Tag Archives: eating out

Never-Ending Advice

Remember when your kids were babies and everyone around you felt the need to give you parenting advice—even when you didn’t ask for it? Well, the unsolicited guidance doesn’t stop as your children get older. Case in point:  The other day my daughter and I were getting a bite to eat at a local family restaurant.  We frequent the eatery on a monthly basis because she loves the rotisserie chicken.  And by love I mean she’s so obsessed she will not order any other entrée.  Given her near religious devotion to the seasoned bird, I didn’t even bother to ask … Continue reading →

Eating Out: More Trick Than Treat

Eating out is a big treat for most families.  Parents love the break from cooking and doing the dishes, while kids enjoy eating chicken nuggets in a different setting.  Unfortunately, splurging on a restaurant meal may come back to bite you. According to a new study by the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI), parents are doing their children a disservice by treating them to dinner out.  Researchers say menu options offered to children by most U.S. restaurant chains have way too many calories, in addition to dangerously high amounts of salt and fat.  In fact, the group … Continue reading →

McDonalds New Menu Items (Wendy’s and Burger King, Too)

McDonalds New Menu Items McDonald’s has some new menu items, and so do its competitors. There is a big push this month to get people coming into the restaurant with more variety and better pricing. In this economy, even fast food restaurants are concerned. Many families are choosing not to eat out as often, and that includes eating at McDonald’s and other fast food restaurants. In 2013, I am making an effort to make sure that our family stays purposeful when it comes to eating out. I’d like to eliminate those too tired to cook moments, as well as the … Continue reading →

Grandma’s Coming

My mom arrives in Dallas from L.A. today. I am beyond excited. I love living in Texas and the life my husband and I have created. Our toddler daughter is ours because we’re in Texas. Nevertheless, I miss living in Southern California with my large family. I wish that Jessie could spend as much time with her cousins and grandparents as my nieces and nephews do. Jessie knows that Grandma is coming. She’s been walking around the house saying, “Grandma,” for days. What an enjoyable time we will have too. According to the text alert, her plane lands in two-and-a-half … Continue reading →

Make It Easy to Not Eat Out

In my household we struggle with not eating out. I grew up on many restaurant and take out meals, and eating out is often as much about entertainment as it is about feeding yourself. But eating out is a big expense in our budget. With a family of five, it usually costs us around $40-45, just for a diner, family style meal or even pizza if we order it at the restaurant. Even a fast food drive thru will cost us $20-25. Here are some more strategies I employ to keep the temptation of eating out at bay. Consider eating … Continue reading →

How to Deal with an Allergy in Marriage- Part 2

So, you’ve got an allergy or your pattern has. Allergies can be a problem when you eat out. We often come up against the problem when Mick and I go out. We often have to end up taking food for me to functions because it is not catered for. Recently at a party Mick stood guard over our gluten free sausages so they did not get mixed up with the others on the barbecue. And on Monday when we went out for Australia Day, lunch was provided for our choir but we learned the hard way the year before that … Continue reading →

Yes or No? Answer These Frugal Questions

When it comes to frugal living, there is sometimes a fine line between being smart about saving and being a miser. Here are some practices that many frugal people use. Are they common sense or going to far. See what your responses might be, yes or no, to each of these questions. You go out to dinner and want to keep your bill as low as possible. Would you do any of the following: You order a free water with lemon. You then squeeze the lemon and add some sugar or sweetener to make your own lemonade. You order a … Continue reading →

When You Are Tempted to Eat Out 2

Would you like to save between $1,400 and $2500 a year? Eliminate eating out just once a week. I feel as though as I am always tempted to eat out. I’m been sharing some ways to overcome that temptation in my previous post: When You Are Tempted to Eat Out. Now, here are some more ideas. Another method for putting a quick damper on eating out is to calculate how many hours you have to work to earn that meal. If you make $10 an hour, that means that a typical family meal might cost you anywhere from 3 to … Continue reading →

When You Are Tempted to Eat Out…

One of the things I struggle with in my journey with frugal living is just how easy it is to go out to eat. Going out to eat can be fun, get us out of the house and prevent me from having to cook. Most of the time, we get excited to go out to eat, but by the time we get home, we are disappointed in the experience and the cost, and vow to stay home the next time. With very little exception, preparing meals from scratch at home will always be more frugal when you compare similar meals. … Continue reading →

Eat Out for Free

Eating out can be very expensive, which is why I always talk about making meals at home to save money. There are some ways that you can eat out and enjoy your meal for free! Not too many people know about most of these secrets, but I’ll share them with you today. Try them out and post about your experiences. Trial Runs A great way to eat a great meal out for free is to keep your eyes open for new restaurants that are getting ready to open. Ask the manager of the restaurant when the kitchen will be doing … Continue reading →