Food Spending....the March Edition

Onward to March's Food Spending Report.....

Here are my FOOD BUDGET spending totals for March 2025.

I have posted Maarch's totals on the Total Grocery Savings Page located  and have updated the Totals there. 
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 Sum.  My spending includes Food, Toiletries/HBA, Cleaning Products, Paper Goods, Pet Food. We are a family of 2(and 2 dogs).
****************

BROOKSHIRE'S

OOP  $2.77

Sales  $1.52

Value  $4.29

Savings  35.43%

KROGER

OOP  $226.99

Qs/Gift Cards  $242.42

Value $469.41

Savings  51.64%

SHOPPER'S VALU

OOP  $1.21

Value  $3.15

Savings  87.81%

WALMART

OOP  $70.41

Qs/Gift Cards $51.39

Value  $121.80

Savings  42.19%

********************
My best Store Savings Total was at Shopper's Valu with a savings of 87.81% but most of the grocery dollars were spent at Kroger with a savings rate of 51.64%.  My worse rate was at Brookshire's with 35.43%.  Not a bad savings rate average overall though.

I shopped at 4 different stores in MARCH.  

TOTAL Spent in March.....$301.38

TOTAL Coupons/Sales/Gift Cards....$297.27

TOTAL Value of Items Purchased.....$598.65

TOTAL Savings of........49.66%

This closes out the March food/toiletries/etc. spending.

THOUGHTS & COMMENTS for this month....Nice job this month.  Didn't spend a lot, for us, in our situation, but got some good deals and lots of savings.  We are continuing to eat down the freezer and the pantry in preparation for the move.

The Monthly food spending savings percentage went DOWN by 49.66% in March to 6.25% compared to February's 43.41% savings average.  When savings percentage goes down it's a good thing.

Since we have an adequate income and food should be a pleasure in life(no way am I going to eat unseasoned rice and beans for my remaining days like some people-because I don't have to). I will buy quality food and pay the price at the register.  I may not like the price but I will deal with it.

With 3 months accounted for, I have spent a Total of $1,060.43 on groceries/HBA/paper goods/etc. in 2025.

2025 Yearly Total Value of Items  $1,931.05

2025 Total Saved   $870.62

2025 Yearly Total Spent  $1,060.43

2025 Yearly Savings Total of  45.08%

The average per month amount spent is $353.48 in 2025 so far but that's before all the rebate monies are added in.

Remember that I withdraw all my cash rebate monies(Ibotta, Shopmium, TaDa, Checkout 51, Swag Bucks, My Points and other miscellaneous rebates-Aisle, Tremendous, Sampoll  etc. and have it sent to my Paypal)at the end of the year and add it back into my food budget, so at the end of the year my food spending will go down.  I don't add in all the cashed out savings until the end of the year,

The other savings apps like Fetch, Shop Kick, Kroger Cash Back that let us get free gift cards(or $ off your grocery total-Kroger Cash Back), those are added back in when I cash those points in along the way.  Alexa app gave me Amazon credit onto my account but I don't buy food on Amazon(sometimes I buy dog food there)so I really don't know how to count that and it's defunct now so I won't worry about that bit.

Because I don't like to let money sit in these rebate accounts and Paypal, I send $$ to my bank account throughout the year.  So far I have sent $489.82 from various rebating programs and through Paypal to my bank.  If you add in all that my food spending at the 2 month point in 2025 comes in at $269.23 or $134.62 per month.

Besides all I sent to my bank account I have more $ sitting in these various rebating programs as well as in Paypal.  This is not counting Alexa, ShopKick or Fetch, which all comes out in gift cards or Amazon credit.

LOOKING AHEAD TO APRIL 2025....

I have just under 1 month to finish using up what we have in the freezer.  We can take canned goods with us but not the frozen/refrigerated food.

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

*  How much did you spend on food/toiletries in March?

*  Do you track your yearly food spending?  It's really not that hard or time consuming; just keep your receipts and either track it in a notebook or on a spreadsheet.

*  What was your savings percentage buying on sale and/or with coupons versus 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....March 2 to March 8 2025

The "Crazy Bird" Edition........

I hope you can make out the bit of red in the middle of the tree trunk in the photo.  That's the crazy cardinal we've had hanging around the house since we got back from our Christmas trip at the end of December.  He keeps dive bombing the window of Hubs study every day.  We think he sees his reflection and assumes it's another cardinal in "his territory " so is attacking it.  We have put a black garbage bag over the window, tried decals and also tried hanging my large windchimes in the tree to scare him off.  The only thing that works is the windchime, but only when the wind is blowing enough to make them chime.

I guess we are going to have to live with this until we leave.

Here's a short video where I finally caught the bird in action banging his beak into the window.

Onward to the meal planning!

Here is what was planned for the last week.....

1. Sunday--Cheeseburgers, Sweet Potato Fries

2. Monday---Chicken w/Stir-Fry Veggies

3. Tuesday--Meatloaf, Green Beans

4. Wednesday--Beef & Broccoli Stir-Fry

5. Thursday--Leftovers

6. Friday--Leftovers

7. Saturday--Leftovers 

And here's what actually happened....

1. Sunday--Cheeseburgers, Sweet Potato Fries

2. Monday---Chicken w/Stir-Fry Veggies

3. Tuesday--Meatloaf, Green Beans

4. Wednesday--Beef & Broccoli Stir-Fry

5. Thursday--Salmon, Brussels Sprouts

6. Friday--Strawberries & Greek Yogurt

7. Saturday--Leftover Chicken Veggie Stir-Fry

Sunday to Wednesday basically happened as planned.  Then we had some 

brussels sprouts we paired with 

salmon on Thursday so it worked with that night.  Then Friday to Saturday it was Fend for Yourself which was a-ok in my book.

What got taken out of the freezer.......

*  Chicken

*  Beef, thin sliced

*  Salmon

*  4 Hamburgers that had been bought and stuck in the freeze and had to be used or frozen.

Last week we spent $71.45 on groceries and the savings rate came in at 46.26%. Spending for the month is $363.62 and the savings rate is 43.417% for February before rebate monies are added in.

Rebates earned in February-

$108.14 on Ibotta

$9.50 on Checkout51

$20.73 on Aisle and Misc.

$138.37 Total in $$

Total spent after rebates is $225.2

9,998 Pts. on Fetch

674 Pts. on SwagBucks

783 Pts. on My Points

81 Pts. on ShopKick

0 Pts. on TaDa

(I don't count these until I cash out for a gift card or cash.)

Before AND after rebates we had a low spend month for groceries at least for us.

Leftovers going into next week...4 slices of meatloaf, green beans, sweet potato fries, pizza, a Portabello Mushroom Parm, 2 Hamburger patties, Beef and Broccoli.  Most of this will be lunches for someone(probably Hubs as I have  chicken salad and bags of salad to eat.

Here is what was planned for this week.....

1. Sunday--Chicken Parm, Asparagus

2. Monday---Leftover Meatloaf, Yellow Squash

3. Tuesday--Shrimp, Broccoli

4. Wednesday--Rigatoni w/Mushroom Sauce, Green Beans

5. Thursday--Pot Pies(Chicken or Turkey)

6. Friday--Leftovers

7. Saturday--Leftovers 

Just trying to eat down what is here when I'm not getting great deals.  I chose my meals by cherry picking the deals and building meals around those items, combined with what is in my freezer.

What is getting fixed and served at your house this week?

Was last week's plan successful, did you go off plan or did you not even plan what was going to be eaten last week? 

Sluggy  

December Food Spending for 2023

Onward to December's Food Spending Report.....

Here are my FOOD BUDGET spending totals for December 2023.

I have posted December'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 December.  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. We are a family of 2(and 2 dogs).
****************

ALDI

OOP  $21.97

Sales  $9.01

Value  $30.98

Savings  29.08%

DOLLAR GENERAL

OOP  $35.97

Qs Saving $16.73

Value  $54.70

Savings   30.59%

KROGER

OOP  $104.79

Qs/Gift Cards $110.74(cashed in some KCB)

Value $215.53

Savings  51.38%

OCEAN STATE JOB LOT

OOP $21.64

Sales  $18.29

Value $39.93

Savings  45.81%

TRADER JOES

OOP  $7.47

Sales  $3.22

Value  $10.69

Savings  30.12%

WALMART

OOP  $139.64

Qs/Gift Cards $171.27

Value  $310.91

Savings  55.09%

********************
My best Store Savings Total was at Walmart with a savings of 55.09%.  My worse rate was at Aldi with 29.08%.  

I shopped at 6 different stores in DECEMBER.

TOTAL Spent in December......$331.48

TOTAL Coupons/Sales/Gift Cards....$331.26

TOTAL Value of Items Purchased.....$662.74

TOTAL Savings of........49.98%

This closes out the DECEMBER food/toiletries/etc. spending.

THOUGHTS & COMMENTS for this month....

The Monthly food spending savings percentage went DOWN by 14.43% in December to 49.98% compared to November's 64.41% savings average.  Since we have an adequate income and food should be a pleasure in life(no way am I going to eat unseasoned rice and beans for my remaining days like some people)I will buy quality food and pay the price at the register.  I may not like the price but I will deal with it.

With 12 months accounted for, I have spent a Total of $4,791.83 on groceries/HBA/paper goods/etc. in 2023.

2023 Yearly Grand Total Spent....................$4,791.83

2023 Yearly Grand Total Value of Items.....$8,420.62

2023 Grand Total Saved...............................$3,628.79

2023 Yearly Savings Total..............................43.09%

The average per month amount spent is $399.32 in 2023 but that's before all the rebate monies are added in.

Remember that I withdraw all my cash rebate monies(Ibotta, Coupons dotcom, Shopmium, Checkout 51 and other miscellaneous rebates sent to my Paypal)at the end of the year and add it back into my food budget, so at the end of the year my food spending will go down.  The other savings apps like Fetch, Shop Kick, Kroger Cash Back that let us get free gift cards(or $ off your grocery total-Kroger), those are added back in when I cash those points in along the way.  Alexa app gives me Amazon credit onto my account but I don't buy food on Amazon(sometimes I buy dog food there)so I really don't know how to count that.

At the end of 2023, I'd accumulated---

* $1,449.22 from Ibotta

* $195.84 from the old Coupons dotcom

* $183.49 from Shopmium

* $93.14 from TaDa

* $32.15 from Checkout 51

* $18.95 from Aisle

* $10.13 from Sampoll

* $2.18 from Inmar

* $29.74 from Alexa 

That's $1,985.10 in cash and $29.74 in Amazon gift cards.

(I also have $79.93 worth of points in SwagBucks I can't access so until I can get my hands on that I am not counting it.)

This doesn't count any Kroger Cash Back $$, Fetch or Shop Kick as I cash those points out for gift cards to the grocery store I use directly.

So my actual Grocery Spending ends up thusly---

2023 Yearly Grand Total Spent....................$2,806.73

2023 Yearly Grand Total Value of Items.....$8,420.62

2023 Grand Total Saved...............................$5,613.89

2023 Yearly Savings Total..............................66.67%

Now my monthly grocery spending comes to $233.90.

LOOKING AHEAD TO JANUARY 2024.....who knowns what inflation actually is for food as the Federal Government lies and rejiggers the numbers for the most basic needs of it's citizens-food and energy.  These are not included in their CPI.

I just know that if I am paying more for the same products(or companies are shrinking the sizes of their packaging)then yes, food and other consumables are costing more.  This is why I track our spending like I do, so we have a handle on where our money is going.  We are not the Federal Government and can't just print money when our supply runs short.

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

*  How much did you spend on food/toiletries in December?

*  Do you track your yearly food spending?  It's really not that hard or time consuming; just have your receipts and either track it in a notebook or on a spreadsheet.

*  What was your savings percentage buying on sale and/or with coupons versus 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

Food Spending......the August 2023 Edition

*I'm done with food spending for August so this report is a couple of days early.*

 Onward to August's Food Spending Report.....

Here are my FOOD BUDGET spending totals for August 2023.

I have posted August'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 August.  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. We are a family of 2(and 2 dogs).
****************

KROGER

OOP  $326.49

Qs/Gift Cards $180.63

Value $507.12

Savings  35.62%

OLLIE'S

OOP  $28.02

Value  $54.46

Savings  48.55%

SUPER 1 FOODS

OOP  $ 1.97

Value  $3.49

Savings  43.55%

WALMART

OOP  $67.61

Qs/Gift Cards $44.53

Value  $112.14

Savings  39.71%

********************
My best Store Savings Total was at Ollie's with a savings of  48.55%.  My worse rate was  at Kroger with 35.62%.  Unfortunately Kroger is where I spent the bulk of my food shopping money in August. lol

I shopped at 4 different stores in AUGUST.

TOTAL Spent in August......$424.09

TOTAL Coupons/Sales/Gift Cards....$253.16

TOTAL Value of Items Purchased.....$677.21

TOTAL Savings of........37.38%

This closes out the AUGUST food/toiletries/etc. spending.

THOUGHTS & COMMENTS for this month....Well I did a little better staying almost within my budget.  Just shopping the sales and trying not to buy unless something is reduced and I can stockpile it.

The Monthly food spending savings percentage went UP by 1.28% in August to 40.46% compared to July's 39.18% savings average.

With 8 months accounted for, I have spent a Total of $3,266.08 on groceries/HBA/paper goods/etc. in 2023.

2023 Yearly Grand Total Spent....................$3,266.08

2023 Yearly Grand Total Value of Items.....$5,485.29

2023 Grand Total Saved...............................$2,219.21

2023 Yearly Savings Total..............................40.46%

The average per month amount spent is $408.26 in 2023 at this point.

LOOKING AHEAD TO SEPTEMBER......

Not predicting what I spend but I'll be keeping tabs on the grocery bills in September. 

I am going to shoot for $350 or less for September's spending.....that's not to say that I'll make that target but a girl has to dream! ;-)

Remember that I withdraw all my cash rebate monies(Ibotta, Coupons dotcom, Shopmium, Checkout 51 and other miscellaneous rebates sent to my Paypal)at the end of the year and add it back into my food budget, so at the end of the year my food spending will go down.  The other savings apps like Fetch, Shop Kick, Kroger Cash Back that let us get free gift cards(or $ off your grocery total-Kroger), those are added back in when I cash those points in along the way.  Alexa app gives me Amazon credit onto my account but I don't buy food on Amazon(sometimes I buy dog food there)so I really don't know how to count that.

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

*  How much did you spend on food/toiletries in August?

*  Do you track your yearly food spending?  It's really not that hard or time consuming; just have your receipts and either track it in a notebook or on a spreadsheet.

*  What was your savings percentage buying on sale and/or with coupons versus 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

Food Spending 2022.......the November Report

*Since I am finished food shopping a couple of days early I am posting the November Food Spending now.  Enjoy 8-)

Onward to November's Food Spending report......

Here are my FOOD BUDGET spending totals for NOVEMBER 2022.

I have posted November'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 November.  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. We are a family of 2(and 2 dogs).
****************

CASH SAVER

OOP  $66.13

Qs/Ads  $49.99

Value  $116.12

Savings  43.05%

KROGER

OOP  $420.53

Qs/Ads  $247.31

Value  $667.84

Savings  37.03%

OLLIE'S

OOP  $7.45

Value  $13.87

Savings 46.29 %

SHOPPER'S VALU

OOP  $34.44

Value  $51.42

Savings  33.02%

SUPER 1 FOODS 

OOP  $49.30

Qs/Ads  $36.16

Value  $85.46

Savings 42.31 %

WALMART
OOP  $305.64

Qs/free Gift Cards  $205.99
Value  $511.63
Savings 40.26%

*********************
My best 3 Store Savings Totals were Ollie's at 46.29%, Cash Saver at 43.05% and at Super 1 Foods at 42.31%.

The worst rate was Shopper's Valu at 33.02%.  
I shopped at 6 different stores in November.  I am still learning the ropes of grocery shopping in this area(where to go, whom to avoid, etc.).

TOTAL Spent in November................$883.49

TOTAL Coupons/Sales/Gift Cards...$562.85

TOTAL Value of Items Purchased....$1446.34

TOTAL Savings of .............................38.92%

This closes out the November food/toiletries spending.

THOUGHTS & COMMENTS for this month.....well I knew that when we got a house to set up the food spending would explode and it did.  We were actually moved in early in November and I sure did take advantage of any Thanksgiving deals I found.  This freezer compartment is HUGE but I still didn't fill it all yet.  I blame having a broken shelf in the freezer that we need to replace.  I blame the high spend partially on horrible inflation which is actually worse than what the government reports it to be.

The monthly food spending savings percentage went UP by 2.90% in November 2022 to 38.92% compared to the October's 36.02% savings average which is a tad better.  Even though I had savings rate in the 40's at some store where I spent the bulk of our grocery monies weren't at those stores.

With 11 months accounted for, I have spent a Grand Total of $3,441.43 on food/toiletries in 2022.

2022 Yearly Grand Total Spent....................$3,441.43

2022 Yearly Grand Total Value of Items.....$12,644.53

2022 Grand Total Saved...............................$9,203.10

2022 Yearly Savings Total..............................72.78%

The average per month amount spent is $312.86 in 2022 so far.

LOOKING AHEAD To December 2022......We won't be home but for 11 days in December as far as cooking goes.  I am trying to use up fresh produce before we leave for the cruise as well as any perishables in the fridge.  I can take anything we can't finish to my daughter's house for them to use.  That is a nice perk.  There will be lots of spending on food out in December(airports, in ports, and at Sissie's house)but that's not part of my grocery spending.

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 November?

*  Do you track your yearly food spending?  It's really not that hard or time consuming; just have your receipts and either track it in a notebook or on a spreadsheet.

*  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 "Is It The 4th of July?!?" Edition....

Even Cousin Tom had a lot going on sometimes and stressed over deadlines. lol  Happy 4th Everyone!  

Onward to the meal planning!

Here's what was planned.....

1. Sunday--Leftover Tempura Shrimp, Salad

2. Monday--Fend For Yourself

3. Tuesday--FFY

4. Wednesday--FFY

5. Thursday--Probably some sort of take-out

6.  Friday--Breakfast for Dinner

7. Saturday--?  Depends of what Hubs made this week

And here's what actually happened........

1. Sunday--Leftover Tempura Shrimp, Salad

2. Monday--Smashburger, Sweet Potato Fries

3. Tuesday--Fish and Chips, Cole Slaw

4. Wednesday--FFY

5. Thursday--Leftover Shrimp, Salad

6.  Friday--Chinese Take-out

7. Saturday--Leftover Take-out

I was not home for 3 days so I didn't do ANY cooking last week!  That was nice for a change.  I left Hubs some leftovers(Beef Pie, Shrimp)and he made a Hamburger Helper type dish while I was gone.

What got put into the freezer last week....

*  1 pack of hot dogs

What got taken out of the freezer and used...

*  Nothing

                                                   

I spent $79.16 on food/toiletries/HBA this last week at Weis.  

This brings our food/toiletries/paper goods Total to $79.16 for July.  

There are 27 shopping days left in July.

I've earned $9.50 on Ibotta in July.

I've earned $0 on Checkout51 in July.

I've earned $ on Coupons dotcom in July.

I've earned 1,704 points from shopping on Fetch in July.

I earned 0 points from food shopping on Shop Kick in July. 

I've earned $.02 from food shopping on Swag Bucks in July.

That's $9.50 in rebates(not counting the Shop Kick/Swag Bucks/Fetch)on $79.16 in grocery spending so in reality it's $69.66 spent after the 3 rebate apps I count.

My savings percentage for the last week was 38.68% (without "regular" Rite-Aid trips)and the monthly savings total for July comes in at 38.68% so far(w/out R-A).  

Leftovers going into this week....some hot dog chili(if it didn't go bad).  I think Hubs ate all the leftovers while I was gone.

Here is this week's "food plan".....

1. Sunday--Breakfast for Dinner

2. Monday--Steak, Corn on Cob, Grilled Veggies, Pie, Watermelon, Almost New Pickles

3. Tuesday--Hot Dogs, Zucchini Tempura,  and leftover 4th of July stuff

4. Wednesday--Spaghetti, Meatballs, Salad

5. Thursday--FFY

6.  Friday--Bratwurst, Pierogi, Almost New Pickles

7. Saturday--Pork Tenderloin Sandwiches, Veggie TBD

What do I need to buy to fix everything on this menu? I bought squashes, corn on cob, steak, hot dogs, boneless pork chops, watermelon and rolls on Sunday which is most of this week's menu. The rest will come from the freezer. 8-)  I don't think I'll need to buy anything else this week.

I'll be cooking 6 out of 7 nights and Thursday will be Fend for Yourself(or leftovers).

What is getting fixed and served at your house this week?

Was last week's plan successful, did you go off plan or did you not even plan what was going to be eaten last week?

Any deals on food at your stores this week?  

Sluggy

The Food Spending 2021........June Edition

 Onward to June' s Food Spending report......

Here are my FOOD BUDGET spending totals for JUNE 2021.

I have posted June'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 June.  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 4(2-3 eating at home this month). No "kids" under 25. (I don't count all the "freebies" I get at the Discount Outlet in my totals either.)
*****************

ALDI

OOP  $20.04

Value  $35.36

Savings 43.33%

P and R DISCOUNTS
OOP  $23.72
Value  $59.07
Savings  59.84%

RITE-AID
OOP  $0.00
Qs/Ads/BC  $1384.74
Value  $1384.74
Savings  100%

TARGET

OOP  $100.31

Value  $129.99

Savings  22.83%

WALMART
OOP  $148.37
Value  $419.89
Savings  64.66%

WEIS

OOP  $50.53

Qs/Sales  $42.12
Value  $92.65
Savings  45.46%

*********************
My best 3 Store Savings Totals were Rite-Aid at 100%, Walmart at 64.66% and P and R Outlet at 59.86%.

The worst rate was at Target at 22.83%(not counting the $25 in gift cards earned).
I shopped at 5 different stores in June.

TOTAL Spent in June.........................$342.99

TOTAL Coupons/Sales/Gift Cards......$393.97

TOTAL Value of Items Purchased....$736.96

TOTAL Savings of ...............................53.46%

TOTAL Out of Pocket for June w/R-A...............$342.99

TOTAL Coupons/Sales/Gift Cards w/................$1,778.71
TOTAL Value of Items Purchased w/Rite-Aid...$2,121.70
TOTAL Savings with Rite-Aid items....................83.83%

This closes out the June food/toiletries spending.

THOUGHTS & COMMENTS for this month.....

I went into June without a firm $$ limit on grocery shopping and still stayed under $400.  yeah me.

I also wanted to cut back on the rebating but failed to do so.  I earned $310.34 back on Ibotta alone(not counting rebates earned on other apps and Target gift cards).

The monthly food spending savings percentage went DOWN by 2.0% in June 2021 to 83.83% compared to the May's 85.83% savings average.  So a small increase but not too bad.

With 6 months accounted for, I have spent a Year-To-Date Total of $1,951.26 on food/toiletries in 2021.

2020 Yearly Grand Total Spent....................$1,951.26

2020 Yearly Grand Total Value of Items.....$10,788.06

2020 Grand Total Saved...............................$8,836.80

2020 Yearly Savings Total.............................83.91%

The average per month amount spent is $325.21 in 2021 so far.

My Ibotta rebate total for the year so far is $1,482.49.  Put that next to a full spending of $1,951.26 for the year so far and I've "actually" spent only $468.77 on food/toiletries for the year or an average of $78.13 per month.  Plus I've been able to donate to the food bank and share my haul bounty with others.

I'd call that a win.

LOOKING AHEAD To July 2021...........

Again, I am going to attempt to cut back on the rebating. (Sluggy plans, God laughs!)  I'll give it my best effort this month. I'll cross the $100 mark in earnings by this weekend but I am really going to slack off on rebating so we can eat down the supplies some more.

I am not giving myself a price limit for July but there is always that $400 mark in the back of my mind yelling at me. 8-)

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 June?

*  Do you track your yearly food spending?  It's really not that hard or time consuming; just have your receipts and either track it in a notebook or on a spreadsheet.

*  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

Food Spending 2020.....The August Report

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

Here are my FOOD BUDGET spending totals for AUGUST 2020.

I have posted August'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 August.  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 4(2 at home this month). 
*****************

BREAD OUTLET
OOP  $4.00
Value  $12.47
Savings  67.29%

CVS
OOP  $3.28

Qs/Ads/ECBucks $140.25
Value  $143.53
Savings  97.71%

DOLLAR GENERAL

OOP  $26.18

Qs/Ads  $40.30

Value  $66.48
Savings  60.62%

MALACARI'S

OOP  $16.95
Value  $34.11
Savings  50.31%

PRICE CHOPPER

OOP  $53.78
Value  $96.00
Savings  43.98% 

RITE-AID *
OOP  $0.00
Qs/Ads/BC/GCard  $670.50
Value  $670.50
Savings  100%

SHARP SHOPPER

OOP  $55.52

Value  $97.71

Savings  43.18%

SHURSAVE MARKET
OOP   ($7.96) used free gift card
Value  $15.96
Savings  100%

WALMART
OOP  $64.35
Value  $183.22
Savings  64.88%

WEIS
OOP  $241.89
Qs/Ads  $131.88
Value  $373.77
Savings  35.28%

*********************
My best 3 Store Savings Totals were Rite-Aid at 100%, Shursave at 100% and CVS at 97.71% .   My worst savings rate was at Weis with 35.28%.  Lots of great savings rates this month!

I shopped at 10 different stores in August.

I also earned $156.15 in cash rebates in August(Ibotta/SavingStar/Checkout51)which helps offset the spending once I cash those in at the end of 2020.

(Actually it was $15.10 more than that amount in August because Ibotta put $15.10 of my August earnings on September even though the rebates were earned in August? Weird.)

TOTAL Spent(without R-A)...................$483.94

TOTAL Coupons/Store Sales................$567.31
TOTAL Value of Items Purchased........$1051.25

TOTAL Savings of ................................53.97%

Add in the Rite-Aid purchases and we get.........

TOTAL Spent........................................$483.94

TOTAL Coupons/Store Sales................$1237.81
TOTAL Value of Items Purchased........$1721.75

TOTAL Savings of ................................71.89%

This closes out the August food/toiletries spending.

THOUGHTS & COMMENTS for this month.....I wanted to stay much lower with the grocery spending but worries about Fall shut downs and shortages had me buying a lot of long term storage foods and refilling the freezer.

The monthly food spending savings percentage went UP by 2.64% in August 2020 to 71.89% compared to the July 2020 rate of 69.25% savings average.  

With 8 months accounted for, I have spent a Year-To-Date Total of $3152.03 on food/toiletries in 2020.

Going into 2020 before the pandemic blew the wind out of my sails I wanted to stay at or under $4K for the yearly food spending.  At this point I don't think that will happen but we'll keep plugging along anyway.


2020 Yearly Grand Total Spent....................$3152.03

2020 Yearly Grand Total Value of Items.....$9410.78

2020 Grand Total Saved...............................$6258.75

2020 Yearly Savings Total............66.51%

The average per month amount spent is $394.00 at this point in 2020 which went up some from July's average.  As long as I'm around $400 per month with 3(now 2)people in the house, it's all good.  While it's just Hubs and I now I will also be supplementing Ex-College Boy's food needs for awhile.

LOOKING AHEAD To September 2020.............

I am determined to have a lower food spending month in September as we were over my $400 budget in the last TWO months!  Between going to the store too much and the rising cost of groceries I don't know if I can do a $200 spending month(which would be half of my usual budget)but I'll try to keep it down.

Sluggy plans, the gods laugh. ;-)

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 August?

*  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 "Would You Eat These?" Edition................

Sonya Ann dearly loves boiled peanuts.  I saw these at the Weis(PMITA)Markets south of here last week in my travels and at 50% off I immediately thought to buy and send them to her.  Then I remembered where she lived and remembered that it would cost me approximately $15 just to ship these 4 cans to her.
So I sent her a photo of them instead. lolz

Moving On....

Onward to the meal planning-

This is what was planned for last week.......

1. Sunday--Roast Chicken, Stuffing(for some), Carrots
2. Monday--Beef Pie(at least for some of us)
3. Tuesday--Spaghetti and Meatballs, Sausage, Salad, Garlic Bread

4. Wednesday--Doing something with the leftover roast Chicken?

5. Thursday--TV dinners in the freezer?

6. Friday--Leftovers?
7. Saturday--Leftovers?

And this is what actually happened--

1. Sunday--Roast Chicken, Stuffing(for some), Carrots
2. Monday--Hamburgers, Salad
3. Tuesday--Fend For Yourself

4. Wednesday--Beef Pie(at least for some of us)

5. Thursday--Had Lunch out/Dinner FFY(I had soup)

6. Friday--Shrimp Scampi over Linguini
7. Saturday--Fend For Yourself

Last week saw 4 nights of home cooked dinners, 3 nights of leftovers/FFY or TV dinners, and 0 night of Eating Out/Take-Out(for dinner, we did have a lunch out).
I am still consuming a lot of soup, jello, hot tea, etc. as my throat is sore and my taste buds are still off.
Spaghetti and TV dinners didn't happen but Hamburgers/Salad and Shrimp Scampi did so the aforementioned will happen this coming week.

I wanted to make something special for Hubs on V-day so I used most of that skewered shrimp I picked up after Thanksgiving on clearance..........

30 shrimp per pack for $2.50.  I just had to take the tails off and remove them from the skewers.  Garlic, white wine, green onion because I didn't have a shallot, crushed red pepper flakes and a bit of butter to make the sauce and it was done.
The rest of the third pack of shrimp I used in a pot of Chinese Sizzling Rice Soup I made.  I've been eating off that pot of soup since Friday(most lunches and a couple dinners).

What got put into the freezer last week....
* 2 bags of shrimp/crab ravioli(Aldi find)
* 3 packages of chicken cutlets(Weis Deal + Q)
* 2 bags of fried rice(Weis Deal + Q + Ibotta)
* 8 pork chops(Weis Deal)
* 3 lbs. ground beef(Weis Deal + $3 Sticker)
* meat from 1 roasted chicken(1 of my .52¢ lb. chickens)

What got taken out of the freezer and used.....
* 3 bags of frozen shrimp skewers
The rest of the proteins used(ground beef, chicken)were bought fresh and used last week.

Lots of spending this past week in the amount of $122.66(Weis x 2, Aldi, Ollie's, Walmart x 2) brings my February Grand Total spending on food to $321.76 so far.
I've earned $69.25 in Ibotta rebates too in February so far.

My savings percentage last week was 51.15%(without Rite-Aid trips)and February's monthly savings total comes in at 48.28%(w/out R-A).  

I have 12 more food shopping/spending days in February.

Leftovers going into this week.....Corned Beef(enough for a couple of sandwiches), Beef Pie, Shrimp Scampi, Roast Chicken, Chinese Soup.

Here is this week's "food plan".....

1. Sunday--Frozen Pizza(Hubs/Ex-CB, soup for me)
2. Monday--Chicken Broccoli Cheese Rice Casserole(using leftover roast chicken)
3. Tuesday--Pork Chops, Veg TBD, Noodles or Rice of some kind(Hubs is cooking this)

4. Wednesday--Leftover Beef Pie

5. Thursday--Spaghetti and Meatballs, Veg TBD

6. Friday--Leftovers?
7. Saturday--Leftovers?

What needs buying for this menu?Nothing really....maybe some salad greens?  We've got frozen veg otherwise.

What is getting fixed and served at your house this week?

Was last week's plan successful, did you go off plan or did you not even plan what was going to be eaten last week?

Any great deals on food at your stores this week?  

Sluggy