Newlywed and need advice...?

Question

I want to run my home well, but on a budget. It's just me and my husband that live together, and it just seems to be so expensive to maintain the house. Am new at this, so advice from more experienced women would be very appreciated. What would be a reasonable budget for stocking the house? And any advice on must-have products for the home?
And then there is cooking...I cant seem to cook the right proportions and, at the right time, cause I'm so tired when I come home from work. Any ideas?
Storage is another one...the bins I buy dont ever seem to be big enough to hold my stuff.
So basically am saying, "HELP!"

KatieJ, is there a website I can visit to find out more about the workshops?

Answer 1

Your budget depends on how much u and your man eat....stuff that's good to have on hand: rice, canned or frozen veggies, potatoes, u know the basic stuff I'm sure...milk eggs etc...there are these workshops all around the country where you go in and they help you prepare meals for 2 weeks worth of time which you can freeze and just heat or cook later, that might be something to consider.

Answer 2

Well, I'm not a woman, but I am a Certified Executive Chef and I can help you out with the food questions. There is no reason to only cook enough food for one meal at a time. It is a waste of time and energy and money to do so. There are numerous foods which can be prepared and frozen in single meal servings. Chili, spaghetti sauce, stews and soups come to mind. The cool part is you can make all of those in a crock pot. Invest in some quart size ziplock bags.

Buy ground beef in family packs and divide it up and freeze it. Find old cookbooks, people were poor and learned how to cook inexpensively.
Get a charcoal grill and some charcoal and starter. Freeze up some of the ground beef into patties. Take them out of the freezer and put them in the fridge before you go to work. Tell your hubby your were thinking about grilling burgers but don't know how and he will take over and cook you a meal. Sneaky trick, but it will work. He'll almost pound his chest as he provides for his woman. It's amazing, he'll grill you chicken, shish kabobs, steaks, ribs and he'll think it was all his idea. I think it is a caveman thing that never evolved away.

Answer 3

I may be assuming something from your name but you might want to check out http://www.crown.org/financialwisdom/church/budgetcoach.asp - this is an excellent web site for learning budgets and getting assistance. You can find someone who will work with you locally for free. There is % guidelines on how much money should go into each area.

On the cooking portion - many web sites you can put the recipe in and reduce it down to two (I use Allrecipe.com) but what you might want to do is make the double portion and then freeze half for the nights that you are tired. For example have chili one night that you cooked in the crockpot all day and then freeze what you did not use. The next week you could have taco salad.

Storage containers? What kind for clothing? For food? If for food you can go to Wal-Mart and purchase inexpensively a box of different sizes.

Also if your budget is tight check out www.freecycle.org this is a site where people give things away for free. You could get many household items through this (this is not a charity thing it is so things do not end up in landfills)

Hope this gives you some ideas and best of luck and congratulations on being married

Answer 4

Food: You would be amazed at the power of coupons. We feed a family of four on about $150 a week. Also, cooking large portions are Ok, even for the two of you, just freeze half for another day. Slow cooker meals are great while you are at work. A GREAT place for recipes: www.all recipes.com. They are the best.

Cleaning: Do not buy any "one-tasker" products. Get yourself a decent all purpose cleaner for floors, counter tops, etc. Much cheaper than 10 different specialty products. INSIST on a fair division of house labor. If you are not offered help, demand it. Do not try to be super wife and do it all. You will end up pooped and very resentful of your spouse.

Storage: Closet organizers, Tall Storage pieces that go to the ceiling, Large baskets and Trunks can be use for tables, etc.

And last but not least: Mr Right is not Mr. Perfect, and neither are you so give each other a break and relax.

Answer 5

I help my wife cook. We have no kids. I save the left overs for lunch the next day or dinner. Less time cooking. Plan out a meal, go buy what you need. Salt, garlic powder what ever get a enough to last a long time. It doesn't go bad. The rest you just learn as you go along. We have had a few yard sales because we bought crap we thought was great. Good luck and don't do all the cooking yourself. We are going on 8 years.

Answer 6

When I was a single parent with 3 young kids, college and or 2 jobs as well, I was toooo tired all the time or sometimes the kids got picky. I had more energy on the weekends and a bit more time. I cooked 2 or three "Big" meals every other weekend and froze them in plastic containers. I would alternate them in the week ahead and unthaw them accordingly. Fill in with a finger food dinner, of fruits, breads, cheeses and fresh vegie & dips meal (no cooking that night!!) Egg salad or tuna sandwiches are a good fill in too.

Answer 7

One of the most important things you can do regarding stocking your shelves is to make a list and stick with it when you go to the grocery store, and take only enough cash to cover it and the taxes. No credit, debit card, checkbook. Cash only. This prevents impulse spending. I buy a Sunday paper and go thru the adds and see whats on sale, and plan my menu for 2 weeks according to it. If Ground chuck is on sale, I buy enough for spaghetti sauce and chili, and maybe for stuffed bell peppers and tacos, maybe meatloaf. I also buy chicken for baked chicken with veggies, maybe chicken alfredo one night, and chicken salad.Give yourself a break and have a soup and sandwich night once in awhile. If you want fish, you may want to pick that up frozen, or buy it fresh the day you'll cook it. Just depends on what you like, and where you live. Produce is cheap at the farmers market, in our area. We live in midwest, so our fresh fish is different from coastal areas. I often get up early on weekend and cook for the rest of the week. I can brown and drain my chuck, rinse and divide into sandwich size freezer bags & freeze it, then just take a bag and put it in the fridge to thaw whan I leave for work. When I get home I simply add it to tomato sauce, add spices, and simmer. I also wash all my fresh produce as soon as I get home. I also chop and dice onions, bell peppers, celery, and keep them in the fridge. Leave tomatos out and whole.Sometimes, when my husband grills outside, I toss a bunch of extra meat on the grill - enough for four or five meals. Burgers, chops, chicken, brauts. Then I freeze them, and take out what we'll eat that night in the morning and put it in the fridge to thaw. Most recipes are for 4 people. I use the leftovers for our lunches the next day, thus saving even more money,or you can freeze them for days you don't want to cook at all. Many can become an entirely different meal. Leftover taco meat becomes taco soup, chili becomes coneys while you watch the big game. You can buy those Glad containers for next to nothing, and they are great, but need to hand wash or use top shelf low heat in dishwasher or you'll warp the lids. I take anything left in my budget, and put it in a rainy day fund and restrain myself from touching it. That way, if an emergency comes up (i.e. car trouble, illness that costs you more work than you have sick days, etc), or can be used for Christmas or vacations. Always have a savings that you contribute to every payday - even if it's just $20.00 - it will add up and save your butt someday. A good cookbook and some spices will help you a lot. Cooking is not only cheaper than instant and carryout - it's healthier, tastier, and can become a great hobby you'll learn to enjoy as you get more compliments. Also - take a good multivitamin - you need the stamina of 6 mules at this point in your life. Keep you electric bill and gas and water as low as you can, even if it means 2 sweaters this winter. Most utility companies will let you pay a monthly average on your bill after the first year, so you'll know exactly how much you'll be spending each month. Set your thermostat at 68 in the winter, and 80 in the summer. Use ceiling fans, and reverse them to blow the heat down in the winter. Good luck, and when things get tough, step back, breath deep, close your eyes, and ask yourself "Will this matter 1 year from now?" If not, it is not worth worrying over. Keep a sense of humor, and good luck!

Answer 8

Relax... all good things come in time. I've been married for 15 years and there is still stuff I'm acquiring to make my home the way I want it! I would recommend you and your hubby make a list of what's important to both of you and them number them from most to least important. Set aside so much from each paycheck (what ever you can afford) to starting purchasing your 'stuff'. Before you know it you'll be on your way to having your house stocked the way you desire. You can also choose to stock room by room. Good Luck!!!