The Bare Bones Budget: Can I Feed My Family of 5 For Less Than $15 A Day?

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I have been giving you some hints about my $100/Week Grocery Challenge that we have put ourselves on this month. I had lots of questions come through about it, so I thought I would share “the plan” a little more this week!

I almost hesitate to share our progress because I still don’t know if it can be done. I know, that is just a great attitude to have, isn’t it!? I love the accountability, but I would rather not fall flat on my face in front of everyone. But I am willing to do it, just this once!

This is a huge challenge for us, one of the biggest ones I have done, and one that probably will affect our family the most.

We survived our first week of the challenge this week (yeah!). It was hard not feeling as though we didn’t have enough to eat, even though our cupboards were plenty full! I realized I have a real fear of that, like anxiety inducing, waking me up at night kind of fear. Another area that I must remember: God is our provider, not our paycheck! I can see some spiritual growth happening during this process J

The only real thing I noticed to be lacking was having enough fruits. That was partially my fault, because I didn’t make it to my favorite farm store for cheap fruit. This grocery budget challenge is going to force me to plan like never before.

I have to tell you I am a geek. I over analyze pretty much everything. I don’t love math, but I needed to see the numbers on this. So I decided the best way to attack this is by setting target meal prices.

But first, here are some facts about our family so you can get a clearer picture:

  • This budget is cutting 25-50 per week from our food bill
  • We have eliminated any pizza nights or going out to eat.
  • We are a family of 5, and all of us eat regular sized portions (meaning we aren’t feeding toddlers and babies)
  • I don’t eat meat or fish
  • We are home all day, pretty much everyday. That means constant child hunger cries.
  • I pack a lunch for my husband every day, and he doesn’t have a way to reheat leftovers.

At $100/week for a family of five, our daily food costs would be $14.29. That would be 2.85 per person or .95 per meal. Wow that’s low! Can I feed my family for less than $15 per day? I am up for the challenge! I have to laugh at our local grocery store display that says “Have dinner tonight for under $10”. Um, that would pretty much be our only meal for the day.

So have you ever figured out what you spend per day to feed your family? Kind of puts that night out at Pizza Hut into perspective, doesn’t it? I would love some tips and advice for my challenge, and I would love it even more if you would join in with me. Maybe not the same exact challenge, but how about setting a goal to spend less on groceries this month? Challenges are a lot more fun when you have some friends! So I double dog dare you!

This post is linked to Frugal Friday and Finding Freedom Friday

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Posted on June 12, 2009, in Budgeting, Family Food and Fun

Comments

14 Responses to “The Bare Bones Budget: Can I Feed My Family of 5 For Less Than $15 A Day?”

  1. klutzymama June 12th, 2009

    I am just now starting to try this for our family too. And I have set a $100 a week budget to start with for our family of 4. I know people do it on a lot less, but I’m just not there yet. I am starting to make a lot more things from scratch, but I still have a hard time keeping the grocery bill down. I am really excited to read about your progress!
    Thanks!
    klutzymama´s last blog: He Got The Job!!!
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    Stephanie here:
    I am so glad someone is doing this with me! Please share your progress with me as well!

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  2. Valencia @ Buildeth Her House June 12th, 2009

    Good luck! I know you’ll do great. I can’t even imagine cutting our food budget, but we do need to.
    Valencia @ Buildeth Her House´s last blog: Feminine Friday
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    Stephanie here:
    If it seems daunting, try just cutting out $10 a week and then keep challenging yourself to do more! You can do it!

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  3. Dana June 12th, 2009

    we totally used to eat for $15 a day, but that was 2 adults and 3 children under 5, now we are 2 adults and 2, 4, 6, and 7 and we only buy organic and we are at about 21 per day.
    our non-negotiables are:
    $25/week goes to our veggie coop (sometimes there’s fruit [yay!] sometimes there isn’t [boo])
    $13/week goes toward farm fresh goat milk and eggs [which is also enough milk for us to make our yogurt for the week]
    right now i’m having a tough time staying under 150/week because we are going gluten free for my son, and it is expensive!! sometimes more than even organic. and everything we purchase (with the exception of one or two mommy/daddy snacks) is organic.
    i think we could cut out a few dollars a week if we had a lot more dry bean based meals and if i could better utilize our veggie coop (you can only have so much squash a day!) and for sure if we reneged on the organic part.
    Dana´s last blog: L is for Luv at First Sight
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    Stephanie here:
    I like how you budget in portions, for example you set an amount from your entire budget to a category ($25 for coop, $13 for milk and eggs). I think I am going to try that this week! I need to incorporate more bean meals into our menu also!

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  4. susieshomemade June 13th, 2009

    What a good idea! Good luck on your ambitious goal:-)
    susieshomemade´s last blog: Friday Foto Fun with Tenants
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    Stephanie here:
    Thank you!

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  5. Annette Piper June 13th, 2009

    It IS a big challenge. If the kids are willing to eat lentils they’re very cheap and very filling with lots of protein. Brown rice is a good basic – if you soak it overnight before cooking it will be fluffy and you can digest the protein. I would think breakfast would be the killer? Cereals are never cheap…
    Annette Piper´s last blog: The trauma of being offline
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    Stephanie here:
    We actually love lentils and brown rice. For cereal I only buy it if I can get it less than $1 a box, usually coupons matched with a sale. I would never pay full price for cereal, I can’t believe what they charge!

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  6. Elizabeth June 13th, 2009

    Hello,
    I so understand how hard it is to cut the food budget. I wrote a post today on buying fruits that might help you.

    I look forward to reading more on your blog.
    Blessings,
    Elizabeth
    Elizabeth´s last blog: Stewardship Friday
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    Stephanie here:
    Is Stewardship Friday a feature on your blog each week? That is a great concept!

    :: Reply to this comment ::

  7. Julianne June 13th, 2009

    I’ve realized that when it comes to living on a tighter budget that the grocery bill is the easiest place to cut costs. There was one time in particular that I only had $50 to spend on groceries until my husband’s next pay check- we were a family of 5 at that time but the kids were all 6 and under. I left the grocery store having only spent $46- so it can be done. It is so true about our cupboards being full, so often I’ll say “I need to go grocery shopping, there’s no food in the house”, and yet my cupboards and fridge are (mostly) full.
    Thanks for sharing!
    Julianne :)
    Julianne´s last blog: and now the ‘P’ word: Patience!!
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    Stephanie here:
    I remember only having $25 to do groceries with at times. Thankfully that is when my children were small. Now their appetites exceed mine! I can’t imagine if I had all boys!

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  8. Eating from The Pantry Menu Plan | A High And Noble Calling June 29th, 2009

    [...] is the last week of my $100/ week grocery budget challenge and it looks like we will easily meet our goal-something that I thought was nearly impossible when [...]

  9. Brian July 2nd, 2009

    Hello! I am a college student living off campus for next semester, and I am trying to figure out how to live within a budget of $15 a day just to feed myself. After reading your article, I’m beginning to wonder if that was a bit much. Any help for those trying to figure out the way of living on your own?

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  10. staci @ teaching money to kids July 10th, 2009

    there si a website that I have really liked for recipe ideas- 365days of crockpotting. It seemed that whenever I was looking for a crockpot recipe- I would end up on this site, so I finally just book marked it. But using our crockpot has really helped us feel like we are having a full meal, and it is quite cheap.
    One of my favorite things is baking potatoes in the crockpot. I bet you could do it on low all night, and then if you kept it wrapped up in the tin foil, and maybe a towel, it could still be warm enough for your husbands lunch. I remeber those days before all schools had microwaves, and I used to take soup in a thermos and it would still be hot. And soups are so yummy and cheap – okay maybe not exactly right for summer, but still.
    staci @ teaching money to kids´s last blog ..A Verse to Hide in your Heart

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  11. danielle July 12th, 2009

    this is the first week of trying to spend 100 for a family of 4 , So far I sepent 111.00 but we have plenty for the week, Im excited to see how good I can do by meal planning. Right now I am making pancakes and french toast and freezing them for the week !

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  12. danielle July 12th, 2009

    spent ^

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  13. tenant December 28th, 2009

    good read,thanks!

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  14. livinoldfashion January 22nd, 2010

    i ALSO,HAVE BEEN BUDGETING FOR AWHILE ON GROCERIES AS WELL AS TOILETRIES,NECESSITIES,BILLS,UTILITIES,EVEN COME UP WITH A FEW IDEAS ON ALTERNATIVE ENERGY,WHICH LEADS TO CHEAPER UTILITIES,HAVENT QUIT GOT IT ALL WORKED OUT YET! STILL IN THE ROUGH DRAFTING DAYS!LOL…I HAVE A FAMILY OF FIVE MY HUSBAND AND I,MY 2 BOYS,ONE OF WHICH IS OLDER AND EATS ALOT!AND ONE THATS 6 BUT ALSO EATS PRETTY GOOD AMOUNTS,I ALSO HAVE A DAUGHTER,SHE IS STILL IN THE TODDLER AGE GROUP,I COULDNT BELEIVE,PRIOR TO DOING THIS BUDGETING THING SO PERCISELY,THAT I WAS WASTING SO MUCH MONEY ON GROCERIES THAT WOULD JUST SIMPLY GO TO WASTE,SHAMEFUL!!! I HAVE SPENDING $100 A WEEK NOW AND WORKING OUT GOOD,THIS SPRING I WILL START MY GARDEN AGAIN,AND SAVE EVEN MORE,ANY ADVICE,IS WELCOMED,I AM LOOKING FOR A WAY TO WORK AT HOME A FEW HOURS A DAY MAYBE ON THE COMPUTER,ANY IDEAS??? HELP! LOL..SERIOUSLY THOUGH,I JUST WANT TO EARN A LITTLE EXTRA MONEY FOR ANY UNEXPECTED ITEMS OR EVEN A PIZZA NIGHT WITH THE FAM!YEAHHH!!LOL..THANK’S ANNY

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