The homemade meal

Yesterday, I made a grocery list and still forgot a couple of things. But, I am determined to stay under our budget, despite only having a little bit left. That's when I started to do the math.

You see, I already know plenty about family dinners, as that was a big part of my studies during my undergraduate education. Family dinners are healthier, and give you added time with your children, which leads to better school grades for them, and less delinquencies.

However, this another, much more obvious, benefit to a homemade meal. The cost.

Stuart and I have a budget of $45 per week for our grocery budget. This not only includes food, but also includes any needed housing needs like sponges. So, if you took those expenses out, the budget is more like $41.

I go to the store every seven days... or six if you count that fact that I forgot the noodles last night.

So, divide 41 by 7. Go ahead, do the math. I was pretty amazed.

5.85. But, there are two of us in the house, so that means that our daily food expenses (haha) are 2.93. For three meals, that means we spend about 92 cents. Wow. If that doesn't persuade you to eat out one less time, I'm not sure what will.

Now, granted. We often have weeks where we don't really eat meat, and substitute beans instead. We save up for meat little by little, and we have an occasional night out to eat. Probably more than we should. But right now, I would say I am pretty pleased with how we are doing. We are well fed and happy.

How do you do your family meals? What tips have you learned about budgeting better?