Spare and Earn
"Spare and Earn." I learned that phrase many years ago in a book by one of my favorite authors, Elizabeth Prentiss. In her novel The Little Preacher, she mentions that so-and-so character was now "old enough to spare and earn" and thus help the family. I often ponder how I, a SAHM, can spare and earn in my own family.
For the "earning" part, I try to remember what Sue Jakes says in Heart of the Home: "What do you have in your house?" (from 2 Kings 4:2, the widow who had nothing except a little oil - great story...go read it!) Anyway, "what do you have in your house?" I have many times in the past participated in consignment sales and sold used books.
But the truth is, as a SAHM who is also homeschooling, it's the "sparing" that I am able to focus on. In the last two years, since the birth of K, our #5, I have become very lax about the budget. Shopping without a list and a plan; takeout when life gets busy. But several things have occurred together that have given us a budget wake-up call:
-gas prices through the roof - our family car is a guzzling tank ... but we can't exactly fit into a camry, now, can we?
-food prices on the rise for various reasons
-one teen boy, and another right on his heels; 4 chicken breast halves used to feed our whole family at dinner - those days are gone!
-K (2) eats nearly the same amount of food at dinner as her older sister. No more getting by on just eating off of Mommy and Daddy's plates
So - it's back to more diligent planning, shopping, and cooking for me! This means taking time to read weekly store ads, stocking up on sale items or things at wholesale clubs, and planning ahead so that there is no 5 o'clock crunch on a busy day that sends us running to a drive-thru. We've also tried to cut back on our use of paper products, relying instead on towels and cloth napkins. (not only frugal, but green) Instead of money, now I'm investing time!
It has made me ponder our grandmothers and how hard they worked to feed their families healthy meals during the depression and WWII rationing. We have become so spoiled!
I found this MSN article very interesting. It's about trying to feed a family of four on $100/week. She mentions the USDA chart guidelines for grocery spending per family. Curious, I looked at the chart and here's what I found:
-for our family of 7 at the "moderate" level - $362.80 per week (yikes! can you imagine?); the "low-cost" plan for our family size was $292.50 per week; the "thrifty" plan was $223.00.
I'm assuming that the chart is food only and doesn't include diapers, paper products, cleaning products, and pet supplies. My budget does. With very careful planning, no eating out, and homemade everything, we struggle to keep it under $225. (Don't even get me started on the high cost of fresh produce, meat and dairy - let alone organic!) This has not been easy, but I feel a little less guilty about the times I've gone a little over when I see what the average family spends on just food.
I used to visit the miserlymoms website several years ago ... maybe it's time I pop back in for some frugal encouragement.
How does your family come in under budget?
For the "earning" part, I try to remember what Sue Jakes says in Heart of the Home: "What do you have in your house?" (from 2 Kings 4:2, the widow who had nothing except a little oil - great story...go read it!) Anyway, "what do you have in your house?" I have many times in the past participated in consignment sales and sold used books.
But the truth is, as a SAHM who is also homeschooling, it's the "sparing" that I am able to focus on. In the last two years, since the birth of K, our #5, I have become very lax about the budget. Shopping without a list and a plan; takeout when life gets busy. But several things have occurred together that have given us a budget wake-up call:
-gas prices through the roof - our family car is a guzzling tank ... but we can't exactly fit into a camry, now, can we?
-food prices on the rise for various reasons
-one teen boy, and another right on his heels; 4 chicken breast halves used to feed our whole family at dinner - those days are gone!
-K (2) eats nearly the same amount of food at dinner as her older sister. No more getting by on just eating off of Mommy and Daddy's plates
So - it's back to more diligent planning, shopping, and cooking for me! This means taking time to read weekly store ads, stocking up on sale items or things at wholesale clubs, and planning ahead so that there is no 5 o'clock crunch on a busy day that sends us running to a drive-thru. We've also tried to cut back on our use of paper products, relying instead on towels and cloth napkins. (not only frugal, but green) Instead of money, now I'm investing time!
It has made me ponder our grandmothers and how hard they worked to feed their families healthy meals during the depression and WWII rationing. We have become so spoiled!
I found this MSN article very interesting. It's about trying to feed a family of four on $100/week. She mentions the USDA chart guidelines for grocery spending per family. Curious, I looked at the chart and here's what I found:
-for our family of 7 at the "moderate" level - $362.80 per week (yikes! can you imagine?); the "low-cost" plan for our family size was $292.50 per week; the "thrifty" plan was $223.00.
I'm assuming that the chart is food only and doesn't include diapers, paper products, cleaning products, and pet supplies. My budget does. With very careful planning, no eating out, and homemade everything, we struggle to keep it under $225. (Don't even get me started on the high cost of fresh produce, meat and dairy - let alone organic!) This has not been easy, but I feel a little less guilty about the times I've gone a little over when I see what the average family spends on just food.
I used to visit the miserlymoms website several years ago ... maybe it's time I pop back in for some frugal encouragement.
How does your family come in under budget?
Comments
I am still confused at the earn and spare?
Keep at it! we will too :)
A challenge for us is that I try to avoid starchy fillers (bad carbs) and that means more protein foods in order to feel satisfied. J. is not as casserole-averse as your menfolk, but there is only so much chx spaghetti that a man will eat! I need to figure out how to "spare" more!
There is no such thing as a 99c box of mac n cheese for lunch in our house anymore. No casseroles or deli sandwiches either! Oy!
It's stresses me out, but because of our health issues, I give myself more leaway here than anywhere else in our budget. After all, I almost never buy clothes, shoes, jewelry, toys, or even books for myself anymore.
I've thought about not feeding the kids anymore, but they don't think that's too funny - lol! This area does require a lot of prayer though.... you're doing a good job to sinch down and be a good steward as your family grows!
Andrea
2) I've been feeding 4 adults and 2 kids at every dinner. I honestly don't know how I get every thing at $100.00 a week except to say "GO ALDI".
3) I've been selling on EBAY like a crazy woman trying to help our family ends get closer to meeting.
4) Kevin MADE me go get new capris last night when my others started showing my underwear as holes developed in the seams. I love my husband.
We're thinking of putting in a late summer garden here. More as a school project than anything else but maybe we'll cut back a bit on groceries.
Margin is another great book. One of my favorites on this topic.
Kate