I was raised by a mom who hated to cook, most meals were sandwiches and TV dinners (remember the foil trays with the rubber chicken lol??).  I’ve always had an interest in cooking, I started saving recipes in a shoe box as a child. So when I got married, I grabbed my shoe box of recipes, bought the orange binder Betty Crocker and off I went.

Unfortunately, I wasn’t a frugal or organized cook. I would just go up and down the aisles at the grocery store and throw things in the cart. On the nights I was tired, there was always fast food! As life changed, mostly becoming a single parent with almost no child support, I realized things would have to change. I discovered The Tightwad Gazette and with the internet, was able to find like minded people.

I slowly built up a pantry with loss leader basics, bought a freezer and filled it with loss leader meats, fruits and veggies. I then discovered OAMC (once a month cooking) and was able to cut back on fast food. With a  stocked pantry, I was able to make so many meals  or the beginnings of meals.  As time went on and I got older, I realized the health benefits of cooking all my meals, I could control the fat, salt and nutrirional content, the portion size and this made fast food even less appealing.

It has taken me many years for this way of thinking to come naturally. The other day, I had a BOGOF coupon for Mcdonalds. After a day of running around I decided to use it for dinner. Then as I was driving there, I realized for the same amount of money I could buy enough loss leaders to make quite a few meals. I threw the coupon out and came home and ate.

 

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