A Week of Groceries

Bob and I are doing this new thing as of yesterday where we only buy a weeks worth of groceries at at time instead of doing 2 major shops a month and a bunch of random little shops every week. Bob and I are both bad for letting food go to waste. I waste meat. I thaw a couple pieces of chicken and they sit in the fridge, and they sit in the fridge, and they sit in the fridge. Finally it's no good and I chuck it. I'm pretty bad for wasting cereal too. I always buy it and never eat it. If Bob doesn't eat it, it sits there forever and then we chuck it and buy more cereal.

Bob is really bad for wasting fresh produce. He likes taking bananas for lunch, but I always find black bananas on the counter. He goes on health kicks and requests snacking veggies, but never takes them for lunch and they go bad. I serve them to the daycare kids too but they literally eat half a baby carrot and are done. I don't even like baby carrots. They're okay I guess, but just not my thing.

I said that's enough of that. One week of groceries is all we will buy. We eat what we eat and then next week we'll know what to buy. I sat down and planned a rough menu for what we will realistically eat for our meals and what I'll serve the daycare kids. It's all mapped out, so I just need to stick to it. We went to the store last night and bought just what was on the list.

Buying only a handful of fruit of vegetables seems really odd to me. I'm so used to buying 2 dozen apples and 2 bushels of bananas and a big bag of oranges. But that's how the food goes to waste. We buy so much, anticipating that it will last us 2 weeks and then we're bored of it and it goes to waste because we stop eating it.

Our grocery bill came to $90 last night. We bought all fresh food, fruit, veg, dairy, chicken, and also crackers, granola, rice, and bread. We didn't get any cat stuff, baby stuff, toiletries, or cleaning supplies so some weeks are going to be more expensive than this one. But, for a family of 3, (that's also a family of 6 for 16 days a month if I include the daycare kids) to spend $360 - $450 a month on groceries isn't absurd. In Canada, the average household of 2.5 people will spend $500 - $600 a month on groceries according to Discovery Finance.

I could reduce my grocery bill by switching yogurt brands and that sort of thing, but price isn't everything. Nutritional value is most important to me. I don't want to buy a yogurt where the second ingredient is sugar. If it costs $2 extra, so be it. I love yogurt, I eat it every day and I feed it to my daughter, so I may as well eat a brand that has less sugar. (Or make my own, but I'm not up for that challenge yet!)

At the end of the month, we'll see how much we spent, we'll see how much food we wasted, and we'll see if we're any further ahead. I think we will be.

Retail Therapy

I've said it once, I'll say it again, I have a slight shopping addiction. When I find items I want to buy (or didn't know I wanted to buy) and then I buy them, I feel a small high. I'm excited and I can't wait to get it home. I could spend all day shopping if I had the money.

My favourite store these days is Value Village. Daycare is my life now and sifting through the junk to find that one great toy that costs 70% - 90% less than it would brand new is the best! And how can I not buy new toys for the kids? The 3 year told me she loved me today and gave me a hug and the 4 year old told me he was going to miss me over the weekend. Such sweet kids!

I don't just buy stuff for the sake of buying stuff. Children's books at Value Village are $0.99 and if you buy 4 you get the 5th free. I look through each and every one trying to find the best books. It's crazy how many I find that I used to own or remember checking out at the library. In the cart they go!

Puzzles, preschool games, dress-up items and complete toy sets are usually the things I'm on the look out for as I slowly check out every single box, bag, and toy on the shelves. Sometimes I even cruise twice to make sure I didn't miss anything. I often do find stuff I missed the first time around.

It's totally worth it though. In two hours I'll fill my cart to the brim and only spend $40. On top of all the money I'm saving from not buying new, I'm apparently helping out the environment and Canadian Diabetes by buying used. (Hooray for reducing waste by reusing unloved toys!)

Shopping is a great excuse to leave the house too. It's hard being inside all day. Walking around, pushing the weight of the cart feels nice. No babies... no talking... no interruptions. Shopping is sort of me time. It's my time to be alone and do something fun. Anytime we need something from the grocery store, I jump at the chance to go! I used to hate Superstore and now I love it. It's where I get breathing space and get to spend money.

Plus, sometimes you overhear funny stuff in the checkout line. Like tonight for example. Some 14 year old was with his friend buying swim trunks and recounting the tale of how a girl he met online on Facebook drove 3 hours to get to his house and when she did his parents were already at work, so he skipped school and did her in his room. Her head kept hitting the headboard and she was saying, "uh, uh, uh,"and it was cool.

It was very hard to keep my composure and not burst out laughing. The cashier and I had a laugh at his expense when they went away because I told her everything I heard.

These are all the reasons I love shopping and how retail therapy makes my life complete.