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Let’s See How Ridiculous We can make Our Food Plan

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We are just starting a mostly no spend month. I’ve already kind of broken that by spending $25 on a parking pass at the high school. (Remember, up until this past week, I wouldn’t have needed one at the high school as I had not drivers attending there.)

Anyways, as we begin I realize just how ridiculous our eating plan in. And I’m fairly certain it’s not at all typical. I mean, we’ve gone years with odd eating times as homeschoolers and then with Gymnast training 20-25 hours a week at night. But now it’s just crazy. Let me explain…

In our household of 6 we have:

  • Three who fast regularly – I fast 42 hours, 3 times a week, Sea Cadet has a 6 hour eating window every day and Gymnast does marches to the beat of his own drum and rarely eats any planned meals.
  • One vegan – Beauty cooks most of her own meals and while she is happen to cook for everyone, most of the time, no one eating wants what she is cooking. Although I will say she is an excellent cook and I enjoy the meals I have with her now and again.
  • Three who primarily work evenings/nights so don’t show up until 9pm or later.
  • One who works crazy long shifts sometimes up to 40 hours at a time.
  • Two restaurant works who can eat at work when they want too for free.

With all that, meal planning just has flown out the window! And while the start of school may bring a bit of normalcy to the schedule. Most of the above will still apply.

Nevermind, trying to have all the family sit down for a meal. I really miss that and constantly look for windows when everyone will be home at the same time that is not the middle of the night! Any other moms of teens feel this pain?

Change in Kitchen Routine

With that being said, the kitchen routine has changed a bit.

  • Everyone gets a say in the typically weekly grocery trips.
  • I rarely buy any prepared foods. (The twins purchase their own if they want them.)
  • I still chop veggies and have them in plastic ware or frozen for quick snacks or to save prep time when cooking.
  • I plan meals for Tuesdays and Thursdays, my weekday eating days. The kids know they will come home to food or can eat it as leftovers the next day.
  • We handle the weekends as they come. If no one is really around, I typically just eat a raw diet. But if lots of the kids and their friends are around, I will cook a big meal.

Anyone else’s world change completely when all the kids became teenagers with driver’s licenses, curfews and social lives?

I am loving it. But I do miss regular family meals! But I guess after our months of quarantine and living in a smaller house, we all need so space.

 


12 Comments

  • Reply Lisa |

    I hope you are giving your older sons a break on the rent. They are both sleeping in the living room and buying some of their own food. $250 each when your rent is $650 sounds pretty high for that.

  • Reply Hope |

    I am not. The amount I am charging them doesn’t even cover a utility bill (our electric bill was $261 this month.) The living room in this home is no different then a bedroom, it has a closet and a door. The only differences are it has an outside entrance and is almost double the size of any of the bedrooms.

    If you add the rent, the utilities and the food, they are getting an amazing deal. And they are getting used to having some adult financial responsibilities. As they look to move out, they are finding nothing less than $500 per month and that does not include food or utilities, so they are getting a great deal!

    • Reply Annie |

      That’s not a screaming deal when you break it down per person in your household.
      Rent per person for your house is around $108. Utilities per person regardless of how much time they spend at home is about $44 per person. It doesn’t sound like you are providing much in the way of food. So, it’s not a good deal. I live alone in a single bedroom apartment. I pay at most $75 a month on utilities in the summer. I pay sufficiently less in the winter.

      • Reply Lisa |

        Thank you, I agree. Plus they don’t even have a bedroom, they share the living room with the living room furniture still in it. I’m not saying you should never charge your grown children rent but this is a lot for what they are getting. One got kicked out of his bedroom and his rent didn’t go down.

        • Reply Hope |

          Yes, they have the living room furniture…
          The big screen SMART TV.
          The couch that I want to get rid of, but they want to keep to take when they move out.
          A recliner for each of them in their own space.
          And the 4 sets of bookshelves that divide the space into 2 rooms.
          Believe, they have just as much if not more space then the rest of us.

          History Buff who moved out of the small room, now has more room then he did in the room.

      • Reply Hope |

        I’m not providing much in the way of food, huh? Because I won’t by processed food? Believe me, we could open a grocery store with as much food as I keep stocked. I don’t just keep weekly supplies but we are stocked in case of quarantine again. There is PLENTY of food here and they have free access.

        The goal of charging the twins rent is not “help mom out financially,” it’s teach adult children responsibility. They are not paying renters insurance, for their own internet, for their food, their laundry supplies and utilities. Believe me, they have priced living on their own and together and both realize that they are getting an amazing deal when compared.

        The “rent” is a lesson being taught as they are both being encouraged to “adult” more.

  • Reply Marzy-d |

    How are you fasting 42 hours three times a week? Thats almost six days out of seven. You eat nothing monday, Wednesday and Friday, and only dinner on Tuesday/Thursday? Is your doctor aware you are doing this? I realize there are many health advantages to intermittent fasting, but this seems to be going a bit far.

    • Reply Hope |

      Nothing Monday, Wednesday and Friday.
      And no breakfast.
      I eat lunch and dinner – Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday.
      I am not currently under the regular care of a doctor. I got my numbers under control late last year and have been off all meds since.
      I am a strong believer in holistic medicine and have studied it for years and years. (Thus my attitude about insurance, and yes, I know it definitely has it’s place.) But other than annual check ups, we have rarely got to the doctor for anything other than emergencies.

    • Reply Hope |

      I should add, I did not start with this stringent of fasting. When I started, I was doing a 6 hour eating window daily. Then I began doing 24 hour fasts intermittently. Then I extended those to 36 hours intermittently. Then I was doing one 24 hour fast and one 36 hour fast per week. This has been a process.
      Once I really began to see the health and mental benefits of fasting, I became more regulated. Unlike my dad, who is under doctors supervision, I do not do long fasts (5-7 days), not that I am opposed to them. But I am not willing to give up meals with the kids, or whoever is home, for an entire week. That’s an important time to me.
      So the 42 hour, 3 days a week regime works really well for me both mentally and physcially.

  • Reply Megan |

    This has nothing at all to do with money, but I’m curious how you landed on that fasting routine. And what your motivations are for it. No judgement, just curiosity.

    • Reply Hope |

      I’ve studied holistic healing methodology and as a result food and nutrition for years; although, I’ve never really had the willpower to implement my knowledge. I just like to each. But with my diabetes diagnosis a couple of years ago and then a hard hitting year to get it under control with the assistance of medication and transitioning to regulating my food, I really wanted to come off meds and manage it holistically, ie food and better habits.
      My dad did it before me. And while I had studied and even tried Keto, again, no will power. Fasting, I can do. It’s much easier for me then making good food choices and I’m finding that I make better food choices on my non-fasting days because I’m learning to listen to what my body needs (not my head.)
      Anyways, I’m currently following the 42 hour plan and have read and researched extensively the content in “The Complete Guide to Fasting” by Jason Fund, MD with Jimmy Moore.
      The side benefit is that I believe my relationship with food is finally improving and it is not only a physical improvement but a mental improvement. I would go on and on, but this is a financial blog. 🙂

      • Reply Megan |

        I’m glad you’ve found something that works well for you. Thanks for sharing something possibly more personal than money stuff. 😀

So, what do you think ?