Sam's Club and Where the February Grocery Budget Stands

I'm very fortunate to live literally 5 minutes from a Sam's Club.  I find the store to be invaluable for certain items that I like to buy because of either personal preference and/or allergy issues.  I prefer their Member's Mark brand dishwasher tabs.  I like to buy the POM toilet paper and paper towels.  Their fruit prices (for the quality they sell) are excellent and I've never had any trouble with any of the produce I bought there.  Sadly I can't say the same for some of the other stores in my area.  I also like their meats.

 This month they had some great sales and I actually bought items for storage that will stretch on into June.  We are covered for toilet paper, paper towels, dishwasher tabs, Clorox 2, food saver bags, and deodorant.  After a careful inventory I made a list of items we needed to go into our food rotation to round out what we have.  I'll also be picking up an order of chicken breasts from Zaycon later this month and it is reflected in my totals.

 For tracking purposes we divide these purchases (except the chicken) out over how many months we will use them and subtract them from those individual months' budget.  This accounting method and our "convenience" fund helps us balance things out. I budgeted $500 for food and household supplies.  When everything is added and the household supplies are portioned out, I have $158 left for the month for incidentals like milk, eggs, etc.  We are well stocked on everything and should be able to carry on into the next month with no problems.

  (This order includes two gifts -- a box of coffee pods for my son and a bag of chocolates for my daughter in law and grandson.  Their cost is not part of the grocery budget, but if I include them I would still have $122 left to spend if I need it.)