One of the things I was really afraid of when I decided to eat healthier was that our grocery bill was going to drastically increase. I figured eating fresher and organic veggies, fruits and meat meant that I was going to have to redo our entire budget, but I was so wrong!
Nic and I have been really good about only spending $100-125 for two weeks worth of food. Back in 2009 we paid off all our debt, bought a house and have continued to stick to a budget so we can continue to build wealth and give more, so I think my fear of a drastic increase was only natural. I wanted to do everything possible to stay around the $100-125 mark, including clipping coupons, checking sales ads and shopping at multiple stores.
It was actually easy! Most of our fruits and veggies come from Sprouts, and I plan my sides around what's on sale. I went today and only spent $25.72 on almost all our produce, and I was in and out in less than 15 minutes. I then went to Tom Thumb to get the rest of our two weeks of food including dairy, meat, grains, and more. I walked out of there with a bill of $116.77 bringing my two store total to $142.49. Looking at that you would THINK I spent $17.49 over my food budget, and truth be told I did, BUT here's the great part... we haven't been eating out so our entertainment budget has just been sitting pretty and growing.
So I'm happy and getting healthy and have one less excuse for not eating better.
3 comments:
How do you have time to go to two grocery stores and plan meals when you're working and in school? Do you feel like Sprouts really has prices that are good enough that it's worth it? I go to Sprouts sometimes, but haven't paid enough attention to the price difference.
Sprouts is great when it comes to their sales! I plan my sides around what is in the sales ad that week, and because I shop late (after 8pm)I can get in and out really fast. I usually stock up on fresh veggies and fruits, and sometimes meat. As far as the two stores in one night, it's easy because they are only minutes from each other. It's worth it to save money and I don't mind the "me" time either :)
I believe Tuesdays are the best days for the meat sales. We've gotten some great deals on lamb that way. Christy could give you more detail on this if you wanted because she's gotten this to an art form!
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