dcmetrocrab
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Post by dcmetrocrab on Jul 5, 2011 1:05:44 GMT -5
SO and I budget $50/week for groceries. We sometimes stay under, most of the time go over that limit. We used to be more strict about it, but we love grocery shopping and our fridge is always overfull. We rarely eat breakfast, bad habit I know! If anything, it is instant oatmeal. Lunch is usually dinner leftovers or result of bulk cooking. We eat out 2-4 times a week, which comes out of our allowances. The budget doesn't include pet supplies, or alcohol. It includes cleaning supplies. SO is a master pantry chef, we rarely if ever buy groceries based on what we want to eat or make. Meal plans are centered around what is on sale and what we already have on hand that needs to be eaten before it goes bad. Walking around with a recipe as a shopping list is a foreign practice to us. Cleaning products, have a hard time guessing on this, but honestly I'd be hard pressed to say we average more than $40 a year on this. We don't do paper towels or napkins. TP, Scott 1000 is plenty fine, a $12 24 roll pack lasts us nearly a year!
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bobosensei
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Post by bobosensei on Jul 5, 2011 1:42:45 GMT -5
Last month it was about 75 a week just on me. I buy organic dairy and bread, but I don't have access to organic fresh veggies. I stick with name brand foods- since that is usually what the commissary stocks. It isn't like I can buy the wal-mart brand over here so that costs a bit more too. I spend another 85 a month on dog food for 2 dogs. I also spend about 40 a month on alcohol.
Some months I spend a lot more, at least twice a year I have to host dinner for a group of DH's coworker's spouses. Feeding 15-25 women is expensive. We also have people over for dinner a good bit. When that happens I spend a little more. I typically don't eat out.
When DH is home we spend about 150 a week on gorceries, and the alcohol buget nearly doubles as well.
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bobosensei
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Post by bobosensei on Jul 5, 2011 1:53:52 GMT -5
oh lets not go there on the pet food. My dogs eat orijen regional red. It is around 85 dollars per bag, but one bag lasts the two dogs a month. The food is grain free, and the meat is made from human grade pasture raised animals or wild caught fish and other game.
The dogs absolutely love their food. It is good for them, and they poop less when they eat it.
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dancinmama
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Post by dancinmama on Jul 5, 2011 2:06:06 GMT -5
oh lets not go there on the pet food. My dogs eat orijen regional red. It is around 85 dollars per bag, but one bag lasts the two dogs a month. The food is grain free, and the meat is made from human grade pasture raised animals or wild caught fish and other game. The dogs absolutely love their food. It is good for them, and they poop less when they eat it.
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bobosensei
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Post by bobosensei on Jul 5, 2011 2:21:11 GMT -5
lol, dancinmama
but in all honesty it isn't that much more expensive than the stuff I used to get at the grocery store. They used to eat 2 bags of 35 dollar dog food a month- so I'm only spending about 15 more a month.
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dancinmama
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Post by dancinmama on Jul 5, 2011 2:44:58 GMT -5
lol, dancinmama but in all honesty it isn't that much more expensive than the stuff I used to get at the grocery store. They used to eat 2 bags of 35 dollar dog food a month- so I'm only spending about 15 more a month. Yep, that's good.
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Post by The Walk of the Penguin Mich on Jul 5, 2011 6:47:54 GMT -5
I've gotta ask - when did the pets (cats, dogs) started to need all kinds of "weird" food??
When I wound up with a cat that was prone to Feline Urinary Syndrome. The additives in a lot of commercial cat foods would cause him to clog up and I'd have to take him to the vet to get him catheterized and cleaned up.
After a couple of $200+ vet visits, the $20/month bag of premium catfud became a cheap alternative.
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daisylu
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Post by daisylu on Jul 5, 2011 7:25:45 GMT -5
I average around $100/week for our family of 4 and 2 dogs.
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family legacy
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Post by family legacy on Jul 5, 2011 7:58:47 GMT -5
For the people eating so cheap - how healthy is the food you are buying? We buy most staples (less meat/produce) at Aldi's (discount grocer), use coupons combined with sales to stock up on frozen veggies, eat only basic fresh fruit bought in-season (no kiwis or kumquats), make some casseroles, and eat some meatless meals. While we do eat some processed foods, with 2 young kids I'm pretty conscientious about offering a fairly healthy balance.
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midjd
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Post by midjd on Jul 5, 2011 8:04:53 GMT -5
Illini, I thought it was funny! Because the grocery threads usually DO turn into "I feed my family of 6 with only organic food and grass-fed beef for $45 a week..." ;D
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jul 5, 2011 8:16:19 GMT -5
However, most people that "poke fun" aren't actually poking fun. Most imply that we are lying and it gets REALLY old. Personally, I've paid close to $0 for health, beauty, and household items for the last 3-4 years....When you can get foods like these for free, it can greatly reduce the cost of what you pay in your "normal" grocery bill and you rarely run out of them. dancinmama, we all love you, but you are obsessed. It is a well known fact on the boards that any mention of grocery costs will attract a 2 page essay from you. We have started using code to avoid. You know the greek bailout thread? That is really about grocery costs. We just didn't want to get you worked up again.
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marvholly
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Post by marvholly on Jul 5, 2011 8:39:24 GMT -5
Yesterday at 9:15am, mmc wrote:For the people eating so cheap - how healthy is the food you are buying?
Let me breakdown my Mon grocery shopping receipts: Meat: 4.64 Fish: 1.00 Cheese: 1.00 Fruit/Veg 3.00 Msc (junk, condiments, seasonings) 3.06
Total 12.69
I still need some dairy, bread and maybe salad stuff this week so +$3-4.50.
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Post by pig on Jul 5, 2011 8:47:51 GMT -5
About 500 a month for three people.
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swamp
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Post by swamp on Jul 5, 2011 8:58:49 GMT -5
Illini, I thought it was funny! Because the grocery threads usually DO turn into "I feed my family of 6 with only organic food and grass-fed beef for $45 a week..." ;D I thought it was funny too because there are certain posters who go on and on about how they can feed an army healthy and organic foods for next to nothing.
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Gardening Grandma
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Post by Gardening Grandma on Jul 5, 2011 9:01:36 GMT -5
Illini, I thought it was funny! Because the grocery threads usually DO turn into "I feed my family of 6 with only organic food and grass-fed beef for $45 a week..." ;D LOL. You left out "by using coupons"
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steph08
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Post by steph08 on Jul 5, 2011 11:54:18 GMT -5
For two adults, no kids, we were spending about $125/week on food and household items (not pet food though). Due to DH's unemployment ending, we have had to cut back and I am trying to do $75/week for the two of us. This month hasn't been too bad. I can usually do $50-70 at the grocery store but if we go out, then that is another $20 or so and I will go over. But I think $75 is a good number for two people for a week. I am going to try not to do a grocery run this week and just get what we need (like milk and hot dog buns today).
I also buy human grade dog food. I used to feed Taste of the Wild, which is what I like best since it is grain-free and a reasonable price, $45 for a 30 pound bag. It usually lasts about 3 weeks with my two 65-pound boxers. I budget $100/month for dog and fish stuff, half the time I only have to buy one bag of dog food and the rest of the money goes into their savings in case of vet visits, etc., the other half of the time I have to buy two bags of dog food.
We actually just switched to a different, not-as-good dog food, which is only $30 a bag for 35 pounds and I am regretting it already. It is still rated pretty well, but not like TOTW and not grain-free. Both dogs have puked once in the week they have been on it and they haven't puked in ages. DH says we have to cut back on the money spent on dog food, but after this bag, I think I am switching back to TOTW if the puking doesn't improve or if they start to get more pimples or their coats worsen. It isn't worth it if my dogs feel bad and have upset tummies. I'd rather pay the extra $15 or $30 a month and cut back in other areas.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jul 5, 2011 16:44:32 GMT -5
I spend a ton my cat food, I did not include that in my spending for the week. My cat became allergic to corn and was throwing up so we needed to get him wet food instead of dry. And he was on that dry food because of his UTI problem which could kill him painfully. So frankly I'll pay $12 a week for his food. I'd skimp on my food before cutting his.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jul 5, 2011 16:51:45 GMT -5
Wow, Gin, I read that you would skimp on your food before you would skimp on your own. Maybe that's because of the allergies and UTI.
I like to think our food and our dog's food are actually about the same quality. She eats Beneful, which is slightly more expensive than Purina Dog Chow and much more expensive than Walmart's Old Roy or whatever it's called. We actually buy whatever Walmart's generic is (Good Value?) for a lot of stuff if I don't have a coupon. Otherwise, we buy the average priced brand.
I know dog food is a touchy issue among pet owners, but I honestly think she eats as well as we do.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jul 5, 2011 21:53:37 GMT -5
We budget $100./wk for 2 adults and one cat, but we bake all of our own breads, pies, cakes, etc. by milling all our own grain that we buy in 50-100lb. bulk weights at a time. (Rye, wheat, etc.) Hobart mixer can do enough dough for about 15 or so loaves at a time, plus we plant a 2 acre garden every year that we freeze/can most of the veggies we get... (About 20 different crops a year, little bit o' everything, and lots of basic staple veggies..)
I spend an extra $100. maybe 3-4x/yr. stocking up on sales too good to pass up...
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april47
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Post by april47 on Jul 6, 2011 9:06:36 GMT -5
We budget $100./wk for 2 adults and one cat, but we bake all of our own breads, pies, cakes, etc. by milling all our own grain that we buy in 50-100lb. bulk weights at a time. (Rye, wheat, etc.) Hobart mixer can do enough dough for about 15 or so loaves at a time, plus we plant a 2 acre garden every year that we freeze/can most of the veggies we get... (About 20 different crops a year, little bit o' everything, and lots of basic staple veggies..) I spend an extra $100. maybe 3-4x/yr. stocking up on sales too good to pass up... You mill your own grain and can your homegrown veggies.... My mouth is hanging open in awe. Do you work fulltime and sew your own clothes too? I feel like a slacker.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jul 6, 2011 11:45:16 GMT -5
We average about $800 a month, so roughly $200 a week. That is a $250 monthly Sam's trip, one big grocery shopping trip (about $150), then weekly $50 small picking things up, and eating out (too much). That feeds 3 adults and 1 child.
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