Monday, September 17, 2012

Food Spending Sept. Week 2, Meal Planning Sept. Week 3





       US Govt. Poster From WWII
***************************************

And here is the "meal plan" that actually happened last week.....


Sunday--Chicken Enchiladas, Caesar Salad
Monday--Steak Tips in Gravy over Brown Rice, Green Beans
Tuesday--Tacos
Wednesday--Pizza
Thursday--Leftovers
Friday--Salmon, Asparagus on the Grill
Saturday--Chinese take-out
The weekly food spending was  $170.02.  $130.37 in reg. grocery spending and $39.65 at Rite-Aid.
Ugh.
While I got some really good deals and accomplished a savings rate of between 45.55% and 56% at the grocery store, it's still a big chunk of money spent.
I spent the $50 on needs as planned and then I did some stock-ups/rock bottom prices on yogurt, spaghetti sauce, chicken, steak, salmon, taco shells, whack biscuits, dehydrated potatoes, pizza rolls for the teen and I bought 4 boxes of cereal.  
I had to laugh at myself buying cereal again.  Besides the casual box or two of cereal I got for free or almost free in my Rite-aid scenarios over the last few years, I haven't 'on purpose' bought cold cereal since the Fall of 2009.
That Summer and Fall I took advantage of a couple of amazing Sales Promotion by Acme markets.  Here's a couple of photos of some of what I got back then....



Let me also mention it was the last time I bought a nasty Pop-Tart....lol


One of those hauls included 19 boxes of cereal, the other one included 45 boxes.  Of course 27 of those boxes ended up going HERE, but I digress.
The point is, I haven't gone out of my way to buy cereal for us until last week, when I bought 4 boxes.  When it was here in such large quantities the kids ignored it and had to be threatened with bodily harm to get them to eat it.  Bring 4 boxes into a "cereal barren landscape" and they are fighting over who gets it first!  I guess it's basic economic theory--the scarcity of a product imbues it with magical powers and the marketplace will set it's value.
Go figure......

I've spent $249.92 of my $400 monthly food budget so far this month. 
I am going into the new week with these leftovers......a tiny bit of taco meat, which I will add to the new filling for the Enchiladas.

***********************

This week's menu.....
Sunday--Burgers on Rolls, Corn
Monday--Stuffed Shells, Green Beans
Tuesday--Beef Enchiladas, leftover Corn
Wednesday--Spaghetti and Meatballs, Salad
Thursday--Pork Chops, Potatoes, Beets
Friday--Leftovers-only 2 home
Saturday--Leftovers
 
What I need to buy this week to serve this menu?.....Ground Beef, Salad Greens.  
Milk, Fruit and some stock-ups('Crack' noodles aka Kraft boxed dinners)will also happen this week.  I'm hoping to "get by" spending $65 this week.
No wait!  There is a Catalina Deal and Hubs needs coffee.
Oh crap.....looks like I'll be going over $400 this month too.
Come back to see how badly I stray from my budget next week! ;-)

So what are you cooking at your house this week?

Sluggy

5 comments:

  1. WOW--what a haul. The cereal would be gone quickly in my house--Cheerios and Golden Grahams are Kevin's favorite---and he eats them in "Jethro" bowls!!! Love your menus. I so need to start doing that again--I save time and money then!! Thanks for the anniversary wishes--some times it feels like a long time and some times it feels like it was just yesterday!!! Hope y'all have a great week. Take care.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Holy cereal haul! :-) I'm making chicken & broccoli fettuccine tonight, leftovers tomorrow, & maybe a chili mac casserole for Wednesday. I'll be out of town the rest of the week. Yeah for a short cooking week!

    ReplyDelete
  3. I was buying cereal on great sales, getting four boxes of Cheerios and a gallon of milk for $8.19 by using coupons and other means on top of sales and deals. Over three weeks, I accumulated a dozen boxes. Therefore, I wanted no cereal. I gave away a couple of boxes. When the last box ran out, I was pacing the house, hoping I had stashed a box somewhere.

    Wednesday, I am baking lots of chicken-four breasts and two leg/thigh portions. I have a chicken casserole planned.

    ReplyDelete
  4. gOOD JOB! We got a free quesidilla maker this weekend and would you believe we're all out of shredded cheese now??... sigh. BUT dinner last night was DELISH!

    ReplyDelete
  5. The men folk are thrilled. We are eating our frozen pizza stash. It only heats the house up for about 25 minutes. I throw together a salad and call it a meal. My fans are loving me.

    blessings, jill

    ReplyDelete

Hey there! Thanks for leaving a comment.
All Anonymous commentors will be deleted.
Please include your name in your comment, or choose the 'Name' option and put your name or whatever you call yourself, in the box. Thank you.

Though I moderate it's partly to keep trolls at bay but also partly so that I read every comment. I don't often respond to comments so if you need me to answer you please write me at my email addy posted on my "About Me" page, linked on the side bar.