recreatingreality.com

I find this to be a shocking statistic, but the average family spends between $8,000 and $10,000 eating out each year.  (Most of the cost probably ends up on a credit card.  That’s my speculation.)

It has been estimated that a family could save half by cooking at home.  HALF!  If you need motivation to cook in your own kitchen, think of having between $4,000 and $5,000 to put in your emergency back-up savings account or to pay on your credit card balance.

Admittedly, I was one who spent too much money eating out for years.  In fact, I was so frustrated with cooking at home that I unplugged the stove and told my husband it was broken.  That ruse worked for almost five years.  And, yes, it took me a full five years to decide that I just could not get in the car one more evening, in the rain or snow, and search out a place to eat.

What started as a matter of so-called convenience became as much a burden as cooking dinner over time.  In fact, because of the expense it became a financial burden although I did not realize it at the time.  Please understand that no one is suggesting that all families stop enjoying a meal together in a restaurant once in a while. 

However, if you are serious about setting up and following through with a family budget, one of the best places to start is cooking at home.  There are real benefits other than saving money.  One is quite simple and most relevant, family time.  Before you start mouthing off about the family having so many different activities that sitting down at the table together is out of the question, I am going to tell you to stifle it.  I’m not going to buy into it.  It isn’t a viable excuse.  One of my favorite little sayings is “Excuses only satisfy those who make them.”  Something to think about.

Aside from the financial benefits for the family there are real family benefits.  When we speak of recreating our realities, it goes beyond dollars and involves sense as well.  Families can spend an hour a day together without too much stress.  In fact, once you get to know one another you may find that you like each other.  If you have children, even teenagers, family dinners should be a nightly practice.  I am aware that it won’t happen every night.  But, it is a worthy goal.  And, if you are a parent, you can control it. 

Think of the family dinner as a time to teach your children manners and etiquette.  Think of the family dinner as the time when everyone can offer a bit of himself or herself to the overal family.  Learn about what your children are doing in school.  Learn about their friends.  And, don’t even start to think to yourself that you know what your kids are doing or who their friends are.  When you pass a child in the hallway or chat a few minutes on the way to soccer practice, you don’t learn what parents need to learn about their kids.  And, kids don’t learn what is expected of them.

Additionally, eating at home can be an asset in healthier eating habits.  You can have the kids take part in the food preparation.  Or, as with some families, create a mom’s night to cook, a dad’s night to cook and if the children are old enough, allow them to access the kitchen to make their favorite meals (perhaps with a little oversight).  But, let the kids learn how to cook.  One day they may need to know how.

I will not go through my entire list of the benefits of families eating together in the evenings.  But, I will go back to the principal intent of this statement.  You can save on average between $4,000 and $5,000 dollars a year by eating at home.  Think about what that amount of money would do for you if you had saved that much last year.  Think of paying an extra $300 or $400 each month on your credit card debt or that much extra on your mortgage.

That’s just a thought for the day.  Plug the numbers into your family budget and see what eating at home can do for you.