• Living on a Budget: Groceries $40 for 4

    Groceries from Save A Lot | RiteAid

     How is it possible we are already halfway through September, this month is FLYING!?   I was super excited to score some 93% lean ground beef marked down to $2 a pound when it was originally almost $5 a pound.  The downside is I went over my grocery budget for this week, thankfully last week I was under so I have some flexiblity for this week.  Here is my weekly update on our Groceries $40 for 4.

    Save A Lot | RiteAid Groceries:

    • $31.61 at Save A Lot | RiteAid for 3 packs of 93% lean ground beef (marked down to $2 a pound), 1 pack Eye of Round Steaks (marked down), 1 pack fresh Ground Hamburger Patties (marked down), 1 gallon Milk, 1 container Whipped Topping, 2 Breakfast Doubles Cottage Cheese with Strawberries (marked down to 50 cents), 2 Breakfast Doubles Cottage Cheese with Peaches (marked down to 50 cents), 1 container low fat Cottage Cheese (marked down to $1.25), 1 bag Cinnamon Raisin Bagels, 1 package Grissom Hamburger Buns (sale), 8 Lunchable Variety Packs (marked down to 50 cents), 2 loafs Grissom Sandwich Bread, and 2 packs Oscar Mayer Rotisserie Chicken Breast (marked down to 50 cents).  I spent a little more than I planned in the store but all the beef products that I picked up on this trip were marked down to $1 to $2 per pound.  Hopefully the meat from this trip will last us at least 2 to 3 weeks.

    Groceries from Big Lots

    Big Lots Groceries:

    • $10.40 at Big Lots for 6 large cans Whole Kernel Corn (clearance), 1 large bag Disney’s Cars Pretzel Snack Bag (35 count), 1 container Blue Diamond Breeze Almond Coconut Milk, and 1 container Blue Diamond Breeze Vanilla Almond Coconut Milk.   I am still trying to figure out what foods are diary free, peanut free, and egg free, yet fun and healthy since we have a little one in our household who is not eating those items.  Thankfully she LOVES the soy, almond, and coconut milk substitutes!

    Groceries from Walmart

    Walmart Groceries:

    • $13.16 at Walmart for 1 large bag Chicken Breasts (5 pounds), 1 bunch fresh Bananas, 1 loaf Everything French Bread (clearance).   Stocked up on 5 pounds of chicken breasts (the thighs and dark meat doesn’t agree with one family member so chicken breast are the only pieces we buy), bananas (one of the girls woke up in the middle of the night with a charlie horse cramp so we decided to pick up a bundle of bananas) and the clearance french bread is a great add on to a meal or can be frozen for later.

    This week I spent $55.17  on groceries.   I went over on the budget this week.  It was going pretty good until I went by the store for milk and encountered some amazing meat deals.  Thankfully I went under budget last week so I was able to cover the overage for this week.   Some of the items that I picked up this week will last us for a few weeks which will help with next weeks grocery trips.   Hopefully next week we can come under budget and September will be a better month for us!

    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.

  • Living on a Budget: Groceries $40 for 4

    Groceries from Ingles

    Now that I am home again and school is in full swing I am trying to do better at posting my weekly grocery update.  Thanks for hanging in there with me as I traveled, spent time with my family over summer vacation, and transitioned in the new school schedule.  It is nice to get back in to the routine and giving you regular updates (they really do help me stay on target).   I was super excited to score some great fresh produce on clearance at Ingles this week (our garden is almost done producing).  Here is my weekly update on our Groceries $40 for 4.

    Ingles Groceries:

    • $16.83 at Ingles for 1 container of Mushrooms (clearance), 1 loaf Laura Lynn Sandwich Bread (sale), 2 packs Vegan Gourmet Cheese (clearance),  1 bag fresh Brussel Sprouts (clearance), 1 bag fresh Broccoli (clearance), 1 gallon Milk (sale), 2 pack Pillsbury Sugar Cookie Dough (clearance), 1 tray Apple Slices & Cheese (clearance), 1 pack fresh Snow Peas (clearance), 1 pack fresh Sugar Snap Beans (clearance), 1 bag Chipotle Coleslaw (clearance), and 1 bag fresh Cauliflower, Carrots, & Broccoli (clearance).   Everything was marked down, on sale, or on clearance including the non-dairy cheese because we have a family member who is not currently eating dairy (all produce was $0.99 or less) at Ingles.

    This week I spent $16.83  on groceries.   I went under on the budget this week, but only because I had a few weeks that I wasn’t tracking the spending well and went way over!  Thankfully we are stocked up on most items so I could save a little from this week to spread out over the rest of the month .  I was happy to find some cheese deals and some fresh produce on clearance that should last us for quite awhile especially with the girls taking lunches to school everyday.  Hopefully next week we can come under budget and September will be a better month for us!

    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.

  • Living on a Budget: Groceries $40 for 4

    Jake was traveling for work most of the week and I had a lot of appointments for myself and the girls but I was able to squeeze in a quick trip to the grocery store.  Here is my weekly update on our Groceries $40 for 4.

    Groceries from Ingles, Walgreens, and Save A Lot | RiteAid

    Ingles Groceries:

    • $37.14 at Ingles for 6 containers Fresh Strawberries (marked down to $0.99 on clearance), 3 bags Fresh Oranges (4 pounds each marked down to $0.99 each), 3 limes, 1 box Roarin Twirling Berry Drinks (10 count), 1 box Roarin Twirling Fruit Punch (10 count), 1 box Laura Lynn Oatmeal, 5 packs Kool Aide, 2 packs Wylers, 4 cartons Minute Maid Cherry Limeades, 2 boxes Go-Gurt Strawberry and Blueberry (10 count each), 1 pack Laura Lynn Sliced Sharp Cheddar Cheese, 1 pack English Muffins, 1 large bag Pepperoni, 1 pack Potatoes, 1 small pack Pepperoni and 1 fresh Pineapple.  (All the items were on clearance, marked down or on sale.  I was able to use a couple coupons as well.)

    Walgreen Groceries:

    • $0.00 at Walgreens for 2 cartons of Eggs, a dozen each.  (Used Register Rewards to pay for the eggs).

    Save A Lot | RiteAid Groceries:

    • 20.49 at Save A Lot | RiteAid for 1 bag Granny Smith Apples (3 pounds), 1 bag Red Delicious Apples (3 pounds), 2 bags Carrots, 2 packs KoolAid Drinks (6 count each), 2 bags Cheddar Chex Mix, 1 bag Fresh Spinach (marked down on clearance), 1 fresh Green Pepper, 1 box Frosted Flakes, 1 stalk fresh Celery, 1 can Cinnamon Rolls, 1 box Little Hugs Reduced Sugar Drinks (20 count), and 1 fresh Cucumber

     

    Groceries from Walgreens

    Walgreens Groceries:

    • $0.00 at Walgreens for 1 gallon Milk and 2 cartons of Eggs (They had their eggs marked down to $0.99 each this week and they are still the best price I can find on milk in our area. I used Register Rewards to pay for the milk and eggs today.  We should be stocked up on eggs for a few days.)

    We were able to stock up on some great items this week.  Although we were a  little over we have two celebrations going on this weekend.  The girls Birthday party and Valentine’s Day!

    This week I spent $57.63 on groceries.  I was over on my budgeted amount for the week because of the busy week with traveling, appointments, and upcoming celebrations so thankfully I have a little extra to cover the groceries this week.  I was happy to find fresh eggs and great produce on sale that we can use for several meals.  I hope that next week is better week, back to normal, and we can come under budget!

    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.

  • Living on a Budget: Groceries $40 for 4

    It was a fun week with the whole family home, traveling is fun but sometimes it is just as nice to have everyone home for a week too.  Our family has been going through more milk lately so you’ll notice an increase in my milk purchases this week.  Here is my weekly update on our Groceries $40 for 4.

    Groceries from Ingles and CVS

    Ingles Groceries:

    • $13.21 at Ingles for 1 bag Laura Lynn Bread, 1 jar Skippy Peanut Butter, 1 package Flour Tortillas, 1 container Vanilla Yogurt, 1 container Fresh Shrimp, 1 bag Oranges, 1 bag Bananas, 1 bag Potatoes, 1 head Cauliflower, and 1 container Lettuce.  (Everything I bought this week at Ingles was on sale, marked down, or on clearance including the produce, seafood and diary!)

    CVS Groceries:

    • $18.17 at CVS for 2 A&W Rootbeer (12 packs), 1 Sunkist (12 pack), 1 bag Candy Corn, 1 Mountain Dew (2 liter) and 4 cans Progresso Chicken Noodle Soup (I received $10.00 in ECB’s back on this purchase so if you count that into the savings it is like I paid $8.17 for everything purchased.  The ECB’s I received were $1.00 on the Candy Corn making it free, $3.00 on the 12 packs making them $2.67 each, $1.00 on the Progresso Soup making them $1.00 each, and $5.00 for Beauty Club Reward.  I have not bought soda for several months because we are trying to cut back on how much we drink it in our house, however, we do host family, friends, Community Group and other activities in our home so when we see a good sale we buy a few to stock up on them.
    Groceries from Save A Lot | RiteAid

    Save A Lot| RiteAid Groceries:

    • $7.88 at Save A Lot | RiteAid for 2 gallons of milk and 1 half gallon of milk on clearance.  (We go through a lot more milk now that the girls are a little older, Save A Lot had the best price I could find for milk this week!)

    This week I spent $39.26 on groceries.  Even though I was barely under on my budgeted amount for the week I was able to stock up on several items.  I hope that next week is an even better week and we can come under budget.   Thankful for an opportunity to stock up on several items even though I was cutting it really close this week again!

    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.