Day 355

The face of the meddler!

Challenges. Everyone has them, including me! You know, those small trials that show up in some form every day. Being a 'fix-it' person, I'm always poking my nose in someone else's affairs. What is it the Bible says about this? Oh, yes, Matthew 7:3 "And why worry about a speck in your friend's eye when you have a log in your own?" (New Living Translation) My meddling is well intentioned, but I am determined to stop doing this. I have my own challenges to resolve! I'll stick to sharing my challenges and what I'm doing to try and remedy those issues here, but I'm done with offering up solutions to others about their challenges. Because of the log in my own eye I have been failing to see how my messing about in other people's lives is causing them to dislike me. Honestly, I was just trying to help. New resolution: Wait to be asked, Nancy.

The work to figure out my next blog series continues. At the same time, I've been reading other blog postings focused on lowering grocery costs. Some of these people are spending between $27 and $35 USD per person, per week on groceries! My current spending level is at about $75 USD per person, per week. Part of this is not groceries at all, but are indeed other household necessities that I usually purchase along with groceries. I also know that we waste a fair amount of food and that has to stop. I've been toying with the idea of trying to feed myself on $27 USD for a week and see what it's like. First, I think it would force me to eat NORMAL portions. (An area where I'm clearly challenged!) Secondly, if I could really devise a plan that would work for those in my household, then it would be wonderful! With the cost of foods skyrocketing, I need to find a better way to feed myself and others so we can be comfortable with less.

After taking some time to think about this over the last few weeks, it seems to me that if I limit the variety and eat the same breakfast, lunch, snack and dinner each day, with little variation during the week, it can be done. Groceries are expensive and buying a large variety of things is where waste and cost are heavily centered. So, next week when I shop for my groceries, I will get the things that my family needs and then I will go back to the store armed with my grocery list made from my menu planning and with only $27 USD cash in hand. I will not use any of the food I currently have on hand for myself (will use that only for my family) and I think this will be the menu for my week:

• Breakfast - Scrambled Egg w/ Toast (5 days 2 eggs, 2 days 1 egg)
• Lunch - Vegetable Soup and Grilled Cheese Sandwich
• Snack - Piece of Fruit
• Dinner - Beans and Rice w/ Cucumber Salad

This is the grocery list I will be using:

• 1 Dozen eggs
• 1 lb. Dry beans
• 1 small Cabbage
• 2 loves French Bread (my HEB makes these daily and sells them for $1 USD!)
• Cheese
• 1 lb. Rice
• Bouillon
• Cooking Spray
• 7 Pieces of Fruit (the most appropriate)
• Can, Crushed Tomatoes
• Can, Diced Tomatoes
• 2 cucumbers
• 2  fresh tomatoes
• 2 onions
• 2 Lemons
• 1/2 lb. Ground Beef (or turkey, chicken, pork...which ever is better priced)
• Tea bags

My goal is to make these 17 items create the menu listed above. I've checked my receipts from recent grocery shopping events and I believe I can make the above shopping list fit within the budget. I have a stash of saved salt and pepper packs from fast food that will come in handy and I'll use those to season the food. I will be trying to use less than $27 and will retain any leftover cash to add to the next week so I can eventually buy some pantry staples like oatmeal, flour, sugar and oil.

There may come a time when I am faced with the challenge of little funds for food. Since I'm always talking to my son about how good it is to be prepared, I think I need to put my money where my mouth is and show what that means in reality. I really want to know that it can be done. Yes, there is very little meat here, but I'll use a quarter pound of meat in the soup and the other quarter pound in the beans, which will give me good flavor!

Here are some questions I'll be asking myself along the way:

1. What are the challenges with eating the same breakfast, lunch, snack and dinner each day for 7 days?
2. Can I come up with more menu plans where the ingredients can be bought with my $27?
3. What are some other ways I can acquire food without having to buy it? (i.e. grow some?)
4. What are the challenges and benefits to a steeply restricted food budget?
5. What are the things I will do differently the next week?
6. What would I be able to do if I added just $8 USD to the weekly budget?

When I was single and living alone from 1977 to 1981, my weekly grocery budget was never above $30 USD. Yes, it's now 33 years later, but if I could do it then, why not try to do it now? I'll write about this all next week and we'll see what happens. For now, I'm just working on my grocery list and figuring out the menu plan so that the whole event goes well. Thanks for stopping by and checking up on old HV. Until tomorrow, when I'm sure the plan will change (have I said how much I LOVE change, lately?) Godspeed, Voyagers!!