March 2012 Grocery Challenge

rising_from_the_ashes

MunniMuncha wrote: »

Look at the positives, at least you won something :rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:

mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

WelshWoofer

I'm another Welshy!!!! Exiled but went home (4 hours away) to watch the game - hurrah!:j:j:j:j

After a long journey back up north today I couldn't face cooking tonight so I popped to Mr T and spent another £12:mad: Mostly F&V and some fresh bits, veggie burgers and a nice quiche for tea. It will last me until next weekend with the rest of stuff thats in.
I'll have to be very strict with myself next weekend as I have less than £30 left if I'm going to come in on my tight budget this month.


Forgot to ask - can you freeze scones? Mr T had finest butter scones reduced to 24p a packet - I won't eat 4 before they go off, would they be ok in the freezer?

sistercas

WelshWoofer wrote: »

I'm another Welshy!!!! Exiled but went home (4 hours away) to watch the game - hurrah!:j:j:j:j

After a long journey back up north today I couldn't face cooking tonight so I popped to Mr T and spent another £12:mad: Mostly F&V and some fresh bits, veggie burgers and a nice quiche for tea. It will last me until next weekend with the rest of stuff thats in.
I'll have to be very strict with myself next weekend as I have less than £30 left if I'm going to come in on my tight budget this month.


Forgot to ask - can you freeze scones? Mr T had finest butter scones reduced to 24p a packet - I won't eat 4 before they go off, would they be ok in the freezer?

yep they will be perfectly fine frozen x

mi_jardin

Another £5.48 spent today. I got a YS gammon joint, lambs liver, sausages and some salad for tea.
Nearly £14 left to go, but payday and Aprils budget is on Friday.

rising_from_the_ashes

Just thinking about budgets ..... I'm at £74 for the month (annual budget breaks down to £140/month) at mid way through point, so all is fine on that front but I've only been buying absolute essentials - no meat or store cupboard items (trying to use up what I've got) so really only F&V, Bread, Milk & stuff for work lunches - so it's not what I'd call a "typical" month at all.

I will be over my % allowed by the end of March - down to a big stock up in Jan so was way over then (and currently being balanced out) but I'm also meeting a friend in town next weekend .... and there's a Home Bar*gains on the way so I will be going to do my 3 month stock up whilst in the area (60 mile round trip so makes sense to do it then, rather than wait a couple of weeks which is when I was going to go).

So .... (sorry, rambling:o) - how on earth I stick to my budget on "normal" months is beyond me but it must be done.:(

Suffolk_lass

rising_from_the_ashes wrote: »

Just thinking about budgets ..... I'm at £74 for the month (annual budget breaks down to £140/month) at mid way through point, so all is fine on that front but I've only been buying absolute essentials - no meat or store cupboard items (trying to use up what I've got) so really only F&V, Bread, Milk & stuff for work lunches - so it's not what I'd call a "typical" month at all.

I will be over my % allowed by the end of March - down to a big stock up in Jan so was way over then (and currently being balanced out) but I'm also meeting a friend in town next weekend .... and there's a Home Bar*gains on the way so I will be going to do my 3 month stock up whilst in the area (60 mile round trip so makes sense to do it then, rather than wait a couple of weeks which is when I was going to go).

So .... (sorry, rambling:o) - how on earth I stick to my budget on "normal" months is beyond me but it must be done.:(

As you say, you like to do a big storecupboard shop every three months so shouldn't you be dividing your annual budget into 16? - 4 for the storecupboard shops and then 12 for the essentials and fresh bits.

The 4 don't have to be the same as the others - you might choose to allocate 1/3 to the stock shops and divide the two thirds by 12 for the fresh/top up shops or 2/5 and 3/5ths; whatever works for you really - then you won't feel you've got to beat yourself up for the rest of the calendar quarter to make it apportion out right. You could get really sophisticated for the things where you buy a year's supply (I bought water filters for example and ended up with 18x4 week cartridges to avoid the delivery charge!) - so I have a spreadsheet 2nd purse instead of a real one to cover that. I seem to recall you are one of the loo-roll girls with a healthy supply in stock - the 16 portion system might work for you.
HTH
SL

rising_from_the_ashes

Suffolk_lass wrote: »

As you say, you like to do a big storecupboard shop every three months so shouldn't you be dividing you annual budget into 16? - 4 for the storecupboard shops and then 12 for the essentials and fresh bits.

The 4 don't have to be the same as the others - you might choose to allocate 1/3 to the stock shops and divide the two thirds by 12 for the fresh/top up shops or 2/5 and 3/5ths; whatever work for you really - then you won't feel you've got to beat yourself up for the rest of the calendar quarter to make it apportion out right. You could get really sophisticated for the things where you buy a year's supply (I bought water filters for example and ended up with 18x4 week cartridges to avoid the delivery charge!) - so I have a spreadsheet 2nd purse instead of a real one to cover that. I seem to recall you are one of the loo-roll girls with a healthy supply in stock - the 16 portion system might work for you.
HTH
SL

:rotfl:Yup, I am a fully signed up member ..... in fact, I will be getting a load more next week as I'm down to my last 2 packs (of 18)!

I'm not too worried about the budget being more some months than others as I know it should balance out but the problem is, I'm really struggling to come in at 1/12 budget on the non-stocking up months..... I did manage it last month (by about £1.50:o) and it looks like I'll be heading for a similar spend this month ... but this leaves [STRIKE]little [/STRIKE] no room for balancing out.

I like the idea of dividing it by 16 and having the "extra 4" for the storecupboard stock ups but atm there just seems no way I can manage on £105 for the "normal" months - my milk spends alone will be close to £40 for March (5 week month)...

My "loo roll consumption" is a lot higher than most peoples (without TMI, medical condition) which also means very restricted diet and more toiletries

Suffolk_lass

My Mum (love her) is in her 80s and currently on a coach trip taking in Lincolnshire with her friend. Yesterday, they did Lincolnshire. Today, I've had texts from her (a nice young man on the train taught her how to text on the train south at Christmas) to say she is in Cambridge. That is only an hour from us! She's bonkers. They live 450 miles up country in Ayrshire and must have spent half the trip sitting on the coach on motorways. Bless her, she'll be all chatted out by the time they get home tomorrow.
:rotfl:

ms_night_ryder

right i spent £12.63 today but £6 f that was drain cleaner which im not including, got a really good whoopsie a pork loin £11.87 down to £2.83 so well pleased with that, will split into 2 and freeze, also fot some junk and half price philly, so i have £5 of my budget left, dont need anything as far as i know, so i'm good.

PennyGrabber

rising_from_the_ashes wrote: »

Just thinking about budgets ..... I'm at £74 for the month (annual budget breaks down to £140/month) at mid way through point, so all is fine on that front but I've only been buying absolute essentials - no meat or store cupboard items (trying to use up what I've got) so really only F&V, Bread, Milk & stuff for work lunches - so it's not what I'd call a "typical" month at all.

I will be over my % allowed by the end of March - down to a big stock up in Jan so was way over then (and currently being balanced out) but I'm also meeting a friend in town next weekend .... and there's a Home Bar*gains on the way so I will be going to do my 3 month stock up whilst in the area (60 mile round trip so makes sense to do it then, rather than wait a couple of weeks which is when I was going to go).

So .... (sorry, rambling:o) - how on earth I stick to my budget on "normal" months is beyond me but it must be done.:(

Hi! I'm like you, doing an annual and monthly challenge all in one go. If I have a stock up that I know about, I'll up my budget for that month. If I don't know about it beforehand, I don't count it in that month, just in the annual bit. If you look at my sig, it'll be clearer. HTH

NSD today. DD brought me breakfast in bed - rice crispies and apple juice! Bless! Then we watched some telly before spending the day with friends and drawing on the pavement with chalks, going for bike rides, having lunch and going swimming. A great day, with little cost. I took some mini sausages and some crisps, all from stock towards lunch, and they provided toasties and other bits. The swimming was £8.??, so not too bad, and it was a fun and floats session.

I acted suitably surprised when I was given my presents that I bought!!), and the children were really excited about them. Don't actually know where dd hid them for the last two weeks!

NSD tom, and actually, planning to have a fiscal fast until Friday at least. The only problem will be that I may need some fuel, but I have £9.02 on a gift card, that a friend gave me, so if I used that, I still wouldn't be spending any of my money, right? That's it. Doing a fiscal fast until Friday.

It's my ex-father-in-law's birthday on weds, so I'll have to make him a card, and his present is already bought.

Meal plan for the week:

Mon: sausage casserole
Tues: lo saus cass (for ch, don't know about me yet as I'm at college, so prob stuff on toast/similar)
Weds: pasta and sauce with grated cheese (ch at their dad's)
Thurs:tomato soup (for ch), as we're not home until about quarter to six that night. I'll have something when they've gone to bed
Fri: no ch, so whatever falls out of the freezer

This feels quite vague now I've typed it out, but I understand it! And. I'll be using stuff up all over the place this week! I had pasta and sauce for dinner on Friday, so I'll just freeze the rest of the sauce, and remember to defrost it on Tues ready for Weds. It's ood, but doesn't mean I have to waste it!

I'm desperate to go through my cupboard under the stairs - I can't see anything past the first pile of food! Whereas before this would have made me feel better, now it just winds me up. I'm really proud of myself for turning that around in less than a year.

Hope everyone is well,

PG x