$75.00 a week challenge

Okay, I am challenging myself.......I am setting my grocery budget for my family of 4 to $75.00 a week. In the past the weekly grocery shopping was double that, if not more - I tend to have my grandmothers mentality on this "you must be able to feed an army at a moments notice" - so our pantry/fridge/freezer is always full. Well, I've been inspired by so many to plan, be resourceful, and to make the most out of every morsel you have - so I've set this goal for myself and am really excited!

Like I have said in the past, I aspire to be one of those women that goes into the grocery store, loads the cart up with $200 worth of groceries and ends up paying $1.54. So I bought a binder and have transformed myself into one of those ladies.....it just makes me giggle because it excites me - organizing, saving money, couponing, etc. excites me! Oh my! ha! ha! But hey, I'm saving money, feeding my family, and am being smart....so if that's ridiculous, then so be it!

I don't have pictures of anything because I'm having technical difficulties with my camera - there is a memory card trapped in there with some great pictures, so I'm working on it! But here is a running total of my purchases for my inagural week of my $75 Challenge - just use your imagination to visualize the items! ha! ha!

Schnucks
Suave Mousse $1.34
Dr. Pepper 2 ltr. $1..25
5.76 lbs. Split Chicken Breast $5.70
7.42 lbs. Pork Roast $7.35

Suave Product Coupon -$3.00
Free 2-liter Dr. Pepper -$1.59
(I'm not sure why, but the store gave me the value of the coupon vs. the actual cost of the product?)
Total w/ tax: $11.36

IGA
2 Prairie Farms Orange Juice (1/2 gallon) $2.00
2 Prairie Farms Chocolate Milk (Pint)$2.00
3 New York Garlic Bread Sticks $4.98

3 New York Garlic Bread Coupons -$1.50
Total w/ tax: $7.59

Walmart
2 Pillsbury Valentine's Ready to Bake Sugar Cookies $2.00
2 Starkist Tuna Pouches $1.86
2 Starkist Flavored Tuna Pouches $3.04

Coupon for Pillsbury Cookies -$0.75
4 Coupons for Starkist Tuna -$4.00
Total w/ tax: $2.22

Meijer
Cascade Rinse Agent $3.74
2 lbs. Ground Beef $3.82
4 Chuck Roast Steaks $3.76
2.5 lb. Bottom Round Roast $4.79
4.44 lbs. Fuji Apples $4.44
Fresh Mushrooms $1.00
Fresh Broccoli $1.00
Crate of Tangerines $4.00
2 Quaker Rice Cake Tortillas $2.00
2 lbs. Baby Carrots $2.00
Green Giant Frozen Creamed Spinach $1.00
Green Giant Broccoli w/ Butter Sauce $1.00
Dog Rawhide $4.23
2 Meijer Brand Sandwich Bags $2.00
2 Meijer Brand Snack Bags $2.00
2 Gallons Meijer 2% Milk $4.00
4 Loaves Aunt Millie's Bread $5.00
2 Pkg. Angel Soft Toilet Paper $2.00

Green Giant Broccoli w/ Butter Sauce -$1.00
(Buy 10, Get 11th item free)
Coupon Green Giant Frozen Vegetables -$0.50
Coupon Green Giant Frozen Vegetables -$0.50
Coupon Quaker Rice Cake Tortillas -$0.50
Coupon Quaker Rice Cake Tortillas -$1.00
Coupon Cascade Rinse Agent -$3.74
Total w/ tax: $45.90

With $7.93 remaining, I still have to buy a 10 lb. bag of potatoes for $2.49 from Schnucks and bananas from County Market that are on sale for $0.39/lb. So overall, for my first week, I think I've done great! I am using supplies on hand of pasta, rice, etc. and as those things run out I will include them on future shopping trips. Hopefully I can stay on track as doing this will help me to meet other financial goals I have set for myself this year.