Seven Villages, Janet Joakim

the grinch is in the grocery store!!

a shocking trip to the grocery store has us wondering about christmas gifts 

The kids are home for the long Thanksgiving weekend.  To stave off the initial “there is nothing to eat in this house” my husband and I stopped at the grocery store on Monday evening to pick up a few things.

We were both shocked when we went to grab the staples we keep in the house when the girls are home.  It has only been since this past summer that we bought these items. 

A gallon of store brand orange juice – was $3.89 in the spring, $4.29 in the summer, now…. its $5.89!

Pasta- we buy what ever is on sale, it is a staple in this house, and 90% of the time there is a brand on sale for “2 for $1.00.” Store brand has typically been $.79 or $.89 for a regular price.  The sale price this trip was “10 for $10.00″ and the regular price for store brand 1 lb pasta is now $1.09…..

 As we traveled through the grocery store it became clear that just stocking the fridge for the holidays will cost us 25-33% more than this past summer!  And, of course the girls are more interested in healthy, organic foods which tend to be more costly - so a can of instant meals like Chef Boyardee (my mother used to call it dog food for kids) are no longer an option.

When we were in Florida, we went to the grocery store a couple of times, and I do remember that pasta was not on sale at the Win Dixie, and I paid .79 a box.  Overall the prices were lower, more to what we had here in the spring and summer.

As often as possible, my husband gets the groceries at the Kingston Stop and Shop on his way home. Gas is cheaper there because Stop and Shop has a gas station that allows for a discount if you use your store card, he makes an effort to stop a couple of times a month on his way home.  I went along with him a couple of times over the summer when I was in Boston and the prices are noticeably less.

Why?

All I know is that just like so many others, we are always worried about how far we can stretch the budget, and with college costs and gas prices, increased home heating costs, electric increases, and our health care fees that have recently increased, the cost of living pay increases are not keeping up with it all.

Despite the fact that the older the kids get the more expensive the gifts, this will be a very lean Christmas!