Food & Toiletries Spending .....May 2018

Onward to May's food spending report.......

Here are my FOOD BUDGET spending totals for MAY 2018.

I have posted May's totals on the Total Grocery Savings Page located HERE and have updated the Totals there.
I am listing subtotals for each store I purchased from in May.  If you aren't interested in that much detail, just skip to the bottom for the Totals Sum.  My spending includes Food, Toiletries/HBA, Cleaning Products, Paper Goods & tax where applicable. We are a family of 3-5(4 at home this month). No "kids" under 22.

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

BREAD OUTLET
OOP  $18.50
Value  $59.66
Savings  69%

DOLLAR GENERAL
OOP  $40.12
Value  $67.87
Savings   40.89%

DOLLAR TREE
OOP  $16.00
Value  $31.66
Savings  49.46%

MAINE SOURCE
OOP  $46.47
Value  $74.66
Savings  37.76%

OLLIE'S
OOP  $28.62
Value  $68.88
Savings  58.45%

RITE-AID
OOP  $0.00
Qs/Ads/PP/BC  $815.68
Value  $815.68
Savings  100%

SHURSAVE
OOP  $28.06
Qs/Ads  $26.42
Value  $54.48
Savings  48.49%

WEIS MARKETS

OOP  $253.45

Qs/Ads  $168.33

Value  $421.78

Savings  39.91%

*********************
My best 3 Store Savings Totals were Rite-Aid at 100%, the Bread Outlet  at 69% and Ollie's at 58.45%.  My worst savings rate was from Maine Source at 37.76%.

I shopped at 8 different stores this past month.  

TOTAL Out of Pocket for May..........$596.99

TOTAL Coupons/Store Sales...$544.92

TOTAL Value of Items Purchased.........$1,141.91

TOTAL Savings of ................................47.72%

TOTAL Out of Pocket for May.....$596.99
TOTAL Value of Items Purchased w/Rite-Aid....$1957.59
TOTAL Coupons/Store Sales.........$1360.60
TOTAL Savings with Rite-Aid items........69.50%

This closes out the May food/toiletries spending.

THOUGHTS & COMMENTS for this month.....
May was a frugal challenge here.  Between good stock up deals, company coming and Daughter's "diet" my food budget got sunk.  I was $196.99 over what I like to spend per month.
On a whim I bought 11 lbs. of T-Bone steaks at half price to put into the freezer so that when we get a hankering for a good hunk of beef this Summer we have it to throw onto the grill.  The steak alone was $44.54 of that overage I spent. 8-(

But not to worry, we have the cash to pay for it all so I'll just dust myself off and begin anew in June to stay below $400 per month on food spending.
And after all, I am feeding 4 adults on that amount which even in a good month is a challenge. 8-)))

The monthly food spending savings percentage went DOWN by 5.42% in May 2018 to 69.50% compared to April's 74.92% savings average.
The free stuff from Rite-Aid skewers my averages but without R-A I am at 47.72% savings.  So even without R-A we are doing well on the "savings" front.

With 5 months accounted for, I have spent a Grand Total of $2219.41 on food/toiletries in 2018 which is a 74.38% savings rate for the year so far and averages out to $443.88 spent per month in 2018.  We were almost at $400 per month average spending last month but my overshooting the food budget in May blew that goal up for now. lolz


LOOKING AHEAD To June.......
Keeping with that $400 food budget for June. If I can stay under $400, more's the better.

If you have other ideas or guidelines you follow please leave a comment and share yours with us all.

*  How much did you spend on food/toiletries in May?
*  Do you track your yearly food spending?
*  What was your savings percentage buying on sale and/or with coupons vs. buying at regular retail price last month, if you track that sort of thing?
*  What are your methods for keeping your food spending in check?

Is anyone out there up for tracking expenditures and trying to spend less but still eat well?


Sluggy

This Week on The Dining Table

The "Back Home Now & It's Cold as Heck Here!" Edition.......

 

 

This is a Caprese Salad I made a couple of weeks before we went to Ocean City, when we still had fresh tomatoes from our garden.
I can honestly say now.....I am not a fan.  Don't know what all the fuss over it is about.
Do you like this dish?

Here are the meals that were planned last week--sort of--
 

Sunday--pizza out
Monday--steak, fries out
Tuesday--1/2 fish sandwich, 1/2 sweet potato fries, cup of crab soup out
Wednesday--other half of Tuesday's dinner ate in the room
Thursday--turkey sandwich at home
Friday--bratwurst on roll, strawberries at home
Saturday--whatever I can find at the house if Judy doesn't come over, otherwise a roast chicken or eating out

Everything was eaten as planned except Friday I had leftover Broccoli Soup and Strawberries and Saturday was Roast Chicken, Carrots and Potatoes.

As for food spending last week.....there was one trip to the store on Saturday, I spent $48.41 on $65.39 worth of groceries at 1 store.
I had $36.74 left in the food budget so I went over by a bit this month.

I didn't include the little out of pocket spent this month at Rite-Aid yet for October and that will add another $7.97 spent out of the food/toiletries budget.

No food waste while we were gone.

Leftovers going into this week--1 bratwurst, leftover roast chicken with carrots and potatoes.

Here's this week's meal plan---

Sunday--Clam Chowder
Monday--Tacos(I'll probably have a chicken sandwich and a part of a bag of frozen veggies.)
Tuesday--leftovers
Wednesday--Lasagna, Salad
Thursday--leftovers
Friday--London Broil, Asparagus
Saturday--leftovers or something scrounged around the house


I'll be posting my final October food spending post in the next day or two since I won't be going grocery shopping again this month.

What got fixed and served at your house this week?

Sluggy

This Week on the Dining Table

The "Still Hobbling Around" Edition......

 

Look at all those ripe tomatoes still on my plants!  I wish I could get out there and pick them so I can can them.....sigh.....

 Here's what was planned last week--

Sunday--Leftovers (I had my leftover Chinese Food.)
Monday--Leftover London Broil cut thin for beef hoagies(with caramelized onions and melted provolone cheese), stir fried Green Beans
Tuesday--Roasted Chicken with Onions & Carrots, Stuffing(for the menfolk), Cranberry "Glop"
Wednesday--Frozen Pizzas(I can have a small piece), Caprese Salad
Thursday--Broccoli Casserole, maybe Pork chops if I can dig them out, Applesauce
Friday--no clue but will probably involve tomatoes and/or green beans lolz
Saturday--ditto

And here's what actually got eaten--

Sunday--Leftovers (I had my leftover Chinese Food.)
Monday--Leftover London Broil cut thin for beef hoagies(with caramelized onions and melted provolone cheese), stir fried Green Beans
Tuesday--Roasted Chicken with Onions & Carrots, Stuffing(for the menfolk), Cranberry "Glop"
Wednesday--Frozen Pizzas(I can have a small piece)
Thursday--I was the only one home for dinner so I made a piece of fish, and green beans.
Friday--BLTs, yet again....lol and Broccoli Casserole
Saturday--Hubs had leftover chicken and broccoli casserole, I had a turkey sandwich and salad.

Through Wednesday was on plan and then the wheels flew off the bus. lol  We didn't get take-out or spend on more groceries at that point, deciding instead to work on eating some leftover and surplus tomatoes and beans and going to the freezer/stockpile to see what we could find.   It all worked out for the best. 8-)

  

As for food spending last week.....I spent $100.86 on $197.03 worth of groceries at 2 stores and the farm stand.  Actually Hubs spent the $ as I was in no shape to go shopping(except for riding out to the farm).  I have $193.67 remaining of my $400 September food budget with 6 days to go in the month.

As for food waste, nothing last week. 8-))

Leftovers going into this week--still more green beans and tomatoes from the garden.

Here's this week's meal plan---
 

Sunday--Pork Chops(freezer), Green Beans(garden), leftover Stuffing, Applesauce(from stockpile)
Monday--Dinner at TGIFridays(I had an appetizer and water, Hubs had a burger and iced tea.)
Tuesday--Roast Chicken(freezer), Brussel Sprouts(freezer), leftover Applesauce
Wednesday--Halushki(noodles from stockpile, cabbage from farm stand) with Bacon(freezer)
Thursday--Rigatoni w/Meat Sauce(meat from freezer/pasta from stockpile/sauce made from stockpile ingredients), some veggie from the freezer OR Fend for Yourself-not sure which yet
Friday--No plan yet, eating out
Saturday--My brother will probably want to eat at a pizza joint so not sure what I'll get there.

On the shopping list......I cooked a chicken breast for lunchmeat so no deli meat will be bought this week.  What I need to buy to prepare the meals above are a head of cabbage(picked up already at the farm stand).  That's it as I have everything else either in the stockpile or freezer.  I do need to pick up some staples we are out of like cornstarch, vinegar(on sale this week), yogurts for me(on sale this week), milk and a bag of dog kibble.  I'm still in no position to do a full-on grocery shop so I don't foresee spending more than $25 at the grocery store this week.

That's what's appearing on the kitchen table this week here at Chez Sluggy. 
  

 What's getting fixed and served at your house this week?

Sluggy

This Week On The Dining Table

 This reminds me, it's almost lunch time! woohoo!!

 

Here's what was planned last week--

Sunday--Leftovers(Quiche or Enchiladas)
Monday--Hot Dogs(on leftover buns)w/Chili or Burritos w/Chili
Tuesday--Chicken Salad Sandwiches, boxed veggie
Wednesday--Eating out after taking #2 to camp
Thursday--Mushroom Parmesan, Salad
Friday--Probably more leftovers
Saturday--Salmon, Coleslaw, boxed veggie

 

Everything was served as planned except for Fri. and Sat. meals were switched.

 

It was another big spend grocery week here with the addition of stopping at the grocery outlet on Saturday.  I also bought some food items at Big Lots the previous week and forgot to add those costs in to my spending.  I spent $167.64  on $298.93 worth of groceries at 3 stores last week(+ 1 from previous week).   So much for my "only spending $38 on food" last week, huh? lol
 

This means I have $140.69 left in my food budget for the rest of July(or $70+ change for each of the next 2 weeks).
I have a 43.56% savings rate at this point in the month.

 

Going into this week the leftovers that remain are-some chili, hot dog and burger rolls, small tortillas, a portion of salmon, cole slaw, chicken salad and some pepper strips that came out of the freezer. 

I also have a large quantity of mozzarella cheese that was in the freezer that needs to get used as it's taking up fridge space and won't last forever in there. 

I'll have some of the chicken salad for lunch today and the rest I'll feed to the dogs w/their dinner-no grapes in it so no worries.  We've had a lunch and a dinner using it and it's not going to be "fresh" beyond today so the pups will feel special tonight dining on human food.

 

(I've made bold the leftover items I've used in the menu below.)

 Here's this week's meal plan--
 

Sunday--Chicken Fajitas(using some tortillas and pepper strips)
Monday--BLTs, cole slaw
Tuesday--Chicken Sandwiches(using some hamburger rolls), corn, pickles
Wednesday--Lasagna(using some of the mozzarella cheese), Green Salad (Very small piece for me but a really big salad.)
Thursday--Pork Chops, Green Beans(from last Summer's garden), Roasted Potatoes or Mashed
Friday--homemade Pizza(using more of that mozzarella cheese), Green Salad (I'll have leftover something instead and a salad.)
Saturday--Leftovers

It's going to be a scorcher this week so I plan on running the oven Tue. and Fri. only.  I'll cook the lasagna on Tues. while I am cooking the chicken for sandwiches and on Wed. we can reheat the lasagna in the microwave oven.  The pork chops and potatoes on Thurs. will be grilled outside.  I might attempt grilling the pizza on Fri. instead of using the oven.  Wish me luck with that! lol

On the shopping list for these meals--Ricotta cheese, lettuces and turkey deli meat.  That's it.  I may pick up some OJ and fruit(maybe a cantaloupe)but we still have cherries, grapes and that watermelon I didn't slice up yet so we are good for now.  I'll be going to the farm stand next week so saving my food budget money for fresh local veggies at the end of July.

 

I'm figuring about $25 for the list above.  After last week, I need a low spending food week. 8-)

That's what's appearing on the kitchen table this week here at Chez Sluggy.

 What's getting fixed and served at your house this week?

Sluggy

Food Budget Talk....the Good and the Bad

I usually budget $400 per month for food and toiletries for our family of 4(there are 5 of us but oldest son is at college).
But with being in the hospital at the beginning of April and the family loose without a list or a clue in the grocery store in my absence(!!!)because I wasn't able to get to the store yet, AND then with the special foods and changes to my diet which cost more than what I usually spend, I didn't know whether I'll be able to stay under the $400 mark.

The family picked stuff up here and there the first half of April and managed to make a $122.61 dent in our food budget.  We were eating mostly from what was here but they still managed to go to the store every other day for 2 weeks, buying non-sale items.....don't even THINK they used a coupon! lol

From the 17th through the 21st, under my watch, we were able to spend $232.91.
5 days.....$232.91
Yikes!

Most of that was $123.12 at the Restaurant Supply Store where I got some awesome deals.
The produce deals seem much better here compared to weekly sales at the local market too.  Even the regular prices on fresh produce are good.
Here are some comparisons to the prices they charge in the grocers locally......

* 9.27 lbs. of colorful peppers for $9.17 vs. $1 per pepper on sale at Weis(would have cost $22)
* 6.05 lbs. of zuke and squash for $5.99 vs. $9.11 at $1.49 lb. on sale at local grocer
* On the vine tomatoes for $1.29 lb. vs. $2.99 lb. or $1.99 on sale at local grocer
* Bag of red potatoes for $1.49 vs. $3.49 at local grocer
* Large loose mushrooms for $2.69 lb. vs. $3.99 lb. loose or $4 for 2-8 oz. containers at local grocer
* Jumbo frozen shrimp for $16.99 for a 2lb. bag vs. $24.99 a 2lb. bag on sale at local grocer
* 5lb. bag of frozen peaches for $10.99 vs. $17.45 for 5 x $3.49 a 1lb. bag in the grocer
* 1 lb. of crabmeat for $7.99 vs. $10.99 on sale at local grocer
* $1.29 for a dozen eggs vs. $1.89(this week) at local grocer
* Even a gallon of mayonnaise for $8.99 vs. 4 jars of Kraft or Hellman's at $3 ea.($12) on sale or $3.99($15.96) reg. price in the grocery store AND it's lower in sodium than those others.)
* 8.10 lbs. ground chuck for $2.49 lb. vs. $3.49 lb. reg. price charged at local grocer

Add 1 2ltr. of soda, a watermelon, iced tea & a cheesecake(for Daughter), and a case of paper plates(Summer entertaining!lol) and we did pretty well at the store.
$123.12 vs. $175.16(using local grocer sale prices if on sale).
I'll take it! 8-))

Unfortunately I'm not done spending on groceries for the month.
I racked up a $75.77 bill yesterday at the grocer.  Most of it was goodies for the bottomless pit I call #2 Son(lunchmeat, cheese, bagel thins, frozen chicken, ice cream, frozen French fries, breakfast cookies, etc.)  The "good" groceries were OJ, facial tissues, decaf teabags, no salt added canned tomatoes, bread crumbs, vinegar, 1 box of cereal, sugar, 6 bags of frozen veggies, a piece of ginger and more fresh produce(lemons, cuke, mango, lettuce, apples, strawberries).

With that trip I am up to $431.29.
Kaboom!  I am officially over budget.
8-(
And I'll probably make another trip to the Restaurant Outlet this weekend for more fresh produce as Daughter has talked me into "juicing" with her.
More on that later......

I'll now shoot for keeping the budget under $500 for April.

How is your food budget doing this month?
Better or worse than expected?

Sluggy

 

MARCH 2013 Budget Results....Food & Toiletries Spending

Here are my FOOD BUDGET spending totals for MARCH 2013.

I have posted March's totals on the right side bar under Total Grocery Savings for 2013 and updated the Yearly Totals.
I am listing subtotals for each store I purchased from in March.  If you aren't interested in that much detail, just skip to the bottom for the Totals Summary.

My spending includes Food, Toiletries/HBA, Pet Supplies, Cleaning Products, Paper Goods & tax where applicable.We are a family of 5(4 at home this month)& 2 dogs. No kids under 16.
******************

BREAD OUTLET

OOP  $5.78

Value  $21.34

Savings   73%

MAINE SOURCE(restaurant supply)

OOP  $153.15

Value  $245.07

Savings   37.50%

SHURSAVE STORES(small local independent affiliated stores)
OOP  $99.06

Qs/Ads  $46.41

Value  $145.47

Savings  32%

WEIS MARKETS

OOP  $79.45

Qs/Ads  $33.57

Value  $113.02

Savings  29.70%

I am no longer adding my rebates received into my food budget directly. I will use them on food on occasion and will note that when used.  I will keep track of rebates/gift cards/certs received here as before however.

REBATE CHECKS RECEIVED IN February.....$5.00

GIFT CARDS and CERTIFICATES....$0

TOTAL Value of Cash/Store Checks/Gift Card Rebates Received...$5.00

COUPONS and FREEBIES

Zero

*********************
My best 3 Store Savings Totals were the Bread Outlet at 73%,  the Restaurant Supply Store at 37.50% and Shursave affiliate market at 32%.  l only shopped at 4 different stores this past month. 8-)

TOTAL Out of Pocket........$337.44

TOTAL Coupons & Store Sales Savings...$154.17

TOTAL Value of Items Purchased............$491.61

TOTAL Savings of...................................31.36%

This closes out the March food/toiletries spending.

THOUGHTS & COMMENTS for this month.....

I went into March with $400 budgeted for food/toiletries for the month.  I have $62.56 leftover in my March food envelope. 

I didn't count the number of Qs that were redeemed in March but there were very few.  I did NO Rite-Aid shopping in March, which lead to a substantially lower savings rate overall.  My almost free shopping at Rite-Aid always brings up my rate of savings for the grocery stores.

Looking ahead to April---We'll stick to our $400 food budget again this month.  With the sudden changes I need to make to my diet this month I am not sure how this will affect our food budget.  I suspect we will need to spend more on food. April will see some changes in our food spending.

 

And here is the run down of my Food & Toiletries Spending for 2013 so far--

2013 Total Saved $932.72

2013 Yearly Total Value of Items  $1,914.70

2013 Yearly Total Spent $990.98

2013 Yearly Savings Total of 48.25%

How much did you spend on food in March?
 

Sluggy

FEBRUARY 2013 Budget Results....Food & Toiletries Spending

Here are my FOOD BUDGET spending totals for FEBRUARY 2013.

I have posted February's totals on the right side bar under Total Grocery Savings for 2013 and updated the Yearly Totals.
I am listing subtotals for each store I purchased from in February.  If you aren't interested in that much detail, just skip to the bottom for the Totals Summary.

My spending includes Food, Toiletries/HBA, Pet Supplies, Cleaning Products, Paper Goods & tax where applicable.We are a family of 5(4-5 at home this month)& 2 dogs. No kids under 16.
******************

OLLIE'S

OOP  $20.57

Value  $42.09

Savings   51.13%

RITE-AID

OOP  $0.00

Qs/Ads/+Ups/Gift Card  $97.63

Value  $97.63

Savings   100%

SHURSAVE STORES(small local independent affiliated stores)
OOP  $138.50

Qs/Ads  $84.61

Value  $223.11

Savings  38%

WEIS MARKETS

OOP  $204.23

Qs/Ads  $112.20

Value  $316.43

Savings  35.46%

I am no longer adding my rebates received into my food budget directly. I will use them on food on occasion and will note that when used.  I will keep track of rebates/gift cards/certs received here as before however.

REBATE CHECKS RECEIVED IN February.....$16.99

GIFT CARDS and CERTIFICATES....$15.00

TOTAL Value of Cash/Store Checks/Gift Card Rebates Received...$16.99

COUPONS and FREEBIES

Zero

*********************
My best 3 Store Savings Totals were the Rite-Aid at 100%,  Ollie's at 51.13% and Shursave affiliate market at 38%.  l only shopped at 4 different stores this past month. 8-)

TOTAL Out of Pocket........$363.30

TOTAL Coupons & Store Sales Savings...$315.96

TOTAL Value of Items Purchased............$679.26

TOTAL Savings of...................................46.52%

This closes out the February food/toiletries spending.

THOUGHTS & COMMENTS for this month.....

I went into February with $400 budgeted for food/toiletries for the month.  I have $36.70 leftover in my February food envelope. 

I didn't count the number of Qs that were redeemed in Feb. but I do know it was quite low.   The little I bought at Rite-Aid for no money greatly affected my savings rate this month. 

Looking ahead to March---We'll stick to our $400 food budget again this month.  It seems to be working for us at this amount. 

 

And here is the run down of my Food & Toiletries Spending for 2013 so far--

2013 Total Saved $769.55

2013 Yearly Total Value of Items  $1,423.09

2013 Yearly Total Spent $653.54

2013 Yearly Savings Total of 54.08%

How much did you spend on food in February?
 

Sluggy

Meal Planning March Week 1 & Food Spending Feb. Week 4

And here is what actually got served last week......

Sunday-Chicken Parmesan al fresco, Spinach Salad, Lemon Cake

Monday--Pizza, Clementines

Tuesday--Pulled Pork on rolls, Coleslaw

Wednesday--Leftovers

Thursday--Kielbasa, Beans, Coleslaw

Friday--Clam Chowder, Fish fillets, Coleslaw

Saturday--Leftovers

I served everything planned,except the Stuffed Shells, which move to this week.

The food spending last week?

I spent $58.85 in 2 trips to the local Shursave affiliated grocer.

Of that amount, $25.84 was spent on food consumed last week and the other $33.01 was spent on stocking up on deals like butter, local honey, microwaveable lunches and pre-made meatballs for the freezer as I may be laid up a couple days after my dentist appt. on Wednesday.   The meatballs give Hubs another option if I am not cooking.

I've spent $338.46 and I am left at this point with $61.54 in my food budget for 3 more days.

As for leftovers rolling into this week--Pulled Pork sammies, Coleslaw and Clam Chowder.

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

Here is what is getting served this week.....

Sunday-Subway Sammies

Monday--Hamburgers, Clementines, Fries

Tuesday--Stuffed Shells, Roasted Cauliflower, Garlic Bread

Wednesday--Leftover Pulled Pork sammies, Coleslaw

Thursday--Tuna Noodle Casserole, Asparagus

Friday--Beef Pie w/Cornbread Topping

Saturday--Sweet Potatoes and Leftovers

Wednesday I am serving leftovers and Thursday I have a prepped casserole on deck.  I won't feel like cooking and these are things Hubs can "cook".  If I am still not up to snuff on Friday Hubs can choose to make the Beef Pie or just go get some take-out or have leftovers, as I might still be eating just soup.

Needed at the store to serve the meals I am making this week?  

Asparagus, Sweet Potatoes and Cauliflower.  We also need eggs, milk, fresh fruit and OJ. 

Other than that I don't know what I'll be buying yet.  With $60+ left for 3 days I'll be staying under budget going into March 1st and a new $400 for groceries.

A few words about where my Menu is headed......

I am trying to change up my menus and what we eat in general here.  With the kids' schedules I never know how many are going to be eating dinner at home each night.  This makes it near impossible to get my meal sizes right and we either end up with not enough on the table or having way too many leftovers.

I have also cut way back on the dishes I serve that call for cheese, rice and noodles.  Believe me, if I could, I'd cut out pasta totally!  But having a Hubs who was raised in an ethnic Italian household, he would divorce me if I tried. lol

I've also been trying to find better ways to prepare foods we like by changing or taking out simple carb components. We are "de-whiting" our diet, meaning changing or eliminating the white carbohydrate foods like refined sugar, white rice, white flour, white noodles, white breads.There is nothing scientific to the way we are proceeding, it's more of a learn as we go process.

In order to get more veggies into our meal times I have begun changing how/what I serve.  I am moving away from the traditional 1 meat, 1 starch, 1 vegetable dinner plate scenario toward a 1 meat, 1 vegetable plate, with other vegetable based side dishes also served.  And sometimes the meat is also missing from the dinner plate.

We are working on finding more exciting ways to prepare veggies too, that don't include frying, battering, breading, or covering with cheese.

It isn't easy doing this, since all 4 of us at home enjoy/thrive on different foods and different percentages of each type of food.  I am not a pasta lover but Hubs is.  Hubs is not a raw food or salad eater and I could eat this way every day.   Hubs insists on meat...not protein, MEAT, so we are working on better ways to prepare it.  If you feel the need to share your Tofu recipes, just keep moving.  Tofu and being Vegan isn't happening here. ;-)

#2 Son eats veggies but his repertoire is limited and most veggies he wants cooked in meat products, plus he likes all that processed stuff.  Daughter eats everything but she loves comfort foods which include all those white foods I am trying to limit.

We are making baby steps toward a new way of eating for us.  Some weeks we do better than others but overall we are making progress.  This week won't see any progress due to my tooth emergency. 

What's on your menu for the week?  

Any good deals at the grocers this week?
Did you have any food waste this week?

Sluggy

JANUARY 2013 Budget Results....Food & Toiletries Spending

Here are my FOOD BUDGET spending totals for JANUARY 2013.

I have posted January's totals on the right side bar under Total Grocery Savings for 2013 and updated the Yearly Totals.
I am listing subtotals for each store I purchased from in January.  If you aren't interested in that much detail, just skip to the bottom for the Totals Summary.

My spending includes Food, Toiletries/HBA, Pet Supplies, Cleaning Products, Paper Goods & tax where applicable.We are a family of 5(4-5 at home this month)& 2 dogs. No kids under 16.
******************

RITE-AID

OOP  $0.00

Qs/Ads/+Ups/Gift Card  $211.88

Value  $211.88

Savings   100%

SHURSAVE STORES(small local independent affiliated stores)
OOP  $162.29

Qs/Ads  $138.58

Value  $300.87

Savings  46.06%

WEIS MARKETS

OOP  $127.95

Qs/Ads  $103.13

Value  $231.08

Savings  44.63%

I don't track Rite-Aid's +Ups here, nor CVS's ECBs & Walgreen's RRs. They will be included when used on purchases under "Coupons".   I'll keep track of what rebates are received monthly.  Rebate money/gift cards will be considered 'income' & will go into the Food/Toiletries budget, offsetting the Out of Pocket. Cash will go immediately into the Budget kitty, while Gift Cards will be calculated in when spent.

REBATE CHECKS RECEIVED IN January.....$16.00

GIFT CARDS and CERTIFICATES....$0.00

TOTAL Value of Cash/Store Checks/Gift Card Rebates Received...$16.00

COUPONS and FREEBIES

5 x Free 12 packs Coke products

1 x Free 20 oz. Coke products

2 x Movie Tickets Coke Sweepstakes win

2 x Large Movie Sodas Coke Sweepstakes win

*********************
My best 3 Store Savings Totals were the Rite-Aid at 100%,  Shursave affiliate market at 46.06% and Weis markets at 44.63%.  l only shopped at 3 different stores this past month. 8-)

TOTAL Out of Pocket........$290.24

TOTAL Coupons & Store Sales Savings...$453.59

TOTAL Value of Items Purchased............$743.83

TOTAL Savings of...................................60.98%

This closes out the January food/toiletries spending.

THOUGHTS & COMMENTS for this month.....

I went into January with $400 budgeted for food/toiletries for the month.  I have $109.76 leftover in my January food envelope.  And I spent so little and even stocked up on pet food in January.

I redeemed 26 manufacturer's coupons at the 2 grocery stores(1/3 were Peelies, 1/3 were Instant Store discount Stickers and the last 1/3 were ManuQs) and 17 coupons at the drug store. 

I also earned and spent 1 x $10 Catalina Q at Weis.
I tried to get us to eat down some frozen foods this month so I could defrost my freezer.  I found some neglected items buried in the back which we make a pretty successful effort to use up.
Go us! ;-)

Looking ahead to February---We'll stick to our $400 food budget again this month.  It seems to be working for us at this amount.  I'll be changing over some food choices this month and I am curious to see how this affects our spending.

 

And here is the run down of my Food & Toiletries Spending for 2013 so far--

2013 Total Saved $453.59

2013 Yearly Total Value of Items  $743.83

2013 Yearly Total Spent $290.24

2013 Yearly Savings Total of 60.98%


Sluggy