$60/month

I just got a chance to compile all my receipts and look at my budgeting for the past six months. The result: I averaged $50.11 on groceries - per month - without trying! If I include eating out (which I budget under 'entertainment' since it isn't an 'essential'), it would still be below $60. October looks to be even lower since I've been more conscientious.

I should note that my expenses actually varied quite widely even from month to month - 2 of those months I spent $30, and in September I hit a record $82 (for good reason: I hosted people for dinner meetings a couple of times, provided snacks for Bible study each week (we're now rotating the job!) and went to a couple of potlucks where the old students were expected to bring enough food to feed the new students!). Anyway, even my crazy month of buying food for everything still left me (barely) within the stated challenge - so I guess I'm showing here that you can even feed others well while still keeping the budget!

So how do I eat on an average of $60/month?

The big help: I very rarely go out to eat. Everyone I work with brings their lunch, so if we want to eat lunch together, we just grab our lunches out of the fridge, head upstairs or outside and enjoy the sun! Plus, one of the groups I meet with has a potluck every other week, so I can get the social and variety aspects of eating out without the cost!

I also keep two shopping lists for my Saturday shopping - one for items I need that weekend, and one for non-perishables I expect to run out of in the next month. Items on that second list I only pick up if they're on sale. I also skim the online circulars for Meijer and Kroger before heading out. While Meijer generally has the best regular price on items, Kroger tends to have some really good sale prices. Oh, and I'm not afraid to at least try off- and store-brands.

Other ways I keep expenses down:
Drink water! It's better for you than most of that other stuff out there, anyway! I do NOT buy bottled water - I just run tap water through a Brita pitcher! For times when water isn't quite enough or I'm really bored of it, I keep some Gatorade mix on hand so I can mix up a single glass.

Powdered milk - I've never been much of a milk drinker, so I've given up on keeping milk in stock - it inevitably spoils before I can use it all. Now I keep powdered milk around for when I need milk as I cook.

Frozen vegetables: if it's not in season/on sale, then I buy it frozen. The nutrients are generally well-preserved, and I actually find I eat more veggies when I keep bags of frozen veggies on hand, since it's easy to toss a handful or two into something.

Fruit: I eat fruit that's on sale/in season.

Breads: If you're careful, the discount rack can be great - you can get something that has a sell-by date of that same day at a great discount. Just make sure it's not something that gets stale (or worse) too fast.

Hmm...I think that's all. And yes, you can use my name if you want to quote me.

-jg

P.S. Yes, I realize the irony of giving permission for my name to be used in print while pretty much refusing to use it online, even in a forum where everyone pretty much knows who I am. I have my reasons...they may not be entirely logical, but I do have them!