November 2008 Grocery Challenge

Tashja

Moning all

Budget well and truely blown :rolleyes: I spent £8 at buchers yesterday and £7 at Sommerfield because for once their woopsies were good !!!

Butchers I bought a small Haggis (couldn't resist !!), some lovely organic minced lamb for Mousakka, cheese (better price then supermarket and much nicer/stronger) and I bought sausages (fresh made) for DS and DD because they are addicted to the butchers fresh sausages !!!

Sommerfield were selling off their packs of Chicken Kieves for 49p from £1.99 so stocked up there, milk, F&V, some bread rolls and a cheap chocolate cake for the 3 kiddies !!!

We are going to go for £300 for December please MrsM - this is to include booze and treats though and also a small stock up ready for next year.

Hoping then that we will have a fair bit left so January, February will manage on £50 a month.

There are 5 of us me, DH, DS6, DD5 and DD1 so hoping this is realistic.

The kittens will only be here for another 2 weeks or so, so the cat food costs will drop by abut £2.50 a week because they are on special food and there are 5 of them (keeping one though !!) You can't walk through my house at the moment without tripping over/stepping on a tiny cat :rolleyes: Might try and get a picture up.

Will update siggy now.

T xx

[Deleted User]

I have been reading through the posts and o.k. some of us have gone a tad over budget, but not by a great deal,and usually because we've seen perhaps something Y/S'rd that would make a couple of extra meals.
The fact that we are all far more eagle-eyed when it comes to shopping and if you look back on your 'old shopping' habits or bills, and see how your attitude to shopping has changed I think its great.
I used to go to my big Tescos for a couple of things, and always seemed to come out with a trolleyfull of stuff that ended up stuffed somewhere in my cupboards.Or I would see a new product and think 'Oh I'll give that a go', and use it once and probably forget about it and stick it in the cupboard under the sink.My youngest DD always used to find a spare bottle of fabric conditioner, or some new cleaning gismo under there, and end up taking it home herself.
Now when I go to Tescos (the smaller nearer one to me) I take my bag, and a basket and once I've got what's on my list I'm out of there.I no longer dawdle and daydream my way up and down the aisles. I am in and out in usually about 10 minutes.I used to spend in a month around £200 + and that was just for me , if I now spend £50.00 I'm really pleased ,even more so if its under. So for those who have a slight 'blip' don't worry its not a hanging offence as you know when you come home with your goodies that you will think twice next time before splashing out.
Although a treat now and again will never hurt you and if it gives you a buzz then think of it as a reward for all the hard work your've put in to regulate your spending I think we have all done extremely well over the past couple of months and having this site has encouraged other who may not of thought of it before to shop more wisely.There are some smashing recipes and tips on here as well which help not only the 'newbies' but the 'oldies' like me as well .I think you are all brilliant.:A :A :A

highland_fling_2

Hey-none of us bite on this group! Do join in-there is no competition, just support. I bet you have cut back somewhat while you have been waiting in the wings? Good luck and do join in..

thanks for reply, that's it I am going to join in officially next month. Will look at last few months spending and set a target based on that. Then depending on how it goes will know if it is realistic. Don't get paid until 13th of the month so will wait until then to declare the amount.

NewlyFrugalMumof3

Good Morning Everyone,

I am a newbie and would love to join the December Grocery Challenge please. I am aiming for £120 for December, to counter £370 spend in November!! :eek:
But I guess I did refill the freezer and store cupboard so am hoping £120 is do-able.

Also would love any tips on how to stick to £30/week grocery budget, for a family of 2 adults, 3 children, & 1 cat.

thanks guys.

cw18

Just caught up on all the posts since Tuesday, and I'm another going to say "don't worry about the blips". My "useage" (the way I record) has been going down month-on-month over the last 18 months, though my cupboards and freezers are now fuller than ever due to stocking up on Whoopsies/surplus stock/end-of-line offers when I see them at prices too silly to leave on the shelves. (My spending is also way down, though not by as much as usage -- but I should be able to manage at least two or three months with the same level of use but very little spending other than milk, bread, F&V type fresh produce).

I withdrew this month due to DH's health knocking all meal planning etc out of the window and his regular requests for expensive processed foods, but the last week has been totally crazy due to losing him in the early hours of Tuesday morning.

My elder DS has been home from the Army since Wednesday evening -- and my milk useage in particular has more than doubled as a result of that :eek: He will be recalled to camp around 6th December, but will then be back on 13th for his Christmas leave -- with plans to head south and spend New Year with friends on 30th, before heading back to camp from there -- so December is going to be totally nuts for me !!!!

As my spending will now (on the whole) be just for myself and younger DS (17), I've no idea what my budget will look like -- there are some meals I've cooked in the past (using jars) I won't be able to justify for 2 of us, and some meals I struggled to get DH to eat that DS and I will happily eat on a more regular basis.

My current plan is to join back in this challenge from January (though I will be following the December thread with interest to see how people cope with Christmas), but I may just keep a tally of what I need to declare without an up-front budget for the first couple of months.

(And in response to the Q about what people include in their totals for this challenge -- mine is food shopping only. I don't think I can reduce much/at all on the cleaning products/toiletries side of things, and I've always treated the costs of the dogs as a separate thing)

rosieben

cw18, I'm so sorry to hear of your loss. Please take care of yourself and come back to us when you're ready. I'll keep you and your family in my thoughts

angelatgraceland

Oh dear CW18-my thoughts are with you. How you are feeling must be really awful and coping with such loss is always so tough. You remind me how lucky I am. I'm glad you have your family for support and company over this period-it does help so much.
As you say, its difficult to judge what you will need over the coming months and with your situation as it is you may well want different things at times for no particular reason.
Take care of yourself and each other-and if you blow the budget meanwhile so be it!

savingfortravel

What can I say cw18?....big hugs to you and your family...I'm so sorry..SFT

OrkneyStar

Sorry to hear of your loss cw18, our thoughts are with you at this difficult time. You seem very organised food wise, so even if GC takes a back seat for a while, you will soon be back on top of it all. Other things are more important just now.Take care.
An NSD for me today, had to get milk and cornflour yesterday but sent DH so no extras popped in (he knows better lol)- will need more milk again soon though as they only had 500ml cartons without a far too soon date on! Big pot of soup on for lunch and then making a roast for evening meal (mmmmmm). Anyway, hope all are doing ok, don't worry if you are over, we all do that sometimes (well most of us lol).
x

ZLS1984

Well I am back from the dreaded weekly shop, and I am proud to say I came under my £40 budget. I spent a total of £31.07 and saved a massive £5.35, it was not a proper shop just a top up shop.

I got some stuff on bogof so I can get my cupboards ready for Xmas. I am feeling pretty low at the moment but staying strong.

I know I can get through this, very angry at the moment, changed the gas meter back to token and £10 emerengy they put on has lasted only 3 days grrrrr. So thats another £40 gone this week already as since the gas is getting £20 the elecky might as well get it.