Wednesday, February 20, 2019

Grocery Shopping on Tuesday

2/19 Groceries

I am glad I waited until today to go grocery shopping.  It was another sunny day, but it was a little warmer, today, and, even more importantly, it wasn't windy. 

Last night, I felt that I was having a bit of a relapse from my cold and cough.  I felt a bit stuffed up and achy.  I boiled some coriander and let it steep to make coriander tea, which is our cure-all for colds.  I added some preserved ginger to it, since I didn't have any fresh ginger, and drank it before going to bed.  I even got to bed by 1:00 a.m., which is early for me!  I didn't fall asleep, immediately, but, slept for a good eight hours, so I had a good night's rest, and woke up feeling much better.  I'll probably have another cup of coriander tea before I go to sleep, tonight, too.

I spent a relaxed morning, having my morning cup of tea and replying to blog comments, putting away the laundry from yesterday, etc.  I brought the trash can in (and put it out, again, later in the evening, along with the damaged recycling bin, for them to collect the old bins and give me replacement bins, tomorrow - they wanted the bins out by the curb by 6:00 a.m. on Wednesday morning and I know I won't be getting up in time to do that!).

I checked the mail box to see if this week's grocery ads had been delivered, but they hadn't been.  They are usually delivered on Tuesdays, but, sometimes, they get delivered on Wednesdays, which is when the prices go into effect.

In the afternoon, I went to the Armenian grocery store for this week's specials and a couple of other items. 

While I was at the store, I took a couple of photos of some different kinds of vegetables, which, I know aren't commonly seen in most grocery stores:

Chinese Okra/Ridged Gourd
Chinese Okra is soft and edible when it is young.  Left to mature and dry on the vine, it turns into what is known as a loofa.


Bitter Melon
Bitter melon, as the name implies, is very bitter! 

I didn't buy either of these vegetables, today.  Instead, I bought:

2 cucumbers @ $.20 = $.40
Broccoli @ $.49/lb = $.27
Sugar peas/Snow peas @ $2.99/lb = $.39
Tomato @ $.79/lb = $3.57
Green Beans @ $.99/lb = $.40
1 lb. bag carrots = $.39
2 lettuce @ $.50 = $1.00
1 papaya @ $.89/lb = $1.97
Apples @ $.49/lb = $.57
6 salmon steaks @$4.99/lb = $19.98
Total = $29.04

2/19 Receipt


February grocery budget = $75 + $5 from January = $80
Spent to date:  $5.00 + $7.80 + $10.51 + $9.30 + $29.04 = $61.65
Balance remaining in February grocery budget: $80 - $61.65 = $18.35

I think I am doing well with this month's grocery budget.  I need to buy some bread and milk, next week, and, probably more fruits and vegetables.  But, $18 should be enough for that.

The majority of the salmon steaks are for my daughter to take back with her - I will cook them, tomorrow, and freeze them.

I bought extra tomatoes to make another batch of tomato soup.  Other than that and salads, I don't have a meal plan as such for this week!  I usually buy whatever is on a special sale that week and take it from there.  I have cooked chicken breasts and cooked roast beef in the freezer that I could thaw for dinners during the week, with the vegetables I bought today and what I still have in the fridge from my earlier shopping.

I hadn't planned to buy any papaya, today, but there was one perfectly ripe one and I decided to buy it:

Ripe Papaya
After I came home and photographed the groceries and put them away, I cut the papaya and had a piece.  Later, around 5:00 p.m., I had a scrambled egg on toast and a cup of tea.  Dinner was part of the pork chop I had cooked earlier, with some steamed green beans.  I couldn't finish either the pork chop or the green beans, so the leftovers are in the fridge for tomorrow's dinner. 

Both Aunt T and Aunt C called, today and I chatted with them.  Later, I watched news and another show on TV and knitted (still working on the sleeve of the grey sweater).  Still later, I video chatted with my daughter.

By the way, Dancer wants everyone to know that he is not slacking off on his duties; he still carefully inspects everything that has been bought:

"What did you buy this time, Mummy?"

Today, I am grateful for:
- A sunny, warmer day
- Being able to do my grocery shopping
- Weekly specials
- Phone calls from aunts
- Video chatting with my daughter

According to the weather forecast, we are supposed to have showers both Wednesday and Thursday!  Well, I don't have plans to go anywhere, so, it doesn't matter if it rains.

Wednesday's To Do List:
- Bring in the new trash cans when delivered
- Cook the salmon
- Make the tomato soup
- Organize the rest of the kitchen cabinets
- Paperwork/filing

How was your Tuesday?  How is your February grocery budget coming along with another week or so left to go?  What are your plans for Wednesday?



18 comments:

  1. Very healthy shopping! Glad your cold is feeling better...and great you slept 8 hours! Andrea

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    1. Thank you, Andrea. Yes, feeling much better, now. :)

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  2. I'm making tomato and (a hint of) chili soup later this week. I've spent very little of my food budget this time but it will take a big hit next month as I stock up with foods suitable for the Slimming World eating plan.

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    1. Tomato (with a hint of chili) soup sounds good! I will definitely add a little chili to my batch of soup, this time. :)

      Stocking up on special food can get to be expensive; will you be carrying over the unspent budget from this month to next month to help with the additional expenses? That's what I tend to do - I carry over any unspent budgeted amounts to the next month, or, if I go over budget, I try to make it up in the following month.

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  3. I hope the coriander tea works it's magic on your cold. Feeling under the weather is miserable.
    Grocery shopping is on the to-do list here today. That is when I can manage to wrestle Lily out of her pyjamas and into some clothes. X

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    1. The coriander tea helped, Jules. Good luck with persuading Lily to change out of her pyjamas to go grocery shopping! :D

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  4. Do Chinese okra get slimy when cooked as "regular" okra does?

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    1. No, they don't get slimy, Live and Learn. I don't cook it all that often (I actually like regular okra, but not Chinese okra), but when I do cook it, I make a curry with it, which is how my mother used to cook it.

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  5. Sorry you aren't feeling well! I hope you feel better soon. Your veggie picture looks lovely. The prices are really reasonable too. I can't find anything close to those!

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    1. Thanks, Sharon. I am feeling much better, today. This one particular store has some of the best produce prices in town! There is another store that has good prices, too, but that store is a bit farther away.

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  6. I found your lovely blog a few days ago and have been following it since.
    I have a question. Is it summer where you are? Then again , even in summer I would not find such incredible prices on produce.
    Your new friend and follower ,
    Helen

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    Replies
    1. Hi Helen! Welcome! Thank you so much for stopping by and commenting. Glad to hear from you.

      I live in Southern California where it is winter, right now, but our winters are fairly mild. I shop for produce at this one ethnic store which has great deals most weeks. I buy what is on sale that week and plan my week's meals around them. It works out quite well for me.

      Looking forward to hearing from you, again.

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  7. Wow! What a great haul for basically $9. The 6 salmon steaks for $20 is fantastic. I can tell that Dancer agrees with me. You returned after a "great hunt" and Dancer must be very proud of you. I was told once that when we leave the house, our pets think we are out hunting. I always thought it was true.

    Making tomato soup and cooking up all that salmon sounds to me to be a great activity for more rainy days. Stay warm and stay safe.

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    1. Thank you, Susan. :) Yes, the salmon was the most expensive item and even that was on sale. The regular grocery stores have salmon fillet, priced $9.99/lb or up! For that $5/lb. price difference, I am happy to buy the steaks instead of fillet.

      Well, I guess Dancer is right in a way - I was out "hunting" for bargains for our meals! He was happy because I brought him broccoli leaves. :)

      By the way, I thought of you, again, when I looked at the grocery ads, this morning - cabbage is back on sale this week (2/20 to 2/26) for $.25/lb. But I still have the cabbage I bought last week...

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  8. I hope you feel better soon, Bless. I'd give you fresh ginger if you were my neighbor. :)

    I love bitter gourd. I usually buy it from the Indian store. Sometimes they have ridged gourd as well. But I prefer bitter stuff. :)

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    1. I'm feeling much better, today, thank you, Nil. I don't like bigger gourd. I wish I did, because it is supposed to be very good for diabetes! I really should try eating it!

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  9. I am amazed at how little you spend on groceries. You get really good deals. I guess I must just eat twice as much as you do. I spent eight dollars on gelato last week. You don't do things like that. I am very impressed with your self discipline.

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    1. Well, right now, I am trying to eat "low carb", so, no gelato (or ice cream, which I prefer). :D

      I don't have a big appetite; I never did. What put the extra weight on me were the high calorie sweets and salty snacks that I love - desserts, potato chips, chocolate, etc. Plus physical inactivity. These days, I am trying to incorporate more vegetables in my diet, which is a bit of a struggle for me because I don't like that many vegetables. I love fruit, but I have to be careful about the sugar contents of fruit.

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