30 Day Challenge ~ 27 Days In
We're nearing the end of the first 30 days of our Challenge that we set for ourselves and I have to say, I really miss, most of all, pretzels.
Small, Snyders pretzels.
That was my favorite snack food at work and for almost 30 days I have not had any of those. I really miss those. Instead my snacks have been the usual grape tomatoes and sliced cucumbers, apples and cheddar cheese and saltines and a bit of goat cheese that I managed to make last for almost the entire month. Today I treated myself and made a big ziploc bag of air popped popcorn topped with melted coconut oil and a tad bit of butter and then I sprinkled Nutritional Yeast, some salt and paprika on top. The end result is very similar to movie theater popcorn but loads healthier. Yeah, I was craving junk food today.
My son has been thrilled lately as he's gotten as many apples as he has wanted (Actually he's only allowed two per day)
Still though, we've managed to stay on budget. Here's the breakdown.
As of today, September 27th 2012 we have spent $53.83 at the local grocery stores. Pretty much all of our purchases that were included in this were of the non edible variety except for the raisins for my son and a bag of ridiculously expensive Kale at Walmart when we forgot to pick some up at the Farmers Market.
Since we were making our own dishwashing and laundry detergent we didn't spend on that at all which helped a lot.
At local businesses such as Brooms Bloom Dairy, Kilby Cream Dairy, Deer Creek Beef, Brads Produce, Lohrs Orchard and KCC All Natural Farms we spent a total of $432.52.
This means we spent a total all month of $486.35 all month long on groceries for a family of three. Now, please keep in mind, like I've mentioned in previous posts, this time of year we are stocking up for the winter. Much like a traditional farm does, we go out and put away extras right now like Maple Syrup, Honey and green beans from Brads and extra apples and peaches from Lohrs. After all, in about two months time none of those items will be available for sale at those locations as they will all be closed for the winter.
We will most likely try to follow the spirit of this challenge come October but I know there are a few things that we'd really like to purchase at the grocery store first. Like pretzels, Perrier and Ritter Sport Chocolate.
Plus, during our challenge our supplies of flour, sugar, coffee beans and bisquik dwindled down to almost nothing. I become very uncomfortable when I see my tupperware containers of basic supplies emptying out. So, we'll most likely be shopping at BJ's where we have a new membership to replenish some of our supplies of those very basic items.
The biggest thing I've learned from the past 27 days? That it is all too easy to go into a grocery store and just start putting things into our grocery cart "because we need it" or "because it looks cool" or "because this looks really yummy!". The past 27 days I think has taught both my husband and I that we need to practice saying "No" to ourselves more often. I cannot tell you how many times we have walked into the grocery store with our list of 5 items and then came out an hour later, exhilarated from our shopping with $150 less in our checkbook.
I challenge you, dear reader, to just take a step back and think about this yourself. How often do you go to the grocery store, list in hand, only to walk out like my husband and I, with $150 less in our pockets and with a lot more groceries than what you planned on?
Small, Snyders pretzels.
That was my favorite snack food at work and for almost 30 days I have not had any of those. I really miss those. Instead my snacks have been the usual grape tomatoes and sliced cucumbers, apples and cheddar cheese and saltines and a bit of goat cheese that I managed to make last for almost the entire month. Today I treated myself and made a big ziploc bag of air popped popcorn topped with melted coconut oil and a tad bit of butter and then I sprinkled Nutritional Yeast, some salt and paprika on top. The end result is very similar to movie theater popcorn but loads healthier. Yeah, I was craving junk food today.
My son has been thrilled lately as he's gotten as many apples as he has wanted (Actually he's only allowed two per day)
Still though, we've managed to stay on budget. Here's the breakdown.
As of today, September 27th 2012 we have spent $53.83 at the local grocery stores. Pretty much all of our purchases that were included in this were of the non edible variety except for the raisins for my son and a bag of ridiculously expensive Kale at Walmart when we forgot to pick some up at the Farmers Market.
Since we were making our own dishwashing and laundry detergent we didn't spend on that at all which helped a lot.
At local businesses such as Brooms Bloom Dairy, Kilby Cream Dairy, Deer Creek Beef, Brads Produce, Lohrs Orchard and KCC All Natural Farms we spent a total of $432.52.
This means we spent a total all month of $486.35 all month long on groceries for a family of three. Now, please keep in mind, like I've mentioned in previous posts, this time of year we are stocking up for the winter. Much like a traditional farm does, we go out and put away extras right now like Maple Syrup, Honey and green beans from Brads and extra apples and peaches from Lohrs. After all, in about two months time none of those items will be available for sale at those locations as they will all be closed for the winter.
We will most likely try to follow the spirit of this challenge come October but I know there are a few things that we'd really like to purchase at the grocery store first. Like pretzels, Perrier and Ritter Sport Chocolate.
Plus, during our challenge our supplies of flour, sugar, coffee beans and bisquik dwindled down to almost nothing. I become very uncomfortable when I see my tupperware containers of basic supplies emptying out. So, we'll most likely be shopping at BJ's where we have a new membership to replenish some of our supplies of those very basic items.
The biggest thing I've learned from the past 27 days? That it is all too easy to go into a grocery store and just start putting things into our grocery cart "because we need it" or "because it looks cool" or "because this looks really yummy!". The past 27 days I think has taught both my husband and I that we need to practice saying "No" to ourselves more often. I cannot tell you how many times we have walked into the grocery store with our list of 5 items and then came out an hour later, exhilarated from our shopping with $150 less in our checkbook.
I challenge you, dear reader, to just take a step back and think about this yourself. How often do you go to the grocery store, list in hand, only to walk out like my husband and I, with $150 less in our pockets and with a lot more groceries than what you planned on?
Comments
Post a Comment