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Big Family Grocery Spending for November, 2025

December 2, 2025 by Laura Leave a Comment

This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see our disclosure policy.

Here’s our Big Family Grocery Spending for November, 2025 post!

Curious how much we spent during the month of November and what groceries we bought? Here’s the breakdown…

Big Family Grocery Spending for November, 2025

1. Aldi

On November 3, I ran into Aldi for some non-perishables we needed. I grabbed a huge pile of Fruit/Veggie pouches for Auggie and the grandbabies, fritos, crackers, cake mix, salsa, meat sticks, rotel, blueberries, a case of broth, and two boxes of granola bars.

Total for food at Aldi: $86.48

2. Sam’s

On November 5, I loaded up at Sam’s. I bought chicken drumsticks, potatoes, spring mix, sweet peppers, apples, bananas, frozen fruit, yogurt, shredded cheese, 2-pound brick of Colby-jack cheese, sliced Colby-jack cheese, 3 tubs of sour cream, heavy whipping cream, z-bars, Rotel, chicken broth, fruit twists, ranch dressing, salsa, peanut butter, honey, and lunch meat.

I also picked up some packaged items for our kids’ lunches. Because of their autism, they have some extreme food aversions so I’ve been having a hard time figuring out what I can send them to eat at school. I picked up some dried fruit packs, granola bites, Pirate’s Booty, meat sticks, and cheese/cracker packs.

Malachi had requested that I grab a few snack/drink items for him to take to his office. He often has someone there editing videos with him and wanted to fill up a table with snack options.

Last but not least, I got several items to help fill our Little Free Pantry. Somehow I made it out of the store with just one cart!

Total groceries for our household at Sam’s: $333.22

3. Wal-Mart

Several times during the month, we went to Wal-Mart to buy perishable items to add to the small fridge we put outside by our sidewalk for people to take as needed. While there, we picked up what our family needed also. Most of what is in these pictures shares what we put into our Little Free Pantry fridge during the month of November, which came out of a separate budget or was funded by others.

Total for our family’s needs: $217.62

4. Aldi

On November 12, I went to Aldi. About half of what I purchased was food to put into our Little Free Pantry. And for our family, I bought milk, ham, grapes, clementines, apples, chips, lasagna noodles, Clif bars, broccoli, spring mix, zucchini, salsa, granola, half and half, fruit/veggie pouches, cake mix, stuffing mix, and pears.

Total from our grocery budget: $116.93

5. Sam’s

On November 19, I filled a cart at Sam’s with apples, grapes, bananas, butter, sour cream, tomato sauce, tomato soup, smoked sausage, shredded cheese, avocado mash, peanut butter, cereal, whole oats, honey, clif bars, strawberry bars (for $0.91/box!), eggs, meat sticks, pistachios, peanuts, dried strawberries, fruit twists, oatmeal cookie chunks (four bags on clearance), canned chicken, applesauce, granola, hot dogs, pickles, cheese slices, hamburger meat, spring mix, spinach, and pork roast.

Total at Sam’s: $413.38

6. McDonald’s

As we were traveling home from Kansas this month, we stopped and bought 80 chicken nuggets at McDonald’s. Malachi was with us and preferred two cheeseburgers. The total cost for ten of us to eat was ridiculously cheap, and the kids LOVED this special treat! Also, in case you’re wondering how quickly we can eat 80 nuggets – they were gone in twenty minutes.

Total at McDonald’s: $23.09

7. Wal-Mart

On November 24, I went to Wal-Mart and found that 9:30 in the morning is a great time to strike gold on meat markdowns! I got great prices on brats, chicken, hamburger meat, hamburger patties, and tri tip! I also got salad, milk, greens, and bananas.

Total at Wal-Mart: $144.95

8. Costco

Next, I went to Costco to buy necessities plus some special treats for our Thanksgiving day family gathering. I had some Costco credit to use, which made this trip cost very little!

I picked up broccoli, blackberries, blueberries, cherries, pineapple, butter, granola bars, berry bars, flour, cream cheese, chips, guacamole, chicken nuggets, pizza, coffee, eggnog, heavy whipping cream, and some snacks.

Total for food after certificate: $88.67

Total for groceries November, 2025: $1,425.07

Our WIC benefits provide our littles with around $120 worth of groceries each month. You can read here to learn our 2025 Grocery Budget plus look over ways I’m able to keep our budget at this level.

Running Totals for 2025

January spending: $679
February spending: $1,459
March spending: $1,346
April spending: $1,364
May spending: $1374
June spending: $1,127
July spending: $633
August spending: $1,501
September spending: $1,603
October spending: $1,347
November spending: $1,425

Heavenly Homemaker's Club Members: Access your homepage and all your fantastic resources here! Not a member yet? Please join us!

Big Family Grocery Spending for September, 2025

October 1, 2025 by Laura 4 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see our disclosure policy.

Here’s our Big Family Grocery Spending for September, 2025 post!

Curious how much we spent during the month of September and what groceries we bought? Here’s the breakdown!

Big Family Grocery Spending for September, 2025

1. Costco

On September 3, I filled up a cart at Costco! I got four bags of apples, a watermelon, 4-pounds of strawberries, 2 containers of raspberries, sweet peppers, oranges, bananas, spinach, cream, half and half, sour cream, butter, shredded cheese, three boxes of frozen pizza, crusted tilapia, laughing cow cheese for lunches, beef hotdogs, bacon cheddar brats on clearance, coffee, chips, barbecue sauce, cocoa powder, pancake mix, pepperoni, and sliced cheese.

Total for Groceries at Costco: $377.99

2. Aldi

I went to Aldi that same day, hoping my chance to score some meat markdowns. I didn’t find any, but the prices on several items were great per pound so I grabbed boneless chicken thighs ($2.49/pound) and grass-fed hamburger patties ($5.49/pound). We use Aldi’s sausage patties for breakfast sandwiches so I got two more bags of those and five gallons of milk.

Total at Aldi: $88.74

3. Sam’s

On September 6, I ran into Sam’s on our way home from a church event because it’s right on the path. I needed Peanut Butter and Bacon, and as you can see, I very much stocked up on Peanut Butter! This is our favorite kind and Sam’s is the only place I can find it. As I always do, I checked for mark-downs on meat. I scored BIG on hamburger patties and even BIGGER on racks of ribs. The ribs were marked down plus each package was an additional $5 off. And they were double packs. So I got two packages each of two racks of ribs for around $13 each. AMAZING.

Total at Sam’s: $196.45

4. Aldi

On September 10, I went to Aldi for our weekly milk plus a few other needed items. I do crack up at the fact that this is what my shopping trip looks like when I just need to “run into Aldi for a couple of things.” :) I got five gallons of milk, Caesar salad kits, cilantro, spaghetti sauce, cantaloupe, granola, lots of yogurt, chips, crackers, cumin, raisins, bananas, limes, frozen fries and tots, shrimp, lasagna noodles, fruit/veggie pouches, sliced pineapple, meat sticks, hamburger meat, and salami.

Total at Aldi: $147.32

5. Hy-Vee Pick-Up

On September 13, we got most of our WIC items for the month through Hy-Vee Pick-up. Acacia aged out of WIC last month, so we get fewer items now. Still, we are so blessed to get several boxes of cereal, some cheese, whole grain pasta, beans, eggs, and produce through Josie and Auggie’s benefits. I forgot to take a picture until most of our groceries were put away…

Total at Hy-Vee: $0 out of pocket

6. Costco

On September 17, I went to Costco and got shredded cheese, rolled oats, milk, sweet peppers, spinach, pears, strawberries, raspberries, meat sticks, graham crackers, potatoes, frozen meatballs, white queso, nectarines, sour cream, butter, chips, bananas, mandarins, chocolate chips, canned pumpkin, pickles, sliced ham, broccoli, and a Rotisserie Chicken.

Total for Groceries at Costco: $217.91

7. Sam’s

On September 24, I stocked up at Sam’s and found meat markdowns while I was there too! I bought 20-pounds of ground beef, three packages of chicken breast tenderloins marked down, plus spinach, spring mix, baby carrots, cream, half and half, oatmeal packets, butter, bacon, brown sugar, pickles, French fries, bananas, raspberries, apples, 10-dozen eggs, avocado cups, sliced cheese, chocolate chips, rotel, canned corn, sausage links, yogurt, honey, maple syrup, spaghetti sauce, egg noodles, minced onion, veggie straws, and some packaged snacks for lunches and soccer games (like granola bars).

Total for Groceries at Sam’s: $490.69

8. Wal-Mart

After I left Sam’s that day, I went next door to Wal-Mart. I forgot to take a picture, but I bought four gallons of milk, seven bags of frozen veggies, a big bag of frozen hashbrowns, three cans of pineapple tidbits, two packages of shredded coconut, two packages of cubed ham, and a pork roast marked down to less than $2/pound.

Total for Groceries at Wal-Mart: $52.63

9. Amazon

Also not pictured is three boxes of Go-Go Squeeze applesauce or yogurts that came in our subscribe-and-save order this month.

Total at Amazon: $31.42

Total for groceries September, 2025: $1,603

Our WIC benefits provide our littles with around $120 worth of groceries each month. You can read here to learn our 2025 Grocery Budget plus look over ways I’m able to keep our budget at this level.

Running Totals for 2025

January spending: $679
February spending: $1,459
March spending: $1,346
April spending: $1,364
May spending: $1374
June spending: $1,127
July spending: $633
August spending: $1,501
September spending: $1,603

Heavenly Homemaker's Club Members: Access your homepage and all your fantastic resources here! Not a member yet? Please join us!

Big Family Grocery Spending for August, 2025

September 1, 2025 by Laura 1 Comment

This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see our disclosure policy.

Here’s our Big Family Grocery Spending for August, 2025 post!

Curious how much we spent during the month of August and what groceries we bought? Here’s the breakdown!

Big Family Grocery Spending for August, 2025

1. Slim Chickens

On August 5, we took advantage of Free Kid’s Meal Coupons that the kids had earned. My dad and his wife had sent me birthday money, so I used that to pay for Matt’s and my lunches. Yay for a fun, free lunch outing!

Total spent out of pocket at Slim Chickens: $0

2. Aldi

On August 7, we had a big grocery stock up morning! At Aldi, I bought blueberries (x2), cantaloupe (x2), Caesar salad kits (x3), pears, mandarin oranges, baby carrots, 100% juice fruit cups (x9), bags of grapes (x2), boneless chicken thighs (4), corn chips (x2), granola, pure and simple bars (x5), meat sticks (x2), crackers, salami, pasta sauce (x4), salsa (x4), raisin boxes (x2), whole milk yogurt cups (x4), fruit/veggie pouches (x21), ground sausage (x4), sausage patties (x3), veggie straws (x3), and brown sugar (x4).

Total at Aldi: $263.31

3. Costco

Next, we went to Costco. We bought tuna, canned chicken, strawberries (4 pounds), broccoli, parmesan cheese, cream (x2), half and half, milk (x4), bananas, spinach, mixed greens, granola, sausage links, minced onion, tortelloni, cheese/cracker packs, butter (8 pounds), eggs (5 dozen), chicken nuggets, avocado mash (x2), ground beef, fresh sweet corn, corndogs, applesauce cups, beef sticks, peanuts, a few cases of drinks, and several packages of easy-to-pack lunch items that were on sale (like granola bites and clif bars).

Total at Costco: $504.46

4. Costco Pizza

We grabbed a pizza for the kids to eat for lunch when we got home…

Costco Pizza: $10.89

5. Cheddars

We got to have an anniversary date on the 13th! We used what was left on a gift card, then paid the overage out of pocket.

Total after gift card: $8.55

6. Wal-Mart

On August 14, Matt picked up 4 gallons of milk, 10 bananas, and a pound of spring mix. I didn’t get a picture. :)

Total at Wal-Mart: $19.74

7. Hy-Vee Pick-Up

On August 19, we ordered most of our WIC items for the month. (Acacia turns five and will age out after this month. Such a big girl!) I also put four gallons of whole milk in our order, so we paid for that out of pocket.

Total out of pocket from Hy-Vee: $11.52

8. Sam’s

On August 20, I went to Sam’s to get food we needed, but mostly to get our favorite box of bacon. :) I checked for meat markdowns while I was there, and was so happy to find pork chops, steak, and hamburger meat all marked down! I also picked up chicken legs, chicken thighs, carrots, strawberries, bananas, apples, Caesar salad kits, potatoes, clementines, sweet peppers, 5-dozen eggs, fish sticks, sliced cheese, shredded cheese, peanut butter, honey, brown sugar, chocolate chips, beef hot dogs, brats, smoked sausage, deli turkey, deli ham, applesauce, cream, sour cream, coconut oil, and avocado cups.

Total at Sam’s: $401.14

9. Amazon

We get several cases of Go-Go Squeeze items from Amazon through Subscribe and Save for the kids’ lunches and for on-the-go snacks. I forgot to take a picture before we put our order away!

Total from Amazon: $33.81

10. Wal-Mart

I had plans to head to Aldi for a bigger shopping trip, but hadn’t had a chance to get out yet. So I put in a pick-up order at Walmart for some essentials to hold us over until I could do some real shopping. Matt picked these up while he was out getting a hair cut: milk (4 gallons), spring mix, frozen fruit (2 big bags), coconut flakes, baby carrots, and flax seed.

Total at Wal-Mart: $25.50

11. Aldi

I was finally able to get to Aldi at the end of the month. I picked up pizzas, hot dogs, brats, and chips in preparation for Acacia’s big birthday meal. I found incredible deals on boxes of 100% juice freezer pops ($0.21/each!) and bottles of squeeze mayo ($0.55/each!) – all marked down because it was the end of summertime. Plus I got cream, half and half, fruit/veggie pouches, cantaloupe, creamer, Caesar salad kits, boneless chicken thighs, sausage patties, ham, crackers, brown sugar, cake mixes, 100% juice pear cups, and pickles.

Total at Aldi: $219.43

Total for groceries August, 2025: $1,501

I went over budget this month, but I’ve been under the past couple of months, so it all balances out!

Our WIC benefits provide our littles with around $180 worth of groceries each month. You can read here to learn our 2025 Grocery Budget plus look over ways I’m able to keep our budget at this level.

Running Totals for 2025

January spending: $679
February spending: $1,459
March spending: $1,346
April spending: $1,364
May spending: $1374
June spending: $1,127
July spending: $633
August spending: $1,501

Heavenly Homemaker's Club Members: Access your homepage and all your fantastic resources here! Not a member yet? Please join us!

Big Family Grocery Spending for May, 2025

June 2, 2025 by Laura 4 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see our disclosure policy.

Here’s our Big Family Grocery Spending for May, 2025 post!

Big Family Grocery Spending for May, 2025

Curious how much we spent during the month of May and what groceries we bought? Here’s the breakdown!

1. Aldi

On May 5, I was close to Aldi so I ran in to see if there were any meat markdowns. They didn’t have any – but I did get strawberries for $1.99/pound.

Total at Aldi: $22.12

2. Sam’s

On May 5, Auggie and I went to Sam’s after his speech therapy appointment. We got pork chops (marked down!), ground beef, frozen hamburger patties, bacon, beef smoked sausages, cheddar franks, beef hotdogs, orange chicken, avocado mash, heavy whipping cream, milk, eggs, shredded cheese, yogurt, peanut butter, honey, rotel, minced onion, pistachios, pickles, spring mix, two kinds of apples, broccoli, bananas, and sweet peppers.

Total for groceries at Sam’s: $347.25

3. Aldi

The Saturday before Mother’s Day, I ran into Aldi to get strawberries and Caesar salad to go with our family meal that Sunday. While there, I grabbed mandarins because we’ve been eating them like crazy! Plus I bought sausage patties so that I’d have them on hand for the Breakfast Sandwiches we like so much. Ah, and I also bought Gelatto. No reason. Only because it’s fun and delicious. :)

Total at Aldi: $46.80

4. McDonald’s

I took three of the kids to a wedding in Omaha on Saturday, May 10. I forgot to take any pictures while there because I was visiting with so many friends. But back at home, Matt, Elias, Malorie, and Malachi were holding down the fort with the other four kids. Matt splurged on McDonalds’ for their dinner that night. I don’t know what deals they found, but it must have been good!

Total for McDonald’s: $20.22

5. Sam’s

For Mother’s Day, we had a lovely, simple meal that included two Rotisserie Chickens from Sam’s. Elias, Malorie, and Malachi picked them up on their way home from church.

Total for two Sam’s Rotisserie Chickens: $10.88

6. The Mill

Also on Mother’s Day, we girls made plans to go out for coffee together after lunch. Kelsey wasn’t feeling well and couldn’t join us. :( But Eva, Malorie, and I had a lovely time enjoying the break together.

Total at The Mill: $17.75

7. Wal-Mart

Mid-month, I picked up a few WIC items at Wal-Mart. I also got two gallons of milk and a few fun treats/splurges for the kids’ upcoming track meet and field trips. I couldn’t pass up the Yoda crackers. :)

Total out of pocket at Wal-Mart: $25.00

8. Hy-Vee

Saturday, May 17, I picked up our May WIC items that I’d ordered from Hy-Vee. As of right now, Hy-Vee is the only store in our area that partners with WIC to allow for online ordering and pick-up. It is super helpful to shop like this for these items, so I take advantage! I got cereal, cheese, yogurt, pasta, rice, beans, and produce.

Total out of pocket: $4.18

9. Sam’s

On May 20, Auggie and I went to Sam’s after his speech therapy. We loaded up on greens, pears, apples, oranges, grapes, strawberries, raspberries, pineapple, watermelon, sweet peppers, cucumbers, cream, half and half, chicken (marked down), hotdogs, steak (marked down), smoked sausage, bacon, nuts, sliced cheese, turkey lunchmeat, sour cream, white queso, peanut butter, oats, applesauce, yogurt, pepperoni, mac and cheese, chocolate chips, coconut rolls, crackers, meat sticks, granola bars, and some snack bars to take on our summer outings.

Total for groceries at Sam’s: $552.59

10. Wal-Mart

After I left Sam’s, I went into Wal-Mart to grab milk and oatmeal.

Total at Wal-Mart: $19.10

11. Amazon

I didn’t get a picture, but we got a few boxes of Go-Go Squeeze pouches in our Amazon subscribe and save order.

Total from Amazon: $33.77

12. Sam’s

On Saturday, May 24, I ran into Sam’s to grab a few produce items for our Sunday Lunch (we were having BLTs). On a whim, I decided to check for meat markdowns, assuming there wouldn’t be any because it was a Saturday afternoon and a very busy shopping day for people. I was SO GLAD I checked! I found multiple packages of grass-fed hamburger meat marked down!! Twenty-one pounds of good beef? Yes, please.

Total at Sam’s: $138.52

13. Aldi

On May 28, we needed milk so I took a couple kids to Aldi with me. Besides milk, I got several other Aldi favorites plus more fresh produce to get us through the next few days.

Total at Aldi: $133.84

Total for groceries in May, 2025: $1,374

NOTE: Our WIC benefits provide our littles with around $180 worth of groceries each month. You can read here to learn our 2025 Grocery Budget plus look over ways I’m able to keep our budget at this level.

Running Totals for 2025

January spending: $679
February spending: $1,459
March spending: $1,346
April spending: $1,364
May spending: $1374

Heavenly Homemaker's Club Members: Access your homepage and all your fantastic resources here! Not a member yet? Please join us!

Big Family Grocery Spending for April, 2025

May 1, 2025 by Laura 3 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see our disclosure policy.

Here’s our Big Family Grocery Spending for April, 2025 post!

Big Family Grocery Spending for April, 2025

Curious how much we spent during the month of April and what groceries we bought? Here’s the breakdown!

1. Costco

April 7 was the first shopping day of the month that I needed groceries. I got restocked on fresh fruits and veggies: Strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, grapes, bananas, sweet peppers, apples, pears, carrots, a salad kit, and oranges. I also got frozen pizza, veggie straws, tortilla chips, cottage cheese, milk, sour cream, half and half, maple syrup, avocado cups, applesauce cups, parmesan cheese, hamburger meat, hot dogs, brats, chicken legs, a Rotisserie chicken, and a case of Kombucha.

I felt great about getting a big Costco-sized cart full of groceries, full of meat and produce, for just over $300.

Total spent for groceries at Costco: $311.25

2. Aldi

On April 9, we headed to Aldi right after it opened because I was hoping to catch some meat markdowns. Once again, there were none. :( But I did get some boneless chicken thighs on sale for just $2.49/pound, so that was a great score! Butter was on sale so I got some, though it wasn’t a fabulous deal so I only got four pounds.

While there, I grabbed some of our Aldi essentials: whole milk yogurt, baking supplies, organic pasta sauce, sausage patties for sandwiches, and pear cups for lunches. I also got two dozen eggs – not because they were a great price but because I didn’t want to run short. I got some (non-hydrogenated) Peanut Butter to hold us over until we could get our favorite at Sam’s. And I got espresso because Malachi has been having fun making tasty lattes each morning!

Total at Aldi: $145.72

3. Walmart

After we left Aldi, we took the crew into Walmart for a little bit of an outing plus to check, once again, for meat markdowns. I only found some boneless chicken breasts, which aren’t our favorite (we prefer thighs). But for $1.92/pound, they rise to the top of the favorite list! That was the only meat worth grabbing that day, but I’m thankful that we at least found a great deal on food we’ll use!

I also got cocoa powder (which has been harder to find lately) and some mixed greens for smoothies.

Total for food at Wal-Mart: $41.12

4. Azure Standard

On April 11, we got an Azure Standard order. I don’t order from them as much as I used to now that we live in Lincoln and I have access to much of what I need from Costco and Sam’s. But I am blessed to accrue a small amount of referral credit each month, and there are certain items from Azure I really love. I used our credit this month and got 25-pounds of whole wheat pastry flour, 30-pounds of frozen hashbrown potatoes, a case of tortillas, two bags of chocolate chips, and some special low-sugar cookies to take on outings for our kids.

Total out of pocket for our Azure order: $0

5. Sam’s

On April 14, I ran into Sam’s and got three 2-packs of peanut butter, a bottle of honey, brown sugar, cheese/cracker packs and meat sticks for lunches, hamburger meat, spaghetti sauce, cream, chocolate chips, and eggs. (Eggs were just $4.00/dozen – the price is slowly going down!)

Total for groceries at Sam’s: $170.93

6. Wal-Mart

I ran next door to Wal-Mart to get a few things we needed, and while there I got a bunch of bananas, four gallons of milk, and a container of spinach.

Total for groceries at Walmart: $20.51

7. Aldi

On April 16, I took Anna to Aldi to grab a couple items for an upcoming family birthday celebration. I only found one of the birthday items I needed – BUT I scored big time on boneless chicken thighs marked down 50% off! There were many packages available so I didn’t hold back and grabbed 10 of them for $1.25/pound. Amazing!!

While there, I picked up a pineapple on sale plus several other of our favorite Aldi items: hard salami and meat sticks for lunches, Caesar salad kits, marshmallows for Rice Krispie treats, several pounds of sausage, sliced cheese, pickles, pear cups, crackers, canned pears, and coffee creamer.

Total at Aldi: $140.04

8. Hy-Vee

On April 18, I put in a pick-up order for our WIC items at Hy-Vee. This makes it so easy and I’m thankful for this online/pick-up option that Hy-Vee offers.

Total out of pocket after WIC benefits: $0.99

9. Scooters

On April 23, Malachi and I took Keith and Anna to Omaha for evaluations and diagnosis so that we can help meet their overall needs more fully. It was an incredibly intense day, beginning at 8:00am and not ending until after 3:00pm. Therefore, afterward I decided that Malachi and I had earned a treat. We ran to Scooters to get special coffee to get us through on our ride home. I didn’t get a picture of the drinks, but here’s Keith pre-appointment!

Total at Scooters: $12.59

10. Aldi

On April 24, I went to Aldi again. I didn’t have a long list, and I mostly went for milk. I grabbed four gallons plus half and half, cream, barbecue sauce, yogurt, bananas, mandarins, fruit/veggie pouches, applesauce, two kinds of apples, blackberries, granola, and cream cheese.

Total at Aldi: $75.00

11. Wal-Mart

On April 28, I went to Wal-Mart to finish using up our WIC produce benefits for the month. (I got two containers of greens, bananas, and strawberries with our benefits). While I was there, of course I checked in for meat markdowns! I found some slider-sized hamburger patties marked down, then happened upon big bags of individually packaged organic veggie straws that were featured at Easter. They were a super cheap clearance steal, so I grabbed six 12-pack bags!

I also picked up cocoa powder, unsweetened coconut flakes, coffee creamers, and banana wax peppers while I was there.

Total out of pocket for groceries at Wal-Mart: $59.46

12. Costco

After Wal-Mart, I went to Costco. I bought a 10-pound tube of hamburger meat, chicken nuggets, frozen fries, peach cups, 100% juice freezer pops, canned chicken, heavy whipping cream, half and half, shredded cheese, pickles, yogurt, guacamole, tortilla chips, raspberries, blueberries, fruit bars, peanuts, and frozen pizza. Brayden had requested Lunchables for an upcoming outdoor fun day at school, so I bought the Costco version of those for a special treat.

Total for groceries at Costco: $351.97

13. Amazon Subscribe and Save

Somewhere in there, we received applesauce and yogurt pouches from Amazon.

Total for food from Amazon: $33.02

14. Bonus Produce

One of our neighbors is a college student who is studying Botany. She and her fellow students have a greenhouse, and every once in a while, she delivers us some fresh peppers, tomatoes, or lettuce that they have grown. It’s so much fun and very tasty!

Meanwhile, she parks her motorcycle in our back parking area – a win-win! (And for the record, we’d let her park there even if she didn’t give us delicious fresh produce.) ;)

Also, Malorie works at a daycare and twice each month, a produce truck hands out a small but nice amount of free fruits and veggies to everyone there. This month, she brought home a fun sack full of onions, cucumbers, peppers, and I can’t remember what else. We make use of everything that comes into our home, and we are thankful for these bonuses!

Total for groceries in April, 2025: $1,364

NOTE: Our WIC benefits provide our littles with around $180 worth of groceries each month. You can read here to learn our 2025 Grocery Budget plus look over ways I’m able to keep our budget at this level.

Running Totals for 2025

January spending: $679
February spending: $1,459
March spending: $1,346
April spending: $1,364

Heavenly Homemaker's Club Members: Access your homepage and all your fantastic resources here! Not a member yet? Please join us!

Big Family Grocery Spending for February, 2025

March 1, 2025 by Laura 4 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see our disclosure policy.

Here’s our Big Family Grocery Spending for February, 2025 post!

Big Family Grocery Spending for February, 2025

Curious how much we spent during the month of February and what groceries we bought? Here’s the breakdown!

1. Sam’s

I hadn’t done much serious grocery shopping since mid-January so we were out of a lot of staples. Auggie and I went to Sam’s on February 4 and got milk, sour cream, shredded cheese, bacon, eggs, chicken legs, grass-fed hamburger meat, beef roast that had been marked down, coffee, coffee creamer, bananas, pineapple, apples, pears, Caesar salad kits, spinach, mixed greens, lunch meat, sliced cheese, honey, peanut butter, yogurt, white queso, avocado cups, spaghetti sauce, condiments, applesauce and yogurt pouches, applesauce cups, peach cups, graham crackers, minced onion, meat sticks, peanut butter cracker packs, a case of tomato soup, and beef sausage. I ran out of cart space, otherwise I might have picked up even more!

Total at Sam’s: $473.81

2. Runza

We enjoyed a special service project with several families from church on February 8. Afterward, those who wished to join could meet at Runza for dinner together. We almost never eat out and decided that this was a great opportunity to hang out with friends and give our kids a restaurant experience since we knew we’d have lots of adult help there.

Instead of ordering meals, I just ordered several packs of 4-piece chicken strips and some large fries for everyone to share. It didn’t get everyone completely full, but it was enough to have fun and get us by (plus I’d fed everyone some quesadillas a couple hours prior so they wouldn’t be starving at the restaurant).

Kids meals come with a free ice cream cone coupon, and when my niece moved away from Nebraska a few months ago, she gave me an envelope full of them! So we pulled those out and had free ice cream to finish filling our bellies!

Total at Runza: $31.77

3. Wal-Mart

On February 10, we were almost out of milk and there was a possible snow storm on its way. So we ran to Wal-Mart to grab milk, plus I picked up tortillas, apples, and coffee creamer.

Total for food/drink at Wal-Mart: $39.36

4. Aldi

On February 13, we ran to Aldi to get some basics, especially chicken and cream. I was happy to find that boneless chicken thighs were on sale for $2.49/pound so I got four big packages. I also picked up grass fed stew meat on sale, salad kits (x2), bag of apples (x2), granola (x3), whole milk yogurt tubs (x2), whole milk yogurt cups (x5), pear cups in 100% juice (x4), chicken broth (x4), beef broth, sausage (x2), sliced cheese (x5), salami for lunches, frozen fries (x2), frozen tots, frozen onion rings (x2), lasagna noodles (x2), half & half, heavy whipping cream (x2), fruit/veggie pouches for Auggie (x20), salsa (x4), pasta sauce (x2), butter (x2), instant oatmeal (x2), and baby carrots (x2).

Total at Aldi: $229.21

5. Hy-Vee

To save time and effort, I ordered all of our kids’ WIC items through Hy-Vee Pick-Up this month. Malorie went and got it for me which was super helpful. I added three gallons of milk to the order that weren’t covered (we like whole milk and WIC only gives us 1% or skim now), plus I went over the produce limit they offered so I paid a small amount out of pocket for all of this. Such a blessing!

Total out of pocket: $18.56

6. Mall French Fries

We packed a picnic to eat at the Mall Food Court on February 16. Matt bought an order of fries for everyone to enjoy a tiny treat after our meal.

Total for Fries: $3.59

7. Amazon Subscribe and Save

I’m terrible about remembering to take pictures when my S&S boxes come. But as always, I got a few cases of applesauce and yogurt squeeze pouches, plus some Annie’s mac and cheese.

Total from Amazon: $53.41

8. Costco

On February 21, I over-filled a Costco cart to stock up on many needed groceries: potatoes, grapes, pears, blueberries, blackberries, bananas, onions, spinach, spring mix, carrots, hamburger meat, shredded cheese, peanuts, frozen pizza, flour, sugar, milk, cream, half and half, Havarti sliced cheese, frozen mini corn dogs, frozen fish sticks, hot dogs, guacamole, avocado cups, cream cheese, tortilla chips, potato chips, and chicken stock.

Total for food at Costco: $516.61

9. BBQ Restaurant

Matt and our adult sons had the opportunity to go to Kansas City and watch Messi play in a soccer game on February 19. They got BBQ before the game (because you don’t go to KC and not get BBQ)!

Matt’s meal: $14.74

10. Wal-Mart

On February 27, Matt went to Wal-Mart to pick up a car battery. He picked up three gallons of milk and two big tubs of cottage cheese for us while he was there.

Total for milk and cottage cheese: $18.46

Total for groceries in February, 2025: $1,459

Running Totals for 2025

You can read here to learn our 2025 Grocery Budget plus look over ways I’m able to keep our budget at this level.

January spending: $679
February spending: $1,459

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Big Family Grocery Spending for January, 2025

February 3, 2025 by Laura Leave a Comment

This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see our disclosure policy.

Here’s our Big Family Grocery Spending for January, 2025 post!

Here’s how we spent our grocery budget for our large household during the month of January. But first…

This January wasn’t normal

This was a very challenging month with a much lower-than-normal spending total due to illness running through our household all month long (first a stomach bug for 10 of us, followed by Influenza for 8 of us).

Appetites were much smaller overall, and parents didn’t have energy to go grocery shopping the last half of the month. So we ate through our stockpile of food from our pantry and freezer, and we had plenty to work with. Next month might be an extra-large-spending month as we make up for what we didn’t spend this month!

Big Family Grocery Spending for January, 2025

1. Aldi

On January 9, we needed to restock many of our staples so we headed to Aldi where I got many of our favorites: whole milk, whole milk yogurt, granola, oranges, Caesar salad kits, blueberries, ground sausage, ham lunchmeat, Fritos, bananas, fruit/veggie pouches for Auggie, sweet peppers, pear cups, powdered sugar, and salami.

Total for food at Aldi: $87.31

2. Costco

From there, we went into Costco where we really stocked up!

We got a lot of produce: apples, mandarins, mini cucumbers, spring mix, spinach, broccoli, two kinds of grapes, blackberries, raspberries, pears, and potatoes. We also got cream, half and half, beef sticks, almond crackers, yogurt squeezies, mandarin orange cups, avocado cups, eggs, tortilla chips, pasta sauce, rotel, maple syrup, olive oil, coconut rolls, tortelloni, mini corndogs, applesauce cups, granola, two kinds of shredded cheese, frozen french fries, chicken nuggets, mac and cheese, chocolate chips, sour cream, and tilapia.

Back at home, as we unpacked from Aldi and Costco, I loved seeing all the variety of fruits and veggies we had to work with as we fed our family meals and snacks.

Total for food at Costco: $429.33

3. Wal-Mart

On January 16, I took Anna and Auggie with me to Wal-Mart so that we could get some of their WIC items and a few other family necessities (boots, tennis shoes – ooh, I scored a pair of shoes for Brayden on clearance for $5!). Elias’ birthday was coming up so I picked up some groceries for his upcoming celebration.

What I find every time I go shopping without Matt or one of our adult kids: One cart is not enough. But with two kids tagging along, two carts wouldn’t have worked either. So I made one cart work – barely!

This shopping trip, WIC provided lots of fruits and veggies (fresh and frozen), eggs, cheese, beans, cereal, pasta, and rice. This is such a blessing!

Total out of pocket cost for groceries at Wal-Mart: $81.06

4. Amazon Subscribe and Save

I didn’t remember to take a picture when our order came in this month, but we got several cases of applesauce, yogurt pouches, pizza crust, and Annie’s mac and cheese.

Total from Amazon: $48.66

5. Wal-mart 

During our time with Influenza, we were not going through groceries very quickly because no one had much of an appetite for many days. But Matt did go get the oil changed in our small car so while at Walmart, he grabbed a few gallons of milk and some bananas to get us by.

Total from Wal-mart: $9.80

6. DaVinci’s Pizza

Someone gave us a gift certificate for Christmas, and we held on to it to use on an evening we needed it. After our many days of Influenza, as appetites were coming back but energy was low, we decided to take advantage. We ordered two extra large specialty pizzas, which was a fun treat after so many days of misery.

Total for DaVinci’s Pizza: $0 (completely covered by gift certificate)

7. Russ’ Market

We don’t normally shop at this local store because its prices are much higher than my go-to stores. But the kids had brought home a $15 grocery certificate at Christmas time (the school sent these home with families who qualify for free lunches I guess?) and it expired this month. So on January 31, I went to use this certificate, plus we had a few WIC items left in our benefits package that needed to be picked up.

Total out of pocket for groceries at Russ’ Market: $21.58

Total spent in January: $679 (would have been closer to $890 without WIC and the grocery gift certificate)

This was less than half of our budgeted amount. But all of our appetites are coming back, plus we have two birthdays to celebrate in February. I’ll take higher spending ANY DAY over having a house full of sick people for four weeks. February, I’m so glad to see you!

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Big Family Food and Fun: January 26-February 1, 2025

February 2, 2025 by Laura 6 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see our disclosure policy.

Here’s our Big Family Food and Fun: January 26-February 1, 2025 post!

On Saturday, January 25, we were all still recovering from a longggggg week of Influenza. Kiya was the only kid who didn’t get hit with it, and she was very helpful since I was laid up on the couch for so many days. She mixed together some Tuna Salad for our lunch on Saturday.

For dinner that night, I slowly managed to make Spaghetti. I’m not much of a fan of pasta, but as my appetite came back after not eating much for days and even weeks (because we’d had a stomach bug before Influenza), Spaghetti sounded really good to me. All of our littlest kids really like noodles, so even if they didn’t want sauce, they gobbled down plates full of noodles with Parmesan cheese along with Green Beans or Corn.

Malorie started her semester of online classes, and I walked into the kitchen that evening to find Acacia learning Anatomy with her. :)

Big Family Food and Fun: January 26-February 1, 2025

Sunday morning, I made a pot of Tapioca Pudding because again, it sounded really good. We stayed home from church that morning because our coughs were pretty bad and we didn’t want our kids to spread germs.

Lunch was easy because a week ago after our Burrito Bar, I’d stirred together this Burrito Casserole. I slid it into the oven to bake the last part of the morning, plus put the last of our White Queso into a small slow cooker to warm up. We all either made Smothered Burritos or enjoyed the casserole as a chip dip. We got out salsa and guacamole to go with this too – I’d just forgotten to get those out yet when I took this picture.

Dinner was fun because at Christmas time, we’d been given a gift certificate to daVinci’s. We used it Sunday night to order pizzas. Plus Matt made a small cheese pizza for the kids who wouldn’t want fancy pizza.

Monday was a refreshing restart. All six school kids were well enough to go back to school – something that hasn’t happened since before Christmas break, phew! As an added bonus, the day was sunny with temps in the 50’s.

My energy was still very low so we didn’t do much that day besides REST after all the kids left for school and Auggie went down for a nap.

I filled a crock pot with Cheeseburger Soup for our dinner, which was a hit with everyone and we finished all of it.

Tuesday morning, Auggie had both a Speech Therapy appointment and a Neurology appointment. It was the first I’d been out of the house in over a week. I ate a Breakfast Sandwich between appointments in an effort to be filled with protein to make it through the morning.

We had a box of bacon in the fridge that we needed to be finished off, so that afternoon, I baked 8 pans of bacon. I wiped out the last of the box, and we ate bacon that night for dinner stirred into Mac and Cheese with either Peas or Steamed Broccoli. This provided us with a lot of cooked bacon in our fridge for grown-ups to warm up for breakfast or lunches as needed.

This week, Malachi moved back in with us! He’s been living across town in an appointment with his cousin. But they both decided to make a shift so Malachi is back. We are all (Malachi included) very excited about this!

Both Little Sweetheart and Arrow have been able to come over this week per their usual schedule of spending time with Lolli and Pop. Here’s Arrow enjoying a (plastic) donut. After all, grandparents are supposed to give their grandkids lots of sweets, or so I hear? ;)

Dinner on Wednesday evening was Meatball Subs with buns and cheese, Pickles, and Pineapple Fluff. All the kids ate very well that night, something I’m so thankful for after our very rough month.

Thursday morning, I made a pan of Peanut Butter Honey Rice Krispie Bars and scrambled a dozen eggs with cheese.

Mashed potatoes sounded good, so the kids took turns “helping me” peel potatoes before leaving for school. They were so excited about this job, but as it turns out, peeling potatoes is harder than they thought. At least they were willing to try. :)

With so many kids’ needs, I finally finished the potatoes mid-morning (took three hours from start to finish, ha) and got them into the crock pot to cook all day. I also pulled out ground chicken from the freezer to make Chicken Cheeseballs for dinner later.

That afternoon, I made two pans of Chicken Cheeseballs. I froze one for another time and baked one for dinner.

This was such a tasty meal: Chicken Cheeseballs, Mashed Potatoes, and Buttered Peas.

Friday morning Anna helped me load the dishwasher. She loved feeling grown up doing this job for me. She even got to push the buttons to run it when she was finished.

It was another gorgeous day outside, so kids played after school and soaked up some sun.

I had picked up a lot of fresh produce at the store that afternoon, so we had a fruit plate with Burgers for dinner that night.

I had found slider-sized burgers marked down at Sam’s a few weeks ago, and they are perfect for our crew since the little ones can’t eat a full-sized burger. We ate 17 out of 18 of these Burgers that night plus Baked Beans, Fruit, and Pickles.

Saturday morning I made Blender Pancakes – a rare treat at our house. I then spent the morning getting ready for the next day’s Sunday Lunch. I planned to bake one of our $10 hams, so I made a big pan of Party Potatoes to go with it. We were hoping for a large crowd, so I also made a small crock pot of Baked Beans and steamed Green Beans. I had Peanut Butter Brownies in the freezer, so I pulled those out for our Sunday dessert.

We ate leftovers for lunch that day in an effort to clean out the fridge. Brayden was excited to help me warm up spaghetti and meatballs.

We spent the rest of the day resting, cleaning, and heading into our Sabbath Saturday/Sunday. And that was our week!

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Big Family Grocery Spending for December, 2024

January 1, 2025 by Laura 7 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see our disclosure policy.

Here’s our Big Family Grocery Spending for December, 2024 post!

Here’s how we spent our grocery budget for our large household during the month of December. We fed 12 people three meals each day, plus a lot of wonderful guests. In fact, because of Christmas and lots of birthdays and other fun get-togethers this month, we had many meals with more than 12 people. It’s been awesome!

Because of the larger meals and crowds, we’ve had more frequent grocery store trips so that we could keep up with food needs. And how did the budget fare? Well, we went over. But only by a little, somehow. :) Read until the end to see how our grocery budgeted averaged out during the entire year!

Big Family Grocery Spending for December, 2024

1. Aldi

On December 2, I ran into Aldi to grab all of our “Aldi essentials.” I got fruit/veggie pouches for Auggie, crackers, a case of salsa, whole milk yogurt, milk, canned corn (because it was on sale for $0.50), Caesar salad kits, blackberries, and sausage.

Total for groceries at Aldi: $116.36

2. Sam’s

December 3, I was halfway to Sam’s while at Speech Therapy for Auggie. So after his appointment, I took him with me to get some of our Sam’s essentials. We stocked up on our favorite peanut butter, plus got chips, potatoes, apples, grapes, pears, cheese sticks, yogurt squeezies, whole milk yogurt, rotel, and coffee creamer. I was excited to find chicken breasts and beef roasts marked down for quick sale so I grabbed those.

Total for groceries at Sam’s $213.59

3. Honest Abe’s

Remember how we used to have Elias take Brayden out for Bro Time? Elias has a new job now that is very intense as he deals with high need kids all day (kind of sounds like what Elias’ parents do all day, huh?). Because of this, we don’t have a regularly scheduled Bro Time any more. But we have started sending both Brayden and Kiya out with Elias and Malorie from time to time on Monday evenings for a special dinner out.

A local restaurant here in Lincoln called Honest Abe’s offers half price kids meals on Monday nights. This gives everyone a burger and fries and drink for right around $4.00! Amazing. On December 9, the four of them headed out to pick up their dinner. Elias and Malorie help the kids figure out what they want and give them the chance to order by themselves (a skill Matt and I don’t/can’t provide for them because eating out as a family with so many littles is too complicated and too expensive.

Overall, this is a WIN and the kids love this time with Elias and Malorie. This night, the restaurant was too crowded so they brought their food home to eat.

Total at Honest Abe’s: $27.35

4. Wal-Mart

On December 11, we took the four youngest kids to Walmart to pick up the girls’ WIC items plus a few other needed groceries. I found day-old (refrigerated) Rotisserie chicken marked down to just $2.02 each so I got two of those. We got lots of fruits and veggies, eggs, rice, pasta, cereal, milk, and cheese, all covered by WIC benefits. And I picked up some Caesar salad kits, pickles, and ham.

Total out of pocket at Wal-Mart: $32.50

5. Aldi

After we left Walmart that day, we went just up the road to Aldi. I ran in and got fruit/veggie pouches for Auggie, raspberries, oranges, zucchini, butter, yogurt, granola, baking items, sausage, deli ham, pasta sauce, fritos, and three large packages of boneless chicken thighs on sale for just $2.49/pound.

Total for food at Aldi: $155.95

6. Walmart 

On December 19, I ran into Walmart to get milk, sour cream, lime juice, a few last minute items for Christmas, plus the last of our WIC benefits. As always, I checked for meat markdowns and scored Boneless Chicken Thighs for just over $2/pound! I bought six packages.

Total out of pocket at Walmart: $57.67

7. Costco

From there, we went to Costco and semi-filled two carts. We needed Christmas celebration food plus regular groceries and produce. We got pears, apples, oranges, grapes, broccoli, blueberries, cream cheese, cream, half and half (marked down to $0.97!!), avocado mash, white queso, guacamole, crackers, two kinds of dips, several kinds of cheese, meatballs, chicken nuggets, tator tots, french fries, fish sticks, yogurt squeezies, applesauce cups, chicken broth, avocado oil spray, and frozen pizza.

Total for food at Costco: $395.59

8. Krispie Kreme

December 20 was Malachi’s 20th birthday. He and a bunch of his buddies spent the night at our house, and he requested donuts for breakfast. I didn’t get a photo of the whole crew, but I got this one when these two got home with the donuts.

Total for Malachi’s donuts: $14.99

9. Sam’s

On December 23, I braved the crowds and went to Sam’s for a few more Christmas food needs, everyday fruit and vegetable needs, and upcoming birthday meals. I got pasta sauce, apple sauce, hamburger meat, sliced cheese, shredded cheese, bacon, cucumbers, bananas, carrots, Caesar salad, mandarin oranges, spinach, veggie straws, coffee creamer, apples, brownie mix, cottage cheese, peanut butter, coffee, orange chicken, oatmeal, gluten free pizza, pickles, brown sugar, fruit strips, and coconut crisps.

Total for food at Sam’s: $310.19

10. Walmart

From Sam’s, I ran to the next parking lot for a few items at Walmart: lasagna noodles, gluten free nuggets, frozen hashbrowns, onion rings, ham, and fake oreos (for birthday brownies).

Total at $54.14

11. Cane’s

Our Christmas tradition has become: make Chicken Strips at home for Christmas lunch after opening gifts, and buy a big container of Raising Cane’s Sauce to go with the chicken. This makes for an easy meal for mom, a perfect meal to accommodate picky kids, and a special way to enjoy our family’s favorite sauce. I picked up a 32-ounce cup of sauce to put in our fridge for the big day.

Total for our Cane’s Sauce: $7.65

12. Arby’s Fries

Matt had some coupons in his wallet for $1 fries at Arby’s, limit 3. So we took advantage one day to treat the kids after an outing to the Children’s Museum.

Total for fries: $3.28

13. Walmart

On December 27, I went to Wal-Mart to check for Ham marked down after Christmas. I found some for $1/pound!! I picked up four, plus found hamburger meat ($3.34/pound) and ground chicken ($2.41/pound) marked down. I also needed Caesar salad, spring mix, and barbecue sauce so I grabbed those.

Total for food at Walmart: $101.77

14. Aldi

I went to Aldi that day also, getting fruit and veggie pouches for Auggie, fresh pineapple on sale, whole milk yogurt, and meat mark-downs. Two packages of boneless chicken thighs were marked down half-price making them just $1.75/pound. Two packages of boneless chicken tenderloins were half-price at $1.99/pound. Plus grass fed hamburger meat was on sale for $4.80/pound. Pork loin was on sale for $1.89/pound so I got one. It was a great meat day and our freezer got filled up!

Total at Aldi: $110.17

15. Wal-mart

Elias and Malorie went to a different Walmart a few days later and I couldn’t resist asking them to check for $0.50/pound hams. Sure enough, they had a bunch so they picked up four more hams for me. It’s hard to pass up such an amazing price for meat that gives us several meals or that will feed thirty people at a Sunday lunch!

Total for four spiral cut hams: $20.20

Total grocery spending for December: $1458

— > Without WIC, our total this month would have been closer to $1658. <—–

If you recall, at the beginning of this year, I decided to keep running totals of everything we spent on groceries each month. I also decided to increase our budget to $1,400/month for food because we feed so many people and my previous $1,200/month average was causing unnecessary stress.

We’ve had adults move in and out of our home all year long. Most of the year, we had 13 people living here, sometimes 14, and now there are 12.

Here’s the breakdown of what we ended up spending each month during 2024…

Summary/Average for groceries during 2024

January: $1,178
February: $849
March: $1,356
April: $1148
May: 1091
June: $1,121
July: $1,190
August: $1,611
September: $1,218
October: $1,345
November: $1,150
December: $1,458

Grand total for 2024: $14,715

That’s a lot of groceries. :)

Grocery Budget Plan for 2025

Watch for a post detailing what we’re planning to change and keep the same for our 2025 grocery budget!

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Big Family Grocery Spending for November, 2024

December 2, 2024 by Laura 4 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see our disclosure policy.

Here’s our Big Family Grocery Spending for November, 2024 post!

Here’s how we spent our grocery budget for our large household during the month of November. We fed 13 people three meals each day, plus a lot of wonderful guests…

Big Family Grocery Spending for November, 2024

1. Costco

On November 1, we went to stock up on items we needed at Costco. We got ground beef, shredded cheese, sour cream, cream cheese, butter, heavy whipping cream, spinach, spring mix, broccoli, turkey lunch meat, chicken nuggets, shrimp (for Matt’s birthday!), tilapia, sausage links, cottage cheese, frozen pizza, chocolate chips, bananas, white queso, mayo, peanuts, pepperoni, eggs, yogurt, meat sticks, avocado cups, frozen french fries, and rolled oats. Annie’s cinnamon rolls were on sale so I grabbed them for our nephew’s birthday the next day.

Total for food at Costco: $333.83

2. Aldi

We also ran to Aldi that day, where I picked up lasagna noodles, fruit/veggie pouches for Auggie, hard salami for school lunches, pears, cake mixes and frosting, cheese cubes for lunches, Caesar salad kits, pasta sauce, fruits, grapes, brown sugar, sausage, raspberries, whole milk yogurt, coffee creamer, milk, and chicken drumsticks.

Total at Aldi: $128.45

3. Wal-Mart

On November 7, I ran into Walmart to get some of Auggie’s WIC items plus a few other ingredients I prefer to get there. WIC items included milk, beans, whole grain pasta, eggs, cereal, and produce. I got spring mix, spinach, frozen potatoes, blueberries, mandarins, and bananas. Beyond WIC, I got flax seed for Mudballs, coconut flour for Snickerdoodle Bites, and a huge tub of Sour Cream.

Of course, I checked for meat markdowns and while I didn’t find much, I did find Rotisserie Chickens marked down to just $2.02! That made them less than $1/pound.

Total out of pocket at Wal-Mart: $32.99

4. Sam’s

Next, we ran next door to Sam’s to get what we needed there. I got a 10-pound box of bacon, 10-dozen eggs, lunch meat, sliced cheese, orange chicken, frozen pizza, potatoes, raspberries, whipping cream, cheese sticks, butter, tortillas, peanut butter, coffee creamer, whole milk yogurt, maple syrup, Rotel, and brown sugar.

Total for food at Sam’s: $270.23

5. Hy-Vee

Our local Hy-Vee offers the option to order WIC items for pick-up. This has been very helpful for purchasing our three little girls’ benefits because it can be tedious to do this in the store. Here’s what we got.

Total out of pocket from Hy-Vee: $0

6. Wal-Mart and Costco

On November 21, I ran into Walmart for some produce provided to our kids through WIC (spring mix, spinach, potatoes, pears, and bananas). I found a London Broil marked down to just $3.35/pound, plus I picked up three gallons of milk. I forgot to take a picture because I was hurrying to get back out to the van where Matt was waiting with the littlest four kids!

Then we went into Costco where we got strawberries, raspberries, apples, mandarins, tortilla chips, sliced havarti cheese, cream cheese, oatmeal, chocolate chips, condiments, frozen meatballs, white queso, shredded cheese, half and half, avocado cups, butter, chicken stock, and ground beef.

Total for food at Walmart and Costco: $261.14

7. Amazon Subscribe and Save

I remembered to take a picture of our Subscribe and Save box this month!

Total at Amazon: $59.66

8. Aldi

Just before we left for a trip to Kansas over Thanksgiving break, I sent Elias and Malorie to Aldi to pick up fruit/veggie pouches for Auggie plus a few other items. They got some snacks for our upcoming Thanksgiving trip, plus a few items for their upcoming work lunches.

Total at Aldi: $49.04

9. McDonalds

We traveled to Kansas over the Thanksgiving weekend. On the last stretch of our trip on our way home, we used both Matt’s app and Elias’ app to get the best deals on chicken nuggets to tide us over until we could get home and eat more. We were pretty impressed that we could get 60 nuggets for such a low cost. While handing out nuggets in the van, I handed out applesauce and pretzels to stretch out the meal. The kids loved the treat!

Total at McDonald’s: $14.96

Total grocery spending for November: $1,150.30

— > Without WIC, our total this month would have been closer to $1,35030. <—–

Running totals for 2024:

January: $1,178
February: $849
March: $1,356
April: $1148
May: 1091
June: $1,121
July: $1,190
August: $1,611
September: $1,218
October: $1,345
November: $1,150

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