December 2014 Grocery Challenge

[Deleted User]

After lurking around this thread and being really inspired by everyone's efforts I think I'm going to put my head on the block and join you starting on 1st January.

Have made a conscious effort to cut back as much as I can but suspect there's still plenty of room for improvement:o. I'll have a good think about what amount to aim for before I declare anything but in the meantime please would someone clarify what exactly is covered in the challenge?

There's just me and OH. I'm always trying to lose weight so am happy with smaller portions but he has a hearty appetite (greedy?) and can eat for 2. We have a cat who never seems full but is pretty fussy what he deigns to eat:eek:

Do we include laundry detergents, cleaning materials, toilet rolls etc in our totals or is it just food and drink (us and cat) please?

january_23

carbootcrazy wrote: »

I'll have a good think about what amount to aim for before I declare anything but in the meantime please would someone clarify what exactly is covered in the challenge?

There's just me and OH. I'm always trying to lose weight so am happy with smaller portions but he has a hearty appetite (greedy?) and can eat for 2. We have a cat who never seems full but is pretty fussy what he deigns to eat:eek:

Do we include laundry detergents, cleaning materials, toilet rolls etc in our totals or is it just food and drink (us and cat) please?

You can just do food and drink if you want to.

It's just OH and me here. We include all food, including take aways which are rare, alcohol, toiletries, cleaning stuff, laundry detergents and the like.

Decembers budget is really high for us due to factor in solstice and Christmas costs. Normally our budget is less.

Basically it includes what you want it to include.

joedenise

Went with shopping with DH yesterday and once again ended up spending more than expected! The planned spend was just some lamb & some veg which I could buy from the farm shop but DH decided he wanted some fish for lunch so went to fishmongers and bought some cod for lunch plus a kilo of whiting (frozen) so should last at least until end Jan or even Feb depending on how often I put fish into the menu plan next month! A total spend of £17.92 (lamb, fish & veg). Will add to total shortly.

Denise

Kerfuffle

carbootcrazy wrote: »

After lurking around this thread and being really inspired by everyone's efforts I think I'm going to put my head on the block and join you starting on 1st January.

Have made a conscious effort to cut back as much as I can but suspect there's still plenty of room for improvement:o. I'll have a good think about what amount to aim for before I declare anything but in the meantime please would someone clarify what exactly is covered in the challenge?

There's just me and OH. I'm always trying to lose weight so am happy with smaller portions but he has a hearty appetite (greedy?) and can eat for 2. We have a cat who never seems full but is pretty fussy what he deigns to eat:eek:

Do we include laundry detergents, cleaning materials, toilet rolls etc in our totals or is it just food and drink (us and cat) please?

Welcome to the thread.

My budget is for anything that I would buy at the supermarket or it's alternatives (market/Aldi/Lidl etc). I don't want to be having to make deductions to my receipts, or be putting things through the checkout separately.

Do it whichever way you feel is right for you, time is a big factor me and whilst I'd love to have a spreadsheet that told me exactly under which category my money was spent I haven't got the time or inclination to be so accurate.

Solstice_3

Evening all Think it's been a few days since I updated so a quick post before bed.

12/12 £12.26 £8.34
13/12 NSD (4)
14/12 £8.83

Bit of a rubbish few days, DS has had upset stomach, which has almost cleared up so had him on plainer foods. DD is now on Soya milk which is pricey compared to milk but it's worth it until we can challenge her on milk again - I'm waiting until the New Year. I've had to fork out 2 lots of prescription charges for myself, one routine the other meds from GP as I have Vertigo I'm being rubbish with the meds as they have to dissolve in your mouth over 2 hours which means no drinks or food so I have to plan carefully and am failing. Plus they taste awful.

Nevermind onwards and upwards

Have a good start to this upcoming week!

GettingOrganised

Got through last week with a couple of top up shops. When I totalled the receipts up and added them to my current balance, it came to £99.99. This satisfied my slightly quirky number pattern obsession! Unfortunately, my total didn't stay at this for very long as I was going to do a big shop later that day. This came in at under £50, so still looking good so far for December.

However, I haven't got much food in yet for Christmas - I'm currently working on making space in the freezer for the expensive meats and I haven't bought any drinks yet either.

I still think that just being aware of how much I'm spending on groceries is a help - next year I can really focus on reducing it down.

january_23

A&C today. Total now £195.40.

miss_try_to_save

another nsd for me today so quite happy with myself dd2 will need more lactose free milk prob tomorrow as shes drinking it like its going out of fashion so will stock her up as its long life first will need to check theres not one lurking in the storage cupboard will be top ups of fruit and milk till thurs/fri when I plan to do a big shop

Solstice_3

NSD (5) today. May or may not have a spend day tomorrow we do need milk so might have to get that at least.

scotmumof3

Small spend for me today in Tesc*. I needed milk, bread and naan bread for dinner tonight. Total spend today £4.50.
Hope everyone had a good Monday