I am pulling myself out of denial!
About a week ago I got our bank statement in the mail for the end of November through the end of December...and Sean and I sat down and itemized the statement into categories. Ummm...lets say...THE CAREY FAMILY SPENDS TOO MUCH! I didn't realize how much we were spending on groceries. YIKES! Lets just say...it was over $900 for the month. So...I decided to take some action.
Sean and I decided to write out our weekly grocery list. That includes EVERYTHING that we use in a week, broken down by categories and amount needed. i.e. we use 3 large containers of yogurt. Sean has the list saved on his laptop and we aren't going to go shopping unless it has been 7 days since we went(of course unless there in an emergency). I think that 1/3 of our spending is "running to the store for one thing and picking up 12" shopping. SO...I am trying to eliminate that. I am trying to save $300 a month on groceries. If I put that away for 10 months we could go away in November just on our grocery savings alone.
Sounds good right? Well...sticking to it will certainly be the hard thing here. The list itself isn't skimpy. In fact it contains everything that we would want or use for the week(and probably includes more than we actually need), but within our food budget is also going out food money. We don't go out often but I think in December we did go out more than usual or ordered take out.
If you haven't done this I encourage you to give it a shot. It certainly saves on time when you are trying to remember what you need and is so convienent to have a printed list.
I have been keeping the list with the amount spent so that I can re-evaluate what we spent after the month is over. We will see how this goes....If you have tips please let me know!!! I would love to hear them!
posted by Erin @ 8:38 AM
4 Comments:
A good tip someone gave me was to write everything down in a notebook that you purchase. I mean every little detail, groceries, gas, bills that get paid, a nail polish you picked up or something you ordered online and then reevalute after the month and make your budget from there! Also I don't know if you already shop at Aldi but they do have quite a bit to offer for less, it may not be as good as name brand but you can always spice it up somehow ;0)
I know Beth from church and I have read your blog many times. I only have a family of 3 but a preteen son who at times eats EVERYTHING. I cut coupons and watch the flyers when they come in the mail. So I shop where the deals are. At first it can be time consuming because it is new but it works. There is a mom who has a blog that teaches how to save money. I got it from Saralyn, from our church. I'll get them for you so you can check it out. Hope this helps. Good Luck. Sharon
Erin~
Here are two sites to check out:
momeysavingmom.com
momadvice.com
Sharon
Where do I start?
A frequent tip that read about online is to keep a pricebook. Mine is still in the process. You keep track of the prices of all the items you purchase and where, to determine what is the best price for each item and where to get it. That way you never pay more than you have to. Hard to keep track of that kind of info in my brain.
Base your menus around the items that are the "loss leaders", usually on the fronts & backs of the sales circulars.
Never shop when you're hungry.
Stick to the list.
Cut back on processed/convenience foods. This is different for every family. Some people consider bread a "convenience" others don't. Anything in a box is probably gonna cost ya more. Also, anything packaged in individual servings.
Shop generic. Almost always cheaper than the namebrand.
Make as much as you can from scratch. Usually cheaper than buying already made. Tastes better & you know what's in it.
Don't shop at Super Wal-Mart. :>) LOL But seriously, almost EVERY grocery item I ever buy there is more expensive than what I pay at my usual grocery stops. Plus, you usually buy stuff not in the grocery area too.
Serve smaller portions of protein. Don't make it the main feature of your meals. Like instead of huge chicken breasts, serve chicken salad or chopped up chicken in part of a casserole. Makes it go further.
I use a list too, but not of how many of each item we use in a week. I have a printed list that I can check off items as we run out. Also helps as a mental jog to look through it and see which items we need. I used to cut coupons too, but I found that I don't use enough namebrand products to make all the time it takes to go through all the ads worth it for me. Generic is usually cheaper than even the namebrand w/coupon.
If it makes you feel any better, we spent more than usual in the month of December too. We had several holiday gatherings here, as well as several days of overnight guests too.
Do you shop at different stores or one main stop?
We also hardly ever run out for a few things. Really, we live too far away from any grocery to just "run out". If we run out, we do without ;>)
HTH!
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