Fun Friday Shopping Totals: See how I feed my family of six (including 3 teens!) for around $400/month. See our $100 Budget Weekly Menu here.
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SAVE A LOT-Spent $23.71.
WALMART-Spent $34.66
LOCAL HISPANIC STORE- Spent $44.59.
Weekly Total: $ 102.96
Monthly Total: $ 427.55
($100/week budget for six people)
I’m $27.55 over budget for the month, but I have lots of meat in the freezer so we’ll see if I can keep to the budget next month!
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Great shopping trip! Check out my trips to CVS and Publix this week on my blog!
Oh – you bought my FAVORITE salsa! 🙂 A girl after my own heart! 🙂
Thanks for sharing!
I’ve been couponing for the last year, and yes, I’ve saved some money – but really, it’s more like I’ve just got 4 times as much food. (My kids have loved that though!) (though – I have to say, I’ve enjoyed reading your ebook so far. I need to finish it.)
However, I did my budget yesterday (was behind quite a bit on keeping it up to date. I’ve gotten lazy with it this last year or so. I used to be almost anal about it) – and realized, with the amount of things in our pantry, I could probably bring our monthly total down still some more – which would be good, as we’ve had some extra expenses in other categories lately.
We have a family of 7, and I’ve been happy to see our food budget go down to an avg of $664/mo this year (from over $800-900) by couponing – plus having a lot more food (which is also good – because my 9 year old, who is as tall as his 13 yr old brother, is going to eat me out of my house one of these days!). However – my goal was closer to $550. I know that $664 is still well below the national avg for a family of 7 (it used to be the avg for a family of 4). In 2009 – our size family’s nat’l avg would be anywhere from $813.63 (via one calculation based on family size alone – not ages) or $1068 (adding each value for age ranges individually) on the “thrifty” plan – all the way up to $1596 or $2114 on the “liberal” plan! Wow! How do people spend that much? Does that include going out to eat? . . . So – now I don’t feel so bad about $664! 🙂
But I did find a family of 7 that fed theirs for $350/mo.! So – I guess I could do better (no more fruit snacks and treats?!). Though – my 9 yr old will eat apples like they are raisins! I need to plant an apple tree! That would save me money! 🙂
Thanks again for sharing your totals and your budget challenges. It is inspiring! 🙂
I too, and working towards more “peace” in my shopping and budgeting. 🙂 No more getting frustrated if the store is out of things on super-sale days. I’m ok with what I can get. 🙂
Blessings!
Lori 🙂
Wow! Great shopping. I love to go to my local Hispanic store also. I’ve told you before I love your blog because you always have the best info and ideas! I just love it. And you let us ask questions! So I was wondering if you have any organizational tips for recipes? I’ve got to do something with mine to have them all together in one place instead of having to hunt the one I need. I bet you have a fool proof system! Hope you have a great weekend. Blessings to you and your family.
Thanks so much Sherry! You are such an encourager. 🙂
I have a binder (could you guess!)? I have it divided into categories like chicken, beef, baking, etc. When I find a recipe that works for us I print it, hole punch it and stick it in the binder. I also make notes about things we like, such as adding more of an ingredient. For all new recipes on The Peaceful Mom I am adding a print option. So far it is on the Black Bean and Chicken Chili and the Easy Hot Wings I added today. I will slowly add the print option to the other recipes as I have time.
Another fun thing I have been doing is to “pin” new recipes on Pinterest. Then when I need some creativity, I check out what I have on my boards. You can go here to see my Good Food board. Hope this helps!
Thanks for taking the time to comment Lori! In my opinion, the most important thing is to find what works for your family. If I were working outside the home for example, I would not be able to keep the bill nearly this low. Also, if I cooked even more things from scratch (like the frozen waffles I bought), I might be able to apend even less. I have found a good balance for our family. Sounds like you’ve found a balance too.
Thanks for stopping by!