Grocery Shopping

ginnie5 · #21 08/17/12, 01:20 PM

I've noticed the same thing. Week after week after week I see buggies loaded with convenience foods. Mine is full of veggies I don't have right now, canned goods, and other staples. I cook everything from scratch.
Last week we took the first vacation in years. My instructions from the dh were to buy easy foods so I didn't have to cook all week...............we spent more on that one week for groceries than I normally spend in a month! My bp went sky high cause guess what? EVERYTHING is loaded with salt. Even the stuff that's "low sodium" is more than I end up with cooking it myself. We got back home and the kids were like finally.....real food!
I have a decent grocery amount weekly and most of the time I'm down to feeding only 6 and it still gets tight sometimes. I honestly don't know how anyone affords to buy all convenience food.

chickenista · #22 08/17/12, 02:02 PM

Good point, Ginnie.
We CAN'T eat processed foods anymore.
Too salty, too much MSG or whatever.
DH's face gets red and he gets grumpy and my mouth burns from too much salt.
And DS can't really digest greasy stuff at all. He bloats up and groans and gags for a few hours afterwards.
Sigh... I have ruined my family.

WV Farm girl · #23 08/17/12, 04:35 PM

Many of you gave valid points. I hadn't thought about some of them.

I think on a whole though that most people have forgotten "how" to cook or even "why" they should. Then I hear of people that have no money by the end of the month for groceries and I wonder what they spent their grocery money on. Those convenience foods are definately more expensive than canned goods.
Oh well, just my opinion.

Callieslamb · #24 08/17/12, 04:46 PM

I wonder about the expense thing. I can't make chocolate chip cookies for what we can buy them. Yes,homemade is better. Yes I know what the ingredients in them are - pretty much. If you don't own all the equipment, you can't cook a lot of things quickly and easily. If I didn't have my kitchen-aid or wheat grinder, would I bake bread? Canning season finds my food processor in use every day. Then there's all the pans. If you aren't already in the practice, getting started in home cooking can actually cost quite a bit compared to one person feeding and cleaning up after themselves.

PNWKatie · #25 08/17/12, 04:48 PM

Generally we cook from scratch and that is usually reflected in our cart, however I went shopping with three teenage boys who were getting ready to go camping for a couple of days. When I looked in the cart, I actually hoped nobody thought this was our "normal" shopping list! Chips, pop, hot dogs, etc. stuff we don't eat at home. LOL. (well except for the hotdogs. My kid love chili dogs!)

HOTW · #26 08/17/12, 04:56 PM

My cart really depends on what I am buyign I do buy snack crackers and some chips because I am, not making homemade potato chips unless I get back to being a SAHM! Most times our cart has frozen veg, fresh veg, whatever condiment I am stocking up on. I hope to do my first canning job soon of spaghetti sauce but have to find a water canner no one has them in stock here but going to see our daughter tomorrow we will stop at the bulk food place and I am sure they will have soime!!

I tend to buy a case at a time of anything..ever see someones eyes bug out that you are buying a case of tuna, case ot tomato sauce, case of canned corn..its pretty fun to watch people. Usually if it s aconvenience food we buy 1 just 1 of it to avoid too many munchies.

PATRICE IN IL · #27 08/17/12, 06:24 PM

I've gotten my share of funny looks this week at the grocery stores. Wednesday I stocked up on sliced deli ham and roast beef for my son's school lunches because the prices were good.....smoked ham for $1.29 a half pound and roast beef for $3.99 a half pound. I got 5 pounds of sliced ham and 3 pounds of roast beef for the freezer. I also purchased 6) half inch thick ham slices for quick casserole dinners. I also bought corn, potatoes & half and half for corn chowder.

Today's cart was 4) 32 ounce blocks of cheddar and mozzarella cheese on sale for $5 each, 3 bags of Tyson chicken patties (for my son's lunches) and boxed mac and cheese for the teenage bottomless pit.

I've become accustomed to funny looks especially when it's stock up time. Tomorrow I'll make a syrup run, they have 24 ounce bottles of name brand pancake syrup for $1.49 each when you buy 6 items from the mix and match sale. I do what I have to so I can stretch our grocery dollars because we live on a fixed income.

gone-a-milkin · #28 08/17/12, 06:34 PM

Recently I bought some groceries in the store my DH works at and the checker there said she should pay ME to do her shopping because I "buy REAL food".
I took it as a compliment, even though my kids tend to think I buy "BORING food".

Melissa · #29 08/17/12, 07:36 PM

My son had a friend over one time and they were looking in the cupboard for something to eat. His friend said, "All you have is ingredients." I had to laugh and it didn't take too long to whip them up something.

NickieL · #30 08/17/12, 07:38 PM

thanks for the reminder,.....gotta pick up another gal. of organic vinigar for this weekend's canning marathon.

julieq · #31 08/17/12, 08:04 PM

I'm overdue for grocery shopping and need to get it done in the next week or so. I know prices are going to be higher than last time, so I keep putting it off (like that is going to help).

Except for maybe taco chips and some saltine crackers, most all of what I have on my list are basic ingredients. And, you're right, my cart looks entirely different from most carts!