All You Challenge-Week 3

During this All You Challenge, some people have been living off their stockpile or staying home to try to keep their weekly OOP as low as possible. We've been living life as normal, to show that even when you are on a budget, you can "splurge" and eat out without breaking the bank.

The first week we were on vacation, so we had to eat out, but we only spent $63.74 for a family of 6 by using up what we already had, eating simply at restaurants, and shopping wisely.

Week 2 we celebrated a birthday, and I didn't want to skip our normal routine of eating at Red Robin to celebrate just because *I* wanted to do the challenge. We even splurged a couple other times that week. But again, with shopping wisely, using coupons at restaurants, etc, we only spent $89.52 for week 2, well within our $150 budget.

This week my hubby and I had a date night planned and we went to Outback--his request--and again, *I* am the one who wanted to do the challenge, so I wanted to be able to show that you don't have to deprive yourself or your family in order to live within a budget. We used coupons, ordered water to drink and had dessert at home instead of at the restaurant, which are things we usually do anyway, so this special night out didn't break the bank (and we even had leftovers for lunch the next day!). And again, because I shop sales and coupons, we were still within our budget at the end of the week. If you'd like to see our week's menu plans, click here.

Outback: $16.44 including tip (Ordered Bloomin' Onion, two 6 oz. sirloins which came with salad and a side, and a side of 'shrooms)
(used free bloomin' onion coupon for doing a survey and $10 off 2 entrees coupon)
Groceries: $40.87

TOTAL All You Week 3 Spending: $57.31