2015 Groceries Week 37 - $5.43

Phew!  We're finally home from a 15 day vacation!  We did great our second week on NOT buying a lot of groceries because I was prepared from the week before and even had brought a lot from home for packing travel lunches.

I picked up eggs and bananas at Target one day.  We had gone to Target for a couple birthday items since DD#4 was having a birthday this week.  I had some bacon so thought the eggs would make a more 'special' breakfast than the cereal they'd been having for the whole road trip.  And we needed just a little fruit to tide us over for the rest of the trip (we had cantaloupe and watermelon from last week, too).   This was $5.43!  The eggs were a ridiculous $3.69 and bananas were $0.29 each.

On the long drive home we stopped at my aunt & uncle's house to sleep over.  They were out of town, but graciously offered their home.  I was going to water her plants and noticed her garden was overflowing with veggies so I picked lots for her and filled her fridge.  She said to help myself so I brought home all this: one huge zucchini, two huge butternut squash, an acorn squash, three cucumbers that are overripe, and any of the tomatoes that had splits or wouldn't last in her fridge for the two more weeks my aunt is gone.

Surprisingly, I didn't do any other shopping this week.  Next week will be a huge one - I have 44 pounds of pears and 75 pounds of apples to pick up, not to mention the usual milk, bananas, & veggies that need to be replenished after our long trip using everything up!

Total Week 37: $5.43
Total Year-to-Date 2015: $3,965,03
Weekly Average: $107.16

2015 Groceries Week 36 - $206.52

We've been out of town so I am late posting for week 36, but I sure did shop while I was gone!  These are mostly bargains from while I was at my Mother-in-Law's house.

First was a quick trip to Von's, the only store I know how to get to near her house.  I picked up tortilla chips, organic milk, a head of lettuce, and a half price deli pizza for $13.91.

The next day DH was amazing and went to the store FOR me as the sales were ending that day.  He got my whole list and some soda for himself for $29.92.  He even used all my coupons!

The new Von's ad came out and I made a big list to combine the sale with coupons and buy some dinner items.  It was a huge amount of stuff (inlcuding junk food I don't normally buy) for $77.40.  I was so excited to see new packaging on the Cheerios that said GF!  And later in the week I saw TV commercials advertising that Cheerios were now GF!  Whoo hoo.  I also picked up GF Macaroni & Cheese with a $1.00/2 peelie so each box was only $2.69.  I got 7 bottles of salad dressing for varying prices, all under $1.00.  I got another gallon of milk, some cookies and hostess cakes (ugh!), applesauce, chicken breast, drumsticks for $.50/lb, crackers, sour cream & bacon (for potato soup), lettuce, bell peppers & tortillas for fajitas, hot dogs, cantaloupe, brownie mix, GF minute rice (FREE after coupon), Capri-Sun, a 2# brick of cheese & sliced cheeses (a big treat that I accidentally left at my MIL's).

At the end of the week we left my MIL's to join my family at a timeshare near Disneyland.  I had tried to plan ahead for a big dinner I was making for the whole group, lunches for at Disneyland, and breakfasts at the timeshare, too.  Unfortunately there was a lack of communication with DH about the time I would need to prepare the dinner and the heat was terrible at my MIL's so I felt bad about heating up her kitchen with a lot of cooking.  Long story short I ended up buying pizzas at Costco to feed the big group (13 adults, 10 kids, 2 babies).  I also bought GF taquitos as a dinner alternative, a watermelon, a big package of lettuce, cucumbers, organic milk, and some chicken nuggets at Costco.  I spent $85.29 there.  Yeesh!

It was a big week.

Week 36 total: $206.52
Year-to-date 2015 total: $3,959.60
Weekly Average: $109.99

Week 37 should be smaller as I barely shopped again while we were still out of town.  But week 38 will be big with a lot of planned produce purchases for canning.

Love, Katie

2015 Groceries Week 35 - $150.36

This week was bigger than I thought it would be, but sometimes you have to stock up when there's a stock up price.

I stayed away from the grocery stores most of the week, but on Thursday I was in Issaquah and didn't want to miss out on Champion Foods.  So I went in with all 4 girls and got all sorts of deals!  Chips are only $0.50/bag and I was happy they had some flavors that sounded good.  We got a dozen bags, plus 3 bags of popcorn.  We have a road trip coming up and portable snacks are a must.  I got some lunch snacks of the GF and not GF varieties.  I found a $3.00 GF brownie mix - score! - pectin for $1.75/box, organic ketchup for $2.20, and GF granola for $3.00.  I always look for spices at Champion first because their prices are so great.  I'm low on cumin & nutmeg so I picked those up, but they didn't have basil this time and I've needed that for about a month!  Not pictured were two packs of GF spaghetti noodles for just $1.75 each and 6 cans of pasta sauce for $0.75/each.  I also was happy to find a 25# bag or organic popcorn.  It was $31.25.  We love popcorn and it's really an affordable snack.  My kids always ask me to make it when their friends are over, too. - I guess it's kind of a novelty.  I spent a whopping $83.15 at Champion Foods this visit.

I was back at Fred Meyer on Thursday night so get more Chex at the $1.99 price I had spotted late last week.  I lamented my lack of coupons, but knew I couldn't pass up $1.99 for full-size boxes of GF cereal.  I can find GF cereal on sale a lot, but it's usually cocoa krispies or something and I prefer not to give the kids candy-ish cereal to start the day.  Plain Rice Chex and Corn Chex are my preference.  Anyway, I also picked up salami, provolone, and mozzarella for antipasto platter I was making, bananas, a half gallon of conventional milk (we just needed a little and it was $1.00), and cottage cheese for $0.60 after coupon.  Cream cheese was $0.80 each after coupon.  I found some diced green chilis for $0.50 in the clearance bin along with more GF spaghetti noodles for $1.09 per package!  I predict lots of spaghetti and macaronada in the next month's menu planning.  =)  I spent $27.21.

 

I also bought 40# of organic apples for $40.00.  I plan to make applesauce soon.

 

Week 35 Total: $150.36

2015 Year-to-Date: $3,753.08

Weekly Average: $107.23

 

 



Monday GF Menu Plan

Keeping the groceries light this week so eating what we've got.

Dinners:
Monday - Macaronada
Tuesday - Italian Sausage Vegetable Soup
Wednesday - Haystacks
Thursday - Mexican Casserole w/GF Cornbread topping
Friday - Leftovers
Saturday - Burgers
Sunday - Dinner at friends

Lunches:
Monday - Turkey Sandwiches & fruit
Tuesday - Macaroni & Cheese pie
Wednesday - Chicken patties & fruit
Thursday - Taco Salad
Friday - Finger Food Lunch
Saturday - Chili
Sunday - Lunch with friends

Katie

2015 Groceries Week 34 - $117.52

I went to three stores on Tuesday.  I guess I needed to stock up after our camping trip!

I ran down to QFC first thing for milk & fruit for breakfast.  I was happy to find a mess of Isernio's sausage on clearance.  Italian Sausage Veggie soup is one of our family favorites and we've been missing it!  The milk isn't pictured, I spent $31.39.

We went to County Market Tuesday afternoon to use a $10/$50 coupon.  I bought some beauty products, some stocking stuffers & a clearance peeler for camping to get my total to $50.07.  This might be a record for hitting close to $50.00!  So after the 20% off, all this food cost $14.47.

I went to a different QFC late Tuesday night to pick up more milk (since my kids drank half a gallon over the course of the day) and check out the clearance sections.  Clearance items were mayo for $0.99, oranges for $1.00, blackberry jam for $2.49, diced tomatos for $0.59, spaghetti noodles were $0.49 each, and breakfast sausage were $1.99 each.  I spent $32.01.

I ran to Fred Meyer late tonight and I have to Sunday night shopping is NOT spectacular.  Everything was not stocked and there wasn't much in the clearance areas.  I was pleased to see Cheerios and Chex on sale for $1.99 each that I stacked with coupons to get for $1.54 each.  DH needed more cream (not pictured) for $2.38 each, cream cheese were $0.80 each, cucumbers were $0.50 each, 1# cheese were $2.99 each, and sour cream was $0.60.  I also bought baking powder because I was out and chips for my GF kiddo's alternate meals. Other chips because they were on sale and I love salt!  I spent $39.65 in all.

Week 34 Total: $117.52
Year-to-date Total: $3,602.72
Weekly Average: $80.81

Katie

2015 Groceries Week 33 - $26.08

I was camping all week and just had a few quick trips to the store for things I forgot.  Fred Meyer was about 15 minutes away.

Once I picked up some Reese's cups and a gallon of milk for $6.89.

Another day I got graham crackers, marshmallows, a head of romaine, and a bag of Doritos for $7.03.

My aunt spent $6ish and picked me up some pancake mix, syrup, and more sour cream for a dinner I was making for the big group.

Our second to last day I picked up more milk and coffee creamer.  It was $6.16.

Week 33 Total: $26.08
2015 Year-to-date Total: $3,485.20
Weekly Average: $105.61

2015 Groceries Week 32 - $179.29

It was a busy week getting ready for camping.  And I spent a lot on groceries because of clearance deals, peaches in bulk, and preparing for camping.

First stop of QFC on Monday.  This was a stop for cheese since QFC had it on special.  I ended up with clarance coffee for $3.49 each, clearance frosting for $0.49 and $0.69 each, clearance produce for $1.00/bag, clearance tomatoes for $0.59 each, and a slice of chocolate creme pie for my pregnant self.  I spent $26.81 on food.

On Tuesday I made it to Fred Meyer since we needed milk and butter.  I also picked up angel food cake mix, black beans, and onions for camping.  DH drinks a lot of pop at work and while I almost never buy it, I figured a week away from the office would result in cravings so I got it for him.  I also picked up some clearance apples and guacamole.  I spent $30.20 on food.

I was back at Fred Meyer on Friday to score huge boxes of Kix for $2.59 after coupon and splurged on clearance Avengers cereal for my kids to enjoy while camping with their mostly boy cousins.  I also got strawberries for the requested strawberry shortcake ($1.49/lb), butter for $1.99/lb, cocoa for a full-priced $5.59, clearance Hershey bars for s'mores at $0.49 each, clearance candy for DH $0.49, PB2 Powder I've been wanting to try for $2.19, clearance corn, beans, frosting, & tomato suace, GF bread for a whopping $6.69, hot dog buns, and sour cream.  I spent $15.75 on food.

Thursday was a big peach bulk buy but because I was leaving town on Friday I just got one box.  A sweet friend picked them up for me.  It was $18.00 for a 24 pound box.  DH actually went to get them from my friend and also bought eggs for $5.00 while he was there.

On Friday I popped into the Dollar Tree and spent $2.00 on whipped topping for the strawberry shortcake.

On Friday I also went to County Market because they sent another $10/$50 coupon!  Yay!  My total came in at $50.46 so I got a full 20% off all my purchases!  Yay again!  Food stuff included pudding cups for $1.00 ($0.80 each after coupon), cereal for $1.49 after MC ($1.19 after store coupon), sunflower seeds for salad were $1.20 after coupon, brownie mixes were $1.00 after coupon, pork chops were $1.22 for 1.1 lbs and $1.55 for 1.24 lbs, chicken breast was $1.59/lb, nitrate free hot dogs were $1.20 per package, corn was $0.27/ear, tomatoes were $0.79/lb - all after coupon.   Food worked out to $28.18.

Clearly it was a ton of shopping!

I also spent $9.40 on Amazon for GF cornbread mix and $7.95 for GF graham crackers.  Yowza!

Week 32 Total: $179.29
2015 Year-to-date Total: $3,459.12
Weekly Average 2015: $108.10

Katie

2015 Groceries Week 31 - $84.04

I went back to Fred Meyer early this week to pay for the pricing mistake on the box of peaches.  The customer service gal was really gracious and said that since the error was on their part, store policy was not to charge us.  I was surprised and thankful.  I was in a hurry to get home that morning so I didn't do a shopping trip, but I found some udi's pizza crust for just $2.99 so I picked it up.

Later in the week I went to Fred Meyer again for a bigger trip.  I spent $39.65 on 2 huge boxes of Kix, 6 boxes of crackers, 5 boxes of organic mac'n'cheese, 12 clearance bell peppers, 2 bags of  grapes, 2 loaves of bread, a pound of red beans, 2 cans of beans, 1 can of soup, 3 boxes of granola bars & a hand of bananas.  Interestingly, I went to the customer service counter to pay for a box of mac'n'cheese that didn't get scanned.  That guy had no problem charging me the extra buck even though it wasn't my error.  Oh well.  =)

Saturday I dashed out for really fast shopping.  I spent $24.78 at QFC on organic milk, a bag of lemons, cereal, and shredded cheese.  Then at Fred Meyer I spent $16.62 on 2 loaves of bread, organic eggs, clearance cookie dough for a special recipe DD#3's been wanting to try, 2 bags of grapes, and clearance produce including 9 organic apples for $3.00, an organic canteloupe for $1.00!

Week 31 Total: $84.04
Year-to-date Total: $3,279.83
Weekly Average: $105.80