Ack!!! Grocery prices, gas prices, and alot of other venting inside BEWARE

[Mosaicmind]

Just got back from my weekly shopping trip to Wally World. I had already gotten some stuff at another grocery store yesterday and had spent $60 there. I had planned on spending only about $40 or $50 at Wally World because money is tight this week. I got up to the check out with what we absolutely had to have and it came to $116, YIKES!!!!

 

Just the juice we get, which is Old Orchard brand, and used to be under a $1 cost me $1.12, except the OJ costs $1.52. My dh works a factory job and can't leave for lunch so I bought all of his lunch stuff tonite. Granola Bars went from $2.50 to $3 a box, his Michelena's lunches used to be .88 and now they are .96.

 

I could go on and on, but I won't bore you. These may sound like pennies, but in the whole scheme of things all of it adds up. The only cleaning supplies and HBA stuff added up to less than $10 of the total bill; so that's not where it is coming from. I can't even give my kids milk for supper anymore because it is now $3.84/gal and that's cheap here.

 

I am just upset. Gas went from $3.99 on Thursday morning to $4.19 by Thursday evening. We have a 15 pass van, 7 pass van, and a Saturn. I quit going to the library because even the couple of miles on our vans add up each week. We don't go to the park and although my older kids can ride their bikes there, I can't because I had back surgery.

 

My dh already works 2 jobs and is only home 1 full day a week. What can I do to help out with the groceries, gas, and other bills we have to deal with? I am at a loss tonite and am worried that now I have over-drawn our bank account.

 

OK, done with my vent for now.

[Julie in Austin]

I'm so sorry that you have to deal with this--it is really hard, isn't it?

 

Since you asked for ideas: on the one hand, it seems like 60 + 116 is a very reasonable weekly budget for a family your size. On the other hand, the items you mention seem that they could be replaced with cheaper substitutes:

 

switch from Old Orchard juice to generic, or trade juice for water (very little nutritional value in juice anyway) or dilute it with more water to last longer

 

switch from granola bars to homemade bars or cookies/muffins/breads

 

switch from frozen lunches to homemade (which you could make in bulk and freeze yourself to save time)

 

Anyway, good luck. Current conditions are tough on the budget, I know.

[LunaLee]

I am just upset. Gas went from $3.99 on Thursday morning to $4.19 by Thursday evening. We have a 15 pass van, 7 pass van, and a Saturn. I quit going to the library because even the couple of miles on our vans add up each week.

 

I was just thinking about this last night. I was wondering if anyone else was feeling suffocated by the increase in gas and groceries.

 

I too have nixed our weekly library trips as a family and go only once every a week on my way to my part time job. We only have one car though, and I used to drive dh to work everyday, now I stay home on the days I don't work and worry if we will have enough gas to last the week. Gas by the way is $4.50 p/g for the cheap stuff and we drive a truck, not a big one, but I'm still putting in close to $185 a week.

 

I try to remember the positives though, although sometimes it's hard to see them. I do get to be home with my kids and don't have to work a full time job and let someone else raise them. :001_smile:

[TraceyS/FL]

We just aren't going anywhere.

 

UGH.

 

We can ride our bikes to the library - and will in a few weeks when we get in a school groove. Gymnastics on wednesday evenings..... otherwise. Here. Home sweet home. The library & park are the only places we can ride bikes too - and we have to do a couple of things that i have the blessings of the local law enforcement to do (sidewalks for the kids for one), we just don't have the bike paths/lanes to use around here. The roads have no shoulders - so it's just not safe to go any place else.

 

TG for year round schooling - i'm piling on the lessons and they are stuck here! LOL!!

 

I had my first increases in a variety of prices at Costco last week. UGH. It's just going to go up - i'm going to figure out how to stretch meals....

[G5052]

DH has a decent job but his medical bills and prescriptions perpetually choke us (over $800 in just May even with insurance). I went to Costco last week for the first time in two months to stock up on things we truly were running out of like chicken, rice, paper towels, canned goods, my OTC medication, etc. etc. and had no problem spending about $200. And we really, truly need a new furnace/AC unit sometime this year...

 

Thankfully we probably are going to be able to sell some furniture tomorrow that I've been advertising for awhile:001_smile:, and I was able to buy some curriculum I need because I sold several things this weekend. Little glimmers of light...

[JennifersLost]

I posted about a month ago that I hadn't see those big rises in price on groceries here in Canada.

 

Well, now I have. Milk jumped up 40 - 60 cents a gallon. Everything's up! Gas is at $5.40 a gallon. Meat is outrageous. When we're back from vacation I think my family is going to become almost entirely vegetarian. Better for us anyway.

 

Anyway, we're feeling the pain, too.

[frogpond1]

for the kind you used to get for $2.50 to $2.99. I don't want to buy the totally cheap bread because I want whole grain etc. I feel the same way. Everything was up across the board today at Safeway. I think some areas don't have to pay as much for groceries, but here things are getting out of hand. I wish I could have gone to Costco, but then that is more gas etc.

[kate in seattle]

I want whole grain etc. I feel the same way. . .

 

Hmm, I don't know where in Pac NW you are but there are lots of outlet bakeries in the Seattle area. One between our house and dh's work, and one towards Costco (where we go once every two weeks to fill up on gas. Whole grain bread is SIGNIFICANTLY cheaper there.

 

Kate in Seattle

[Mosaicmind]

The nearest Costco for me is almost an hours drive away; so if I want cheap I go to Aldi's, which on some things isn't cheaper than Wally World.

 

I second the bread store option. I can get whole grain wheat bread 2/$2.29 right now which is a good deal. But, I spent almost $30 last month on bread and we are just now about out so I would say that's good.

 

I do try and cook extra so dh can take leftovers for lunch, but that is hard when there's not much "extra" left and no money to make sure there is. I make instant pudding for him to take and instead of individual serving sizes of fruit cups we buy the big cans and I just divvy out what he will need for the week.

 

We are also cutting out alot of meat from our diet because of the cost. I make more stir frys because they require so little meat to make. I am also making spaghetti without meat in the sauce and we have pasta salad alot with just lunch meat type sandwiches for supper. My family unfortunately does not like beans; so I can't go that route. I did make a meatloaf the other day with turkey and not one person knew it was turkey.

 

what other ways can we think to save money?

[TraceyS/FL]

Lisa - it's worth the $$ savings for me to drive to Costco which is an hour away. We are getting an Aldi, so i cant' compare prices on that yet since it's just metal sticks in the ground so far, but i can beat my prices at WM hands down. We also have a Sam's Club that is going in 2 miles from my house, and while i prefer Costco - i'll do what i can there.

 

I can't cut meat out here - so i have to figure out how to stretch it further. Add in DH eats one meal a day these days - there go the leftovers. UGH.

 

But ya, i'm whining with ya......

[genie]

Oh yes, I feel your pain. And on top of gas and grocery prices, I have extensive attorney's fees. :crying:

 

Luckily we have kept our old trusty 18-year-old Honda Civic around. There were several times we considered getting rid of it and only having one car, but I'm so glad we kept it. It has over 348,000 miles on, is on its second engine, but it still gets over 40 miles-per-gallon. We thought the air conditioner had broken on it last year, but come to find out a mouse had made a nest in the fan area, and once we cleaned that out the air worked again. Yay! So I've been driving it to save on gas, and as a perk, my daughter has learned about driving a stick shift. Silver linings, ya know? :o

[Jennifer in MI]

Yep. I've noticed the difference too.

 

Since you asked - here are a couple suggestions - First, make your own cleaning supplies. A spray bottle with vinegar/water will clean nearly everything. I use it on my floors, windows, dusting, etc. If I need to scrub something, I use some baking soda. I also make my own laundry detergent. It costs about 50 cents for 2 months worth.

 

I'd also cut out the juice altogether. Drink water!

 

Buy milk when it's on sale. I can still find it on sale for $2.50/gallon. Just dump a little bit out into a pitcher and freeze it! I also do that with cheese. When it gets down to $2 per package, I buy a BUNCH and stock up!

HTH!!!

[Doran]

Yep. I've noticed the difference too.

 

Since you asked - here are a couple suggestions - First, make your own cleaning supplies. A spray bottle with vinegar/water will clean nearly everything. I use it on my floors, windows, dusting, etc. If I need to scrub something, I use some baking soda. I also make my own laundry detergent. It costs about 50 cents for 2 months worth.

 

I'd also cut out the juice altogether. Drink water!

 

Buy milk when it's on sale. I can still find it on sale for $2.50/gallon. Just dump a little bit out into a pitcher and freeze it! I also do that with cheese. When it gets down to $2 per package, I buy a BUNCH and stock up!

HTH!!!

 

 

Back when my kids were tiny and we were strapped enough to need the benefit of WIC coupons, I had the option to buy more milk than we could drink in a week. So, some weeks, I'd buy it and freeze it. It worked out just fine to take a frozen half gallon out of the freezer as I neared the end of the one in the fridge, let it thaw in the refrigerator, and it was delicious. Now, prices being what they are, would be a good time to take advantage of sale prices by using this tip.

[Old Dominion Heather]

 

I also make my own laundry detergent. It costs about 50 cents for 2 months worth.

 

 

 

No Fair! Don't tease us and then not post the recipe! :bigear: How do you make this stuff?

[Erica in PA]

I'm so sorry to hear that you're having a hard time, Lisa. We've been hit by these prices too. When you're just getting by to begin with, even relatively small increases like these makes a difference.

 

Here are couple of things I've done to try to make ends meet a little better:

 

1. Shop at a local discount grocery (that sells discontinued or soon to expire items) for as many items as possible. Make simple meals out of what I can find here (it varies from week to week), rather than starting out with a list and going out to get particular ingredients.

 

2. Get the rest of the groceries that we really need from Aldi's.

 

3. Make use of everything in the refrigerator. Don't let anything go bad and have to throw it away.

 

4. Everyone drinks water or iced tea (made cheaply at home.) Milk is used primarily for cereal. We don't drink orange juice with breakfast anymore, just too pricey. Use that money for fruit instead, it's healthier anyway.

 

5. Use dry milk in baking.

 

6. Make sandwiches for dh for lunch, or send along leftovers.

 

7. Just eat less overall. We don't need lots of snacks. I've also learned that supper doesn't always need to be the "event" that I think it does. Sometimes something like crackers, cheese, and fruit can be a perfectly fine supper. Or a box of cheap mac and cheese and carrots. Etc.

 

8. Limit meats to mostly chicken and ground beef on sale, with occasional fish on sale. Don't use meat in every supper. Pasta or bean based meals can be filling without meat. I made bean burritos last week from just homemade refried beans and cheap flour tortillas with a pinch of cheese, and I was surprised that my kids loved them.

 

9. Make what I can from scratch. Anything you buy prepared is likely to be much cheaper if you make it yourself.

 

10. Use less of everything. When I do laundry, I use less detergent. When I run the dishwasher, I use less detergent there too. If I make a sandwich, I put less meat and cheese on it. Have the kids share a sliced apple rather than giving them each their own. Just try to stretch everything you have as long as you possible can.

 

I hope something here might be helpful to you. It's hard, but some of these things have become second-nature to me with time. Others are an ongoing struggle. But I just figure that every little bit helps, and since I am not bringing in income myself, these are some ways I can help my family get by when times are tight.

 

Erica

[paula j]

I feel your pain. Prices here in MO may be a bit less but still bad, and I have 2 extra teenagers for the summer. We are lucky to live in the sticks I guess. I can buy a dozen fresh eggs from my neighbor for $1 a dozen. We are busy growing a bunch of samonella free tomatoes and also peppers of various types. We just purchased a half an organically fed, hormone free, antibiotic free cow and that should last us a while. We got 45 2lb packs of hamburger, and a whole freezer full of roasts, steaks, and ribs. Other than this I mostly shop at aldi's for canned goods and things. I have tryed to shop at wal-mart but I always spend way more. My total for 6 bags of groceries this week at aldi's was only $72 although I didn't buy much in the way of meat, just lunch meat and chicken. I also do some canning. I always make pickled beets. I pick blackberries and make blackberry jelly and also freeze some for cobblers. If I find some really good patches I can even sell the leftovers. I also have peach and apple trees and make jam, apple butter, apple sauce, and pie fillings.

[beansprouts]

DH has a decent job but his medical bills and prescriptions perpetually choke us (over $800 in just May even with insurance).

 

This won't be a solution for many. One of the things we did recently to save money was ditch our health insurance. Because dh owns his company, he pays on both sides. That's $1000 a month for lousy insurance. Co-pays for doctor visits were $30 - 50. Total bill for a typical visit: $120. My dd recently went to the ER to be sutured. The total bill was just over $500. Our portion: $150. I would rather have my money and just pay the bills myself. So, we're taking our $1000/month, socking it away into a seperate account, and now we can afford health care, as well as dental and eye care.

[genie]

This won't be a solution for many. One of the things we did recently to save money was ditch our health insurance. Because dh owns his company, he pays on both sides. That's $1000 a month for lousy insurance. Co-pays for doctor visits were $30 - 50. Total bill for a typical visit: $120. My dd recently went to the ER to be sutured. The total bill was just over $500. Our portion: $150. I would rather have my money and just pay the bills myself. So, we're taking our $1000/month, socking it away into a seperate account, and now we can afford health care, as well as dental and eye care.

 

We do something similar. We just have a low-coverage plan through Humana that really only takes effect once you meet your high deductible. It is only $150 per month for the three of us, so I really only have it there for worst-case scenarios. It has a $5000 per person deductible, or $10,000 family, but once you meet it, it covers 100%. You are also allowed yearly checkups for free without having to meet the deductible. I can't see paying hundred or thousands of dollars every month, and then still having co-pays for visits!

 

So when we do have dr. visits, we just go self-pay and usually get a lower rate because of it. And even with the costs of the visits, we still pay less per month than we would for a policy with "better" coverage. But we're lucky that we are a mostly healthy family. It would definitely be a different situation if we had regular medical needs.

[beansprouts]

We do something similar. We just have a low-coverage plan through Humana that really only takes effect once you meet your high deductible. It is only $150 per month for the three of us, so I really only have it there for worst-case scenarios. It has a $5000 per person deductible, or $10,000 family, but once you meet it, it covers 100%. You are also allowed yearly checkups for free without having to meet the deductible. I can't see paying hundred or thousands of dollars every month, and then still having co-pays for visits!

 

We were looking for those, but couldn't find one that was a good deal for the five of us. Since dh still carries a group plan for his employees, it is a simple matter to jump back on if, heaven forbid, something catastrophic should occur.

 

It would be a tragic shame if health insurance ever became mandatory. The entire system is a total rip off, and is half the reason why medical care is so expensive.

[Dayle in Guatemala]

I know what you're dealing with. Gas here is over $5 a gallon and is going up each week. The up side is, we do have the chicken busses we can ride to help save money, but, these are only safe during the day and are usually 100 people in a 70 passenger bus!

 

Food prices here have more than doubled. I've been watching the news about the food shortages in 3rd world countries, and I can tell you, it's happening here. I pay $1.75 a pint for milk. And more than $3.00 for a loaf of bread. Cereal is about $6.00 for a small box.

 

Here's what I've tried to do to help out the costs here:

 

1. I use powdered milk for everything except drinking and even then, we are limited to 1 glass per day.

 

2. I don't buy anything pre made. I'm finding recipes for things that are quick and easy, but, nutritious for my family. (Rachel Ray is great with her 30 minute meals and I usually have leftovers for lunch the next day.)

 

3. Instead of sandwiches we are making wraps with tortillas. I try to add a lot of veggies (which are going up in price at the market, but, thank goodness are still cheap) and not much meat or cheese.

 

4. We are cutting back to only a few meals a week with meat in it. That's been a hard one for my dh because he's a big time carnivore!

 

5. I'm cutting back on portions when I serve the food. We don't need as much as we think we do!

 

6. Snacks for us are: popcorn, crackers, fruit, veggies, and home baked things. I no longer buy snacks.

 

Anyway, this is just a few things. The problem is only going to get worse, I'm sure. There are people living right next to me that are hungry. We try to help when we can, but, it isn't easy for us either. The crime rate here has already gone up and I know it's because people are desperate. It's hard right now for everyone (I remind myself of that when I start to struggle with self-pity!), it's a good time to really change our patterns. We needed to!:001_smile:

[Anne/Ankara]

Also, I wonder if older teens (14 and up) can pick up a part-time job to help with expenses. Here in our area, there still are a ton of places advertising for help (retail, restaurants, etc). Perhaps the older teens can pick up a part-time job and send the money into the family budget. I would imagine that many young people would actually be honored to help out their families in times like this-- they can learn new skills and acquire a "helping" mentality that will prove useful to them throughout their lives!

[Citrusheights5]

I know what you're dealing with. Gas here is over $5 a gallon and is going up each week. The up side is, we do have the chicken busses we can ride to help save money, but, these are only safe during the day and are usually 100 people in a 70 passenger bus!

:

Ahhh the chicken bus!!!! I had almost forgotten about them!!! It's not so much that they are only safe during the day time... or that their are 100 people on them... or that the little ticket collector/payment guy can squirm through the hoard of people to find the one person who hasn't paid... It's the fact that they never stop!!! I can remember trying to get off with my cousins, and having someone catch the 3 year old... I couldn't imagine trying to get off now, with a 2 yo, 4 yo, and 4 month old. I would have to have two of them strapped to me, and the big one jump with me... I know the answer.. but do they stop the buses?? Have they learned where the break is?? Thanks for the trip down memory lane.. :lol::lol::lol: I love the chicken buses...

 

Lee

[Mosaicmind]

Also, I wonder if older teens (14 and up) can pick up a part-time job to help with expenses. Here in our area, there still are a ton of places advertising for help (retail, restaurants, etc). Perhaps the older teens can pick up a part-time job and send the money into the family budget. I would imagine that many young people would actually be honored to help out their families in times like this-- they can learn new skills and acquire a "helping" mentality that will prove useful to them throughout their lives!

 

Three of my ds have paper routes and they buy their own necessities right now; (HBA, extra food stuff, clothes, ect...) They don't even gripe about it because they can get what they want instead of what I can afford.

[sandellie4]

We were looking for those, but couldn't find one that was a good deal for the five of us. Since dh still carries a group plan for his employees, it is a simple matter to jump back on if, heaven forbid, something catastrophic should occur.

 

It would be a tragic shame if health insurance ever became mandatory. The entire system is a total rip off, and is half the reason why medical care is so expensive.

 

You could just jump back on the insurance if something catastrophic came up? That sounds great. Would you be able to afford it once something catastrophic had happened? I don't know how pricing works... Sandy

[Dayle in Guatemala]

Ahhh the chicken bus!!!! I had almost forgotten about them!!! It's not so much that they are only safe during the day time... or that their are 100 people on them... or that the little ticket collector/payment guy can squirm through the hoard of people to find the one person who hasn't paid... It's the fact that they never stop!!! I can remember trying to get off with my cousins, and having someone catch the 3 year old... I couldn't imagine trying to get off now, with a 2 yo, 4 yo, and 4 month old. I would have to have two of them strapped to me, and the big one jump with me... I know the answer.. but do they stop the buses?? Have they learned where the break is?? Thanks for the trip down memory lane.. :lol::lol::lol: I love the chicken buses...

 

Lee

 

Oh they stop alright, for about 2 seconds. You have to be so ready to get off and pretty much they push you off to race the next chicken bus to the next stop to collect the people and the money. It is definitely a cultural experience!:001_smile::D