This is What $65 of Groceries Looks Like in March, 2013

 

Please excuse the poor photograph. A professional photographer is not on my list of professions. It is also not on my fourteen year old son who took this photograph's list either. But it will have to do.

 

 The food, toilet paper, and laundry soap above cost me about $65 to purchase this weekend. I think this purchase is a very typical one for an American household. It is really not how I usually would feed my family or shop. Times being what they are I am trying to relearn each day as inflation takes away more of my grocery buying power.

 

So what do I have up there?

Two loaves cheap wheat bread

One box store brand Cheerios

One box store brand granola bars

Two packages snack crackers

Bunch of bananas

Two store brand boxes of pasta (16oz each, I refuse to buy any pasta that does not have 16oz in the box anymore)

Package of soup mix my son likes

One box jello (request of my son)

One can mandarin oranges (to go with the requested jello)

4 pack of 1000 sheet toilet paper

Jar of sale spaghetti sauce

Two cans of generic tomato soup

Two cans of tuna

Two packs of ground beef from the local meat market (cheaper and nicer than grocery store)

One pound store brand real butter

4 dozen organic small eggs (I purchase these for $1 a dozen from a mennonite family)

One pound package of cheap deli ham bought with coupon

Package of cheese meat coating mix from the dairy case (bought with coupon, took half the cheese out for another use)

Two bags of pretzels (bogo)

One gallon milk

Jug of laundry soap (free with electronic coupon)

Two bags of frozen veggies

Bag of baby broccoli (on sale)

One bottle of diet coke for the addict

Bag of apples

 

I think that is all that was there. Sad isn't it. Just a few years ago that amount of money would have almost fed my whole family for the entire week and it certainly would have been better food than this. On top of this purchase I ended up at a bread thrift store later in the weekend, as well as picking up a couple odd items at a liquidation store, and I bought $25 worth of produce, which was not much produce.

 

 Now before I get any haters here. I admit that I could do better than this food wise and spend a lot less money. Like I said I am relearning things. I have moved to a new area and my resources are different. But at the same time this is a great example of how a lot of Americans shop.

 

 I will do better! How I am not sure, but I will.