Groceries - week 5

I'm posting this early because I'm done shopping for the week, I've done the math, and it's been a bitter pill to swallow. But at least it's done. 

Let's just say, it's a good thing I planted an almond tree

Groceries - week 5 
Grocery store - $34.73
meat, a couple snacks


Farmer's Market - $175
Organic grass-fed beef (3 lb chuck roast,  4 lbs ground), red/yellow/orange bell peppers, jalapenos, tomatoes, purple grapes, oranges, watermelons, honeydew melons, broccoli, eggplant, zucchini, yellow crookneck squash, potatoes, 3/4 lb salmon fillet

16 pounds nuts, not processed with wheat, in shell (price and shipping costs) -  $56.93

16 pounds dried beans, not processed or harvested with wheat (price and shipping costs) - $98.00

Total: $364.66 ($209.73 reg. groceries, $154.93 beans and nut)

So, like I thought, beans and nuts were godawful expensive. And the flu part-two is visiting (complications), so I caved and went to the grocery store for the day before the Farmer's Market


Our Budget for the future
I sat down and figured out exactly how much some of this stuff is going to cost. I haven't done it before because, truth to tell, I've been disorganized. I'm getting used to produce being only seasonally available, even half-planning for it. But it's not a natural way for me to think, yet. I was still surprised the day I went to order beans a few months back and found out they were out until next season.

My brain is still partially stuck in the land of the grocery store, where almost everything can be purchased year round. So meat, beans, and nuts having a finite season managed to sneak up on me. When I found out, though, I didn't plan so much as make purchases of opportunity. I would buy a little extra here, a little extra there. I'd wait until we have some low bills or extra cash and buy surplus food then.

That's my old pattern of shopping. When sales would come up, I'd buy extra of our staples. I'm used to doing that. And that simply doesn't work when we're dealing with building up supplies for when there ARE no supplies. This last year, we ran out of some foods that I really needed. I could get my kids alternatives, but I was pretty much screwed. It finally brought home to me that I need to plan better, but as usual, life gets a bit complicated and the planning got put on the back burner until now.

We need these too badly to run out again. I should plan like I need to: for the year, not just for a week or month of meals. If I have only one source of a certain vitamin, I better dang well make sure I can get it.

When I have all that planning down, I believe I'll put it up here. What I do have at the moment is this: buying nuts, beans, and meat, plus the monthly 'extra' supplies I'll need to last when these are out of season, would cost $650 a month. Without any produce at all.

My $150 grocery budget is $600 a month.

So, the cheap budget is not going to happen. If we have the money to buy enough food to be healthy and get all our vitamins, we will dang well buy it. I will do everything I can to keep the costs low, but I'm not going to sacrifice the kids' health as a result. I'll just be dang grateful that we have the resources that can support our diet.

We'll see how much this is all going to cost once I get it all figured out. :-/