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| Herman Cain Republican presidential hopeful |
Herman Cain's 9/9/9 is catchy, though pundits say it won't work. My 10/4/3/7 does. What's 10-4-3-7? It's $10 for (4) 3 meals for 7 days plus snacks.
Want a fat wallet and a skinny waist? If so, I dare you to try my 10/4/3/7 plan.
If you haven’t time for couponing or following weekly sales, take a trip to the Dollar Tree. In addition to non perishables, many of these stores, where everything is really just $1, also have a well-stocked refrigerated section. Like any store, the better the neighborhood, the better the selection.
For just $10 at Dollar Tree plus a trip to your local farmer's market, you can buy ingredients for healthy meals and snacks that will last you all week long. With some advance meal planning, including planned “overs you'll save-- not only money--but time and calories too!∞
Here’s a sample of planned menus for the week using items bought at Dollar Tree. I bought a bag of eight Gala apples for just $1.99
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| | Breakfast | Lunch | Snack | Dinner |
Monday | Toasted thin sliced bagel with strawberry jam Boiled egg | Egg salad sandwich | Apple with string cheese | Great northern beans Rice Cornbread muffin (Planned overs meal) |
Tuesday | Strawberry banana smoothie | Great northern beans with cornbread muffin | Apple Boiled egg | Hamburger helper Green Beans (Planned overs meal) |
Wednesday | Oatmeal | Hamburger helper Green beans | Banana with Peanut Butter | Macaroni and cheese Kielbasa links Broccoli Garlic bread (Planned overs meal) |
Thursday | Cereal with soymilk | Great northern bean soup | Crackers with string cheese | Spaghetti and meat sauce, salad (planned overs meal) |
Friday | Toasted thin sliced bagel, turkey bacon, egg sandwich | Pasta salad Yogurt | Applesauce with string cheese | Personal Pizza |
Saturday | Oatmeal | Hot dog Sweet potato fries | Apple Yogurt | Baked chicken breast Green beans Rice or Pasta |
Sunday | Oatmeal Boiled egg | Spaghetti and meat sauce, salad | Peanut butter cookies with Soymilk | Baked barbecued chicken breast Pasta Lettuce and tomato salad with balsamic vinagrette |
| Bread-Most Dollar Tree stores have a large selection of day-old bread, bagels and sandwich rounds that retail for $3 and up | Dried Beans (red beans, pinto, great northern) |
Eggs | Tuna |
Soymilk | Peanut Butter |
Macaroni | Shredded Cheese/String Cheese |
Flour | Oatmeal |
Frozen Strawberries | Brown Sugar |
Apple Sauce | Canned fruit |
Spaghetti Sauce | Frozen chicken breast |
Macaroni, Spaghetti | Hotdogs |
Jam | Kielbasa sausage |
Stock up on other Dollar Tree items and save
| Spices | Add your own list here: |
Laundry Detergent | |
Household cleansers | |
Beauty and first aid | |
Vitamin supplements | |
Pet food and supplies | |
Insulated cup- save on bottled water | |
Foil, plastic wrap, sandwich bags | |
Buy seeds and plant your own patio garden | |
Stationery and office items |
I totally agree and love these suggestions! One can really save when meals are planned and the right shopping places/deals are selected. I'd also like to suggest (perhaps more for those with large families and/or extra storage space) to consider buying in bulk (Costco, Sam's Club, etc.). I feel that I save a lot of money when purchasing canned goods, cereals, pastas, juices, sauces, fruit, veggies, meats (and various other items) in larger quantities once a month at the aforementioned shopping clubs. I just make sure these are products I/my family likes, will work with my planned menus and then pay close attention to the expiration dates to ensure I can hold on to the items as long as I/my family may need. :)
ReplyDeleteThanks Zoe!!! Please keep these great budgeting tips coming, because I definitely need to be creative with my cash flow these days. :)
- Felicia K.