I am having a hard time coming to grips with the fact that it is already December 2. Bernard, our Elf on the Shelf arrived on Sunday morning. That’s typically when the shock sets in. The days seem to be whizzing by, and I’m capturing and sharing our memories all while keeping us on a strict grocery budget.
If you’ve been following our grocery budget journey through November, you may recall that last week we had a balance of $254.83 remaining for the month and I was feeling a bit apprehensive about how we’d create a memorable Thanksgiving feast and still be able to eat non-turkey meals for the remainder of the month. What I failed to remember is that Thanksgiving fell late in the month this year, and there were only a two days in the month after Thanksgiving!
I shopped for our fresh turkey on Tuesday and all of the side dishes (why are they called ‘fixins’?) on Wednesday. Shopping at the last minute helped me stay to our list and speed in and out of the stores! I spent a total of $146.86 for the Thanksgiving meal and two quick trips to Trader Joe’s after Thanksgiving. Our total monthly expense on groceries was $611.42. We were following the USDA’s moderate spending plan for our family size – which allotted us $719.30 per month. I’m thrilled that we came in $107.88 under budget.
As we head into December, we are going to continue to follow the USDA’s spending plan – though the most recent data available allows us $719.50 per month – and be mindful of what we’re eating, not eating, saving, and spending. To start the month, we’ll be eating:
Monday – Chicken Wings and Sweet Potato Fries
Tuesday – Shrimp Scampi, Garlic Bread, and salad
Wednesday – Delivery Pizza
Thursday – Turkey Tacos
Friday – Leftovers or Turkey Ruebens with Sweet Potato Fries
Saturday – Chicken Parm – either Sandwiches or served with pasta
Sunday – Enchiladas
Do you have a monthly grocery budget or simply spend freely? Menu planning is a wonderful way to track what you’re eating and what you’re spending; you can find great bloggers sharing their weekly menus here.
[…] After reviewing our receipts – there are several “quick trips” that were more than $50, I don’t see a lot of snack items or wasteful spending. Perhaps in November we were eating more items from our pantry that I realized? I know that in November I shopped primarily alone and stuck to a list, this month we’ve already made several trips together and deviated from the list. Sigh. How embarrassing after such a strong finish last month. […]