July 2023 Grocery Challenge

Cocobeans

Had a Morries delivery today - tried to stock up on things like loo roll, dog food, cereal etc as had a £12 off an £80 shop. As always there were items missing and also the washing up liquid was leaking so the delivery driver claimed it was a missing item and refunded us but let us keep the liquid! Will have to get the missing items tomorrow as its mainly Soya milk which we use everyday! Realised today that DD finishes school a day earlier than I thought which means we can go away a day earlier so feeling confident about staying in budget this month! 

£88.62/ £275 spent

Nelliegrace

Thank you @elsiepac.
I am setting the budget for two pensioners at £5 a day.

Budget for July £155.

We have a bag of tinned food which needs using and the freezer is full of portions of meat, fish, butter and cheese. I need to shop at home first. We are avoiding most highly processed food, except for bacon and sausages.

The dog food is bought in bulk and the chickens pay for their own Smallholders layers pellets. 

Thevalueofless

@Suffolk_lass thank you for the tip on buying items on offer for my stores. I had thought I'd buy a few random things each week but taking advantage of offers is a much better idea. I was shockingly over June's budget by today so have to get it right for July.

TVOL

lianne1984

£250 target for July.
Good luck everyone!

Suffolk_lass

Thevalueofless said:

@Suffolk_lass thank you for the tip on buying items on offer for my stores. I had thought I'd buy a few random things each week but taking advantage of offers is a much better idea. I was shockingly over June's budget by today so have to get it right for July.

TVOL

@Thevalueofless - when I started this stores thing, I allocated an annual pot for stores that was separate to the monthly bits and pieces. I now buy some things from big river on subscription, but it takes a bit of discipline not to over buy and I try to have five things in a month, so that I get 15% discount - it's useful to have things like sanitary products that I can have as a monthly cheap "filler" and skip things when I just don't need them. Water filters, tea and coffee are worth the savings.

It was shower gel in the SM that I started with - £1 instead of £2.20 - so six at a time, and I had started to record how often they do this. It is usually twice a year. Anyway, I could bore for Britain on it - passion I call it.

My shock month was over £200 a week, when I started. It is sometimes less than £200 a month now (including stores).

June was a nightmare this year though, more like £350 (but I am half way through the year and under half of my budget is spent (just) with 47.85% of my annual (£3000) budget spent (or £64.36 saved for December). Onwards and upwards, to quote positive people on here. 

Verulamium_Vixen

Hi everyone,  especially @elsiepac

I'm off on a family self catering holiday next week, I'm going to do some meal planning but will increase the budget as well.

£750 for July please

xx

mucky_moo

Hi,
So my first spend of July is £46.76. That should be it for the week hopefully 

LittleGem

Hello all please could I join you?

£250 for 2 adults, a 4yo and a 1yo with a healthy appetite!

first shop of the month completed, needed to buy big things like loo rolls and washing powder so a little more expensive than it usually would be at £45.61 in Lidl. 

We have a few odds and sods in the freezer (random portions of lasagne and shepherd pies) to use up and then I want to properly plan some batch cooking as it saves me so much time, effort and money! And who doesn’t love the satisfaction of knowing you have something already sorted for dinner. 

Good luck everyone!

PipneyJane

PipneyJane said:

Thanks for the new thread @elsiepac, and thanks @Suffolk_lass for telling us it was up.  Please count me “in”.  Since we’ve had to “borrow” £20, because we’ve overrun in June

our budget for July will be £120.

We’ll be away for the second half of the month, so should survive.

- Pip  

Good afternoon All and welcome to anyone new.

Apologies @elsiepac, but since we finished June only £4.80 overspent

please change my July budget to £135.20

Many thanks.

We kicked off July by visiting MrT’s last night: £32.53 spent, which included a £3-off voucher and one of their Dinner-for-2-£12-Meal-Deals (wine, main course, a side dish and dessert).  I’m not massively impressed, if the truth be told, and won’t be doing that again in a hurry.  It was late when we shopped and we’d been hoping for one of their “takeaway-at-home” boxes, preferably YS at £6-something, but they didn’t have any.  Looks like they may have stopped doing them.  Scored a £2 coin in our change, to go to the Running Away Fund.

Today, we went to L!dl and did a bit of a stock up: 4 lots of butter, milk, cream cheese, puff pastry, mixed seeds (on offer), etc.  £47.65 spent with another £2 in the change.  

Also in L!dl, I had to return one of the chorizo sausages that we bought in June - it was growing mould.  The use by date was 25 August 2023.  £1.89 back in the pot.

The above brings July to £82.44/£135.20, leaving £52.76 for the rest of the month.  Since we’re away from the 12th to the 27th, that should do us. (Famous last words.)

- Pip

Soontobeoap

16.00 spent this week already on 2,seperate shops in Sainsbugs, our big big shop to restock is due on Tuesday so a lot to be spent early this month. I made up 2 lasagnas, a shepherds pie and 6 cheese burger pastrys using a left over beef burger and 750g of mince. I am kicking myself that I did not remember to add a few oats to bulk it all up as I know I would have got another meal for both of us out of it. Also really annoyed that I set about making the lasagnas for grandchildren stay and didnt have any df sauce. Nothibg wasted but I still have to make up more now and will need more ingredients! Need to get my organised head on again! On the bright side I have been given runner beans and 2 garlic today. I just need to look up how to freeze garlic as we only use it about once a fortnight. Half way through the year and half way through my budget! The more expensive half is still to come. Must get back on track. Ice lollies are our undoing at the moment!