Slash a Couple of Big Ones from Groceries This Month?
You want us to do what? How can we possibly save money on anything in December, the whole month long celebration of consumerism! Well, I know it sounds tough, but you can do what I’m going to do, and you may be surprised how much money you can save!
Make a Skimp Week!
I do my main grocery shopping once a week, not that I never have to go back to pick up something I forget. But one week a month, I try to use what I have. I am not a well organized person, and I’m sure if I was, I would spend a lot less money. I fall more into the creative people are seldom neat category. For instance, I came home with a jar of mild picante sauce, a staple food in our home, only to find that I already had 3 jars stuffed behind other stuff in my pantry. I have done this before with other staples like pickles and tomato sauce. I often spend money on things I already have. Lucky for me, these are usually things that will keep, so if I can just keep from buying them again, I am well stocked to be sure!
So, the first thing you need to do is go through your pantry and fridge and freezer and take an inventory. I am not asking you to computerize it or anything, but just try to take mental notes of the things you have that you tend to overbuy.
Now here’s a word to the wise. If you do have a box of cereal that has sat in the pantry with one serving left for 2 months, it is time to toss it and find out what your kids will eat for breakfast! That box is just making your pantry hard to organize and access, and it is probably just going to get older.
OK, so now you know that you do not need to buy another box of croutons or can of chicken broth because you have’t used up the ones you have in the last month! You probably do need bread, fruit, vegetables, etc. because they tend to spoil. In my house, fruit tends to get eaten, but some weeks we do not get through a loaf of bread. If that loaf of 7 grain isn’t getting eaten, it might be time to replace it with some other source of whole grains that people will eat.
Use What You Have
Take a hard look at what you already have in your freezer and pantry, and try to plan some meals around that. Only buy missing ingredients. If you have croutons and dressing, you probably only need lettuce and salad veggies. Buy things that can do double duty. A green pepper can go into a salad or get cooked into pasta sauce. If you, like me, already have a couple of pounds of ground beef, you probably don’t need to replace them at all!
Here’s My Example To Save Money this Week!
It’s the end of the year, and I have some holiday shopping to do. I also have property tax bills sitting on my counter. This is a good month to be frugal where I can.
So I found 3 pounds of ground beef, 3 packets of flavored rice, a pound of turkey sausage, 2 jars of store brand spaghetti sauce, croutons, fake bacon bits,2 1/2 boxes of pasta, and a couple of bottles of salad dressing, and 3 jars of picante sauce among other things!
We are certainly going to have pasta and tacos a few times this week. I just need to buy taco shells, salad stuff, and a can or two of refried beans. Of course, I also want to buy some fruit selections because my family tends to snack on that. To vary up the menu, I may get a can of sloppy joe seasoning and some hamburger buns.
Even if I toss in a 12 pack of soda cans for road trips, and a few other snack foods, I can probably keep my grocery bill under $100, instead of going over $200. If I can do this for 2 weeks this month, I’ll have saved $200. This is a reasonable goal, and I haven’t even used a coupon yet!
Related posts:
