Friday, March 28, 2014

Grocery Budget Update - March - BUSTED!!!


Holy cow did I buy groceries this month!  And yes, I definitely went over my budget, especially since I started out the month in hole already.  I had the extra money this month so I decided to spend it.

Our beginning balance was $112.98.  I spent $175.04 which means I'm in the hole big time next month.  Our beginning balance with be $79.50.  Will I be able to feed my family on only that much next month?  Realistically, probably not.  But I'm going to try to stay as close to it as possible.

Our freezer is full and our pantry has quite a bit in it as well so we are pretty well situated.  My main focus will be on fresh produce and dairy.  I have more than enough meats and pantry staples although our flour is getting a little low.

Our non-food spending came in at $27.36 (of our allotted $25 budget) and yes that means I went over budget there too.  I don't feel too bad about that because I rarely ever come close to using it all anyway.  I bought a 20 lb bag of cat litter, 2 cans of cat food, a bottle of dish soap, facial tissues, astringent, liquid hand soap and stocked up on the girlie stuff.  I had a boat load of great coupons and sales to go along with.  A stop at the dollar store too helped keep these expenses to a minimum.  We are good to go in all areas for quite some time.

This is what I bought for groceries this month:

Groceries

 $$$

Cheese (2)

             3.28
Sale/Coupon
Tortilla chips

             1.00
Sale
Butter (2)

             4.00
Store Coupon
Olives (2)

             1.98
Sale
Mayonnaise

             2.09
Sale
Asparagus

             1.75
Sale
Chicken breasts - 2.5# (2)

           12.98
Sale
Ground pork - 2#

             4.00
Sale
Flour - 5#

             1.59
Sale
Sugar - 4#

             1.99

Peanut butter (2)

             2.98
Sale
Cereal (4)

             3.96
Sale/Coupon
Pork chops - 5ct

             2.35
Markdown
Italian sausage

             1.00
Markdown
Ground beef (3)

             7.20
Markdown
Chili powder

             0.36
Bulk Bin
Parsley

             0.45
Bulk Bin
Almonds

             1.47
Bulk Bin
Apricots

             1.99
Bulk Bin
Raisins

             1.42
Bulk Bin
Craisins

             1.64
Bulk Bin
Bagels (2)

             3.96
Sale
English muffins (2)

             1.98
Sale
Frozen french fries

             0.88
Sale
Corn dogs - 16 ct

             3.98
Sale
Salisbury steak

             2.44
Sale
Pot pies (3)

             2.34
Sale
Ground beef patties - 20 ct

           12.98
Sale
Whipped topping (2)

             1.56
Sale
Ramen (20)

             3.52
Sale
Pasta (6)

             3.48
Sale
Mung bean noodles

             1.20

Vegetable juice (2)

             3.12

Tuna (4)

             2.72

Tomato sauce - 29 oz (4)

             3.12
Sale
Cream cheese (2)

             1.98
Sale
Parmesan (2)

             1.96
Sale
Beets

             0.78
Sale
Water chestnuts (2)

             0.96

Bean sprouts (2)

             2.16

Soy sauce

             1.62
Coupon
Nesquik

             3.58
Sale
Apple cider vinegar

             1.12

Marinated artichokes

             0.98
Sale
Pan spray

             1.97
Sale
WW flour

             3.22
Sale
Milk - 1 gal

             2.28
Sale
Sour cream

             0.98
Store Promotion
Eggs - 1 doz

             0.98
Store Promotion
Worcestershire sauce

             1.10
Sale
Hamburger buns

             1.25
Sale
Cream 

             1.19
Sale
Mushrooms

             1.23
Sale
Cheese (3)

             5.00
Store Coupon
Tortilla chips (2)

             2.00
Sale
Milk - 1 gal

             1.88
Store Promotion
Bananas

             1.27
Markdown
Sugar - 4#

             1.89
Store Coupon
Orange juice

             1.25
Store Coupon
Raspberries

             2.50
Sale
WW Tortillas (2)

             3.18

Lettuce (2)

             1.76

Spinach

             1.99

Mushrooms

             1.79
Sale
Salad dressing (2)

             3.78
Markdown
Bread (2)

             1.50
Markdown
Snap peas

            2.50

Cabbage

             0.98

Apples

             2.40

Milk - 1 gal

             2.28





Total

 $      174.05


$175.04 ÷ 31 days ÷3 people = $1.88 per person per day!

The items in red are my stock up items. 

How did you do with your grocery budget?  Hit any great sales?

4 comments:

  1. I think you did great this month with the sales and coupons! Wow- where in the world did you find marinated artichokes on sale for 98 cents?? I love those! I have never seen them that low. (That would have been one of my stock-up items- haha.) I like to be ahead of the game when I can as far as having groceries in the house- that way you are stocked up and can live off of it for a while if you ever have to. (And it also makes some room for some extra treats here and there.)
    This month I got some more meat on sale. In the past I have bought beef cubes (to make beef stew) but this week I picked up a beef roast on sale and cut it up into cubes myself. For a couple of dollars more than I would have bought the already cut cubes, I got three times the amount of beef. I was happy about that. :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I used to buy the "stew meat" until I figured out I could make my own with a roast. You are right, you get so much more for your money doing that. I think I should have bought more artichoke hearts too. ;) We have a store called Winco and that is where I got them.

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  2. I swear I am at the grocery store every other day. I need to set a realistic budget because I go over every single week. Yesterday I noticed that food prices are really jumping again. For a while food prices were not rising. It is truly disturbing to think about those on fixed incomes. I need to start donating to the food bank again to do my part.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Groceries are really going up right now. I've noticed it too. Food banks are really hurting right now. If you have extra that would be great. They just had a campaign at my daughter's school to get food in so they can do boxes at Easter.

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