March 2010 Grocery Challenge

Long_tall_sally

Long Tall Sally LOL no craic is not rude. It's something you only get in Ireland and is a mix of chat/cameraderie/argument just generally peeps getting along well!! It's the second best bit about going to Ireland (after the gorgeous sexy accents)[/QUOTE]


Is it another way of saying / spelling "crack" - meaning for the fun of it, I suppose?
Yes, I like the Irish accents & I am a bit fussy with accents generally.

banwa

Not posted for a while but have been sticking to the budget and loving:heart2: my slow cooker. Had one of the happy chickens from co-op in there, twas lovely. Food cupboard and freezer full to the brim, think I will just need fruit and veg and alcohol until the end of the month. Finally got a recipe to use the free chocolate I get from work, a sort of decadent chocolate trifle with chocolate custard, value swiss rolls and raspberries. :DIt has been agreed it is the best pudding ever and it costs pence.

And the best bit, I am 55% through my month and 54% through my budget. :j

Happy budgeting everyone

franby64

I, on the other hand, am 84% of the way through my budget and looking a bit wobbly!

I really need to hit my target this month - I've still got about £5 a day left but I'm starting to cast my eyes on my Tesco vouchers which I'm trying to save for Xmas. Be strong.

I found out yesterday that if I nip into the C*op on the way to fetch DD2 from school they have reduced meat/fish - I got some smoked haddock for a kedgeree - so I will check that regularly from now on.

Have a good day everyone.

savvyshe

Sorry to hear about your freezer Slowandsteady it must have been heartbreaking to throw all that food away. We were in the same situ with cars last year, and decided to trade both in and with good deal from scrappage deal and trade in we decided to buy a brand new car and just manage with one. So far it has worked ok I walk 3 days and run DH 2 days we are a lot better off and the walk does me good. Hope things buck up and keep your pecker up!:).
Spends yesterday 45p chilli and lime and 10p!! two garlic bread co-op.
total spend £137.19
Bye for now xx

Spiggle

Hi All,

Slowandsteady you have my sympathies - absolutely gutting experience.

We did a bit of shopping yesterday and spent a fair bit - £3 butchers, £1.78 veg, £41.19 MrT - though we shouldn't need much more for quite a few days now (which is good as only £105 left until 31st:eek:). Sig is updated.

I'm off to Manchester later for an overnight and seminar tomorrow then back home. OH is very pleased as he managed to persuade me to give him his pocket money a day early as I won't get back until the evening tomorrow. He was warned that when its gone its gone - and it's the last weekend of the six nations so I hope he's sensible!

Oh, btw I wasn't sure about a BM but bought the Morphy Richards one that was recommended in the which survey for just under £40 on Amazon and I'm very pleased with it. BUT I don't use the recipes in the manual (or hugely adapt reducing the sugar) - there are far better ones listed on here.

Take care all, I'll catch up with you on the weekend.

Coxy11

Morning!

Just on to update my sig. Went to large MrS with DMum on Monday and got the easter eggs I needed for the family (12!). They weren't as good at MrT's 97p offer - instead 3 for £5 and a couple of the smaller ones were bogof, but as I'd already spent the petrol and time I figured it was worth the purchase.

Just over £15 left to last me until 22nd March when our GC ends. Looking good as I only have to buy a little F&V for the weekend, plus some cereal. DH and DS1 are bagpacking with the Scouts in MrS on Saturday for Sports Relief. Will give DH the money to buy what we need as I'm working for the next 4 days and will not be wanting to shop!

Off to see the XFactor on Sunday night! Very excited - sad I know - must get out more!!

Have a good day everyone.

Coxy
xx

Winged_one

I've been awol for a few weeks due to frantic work and home life. Which has also had a bit of a knock-on effect on the budget. So I am now changing my target to €600 for this month (which is tight given that we are travelling this weekend so will be at the farmer's market and need a good few things there).

But at the same time, I have got good stocks in freezer (like the spare lasange I put there on Tues when I was off, and we had the large one on Tue, wth leftovers last night and again tonight). And I have a nice joint of lamb which I was going to have yesterday except DH had to travel mid-afternoon so we'll have that next week some night (it'll keep until Fri, or I'll freeze if need be). And things didn't totally fall apart in the chaos - part of the high spends were due to shopping in certain stores I rarely get to and use as "stocking up" shops. Including things like multipacks of fizzy drink cans - now that gardening season is here these are more important to have on hand (we bring them to the plot with us as there's no drinking water on site, and we usually need the sugar as well as the liquid up there). So my yearly is still on track, I think.

We've had some success with the garden too. While digging the peas/beans bed, DH uncovered about 6 potato plants we'd missed last autumn, enough for a dinner. So we had those with a head of savoy cabbage on Monday - which was yum, and pan-fried pork chops. I got 4 chops, and as I had the scissors out anyway to snip the fat (a la Jamie O), I cut the spare 2 into cubes for using later this week (except DH is now travelling, so they are now frozen) - which will make for an easy dinner that's not chicken!! And we got a few leeks as well to make a baby leek dish. The PSB is finally coming. And I have got the start of this season's sowing done - onions, garlic, a first row each of broad beans and peas. And some seeds in pots at home - rocket, carrots, cabbage, lettuce, broadies, tomatoes, coriander and basil, and some flowers.

This evening, we are having leftover lasagne and I will sow some calabrese (I needed to buy more seeds), and then finish packing up to get the train down to meet DH for the weekend on Fri after work. Including putting in a couple of drinks and snacks, and hopefully getting some pork pies or sausage rolls in M&S - although I will get coffee in the station and a packet of chips on the train as we're travelling through dinnertime and DD will need "proper" food.

I haven't even thought about next week's menu yet - maybe I'll get time on the train.

Moniker

Thanks Spiggle, Savvyshe and LTS for your encouragement with the swimming. It went quite well actually, though it was very tiring as I was in the water for an hour and usually when DH and I go we are only swimming for a max of half an hour! Also had to concentrate lots - it's a bit like patting your head and your tummy at the same time IYSWIM-still good for the old grey matter too!

Off to Sainsbury's shortly with a quite a short list so am hopeful of staying within my week's budget of £32. No meat to buy and no cleaning materials or toiletries so it should be do-able. Have had 14 NSDs this month so far which is my best ever!

Good Luck everyone. Will pop back later to update my signature.

Moniker

Keiss_21

Long_tall_sally wrote: »

It's always interesting to compare with other people who are feeding similar numbers. My target (or should I just say my wild dream seeing as I don't seem able to actually achieve it!) is for 2 adults, 2 kids aged 10 & 6 full time, plus 1 18 year old & 1 16 year old half the week, plus 3 rabbits & 1 hamster. DS is diabetic & Coeliac & I always seem to be buying gluten free food for him that is certainly not cheap.

Long tall sally - I started at £450 last year as my GC target, and managed to bring it down to £400 just before DS1 went off to Uni. So I thought the three of us (DH, moi and DS2, as well as one large (white) Golden Retriever and the wild birds we feed daily) would easily manage £350!! Not yet got there yet! Hoping that we might this month...but with two weekend trips north to Scotland, our spending is not quite normal this month!

My DSs are 20 and 17 respectively and both eat masses. DS2 is a serious rugby player, and has been told by the team nutritionist he needs to eat 5000 kcalories a day!!:eek: He is also diabetic, so I do lots of baking, cutting down (or out) the sugar, and upping the fibre. With all his training, he does have a fair few hypos, so we need to have enough high-sugar stuff too!! Life is never simple is it? He is away for three weekends this month and a further week starting Good Friday (all rugby) - so that will cut down on the food consumption at home a bit! The Scottish Rugby Union will pay for his food whle he is away thank goodness, though I will still send him away with a home-made fat-free fruit loaf, as well as some Twinks hobnobs!

DS1 is back from Uni on Saturday for 5 weeks, though he will stay at his GF's parents for some of that....and she will stay here too I expect. He is a constant grazer...so more baking to do today for me!

Megs_mum wrote: »

Well Hi Grocery Challenge People - just browsing but thiught I should add my 4pence worth! ..... Soooo my lovelt spreadsheet has a bottom line of £1070 for 4 week months (and 1340 for 5 weekers) BUT that covers groceries, my car fuel, haircuts, chiropodists, dog and hen food and bits (shavings for bedding, balls, treats etc) crafts bits, birthday cards and pressies and mostly everything else (we set it by thinking of everything that I physically paid for even though we have a joint a/c and dont differentiate with my money/your money) Anyway since I have been on MSE I have saved £270 in Jan, £350 in Feb and March is looking about £300 too.

Megs mum - I too put everything that we spend down in a spreadsheet...but only include my GC spending here..it is too scary to concentrate on the full total...but perhaps I should.....:o

Looking back since the begiining of the year, we spent £1467 in Jan; £1725 in Feb (included a £500 car bill!) and so far have just broken the £1000 for this month. Mind you, we have had numerous birthdays, as well as lots of rugby training trips away (Sheffield & Scotland in Jan; Leeds & Bristol in Feb and now 3 trips to Scotland in March :eek:). I also include in this grand total all the therapist sessions I have, which are thankfully getting less now as my health improves,not to mention the fancy protein shakes my DS2 has started taking...it all adds up!

I should really look at this overall total and work out ways to reduce this as it is everything we actually shell out (SOs and DDs exempted). Thanks for making me face the terrible truth!!

franby64 wrote: »

I, on the other hand, am 84% of the way through my budget and looking a bit wobbly!

franby64 wrote: »

I really need to hit my target this month - I've still got about £5 a day left but I'm starting to cast my eyes on my Tesco vouchers which I'm trying to save for Xmas. Be strong.

I have been contemplating my vouchers too franby64, as I am now 97.5% through my GC total :eek:! I did get some lovely rump steaks from the butcher for DH's birthday yesterday...much cheaper than going out for a meal, so I have been sort of good!! :o

Right off to get the baking done and then cancel my Denplan payment scheme...got into an NHS dentist...so that's £57 a month saved!!

Also found out we can save £260 a tear if we switch energy suppliers...must get DH to do this, as it is in his name...but every little helps (as someone else said)!!!

Oooh my man has just dropped off the car, the bonnet cable broke/came loose and needed to get it mended before heading off to Scotland tonight. I need to get a colour printer cartridge and some other bits in town, so will pop into the garage to see what I have to pay. He is very good and very reasonably priced....but still more money spent!

Have a great weekend, I won't be back until next week sometime as I won't have access to a computer in Scotkand...so should get lots of knitting done!

vodkawitch1

:TJust few bits needed today. some loo rolls and some milk. Spent £4.00. Lots of food in so should be able to stay on target. Good luck everyone.