Family Finance Meetings

Some of us love to shout the F-word, while others softly gripe and stare at their shoes: FINANCES.

A few interesting facts I've learned along the way to personal finance enlightenment!

1. Financial difficulties are the number one reason marriages end in divorce.  Wasn't it The Beatles that told us love is all you need?  Apparently, you also need a handle on finances as a family.  

2. The average American family owes $7,000 in credit card debt.  If we focus on families in debt, they owe an average of $15,000.

3. The estimated magic income number that allows us to feel warm and cozy about our finances? $75,000 annually.

4.  If you are currently 30 with a newborn child, the cost of a 4-year college degree at age 18 will be $442,000.

5. An emergency fund should contain 3-6 months of living expenses, but the average savings account holds a little over $2,000.

Are you feeling depressed?  Don't be!  This is just a kick start to get you thinking about where you are in the world of finances.  

During Carrie and my first family finance meeting, we had to stop due to the sheer frustration and exhaustion of talking about finances.  It is a very hard conversation!  I scoured the internet for a financial meeting template and came up short.  There was nothing out there! Well how are we supposed to have a meeting when we don't know what we are doing?

Here is a small guide I came up with to organize our financial discussions and may be helpful if you and your family are not having routine conversations about money.

Step 1: Track everything.  We signed up for Mint.com.  This gives you an easy way to see how money comes in and out without all the long-hand.

Step 2: Set a specific time for your meeting.  We decided on monthly meetings.  We review the previous month and look ahead to the upcoming month.  If you are in a dire situation with your finances, a weekly review is in order.

Step 3: Set goals, both long term and short term.  Where would you like to improve?  This helps the whole family steer towards the same end point.

Here is a spreadsheet to review your finances in detail if you enjoy the nitty gritty.

"Personal Monthly Budget" Available on Google Drive Templates by Vortex42.com

If you just ran in fear of Excel spreadsheets, here is a simplified version from The Peaceful Mom.

I created a template for our monthly family meetings, which is also available for download HERE.  If you have multiple savings accounts or would like to include retirement accounts, please add those as well.

Do you hold routine financial meetings with your family?  Do you involve your children?  What tips do you have for others?

The $30 Grocery Week

Wait...$30?  For the whole week of groceries?  Yep, it's called stripping down to the bare essentials for the week.  Maybe you are saving for a pair of shoes.  Maybe you can't find the money for the electric bill.  Carrie and I were planning to spend extra money on booze (typical) and plan for company coming in town (YAH!!), so we needed a couple extra bucks.  Here is what a day looks like on a $30 grocery week:


Breakfast:
Coffee with Creamer
Two eggs scrambled
Apple or Banana

Lunch:
Seasoned Chicken Breast
Half a Sweet Potato
Carrots and Celery

Dinner:
Potato and Broccoli Soup


No, we aren't skipping meals and we are not starving to death.  Here's how it worked out.

Last week I realized I had enough food in the fridge and freezer to skip a week at the grocery store.  Since I have learned to save a buck on groceries, I also learned that it is ok to have condiments as the only item in the fridge by the time you get around to the grocery store.  Keeping your fridge organized and a little bare lets you know what is on hand, therefore you do not throw out food or let anything spoil.

Carrie ended up having some students over for a class assignment so she made a grocery run for beer, vegetarian chili, and cornbread.  She spent $40.  I pulled out some frozen cookie dough I saved from making cookies two weeks ago.  I went to the grocery store yesterday with the intention of spending as little as possible, which totaled $31. So, here is the breakdown of the last four weeks.

Week 1: $62.08
Week 2: $89.16
Week 3: $40
Week 4: $31.54
Monthly Total = $222.78
Budget = $300

So, I essentially squeezed $77 out of our grocery budget to spend on other priorities.  I skipped a week because of the freezer dinners and cutting down to the bare essentials for one week out of four.

My inspiration for the $30 grocery week can be found here at PeacefulMom.

Here's what the week's plan looks like:

Thursday: Leftovers
Friday: Potato and Broccoli Soup
Saturday: Leftover Soup
Sunday: Chicken Pot Pie (Homemade Freezer Meal)
Monday: Burgers (Homemade Freezer Meal) with Zucchini
Tuesday: Spagetti and Meatballs (Meatballs are Freezer Item) with Salad
Wednesday: Breakfast for Dinner


Also, spending some extra time searching for the best deal at the grocery store can save you a lot of money.  I had potatoes on the list for potato soup.  After browsing all my options for potatoes looking for the best deal, I realized the 10 pound bag and the 5 pound bag were both $3.29.  SO WAIT.  I can get DOUBLE the amount of potatoes for the same price?  Yes, 10 pounds of potatoes is a lot but potatoes last forever when kept in a dark, dry place.  Great!

Here is my list of groceries:
Potatoes (10 lbs)
Sweet Potatoes (2)
Carrots (2 lbs)
Celery
Zucchini
Bananas
Bag of Apples
Dozen Eggs
Chicken Breasts (3)
One packet Herb Seasoning
Milk
Bread
Strawberry Jelly
Spagetti

I will have enough Potato Soup to make one freezer item this week.



Here is a cheap option for dinner that can make one big pot pie or two smaller pot pies.  These also freeze well! If you buy a rotisserie chicken like I did, you can repurpose the carcass after cutting off the meat to make your own chicken stock.

What are your recipes that freeze well?

Pioneer Woman Pot Pie

Ingredients

• 4 Tablespoons Butter
• 1/2 cup Finely Diced Onion
• 1/2 cup Finely Diced Carrot
• 1/2 cup Finely Diced Celery
• 3 cups Shredded Cooked Chicken Or Turkey
• 1/4 cup Flour
• 3 cups Low-sodium Chicken Broth, Plus More If Needed
•  Splash Of White Wine (optional)
• 1/4 teaspoon Turmeric
•  Salt And Pepper, to taste
•  Chopped Fresh Thyme To Taste
• 1/4 cup Half-and-half Or Cream
• 1 whole Unbaked Pie Crust
• 1 whole Egg
• 2 Tablespoons Water

Preparation Instructions

Preheat the oven to 375 F.

Melt the butter in a large pot over medium-high heat, then add the onion, carrots, and celery. Stir them around until the onions start to turn translucent, about 3 minutes.

Stir in the chicken or turkey and then sprinkle the flour over the top and stir it until it’s all combined with the turkey and vegetables. Cook for 1 minute, then pour in the chicken broth (and wine if using) and stir it around and let it cook and thicken.

Once it starts to thicken add the turmeric, salt, pepper, and thyme.

Add the half-and-half or cream, then stir the mixture and let it bubble up and thicken, about 3 minutes. If it seems overly thick, splash in a little more broth. Turn off the heat.

Pour the filling into a 2-quart baking dish. Roll out the pie crust on a floured surface and lay it over the top of the dish. Press the dough so that the edges stick to the outside of the pan. Use a knife to cut little vents here and there in the surface of the dough.

Mix together the egg with 2 tablespoons water and brush it all over the surface of the crust. (You will have some egg wash left over.)

Place the pie on a rimmed baking sheet and bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until the crust is deep golden brown and the filling is bubbly. To prevent the crust from getting too brown, you might want to cover it lightly with foil for the first 15 minutes of baking time.

Serve up servings by the (big ol’) spoonful!

Here is my recipe for pie crust.  You can use half for the pot pie and freeze the other half to use another time.  Also, this is a cheap option because these items are always in my pantry.

Pie Crust

Source Unknown

1 1/2 sticks Unsalted Butter, Cold

3 cups Flour

1 teaspoon Salt

1 tablespoon Sugar

1/3 cup Shortening

6-8 tablespoons Ice Water

Combine flour, salt, and sugar in food processor.  Add diced butter and shortening.  Pulse until pea-sized.  Run processor and pour in ice water until dough forms a ball.  Remove and roll into ball.  Refrigerate for 30 minutes.  Makes top and bottom. 

Putting the GET in Budget

As Carrie and I adjust to what we lovingly refer to as our fake married life (since we aren't legally married), we are also adjusting to our newest challenge....my unemployment.  Well, I am technically employed (stay with me....its very technical so far).  I accepted a job as a Nurse Practitioner, but I don't start working (and earning) until November.

We have hurdled the many ways to get income without a job, which may be addressed in a future blog post.  Most recently, I have squeezed our grocery budget so tight that I thought it would be useful to the many other young folk out there trying to get by on a scant income.

The following will be a detailed account of our groceries and budget friendly meals for the week.  I will also include tips on what I do to save a few dollars in the process.  Let's start with the breakdown of the receipt...

What I Spent...............$62.08

What I Saved.............$11.11

Percentage of Savings......15%

The percentage of savings is the fun of the game.  How high can I get?  My personal best since I've been paying attention is 22%.  OK, ok.......you watched Extreme Couponing recently and you saw they saved over 90%.  You are not impressed by my measly 15%.  People!  This is just the beginning!  AND I can't find 60 hours of time to coupon.....I just don't have the stamina or attention span.  So Mary, how did you save 15%?

Tip 1: Plan a week at a time.  Set an amount you will spend.
Have you ever thrown out food?  Of course you have because everyone does it.  It is an awful feeling.  I picture starving children in another country as I shamefully hang my head and I toss out food that just isn't appealing or has spoiled.  I wanted to stop throwing away money and food.  I decided that I don't cook seven days a week.  I probably don't cook four days a week, but I would try that first.  Here was the plan thanks to tips from The Peaceful Mom.

Monday-Pizza Soup
Tuesday-Leftovers
Wednesday-Chicken Salad
Thursday-Out
Friday-Chicken Tostadas
Saturday-Curried Carrot Soup
Sunday-Leftovers/Breakfast for Dinner

I am still working on the setting the budget thing.  Sometimes, I go over and sometimes I go under.  I currently need staple items (toilet paper, detergent) frequently since we just moved, so that knocks my budget off for the week and I don't have extra from which to pull.  I try to stay around $75 a week.

Tip 2: Breakfast for dinner once a week.
I love breakfast so this wasn't hard to adopt.  If you aren't a breakfast person, maybe sandwiches for dinner is an alternative.

Tip 3: Stock up when you can.  Get by with your pantry when you need it.
I had more money when I started aggressively tackling our eating habits.  I stocked up when the sales were right, but in the last couple weeks I have used our freezer items to get by.  Carrie wanted the freedom to choose a dinner if she wasn't in the mood for what I planned.  Freezing meals gives us more than one option for dinner.

Tip 4: Read your grocery circular.
On Sunday mornings, I read the deals for the week over coffee.  It might be my favorite "ME" time of the week.  After reading the deals, I cut useful coupons included in the Sunday Paper.  I get on CouponMom to see what the best deals are and where coupons can be located.  CouponMom is great for several reasons.  It's a free website and they list deals for your grocery store based on percent saved.  She also has links to printable coupons.

Tip 5: Cut coupons, but only use the ones you need.
Coupons can be great if you use them appropriately.  Many times I have cut a coupon and then realized I don't really need that item.  CouponMom helps me sort which deals are worth taking advantage.  The key to couponing, and you will see this in just one episode of Extreme Couponing, is combining a manufacturer coupon with a sale at the grocery store.  Take the example this week:

Red Baron Frozen Pizza
Sale at Kroger: $7/2 pizzas
Manufacturer Coupon: $1 off two pizzas
Price per Pizza: $3

Extreme Couponers also buy in bulk, which completes the savings trilogy.

Tip 6: Be Loyal to your grocery store.
Using a loyalty card benefits you in the long run.  Let's take Kroger for example because that is what I use.  I shop for groceries there once a week.  If I spend $300 a month, I get 30 cents off on my gas that month at Shell. With my receipt, I fill out a survery online about the store and get 50 fuel points.  Per month, this increases my fuel points by 200 or 20 cents.  I am also entering a sweepstakes with every receipt for $5,000 at the end of the year!  Occasionally, I will get extra coupons at the register.  For example, I got a coupon for $2.00 off my groceries from Yoplait.  Not yogurt, GROCERIES.  Yoplait saw I was loyal to their product and just gave me $2.00.  Score!

I hope these tips have been helpful in getting you started to some grocery savings!  How are you budgeting or saving on groceries?  I would love to know!  I have included the recipe for my budget friendly Monday dinner....pizza soup!

Pepperoni Pizza Soup 
Courtesy of George Duran


Ingredients2 1/2 cups prepared tomato-basil-garlic soup1 1/2 cups water2 cloves garlic, minced1 1/2 cups elbow macaroni (or other short pasta such as ditalini or alphabets)2 green onions, sliced2 teaspoons dried oregano, plus more for broiling1/3 cup diced pepperoni1 cup grated mozzarella1 cup grated Cheddar


DirectionsPreheat the broiler.
Put the tomato soup, water, and garlic into a large pot and bring it to a boil over high heat. When it is boiling, add the macaroni, green onions, oregano, and pepperoni and stir well. When the macaroni is cooked, about 6 to 8 minutes, pour the soup into oven safe bowls. Top each with 1/4 cup mozzarella and 1/4 cup Cheddar. Sprinkle on some oregano and put under the broiler until the cheese is bubbling and lightly browned, about 3 to 5 minutes.

Cost of Meal: $6.71 for 3 servings

(my pantry items on hand included: garlic, dried Marjoram, elbow macaroni, cheddar)