Kroger5 lbs. Land'O'Lakes Butter - $1.44 ea.
(5) $.55 coupons
2 Cream Cheese - $.99 ea.
2 Kroger Vegetable Mix - $1.00 ea.
2 Orange Juice - $1.46 ea.
1.44lbs. Ground Beef - $2.24, Manager's Special
6 cans Dole Pineapple Chunks - $.73 ea.
(3) $.55/2 coupons
Head Lettuce - $1.05
(I like this ongoing low price!!)
.64lb. Roma Tomatoes - $.67
Mixed Salad Greens - $1.89, Manager's Special
1lb. Carrots - $.87
1 cucumber - $.97
Kroger Pretzels - $1.99
3 Whole Chickens - $.59/lb
Total OOP: $33.39
Total Savings (including $5 gift card): $25.24 or 43%
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WalMart
5qt. Ice Cream - $6.08
2lbs. Cornmeal - $1.06
Doz. Eggs - $1.00
Total OOP: $8.34
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Food Lion
1.98 lbs. Canadian Maple Ham (BOGO Sale) - $5.94
3 Kraft Salad Dressing - $.17 ea
(3) $1.50 coupons
4 pkgs. Ball Park Beef Bun Size Franks - 1.49 ea
(2) $1/2 coupons
Total OOP: $11.85*
Total Saved: $23.86 or 67%
Whole Trip OOP: $53.58
Total Saved: $49.10 or 49% ($102.68 before sales and coupons!)
*I had to make a couple returns, and ended up getting full price back on them, so I just subtracted the cash I got back from my receipt totals. If you - by some weird chance - look through my numbers and realize that things don't add up, well they don't. Especially the Food Lion one. I didn't realize (note to self: PAY ATTENTION) that the hotdogs were BOGO LIMIT 2 FREE and bought 6 pkgs. because I had 3 coupons. This morning I couldn't figure out why they were coming out higher than they should and I realized my goof. So I returned the 2 extra packs! Anyway... it pays to pay attention. But it did bring my overall total down about $9, so that's ok. Sorry for all the confusion.
And I know I totally blew my budget out of the water. Big time. Like all the way to the moon and back. My excuses/reasonings are: when I planned this weeks menu I forgot that we have our small group get-together Friday night. I offered to take salad and dessert (they are ordering pizza). Thus the extra produce and the ice cream. The chickens were such a good deal I couldn't let them get away from me. And it was a good opportunity to use a $5 gift card. The hotdogs - well, at $1.50 for a pound of meat, I'm gonna buy them and eat them! And we were totally, completely, none-to-be-found, out of ground beef. The salad dressing was basically free. And the butter. I have never, in my life, seen butter this cheap. At this price (with the coupon) I was going to buy as many as I could possibly scrape up coupons for. Even if it did cost me now, it would be sure-fire savings later.
Point A: I won't have to buy chicken again for a long time. Or butter. Unless I go into a crazy cookie baking spell or something.
Point B: We can have extra cheap meals with the hotdogs over the next long while
Point C: I wanted to take salad and ice cream to our small group meeting. And as I'm sitting here typing this I realize that I could have VERY easily made a fruit salad and not had to spend any money. WHERE IS MY BRAIN?? HELLO???!!! I have a ton of canned pineapple for super cheap. I have a gallon ziploc of grapes sitting in my frige leftover from a church thing. I have canned peaches and pears in my pantry. Please tell me I'm not the only one that makes dumb, costly mistakes.
Maybe I will lock myself in the house next Wednesday and not buy any groceries.
5 comments:
You still did really great because some of those prices are unbelievable!
Miriam it happens to all of us. The trick is to balance the books and to know the limit on what you can borrow from next week (if that's even allowed). You know what you're budget can tolerate. Besides you'll be soo much happier with yourself not having to pay higher prices later. No one said that you have to spend your entire budget every week--it's just trickly when you've only got $25. I find the best way to make up is like you said. Lock yourself in the house and just don't go. There's almost always a deal to be found and unless it's very basic you can probably afford to skip it. Like last week I think I only spent around $8. Those weeks always make me feel better.
Ahhh...can I tell you how many, many meals I make each month for other people, and use lots of expensive ingredients? You want to make something they will eat and enjoy, and not scrape platefuls into the slop. So, my thing, green salad goes with pizza much, much better than fruit salad. So, feel at ease, know you did the right thing--unless this gets your electric cut off, or something equally drastic. When it comes to spending for others, I don't think you should necessarily go chintzy. Christ didn't go chintzy for us! (Another lesson I have learned from my husband--when buying stuff for others, he likes to get "nice things", food included!)
I think you did a great job! You scored big time on the butter and the chicken.
I've had to lovk myself in the house before so I didn't go grocery shopping. Got to do what you got to do. :)
But, don't beat yourself up, we ALL have budget busters from time to time.
You did a good job Miriam. I did not let myself leave the house this week either. I'm still breathing : )
Do you have a dairy or creamery near you where you can buy butter? I buy it by the case and put it in the freezer. I paid a 1.85 a pound which I did not think was bad...not great but I do make cookies : )
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