Trish - it is scary but at the same time it can be very empowering. Why not start with just tracking 1 or 2 categories?

Mrs Fancypants - what’s happened with your car just sounds plain wrong. I HATE it when stuff like that happens. Thanks for dropping by. I hope you do so again.

Dirty Laundry Diva - sorry to hear that. It IS hard at the moment.

Talina - that is so true and we really notice it when I’m not feeling up to cooking from scratch (like at the moment).

Maggie - glad to hear things are going well for you. All your effort is really paying off which is great. Fuel here is around $1.60 a litre and rising almost daily.

Suzie - it’s great when you can make use of a farmer’s market. Our closest one is around 500km away.

River - so glad to hear you’re keeping on top of things. I find keeping a well stocked pantry to be quite a difficult balance at times.

Lisa - hours in the day is a definite problem. I guess at least by marking those assignments you’re bringing money IN.

Jeanie - LOL. I doubt you’re alone in that feeling. Honestly though, reality is rarely worse than imagined reality. Or at least it gives you the power to do something about it. That being said, denial for a little while does make for a nice break from a constant struggle against rising prices.

Nicole - I think you’ll find it’s easier as time goes on. I prefer to do bulk shops and then top up shops in between. I’m doing the opposite at the moment. Smaller, “what we really need” type shops until I can get to a cheaper store to stock up.

Lynette - yes, it does seem that things are going to continue to go up. Especially fuel prices. Maybe it’s the wake up call the world needs???? I’ve not heard about food shortages. Whats up with that?

Kate - yes, fuel prices are really biting hard. And they will drive up the costs of producing food and transporting it as well. I understand the issue of having to “drive everywhere”. We’re in the same boat.

Rachel - ROFLOL. Sounds exactly like what I’d do!!!! Hope you got the budget somewhat sorted.

Lis - How did you get on with resorted the budget?

Sharon - I HATE to think what my kids are going to go through in terms of food when they’re teenagers. They eat constantly NOW!!!!

Lauren - I’m terrible when I enter Target so I can understand. I heard Ben was contemplating eye surgery. Sounds interesting.

Marita - it is really HARD when a spouse isn’t on board quite the same. And sometimes blokes can be the worst culprits at spending money to make themselves feel better if finances are tight (my dad was like that).

Kathy - I’m glad you found my series helpful. I’m working on a website dedicated to “save money tips” which I’m hoping will also be helpful (it’s just taking a while for me to get established). Hang in there. It is possible to tame the budget - but it can take a bit of time and effort.

Journeyer - you’re a braver girl than me. One day I’d like to ditch our credit cards. Not that we actually use them for credit but I’m sure I still spend more by using them. They allow me to stay in denial for a few week’s longer!!!! I think one of the most frustrating things about budgets & tracking spending in the current climate is that efforts are eaten up by price rises. Technically you’re still saving money on what you WOULD HAVE spent but it’s not quite as obvious and therefore doesn’t have quite the same rewarding feel to it.

It’s ok though, I’ll be winning the lottery soon so it’ll be all good… and of course I will share!

(oh and, hey, this is my first visit and comment - which is quite bad to say you’ve been commenting on mine for a while).

I am working real hard to get the most out of every grocery we buy, wasting less and leaning how to make meals with the basics is something that has helped me so much.

When you can make stuff from scratch you can buy more of the “kitchen staples” that are more versatile and can be used to make more that just one meal. I am buying fryer chickens these days, I can get 3 meals out of them!

The rising food costs haven’t exactly hit yet here in Canada, I’m sort of waiting for the shoe to drop. In the mean time i’ve stocked up on rice and pasta (both of which were on sale of all things lately!) As for gas (petrol) prices, I heard someone say that Canadians are paying about 5$/gallon. They were comparing what Americans are paying, which is 4$ a gallon. For liter prices it was 1.20/litre. As I don’t drive I’m rather unaware of what the going rate is. Living in my own bubble I guess.

On the other hand, I wont be surprised in the least if public transit prices go up to compensate for gas prices. Unfortunately I can’t walk to work, so I might have to pay more than 66$/month for transit.

That being said, considering some people pay nearly that much or even more per week for their cars, my transportation costs are minimal.

And just last night I was offered some freelance work — some extra pocket money to set aside for rising costs. All things considering I’m doing ok here.

Cheers,
Maggie

ps I suppose I should answer the original question lol — yes I am mildly in denial, but I am trying to face facts and pay off debts. No one else is going to do it for me.

I rarely but vege and fruit at woolies or coles- I do use Aldi and save loads and there stuff is much fresher- but I save lots by going to out local Farmers narket each week and the food is soo fresh