I noticed on Youtube that extreme
grocery budgets seemed to be all the rage this past year and still are. With everything that took place in 2020 it
doesn’t surprise me at all and I’m glad those resources are out there to help
people figure out how to feed themselves and their families on a super tight
budget. My current grocery budget is
considered extreme and was born out of sheer necessity, the same as what is
currently happening with a lot of people.
In 1987, as a newly divorced single mom with a part time job and a lot of pride, I had to figure it out. And I did. Over the years, as our circumstances improved, I have been able to, thankfully, up our budget in order to keep pace with the rise in inflation. However, our budget has still remained extreme. In spite of that I have still managed to fill a pantry as well as two freezers, a small chest freezer in our garage as well as the one on our side by side refrigerator, to maximum capacity. Because of that I decided it would be prudent for us to cut back our budget to where it was about ten years ago and see how we do this year.
If you are in need of ideas on how to
accomplish your own extreme budget I do recommend that you check out some of
the vloggers on Youtube. I’ve shared a
lot of what I do here on my blog, but even I find it helpful to get a fresh
perspective from someone else. I’m also
very much interested in know if you want me to do more posts about my extreme
grocery budgeting and to put out more details of what I do to not only feed my
family well, but also amass a good supply of groceries in the process. One thing I do know from my own personal
experience is that we can do a lot more than we think we can. Let me know in the comments if this is a
topic I should delve into further.
I too have been building my pantry and filling my freezers only to have my main refrigerator compressor die - only about 7 year old appliance. Sad to toss all that food as it has taken 10 days to get service guy with right parts to fix it. Expensive to replace all that food too! Keep up with food helps - even short grocery trips are so much more expensive now!
ReplyDeleteUgh! I've had that happen before.
DeleteYes yes yes... please keep writing about this!
ReplyDeleteokie dokie! :o)
DeleteI would love to hear more on this topic from you. I have always lived on a tight budget for groceries. I call it my hobby. One that gets us something and also saves us money. I am always looking for deals on things we use and stocking up when the price is right. Also looking for bits and pieces of $. Last year I made 165.00 on the side in store gift cards just by taking pictures of my receipts on Fetch and Receipt Pal and signing up with the place I get my prescriptions. For every 10 I get a 5.00 Target gift card. I asked if I could put my grown son on my card too since I pick up for him (day sleeper - works nights) They said yes. His prescriptions are mostly free with insurance so I get at least one Target gift card for 5.00 every 4-5 weeks. Every bit helps.
ReplyDeleteThat is fantastic Crystal. Great work!
DeleteYes, I also enjoy your posts on how you manage to keep your food budget so low and yet feed you and your family well,
ReplyDeleteExcellent! Thank you for the feedback! :0)
DeleteLove your food budget/cooking ideas. Please continue to post them. Your blog is very inspirational
ReplyDeleteThank you! I will!
DeleteYes! I hate to pay full-price on anything (I have to for groceries because DH isn't on the bandwagon yet.) I'm always looking for bargains.
ReplyDeleteNothing quite like a good bargain! :)
DeleteI would enjoy reading continuing blogs on extreme budgeting. I would like to get at that place eventually. What youtube vloggers were helpful to you. I admire what you have been able to do in your own family. As a daughter of a single mom we struggled at times but all of my needs were taken care of. As I've gotten older I see her in a whole new light and all that she had to do to keep things going. I never thought about the sacrifices she made for us until she was gone. You're doing a great job. Diane
ReplyDeleteThank you Diane. I bet your mom was amazing.
DeleteI do like the Frugal Fit Mom. She does a lot of meal planning, prepping and budget hauls. A lot of the extreme budgets I've watched are pretty carb heavy. That just inspires me to figure out how to do it healthier! :)