CANNON BALL!
Bff's jump on three 1, 2, 3 !
Mike getting his awards. the Cub Scout master said something special about each boy.
It was so rainy that on the last night we made smores in the camper over the stove.
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I've received numerous emails from people recently asking how you can lower your grocery bill if you don't live nearby stores which have good coupon deals or if you don't have time to clip coupons. While I'm a big proponent of coupons, I understand that they don't work for everyone in every season of life in every area of the country. Here would be a few of my top recommendations for ways to lower your grocery bill without clipping coupons:
1) Plan a menu and stick to it. Seriously. If this is the only thing you ever do, you'll greatly reduce your grocery budget.
2) Shop once per week or less. The less you shop invariably means the less you spend. I recommend you have a grocery budget, plan your menu and list with your grocery budget in mind, use a calculator to tally up your running total as you shop, and only bring the allotted amount of grocery money with you in cash.
3) Stick with simple, inexpensive meals. I'm a big believer in simplicity. There's an occasional time and place for the elaborate, six-course dinners, but for the everyday, keep it simple. We like to have a main dish, homemade bread of some sort, and then fruit or veggies of some sort to round things out. I plan our main dishes around what we already have on hand and what meats and other mainstay ingredients are on sale.
4) If you live nearby a store which does run sales, plan your menu based upon the store sales. The simple step of taking a few extra minutes each week to browse the store fliers and create your menu based upon what is on sale there will greatly enhance your savings. If you have more than one store which runs weekly sales, check both fliers and decide which store to do your shopping at based upon which store has the best sales.
5) Shop at Aldi. I know every area doesn't have Aldi stores, but if you do, you should be shopping there. I don't recommend buying everything at Aldi, but there are many things there which are very comparable to name brands at the store, but which are routinely quite a bit less. Our Aldi standbys include: fruit (especially bananas, apples, oranges, grapefruit, and frozen fruit), tortillas, some veggies, frozen veggies, and staple ingredients. You have to be a bit flexible since Aldi doesn't always have everything in stock and the produce is sometimes hit and miss, but we've saved hundreds of dollars each year by buying 25% or so of our groceries at Aldi.
8) Cook from scratch, as much as possible. It's a no-brainer, but cooking from scratch with simple, inexpensive ingredients is likely one of the greatest ways to save money on your grocery budget while also eating more healthfully. We enjoy some processed foods as a treat, but I attempt to have the bulk of our diet made up of fresh fruits and veggies and homemade items. With some planning ahead and cooking in bulk and freezing, you can eliminate the need for many processed foods without spending a great deal of time and thought.
One of my best tips to help one be more efficient when it comes to cooking from scratch is just to look for ways you can make extra. If you're making waffles, make a double batch or triple batch and freeze the leftovers for breakfast later in the week. If you're making cookies, double the recipe, bake what you'll eat right away, and freeze the rest of the cookie dough in balls and then pull out how many you'll need and bake them later.
Another thing which has worked well for me is to try and bake for a few hours one day per week or to take 20 minutes everyday and bake up a triple batch of something and freeze most of it. This guarantees I almost always have a few different things on hand for quick breakfasts or snacks or bread to go along with dinner.
What are your best recommendations for saving money on groceries without clipping coupons?
Well, I am not quite sure why, but Staples is really generous lately with the bargains. Maybe they do this every year and I have been oblivious. But I am not complaining!
Once again, they will have some super cheap goodies next week, beginning Sunday, July 27. These are available in-store only, while supplies last, so don't dilly dally!
Slider Pencil case, assorted- $0.01, Limit 2
Staples 2-pocket plastic report cover- $0.20, Limit 10
Staples mini stapler- $0.25, Limit 3
Pentel Energel Pens, 4 pk- FREE after easy rebate, Limit 1
Staples electric pencil sharpener- FREE after easy rebate, Limit 1
Other Deals of Note:
BIC Brite Liner highlighters, 5/pk- $0.99
BIC Atlantis Ball Point Pens, 4/pk- $0.99
Teachers qualify for higher limits on items. Also, mark your calendar for upcoming Teacher Appreciation Day at Staples.
If you are unable to make it to Staples, bring the ad from the Sunday paper to Wal-Mart for possible price matches.
Kroger is having a 10-Item Mega Event at many stores around the country right now. They have a number of items on sale for $3, $2.50, $2, and $1.50. For each combination of 10 participating items you buy, you'll get an instant $5 off your purchase (with a limit of 3 discounts per transaction).
Melissa posted the sale flier for her area here. And Marcy shares a large list of deals with coupon match-ups here.
You'll definitely want to especially take a look at the items which are $1.50. If your Kroger doubles coupons and you have $0.50/1 coupons on any of these items, you'll get them free if you buy 10 and get the additional $5 discount. Free items include: Betty Crocker Cookie mixes, Cattleman's BBQ sauce, Frank's Red Hot sauce, and Daisy sour cream.
Click here to see the list of all the deals to be had and be sure to check your store's flier to see if they are participating in this great deal!
