Loaves but no Fishes

One of the biggest expenses for me each weekend is feeding the hungry little blighters.

Maybe if I'd had four girls it would be simpler because they'd all be worried about stuffing their faces (not something I would have encouraged, just tapping into a sterotype!), instead I have four growing boys with the appetites of a Snorlax.  Each.

Thankfully, when we're out and about there's usually some deal around that makes it slightly less expensive to fill those tummies of theirs.

We used to make good use of Greggs' meal deals, but they seem to have stopped those for now.  More recently we've been relying on Sainsbury's meal deals and the new Subway lunch offer.  My eldest especially loves the meatball sub.  Oh and we've recently discovered Superdrug do a decent priced meal deal too!

The 7 year-old is the trickiest to feed as he is very fussy and if it isn't exactly as he wants it then he will simply refuse it and go hungry (not that I let him.  I usually have to locate something he will eat eventually).  It might have something to do with his cerebral palsy as he may be slightly autistic so its not something he can necessarily help.

I've also rediscovered happy meals.

I'd discounted them for a long time because the older two had moved onto adult sized meals and so that kind of blew my cost-per-head for lunchtimes.  However, as the older two are catered for elsewhere it occured to me that MuckDonalds was back on the menu.  Why would I willingly purchase it for them?  Because it's a guaranteed feed for the 7 year old. 

Yup, I admit that it was a concession to a hassle free lunch, but I know that his narrow palate positively drools for happy meals!  Also if I'm getting it for him then I know there's no way that my 5yo would accept being left out.

I'd forgotten how cheap they were too (which doesn't bode well for their quality), but hey, I gotta work with what I got.

Halloween and Christmas is also a good time to get deals on sweets too.  Especially at the moment where shops are flogging their halloween stock at ridiculous prices.  Then tins of chocolates are great value too as you're meant to stock up on them for Christmas, but it would be a miracle of biblical proportions if they lasted that long with these kids (and the odd few snuck away by me)!

I kind of feel like if they can sell them at that price and still make a profit why would I EVER buy them at the normal price knowing that half of it is just going straight into their pocket.  Then I again I rarely buy anything anymore that isn't part of an offer of some kind.  Such is my life atm!

I'm sure I could try hand making lunch for the kids and bringing it out with us as that would seem to be a more cost-effective way to do things, but their tastes vary so much that it would cost me as much to buy the ingredients for each of them and then find myself left with food left over that I would need to use in my lunches to avoid waste and I'm not sure I could stand having jam sandwiches for my lunch or whatever!