$200 a month feeds a family of 4

As I said before in some other post, I feed my family on 200 dollars a month. For those just googling and finding this, that includes, my hubby, me and 2 kids (one is 2 and a half with the other just being born early last May). I will also say that I use cash only to pay for food, this guarantees that I do not go over our budget.., ever. This 200 also covers diapers and personal care items. (wonder why my kids are in cloth diapers? Now you know. Same goes for why I don't shave my legs.)

I ALWAYS ask myself if something is a want or a need before I buy it (or eat it). Then I ask myself how can I get it cheaper. An example of this is milk. Having small kids makes milk mandatory, but you can drink dried milk, or at least cook with it. This can cut a huge chunk from you how much you spend. I also weigh my eggs and see which is the best price per ounce. I know that seems extreme, but those little bits do affect the way your family eats when on a tight budget.

I also don't buy foods we really don't need. Anything convenience is just a big NO. This goes for sodas, bottled water or even crackers and chips. In fact buying foods based on the vitamins and other nutritional need is good to do.

Over eating is seen in my house as wasting food. You don't need that food right now, you could wait until tomorrow to eat it. For small children that means making them beg for more. Kids under the age of 5 will not overeat unless urged to by an adult, so as the adult not wanting food wasted only put one piece of each type of food on the child's plate. when they eat what is there let them ask for more and only put one more piece on the child's plate. This goes on the whole meal and helps train the child to be healthier in not overeating or wasting food.

Another way to eat cheap is to make EVERYTHING from scratch. If you don't have a lot of time to cook this can be harder but still possible. You can make a casserole and freeze it for a few days down the road or you can go to allrecipes.com and do a search keeping times in mind.

If anyone has questions please post.

Aunt Kathy: Baby is sleeping a lot (and growing too). Makes me happy that I knit up small size soakers and not newborn! I am still tired but that is because my little 2 year old is an over flowing well of energy!