It’s a
brand new year and time for my new grocery budget plan so I have put a lot of
thought into this one, and I do mean a
lot. All of my life I have shopped
carefully and kept my grocery budget cut to the bare bone and it has worked out
amazingly well. I have filled pantries,
freezers and established my long term food storage. In the past few years I
wanted to really up my game with the quality of the whole foods I eat, which is
one of the reasons I got myself a membership at Costco and that continues to be a big goal of mine again for
2026.
After
some careful analysis of my spending and shopping habits I sat down and
envisioned how I would ideally like to eat. I drafted a long list of meal plan ideas. What meals I would like to have on a regular basis
and why I would like to be able to eat this way? With my primary focus dialed in on protecting
my health and improving my quality of life.
I want to eat well and truly enjoy what I am eating.
I am
adding a Butcher Box subscription to
my grocery food plan and I am really excited about it. I’ve been looking at doing this for quite
some time and I wrestled with the overall costs, but with the rising prices of
beef this past year it has been making more and more sense for me to go ahead
and do this at this time. In addition to
my regular shopping I will also be getting their Classic $169 box, for one to
two people, every other month. I was
able to get a really nice introductory offer – 2 FREE rib eye steaks, 1 package
of bacon and $100 OFF over the first year of my subscription.
After
taking a good look at what I have on hand as well as my typical shopping habits
to determine my best course of action I decided that this year I’m not going to
have a set grocery budget. This is going
to be a HUGE departure for me because I have always had a budget to work within, but this year I’m not going to
hold myself to a set budget and just see what happens. I feel at this phase in my life it is going
to be okay to do this.
I would
love to go into Costco and go shopping without telling myself I can’t have
something because it is too expensive or there isn’t enough money left in the
budget. This doesn’t mean I plan to go
off the charts and spend with reckless abandon.
I will still be keeping track of my spending and buying only what I need
or want for a healthy and nutritious lifestyle, while I make sure I get the
best quality and value for my money spent.
The USDA Thrifty Food Plan suggests I spend nearly 2 1/2 times my regular budget
Even
though I’m giving myself a lot of latitude for grocery spending I still expect
that I will be coming in way under what the USDA Thrifty Food Plan has in mind
for a woman my age. It has been a fun
challenge for me to be able to stick to minimal budgets and really make them
work, but I’m looking forward to this new challenge. A no budget – budget. Let’s see how I do.
I have seriously considered a Costco membership myself. I have only recently started a grocery budget of $50 a week. It has helped me be more creative with meals and eat up what I have. Plus, it shows me that I can do it, if I have to. My mother used to buy meat from someone who raised cattle. She would stock up a chest freezer, then fill in with her garden and some rice or potatoes to round off her groceries. She was a healthy 93 year old!
ReplyDeleteAt $50 a month you would be well under the Thrifty Plan too. I think I enjoy the creativity that comes with a good low budget most. I like your mom's way of doing it. Very smart. And healthy!
DeleteI haven’t had a grocery budget for several years now. Rarely do I go wild, because after so many years of watching every Penny it’s just habit now.
ReplyDeleteHave you considered buying beef from a local farmer or rancher? I don’t currently have any because I can’t seem to free up the freezer space, but for several years that’s how I bought all our beef. I’m not sure is cheaper, but the quality is superior, and I was buying from a guy a few miles from my house. He processes it himself, so every dime I spent went directly to him. I like that.
Diane
I don't have the freezer space available to accommodate a local beef order at this time.
DeleteYay for you! With so many years of having budgets, I wonder what it will be like for you this year. I'm especially looking forward to hearing how you like Butcher Box. Good thinking to compare current supermarket meat prices to a subscription box, that would not have occurred to me! So smart!
ReplyDeleteI'm excited about it. :)
DeleteI thought of doing Butcher Box, so I tracked meat purchases in December (260.64) ans ate maybe 25% of that. Most of the cost being Costco steaks that we may not even get to until March. I believe I will do another couple of months for an average.
ReplyDeleteI am looking forward to it. Something new.
DeleteWe do not eat grocery store meat and are able to stay at a very reasonable budget. So I think you will find it really doesn't end up more expensive in the long run. Especially since it is healthier and that is priceless.
ReplyDeleteI think you're right. :)
Delete