Monday, April 6, 2009

To Eat or Not to Eat...

I had an epiphany today. To most of you it's going to seem like, 'D'uh we all knew that', but it's the extent of the idea that struck me today. There is no way to feed a family of seven for cheap. Just no way. Now, of course, I realized that it would be expensive to have a large family; however, being raised in a home with only one sibling, I never grasped just how much food my five children would go through. For instance, if we all eat sandwiches, a loaf of bread is finished off in two days. Easy. That's the giant loaf.

Bobby is starting his first day back at Game Crazy today. Since there was about a 3 week lapse between his Best Buy job and this one, money is a bit tight. It's going to be tight until the end of the month. I can't believe it's only the beginning of April. So... I rounded up all the children this morning, made a simple list, and headed to the grocery store. I think I did fairly well. There were some good sales, for instance I bought 3lbs of ground beef for 3.89. Not shabby. I bought two of those because of the great price. I have explained to the kids that we are going to use our food sparingly. One glass of milk a day, once glass of juice and then water for the rest of the day. One small snack around 10am and another around 3pm and that is it. They have agreed - for now. I have a new found love for Ramen, hot dogs and dollar frozen pizza. I hate giving them junk but they'll live eating this stuff for a month. I did find healty stuff but it was more money so I didn't buy as much. Isn't that sad? Our country complains about the obesity problem and yet, if one is on a very tight budget, they can not afford healthy food. Our country will always have the weight problem until it becomes affordable to eat whole grains, organic fruits and veggies and so on...Okay off my soapbox now.

So, we're excited about Bobby's new job. We feel very blessed that with the economy like it is he found a job so quickly and for a bit more than he asked. The kids and I are on Spring Break this week. I have no big plans but, if the weather clears up, there is a free park here with a petting zoo that I want to visit. Ayden can speak well enough to communicate just about anything he needs or wants to us, which is a plus. He was in his toddler bed for one week and promptly returned to his crib. He loves his crib. I suppose that means Dillon will be in his pack and play for a while longer. Dillon is doing great. He's still rolling all over and has begun reaching for a grabbing his toys and playing with them. This means he is also grabbing and holding onto my hair, which needs a cut badly. I would report on the kid's progress with school but will wait for report cards at the end of the week. That is it, very boring and mundane but it's nice to have a peaceful life and I won't complain.

8 comments:

Castaneda 5 said...

I hear ya! I tell you, I think I am cutting back on just about everything these days but it's not enough. I, too, have been really watching our grocery budget. You are not alone! But just think, we are saving money by not eating out at least!

brooke said...

its so tough balancing money and health. My kids love the cheap junkfood crap too, but I feel guilty because they won't eat much of what's good for them.
oh well. just make sure they run around enough to burn off those calories!

Heather said...

Oh believe me, with our big backyard they are running outside daily! Besides, it's just one month. One, long, fat-ridden, carb infested month! LOL

Jeanette said...

Amen sister! Groceries are a large part of our budget. We eat alot of breakfast meals for dinner. Eggs and toast, pancakes, french toast...I can feed our family for under five dollars this way and it switches things up.

Kate said...

Oh I totally agree with you about obesity and the cost of food. I wish it was different. I wish it was cheap to eat healthy.

Anonymous said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Anonymous said...

Thanks for deleting my comment. I won't be back to your blog...EVER!

Holly said...

It's a little late to get started this year, but maybe next spring you can grow a little garden. Something the kids can help with. You don't need much space, just some pots or simple boxes to put soil in and grow some strawberries,green beans,carrots. We didn't get to our garden this year, but we will try again next year. Oh, and Boo would love a tomato plant and those are easy. Good luck with the groceries.
Love,
Holly

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