are you economising?

I have definately noticed the increase in prices on certain items. I found as I cut certain stuff out (snacks and unhealthy stuff) due to healthier eating ect that my bill just didnt come down.

I buy only meat on special and then stock up on it. Check the mad butcher prices out every Monday and compare it to the other shops when I am out.

Buy fruit at the market or at the fruit shop. Hubby is itching to get a hyproponic system and then grow certain veg and fruit all year round. Right now we are working cost out to see if it is worthwhile.

Definitely cutting back here

We do a grocery shop once a month (and fruit/veg/milk/bread once or twice a week), and every 4 months we don't do a big shop for that month and almost completely deplete our stocks, and then start again.

Our budget is $150 a week for 2 adults, and 2 kids and its been that way for over a year. I don't buy any brand stuff either. We have only been shopping twice this year and didn't buy any 'junk' so our cupboards are very bare at the moment!!!

I also don't eat meat, so that cuts the bill down.

We also only have one car which we fill up once a week, and sometimes it lasts longer if we stay local, and DH cycles to work and I often walk home (luckily for us we both found jobs within a few km from home).

We are pretty good with saving money, turning all the lights/power switches off. Walking lots, no coffees out, no dinners out.......

Sounds sad when I read it back but we live a very happy life

Ok have been seriuosly cotemplating a lot of these great suggestions, but have a few questions:

What is the difference between a crockpot and a slow cooker? Which is better & why?

How do I blanche veges to freeze? Do they all need to be blanched before freezing? I have brocolli, cellery, corgettes and green peppers that I want to do to freeze today.

Looked on some mince we had in the freezer that I got last week on 'special' and it was down to $10 a kg,..which I thought was good! Off to a butcher thsi week to sus me out a cheaper place,..we only have woolworths and pack n save supermarkets here (thats all within 2 /12 hrs drive)!

Cool thanks I will go blanch the brocolli now!

I am going to go back to shopping at pack n save from tomorrow, and buy fuit and vege at the farmers market and will find somewhere cheaper for meat.

If you check out www.destitutegourmet.com.nz you'll find a list of things that can be frozen, and whether they need blanching or not!

we don't buy too many brand name products either although i must say that alot of the time here the brand name stuff can actually be cheaper than the pams or budget stuff.. weird huh.

we stock up big time when there are specials, of things like cereals (when they're $1.50 for a big bag, we'll get about 6 of each)

we buy small portions of meat to try and fit in with what portion sizes should be. All of us love our meat but tend to have alot of chicken etc and lots of stir-fry type meals so that cuts down because i can put a small amount of meat in the stir-fry, add heaps of veges and it disguises the fact there isn't much meat.

we do buy the sauces to go on them, but not the expensive ones, we tend to get the ones in bottles and have a range so that i can just add a small amount, enough to add a bit of flavour, and that's it.

we are still very much a meat and 3 vege kinda family in between the stir-fry stuff to mix it up a bit.

we still buy cheese, 1 kg block, sometimes we go through that in a fortnight, other times we don't

and petrol, we allow $80 a fortnight to fill the tank, sometimes we have plenty left, other times it is getting towards payday and we are on E-for-enough

there are things i won't scrimp on, and those are the fruit, milk, breads etc, and heating for our home. We have our nightstore heater going throughout the winter, works wonderfully, and we so need it. if we didn't spend on heating our home, we'd be spending much more in doctors bills for paris due to her asthma etc, and lossing money from having to take time off work to look after sick kids.

we have cut down though, on the snacky stuff.... mostly cos i have no willpower so i try to remove the temptation.