Steps to Cut Your Grocery Bill in Half!
So what have I been up to in the past few months.... Well chasing after two energetic girls, a wonderful husband and just the normal everyday life at the Sechler household. Other than that, I have taken a huge interest in frugal living, but more importantly how to live more joyfully. I have found that the two go hand in hand when it comes to our everyday domestic living. Simplifying our lives and our budget has taken a huge stress off our shoulders and more time available for the important things in life.... To be servants of the Lord. We are also to be good stewards of our money as well. I think it starts with having the mind set that whatever we have in reality belongs to the Lord first, not us. So how do we be good stewards of what the Lord graciously blessed us with?
Do it in BABY STEPS! I am the first to admit, I am not a patient person. I like to do things right the first time around instead of in baby steps. I only found myself frustrated and overwhelmed. But when you take a step back and start over again in those small steps, the journey is sweet.
MY FIRST STEP: FOOD
"Go to the ant, thou sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise" Prov. 6:6
Since the grocery bill seems to continually grow. I took on the challenge of lowering that first. This does take time and planning and I am still learning new valuable tips along the way, but at least it's a good start.
1. Buy off brands: We have come to realize that a lot of the off brands taste just as good and sometimes better than the name brands, plus we are saving $ in the mean time. I've tried the whole coupon thing but found myself very frustrated trying to plan to save the most money. A lot of times you will find the off brands will still be cheaper than the name brand on sale and using a coupon. Aldi's is my go to store for almost everything. I have literally saved about 50% just by switching to Aldi's alone. What's great about them is the fact they their food is good and they are really taking on the natural & organic approach for their customers. They have excellent produce and much more.
1. Buy off brands: We have come to realize that a lot of the off brands taste just as good and sometimes better than the name brands, plus we are saving $ in the mean time. I've tried the whole coupon thing but found myself very frustrated trying to plan to save the most money. A lot of times you will find the off brands will still be cheaper than the name brand on sale and using a coupon. Aldi's is my go to store for almost everything. I have literally saved about 50% just by switching to Aldi's alone. What's great about them is the fact they their food is good and they are really taking on the natural & organic approach for their customers. They have excellent produce and much more.
2. Menu Plan: A lot of frugal ladies out there will tell you to do a menu plan. I struggle with this because I like to just make whatever I'm hungry for.... and a lot of times find myself not knowing what I am hungry for really- go figure! But by menu planning you can then make your grocery list and buy everything you need at the grocery store at once and lest often. I made this dry erase menu board from an old picture frame. (I'll have a diy post in the near future). It's a start for weekly menu planning.
3. Make a list and stick to it: I usually go thru my cupboards before heading to the grocery store to make a list of what I need. Also look at your menu plan if you make one and that also will help you decide what you need to get. This avoids impulse buying when you are at the store, and it does help in saving money.
4. Grocery Shop less often: I started this task by planning grocery trips every two weeks instead of weekly. Slowly I started to build each trip up father apart. I now go once a month. When I went weekly I averaged a grocery bill of about $140 per week. Now I average about $300 every 4 weeks and that totals to be about $75 a week. Big Savings!!!
5. Buy in Bulk: I have been buying a lot of my staple items in bulk (such as flour, sugar, etc). What's so nice about this is that you always have it when you need it and it does cost less than buying pre-packaged items in smaller sizes.
6. Go Homemade: The internet, local library etc are full of wonderful, easy and free recipes. USE THEM. You can even find recipes to make mixes in bulk, store and use as needed. I have done this with brownie mix, pancake/waffle mix, pudding mix and many others. This will save time for those who think that homemade stuff just takes too much time. In reality it doesn't take much time at all. But the BIGGEST benefit is that it is much, MUCH healthier. No preservatives, additives and other yucky stuff I can't pronounce. I recently found a recipe for homemade hamburger/hot dog buns using my bread machine. (Included on my blog under Recipes tab). They are so yummy, I do prefer them over the store bought any day. And it took me very little time to do so since I used my bread machine.
Just by following these simple steps you will soon start seeing the savings and health benefits. It really is as simple as that and it really works! It's just making your mind up and following through with the plan to do it, is what is so hard. Don't Give Up!
"My son, if thine heart be wise, my heart shall rejoice, even mine." Proverbs 23:15
~Blessings,
Sarah
