On a Budget 125.00 a Week for Everything

Hi, have you tried applying for WIC or foodstamps? Even if you don't think you will qualify try it out. If you don't qualify for a large amount of foodstamps, even little can help out a lot. And most of the time when you don't qualify for foodstamps, you can get WIC which is just as good, since you get eggs, milk, juice, cereal, cheese, and peanut butter. Just by getting those items out of your grocery list will save you a good amount of money.

Have you considered joining Sams Club or Costco? These stores sell in bulk which would allow you enough food to get by for at least a month. To the execption of milk. There is an annual membership fee of around $35.00 and up. Maybe your husband can turn the weekly grocery allowance into a monthly allowance. You can also get diapers and toliet paper in bulk that would spread out for alot longer than buying it at the store. That leaves you with only having to buy milk as you need it. In the long run, this can and will save you money because you won't run out of food as quickly. My husband and I bought baby wipes at Sam's just a few days after our son was born and they lasted us just short of a year. Buying toliet paper in bulk for around $18 to $20 will last you for about 3 months.

I just sent you a personal messge. Please check it and email me if you would like. Thanks and the best of luck for you!

I have a suggestion... We are on a tight budget as well and I have tons of grocerys. I have them in rubbermaid containers in our guest room. This is how I do it.... www.thegrocerygame.com It is the best thing i have ever done. It takes a while to get going (12 weeks to be exact) I get free toothpast, can goods, dog food, baby items all from Krogers. You sign up for a 8 week trial (it cost $1.00 for the trial membership then the price goes up) The print out list of grocerys and stores you shop at. You clip coupons and go shopping. Its wonderful!!! The best I have done is 180.00 worth of grocerys for $60.00 after coupons. If you have any question please email me back. I love this program.

I think that maybe he should go shopping with you so he can actually see how much everything costs. 125.00 for a family of five is just not enough to cover everything you wrote about. It may be a good idea to show him an actual list of things you need to buy and the average price each costs. It sounds like he has underbudgeted your expenses. I hope he listens to you. thanks.

I am not sure what to tell you, b/c that is a tight budget. I would defintely clip coupons (which I'm sure you already do) - and there are jobs out there that you can do without paying any money. So you can make a little extra. And I will offer my support through prayer...that always helps.
Good Luck!
A.:)

Have you considered having an extra child come to your house during the week? I found a family looking for some weekday childcare on this Mama source over a year ago and it is working out great and the extra money is really helpful. I also posted an add on Craigslist for a family looking for childcare.
Good Luck.

Have you considered Angel Food Ministries? They have packages that should help with groceries for $25. Check their menu out at http://angelfoodministries.com/
They probably have a location near you. I have bought their food packs and with only a few exceptions have been very happy with what is included. The bad thing is you generally have to pay in cash and then the packs are delivered to the pick up sites 2 weeks later. Maybe your husband will let you do that.

Maybe you can get by on a little less that way.

Time to start potty training the little one. Look at all your bills. Cancel stuff you don't need to lower bills. Consider buying store brands. When you go to the store, shop wisely and watch your money.
$125 a week isn't much. We have 2 kids in the house, 5 & 8 yrs. old. My 13 yr. old lives with dad in San Antonio. Our grocery bill alone is average $150 a week, and no more diapers here.
Really sit down and look at that budget and be sure you both can afford for you to stay home. If you do go back to work, daycare comes into the budget. Then you have to figure the daycare vs. your paycheck, and if its worth it.

I'm getting ready to sell my business and work part time since my husband's new job schedule cut my hours a little. Someone has to be there to drop off and pick up kids at school and daycare. Working part time hours its not worth it to keep the business. Maybe sometime in the future when the kids are old enough not to worry so much about, I might start up again. My husband would rather I stay home with the kids. But since he just started this job I'd rather work a while just part time to see if things work out. Also he would take on extra bills like my new diesel truck I bought last August and the auto insurance to it. Our cell phones were business, and we turned the house line off. I'm sure he can afford me to stay home with what he is getting paid. We'll see before I jump right into staying home. I'd think I'd go nuts being home all day though. And I love the work I do, just hate the hot weather. My 5 yr. old starts kindergarten this year. Just work till they get out of school or work nights.

I think the other pieces of advice are great - Prayer (most important!), taking care of another child, and the Angel Food Ministries (we buy from them and everything is top quality.) The other suggestion is to use www.grocerygame.com - it is about clipping coupons and buying the sales - someone else does the work for you and tells you what to buy and when to buy (based on what you want and/or need) - a typical family of 4 can cut their grocery bill in half! I live by their list! It's awesome. Feel free to email me if you want more info on it. Thanks and good luck!

My husband quit his job last month so I had to budget everything for a few weeks until his check came with his new job. So I understand the stress that comes with that! I am sorry you have to deal with that on a regular basis. I found this awesome website though that gives you casserole recipes. http://www.geocities.com/webcipes/cass.html Some of them make alot of food that would last for leftovers. That's one way to cut down on food cost. With that many mouths to feed it's got to be hard with that small of a budget. Another idea is to use cloth diapers because you can just wash them. Good luck!