It is unreal to
me that July is coming to an end.
And! I'm almost four months in on my super
thrifty retirement already! Time is
flying by I tell ya! Part of my thrifty
retirement this year is to keep to my grocery budget and spend as little as
possible. Since my youngest moved out on
the 7th of this month that made it much easier for me to keep costs low,
especially the last three weeks. I found
myself doing mini weekly shopping excursions, mostly for produce and anything on sale I
thought I might need.
It did help a
bunch that I was able to find an amazing deal on meat at the beginning of the month. Originally the plan was to pick up two or
three pot roasts, which I did, but I also found marked down burger patties and
meat balls so I added those to my cart as well.
I will get loads of meals out of these items, no problem and I do plan
to share some with my youngest to give her a bit of a boost with her groceries
too.
I was able to
stock up on cheese that was on sale and I had several paper coupons to go along
with making it only 99¢ a package for the grated cheese and $1.29 for some sliced
pepper jack. I love pepper jack for my
grilled cheese sandwiches. After that
most of my money went for fresh produce and cream for my coffee.
Nonfood spending
was only $3.99 for a twelve roll package of toilet paper that was on sale to
add to my long term storage. Other than
that I didn't need or buy anything else nonfood. My food spending came in at just $73.77 out of
my $100 budget. Not too bad, I'd say.
I'm curious now that I'm an empty nester to see how my shopping habits change and how much it impacts my budget. With all of the stockpiling I did last winter in preparation of my earlier early retirement I really don't need much and I find right now I'm cooking less and consuming less so those groceries will last much longer. It will be interesting to see.
How did you do? Stumble across any great bargains? What were you able to stock up on?
You do so well at Fred meyer. We don't have one here, but my dd goes to Idaho falls 2 or 3 times a month and always stops to check the deals. She got me a 99 cent pork loin this week, and she found lots of markdowns this time too. She got me a couple of those roasts
ReplyDeletea couple weeks ago. Their meat and produce deals are like nothing I see here. You are proof that even with rising prices its possible to stick to a budget.
Wow Diane! Great buy on the roast. I love those deals. :)
DeleteMaybe you'd do a post on how you find these bargains? Is there a certain day -- or time in the day -- that's better than others? I do okay for myself in bread, canned goods, etc. -- and if I go to King Soopers (your Fred Meyer), I can find the red-bagged produce. But meat??
ReplyDeleteMy best bargain lately was on Amazon Warehouse -- and that canned chicken I mentioned to you. I also found some fancy German chocolates I'm saving for Christmas. Otherwise, it's been pretty quiet bargain-wise around here in Colorado.
It can be hit or miss on meat and produce deals. I go at various times and days, but I always check for markdowns.
DeleteKroger left NC and they always had great deals. I miss them. You do an excellent job!!
ReplyDeleteThanks Lee Ann. I do the bulk of my shopping at Freds.
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