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Cut Your Grocery Bill Challenge (week 4)

A Peek Into Last Week (+ an update on my habit tracker & goals!)

Cut Your Grocery Bill Challenge (week 4)

We’re kicking off the year with an 8-week Cut Your Grocery Bill Challenge. I’ll be sharing a weekly post here every Thursday with a task or challenge for you to complete/focus on to help you tweak, improve, or overhaul your grocery budget.

My hope is that we can all work together to crowd-source new ideas and fresh inspiration to be more thoughtful and intentional in our grocery budgets + hopefully save some money and instill some practices and principles and habits that will continue to save us money throughout the rest of the year.

In week #1, we talked about setting up a grocery budget. That’s the most important first step in cutting your grocery bill.

In week #2, we discussed why you need to recognize potential roadblocks. Be sure to read through the comments here to hear about others’ roadblocks. I think it will encourage you to know you’re not alone.

Last week, I challenged you to commit to change one thing for three weeks. You can see the comments on the post for ideas of what others picked.

Week #4: Check In on Your Progress

It’s been four weeks since we began this challenge and it’s time to check in and see how we’re doing. How are you doing sticking with your budget? What are you struggling with the most? Are there things that you are finding especially difficult? Has anything surprised you?

Also, have you saved money? If so, how much?

It’s important to regularly check in on your progress. Sometimes, we can think we are making progress, but if we don’t actually stop to measure and quantify it, we won’t know! In addition, take time to re-assess what’s working and what’s not working and celebrate the wins you’ve had and make adjustments or tweaks in areas where you’re struggling.

I went to my usual Kroger this week. There weren’t any crazy, amazing deals, but I did find some deals and markdowns.

All totaled: $95 and some change for all of this.

I’m going to buy eggs from some friends who have chickens and then we’ll roll over what’s left in the budget from being under-budget the past two weeks. (About $23 total.)

I’m loosely planning we’ll have Chicken Broccoli Rice Casserole, Sloppy Joes, Barbecued Chicken & Twice Baked Potatoes, Sausage/Potatoes/Carrots in the Crockpot, Bean & Cheese Burritos, and then we’ll have leftovers/fend for yourself night one night and takeout for Kathrynne’s 18th birthday!

Week #4 Project: Check In on Your Progress

Are joining us for the Cut Your Grocery Bill Challenge? If so, I’d love for you to leave a comment and let me know how it’s going, how you’re doing with sticking with your budget, and if there’s any area you’re especially struggling with.

Plus, if you have a minute, go through the comments and leave a comment or two replying to someone and cheering them on or giving them ideas for what might work in areas they are struggling.

Need some practical ideas for ways to cut your grocery bill? Be sure to sign up for my free cheatsheet with 10 Ways to Cut Your Grocery Bill by $50 This Week!

A Peek Into Last Week (+ an update on my habit tracker & goals!)

I’m in the middle of a lot of media (podcast, TV, radio interviews) for my new book that comes out in March. So Jesse has been finding fun things to do with the three little ones on my recording mornings.

This past week, he took them all to a local indoor gym that is very inclusive for children with disabilities and they all had the best time. Kierstyn has asked every morning if they can go back!

We spend quite a bit of time right now at basketball games cheering on Silas. He’s been playing on two different teams and loving it!

Micah turned 7 months old last week!! He’s obsessed with food and wants to try anything and everything! He’s such a sweet gift to our home and brings so much laughter and joy!

We had a really scary experience with David last week. I shared more about it in this post. I’m so grateful he’s doing better and back to his normal adventurous self!

Listen to your teenagers — especially when they tell you that your jeans are unflattering.

The girls have been telling me for a long time that all of my jeans are the wrong cut for my body type. But I struggled to listen to them because I’ve been wearing this same basic cut of jeans for pretty much all my adult life (well, ever since I stopped being dresses/skirts only back when I was in my early 20’s — which is a whole other Instagram post!).

I had a lot of excuses as to why their suggestions for trying different jean styles wouldn’t work and, for months, I just made excuses and moved on.

But I finally took a good long look in the mirror and realized maybe there was some merit to their gentle suggestions.

So I asked them to take me to the mall to find more flattering jean styles. And we had the BEST time together — even though I did still protest at some of their suggested picks.

We came home with two pairs from American Eagle — one pair of jeggings that just might fit me better than any pair of jeans ever has (swipe to see) and one pair of high waisted jeans that still freaks me out a little bit that I think I am going to learn to like.

And I have to admit: I should have listened to their encouragement long ago instead of stubbornly sticking with what I’ve always worn. I kind of feel like I might never go shopping again without their oversight.

Kierstyn has been loving doing preschool with me every day!

She’s also loving swimming lessons!

Here’s my update on my Habits Chart from last week. My goal is to have 5 x’s in each line — I hit that in 10 lines this past week — which I was so excited about!!

2023 Weekly Goals Update

Every week, I’ll be giving an update on how I’m doing on my goals — since they are weekly goals. I thought it would be fun to do an update with a running total of how many weeks I hit them throughout the year. This week, I hit all of the goals — yay!!

Goal #1: Lose .1% Body Fat Per Week

This goal was pretty easy to hit this week just by hitting my workout goals, making movement a priority, drinking more water, and eating more protein.

Update: 3/52

Goal #2: Have One Family Dinner Per Week

We had three family dinners together this past week! I think just prioritizing it by putting it on my goals and daily habits list has made SUCH a difference in me getting creative in finding ways to make it happen!

Update: 3/52

Goal #3: Finish One Book Per Week

Here’s the book I finished last week + my review.

Update: 3/52

Goal #4: Have One Date With One Family Member Per Week

The girls and I went to the mall together so they could help me pick out some “more flattering” jeans. We had such a fun time — and I came home with two pairs of jeans that fit really well!

Update: 3/52

Goal #5: Spend 25 Minutes on Organizing/Decluttering Each Week

You can see the decluttering and organizing I did last week here.

Update: 3/52

Goal #6: Delete 300 Photos/Videos From My Phone Each Week

I deleted more than 300 and it felt good!

Update: 3/52