Week #8- The Over Budget Grocery Shopping

Do you ever have one of those weeks where you feel like all the time you spend budgeting, couponing, etc is a complete and utter waste of time.  In total I spend hours each week sorting, clipping, and organizing coupons, checking the coupon websites, making my list, and adding and subtracting every way possible to keep everything within my tiny $30 budget.  I consider this part of my job of being a stay at home mom, making my husbands paycheck go as far as possible.  However this past week many things happened that made me feel like it was a waste, at least for this week.  So I don't have a $30 shopping trip to show you because I did what I never do, I went into the store with no list and didn't even keep a running tally of what I was buying.  I didn't go crazy throwing everything that looked good in my cart, cuz I just can't do that, but I ended up going $15 over  budget.

You see when I go to the grocery store I have a list with the prices, the coupons, the price after coupons, the total amount spent, and how many of each item I need to buy, and usually my total amount spent is within pennies of my $30 budget.  Meaning I spend every last dime with no room for adding last minute items.  My husband used to be really bad about coming with me and adding multiple items to my cart, things he "needed" but forgot to tell me about.  He's gotten much better now after me complaining  explaining how I do my list and how important it is to stay on budget.  Now instead of just putting things in the cart he points to things that are on sale (I've taught him well) and makes sure I see them, knowing he wants me to buy them.  Normally I just say "yea I saw that" and go on with what's on my list.  This shopping trip, because of the week I was having, I said screw it.  When he pointed at the Tyson chicken tenders that were on sale for $3.99, instead of saying my usual, I said nothing and just put them in the cart.  When the Gordon's fish fillets were right next to them, again I said nothing and put them in the cart.  I rarely buy frozen items like this because I would rather spend my budget on chicken breast, ground beef, or pork loin that will last longer.  I bought ice cream, which I don't think I've bought in about a year (it was only $1.50 with a coupon but I would normally pass it up anyway).  I have no menu plan for this week because again I've felt like my efforts are lost.

I've been doing a $30 grocery budget for about 3 years now, and I consider myself pretty good at making sure we have everything we need including meat, fresh fruit, veggies, and enough food for 7 dinners, lunches, and breakfasts.  There have been few times where I have went over budget by more than a couple dollars and I pride myself on that.  I know plenty of people who say they have a $100 budget and spend $120 or more during the week without batting an eye.  I'm just not like that, our budget doesn't allow it and normally I'm ok with it but when you have one of those moments where you feel like your the only one giving this budget your all, you figure what's the point?

That's where I'm at today.  I'm in a mood, and not a great one.  No worries because I know me and I know this coming week will be back to normal with the usual hours spent clipping, organizing, and making lists to stick to my $30.  I guess maybe everyone needs a break sometimes.  Maybe every one needs to get out of the norm for a day or so to get rejuvenated.

If not this is what I'm going to tell myself to make me feel better.