this made my day

**hmcart** · 01-01-2012, 04:10 PM

So for the new year one of our resolutions was to go a full month without eating out. Now I know that some of you all think that isnt a big deal but it is here. Well I have been looking forward to a womens retreat this month with my church girls. The good news is that all of the food is prepared by us and we dont eat out. The down fall is that its a 3 hour drive and we usually stop and eat. I found my carpooling buddy and explained to her that I was going to bring snacks for the road instead of eating out and she LOVED the idea! Apparently she is in the same boat. I love that I have a friend right here close by that I can talk to and share frugal ideas with! I do love yall as well!

**josantoro** · 01-01-2012, 05:47 PM

We always do this on trips, even 3 day trips!! So glad your friend is happy to go along with you on this.

**Shewillbemine** · 01-01-2012, 08:50 PM

Not only is this better for your wallet, it's also better for your health. Good job!

**AmyBoz** · 01-01-2012, 09:14 PM

Awesome! I don't have a lot of friends with the same frugal values as I have, so I know it's a struggle. So glad you have someone to share with!

**Spirit Deer** · 01-01-2012, 09:35 PM

We almost always take a lunch on day trips, even stuff like shopping trips. We actually prefer that.

One trip, we drove down to a parking lot by the bay in Superior, Wisconsin. The view was amazing and we enjoyed it while we ate lunch from our cooler. But the most fun was feeding the gulls. The wind was just right that they were able to hover over me in a big cloud. (Luckily, I wasn't bombed!) I threw bread up in the air for them to catch. We'll remember that day for a long, long time. No restaurant meal could compare!

**MTS04** · 01-01-2012, 11:29 PM

What a great idea and goal for the new year. Good for you for being open and honest with your carpool buddy. Looks like you have a new friend with goals in common. :-)

**MTS04** · 01-01-2012, 11:31 PM

Originally Posted by Spirit Deer

We almost always take a lunch on day trips, even stuff like shopping trips. We actually prefer that.

One trip, we drove down to a parking lot by the bay in Superior, Wisconsin. The view was amazing and we enjoyed it while we ate lunch from our cooler. But the most fun was feeding the gulls. The wind was just right that they were able to hover over me in a big cloud. (Luckily, I wasn't bombed!) I threw bread up in the air for them to catch. We'll remember that day for a long, long time. No restaurant meal could compare!

Spirit Deer, I love Superior! What a beautiful town. DH and I happen to be there when they were having a summer festival of sorts, had my first ever Lemon Stick. best $1 I ever spent for a treat. Thanks for bringing up a good memory.

**Spirit Deer** · 01-01-2012, 11:42 PM

Superior cracks us up, with all the Packer stuff in people's yards.

At the least we always bring along a small cooler with water and pop. No matter where we're going, at some point we're going to want something to drink so might as well bring it from home. On long trips, we use a system I put together with eleven stainless steel water bottles and a carry case that holds nine of them. The other two are in the cab of the truck so they're handy. The bottles are color-coded so we know whose is whose. We never buy bottled water.

We keep stuff in the freezer just for travel too. Cheese sticks, snack crackers, granola bars, yogurt cups, candy, all bought on close-outs so they're cheap. It's in the freezer because we usually don't eat that kind of stuff at home. Usually there's some lunch meat in the freezer, too, or I mix up tuna salad or something. I keep a small plastic container in the fridge with small packets of mustard, mayo, and catsup we've bought at the grocery store (not stolen from restaurants) so that's handy to toss into the cooler. If it's summer I usually have a small box in the fridge full of little containers of pickles, olives, etc. Those are handy to grab for a spur of the moment road trip, too. Also for camping.

I set up a picnic bag years ago for this kind of thing. It contains disposables like paper cups, plates, napkins, and plastic utensils. Again, we don't use this stuff at home but it's perfect for on the road. The bag has a plastic box with a paring knife, small can opener, plastic shopping bags for trash, a full-sized trash bag, and other things we might need, including a half roll of toilet paper, which has come in handy more than once when we stop at wayside rests where the paper has been stolen or never supplied in the first place. The bag is kept fully stocked in our pantry, ready to pull out and go. We also keep wet wipes in the vehicles so we can clean our hands before and after eating, and a small pair of scissors to open plastic food bags.

After years of taking our meals on the road, I pretty much have it down to a science. It's saved us tons of money over eating in restaurants, plus it's quicker.