Thought I'd start it :) I haven't been in this forum much, and started browsing... why wasn't I looking :rolleyes:


I feed a family of 6(one infant, 5yo, 7yo and 9 yo).

Goal: $250 CAD(paper goods and cleaning stuffs included)

Doesn't sound like much, but I have 1/4 of pork and beef in the freezer(dh is die hard meat eater and won't eat beans..lol).

I'm up for it! We did so well in February, met our goal, reduced our bill by over 50% from January (January was just a crazy month).

My goal for this month is $280 on food/toilet paper/cleaning stuff.

I count supplements, vitamins, and shampoo etc separately and don't really have a goal, but will be keeping track to see what I spend on these items. My son has cystic fibrosis and takes several different supplements which cost $$$.

My total for this month so far:

March 1 - grocery store $41.07




Kristin

I am so in on this. We did SOOOO bad this month - so, gotta start over! I always count all my store-bought goods in my totals, since I am buying it all togetether. I definitely will spend on $100/month on vitamins that have been prescribed for me (only thing my insurance will cover is Folic Acid, so I pay a whopping $2 a month for that LOL).

I need to plan well this month. We went shopping two times recently - and when we got home today we had nothing I could make easily for dinner (I've got AF so bad dh is concerned & waiting on me LOL), so we ended up ordering out. How sad is that?

I REALLY think I need to look into once a month cooking for dinners - I think it may be the only thing that works for us......

Right now I will set my goal at $400 - minus the supplements for me. (hey, I've got 4 kids who are homeschooled - they eat a lot! LOL!)

Count me in. My budget goal is $250.00 for the 4 of us and 1 puppy. That amount includes everything even my vitamins and supplements, which run about $35.00 per month.

I think this month I'm going to keep my receipts to see what I spend, meat, organic dairy, produce, junk food, pet food, bulk items, cleaning supplies, and paper and plastic. It would be great if I could cut back some more.

Lori

Wow, I so want to do this, but I don't have a clue what my goal should be! Our food budget is the one place that we don't scrimp at all and I know we go way overboard with it. I'm sure even my "cheap" budget would be way more than it should be. Hmm, I'll have to give this some serious thought!

j

j,

If you know how much you currently spend, make a goal of cutting back $50 for the month. It's not a huge thing, but it'll help you see where you CAN cut back. Then next month challenge yourself to cut back a bit more. You need to find a total where it works for your family. You want to be frugal, but frugal doesn't mean deprived. Playing with numbers for a few months, reducing it, stocking a pantry and freezer will help. If you buy just for the week, not planning ahead you end up spending way more.


I'm trying to convince dh to give up cola, but he shrugs and says it's cheaper than beer (and he's right..lol). We'll see. My goal is quite low, only because I spent a wad of cash to by a 1/4 beef and 1/4 pork, but that'll last us nearly a year. I also have been hoarding groceries. A girlfriend is a refugee from Bosnia where they went without, and she's terrified of her girls going hungry. I've learned her bad spending habits, but I quit that. She'll spend 4-500 every 2 weeks. I did a couple of times, now my pantry is very "plump". So we will be eating from the pantry and freezer for quite awhile yet.

On top of my insurance not covering a birth center birth or a doula my washer also decided to go to appliance heaven this weekend so things are going to be very tight here for awhile.

Luckily I have a very well stocked pantry and a full freezer so I should only have to buy fresh fruit, veggies, and milk.

I intend to spend no more then $125 this month on food, cleaning supplies, and dog food.

3/1 Spent $35 which included 10 rolls of t.p.
3/2 33.26 at co-op (included fair trade coffee, some organic produce)

Total $68.26

My goal is going to be $300 this month, up from $200 b/c we have an exchange program guy w/ us for 3 weeks, and will also have houseguests for 4 days this month.

hee-hee - okay, I didnt make it. But by choice. I am getting a lot of deals, so doing a lot of stockpiling. And still- we will spend maybe $600 (my goal was $400). We usually spend over a thousand! AND eat out a lot cause dh loves to go out. This month we have only gone out to eat once I think? Dh tried to convince me to go out today, but I convinced him to eat at home instead :)

So, we did save a lot of $ We could have made it for $400 - or less - but it just wasnt worth it this month! (and yes I know the month isnt over - but I'm done paying attention to how much I spend cause I went over budget but I am happy with it!)

Todays totals: $21.12

bread store: $14.62
Super Target $6.50


Lori

I'm in. I haven't spent anything on groceries yet.
My goal is $200.00 for 4 people, 1cat, 1 dog. We eat meat...but I have so much stuff here now, that I probably won't get much this month.

Mar2 - 9.51 for lard, eggs, chocolate chips, flour
Mar 3 - 25.37 take out pizza(I was terrible ill this afternoon, nauseous, dizzy, so dh "cooked"..lol.. by dialing the phone. I had a simple meal planned but he wouldn't do it)
Mar. 5 - 15.00 lunch out with girls

I still haven't spent anything yet. I am going to Sam's Club on Monday, though. (mil has membership, so I have her do 2 separate orders, and I don't have to buy a membership) But I think I have to get cat food before then.
Does pet food count:confused:
I told dh that I need only $200.00 cash for groceries this month.
I am going to try to have us live off only $200.00 a month for awhile. I am sure we will go over that, though. Since we will buy meat about every other month.
Dh complains we don't eat enough steak, but then when I want $$ for groceries he complains, so he will have to get used to eating more chicken:p
I think I am going to try menuing this month. Seeing as I went to the bread-thrift store last month, I don't need to go for at least another 2 weeks. I got SO much bread the last time, that is in our freezer. When they have good deals, I stock up!!:thumbsup:

So far, I haven't spent anything on groceries this month. We ran out of bread so I made 6 loaves yesterday. We have 1 gallon of milk left so I'm sure I'll be going to the store sometime soon.

I'm really working hard to not spend a lot on anything this month. We are saving towards the Celtic fair in a few weeks so we can have extra $$$ so we are eating out of our pantry for now.;)

You guys can REALLY only spend around 200 bucks or less on groceries. I am just floored. Last year I was spending around $800 a month. Yah, we are only a family of four and yes they are only toddlers but my kids can eat....apparantley 6 months worth of supplies for you all....lol. So, I had to rework our budget to keep dh from getting a second job so I can stay home with kids and cut out needless spending. January I spent $475 YAH February $425 YIPPEE I have yet to go shopping for the month and am not up to doing once a month cooking. :) Thanks for getting me back on track mamas. I guess my goal now should be $375 I DO have a big bag of pinto beans and big bag of rice but my freezer is bare and fridge has green fuzzies in it because I haven't cleaned out rotting food yet.
So my question is what's your trick?? I want to eat healthier. I want to afford fresh veggies versus frozen. I really want to change our diet around here. Last two months I didn't buy anything prepackaged except some of those cheapo Jiffy corn muffins, mac n cheese for the kids and some cheap soda for dh's lunch and to occasionally feed my habit. We rarely eat red meat or pork. Basically chicken and turkey. But my dh is the type of person that has to have some substance to his dinners. Slowly I am trying to slip some beans in our meals and i think it is working but then my 3 year hasn't been eating many dinners lately (just wheat bread cheese sandwiches) because basically he is 3...lol. Okay I am rambling now and got way off the topic. Sorry!

Goal: $375

Well, one of my main tricks is that I get WIC.
That is a HUGE help. My milk, eggs, cheese, cereal, peanut butter and juice is covered by dh's taxes.
Then I buy meat in larger quantities, and I use it up over the course of a few month...so technically not EVERY month I can spend $200.00. But I am learning to keep track of prices, and get large quantities of pasta and flour.
Those cornmeal muffins you got, would it be cheaper to get a bag of cornmeal?:) I got 2lbs of yeast for under 3.00 vs .99 for 3TBS at the grocery. Then I got bread flour 25lbs for less than 6.00.
I make homemade pizza at least 1 time per week, and then we have pretty basic meals, a lot of repeats...but it is worth it because occasionally we will eat at a buffet restaurant, or I will make something extra-special.
I get our shampoo in large pump bottles, and that makes a difference also. If we had a water softener, I could make 1 bottle last a year if I was the only one using it;) Dh has super thick hair.
Veggies- I use frozen or canned. Very rarely use fresh. But when I do, we get them at the flea-market from the farmers, or the grocery store on sale. I am going to plant a garden hopefully this fall.

Some of our most in-expensive meals:
french toast
macaroni and cheese
pancakes
spaghetti
sloppy joe's
tacos
soup and sandwiches
hotdogs
hamburgers
fried fish with rice and veggies
baked chicken which makes chicken soup the next meal
shepherd's pie
goulash

Well, we don't have WIC in Canada. Not sure if we have that kind of program at all :confused:

I keep costs down by shopping bulk. Now the first times shopping once I started this we spent more. But I stopped to notice what we actually eat, and stopped buying everything else. Lots went to waste, or ended up at the food bank. Now that I have our basic diet settled, I know what to get when it's on sale. I shop the perimeter of the store, milk, cheese, butter, eggs, bread(once baby is older I'll start making it again) and fruit and veggies(seasonal only). Then baking ingredients and cereals, tea coffee and soda crackers. I will confess to buying blueberry muffin mix as I can't find a muffin recipe dh likes and that's his breakfast and coffee at work. He does like pumpkin bread ans banana loaf, but my baking time is limited for now. Oh and I get frozen veggies, perogies(which I'll make when have more time). But I am well stocked at the house.

Last month we spent clost to $850, but that was a stocking month, big time, I got 1/4 beef(1.95/lb) and 1/4 pork(1.50/lb) so $500 was just meat. I'd get chicken, but here it runs $5+/lb for the cuts I like, even whole it's $4/lb, ground is like $7/lb.
Frozen veggies were on sale, so stocked, got store brand cereals on sale, plus tp stock up, laundry detergent, dishwasher detergent plus some othe staples needed refilling that I neglected to buy before.

So these next few months will be lots cheaper, I have meat for most of the year our biggest expense.

I'm in. ((((( I'll try to keep a running total in one post this month:

3/2 - $9.25 for milk, yogurt and carrots.
3/9 - $7.38 for milk, ice cream and chocolate syrup (per DH's request)

Craftymama: One thing I've found when moving to eating more fresh food is to try to buy in season. I never used to pay attention to what was on sale or in season and just bought what I was in the mood for. If I wanted oranges, I bought oranges and didn't pay attention to the price. Well, I could never understand how anyone could consistently buy fresh fruits and veggies because it was costing me an arm and a leg. Once I started paying attention to what I was buying and when I was buying it, I found that I can buy a lot of in-season produce dirt cheap (or at least it seems dirt cheap compared to what I was spending). But it is also possible that you live in an area where grocery prices are higher too so I think sometimes it can be hard to compare one person's grocery budget to another person's because of this differance.

Bladestar: Where do you get your yeast?! Wow, that is a great price! I usually but the little jars in the grocery store for $5.99.

I have not done this before but I am trying to keep our food bill where I want it. Mine is high as we eat nearly all organic and my youngest is gluten and dairy intolerant. And, this does not include DH's lunches. It does include mine and the girls. We also eat meat from the freezer. But, I am purchasing natural sausage and chicken breasts tomorrow. Pricey but good.

So far, I have not spent anything. I did buy some stuff on Sat. But, hey, that was last month.

Tomorrow my organic co-op order will be about $210 but that includes 10 to 15 bars of soap and a few supplements. I will have to pull out their amounts. Also, that includes enough applesauce, flour and fruit leather for four or five months, I hope. Oh, cheese too.

I think I would like to stay under $300. I will spend another $40 this month on organic produce and a little each week picking up items I do not get through the co-op.

[i]
Bladestar: Where do you get your yeast?! Wow, that is a great price! I usually but the little jars in the grocery store for $5.99. [/B]

Sam's and Costo both have 2 lb bags of yeast for just a few dollars. Huge savings. When we lived in Nevada I could buy it at some of the groceries too (Winco) I keep mine in the freezer and it'll last a year or so :)
Anne

Freezing yeast can kill it if it gets too cold. So, be careful. Our freezers are kept very cold (-5 to -30 degrees F). So, I can't keep it there. But I do keep it in the fridge. I use about 1 lb every 3 to 6 months.

Bladestar: Where do you get your yeast?! Wow, that is a great price! I usually but the little jars in the grocery store for $5.99.
Sam's Club:)

Ok I am up for it too... My goal is to eat out less than twice a week... including all eating out... (crappy lunches, coffee, etc) Plus I am also going to the DSHS office for Food Stamps. So I will have more of a goal after I know what I am getting there.

So far we have spent $68.42 at Fred Meyers and then $4 on coffee, and $6.97 at the deli for lunch.

$38 at Costco on stuff for dh to take to work with him at night. This helps keep dow2n our other goal of not eating out. :) Oh Frap... I forgot I got Coffee AND lunch yesterday... Cyan is sick. So no sleep = need pampering. ;) $7 for the two of us for coffee and $6 for pizza (cheap slices). (Ugh... what a waste. I am about ready to buy an esspresso machine just so I don't have to deal with this anymore. Although I don't know if it would help... Heather has one, and she still buys coffee out. She says it is the ambiance, and not the coffee.)

TOTAL: $130... already. OMgoocness. And I have not even gone to the grocery store the second time yet. Wow... I wonder how off I will be in the end?

Love Val

What I did was take $200.00 cash, and kept it in the bank envelope it came in. I am putting receipts in it, and I wrote "March Groceries" on the envelope. At the end of the month I will tally it up. If there is any $$ left on April 1, it will either go into savings, or for next months groceries depending on how dh's pay is next month.
I will give my total at the end of March:thumbsup:

I'm going to join this month too. I did not keep really good records last month but I was more aware of what I was doing and in general we spent less. We seemed to do better about not wasting food and we ate out a lot less.

So far this month we have spent...

24.11-milk, juice, bread(I need to learn how to make my own), lettuce, carrots
145.00-2 weeks worth of food, supplies, pet food
33.84-milk, juice, bread, lettuce, carrots, etc
31.70-same as above

total-234.65

Goal-425.00

I'm in Canada too, and I think my goal this month will be $225.

So far I've spent $22 on groceries (milk, cheese, oranges, etc.) on the 6th of March at Superstore. The first half of the month is the toughest to make it through because we have our car insurance and strata payments ($315 total) all in the first ten days of the month and my husband doesn't get paid until the 15th. So tonight will be a pancakes-and-eggs night I think.

We're used to living like this (my husband works on a farm for $12 an hour) and so it's not too hard, but I often want to spend more because of the deals, like spend $150 and get 200 extra airmiles, or spend $200 and get a free bucket of laundry soap, etc.

Kerri

Originally posted by Shoshoni
What I did was take $200.00 cash, and kept it in the bank envelope it came in. I am putting receipts in it, and I wrote "March Groceries" on the envelope. At the end of the month I will tally it up. If there is any $$ left on April 1, it will either go into savings, or for next months groceries depending on how dh's pay is next month.
I will give my total at the end of March:thumbsup:

Well, I blew it:o We had a beetle infestation problem, and I have been very busy, so I have eaten out WAY too much this month. My goal for April is:
Get the danged house organized and get together lunch boxes so we won't eat out anymore:eek:
I gotta get menuing. I don't care WHAT Amy Dacyczyn says against menuing, it will certainly help us some!
I gotta buy some stuff today because Albertson's is having some sales that just can't be beat. They rarely have good deals, but we are getting low on taco powdered mix, and margarine. For April I am going to center the menu around stuff we already have.

This is a great idea!

Is there going to be a new thread for April, or just continue this one?

What she has against menu-ing is most people don't do it right! People often sit and make a menu from thin air. Make their list and go shopping. It's very expensive.

Menu planning should start in your pantry and freezer. What do you have? What can you make from that? Then it should start with sales. What meat is on sale? Work with that. Much cheaper.

I blew my budget too, I had 23 people to feed on Sunday. Oh well. I think my groceries for friday will only be around $50, potatoes, milk, cheese, eggs and dh pop :) I've been baking so the need for snackfoods is minimal.

Originally posted by mamannaturelle


Menu planning should start in your pantry and freezer. What do you have? What can you make from that? Then it should start with sales. What meat is on sale? Work with that. Much cheaper.



This is what we do now. I was really bad at buying too much each time we went to the store. Then we would waste what we had because it would go bad, etc. I have been making our menus based on what we have in our cupboards and in our freezer and it has saved us a lot of money. We are getting to the point though that things are looking kind of bare around here.

I thought I read something where she said menus over a week in advance weren't a good idea? I forget where it was. I can see her point in some ways, because of sales, but really I can't say I went over my $200.00 limit, when MOST of the stuff I got at Sam's will last for SEVERAL months (shrug). I did pretty well. The eating out was what put me over. So I average about $200. a month without eating out, since I bulk purchase.:thumbsup:

Originally posted by Shoshoni
MOST of the stuff I got at Sam's will last for SEVERAL months (shrug).

Would you mind me asking what kind of things you buy at Sam's and if you do a majority of your shopping there? We had a membership there a few years ago but always spent way too much there. This was when we were still really heavy into the snack food though.

Nicole

No problem:) I use my mother-in-law's membership, though. I have to go with her, and she uses her card and does 2 separate orders. I can't see paying for a membership when I hardly ever shop there.
Here is a list of the stuff I bought there since this past winter:


Bread Flour 25lb bag
Fishsticks, bag of over 100 of them!
15lb bag of baking potatoes(I should've taken them out of the bag, they already went bad:( )
5lb bags of pasta
A package of 2 1lb packs of yeast
graham crackers(kids love these)
Trail mix(probably won't buy that again. I hate the raisins)
Toilet paper case of 45rolls
12lb bag baking soda (a few cents cheaper per pound if I remember correctly:p )
pepperoni (I make home-made pizza every week)
Dawn dish detergent90 oz. (probably a little more than Winn Dixie on sale, but in 1 big bottle for easier storage)
Flintstones vitamins
hotdogs
ice cream sandwiches
ketchup
toasted crackers for me and dh
(I hardly ever eat snacks, though)
lettuce(more edible lettuce on each head. I was shocked by how much good lettuce was on each one)
1 jug of water which we will refill at dh's moms

Well I'm pretty sure I made my goal. I spent a little over $225 at the grocery store, but that's because I bought things that weren't food, like two bike helmets and other stuff like that. I spent $250 to get a free butter-basted turkey worth $25! So considering I bought other stuff like I mentioned, I got really good value for my dollars. It's hard for me to spend that much though. Uggh. I even have a list and try to stock up on things that will last for a few months, and I keep crossing things off because we don't really "need" them. It took me about 3 hours to do the whole shopping trip because I was so hesitant to put each thing in the cart and spend so much. I'm crazy, I know.

Kerri

than I did. But it is not bad. $355 plus about another $40 for produce. I wanted to spend only about $350 total. I had some extra expense as some of my co-op order did not come in and I had to buy it at full retail price. I am off to next month's challenge.