Sunshine has to mean BBQ time

The Great British weather has taken a turn for the good, making a nice change for all of us, especially if you aren't planning on going abroad this year.

When the sun is shining brightly, it always gets me in the mood for a good old barbeque, so when moneysupermarket.com set the "charcoal challenge", I was eager to get involved. We were given £50 to spend on creating the best barbeque on a budget and anyone who knows me will know that I am always on the look out for a bargain.

First off we actually needed to buy a disposable barbeque because we don't actually own one of our own due the garden not being a massive size. I managed to get a double sized one from Morrisons for a tiny £5.00, leaving me £45.00 for all the food and drink because you know what goes well with a barbeque, you guessed it, alcohol!!!

I managed to buy a lot of food with my money :

* 16 burgers
* 20 sausages
* 8 jacket potatoes
* 5 turkey steaks
* 5 lamb kebabs
* rolls for burgers and sausages
* ketchup
* salad
* coleslaw and potato salad

all of this cost less than £20.00 and in the end managed to feed 9 people and still with food left over!!

Then on to the drink, not quite as important as the food but it definitely plays a vital role I think :)

In the fridge we had :

* wine
* beer
* cider
* alcopops
* fizzy drink
* juice

Adults and children well catered for in my opinion, oh and ice was already in the freezer so no extra cost there!!
This still left me with arond £4 out of my budget to spend, what else would you need for a BBQ in hot weather??

What better to keep cool and keep the kids entertained whilst you are cooking than toys for the garden.

I love poundland for a tiny £3 I managed to pick up

* 3 fun shaped bubble blowers
* 3 water guns
* a small paddling pool

I think this prooves that when given a budget to stick to, it can stretch very far, I will definitely be setting myself more budgets in the future.

Now after all the buying, it was time to finally sit down and enjoy what we had bought.

Bring on the fun in the sun.

So of course Daddy Hazelden was in charge of cooking the food

Gracie decided whilst waiting for her food that she would chill out in the paddling pool.

And was just as quick to sit at the table as soon as the first burger was ready.

Even Layla enjoyed herself with her partner in crime, Freya keeping her company.

I really loved this challenge because it made a day spent with friends and family possible and really opened my eyes as to just how much you can get with your money if you really try. Here's to many more BBQ's this Summer!!

How many BBQ's have you all had this year so far, did you manage to do it on a budget?? 

xxxx

Disclaimer : I was sent £50 by moneysupermarket to take part in this challenge, however all thoughts and opinions are my own.