Saturday Budget Check- Bountiful Baskets

As you may have noticed, we have not been doing a lot of what I call "intense coupon shopping" lately.  We have learned that sometimes you just need a break, and it is ok to not get all of the deals.  With the warm weather comming on, we have spent a lot of time outdoors and in our garden.  We are working out new schedules for the summer months.  We are not using as many coupons, but we are still smart shoppers.

Winco
We have done a lot of Winco shopping this month.  Generally they have the cheapest prices on produce and a few of our other regular purchase items, so it makes for a nice one stop shopping trip.Grapes
Onions
Banannas
baking cocoa ( I love the bulk food section!)
Margerine
2 gallons of Milk
10 lbs Potatoes
Vanilla Extract
 Total Spent: $17.81
This next week I plan on ordering a basket of fruits and vegetables from Bountiful Baskets.  We have done it once before and love the program.  Because there are only 2 of us and we cannot eat all of the produce before it goes bad, we will split it with a friend.  I do not have a picture of everything that came last time, but here is an approximate list:

8 Apples
8 oranges
Cantalope
Cauliflower
Asparagus
Sweet Potatoes
8 Cucumbers
Bannana Cluster ( 7 or 8)
Lettuce
Pineapple
4 Small Zucchinni

It was a great deal.  Here is a picture from another participant, Glenda at The Little Red Hen Food Site.

About Bountiful Baskets:
Bountiful Baskets is a Co-op that operates mostly in Arizona, Utah and Idaho.  Each Monday or Tuesday (depending on your area) you can order a basket online.  You do not know what exactly you will get except that it is 50% fruits and 50% vegetables.  Each Basket is $16.50($15+$1.50 shipping and handling).  The Co-op takes the money and number of participants and purchases produce from small farmers in Mexico, Arizona, and California in bulk. 

In the end you are able to get quality produce for very little money.  You pick up your produce on Saturday at a pick up point in your area.  You pick where you will pick it up when you order the basket.

They also offer a variety of other baskets including bread and a mexi pack.  I have not tried these, but I have heard that they are great.

Saturday Budget Check

Time to report for the last 3 weeks!  Last week I was out of town, so I took a break from my budget check.

I spent half of our budget in the first week of the month, which cut down on my shopping for the rest of the month.  We were able to stock up on cereal & pasta- yippee!

Sorry that I don't have any pictures!  I have been a slacker.  :D

Winco
I have fallen in love with Winco's bulk food section.  It has been a challenge to restrain from trying everything!  This month we stocked up on my new favorite pancake mix & a few spices at Winco.  We were also able to get bananas, oranges, and milk there.

Total Spent: $13.24

Albertsons
McCormick Spices $1.00
- $1.00 off coupon!
Frozen Chicken @ $1.88 per lb.

-$5.00 from previous trip
Total Spent: $1.04

Fred Mayer
We were having a BBQ with some friends.  Luckily Fred Mayer had Hamburger on sale! (this was 2 weeks ago).  I was able to make a bunch of hamburger patties & freeze them for later in the summer.  I also froze some hamburger for Tacos.

93% lean Hamburger @ 1.99 per lb.
Lettuce
Tomatoes
Hamburger buns

Total: $8.93

Saturday Budget Check

This was a pretty good week!  I am still recovering from my lack of shopping last month.  We decided to go ahead and buy the items we needed.  We ended up using half of our monthly budget this week.  We were able to stock up on some good sales, so I think we can still keep it to $100 for the month.  Hopefully we will just have fewer shopping trips.  As you can see, we got a lot of Knorr pasta sides.  We went through a lot of our instant meals last month while we were moving, so we needed to stock up again while they are on sale!

Albertsons
Transaction 1
(2) Kellogg's Raisen Bran
(3) Other Kellogg's Cereal
Used $1.50/2 Raisen Bran Coupon
Used $1.00/2 Kellogg's Cereal
Paid: $8.10
Recieved $4 OYNO

Transaction 2
Promotion- Spend $20 on participating products, recieve $5 OYNO
(12) Knorr Pasta
(2) Wishbone Salad Dressing
(2) Breyers Ice Cream
Total Before Coupons: $20.38
Used (2) $0.50/1 Wishbone Printable
Used (2) $1.00/1 Breyers Smooth & Dreamy
Used $4.00 Catalina from Transaction 1
Paid: $14.61
Recieved $5 OYNO

Winco
We live really close to Winco now- which is good and bad.  Winco definately has the best price on eggs ($.89 a dozen!), milk, and produce.  It also has good prices on bulk items.  The problem is that it is often tempting to buy more than you need, because of all the good deals.  I am still working on that part. 

Total Paid: $28.76

Total Spent: $52.67
Total OYNO for Next Week: $5

Saturday Budget Check

The Small Victories

My husband & I spent a large portion of the day looking at appartments in Idaho Falls.  We want to move closer to work to save money in gas & time in commuting.  All logic says that we should move to Idaho Falls, but it will be hard to leave Rexburg!  We have friends & family here, and we love our appartment!  It will be hard to find a replacement.

Because we spent the majority of the day driving around, I did not feel very productive- but I got free pasta!!  Sometimes you have to focus on the little victories in life.  Daniel & I will not need to buy pasta for quite some time.  That is a victory. 

Victory Two- we only went grocery shopping at one store this week! 

Smith's

See Details Here

A friend & I split a basket of produce from Bountiful Baskets.  This was my first time trying it- and I was very excited.  You pay $16.50 (+$3 your first time) & get a basket full of produce.  I will have pictures and more details for you next week.  Here is what was included in our basket:

Apples
Tangerines
Cucumbers
Bananas
Cantaloupe
Pineapple
Strawberries
Sweet Potatoes
Zucchini
Cauliflower
Asparagus

I am not very good at buying vegetables & planning them into our meals.  I decided that if I have vegies, I will plan them into my meals.  I am excited to see how our menu plan turns out.

Total we spent $19.36 this week.  I planned to go to Walgreens- but I was too worn out from our appartment search.  It looks like there are a lot of great deals next week at Walgreens!

It is almost the end of the Month.  Next week I will be updating you on how we are comming on our financial goals.

Visit the Savers Bungalow to see how other bargin shoppers did this week.

Saturday Budget Check

Time to match my shopping trips with the budget! I was very pleased with how well this week went considering how busy I was at work! I did not have as much time for deal shopping, but I felt like I got some great deals on the necessities- pasta, bread, & ice cream. :D

Smith's

See Details Here

Spent: $5.17

Albertsons
See Details Here
Spent: $9.49

Walmart
(2) Oscar Mayer Bacon $2.76Used (2) $1.50 off Coupons
Spent: $2.85

Total Spent: $17.51
We used $7 from this weeks budget on last weeks deals, so our budget this week was $18.  It is probably a blessing that I was busy, or I would have been tempted to go over budget!

Visit The Savers Bungalow to see how others did on there shopping trips & budgets this week!

Saturday Budget Check

This was a pretty exciting week at the stores!  I love being able to save money buying everyday items like flour!  We usually buy flour bulk for arount $7 for 25 lbs.  We got (2) 5 lb bags for $.75 ea..  That is under $4 for 25 lbs!

We have been trying to buy more snack & lunch items for Daniel.  He loves Nature Valley Granola Bars- which were just over $1 a box after the coupons & Catalina. 

Broulims
Daniel made a quick trip to the store to pick up bread & eggs
Total Spent: $3.77

Albertsons
I thought I had missed my opportunity to participate in the CHILL promo at Albertsons- but when I went this morning they had some Old Orchard!  I love seeing my dollar spread.
Transaction 1
9 Old Orchard Juice Concentrate
Used (2) $1.00/4 Old Orchard (Coupons.com)
1 Bryers Ice Cream
(there is a coupon for Dryers (1/31 RP)- but I thought it was not included in the promo- turns out it is!)
Paid: $13.80
Recieved: $10.00 OYNO

Transaction 2
1 Tillamook 2 lb. Colby Jack Cheese $3.99 w/ in add coupon
(That is a great price for Tillamook cheese!  In my experience, Tillamook lasts longer in the fridge & freezes better than other brands)
2.5 lbs Chicken Breasts $1.99/lb
Bananas

Used $10 OYNO from transaction 1
Paid: $0.87!!

Smith's  (Don't forget to enter my $25 Gift Card Giveaway! )
It really does pay to pay attention!  I forgot to enter my prefered card for my second transaction, & I almost lost $12!!!  I realized the mistake & they were great to fix it. 

One of our biggest budget savers is planning our menu by what we have & what is on sale- not planning our shopping trip by what is on our menu.  For example, I bought cottage cheese because it is on sale for $1 ea.  Smith's normal price is $2.29!  Since the cottage cheese is on sale, I will use it in my menu plan for next week.

(3) Gold Medal Flour 2 for $3
Used (2) $.75 Gold Medal Flour Coupons.com
Used (1) $.55 Coupon on Product

(3) Nature Valley Granola $2.29
Catalina: Buy 3 Get $2.00 OYNO
Used $.40 Nature Valley Granola bars Printable (Coupons.com)
Used $0.40 Nature Valley Bars e-coupons Cellfire

(1) Green Giant Valley Fresh Steamers $1.28
$.50 Printable (Coupons.com)

Large Shell Pasta $2.00
(2) Kroger Cottage Cheese $1 ea.
(1) Sunny D $.79
(2) 1% Milk $1.69
Eggs $1.39

Paid: $19.39
Recieved: $2.00 OYNO Catalina

Total Spent: $37.83
Left over for next week: $2.00 Smith's Catalina

We used the $6 we saved from last weeks budget & $7 from next weeks budget so that we could stock up on these great deals! Our total spent does include the $25 Kroger Family of Stores Gift Card we recieved from General Mills, P&G, and My Blog Spark- which gave us a little wiggle room in our budget. 

Next weeks shopping will be mainly stock up items.  I am excited to see what is included in Smith's Mega Event.

Saturday Budget Check

Time to see how we did with our $25 a week budget!

We went to a lot of stores this week, but we did not do a lot of shopping.  The Albertsons deal was put off till next week when they have more Old Orchard juice.  :D  

I did get some free Kotex at Walmart this week.  I have decided that I am going to pay a little more attention to the coupons match ups with Walmarts every day low prices. 

Walgreens

See Details here
Spent: $1.78

Broulims
Iceburg Lettuce
Tomatoes
Hamburger Buns
Chicken Breasts
Spent: $9.53

Albertsons
Wanchai Frozen Entre
(From the Giveaway)
Spent: $.63

Walmart
Copy Paper $2.97
Milk $1.67
(4) Kotex Liner $1.00
Orbit Gum 3 Pack $2.24
Used (2) $2.00 off 2 Kotex Pads (coupons.com)*
*No longer available
Use $1.00 off 1 Orbit
Spent: $4.77

Total Spent: $18.48

That leaves just over $6 to add to next weeks budget. I am hoping to get the Old Orchard juice & Dryers Ice cream at Albertsons next week. 

Our $25 a week grocery budget has been such a challenge & a blessing for us.  We are trying to save money towards our goals.  By setting up a working budget, we have created guidelines to check ourselves along the way.

Even though we are far away from our big savings goal- it is great to be able to measure our success by the small steps that we have taken- like keeping to our $25 grocery budget. These small successes help to motivate us to continue working towards our big goal.

Saturday Budget Check

The highlight of my days this week was checking the mail!  I recieved 2 coupon booklets, 1 Kashi sample from Vocal point, 1 coupon for free Excedrin, and a package from a giveaway I won! It really hit me how much I have benefitted from all of these online deals & freebies. 

This weeks shopping was not too exciting.  I spent $19.20, putting me just under my $22 budget for this week.  Here is the run down:

Broulims:
I had Daniel go on Tuesday before last weeks sales ended. Then we made 2 other trips to grab items we had forgotten.  I need to be better at reading my shopping list!!
Grapes 2.03 lbs @ $1.29/lb
Lunch Meat $3.29
Used $2.00/1 coupon from Land-O-Moms.com
Lasagna Noodles $1.49
Cool Whip $1.29
Onion $0.55
Paid: $7.79

Walgreens:
I used two of the coupons that I got this week for free items. I spent $2.91 and had $15.48 in coupon savings- sweet!!
J&J Baby Wash $4.49
Used $1.00/1 Printable Coupon
Bounty Basics $2.99
Used $1.00/1 from P&G/ Save a Lot Coupon Booklet
Kashi Heart to Heart Cereal $4.49
Used Free Kashi Cereal Coupon from Vocal Point
Excedrin Extra Streangth Gel Tabs $4.99
Used Free Coupon from Mail
(I don't remember where I signed up for this one!)

Used $4.00 Register Reward from Previous Shopping trip
Paid: $2.91

Albertsons
I got a rain check for the Chewy Dips Granola bars during the Quaker sale a few weeks ago & I was finally able to use it this week.
5 Quaker Granola bars $5
Bread $1.50

Used $2.00 Catalina from  Del Monte Vegies a few weeks ago
Paid: $4.89

Walmart
1% Milk $1.67
This is normally $2.16, but I price matched to Smith's.  You don't have to have an add, just tell them you want to price match to the Smith's add & how much it is. That simple step will save you almost $.50!
Eggs

Paid: $3.61

Total Spent: $19.20

That makes our Monthly Total $97.26.  Using coupons, watching sales, and taking advantage of rebates have allowed us to keep our grocery budget so low.  We could not do it otherwise!

It has also been a great strength to me to be able to report how I am doing on my budget.  When I want to grab a little extra something or splurge, I think of reporting my weekness & stick with my budget. 

Visit my post On the Road to a debt Free Education to see how we are doing on our Financial Goals for the year.

See how others did on their shopping this week at The Savers Bungalow & Super Savings Saturday

Saturday Budget Check

Time to evaluate my shopping for the week!  This week was good and bad.  I found some good deals, but I also had quite a few that did not go as planned.  Here is a run down:

Smith's (pictured)

I went to Smith's to get some participating items in the Mega Event.  They have the cheapest milk around.  It is only $1.67 for 1 gallon 1%!  The cheapest in Rexburg is $2.06 a gallon.

Spent: $15.53

See Trip Details Here

Walgreens
This was not as successful.  I was hoping to get $0.04 toothpaste- unfortunately Rexburg Walgreens has toothpaste for $2.59 instead of $2.29 making the toothpaste $0.34 + tax.  That is not a bad price, but I can usually get it for free- so I am waiting.  I also have 6 regular sized toothpaste & 2 travel sized toothpaste in my stash- I am not exactly in need.  :D   I also almost made $1.00 buying toothbrushes- but the coupon I had would work for single packs, but not multi-packs- lame!

Angel Soft Toilet Paper $4.00
-$1.00/1 Printable Coupon
Spent: $3.24

Broulim's
This was also a little disappointing.  I went to Broulim's expecting to come away with 2 lbs of free lunch meat.  I realized that the coupon I had was for premium lunch meat, and the regular stuff was on sale for $2.00. The premium Land-O-Frost lunch meat is $3.29.  With the $2.00 Printable Coupon that would be $1.29- which is a great deal, but not in our budget this week.  I will probably go the beginning of next week and get some.

25 lbs Flour $6.88
Bananas $0.88
Broccoli $0.79
Spent: $9.06

Total Spent: 27.83!!!

Ahh!  I totally forgot about my Walgreens purchase when I was calculating how much I could spend at Broulims.  We will have to take $3 from next weeks budget.  So far this month we have spent $78.06 on groceries, leaving us with just under $22 to spend this next week. 

It has been so great to have someone to report to each week.  I highly recomend reporting your progress when you are trying to stick to a budget.  Find a friend or a sibling that is trying something similar, or even just report to your spouse.  It really helps me reach my goals when I know I will be telling someone how I am doing.

Saturday Budget Check

Saturday already?!  This week we did a lot more shopping than last week!  Last week we spent under $7 on groceries, so our budget was $43 for this week!  There were a lot of good deals and promotions.  Here is where I spent our budget:

I had Daniel go to Broulims & Albertsons for me on Monday, so these first 2 are last weeks deals.

Broulims:
1 Wheat Bread
2 Egg Noodles
2 Knorr Pasta
Bananas
Mission Tortillas
Paid: $11.01

Albertsons Trip 1

4 Kraft Dressing

2 Rozoni

Paid: $7.53

Recieved: $4 Catalina

Smith's
I went to Smith's to check out the mega event prices & hoping to make money buying Purex, Pillsburry, & Country Crock.   I found the items I wanted & went to check out.  When the total rang up, It was twice as much as I thought!!!  I soon realized that the Idaho Falls price for the Pillsburry Grands was twice as much as the Memphis Prices posted by Saving a Bundle.  I had them cancel that order, but still bought some other sales items.  I plan to go back Monday to get some of the Mega Event items.

Bought:
2 Gallons Milk @ 1.69 ea!
2 Cartons Kroger Cottage Cheese
1 Carton Eggs
Kroger Steak Sauce
Coke
Paid: $11.35

Albertson's Trip 2

This deal is still good until next Tuesday!  If you like canned veggies or Frosted Flakes, that is a great price!

See Trip Details here

Paid: $7.51

Left over: $2.00 Catalina

Walgreens
See Details Here
Paid: $5.86
Recieved: $4.00 Register Reward

Total Paid: $43.26
Total Left Over: $2 Catalina, $4 Register Reward

How much closer can you get?!  26 cents over budget- I can accept that.  :D  We are stocked up on Frosted Flakes, Salad Dressing, and canned Veggies for a while!

Saturday Budget Check

Time to report how I did with my $25 a week grocery budget! We definately did not go over this week... mostly because I skipped shopping all together!  It has been a very busy week- so I did not go shopping.  That is definately one of the benefits to having a stockpile! 

Daniel did go to the store Friday to pick up a few essentials & ingredients to make ice cream.  He found whole milk on clearance because it was close to the expiration date-only $1.60 for a gallon!  Here are the details of his trip:

Daniel's Trip to Broulims
(2) 1/2 gallons of Whole Milk $0.88 ea.
(2) Pints Whipping Cream $0.79 ea
1 Gallon 2% Milk $2.16
1 Dozen Eggs $1.24

Total Spent: $6.97

We have several bulk purchases we would like to make this month, so the extra money in our budget will go towards that.  I have shopping trips planned to Broulims and Albertsons Monday to take advantage of a few of this weeks sales.

The Road to a Debt Free Education
As I mentioned in my monthly evalutation at the end of January, we have also been researching & experimenting with more ways to earn money on the internet while Daniel continues his job search.  I will be posting more about our findings and new goals next week.

Saturday Budget Check

Time to report how I did with my $25 a week grocery budget!  As always, it was a little bit of a challenge.  There were a lot of good deals and only $25 to spend!  I am sad to report that I ended up $1.11 over budget.  I forgot to calculate tax on a deal & it pushed me over.  Here is what I was able to get:

Smith's
1 Post Cereal $2.49
3 Hormel Chillie $2.37
3 Diced Tomatoes $2.97
1 Kraft Dressing $1.99
1 Electrasol Finish $2.99
1 French's Honey Mustard $1.69
Used: $6.25 in Coupons
Got $5 off (Mega Event Promo)
2 Gallons Milk $3.48
1 Half Gallon Milk (Free with Purchase of 2 Milk)
1.5 lbs 80% lean hamburger @ $1.89/lb ($3.06)
Tax: $1.18
Spent $12.87

Winco
25 lb Sugar
Spent: $12.38

Walgreens
I was disapointed to find that we had a short add this week & the items I had planned to buy were not on sale at our store.  I had a $2.50 RR that was about to expire, so I chose a few items that equalled as close to $2.50 as I could get.  I also found out that you can not lower the value of a Register Reward.  I wanted to change it to $2.49 (yes, 1 penny less), and they would not let me!

Secret Deodorant $2.49
Chocolate Pudding $.39
Spent: $.56

Albertsons
4 Quaker Instant Oatmeal $1.60
1 Life Cereal $1.60
-$3.00 (buy 5 get $3 off)
-$5.00 OYNO from a previous trip
Spent: $.30

Total Spent: $26.11
Total Earned for Next Month: $1.00 RR
Total Rebates Submitted: $15 Olay

That puts my total for the month at $101.04.  That is pretty close!  We were able to get 25 lbs of sugar- which will last us about 6 months.  We also were able to stock up on some quaker products.
Do you have weekly or monthly budget goals?  See how we are doing On the Road to a Debt Free Education & on our other Financial Goals for 2010.

Check out The Savers Bungalow, Super Saving Saturday, and Coupon Super Savers to see how others have done on finding great deals and meeting their weekly budget goals.

Saturday Budget Check

Time to report how I did with my $25 a week grocery budget!  Reporting is a great motivator when it comes to budgeting.  It would be a lot harder for me to stay within my budget if I did not have you all to report to!! Thanks for your support! 

This week was definately challenging.  I was determined to stay under budget, but there were a couple of times I nearly convinced myself to splurge. 

This has been an interesting month for us.  We have been sticking to our goals of partial participation in the Eat From the Pantry Challenge.  We have not lowered our budget, but we have tried new recipes & freezer cooking techniques.  As a result, I have spent more money stocking up on personal care products and less on food groceries this month. 

Here is what we got this week:

Broulims: $5.12
Lunch Meat
Bananas
Broccoli
Walmart: $13.79
Milk (Price Match Smiths add)
Olay Face Wash (I am submitting a rebate, veiw details HERE)

Walgreens $2.03
(2) Lubriderm ( I used a rain check from last weeks sale)
Glue Stick

This Weeks Total: $20.94
Monthly Total To Date: $74.93

I nearly justified not including the Olay Face Wash ($12) in my budget for the week, since I have turned in the form to get a $15 rebate.  I decided to include it to really streatch the budget.  When we get that $15 rebate check, it will be a bonus income!

Join me next week to see how we our doing on our saving for vet school goals.

Be sure to check out Super Savings Saturday  and Coupon Super Savers to see what great deals other people snagged this week!

Saturday Budget Check

Time to check the figures and see how we did for the week!

I was suprized at how much I spent this week.  Our weekly budget for groceries is $25, and we spent $38.99 out of pocket!! I had $10 extra dollars from last week to add to that, making our budget $35, so we were only $4 over budget.
To justify that further, we do have $5 in Catalina at Albertsons and $2.50 in Register Rewards at Walgreens left over for next week.  Anyway I look at it, I realized that I need to be more careful at keeping track. 
Here is a brief overview of the deals I got this week:

Walgreens $11. 92 OOP
Register Rewards Left Over: $2.50
Trip 1: detailed here
(2) gallons milk
(1) Half Gallon Chocolate Milk
(2) Clean & Clear Products
(1) ThermaCare Wrap
(2) Oust Air Sanitizers
Trip 2:
ThermaCare wrap  $1.64, earned $2.50 RR
Lubriderm Rain Check
Albertsons $22.17 OOP
Left Over: $5 OYNO
(5) Philidelphia Cream Cheese (See details here)
(2) 18 pack eggs
Chicken (3 lbs for $6)
Fuji Apples (My favorite!) $1/lb

Broulims $4.90 OOP
1 Margerine
Tortillas 30 ct.
1 Newspaper

Total Spent: $38.99
Earned for Next Week:
$5 Albertsons
$2.50 Walgreens
We snagged a few good deals, but I definately learned a lesson.  I will be paying closer attention to my total next week.

LeaDawn

Saturday Budget Check- Better late than Never!

Sorry I am a little late with this post!  I spent all last week trying to catch up from our week and a half vacation.  It has been so fun to spend time with friends and family, but I am definately behind.

Because we were so busy, I did the majority of my shopping on Saturday (for my Sister in laws birthday dinner).  We ate out of our pantry during the week, then stocked up on essentials at the weeks end.  I will be reporting more on a few things I have learned from the Eat from the Pantry Challenge so far later in the week. 

This week we spent a grand total of $15.00 (even, isn't that neat?). I was not terrible impressed with the deals last week, so our left over budget money will be saved for a good deal later on.  Here is a brief overview of where our budget was spent:

Walgreens:
(2) Oreos
(2) Neosporin Lip Balm
(2) Gallons Milk

Register Rewards Spent: $5
(Spent meaning I did not buy products that gave me additional RR)
Total OOP $0.80

Albertsons:
(2) Koolaid packets
(1) Hambuger Buns
.5 lb Tomatoes
.53 lb Onions
1 lb Carrots
Total OOP: $5.50

Winco:
3 lbs Hamburger Patties
Baking Powder
Total OOP: $8.70

Grand Total $15.00

This week is actually a great example of the bennifits of Stockpiling.  We were able to eat all week without going to the store for ingredients (except for milk).  Not only did this save us money (because we bought our stockpile items at rock bottom prices), but it also saved us time when I really did not have any to spare!  I will be watching for some good stockpile prices to use my extra $10 on later in the month!

LeaDawn

Be sure to visit Money Saving Mom, Saving a Bundle, and Coupon Saving Game to see how others did on their savings last week.

Saturday Budget Check

Our shopping was a little sparce this week. Normally we try to fill our needs and increase our food storage. My husband, Daniel, and I have decided that this month we would try to spend less on groceries by just focussing on our needs and exceptionally good deals (since the amount in the gift portion of our budget is significantly increasing, we wanted to decrease in other areas). We spent $16.05 on groceries this week. Here are the details of our shopping trips: I just did one main Walgreens trip this week. You can see the details here. I actually had to return today to pay $1 for the Finesse Shampoo because the cashier failed to scan it. I will be submitting the $2 rebate for that.

Total Spent at Walgreens: $4.27 Out of Pocket+$23 in RR
Total Recieved: $27 RR pluss the $2 Mail in Rebate
I made $1.73 on all of this!

I finally went to Albertsons today to try and get cheap Progresso Soup- it worked!
Transaction 1:
12 cans Progresso soup @ $1.39 each
2 boxes of Green Giant Vegetables @ $1 each
-$1.10/3 Progresso Soups (x4)
-$.50/2 boxed vegatables
-$.50 Twice Value coupon used on Vegatables coupon
-$2.49 (free broth for buying 4 soups) (x3)

Spent: $5.81+$.79 tax
Recieved: $5 Catalina

Transaction 2
Vegetable Oil $2.39
2 Wheat Bread @ $.89 each
18 Eggs $2.09
Bananas $.94
-$5 Cat. from transaction 1

Spent: 2.20+$.43 tax

Trip 2
Spent: $1.99 on milk

Total Spent at Albertsons: $11.22

Total Grocer bill: $15.49

Success! We kept our grocery bill significantly under our $25 budgeted amount. That is $9 that we can spend on Christmas gifts and holiday travelling.

Since it is almost 2010, we are working on our budget plan and our savings goals for next year. We are hoping to be going to either Veterinary School or Grad School starting next fall. The first 7 months we will be saving towards that. Our goal is to make it through school debt free- wish us luck! Starting in January I will be posting monthly about how we are doing with our savings goals.

Saturday Budget Check

We have a new goal of keeping our grocery budget at $25 a week or less. In the past we have just had a monthly goal of $100 or less, but it has been hard to decide when to spend it. Last month our grocery total was $112 because there were some really good Thanksgiving sales that I could not pass on, and I had spend most of my budget in the first 3 weeks of the month. I am excited to see if we can keep better track and spend less this way. This week I spent $25.81, so I did not quite keep it under $25, but I got really close! I will just have to spend less that $24.19 next week. Here is how my shopping trips went this week:

Walgreens
I made 3 trips to Walgreens this week because I was trying to get the Ecotrin deal. Here what I got:

Trip 1
3) Ecotrin 45 ct. $3.49
(1) Complete Multi Purpose Solution $7.99
(2) Glade Plug in Refils 2 for $5.00
(1) Christmas Pencil

Used:
$10/3 Ecotrin 10/11 Red Plum Insert
In add coupon making them $1.99 each
$1/1 Complete Multi Purpose Solution 10/25 Red Plum Insert
In add Coupon making pencils 8 for $1
$8 Register Rewards from a previous trip

Subtotal= $0.09 +1.15 tax
Total= $1.24
Recieved: $8 RR from Complete Solution
$1 RR from Glade Plug Ins

Trip 2

Quilted Northern TP $4.29
$1/1 Printable
Ecotrin $1.99 w/ in add coupon
$2/1 coupon from 10/11 RP insert
2 cookie cutters $3/1

Used a $3 RR from previous trip

Total: $.95+$.42 tax=$1.37
Recieved: $1RR from Quilted Northern

Trip 3
1 Lubriderm Lotion 6 oz. $3.79
$2/1 coupon 10/11 RP
$1/1 coupon Diabetes and You booklet (found by pharmacy)
1 Quilted Northern TP $4.29
$1/1 Printable
1 Holiday Pencil 8/$1

Used $4RR
Total: .21+$.50 tax=$.71
Recieved: $1RR from Quilted Northern

Total OOP at Walgreens: $3.22 (1.25+2.07 tax)
Register Rewards spent: $15
Register Rewards earned: $11

Albertsons
3lb. Farm fresh Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts
$1.79/lb w/ in add coupon ($5.37 total)
Nestle Morsels $2.50
$1.69 w/ in add coupoon
$1/1 printable coupon
1.45 lbs Oranges @ $.68/lb
2.04 lbs Apples @ $.68/lb

Total Spent at Albertsons: $9.80

Broulims
(2) 2lb Chedar Cheese $4.79
$1 off 2lb any brand cheese coupons.com
Brown Gravy Mix $.47
Total Spent at Broulims: $8.65

Walmart
I finally remembered to try having Walmart match Smiths add, and it worked! Smiths always has their milk advertised at $1.69 for 1% or $1.79 for 2%, so having Walmart match the price gives you the cheapest milk without driving 30 min. to Idaho Falls to find a Smiths.

1% Milk $1.69
2% Milk $1.79
1 lb Brown Sugar $1.54
Match to Smiths= $.99
Total Spent at Walmart: $4.74

Weekly Total: $25.81