tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9283473.post5440114191136480056..comments2024-02-29T01:33:35.477-05:00Comments on As thy Days...: Saving Money on Food - Part IAnnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08407636240006454920noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9283473.post-83356309827124476442009-02-26T15:15:00.000-05:002009-02-26T15:15:00.000-05:00Lydia -Yes, I know your grocery costs must be much...Lydia -<BR/>Yes, I know your grocery costs must be much more than ours in the Midwest. Both you and Rebecca live in places with very high costs of living! We have lived in a couple of other states and vacationed in more and seen the sometimes dramatic differences in food costs. Some other places that can be expensive are inner cities and rural areas, where competition is low. Probably a city like Indianapolis might offer some of the best shopping opportunities.<BR/><BR/>Cloth diapers - I used them for my first four babies, then stopped during my fifth pregnancy. I haven't run the numbers for a long time, but it would be worth comparing costs. At one point we were able to have a diaper service and it cost less than buying diapers for my baby and toddler. I'm not sure if diaper services exit anymore, or what they run. We have a large front-load washer (Maytag) and I love it. <BR/><BR/>Gardening - starting small with a few vegetables which you really enjoy is really a good idea. I'd pick some early crops like broccoli, spinach, and lettuce, then follow those up with warm weather veggies of tomatoes and maybe beans and peppers. If the spinach and lettuce get in early, they can be out of the way in time to fit at least some beans in the same place. <BR/><BR/>- AnneAnnehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05050188794675868871noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9283473.post-8596954777290575222009-02-25T18:08:00.000-05:002009-02-25T18:08:00.000-05:00Speaking of cooking from scratch, I recently found...Speaking of cooking from scratch, I recently found out how easy and inexpensive it is to make heath (toffee/chocolate) pieces for desserts! I was so disgusted when I found out those $3 of stale broken pieces are pretty much just caramelized sugar that takes 10 minutes and a thermometer to recreate!Karahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03481029995823759150noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9283473.post-22509508722492312112009-02-24T20:34:00.000-05:002009-02-24T20:34:00.000-05:00Anne your grocery budget is impressive! But I agr...Anne your grocery budget is impressive! But I agree with Rebecca, when I think of how much higher our food prices are in the Northeast I don't think my budget is too far off, for the number of people we have.<BR/><BR/>I would love to know any tips for getting started with successful gardening. How many different things do you grown in your square-foot plots? I'm trying not to get carried away on my first time out.<BR/><BR/>Also, I was wondering if you have ever tried cloth diapers with your kids. Did you wash your own? How does the washing cost compare to the cost of disposables? We love the White Cloud Walmart brand but I think with the money I would save maybe I could justify buying a high-efficiency washer?<BR/><BR/>Many thanks,<BR/><BR/>Lydia Carter (who remains anonymous due to the inability to remember yet another password!)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9283473.post-58003905572913264602009-02-24T19:32:00.000-05:002009-02-24T19:32:00.000-05:00Rebecca - Yes, it really does make a difference wh...Rebecca - Yes, it really does make a difference what stores are in your area! (And the cost of groceries varies a lot from place to place.) I'm really thankful for Aldi. (Jill Crum wrote a great haiku about Aldi after moving to Maryland from Florida where she had not had one nearby.)<BR/><BR/>That makes sense about those phenomenally low grocery budgets. I read about one family who only shops monthly, but they eat fresh produce only while it lasts - one week, or two for some items. That'd be a pretty significant sacrifice!Annehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08407636240006454920noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9283473.post-81988222969454963942009-02-23T15:52:00.000-05:002009-02-23T15:52:00.000-05:00Thanks for the tips, Anne! Back in our days in Nas...Thanks for the tips, Anne! Back in our days in Nashville, I shopped at Aldi, Kroger, and Walmart, which was very helpful, but I could never keep it below 80 dollars a week. Here in VA (where the prices are oh-so-high), there is no ALDI (close by, anyway) and no SuperWalmart (anywhere!) <BR/><BR/>Anyway, I had read about some families spending 30-50 dollars a week on groceries, but what I came to find was that they ate mostly refined sugars/carbs with almost no fresh produce...I don't think I could do that!Rebecca Nugenthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02101987573116762495noreply@blogger.com