Food Budgets

First read this condescending and irritating article about eating on a foodstamp budget.  Then read Sharon Astyk's comments on same.  While she nails many of my thoughts while reading the food stamp article, I had to remember back when I used to watch the news with Dad.

I was an odd kid, I admit it; I liked watching the news when I was, say, seven.  I remember there was a story once about Poor People.  Not sure what the story was, exactly, but I felt very sorry for the poor Poor People, as defined by the federal government.

Dad casually dropped the bomb on me that to the government, we were considered poor.

This made me look sideways at the government ever afterward, for I knew I wasn't poor.  I was never hungry without the ability to fill my stomach, I had plenty of clothes and toys, and there was plenty of books, movies, and music around.  What poor?

This contentment (bless it) makes people think of "the poor" as being "those people".

My friends, "the poor" is us.  It would behoove everyone to learn from what the chefs did in the article and DON'T DO THAT.  In other words, don't accept that $20 over-budget is ok!  Don't try to produce Food Network-style meals when your family is happy with a pot of Cowboy Beans over rice.  Above all, don't believe that frugal eating is grueling, time-consuming, horrific work.  It takes education, practice, and dedication, and it can be done.

(Incidentally I'm also with Sharon Astyk on this: it's inappropriate to hold out chefs as a model for "the poor", whomever they may be.  If you haven't got a knife, how are you going to dice onions?  On the other hand, when the Husband and I were first married we made $945 a month, and of that $425 went for rent, which meant my weekly food budget was about $40.  So I know it can be done--but I got knives as wedding presents.)

The foodstamp budget in the article is $68.88 for 4.  This last week I spent $78.90 on groceries for my 4, though two are toddlers.  In some ways I find it oddly encouraging that as relatively affluent people (at least, I feel affluent) we spent, on an indulgent week, only $10 more than the stingy government allots for foodstamps.  (Indulgent in that I bought wine, and instead of making yogurt, tortillas, and rolls I bought them.)

On the other hand I have a stockpile of flour, toothpaste, toilet paper, a working oven, and a stand mixer.  But a couple of other things did occur to me:

1. If you save money on your food budget, you can use it to purchase stockpile items or pay down debt.

2. Everybody should be either saving extra cash right now or turning it into durable goods--blankets, wool sweaters, storage food, garden tools, etc.

So, with that, here are my suggestions for a frugal menu for seven days.  (Frugal in my part of the country.)

After seeing how long the post was, here's a Googledoc that makes it more streamlined.

If you're intimidated by the baking: it ain't that hard.  Espeically if you're home all day, and are already scheduling your time.

Cheers,

Breanna

P.S.  You're NOT scheduling your time, you say?  Schedules are too hard/for the OCD among us, you say?  Check out Holly's website, and her book if you can afford it.  It's a lifesaver.