We put all of our expenses on the credit card. (Calm down,we pay it off every month.)
So, for the last two statements the average we spent on food was
Grocery: $567.30
Restaurants: $386.84
A total of $954 a month. For two people and a baby, and this doesn't include formula. This does include things like shampoo and TP, and it will continue to. I obviously need to spend less on those as well.
Jeepers. If we can't cut that down. We're out of control. I know we aren't eating it all, because I threw out a big bag of spoiled food last night!
So, goal number one is to reduce these amounts by 25 percent for the next two months. That means a total of
Groceries: $425.47 ($141.83 less)
Restaurants: $290.13 ($96.71 less)
Total food bill: $715.47 ($238.53 less)
The long-term goal is to cut those amounts by 50 percent, by December, for a total of
Groceries: $283.65
Restaurants: $193.42
Total food budget: $477.07
The first goal is to cook at home more, reducing restaurant expenses. The second is to reduce grocery expenses by cooking more from scratch and from shopping at Aldi's and other discounters, and by using sale flyers and coupons to plan menus. I should have been doing this already. I guess I didn't know how bad it had gotten.
Grocery Challenge part 1: The bill. Brace yourself.
August 23rd, 2008 at 01:47 pm
August 23rd, 2008 at 03:25 pm 1219505113
August 23rd, 2008 at 03:40 pm 1219506036
August 23rd, 2008 at 04:23 pm 1219508623
August 23rd, 2008 at 04:23 pm 1219508637
But that was the first thing when we found out I Was pregnant and my spouse lost his job. We primarily ate out and my dh figured if he wasn't working anyway, he was going to start home cooking healthy meals.
We probably got our grocery budget down to about $500 or $550 monthly (including dipes and formula for some period of time, and this would be with no eating out) but since joining this site I would say we average $450/month. Our eating habits really haven't changed much. Just shopping smarter, and I think my dh is just getting better at the whole thing with time. IT's an art.
I also wanted to share just to say don't get discouraged if it doesn't happen all at once. My hubby has been home cooking for 6 years and this year our bills have still been decreasing. They have mostly been going down, down, down, the better he gets at shopping. The REAL key is to get a large repretoire of recipes and get proficient at being able to use up whatever happens to be on hand. I think in the last year that is the area we have improved the most. But it took some time (years) to get to that point.
(I also can't help but feel that we are doing better with full night sleep and clear heads. A luxury you don't have with a 0-2-year-old.
Eating out was out of the question for many years, but with the economy as is we have been hitting a lot of 2-for-1 deals, and a nice trick is we meet for lunch dates while the kids are at school/daycare. We have a 2-for-1 buffet lunch date next week. So we have found maybe we deprived ourselves a bit much in the early years. There seems to be options out there to eat out and not break the bank.
Good Luck!!
August 23rd, 2008 at 05:22 pm 1219512139
August 24th, 2008 at 02:07 am 1219543635
Some tips:
Buy generic formula! If you look it has the same ingredients as the name brand for 1/2 the price.
In the winter have a soup/salad/sandwich night once a week
Have a "breakfast night" - Pancakes/bacon/eggs..etc
Try and take a bag lunch to work once a week
Drink less soda
Make a weekly or monthly list of meals you want to prepare at home the ingredients and stick to your list.
(I am anal and prepare our dinner menu a month in advance. My husband like it because he always knows what he is having for dinner!)
When eating out : look for the daily specials, eat a salad, drink water, look for coupons, dont get dessert, Bring it home so you arent tempted by anything "extra"
I can give you TONS of other tips or recipes! I like things fast and easy....and as healthy as I can! You can do it, it sometimes just takes a little creativity!
August 24th, 2008 at 02:33 am 1219545202
All good tips, and I welcome more! I know our monthly total is jaw dropping. I was shocked too frankly.
Funny thing-- we don't drink soda! It's never in the house. A big budget-buster is my hubby's gourmet coffee taste. Peet's. He loves it and coffee is his passion, so he won't give it up, even if it's $10-$20 a pound. We'll have to work around that one...
August 24th, 2008 at 06:48 pm 1219603694