We went to Winco. I need to adjust my mentality a little. I want to buy "a lot." I want to stock up on good deals. That is how I was raised. But you cannot do that on $125 per week and I go to Winco (fun for me!) so rarely - I really struggled.
I originally spent $105.19. But I remember that I needed $38 from this week's budget to pay for dinner out last week so I had already overspent ($105.19 + $38= $143.19). And I still needed milk and produce. So I returned one jar of peanut butter, two cans of tomato sauce, one package of flour tortillas and the rice cakes for a total of $11.72 netting me at $93.47.
I had bought two peanut butters because it was a good price. Wrong approach to the staying on budget. I bought 6 cans of tomato sauce rather than the two on the list because it was a great price. I bought two packages of flour tortillas because the price was decent and Jason loves to have tortillas around. If we want to have them around, I need to put it on the list that way not just buy extra. The rice cakes were for dinner on the way home but I decided we had enough. For dinner they also munched on prunes and Nilla wafers left from their lunches.
Things on the official list that I bought totaled: $55.97
Flour is bulk but that is just the way we do it and will probably always do it. Same with oatmeal. As such, I probably just need to suck it up. It is cheaper per week to buy only what we need for the week but so much more expensive per unit. We store our flour in the freezer except for a small amount in the pantry. I did need penne but could have bought less. Regularly I pay between $1.20 and $1.30 per pound but this was $1.01 per pound. So I bought a lot because I am so rarely at Winco. But really we will be in Sac for Thanksgiving so I could have done better and waited (granted had I had no off-list items I would hardly be analyzing my failure this week in staying in budget.)
The stuff we bought to eat en route home (we packed lunch and lunched with our cousins but we didn't pack dinner and were headed out a little later than I had originally hoped) was $4.92. Not too shabby for dinner. Not totally healthy but I did get grapes and they had their water bottles which we had brought from home and refilled before heading home.
It was pretty dark when we finally got out of Winco and headed home. The girls asked would it be sunrise when we got home? I told them no, but it would be about bedtime. Then they asked "When will we have dinner?" I told them they were already eating dinner. Then Dai talked about how this was what it would be like if we camped on wheels and were headed back home late at night from camping. Kind of a weird way to look at it - but she's eight so we just went with it.
Things that were not on the list totaled $32.96.
So, let me walk through this. The tomato sauce was easily a third of what I pay at Nob Hill so a spazzed. Learn to watch that. Even after returning some groceries, I kept two extras. We eat rice and beans on Sunday's or as a convenience food. It is nice to have for weekday lunches and it was easily at least 60-80 cents off what I pay for it. I like it. Part of the problem here is I do not meal plan lunches. We usually eat leftovers, sandwiches, etc. Something to think about for the shopping list (which is largely based on the meal plan and a few other known issues for school lunches, etc.) I baked a lot of muffins recently and used up almost all (like all but 5) baking cups. Good price - but again, need to think better. Yeast, well, truthfully could have waited. I should have waited. Millet and groats were total splurges just to try out a new grain. Garbanzo beans now are well over a dollar at Nob Hill. So, I saw them for $1.06 per pound and was excited but I had two pounds at home and only one meal calling for it in my meal plan. I should have passed. Brown rice was 61 cents per pound. We traditionally buy this in 10 pound increments but I may need to rethink bulk for brown rice when I am shopping weekly. It hurts to pay more per unit (and for flour or oats we won't) but maybe I need to reconsider for rice. It is in the back of my brain, stewing. Raisins were just in the canister I like - but we did not need them and I should have left them there.
I wish I had not bought the tomato sauce, the yeast, raisins and garbanzo beans. I wish I had bought less rice. I could have brought this down to less than $20 of off-list items which would really have helped.
Rawhide was for Daisy who was waiting so patiently in the car while we shopped. Good puppy. It was cool and raining so she was fine but I felt like rewarding her and it was a good price. I think I need to stock up on that when we go to Sac next but not from the grocery budget.
So, all told $105.19-$11.72+$38 = $131.47. I am over and still need milk, apples, a bell pepper and Persian cucumbers. It is cheating but I plan to pilfer some from the gas budget. I still have $52 there. Or I could count the $38 eating out as from somewhere else (technically it was paid from another account and we forgot to use the cash from our grocery budget because I left my purse at home). If I do that I have $125-93.47=$31.53 for produce and milk.
This blog causes me to be a little more accountable. It was part of what pressed me to do the return. I knew I would write down exactly where my $125 came from and it wouldn't be pretty. I think borrowing from a future week is the pits and do not recommend it.
The good news is I will not need to buy spices or flour for awhile. But I will need meat in the next couple of months. That also can be expensive because I buy chicken in bulk at Costco. This is fine so long as I plan it that way so I don't need much else at the same time.
I originally spent $105.19. But I remember that I needed $38 from this week's budget to pay for dinner out last week so I had already overspent ($105.19 + $38= $143.19). And I still needed milk and produce. So I returned one jar of peanut butter, two cans of tomato sauce, one package of flour tortillas and the rice cakes for a total of $11.72 netting me at $93.47.
I had bought two peanut butters because it was a good price. Wrong approach to the staying on budget. I bought 6 cans of tomato sauce rather than the two on the list because it was a great price. I bought two packages of flour tortillas because the price was decent and Jason loves to have tortillas around. If we want to have them around, I need to put it on the list that way not just buy extra. The rice cakes were for dinner on the way home but I decided we had enough. For dinner they also munched on prunes and Nilla wafers left from their lunches.
Things on the official list that I bought totaled: $55.97
| Flour tortillas | $2.74 |
| Baking soda | $0.53 |
| Beef bouillon | $1.49 |
| Flour, unbleached all-purpose | $15.50 |
| Baking powder | $0.79 |
| Garlic Powder | $1.57 |
| Dutch Process Cocoa | $5.03 |
| Chili Powder | $0.82 |
| Cinnamon sticks | $0.30 |
| Spice Bottle for baking soda | $1.39 |
| Sage | $0.05 |
| Parsley | $0.22 |
| Cinnamon sticks | $1.40 |
| Allspice | $0.35 |
| Onion powder | $0.37 |
| Cayenne | $0.15 |
| Penne | $3.95 |
| Nutmeg | $0.99 |
| Paprika | $0.70 |
| Honey | $6.82 |
| Tomato Sauce | $0.52 |
| Turmeric | $1.98 |
| Peanut Butter | $4.74 |
| Brown Sugar | $3.57 |
| $55.97 |
Flour is bulk but that is just the way we do it and will probably always do it. Same with oatmeal. As such, I probably just need to suck it up. It is cheaper per week to buy only what we need for the week but so much more expensive per unit. We store our flour in the freezer except for a small amount in the pantry. I did need penne but could have bought less. Regularly I pay between $1.20 and $1.30 per pound but this was $1.01 per pound. So I bought a lot because I am so rarely at Winco. But really we will be in Sac for Thanksgiving so I could have done better and waited (granted had I had no off-list items I would hardly be analyzing my failure this week in staying in budget.)
The stuff we bought to eat en route home (we packed lunch and lunched with our cousins but we didn't pack dinner and were headed out a little later than I had originally hoped) was $4.92. Not too shabby for dinner. Not totally healthy but I did get grapes and they had their water bottles which we had brought from home and refilled before heading home.
| Sesame stix | $0.78 |
| peanut butter pretzels | $1.72 |
| frosted wheat cereal | $0.43 |
| grapes | $1.58 |
| cheese and cracker | $0.41 |
| $4.92 |
It was pretty dark when we finally got out of Winco and headed home. The girls asked would it be sunrise when we got home? I told them no, but it would be about bedtime. Then they asked "When will we have dinner?" I told them they were already eating dinner. Then Dai talked about how this was what it would be like if we camped on wheels and were headed back home late at night from camping. Kind of a weird way to look at it - but she's eight so we just went with it.
Things that were not on the list totaled $32.96.
| Tomato Sauce | $0.52 | |
| Zatarain's Rice and Beans | $8.88 | |
| Baking cups | $1.16 | |
| Yeast | $3.18 | |
| Hulled millet | $0.76 | |
| Toasted wheat groats | $2.28 | |
| Garbanzo beans | $2.67 | |
| Brown rice | $7.16 | |
| Raisins | $2.98 | |
| Rawhide | $2.61 | |
| $32.20 |
So, let me walk through this. The tomato sauce was easily a third of what I pay at Nob Hill so a spazzed. Learn to watch that. Even after returning some groceries, I kept two extras. We eat rice and beans on Sunday's or as a convenience food. It is nice to have for weekday lunches and it was easily at least 60-80 cents off what I pay for it. I like it. Part of the problem here is I do not meal plan lunches. We usually eat leftovers, sandwiches, etc. Something to think about for the shopping list (which is largely based on the meal plan and a few other known issues for school lunches, etc.) I baked a lot of muffins recently and used up almost all (like all but 5) baking cups. Good price - but again, need to think better. Yeast, well, truthfully could have waited. I should have waited. Millet and groats were total splurges just to try out a new grain. Garbanzo beans now are well over a dollar at Nob Hill. So, I saw them for $1.06 per pound and was excited but I had two pounds at home and only one meal calling for it in my meal plan. I should have passed. Brown rice was 61 cents per pound. We traditionally buy this in 10 pound increments but I may need to rethink bulk for brown rice when I am shopping weekly. It hurts to pay more per unit (and for flour or oats we won't) but maybe I need to reconsider for rice. It is in the back of my brain, stewing. Raisins were just in the canister I like - but we did not need them and I should have left them there.
I wish I had not bought the tomato sauce, the yeast, raisins and garbanzo beans. I wish I had bought less rice. I could have brought this down to less than $20 of off-list items which would really have helped.
Rawhide was for Daisy who was waiting so patiently in the car while we shopped. Good puppy. It was cool and raining so she was fine but I felt like rewarding her and it was a good price. I think I need to stock up on that when we go to Sac next but not from the grocery budget.
So, all told $105.19-$11.72+$38 = $131.47. I am over and still need milk, apples, a bell pepper and Persian cucumbers. It is cheating but I plan to pilfer some from the gas budget. I still have $52 there. Or I could count the $38 eating out as from somewhere else (technically it was paid from another account and we forgot to use the cash from our grocery budget because I left my purse at home). If I do that I have $125-93.47=$31.53 for produce and milk.
This blog causes me to be a little more accountable. It was part of what pressed me to do the return. I knew I would write down exactly where my $125 came from and it wouldn't be pretty. I think borrowing from a future week is the pits and do not recommend it.
The good news is I will not need to buy spices or flour for awhile. But I will need meat in the next couple of months. That also can be expensive because I buy chicken in bulk at Costco. This is fine so long as I plan it that way so I don't need much else at the same time.
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