How do you stick to a budget when getting eaten out of house and home?

[onecuteweelad]

DH is a huge eater and I have to say a thoughtless one, he has no qualms about eating the last of the food even if he knows that some of it is for ds's lunch. We are trying to conserve money at the moment as things are tight but I have to keep replacing food that he has eaten.
Last nite I made chops, baked potatoes, cabbage and carrot. He had two huge chops, 3 spuds, and a decent serve of the rest. He then ate half of an entire watermelon as desert.
Later I caught him making sandwiches of which he had about 3 with cheese and toms. Then he ate 2 bananas (for ds) and half a papaya. I have tried talking to him he says he will try and then doesnt. I have tried hiding food, but he finds it.

HELP.

is he overweight? or just hungry? it doesn't sound like he's eating unhealthily.

can you not just explain to him that you have a meal plan for your wee lad and he needs to leave that food alone?

Men dont learn things until they see it in practical terms. Remove his lunchbox from the fridge one morning or something similar so he can see how bloody inconvienient and annoying it is.
Cannot stand the way mums would give thier kids thier choocy bar yet dads would eat the kids sarnies, no thought given

Tricky one. I think that you just have to limit what is available. If you only cook one chop then he'll eat that. Better for him to have 4 or 5 potatoes instead cost-wise to fill up on. If he is a constant kitchen-raider then you may end up not doing a big shop but having to buy each day (though this does mean that if you shop late you can get some discounted stuff).

If you prepare ds's stuff in advance and container it up marked for your son then he may be less likely to take it.

Watermelon and papaya don't sound cheap though?

Lots and lots of fillers.

Pile his plate sky high with pasta, rice, bread and butter, potatoes. He wants to eat piles of cheese? Fine. Buy very cheap cheese, I mean Tesco Value cheese. The bananas aren't dear (unless organic) but the papaya and melon will be.

Tot up what he eats in a day, and the cost of it. Show this to him, explain that as a family, you can't afford to be spending so much on food, and that if he doesn't stop being selfish about how much 'nice' stuff he eats, you are going to stop buying it.

He is probably a little overweight, he is 6'5 and solid. I think it just takes a lot of fuel to tank him up, have tried to explain about meal plan and ds's food, he always says "Ive just eaten such and such but I'll grab more tomorrow" which we 1. cant afford and 2. he forgets.

Watermelon and papaya are on sale here at the moment. I like the idea of putting ds's aside and actually labeling it so that he has more of a feeling of "stealing food from his son". May try the buy a little at a time idea also thank you.

Colditz, thanks some good tips there that I will try.

I've got a selfish eater in the house too. Luckily he is 5'9 and 9 stone, but everything he eats by choice is SO expensive. If he cooks, he will fill half the plate with meat, and the other half with everything else. He will put 4 chicken breasts in a curry for 2 adults and a toddler!

I have started buying very small packets of things, or re portioning when I get home. As for snacky things, I buy those daily. Dp can clear 18 packets of crisps in 3 days! And then not eat the cottage pie I cooked. It is very annoying and childish, you have my sympathy.

If he's 6'5, he probably needs a lot of food.

Maybe get him to write the shopping list and go and buy it? You can't stop him eating especially as it seems like healthy stuff. Maybe more carbs wil fill him up.

Yes, that's a big lad - same height as my 'wee' brother and I believe you when you say he eats that much as my bro could eat my parents out of house and home too. Thankfully for them, he's now happily married with his own dd...........
Anyway, my suggestion would also be to make up your ds's lunch the day before and make sure it's in his lunchbox and in the fridge (or clearly labelled if the lunchbox won't fit).
As for filling up your dh, stock up on cheap healthy food and a large supply of bread and butter/cheese (yes, the value stuff) and let him get on with it. If he's anything like my bro, he'll have hollow legs and impossible to fill!