Thursday, February 26, 2009

Aloha Friday

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Over at Kilani's blog she started the Aloha Friday, in honor of in Hawaii, Aloha Friday is the day that they take it easy and look forward to the weekend. So she thought that on Fridays she would take it easy on posting, too. I thought this is a great idea so therefore, I’ll ask a simple question for you to answer. Nothing that requires a lengthy response.


A "hot" topic in our household is how much we should be spending on groceries versus how much we have budgeted for groceries. Lately, it seems like we have been spending WAY too much on groceries. Now, I do shop at Meijer (Like a Super Target) which has me buying everything from groceries, to children's books, clothes, to health and beauty items all in one stop. Last week I spent $220.00!! And almost had a heart attack when that was with my 25.00 gift card. The week before I spent $170.00. This frustrates me because I read the flyers, buy the sale items and try to clip coupons, and still our grocery bill is too high for what we would like to be spending... I mean it is only me and my hubs, and the babe. I am buying baby food though...


Anyways, this leads me to my question of the week....
How much do you spend per week on groceries? Do you clip coupons? Buy the sale items in the flyer? Stock up when things are on sale? And if you have any tips on how to be frugal - please - send them my way... my husband (the account manager) would really appreciate it!!


Hope everyone has had a great week and ALOHA FRIDAY!

28 comments:

Anonymous said...

Here in Canada I don't think coupons are worthwhile at all because they only have them for products that are way too expensive to begin with. I look through the flyers, and definitely pick up as much as I can on certain sale items. Not all things in the flyers are actually on sale. Cheese is a really good thing to buy a lot of when it is on sale (and chocolate milk). We normally spend about $60 - 80 a week (but then we may skip a week). Rarely do I spend more than $100. It is for myself, my husband and an almost two year old (big eater). This is usually only groceries (with maybe an extra item or two). When I buy diapers it is more (but we use cloth most of the time to save money). By the time you add formula, baby food, and diapers, your grocery bill gets big real fast (and you can't do much about it). We switched from formula to milk earlier than a year and I made my own baby food. One little thing I do is always buy the 'sub mix' at the deli because you get more expensive meats for cheaper. I always make a menu plan ahead of time and therefore only buy what we need. Those are some of my tips:) Esther:)

Abby said...

It varies quite a bit from week to week, but I would say usually about $75 a week. It is just me, my husband and my son. We rarely eat out anymore so that saves tons of $. I don't do a lot of coupons, just for diapers or if I have a really good one that I really need. I find with coupons you often end up buying a more expensive brand and therfore don't really save, but if I am going to buy it anyway then a coupon is a good choice.

Country Mouse, City Mouse said...

About $200 a week. But it can vary depending on the time of the month. At the end of the month before my cheque comes I spend less, and the week of the cheque it is more.

I say, buy the foods you enjoy and try to cut back elsewhere if you are trying to save money. Say...baby clothes, maybe your sister has some hand-me-downs she could send your way. Life is short, enjoy your foods, your choice are good.

Beth @ TheAngelForever said...

We probably spend $100-150. It depends on whether we go to BJ's that week or not (especially when we need diapers). Lately we sit down and plan out the menu for the week. Then we look to see what items we need. Usually it simply means adding in produce and a few odds and ends. Hubby and I are both into coupons and are working on organizing them more to maximize usage. I often shop at CVS and Target to hit sales with good coupons for stocking up. Good luck!

*Just Jen* said...

I clip the coupons all the time and then forget to use them! LOL I spend about $100 a week, but my son goes to his dad's house every other two days, so I don't have a growing boy eating me out of house and home EVERY day. lol

Tara said...

Hmm.. I try and use coupons. I tend to stick to the same items every time we shop. The same menu. I am not good at playing the "grocery game" (I wish I was) The only way I really save is by cutting out all the extra "junk".

Tara said...

oh and we buy groceries every other week.. probably spend about 150 to 200.. but we buy in bulk once every 2 months or so..so it keeps the regular grocery trips lower.

Anonymous said...

I spend about$200.00 a week and rarely use coupons. If something I normally buy is on sale, I might buy a few extra. I don't buy things just because it's on sale.

3boyzmom said...

I spend about $100 a week on groceries for a family of five, BUT that doesn't include anything but food. Plus, the kids eat at school for lunch and even breakfast many days, and we eat out often on weekends. I buy store brand for certain products, there are a few items where I actually like the Kroger brand BETTER than the name brand...and other items I ONLY will buy name brand (like mayo for example). I also buy in bulk meat, then divide it into meals and freeze it.

Kari @ A Giveaway Addicted Mommy said...

We spend about $150 a month on groceries. I have a 17 year old son who consumes his weight in food daily though.
I am a coupon clipper and it you are too - you might was to check out www.thegrocerygame.com

Come visit my first Aloha Friday HERE!

Heather said...

I am of NO help to you. I promise.

We are a family of 3. We budget $600 a month for groceries and seriously, I use it all. That's a shame for a family of 3!

But, lately I've been buying meat in bulk and separating it myself. And, I've been watching for sale items and coordinating my weekly menu.

http://www.5dollardinners.com/

This gal helps me a lot, too!

And, you can check out Angel Food Ministries for some great deals.

janetfaye said...

I spend about $100 per week. Groceries are very high now even when I use coupons.

Anonymous said...

I spend about $100-150 per week and try to use coupons. I always price compare and will buy store brand if it saves a bit. I take advantage of sales and purchase non-perishibles in bulk. I always, always plan all my meals in advance!

Amy the SaltyMomma said...

We are a family of six and try to limit our household purchases to $100/wk. I coupon, shop the sales, shop CVS, and read Money Saving Mom religiously. If you haven't discovered her site yet check it out. It's GREAT!

Good Luck Shopping! :)

Amy ~ The Salty Momma

Andrea said...

We eat really cheap, so we only spend about $100 a week. It used to be quite a bit less, but when gas went up, so did the cost of groceries. You'd think that now that gas has gone down, so would food costs, but no go so far...

Nina said...

I learned a trick from my sitter... I travel around to about 4 different stores. Aldi for some things, Kroger for most, Walmart and Meijer for some things. I find Walmart and Target to be bad stores so I have to have a list of exactly what I am getting and I don't look at anything else. It is funny because my cereal is half the price at Walmart verses Kroger and my carotes more then double off at Aldi verses Kroger. I created a spread sheet of what things cost at different stores and travel around with my list.
In total I spend around $200 every two weeks but that includes a huge bag of dog food and diapers.

Anonymous said...

This used to be a huge problem for me too...impulse buying was my problem. Now I go with a set list from my meal plan for the week. I only buy the food we need for that week. My meal plan consists of breakfast lunch and dinner for each day, and I take into account company or extra curricular activities, then plan around them. I also am an avid flyer user. like Esther said I buy lots of cheese when it's on sale and I will shop around. We also collect points on our groceries and I hope to pay for my Christmas dinner at the end of the year with my points. I have a set budget and if I go over, we end up eating mac and cheese and rice and beans, so there's a real feeling of commitment to my budget as well...it's not just an oopsie, well I guess we'll have to pull out of our savings...that 's a no-no. I used to do the same thing and buy books and clothes at the grocery store, and now I shop where I can no longer do that, the temptation is too great for me!! lol, I have no self control around cute kids clothes :)

hope all is well otherwise Kel!! love ya!

Jennifer said...

Hi There!

I spend about 200.00 a month on groceries for a family of 6. Give or take. I do use coupons (get more than one paper and stock up on coupons) I check sale ads. I buy cheap & I do competitor price matching. (Walmart will match any competitor's price) I don't buy many items in bulk, but some things I will like toliet paper, shampoo, soap, laundry detergant...only if they are on sale & I have coupons!

annies home said...

I have a family of 8 and we normally use around $125 to $150 I hist sales, coupons, frugal ways of shopping, and whatever else. THat is my budget and I can not go over but I want a week of great meals and snacks. This also includes household items that are needed ie shampoo, soap, cleaners, etc... When I make it and save I have a party in the grocery aisle. One of the things I do is pray over the shopping list that somehow my eyes will be open to find the bargains that I have to.

Anonymous said...

We spend about $100 - $125 a week. No coupons. And I usually look at the flyers but I rarely end up going after the deals unless they are things I wanted to buy anyways.

OLLIE MCKAY'S ~ A Chic Boutique said...

Probably averages out to $100 per week - lots less since both kids are out of the house! I go to the commissary about every 2-3 weeks - big savings! In between I use the local stores. My hubby is very, very good about eating left overs ~ so we do that ALOT! I try to fix them up a little differently, but whatever I do ~ it really helps to squeeze more than one meal out of a dinner!

sues2u2 said...

I was impressed by all of the answers & gratified to know that I do some of those things too! What a great question.

I spend around 125 - 150 per week however that feeds two large dogs, two cats, two adults, one little girl & one teenager who recently grew 1 1/2 inches in less than a month! I think I do pretty good. That being said I too shop the fliers & also the end caps especially. The end caps are where the sale items are. The rest of the shelves are just products. Oh & oddly enough it Does pay to shop @ more than one store. Chances are very high that the savings in food are more than the cost of driving!

Good luck.

Anonymous said...

Since the kids are in college, I only spend about $20 a week. It used to be about $75.

Sarah said...

We spend about $100 a week. I save a ton of money with coupons and BOGO sales at Publix. When an item is BOGO they let you use a coupon for each item which adds up. I don't buy anything just because I have coupons for it. Publix also rotates their sale items so that I stock up when it is on sale and know it will be on sale again in a few weeks time. I rarely buy things full price.

Shelley K. said...

It varies weekly--depending how much meat we buy (it is just my husband and me--and the furbaby :) I say we probably average about $125 but we tend to buy a lot of goodies. We do use coupons and have a shoppers card. We are very blessed to be able to get the things we need and thank GOD at every meal :)

Alicia said...

I spend normally about $150 on groceries every 2 weeks. I use coupons if they are available and I do stock up on things if they are something I know we use on a regular basis.

Lisa C. said...

I used to clip, but now that the girls are bigger and more demanding of my time... I only WISH i had the time. From time to time, I get lucky and find a few...

Anonymous said...

How funny! I just got home from grocery shopping! I don't clip coupons but I do check out the sale ads.