If the 5 of us went to Menchie's (self-serve frozen yogurt), we would spend about $35. Yikes! That's a whole lotta cash for a bowl of frozen yogurt, each.
Every month, we set aside a small amount (I mean small, about $5-10 depending on what's leftover after the budget is made out), for doing fun things with the family. We don't always use this money, so it builds for a couple of months. But we try to use this money wisely.
We could save for several months, and go to the movies. Or, we could spend $1 and rent a recent release from Redbox. Or, what we most often do, we can hang on to the money and borrow dvds from the library.
We could save for many months, and go out for dinner. Or, we could save for one or two months and get fast food for 1 night. Or, we could buy some special foods to have at home or take to the beach, for a nice dinner or special treat, with far less expense.
In June and July, we made plans to use some of this "family-fun" money to enjoy time together, with special treats.
Last Saturday, my daughters came with me on an errand in the AM, and we were talking about how it would be the perfect day to go to Menchie's as a family. It had been hot for a few days, and Saturday's forecasted high was to be the hottest day of the week. So, a bowl of frozen yogurt or ice cream sounded especially appealing.
We talked about our various options. We could all go to McDonalds after dinner for their sundaes, at a cost of about $6, total. Okay, but as it's ice cream made with milk, it wouldn't be the best for me. Then we talked about Menchie's. A better option for me, as I can get non-dairy fro-yo there. And everyone gets to customize their own dessert. But at a price of about $6 or $7 each, for a whopping $35 for 5 of us. That's when the thought of going to Fred Meyer and picking out ice cream (and sorbet for me), plus toppings was thrown about.
The more we discussed this, the better a home sundae bar sounded. We talked about a price limit on how much we should spend, out of our "family-fun" savings. $15 sounded about right, for a special treat for 5 people.
So, after a lot of walking about the store, checking out our options, we chose some slivered almonds, from the bulk bins, a few gummy worms and chocolate caramel peanut clusters from the Brach's bulk bins, a snack-size package of Pepperidge Farms Mini-Chessmen shortbread cookies, a bag of dark chocolate-covered pretzels, a bottle of dark chocolate Magic Shell (chocolate sauce that hardens on the ice cream, something my kids had once at a cousin's house but never since), and a 1-gallon pail of Neapolitan ice cream, (plus that pint of raspberry sorbet for me). At home, I had strawberries, raspberries and blueberries in the garden to add to our sundae bar. In total, we spent $11.39. And, we had enough of all of the supplies to have sundaes both Saturday and Sunday after dinner. Plus, there's half a pail of ice cream and almost half a pint of sorbet remaining for future family-fun nights. None of this had to come out of the regular grocery budget.
Later this month, our family will be doing our annual fish and chips, beach-front dinner. We do this once per summer, and have a fun fish dinner together, at the beach. Waterfront dining at it's best!
In previous years, we bought our fish and chips from the Ivar's seafood bar at the beach (the beach which now charges for parking). We had been talking about going to a different Ivar's and bringing our fish and chips to one of the free-parking beaches in the area.
As good fortune would have it, frozen cod fillets are on sale at Cash & Carry this week, for about $18 for a 5-lb box of 2-oz fillets (a good size for fried fish strips). In previous years, we have spent about $30 on fish and chips for the whole family at Ivar's. A 5-lb box of cod fillets is enough fish for the 5 of us, for 4 nights of fish and chips, at a cost of $4.50 for a family dinner of the fish. Add in the batter and oil for frying and some potatoes for chips, and we're up to about $6 for our annual fish and chips at the beach dinner. I'll make the fish and chips at home just before we leave, then take the dinner to the nearest beach (5 minutes away).
I know that we could have fun without any expense. But sometimes, a little expense is worth it. And this is a way that fits within our budget -- and that makes me happy! (And the treats made my family very happy!!)
