Dear Budget,
Sounds like you have a healthy growing family. Boys sure can eat. My nephews come to visit and I always feel like they are going to starve if I don’t feed them every hour. They are ALWAYS hungry. Being able to make a healthy budget friendly meal can be tough in today’s economy. So I turned to my trusty friend, social media, for answers. My friends live all over the globe and have had to tackle this very same dilemma.
There is a great app I just found called MyFridgeFood. You check off everything you have in the house and it comes up with amazing recipes using those ingredients. One submission was Rosemary Pork Tenderloin: dust pork tenderloin with rosemary and bake at 350* until done.
Or even.
Fiesta Chicken:
1.5lbs boneless skinless chicken breast
can black beans, rinsed & drained
can corn, drained
jar salsa
4tsp diced jalapenos
8oz cream cheese
rice
Put chicken in the bottom of your crockpot. Pour black beans, corn, and salsa on top. Cook on low for 5 hours. After 5 hours, shred the chicken and mix back in. Put cream cheese and jalapenos on top. Cook for 30 minutes. Stir & serve over rice.
And then there is my favorite method. I bought a desk calendar and every week the family decides what the week will look like for dinners. We write down each main dish, side, and dessert (if allowed). Then I write out my shopping list for the week to include ONLY those items from the recipes. This helps me avoid over purchasing items that I will forget about later. This also helps reduce the amount of “what’s for dinner” questions.
As far as budgeting for your other items, there are many resources that are out there for you.
Military OneSource has financial, retirement and even tax help.
Military Spouse Advocacy Network (MSAN) Has great links to help manage living within your means
You are not alone in your budget crisis. Luckily there are many resources out there to benefit your family.
Good Luck and as always, We’ve got your Six!
Mindy
