July 2009 Grocery Challenge

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  • MoneyQueen
    MoneyQueen Posts: 927
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    Hi,

    I seem to be well on track this month. I have spent £37.40 in cash and have used £3 of vouchers on groceries till today. I am doing another shop this Friday and will try to keep it below £15... So hopefully I will be below my target of £100 this month

    MQ
  • Hi
    I seem to be managing better this month, have run out of dog biscuits but will make some today. So should make target ok.
  • elf06
    elf06 Posts: 1,547
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    kiwiblue - how do you make your dog bics?????
    Emma :dance:

    Aug GC - £88.17/£130
    NSD - target 18 days, so far 5!!
  • cw18
    cw18 Posts: 8,613
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    Just updated my sig with spends since last update on 7th......

    This includes 6 litres of milk (£2.94), 2 pizzas (£2.38), bananas (32p), bread (47p), 2 tubs of cheese & onion sandwich filler (whoopsies - total of £1.20 instead of £2.70), 2 packs of unsmoked streaky bacon (whoopsies - total of £1.30 instead of £2.58) and 2 seeded rolls (whoopsie - 20p instead of 59p).

    I now stand at a spend to date of £16.50 out of a monthly budget of £118.60 (£49.74 to end of day would be on budget, so I've spent a shade over a third of that) - and I've had 7 NSDs including today

    Our local Mr M opened this morning, so after my voluntary stint at the local primary school finished (11:30am) I wandered down for a look. Hard to really get to grips with the place as it was heaving (never saw it so busy when it was S/flds - not even just before Christmas), but I wasn't impressed with the couple of bits I specifically checked out.

    We now have fish, butchers, hot chicken and deli counters - so had a quick look at the deli one. I was looking forward to being able to get an odd slice of something for my lunch-time butty if I fancied a change - but the prices are scaring me off :o Yorkshire Ham @ £1.05/100g after a 20p discount :eek:

    The other thing I wanted to check out was ice-cream. DS and I both eat vanilla (which I've been getting from A!di) and Mint Choc Chip. I also eat Raspberry Ripple (another A!di purchase) while DS eats Neopolitan. What I can't get from A!di I've been getting from Mr T, but it means taking the car so I'd hoped to be able to get from Mr M...... which isn't going to happen. They had at least 4 (think it was 5) types of vanilla, plus a chocolate one. Other than that it was only the expensive / speciality / big name tubs :mad: Guess I need to find their "suggestions" procedure and politely suggest they swap out some of the vanillas for other flavours :confused:
    Cheryl
  • barneydee_2
    barneydee_2 Posts: 318 Forumite
    I set myself a budget of £150.00 for this month, but have blown it (£283.00):mad:
    and we are not at the end of the month yet, and that is not taking into account what my other half has spent, i started of good,keeping a diary but after the first week I lapsed, I know it was do able as my freezer, fridge and store cupboards are bursting at the seems. I get paid on Friday will do a small shop as i have run out of a few basis i.e. cheese,salad stuff fruit,milk,potatoes then I will get back on the wagon, i have instructed OH that he is to keep a list of what he spends.

    The only good thing is that studying my recipts and looking at what I got I can see where there where items I could have done with out i.e. magazines, Chocolate.

    I do cook from scratch but one of my problems is that my lot are all fussy eaters.

    My plan for August is:
    To keep a spending diary I am going to do a spread sheet if i can to track what I am spending.
    I am going to do a store cupboard challenge.
    I am going to set a higher budget then month by month get it down to where I want to be.
    And i am going to post more on here as you guys are great and I am sure you will help me keep on track

    Dee
    July grocery challenge £250.00/£408.93
    August grocery challenge£350.00
    2/8£28.46
  • barneydee_2
    barneydee_2 Posts: 318 Forumite
    also forgot I am going to do a monthly meal plan and do my shopping list and stick to it, I will post my menu later

    Dee
    July grocery challenge £250.00/£408.93
    August grocery challenge£350.00
    2/8£28.46
  • [Deleted User]
    [Deleted User] Posts: 0 Newbie
    edited 14 July 2009 at 12:09PM
    Dog Biscuits
    Hi elf06
    I make extra gravy with a roast, use this as the base, then add any/all of the following, depending on whats around.
    egg
    mint
    garlic
    oil
    cooked rice
    bind with flour, roll out and cut into circles.
    Bake at 180 degrees until cooked.
    Dog loves them, and they are much better for her than the commercial ones.
  • Lemon_Verbena
    Lemon_Verbena Posts: 43 Forumite
    edited 14 July 2009 at 9:45AM
    Hi everyone :D

    Belated congrats on the wedding Helen, may you and your DH have a lifetime of love, laughter and happiness. Just finally caught up with the thread been reading for two days now lol! Was very busy last week so couldn't post but we got some good news, my DH got the intrenal job he was wanting so now he won't be made 'surplus' and let go, so for the time being he's still employed and things aren't as bad as we thought :)

    GC is going really well, amazing what you can do if you put your mind to it. I've spent almost 2/3rds of my budget (some whoopsies for the freezer and frozen food stock up) I have 13 days left to go, but have loads in the freezer and cupboards and have made meal plans which are working out very well. May follow the meal out Harry Potter treat tip if I can save enough cash out of the budget by the end of the month. Or may buy DH the new Star Trek film on DVD as we didn't go to see it when it was at the cinema cos we were scared he'd be unemployed so were saving cash.

    I convinced DH to come with me to Farmfoods and Aldi, he's a 'snob' shopper and thinks that you have to buy branded foods only and can't shop at a supermarket other than Tesco, Asda or Sainsbury's I blame his mother lol! We got some nice stuff and so cheap, we're making the most of the Aldi super 6 deals we got lots of fruit and peppers for salads and to freeze for chilli, pizza topping etc, and he's taken a chicken pasta salad with some of the grapes mixed in today. We got a huge trolley full of stuff for less than £45 and that included a couple of treats and some baking stuff. The same branded and own label stuff from Asda would have cost me £75 or more, I know I'm preaching to the converted but I'm so pleased with the way things are working out :j Even got the cats some of Aldi's catfood which is £1.30 a box cheaper than whiskas and they lick the bowls clean, I was gobsmacked as they're really fussy eaters!

    DH was well pleased with the reduced shopping bill and has been very impressed with taste and quality of the stuff we bought. I stocked up on frozen veg and fruit at Farmfoods which has saved me a fortune and I only use as much as I need and no peeling :) I wish I could grow salad stuff in my little garden like lots of you do, have tried in the past but the slugs get the goodies before we do :( I have grown some toms and potatoes in tubs and they're almost ready for use and I spotted a couple of strawberries which may be slug free. I did sow cucumber seeds but the slugs ate the little plants and the cut and come again lettuce was a slug salad bar and gone within seconds of it emerging so I give up! Waffle over, hope everyone is having a good day, if not hope it soon gets better. Have to shop tonight but only need lemons, red onions, yogurt and eggs had 2 NSD's in a row and 8 so far this month, which isn't bad for a family that used to go to Asda everyday and spend £30 or more on nothing!

    LV x
    Grocery Challenge : August 09 £295.00 £194.23, July 09 £300.00 £281.08
  • elf06
    elf06 Posts: 1,547
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    Hi everyone - just had a little shop today. Really just went out to get myself and DS some fresh air as the poor little mite still isnt feeling good (and into Boots to get something to help him on their minor ailments service) and in the process nipped into Aldi for some cereal (noticed last week that their version of the cereal my son eats is more that £1 cheeper per box).
    Also went into pet shop to get some catfood. Normally get cat food when I do my food shopping but had £10 voucher for petshop (as compensation for telling me some big fat fibs :mad:) so decided to go and stock up on catfood as it is essentially 'free'
    So all in all this morning I got a bottle of Calpol, bottle of own brand ibuprofen, 2 boxes of cereal, 3 x 12 Felix catfood and a box of own brand cat bics and only spent .............£1.98 :T

    So really happy for this morning but still have a few bits to pick up when I go to work tonight so will leave updating sig until then
    Have a good day all

    Oh and kiwiblue thanks for the dog bic recipe
    Emma :dance:

    Aug GC - £88.17/£130
    NSD - target 18 days, so far 5!!
  • Puddleglum
    Puddleglum Posts: 851
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    Hi all! A quick rant coming on.

    About six months ago I finally called time on running a B&B to concentrate on other things. Well we currently have some guests staying who have been before and so managed to tunnel in under the perimeter fence.

    I have spent so much money on breakfasts you wouldn't believe it. B&B's can not run out of certain things whether or not the guests want to eat it! Only a fraction of what has been bought will be eaten by the guests in the week they are here. I have not included what I have spent in the total below as the cost will be met from their payment.

    The worst thing about it is though that over the past few days I have gone from feeling in control of my life and spending to feeling completely out of control. Everything has to be fitted around the guests, DH, DS, DD and meows included.

    OK, feeling slightly better now, got beds to make, better go. Slinks off.
    "A thousand candles can be lit from a single candle without shortening the life of that candle."

    I still am Puddleglum - phew!
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