Wednesday, February 15, 2017

February Grocery Shopping - Week 2

February 13 Groceries

I went grocery shopping on Monday, February 13 and bought:

1 box pancake mix = $1.99
1 loaf bread = $1.00
16 oz. jar unsalted roasted peanuts = $2.99
2 cans condensed milk, @$1.69 = $3.38
1 can corned beef = $5.99
1 lb. butter @ $3.99 - $.40 coupon = $3.59
Bananas @  $.69/lb = $.79
1 cucumber = $.50
1 container (6 oz.) blackberries = $.99
1 package chicken split breasts with ribs and skin, @$.77/lb. = $3.47
Total = $24.69


I have come to the end of the box of pancake mix I have in the cabinet and I opened the last can of corned beef I had, last week.

I found it interesting that the same, store brand, unsalted roasted peanuts cost $2.99 for a 12-oz can, but the 16 oz. jar was also priced at $2.99!  No explanation for the price difference.  All the different kinds of store brand peanuts (salted, honey roasted, etc.) were priced the same - $2.99 for the 12-oz cans and $2.99 for the 16 oz. jar!  Maybe people assume that the can will be cheaper?  Personally, I'd rather have more peanuts for the same price and a reusable jar, as well!

Yes, I finally caved in and bought the butter at $3.59/lb with the coupon, as I was down to half of the last stick of butter.  It's $3.99 otherwise and $4.49 without the store's club card!

The two oranges in the picture above weren't bought; I picked them from my tree.  I just included them in the picture because I picked them on my way from the garage to the house and I dropped them in one of the bags with the rest of the groceries!  

February 13 Receipt


I spent a total of $36.64 at the grocery store, but $11.95 of it was for cat food, which is not included in my grocery budget.  The groceries came to $24.69.

February grocery budget = $75 + $20.53 carried over from January = $95.53
Spent to date = $10.11 + $24.69 = $34.80
Balance remaining = $60.73

The new grocery ads came in today's mail and I took a quick look.  No exceptional sales, but that's OK.  All I'll need next week are more fruits and vegetables and maybe some fish for a change.  Also, maybe some frozen puff pastry to make sausage rolls with the sausage I bought on sale, last week. 

How is your February grocery budget coming along? 

14 comments:

  1. You just gave another example of why it's important to pay attention to prices because every once in a while the "obvious" is not always the best price.

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    1. Yes, I almost always check the prices and do a bit of comparison. Comparing the unit price (price per ounce, etc.) is helpful, too, but they don't always put the comparison at the sale price, only at the regular shelf price.

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  2. It's lovely that you can get oranges from your garden! I was so jealous of the temperatures that you had the other day. It is still cold here. Thought I'd take a walk outside this morning and didn't wear my long undies - brrrr - what a mistake!

    Butter is SO expensive. I don't use often but do try to 'stock up' when it's on sale around the holidays.

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    1. Yes, it's a blessing to be able to pick fruit from the garden. Oranges may not grow where you are (unless you try it as an indoor plant?) but maybe you have other fruit trees in your garden? Apples and cherries grew well in Wisconsin, I remember - I went apple and cherry picking once, with some friends, when I was there.

      Unfortunately, I couldn't stock up on butter during the holiday season, last year. The price never went down to what I considered stock up prices, which is $2 or under. I am going to have to re-think my price point for butter, I think! I comforted myself with the thought that at just under $4 per lb. (without a coupon), a stick of butter costs $1 and it lasts me a week for sandwiches and sauteing, etc. (as long as I don't bake!), which really isn't too much. I used to buy margarine, but then I read that butter was better for you, although my daughter tells me that opinions have changed. I need to read up on it, again.

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    2. We switched to unsalted butter a long time ago. Recently met with a dietician who confirmed a better choice than marg - stay away from processed foods and if food color was not added to marg it would be a horrible gray! I recently read that butter from grass fed cows contain much greater amounts of heart healthy nutrients than butter from grain fed cows.

      SandyExpat

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    3. Sandy, you know, I had half a packet of unsalted butter in the freezer (bought for some dessert recipe that called for unsalted butter) and I used it up for regular use and didn't detect much of a taste difference. In fact, yesterday, I reached for the unsalted butter, as I am supposed to watch my salt intake, and then, put it back and went back to the regular, salted butter. I think, I will give the unsalted butter a try, once this package is over.

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  3. Wow.. great price on those chicken breast and black berries..
    The sausage rolls sound really good. I love puff pastry.
    Hope you have a good day..
    I have not done much grocery shopping in February.. I did go Sunday after church and bought:
    centercut pork chops- [family pack, I repackaged them for us, when I got home]- 1.59 lb
    lettuce- 99 cents
    diet coke - 2 liter-99 cents [bought 6]
    Tomato - 99 cent lb
    Have a great day.

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    1. Yes, usually, the bone-in with skin chicken breasts go on sale for $.99/lb. or $.89/lb. and that's when I buy them. But when I saw they were $.77/lb. I knew I had to buy some! I removed the skin before I cooked them, but kept the bones on.

      Looks like you got some good deals, too. :)

      Hope you are having a blessed day, Judy. Take care.

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  4. You did well at the grocery store, especially on guise back berries. What you wrote about the nuts is so true. Today I got 2 large size Cheerios for the same price as two small boxes. Go figure! I have had to change my shopping choices a tad as my husband is now on a low fat low salt eating plan. One of the changes we had to make was seriously cut back on cheese. I have become an avid label reader.

    I hope next week I can do a lighter shop - fruit, veg and deli chicken/turkey for his lunch time.

    SandyExpat

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    1. Glad you found the larger boxes of cereal for the same price as the smaller ones! I think a low fat/low salt eating plan is a good idea for many of us! Fortunately, these days, there are many low fat/low salt options, but even so, reading labels is an important part of it, because added salt (and sugar) is hidden in a lot of things. Even things like raw chicken will have brine added! I know there are some varieties of low fat cheeses, but I don't know how low salt they are. I don't eat a lot of cheese and my daughter doesn't like cheese, so I rarely buy it.

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  5. It's shopping day for us tomorrow. The bills haven't been too bad lately, we seem to have cupboards full of stuff and we could do with thinning some things out over the next couple of weeks, mainly so I have tidy cupboards again :)

    I'm pretty good at knowing what I usually pay for things when I go shopping and there's never much variation at Lidl but I always wince when I go to other stores because some things are really expensive. It's good to have a general idea of prices I think. xx

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    1. Suzanne, it might be time to do a pantry challenge, when you try to eat from what is in the cupboards! I read a news article today, that stated that Lidl is planning to open stores in the U.S., in some states along the east coast, maybe later this year or next!

      I used to keep what is known as a price book, where one notes down the regular price of items and sale prices in order to know what is a good sale price at which to buy/stock up, etc. It got to a point where I pretty much knew the sale prices and then, I arrived at a "price point" above which I would not pay for an item, preferring instead to wait for a sale. These days, however, that price point is needing to be revised upwards for a number of things as even the sale prices are higher than my former price points!

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  6. Great for noticing the nut prices. I think people traditionally think smaller will be cheaper. I have found the same thing with ketchup here.
    We are on week 2 of no spectacular grocery buys. I only need produce, so I am going to cherry pick the best I can. We will be out of town next week so I only need a few days worth anyway.

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    1. Yes, often the larger containers can be cheaper than the smaller containers. I almost always bought the larger containers because of it. But now, with just myself, I find the larger containers spoiling before I can finish them, so, have started to buy the smaller packages which cost more.

      Good idea to cherry pick the produce you need. I used to do that quite a bit in the past. Not so much, any more.

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