I think everyone has probably felt the increase in the cost of groceries and gas lately. This was an interesting article on msn about a woman who fed her family of four on almost $100 for the week. It is always a juggle, trying to balance out the cost of food, the nutritional value of what you buy, and the time it takes to prepare things. I have found that I can save myself money, and then I usually have to make up for it in time. But, fortunately, that is a trade off that we can and many times have to make.
Christine was so kind as to share some of her organic produce with me, which I immediately put to work on some yummy veggie kabobs. This week I have also made whole-wheat banana carrot bread, bran muffins (with flax, crushed pineapple, and carrot), homemade granola, and hopefully some whole wheat bread. Of course, I was so tired and overwhelmed by all my dishes that I did actually lay down on my daughter's bedroom floor this morning for 10 minutes. But that's a whole different story.
Anyway, I have also found that I save my money by supplementing my regular grocery items (from Trader Joe's) with items from 99 cents only, Big Lots, or Target. One week I actually got my grocery bill down to $115 (for five of us, and one is preggo, mind you!!), but I did fill in with some items from the other stores. Often times, 99 cents only or Big Lots will have organic or all natural products. Anyway, I am posting a link to this interesting article...but I thought all of us bloggers could share our own money saving, healthy eating tips. So, how are you coping with the rising cost of groceries, and how do you save money??
P.S. If you want any of the the aforementioned recipes, just let me know.
P.S.S. In the midst of typing this post, I can't find the article on msn that I was reading, so I can't post a link to it. But, we could probably come up with better ideas anyway. =)
7 comments:
Our groceries for the 6 of us are about $100 a week. I shop at Aldi and what I can't get there I can get at the store right next to it which is a produce store. We get meats at that store for half what Jewel costs. We try and eat as healthy as possible too. But I really don't buy organic. I don't think that is really helpful but that is what we do to be able to eat.
I also make bread and other items during the week. I stock up on items we use all the time, like beans, when they go on sale, and try to buy produce and meat when it is on sale, or in bulk at places like Sam's (or Costco.) I don't always buy organic, because of the expense, but there are a few things I wont skimp on, like milk.
I don't know if that's revolutionary...but I also tell myself that spending a little more now on healthy food, will most likely save me a lot in hospital bills later on! :)
Yes, we do about $100 a wekk for groceries fo our family of four, and that includes Arrowhead water, too. But what it doesn't include is out-to-eat or ordering in. That does not come out of our food budget. If we go out to eat, we use other money.
So, how do we do it? Well, here's some simple things...we do not ever (and I really mean it, unless we have a party) buy any liquid but milk and water. No soda. No juice. Nothing. That stuff is so expensive and so full of sugar (even the juice). Also, we rarely, and I mean rarely, buy any packaged cookies or chips. Those also are so expensive and full of junk. We don't buy in bulk at Costco anymore unless we are sure we are going to use it. And we only go to Costco once a month. No more. And we only go to TJs once a month. We rarely shop for groceries in Ojai because it;s too expensive, but if we do, we go to Starr Market. Believe it or not, on their regular priced items, Starr beats Vons every day. We also used to buy produce from roadside stands, so much cheaper. (Now we trade fish for produce, but not everyone can do that.) We buy frozen pizza from TJs and have it on hand for those rushed nights, instead of ordering pizza, which can be four times as much money, even Dominoes is four times as much. I used to clip coupons, but I don't anymore.
Hmmm....well, that's probably way more than you wanted to know. Hope it helps. I hope I didn't misspell anything.
Glad you liked the veggies/fruit. I have more carrots if you want!
We don't have a lot of options as far as retailers go. But the good thing about that is that you kind of memorize who has the best price on what. So there are a lot of things I buy regularly only from Walmart, and a lot of things I buy when they're on sale at Safeway. We get most of our meat from the local butcher (so cool!) which is both cheaper and better quality. And there are a few things I buy once a month at Costco (like the five pound bag of tortilla chips, which Jason eats for snacks at night, for $3.50). When money is tight, I can get our grocery bill down to about $75 a week doing those things, but I like to keep it closer to $100 a week if possible, so we have extra for when we run out of fresh fruit or something. Gas just about kills it though. Nothing is local but the meat.
Wow... I am impressed with all of you. I would love to see how cheap Jeff and I and kids could eat for. (We could always throw in a Ramen night for a cheapy.) But with the five adults and four kids that live in this house I think we are usually about $200. There are two to three people that go out and shop at different times, so it is hard to tell exactly. (Luckily our store is only five minutes away.) One of my favorite cheap meals is lentil soup. Good and Yummy and Cheap!
I have not been able to get our groceries down to $100/week. Even when we eat our most cheap meals. But I am close, and I am working on it. Last night we had baked potatoes, green beans, and cucumber salad for dinner, which is a pretty cheap meal!! But even with cutting back on cereal, we still go through 3 gallons of milk a week. I am not sure, but I think much of our money is spent on dairy (milk, cheese, butter, etc.) Maybe we should get a cow! Oh wait, then we would have to feed the cow too!
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