January 2012 Grocery Challenge

Chopper5

Hi everyone, I started the GC last year but did not stick to my budget. Now another 12 months has passed and I have saved £0 I am determined to stick to it this time, I have done it successfully in the past but I need the motivation. I am trying to improve my lifestyle in general, cutting back on alcohol and smoking and eating well, and I see the GC can help all of those areas.
I am setting a budget of £200 from 20th Jan to 19th Feb, this is for me and my partner Jake. We both work from home so this should cover all meals that I cook at home. I live in the city centre so go to the markets for meat and veg most weeks. I also shop at lidl most of the time with a monthly visit to ASDA for things like loo roll.
My main aims are to cook more things from scratch instead of packets and avoid the wine aisle!
I will do a meal plan tomorrow, I am too tired today as I came back from Philadelphia this morning, it was a night flight so I have had 5 hours sleep since thurs!
Night night

XSpender

Hello Everyone

I decided in the end to go to C0stco to get the nappies on offer. I now have about 9 weeks worth of nappies:D I knew we would never leave C0stco without buying anything else but pleased with what we got which was a huge bag of curly fries on offer at £2.68. DH doesn't like oven chips so these are a good alternative when a meal calls for something 'chip' like. Also picked up 8 chicago town pizzas at just over 50p each. I love these but won't pay much over £1 for 2. Also got 12 halogen light bulbs for not much more than £6 as we have a four bulb light fitting in the kitchen that just eats bulbs.

Also went to L1dl and bought 10 packs of beans and 3 packs of half price sausages out of the 2nd purse and 2 packs of 99p Quorn sausages out of the GC.

Finally, hit Mr S for skimmed milk, chilli and tortilla chips for an 'in front of the telly dinner', basics cranberry sauce and beer out of the GC and 4 x Sanex shower gel half price at 99p out of the 2nd purse.

My second purse now has approx £2 in it so won't be getting used until we eat our way through some of the 45 tins of beans bought this week on offer:eek:

GC is standing at £148.30/£400. I have bought a lot of things this month that will last longer than the month but I prefer to add them in to the month they were spent rather than spread them across the months they will be used.

DH will be popping into Mr T to buy some Mug sh0ts as he likes these for lunch and they are low fat and they have a better range in the Mr T next to his work as the Mr S near home only had 3 flavours in today. He can be trusted just to buy these (I hope!).

I have agreed with DH, as the house is groaning under the weight of food in it, that we will not shop unitl the weekend, will not order any take aways this week, and will try and just do a shop for fresh food next weekend and not enter another shop to buy food until then.

Treated myself to a spotty lunch bag in Mr S today to encourage me to take my lunch to work and eat it when I get there. It isn't that I buy other food it's just that I don't make the time to eat as I am so busy and I am losing weight/it's not healthy.

On_an_Avon_Mission

Hi everyone. Enjoyed reading this thread for inspiration. Will join for next month when i work out a budget!
My favourite shops are H*me Bargains and Al*i. Tes*o drives me insane with their constant price changing!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Top tip for others: if you like luxury chocolates (not really a grocery as such i know but good for a treat!) H*me Bargains do 350g bags of what are branded as Luxury Chocolate Misshapes for just 99p. I am 99.9% sure that these are actually Thornt*ns chocs. The varieties / shapes etc are identical. Great for splitting into individual bags etc as little gifts. Suberb value!

In answer to the kids' favourites post, my kids love M*llerrice. Good alternative is value rice pudding tin split into little pots with a spoonful of jam / apple sauce / custard etc. Great for lunchboxes.

Linz4383

Natterjack88 wrote: »

OOOH this sounds interesting- although OH has got a new job and so our combined earnings are now around £20k so not sure if we will qualify anymore? I have a child under 5 but no clue what this pension credit is? Not too much info on this around is there

i think you have to earn lower than 16/17000 if you search warm winter scheme or ring your supplier you should be able to find out

JIL

Natterjack88 wrote: »

OOOH this sounds interesting- although OH has got a new job and so our combined earnings are now around £20k so not sure if we will qualify anymore? I have a child under 5 but no clue what this pension credit is? Not too much info on this around is there

Have a look on this site it helps explain a bit more, it seems to be a different criteria from each electricity supplier.

http://www.decc.gov.uk/en/content/cms/funding/whds/whd_broader/whd_broader.aspx

Linz4383

tracey12 wrote: »

Thanks so much for this, it seems that I may be entitled to it as well and had no idea :T




Tracey

glad to have helped i cant believe how many people dont actually no its available to them!

seductivesmile

Good Evening all,

jedi82 wrote: »

Good morning, been offline a few days and have no chance of catching up with this thread!!!! I have gone over as spent £70.27 in MrM yesterday which brings my total up to £366. Not sure we will manage until the 31st but am going to try! Was quite annoyed in MrM yesterday as the value range is being re-branded to 'savers' and part of this process seems to be an increase in price! there were two price labels for jam - value strawberry 18p, savers strawberry 35p. Naturally there was no value jam left :mad:. Makes me cross but enough moaning.

Have a good weekend
Jedi x

This is apparently because all of the value range (old yellow packaging) is being sold off at half price as part of their rebranding thing, not a con to make us spend more!

XSpender wrote: »

Hello Everyone

DH will be popping into Mr T to buy some Mug sh0ts as he likes these for lunch and they are low fat and they have a better range in the Mr T next to his work as the Mr S near home only had 3 flavours in today. He can be trusted just to buy these (I hope!).

Hi, Noticed these were half price in Mr M's if you have one near you! hth.

today i bought a calander, the sort with the blocks for days instead of lines, (75p) and have attached it to my pin board in my kitchen so i can make my meal planning easier.
So far this week, i have planned for, roast pork, pork sweet and sour, Turkey escolopes, spaghetti bolognese and gammon, just got friday to plan, and hopefully no need to go shopping until next weekend, i might dig some meatballs out, or have a treat of pizza from the freezer (i have 2 ristor*nte pizza's cut into halves wrapped in cling film in the freezer)
on my things to do tomorrow is a freezer inventory as i have done my store cupboards, so just the freezer to do and i can PLAN PLAN PLAN!
Have a good week all
SS x

Linz4383

so anyway now ive caught up its maybe time to admite how naughty ive been thought id treat myself to a chinese £5.35 (not comin out of gc budget)
got a few whoopsies from work althought not all to !!! out of my gc budget.... got the big vaseline tins from £5 to £1.50, a lynx set £5ish to £1.25, 3 pks of chicken breasts 3 for £10 packs whoopsied to £1 each, 2 pks of mash from £1ish to 26p, got sum 4pk of pot noodles whilst half price, sum mushrooms and a few other bits for my break at work so ive got a total of £9.38 to add to my total
chicken all split up and in the freezer..... just a quick question although im assumin you can wen youve made the homemade chicken nuggets are they ok to freeze?! the chicken hasnt yet been frozen but was goin to make extra and freeze them thanks

slightly over this weeks budget but on target with the annual one so alls good hopefully i can keep on target as i have plenty in the freezer, just used up sum leftover chicken in a pasta sauce all portioned up ready to freeze for my DD!!!

Fiasco55

I'm just back from Mr T with a stark reminder of why I never shop there anymore :mad:. Got my flavoured water - 4 bottles. There was an "offer" on buy 2 bottles for £1.80 or 99p each. The offer didn't go through and only noticed when checking my receipt on the way back to the car. I headed straight back in to cs to be told that it was closed and to go to a till.

Get to the till and the assistant starts sounding off about her having to do the work of cs. She is annoyed that she has to get up and go and look at the SEL. She returns and scans through a refund for 36p. I then point out DTD to which I am told this does not exist. I argue that it is and it is current policy under "our promise". She then calls another assistant over who says that the DTD promotion finished last year. Again I state this is not to be confused with the huge DTD promotion last year this is just the wrongly charged policy. I hit a wall and ask to speak to a manager. Both assistants say that he won't help me as there is no such promotion.

So I am now over at the CS desk again and after a wait the manager turns up. Denies the DTD policy exists - I point it out on the wall. He then says he can't access the tills. I highlight the amount again and he pulls a pound coin out of his pocket and says just take it from me as its just such a small amount :mad::mad::mad:. Talk about belittling the issue for me!

I refused and stated that this is policy I am only claiming what I am entitled to as stated on the CS wall. I want this to go through the till and to train all staff that this is what should happen. He then oddly enough can access this till and refunds DTD. I was left feeling belittled and an inconvenient, time waster. I spent the drive home in a total rant to my long suffering friend (who witnessed all of this).
Anyway total spend £5.38 in cash, total cost to my blood pressure ???

Florenceem

Another NSD here.