FREE HOME PLANNER
SAMPLE!
I made the quickest run this morning to Kroger after working out (I'm telling you what, going to the grocery at 6 AM is the best way to shop – it makes life so much easier!) Because I'd shopped Costco last week as well as the Kroger Mega Sale, we didn't have all that much that we needed, so I just picked up the items on my list from this week's menu plan.
Goodness, it is amazing how much you can save simply by shopping with a list and menu plan, especially if you can find a few of the items on sale. All I had to do was run in and grab a few things that I didn't have in our pantry (I love having a stockpile with many of these foods!), so my grocery bill this week was a whopping $22.17 for the week. (Yay!)
- Kroger Shredded Cheese $1.99 (normally $2.99)
- Kroger Chicken Breast $7.99 (normally $13.99)
- Organic Chicken Broth $2 (regularly $2.49)
- 2 Green Peppers $1
- Kroger Half & Half $1.39 (regularly $1.59)
- Kroger Green Beans $.69
- Bag of Granny Smith Apples $3.99
- Red Onions $1
- Organic Tomato $.60
- Bananas $1.52
- Total = $22.17
I've really been working to stick to our grocery budget, this helped so much.  I'm thrilled to be well under budget this week, and excited to see where we end up at the end of our two week grocery budget! I can't express enough how very important it it grocery shop with a plan in mind, and to strategically shop the sales ad so that even without coupons  you always get a deal. You can even try “coupon” shopping every other week (especially when the coupon deals are good), and then on opposite weeks stock up only on produce, bread, milk, and any items you absolutely need for your menus.  It can't definitely have an impact on your grocery budget, and you'll see savings almost immediately!
If you've been struggling to start this month out on track, I encourage you to consider living on a budget, and you may want to try out a menu plan too. I'd love to hear your thoughts if you're working to save big this month too!
I'd love for you to join me on Pinterest for more penny pinching ideas, and keep up with my Fall Menu Planning Board to see what we're cooking up each week!
Hey Laurie, Just came upon this post while getting CVS coupon match-ups! You and your frugal ways have helped me and my family soooo much!! We have 4 kids and always have room for guests and friends at our dinner table! Menu planning and using from your stock-pile makes such a difference, because you are paying the lowest possible price for groceries, and rarely paying full price for anything!
I’m so glad it helps Shelley – that means so much to me! I love that it helps make life easier for you, and goodness, it’s just amazing what peace comes when we have control over our finances. Thank you so much for taking the time to say something!
Not sure if it matters, but the post was really about how using a menu plan (and shopping what I already have in our pantry and fridge) saved a ton this week. We already have the roast in the fridge (bought a few weeks ago when Kroger had them BOGO), and were stocked up on fresh produce and milk (I bought 3 gallons and we were out of town over the weekend, so still have almost 2 full gallons left.)
I think the biggest point I was getting at (but must not have made correctly) was that just shopping with a menu plan in place rather than randomly going into the grocery store can save a TON and works for our family. Yes, we spent $46 at Sam’s last week and another $40 at Kroger – so my total for two weeks is $106 which comes out to $53 a week – and we really do eat real food. Salads every night along with our meals, and lots of fruit because my kids love it. After spending the last year in a rough spot handling our menu plan because of a difficult move, I’m thrilled to be back on track again and am pleased with this for our family, but it absolutely won’t work for everyone.
As far as extra items (light bulbs, toilet paper, etc), I stock up on those when they’re on sale at a great price, and none of those items had a good sale this week so I didn’t buy the *extra* stuff. Thankfully years of couponing has our pantry fully stocked so I can shop the pantry rather than pay full price, and for us that’s working right now! It’s just a matter of shopping differently, but has worked for us and given us financial freedom.
I haven’t visited your blog before, but I noticed the unfortunate comments above and I’ve noticed the same type of thing on other blogs; most of the time, it looks like it’s coming from people who are defensive about what they spend, so they claim you can’t save *and* eat well or be healthy. I understood that this was a shopping trip to supplement what you already had, and I see produce on even this supplementary list. Lots of people shop this way– large trip, then a small one later. And $50/wk isn’t bad.
So glad you stopped by, and thank you for sharing! We really do typically shop like that (I’m assuming other folks do too), so and it works for us. Thanks for your kind words!
Plus she spent $22 at Krogers that day, but also spent $46 at Costco (3 gal milk, a 52 pack of Rice Krispies treats etc), and said she had earlier shopped a Kroger Mega Sale. She is def not feeding her family on $25/wk. If you give up soda, and buy powdered drink mix like Koolaid as a treat for the kids, you CAN save more, but you know… you have to also have a bit of enjoyment in your eating/drinking. Like all things, it's a balance, and also, there's only so low you can go.
There are plenty of blogs that teach you to stretch your budget by doing things like cooking an entire chicken in the crock pot, and then having meat for a casserole, a pot of soup, and wraps or a salad. They have you do a whole bag of pintos for $2.00 that will last for 3 or 4 different meals, ditto a bag of rice. I hate when I see the save money by eating crappy blogs.
I was looking at her menus, and they are super heavy on carbs, super light on vegetables, and she stretches cheap cuts of meats with the carbs. For the entire week's menu, she bought a red onion, a bucket of mushrooms, a bag of salad mix and a tomato. I could shop super cheap also if I cooked that way…but we'd all be obese and have scurvy.
I assume when you say groceries you don't mean things like cat food, light bulbs, toilet paper, etc., and that you don't drink soda or give the kids capri sun or anything but tap water. No milk in your week's shopping? I find it impossible to spend less than a hundred a week. That's a great week, too.
How many ppl are in your family? I have a family of 6 and find it really hard to get a weeks worth of meals for less than $50. Any tips would help…
Hi Sara! We have a family of 5, and it can be done but isn’t always easy to eat meals for less than $50. Some things that we’ve found have helped have been to try different things for dinner (we have breakfast for dinner at least once every other week – eggs are inexpensive compared to meat), as well as re-using leftover ingredients from one recipe for another one which helps. Also really (REALLY) working on menus that match up with the sales ad helps so much ~ when I see a good price on meat especially I stock up on a bunch of it by freezing it and then we have it for weeks when meat’s at a higher price. Hope that helps!