You’ll remember that the purpose of my pantry challenge this month is not to save money, but instead to funnel money to stock up on seasonal fruits so we can save money in the winter.
As of my first report last week, I spent $282 and had $468 left in the budget.
This week, I spent a bit more than I would like, but the fresh fruits that are in season are so tempting. Here’s what I bought this week (just the basics (except for the chips the family was clamoring for; no stocking up this week):
In total (not including the veggies in the middle from the CSA that we paid for in May), we spent $144.29. Higher than I would like, but I guarantee we’ll eat almost all this food this week.
Total now, I’ve spent $426.29, and I have $323.71 left in the budget.
I need to be careful because we plan to buy organic blueberries sometime this month. Last year we bought 50 pounds, which seems like a lot, but they were all gone by February. This year we’re going to buy 80 pounds, and depending how much we pick ourselves, they’ll cost somewhere between $160 and $240.
Besides that big expense, I’m getting low on the meat that I can eat (lamb, pork, chicken and turkey), so I’ll need to buy some of that soon. That doesn’t leave much for the last 10 days of the month.
Still, I think keeping the budget tight and stocking up while the CSA is flowing is the best way to try to keep the budget in check.
Are you stocking up on any seasonal produce? If so, which ones?
We typically buy a bunch of whatever seasonal fruit is on sale and then freeze what we don’t eat. I think it definitely saves in the long run.
I think so, too. The hard part is finding the money upfront to stock up. 🙂
Found this really interesting! Thanks!