What I Learned in the Challenge

Participating in Mary's $75 a Week Grocery Challenge (check out the button in my sidebar) has been very enlightening. At the outset of the challenge I stated that this was just the push I needed to permanently cut back in this category.

I honestly never thought I could cut back that far and not feel the pinch. I figured I would deplete my stock pile and go without several items until the month was over. My plan at the end of the month was to raise it up slightly from the $75 and feel like I had a little more wiggle room but probably still feel squeezed.

I am blown away by the results at the end of the month. My pantry has never been so full - ever. I bought diapers, shampoo, toothbrushes, toothpaste, a special toy for my son, frozen pizza (ironically - a luxury item around here), and many more items we could have lived without (OK - not the diapers!) for the month. I never felt deprived. I felt . . . challenged, and focused, and really excited to see how well I could do it.

I did learn that it takes more time to save more money. I was much more willing to hit a greater number of stores in order to hit the lowest price on something. I spent more time scrounging for coupons for everything I was buying - clipping and arranging A LOT. But, I saved the money. And, right now I have the time and NEED to save the money.

My previous $100/month allotment was a HUGE accomplishment for me when I began to shop differently almost two years ago. I had cut WAY back from my previous spending of I-don't-even-know-how-much. But, I became so skilled at my new way of shopping, that $100/week became quite easy. I was more willing to forgo a sale or skip looking for a coupon. I also gave myself license to buy things with the extra money that really had nothing to do with that budget category (such as clothing or haircuts). Not a huge deal, except that then I really don't have an accurate account of what I was really spending in those categories.

All that to say "THANK YOU!!" to Mary for the challenge. I enjoyed the stretch, learned a lot, and feel much more confident that I can permanently cut back to $75/week and survive - quite happily.
Click HERE to see how all the other challenge participants ended this month.

Last $75 a Week Spending Challenge!!

Here is this week's shopping low down:

meijer:

1 can green chilis

1 box gallon freezer bags

2 pkgs. paper plates

3 cans veggies

6 cans fruit

4 bottles ketchup

4 Healthy Choice Frozen dinners

1 jar olive oil

$24.90

Walmart:

1 matchbox motorcycle for 1 middlechild/only boy who needed a special day all his own

$4.57

Menards:

4 Chicago Tribunes for extra coupons

$4.00

Aldi:

3 frozen OJ

2 frozen 100% grape juice

1 can cr. of mushroom soup

1 bottle reduced sodium soy sauce

1 8 oz. block cheddar

3 gallons milk

4 oz. chili powder

3 lbs. Gala apples

3 lbs. bananas

$18.32

Walmart:

2 boxes quart, expandable freezer bags

1 bag brown rice

1 bunch celery

1 whole farm-raised natural chicken

2 tubs vanilla yogurt

2 cans chili beans

12 jars baby food

2 lbs. pears

1 lb. bananas

3 lbs. Golden Delicious apples

$29.01

Jewel

1 bag bean sprouts

2 loaves bread

5 frozen Jack's pizzas

$14.49

Walgreens:

18 cans of tuna

1 Reese's PB cups (for Jason)

1 bag candy corn (for Jason and Sophia)

1 bag caramels (for Jason and me!!)

$14.60

Total spent for the week - $109.89. Yikes. BUT, I had $18.81 left over from last week AND my $20.00 Kraft rebate came this week!!! So, I had $113.81 left for the month when I started this week. That brings me to $3.92 left to spend (if I absolutely need something). I hope I don't!

$75 a Week Update

Here is the low down on my shopping this week. Remember I am following along with Mary's challenge to only spend $75 a week on anything I buy at the grocery store (diapers and toilet paper included, etc.)

Meijer - $13.58

Chicken Sausage

Bananas

Nectarines

Peaches

2 hand soap pumps

2 pks. paper muffin liners

4 large cans baked beans

2 pkgs. turkey lunch meat

Jewel - $17.37

Boneless pork loin

4 loaves cinnamon raisin bread

4 bags Goldfish crackers

Sam's Club - $19.31

Swiffer sweeper pad refill

Raisins

Walgreens - $24.49

6 packs of 6 kid toothbrushes (clearance for $1.09/each!!)

2 Angel Soft 12 double rolls

2 adult toothbrushes

9 12oz. bags of Nestle chocolate chips

KMart - -$22.60

I returned 4 Jumbo packs of Pull-ups that we no longer need (YAY!!!!)

Aldi - $4.04

2 gallons of milk

1 dozen eggs

Total Spent - $56.19

$75 a Week Update

Can I buy a chicken, a tube of kid toothpaste, fruit for the week, and 3 tubs of yogurt for under $5? Dang. So, I guess that means I'm going over budget for the week.

I just couldn't stay away from the great General Mills deals at Jewel this week. But, like Mary said in this post, it doesn't seem prudent to pass up REALLY INEXPENSIVE cereal, soup, granola bars and frozen veggies just to stay under budget by a few dollars this week. I do need to think long term a little bit.

So far, though, my major downfall this week was Walgreens. Yikes - did I really go wild there.

Here is my running total for the week:

Walgreens - $53.46 (ouch)
Jewel - $6.83
Aldi - $10.14

Total - $70.43

I still need to go to Walmart to gather the above items to ride out the week. OR - I could serve granola bars and soup for dinner one night instead of chicken. Trust me - it's scarily tempting.

As the saying goes, "Desperate times call for desperate measures." These are desperate times, Ladies. We have seen a DRASTIC reduction in income this past year and it is time to cut back. Again. Even further.

I am trying to cut back to $75/week for all grocery/household/personal items for our family of 6. This means staples and eating from the pantry. A lot. I'm looking forward to it though, because I have some yummy meals planned despite the restrictions. Here we go:

Dinners this Week:

Homemade Pizza, fruit
Tuna, Spinach and Rice Casserole (Jack's FAVORITE meal!), bread, fruit
Chili, cheese and crackers/corn bread
Blueberry Pancakes, sausage, scrambled eggs
Roasted Chicken, potatoes, corn on the cob
Popcorn, smoothies, and veggies and dip
Classic Spaghetti, bread, peas

Lunches this Week:

PB & J, fruit x 2
Banana Chocolate Chip Oat muffins, baked beans, cheese and fruit
M & C, green beans
Grilled cheese, fruit
Leftover pizza
Cheese and crackers or PB, fruit, yogurt

I really do plan to make 2 loaves of Oatmeal Wheat Bread this week. Really. It is SO WORTH the effort - I just have to carve out the time. And clear off the counter.

Join in the Menu Planning fun over at OrgJunkie! Or, just snoop around there and see what others have planned. No pressure.

$21.54 to Go

I usually try to keep all of my shopping local unless there is a screaming deal worth the gas money and time to drive farther. This means I do my weekly shopping at Walgreens, Jewel, Aldi and Walmart.

I buy the free and cheap items at Walgreens and collect my Register Rewards. The Register Rewards are like money to be spent at Walgreens the next time I go there. However, since my next stop is almost always Jewel (which has no problem taking the Walgreens RR as coupons), I just spend my RR there. Then I don't have to worry about them expiring when I forget that I have them next time I go to Walgreens!

This week's Walgreens trip is pictured above and includes:

8 Crest toothpastes

2 Glade Sense and Sprays

2 Glade candles

4 Carefree Ultra Protection liners

3 AAA Duracell batteries

1 AA Duracell batteries

4 Reese's giant candy bar thingies (which I will have to hide to keep Jason from eating by the end of the week)

My total OOP was $43.30 and I got $39 in Register Rewards to use at Jewel.

This brings my original $75 for the week down to $21.54 (including my shopping trip earlier this week). I will hit Jewel and perhaps Walmart tomorrow. And by hit, I do mean "shop at" not rob. Aldi will have to wait until Tuesday, as their lucky employees get to enjoy the holiday.

I think I can get it done with the money I have left. We shall see.

The Hot Dog Fairy

Another way I avoided spending today was the fact that my mom ran to Walmart for me this afternoon. And took two of my girls - BONUS. We do this often for each other, and we just keep track of what we owe and make good by the end of the week. Works for us.



I had asked her to pick up a loaf of bread for me. Ordinarily I would have made do without until my regular Monday shopping trip, but we have a Block Party tomorrow afternoon and evening. I could have gotten creative and whipped up something, but PB&J just seemed like the way to go. So I wanted bread.



But, my mom was feeling picnicky and opted for hot dogs and buns. And then she thought we could use some grapes. And apparently the girls shrilled when they noticed ice cream cones, and somehow they ended up in the cart : ). I started to sweat a little when I saw all of the unasked-for purchases unfurling on my island. I cheerfully said, "What do I owe you?" To which she answered, "Don't worry about this one. My treat."



Gratitude. Relief. Still $289.84 to go.

Spending Less Challenge - Day 4

Another day with no spending. It was a close call though. Jason worked out of the house today for the first time in about 10 months. Threw us for a loop. Back in the office days, I used to pack his lunch. And get up early : ). Well, those days are well behind us, so I was out of practice on both counts. I did not see him off and panicked around lunch time when it occurred to me that he may at that very moment be spending our $75 for the week on a cheesy take-out lunch. I vowed to be understanding. Thank goodness that, although he too was quite groggy this morning, he remembered to pack a lunch.

Lessons to take away from that:

1. Plan ahead to make sure your husband/children aren't tempted to blow the budget when the noon time hunger pangs hit.

2. Make sure you have drilled it into their heads that you cannot afford to spend the $75 for the week on one day's lunch.

I did neither, and thankfully it worked out in our favor. Whew. Way to go, Jason!

3 Down, 27 to Go

I did not spend any money today. Thank goodness. Suddenly I am very conscious of this, now that I have publicly stated that I am trying to cut back.

I had to will the van past Walgreens tonight to NOT go in and work the deals.

Whew. What is it today, September 3rd? So I have 27 days left and I still have money in my pocket.

I can do this.

Want to join us? Check out the button in the sidebar!!!

$289.84 to Go

I'm going to be really annoyed with myself if I get to the end of the month and can't buy milk and fruit because I just spent $10.16 on non-essentials. If that is the case, it will be a lesson well worth learning. I made my first shopping trip since I started this challenge. A few questions I should ask myself as I ponder that trip:


First, why did I even go shopping when I don't normally shop at all except on Mondays?

Why did I go and buy things that I do not need and could have lived without, for sure?


Answering those questions gets at the root of why I haven't cut my budget back before now. It is SO HARD for me to pass up a deal. Deals are great, but not if I am spending money I don't have to get them.


Finding a happy medium needs to be my goal. I need to buy the items we need every week (milk, yogurt, fruit, bread, eggs), use any leftover money to stock up on deals, and be satisfied with the deals I can get with the money I have. Period. So much easier said than done.

Stay tuned . . .

$300 to Spend for the Month

I am following along with Mary, over at Owlhaven, and cutting my spending back for the whole month of September. I normally spend $100 per week on grocery/household/personal items, but I know I could do it for less. It would require more discipline (and less buying), and thus I have avoided cutting back. Well - NO LONGER!!

Hopefully, at the end of the month I will be used to a new, lower monthly amount of $75 per week. In that case, I can keep the $75 going, or I can raise it a little (maybe $80) and suddenly feel like I have a little more wiggle room. We'll see how it goes.

I am well stocked right now on most things, so that will help tremendously. I will need to buy diapers this month. BUT - only for 1 child!!!! 2 year old Elise is officially potty trained and that is a big relief in so many ways. Jason has a birthday in September, but to be honest we don't usually buy things for each other on our birthdays anyway. The kids and I will make and decorate a cake, make fabulous signs, and sing our hearts out. Free. Perfect.

Before deciding to follow this challenge, I made my usual Monday shopping trip and spent $100. While it was technically done in August, all of the food was for this week. Dilemma. Since there are still 4 Mondays in September, I feel like it will all work out even in the end. SO - $300 for the month. Crossing fingers. Wish me luck.

$75 a Week Grocery Challenge

One of my favorite bloggers has sent out a challenge this month, and I hope I am up to the task! Mary over at Owlhaven has begun a $75 a Week Grocery Challenge for the whole month of September. Yes, ANYTHING you normally buy at the grocery store is included: toothpaste, toilet paper, cleaning products, shampoo, food, etc. And Mary has 1 husband and 10 children (8 of whom live at their house full time). Go Mary!



I only have 1 husband and 4 kids. Should be easy, right? Well, we'll see. But, I am willing to try. Of course as soon as I mentally committed to doing this, I began to dream about all of the things I want and will not be able to buy. This should not come as a shock to my system since I have really tried to cut out all unneccessary spending since Jason lost his job last November. I still dream about the day when I will be able to buy amazing smelling bathroom soap that doesn't come in a 5 gallon jug . . .



Let the challenge BEGIN!!



Follow along with all of the other ladies who have taken on this challenge HERE.