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Friday, February 27, 2009

Me against the grocery store- I will win!

If you were to ask me if I considered myself competitive I would quickly say no. I enjoy the laughs along the way and am happy for whoever wins. Well, I was just thinking about this today and I think my answer might have to change a little.

You see today is grocery shopping day. What does this have to do with competitive-ness? Just keep reading...My husband gets paid every two weeks and I make a meal plan and go to the store for what's on my list- and nothing extra. Because we are trying to cut back to pay off bills and etc. the grocery list has been reduced to the minimum. $60. Yes that's right people, $60 for 2 1/2 people for 2 weeks! You have to plan ahead but a lot of it can be fun too. This is the time when you look at what you've got in your pantry, look at cool food sites and put your creative hat on. Sometimes I even make dough parties with whoever and we make huge amounts of dough for many recipes. The best part is it's all hand (heart)-made, healthy and you get to hang with cool people.


OK, so back to the competitive-ness. I was thinking that some of the reason why I love shopping (yes I love grocery shopping-you can pray for me :) ) is because I feel like it is the store against me. And trust me- I will win. I walk in to the store and see all the ways they lure people into spending way to much and on silly things like 5 lbs of peanuts. Who wants 5 lbs of peanuts?! There are huge colorful signs luring me to whatever 'sales' they might be having and even sometimes a voice is heard telling the 'lucky costumers' about a sale going on in the produce. * roll of my eyes.


OK, you go on a mission and you go. If it helps- don't go with your kids, I can remember asking (OK I begged and did whatever I had to do) my mom for treats when we went shopping. And I always got one little thing. Good memories. :) I plan it with my hubby and he takes care of our little Emma and I go alone with my hand made grocery bags (so simple!) and i-pod. When I go through those doors I blare whatever music I want and go on my mission. It's actually enjoyable!




What things do you do that helps you stick to your food budget for the month?
OK, long post. Sorry about this, and many of you know this I'm sure- looking around the blogging world, I've found some very smart women. But it's something I'm passionate about.
Lastly I want to give my 2 week grocery list. Why? I have many women asking me how we eat healthily with the $60. What meals I make and how do I make them stretch. One trick also is that I cook maybe 4 breasts of chicken at a time and keep them in the fridge for the next coming meal. It really cuts on a lot of time.
Here is my list for the 2 weeks:
(I'm starting with tonight's dinner as the beginning and also, I make Travis' lunch with a lot of left overs or sandwiches. Personally, I scrounge for whatever I can find during the days that's light and easy. I mostly plan out the dinners for the 2 weeks)
Friday: Chicken Breast Florentine with Whole Wheat pasta
Saturday: Crepes for breakfast, sandwiches for lunch, Tuna Melts, cranberry muffins
Sunday: Chocolate chip Pancakes, Potluck night with our small group- I'm bringing a chicken casserolewith peas.
Monday: Savory Spinach/Parmesan/Chicken stuffed crepes, cranberry muffins, salad
Tuesday: Hamburgers , salad and apples
Wednesday: Chicken Alfredo, green beans, cranberry muffins
Thursday: Meatball melts, salad, fruit salad
Friday: Left over night! Yahoo for me!
Saturday: BBQ kielbasa, baked beans and apples
Sunday: Breakfast for dinner! Omelets, fruit salad, biscuits
Monday: Home-made Hawaiian Pizza
Tuesday: Taco/Burrito night with a cold black bean salad
Wednesday: Chicken Carbonara with Whole Wheat Angel hair past, salad, cranberry muffins
Thursday: Hot sandwiches, applesauce, salad
Friday: Left over night- Yahoo for me!
And the cardinal rule? Never ever, ever, ever, ever, EVER!- go grocery shopping hungry. never.
Hope this was helpful. Off to my sunny day. :)

3 comments:

Melissa K. said...

You are amazing... to cook that kind of food on a budget of $60 for two weeks. I go grocery shopping every week (on Friday when Chris gets paid) and $50 bucks will get us through. And I don't even pay for milk, cereal, eggs, and cheese. (WIC)

And I thought I was doing good and saving a lot of money... I am going to have to pick your brain and learn your secrets!

Yankee Wife said...

I'm always amazed by those who can meal plan in advance. It takes time & patience. I want to do that consistently . . . maybe tomorrow. JK - Gonna try it today as I'm gonna try to get to the store tonight. My goal too is $60 week, but with one on formula & two in diapers I don't think I've quite made it yet. Probably another month or two & I'll get it under control. Thanks for your comments!

Anonymous said...

Ok, so you and I are weird... I totally love grocery shopping because I get to make some new things and quite frankly just love cooking. I don't have the small budget like $60 because I can't get a lot of frozen foods because I don't have freezer capacity like you do, but I make it work!