*Feed Your Family $10 A Day Challenge*(AT HOME)

[kayeandjim00]

I find this thread fascinating. While it's not for me and even with the two of us I don't think we'd stay under 10.00 a day. I am amazed at some of the prices people get things for. I think I'm a great couponer and save lots but I still don't get things for the prices people mention.

 

[marcyinPA]

I added up what I spend per month on just food products (no paper or cleaning supplies), including those little trips for bread and milk, and I only spend around $270 per month for a family of 4 (with 2 boys, ages 12 and 8). I expect that this may go up within the next few years...

Anyway, we eat quite well, and we always have fresh fruit and veggies in the house. I figure if you divide what I spend by 30 days, I feed my family for about $9 a day. (btw, I have $400 a month budgeted for food, but I never spend that much!)

I buy whatever meat is on sale, and I buy a lot of it. I have a foodsaver and I seal everything and freeze it in my cube freezer. I always have a good supply down there. I also use coupons, and I buy fruits and veggies from the farmer's market. We rarely eat out. Maybe once a month, if that.

Marcy

 

[momof2disneybabies]

Not sure if I've posted in this thread or not, but have been reading through it and found it interesting. I've posted in other places about my grocery budget, but wanted to share here too.

It kind of bothers me when people say "well, we could eat for $10 a day, but we like fresh fruits/veggies!"

Yeah, well, we eat for less than $10 a day, and we like fresh fruits & veggies too and we eat them every day! :gasp:

We have been vegetarian, even vegan before, so trust me, we love fresh produce and healthy foods. We don't eat processed, pre packaged foods (most of the time, my 4 year old like some mac and cheese here and there). We don't drink soda, coffee or anything but water. We do get the crystal light / lipton to go packets to add to our water for flavor, but we just love ice water more than anything. We drink very little milk / soymilk, just with cereal. We get plenty of calcium from spinach and other greens, so drinking milk is not a big deal to us, one gallon will last us a week.

My grocery budget is $50 a week for all 4 of us, and that includes household, paper, personal and all baby items. Everything, even stamps! We bought a house, had a second child and dh had emergency surgery (that we had to pay $4000 for) all at the same time, so money was tight and $50 was all we had. We have more money now, but I'm sticking to $50 because I find it easy to stick to it. I find deals, bargains, sales and stock up.

For example- Kroger had gerber graduates on sale for .50 each, and there were coupons out for $1 off 2. So that makes them free. So I bought 20 of those coupons for 5¢ each (total $1) and I got 40 jars of Gerber diced apples, pears, and peaches for free.

Also- Meijer had bagged salad on sale for $2, so I traded for 5 coupons for $2 off 1 bag and got 5 bags free. We eat a lot of salad, plus had a dinner party, so we ate it all and it saved me $10!

I only buy meat, fruits & veggies that are on sale. And I only buy what we use, I hate waste. I used to overbuy and throw a lot away, but now I know to buy smaller amounts (2 zucchinis instead of 5) and if I need more, I can always buy more.

I get all our personal items (toothpaste, deoderant, razors) free each month at Walgreens, CVS & Riteaid through their rebate programs. I have a small checking account with $50 in it that i use to buy these items, then when I get the rebate checks, I put the money back into it and buy more, so I'm recycling the same money over and over and dont' miss it from my grocery budget.

Today, we are having-

raisin bran & soymilk for breakfast

chicken & homemade bread paninis with a little cheese on them + salad, and banana smoothies for lunch

For dinner, we're grilling out- it'll be steaks (bought on sale for $2), plus watermelon, potato salad (homemade, low fat), grilled onions, pepper & zucchini, and baked beans.

Costs-
Raisin bran (1/3 box) = 50¢ (bought on sale)
milk 1/2 of 1/2 gallon .50 (bought on sale)

chicken- $1
homemade bread- 25¢
cheese- 25¢

steaks- $2
1/2 onion 40¢
1 pepper 70¢
1 zucchini 50¢
watermelon 25¢ (paid $2 for a whole one with a promo at Kroger)
baked beans 20¢ (sale and coupon)

water to drink

= $6.30

For snacks, we'll probably have popcorn (10¢ a bag, sale + coupon), yogurt (30¢ for 3, again coupon + sale), grapes (25¢ they were 99¢lb), and more watermelon (another 25¢).

= $7.20 for the day

We don't live in a high cost of living area (by choice), so for some, this budget it not going to be realistic. There are many ways to trim your budget, but I know some people can only get milk for $4 a gallon, when we can get it for $2. So you do what you can. We choose to live here, because I can be a SAHM and we can still have extras.

For diapers, I found a clearance sale KMart was having at the beginning of the year. They were clearancing their diapers for $1.50 a package and I had $1 coupons, so I got a 2 1/2 year supply in all sizes for around $100! I was 6 months pregnant and the time. Dd is now in size 2, and I haven't had to buy any diapers at all, I actually have had a bunch leftover and I'm giving them to a friend who hopes to get pregnant soon.

For formula, I trade for formula checks and combine them with coupons and buy my cans at CVS where I get gift cards for having prescriptions filled. I use the gift cards on the overage and I haven't had to pay hardly anything for formula yet.

Gotta run!

Jennifer

 

[neatokimmo]

This is what I've been trying to work on, being a 1 person household I feel like I waste so much.

I only buy meat, fruits & veggies that are on sale. And I only buy what we use, I hate waste. I used to overbuy and throw a lot away, but now I know to buy smaller amounts (2 zucchinis instead of 5) and if I need more, I can always buy more.

 

[punkin]

We don't live in a high cost of living area (by choice), so for some, this budget it not going to be realistic.

Well there you go. Here is my problem in a nutshell. Try getting some of these prices in suburban Washington DC.

 

[kmchar1]

Breakfast:
DH: free at work
Me: orange (.25), granola bar (.25-generic), yogurt smoothie (.50 on sale)
DS (6 years old): orange (.25), 2 cups cereal (.25-box on sale), milk (.25)
*total: 1.75

Snack:
DS: yogurt .50
*total: .50

Lunch:
DH: free at work
Me: Boca Burger (.50 on sale), Whole Wheat Bun (.25 on sale), condiments (.10), Summer Squash (.50), pretzels (.25-generic)
DS: Boca Burger (.50), Whole Wheat Bun (.25), condiments (.10), pretzels (.25), 1/4 bag of carrots with fat free ranch dip (.50)
*total: 3.20

Snack:
Cheap popsicles .30
*total: .30

Dinner will be:
All: Grilled Tilapia (3.50-on sale b1g1), frozen bag of mixed veggies (1.00 with coupon), Texas Toast with Cheese (1.75 with coupon..not healthy but we love it)
*total: 6.25

Snack Will be:
Strawberries (1.50 bought at farmer's market)
*total: 1.50

Grand Total: $15.50

 

[mommiepoppins]

this week I just have my 2 dd my other 2 are at bible camp. I miss them like crazy
ok here we go

B = 0 we ate for free when we left the camp

L= turkey lunch meat = 20 cent
Whole wheat bread 25 cents
Milk =40 cents
Mayo 10 cents
Ice cream sandwich= 50 cents
=145 DH and I were to stuffed from breakfast to eat

Snacks= cinnamon gram crackers= 50 cents
Pringles’ chips= 45 cents
=95
Dinner=
Buns for hamburger 15 cents
Cheese= 20 cents
Hamburgers= 3$
Corn on cob=150
Milk = 40

=525

765 for the day. DH will be traveling this week so I am sure I will have a budget of less

 

[CEDmom]

this week I just have my 2 dd my other 2 are at bible camp. I miss them like crazy
ok here we go

B = 0 we ate for free when we left the camp

L= turkey lunch meat = 20 cent
Whole wheat bread 25 cents
Milk =40 cents
Mayo 10 cents
Ice cream sandwich= 50 cents
=145 DH and I were to stuffed from breakfast to eat

Snacks= cinnamon gram crackers= 50 cents
Pringles’ chips= 45 cents
=95
Dinner=
Buns for hamburger 15 cents
Cheese= 20 cents
Hamburgers= 3$
Corn on cob=150
Milk = 40

=525

765 for the day. DH will be traveling this week so I am sure I will have a budget of less

I'm just wondering what brand of turkey you're buying that it only costs 20 cents to make sandwiches. Around here it runs about $7 a lb and I can maybe make 6 sandwiches with that. Even my 7yo DD probably eats at least 50 cents worth.

 

[vickyBaby]

L= turkey lunch meat = 20 cent

A 6 oz package of Hillshire Farms Turkey breast is $2.00 in my supermarket. The package claims it feeds 3 (serving size 6 slices). You indicate you are feeding 4 (2 children, 2 adults). If you stretch the package that feeds 3 to now feed 4 -- it's still $2. How are you possibly feeding people turkey for 20 cents? Are you waving a slice over the bread and hope it will leave behind the scent of eau de Turkey?

 

[CJBaby]

Are you waving a slice over the bread and hope it will leave behind the scent of eau de Turkey?

OMG!

Would you like an "eau de turkey" sandwich???

Edited to add: This is starting to sound more like a "starve your family" For $10 A Day Challenge!

 

[vickyBaby]

Milk =40 cents

A gallon of milk in my supermarket if $3.99 -- so 40 cents of milk is 13 oz split between 4 people? That should be the serving for 1 child. 3 oz of milk per person is absurd.

I really think your math is way off -- if you are serious -- I can't understand why you wouldn't be embarrassed letting people know you allow 3 oz of milk with a meal.

 

[snomofinn]

Wow, I must live in the wrong part of the U.S. Iam happy when I can feed my family for $10 a meal! .20 turkey? I agree with the above post, I usually buy Butterball Cajun turkey breast, when it's not on sale it's around 7.00 lb. I get around 5-6 sandwhiches out of that depending on who's making the sandwhich Just thinking about the meals we ate today...

Breakfast;
Box of Eggo nutrigran waffles - 3.99
3/4lb of bacon - 5.00
Tropicana invidual o.j. - 2.00
Coffee (iced from Dunkin Donuts) 2.00

Total 12.99!

Not including lunch and dinner! I guess I blew it!

 

[momof2disneybabies]

We recently went on a trip and packed our lunches for 3 days of it, we had turkey sandwiches all 3 days. Dh ate 2, I ate 1, dd ate 1 and I packed an extra, for a total of 4. I bought a huge package of turkey for $4 and it fed us all three days with some left over.

Deli turkey is normally on sale for about $3 a pound here.

Depends on where you live.

Jennifer

 

[vickyBaby]

Edited to add: This is starting to sound more like a "starve your family" For $10 A Day Challenge!

You are not kidding. The math just doesn't add up.

 

[momof2disneybabies]

3/4lb of bacon - 5.00

Jennie-O Turkey Bacon is only $2 a package here (1 pound)!

Regular full fat bacon is usually on sale for $1.79 a package!

I don't know how you guys do it. We visited Florida in the spring and we went to Publix, my eyeballs about popped out of my head at the prices.

Jennifer

 

[vickyBaby]

We recently went on a trip and packed our lunches for 3 days of it, we had turkey sandwiches all 3 days. Dh ate 2, I ate 1, dd ate 1 and I packed an extra, for a total of 4. I bought a huge package of turkey for $4 and it fed us all three days with some left over.

Deli turkey is normally on sale for about $3 a pound here.

Depends on where you live.

Jennifer

Would you care to share what brand? If you are referring to that Snowball slimey garbage full of preservatives and fillers -- I wouldn't feed that to my dog.

A good quality turkey like Boars Head or Thumanns will run $7.99 lb.

 

[vickyBaby]

Regular full fat bacon is usually on sale for $1.79 a package!

Holy cow!!! Bacon usually runs $4.99 for a package by me.

 

[momof2disneybabies]

Go to www.meijer.com and put in 45201 for the zip code. This isn't my city, but comparable to it, and the sale prices around here. The milk is 10¢ higher this week than my store, but the prices are pretty close. Sometimes a gallon of milk is $1.69.

Jennifer

 

[momof2disneybabies]

Would you care to share what brand? If you are referring to that Snowball slimey garbage full of preservatives and fillers -- I wouldn't feed that to my dog.

A good quality turkey like Boars Head or Thumanns will run $7.99 lb.

Gross. I've never heard of any of those brands, we must live is two completely different areas. I normally buy Jennie-O. I have never seen Turkey for $7.99 a lb.

Jennifer

 

[kmchar1]

I live in Orlando, and while yes Publix is expensive, we do not shop there..we shop at SuperWalmart, farmers markets, and I use coupons galore at Winn Dixie. If you look back at my meals, they are almost always healthy, nutritious (for the most part) and we eat A LOT of food.

1 pound of bacon (turkey bacon) I purchased for 1.50 on sale with coupon at Winn Dixie.

Instead of making an entire box of Eggo waffles, I would have made my own. A box of waffle mix at Walmart would have been $2.00 and would have made dozens and dozens of waffles. I make up extras and freeze them...so I still get the convenience of frozen ones. So instead of $4.00..I would have spen t$2.00 and had a ton of waffles.

Instead of Tropicana individual OJ's..for $2.00..I would have spent only .75 for a frozen OJ and made it up myself. (generic, from Walmart)

We don't do deli meats that often. My son doesn't like it so we rarely get it. If we did, it would be around $7.00 for one pound. We also do not get fast food very often (maybe once a month) because it's so unhealthy and because it's so expensive for what you get. So, the iced coffees from Dunkin Donuts would have not been on our menu.

Milk does not run 3.99 for a gallon here. CVS or Walgreens usually has it on sale for $2.49 and we buy extras to freeze for when it's not on sale.

We often see a sale and use our coupons...then stock up. Target often sells their Sutton and Dodge steaks pretty cheaply and then have $2.00 off coupons. We buy some pretty nice steaks for less than .50. We then buy a bunch and freeze. We also get our high fiber cereals on sale and with coupons will come to less than $1.00 a box..and then we stock up. Fruits and veggies I stock up on when on sale (or from farmers markets), chop 'em up and then freeze. Whenever I see items that are B1G1 free that we use, I look for coupons and then stock up. It's just a matter of budgeting. Both my husband and I work for Disney..so we are paid fairly low. We HAVE to budget. But we eat well and are pretty healthy.

Honestly, a lot of it depends on where you live. It also depends on what you are feeding your family, how much you use generic foods, coupons and sales, and also where you are purchasing the food (fruits and veggies are sometimes half the costs of supermarkets if purchased at farmers markets or roadside stands around here).

I do think some people go to extremes though and may not be feeding their families quite enough....but I certainly do not starve my son. You should see all the food he eats!