Since Scott and I first got together, we have always enjoyed going out to eat. I think working in restaurants might have something to do with it!!!
When Alayna was born we slowed down quite a bit, but still went out to eat more than we probably should.
Sitting down to dinner at one of our favorite restaurants, P.F. Changs, we start talking about how much money we could probably save by eating at home more. I'm not an idiot, I know going out to eat costs more, a LOT more, than eating at home. It's just the convenience...we like going out and enjoying meals, and not having to worry about cooking or cleaning up. For someone who cooks for a living, and works 70 hours or more a week, Scott definitely doesn't want to spend his evenings on his days off in the kitchen. Even though my work schedule has dropped 8 or so hours a week, it seems like I'm doing MORE, and by the time I get home, do homework, laundry, whatever else needs to be done I don't wanna cook and clean either.
Well, we decided to make a pact. For the month of February, we are not going to spend money on any food/drinks other than groceries. We can't say "no eating out other than home" because Scott works at a restaurant, where he spends sometimes 14 hrs a day. Of course he can eat at work, as long as he doesn't spend money on it (it's part of his salary...).
February is going to be tough, for sure! I have a bad habit of grabbing sweet teas from McDonald's and White Chocolate Mochas from Starbucks, and Scott has a Panera Bread and Big Gulp addiction. We're also going to be spending Valentines day at HOME! I've got a Moms Night Out planned for 2/8 at Cheeseburger in Paradise, and I will be sticking strictly to water :(
I don't know how much money we'll save. Of course we will be spending more on groceries. The only outcome I'm hoping to get out of this is realizing that we CAN eat home more often. Maybe, just maybe, if we can both stick to our pact, we will be able to change our habits and maybe even begin a healthier lifestyle. I no longer want to ask my daughter what she wants for dinner and have her answer with the name of a restaurant!!!
After February, I'm sure we will continue to eat out occasionally. Occasionally being the key word. No more primarily eating out!
Wish us luck!!!
Good Luck and when you do get back to eating out you should be mindful of when kids eat free. It helps a lil on the budget too.
ReplyDeletegood luck hon. After leaving the school system Greg and I quickly learned that we could not maintain the same eating out lifestyle we enjoyed while I was still teaching. Dont get me wrong, I love to cook and experiment with food, but like you said---when you get home at the end of a long day you run out of time or are too tired to spend much thought in doing it yourself.
ReplyDeleteGood luck retraining yourselves to slow things down a bit when possible and take time out to eat together and cook together. Not only will it help your pocketbooks, but it might make a difference in your waistline as well. Ive noticed for us since we started cooking more at home we have each lost a little bit of weight and dont always feel as sluggish---WE get to control what we eat instead of having someone else make it for us.
good luck!! and to help keep it from hitting hard at the grocery store and help stick to it do a menu plan for the week and stick to it! plan out every meal if you have to. also trying new recipes is a good way to enjoy it more at home. I love allrecipes.com. I signed up with them and every day they email me a new recipe. some look good some I just delete but it gives the option to consider other possiblities.
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