Need to leave my camera in my purse

I am still new to this blogging business. As such, I remember to take pictures of the meals I cook, but other things... I sometimes forget.

Today was my monthly grocery store trip and I had this blog already designed in my head. From pictures of us in the store (as my 3 kids came with me) all the way down to pictures of the shopping cart and all the bags lined up before we start putting stuff away.

None of that happened because while I was in the store, my camera sat on my desk at home.

There's goes my whole plan... right out the window.

First, I think that was the faster I've ever been in and out of the store for a monthly shopping trip. I walked in they door at 2:10pm and was sitting in my car and ready to drive home at 3:02pm.

Less than an hour, a receipt that is 4 feet, 5 inches long, and over-budget. Going over-budget is something that rarely happens in my house. BUT, when I got to the store, they had some really good deals, so I stocked up on a few things. Then, next month, when those items aren't on sale, but I still need them, I won't have to buy them. In the long run, I am saving money on next month's grocery bill.

First, my shopping list. I never go to the store without a list in hand of everything I will need for the month.

 

(My shopping list for this month. I even went through and estimated how much all of it would cost - I tend to overestimate on items I'm not sure about the cost of - my estimate for this month was $365, well over what I usually pay for a month of groceries)

Here's a run down of my shopping trip (as if the picture above isn't enough of an indicator that I had a lot of things to buy)....

peanuts

raisins

canned soup (my husband loves the Chunky soups and they were on sale, so I bought extras)

tuna

non-stick cooking spray (also on sale, so I bought extra because I use this a lot)

spaghettios (a treat for my kids once a week for lunch)

dried beans (pinto, lentil, and split pea)

canned baked beans (on sale, stocking up for BBQ season, which I hope comes quickly)

canned tomatoes

condensed soup (chicken noodle, great to serve with grilled cheese sandwiches for lunch)

canned spaghetti sauce (we have homemade that we canned last year from the garden, but I like to keep a couple of these on hand and I was down to only 1 on my pantry shelf)

taco shells (sale! stock up)

1 package of chocolate chip cookies

1 package generic oreo cookies

granola bars

yellow rice mix (great as a quick and easy side dish)

pudding mixes

graham crackers

fettuccine noodles (I was out! Yikes!)

pop tarts (also on sale and a treat for my kids, I'll pick up a couple of boxes every 2 or 3 months)

shortening (I bake a lot, and this was on sale as well)

lasagna noodles

coffee (need....... coffee...... can't..... function.... without..... my...... coffee......)

mayonnaise (sale!)

chow mein meals (not a normal purchase, but my hubby likes them occasionally and they were on sale as well)

cracker sandwiches

spanish rice mix

sea salt grinder (I love those things! And they were on sale)

goldfish

taco seasoning

pretzels

4 bags of cereal

cottage cheese (snack for kids, they love it with fruit)

bagels

cream cheese

a tub of margarine

yogurt cups (great deal! Sell by date of the 7th so they marked it way down, my kids will have it all eaten by the 6th, LOL)

large tub of vanilla yogurt (smoothies!)

shredded cheeses

block cheeses

sliced cheese (on sale!)

10 lbs of ground beef

10 lbs of chicken

2 frozen pizzas

pizza rolls (not a normal purchase, just a treat for the kids for lunch for the next month)

frozen pretzels (on sale and a great snack for the kids)

celery

carrots

apples

frozen strawberries

frozen raspberries

Grand total - $290

Not bad considering most of those things I listed I bought more than 1 or 2 of each.

I know it's a little slim on the fruits and veggies. BUT, I have just taken in inventory of what I already had in the house. I already have 2 bags of oranges, 5 lbs of bananas, more cans of fruit than I can count, frozen peaches and strawberries. Then there is my freezer full of green beans, corn, peas and carrots, peas, broccoli, zucchini and squash. I'm sure I'm forgetting something on that list of what I already have.

I also didn't have to buy milk, as I had just bought milk a couple of days ago.

I was $40 over budget. But I also got more ground beef than we need this month (I'll cook off and freeze the beef tomorrow). I got more than I needed of the sale items so that I don't have to buy them again next month. And being the big trip of the month, I threw in a few treats for the kids that they do not normally get.

Had I not bought extra meat and staples and those little treats, we would have still eaten well for the month, but next month's grocery bill may have been higher. Now, I don't have to buy many things for next month and will have a lower bill when March comes around.

Over the rest of the month, I will spend about another $60 on milk and eggs and perishable items (though I won't need to buy cheese for awhile, block cheese, sliced cheese and shredded cheese all freeze well). But today, I am happy with what I got and how much (or little) I spent for our family of 5 to feed us for a month.

Now that all the groceries are put away and I have typed up a blog, I'm off to fix dinner before getting the munchkins ready for our Wednesday night activities. Spaghetti night! Yum!