3 reasons to shop early at Sam's Club

Three reasons to shop during the early business hours at Sam's Club:

1.  A shady parking space.  In 90+ degree Florida summers, this is crucial! This was at 7:45 a.m. 

2.  Hardly anyone is shopping  so no lines and there are still meat specials to pick up. :)

3. Fresh coffee !

Aldi Cereal Price Comparison

I use coupons but lately due to time constraints have slacked off  bit. Instead, I have been doing most of my food shopping at Aldi which is close to us and using coupons for items that Aldi does not carry at either Winn Dixie or Publix.  It has been surprising to me how much $$ I am saving for our regular grocery purchases by this simple change.

Two examples of items we regularly purchase are Cheerios and UNfrosted Shredded Wheat. I was so glad to see today that the Aldi Shredded wheat is now in stock at  $1.79 a box. They have had the frosted for quite awhile but just got the Unfrosted.  Grocery store price is  $2.99-$3.29 for a 16.4 oz box although I did see it this week at Winn Dixie BOGO $4.19 ($2.09 each). Still cheaper at Aldi. Tastes just the same as the Post brand.

 The Aldi version of Cheerios tastes exactly like General Mills Cheerios (my have cereal, so I know!). $1.59 for a 14 oz. box.   Grocery store price:  $ 3.99+.










I'll keep posting every now and then about products that we like at Aldi.  We are trying many of them systematically each time I shop there.  [We don't care for the yogurt.]   I just discovered the free Blogger app and how easy it is to use!    :)

Cooking with Groceries from Your Freezer and Pantry

Monday morning routines...After my husband leaves for work I usually do 2-3 loads of laundry, clean both bathrooms and dust a little.  Since I often grocery shop on Mondays or Tuesdays (Grocery Game), I check our upright freezer while I'm in our laundry room to see what I have on hand. This week, except for perishables, I don't need much from the  grocery store.    In fact, I have a $5.00 coupon to use but I'll just buy produce this week.  :)  This happens about once a month, sometimes more often, since I stock up when things are at their lowest price.

Then I write the main course on a small dry erase board that's mounted on the side of our refrigerator.  Under the red line is some of the other things I noticed in the freezer that we could have for lunch this week.    Usually the day of the meal I add the side dishes that I want to make with the main dish.  Monday night we're  having baked fish with loaded baked potatoes (cheese and broccoli) and cantaloupe.

Monday's Dinner

Oops...I was going to post a photo here but I forgot to take one before we sat down to eat dinner.  You wouldn't want a photo of white plates with everything eaten off of them.  :)

Making these mini-menus BEFORE grocery shopping, couponing or looking through flyers really helps me save $$ on our groceries.  Remember, the menus don't need to be complete We just donated food  for Souper Sunday and all I needed to do was go to the pantry to fill a large paper grocery sack to take to church.  Sometimes frugal shopping overstocks your pantry and freezer, so I'm trying to have us eat from both to "clean" it out a bit.    One of my favorite blogs that a friend writes had a post about eating from the pantry in January. Check it out HERE.   We still have the variety of food to eat and a little advance planning takes the stress out of the 5:00 p.m. panic hour of what do I make for dinner!.   This is really helpful to me on the days of the week when I have later piano students (leaving around 6:00 or 6:30 p.m.)

Give it a try and relax a little in the evening instead of stressing out over your meals at home.

Proverbs 31:27 

She looks well to the ways of her household, 

And does not eat the abread of idleness. 

Grocery Shopping Reading Food Price Labels

At first glance can you tell the difference between these two labels?  What is the price that you will pay for each of these items?  Which is actually the better buy? The blueberry juice? or the apple juice?

BLUEBERRY JUICE

APPLE JUICE

I shop the sales only at the Winn Dixie near us and have for awhile.  This means I only buy what's on sale at their lowest price (per The Grocery  Game) and stock up.  The rest of my groceries come from Sam's Club or Wal-Mart SuperCenter.   A friend has been steering me towards Publix lately armed with my coupons. :)

Winn Dixie recently changed their labeling tactics.  More than once I have picked up an item thinking is was incredibly inexpensive (it really was incredible) only to realize that the price I was looking at was actually the HOW MUCH YOU SAVE amount, not the cost at the register.  Thankfully I realized my  mistake before reaching the checkout line.

You can see what I mean in the top photo of blueberry juice. Is the price $1.49?  No, it's actually $2.50 each (2 for $5.00).  In the bottom photo of Apple Juice the price is $2.99 but with the BOGO (Buy One Get One Free) it's actually $1.50 each, a better buy than the Blueberry Juice.  I personally think this is a bit deceiving because shoppers are accustomed to the price being the BOTTOM number on all of the labeling.  


Publix does the same thing with their labels.

Read labels carefully at the store where you shop...  

Proverbs 31:27 

She looks well to the ways of her household... 

United States Post Office Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive, May 8, 2010 / Grocery Shopping

Just a reminder that today is another one of the U.S. Post Office's  Stamp Out Hunger food drive. 

This past year there have been more food drives by various organizations than I can remember.  That is another reason to manage your grocery shopping budget and to shop the sales primarily, stocking up when foods, especially non-perishables, are at their lowest prices.  Since I have been doing this regularly  over the last year, I always have a full pantry and freezer and  never have to fret about donating food or having enough to give.

There are several ways to check the lowest prices. Here are just a few:

• Coupon Mom
• Grocery Game
• Wednesday sale flyers in the newspaper
• Check with your friends

I use all three methods  for shopping in various stores.  Coupon Mom is free; Grocery Game charges $10 every 8 weeks for one store list ($1.25 per week) with more stores added for $5 each; newspaper flyers come with your subscription.  Many people balk at the cost of newspaper subscriptions since the news can be found online but I have found that the coupons alone more than pay for the subscription.   Friends often have good leads on the best prices, some of mine even post them on Facebook occasionally.

Just some simple ways to stretch your (or your husband's) hard-earned $$.

FINANCES: ALDI Food Stores

Proverbs 31:27

She looks well to the ways of her household...

There is a new grocery store in our area called ALDI. I had never heard of it before but it advertises fairly inexpensive grocery shopping so I checked it out last weekend while everyone was away. It's not a particularly large store but very clean and it definitely has all the basics a household would need--produce, meats, dairy, packaged goods, bread, paper products... Most items that are not fresh are Aldi's store brand with very few national brands on display. The national brand prices were about average from what I saw. The produce looked very fresh. I bought a sampling of types of foods, fresh and packaged, that we normally eat and so far, we have been quite satisfied. It is very convenient to our home and I actually drive right past it several times a week, so I may be stopping in again for produce or last-minute items I need. They don't do much advertising to keep their prices down, so unless you go in, you won't know what they have.

A few quirks to advise you of:

• Shopping carts cost 25 cents to use. After you've unloaded your groceries, you return the cart and insert a "key" to retrieve your quarter.
• No shopping bags. Bring your own or you can purchase canvas bags at the store.
• Cash or debit cards only. They do not accept checks or credit cards.

If you're on a tight food budget, this would be a good place to cut some corners. If you are partial to particular brands, at least give their brand a try to see if there is any difference in taste. I tried this with their Triscuit look-alike crackers and they taste the same to me.