Shopping on a very tight budget

bobsa1

I never used to use things up, know i put bits and bobs in slow cooker and turn it into a stew, soup is so easy and goes a ling way, also look at your portion sizes & cook in bulk.

tango

'Wait until tomorrow' is a valid point,since i have now managed to get some sort of control re separate accounts, ( a very painful process) and oh is often out of the house,i have managed to put off shopping for 2 weeks now, and that money is still sitting in my account,and that is so satisfiying,tango x

bulchy

Hi Tango, cant really add much to the great advice you've already been given. I just joined this site myself last week, and am doing the april grocery challenge. I just want to wish you good luck, and say, do take things slowly, involve the kids in meal planning,make it fun for them rather than a chore, it'll help make it easier. I involve my 2 in meal planning and the older daughter is loving helping in the kitchen, son and OH prefer the eating :rotfl: I find it helps to shop fortnightly rather than weekly, this way I have £100 to spend, and can buy in bulk, I've set myself a weekly shopping budget of £50. Good luck to you.
Sue

summerday

Hi Tango, you will manage just fine on your own, so stay positive.

To add to the already great advice, when you go shopping in the supermarkets always look low when you have located a product you want to buy- the most expensive brands are always put at eye level, cheaper brands are down by the floor!

Always meal plan and make a shopping list before you go, and stick to the list- it's so easy to add loads of extras in when you get there otherwise. If you take your kiddies with you, agree with them in advance about how many/which treat foods you will buy.

Best of luck, have a read through past threads on this board and you'll get loads of ideas!

Sarahx

tango

Thanks :A off to shops to get basics,will let you know what i got and what i spent

[Deleted User]

tango wrote:

Hi i am splitting from my husband,and taking on the mortgage myself :eek:
I am going to have a very tight budget for food,for a while, around £130 per month,myself and two children of 10 and 6.
Could anyone offer any advice on how to make this a sucess :eek:
I am going to have to be very particular and careful re every penny
Any advice,much appreciated tango

Hello Tango,
as you can see from all of the posts on here today we all wish you well love, and are right behind you. Today is the start of a different life for you, hopefully a happier one .:A
Remember that you have lots of friends here ,some of whom have been in your position and know how worried and frightened you may be feeling.But try not to worry too much, things will get better, and you have the richest thing in the world in your life and that is your two children. Children are suprisingly adaptable ,far more so than we think as they are changing all the time as they grow up. As long as they have their Mum to give them a cuddle they will be happy. Good luck my dear and we all are here for you when ever things get a bit iffy
Cheers, Jackie

Prudent

I think your budget is perfectly possible tango. I was on a really tight food budget when I first split from my husband. I have one child (then 10). We had a budget of around £80 per month.

I found that it really helped to try and keep aside a portion from things like soup, spag bol, casseroles etc by making the portions a little samller. I then froze the portion I had put aside. When I couldn't be bothered cooking because I felt tired or low, I would give us a frozen choice. Usually that meant we had two differnt things that night, but it we had fun by choosing strange combinations or eating half of each others meal.

jordylass

I do this too Prudent, i bought some of asda's cheapest plate range and found that as they are smaller plates, i have one portion left over, this is always frozen and reheated when I just can't be bothered. I never label anything which wasn't a problem, until fussy oldest son moved back in and keeps heating things up that he wont eat :mad: .

I'm in a similar situation Tango and this forum has really helped me through it, with inspirational recipes at very low cost, and nice friendly banter. Good luck

£Ronnie

Best of Luck for your new chapter in life,Tango.

I thought I would add that the best way for me to keep to the food budget is to shop online with my meal planner by my side. I am lethal in the shop, picking up "bargains" and extra bits and bobs.:o

By using the vouchers on the vouchers board I never pay full price for my shopping let alone delivery.
:money:

It also saves huge chunks of time as well. If you consider this option it is worth bearing in mind also that there dosent have to be a store in your area for them to deliver to you. Eg My nearest asda is 40mins drive away but they deliver to my town!


best wishes
Ronnie

tootles_2

Hi Tango and welcome to the board, you will find lots of advice here, but the best bit you have been given already, planning.......planning and more planning.

If you look up some of my old posts you will see that I had 4 children and had to go back to work to keep body and soul together...... working fulltime meant that I had to plan ahead, try at first shopping just once a week, and then try planning for 2 weeks and if you can move to shopping once a month, I find I save money that way, and I am forced to use up whats in the cupboards too.....I buy basics and fruit and veg on my main shop and then top up with fruit and veg halfway through the month. You may find you need to do a veg top up once a week, but try and stay out of the supermarket....... I shop on the market......its cheaper and also better quality than at the supermarket.

Good luck..................