Day 14: Shopping Below the Line Take 3

Day 14: Monday 14th January 2013

Monday's Menu:
Breakfast: 50g of Porridge, with water, 50g of fruit and 1 tsp of sugar
Lunch: Last of the homemade soup from Saturday
Dinner: Curry (1 portion of rice, 1/3 tin of kidney beans, 3 tbsp of mixed veg, 1/4 jar of curry sauce)

It's that time of the week again, time to get the supplies for the week ahead. I struggled shopping today. I made the error of going shopping on an empty stomach, and whilst I had intensely planned my shop, any plans completely went out of the window the minute I walked into Tescos. I was picking up everything the Tesco's everyday range had to offer and putting it into the trolley. I think I imagined that because it was cheap it would come under my budget of £6. At one point I had 3 different varieties of tinned pudding, two different varieties of fruit squash, various different cereal options, every tinned bean in the range and and some biscuits (which I can't even eat because I'm intolerant to their main ingredient, but they were 15p!!!). Not to mention expensive cereal bars, sausages, wheat free bread and lots of fresh fruit, just because it was slightly discounted. .

I think my need for some variety and my grumbling tummy told me to ignore the plan and pick up what I actually wanted. Obviously everything had to go back. I think I was most devastated putting the sausages and bread back. The possibility of a sausage sandwich slipping away from me was too much to bear. Dramatic much. I was determined to find some form of meat that I could afford though. Some how I was going to do it. Tall aim I know, I couldn't really afford more than 50p on such a luxury. Firstly I  tentatively approached the canned meals sections (you know with canned stews etc). I did find meat balls in tomato sauce for 40p but the can reminded me of dog food, and one of the main ingredients was wheat.  I didn't fancy risking this option, so didn't pick it up. It was on the baked bean shelf that I found it, baked beans with sausages in. Almost wheat free and only 40p! Brilliant! I have had the heinz version before (admittedly I was about 10) but I seem to remember it being nice, how different can the value option be? I can't wait to sample this delicacy.  I am hoping it will be scrumptious, like the so quickly judged 24p value curry sauce from last week that ended up being the highlight of my dinners. Or, it may resemble dog food. I'm  praying it won't be the latter.

Standard photo of the weekly shop. How inventive can I be this week?

If you want to see a more detailed list of what I got for my £6 please see below.

Today was also my brother's 16th birthday (HAPPY BIRTHDAY WILLIAM!). We had the family over for tea and cakes to celebrate. I had to muster up every bit of self control not to sneak a cheeky crisp, a mini flapjack or even just scrape off a secret bit of icing from the cake. The smell of chocolate filled our house. It was almost unbearable. Ok, I know this sounds very dramatic, but today I feel like I have had a battle with temptation and won. I was at home with a house full of the yummiest treats and I didn't touch one. Everything was technically free, and a little voice in my head was saying, your spending a £1 a day, well if you eat that freebie you won't have broken your challenge. Obviously that is a load of rubbish, I doubt an afternoon tea spread is something those below the poverty line come across on a monthly basis.

Tempting Birthday Spread

For some reason this month is so much more difficult than any diet I have ever been on. I don't know if its the lack of variety or the knowing you can not eat anything outside the supplies you bought at the beginning of the week. I am finding temptations like today far more challenging than when similar situations have occurred when dieting. Obviously I am not doing this month as any form of diet, I want to make that crystal clear. This month is chance to raise money for Tearfund and raise awareness for the millions of people living in extreme poverty. Any weight loss is in no way a motivation for this month, it will definitely be a result of the challenge, but it has not been a drive for me to take part.


I am 1/3 of the way there with my fundraising. I  would like to thank everyone who has sponsored me over the past two weeks. I still have a long way to go. If you are able to sponsor me I would really appreciate it. I know I bang on about how great they are, but Tearfund really are doing some fantastic work to fight poverty. Please click here to be taken straight to my just giving page.

An overview of my food supplies (for anyone who is interested)

Left overs from last week:

• 1 Portion of porridge
• 3 Portions of rice
• 1 portion of Potatoes
• 9 Small Onions 
• 8 Stock cubes
• 10g of herbs/spices of my choice
• 4 Portions of mixed veg
• 1 tin of chopped tomatoes
• 8 Sachets of Tesco Value Cup a Soup (I didn't really eat any cup a soup last week)
• 1 Egg
• Tea Bags

Purchases this week (Budget £6 - £1 deducted from slip up on day 1)

• 1 pint of milk - 45p
• Tesco Everyday Value Baked Beans - 28p
• Tesco Everyday Value Baked Beans with Sausages - 40p
• Tesco Everyday Value mini Potatoes - 69p
• Tesco Everyday Value Porridge - 80p
• Tesco Everyday Value Strawberry Whip - 10p
• Tesco Everyday Value Frozen Mixed Veg - 75p
• Tesco Everyday Value Tinned Tomatoes - 31p
• Tesco Everyday Value Frozen Fruit - £1.25
• Tesco Everyday Value Kidney Beans - 18p
• Tesco Everyday Value Fruit Squash - 42p
• Sugar (from store cupboard - 17p per 100g) - 17p
• 1 Egg (laid by our chickens - price based on every day value range) - 12p

Total Spend: £5.92