I need to cut my grocery bill, only because it's just 3 of us. I'm trying to do $60 a week. That's not including diapers, wipes, cleaning. It's just groceries. I just did it and I was about $3.00 over. That's packing my lunch every day and the kids lunches as well. The problem I have is the kids drink alot of milk t 4.15 a gallon, in one week I went through 6 gallons.

I'm trying to expand meals. Like make a chicken breast and then make chix salad for lunches. What do you budget/

Thanks

Is powdered milk nutritious enough? Can you buy whole milk and then put 1/2 glass whole milk and 1/2 glass water? I did that years ago for 2 reasons - budget, plus I realized milk hurt my tummy.

I found carrots, whole, then cut up yourself, make great snacks w/ranch dressing. Just an idea. It is hard, without sticking w/spaghetti and mac & cheese! I know others here can do better than I can.

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I just read the ebook about spending $200 a month and I am going to try that. Most likely it will about $250 because of diapers and wipes for us too.
You should read it if you haven't yet. She uses mostly vinegar and baking soda for cleaning. Both are very cheap.
I was just trying to look for the link for vinegar cleaning. I bought a gal of vinegar for $1.60 and a box of soda is like 50 cents.
Originally I was thinking $100 a week/$400 a month, but I think I can do better than that. I am really going to try to go shopping once a week and I think that will help me spend less too. I think I can do the $200 a month. It will take a lot of planning, but I CAN DO IT!
Sorry, I can get milk at Sam's for $2 a gal.

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You should be able to do that with no problem. That is pretty much what I spend on 7 of us. Shop around for cheaper milk. I just discovered that kwik Trip has 1/2 gallon milk that comes in a bag for $1.49 a half gallon (Thanks Kelli!!)

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Check out www.hillbillyhousewife. She has a $45 a week emergency menu plan as well as a $70 regular menu plan for a family of 4-6. She does use powdered milk. I use powdered milk pretty much exclusively. She has a lot of tips on how to make the transition from regular milk to powdered. Her site is full of stuff. Got on there and look around. Also, it may be that some of the tiems you are buying can be made from scratch cheaper. Examples of this from my own grocery list are; choc syrup, pancake syrup, granola, granola bars, pudding, sausage(yes it can be done), pancake mix, biscuit mix, cookie mix, hamburger helper mix, white sauce mix(use instead of cream soup), etc. If any of these sound interesting to you let me know and I will give you the recipe.

I would like to know how you make white sauce mixes into cream soup! Would that work in place of the cream of chicken or cream of whatever in casseroles? Thanks!

I would try and use a little less milk. We spend a lot on milk here, too! Also, gas stations tend to have milk cheaper around here. By usually 50 cents to a dollar. Also, try bread thrift stores. we have a jj nissen nearby. I can buy and freeze two weeks worth of bread for what I usually spend on 3 loafs at the grocery store. I would try to hit sales on meat so you can stock up. I do the carrots and cukes with dip as a snack, and buy fruit on sale. I do very little packaged snacks. Usually one package of cookies a week, if that. $60 is definitely doable though.

I think that it is doable! I usually will do around $75 a week- this also includes a lot of milk. I switched to 1% since it is cheaper and the youngest does not need the whole milk anymore. I could go under the $75 if it is a tight week. I also think a stockpile really helps us out a lot however!

WHITE SAUCE MIX

In a bowl mix together:
1 1/2 cups dry milk
3/4 cup flour
1 ts salt

Cut in 1 stick of margarine. Store in refrigerator.

Combine 1/2 cup mix and 1 cup water in saucepan and stir with a wire wisk until smooth and thickened. This equals 1 10oz can cream soup.

Variations

Cheese- add 1/2 cup cheese and 1/4 tsp dry mustard
Tomato-use tomato juice in place of water. Season with garlic, salt, onion, basil, and oregano.
Celery-saute 1/2 c chopped celery and 1 TBS chopped onion
Chicken- Use chicken broth for water. Season with poultry seasoning or sage.

Hope this helps.

I've been averaging $100 a week in groceries including a LOT of juice and frozen fruit and cleaning/diapers. But the past few paychecks I've been able to get it down; this week I just spent $100 including diapers and cleaning stuff - all of that will cover the next two weeks. Here are some things I do:
-buy lunchmeat in airtight pkging at Aldi's. freeze them and take out one pkg at a time.
-sliced cheese is a lot cheaper per pound at SAM'S CLUB in a giant sleeve. It ends up being like $2.50 a pound, vs $5.99 a pound at the deli in the grocery store.
-pick up discounted meat/veggies at your discount grocery store (SAMS CLUB has discounted meat too) and freeze or use immediately
-i found CVS brand wipes to be better quality than even Pampers (which rules the market otherwise, imo). they're a lot thicker and softer; they are cheaper and you get more wipes.
-i do all my menu planning with the local sales ads
-only use about 1/4-1/3 of the suggested amt of laundry detergent per load
-get fabric softener sheets at the $1 store and cut in fourths
-use liquid fabric softener from $1 store and only use 1/2 amt (for clothes that I hang dry)
-i use simple green to clean almost everything (laundry, floors, walls, carpeting); i mix a small amount of the simple green with some foam detergent and warm water and shake in spray bottle. works better as a stain/odor remover for me than any other cleaner made for it i've tried.
-WIC helps me a LOT; i get a good $60 worth of free food a month
-beverages - i make iced tea, koolaid (with less than half the sugar it calls for), water, juice (from concentrate with another 50% water added on top of what it calls for - juice is too sweet for me otherwise, and as a bonus, it stretches the juice further)
-i use the crockpot a lot
-when i'm making my grocery list, i write the price in a small number next to each ingredient so i know how large my bill will be before i even step in the store. this saves me SO much stress and frustration. it eliminates the dread of watching the screen and the thud of the final amount when it turns out more than you hoped it'd be. when i figure the cost beforehand, i can adjust my meals if one meal will cost too much or i can decide what to cross off my list at home before i get in the grocery store and everything looks good. LOL if you aren't sure of the price, guestimate HIGH and you'll find out next time you go in, and then you'll know for the next time. try to beat the prices you have already set for each thing.
-use only 2/3 or 3/4 lb of meat per recipe instead of a full pound. you can stretch your recipe to be filling with other things. ex: when i make spaghetti, I only use like 2/3 of a pound of burger in my sauce, so to give it more substance, I add onions and a can of small diced tomatoes. DH actually likes it better that way - says it's not just a mouthful of meat and sauce. sometimes a small (4 oz) can of mushrooms when i wanna get "fancy". like when company comes over. hehe
-i buy cereal, canned goods, "snacks" (pretzels, crackers) at Big Lots. Some things are on the verge of expiration dates but i've never gotten anything that was stale or made anyone sick. everything tastes just fine and i haven't died yet. *knock on wood* j/k i'm sorry, but i refuse to spend $3 on a box of fruit snacks when i can get the same box (unexpired) at Big Lots for 75 cents or $1. Cereal is another thing - I rarely purchase cereal (outside of WIC) at the grocery store, but i'll buy it at Big Lots for half the price.
-we don't keep snacks around. the only "snacks" we have on hand are like triscuits and cheese or kernel popcorn (that you make on the stove). i buy ice cream when it's on sale and i have a really good coupon; i'm not against buying off-brand ice cream either. i got store brand ice cream a few months ago that was on sale for 99cents a half gallon. sure it wasn't gourmet, but DH didn't know it was that cheap until he saw the receipt - he thought I paid $4.99 or something insane for it. yea RIGHT!
*if i think of more, i'll post again...

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