November Monthly Food Budget- How Do I Do It?

We are on a strict budget. One of the ways that we maintain our budget is by only spending our allotted amount each month for food ($200). We budget $100/person. I will admit we do go a bit over each month, but technically we are a household of 3. Our little one is breast fed and with the extra calorie intake per day (500 calories extra), I find I sometimes eat much more than I did before! Soon, though, the budget will have to be increased as our little one begins eating more solids.

Sticking to a budget means going to the grocery store as infrequently as possible. Generally, the more often you make trips to the store, the higher amount of money spent on food will be. We aim for every other week, but since having a child, I have found that we are much more likely to go weekly (dang baby brain). This is largely due to me failing to notice food items that should have made the grocery shopping list.

Sticking to a budget and eating at home means lots of PRE-PLANNING. By not planning ahead and trying to “wing it” you will be much more likely to eat at a restaurant. I start with a monthly calendar of meals for each month. I do allocate for 2 meals each month to eat at a restaurant. This is by my husband’s request, if I had my way we would only eat out a few nights a year.

Here is November’s calendar (sorry that it's so blurry, read further to get the exact meals):

As you may or may not be able to see, I plan for 1 meal a day. I make enough at that meal to cover at least the next day’s lunch for the 2 of us. Many times though, I make enough left over to cover a few more meals.  Don’t worry, no leftovers go to waste at our house. As we go through the month, if we end up with a surplus of leftovers, I will scratch what is on the menu for that night and we will have a leftovers night for supper (dinner, as you may call it). This typically happens at least 1 time per month. 

On the menu, I list the main food. I do serve sides with each meal. These sides will be dependent on what I bought at the grocery store on sale or have in the freezer. This includes frozen vegetables, fresh vegetables, rice, etc. This helps to ensure a balanced diet for my family.

I also buy surplus items that can be frozen when I see them on sale to use for future meals (e.g., brats, frozen pizzas, bread, hamburger meat). This helps us to save money as well. The more you can shop sales, the better!

Lastly, as I plan for meals I try to have at least 1 night a week where we go meatless. This could mean meatless spaghetti, sandwiches, brinner with no meat, etc. Meats get expensive quickly and it is amazing how even 1 night without can make a huge financial impact.

Now, on to the meals! Here are the meals for this month (in case you can’t read what’s on the picture):

            November 2013

Day	Meal
1	Brats (pull from freezer)*
2	Egg Salad Sandwiches
3	Goulash
4	Dinner Out
5	Pizza
6	Brinner
7	Meatloaf
8	Chicken Nuggets
9	Barbeque Chicken with Rice
10	Steak
11	Corn Dogs with Macaroni & Cheese
12	Beef Stroganoff
13	Smoked Pheasant (Pull from freezer)*
14	Chicken Noodle Soup & Grilled Cheese
15	Dinner Out
16	Porcupine Meatballs
17	Tacos
18	Chili
19	Chipped Beef on Toast
20	Spaghetti
21	Beef & Corn Enchiladas (Pull from Freezer)*
22	Tuna Sandwiches
23	Sloppy Jo Sandwiches
24	Fried Chicken
25	Brinner
26	Pizza
27	Traveling/ with family for Thanksgiving, no plan needed
28	Traveling/ with family for Thanksgiving, no plan needed
29	Traveling/ with family for Thanksgiving, no plan needed
30	Steak

*Pull from freezer- these are items I either got another month when they were on sale and stuck in the freezer or are a meal that I prepared a double batch of and put the extra in the freezer. My husband also hunts and we do eat game food, such as the smoked pheasant. 

This helps our family stay on budget each month for food. What tips do you live by to keep your grocery budget in line?