2021 Food Spending....the April Report

 One more day until the month ends after today but I am finished food spending for April at this point so I am posting this a bit early.  Anything spent in these last two days on groceries will go onto May's tracking.

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

Here are my FOOD BUDGET spending totals for APRIL 2021.

I have posted April'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 April.  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.)
*****************

BREAD OUTLET

OOP  $14.00

Value  $52.10

Savings 73.63%

DOLLAR TREE

OOP  $2.00

Value  $3.49

Savings  42.69%

MALACARI'S

OOP  $10.65

Value  $19.22

Savings  44.59%

OCEAN STATE JOB LOT
OOP  $0.00(used free gift card)
Value  $11.00
Savings  100%

P and R DISCOUNTS
OOP  $34.36
Value  $78.33
Savings  56.13%

RITE-AID
OOP  $2.52
Qs/Ads/BC  $1,999.95
Value  $2,002.47
Savings  99.87%

TARGET

OOP  $0.00(used free gift card)

Value  $76.61

Savings 100%

WALMART
OOP  $223.10
Value  $547.02
Savings  59.22%

WEIS

OOP  $139.80

Qs/Sales  $157.11
Value  $296.91
Savings  53.15%

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My best 3 Store Savings Totals were Target at 100%, Ocean State Job Lot at 100% and Rite-Aid at 99.87%.

The worst rate was at Dollar Tree at 42.69%  I'll take that all day long! ;-)
I shopped at 9 different stores in April.

TOTAL Spent in April.........................$423.91

TOTAL Coupons/Sales/Gift Cards......$731.26

TOTAL Value of Items Purchased....$1,155.17

TOTAL Savings of ...............................63.30%

TOTAL Out of Pocket for April w/R-A...............$426.43
TOTAL Coupons/Sales/Gift Cards w/................$2,731.21
TOTAL Value of Items Purchased w/Rite-Aid...$3,157.64
TOTAL Savings with Rite-Aid items....................86.50%

This closes out the April food/toiletries spending.

THOUGHTS & COMMENTS for this month.....

I went into April without a plan other than eating down some of the frozen assets and staying under $400 for the month.  Didn't quite stay under budget but we did eat down freezer/stockpile.  Spending was a bit high but my $360.55 in just the Ibotta cash rebates makes my "actual" spending almost nil for the month so there is that. 8-)))

The monthly food spending savings percentage went UP by 7.58% in April 2021 to 86.50% compared to the March's 78.92% savings average.  Any month I get a lot of items at Rite-Aid my savings percentage goes waaay up! ;-)

With 4 months accounted for, I have spent a Year-To-Date Total of $1,250.94 on food/toiletries in 2021.

2020 Yearly Grand Total Spent....................$1,250.94

2020 Yearly Grand Total Value of Items.....$7,922.58

2020 Grand Total Saved...............................$6,671.64

2020 Yearly Savings Total.............................84.21%

The average per month amount spent is $312.74 n 2021 so far.

LOOKING AHEAD To May 2021...........

I really haven't thought about May much yet.  I plan to take a break from Ibotta next month so there will be less shopping.  I will get the deals I find however as always.  I hope to be at around $300 spet for the month.

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 April?

*  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

To-Do List......the February & March Updates

FEBRUARY

* Pay Bills   PASS

* Read 1 Book  PASS

I read this one.........

"Rivals Unto Death: Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr" by Rick Beyer

Not a big book but interesting about the love/hate relationship between Hamilton and Burr.  Sometimes they were friends and allies and at other times they were on opposite sides of an issue or down right enemies.  The term "frenemies" may have originated with these two.  If you didn't read the Ron Chernow book or you want more on this part of history then pick this one up.

* Organize Pantry  FAIL  Just didn't get to it.

* Hold Giveaway  PASS

* Mail Giveaway  PASS  It was mailed and received though I hear the chocolate didn't last long. lolz

* Clean out Inserts/Coupon Envie  PASS  

The stack of old expired stuff that got pitched.  Go me.

* Finish Editing Old Photos  FAIL  Didn't get to it all but I did a bit.

* Post about Old Trips  FAIL  Nope.

* Work on Genealogy  PASS  I was on fire in February with genealogy research!

* Re-Organize Toiletries Stockpile  PASS  The guest room/toiletries room got done.  I don't think I took a photo though(can't seem to find one anyway).  But with all the freebies I've got at R-A since then it's a big old mess again. sigh.

* Fill 6 more Giveaway Boxes  PASS  I didn't take a photo evidently but trust me, they are sitting stacked up on the floor of the dining room(well 4 of them that are left are).

* Roll/Spend ECBs  PASS  Yep, did that.

* Roll/Spend Bonus Cash  PASS  Yep, did that too.

* Clean my Desk  HALF and HALF  Cleaning my desk is an ongoing chore/project.  As soon as I pitch stuff and/or organize things it just accumulates more stuff.  I'll either keep this on EVERY To-Do list or just drop it altogether because we all know it's something that needs doing every danged month! ;-)

* Stay Warm  PASS  Yep, I managed to drop the heat a couple of degrees and donned a sweater or hoodie to keep warm without letting the electric bill get outta control!

* Eat down the Freezer/Pantry  PASS  We got down a level or two on the archaeology dig I call a freezer.  Of course, with new deals I managed to add back a new layer. lol

MARCH

* Pay Bills  PASS  Always at the top of the financial things to complete each month.

* Read 2 Books  HALF and HALF

Well I only read one book, not two.

"Hottest Heads of State Volume One: The American Presidents" by J.D. and Kate Robson

I totally misconstrued the title of this book when I bought it at Ollies(Good Stuff Cheap!).  I thougnt "hot" meant foul tempered, mean, rotten, etc. not "hot" as is handsome, a dreamboat or desirable as a mate.  lolz  My bad.

But still, it was a light, fun read full of sarcasm, which I like.  And I still learned a couple of quirky things from it.  It was fun and funny and a change of pace for me and parts of it did make me LOL.

* Have Financial Meeting  PASS  Hubs and I had two meetings in February.  The immediate issue was about taking a 401K withdrawal to cover some irregular bills like the taxes, etc.  That was the easy part.

Then we talked about what made sense for us in terms of starting to take Social Security.  Now since I'll be claiming on Hubs since mine would be much lower than half of his we need to figure when he should claim since I can't claim until he his.  If he waits until full SS at 66 years and 10 months that pushes my claiming back until I am 66 and 1 month.  We did some calculating and with all our savings(401K/non 401K)and our annuity we actually will be more than fine if he claims later this year(and then I can claim too).  Still stewing some stuff over but right now that's the plan.

* Organize Pantry  PASS  Yep, I finally got to straightening the pantry out.  Now I just have to straighten out the stockpile in the garage....again.

* Hold Giveaway  PASS

* Mail Giveaway  PASS

It got mailed out quickly and received in a timely manner and was much appreciated by the recipient.

* Clean out Inserts/Coupon Envie  PASS  No photo of this clean out but enough inserts got pitched as to fill up my small wastebasket. 

* Finish Editing Old Photos  HALF and HALF  I did edit a few photos on the computer but I worked more on scanning old family photos from my mom's scrapbooks to digitize them.  Here's an example.....

This is my maternal Great Great Grandfather(my mother's paternal Grandfather), Robert William Harper taken in 1950.  Born in 1881, Robert had a hard childhood with both of his parents dying before he turned 15.  He outlived his wife, 7 sisters and a daughter as well.  He was 69 in this photo and had written on the back "Looking good for 69.".  He died before I turned 2 so I have no memories of him.  I'll have to ask my brother who is 6 years old then me what he remembers the next time I see him.

* Post about Old Trips  FAIL  Nope.

* Work on Genealogy  PASS  See the item above on photos. lolz

* Roll/Spend/ECBs  PASS  I managed to extricate myself from the CVS merry-go-round in March.  No more ECBs to roll and I don't plan on going back(at least until Black Friday if their deals tempt me enough). ;-)

* Roll/Spend Bonus Cash  PASS  Yep!

*Clean my Desk  PASS  I did clean it good in March.

* Eat down the Freezer Pantry  PASS  We had a low spend month again in March and managed to eat from the freezer/stockpile a good bit instead of bringing more into the house(besides Ibotta deals).  Go us!

So now I am caught up at least for a few days until April ends. lololz

Sluggy

This Week on the Dining Table

   The "Mother Nature is on Crack Evidently" Edition.......

Last weekend it got into the 70's then two days later it snowed on and off for the next two days and we woke the first morning to a heavy dusting.

It's the end of April for gosh sakes!  I posted on Facebook--Dear Mother Nature,

Stop the drinkin' and the tokin' and for gosh sakes PLEASE go back on your meds!

Signed, Pennsylvania

Onward to the meal planning!
Moving On-

This is what was planned....

1. Sunday--Shrimp and Crab Ravioli in White Sauce, Tossed Salad

2. Monday--Caesar Salad w/Chicken Strips

3. Tuesday--Salmon, Sweet Potato Wedges, Brussels Sprouts

4. Wednesday-- Teriyaki Pork Stir-Fry w/Rice or Noodles
5. Thursday--Leftovers

6.  Friday--Tacos or Taco Salad

7. Saturday--Fend for Yourself

And this is what really happened.......

1. Sunday--Shrimp and Crab Ravioli in White Sauce, Tossed Salad

2. Monday--Caesar Salad w/Chicken Strips

3. Tuesday--Salmon, Sweet Potato Wedges, Sugar Snap Peas

4. Wednesday--Chinese Take-Out
5. Thursday--Leftovers

6.  Friday--Roasted Chicken and Assorted Veggies, Sourdough Bread

7. Saturday--Fend for Yourself(I had Hot and Sour Soup)

Last week saw 4 nights of home cooked dinners, 2 nights of leftovers/planned overs or FFY and 1 night of Take-Out/Eating Out. The tacos and the teriyaki pork stir-fry didn't happen, might move to this week.  Ex-CB came over on Friday so I roasted a chicken and veggies that night instead.

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

*  1 frozen Pizza

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

* 1 package of Chicken Strips

* 1 bag of Ravioli

* 3 portions of Salmon

* 1 box of Sugar Snap Peas

* 1 Whole Roaster Chicken

We spent $15617 on food/toiletries/HBA/paper goods last week on a trip to the Bread Outlet, the Discount Grocery but the bulk if that was at Walmart. This brings our food/toiletries/paper goods Total to $415.50 for April so far.   I didn't even darken Weis(PMITA)Markets door last week but I still managed to spend quite a bit. ;-)

There are 4 shopping days left in April.

I've earned $308.62 on Ibotta in April.

I've earned $5.00 on Checkout51 in April.

I've earned $21.00 on Coupons dotcom/Paypal in April.

I've earned 5,622 points from shopping on Fetch in April(haven't submitted all my receipts yet tho)which equals $5.62.

I've earned13,137 points from food shopping on Shop Kick in April which equals $52.54.

I've earned 3,705 points from food shopping on Swagbucks in April which equals $37.05.

My savings percentage for last week was 50.67%(without "regular" Rite-Aid trips)for April and the monthly savings total for April comes in at 62.47%.(w/out R-A).  

Leftovers going into this week--1 small piece of Chicken Marsala, some roast chicken and roasted veggies.  I'll need to cook this week.

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

1. Sunday--Pizza, Tossed Salad

2. Monday--Cheeseburgers, Sweet Potato Fries

3. Tuesday--Ham and Beans Soup

4. Wednesday--Fend for Yourself
5. Thursday--No Clue

6.  Friday--No Clue

7. Saturday--No Clue

What do I need to buy to fix everything on this menu?  Nothing.  I might finish up my $10 Ibotta bonus this week since I won't have the opportunity/time to do it after this week and before it expires.

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

Rite-Aid Pillaging for the Week of April 18th....Whoa Nelly!

 Get ready for your Rite-Aid porn cousin!

Here is everything I "bought" this past week at Rite-Aid in two photos because I couldn't fit it all on the dining room table together. lolz

Not pictured are two large DiGiorno pizzas as well as the two online orders I placed that haven't arrived yet.  Independent of the 4 different coupon codes you could also do an online order per card/account as well.  Online there was an extra discount of $10 off your order if you hit $65 total before digital Qs or that $10 discount.  It will be about another week before 6 x Magnilife products, 2 x 7th Generation Paper Towel bundles, 2 x 7th Generation Dish Soap bottles and 6 bottles of Hydrogen Peroxide arrive but I have included them in the totals.

I was also forced to spend $2.52 on a credit card for one of my online orders as I was short that much in Bonus Cash and the form wouldn't let me use a gift card. sigh.  So I won't have a 100% savings rate this month. 8-P

Here are the numbers for R-A from last week.......

Bonus Cash Used/Rolled  $423.05
Gift Card Used                   $11.04
Credit Card                          $2.52
Total Spent                       $436.61

Bonus Cash Earned          $378.00
Ibotta/Coupons dotcom      $21.00
Cash Refund on 3 items       $8.34
Total Back                        $407.34

$436.61-$407.34=$29.27 OOP either on the c/c($2.52) or spending down BC($26.75).

Not quite free but it's a living. 8-))
I'm taking a break from R-A this week as it's not a great deal week(no coupon codes either)and I don't need to roll my BC anytime soon.

Now to work on my Walmart/Ibotta numbers from Friday.

Sluggy

Frugal Friday on Saturday....the April 24th Edition

*** Don't Forget To Enter The April Giveaway!  You can enter once a day.  Go to the post or the link on the  right sidebar under Giveaway to enter.***

Life has been crazy business this past week.  Between RL stuff and preparing for a trip and working on Ibotta and going to Rite-Aid a bazillion times(plus repairing a friend's pair of jeans)I've gotten not much else done and what got done wasn't done in a timely manner.  Such is life.....  Which means FF on Saturday as I am a day behind.

Here are some wins from the past week.........

*  My desk lamp(actually a standing lamp next to my desk)finally got replaced.  It was a cheap clearnce find at a Walmart in West Virginia years ago but the screw on shade finally cracked all the way around so it was a bare lightbulb deal for the last few months and I felt like I was being interrogated by the coppers when using it. lol
I looked online for an inexpensive replacement lamp but came up empty, then we had to go to Lowe's to scope out replacment fixtures for the bathroom we are having redone and I wandered down the lighting aisle there and found a lamp that worked for me!

The best part it was free since I used the last of an old Lowe's gift card I earned through my credit card points. 8-))

*  Since I've spent almost nothing of the various "stimmy" checks Uncle Sam sent me and my desk chair was getting uncomfortable/worn out I had found one I liked online but the price was too high so I got on their notification list for if it ever went on sale/the price was reduced.  I know, I know....it was "free" money to begin with but I still wasn't going to spend more than $XX on a chair. ;-)  Finally got it as the price came down....

Now all my adult gamer children are lusting after it....except it's purple! lolz

*  I have been making Rite-Aid my bitch this week, using those 4 different Coupon Codes.  No photos yet because I am going out this morning to finish up and what's here is still laying in bags on the floor in the dining room. #notagreathousekeeper  

I'll do a massive haul photo shot tomorrow, probably just for Sonya Ann's enjoyment. ;-)

* Other than R-A I've hit two different Walmarts this week working on various Bonuses.  I did a blog post a day or so ago about the first Walmart trip so I'll get something done up about trip #2 from Friday later on and how much I "spent" OOP after rebates on various apps.

*  I found money!
Not a stellar week for change finds but it was something.

There may be another penny or two hidden amongst all the crap on my desk but I haven't had time to find it so 3 pennies it is.  It was all found last weekend or earlier this week so I don't even remember when or where but the probability is high they were all found at Rite-Aid since the only places I've been this week are at multiple R-As and Walmart.

That's all I have for this week.

Tell us your wins and remember to stay frugal my friends!

Sluggy