Groceries For $7 a week! How We Saved Money On Groceries - Penny Pinching Mama 

my dad was a janitor at a school and he hated the fact that every day he hauled four large steel garbage cans full of food out to the dump. He set up an exchange table and if there was anything in your lunch that you did not want you put it on the table and if you were hungry you went to the table and helped yourself. Those four cans were cut down to less than half a garbage can.

Sounds like the reason the kids weren’t hungry was the fact they were not addicted to sugar. Great video, loads of top tips. 👍

My garden saves me. money. I canned 134 qts of green beans not to mention the corn, squash, okra, and peppers I put up. I made 23 jars of jelly from one plum tree. I made pickles, pickled okra, pickled peppers. I am eating turnip greens and freezing some for later. I have a lot of herbs and onions. In the summer I eat breakfast out of my yard. I pick cherry tomatoes, blueberries, strawberries, plums or apples. I buy a head of lettuce and salad dressing and I have everything else for a huge salad from asparagus to kale to arugula, peppers, cukes, spinach,tomatoes, and herbs. You can take one tomato seed and produce numerous plants by rooting some stems. I even have black pepper plants indoors

I’m Irish and growing up in the 70s and 80s there definitely wasn’t a lot of money, also this was during the “Troubles” So meals were carefully planned and very nutritious. A pot of homemade soup cost around £1 and would feed a family of 4 for two days. Boiled potatoes with it was very filling. Then for the next two days it was minced stew, and this could be curried which tastes amazing. Liver was also on the menu which was lovely and a chicken dinner for Sunday’s. My mums careful spending never saw our food shopping go over £6, and now I’ve carried what she did into my home life. It can be done ppl. Have a price set and don’t deviate. Do your weekly menu and don’t deviate. Great video. Peace and blessings from Ireland 🇮🇪

We lived on groceries of $3.00 a week for about 3 months. Bought bags of potatoes when on sale for $1.00 for a 10 lb bag of potatoes (at the little rancho style market, they were pretty much always $0.99 for a 10 lb bag), a bit of oil and occasional seasonings to be had for $0.25 to 50 cents every now and then. Yeah not the healthiest choice but when in a pinch. We'd basically eat one meal a day in the evening but if there were any leftover potatoes at the end of the week, we'd make some hash browns for breakfast. Now mind you, this fed 2 people. Now that we are both well employed and making decent money, I think back to those days of old and realize just how wasteful we have become again. I cleaned out the fridge the other week and saw just how much leftovers were sitting in there ready to go in the bin. We would have just about killed to have the leftovers that we've now been tossing instead of using. Definitely time to wake up and stop wasting so much.

I believe whoever sent the $7.00 every Saturday has special place in heaven.

I admire the close mum/daughter relationship, sensible tips and self confidence and the immense pride you have in what you do. Kudos to mum who has a awesome personality. Really admirable !!!

Thanks for letting us single moms off the hook about all this organic food, gardening, etc. Time and money are already stretched to the limit but society adds all this pressure to be perfect.

Hi girls, you reminded me of my growing up years, my father died when I was 8 and my brother 4, my mother was a widow at 28. Sooo, we never had juice, pop or anything of the sort. Some years ago my mother reminded me of a funny story, a school friend of mine invited me for tea, we are a tea drinking country. So when I came home I told my mother that my friends family were very rich, millionairs I screamed, but what happened, my mother asked me, did they have gold forks and spoons? I said, noooo, its mote than that, my mother asked agai, so tell me, and I stood up and said, they served pastries at tea time. Hahahaha, in my house we had onions, potatoes, carrots, meat once a week and chicken once a week, the rest were vegetable dishes, my mother didnt even buy butter, or jam, or ham and cheese, or anything of the sort. It was so funny, mu grandchildren cannot believe we were happy. We didnt even have tv. I am now 72 years, so I am speaking of the very olden days....❤❤❤

Back then you didn't need to buy "organic", every was naturally organic. They didn't use pestisides or GMO's or spray everything. Luv your site.

I was overpacking my childs lunch and he himself said at one point,please dont send so much with me to eat.i cant eat that much and even if i am that hungry -we don't really have enough time to eat as it is.

Wow! I admire your mother. She is amazing!! That is exactly what a mother is supposed to do in such a situation. It was hard but she pulled through making sure her kids were taken care of. I applaud you!

i forgot to add that i went plant based a year ago due to health issues (endometriosis) at 46..and my food bill went even lower. tofu costs a $1, beans cost $1. i buy frozen veggies and produce that is on sale. almond milk is cheap now. happy to say.. i am no longer in pain.

My father worked two jobs and barely made any money at either one. My mom stayed at home and raised nine kids. We always had more than enough food and never got heavy. We had a small farm and grew our vegetables and if we needed some chicken we had more than enough of them in our backyard. They also produced almost all of our eggs. My mother went to local farmers markets and canned food very cheaply. The garden was tended by the children and if we weren't doing the summer chores there were always winter ones. Our garden wasn't huge either and was only about 1 1/2 acres. We did everything from getting the soil ready to harvesting ourselves. My parents rarely had to spend much money for food at all however, my mother never failed to have a full table of food and made a lot of things from scratch. Even our bread was homemade and our leftovers were always eaten. I don't recall ever having one meal that didn't contain meat. For milk we used canned milk but we normally drank kool-aid. Every Friday night my dad would come home from working later at night and we had hot dogs, one bottle of soda, and one Hershey candy bar for our weekly treat. Otherwise, my mom made donuts, cinnamon rolls, pies, cakes, and cookies from scratch. Oh and if we wanted beef or pork my mom would either purchase it with what little they had or invest in a side of beef or buy a year old pig to raise up. We didn't have to worry about putting on weight because we were always busy either doing chores or something outside. The key to success ladies isn't always how much you eat but how much you physically burn it off. I do have to disagree though about "healthy" foods because going gluten free is much easier on a persons stomach as they age. Janet

I needed to hear that so much that it brought me tears. The stress of being in debt is more detrimental to your health than not eating perfectly all the time. I've been on Weight Watchers for a little over a year because I was like 40 pounds overweight from just mindlessly eating/stress eating all the time. Since I started I've spent almost $200 a week on groceries for just 2 people. Mind you, it's very expensive where I live but still...The point is, I'm spending all this money on healthy food but only work seasonally as a full time student...I've built $2,000 in debt in the last 6 months and I can feel that stress physically. It's so bad that when I go back to work, I spend the first 4 months trying to pay back the debt...Time to make a change. Need to change my mindset about food so I'm not overeating and understand I don't need to eat perfectly all the time.

You truly speak my language ! I used to be a health Visitor here in the U.K. Working with vulnerable families - often young unmarried mothers who didn't have a clue Re budgeting , cooking, menu etc. My big ambition was to start budgeting and cooking classes for these families but my employer was too shortsighted to see the benefit . Everyone eats too much , eat the wrong stuff etc . We are truly a generation of excess! I'm proud to say my three children have been imbued with the same message you are spreading .

most of the people i know are used to having their fridges stuffed. i only buy necessary stuff and am not scared to see my refrigerator half empty

I found this video helpful for myself. For me personally what spoke to me is how stress is more harmful to buying the "perfect" type of food for my family. I remember hearing that no matter how "healthy" you eat the consistent high levels of stress we are in/do to ourselves will undo almost health benefits from "healthy" food.

She reminds me of my frugal grandma, I can’t believe how I am going back to her teachings, now that I’m in my 20’s. Thank you for posting.

Life passes so quickly and one of the things my elderly patients told me was-they wished they had not given up so much. Sad you could not have a cup of coffee which you loved each morning. I faced struggles too, married to someone who got into heavy drugs. I asked my boss to give me extra patients for added money. Still tough, but eventually he,6'4'' big guy, left and w/ one less to feed and more money coming in, it did get easier. We ate almost all meals at home. Found specials where we did go- 99 cent children's buffet at Ponderosa and penny a pound for kids at Ground Round one night a week. You struggled much more than I did. Very stressful to have children and severe lack of funds. Luckily, we have excellent food banks and assisting programs now.

Great tips. My mom was a single mom...not easy. I praise single moms...it is hard. 🙋

I must say you two ladies are so refreshing. I've "known" my grocery store for years and shop almost strictly clearance. Truthfully I find it satisfying being self sufficient just as you describe. No debt, no stress!

yes, you can get four meals from one chicken. I fed 5 people on $10 a week. I cut the chicken up, getting 6 meals from one chicken. #1 One breast thinly sliced with julienned vegetables over rice #2 One breast cut into small nuggets, fried, make gravy, put over rice, potatoes or noodles #3 Boil rest of chicken. divide in half. use one half of meat and broth to make chicken soup. This makes 2 meals #4 Use rest of chicken and broth to make chicken and rice. 2 meals from this. That is 6 meals from one chicken for 2 adults and 3 children.

I love this! this is how I was raised by my mom. She was a single mother of 2 and worked 10-12 hr. and it didn't pay much. she like Jill would stretch a roast out for a few meals and also would use every bit of it also. and in the summer we would have a garden so that would be our veggies she would barter with people for the seeds and to til our soil patch so it would not cost he anything and us kids would tend to it during the summer while mom was at work. and we would have an abundance of veggies she learned how to can we never canned fruit like Jill said you have to add sugar and other stuff mom kept it simple and stuck with veggies and she taught me this and this is how I am with my own family. people alway use to say that my mom could grocery shop and she could. and I love my mom for giving/showing me that skill.

How many people were fed each day...I had to do the same thing for five little ones. I still use the same "deodorant" I used fifty years ago...Half Corn Starch, Half Baking Soda, sifted onto wax paper, then poured into a clean cottage cheese container with the lid. Take enough toilet paper so that it makes a nice cushy square. Use that the way you'd use a power puff and dab that on your clean underarms. I can't use regular deodorant because it makes me itch and turns my skin red. My homemade stuff doesn't. It's free. If you don't know the benefits of baking soda, then google up "Baking Soda." SO Many uses...you'll be surprised. If you don't want to "sift," no big deal, just use a fork to stir it up good, put the lid on, and shake it hard...little lumps will disappear. When I ran out of soap for dishes and laundry, baking soda was my go to solution. It's really cheap, and cuts grease and dirt. Also had a backyard garden. I didn't have debt...just an ex-husband who wouldn't pay child support, and as he told the judge..."I don't live there anymore, so why should I pay the house payment?" The Judge said, "Bayliff, escort this man to a holding cell with the rest of the prisoners." He got thirty days out of that escape. His parents brought groceries over, and paid back utility bills. They left him sitting in jail. He thought for sure the would pull him out of that situation...but they didn't. Everybody has a story to tell about their lean days. Lean days gives us character. Cheers, thanks for reading, even though I got off topic. 3/5/18.

In england, during WWII, the government issued rationing coupons based on their understanding of basic nutritional needs at the time. Initial, people griped and there was a lot of hand wringing but after a while, helpful hints and neighborhood efforts to share and exchange things as per people's preferences, a whole new eating style emerged. Meat was usually something that showed up on the table once a week. In the roughly 6-7 years those restrictions and food management programs were in effect (It went beyond the years of the "hot war" because distribution and production of food needed time to recover), people got HEALTHIER. They lost weight, ate almost only real food, fewer tooth failures, etc. Just something to reflect on.

Someone was sending you money? That's so sweet. 🙂 Thank you for sharing. My husband and I actually make a good living, but I like to live frugally because I don't want to be wasteful with my hard earned money. I do but some "luxury" stuff but more of as a treat.

Your mom is awesome. I have been in the single mom trying to be healthy on a crazy low budget...it's a challenge but it's absolutely not impossible! It's nice to see someone caring enough to not just fill their kids but thinking about nutrients. Refreshing. I like you two.. straightforward, it's great! Subbed!

I remember a year or so when my father went to trade school in another state, we ate potatoes, carrots, and onions in gravy, with deviled ham on Fridays. My mother worked at a dime store and earned a whopping $1.10 an hour, out if which she paid rent, utilities, food, and whatever else. We had no car so we walked everywhere. In later years, my mother mentioned the fact that during that time, none of us got sick. There were five of us: mom and four kids. As far as your take on organic foods: it's true. Nutritionally, they are pretty close. BUT, organic foods do not have the vestiges of antibiotics or growth hormones or steroids. That's why people tend to buy organic. Also, the wheat and corn available to us today are genetically modified and do damage to the human body over time. They are not the wheat and corn my parents and grandparents farmed! I have had no choice but to cut grains from my diet, so it is more expensive for groceries. But, I'd rather pay the grocery bill than tolerate IBS and other health issues that have resolved since changing my food lifestyle!

Growing up we raised chickens, had venison, a few caught fish and supplemented by 1/4 of a cow. We had a big garden and canned everything. I agree we were healthier and rarely went to the grocery store. We also didn't have much garbage. Organic food does not have more nutrients, but it is free of cancer causing chemicals from Monsanto

Your mother is so incredibly sweet and yet real and down-to-earth. True inspiration.

You can make tea out of anything. If you have a piece of property, there is probably dandelions. Many plants you think of as weeds are beneficial and taken as tea. I'm fortunate to have rose hips, many flowers that can be used as tea, as well as the herbs I have planted, such as many types of mints, including chocolate mints, yum, and red clover tea full of vit C.

Esther chicago- I paid $17,500 student loan, $1,590 medical bill, and $3,000 borowed from my husband retirement account. All came in to a place to pay off, and I have to listen to Jill hundreds of times to motivate and understand what Jill really means.

This is one of the best, most practical talks on nutrition and eating, food budgets, etc. that I have heard in a loooong time. From a new mom w/ a baby, thank you!

Jill you used good old common sense in your cooking . That is the way our generation was raised. Thanks for sharing with everyone!

Mama Jill you are beautiful inside and out! You're such a strong woman and just radiate the joy of the Lord! Thanks for all the great tips your daughter and you give! May God bless you and your family! 😍🙏♥️

I just love the joy that shines through Jill.I respect her so much, such a genuine personality.You guys make such great videos and they always feel so "homely" Greetings from freezing Holland

My eldest son, the first word he learnt how to read at just two years old was the word "free" every time I took him shopping he would look for the buy one get one free sign and say mum mum freee ;)

Nothing made me more proud than when my son said to me that he was so glad we brought them up thinking they didn’t have to have the best of everything, spend and buy what is bellow your means, including a home. Even if you have a dual income, live as though you are one person. Then if something happens you don’t have to worry.

Remembering what it was like to go to a food pantry and have food donated to us can be sad, but you ladies just made me realize how much good came from simple living! We never over ate. We were never hungry. We were never sick. We bought soda at Walmart vending machine at 25¢ on special occasions. All of my family members were lean. I don’t even remember being bored with having rice and beans everyday. Today we are lean and healthy. None of us have diabetes or other serious health issues. We were also vegetarians not by choice, but because meat was expensive! Good times. Thanks for this video!

I realize not everyone is blessed with space for a veggy garden BUT if you are....Free Veggies. Buy GMO free seeds, use your own compost (no fertilizer required), save your own seeds for future growing and can, freeze dry, or store root veg in cool area. A little physical effort can reap tons of free organic food year round!

My mom would have spaghetti Wednesday every week with salad. Then other days we might have beans with cornbread made from scratch with fried potatoes for dinner. Also we would make homemade biscuits for breakfast sometimes with our mom and have chocolate gravy with it. We also made chili and whatever we could make. Now me and my husband and our son make homemade bread and make homemade chicken nuggets from chicken and bread crumbs from the ends of the bread we made. Also I make homemade pancakes some mornings or some mornings I heat up some oatmeal and add brown sugar and cinnamon to it especially during the winter for my son before school. Also we make our own cinnamon raisin bread because the ones at the store cost 4 or 5 dollars for a very small loaf. We get a huge loaf and we eat that for breakfast. Also my husband is learning to make cream cheese and our own butter.

I had 4 kids and was making $5.75 an hour back when they were young....I'd buy the cheese ends and make mac and cheese. A pound of pizza dough was a dollar so we had fried dough and sauce sprinkled with cheese....soup made everything go further. Cut out the extras and your money goes a lot further.

How amazing your mom was to figure out the Nutririon her family needed!

So true! The lunchroom waste at school in one day could easily feed our family of 6 for a month.

You had a guardian angel sending you that money every week. I hope that they have gotten rewarded in turn. What a beautiful gesture! New to your channel and I'm looking forward to listening to the PPM series! I've already cut down my food budget (it's just me) from $400 to $200 last month and I'm setting a goal for $150 for this month. Meal planning and smart grocery list/planning has been the key thing for me. I'm in my 50's and have JUST learned to cook! My average meals are coming out to about $3!

oh my god we ATE the exact same way.... and no one was fat and no one was hungry no packaged food .

Admittedly we were not through survival mode, and my Mum's prefered 'relaxing' activity was gardening amd teaching me how to grow things, and then to cook with the things (and we had a garden, and lucked into the right soil for what my Mum liked growing, and typically did! Mainly because we tended to make things that had a tomato base). My Mum would make things like cheats spaghetti bolognaise and typical tomato sauces for pasta, with added sneaked in veggies, and would make enough back up meals in her old crocky slow cooker thing for part of the year, or a basic tomato sauce with cheapy garlic stuff in, so that the meat or whatever could be added in at the time. We were lucky that we had decent freezers, couldn't taste any freezer burn (although a layer of charcoal helps!), my Mum would spend time sorting and cleaning cupboards and freezers on a regular basis, and my Mum had lots of paid holiday time to do this in (as she was a teacher!). We used the tomatoes that wouldn't stop growing, the whatever else my Mum grew etc, when it was ripe to make meals up for later in the year, so in winter we'd have the summer tomatoes in spaghetti. I like how my Mum used a stress reducing activity she liked, to give us many meals throughout the year for a low amount of money, and high nutritional value, we also had very many teachable moments. Seeing my Mum calm and reassured that she had things to help contribute to the family, and doing something that she liked for herself... that look in her bodily expression, face expression, movements, and voice, is better to me than the most expensive toy invented! My Dad worked full time, and so did my Mum, they managed the money, and general household running etc as a unit, and neither wanted to keep things from or lie to the other, so when I proudly (or panicly/unsuredly) approached a parent about the other parent's birthday or special occasion... the surprise was often ruined by the day! I feel so fortunate that my Mum taught me to be thrifty (our 'big deal' thing was going to all the charity shops in town together!), and I feel so fortunate that my parents were such a united team regarding all matters. I felt so very safe with that situation as a child. I liked that my parents showed me how much communication is needed and wanted in a relationship, and that showed me that thoughts behind actions or items are often more important and more hidden than the gift, and are needed to be told. We ended up buying cheapy presents, but having a thought or memory and writing about it as part of a present is more meaningful for them. I bought my Dad a 'tortoise themed' present thing for a big birthday, and I gave him a big showy present, a pencil with a wooden tortoise end to it, and some other things. I wrote about what a tortoise means and in connection to my Dad, I then wrote about why I bought the pencil (at the time I thought I needed to justify it and eventually apologise regarding that gift!). I wrote about how talented my Dad is about thinking through things, from scale diagrams to just rough drawings, to complete scale based room with scale based movable things (for basic things like reorganisation of furniture beforehand!), and that I liked how well and thoroughly he plans things, and wrote it to him. The tortoise pencil was put away somewhere and so I figured he threw it away or something, but whenever there was some kind of major project where my Dad might need to note something to draw something, out this specific pencil would come (other times an automatic pencil would be there because 'it is more precise'!). Needless to say, I feel tons of relief, and can't help beaming when I see it near a 'current big project planning' thing! He even confessed that he didn't want to use it much, because he didn't want to use it up (and was almost crying as if using it up would hurt my feelings!), I almost cried because it was so unexpected that he liked it so much. From that point on, I've always done thought over present, and spent time thinking and stressing on what to write rather than buying elaborate and/or expensive presents! My parents are redoing a house at the moment, and I am trying to save money up (whilst on a low budget!) to help them incase they need some money to get some extra people in to help them with something (or buy something they can't afford, or to just help them get further ahead and in more comfort quicker!).

I felt bad cause grand kids wanted cookies. To high. I told them i have all the stuff to make homade ones. Cheap grandma or good now they know how to make. Had fun as well

My rent is $450 and that is very cheap in a crappy neighborhood. I don't understand how this living on $500 is even possible. I could live in my van but it's cold outside. Heck, it's cold inside.

$7.00 a week to my family would be a blessing from god. It is great to see someone else that knows what a person need to have all or more than what they need and be greatefull and never be hungray

Hey Tawra hope you are doing good. I don't remember how many times I watched this video and its so inspiring. Your mom is indeed a beautiful and intelligent lady. Love you both..!!!

My biggest bill a month is on groceries so I love videos like this ! My husband and I are trying to start living on a budget we make ok money but spend way too much

My moms dad left the family when there were the 5 kids. My mom was raised on day old bread from the bakery, powdered milk, and grandma also has a very precise menu. My mom would ask her to once in awhile to get 6 tacos(or something like that) for $1 at Taco Bell back in the 60s, but my grandma was on such a strict budget they never could get that.

Sorry, I disagree about the garden. I had a nice garden and I did not buy special soil or anything. There are frugal ways of fertilizing a garden. My friend's husband would take a wheelbarrow down to the river at certain times of the year and gather seaweed for his garden. His garden was the envy of the neighborhood! You can find the other free sources of garden fertilizer depending on what's around you.

I'm always inspired by these super frugal grocery tips. My kids are all "grown and gone" now, but we sure learned how to get by on a lot less than most people we knew when they were all small and at home. We still laugh over some of my creativity back then. None of us starved, and the money we saved helped us to live on one income. Thanks for posting common sense information and addressing the difference between needs and wants (speaking of the cars). So many today don't seem to understand the differences. I'm a new subscriber and I can't wait to watch all the videos!

If you are looking to replace spices go to the bulk food store or bulk section of your grocery store. I replaced all my spices (18 of them) for under $6.00. And if I want a chili spice blend I go on the internet and make my own. I have to say I like my own spice mixes better than the store bought one's.

I drink water all the time. I won't eliminate coffee but I don't have to at this time. I just cut down on the amount I drink.

Going to start tomorrow with my shopping and see what I can get cheaper I dont owe anybody anything, but its better the money in my purse then the shops.

You have inspired me! You are so right! I grew up eating that way and fed my own kids that way. I need to get back to 3 small meals a day and no snacking. After the kids grew up I started eating badly. I need to get back in line.

This is great. It takes me back to the good times with my grandma. She used to have little juice glasses that were actually the little glasses left over from the cheese bread she used to use on holidays. They held about half a cup. And when we did have a glass of juice that was all we had. Make sure your tap water is healthy. Ours ended up getting chemicals in it from a chemical plant about 7 miles away and we ended up with genetic defects. My granddaughter died from that. That's your problem with on organic is the chemicals that cause the mutations. Thanks so much for sharing I really enjoyed it!

My mother use to feed us that way and we were so healthy and happy. Thank you for this video.

I relate to this so much. I was the youngest of four when my Mom and Dad divorced. Mom stayed home and we lived on child support. No phone, no washer dryer, no car. From the time I was 4 years old until I was 21.

Loved visiting , volumes to learn right here on what truly matters!!! Beautiful Mom and Daughter relationship...more about love, team work, Encouragement.....less about the nonessentials !!! Way to go family!!❤️👍

Eating less and eliminating drinks will save a ton. Great tips.

My husband and I spend about 1,000 per month. I am saving my receipts for the month and see what we are buying that we don’t need or to cut back on items. You’ve got great ideas, thank you ❤️

Cabbage has Vit C....a bag of slaw mix is $1.....grate in some carrot,. tsp white vinegar,, oil or mayo...boom! Great on chicken tacos or as a side. We eat lots of apples, spinach, tons of celery, kale, green beans, carrots, onions...whatever's cheap...fill up on soups...vegies n lentils. Sprout some beans....make a stir fry with celery, onions and a handful of frozen peas. Almost everything I've mentioned is only $1. Beans are cheaper than meat. Chop apples into cookies, use oatmeal and/or peanut butter to keep cookies on the healthy side.

I really enjoyed your video because my mom taught her five daughters to shop like you. She did that in the 1950s , 60s and 70s when we were home .I taught my daughter and we taught her two sons. We all look for bargains and markdowns. Thank you for taking me back a few years . My mom would have had her 94 th birthday the other day ( May 27 ) and she's been on my mind and heart....I remembered her writing out her grocery list and planning the meat we would have for the week. We had a dad , mom and five girls at home . I loved the memories. She made a roast or hamburger go for so many meals. Thank you so much . God bless you both.

I think that a great staple would be dried beans and rice. So cheap and makes many portions. Plus the combination of the rice and beans creates all the amino acids that you need!

Thank you for all of your information. My husband and I live on a fixed income and our granddaughter and two greats live with us as well. We need to cut our expenses drastically or we will all be out on the street. Thank you so much for writing a cookbook that we could afford and that will help us cut back. My mom knew how to do these things as well, but she passed and I had forgotten in our good years how to "make do, or do without."

I smiled when I heard you say giving up coffee. Before I retired, I drank a whole pot of coffee in the morning BEFORE I left for work and then I was in the coffee club at work and drank coffee there till around 1130 am. :-) Since I retired, (I'm disabled) I have coffee twice a week. That's 2 cups 2 days a week. The other 5 days, NO coffee. And guess what? I managed with that like you're doing here! Thanks for the great info!

Having my own garden has saved me SO much money & I can ensure that the produce is not coated with pesticides and harmful chemicals. Growing your own food is a huge blessing - a little sweat in the garden won't hurt you ;)

Wow, your Mom has so much wisdom and has a huge heart to pass it on to the next generation! Thank you! Very insightful!

I have you say I'm very jealous of you for having your mother still. My mama dies in 88 when i was 30. We did lots together. Watching yall makes me cry but i try to stick with yall.

Wonderful video, ladies! I am appalled when shopping, to see all the junk that Mothers put in their carts to feed their children . That money could be spent on wholesome foods that could add nutrition to their diets, instead of health & behavior issues. Most of these junk items are loaded with harmful chemicals & additives [many are addictive]. PLEASE read the reply I made below to Lyn Hannah's comment.

you guys are awesome. i grew up poor and frankly we ate a lot of latin/italian/irish "peasant foods". luckily, i love beans, rice, and cabbage. lol. meat was a always in small portions with a lot of sauce!

We are a family of 5. I spend 300.00 a WEEK! I'll be watching these 2 ladies very closely. Getting ready to save a bunch of money..

I do spend on soda, tea, coffee. I save by keeping my utilities low. Best way to keep the water low is showering at the gym, I only shave and wash clothes and dishes. I save there so I can get what I want to eat. I eat a lot of beans and rice but I put a lot of meat in the beans. I do the beans soup so I just cook one large pot each week. I have other meals like sandwiches,hot pockets, chimichungas. To me it's more about not eating out, talk about blowing through cash and gaining weight.

I try to watch my grocery money but it never seems to stretch far enough :) I do have a teenage boy in my home so that does explain some of it. You can have nice cuts of meat and stuff too if you watch for the good sales - I got sirloin steaks last night - paid 10.47 and there is enough steak to feed my grandson and I for 3 meals - that felt good and the steak was delicious last night :)

Hey ladies, alot f people including me....buy thin skinned fruits or veggie organically,, its not just about nutrients its also the pesticides that are used on the non organics.Jst wanted to let you know it s not just about the nutrient factor.Love your video.

This video was a life saver, I am overweight and want to lose lots of it, I am a big eater but mostly we just buy so much junk food and drink and processed stuff, we spend $100 a week for 2 of us, it does include cat food and household needs but that's minute compared to the crappy food, I am going back to old skool ways, it will reduce our food spending but also my waistline, thankyou so much, another thing is we have so much wastage as I make too much and have heaps of left overs which hubby won't usually eat and me for the fact, what's in our house ATM could probably feed us well for the next month at least yet I keep going shopping every week thanks again

You guys are a true blessing.... and it is sad that MOST people, would not even try to budget, or live on limited quantities like this! Thanks for sharing!

Oooo ladies... this brings back precious memories... 17 family members under our roof.. Mom, dad and us siblings... never went hungry...we harvested seafood, gardens and preserved a lot of our bounty and a treat from grandparents farm such as lard, salted pork, butter and cornmeal from afar. Yes, dad worked 40+ years before retirement from shipbuilding and mom outside home for many of those years... yes, we were often offered things from others from time to time but mom always said thanks but please give that to someone who needs it... No government handouts were included in our household. NO! Mom again said we are fine and just carried on. And we did... Thanks for your representation because it was so real for of family frugality was passed on to me and I still practice >>waste not, want not... Continual health and strength and many, many Blessings to both of you mama’s😍😊

It is so true about the children's lunches! I work in elementary-aged childcare, and when they brought cold lunches in the summer, I was SHOCKED at how much they wanted to just throw away every day! When it became a pattern with a child, I would have them take the uneaten food home so that THEY had to explain to their parents why they had eaten their chips and cookie and left all of the nutritious food untouched.

I'm so impressed w your Mom very clever and hard working. Dad should be in jail that's child abandonment AND just plain wrong and mean.

You mom is so a sweet person.you are lucky to have her in your life.my mom was doing the same and we was healthy and never get sick or had allergy.

I haven't gotten my grocery bill down as low as I'd like to yet but I utilize food pantries to help us out because they provide lots of beans, noodles and canned goods which completes a meal. I have cut down a whole lot on junk food.. I buy it as treats now instead of just having it to graze on. I keep a bag of popcorn tho cuz that's my weakness! Lol but i cook everything from scratch and make alot of 2 and 3 ingredient things.

Jill and Tawra, i come back to this video over and over when i feel overwhelmed at a small budget for our family of three. Thank you.

Once ,I made soup out of a can of tomato paste, it was all we had. I put mace to flavor it. This was back in 1979 or 80 . We never had much to eat but we got by I had 30$ a week grocery budget.

I had my kids making their own lunches by age 8. They also made their own snacks, pikelets,mini muffins and cup cakes, I did the oven. I only ever had popcorn in my cupboard, no other snacks. All their friends were jealous and wanted to cook as soon as they walked in the front door! 😄

I once relieved a lunch room lady for a few weeks. She told me to ask the children to donate any foods they did not want to the teachers desk. Then others could pick from it if they didn't like their lunch. What happened is that most of the children put their apples in the bowl. Every day there was a huge bowl of fruit. The lunch lady told me she took the apples home and made apple pie from them. From that time on I only gave my kids things they really liked for lunches and not what I thought they should eat.

We were a family of 6, my dad was a big man 6'4 and 1/2"my two brothers had big appetites too, growing lads. Mum was an ex army cook and she would rustle up hearty dinners out of anything available. Often though in the evenings she would bring in supper a tray of baked potatoes to eat around the fire together, they must have been plentiful. She would also make huge dishes of cheese and potato pie... very filling with crusty bread and any left over bread was made into a tray of bread pudding that dad would have for lunch at work. Rice puddings, suet puddings, macaroni puddings all made to fill up hungry men .

My parents grew up during the depression and we were raised very frugally. Not so sure I could give up coffee totally, but I'm down to one cup in the morning. Planning on trying some of your ideas for saving.

These are great reminders, there are several videos on you tube to buy in bulk or freeze leftovers. I agree 100% it's about eating less, being healthy, and not waisting food. Great video, I picked up on some new ideas! :)

👍Watch Next: $750/month - Living On Social Security: How To Make Ends Meet On A Fixed Income ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-iel4R1ugkWI.html👍 👍 25% off On Sale NOW! 👍❤️ Quick and Easy Recipes! ❤️ Dining On A Dime Cookbook www.LivingOnADime.com

This is interesting. I brings back memories of when I was growing up. My parents lived during the Great Depression, so they learned how to live on less. My grandparents were the adults during that. It did have an effect on how I lived because I was raised that way. I lived among my family of 8. I had observed and was taught how to save. Hamburger went for 3 pounds for a Dollar. There were times we had hamburger patties with no bun. Mostly it was stretched in dishes that had meat in it. One chicken last for one meal. Mom had a way of making many pieces. I still use a half a pound of hamburger for things that call for a pound. I made chocolate with what if called for there were too many. School lunches were what we brought for lunch when the weather was nice. It was a sandwich. She used Miracle Whip to spread on the bread with one kind of meat or cheese. Cookies, and money for milk. We had the school lunch during the winter. I remember for 5 of us for 5 days was $25.00 dollars. Mom canned and I helped. We would go to U-pick orchards and that saved money. Got bread at a store that the bread companies had for day after bread. Mom would bring home several and freeze them. When I first move out on my own in the mid 70's, Ten Dollars would buy a lot of food including meat. Mostly is spent less. We had one serving at the meals and we played outside and never had weight problems. I can go on but I am not writing a book. Thanks for sharing people do need to know that it can be done.

Mom needs to have her own time alone to be in her experience and say things from her perspective. I'd really appreciate hearing you both separately occasionally as your ages and the decades you lived are very unique. Thanks to you I stopped buying drinks that was 40%of my bill. Now I bought a refurbished filter and am drinking clean water I make unsweetened hot or iced tea (with 50 bags of tea $1.) I am taking Dollar Tree Senior multivitamins and buying sale canned beans 10 lb bags rice eating oatmeal for breakfast and cutting out meat, cheese and dairy plus all packaged foods unless on clearance buy dented cans of hearty soup for $1, making my own sf peanut butter, So much more thanks to both of you.

For a long time I hated drinking pure water, so I prepared myself a big teapot full of water and squeezed half a lemon into the water. Or I mix 1/3 juice with 2/3 water. Plus, the rest of that lemon is perfect for cleaning the stove, the shower or the microwave!

I save alot when i shop at the 99cent store and all my meet i buy it at walmart .and my soaps .tootpaste .laundry soap ect.i use coupons .and my clothe i buy it at the Goodwills .alots of nice clothe expensive brand for cheap .believe or not i save so much you guys .i also save my change and some dollars in a piggy bank for the hole year and every december i had save almost $3000 pluse what i save in the bank ..im not rich ..but this is how i save and have a roof over my head im so grateful how i ministro my money ...i dont have to buy expensive things that you dont really need ..

To the mother - You are amazing. You were so strong and wise. Look at you now, you made it to a better life.