April Week 4 Healthy Food Budget: $103.47 spent, for a total of $381.98 for the month. (See below for 6 month update)
Yay! I was able to stick to a lower budget this month! Awesome!
I have to admit I sort of cheated…but not really. I needed fruit (for one last day of April). But why waste fuel for a second trip to the store a day or two later when I could pick up everything in one shot (including some non-grocery items). I applied just what I needed to April’s budget, and will carry the rest over to May.
My plan for purchasing local flour this week was put on hold for now. I had plenty of Bob’s Red Mill flour, so better to be frugal and eat from my pantry instead.
DH was craving fried seafood (he works so hard, I can’t say no), so we splurged with a larger-than-normal-take-out dinner. I had a coupon for $10 off a purchase of $45 or more, so I added in a small Italian calzone to freeze for a dinner next month.
My pantry is getting really low! I was shocked to find I only had a few tablespoons of brown rice left, and I used the last of the quinoa. I’m going to need grains in May for sure. I also ordered (2) coconut oil & (2) coconut cream (BOGO) from Tropical Traditions and tuna will be delivered from Amazon, so that will also be a big hit to my May spending.
March Food Spending
Dining Out: $61.02 / Total $140.43
Groceries: $42.45 / Total $241.55
Most of my spending this week was for take-out! Wow! Ha! So much for my “unspoken” $100/month dining out budget!
I tried to eat from my freezer and pantry, and hit the grocery store mostly for produce; we still ate very well for the most part!
(Mon) Whole Foods Market & Market Basket $8.92 for Theo 70% chocolate bars, bok choy, and broccoli
(Wed) Market Basket $14.56 for pineapple, asparagus, organic Fuji apples, red grapefruit, minneola oranges, and bananas.
(Wed) Open Meadow Farm $8.32 for yummy boneless pork chops (meat from farm is pre-paid in full, so technically no real money is actually spent, but I apply the cost to my budget as we consume it.)
(Sat) Market Basket $5.79 for mango, grapefruit, minneola oranges, organic Fuji apples, bananas
(Tues) Market Basket $4.86 for grapefruit, avocado, and minneola oranges.
Where I Spent My Grocery Dollars for April: $241.55
MARKET BASKET 95.39
Whole Foods 43.51
Trader Joe’s 29.38
Open Meadow Farm 28.77
Amazon.com 28.40
Seven Acres Farm 7.50
Jones Farm 5.60
Aubut’s Liquors 3.00
6 Month Budget Update: $2299.06
Dining Out: $720.96 (31%)
Groceries: $1550.04 (67%)
Supplements/Vitamins: $28.06 (1%)
Total: $2299.06
I’m 6 months into the budget (nov-apr) and so far so good. I’m pretty sure I won’t be able to continue the lower budget totals in the warmer months, but I am hoping to stick to my original $400/month. If not, I’ve got an excess of at least $100 to play with.
It’s comforting to know that my grocery spending is 67% of my food spending and more than double that of my dining out spending. I’d like to continue that trend!
Where I Spent My Grocery Dollars 6 Month Update
Grand Total $1,550.04
MARKET BASKET 393.80 (25%)
Whole Foods 387.36 (24%)
Trader Joe’s 268.73 (17%)
Open Meadow Farm 134.25 (8%)
Amazon.com 65.31 (4%)
Ocean State Job Lot 59.88
Seven Acres Farm 59.75
Mann Orchards 37.04
Wilson Farm 33.24
Winchester Winter Farmers Market 30.65
Brookline Farmers Market 21.70
Tropical Traditions 20.97
Four Star Farms 15.00
iHerb.com 13.27
Hannaford 11.04
Jones Farm 5.60
Vitacost 4.94
Penzeys Spices 4.25
Aubut’s Liquors 3.00
WALMART 0.99
Credits (20.73)
Interesting that Whole Foods and Market Basket are just about even. Soon, I’ll be heading to local farms more, so the % of Whole Foods spending will surely go down in the next half.
All in all, it’s been a very good 6 months. We’re eating well, with regular decadent splurges thrown in. Life is good!
About My Healthy Budget
My healthy budget goal is to eat seasonal (local if possible,) home-cooked meals while sticking to a $400 $385 monthly budget for all food including groceries, dining out, entertaining, vitamins/supplements, and gardening.
There’s two of us eating (mostly) 3 meals per day. DH occasionally eats take-out lunch at work, & that $ comes out of his personal cash stash.