Tricia's household and mine share similar demographics. And our spending reflects that somewhat. (I suspect that the cost-of-living here in Oklahoma is cheaper than her locale, though.)
For the last six months, my household (two adults and one almost-4yo) grocery expenses averaged $350 per month. Our dining-out expenses averaged $161/month for the same period. My "grocery" category includes pretty much only food and drink; all other household consumables fall under my "household" category. For the last six months, we averaged spending $236 per month on such household items.
A year ago, as related in this grocery spending post, we were averaging about $367/month for groceries, $87/month for dining out, and $232/month for household items.
So our average grocery spending is down a little year over year, dining out expenses are up A LOT, and household-consumables are about the same. I feel as though there's been decent inflationary pressure on the prices of these items, but that's going purely on gut feeling. I haven't been using my Price Book spreadsheet at all, or else I could pinpoint such pricing changes.
Anyhow, I feel okay about the grocery and household expenses. The dining out, on the other hand, probably needs some trimming. I've not been paying much attention to it lately, and that will have to change.
Labels: Spending
