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Struggling with grocery bill

April 6th, 2011 at 09:51 am

(Self-analysis of why our grocery bill is going up instead of down)
I wanted grocery bill to be under $70/week. The past couple months, though, it has been steadily around $100/week!
-we have reduced our eating out from a couple times a week to maybe 3-4 times a month, requiring more meals at home.
-we all take lunch to work and school.
-we buy a lot of produce that adds up each week.
-we buy plenty of disinfectant wipes, napkins, paper products weekly.
-we use coupons...

What am I willing to change in order to make my grocery expenses go down?
- STICK to the LIST. Even if we have a coupon for something else, unless it ends up being a stock-up steal, we can do without. While we have been saving a lot with coupons, I think they are encouraging extra spending on things we might have done without in the past.
-Find a cheaper way to get cleaning products. Does anyone have an at-home alternative to the disinfectant wipes? My roommate is squeamish about sponges and is hooked on those wipes, but there has to be an alternative to these things.

Ok, we'll see what happens Sat. after weekly shopping trip...

Posted in Grocery report | 7 Comments »

7 Responses to “Struggling with grocery bill”

  1. LivingDebtFree Says:
    April 6th, 2011 at 11:13 am 1302088416
    1302088416

    Have you ever looked into Angel Food? We buy at least one box a month from them and it really helps stretch the grocery money. I seldom buy any meat at a grocery store anymore because of Angel Food.

  2. NJDebbie Says:
    April 6th, 2011 at 01:12 pm 1302095536
    1302095536

    Since you've cut down on eating out, why don't you add some of that money to your grocery budget. Sometimes it's important to tweak the budget according to your needs. Angel Food is a great alternative!

  3. Joan.of.the.Arch Says:
    April 6th, 2011 at 01:38 pm 1302097088
    1302097088

    Disinfectant wipes: Remove half the paper towels from a . them apart at the tear line an lay them out in a plastic container, in a graduated fashion so that all the edges do not line up. That is to help you get out a single towel at a time. Mix a teaspoon of bleach into one 8 ounce glass of water. Mix a drop of dish detergent into the water (but do not use any white pearlescent detergents; some of them will react with bleach). Pour the bleach-detergent-water over the paper towels and put the lid on your container. Ready to go!

    These would be for cleaning hard surfaces, not for hands, faces, or fabrics.

    OR: Simply put the bleach-detergent-water mix in a spray bottle. Spray the bleach safe surface and wipe with dry paper towel right off the roll. (Or use with dry white cloth.)

    However, if your roommate is opposed to re-using a sponge, perhaps s/he would be comfortable using a stack of freshly laundered, single use cloths. In a drawer we keep a stack of terry cloth and cotton napkins ready for use. I never have to buy disposable wipes, paper napkins, paper plates, etc. I only buy paper towels for special projects that would dirty towels too much to even launder them. (Like using a chemical stove cleaner.)

  4. North Georgia Gal Says:
    April 6th, 2011 at 03:34 pm 1302104067
    1302104067

    If you are consistently going over budget maybe you need to re-examine and alot more to the grocery category.

  5. debtfreeme Says:
    April 6th, 2011 at 10:02 pm 1302127359
    1302127359

    The cost of groceries is going up somethign awful!

  6. Taylor Says:
    April 7th, 2011 at 12:09 am 1302134940
    1302134940

    I use spray cleaner and dish towels. I have a stack of towels that are just for wiping spills, cleaning counters, etc. I tend to use one a day then toss it in a special basket just for towels. They get washed and reused. They've lasted about six years so far. Also I have another towel that hangs on the stove handle that is used for drying hands only. I think paper towels are a waste. They're nice, but can add up if you use them often.

  7. mamasita Says:
    April 9th, 2011 at 11:14 am 1302347647
    1302347647

    I am starting to build a collection of cleaning towels/rags, to be used once and then washed. It drives me crazy to use so many paper towels.

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