Monthly Food Budget - very detailed

Warning - This post may be long because I'm detailing everything.

Most of you know that I use coupons and save 50% or more on our grocery bill. I love doing it and it gives me great satisfaction knowing that I am saving our family hundreds of dollars a month. I'm a SAHM so any savings is a big help to us.

I wanted to write a post about our monthly food budget not only for you guys, but for myself too. It'll be a chance for people to see how much I spend and save each month on groceries, pet supplies, and household goods. And this will (hopefully) make me stay on top of it this month as far as documenting everything.

First off, I set a budget of $300 a month, or $75 a week, for our family of four, along with three dogs, one cat, and a chinchilla. (I know, it's a zoo in this house.) If I buy toilet paper, it comes out of this budget. Shampoo, laundry detergent, and pet food comes from here too. So you see, the $300 is not just on food.

It can be hard to stick to the budget, but I love that I know how much I have to spend and really helps you to stick to your grocery list. I think another thing that has helped me is planning out meals for the week. With the help of Pinterest, it's not boring anymore and actually fun to find new recipes to try.

As of today, June 6th, I have spent $50.54 and saved $48.94! Still within the budget and actually under it for the week!

My first trip to the store was just for milk on the 4th. I spent $3.19 on two gallons of milk ($1.57 each) and saved $2.04. I know, not impressive enough. But wait, there's more.

The second trip was to Fry's last night where I spent $44.00 and saved a total of $44.62. (I consider it a WIN if I save more than I spent!)

I also went to Safeway and spent $3.35, saving $2.28.

Here's the breakdown of my Fry's trip -

General Mills cereal was on sale 3/$5, or $1.66 each. I had two coupons valued $1/3 making each box $1.33. I got 6 cereals. (Normally, I don't consider $1.33 a stock-up price but we were running low and they had kinds my kids like. < $1 is a great price.)

Kellogg's Gluten Free Rice Krispies on closeout for $3.14. I had a $.50 coupon that doubled to $1 making the box $2.14. (Again, not a stock-up price, but good for gluten free)

2 Minute Maid Lemonades on sale for $1 each.

Kellogg's Pop Tarts on sale 3/$5. I had two $1/3 coupons so I got six for $1.33 each. (I have never bought pop tarts for my kids so this will something different to have once in a while.)

Heinz 40 oz Ketchup was on sale for $1.99 and I had three $.50 coupons that doubled to $1, making each bottle just $.99.

Two gallons of milk on sale for $1.57 each.

All Laundry Detergent on sale for $2.77. I had a $1 off coupon, making it just $1.77.

Snuggle Fabric Softener also on sale at $2.77 with a $1 coupon, making it $1.77.

Kroger Cottage Cheese on sale 4/$5. I got two at $1.25 each.

Orville Redenbacher Popcorn Butter Oil, not on sale, for $4.39. (EEK! I hate paying full price and this one killed me. Gabe better love me because I got it for him.)

Kroger White Popcorn Kernels on "sale" for $1.79. (Apparently the normal price is $1.99 so woo! for $.20 savings.)

I had a raincheck for Angel Soft Toilet paper 12 double rolls for $4.99. Then with a $.25 coupon upped to $1, it ended up being $3.99.

The breakdown of my Safeway trip - 

There were only a few things I needed to get  here and of course, they were out of one. (Oh well, I guess that's what I get for waiting until the last day of the sale to go shopping.)

I got three ears of yellow sweet corn 2/$1. (Not a great price but we've been dying for some corn.)

And then one Motts for Tots Applejuice at $1.79. (Not a great price but it's something I don't get the kids too often, so I went for it.)

A glimpse into my stockpile. This is my laundry/household cleaner shelf.

So there it is. I did not get to make a menu for the week yet, so this was not my typical grocery trip. I did get my laundry stockpile filled up now with 7 detergents and 5 fabric softeners in my stockpile. I should be good for the next six months. :) And that ketchup should last us a couple of months until the next sale comes around. With the milk, I now have four gallons in the freezer to last us until the next milk sale (Usually every 2-3weeks.)