Let's start with the shopping...
I had a plan! I calculated so carefully exactly how much we were going to spend and on what. I'd left myself £2.50 emergency money and was feeling pretty organised.
I strode confidently into Aldi, planning on whizzing around the shop sticking to my list and heading to the tills in under 20 minutes. However that quickly changed when I discovered that the 69p clementines I wanted to buy were out of stock and the cheapest alternative was 95p. A quick recalculation and we were back on track but there were quite a few things which were priced differently than online.
I did the Maths a few times to make sure I hadn't gone over. I also had a fairly lengthy dilemma by the apples. The total had crept up to £18.09, mainly because I impulse bought potatoes which were on offer at 39p and a couple of tins of rice pudding. At £1.39 they would have pushed us right to the limit but I so want the kids to be able to have a piece of fruit after school.
In the end I walked away, thinking I might pick some up cheaper elsewhere and also see how the week progresses. But I was annoyed that I had to make that choice, that anyone has to make that choice. It's so much cheaper to feed your children processed, sugary food than good fresh fruit and that's so sad. When things are this tight you're basically forced into deciding that you can't afford to give your kids a decent diet and therefore healthier start to life.
At the till I felt my pulse quicken as the total increased. Had I worked it out right? Especially with the last minute changes. What if it was more than I thought? What would I put back? As the last few items went through my mind was racing, calculating what else had to go through and thankfully I was right on the money.
So our pre-challenge total stands at £18.09. That includes all the food I bought at Aldi, plus some reduced loaves I stumbled across in Morrisons (9p each!!) which could be a godsend later in the week if the kids are hungry.
Most of Sunday night has been spent cooking. First I roasted the chicken legs and pulled all the meat off for later in the week. The bones went to make a stock, half of which is going in the soup and half in the curry. Usually I'd chuck a couple of carrots, onion, celery etc in the stock pot but didn't want to waste that much so instead I added the bits we'd usually bin.
Top and tailed all the carrots and onions, plus the chicken bones and a few herbs from the garden and I have a free pot of stock!
I've made soup from half the potatoes, almost half the carrots, one onion and a tin of tomatoes. I reckon the whole thing would be about £1 and it smells delish.
I also stuck the potato peelings in the oven with some oil and salt as a snack for the week ahead. It was a bit of an experiment but actually tastes alright! There has not been a single bit of waste in the food I've prepared tonight.
The final 'to do' is to tidy up the wine and crisps so they aren't a distraction next week. Gosh this is hard work ;-)
Thanks so much for reading. If you're able to sponsor us it will make the week ahead more bearable, the reason we're doing this is to raise funds for Barnsley Churches Drop-in Project. The charity is a lifeline for those in Barnsley living in poverty. We've been sponsored £65 already which is brilliant! https://mydonate.bt.com/fundraisers/livebelowtheline
Wish us luck!
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