Week 1:

Purchases From Food Budget: $201.49 (Back to school and grocery)

 

Back to School for 2 kids (Walmart): $125.05

School Supplies (Walmart):$28.78

School Supplies Wish list (Walmart):$19.85

Kids School Clothes and other (Walmart):$76.42

Monthly Grocery list: $76.44

Walmart Purchase: $74.25

5 bags-5lbs Unbleached Flour: $1.22 ea.

5 Lbs. Yellow Corn Meal: $2.84

2 bags Animal Crackers: $2.74/ea.

2 Bags Chocolate Animal Crackers: $1.98/ea.

5 Roasted Unsalted Peanut: $1.98/ea.

101 oz. Extra Virgin Olive Oil: $18.24

1 box Sandwich Zip Bag: $5.22

9 Boxes Cereals: $14.79

Jalapenos: $0.75 ($1.38/lbs.)

2 Bags- French Steak Rolls 24 ct.: $4.78 ($2.39/ea.)(Discount $1.59 ea.)

Gallon 1 % Milk (Aldi): $2.19

Meat: $28.81

 

20 pc Fried Chicken (Hy-Vee): $26.74

3 Dozens Large Eggs: $2.07 ($0.69/ doz.)

Fruit: $20.27

13.34 lbs. Green Grapes (Hy-Vee): $11.74 ($0.88/lb.)

19.40 lbs. Bananas (Aldi): $8.53 ($0.44/lb.)

 

Garden: $86.67

U-Haul & Gas: $65.67

5- 5ft Farm Fence T-Posts (Lowes): $21 ($3.98/ea.)

 

I served the fried Chicken on plain rice and chili oil that I made myself. Ready to eat food can be expensive. That day, we rented U haul van to move wire and garden posts from our community garden plots to our second property. I decided to stop renting the plots at the community garden and start a new garden on our second property. We dropped the wire and posts on our property and returned the van within hours. Then we went shopping. At the end, we purchased the chicken and I used it to make dinner that day.

The animal crackers and the zip sandwich bag are for snack for the kids when school starts.

Eggs have been on low price this summer. I included in my meal plan some quick meals that use eggs. I need 4 dozens of eggs a week for these meals including sheet pancakes (6 eggs), egg casserole (16 eggs), egg, fruit, and sorrel salad (16 eggs).

I used my allowance to pay for the u Haul van, gas, and the T posts. We purchased 5 posts to added to the wires and transported all of them the new location. The cost was too much for the food budget to cover it. Since gardening is a little of my hobby with the goal to decrease our food expenses and increase our food quality, I decided to pay it with my allowances.

Week 2

Purchases From Food Budget: $46.16 (Back to school, grocery, and garden)

Back to School (Walmart): $16.23

Kids’ under garments: $7.97

Kids clothes Next year: $8.26

Groceries: $12.16

Jalapenos (Walmart): $1.42 ($1.38/ lb.)

1 gal 2 % Milk (Walmart): $2.49

1 gal 2 % Milk (Aldi): $2.29

4 Casera Tostadas (Aldi): (1.49/ea.) $5.96

Garden: $17.77

Kobalt 14 in Bolt Cutter (Lowes): $17.77

 

Fruit: $20.27

23.04 lbs. Red & Green Grapes (Fresh Thyme): $20.27 ($0.88/lb. total discounts: $65.59)

 

Meat: $4.14

6 Dozens Large Eggs (Aldi): $4.14 ($0.69/doz.)

We used the bolt cutter to cut through the chain-link fence left on our second property by the previous owner. We used the chain-link fence to fence the outside of the garden.

For the first two weeks of August our grocery expenses are as follow:

Back to School: $141.28

Food: $88.60

Garden: $104.44 ($17.77 from food budget and $86.67 form my allowances)

Food and non-Food including back to school and garden: $334.32($247.65 from food budget and $86.67 from my allowances)

Fruit: $40.54

Meat: $32.95

At the beginning of August, my husband took out $200 for food, $80 for fruit, and $95 for meat. That is $375 for the month for our family of 5.  From prior months, I have $100 saved from food budget. This month I made a list for our food grocery and that totaled to $ 100. I have $100 left which I added to the saved $100. The schools supplies and kids items cost $141. I have  about $60 left. We purchased bolt cutter for close to $20 and I have a little over $40 left in the food envelop. I am glad I was able to spend less that $200 a month on food in order to  be able to purchase the kids clothes and their school supplies without touching our checking or saving. Their school registration fee is included in our irregular expenses of $4,000 a year and saved for every month. Shopping for sale, purchasing food ingredients I know I would use, and cooking from scratch allowed me to spend below our food budget. Downsizing kids clothing, sorting through their clothes and create a list of what they need for school allowed me to avoid impulse buy and stick to my list.