Another week of doing Groceries $40 for 4. I was able to stock up on some items but overall it was a quiet grocery shopping week because a lot of unexpected activities came up.  We are trying to eat up our perishables this week since we have a lot of produce already in the fridge and from the garden.  A lot of the items we picked up will be great for the upcoming road trips we have this summer!  I am hoping to get back on schedule soon with grocery shopping although I have a feeling the summer months may have a new type of shopping schedule with the kiddos along helping.  Below are my grocery shopping adventures for the week!

CVS Groceries:

• $1.46 at CVS for 1 Powerade Fruit Punch, 1 Powerade Mountain Blue, 1 Vitamin Water Energy Blast, 1 Fuze Refreshing Peach, 1 Fuze Strawberry Melon, 1 Chex Mix Cheddar, 1 Chex Mix Honey, 2 Chex Mix Turtle, and 1 Powerbar Energy Snack.  I used coupons on the Chex Mix and a couple ECB’s to help with the savings.  I received an $2.49 ECB for the Powerbar and $2.00 ECB for the drinks.  These items will be great for our upcoming vacation road trip.

Walgreens Groceries:

• $2.01 at Walgreens for 4 cans of Mandarin Oranges, 2 boxes Strawberry Royal Gelatin, and 2 boxes of Raspberry Royal Gelatin.

BiLo Groceries:

• $14.49 at BiLo for 1 gallon of Whole Milk, 1 gallon of Skim Milk, 1 container of Country Crock, 1 box of Oatmeal Cremes, 1 box Blue Bonnet, 1 box of Peanut Butter Bar, and 1 container fresh Mushroom.  (I had three munchkins with me on this trip so I didn’t have a chance to match the sales and coupons).  I probably spent a little more than expected but it was worth to have the extra time with the kids.

I am excited to be back doing our Groceries $40 for 4 budget again.  This week I spent $17.96 on groceries.  Even though I wasn’t even close to the budgeted amount for the week  I was still able to stock up on several items.  Thankfully I was able to keep the amount within reason although I would like to see a little extra left over for those weeks when I find a really good deal or go a little over.  Plus I hope to have more time soon to do more regular grocery shopping.  We were out of town for the weekend part of this grocery week so it a little different from our usual events, however, we brought the majority of our food with us to make meals or just did two meals a day with snacks in between.

It is my goal to give you regular updates on this budget section so you can celebrate the good weeks with me and thump me on the bad weeks!  As always you are welcomed to join the journey with me.  I would love to hear your story and how you are doing too.  The purpose of our family doing this it to watch our grocery spending while allowing us to feed our family, enjoy life, share with others, and yet stay on track with our budget.

Living on a Budget is a series of ways our family uses a budget to help keep us accountable with our finances.  Life doesn’t always go as planned.  We have used some of the ideas I will be sharing for years while others are ones we are just starting to implement as we continue finding ways to be creative and have fun with what we have been given.  Having a plan in place allows us the freedom to be smart with what we have been given, get more creative when it is a tight (week, month, year or a season) and when necessary live a much more simplified life.  A budget helps us stay on track so we have more opportunities to enjoy the many blessings we have been given as well as share what we have with others.  There is so much more to life than having all the stuff.  We may not have the newest or greatest items in our house, we drive used cars, and wear hand-me-down clothing…..however, if our family is taken care of and have love for each other and others we have more than all the riches in the world.