Wednesday, December 30, 2009

Eat From the Pantry Challenge!


 I decided to join in on the party at Money Saving Mom and cut some money on our grocery budget in the process.  I've been sort of a slacker the past few weeks in planning meals.  But I have been pretty good about using my coupons!  So my pantries and freezers are getting full...but no one is really using anything in them!  


 The point is to avoid going grocery shopping as much as possible.  I have a family of five, so of COURSE I will still be going...for things like eggs, milk, fruits and veggies. 


Why this will be fun?  Because Dan knows I've been getting really into the coupon thing and loving the results.  He just thinks that since the pantry is full that we should never have to go to the store again.  In our lives. Ever.  And every meal he suggests "We can just have toast."


That boy was raised on homemade wheat bread and jam and it's still in him system I think!


It is a pretty good idea to rotate through...so January will be our "rotate" month!

 
So here are my goals for the Eat From The Pantry Challenge:


1) Stop at the store a maximum of four times in January.

2) Only buy dairy (milk, eggs, cheese, etc.) and produce (fruits/vegetables).

3) Spend a total of $100 or less on groceries during the month of January. 


4) Put the leftover money from our grocery budget towards our Disney Vacation.  We had a few unplanned expenses on that trip (flat tire and hotel stay due to the snow storm anyone?) so we want to get that off the credit card asap!


My one "exception" is that I have a rain check for peanut butter that I plan on using in the next two weeks...$1 per jar so I plan on spending about $25 to stock up on that.  But that money won't be coming from the $100 budget!



But you can tell from the pictures that with a little pre-planning...this should go off without a hitch! 

Kitchen pantry (that desperately needs a light!)

Inside freezer

Garage freezer

Cold storage

More cold storage...and junk storage...we are working on finishing the basement so everything sort of gets tossed in here! 



5 comments:

Laurel @ Ducks in a Row said...

WOW!! You have a ton of food storage. I'm so bad at using my coupons, I think you've inspired me.

Twice as Nice said...

WOW! I wish you were my neighbor then I won't have to go to the store for a month! Just kidding. Now did you do all of that buy using coupons? Would love to hear how you acquired all of your supplies. Thanks for stopping over our blog. The Twins

Kerstin said...

That is AWESOME Kristen! Thanks for the peek into your storage. I am always interested into what other people "stock up" on.

And...since my husband is also trying to finish all of our basement most of our food storage is packed into the walk-in closet in our bedroom.

Yeah...not the best way to organize...but I have run out of room!

K!

shayla said...

Are you kidding me?? $100 in a month?! Teach me, girl, teach me! I think my biggest hang-up is Costco. That place is evil and blows my budget in one trip:) I think I need to be a better coupon clipper--you've just inspired me.

Kristen said...

Shay! I have half the kids you do and they are not nearly as old (or eat as much as your boys most likely do - yet!) So $100 might be a stretch for you! I LOVE CostCo but I found I don't save a dime there, I pay $150 and walk out with 10 things if I'm lucky! I've started combining coupons with sales and stockpiling that way. A good place to look to get an idea is a blog called the Utah Deal Diva. Hope this helps! I've cut our grocery bill down from $500 a month to about $200-225 now!