The annual Howard Family Budget meeting has come and gone (thank goodness! I don’t think either my husband or I look forward to it, for different reasons) and I’m still reeling from the cost of simply running a household.  With the occasional splurge on a nice item (hey! the Joneses had one first) and our propensity to travel to places where our family actually live, I think we lead fairly simple lives.  Sure, could I take one less SoCal weekend per year or forgo that pair of flats that I justified by the 40%-off? Absolutely. But the real bulk of the expenses are not superfluous items.  It’s the diapers, the milk, the groceries, the $20/hour babysitting rates, the strollers, the wedding/shower gifts, the occasional date night, the DMV registration (not to mention the parking tickets!), basic gym memberships, etc. etc.  Life (as we are blessed to know it) is just expensive.

Just think how much you spend on food in any given month.  I’m not talking just Trader Joe’s and Safeway (with the occasional Whole Foods trip).  I’m talking all-in: Starbucks, lunch, that date-night dinner, frozen yogurt, the $20 airport breakfast on your way to SoCal, the pizza night when you just plain forgot to think about dinner until 5pm … IT. ADDS. UP.  We were shocked to learn how much we spent last year on Food with a capital, all-inclusive “F”.

And then a friend sent me his family’s blog.  Talk about a New Year’s Resolution: his family of four is attempting to feed themselves on just $400/month. $11/day.  Admirable? Yes.  Impossible? No? I’m pullin’ for him.  And I’ll cringe just a little more the next time I buy the $5.99 container of crumbled goat cheese.