Before I type in what I spent on what, where and when for February. I need to give you a little background. We were gone the first week filming for the 700 club. I still purchased pretty much the same because I buy for storing in the pantry not for what we eat right away. It was a particularly good month for sales and I took advantage until the last week.
I went to the store more frequently than normal in February as I took advantage of the sales and to help replenish our fridge after being gone for several weeks in a row.
I had money left this month and decided to save it in an envelope for August when I plan to make a bulk food order. I will pinch off a little each month until then so I have the extra cash to spend come time.
I recommend $50 per person per month and for our family that’s $350 a month. It’s a comfortable level for us, we did it for $200 a month a little over a year ago during a time of lengthy unemployment. So at $250 a month I can buy several treats and this month those included canned wheat Grand’s biscuits and breakfast sausage. I normally don’t have those items on hand, but at this stage in my pregnancy it was nice to have a treat and save some preparation time. It’s interesting to note, that after a meal with those items none of us felt well and my 7 yo vomited in the night. I had to remind mysel fthat there’s a reason I normally pass those items by even when they are a good deal.
2/5/11 Costco
Jonagold apples 2 flats–$3.99 each ($.79 a lb)
Honey ham lunch meat (treat) $8.99
Mini Bell Peppers $3.99
10 lb bag of chicken breasts $19.99
4 lbs of butter $9.69
Fresh broccoli florets $4.49
5 lb organic frozen green beans $5.79
2 gallons of skim milk $2.31 each
Roasted red pepper hummus (treat) $4.99
Colby Jack 2 lb Brick $4.89
5 lbs of Turkey Burgers (treat) $9.99
Total with tax $89.87
02/05/2011 Price Choper
4 boxes of Barilla Manicotti shells (on sale for $.69 off and I bought extra to freeze casseroles for after the baby comes) $1.50 each
6 pkgs lowfat Turkey Hot Dogs (Treat! ON sale and wanted these for Valentine’s Day and bought extra to freeze for later.) $.68 each
4-1.5 lb packages of 93% lean ground turkey Regularly $3.50 onsale for –$2.00 each
9lbs of Pork strips for BBQ @ $1.00 a lb
2 jars Pace PIcante Sauce Sale $1.48 each
3 Nufchatel Cheese bricks onsale $.69 each
Valentine Candy–$4.00
2 boxes of wheatable crackers on sale–$$1.48 a box
Total with tax: $51.76
02/11/2011 Price Chopper
4 KoolAid Packets for Valentine crafts–$.60
2-12 oz links Turkey Sausage (like Keilbasa) on sale $1.98 each
6 pgs of 12 oz breakfast sausage links on sale $.78 each
8 lbs of chicken tenders $2 a lb
4 Cans whole wheat grands biscuits–$.98 each
Marichino Cherries (for Valentine’s Day) $1.49
Chili Powder $1.49
2 heads of cauliflower $.98 each
Total with tax $37.42
02/14/2011 Aldi
2 boxes of bran flakes–$1.69 each
24 cans of tomato sauce $.25 each
10 lbs of potatoes $.299
10 lbs of naval oranges $3.00
4-1 lb bags of baby carrots $1 each
3-1.5 oz of ground turkey $2.49 each
Bananas $1.30
2 cans of Rotele tomatoes $.49 each
2 cans of Refried beans $.65 each
4 cans of Black Beans $.55 each
4 cans of tuna–$.52 each
Velveeta style cheese $3.69
2 cans of mandrain organges $.49 each
2 boxes of Microwave popcorn (treat) $1.49 each
6 boxes of mac and cheese (treat) $.29 each
2 cans of chili powder $.99 each
Lite pancake syrup (treat) $1.29
2 boxes of “cheerios” $1.59 each
2 cans parmesan cheese $2.29 each
2lbs of Fresh red grapes $1 a lb
2 bags of frito style cornchips (treat) $.99 each
2 gallons of Skim milk $2.88 each
Mustard $.69
5 lbs of sugar $2.39
Strawberry Jam $1.49
Red pepper flakes $.99
Pepperoni $1.99
2 cans of Chunk Pineapple $.98 each
Total with tax $85.08
02/17/2011 Costco
6 Romaine Hearts $3.49
5 lbs shredded mozzarella cheese $9.99
2 gallons of skim milk $2.31 each
64 oz of plain yogurt $3.99
Tortilla Chips $3.39
Total with tax 27.79
02/15/2011 Nature’s Pantry
1 lb Vital wheat gluten $4.83
4.7 lbs White whole wheat flour $4.73
4.3 lbs of barley $6.16
2.4 lbs of spelt $4.33
1.6 lbs of buckwheat $2.87
1.2 lbs of rye berries $2.86
Total with Tax: 29.89
2/19/2011 Aldi (quick run to grab some stuff for a friend’s party)
onions $1.49
sweet onions $1.49
teriyaki sauce $.99
2 pks pf crescent rolls $1.29 each
Total with tax $6.85
Total for the month: $328.85
Thank you so much for posting this! It really does help to see what someone else buys and pays for. I do have a couple of questions…Does Costco have sales or are their prices always the same? I’ve been considering making a trip to ours to see if it would be worth the price of membership for our family. And, I’ve never heard of Price Chopper and Nature’s Bounty. Are they actual stores or internet stores?
Hi Pam, Costco doesn’t have sales. But once a month they mail out coupons for certain items. Most of the time these are for things we don’t use, but every once in awhile I snag a great deal–like the $1 off the flat of apples last month. Price Chopper is just a neighborhood grocery store and Nature’s Pantry is a healthfood store with a nice bulk section–they are similar to Whole Foods. Right now I don’t buy any groceries over the internet. I can usually beat the prices locally and not have to deal with the shipping lag.
Oh, I almost forgot! I made your bread machine mix this weekend (and 2 extra batches for the fridge) and made your dinner rolls. They were awesome! We wouldn’t be needing all 2 dozen of them so I froze 1/2 of the dough in muffin tins and then transferred them to a freezer bag when they were frozen solid so that the next time I need them all I’ll have to do is take them out of the freezer and let them rise again before baking. They look exactly like the Parkerhouse type rolls I used to buy at the store for a fraction of the cost. Thanks so much for taking the time to continue to blog and send newsletters with your busy life!
Yay Pam! I’m so glad it worked so well for you. Good idea freezing the extra.
Thanks for posting this info, it was helpful to see what you actually bought. I’ve been trying to shop your way for a couple of weeks now and am doing very well and am saving a lot of money. One of the things I’ve noticed is that we are eating healthier, nearly all of our meals are from scratch which is good.
Thanks for sharing, I printed these and deleted the items we never use. I plan to use it as a starting point for my “price book”. I have not been really looking for sales, we just buy our ingredients where we like the quality, except for costco, some stuff we buy from there simply because of the price, like milk. Even though prices vary, it gives me a starting point to compare to. I do kind of have it down in my head what good deals are and if I’m careful to sit down and look at adds I’ll save money on some things, I also scan the clearance section at the store first. Knowing that they’re clearancing things because they’re old helps me to not impulse buy. oh and after many confusing wasted papers it finally hit me to use a PENCIL for the prices in my price book. LOL, as basic as that sounds I didn’t think about it before and kept having to cross out and change prices as they went up.
One quick question- Any ideas for parsnips, turnips and rutabagas? I got four large bags (potato size) of them given to me. What would you do with them?
Staci, if I had them I would roast some of them drizzled with olive oil onions and garlic (salt and pepper.) They would be pretty with some sweet potatoes or carrots thrown in too.
Thx for posting this, Angela! It helped me realize why as hard as I”ve been trying I haven’t been able to get down to $50/person. Where I live in California, even sale prices at our grocery stores aren’t anywhere close to what you all get to pay(ex. I have NEVER seen cereal for under $2/box; I stopped buying it b/c I couldn’t find it for under $3.50 opting to make lots more eggs & toast for breakfast). And the Costco prices on your list are lower than what I pay as well. Helps me to not be so discouraged, and to just keep trying and looking for what are deals in my area; stocking up when I see them. The plan is still the right plan even if my bottom line will end up being a little higher…Thx again!
Angela,
I went to the local Dollar General store, and was surprized to find food. I bought a 13 oz box of of Crispy Rice Cereal for $1.00. It was fresh and very good. They had lots of bargains, but I had never thought of that store as a food source before.
Sue
I find the comment about prices in California very interesting because I was going to post something similar. I live in Ontario, Canada, and I think that bringing the cost down to $100 a person per month will be a challenge – but it is my goal. Right now, I pay about $900 for a family of 6. I wonder if anyone else in Ontario could give me a ballpark figure of what they pay per person.
Thank you for your site, Angela. I just found it and I love it!