Can I REALLY Save Money Cooking Once A Month?
Cortney and I have successfully completed our first OAMC BIG DAY as Once A Month Mom’s. We have done it before, of course, but this is the first month of this site and of our new strategy of shopping the sales and using coupons to purchase our Once A Month Cooking grocery items! I was so excited to make the final grocery tally when I got home from the grocery store on Tuesday night! My husband was excited too. I was busy putting the groceries away and he was already asking me how much I had spent/saved this month! I am glad that he was excited to hear the results too!
So what were my results you ask? Well don’t let me keep you waiting. On all of the groceries for Cortney and I, I spent $145.66! That’s it! That was at least 50% less than any time I have ever done OAMC! That equates to $2.51 per meal! WOW! We are eating a main entree for a family of four for well less than $3/meal! AWESOME! And that is after making the choice to spend a little more money purchasing whole wheat pasta, whole grain bread, and brown rice. (For our breakdown of grocery savings/spending check out my completed grocery list here).
Now some of you are going to point out that we got a free turkey from Griggstown Quail Farm that we used and that is how we saved so much. I beg to differ! I also figured up how much we would have spent had I bought chicken breasts instead of having the free turkey. The total for the groceries would have been $168.22, which is still only $2.90/meal! A great savings if you ask me!
So if you are wondering if the 8 hours in your kitchen in one day is worth it, I would suggest doing the math. I like the old saying, “Time is Money”. If you have some time you can devote to this (and really you are saving yourself time every evening) you can really save yourself and your family some money. I think it is totally worth it! I am liking that we only spent $77 for our family for groceries for over half the month.
That is outstanding. I spent $193 today, plus I guesstimate that I had $50 or so in “at home stuff”. Without any coupons or shopping throughout the month, so not as awesome as you guys, but I’m super thrilled. Even at $240, that’s only $120 per family for all those meals!!
Next month I’m clipping those coupons and shopping throughout the month like you recommend, and then I’ll be playing in the big leagues!!
Okay, now off to chop/slice my veggies before hitting the couch for some veg time of my own!!
Thanks guys!
YEa – it’s SO fun to hear your results. People are always doubting that I stay at $500 a month for my spending – with toiletries (thanks CVS), especially with growing teen aged boys. It takes a little extra time, but it’s so worth it. I always tell them to do the math. If it takes 2 hours to cut/organize the coupons and sale flyers…HELLO – I’ll take the $75/an hour for that job.
I had a lot of stuff already in my stockpile, so I didn’t keep track of my cost this month. BUT, I also save money when I do OAMC because I am much less tempted to buy fast food or convenience foods when I know there is something already made in the freezer if I’m too tired to cook, or short on time. I save a lot of money that way!
I saved money because I didn’t have to stop at the grocery store most nights on my way home from work. I was spending anywhere for $15-$20 a trip at the store just for dinner stuff. Craziness.