October 2011 Grocery Challenge

totallybored

Hi all, another newbie on the old style board. I'm going to join in as I've been spending far too much recently and i'm going to go with £250 for the month. This is for 2 adults and we have my dad visit for the weekend every other week. I'm including all cleaning products (I have to admit I buy very few apart from anti bacterial wipes) and toiletries. I'm not including alcohol as this is coming out of my "fun" budget that also includes eating out and drinks of which I'm going to try to stick to £100 a month.

I have no idea what I've been spending in the past but I think it's been at least £120 a week and I shop everywhere from Aldi to Waitrose (I like buying things!). I don't throw much away but my freezer is full and I have cupboards containing who knows what! I try to meal plan and cook from scratch but we don't get home until at least 7 so it's not always possible so I intend to use up some of the freezer and then make my own ready meals.

The aim of the new budget is to increase my savings as I feel I've been wasting far too much money for too long.

rosieben

Welcome to all our newbies, as Spiggle has said you've come to the right place for support and ideas

Spigs, great post as always :beer:

Ches

Did the main grocery shop today but didn't need huge amount as plenty in the cupboards. Spent £35.77 but that included a sympathy card at £1.85. Leaves me with £134. 23.

Want_to_be_free

£90 Only please

Want_to_be_free

Could you please put my name down for £90 only , this will include food, drink and cleaning stuff. I normally spend over £300 , so real cutting down but no more long term guess is in the house and YM is here only for 3 days every week. This amount is a challange for me but I will clear up my fridge and frezer , along with my cupboards...

So far £ 15.90 for my weekly shopping , but I will need to buy eggs... I made my own bread today and tomorrow will attempt to make yogurt ...[/QUOTE]

seductivesmile

Hi All,
Could i please be put down for £77.50 for October please. This is £2.50 per day. I have got plenty of stocks in, and my spares stock will be 'bought' from before i go to the shops - a twist on motherships 2nd purse thing, i put the money in my Tardis money box to restock in the new year - I will be meal planning loosely, ie - a pot of pieces of paper with meals written on them, and then in the mornings, pull one out of the pot, and then out of the freezer. So hopefully, a very cheap month for me, with the left over pennies (fingers crossed) into the tardis.
Ok, off to write my potluck tickets!
Good luck for october!

recovering_spendaholic

Hi everyone - hope you are enjoying this lovely weather.

I am in a bit of a state today because I have just done my budget for the month and find that, after all my essential bills are paid I only have £200 to last the month for everything (groceries, petrol, school trip). I don't think I can manage on that and I am panicking. The problem is that after my renewal of my tax credits the tax credit people decided that I had been overpaid by £922 - I dispute this but it seems that I am getting no-where. They took some of it out of my June pay and that caused me a problem but then this last month they took the remaining £484 in a lump sum which has thrown me into financial chaos. I rang them up and they said that they would refer it on but I've heard nothing. I wasn't asking to write off the overpayment, just to allow me to pay it off in smaller chunks. Anyway, this means that my planned grocery target of £360 will have to be re-thought! I am really upset about it and don't have alot of things like meat in store at all, and was planning to do an online meat order next week, but now I can't.

My kids are so fussy and my oldest works and earns a good wage, but doesn't pay any keep and won't do so (that's a discussion for another thread I think....)

Tonight I re-heated a frozen hm pasta bake which I made last week. It was absolutely horrible because the pasta went all mushy when it was being reheated and it was truly vile. No-one would eat it and so I had to make sausages, which I had got from Aldi, and they were not well received either as DD1 said that they tasted cheap and so she wasted hers, along with two slices of bread which she had with them. Does anyone know why the pasta went all mushy? I tasted it when it was freshly made and it was yummy - REALLY nice!

I was going to go to Tesco tomorrow with two vouchers (one for £5 from the Daily Mail, and a till spit for £6 off £40). I had done a list and reckoned that it would cost me £40 in total, after BOGOFs and vouchers. Now I don't think I should go but I think it is probably a waste because the vouchers expire tomorrow.

Sorry to have gone on but I am in a real panic! I will have to try and work out a strategy but it won't be easy.

hjanea

Evening everyone! What another beautiful day-strange to think its October tomorrow!
Anyhow went to [EMAIL="Waitr@se"]Waitr@se[/EMAIL] as they have cat food on offer. Spent £50 on catfood (different budget) and saved £24.60!! Spent £3.55 from grocery budget on salad, garlic bread and a gingerbread biscuit for DD as she'd done well with her reading today.
I've updated my sig. Hopeful of tomorrow being an NSD as we are having tea at mums and going to mealplan the next week whilst I watch tv this evening. Must try not to think that planning using HM lasagne that has been in the freezer for over 5 years is a good idea in future. It looked revolting after cooking and tasted a bit odd so got binned and we had spaghetti with HM tomato sauce instead-poor DD was very hungry by the time I'd made that!!

hjanea

Hi Jane, my post coincided with yours. So that you don't waste the vouchers is it possible to redo your shopping list to get some meat etc and other staples that you could freeze for later in the month? Have you read the threads about getting more out of your meat-stretching it by adding cheaper ingredients as well. My DD has no idea she has lentils in her mince!! I also get some quorn (or cheaper supermarket own brand) and add that to my real mince to make it stretch further.
I'm afraid that frozen pasta thats reheated always goes soggy and slimy for me too. Better to freeze just the sauce and use with freshly cooked pasta.
I think perhaps if your kids won't eat what they are given (and they are old enough) you should explain that things are tight at the moment and that they eat what they are given or its basics jam on bread for tea-that used to be a tea when I was a kid!LOL!!!
Good luck. Hope someone comes along with some more ideas.

Fiasco55

Good evening all. I am back in for another month. Having overspent in the last two months I am going to have to bite the bullet and set my budget at £160 for October.

I have got quite a bit still stashed away in my freezer and my store cupboard is very healthy. I will be needing to pick up some more flavoured water this month and will be looking for a deal on cans.