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Apr
22
Hi. Can we talk about groceries for a minute? I know, BOring, but the alternative at the moment is discussing the yoga class I went to last night and whether or not you think anyone noticed my heels, which are in dire need of getting up close and personal with a pumice stone. I mean, do you think I was screwing up anyone’s savasana or anything because they were haunted by the vision of my scratchy dry FEET? It has been bothering me, this possibility.
So, groceries? Okay then! Here is a sampling of some of the things I buy, which I have copied and pasted from Amazon’s grocery service receipt thingie rather than laboriously re-typing by hand:
Fuji Apple, 1 Large Apple: $0.79
Cucumber, 1 Medium Cucumber: $0.69
Baby Bok Choy, 12 oz Package: $2.19
Broccoli, Organic, 1 Bunch: $1.99
Oscar Mayer Deli Fresh Meats Turkey Breast, Oven Roasted , 9 oz: $4.12
Jif Peanut Butter, Creamy, 28 oz: $4.77
Diet Coke Soda, 6pk, .5 ltr Bottles: $3.08
Isomil Advance Soy Formula with Iron, Powder, 12.9 oz: $17.99
Wildwood, High Protein Tofu, Super Firm, 10 oz: $1.94
Alessi Chunky Marinara Sauce, 24 oz: $5.50
Oscar Mayer Oven Roasted Chicken Breast Cuts, 6 oz: $2.88
Chiquita Banana, 1 Ripe Banana: $0.29
Horizon Organics Mozzarella Cheese Sticks: $4.29
Ziploc Storage, Gallon, 40 Count: $4.29
Huggies Baby Wipe Refill Natural scent, 160ct: $6.82
Organic Valley Low fat 1% Ultra Pasteurized Milk, Half Gallon: $3.99
Rosarita Refried Beans, Traditional, No Fat, 16 oz: $1.82
Honey Bunches Of Oats With Almonds, 14.5 oz: $3.96
Yoplait Light Non-Fat Yogurt, White Chocolate Strawberry, 6 oz: $0.69
Pampers Cruisers, 40 ct: $18.48
Pampers Swaddlers, 44 ct: $12.67
Can you tell me, does that seem like an extravagant list? Because it’s a fairly typical assortment and I swear I cannot believe how much our monthly grocery bills are getting to be. I don’t think Amazon is more expensive than our local store or anything, although maybe I should actually check and see. I’m just looking at our checkbook today thinking that from one perceptive, jesus, that’s a LOT of freelancing that’s going towards . . . what, FOOD? Food that we have to constantly replace? I AM DOING SOMETHING WRONG.
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141 Responses to “Expenditures”
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Oh, you think it’s bad now? Wait until they start really eating.
Whoa, first, maybe.
It seems okay to me, but I would imagine that formula, diapers, etc adds up fast.
God I know! I cook a lot, and from new recipes at least 4 times per week but still, we send an unholy amount on food. It is sad. Add the diapers and wipes, woe is me.
Right now I’m trying to figure out how much we spend on groceries. I’m thinking it’s around the $500/mo mark and that’s with a 9 and 6 year old. Food is going to go up simply because of the price of gas. The only extravagance I see is the ‘organic’ stuff (I mean, how can you be sure it’s really organic????) otherwise your list looks normal.
Wow - aren’t you guys healthy! Where’s the giant bag of Fritos? *ahem* Actually, I live in the Midwest, so I don’t know about your grocery store prices, but some of the stuff, particularly when there are sales, is cheaper at our grocery stores.
Also, we get our produce from a CSA (community supported agriculture). You give $ to the farm & get a box of fresh fruit & veggies every week. It can be pricey, but some health insurance companies will pay for part of it (ours gives $200), so it can be cheaper in the long run…
Grocery prices are going up at a scary rate. In our house it’s just me and the husband and our average weekly bill has gone from around $80 to a little over $100 in the past year or so. And it’s not like I’m buying foufy gourmet food - we’re talking meat, veggies, starch, beverages and some snack stuff. And coupons don’t alleviate it very much. And if you watch the news, it seems like it’s only going to get worse.
Oy vey you are charged a lot at Amazon. I do most of my shopping at Costco and their prices are MUCH lower. You buy ‘a’ banana and ‘a’ apple at a time?
Seems okay to me. But I think it’s like when we go to Trader Joes and buy $100 worth of stuff. Then we get home and have nothing to eat. WTF?
I’ve been thinking about using Amazon or Peapod. But if your list is considered expensive, then maybe I’ll take a pass.
Just passing through, but you’ve got $56 stuff going towards baby i/o. (diapers, wipes, formula) Once everyone’s eating big people food and using the potty it should get a lot better. Try subtracting the $56 out and see if your grocery bill is closer to normal.
Hey chickie! I hear you about the grocery thing. I actually started going to different grocery stores around here to see if I could figure out the cheapest one. Bread sucks. Almost 5 bucks down here. I just bought the store brand for 2 bucks, but I bet you the 3 dollar difference that Charlie turns his tiny discriminating nose up at it. If I haven’t mentioned, Dylan is perfect, Riley looks so happy, and you guys did a fantastic job with that transition. Did you see Polly? Dylan’s future girlfriend, I’m telling you!
I don’t know if you’ve been paying attention to the news, but there’s a FOOD CRISIS going on right now. Food prices are rising because fo the oil prices rising. There are food riots going on in Haiti. Be glad that we have food that we can afford here. Sure, the food prices are rising, we are in a recession after all… that’s usually what happens…
Your prices seem like regular grocery store prices, which are going up at an alarming rate. TJ’s and Fresh and Easy (don’t know if you have these stores up there) are slightly cheaper, as is the farmers market. So, lately I’ve been making like two or three stops a week to buy groceries. Am I actually saving money after gas and time spent??
You could save money by choosing generic dipes + wipes + cut back or lose the organic products. I’ve found that White Cloud dipes by Wal Mart work super well (even over night) + to top it off they feature John Lennon Real Love designs (totally matches my nursery) which blow the tacky Sesame St + Disney crap outta the water! Parent’s Choice cloth wipes are slammin’ too, also a Wally World brand.
Check sale prices online before you hit the stores + check Google for coupons for the items you need. IE: I think Amazon is steep, yo!
You forgot to include what I personally consider the biggest rip off ever! FORMULA. My baby is only on half formula (half breastmilk) and I think we go through a $30 can every 2 weeks. Soooo expensive!
I looked at our online spending report a couple months ago and nearly fell over when I saw what we were spending on groceries every month for two people! As annoying as it is, I’m now shopping sales and Costco which has helped the budget significantly. Good luck.
Oh now I see your high priced formula….Still it just peeves me! I buy Costco diapers and wipes but honestly I only save a few bucks each time, so I don’t know if it justifys the cost of the membership.
Well, I don’t want to seem like a know-it-all here, but you are getting ripped off. All of the non-grocery items are significantly cheaper at WalMart or Target (seriously, the ziplocks should be $2.00), and the produce seems waaaay overpriced to me. I live in San Diego, which is an expensive market, but I am crazy insane about saving money (my hub and I are grad students and we have a 5 mo old). The sandwich meat and milk seem high, too. Groceries ARE getting more expensive, and with two kiddos it might be worth the premium you pay to get them delivered (I dream of being able to afford grocery delivery!). You definitely pay a lot more for organic, too.
It’s good that you’re buying organic, and hell yes that is expensive. But it’s better to buy organic for the health of yourself and your family. I tend to shop at many different stores, too. I don’t own a car, I use ZipCar, so I’m not spending extra money on gas, etc. I usually go to Costco, Trader Joes and Farmer’s Market every couple of weeks, and I only buy organic. It’s just me and my partners and our combined income is pretty high for two people, so I suppose we can afford it… but yeah, kid costs skyrocket all of your expenditures… right?
Your list is certainly not extravagant - I’m lucky to leave the grocery store every week for under $150 - and all 4 people in my house eat regular food and are potty trained! I think we suffer because we choose to buy organic, which is more expensive.
I think you’re doing just fine and not being overcharged. Then again you could be suffering from lack of grocery shopping prowess because you were spanked as a child, and since I was as well, we’re both delusional when it comes to shopping for food. Ha. Ha ha. : )
Food costs are getting outrageous. There are only 2 of us in our household and we spend an ungodly amount at the grocery store. The monthly bill has more than doubled in the last three years.
I was thinking the same thing when I spent $81.15 at WinCo last night, on barely a week’s worth of groceries for hubby and myself. WTF? Our bill used to be literally half that amount, for more food. Prices are getting ridiculous, no matter where you shop. Fear not, you’d spend the same on your stuff at a supermarket, plus you’d have to use gas, wrangle the munchkins into a cart, and carve a bigger chunk of time out of your day. I’d say you’re coming out ahead with Amazon.
Considering the gas prices these days, running around town trying to save a few bucks here and there may end up costing more in the long run. Nothing here really looks that extravagant to me, especially since it’s being delivered. When you add up the time saved with the online orderin, and the gas saved, I’m wondering if it all comes out even (or even ahead). Just a thought.
I live in NY and use Peapod. Your pricing looks average (or cheaper) to me as far as non-baby items. (My “babies” are 16 and 19.)
ok, weird…that could be MY shopping list…we eat/purchase freakishly similar things. i have to say, i think you are definitely overpaying with Amazon.
i shop at several local chain and independant grocery stores here in Southern California (**DISCLAIMER: i also am a stay-at-home mom with only one toddler, so i have time to go to three or four different stores in the course of a week to complete my full list**) and i know i pay about .33 cents a can for my refried beans- there’s always a 3 for a dollar or some deal going on, $2.00 or less for a six pack of diet coke (it’s almost always on sale somewhere), bananas are typically about .19 cents each, etc…so i think that you would pay less for the actual groceries if you shopped the brick-and-mortar place, but the convenience is what you’re paying for, so really, it probably evens out in the long run. just an aside, we finally made a grocery “budget” for our little family of 3 - it’s $500.00 a month and it is ALWAYS a stretch to stick to it.
Someone already mentioned the C word (COSTCO), which is my family’s saving grace.. and our curse, if we’re not careful. We save TONS on diapers, wipes, and non-perishables. (They also have a great store brand formula that’s a fabulous deal.) That way, when you visit the store (or Amazon), you really only have to focus on food.
You can save a lot of money buying many of those items at Target. All of the non-food items are significantly cheaper there, and some of the food is, too. You will not believe how much cheaper, for example, cereal is.
I have been trying to figure out what I’m doing wrong. There are two people in my house. TWO. I go to the Walmart grocery store every Friday, and rarely spend less than $200- a week! I swear every Friday, I am only going to get a few things, and those few things end up towering in the cart. I do not buy exotic items, we eat really easy stouffer one skillet meals, that cost around $5 (easy to throw on after work). I just don’t get it.
I so feel your pain! We live just up north of you and gas alone! - we’ve been almost at $4 a gallon for weeks now. But groceries…I soometimes wonder is it a west coast thing? It’s killing us. I want to do organic milk (and meats) (because I would rather my daughter not have boobs at eight years old, please)and it’s 5.69 a gallon unless I hunt for sales and freeze it! Food is our second biggest outlay and it’s not like we are eating filet mignon. It’s frightening. (And I shop at Costco every two weeks.)
We buy none of the same items (really NONE, how odd is that?) but your broccoli is cheaper than my cauliflower and your cereal is cheaper than mine. Cereal here is over $4 a box. I hate that. Eating healthy (weight watchers) is freaking expensive. Oh and I order from a company called Fresh Direct that delivers in NYC.
Don’t have the Amazon Grocery service available here in Norman, OK, but I did do the Amazon Subscribe and Save option buying a few things in bulk like laundry detergent, fabric softener, canned tomatoes & artichokes. I was very pleased with those savings! I don’t pay shipping and have that stuff auto-shipped at 1-2-3-6 mos intervals and it gets me 15% discount. I LOVE saving money and having some of my groceries waiting for me when I get home from work.
I hope someday soon I can have other grocery goodies delivered. You should check out the Subscribe and Save option for the wipes and dipes, etc…
I have one word for you: COSTCO.
Or Sam’s Club, if that’s closer.
I buy almost everything at Costco, and I swear to God, their prices rock. Yes, I do drop $250 each time I go, but I only go maybe every three weeks and buy almost all my groceries there. I go to the regular grocery store maybe once a month now, for the few things I can’t find at Costco. They also have deals on tons of other handy things, like coffeemakers, clothes, autmotive junk, tools. Watch out, your husband may get all excited and decide he needs a $380 pressure washer (mine did).
Also if you join Costco, you can get the Executive Membership for $100. The regular membership is $50, but with the Executive one you get a percentage of your purchases back as store credit. Last year our membership ended up costing only $30 after the refund, this year I think we’ll MAKE money.
It’s not just you - I’ve noticed my grocery bills are getting ridiculously high. With all of the news of shortages of staples, I’m thinking of buying some gigantic, Costo bags of flour, rice, etc. just in case…
Forgot to mention, Costco has tons of ORganic stuff, including Annie’s mac and cheese, milk, fruit. And great house-brand diapers.
I don’t know if you have one near you, but I’ve saved a ton by shopping at WinCo instead of Albertsons. Our bill went from $150 to $100 per week.
There is certainly something to be said for buying off-brand items. And I don’t know about your local WalMart’s prices, but you can buy a larger package of diapers for less than you’re paying for the 40-count. And the Costco/Sam’s Club prices for formula are really great. We saved a ton of money buying my son’s formula from Sam’s Club.
I consider myself to be something of a grocery ninja, but even my bills have been going up. I totally agree w/ everyone who has said to buy non grocery items at Target or a drugstore . . . tons of savings there. Also, are farmers markets an option for you? I go to one every Thursday on my lunch hour from work and spend about $10 on veggies, which ends up cutting my grocery bill for the week in half (I do buy an abnormal number of vegetables though, i suppose).
Uhhhh yeah. I shop at Trader Joe’s, exalted for low prices (and dangerously ripe cheese), but notice even there, my grocery dollars are now more like grocery nickels. Makes me want to go off the grid and grow my own asparagus.
The list is not extravagant, no, just the price of food and necessities nowadays. you might try buying store brand peanut butter, storage bags, cola and refried beans to save a little money. Store brands taste/work just as good as the fancy-pants stuff.
You can save a lot on diapers by signing up for Amazon’s Subscribe and Save auto-ship program - that’s how I can afford to use the Seventh Generation disposables! Amazon also sells your formula by the case; my very rough estimate had you saving over $30 if you buy six double-size cans at once rather than one regular size can. It adds up. If you’re already ordering through Amazon it doesn’t make any sense financially to get 40 diapers at a time when you could order three times that many and save money. SnS here: http://www.amazon.com/b/ref=amb_link_6331352_1?ie=UTF8&node=251482011&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=auto-sparkle&pf_rd_r=1Q3RVWFH5BGDTWCP51Y0&pf_rd_t=301&pf_rd_p=363100301&pf_rd_i=subscribe
Trader Joe’s regular milk doesn’t have rBST in it and it’s half the price of organic.
We belong to Costco, too, and I thought we’d impulse shop but we don’t. It’s hard to impulse shop when you have to buy, say, eight boxes of mac and cheese instead of one. You could really save on the Ziplocs, for instance, and yeah, their diapers are great.
My toddler used Costco formula forever, seriously $20 for 2 large cans. Rad.
I shop at Winco and buy many similar things to you, but it is dirt cheap compared to Fred Meyers or Safeway and I can find many organic items too.
I have been trying to save by not having meat every night and making things when I can (homemade vs. canned soup)
Funny, I NEVER paid attention to grocery prices until now, but have just started to, baby #2 is coming and we’re about to have that huge formula bill again. Also, Target is pretty cheap for food too, even if it’s not a Supertarget. My husband eats a box of cereal every 2 days I swear and Target generic is much better than most crap generic cereal.
Someone already beat me to it, but shopping at those giant warehouse places (Costco’s, Sam’s Club, BJ’s, etc) really makes a big difference in the bottom line. We live on the East Coast, Mass to be exact, where prices were already higher than average and now are completely outrageous. Shopping at a warehouse and buying in bulk is what saves us on a monthly basis (we have a six year old and a freshly minted three year old). Yes, you might come home with a GIANT VAT OF PICKLES (or whatever rocks your boat) but you won’t have to buy pickles for a long time. We buy the GIANT VATS for items that the kids, in particular, are likely to blow right through. Including PICKLES, which they like to eat as if it were candy.
God yes. I mean, we’re ONLY TWO PEOPLE and we eat at home most nights with the simplest of meals and yet … oh my hell, how did our bill come to $97 for like, three days’ worth of food? On NOTHING EXCITING OR EXTRAVAGANT. I do not buy carloads of imported smoked oysters and I am not buying goat cheese shipped from the Swiss Alps. I even buy some GENERIC ITEMS. So why, I ask you, does my meager grocery order of chicken and vegetables come to almost $100?
Get thee to a Sam’s Club! I know, Wal-Mart is the devil…but you literally cannot beat their diapers & wipes. The Swaddlers are $39/box of 250, and wipes are $14/case of 720. I know it’s a pain to go…but those prices are worth it!
I don’t think that your list is extravagant at all. However, I do think you can do better. As long as you aren’t wasting tons of gas, shopping at several stores saves me tons of money and I just recently started clipping coupons. I generally have between $7-$10 worth of coupons each week (yes, it’s a pain). Also, we buy diapers, wipes, TP, and some staples at Costco and it saves us lots.
I only started doing all of this in the last 6 months or so because I work in the commodity/agriculture business and the future doesn’t look bright. Gas prices, as we all know, are high which raises the cost of food at each landing point (try to buy local). The US dollar is falling which allows foreign countries to buy cheaper US goods so we are exporting more, creating a higher demand and higher demand equals smaller supply which equals higher prices. What we do import (such as spices and pesticides/fertilizers) are extremely expensive because of the small US dollar (also think the farther something travels the more fuel it uses which equals higher cost). US farmers are not planting their crops because they can’t count on a workforce to pick them and they can’t compete with imports. Biofuels are causing corn prices to skyrocket, which means that feed prices are rising, every animal’s meat that eats that feed is rising, not to mention the breading that may be on that meat.
Sorry to be such a Debbie Downer.
I also have to say that I put high importance on quality of life and when I have my second child in October (currently have a 2 y/o), our grocery bills will go up because I will not be the smart shopper I am right now. When I get my sanity back (at least somewhat) I’ll go back to this crazy game.
I’m across the country on the East Coast and I’m sorry to say but you are spending a fortune on your groceries. Wow! It may be the difference of location, but I couldn’t believe your cost on things. No wonder you freaked out over the bill.
I’ve started using diapers.com for all my baby stuff. They offer free shipping on orders of $49+. It’s next day service which is a lifesaver. It balances out to be about the same cost as walmart or target, but much more convenient.
I agree with the others that you should check into a Costco membership. You will save money. I promise.
There are also a TON of coupon services on the web that can additionally save you loads of money. My last grocery bill was $348, but after the store card and my coupons were entered my total was $293. I saved over $50 just using coupons and shopping the store sales!! I was shocked. It was the most I had ever saved at one time. It definitely made the extra time printing coupons worth while.
Anyway, whatever you do, good luck.
I know, the cost of groceries kills me, even when I’ve made an effort not to buy many processed foods.
Have you tried using Diapers.com? I would suggest stocking up on non-perishables if you can find a sale price (Costco’s prices might be cheaper, I don’t know); I grab as many packs of diapers as I can when I see a sale, since my son is going to be in the same size for a while. Which means I have years of changing diapers ahead of me, o joy. You might also find that you can use store brand diapers part or all of the time (during the day, for example).
The only other tip I can offer is to eat oatmeal in place of cereal, since it’s cheaper, although it sure is lacking in any kind of crunch.
Oh I forgot to add- that price is for the Huggies wipes, exactly what’s on your Amazon list. Love them!
you seriously need to buy at costCo, Sams, or other place iwht bulk and cheaper formula, diapers, etc.
So are cat and dog having to hunt and kill their own food, or are you just abusing them again, AS USUAL?
LOL, and are each of you getting ONE slice of the ONE apple and banana?
For whatever reason this just cracked me up to no end. (But then I read other people’s lists when they leave it in the basket and I find it.) Grocery shopping sucks the big fat one.
i feel your pain, i just spent $150 on groceries and cannot find a thing to eat in my kitchen. for baby things though, check out babycheapskate.com for deals on diapers, wipes and formula. they also let you know when stores have deals on baby and kid’s clothes.
I actually felt kind of panicky and HELL IN A HANDBASKET last night after the latest report on gas prices, as soon as I got home from spending a fortune at the grocery store (on nothing exotic!). And it’s just the two of us and we have some disposable income, so we aren’t bad off. I’m plotting how I can not buy gas, but I’m not sure riding my bike to work 10 miles each way through a bad part of town is going to work. I guess we move closer to town? And stop eating? Sigh.
thinking the same as you. With the economy the only options I would send out are Target or Costco. I can’t offer up words for WalMart or Sam’s Club because I so detest their hiring/promoting practices (don’t mean to sound preachy).
prices of everything are skyrocketing.
Your bill looks about right to me except for the diapers. I get a box of 92 Pampers at wal-mart for $21. Also, their generic wipes are a lot like Huggies wipes but you get something like 600 wipes for $7.
Food is one of many areas we are seeing rampant inflation. I am amazed. I am not a big shopper. That is I buy what I like and I like to provide organic healthy foods for my family. This does not include much processed foods. I have noticed a significant increase in some of the things I buy fairly regularly that are “processed” per say and fruits/veggies OMG out of this world!
I would say our monthly food bill has almost doubled. We do buy some food in bulk (like frozen chicken) but not much. Perishable bulk foods generally goes to waste. Diapers and wipes have always been less pricey at Sam’s Club. However I have heard the Target brand is a better deal.
I also noticed the amts people are paying around me at the grocery store. I go to a nearby Kroger (1 of 2 stores - the other is a Co-op) and every single person in all the isles around me paid no less then $100 for food. This is not an upscale store and the people buying the food do so with pinched faces - they generally do not have much food in their cart when they walk out either…
I have read several articles and listened to numerous NPR broadcasts that said inflation on food is something like 25%-45% depending on the item. Good examply, we buy organic milk and my husband about had a heart attack. A gallon of skim organic milk at Kroger was $6.50. It used to be something like $3.50… ACK
Cheese and rice, man, some of that stuff is crazy expensive! Maybe it’s just different parts of the country, but we paid around $13.00 for the 12 oz. can of Enfamil formula. A gallon of 1% is only $3.49 (it’s not organic, but STILL…your’s is over twice that much). I just bought 12 packs of diet cokes for 3/$11.00 plus that came with a free 24 pack of any coke product.
The previous commenter that recommended White Cloud diapers from Wal-Mart was right on. We used Huggies Supreme with Payton until he was just over a year and then tried some of the White Cloud ones when we had to bum one off a friend. They worked better than the Huggies, in our opinion. I pay about $15.00 for a box of 92 size 4s. I understand putting the baby in the fancy diapers because they’re so soft and we did the same with my daughter for several months. But then we switched her to the W.C. ones too. Sooo much cheaper!
Your three biggest expenditures aren’t on groceries per se, but formula, baby diapers, and toddler diapers — luckily none of those are permanent expenses! I buy diapers and wipes through Amazon’s subscription service, which gives me a discount. Plus I use my Amazon credit card, so I get rebates and makes the convenience of Amazon worthwhile for us.
It’s been well over a decade ( almost two ) since I had to buy diapers and formula so we don’t feel that pain ~ however I almost fainted when I went to grab a yellow bell pepper at the store and burned my hand on the $2.84 EACH sign ! WTF…. almost three dollars for 1 pepper… even the green one was over a dollar… I’m gardening this summer !
Some of those items do seem high. I don’t always buy “brand name” groceries though. I’ve tried some things I don’t mind buying that are cheaper than the better known brands.
Also, the feet thing…I HAD to comment to let you know about a product I LOVE. It’s an I-bella pedi-scrub exfoliating foot buffer. Best product ever for flip-flop lovin feet ;) This product will be hard to find, but def. worth it if you can find it in your area. It also lasts a long time!
groceries have gone up like CRAZY in the last two years since william and i started living together. there’s only two of us plus our dog. i can’t believe how much we spend each month and we do not buy expensive stuff or even shop at a super nice grocery store. it’s kinda depressing, actually.
Okay, here’s my $.02, adjusted for inflation. I didn’t read all the comments, but there are a number of things to consider:
1) How much are you saving on gas, childcare, lost time by having the stuff delivered? Is it enough to balance out the slightly, sometimes significantly, higher prices than you’d get by purchasing store generics/Costco/trader joe’s products?
2) IMHO, the “cost” of things should include the social/environmental cost continuum (production, distribution, consumption, waste products). To me, items from a discounter like Walmart have a hidden cost that, by purchasing from that establishment, I unfairly push on to an underpaid employee or grower/farmer/producer/trucker. I don’t feel good about participating in that, so I don’t purchase at those stores.
3) You’ve got a lot of brand-name items in there that you could probably substitute lesser known/generics for if you weren’t shopping on line. Also, buying bulk is a good alternative if you don’t go all Costco-crazy and determine that suddenly your family needs a side of beef. Definitely worth it for the non-perishables. (And what’s wrong with a big vat of pickles?)
4) If mother nature EVER decides it’s spring around here, you can grow a lot of your own veggies fairly inexpensively and organically. The thing to remember is to eat in-season stuff. (There are exceptions: I can’t resist the early season blueberries from Chile….)
Uh. Maybe I’m doing something wrong, but my WEEKLY grocery bill for a mere TWO ADULTS is usually over $200.
(Just wait til we add formula and diapers! Woo hoo!)
Granted, we live in Manhattan where a box of cereal can run you back $7 (plus we buy organic stuff whenever possible, plus lots of produce and the free-range, grass-fed, hormone/antibiotic-free meat and so forth because I LIVE IN FEAR, so it’s our own fault), but still. The prices have definitely been rising even in the past few months.
That is about my grocery list and prices but I don’t buy organic or speciality wipes. I buy unscented wipes of 80 that rival the expensive ones for $2.00 and I just get a gallon of 2% store brand milk for $3.29. I also buy generic where I can, something has got to give, my grocery bill is growing too and not just because I took on raising two babies again! EEK! :(
Nothing on your list jumped out at me as being singularly outrageous except peanut butter. $4.77 for a jar of peanut butter?!
I will not scold you for buying name brands or organics, and I will not implore you to shop WalMart or Costco. Nor will I ever suggest that you should schlep your tiny children in your SUV while gas is $4/gal to three stores per week in search of the cheapest wipes and bananas. Life is too short.
I will only sympathize, because WORD have groceries gotten re-goddamn-diculous. I just turned over a big patch of dirt in my yard and hell if I’m not growing as much produce as I can this summer…I am NOT paying $3 for a pepper or a tomato.
Oh my dear good god am I glad I don’t live in Seattle. That… wow. I’m sorry. My husband and I eat well for $300 a month.
1. Stop buying stuff like ziplocs and cleaning supplies from a grocery store (or service). These can be gotten much more cheaply elsewhere. Do you have Big Lots? Same brands, half the price. My rule of thumb is, if it isn’t food, you don’t buy it at the grocery.
2. Oh my god I’m so sorry.
3. Dude! I want to send you a puppy or something. Except that they eat!
Sorry to go all “economist”, but perhaps this can explain why the bill is getting so high:
http://www.economist.com/opinion/displayStory.cfm?Story_ID=11050146
My financial aid better start coming with food subsidies. =P
Who cares about the cost if you don’t have to brave a busy grocery store with a toddler and a 2 month old! :-)
I’m a total price dork, but I know that you can usually get that cereal for $2 or 2.50/box at Target or during grocery sales, and it will keep, so that could turn into a stock up item. At Costco, Honey Bunches of Oats is either 5.99 or 6.99 for two large bags. The spaghetti sauce could be cheaper too, most jars are 26 oz and you can get them for 2.00-2.50 at Trader Joe’s or during store sales. That should save you a whopping $10-20 a month. Hope that helps a tiny bit!
Just because I’ve been hearing about it so much I just went back and added up my monthly grocery expenses: $450! for ONE person! And I cook almost all my meals. So that’s just ingredients.
I agree with all on the Sam’s/Costco. And you really don’t have to turn half your house into a storage area. The big bags of frozen veggies, individual portions of frozen fish/shrimp/chicken, the large brick of cheddar are faves.
I’m thinking about looking into getting a freezer for the garage. Wondering about the cost of energy to run freezer vs. rising food and gas prices.
So jealous of those who live in Trader Joe’s country….
I cloth diaper my baby but my toddler still uses diapers from Costco and I love, LOVE their wipes. They are much cheaper, and I also used formula from Costco, once my doctor gave me the go ahead. It has really been excellent to use the cloth diapers this time, because it’s a one time purchase - it’s so nice to go to Costco and not need diapers for the baby, especially since they use SO many. I also buy organic milk there for the toddler, and, like toilet paper and stuff. Sometimes I buy a big vat of pretzels or 100 muffins but not that often. They have good prices on clothes, too. And books!
You’re not doing anything wrong. Groceries are damn expensive! I went to the store the other day and walked out with one bag and a receipt that said $64.78. WTF?!!?
No, nothing extravagant, prices are just outrageous. We spend an unholy amount on groceries with the same exact household–1 3 yo boy, 1 baby boy, 2 adults. We use Costco for diapers, dog food and non-perishables like toilet paper, etc. (and we used to buy formula there for our 1st because it is really cheap compared to the grocery store–the whole reason we joined costco, in fact), and because I am really, really desperate to save money, I have started to use these thin baby towels instead of wipes (I know, gross, but i am desperate to cut corners right now–it is either save on groceries or get rid of the cleaning service, and by god we’re going to be eating ramen rather than do that). We also JUST joined a CSA this week b/c we eat a lot of organic stuff and it seems cheaper than at the Fred Meyer. I hope it saves us money, and it helps that we’ll eat things in season and not destroy the planet (too much) (I hope) with our desire to have kiwi fruits from Chile in December, or what have you. Oh, that was long, sorry.
I stopped reading comments half way down, but Costco pickles are like $3.50 for a MASSIVE jar, and they don’t cost points on Weight Watchers, so we go through a lot of them. Considering that a jar of picks at Top Foods is $2.50 and 1/3 the size of the Costco one, it’s a good buy.
Also, Costco diapers and wipes–they work great! And the diapers are $.17/each. Swaddlers, while they smell nice and all are the most expensive brand I’ve found. (PS I’m in the Seattle area too, so my prices are locally compared)
I see there are a lot of comments about cheaper diapers…
I tried every cheap store brand and ended up, after using up tons of diapers that I HATED, back with Pampers.
If your kids are prone to blow outs like mine were Pampers cannot be beat. And in my opinion, are worth the extra money.
Not to be preachy, but you could always cloth diaper and cloth wipe. My son’s diapers cost $200 and will last until he’s two (bumGenius.com). I use a cut up receiving blanket for wipes, with a very simple water and oil recipe.
I highly recommend buying your produce (ie. bok choy, fuji apples) from asian markets . i guarantee they will be significantly cheaper :) i’m asian, i know! :)
A few things leapt out at me:
-$3.99 for 0.5 gallon milk is nuts! Our local dairy delivers organic milk for $2.52 per 0.5 gallon 1% milk
- $1.82 for a can of Rosarita refried beans is way too much. We buy the same brand at King Soopers (City Market/Kroger) for approx $0.80 per can if I remember correctly.
- Yoplait yogurt is usually on sale for 3 for $5, which is $0.69. That’s a $0.09 savings per carton of yogurt.
-$4.77 for peanut butter seems like a lot. We buy the Kroger brand organic peanut butter for $3 and some change if I remember correctly.
I live near Denver, CO, for reference. I don’t know if stuff costs differently around the country. I’d estimate I pay about $350/month on groceries for the two of us.
Your produce prices don’t seem too bad. Sometimes produce is astronomical and it gets depressing.
We’re expecting our first baby, and we’re going to cloth diaper/cloth wipe to save $$$ and because I just love cloth diapers. They don’t stink as much as regular ones and are less creepy. I hear there is less diaper rash, too.
Advice? Start buying store brand (Kroger brand everything is good, especially their juices.) and clipping coupons in the Sunday paper. You can save a TON like that. One of my friends also buys all her groceries with her Discover card because of the cash back feature.
Oh! And! If you like ordering online, Safeway dot com offers free delivery on orders over $50 if someone in your house works for that giant corporation around the Seattle area. If you want to try it and can’t find the secret code, email me. I did that when I was hugely pregnant and had to give the big F.U. to our three story climb to our Seattle “charmer” or whatever bullshit our crappy house is called. (But, warning, I stopped doing it because the website was super annoying; even MORE annoying than shopping with two boys. I guess I didn’t sell that well.)
I keep our grocery bill down by planning 9 dinners each week. I shop for those 9 meals plus 2 or 3 lunches and breakfast items each week ( I stock up on the first Tuesday each month where we get an extra 15% off the grocery bill). During the week my husband chooses what he wants the next day off the written menu - and the 2 or 3 meals that do not get consumed are eaten the beginning of the next week. This keeps me out of the store making impulse purchases (you know that 60$ grocery bill and nothing to eat issue?) and has driven our grocery bill down dramatically.
As well Costco diapers and wipes and meats (just buy ziplocs there and repackage them) are really cheap.
We also have a produce store here called H&W where the produce that isn’t sold each day at a local grocery store goes to. I can get 2 weeks of fruit and vegi’s for $18, and the quality is just like the Safeway up the road where the same 3 bags FULL of food would have been 60$ or more. So damn cheap. I often plan our meals around what they have for produce each week.
And to add I live in Canada where even though our dollar is strong our prices are very high, and I feel like mortgaging my home to go for groceries each week.
Also, I realize I am a brand whore about almost everything, but the truth is, there’s usually a reason. Certain brand foods taste better to me than the generic equivalent, and certain products work better than their cheaper counterpart. Of course, I should maybe get over it, since I am going BROKE buying name brands.
Your list isn’t extravagant at all. I will say that a lot of the brands I notice you buy are available at Costco and although you may not need 24 containers of Yoplait, you get a pretty good savings. I just have to go in there with blinders on so I don’t give into the 96 ounces of animal crackers (but they are organic). I do a monthly Costco run and then use both QFC and TJ for weekly supplements and find that I do save some money that way. I think someone already mentioned the Amazon subscribe and save program, but it is great for wipes, formula and diapers.
Don’t feel bad about cloth diapers, dude — I just saw in the NY Times Magazine this weekend a blurb about how science-y environmental types have declared a draw between cloth and regular disposable diapers (because of the energy and chemicals required to clean cloth and so forth).
They did say that in-between options like gDiapers are promising since they’re flushable, but those aren’t for everyone, either (I have grand plans to try them but may well run screaming to the Pampers) — and as far as I’m concerned, once you’ve figured out a poop-related system that works for you, you stick with it.
Ooh!
Did you read the story in the Seattle Times yesterday?
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2004362688_foodprices21.html
Also, Costco is great for food and toiletries. Just try to stay away from the middle impulse-buy-product section. That is always where my purchases double! Organic milk, good cheese and non perishables, fruit and frozen is what I usually stick to at Costco.
Also I go to a produce stand for much of my produce that I don’t get at Costco. Way cheaper than the grocery store and often better produce.
That is funny about your experience with store brand diapers - although Costco diapers (and wipes) are made by Huggies, so I have found them to be virtually identical. I found Luvs to be pretty crappy (no pun intended) for us, but man do I like those Costco diapers, especially for the price. I fear the way that gas prices are going, this is just the beginning for grocery prices going up. Also, I meant to say, we buy our fruit and vegetables from a local delivery place (farmfreshdairy.com) and it’s fantastic and really reasonable. I think it’s cheaper and greener to buy locally when you can because it uses less gas.
I got nothing to add about diapers or wipes. In fact I got nothing new that hasn’t been addressed in the above comments.
In the spirit of Earth-day I will say the more organic produce people buy the better for their health and the health of the planet. It has more nutrients and really isn’t too much more expensive. The more people who buy it the more demand the more stores will carry it.
You could save some money by stealing from the store (don’t question the morals, supermarkets put a percentage of their budget to “overstocking” to cope with this and still haul in millions and billions a year). In America, I’ve found, that if you take something in a supermarket, open it, and eat it while in the store, all of the other employees and shoppers will assume that you’ll pay for it or it was bought prior to entering the store. I’m a college student, and I survived doing this for about a month, spending less than $5 the whole time and maintaining a healthy diet. Not once was I accosted.
You could save on a meal or more every time you visit the supermarket..;-)
The formula & pampers are half the bill. Get rid of the kids and you can freelance.
Google “food prices” and shudder. There are riots happening around the globe because people can’t afford food anymore.
Btw, speaking of ratty heel syndrome, here’s an indispensable product: Glytone Ultra Heel and Elbow Cream. I believe US citizens can buy it on Amazon. Use this once a week and you will never need a pumice stone again. It actually does a much better job. It’s got, like fruit acids or something, that exfoliate the old skin and leave only smooth heel skin. I swear by it.
I get those same beans here in AZ on sale 3 for $1 - I stock up whenever I happen to notice that sale. I actually do that whenever I notice a non-perishible that we use pretty regularly on sale - our pantry stays pretty full, and I usually have enough random stuff stockpiled away to make a emergency dinner if I burn the one I was originally making. There’s only the two of us, though, and I think this whole concept will be a lot harder to carry out when we finally do add to our family - less space, less sleep, etc.
Our friendly neighborhood Fry’s (Kroger, in other areas) is offering a 10% match if you put your tax rebate (anywhere between $300-$1200) on a Fry’s gift card. I’m thinking pretty hard about doing it. I mean, I’ll be spending that money there anyway, I might as well get a free $60 bucks out of the deal. I certainly won’t be getting 10% interest if I put it in savings…
Hmmm…. even down here in good ol’ So Cal, things like your lunch meat and pasta sauce are WAY cheaper - but I am a sale shopper AND a coupon shopper, so I don’t usually pay full price for anything…
ACK! 40 diapers for 18.00? That is CRAZY. I do the Amazon subscribe and save for 144 Size 3 Huggies for $27.00 a month. They only offer subscribe and save in the Huggies but they work fine for us and it saves us a lot.
It’s completely fucked how expensive groceries, gas, etc. have become. Every time I get sodomized at the register I can’t help but think about how so many people have it so much worse and that I should be thanking my lucky stars that I am able to afford to feed myself and put gas in my car.
While I’m on my soapbox, my mind is blown every time I pass Whole Foods and the parking lot is packed to the gills. Who the hell can afford to shop there anymore? I am clearly in the wrong line of work as I can’t afford to buy an apple at that place.
The Walrus is a big fan of Costco brand everything. For a recent baby shower he sent me off with a 10,000 count container of wipes and a flatbed full of diapers that he paid about .30 for because he had a coupon. We also rely on Costco for paper towels, toilet paper, etc. May I suggest a 20 lb. box of Nerds to go with your vat of pickles?
I’m not registered over at ParentDish but I love reading your articles over there! Anyway, don’t feel bad about yesterday’s drama. Look on the bright side — 112 comments. :)
Jeez! It always takes my breath away when the lady at the grocery store tells me my total!
Have to agree with Emily. Hubby is GM of a food processing company in E. Wash selling to Costco, Whole Foods, Wild Oats, etc. Prices are skyrocketing to contract with farmers and bring it to the consumer. I still think it’s worth the added cost for organic though.
And unfortunately, we don’t get a discount- bastards!
That’s what most people think about Costco. You can buy smaller sized containers but you usually have to buy two. Two gallons of milk is $5.50, bunch of bananas 1.29, 18 X-Large eggs 1.69. They now have a ton of fresh vegges. Formula and diapers. Those two alone were worth the cost of the membership.
I’m on disability and the government just cut my foodstamps from $140 to $10. Try that!
comPLEEEETEly offtopic, but my, those parentdish commenters sure have a lot to say, huh! good on you for keeping on doing it despite the cranky masses. and i agree. hitting an 18month old=fuckucked up
Your list doesn’t strike me as particularly outrageous, minus the organic milk part. But you know what? I’m somewhat of the opinion that if it tastes better and you KNOW it tastes better, my budget can take the additional 10 bucks a month. So maybe I’m not the best person to ask.
And maybe I’m just not part of the Costco/Sam’s Club/Target bandwagon to buy random things, but I have ALWAYS found that when I go into places like that, there are SO many options I always end up spending more money than if I JUST go to QFC or Safeway. So…I guess I’m just not convinced that people save money at stores like that. Honestly, if I go into Target more than once a month, I can kiss 200 bucks goodbye. Actually going there on a weekly basis? Oh, goodness.
And as for saving money at Wal-Mart, I guess I have a limit to how far I’ll go to save money and Wal-Mart is most definitely my limit.
I live in Hawaii. Food that is brought from elsewhere to here is ridiculously expensive. I have no problem picking up the avocados that land on the side of the road. Or ask my neighbor if I can pick their oranges or limes or whatever they may have lots of. No problem whatsoever.
Just to give you an example one half gallon of Organic Milk is about 9 bucks.
Oh snap! I forgot to mention you could turn FREEGAN. You dumpster dive in grocery store bins after they close because they throw out perfectly good stuff. JB has dive gear. Send his ass out to do the dirty work!
Grocery prices here are rising, too: the whole petrol price / food inflation crossover and filter effect.
Man, those PD comment sections are insane. In your follow up post to the spanking one, where you quite reasonably say how you feel in certain situations has been ridiculously reacted to. The person whom claims to be rational when spanking whom sees said follow up post as an actual attack on her? Oh my God, the insanity. If she can’t see that as you reasonably trying to voice your perspective it’s reeeeaaaaaally hard to imagine her being as rational as she claims to be when it comes to reacting to a child’s behaviour and then issuing a smack.
Anyway, I think most people will understand where you’re coming from so I hope the the fuckwits aren’t getting you down :).
heh, someone mentioned Costco. The one and only time I went there was with a friend while they shopped. I emerged with a whopping crate of Power Bars thinking “great idea!” Never again! :)
P.S. Parent Dish is madness. I don’t know how you put up it. I think I’d rather be kicked in the stomach by Riley during a clothing change than have to read some of those commenters.
Btw, I left a comment up there to the effect that people who start flame wars in commen threads defending spanking can’t convincingly claim to have self control. I mean, wow. If you’re that pissed at a total stranger’s harmless blog entry you can’t really be trusted to lovingly hit your kid…not that there is such a thing as lovingly hitting children.
Just so you know, our shopping lists are about the same. Mine costs around 35€ a week. Viva la France, The Country Where They Consider Eating a God-Given Right.
$4.77 for peanut butter. That’s ridiculous. Mine is 1.75€ and it’s imported from the US.
A giant baguette backed 20 minutes ago costs .85. And the sea salted organic butter to melt on it: 1.50€
Something I learned during the course of my job, though it certainly isn’t true of *all* store generics, is that a lot of times the grocery stores will have contracts with the name-brand producer for the name-brand producer (think Kraft, Pet, Nabisco, etc.) to run batches of products and put the store-brand name on it, and it really *is* the same thing as the name-brand. Sometimes, somewhere on the package, is the name-brand producer’s logo. It would probably take a bit of research to figure out which products are truly the *same* as the more-expensive, name-brand versions, but….
I am a total coupon and sale nut. I’m the lady you dread in front of you in the checkout line with a fistful of coupons explaining to the cashier why this one doubles and then ending up at customer service because the new cashier messed it up and the store now owes me 2$ back. Yep- that’s me!
Tips: have you signed up for the formula coupon checks from the website? Sign up everyone you know. Those things are like gold! (they sell for more than 1/2 the face value on ebay so just sign up everyone you can and collect them from them).
The diapers and wipes and other name brand stuff - when ya got a few moments, check ebay for coupons. Buy them if you can use them. I know it sounds odd- *buying* coupons?! But if paying 7 cents per coupon will save you 2$ per pack of diapers and you are going through a pack or two a week, its worth the effort. be careful of sellers who overcharge on shipping.
I wish I had a delivery service for groceries. We live too far in the boonies. I’ve used amazon when they have a nice sale (like when I bought 40$ of popcorn for 25$ or somthing- hey, we eat alot of popcorn!).
Warehouse clubs are fine but you will end up spending more at one time. I bank on 150$ each trip minimum (which I do about once a month) but they do have some awesome stuff that I cannot find elsewhere (Sam’s club- blackened salmon fillets individually shrink wrapped and the shrimp wonton soup frozen in individual servings and the giant box of corndogs that my 10 year old lives on!!).
Generics: start small. Buy a small container(of diapers or wipes etc) because you may or may not like it. I like the generic CVS diapers but not the generic wal-mart diapers. Wipes- sorry, nothing compares to Huggies Supremes. I stick to it faithfully.
Oops- sorry, didn’t mean to go off. One of my fave subjects to talk about.
I’ve just been going over the monthly budget and the amount we’re spending on groceries each month is actually almost as much as, if not more (on some months) as we pay in rent.
I’m dedicating an entire entry to it, because it just boggles my mind!
My grocery list looks like this, but longer and worse and about $100.00 more I assume. This year I decided to only buy organic, and to try and have my cart be a ratio of 3/4 vegetables 1/4 hydrogenated, bleached, enriched, corn syrup, (you know the GOOD food). However this made my grocery bill almost triple. I then tried to make a weekly menu and buy everything for every meal in one trip, breakfast, lunch and dinner, that also doubled my grocery bill. I spend close to $500.00 a month at the least for two adults and two small kids, and one of those only eats boobie milk so he totally doesn’t count as having groceries bought for him, and one is potty trained so I’m only buying one box of diapers and I get those at Sams Club. Yet some how I still spend all of my money at the damn store.
But, I sure do eat good every meal!
only 2 things i cringed at were the baby wipes & the refried beans ($2–dude, they are beans!). the rest looked like regular prices. my rules of thumb are that (except essential items like milk) i don’t buy anything that isn’t on sale or that i don’t have a coupon for and i try to stick to the list, but this is me shopping at a regular grocery. we don’t have a delivery service here.
I’m also a diaper brand whore. Oh yeah small note. I was totally married to Pampers Swaddlers. But then Huggies sent me a free sample of their new super soft baby diapers, and the inside felt like A QUILT. I noticed the pampers swaddlers were sticking to my little guys tush when he pooped. You may want to try out the new huggies baby diaper, Oh they are called Huggies Gentle Care and they totally kick my previously loved Pampers ass!
http://www.huggieshappybaby.com/products/index.aspx?diapers
I register on Huggies and Pampers every time I’m pregnant then they send me samples of each of their current “NEW” diaper so I can make sure before I buy and stuff.
Just saying. They are super softer on their little man parts.
dude groceries just suck…..I just recently signed up for the grocerygame…saw it on babycheapskate…hoping that will help me!
I also hear you on sticking with certain brands…I too swear by Pampers diapers and Huggies wipes…although now knowing that Huggies makes the Costco brand I will be giving them a try.
Your list and prices seem par for the course to me. It really stinks how much groceries are costing. It’s scary when your mortgage payment and your monthly grocery bill are roughly the same number. Sigh.
Go for boxes of diapers and wipes.
I know Walmart is horrible but you can save time by taking your local grocery store sale ads there. If Walmart is not cheaper then what is on sale they will honor the price. This way you don’t have to run to four different stores to get the sales price.
I also go to the dollar store for cleaning items. You can get name brand cleaning suppies for a few dollars cheaper than Walmart or Target.
It’s hard to say because I know the PNW is much more expensive than my area… but I’d say you can find it cheaper if you’re willing to do some research locally.
I don’t use coupons because I don’t have time to clip and search online, and because they’re usually for things I wouldn’t normally buy anyway. But I do know the day the local stores publish their sales flyers in the paper (Tuesday) and take a quick scan through them to pick up their dirt-cheap deals. I buy skinless chicken breasts at $1.99/lb, beef roasts at $2.99/lb, butter at $1.50/lb, 5 lbs of sugar at $1.50 this way. We stock up when an item’s on sale, a month’s worth or so, so that we can make it until it’s on sale again. It’s the only way I know of to save on the basics.
We’ve also given up diet soda and taken to making iced tea for our beverages, which saves us loads and is healthier too. Oh, and I’ve got two or three soup recipes that are dirt-cheap to make and feed us for 2-3 nights each. All that helps keep our food costs down.
If you’re interested, read ANIMAL, VEGETABLE, MIRACLE by Kingsolver if you’d like to understand our “food crisis”. Her solution isn’t possible for me, but I am way motivated to make some changes after reading her book– esp. in avoiding corn-based sugars and frequenting our local farmer’s market (once it gets going again).
Hey I wouldn’t feel too bad about using disposable diapers over cloth. As far as total energy use goes, they’re about even. I mean, all the energy that goes into washing the cloth ones; heating up the water, running the washing machine, and if you’re using a service, the gas they use carting your diapers around…
Disposable diapers don’t mean you’re going to rot in global-warming hell.
We use cloth diapers and wipes for our babies. We have 2 in diapers too. Not only is it better for the environment, but it’s better for the boys and their boy parts. Did you know they suspect the heat and chemicals trapped in plastic diapers are one of the main the reasons for male infertility?
Oh, and I disagree with the idea that cloth vs. disposables use the same amount of energy. Water is used in the production of every paper diaper, not to mention the chemicals added. Plus the idea that your diapers GO somewhere to be dumped and never to bio-degrade is kind of disgusting. Did you know it is illegal not to dispose of baby waste down the toilet? Who do you know who does that, who uses paper diapers? If you don’t believe me, read the diaper package. Trying to assuage the guilt of using disposables by saying it’s the same as cloth is not going to change the fact that every diaper you throw away is still around, and will be hundreds of yrs from now. Yuck.
I don’t have time to read through all the comments, so this is all probably repeat info, but: I would absolutely get a Costco membership and get some of your stuff there. Not everything, but I would imagine diapers, garbage bags, toliet paper, etc. would be much cheaper. Also, not everything comes in large-sized jars! Stuff like marinara sauce, chicken broth, refried/black beans, and soup come in small “pallets” of 6-8 cans, which is very convenient. And don’t forget the cheap gas!
As for your veggies, forget Amazon! Anywhere is better than there. I know this is out of your way over there on the Eastside but the Ranch 99 Market (on Aurora in Edmonds) and/or Uwajimaya downtown is the cheapest place to get veggies, and they have a bigger selection (less than a dollar/pound for baby bok choy). Also good for cheap tofu & tofu products, Asian noodles, and even fresh seafood.
I am too lazy to read the 121 comments before me, so forgive me if I’ve repeated someone else!
As far as formula and diapers go - all I can say is COSTCO COSTCO COSTCO. (or Sam’s) Sam’s has the Pampers, we use Huggies and I pay about $38 for well over 100 ct pkg of size 5’s. And WIPES! I absolutely LOVE the Costco Kirkland brand wipes. It’s about $15 or so for at least 700 wipes and I see you are paying almost half that much for Huggies wipes for a lousy 180 wipes. I started out using Huggies wipes, but once I discovered Kirkland I won’t go back. Plus I buy a big box and it lasts for quite some time. And I use them for EVERYTHING - post-meal cleanups, shopping cart wipe downs, restaurants, and of course - diapers.
Also - as convenient as Amazon sounds (and since I live in Michigan I can’t say much more about it because that service doesn’t exist for us) I would imagine you pay a little more for that convenience. Sure, going to multiple stores sucks but if it means saving some money, I’m all for it. I have found lately that the Wal-Mart Supercenters (with a full grocery store) have REALLY good prices. I paid $3.27 for YoBaby yogurt that was over $4 at my Kroger grocery store. I have read that, on average, Wal-Mart’s grocery prices are about 20% cheaper. Food for thought!
Costco (kirkland brand) wipes and diapers. I swear to you they rock. I LOVE LOVE LOVE Pampers and tried several generics with blow out results before trying the Kirkland brand. They are fantastic. They are also 10 cents less per diaper than Pampers (at least at the size 4 price) so that translates into up to $30 a month.
And you CAN walk into Costco and walk out with just diapers and wipes. It is possible.
Also, your formula is about $1.38 an oz from Amazon and about $0.90 an oz from costco!
You probably won’t get down this far, but…
Your pricing isn’t really that far off from my local grocery stores. If the time savings and brain savings (not having to wrangle two kids at the grocery store more than is necessary) and gasoline savings are worth the maybe $10 you’d save on those identical items - keep shopping at Amazon. Seriously.
Target is the best price in my town for paper goods (toilet paper - the same pack at our local albertson’s is $3.89 MORE, paper towels, kleenex, etc.), garbage bags, ziplocs, shampoo, conditioner, cat litter, vitamins, laundry soap.
While we do have a Sam’s Club here, I can get the exact brand and flavor of everything I need at Target for the same price or cheaper. We buy food stuffs at Sam’s on occasion, and definitely use it when we’re gearing up for a BBQ. The non food items really are cheaper at our Target.
Holy crap, missy. I know it is the devil, but Walmart is soooooo much cheaper. Everything about that place is evil, I know, but the prices… so much cheaper
I feel your pain too … I’ve actually moved to using more canned fruits rather than fresh and I only but what is fresh when its in season — when the prices are lower. For the diapers I would recommend bulk - Costco, BJs, Sams Club, etc … or at least Target when the brand you prefer is on sale. I find that I can compromise on brand preference when I can buy 200 diapers for $35 … versus 40 for $15. I’ve had to train myself to really think, “where in the sam hell am I going to store this 15 gallon bucket of pickles?”
I was just over on the western side of Washington (I live closer to Spokane) and I have to say that some of the grocery prices there are *absolutely ridiculous*.
I paid $6.99/lb for the same chicken breasts I can get over here at Costco for $2.99/lb. If I buy them in a regular grocery store here, like Safeway, they’re $4.99/lb MAX. Also, yogurt was way more expensive. I get a certain brand of yogurt here for $.89/cup, and over there it was $1.09/cup. It was like that with everything I bought!
So, while I definitely agree that prices are going up everywhere, you people on the western side of Washington are taking it up the behind.
Have you ever seen the infomercial for the “Ped Egg”?(http://www.pedegg.com/index-alt2.html?directLoad&uid=354F15DD1158DCC5AEBF825D6B616EA3)
This product will totally solve your dry, icky heels! I was a bit leery of trying it out but did so after hearing rave reviews from a friend. Even after one use my heels looked & felt incredible. It works WAY better than a pumice stone. Get yourself to a Bed, Bath & Beyond or Target to buy one & I promise you won’t be disappointed!
*disclaimer- I am not an employee of the Ped Egg company, just a major fan of their product :-)
Such and interesting topic, I came back today to read more…
Seconding Lesley on the Glytone Heel and Elbow Cream. Magic. I buy it for myself (at the dermatologist) and for my aunt and mother and mail it to them.
Would it be redundant if I suggested Costco?
The secret to Costco is to really know the prices of the items you buy most frequently, and do the math. Oh, and don’t go in there hungry.
Go without JB and the kids. Have a list and stay out of the middle (books/clothes/candy). Bring a bottle of water and your patience. And try not to go on a weekend, unless you can hit it the moment they open. Tues-Wed-Thur nights tend to be really dead times.
Once you start going regularly, you sort of get over whatever it is that makes you think a 30 gallon bucket of mayo is a good idea and you don’t end up with a bunch of crap you’ll never eat.
I make a “major” Costco trip every 5-6 weeks or so, for paper products, cat food/litter, nonperishables, frozen foods, cleaning/laundry supplies etc. I will go about 2 additional times per month, run to the back corner of the store and pick up produce and fresh hummus and fresh pesto (I think my kid bathes in both). They do have a fair amount of organic (at least in Portland), but I’m not wed to organic, and our family of 2 eats a TON of fresh produce, so buying 4 pounds each of pears, strawberries and kiwi is doable and without waste.
When the weekly food ads for the “regular” stores come out, I peruse them to see if there is a killer sale on anything I need immediately or that I have room for and can/will store in my pantry or freezer. I refuse to go to more than one store, tho’, unless there are some hella good deals at multiple stores. I really use the regular store to “fill in” what I need between Costco trips, or to get the things that are really not practical for me to buy in bulk.
For shampoos, toothpaste, etc., where I am brand-loyal, if I see them on sale, I totally load up on as many as they will let me buy. Last night I bought enough shampoo, deoderant and toothpaste at Rite-Aid to (seriously) last until the end of the year. It was all buy one get one free.
No one has mentioned WinCo, I don’t think. They are pretty cheap on almost everything, but those stores overwhelm me, I don’t know where anything is, and the other customers in the two WinCo stores closest to me skeeve me out. I go there a couple of times a year, pay next to nothing for a ton of groceries, then do not have the intestinal fortitude to go back for another 6 months.
One last thing–I really try to minimize the number of times and/or number of stores I enter during the course of a week or month. That’s why I don’t run to 15 different stores to grab the best bargains at each. I have a certain lack of self control, and can NEVER stick 100% to my list. I’m better off paying a couple of extra dollars in 1-2 stores than I am going to Target for a good deal on TP and coming out with the TP, some new dish towels, a pair of shoes and the lastest seasonal tchatchke.
You should check out the grocery game www.thegrocerygame.com. I have cut my grocery bill from about 900 per month to about $500 per month. You subscribe to a “list” which tells you what coupons to match with sales at a particular store that week to get the best price. The idea is to stock up as much as you can while it is on sale so you don’t need to pay full price.
It’s just my husband and I and we spend about $300-$350 a month on groceries. Sometimes even $400. We do the majority of our shopping at our local Walmart Supercenter, because it’s hard to find prices lower than theirs. Every now and then, Publix and Winn Dixie have great sales and Winn Dixie always has awesome specials on meats and poultry if you have the Winn Dixie card, but good gracious- food is getting epensive!
Between groceries and gas prices, I’m pretty sure that we are going to be in the poor house soon. This whole recession/EVERYTHING GOES UP WITH THE PRICE OF GAS thing sucks. Each week I try to spend less on groceries and, even with a not very full cart, I somehow spend more. It sucks!!
Amen sista! I hear you. I’m so, SO frustrated with our grocery bills rivalling our car payments, I could scream. I’ve followed a ‘plan’ with my grocery shopping for several years, that until recently worked great. When I get Safeway’s circular every Tuesday, I sit down with it and my cookbooks/recipes and plan a menu according to what’s on sale each week. Then I make up my shopping list and check my pantry and fridge to make sure I’m not buying something we already have. Worked great! This past week, I bought the regular stuff like milk, eggs and cheese, and then the ingredients for 2 recipes. Two recipes that did NOT consist of 14 karat gold OR crushed diamonds. And yet…..the bill was astoundingly high. I got light headed before swiping my debit card.
Late last week I got a flyer from Dinner’s Ready, which we’ve used before. It’s a meal prep service that has all the ingredients for the meals you choose wrapped up in ziplock bags, ready to go into the freezer. The meals are delicious!! We used it a couple of years ago after our son had major surgery, and recently got a gift certificate for our friends whose kiddo was at Seattle Children’s hospital for 15 days. It’s great to not have to fuss around with chopping etc., just throw it in the pan/baking dish and follow the printed instructions. ANYWAY. The flyer I got was an advertisement for their May menu, and there was a note that explained that their prices weren’t increasing. The company has a contract with their food supplier which guarantees their prices staying where they have been, even now that groceries have gone sky high. I ordered 6 meals, and will pick them up on Friday. Each of those 6 meals at 4 servings each, will last my husband and I through two meals. So for our family, it’s 12 meals for $145. I just might ditch my menu planning altogether if we can stretch these meals as far as I think we can. I’m fairly certain there’s a branch of this place near you? Anyway, that’s my plan of action for battling the crazy grocery increase.
And this concludes The Longest Comment Evah.
i may shop in the belly of the beast, but wal-mart supercenter is the bomb! i aways use couopons and also the price-matching feature.
my neighbor and i are both having gardens this year and have agreed to share food, so we will have more variety.
i also go to the roadside farmer’s markets and get great deals on home-grown veggies. i am not going organic, just going more natural and eating healthier, not so many processed foods. organic is too expensive here!
aso, you can make a cheap and nice scrub for your heels by mixing salt and olive oil. leaves your feet nice and soft. i have heard of using sugar instead of salt , but i don’t want to deal with ants!
My family of 5 (DH, 16 yo, 2 yo, 10 mo and I) have a monthly food bill of about $1200 (YEAH - TWELVE HUNDRED). I cook most of our food and I do shop at Sam’s club (paper products, some meat, diapers, wipes). My husband brings his lunch 6x week from the house, and I bring mine 3-4x week. I plan my meals to make at least 6 servings (4 dinners + 2 lunches). I shop the farmer’s market (not cheaper, but better products) when it’s open (4 mo a year). I generally don’t buy store brands and very little junk food makes it into the house. While I don’t think we’re extravagant, some changes could be made and probably, will have to be. But then, I’m in Alaska. Whole milk from the dairy 100 miles away is $5 a gallon. Gas is $3.89/gal. Just some perspective. So Sundry, I don’t think your bill is really out of line.
I know that it has already been said here but Target has surprisingly great prices on food. Do any local grocery stores have delivery in your area? You get all the benefit of shopping the weekly sales without the hassle of driving there. There is usually a charge for delivery but it is usually small. Best of luck! :)
It is a quite interesting post but quite difficult to understand for me -
Do you know about diapers.com? They sell the huge boxes of formula, diapers and wipes along with baby food and other stuff. If your order is more than $50, you get free shipping! Awesome site! I order from them once a month (I have twins) and I get my order within a week. You should check it out!