Oh, Jeremy

Having breakfast with Jeremy this week, we discussed my recent efforts in household budget management. Apparently Jeremy was not so impressed with my ability to stay on budget and seemed to side more with some of those dreadful, angry people who commented so bitterly on my last post. We disagreed about how well I did, and whether or not I should take over more of our household responsibilities. Since it was our last weekend in Portugal, I decided to prove him wrong.

I was determined to show him that I could be entrusted with budgets of any kind, and found a perfect opportunity to show my stuff when we recently ran out of dog food. (I know, right? It just never ends…)

I decided I was going to set a budget and go buy the ingredients to make our Airedales a meal to show Jeremy and all those internet “haters” that I am a woman who knows what she is talking about when it comes to budgeting. So take notes everybody: this is going to be a great lesson in frugality!

Copying the Ingredients

I knew I would not have to spend a fortune to be able to give Bella and Alfie something healthy and appropriate. Dogs are the best kinds of people – but they’ll try to eat anything! A quick look at the ingredients on the labels from the food we get them from Lily’s Kitchen showed me that dogs really eat the same foods that we do, it’s just all ground up and made into kibble. Who knew?

I knew I certainly wasn’t going to make kibble (that would be a disaster), but I figured I could have Lorna cook the ingredients and make something equally as healthy for them. They can’t read, so how would they know what kinds of food I am feeding them unless it tasted bad? It seemed easy: set a budget of less than 150 euros, and make sure both dogs have a satisfying and appropriate supper.

So I made a quick list and grabbed Alexandra (my mostly willing partner in crime, on these budget-conscious sprees!) to pop off to the shops. Alexandra does not quite understand too well why we have to be so budget conscious as we shop, but she is often great at rooting out bargains on the shelf and loves to help me pay for our shopping items when we are done. She’ll be quite a catch one day!

A Picture Says a Thousand Words

I will spare you the details of the voyage to the store, but let’s just say I am glad that it does not have to happen more often. I am a woman who truly loves shopping, but you do run into all kinds out there – it is no wonder things are in such a state. I bet some of the people who comment on the internet were there!

But we found all our ingredients, and Alexandra had the great idea to take pictures as Lorna prepared our recipe. So without further ado, we will let the pictures do the talking here – and you will see how this all ended up happily for everyone – especially for Bella and Alfie!

The Ingredients

The Process

Budget Met: On to the Next!

And there you have it – a simple, no-nonsense way to handle the naysayers around you. Say it with dog food! I don’t think Jeremy will be so quick to judge my abilities at setting and then sticking to a household budget any more, no matter how small a budget he allows. I am sure my success here will only get me more opportunities – which is great for our household budgets, and also for my blogging.

I would be eager to hear from other dog owners on how they feed their own little furry friends, in times when the kibble runs dry. I hope they don’t have a Jeremy of their own, leering down his nose across the breakfast table at them – but if so, this post is a sure way off the hotseat!

You can follow Laura on Twitter – @SaveWithLaura.