering why the overkill on the length of stay if it means penny pinching to the extreme?

 

[puddleduck]

I really don't see why everyone is so worried that her kids are going to starve. If she feeds them on $75/week at home(and yes it can be done) then why wouldn't she be able to it on $458+ her two weeks of grocery money while on vacation. Just because many people rather eat out while on vacation, it doesn't mean that her kids will be deprived of anything. If anything they will appreciate this trip more than most kids. I know a lot of kids who even if you went to every kind of character breakfast they offer, it still wouldn't be enough. It sounds like she can buy the food for breakfast and dinner with her regular grocery money and I really don't see why they can't eat lunch at a counter service place for $26/day. Just tonight, on my rare trip to a fastfood restraunt, I bought 3 meals to split between me, dh and my 3 boys. My kids can't eat a kids meal by themselves, I usually buy one adult combo and split it between the three of them and usually still have leftovers. My kids like to snack through out the day and I don't spend a lot of money on snacks. No prepackaged food in my house. My kids snack on bananas $1.50 buys a weeks worth, cheese $3.00, apples $2.80 or so a bag, and large cartons of yogurt (instead of small prepackaged cups) for less than $2.00. My oldest son loves baby carrots and ranch dressing. I can buy a bag of baby carrots for $1.50 and a large bottle of ranch for about $2.00. After snacking all day they aren't hungry for big meals, and don't encourage them to eat the extra large servings that are served at restraunts these days. You have to remember that what is now considered happy meals sized portions used to be the adult size hamburger and fries when McDonald's opened, so I really don't see a problem with young children sharing a meal. I seriously doubt that she is going to go all the way to Orlando just to have an opportunity to make her kids miserable. And she did say she had back up credit card just in case. I am sure that if she saw that the budget just wouldn't work, she would use it if needed.



Now, someone tell me how to reduce my grocery bill, I need to save all the money I can for my families first trip to Disney World this Dec.

Sharon