~How to Save on Food: Part 1~

In most households the part of the family budget that can go way out of control is the food budget. Many factors play into your food budget and so therefore give many areas where you can improve. One area that most people know of but aren't sure how to get started in is eating at home. While it is nice to have a dinner out once and a while, it should be a treat, not a necessity because of poor planning.

Eating out at restaurants adds up so fast and before you know it you have spent more on a few meals out then you would on a whole months worth of groceries! Do I know what I'm talking about? You bet! My husband and I ate out a lot before we had our son. I happen to know that we used to spend over $600 a month on eating out plus another $300-$300 on groceries. FOR TWO OF US!!! As soon as we found out that we were expecting we knew we had to change our ways in order to be successful.

The first thing I did was to go through my pantry, freezer, fridge and cook books and identify favorite recipes and the ingredients they require. I then made a 'pantry list' of items that I use often so that I could watch for deals and make sure that I have them on hand. I keep a running list of items to watch for one sale with my grocery list whenever I go to the store.

Next I started to meal plan. If you want a great resource for meal planning visit Cooking for the Rushed and pick a book of Sandi Richards to take out from your library and check out her great tips for planning ahead.

I plan out our meals based on my work schedule. I work shift work so some nights I'm only home for an hour to eat and run back to work. So I plan meals that I can do in my slow cooker or that only require a little finish up by myself or my husband.

I usually plan my meals on the weekend and then make a grocery list based on what I need to fill in the ingredients that are missing. It is usually only fresh items as I try to keep everything else on hand and purchase when they are on sale.

I have a magnetic meal planner that stays on the fridge and helps us to keep ahead of it.

So far using this system we have cut back our dining out to around a $150 a month and our grocery bill is between $200-$350 a month. We chose to eat out about once every two weeks and for lunch on Fridays. We are happy, losing weight and saving money...a win-win situation!

Stay tuned for more tips on saving money on food!