Help me save money please you good peeps :)

Pooky

I must admit to having real problems with my 7.5 year old at the mo with food. We've gone down the "eat it or go hungry" route........it works well. We've started doing another thing too, if there's something we know she'll create about, (i.e. runner beans being this months fad) then we only put runner beans on the plate and she can't have anything else until she's eaten them. It's not that she doesn't like half the things I give her, just that she can't be bothered to eat them.

I remember being the same at her age. I've vivid images of sitting at the table whilst everyone else was eating a weekly favourite of mash, beans and corned beef (early 80's - not a lot of money about)...I refused to eat it so used to get called to the table and had to sit and watch them eat it and then sit and watch them eat their pudding. It got to the point where mum didn't even bother putting a plate out for me.....I think I only did it about 4 times before I realised that going to bed hungry wasn't fun.

We all know there are things in life that we really truely don't like to eat and I'd never expect a child to eat something under those circumstances but I do belive that if you just keep up with the "eat it or go hungry" for long enough you'll find there's not much they don't actually eat.

se999

We used to have lots of language students staying with us for 1 to 3 weeks at a time, ages from 10 to adult. We found using serving bowls and helping themselves worked best. They could have a little taste and if they liked it help themselves to more. Using serving bowls I didn't get stressed out about wasting food as either I could freeze it or use it in something else.

They didn't get faced with a full plate of new things that they might or might not like, which tends to put people off even before they even taste it.

Most visitors put on weight, not sure if that is technically good or bad nowadays

I did always have fresh fruit and toast available on demand, so they didn't starve.

So why not try this combined with getting them to help cook. My 2 sons are both at Uni now, and both love cooking. They're also more adventurous cooks than I am now

Lucie_2

Getting the kids involved in cooking will certainly help them to be more adventurous. Most kids I know will eat something that they have created.
Make your own chicken nuggets - pieces of chicken breast, dip in plain flour, then beaten egg then coat in breadcrumbs (you know, made from the manky bread ). Shallow fry til cooked & crispy on outside (I have baked them in the oven too). It's messy but the kids will love it. Serve with home made wedges - cut spuds into wedges (no need to peel), toss in a bowl with a splash of veg/sunflower oil & bake on a tray in the oven. If you're organised you can have a cake/pud in the oven at the same time.

kiwichick

Hiya,

Good on you for making the effort to save, its m first month trying too. One thing that some other OSrs have told me which REALLY WORKS is to try and shop less often. I now do the majority of my shopping online from Tesco once every 2 or 3 weeks rather than every saturday in store and lots of little trips in the week.

You'll find that buying that much in one go will enable you to grab BOGOFS that you might not have gone for before. I also do things like buy 12 rollds of loo paper at the begining of the month rather than a 4 pack every week. This aves me nearly £1 a month.

I also go to the reductions bit in the chilled section at tesco when I am there as they often hae meat that is nearing its bb date. As long as you freeze it that day it will keep for ages.

Boots are good for BOGOFs on toiletries, even ladies sanitary wear is 3 for 2 at the moment. If I know it is something I would have to buy at a later date I get it on BOGOF, my youngest 2 are still in nappies so I get all my nappies and wipes at boots when on offer, you gets the points too which is a bonus. If you dont have a boots card now then get one and save all your points for xmas time. I use mine on all the 3 for 2 xmaz offers and can save even more.

Tesco loyalty card is also good. I use mine always and rather than use the vouchers they send out for money earned I save them. This summer we exchanged some for deals tokens which give you four times the value and we had 3 good days out worth over £150 for NOTHING AT ALL!!! I am now saving them for a new bed from MFI in the new year sales.

My kids wont eat OS/HM either and I poted just this morning asking for advice, prior to reading this thread. I am going to try the eat or starve approach, I remember it from childhood and it never did me any harm.

Good luck with your kids, I'll let you know if I come across any magic tips with my lots!

Allison.

JessicaFishy

i recommend, buy whats cheap - veges from the vege shop and sale items at he supermarkets- and then plan your meals around what you've got. I never understand my friends who complain about spending too much on food when they are going every day to the supermarket and buying what they feel like at the time. I have found that is a surefire way to buy too much of the too expensive stuff!! once a week supermarker shop and vege shop trip will do it for me.

culpepper

What helped me was writing down absolutely everything we spent for a whole month.It showed me where the biggest expenses were and then I could target that area.At the time I did it,I had 2 babies and discovered a large proportion of the housekeeping was spent on baby stuff even though we used washable nappies.
Food wise,my kids get fed at the same time as us and eat it or leave it.
Its much easier to keep the eat it or go hungry thing going,if you have no other food about and there is no opportunity for them to eat elsewhere with pocket money or nibbling biscuits or cake at a friends house.

SuiDreams

When I was a child I was an extremely fussy eater, (the only Veg I would eat were Potatoes, Carrots and Mushrooms), what my Dad used to do was mash carrots and turnip together and call it mashed potatoe and carrot, and I ate it every time. I must say I'm loads better now. I'm actually trying 1 veg I don't like every week at the moment.

windym_2

You could buy some cheap mince beef. Add a very finely chopped carrot, onion and garlic. Make a slice of bread (staler the better) into breadcrumbs and add the whole lot together, bind with an egg and then make into homemade burgers. Let them rest in the fridge in their rounds for about 30 minutes. Fry them off (no oil) and cook through thoroughly. Chuck them in some cheap rolls with mayo, ketchup or whatever and they are DELICIOUS. My son will not eat McDonalds anymore, he wants McMummys! I get about 8-10 burgers out of 400g of mince. If you want to pad it out more, then add more bread.

culpepper

Could you blend the veg in with the gravy like a soup consistency?
I know it wouldnt stop them thinking they werent eating veg but it would give you piece of mind.

Anne_Marie_2

Kimberley wrote:

Ok i spend about £240 on food and toiletries and cleaning stuff etc a month. I won't give my 3 kids processed, boxed or frozen food as it's unhealthy rubbish, i get my meat from the butchers..

I have also ordered, the "how clean is your house" book so i'll be looking forward to saving on my household cleaning stuff :j

Any ideas on saving me money please? :rolleyes:

Can you post details of your spending? Might help reducing your monthly costs to see where money is going, what can be cut back on.

Much as I love my steam cleaner, I do get lazy about using it, so, wouldn't advise you to get one, unless you are willing to steam clean all the time, vinegar/baking soda and cloth are often just about all you need. Would hate you to waste your money, when you are trying to cut down. If you know anyone with a steam cleaner, beg to borrow it for a day or two, then see what you feel.