Tuesday, January 6, 2015

Stocking Up On $5 A Week


I recently read an article about stocking up on pantry staples by using a set budget and a weekly schedule.  After a lot of thought I figured out a way to make this work for me as well.  I came up with a schedule of my own and a budget that would work alongside my regular grocery budget.


My goal is to select one item off the list each week to stock up on and buy as much of that item as I possibly can for a mere $5 per week.  I'll choose items from the list that on sale and use coupons whenever possible so I do not plan to go in chronological order, necessarily.


I'll keep a running tally of all the items I buy and how much I spend and any money that is leftover one week, if there is any, I'll roll into the next.  It will be challenging, but as usual, I am always up for a good challenge.


I also made up a schedule for stocking up on toiletries and meats.  Would you consider doing something like this?





8 comments:

  1. I like this idea and your list is great! The only problem that I see myself running into is the $5 limit. Depending on what the item is, how good of a sale it is and how often we use it I might spend more than $5 or maybe less than $5. I guess that is what you mean about rolling it over into the next week. I wrote out a stock-up list last year and I try to keep my eyes out for any of those items when I am shopping- if the deal is super then I will stock up! :)

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    1. As far as meats go- at times when I am shopping I see meats with the "Managers Special" sticker on it (I always get those happy flutters in my stomach when I see those bright orange stickers! lol) Sometimes the meat deal is not so good, but when the deal is really good I get as much as I can if I know we will use it. :)

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    2. You bring up a really good point. Certain items I know I use more of or that are more expensive I listed onto multiple weeks. For instance I just bought a 25# bag of rice for $10.79 because I had it listed on two weeks. Same thing with oatmeal, pasta, peanut butter, tuna, etc. Families that are larger than mine may want to up it to $10 a week. I just thought this might be a great way to get a little stockpile going for not a lot of $$. So far so good too because I've hit some really great sales and I've already got some good stuff. :)

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    3. Oohhhhh.... okay, now I get it. Yeah, I see now how you listed items twice and what that means. (Sorry- I am really tired and slow this week. Some days I think I lost my mind.... and I'm pretty sure the kids took it!)
      This is a really great way to stockpile for not a lot of money! Like I said before, your list is really good!
      By the way, nice price on the rice! (Wow- that just sounded so silly. See- I told you I'm tired!!)

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  2. That sounds like an awesome idea! I'm going to have to try that out!

    Thanks so much for commenting on Treasure Trove Tuesday! I love the cookbook too and that pitcher is for sale in the shop now! ;)

    Tania

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  3. I like this idea, although I think I would have a hard time figuring out exactly how to work this plan for items that I buy in huge bulk -- I just picked up a 50 pound bag of oats because it was at a really good price (for this area) and because we eat a ton of oats. I'm also trying to stock up now on some things that I am going through much more quickly now that we are on only one income and eating much more from our pantry. I've always kept a decent pantry store, so this is more for me to really increase in places I'm seeing we use more frequently than expected.

    Having said that, I do like the idea of setting aside funds within my grocery budget for storage items specifically. Like you I will shop based on sales as opposed to rigidly sticking to a specific order but writing out the list is a good idea. For example, tonight I realized that we are out of tuna because my husband has been eating it on days that I work. Which is fine, but I didn't know he was doing that so now I feel a little behind the eight ball!

    Sorry to eat up your comment section!
    Laura

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    1. Eat away!

      I figured out right off the pat that working in a specific order would be difficult, especially trying to buy as much as I can with such a small amount. Sales have to factor in. What I like is the challenge of doing it with only $5. I'm eager to see how it all works out. So far, so good.

      Here a 25# bag of oats would have to be spread out over a few weeks. It is on my list by the way. We'll see how much I can get for $15. :)

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