May 2011 Grocery Challenge

unhappy_shopper · 4 May 2011 at 11:37AM

Mrs.M, Please put my GC budget for May as £200.

Thanks.

cutiepieabf · 4 May 2011 at 11:40AM

ok, ive just updated my sig, and got up to date with the thread. cant believe how fast it moves!! we are certainly an active community on here!!

Since my meal plan, i have been to coop and l!dl for the top up i needed, and have spent £31.20. i have plenty in the cupboards and freezer so i am trying to use substitutes that i already have instead of what i would normally use/what is in the recipe - if that makes sense?!

i have also started this month by taking out my £100 budget in one go and putting it in a separate purse with my Mr T clubcard and Mr C membership card. i agree that actually seeing your notes turn into coins and thin air makes you much more conscious of what you have remaining. i am trying to wean myself off supermarkets and opt for local produce but this is going to be gradual as the cost can be more. i also have my hen do end of july and we are using Mr T CC vouchers to pay for it so shopping there at the moment is paying for that and my shopping.

we have also had to buy a new car last weekend which is EXACTLY what we needed - NOT!! just as i suggested to OH that we should pay £100 each into our joint acc each month for the wedding costs, we now have to pay £140 per month for the car finance. i know he will be saving an awful lot of money in fuel/tax/mot etc, but it couldnt have come at a worse time. we have cut back on the wedding costs so much as it is! and my cc is totally maxed. arggghhhh.:eek: didnt mean for this to turn into a rant sorry.

ok, onwards and upwards!! this sunday we are having a car boot stall (finally) to rid all the accumulated bags of unneeded things, and i am also going to make some cakes and sell some plants i have propagated (strawbs, sage, lupins). so hopefully the weather will be good, we will make some money, and it will help pay for something.
i know my worries are nothing compared to others so i need to pinch myself.;)

Good luck everyone for May, and happy saving!! :T

cat_smith · 4 May 2011 at 11:46AM

cutiepieabf wrote: »

if you have any tips that would be great. i am getting bored of sandwiches/hm soup/hm sausage rolls. OH wont eat salad which is a PITA so i need to make sure he gets a variety so he doesnt buy stuff while hes in work...

ETA - he doesnt like eggs either.... so quiche is out of the question. grrrr

Does 'salad' just mean rabbit leaves?

Dawning · 4 May 2011 at 11:57AM

It's only the 4th of the month and I feel a FAIL coming already for this month! :mad:Just had to pop out to the coop, spent another £11.47.

I did manage to resist buying my favourite chocolate. I want to write about this because it's really shocked me. A year ago, maybe even 6 months ago, my favourite which is Lindt Excellence Extra Creamy was £1.49 for 100g. I knew it was expensive even then, but I really do like it and it's an occasional treat only. Today it was £1.99 for 100g !! :eek::eek:
How can it have gone up 50p in less than a year?? That's disgraceful.....I can't work out percentages but my frazzled maths brain tells me it's a huge percentage increase. Anyway, I told myself I was NOT paying £2 for a bar of chocolate, so I put it back on the shelf...

Just wondering what you all buy for washing up liquid? I have a dishwasher but still wash by hand now and then. I used to get the coop value one at 19p but they don't make it any more. Any suggestions for a cheap brand please?

cutiepieabf · 4 May 2011 at 12:00PM

cat_smith wrote: »

Does 'salad' just mean rabbit leaves?

Apparently it is actually bad for your rabbit to feed them lettuce! or so ive heard!

by salad i mean lettuce, tomato, cucumber, coleslaw. he will not eat things with mayo in (potato salad, coleslaw). he will eat celery cooked but not raw. erm... cant think what else off top of my head.

i know he sounds like a right awkward bug, but i blame his mother who did not introduce him to the world of fresh food as he grew up, and to be fair to him he has improved an awful lot since we have been together. he used to hate pasta, most veg, mushrooms, noodles, but he loves them now, and he has even asked if he can try prawns?! which is a major breakthrough as he wont eat fish (except fish fingers) :wall: i started off by sneaking these things into his meals and once he discovered what it actually was he would then eat it. but i cant seem to get anywhere with salad...:o how can i disguise these things? god its like feeding a toddler..:o

cat_smith · 4 May 2011 at 12:46PM

cutiepieabf wrote: »

by salad i mean lettuce, tomato, cucumber, coleslaw. he will not eat things with mayo in (potato salad, coleslaw).

god its like feeding a toddler..:o

I know the feeling. I tend to serve things without explanation and wait with baited breath.

Couscous with olives, feta, spring onions and peppers with a little lemon juice works quite well. I throw in whatever else I have - peas, sweetcorn.

Potato salad works with spring onions and a mustard/herb/vinagrette.

Wild rice salad with beans, carrots and a soy and honey sauce.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Lunchbox-Bright-Ideas-Moveable-Feasts/dp/1853753149/ref=sr_1_8?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1304509483&sr=1-8

Hope this helps. It's a great book.

supersally01 · 4 May 2011 at 1:01PM

Afternoon all, Please could I be put down for £375 again this month. Went a bit over last month due to DTD, but should be ahead this month, due to having loads of store cupboard products in. Many thanks all!!!

tessie_bear · 4 May 2011 at 1:29PM

hi...hope all had a lovely bank holiday...lovely weather here which makes a pleasant change for a bank holiday down our way...on gc front i seem to be spending a lot...i seem to be falling into the trap of running out of something essential....say fruit for kids lunch boxes...or an element of something i want to bake and popping to the shops and coming out with loads of 'bargains' and spending a fortune...need to stop but easier said than done

im going to try and reign in the spending for next four weeks as kids are on holiday after that and see what the figures look like

take care
tessa

cutiepieabf · 4 May 2011 at 1:42PM

cat_smith wrote: »

I know the feeling. I tend to serve things without explanation and wait with baited breath.

Couscous with olives, feta, spring onions and peppers with a little lemon juice works quite well. I throw in whatever else I have - peas, sweetcorn.

Potato salad works with spring onions and a mustard/herb/vinagrette.

Wild rice salad with beans, carrots and a soy and honey sauce.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Lunchbox-Bright-Ideas-Moveable-Feasts/dp/1853753149/ref=sr_1_8?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1304509483&sr=1-8

Hope this helps. It's a great book.

thats great - thank you. :T Rice is another thing he wont eat, but i think this is just because when he has had it in the past it has tasted like bullets, so maybe i can swing him around with a good rice salad? cold pasta salad - why did i never think of that??

Chloris · 4 May 2011 at 1:51PM

I have just updated signature. It is not good and I have been to the shops too often. Need to reign in the top up shops again. Help!

Hope everyone is well, I just can't keep up with the thread!

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May 2011 Grocery Challenge

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