Grocery List for September

My grocery list coincides with my meal plan.  The meal plan is the post below.  


After I get done with the meal plan, I go through every single thing we are eating and write down everything we need for every meal-even if I know I have it in the cupboard.  This way I am less likely to forget an ingredient.  Then I go through and mark off my list what we have, or mark down the amount we need to buy depending on what we have.  

After that, I go into my spreadsheet and type in what we need, and how many.  (I can't get my spreadsheet to upload.... so please bare with me.)  
My husband is a spreadsheet wizard-spreadsheets are his favorite thing. Seriously.  Everything has a spreadsheet. EVERYTHING. EVERY.THING.  So he taught me how to use a spreadsheet....because the 6 months of using it at a job I had in high school wasn't enough to drill it into my head. 

So my spreadsheet. I have two tabs.  One is ad sales. One is the shopping list. 

The Ad Sales tab.  Pretty self- explanatory.  (Bunny trail..I've been told I type like I learned on an old typewrite...BECAUSE I DID... so if my use of spaces seem excessive, blame my grandma.)  I have it separated by stores.  Under each store are 3 columns-item name, cost, size, sale ending date.  I just go through the ads and fill things in..  Because we usually buy the same things all the time, it's a pretty simple process to figure out what I need the prices for, but if I see something that looks like it would be different, I go ahead and make a note of the price. If I can fit it in the budget, it goes on the final list.  

My shopping list tab.  Again, pretty self-explanatory, and also a little redundant of how the ad sale sheet is set up. It's separated out by stores.  Each store has 5 columns, I also utilize the awesome algorithms a spread sheet can give you.... I think that's the right word.  My columns: Item name (I get brand specific here if something is on sale or I have a coupon for it), price per each, how many needed, total cost of item, total cost of store.  Now, so my algorithms don't get erased I only delete the name, price per each and how many.  I have the total cost of each item in there so it multiplies the cost per each and how many needed as I put prices and amounts in. The total cost per store ads up the column of the total cost per item.  Follow me?   There is a few more cells with an algorithm.  One cell adds up all the columns of the total store costs.  One cell tells me what my budget is, one cell tells me if I have anything left over from last month's budget.  Once I get it all figured, I subtract what we have left from what it will cost... If it exceeds the budget, something has to be crossed off somewhere, we start with snacks.  Now sometimes, halfway through the month we budget a bit so I can to the local store and get some snacks.  That depends on how the bills go. 

So here's my shopping list and what I'm guessing on spending at each store.  I always round up or overestimate, that ensures I have enough money with the food tax. Especially with the fresh veggies and fruit.

Walmart $110
Yogurt 
Whole Dill Pickles
Pita Bread
Eggplant
Juice
Strip Steak
Pineapple Salsa
Dry Ranch Seasoning
Shake N Bake Mix 
Lotion
Ice Cream Bars
Tartar Sauce
Color Bleach
Hamburger Patties

Aldi's $181
Eggs
Hashbrowns
Flour
Sugar
Spaghetti Sauce
V8
Crescent Rolls
Stick Butter
Hot Dog Buns
Cinnamon Rolls
Brown Sugar
Cauliflower
Sunflower seeds
Tomatoes
Sweet Pepper
Onions
Spinach
Sliced Colby Cheese
Potatoes
Sliced Pepperjack Cheese
Biscuit Dough
Mozarella
Olive Oil
Sweet potatoes
Red Onion
Garlic
Diapers
Zucchini
Squash
Baking Chips

Costco $290
Bacon
Cereal
Kerrygold butter
lettuce
Jelly
Nutty Bars
Shredded Cheese
Chips
Bacon Bits
Fries
Cream Cheese
Hot Dogs
Fig Brs
Parmesan Reggiano
Saltines
Chicken Breast
Peanut  Butter
Fruit
Pizza
Hot Dogs
Popcorn

Dollar Tree $20
Parsley
Onion Powder
dried Chives
basil bleach
wax paper
coloring books
air freshener
bath tub toys

Bakery outlet $10
bread


Deep Creek Honey $13



Now that I'm done with shopping I can post the final results after I pick my husband up off the floor from his reaction to how much money spent. (Just kidding.)  

So with my prices, I was expecting to spend $626...  Our budget (with help with groceries) is $600.    So about half of that out of pocket.  

We spent $487.22.     I'm happy when I can make it home in under $500.  Costco and Aldi's are definitely helping with the cost.  I have yet to go to Dollar Tree, I will do that this weekend with my mom.  I'm expecting $15 there.  

After a few months of Costco, I am learning a few things.  We need to go to Sam's to get a few things.  Chicken-while I LOVE the packaging Costco has, the chicken is cheaper in price in Sam's.  Although that decision is debatable as Costco's chicken is organic.  Canned Fruit... My husband eats canned fruit on a daily basis for work.  There might be a few other things in there... but in reality, we are really loving the decision to get a Costco membership.   



Have a great week!!

~Tabitha