The Goal of the Grocery Budget Challenge is to be creative with our meal planning and grocery shopping so that we aren’t over-spending. We don’t want to make our families miserable with bland meals, boring snacks, and not enough food in the house. Lately when I see my bill at the check out, I’m shocked at how few groceries are actually going home with me. This will be a challenge where we’ll need discipline, support, and planning.
On the 30th of each month, between January and November in 2014, we will meet here to discuss our challenges and successes for the month. There will also be action steps every month due by the next meeting.
How did we do in January?
January’s homework was to figure out your monthly grocery budget and start meal planning. If you’re just starting with us in February, read my 11 Simple Meal Planning Tips to help you get started.
My success: My January grocery budget was $450. Thankfully we came in right on budget for the month. Part of my motivation was that I’m hosting this challenge. It would look pretty bad if the host blew up her grocery budget, but I also remained diligent planning our menu and my shopping list every week. Meal planning remains my number one way to stay within my grocery budget.
My challenge: My family is getting bored with some of my staple meals. “Are we having THAT again?”, was cried more than once this month. They’re not being bratty, because the truth is, I’m getting bored with those meals too. I need to find some new recipes that are quick, easy, and tasty.
February Assignments
Action Step 1: Plan your grocery budget for February. Take into account any special occasions, such as the Super Bowl, Valentine’s Day, birthdays, anniversaries, and pot lucks.
Action Step 2: Continue to plan your meals and grocery list. For my system, read my 11 Simple Meal Planning Tips.
Action Step 3: New this month, clean out and organize your refrigerator, freezers, and kitchen pantry. I’ll be organizing my kitchen too and (of course) blogging about it at some point. By keeping our kitchens organized, menu planning will be much easier, we’ll reduce our food waste, and we’ll be less likely to buy duplicates.
Action Step 4: Meet back here on Friday, February 28, ready to discuss your successes and challenges for the month.
How did you do in January? Did you plan your meals regularly? Did you come in right on budget or did you go over or under budget? Please share in the comments. Also, if you’re blogging about the Grocery Budget Challenge, feel free to leave the link in the comments.
This post is linked to Thrifty Thursday and Fabulously Frugal Thursday and Financially Savvy Saturdays.
$291. 13 spent on groceries this month for a household of 3 (2 adults 1 five year old) Not bad, not great either, I want to lower it. My averages at the end of the year look to be about 90 bucks a week. We will need to do our twice yearly meat/fish shopping trip at Costco soon so that will bump up the budget in March.
I’ve kept up on my meal plans though, I create it for the month which sometimes overlaps with the next month since our “big” grocery shopping day falls unevenly with our paychecks. Big shopping is on the 8th so I’ll work out the new monthly plan next week. Followed it pretty well, when I felt too tired/lazy just made some Gorton’s beer battered fish and homemade fries.
I’ve been fighting this mystery pain in my lower ribs that the doctors can’t figure out since October so when I have a bad streak of days and a more ambitious meal planned we have ordered in.
Jennifer Blacker recently posted…Menu for the week of 1/27/2014
Hi Jennifer – I’m sorry about your illness, hopefully the doctors can figure that out soon.
I have our CSA (organic veggies) share agreement coming up in March so I’m trying to set aside money for that payment. Could I ask why you limit your Costco meat trips to just 2 a year? Do they have a major sale? We don’t have a Costco, so I’m curious.
I really like your accountability program. Our grocery budget fluctuates monthly due to what I have planned that I use from my freezer meals, or my canning products. I try to keep our budget at $300.00 and that includes eating out. We have a family of five right now soon to be six.
Will check back in February to try and post how our month went. Thanks!
Thanks for stopping by, Michelle. If you are feeding your family of 5 on $300 a month including eating out, then I bet you have a lot of tips to share. That’s awesome. See you in February…and Congrats on #6!
Hi I had a question about how you categorize you shopping for the home that is not quite groceries but is still recurring eg toiletries, printer ink, batteries etc. ?
Hi BJ – my grocery budget does include toiletries. I have a separate household budget line for things like batteries, light bulbs, etc. Printer ink is an office expense for me because I do a lot of work from home with our small business.
Hope this helps. Thanks for reading and commenting.
Saw this on Thrifty Thursday and just had to check it out! I try to hold myself accountable to my $140/week grocery budget by always stopping by the ATM and getting that exact cash out to go to the grocery store. If I go over, I have to take money out of my “own” stash, or ask the cashier to put something back, which I have done many, MANY times. I try to hold the treats and things I know I really don’t need in the back of the cart so that it is easy to make a decision on whether or not to put it back. Also, when I have a small grocery list some weeks (leftovers, enough in the pantry to make several meals) instead of hoarding the extra cash, I use it to restock my pantry staples, cleaning supplies, etc.
Denise @ Go Cheap or Go Home recently posted…February #EatinMonth Challenge- Week 1 Menu and Recipes
Hi Denise,
Thanks for the tips. I typically use my debit card, but I’m thinking of switching to using cash in February and hoping that will also help me stay on budget.
Thanks for stopping by and commenting.
This is a neat challenge! I just changed my budget for this year. My previous year’s budget for groceries was $120 (I am single– so it’s just groceries for me) but I’m working at using my entire salary to go towards loan payments and use side hustle money to “live” on, so I cut it down to $80. I’m still in the first month of this, but half way through and I’m doing good (it helps that the local grocery store offers killer deals on meat, so I can stock up and not have to buy any for 3-4 weeks at a time)!
La Tejana @ Debt Free Tejana recently posted…The Tejana Diaries – Part 1
Hi La Tejana – I love a good sale on meat. I stock up too to store in the freezer. It saves money and makes meal planning easier.
Thanks for the comments.
Just saw this and I am in! I spent approx. $155 week in January but that includes a few random things at Target…like a scarf, gym clothes for my son, etc. I sm giving myself $150 a week. I like the idea of taking out cash. I am going to try to stay under. One thing I need to be better at is meal planning.
Hi Tawnya – Welcome to the challenge. If you need help with meal planning, be sure to read my post 11 Simple Meal planning Tips: http://www.familybalancesheet.org/2014/01/11-simple-meal-planning-tips.html
Also, if you’re a big Target shopper, I just shared my experience with their moneysaving Cartwheel app: http://www.familybalancesheet.org/2014/01/save-more-money-with-target-cartwheel-plus-a-1000-target-giftcard-sweepstakes.html
I did stay within my budget of $125 per week for January! But, like your family, mine is getting a little tired of the same old, same old! I am pinning more on Pinterest and scouring the cookbooks in my library to switch things up a bit. I think part of it is we are all so tired of the bitter cold and the heavier “comfort” foods that go with it! I should mention we are a family of 4 which includes myself, DH and 2 daughters just into their 20’s. Thankfully, they do go ahead and purchase things for their own lunches and snacks if I don’t have them on my menu for the week, so that does help. I also write a food blog, so this budget does include ingredients for my baking projects!
Maureen recently posted…Hazelnut Crusted Orange Chocolate Tart
We are getting into the groove of menu planning at our house. I think it really helps to keep a variety in the menu as well as keeping down the grocery bill. The best part about menu planning is that my husband loves to cook as long as I tell him what to make!! We did fail miserably at our budgeting goal, though. I’d like to spend $125 a week for out family of 5 ($500 a month). For January, however, we spent a total of $717, or $179 a week. I think the monthly goal of cleaning out and organizing the pantry and fridge.freezer will help us a lot. We’ve shopped a lot of sales, but the meat gets put in the upright freezer in the basement and we forget about it. Ultimately those sales end up wasting us money.
Rabia @TheLiebers recently posted…#AskAwayFriday with Lisa from The Golden Spoons
It’s not easy to stay within our grocery budgets–hopefully February is easier for all of us. Thanks for stopping by and commenting, Rabia.
Have you checked out Cooking Light Budget Cooking: Feed 4 for $10. You can get a lot of recipes from there so your family won’t be bored. It’s just me and the hubby but I need to stick to a budget also. My hubby has an expensive tastes. He also has to have his snow crab legs and prosciutto but he buys that for himself.
The Frugal Exerciser recently posted…Financially Savvy Saturdays: Twenty Third Edition
Thanks for the tip. I subscribe to Cooking Light magazine and love their recipes. I’m going to go check it out now.
I love how you make this such an active, yet doable, process. I’m going to sit down and start meal planning one of these days….just have to find the time to get back into the swing of things. We did it before and it was so helpful in saving us money on those grocery bills.
femmefrugality recently posted…Financially Savvy Saturdays: Twenty-Fourth Edition
Meal planning has saved us the most money on our grocery bills. Thanks for stopping by and commenting!