New Life Pending.....

Toni'sfriend · 25 July 2019 at 3:56PM

At the moment I'm budgeting £40.00 a week for two adults. That, includes toiletries, cleaning stuff etc. Our freezer is stuffed full and we are retired so don't have work lunches to consider. I'm not spending even half of that just now but what you need is what you need. It's good that you like cooking. It is so much cheaper to make your own and batch cook (healthier as well). Do you use Aldi, Lidl, etc? I always buy YS things but it's only a bargain if it's something you use. I always buy chicken, mince etc. if I see it reduced.

Iwantanewlife · 25 July 2019 at 4:04PM

Toni'sfriend wrote: »

At the moment I'm budgeting £40.00 a week for two adults. That, includes toiletries, cleaning stuff etc. Our freezer is stuffed full and we are retired so don't have work lunches to consider. I'm not spending even half of that just now but what you need is what you need. It's good that you like cooking. It is so much cheaper to make your own and batch cook (healthier as well). Do you use Aldi, Lidl, etc? I always buy YS things but it's only a bargain if it's something you use. I always buy chicken, mince etc. if I see it reduced.

Hey!

I do go to Aldi mainly, although being very honest with myself, i equally use Asda too! My plan is to go to Aldi and try full time. My meal plan for next week includes, a chicken stir fry, coronation chicken with salad, and chicken mash and veg. Therefore, i was thinking if i get a large roast chicken, i could actually try and stretch that to all three meals and bulk out with veg etc. Once ive done the Aldi shop i will let everyone know how much i spent to enable the 5 lunches and 5 dinners (for 2) for the week!

Toni'sfriend · 25 July 2019 at 4:10PM

Great idea and you can make stock with the carcass for stock or soup. My cousin once fed herself (her OH was in hospital) for almost a week (lunch and dinner ) on a reduced chicken that she bought for £1.00. Salad, sandwiches, stir fries, etc. I must admit I was impressed.

Iwantanewlife · 25 July 2019 at 4:16PM

Toni'sfriend wrote: »

Great idea and you can make stock with the carcass for stock or soup. My cousin once fed herself (her OH was in hospital) for almost a week (lunch and dinner ) on a reduced chicken that she bought for £1.00. Salad, sandwiches, stir fries, etc. I must admit I was impressed.

wow that is seriously impressive!!!! Well im going to see how i get on, i am so determined to be debt free and financial secure, i am willing to give anything a go!

Toni'sfriend · 25 July 2019 at 4:27PM

wow that is seriously impressive!!!

Yes it was!!!. But take it slowly and you'll get to a budget you're comfortable with. I bet you surprise yourself with what you can manage.

Thick_n_Thin · 25 July 2019 at 7:44PM

Grocery shopping has always been my downfall and I still haven’t got it right, one thing I do from time to time is leave my card at home and just take cash, that way I’m forced to remain in budget and resist the impulse buys. Good luck with your journey, I have subscribed and will be cheering you on!

Iwantanewlife · 25 July 2019 at 7:52PM

Thanks Thick N Thin!

Food shopping is tough, and doing it via cash is a good idea! The other thing that helps me is the self scanners because you can obviously add up as you go, sadly Aldi don’t have any of this yet maybe I’ll have to be the girl with the calculator lol

Thick_n_Thin · 25 July 2019 at 9:25PM

Ha ha, I’ve never been brave enough to walk round with a calculator, what I do is add it up in my head rounding up to the nearest whole pound, this only works though if nobody speaks to me whilst I shop! The other method I use is make a list then next to each item list the amount that you can pay for that item, for example washing powder would be £4.00 and so on, so you can calculate the total amount you will spend in advance. I quite like this method as it treacherous you to look for bargains rather than just putting the same things in your trolly!