As discussed previously (see post from Sept 13, 2014), it became clear that I wasn’t going to succeed right now going to BJs only once a month.  So, its been three weeks and I went back again yesterday.  This time I thought I’d include a picture of what I bought along with an update on how we did using up what we bought the previous two times.  Note I left the milk out of the picture, as 12 gallons would have overwhelmed it.

Those of you with sharp eyes will notice that I bought a bunch of pre-sliced apples.  While I would normally buy whole apples (and my kids prefer to eat them that way), we’re providing soccer snacks soon.  I’ve learned over the years that I prefer to buy separate packages vs spending my time cutting them up only to throw out a bunch of apples everyone’s handled at the end.  This way each kid gets clean apples (soccer hands can be dirty) and I get useable leftovers if any don’t get eaten.

Previous BJs purchases in Sept & Oct (covers 6 weeks):
Entirely gone:
10 gallons 1% milk
10 gallons whole milk
6 lbs frozen shrimp
3 lbs bacon
1 package (4) green peppers
3 lbs (6) sweet potatoes
1 package (2 loaves) whole wheat bread
1 package (16) hot dog buns
3 cartons of chicken broth
3 flats (96 cans) Coke

In process (with amount remaining):
5 packages (110) Babybel cheeses – part of 1 package
4 lbs butter – 3 lbs
6 dozen XL eggs – 3 dozen
2 packages (really 6 since they come in 3pks) chicken cutlets – 4 packs
8 lbs boneless/skinless chicken thighs – 1/3
5 lbs thin sliced chicken – half
4 lbs ground turkey – 1/3
4.5 lbs ground beef – 2/3
10 lbs carrots – roughly 2 pounds
2 lbs (6) lemons – half
2 cases (16 cans) mandarin oranges – part of 1 case
1 package (36) flour tortillas – a few
1 container chili powder – this was going to last a while
1 container brown gravy mix – this was going to last a while too
2 bottles BBQ sauce – 1 bottle
1 package of 2 salsa/1 queso – one jar of salsa
2 containers of peanut butter – 1 container
2 bottles grape juice – 1 bottle
2 flats (48 cans) pineapple juice – roughly half a flat

Not yet started (maybe should have delayed purchase):
3 lbs Kosher salt
3 lbs honey
72 oz chocolate chips -> we were out and the coupon was expiring
36 Hershey bars -> for Halloween but purchased with expiring coupon

We’ll stick with food as the point of discussion today, but the real issue is space.  Here’s my fridge today after I did a bit of shopping.

I know a lot of you have deep freezes.  I don’t as my issue is always the fridge.  So, I was on the hunt for space when I got back from the farm stand today.  I also stopped at Trader Joe’s for cereal bars (obviously not here) and picked up a few Squishers which I haven’t had in a long time but were requested recently.

I guess there are a few things you might note.  First, that’s a lot of eggs.  Well, the dozens are for baking and one only has 2 eggs left.  The 18cts are XLs for eating (poached, scrambled, French toast, etc.) and one of them only has a few left too.  If we eat eggs for a meal it’s a dozen so this isn’t as crazy as it seems.  And, I just got the extra 18ct 2pk in my BJs run yesterday (10/6/14 link).  There’s also a tray of lasagna that’s not in the most efficient place.  But, its all pretty good stuff (Coke aside).

Behind what you see on the top shelf is more milk, 5 lbs of carrots & 4 lbs of broccoli.  The back of the middle shelf has sour cream and cheese blocks.  Behind the eggs on the bottom are sauerkraut & tortellini.  The bottom drawers are pretty full.  So, it can be done, but its tight and I don’t want to pack it too tight or I’ll have no air flow.

I do have a second fridge, but I try to use it for drinks and rarely used condiments only.  Right now its full of milk and lots of apples since its fall.  It’s where the large meats end up on occasion.

I’m not planning to show off the fridge on a regular basis, but I may again come holiday time.  It will definitely require planning and some creativity.

Where do you have space issues?

I did go to BJs the day after my milk discovery.  Prior to the summer I had been going every 10-14 days.  But, this milk revelation got me thinking that maybe I could go only once a month, thereby cutting back on the driving.  So, that’s what I tried this week.

It had been almost a month since my previous trip.  That wasn’t on purpose as much as all the time in between was eaten up with the back to school schedule.  Below is my first attempt at once a month BJs shopping.

6 gallons 1% milk
6 gallons whole milk
2 packages (44) Babybel cheeses
4 lbs butter
3 dozen XL eggs
2 lbs frozen shrimp
2 packages (really 6 since they come in 3pks) chicken cutlets
8 lbs boneless/skinless chicken thighs
5 lbs thin sliced chicken
4 lbs ground turkey
4.5 lbs ground beef
3 lbs bacon
1 package (4) green peppers
10 lbs carrots
3 lbs (6) sweet potatoes
2 lbs (6) lemons
2 cases (16 cans) mandarin oranges
1 package (2 loaves) whole wheat bread
1 package (36) flour tortillas
1 package (16) hot dog buns
1 container chili powder
2 bottles BBQ sauce
1 package of 2 salsa/1 queso
2 bottles grape juice
2 flats (48 cans) pineapple juice
3 flats (96 cans) Coke

Note that I’m only discussing food here.  The big thing I learned from this attempt is that my cart fills up fast only shopping once a month.  I’ll need to plan better next time and maybe do all the non-perishables first plus paper goods, etc; put them in the car; and then go through again.  This would still be better than driving there and back twice.  And, it is manageable with just the little one in the cart. It won’t work nearly as well when school is out and I have to take the older ones, but they can push the second cart for me.

I plan to do a fridge/freezer/pantry audit before my next trip.  I probably should have done a more thorough job of this before this trip, but I didn’t and I’m not digging everything I just put away back out.  So, I’ll check back in on this subject in a month and we’ll see how much of this we actually used.

I knew I would need to do a lot of grocery shopping when we returned from our summer travels.  This would primarily be at BJs and Stop & Shop.  I made lists for both and, after a long debate, decided Stop & Shop would be the priority and get done first.  This was a harder decision that it might seem because we drink about a gallon of milk a day and milk at BJs had been enough cheaper than Stop & Shop that I went there whenever possible to buy it.  But, Stop & Shop had more of the things I really needed coming back to a rather empty fridge so it seemed better to go their first and eat the extra cost of a few gallons of milk.

I was thrilled to discover when I got there that milk had been reduced from $2.89 to $2.49 per gallon through Christmas.  That matches BJs price so I won’t have to drive the extra distance to BJs.  But, since I was going to BJs the next day anyway, I only bought 2 gallons (1% for most of us and whole for the little ones).

The math shows that if I do go to BJs I should buy all my milk there.  I get gas points at Stop & Shop.  So, for every $100 I spend, I get $0.10 off my gas purchase.  My minivan takes 18 gallons of gas, so $0.10/gallon * 18 gallons = $1.80 off for every $100 I spend on milk.  But, I get 2% back or $2.00 per $100 at BJs so that puts me slightly ahead.  If my car took 20 gallons, I’d come out even.  But, since BJs is roughly 20 miles further from my house, I’ll be buying most of my milk at the grocery store for a while, at least.