Oh man, I need help from you frugal mamas!

[Emmama]

Due to a major glitch with the finance dept (Army) dh did not get paid today... and won't be until the 15th. We have 300.00 and that is IT. We will try to see what help we can get, but that is it for right now.

How can I make that stretch for a family of 6? The bills can wait to be paid on the 15th. I CD two of the kids. We are mainly talking food and fuel for two cars for two weeks. Is this even possible? I am kinds scared right now.:

[OliveGirl]

How much do you drive? Can you cut back on this? For us it would be doable. I would probably budget one to two tanks of gas (try for one so we'd have more for the food budget). So a tank of gas at $30 would leave $170 for food--plenty! I'd make a meal plan for two weeks and stick to it like glue. Do the food shopping for the two weeks, but leave $30 - $40 for fresh produce/milk/etc. around the 8th or the 9th.

[pilesoflaundry]

Go to ACS on base and they will give you some food for now if you really need it. : A few times due to finance goofs dh didn't get paid at all or got paid less than $50. We sucked it up and went to ACS.

[GoddessKristie]

Check out this website. Someone linked to it in another post and I'm in LOVE with it! It has affordable menu plans for families of 4-6 people. I took the $47 menu and added meat to it because it's based on beans, but we are meat lovers. I also had a lot of things on hand, so I could cut some of the items on the shopping list out. I checked out the local stores for the best sale on meat (chicken leg quarters for .49!) and ended up only spending $35 for 3 weeks worth of food! Of course it's just me and dh, but it wouldn't cost much more to make it go further for some little ones.

For me it's important to create a menu and buy all the food at once so I am positive we can eat. When I create ours I try to create dishes that are dishes, not meat based (chicken pot pie vs fried chicken). It makes your meat go A LOT further, and you can buy a cheaper cut of meat because the flavor of it isn't as important!

www.hillbillyhousewife.com

You'll be fine, don't sweat it!

[Emmama]

Thanks everyone. I am feeling a bit better. That website is great, GoddessKristie, wow.

I did go out and buy groceries for two weeks, which was cheaper than I thought it would be. I also signed up for WIC, but the appt is not until Nov 21. That will help with milk, eggs, and cheese....my kids LOVE those three, and three of my kids qualify, so that is great.

pilesoflaundry~I hadn't thought to do that. I called yesterday and they said we cannot get emergency vouchers since dh is still employed. They did say to try to get a loan from Army Emergency Relief, but I don't know if I want to go that route. Grrr...I hate finance right now!

Thanks again everyone

[2x2]

The Army Emergency Relief will give you an interest free loan that you can pay back over time... so keep it in mind in case something unexpected comes up. If there is an Armed Services YMCA on base, they may also have a food pantry that you can use. Call Family Services/Support and ask if there are other services that you can take advantage of to help you through the next couple of weeks. And please let us know if there is anything else we can do for you.

[Rant n Raven]

Sometimes when things would get really tight with money I would grab some books that have already been read, cds and videos that folks don't watch anymore, knick-knacks, clothes, toys, shoes, etc. and sell/consign/ or craigslist them.

Sometimes it would only be only a bit of money but I was often surprised by how much I got. I would then put most of the money toward food and house repair supplies. A bit left over I would get something for the family like a traded video or cd. Since this was stuff we weren't using anyway it would feel like a 'bonus' and the house would be less crowded.

FlyLady recomends just donating stuff but my budget was so tight that money from clutter was quite helpful. AND your house is cleaner.

Another thing that might help is doing errands with a friend and split gas. I had a friend without a car and they would use my car and put in extra gas. It worked out well.

Another bold move is to think of ANY skill you might have (baking, knitting, sewing, car repair, yo-yo tricks) and post on craigslist for private lessons. This worked for me and developed into a business later.

There are often emergency funds on the State, County, City, Church level that folks don't know about.

I want to emphasis that certain solutions work for different people. Also, when getting help don't let anyone make you feel badly. Everyone needs help throughout their lives. You are a great Mom because you are so pro-active about getting help.

Good luck and best wishes.

[Twocoolboys]

I second hillbilly housewife! The menu plans and shopping lists have gotten me through a few tight months. I think there are $45 and $75 weekly menu plans, so depending on how broke you are, you pick which one. The food and recipes are good and it is A LOT of food, even the $45 plan. And, like the previous poster said, I had some things on hand too and didn't have to buy everything. And I did fill in a little with some fresh fruit for snacking. It is a great resource.

[kibba]

I find cooking breakfast for dinner is REALLY cheap...

Also using up what you have in the freezer/cabinets.


pasta is always super cheap too