September 2011 Grocery Challenge

rej-c

Condolences to you and your OH, Sonastin. Good luck with dealing with all the Stuff.

I've just updated my sig to include an NSD on Sunday, and spends of £4.12 yesterday and £1.34 today.

I'm aiming for at least another couple of NSDs this week, but we'll see how it goes.

BTW, can I just offer a word of warning? I know we're all pretty good here about avoiding waste and using our common sense when it comes to BB dates, but I think I've pushed my luck too far today - and with bread, of all things. I had a couple of very-much-past-their-best, but apparently fine rolls [a bit dry but smelled fine, no sign of mould etc] for breakfast this morning, and have spent much of the day regretting it - I even had to come home early from work and take to my bed for a few hours. Not good. Thankfully, I'm feeling much better now, but let's just say I'm going to be much more careful from now on...

Take care, everyone.

Rowan9

Signing off from keeping my grocery tally this month. We've had my Dsis staying and I've got a bit lost with my totals. I know it isn't much though as I've been good and thrifty!! Will carry on trying hard for the rest of the month but just not keeping an official total.
Good luck this month folks!
W

jovichick123

Hi all :wave:

I've not posted here (on the OS boards) for a long time and ashamed to say I have fallen out of OS ways

Our grocery shopping spending is currently way out of control and I really need to rein it in... For 2 x adults, 1 x 6 year old and 3 x cats, last month we spent just short of £600 :eek::eek::eek: :mad:

I need help

Today is OH's payday so start of a new month for us - I want to bring the shopping down (lots) and will join in the challenge for October - is £250 a reasonable target for us or is it too ambitious?

I should also say, I am meal planning as of this week too and know that in the past it has helped to bring shopping down, I also have a lot of freezer food (whoopsied meat etc) that needs using up...

TIA,

medsdemon

NSD yesterday and monday. But have shops to add from sunday and will also have to nip out and get milk today amongst other things so will definitely be over budget. On sunday spent £12.20 in A*di on veg, ham hock etc and £6.60 in M&S on 2 packs of their sausages as they're now GF and were in a list of being the best in a taste test. Also bought one of their casserole pastes because they were on special offer and it made a delish casserole with the Chorizo sausages served with mash:D. Then £8.20 in Sainzers on other bits I needed.

Will definitely have to rethink my spending as I just can't seem to stay under the £200, I might have to slightly up my budget ...or try for one more month at £200, I will see ( or maybe try a weekly budget??). It is an awful looong month with still a week to go for us yet so I guesstimate another £20-30 on top of what we've already spent:eek:.

Tonight I have a spag bol in the SC already bubbling away full of veggies that needed using up and a huge load of garden toms. It should make enough for tonights dinner and also to freeze a dinner for 3 for next week.
meal plan for the next week till payday and trying to use storecupboards up will be: spag bol (2 meals), split pea & ham soup( 1 dinner then a couple of lunches), sausage and pasta bake, mushroom rissotto, veggie chilli & rice (from freezer) & baked pots & baked beans. So in theory I should only need to buy potatoes and a can of tinned toms for the dinners, all lunches will be L/O's and I have enough cereal and bread for brekkies in. I don't have alot of veg or fruit in but I could make a portion of H/M slaw to have with the pasta bake and I have chard in the garden and plenty of carrots & onions. Fruitwise I have a couple of oranges, some blackberries in the freezer and raspeberries and some tinned pineapple so maybe just enough. I do need milk, teabags, sweeteners, sparkling water and ladies things so todays spends may just be it ( milk 3 for £3, enough for the week, teabags 30p, coffee £2.31 with voucher, sweeteners £1.62, water 17p). Treats/puddings I can make H/M popcorn, fruit crumble, rice pudding and I'm off to search the recipe threads for cheap and yummy baking recipes using what i have in.

Apologies for the super long post, it just seemed easier to write all my thoughts in one place and will make me determined to keep my spends down and be frugal:o

166million

166million wrote: »

£6.99 on cat food. She's been very hungry lately. Total now: £63.48/£100

Tesko shop of £17.72, new total £81.20/ £100

helen_jelly

Morning Peeps

sonastin - sorry to hear your news, hope the paperwork goes smoothly and hope to see you back here

wmf - never mind about this month - its all a learning curve

jovichick - Hi, I'll add you total to the first page in a mo

Some of us are struggling - just remember that because you are doing this challenge you are more aware of what you are spending and thats a good thing, look, learn and move onwards and upwards.
I'm pretty sure I've blown our target this month - need to check my figures, there's no reason for it just rubbish shopping!!

Helen x

cutestkids

Just updating the total for the last week or so and so far this month I am at £299.79 still on budget so hopefully it will stay that way:D

quintwins

hoping for a nsd but the kids asked for doughnuts earlier and if they remeber daddys coming on the school run so i might have to get some, wouldn't mind but they wnat 2 diferent types so i'll have to buy 2 bags lol

looie

Hi all, just updated my total with £16.58 leaving me with £12.71 for the rest of the month. I can do it …. it I know I can

£2.67 on coffee at Sainsbugs and £13.91 at t’s. Got the usual - milk, bread and yoghurts. Bought some things that I had coupons for and stocked up on fizzy drink and biscuits and that was about it really. All the cupboards are bursting as is the freezer.

It’s my mum’s birthday today so I am hoping my sister is baking her a cake if not I will go and buy one later.

Hope everyone has a good day

recovering_spendaholic

Sonastin - condolences to your OH and hope everything goes okay with the probate etc.

jovichick - I think personally that trying to get down to £200 from nearly £600 is a bit of a big ask. I would try for £300 or even £350 this month and see if you get on - I know from my own experience that if I set my target too low and don't achieve it - once I hit the target it all goes pear shaped and I stop keeping count and then spend loads! You may be more disciplined than me though!!

Hoping for a NSD today. Have made a vegetarian pasta bake for DD1 (day 3 of her vegetarianism and I am supporting her as I think that she really does want to do it, plus I don't mind veggie food at all) - I just made the tuna pasta bake with the campbells soup but instead of tuna I used mushrooms and red onions and put a bit more cheese on top for extra protein. DD2 can have hamburgers out of the freezer as she refuses to eat anything veggie, even vegetables!! I have just made a tray of millies cookies so they will go into the tin and can be used for afters with some ice cream tonight.

For my lunch I have decided to have cheese and egg panini. I don't have a panini press so I just lightly toast the panini and then chop up a hard boiled egg and mix it with salt and pepper and grated cheese and pile this on the toasted panini and then put it in the oven for about 5 - 10 minutes until it is all bubbling. I am the only person I know who likes this so I usually make it when I am in on my own!!

Only 4 days till payday!! If the tax credits people are kind to me I may get a bit extra as they took a huge chunk back all at once for an overpayment (which was their fault but don't get me started...). I appealed and asked if they would let me pay it back in installments and haven't heard the outcome yet so fingers crossed (but I'm not hopeful).