What other stores are near enough? I love TJs but I think there are less costly options for purchasing groceries. Look around.
Eggs are expensive because of the big outbreak of bird flue in Iowa and Wisconsin earlier this year. The price has doubled at my local grocery store.
I really think you could find relatives and friends who have pots/pans/silverware/dishes they could donate to you so you don’t have to buy. I currently have a full set of fiesta ware in my cellar all boxed up. And I certainly have enough mix matched silverware pieces I could donate to someone making a new start in an apt. Ask your parents, friends, friends parents, and on facebook if anyone has stuff they can give you. Of course, this only works if you do not have to transport this stuff by plane.
Agreed…ask around. We helped outfit several friend’s kids apartments in addition to our own kids. We had old but good stuff of our own, plus grandma’s whole house when she died. Plenty to go around!
We got kitchen things for DD at a thrift store over a two year time period. Dishes are all Crate and Barrel, or Williams Sonoma. Small appliances include Cuisenart, and Hamilton Beach. She has All Clad frying pans. Some of the stuff was brand new, with tags. Emeril SS saucepans and Dutch oven. All reasonably priced. Her kitchen is really nicely outfitted!
I agree w/ Mamom. Purchase one meal a day on campus. You can grab lunch, for instance there, even if you’re cooking dinner at home. That said, yds’s school had the top rated college food in the country so he was more than willing to keep eating it. LOL.
great lakes mom- D did this a year ago at Uchi- each cooked one night.
I make a vegetable frittatta every Sunday morning using @ dozen eggs. I start with browning/sauteing an onion. I add cut up peppers, tomatoes, spinach. (You can add anything at all to this, including sausage or bacon or other veggies) The egg mixture with cheese added (usually shredded) and spices is added in after all the vegetables. It then finishes in a 350 degree oven for another 15-20 minutes. It’s cooked in a large round skillet that is good for top of stove and inside an oven. When it comes out of the oven, I let it sit for 5 minutes and then cut in 8 triangles. I eat it during the week for breakfast with a piece of toast or english muffin. If it’s for lunch, I’ll add something else like a salad or soup or whatever. Inexpensive!
^ a variation of this would be to put mixture into a greased muffin tin (or use paper liners). The muffins are easy to grab and go…and heat up quite well. I use peppers, spinach, mushrooms, etc., or the basic eggs, ham or bacon bits and cheese.
^^gosmom: Love it! Great idea.