Yes...that's why I get so confused. I am trying to find out what is realistic and what we should shoot for - 3 adults + 1 baby.
I just about had a heart attack when I checked the grocery bill for this past month and it amounted to almost 800$ for the household (
) - with my mom cooking in a totally inefficient way and me having cafeteria eats at work quite often.
However, I did not want to criticize her way of cooking too much because after all we did get free childcare while she was here (for 10 months) so it still made sense.
She is from Eastern Europe (leaving in 2 days) and boy...at least in the country (or city?) I am from ...a lot of people have NO CLUE how to cook in a more efficient, healthy manner (my mom included). Cooking big chunks of meat on its own and placing it next to some vegetable, with bread - that's it. They do use side salads with the meal - which is the only good thing.
It's basically tons of meat, meat and then some more meat. It is a scar left over from the communist times when meats were hard to get and there is still this perception over there that if you can afford lots of meat, you live well and that that's the only way to feel full, content and have a great meal
And then they complain that food in that country is horrifically expensive. When I tried to explain to them that most Americans do not cook so much meat at once and do not buy so much food overall - she just dismisses this sasying that food in the US is very cheap and that Americans have tons of money anyway.
OMG!! And there's no way to show her that Americans budget much, much less money per person for food than they do over there, on much, much smaller incomes. I wish I could show her the dozens of families posting on this forum who say that they soend 70-80$ a week for a family of four. Jesus!!!
How is it possible to eat so much meat, I will never comprehend.
That being sad, what should I shoot for now that I will no longer have my mom in charge of the kicthen? We will be 3 adults (my sister included) and 1 baby.
Thank you so much again!