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Jenny
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I just wrote about my trip to the grocery store this morning and would like to know how much you spend a week to feed how many people.
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Jenny
Chris' wife and momma of 7. My blog: The Littlest Way--Bible Journaling, Inspiring Bible Quotes, Daily Affirmations, Prayer Journaling & photography
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Leslie
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I'm really interested in this discussion! I wish I had advice...I can only offer this: I have 3 children, and shop at a commissary, and my bill is about the same.  I feel like I'm trying to be frugal, but apparently I'm missing something 
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Leslie
Mom to Kyler 6, Maddie 4, & Lucas 2
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teachingmom
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Hi Jenny,
I took a look at your receipt. Since you ask for ideas on where to cut back, I'll put in my 2 cents. I am a very frugal shopper in general. It's been a long time since I've done all my shopping at a grocery store because we have a Costco 10 minutes from home and it provides most of what I need. But here are a few suggestions:
Except for the basic necessities, I try to buy much of what we eat on sale at the grocery store. (There is enough of my penny pinching Irish grandmother in me to cringe at paying full price!  ) So if something like bacon is not on sale, we would just do without until it goes on sale. I very rarely buy cream cheese unless it is on sale for 99 cents per 8 oz brick. They last a long, long time in the fridge, so I buy maybe 10 of them at a time on sale and they last for a few months. I also refuse to pay full price for breakfast cereal at the grocery store. I either buy it on sale, or buy it at my non-grocery Target (which interestingly has very low prices on cereal, both their brand and name brands!), or at Costco.
I don't go to lots of different stores, but when I am in one that has good prices on something, I will stock up. I am in Walmart maybe once every 3 or 4 months. But they have the best prices on microwave popcorn, so I'll buy a bunch of Act II popcorn when I happen to be there.
And I used to be a bit of a snob for certain brands. We still are about some things (like Hidden Valley Ranch salad dressing for example) but we've found that many things taste just fine in the generic version.
Hope this is of some help. I just love saving money by buying sales. Honestly it can make my day if I go to the grocery store and see the totals at the bottom of the receipt and find that without sales I would have spent a certain amount, but that I've saved 30 or 35% off my total bill through sales. Good luck with cutting down.
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~Irene (Mom to 6 girls, ages 7-19)
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folklaur
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Okay...these are just ideas...I am not saying I do them all...just suggestions...
Could you use powdered milk? Not for all your milk, but like when it gets down to about half a gallon, top it back off with reconstituted? I have heard that it doesn't effect the taste much to do it that way....
Could you make dinners with leftovers, and have your husband take that to work? Or does he really like sandwiches?
Ummm....I know this stinks...but maybe cut out the variety of foods, and do a few more repeats for breakfasts/dinners? It would be cheaper to buy flour and make pancakes a few times...and eggs are pretty inexpensive too....
I am not saying these are good ideas....just ideas  
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teachingmyown
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We spend about $1000/month. I can't give a weekly amount because we shop in bulk at Costco in addition to our "regular" shopping at a grocery store. We have 8 kids (one a newborn so he doesn't count, one a teenage boy so he counts twice!) and two big dogs. I have two in diapers and am not currently using cloth. We would like to pare down our bill too.
Some things we do that I believe make a big difference:
We buy bulk cheeses which saves a lot of money, especially since we LOVE cheese.
We only buy meat on sale.
We have switched to almost everything generic. That is hard on me. I like my name brands.
I bake our own breads for dinner instead of buying rolls or French bread, etc.
I make my own pizza crust instead of buying frozen.
We drastically cut down on breakfast cereals. Only on sale or generic and not all the time. Eggs or baked goods for breakfast.
Probably some other things, but I need to run. Looking forward to hearing what others are doing.
ETA-dh takes leftovers every day. We gave up cold cuts because they are just too expensive. Now we only buy them on sale as a treat for something like homemade subs.
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Molly
wife to Court & mom to ds '91, dd '96, ds '97, dds '99, '01, '03, '06, and dss '07 and 01/20/11
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10 Bright Stars
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I would have to ditto Molly to not eat breakfast cereal more than you absolutely need to, and only then if it is on sale or buy one get one free. (You only had one, but it was sort of pricey.) I have stopped eating it/serving it and the kids don't get nearly as hungry with a nice hot, egg and toast or pancake, french toast etc. breakfast. I think the Maria's Salad dressing seemed rather high. And, the bagels seemed kind of pricey. I think there is a cheaper brand for maybe $.99 if I am remembering correctly. I try to make bisquits with raisins and powdered sugar or something in liue of bagels these days or rolls from the bread machine. (Incidentaly, I noticed that if I pre-make ziplock bags of the "mix" for the bread machine, I am much more likely to use it! I put the butter in the bag first, then all the dry ingredients, ending with the yeast. I place it in the bottom drawer of my fridge. That way, I only have to put in the cup of hot water and dump the bag in! Voila! Bread machine without all the measuring and mess except for one time a week. )
Anyway, I have had to go with the "house brand" all the way since we discovered recently that we aren't as rich as we THOUGHT we were. (hehe) I even buy "Family Bread" when I do buy it which I would NEVER have purchased before, being a brand name "snob" too as someone put it. I think we just get into routines when we go to the store. I always used to get Daisy sour cream, but now just opt for the store brand and it is just as good. (I made some killer sour cream pancakes the other day. WOW! were they good!!!)
So, I think if you cut back on some of the name brand things. Is the OR popcorn microwave popcorn? Maybe you could get a hot air popper and then the store brand popcorn. (Our family is big into hot air popcorn!) Hot air poppers are pretty cheap and the bagged popcorn to place in there is very cheap. Your foods seem a little higher than where I live. Are you in a city? I just wondered. I know prices are lower in a nearby town where the income is lower etc, so the prices are lower on a lot of things. I have considered going there to shop, but with my regular store only 2 miles away, I can't justify the gas!
Anyway, I probably spend over $1000 a month for 8 children, at least prior to my recent overhaul of what I buy. I have not tallied the new totals yet, but hope to do much better. I have 3 in diapers and 2 in pull-ups!!! So, that really hurts the bill!!!!!!!!!! I keep trying to potty train the twins, but they get confused after a few days.  And, I have no idea how to get kids out of pull-ups consistantly at night. I wake them up etc., but sometimes they still have trouble. (hereditary??? (Deep sleepers etc.) (Maybe there would be tips for this we could start on a side-thread????? I could use that diaper money in SOOOO many other places!!! )
Some people swear by Costco. I personally always went to BJ's, but I thought about looking into Costco since so many of my friends seem to recommend them. I usually only go there for huge pallets of paper porducts and diapers anyway since I noticed I tend to buy gourmet things there that I would not normally buy. (Fancy olives for my husband, fancy cheeses etc.)
So, I hope you didn't feel too scrutinized since you asked me to look. I should post my bill and see if someone can help me!!!
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Kim married to Bob (22y)
Mom of 11 blessings:
Bobby 19, David 17, Noah 14,
Mary 12, Gracie 10,
Isabelle and Sophia 8,
Gabrielle 6,
William Anthony 4, Joseph 3 and Luisa Marie - born in M
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5athome
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A few suggestions but may not work depending on kid's needs/preferences (also you may already be doing some of this):
- I would cut back on the meat purchases - sausage or bacon but not both each week, stretch the roast into at least 2+ meals
- more rice/pasta/vegan meals
- whp crm seemed really high -- can yu substitute something else for this? not sure which recipes it is needed so may not be negotiable
- buy frontier or some other brand buttermilk pdr and make your own buttermilk (or use vinegar trick)
- pop your own popcorn
- make your own dressing
- reduce number of snacks/chips/pretzels etc or substitute with homemade goodies
- as others have suggested can you buy in bulk anywhere like a costco or sams
- we also often take our dinner leftovers (this would be our big meal) and reconfigure them as lunch the next day. For instance, if we have grilled chicken for dinner, the kids can pretty much bet we will be having a stir fry brown rice/chicken/veggie with the leftover meat for lunch the next day.
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Margaret
ds '93, dd '96, ds '99,
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ds '08
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Jenny
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Thank you so much for looking over my receipt!
I do pop my own popcorn, although I buy Orville Redinbacher. I need to try to buy it in bulk somewhere. The store brand popcorn just doesn't pop.
We do not have a Costco. We do have a Sam's about 40 minutes away. I think I may spend more in gas getting there though, I need to figure that up.
The cereal is for Friday morning when I grocery shop and am not here to make breakfast and for Sunday morning before Church.
My husband has to take sandwiches because he does not have access to a microwave when he's working. He is a telephone repair man & is out in the field all day/night.
The dressing is VERY expensive. We are trying to use some Feingold suggestion foods, plus I cannot tolerate MSG very well. We only use the dressing for dips for our veggies. I am trying to find a cheaper substitute. I copied a recipe from Ruth I think for buttermilk dressing that I need to try.
Please, continue the suggestions!
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Jenny
Chris' wife and momma of 7. My blog: The Littlest Way--Bible Journaling, Inspiring Bible Quotes, Daily Affirmations, Prayer Journaling & photography
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JodieLyn
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do you have storage space?
Because if you do.. you can buy and store your cereal when the cereal is on sale.
You can buy and freeze bagels when they're on sale.
Buy and store the cream cheese when it's on sale.
Buy the bacon (divide into packages if necessary) and freeze.. when it's on sale.
And yes, do look at your gas prices before jumping into going to a "discount" store.. it may be worth it.. but it may not be.
By shopping sales (and you'll get a feel for how often things go on sale.. like you might just need to get enough cereal for 2 months and the cereal will be on sale again).. and buying bulk at certain times of the year.. I keep our costs fairly low and don't set foot in a Costco or Sam's or any such thing. I shop at Safeway and Thriftway (this one has a case goods sale in the fall). And I buy dry goods in bulk once a year from walton feed.
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Jodie, wife to Dave
G-18, B-17, G-15, G-14, B-13, B-11, G-9, B-7, B-5, B-4
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teachingmyown
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One thing about the lunch meat is to maybe buy meat (a ham or a roast,etc) and cook it and slice it yourself instead of buying cold cuts.
My Costco also sells gas, so it makes it worth the trip to save $.10/gallon. Also, we save almost $1.00/gallon of milk which really adds up for us.
Feingold makes things harder. I know, we tried it. For my Feingold kid, I was able to just weed out the foods that were absolute triggers and not eat them at all instead of trying to find the "right" brands. I am sure this doesn't work for everyone, but it has been pretty successful for us.
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In Christ,
Molly
wife to Court & mom to ds '91, dd '96, ds '97, dds '99, '01, '03, '06, and dss '07 and 01/20/11
Remembering Today
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stefoodie
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Okay, just dropping by here before I go to bed and I can't resist -- however, I did not have a chance to read everyone's response so I may be repeating a lot of what's already been said -- if so, I apologize, just ignore me :)
so -- quick comments (hoping I won't sound insensitive here):
- grate your own cheese. if you don't have a food processor, you might want to invest in one -- it's expensive on the front end but it will pay off esp. if you use it as much as i think you will based on what you've got on your list.
- whipped cream? if it's not on sale i wouldn't get it, unless i REALLY REALLY need it.
- you could buy powdered buttermilk and just reconstitute it yourself -- cheaper that way
- cream cheese goes on sale here for $.99 so if you can wait that's half price:)
- if i can cut down at all on deli meats i would
- i don't buy chips on a regular basis because then the kids just eat them whenever the mood hits, not really when they're hungry -- mostly i get them only when we're traveling -- it's still junk food you know:)
- i'd actually opt for lard from a local farmer (without the hydrogenation) instead of crisco shortening -- healthier and possibly cheaper
- is the mixed fruit canned? could you maybe switch to fresh fruit instead? more work, but more nutrition for the money
- i would mix up my own self-rising flour -- it's just flour and leavening
- bacon could be bought on sale for cheaper
- the dressing is waaay expensive; what kind is it? you might want to try some recipes
- baby carrots aren't really baby carrots but mature carrots whittled down to make them look like baby carrots; so you're paying more for processing than anything else -- i'd just get regular carrots and cut them into sticks myself
- can't address the cereal because that's our emergency food here; don't like it that way but it's what works, for now, until we can teach the kids to kick the habit anyway...
hth,
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stef
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JodieLyn
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area plays such a part Stef.. for instance..
Quote:
- grate your own cheese. if you don't have a food processor, you might want to invest in one -- it's expensive on the front end but it will pay off esp. if you use it as much as i think you will based on what you've got on your list.
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I get grated cheese for the same price as block.
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Jodie, wife to Dave
G-18, B-17, G-15, G-14, B-13, B-11, G-9, B-7, B-5, B-4
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Servant2theKing
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So many good ideas here. One thing that helps when packing lunches for dh is to use small containers and sandwich bags and prepack fruit, vegetables, snacks or desserts for the week on a single day. Pre-packaged fruits and puddings are pretty expensive, even on sale, and they always seem more processed. We have gotten in the habit of packing extras for my husband's lunch when we serve fruit, vegetables or a dessert for meals. We have a special container in the frig. for his lunch items.
Bulk purchases and buying only sale items makes a BIG difference in saving on the grocery bill. Just last night I spent 150 and was able to save $70 for two weeks worth of groceries. Butter was on sale for $1 a pound, frozen chicken breasts were buy one get one free, and many items were buy 10 at $1 apiece and get the 11th item free, including microwave popcorn. Even if we have the items that are on sale at home, I tend to stock up on those things that I know we use regularly. Currently, our grocery bill runs between $300-$400 per month for five of us, which includes three teenage boys. We don't have the expense of diapers and baby needs, which really adds up.
If at all possible, homeschooling mothers should not be too burdened or obsessed over the costs of groceries...you are already doing a tremendous job by teaching your children in the home and that needs to be your primary focus. When finances dictate that you have to cut grocery costs (as ours often have), pray to the Lord to help you make prudent and wise decisions in that realm. I have also noticed through the years that the more I thank God, and my husband, for providing for us, and concentrate on being grateful for all that we have, the easier it has become to juggle groceries, cooking, bills, etc. It seems as though God has blessed us with more grace to be good stewards of His gifts as we have become more grateful for them! It does get easier the older and more experienced you become. Pray to dear St. Anthony to guide you and help you find purchases that best suit your family's needs!
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10 Bright Stars
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Jenny,
It's pretty funny about the Maria's dressing. I went to the basement to visit my husband after writing to you for a bit and was talking to him about groceries etc. since this is a hot topic for us around here too. (He keeps looking online here and there to see how much we SHOULD be spending for our size family and we always spend way more.) Anyway, I was talking to him about how you had put your receipt on here and how I had commented on the salad dressing. (Yeah, with all the kids, conversations can be pretty boring these days. hehe) Well, low and behold HIS dad who is as tight as tight can be splurged on this same salad dressing when he was a kid!!! He said it was the one fancy thing they ate, whereas his mom was making homemade ketchup and things like that to save money. They had bees for their own honey and didn't even use regular sugar!! Also, my husband was on the Feingold diet as a kid, which I just noticed you mentioning this morning on the list, so maybe that is why they had that dressing too. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed all the advice. I felt guilty looking over your receipt. hehe
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Kim married to Bob (22y)
Mom of 11 blessings:
Bobby 19, David 17, Noah 14,
Mary 12, Gracie 10,
Isabelle and Sophia 8,
Gabrielle 6,
William Anthony 4, Joseph 3 and Luisa Marie - born in M
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Becky Parker
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I'm not going to be much help because our grocery bill is about the same. I don't buy cereal, but I do buy other things that make things equal out. One thing I did find might help though. (Or maybe someone can tell me I've been doing this wrong!)
I had been buying some organic items just to make sure they don't contain high fructose corn syrup, hydrogenated fats and food colorings. Then, one day I actually read the label of our store brand potato chips and, like Lays, it just said potatoes, oil, salt. I also noticed the same thing about taco shells. The name brand (not organic) contained hydrogenated fat, but the store brand does not. Refried beans - same thing. I know there are other items as well.
Now, if organic is important (and how I wish I could afford organic everything!) this wont help, but if you're just trying to get rid of some of those things like high fructose corn syrup you might be able to do it more cheaply by buying the store brand.
Oh and just to mention, besides the organics, Marie's in the only salad dressing I have found that doesn't contain the "bad stuff".
Servant, I agree that we shouldn't have to worry.  I wish I didn't but I do - every time I write the grocery check! I'm not sure what it is, but I don't like the guilty feeling I get when I pay for groceries, as if I'm buying a new wardrobe, toys, bonbons or whatever! Perhaps it's because I'm not the one that is actually bringing home the check. Silly, I know! We would pay a fortune for someone to clean the house and teach the kids and taxi everybody where they need to go. Maybe it's just remnants of "the worldly thinking" that women should be out working a job and that being a sahm isn't a worthy "profession". It's all hooey, but maybe I still have some of that lingering in my head from when I was a professional (a school principal no less).
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Becky
Wife to Wes, Mom to 6 wonderful kids on Earth and 4 in Heaven!
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lapazfarm
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I don't think your budget is unreasonable at all. I spend about 180-200/week for our family of myself and 5 kids, one in diapers. And I think I shop pretty frugally, though I don't obsess over every penny. There is nothing on your receipt that just screams "excessive!" to me, except perhaps the salad dressing, and that is just one little splurge. We should all be allowed one little splurge, you know? (Mine is fresh mozzarella. Yum!)
Perhaps there is another area of your life you could cut corners more easily to save that money?
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Theresa
us-schooling in beautiful Fairbanks, Alaska.
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Servant2theKing
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Becky, My husband just commented the other day about the multiple roles we are fulfilling by homeschooling...he ran through a list including teaching, curriculum planning, adminstrating, in addition to childcare, shopping, cooking, cleaning, laundry, chauffering, paying bills, etc. etc. etc. He was very appreciative of the fact that we accomplish so MUCH with our limited budget and was pointing out how little actual labor is often involved when a person is working at a paid job with very individualized focus. Homeschooling moms need to recognize that they are actually doing much more than many of their counterparts...if your budget allows you to splurge in the area of groceries once in awhile consider it an occupational perk that compensates for pulling extra duty day in and day out. Of course, if the budget calls for scaling back, then it's simply time to utilize all the skills you employ in mothering and homeschooling and find creative ways to s-t-r-e-tc-h the pocketbook however possible! Try not to feel guilty for feeding and caring for your families...you are fulfilling a precious God-given mission that is irreplacable, something that cannot be said for many jobs in the workplace.
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Maryan
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Jenny, my bill is about the same as yours. I buy whipped cream, cream cheese and expensive Marie's too.
I'll have to switch to the bars of cream cheese for .99 -- I just don't think to look for the bars as I'm racing through the grocery store with the gang before a meltdown occurs. That's good to know it lasts so long in the fridge.
The only thing I had to drop was sandwich meats for the kids and I -- we do PB&J or PB & honey. And I buy wheat bread on sale in serious BULK and freeze it.
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Maryan
Mom to 6 boys & 1 girl: JP('01), B ('03), M('05), L('06), Ph ('08), M ('10), James born 5/1/12
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teachingmyown
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Jenny,
Our grocery bill varies, often widely, when I am pregnant or newly postpartum. At those times, I am just not up to thinking it through every time I go to the store. Also, dh does a lot of shopping during those times. My point is, give yourself some slack, you have plenty to think about. Start making a plan and looking for ways to cut back.
One more suggestion, I have started buying dry goods from Amazon grocery. Everything from tea to diapers are below retail with free shipping. If you "subscribe" to certain items you save an extra 15%. I have a subscription for Good Nights pull-ups, tea bags, and coffee. The diapers are not cheaper than Costco, but they are cheaper than a grocery store. It also means that you have less to think about while you are in the store. I know I have made uncountable bad buying decisions while standing in the grocery aisle with a crowd of little people trying to "help" me!
This Lent I have been trying to combat my "it's not fair that I can't buy cereal, or a new dress, or stop for a smoothie while I am out" feelings by remembering just how much I do have and get compared with so many in this world. It has helped. (Most of the time anyway! )
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In Christ,
Molly
wife to Court & mom to ds '91, dd '96, ds '97, dds '99, '01, '03, '06, and dss '07 and 01/20/11
Remembering Today
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Rachel May
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JodieLyn wrote:
area plays such a part Stef.. for instance..
Quote:
- grate your own cheese. if you don't have a food processor, you might want to invest in one -- it's expensive on the front end but it will pay off esp. if you use it as much as i think you will based on what you've got on your list.
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I get grated cheese for the same price as block. |
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I've become mildly obsessed about this since we discussed it on an earlier thread. In the end, my "scientific" analysis showed that while the per oz price for block and grated cheese is the same, when you grate a block of cheese, the volume was about a cup more. So we're back to the block.
A side question, have we ever come up with a number for how much it should cost to feed a person per week or a family of 4/week? It seems like we always want to lower our bills, but what are we shooting for? What is a realistic goal?
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Rachel
Thomas and Anthony (10), Maria (8), Charles (6), Cecilia (5), James (3), and Joseph (1)
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4Real Forums : Our Lady's Loom, Larder, and Laundry
Topic: Let's Talk About Groceries...again
