December Grocery Extravaganza

Having done a very small shop in November in order to get my financial house in order we were in need of some major shopping for December. Keeping my budget in mind of course.
I set myself a goal to attempt to do all of our shopping at BJ's wholesale club and Aldi, and to get not only nutritious foods for meals but all the items I wanted for my holiday baking. I was successful on all counts. I also spent more money at Aldi than I ever have before, leading me to beleive that if push came to shove I could easily feed my family with only items from this store.
My first stop was BJ's Wholesale club.  I have a cash back membership there and it came in handy as I received an $86.62 gift card in rewards to use towards my December purchases. My bill totaled $188.67 but after deducting a $3 coupon and the gift card my out of pocket expenses were only $100.06. Toilet paper, paper towels, paper napkins (free after coupon with purchase of paper towels) tampax, and a holiday jar candle came from the household budget and the remainder was food. We brought home 1 6 pack of Chunky Chicken Gumbo soup ( a favorite of my teen daughter who arrives home early enough from school to eat lunch here), 10 lbs. Gold Medal flour, 1 large can hot chocolate mix, 2 chuck roasts, 1 lb. hard salami, 1 large eye of round roast, 3 lbs. organic bacon, 1/2 lb. proscuitto, 1 whole boneless pork loin (which I cut into a large roast for New Year's Day, 6 pork chops, 6 schnitzel, and 1 lb cubes),  a 4 pack of Pork tenderloins, a wedge of imported parmesan cheese, 1 jar of spreadable port wine cheese, and 6 lbs of clementines.
Our final stop was Aldi. I spent a grand total of $250.05!!! I stocked up on some specialty items for holiday entertaining and the needed baking items for cookies, fruitcake, and quick breads. From my household budget I spent $ 21.05 and got trash bags, storage bags in two sizes, toothpaste, shampoo, and a couple of new cloth shopping bags. The remainder of $229 was spent on food. I came home with a loaf of bread, a bag of tortilla chips, 4 bags assorted potato chips, 1 pck plain bagels, 100% cranberry juice, 100% red grapefruit juice, 100% grape juice, 2 100% apple juice, 1 bag frozen shredded hash browns, 1 bag mini marshmallows, 1 bag holiday marshmallows, 1 box rice krispies, 2 3lb bags boneless skinless chicken breast, 1 bag crispy chicken strips, 1 bunch celery, 3 lbs. granny smith apples, 1 bag fresh cranberries, 2 pomegranates, 3 lbs bananas, 1 pint baby bella mushrooms, 1 seedless cucumber, 3 lbs. red grapefruit, 1 pck. muenster sliced cheese, 1 pck. sliced provolone, 1 bag mini chocolate chips, 1 bag semi sweet chocolate chips, 1 bag white chocolate chips, 2 cans pumpkin, 1 jar pesto sauce, 3 cans cream corn, 3 cans evaporated milk, 1 100% pomegranate-cranberry juice, 1 can fire roasted tomatoes, 1 can Italian seasoned tomatoes, 4 cans beets, 1 box baking soda, 1 can baking powder, 1 can condensed milk, 2 Cornish game hens, 3 cans chunky beef soup, 1 can pineapple chunks, 1 pint grape tomatoes, 1 pck roma tomatoes, 3 multi colored peppers, 2 cans potato corn chowder, 2 bottles steak sauce, 1 can crushed pineapple, 2 cans green beans, 1 bag egg noodles, 2 boxes au gratin potatoes, 2 boxes rice a roni, 1 bag sliced pepperoni, 3 lbs lemons, 3 lbs.sweet potatoes, 2 lbs powdered sugar, 1 pck corn tortillas, 2 lbs brown sugar, 1 bag parsnips,  1 box buttery snack crackers, 2 jars bread and butter pickles, 1 bag coconut, 1 box onion soup mix, 1 box elbow macaroni, 1 pck fresco cheese, 1 box cream of wheat,1 box granola bars, 1 bottle ranch dressing, 1 jar mild salsa, 2 pcks colby cheese, 1 ball fresh mozzarella, 2 pcks cheddar brats, 1 corned beef, 2 pcks turkey kielbasa, 2 pcks imitation crab, 2 bags baby carrots,1 bag regular carrots, 2 lbs butter (I have 5 lbs in the freezer), 1 container french onion dip, 1 quart lowfat cottage cheese, 4 assorted fruit greek yogurt, 1 bag shredded Italian blend cheese, 1 pck neufchatel cheese, 1 pint light sour cream, 1 cabbage, 2 blocks NY cheddar, 1 pck american singles, 1 box golden raisins, 3 heads garlic, 1 bottle honey mustard, 2 bags chopped dates, 1 bag string cheese, 1 container caramel apple dip, 1 bag 'oreos', 1 bag dried apricots, 1 bag dried cherries, 1 bag dried pineapple, 1 pck. English Double glouscester cheese, 1pck Red Leicester cheese, 1 jar con queso, 1 container pumpkin spice creamer, 1 jar peanuts, 4 cans mandarin oranges, 1 jar cinnamon applesauce, 1 log summer sausage.