I woke up this morning eager to finalize my grocery list and see how well I will do at my first shopping trip for The $250 Challenge. I brought with me only $60 of the $125 allowed for the first 2 weeks of May, but my goal was to only spend $50.*Remember the Challenge includes all necessities - I've already decided to not purchase any clothing for myself this month and no new toys for Little G*
After completing the grocery list and searching for coupons online, I headed off to Fresh & Easy then to WalMart Super Center. It is Saturday and the 1st of the month so it definitely wasn't pretty, but I survived.
Fresh & Easy was my first stop. I had a F&E coupon for $5 Off when you spend $25 or more and knew I would spend at least $30. The total was $31.50 but I saved $6.90 in coupons making the final total $24.80. I don't buy all the groceries at the same store because F&E has many Organic options but not everything I need. I also know which items are cheaper at each store. For example, lemons are 33 cents each at WalMart, and 89 cents each at F&E. Romain lettuce is 98 cents at F&E, and $2.29 at WalMart. Big savings are made if I shop smart and pay attention to how much I am spending on every item I put in my cart.
At WalMart I was able to control my urge to veer off the list and buy only the items needed. I did, however, remember that I am low on Vegetable Oil so I got that. I was unhappy with the price of the Ciabatta bread at WalMart. I usually get it for 98 cents but it was $3.00. Mental note to get it at F&E next time. My total at WalMart was $27.13.
Fresh & Easy was my first stop. I had a F&E coupon for $5 Off when you spend $25 or more and knew I would spend at least $30. The total was $31.50 but I saved $6.90 in coupons making the final total $24.80. I don't buy all the groceries at the same store because F&E has many Organic options but not everything I need. I also know which items are cheaper at each store. For example, lemons are 33 cents each at WalMart, and 89 cents each at F&E. Romain lettuce is 98 cents at F&E, and $2.29 at WalMart. Big savings are made if I shop smart and pay attention to how much I am spending on every item I put in my cart.
At WalMart I was able to control my urge to veer off the list and buy only the items needed. I did, however, remember that I am low on Vegetable Oil so I got that. I was unhappy with the price of the Ciabatta bread at WalMart. I usually get it for 98 cents but it was $3.00. Mental note to get it at F&E next time. My total at WalMart was $27.13.I spent a grand total of $51.93 which leaves me $73.07 for next week. I know I can stick to this weeks meal plan, I'm just worried that my french fry and Cherry Coke addiction will kick in sometime this week - maybe I'll look around the house for some extra change. Wendy's has a delicious Chicken deluxe sandwich with fries and a medium drink for only $2.99. It's my weakness. Hey, some people spend more than 3 bucks on a coffee - now that's crazy!
Sounds like a lot of work, but if you can save in the end it's totally worth it!
ReplyDeleteoh...and I looove the $2.99!
It's really not much effort at all. The most time consuming part is planning the weeks meals and making a list. Even if you plan for half of the week it's a start. I know that we are going to save at least $100 this month by not eating out. Having the meals planned is a great incentive for staying home.
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