I have a monthly budget of $160 for my family of
three to get all of our household items including groceries and all
household goods. I work very hard to stay under budget and get the most
for my family to stretch the budget as far as possible. In order to get the most out of our budget, I make a lot of items from scratch including rolls, bread, cinnamon rolls, quick breads (this month was applesauce bread and banana bread), lots of homemade cookies and of course lots of meals. I try to do my best to not have a lot of food waste so that I can make sure to stretch my budget as far as possible and use a menu plan to get the most out of everything.
I was a little worried with the amount of money that I spent way too quickly in the month (which happens sometimes based on the deals that are available. I started the month off with a big trip to Aldi to get a bunch of things that we didn't have plus oranges for soccer. I also had to stock up on Wegman's stuff and I was by the store at a work conference so I went less than 5 minutes on my way home to get a few times there. I also grabbed some freebies at Giant and more necessary ingredients at Aldi to get my lasagna finally made! Then the busy part of the month came because super doubles started near the middle of the month.
I grabbed lots of deals at Harris Teeter with the help of rain checks and a few other deals and coupons. I went a little crazy with a lot of things that we didn't really need right then that were great deals because of the super doubles time like my trip to get Finish Dish washer detergent and Jet Dry Rinse Aid. I was going to try to fit in one more trip to the store but I ran out of energy so I didn't make it another time. One final trip to Aldi to get the last trip of the month or so I thought. My mother in law came into town and she paid for two other small trips to the store to get some special treats for my son (aka the most spoiled grandson because he is the only one on both sides of the family) where he asked for ice cream and ice cream bars "because two is better." Grammie bought it along with some veggies and fruits for herself. She paid $27.55 over the two trips but lots of the food was for her so I didn't take pictures.
Here is what I got and the totals spent. If they are highlighted, I posted about the details of the trips and you can click on the amount and see all the ins and outs of the trips.
Aldi $29.49
I was a little worried with the amount of money that I spent way too quickly in the month (which happens sometimes based on the deals that are available. I started the month off with a big trip to Aldi to get a bunch of things that we didn't have plus oranges for soccer. I also had to stock up on Wegman's stuff and I was by the store at a work conference so I went less than 5 minutes on my way home to get a few times there. I also grabbed some freebies at Giant and more necessary ingredients at Aldi to get my lasagna finally made! Then the busy part of the month came because super doubles started near the middle of the month.
I grabbed lots of deals at Harris Teeter with the help of rain checks and a few other deals and coupons. I went a little crazy with a lot of things that we didn't really need right then that were great deals because of the super doubles time like my trip to get Finish Dish washer detergent and Jet Dry Rinse Aid. I was going to try to fit in one more trip to the store but I ran out of energy so I didn't make it another time. One final trip to Aldi to get the last trip of the month or so I thought. My mother in law came into town and she paid for two other small trips to the store to get some special treats for my son (aka the most spoiled grandson because he is the only one on both sides of the family) where he asked for ice cream and ice cream bars "because two is better." Grammie bought it along with some veggies and fruits for herself. She paid $27.55 over the two trips but lots of the food was for her so I didn't take pictures.
Here is what I got and the totals spent. If they are highlighted, I posted about the details of the trips and you can click on the amount and see all the ins and outs of the trips.
Aldi $29.49
Wegman's $20.78
Giant $2.65
Aldi $2.80
Total Retail $482.78
Total Savings $343.09
Total OOP $139.69
I am pretty impressed with all that I got and how little I spent being $20.31 under budget. I guess I could have fit that one more trip into get some deals at super doubles at Harris Teeter but I didn't add up anything which is not something that I should have admitted but there is the honest truth.
We did have some big take out this month with one trip for Chinese food $42.55 and one trip for pizza $5.30. We normally try to stay under $25 for the month but we had company and we treated for Chinese (per my husband...not sure why he insisted but he did). Great thing is that we were under budget so it worked out pretty evenly for the month.
How did you do for the month?
Total Savings $343.09
Total OOP $139.69
I am pretty impressed with all that I got and how little I spent being $20.31 under budget. I guess I could have fit that one more trip into get some deals at super doubles at Harris Teeter but I didn't add up anything which is not something that I should have admitted but there is the honest truth.
We did have some big take out this month with one trip for Chinese food $42.55 and one trip for pizza $5.30. We normally try to stay under $25 for the month but we had company and we treated for Chinese (per my husband...not sure why he insisted but he did). Great thing is that we were under budget so it worked out pretty evenly for the month.
How did you do for the month?
You are awesome, Alison! I wish I had access to your stores and your coupons... and your shopping expertise! Great job this month! You did lots of stocking up and came in under your budget! High Five to you!! :)
ReplyDeleteThanks!! I think that I got a lot of things...not necessarily the things that we need but some great deals and great prices. I did a lot of baking to make up for it but food is getting in short supply here now and I am avoiding the grocery shopping so we might be in trouble soon. Here is hoping that I get out of my grocery shopping funk and make it to the store soon to get some food for us to make it through the month!!! The stores here are pretty good but the cost of living is really high so I guess that I make it work the best that I can with sales and coupons to stock up on things and cook at home which is the same thing that you do!! Thanks for the high five and sending one right back to you :)
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