I went to Stuffmart yesterday for my groceries, probably for the first time in a couple of weeks. Whoa, have prices ever gone up! They were going up all along, I know, but all of a sudden it had a big impact on my grocery budget. I understand prices go up, but why does the ethanol thing mean milk goes up 40%?? Yes, I know, cows eat corn. But 40%??
Lately I have really trying to be a more prudent wife, watching the grocery bill closely. Last month we spent $720 for FOOD!!! That has got to be a sin. I can't stand it that the "belly god" gets that much ("whose god is their belly")! That is $120 per person. Is that a lot? I think it is a lot. We spent an additional $50 going out to eat, which I think is above our monthly average -- we don't eat out very often.
So here is what I want to do. I want to hear from other bloggers who are in similar circumstances, and I want to know what you spend for groceries, on average, per person. We live west of the Rockies, where things are more expensive anyway. We don't have Aldi. I usually buy the Stuffmart brand, if there is a choice. I go to Smiths (Kroger) and Safeway for their loss-leaders (if it is stuff I would have bought anyway), and especially for produce (Stuffmart's is horrid) and meat (again, horrid at Stuffmart; usually the bottom side of the package is lined with an extra pound of fat, not meat). I don't often use coupons, because the generic is usually cheaper than the brand-name sale price, even with a coupon. My grocery bill INCLUDES all household cleaning supplies, paper goods, shampoo, etc., and also included diapers, when we used them. We do not drink pop/soda, smoke cigs, or feed a Starbucks addiction.
This all wouldn't bother me quite as much if I didn't know that Crystal Paine, the queen of good deals, spends about $35 a week for groceries! (She now has two(?) in diapers, and her budget has probably gone up a few dollars.) By the way, if you do have Aldi, and you can do the deals at CVS/Walgreens, and you collect coupons, Crystal's book, Secrets to Supermarket Savings, is awesome. (The problem here is that I am not an awesome shopper!)
So, out with it. Tell me what you are spending. Am I going to feel better or worse?? I am ready to starve the belly god to death. He costs too much.
Oh, I miss Aldi. We had them in Illinois, but not here in Idaho. I usually buy our things at Stuffmart too, and we spend around $650 a month for a four person family, the youngest being 10yo. And that to includes paper and cleaning products. I'm sure we go over and under that at times, but I would guess that is an average. We have been blessed with 1/2 cow last year and still use that meat, but we do buy chicken and bacon, so that's not including much meat. But my special needs child only eats certain foods, and they are a bit more expensive, so that has to be added in.
ReplyDeleteOK, there you have mine. I don't know if it encourages you or not. I do know I get discouraged alot too when I go shopping.
JoAnn
Good Question! I look forward to coming back and seeing what others are saying.
ReplyDeleteWell, my non-budget should make you feel good. Now, I have to preface the following in saying that I do get what you get there, shampoo, laundry soap, etc., plus my asthma medication & recently bought a $20 dvd, but for our family of 4, I spent $849 in the last month. Plus another $79 across the street for meat, fruit & veggies. I know, it's just awful - poor Jeff! I too had bought Crystal's ebook, but our closest Aldi is 45 minutes away and CVC is an hour away - I just don't think I can shop like she does. I sometimes use coupons, but I'm not as diligent as I ought to be and like you, often I can get a better deal without the coupon brand. Hope this made your day! It's made me think I need to try to cut back.:)
Sally,
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We spend at least $1600 on food. It jsut costs money to eat, sorry. ;) I guess you could do it cheaper but cardboard is not very healthy or tasty.
ReplyDeletewell, i kow this post was a while ago, but I have't been keeping up with my blogs...our groceries are about 400 a month - which is 100 dollars a person! right now that is a great goal for us....we used to spend almost 1,000 dollars a month on groceries when we were in the military and paid more!
ReplyDeletehow I save money now is to shop at 3 different grocery stores - fry's is the cheapest in our area, the sunflower market has the cheapest and best produce and costco has the bulk stuff we need a lot of. I also plan my meals and go shopping every 2 weeks. It saves money to only buy the ingredients we need ( and I try to plan recipes that use similar ingredients). We have budgeted 240 dollars for each 2 week cycle - we usually only spend 200 of it - then I save the extra and we either go out to dinner or stock up on meat or something.
i would definitely try meal planning if you don't do it already. it saves a lot of money.
marie