Our Menu for this coming week is:Homemade Tacos
Green Spaghetti
Salmon Patties
Goulash
Beefy Cabbage Rolls
French Toast
All are served with sides. Breakfasts consist of fruit, cereal, toast, eggs, or oatmeal. Lunches are leftovers, sandwiches, cheese and crackers, or other odds and ends. For snacks we always have fruit and vegetables on hand, popcorn, or crackers.
I won't pretend to be an organic or health nut. Some weeks we eat really healthy and others we let things slide. But I do like to think that we eat healthier than the mainstream public, as we rarely eat out and I try to cook as much from scratch as possible. We do have our little vices though. As you can see from the photos, there are processed foods in it...corn dogs, sliced "processed" cheese, etc. Others things, like the processed crackers, are a step-up from the chips that we used to eat. I won't hide that we do eat processed foods, but again, am hoping that it is still less than the mainstream public.
I've stopped buying paper plates and this will be the second week that I have passed by them at the store. I do still buy paper towels, as you can see in the photos, but have been trying to use more rags instead of automatically grabbing for the paper towels.
I was going to lay out everything nicely but was then in a rush so piled it on the table. Half of what I bought is covered up underneath other things. My shopping list consisted of:Oatnut bread $1.99
Mom's Naturals Honey Nut Cheerios $2.29 (did you realize that these are all natural and one of the lowest priced cereals at the supermarket?)
Corn dogs $2.49
Ciabatta Bread $2 (minus 55 cent coupon)
Parmesan cheese $1.99
Butter $2.49
2 pkgs. 8oz. cheese 99 cents each
sliced processed cheese 99 cents
2 toothbrushes 69 cents each
4 pkgs. Pillsbury ready bake cookies on clearance for 79 cents each (these I will stick in the freezer and should last several months since we will only make about a package a month)
Chicken in a Biscuit crackers $2.99 (minus $1 coupon)
Cheese Nips $1.67
3 lb. bag of chicken breasts $5.99
2 pkgs. Scooby-Doo macaroni 88 cents each
Spaghetti $1.19
Bag of frosted flakes 77 cents
white vinegar 89 cents
apple cider vinegar $1.29
wheat squares 77 cents
frozen peas 89 cents
cottage cheese $1.49
paper towels $1.48
Brown rice $1.29
noodles $1.29
Bologna $1.19
fresh spinach $1.50
sour patch kids 67 cents (I let Jacob choose a treat)
2 pkgs. ground beef $2.85 and 3.01
1.39 lb. bananas 82 cents
2.31 lb. cabbage 90 cents
tomato sauce 65 cents
3 cucumbers $1
2 pkgs. corn tortillas 69 cents each
shredded lettuce 68 cents (was cheaper than buying a head of lettuce this week)
1.21 lb. tomatoes (2) $1.17
onion 62 cents
2 tootsie pops 25 cents
whole watermelon $2.88
gallon whole milk $3.19
Grand total was $65.99
That means that with the $24 I spent earlier in the week I went over my typical $75 grocery budget for the week. Part of that was the big bag of chicken which we will be eating from the whole month so hopefully one of the other shopping trips this month will come in well below $75. It usually evens out. Left for the month of June: $546.84
What would you have done differently in shopping for the week?
I guess I'm kinda a judge-y person when it comes to the shopping cart.
ReplyDeleteWhen I'm in the store I like to peek into others carts as I'm walking by, or waiting in the looooong lines at WinCo.
We definitely have our off times and get treats (especially from grocery outlet! They have Ben and Jerry's for $1.49!).
But...your purchases *do* look like the typical cart to me, anyway. It may seem more healthful to you being that you're in the midwest (that is where you live, right?). I don't mean that offensively, my IL's are in wisconsin, and in general, it's just not as health-conscious of a place as where I live (little hippie/college town in Oregon).
I think your budget could be stretched a LOT further if you started making more from scratch. Granted, I haven't been reading you for long - but I see you saying you cook mostly from scratch, yet you're purchasing a lot of pre-packed crap (sorry...I guess "crap" is kind of mean...but I would NOT let my kids eat things like frosted flakes on a regular basis. As a treat once or twice a year, maybe...but absolutely not even weekly.
Okay.
This is just my 2 cents. I hope it's not coming across as b*tchy...I don't mean it that way! It's just one gal's opinion ;)
Atheist Mama-
ReplyDeleteYes, we are right in the middle of the heartland. I agree, the west coast seems to be a lot healthier and even the college towns here in the midwest are a lot more health-conscious and have big farmer's markets and health food stores with bulk bins and everything you can imagine. Nothing like that here in this town, AT ALL.
Yes, the frosted flakes are a bit of a stretch but the kids eat cereal about once a week so that bag should last a month. The corn dogs...total crap. Yep, I know that and still buy them but the boys enjoy them as a lunch about once a week and some days that is all I can get Joe to eat. But you are totally right about that. I don't disagree with you that we do eat a lot of packaged foods. And it is something that I hope to continue to cut out. I grew up with it and it's taking time for me to learn to cook totally differently.
With that said, I am also a cart peeper, especially when waiting in a long line. And while I see several healthy carts (typically older ladies or younger single looking women) the majority that I see in my area have TONS more packaged foods than me. They are loaded up with cases of soda, Little Debbie Snacks, bags of Doritios, frozen pizzas and dinners, and more.
I'm learning though and don't mind feedback on my blog.
Even though it is only my husband and I, one thing I do differently than many people is buy in quantity. Right now I have several pounds of butter in the freezer, several bags of shredded cheese, about 10 pounds of ground beef, a roast, several packages of brats, about 12 packages of Oscar Mayer weniers, chicken breasts, fish, frozen dinners and pizza, chopped peppers in bags, strawberries in bags. I buy peppers and strawberries and onions when they are really cheap and divide them in freezer bags. I freeze bread, buns, and bagels.
ReplyDeleteI usually have about 10-12 packages of toilet paper, several rolls of paper towels, at least a dozen boxes of cereal, and that many fiber bars, enough staples to take me through several months. And then there is the canned food, baking ingredients, packaged food, and condiments. Right now I have 4 bottles of ketchup, 2 bottles of mustard, 2 jars of Hellman mayonnaise, 2 jars of barbecue sauce, several boxes of macaroni, bags of noodles and rice. I even stock up on items like foil, plastic wrap, and zipper bags, cleaning and laundry supplies. When the store has a great sale on an item, and I have coupons, I buy as many as I have coupons for.
When Aldi's had butter for 99 cents I bought 6 and froze them. When HyVee had chicken breasts for 88 cents a pound, I got enough for several months. I still have to get produce and milk and eggs by the week, but that is about it! I am fortunate to have lots of stores here in Dubuque, and to have enough storage room to stock up. I "shop" from my shelves and freezer most of the time, and depending on what I'm in the mood to make, have all the ingredients for our favorite recipes on hand all the time.
Dave takes food with him in his truck; he has a cooler, and uses microwaves at truck stops to heat things up. When I make chili or goulash or other casseroles, I divide them into serving containers for him to take.
On average I spend $30-40 a week for food; I spend another 10-15 each week for personal products, pet food, and household supplies.
I have on big shopping day each week and go to Target, WalMart and HyVee. Another day I might hit Walgreens and maybe the Dollar Store. Thanks to register rewards and Target gift cards, I save even more money.
So I don't do a week's shopping so much as keep my pantry and cupboards stocked up, and supplement with fresh foods. The specials each week often go into the freezer for future use. I shop at least one month or more ahead. This did cost me a little bit more than usual the first month I started doing this but I now save about 60% on average. I sometimes save more than 75% on some purchases.
I do spend alot of time looking for coupons and rebates, clipping coupons, and tracking what is on sale at the various stores. I go to more stores in order to save money, but am lucky that they are all within about 2 miles of each other.
Hey girl. I love this idea. (I'm a fellow FJer).
ReplyDeleteGood luck to you! The only thing I can think of to suggest is on spaghetti--I don't know where you shop, but at Wal Mart the spaghetti (at least in my area) is .88 a box, and that's even for the wheat spaghetti. Don't know if that helps any, but I thought I'd throw it out there.
Hey, I'm from FJ too :) I like your blog. From your description it sounds like we have alot in common.
ReplyDeleteI just wanted to say I think this is a really neat venture. You're certainly brave, to put this all online and be so honest about it, I think that's really cool. I have two kids ages 30 months and 8 months, and even though it's mostly just me and my hubby our grocery bill is still sky-high. I find it really tough to eat really healthily on a budget. Gluten-free bread is $8 bucks a loaf here, and quinoa costs twice as much as rice. And if I could buy a bag of chicken for $5.99 I'd stock up, 'cuz it's pricey where I live!
Anyway, just wanted to add my 2 cents. Good luck!!
Becks (aikentree.blogspot.com)
What would I do differently... Well, a few things. I shop much like the previous commenter - jkramer48 in that I 'stock up' on things when they are on sale. I agree with her in that the first month or so that I was working on that, it felt like my grocery budget was high - but it quickly catches up and I'm now down to usually spending about $50 per week for my family of 4 plus a dog.
ReplyDeleteSome specifics based on what I have seen you buy...
Cereal - Our store often has specific brands on sale at 3/$5. Stack that with a coupon for $1 off of 3 and they are $1.33 per box. (Last week I got Cheerios, Multi-Grain Cheerios, and Honey-Nut Cheerios at that price.)
Butter - I stock up and freeze it when it is on sale, usually at 2/$3.50 or less.
Meat - I've changed the time that I go shopping. I discovered at one local grocery store that early Saturday morning, they mark down packages of meat that need to be sold by Sunday with various $off coupons. (They do the same on Tuesday morning, but I am a teacher and the thought of getting up and going to the store then is not a pleasant one.) So, I get up early on Saturday and go to the store before the kids are up. When I need meat, which isn't every week, I load up on those packs of meat and freeze it right when I get home. An example - last week I got 2 packages of cube steak, a total of 5 lbs for a little over $3.00.
I guess another big thing I do is use coupons. I write my list with the flyer from the store in front of me and go through my stack of coupons, looking for overlap. There are a lot of things that I just won't buy unless they are on sale AND I have a coupon. And, we aren't 'missing out' on anything because of that. By stacking the sales and coupons, I am averaging 40-50% off of my grocery total.
Anyway, hope that helps some! :)