Grocery Shopping for January 2025

I grocery shopped 3 times in January, and my daughter picked a few items for me on 1 occasion.

January 2.  We needed milk and a couple of other items, so I went to Walmart, which is about our closest grocery store. I bought 1 gallon milk ($3.67), 2 small boxes frozen turkey breakfast sausage ($1.78 ea),1 bar unsweetened chocolate ($2.84), 2 3-lb bags of apples ($3.28 ea), 2 packages turkey snack sticks ($3.72 ea), bananas (50 cents/lb), cabbage (86 cents/lb), garlic powder ($1.12), and 4 avocados (78 cents ea). I spent $33.81.

January 13. This was my big stock-up for the month and in preparation for not going anywhere for about 10 days. I went to WinCo because most of their prices are better than Walmart, and the quality of both fresh and frozen produce is higher. I would shop at WinCo every time, but they are a good 20 minute drive from my house. Gas is still very expensive in my area, so how far I have to drive to shop is a consideration.  

I bought 1 large bag frozen petite peas ($2.99), 7 small bags broccoli cuts ($1.18 ea), 2 gallons milk ($3.67 ea), block of sharp cheddar ($3.48/lb), block of mozzarella ($3.48/lb), family pack boneless skinless chicken breasts (about $2/lb), a lb sliced pepperoni (about $6/lb), 7 avocados (68 cents ea),1.5 lbs raisins ($2.58/lb), 1/2 lb cashew pieces ($4.48/lb), 1 lime (25 cents), dried cranberries (70 cents), .38 lb dry milk for cocoa mix ($4.08/lb), sesame snack ($3.16/lb), green pepper (78 cents), 2 3-lb bags apples ($3.28 ea), celery ($1.28), 5-lb bag carrots ($3.48). 2-lb bag tangerines ($2.98), 2 heads cabbage (78 cents/lb), bananas (50 cents/lb), mayo ($3.28), Roma tomatoes ($1.47/lb), bread flour ($4.98/5-lb bag), 2 lbs freshly ground peanut butter ($2.18/lb). Total spent at WinCo -- $96.65. I was buying a couple of snacky foods for our de-decking the halls dinner while at WinCo. Their bulk section is great for small amounts of snack treats.

January 24. My daughter picked up a jar of smooth natural peanut butter, a box of Cream of Wheat hot cereal, and 4 cans of green beans for us. These items came to $12.44.

January 31. My first time grocery shopping since my mouth procedure. Our fridge was beginning to look a bit bare, especially the produce drawer. Since this wasn't a big shopping trip, I just went to Walmart -- less driving.  I bought 2 packages turkey snack sticks ($3.72 ea), 1 bag frozen spinach ($1.16), 1 bag frozen peas (98 cents), 1 lb mozzarella cheese ($4.22), celery ($1.88), 5-lb bag carrots ($3.98), 3-lb bag apples ($3.28), 3-lb bag tangerines ($3.28), 1 green pepper (92 cents), Roma tomatoes ($1.28/lb), cabbage (86 cents/lb), bananas (50 cents/lb). I spent $32.39.

My total spending on food groceries for January came to $175.29.

I think my groceries are pretty basic. It feels easier to me to cook from basic ingredients and not worry about ingredients that bother my digestion than to buy a lot of convenience foods. Plus, I think cooking from basics saves us bunches of $$$.

What I bought in January:

3 gallons milk

3 pounds cheese

small amount of powdered milk (for cocoa mix)

4 packages turkey snack sticks

2 small boxes turkey breakfast sausage

family pack chicken breasts

a pound of sliced pepperoni

a couple of bunches of bananas

9 lbs apples

5 lbs tangerines

4 heads cabbage

10 lbs carrots

2 green peppers

11 avocados

several Roma tomatoes

2 bundles celery

1 lime

10 bags frozen vegetables

4 cans green beans

1.5 lbs raisins

garlic powder

1 jar mayonnaise

10 lbs bread flour

3 containers of natural peanut butter

Cream of Wheat hot cereal

cashew pieces, dried cranberries, sesame snacks for a fun dinner

Dealing With Meals for the Rest of the Family

First of all, I have to say that I'm fortunate to have 3 other cooks in the household. But still, I didn't want the burden of meals to fall on the others when they also have lives and work. And, one daughter was sick for a week, so she couldn't help much. 

This is how my family managed:

As I mentioned before, I made my own foods in advance to eat for the first few days. I also did some baking last weekend to see my family through the week -- bread, bar cookies, and granola. This saved me from feeling like I needed to get back to work before I was ready.

For the family meals, one daughter had last Friday as her family cooking night. She made us pepperoni pizza, doubling the recipe so that there would be an additional large pizza for this week. On Sunday, she was making a lunch for her boyfriend and his grandparents. Again, she doubled the recipe to save extras for this week. So, Monday and Tuesday, my husband and two daughters had the leftovers from her cooking for the boyfriend and family, reheating the pasta dish and making a fresh salad both nights. Wednesday and Thursday the three of them had the leftover pepperoni pizza with some steamed broccoli one night and Cole slaw and tangerines the second night.

All four nights of this week were super simple for dinner prep, thanks to my daughter doubling 2 meals she was cooking. My other daughter has been able to rest this week and work at regaining her strength. And my husband didn't have to cook at the end of a work day.

My thoughts -- if we ever have a situation like this again, where we know in advance that I will be incapacitated for a couple or a few days, doubling recipes a couple of nights the week in advance would provide enough heat-and-eat meals for the rest of the family to simply serve themselves. This wasn't all planned out in advance. It just sort of came together with the help of the non-sick daughter. But now that I know how well a little extra cooking and baking in advance could make a hard week so much easier, we will work things out in this same way again.