{"id":11175,"date":"2012-04-20T12:18:51","date_gmt":"2012-04-20T17:18:51","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/crankymouse.com\/?p=11175"},"modified":"2012-04-20T13:12:30","modified_gmt":"2012-04-20T18:12:30","slug":"eat-well-spend-less-one-year-later","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/crankymouse.com\/index.php\/2012\/04\/20\/eat-well-spend-less-one-year-later\/","title":{"rendered":"Eat Well, Spend Less: One Year Later"},"content":{"rendered":"

It has been one year since we started the Eat Well, Spend Less series<\/a> (big thanks to Jessica<\/a>!), and we’re taking a look at how our food budget, menu, shopping habits, and diet may have changed in the last 12 months.<\/em>
\n\"\"
\nLast April we kicked off the Eat Well Spend Less series by looking at the way we eat. I went over several meal planning tips and guides<\/a>, and then I broke down an actual week of our food budget and a sample menu for that week<\/a>. To date, those are two of my favorite posts of the series and on Food for My Family as a whole.
\n
Still, a few things have changed since I wrote those posts 12 months ago, and today we’re going to look at the changes a year of eating can bring. What have we started doing differently, and what changes are we still striving towards?
\n\"\"<\/p>\n

The Way We Eat<\/font><\/h2>\n

We aim to have a diet that is largely focused on whole foods, and our shopping cart resembles a CSA box no matter where we happen to be shopping: farmers market, supermarket, or co-op. We do use a few convenience items, but we make sure they are brands and names we trust, and we pay close attention to ingredients.
\n
Meal planning is still an important aspect in keeping our budget and diet grounded. With a plan we do much better than without one. During the process of writing my book<\/a>, we backslid and stopped the menu. It showed in our finances at the end of each week, and it showed in our diet. We eat better on the whole when there is some guideline for the meals we’ll be making for the week<\/a>. It is worth it, and it needs to be a priority to keep mealtimes running smoothly.
\n
Meals aren’t always fancy. In fact, of the three daily meals, only dinner gets a bit of a nudge in the fancy department. Lunches are often dinner leftovers, but when they aren’t, they consist of basics. I’ve been enjoying eating half an avocado with spinach leaves, a handful of tomatoes (fresh or sun-dried), seeds, and a small scoop of cottage cheese for lunch this week. Raw vegetables and hummus make regular appearances in the kids’ lunch boxes. Fresh fruit is offered as a snack.
\n\"\"

Photo courtesy of the Sno’Laughlins<\/center><\/p>\n

What’s Changed<\/font><\/h2>\n

We chose to do a few things differently this year with how we shopped. Even during the worst weeks of disorganization with looming deadlines and chaos everywhere else, these things helped to keep us a bit more sane than we would have otherwise been. Our budget has only increased slightly, mostly due to having children who are growing and eating a bit more than last year. We have shifted some of our spending so that it is in lump sums, but otherwise, our approach to family meals and feeding has been relatively stable. <\/p>\n

Meat<\/font><\/h3>\n

The first major thing was switching the way we purchased meat. A 1\/4 of a grass-fed cow was purchased (we split a 1\/2 with our neighbor), and while it was a larger investment up front, it’s been wonderful in the long run, and that investment actually saves us money.
\n
Cooking Light did a review comparing grass-fed beef to conventional<\/a> earlier this year, which made it easier to pull measurable differences in cost and nutrition. Here are a few of the reasons why we like going this route when it comes to purchasing our meat.<\/p>\n