Skip to main content

The Biggest Change I Ever Made...

...and the word change in this sentence has two contexts - I made a change to my life and consequently now receive MORE change at the supermarket!!

There are many age old theories and also plenty of new ones regarding how to save money with your groceries.

One that I have never applied nor followed is the art of making a meal plan and thus a shopping list....and then sticking to it.

For the last 2 - 3 months, that is exactly what I've done and by geez has it worked. Combining the meal plan and shopping list with some other tried and true shopping tricks I have kept my grocery budget and we have eaten beautiful, yummy food every day and every night.

This week for me is shopping week so as I complete each step I'll blog it and hopefully you'll see how it actually works. Before we begin, below are my KEY shopping tips to save money that I undertake every shop (for me this is fortnightly)... and because I'm all about sharing my personal grocery budget for a fortnight is $350 - this is for 2 adults (both working), 1 little boy (18 months old, still in nappies) and 2 little dogs. That figure is inclusive of nappies, wipes, dog food, meat, fruit & vegies and all our treats. We allow an extra $20 for a quick supermarket trip throughout the fortnight for additional milk / bread / treats (i.e. chocolate or ice cream!)

  • Make a meal plan for your shopping period, include enough dinners for every night you'll be cooking.
  • Shop from your pantry first e.g if you have a lot of mince leftover from a previous shop include meals with mince as the meat ingredient
  • Go through the specials catalogue from your local major supermarkets and circle anything you need / want (for me these are Woolworths, Coles & Kmart)
  • Take the time to buy those items that you need that are on special at each supermarket.
  • Read the BIG W and Kmart catalogue if you receive them - they sell some grocery items in bulk
  • Shop at ALDI for as much as you possibly can - if you're buying home brand at the other supermarkets, Aldi WILL be cheaper and 99% of the time tastes better
  • Buy your meat from a butcher (bulk / budget if possible) and your fruit & vegetables from a fruit shop or market...YOU WILL SAVE $$$$$$ JUST BY DOING THIS ALONE
  • Check Big W for their bulk items - dishwasher tablets, toilet paper and washing powder, be familiar with their prices. These items work out cheaper everyday than buying smaller amounts at the supermarkets.
I know this seems tedious, but once you start and get into the rhythm and routine it won't feel like extra work.

Once I have created my meal plan for the coming fortnight I will post it so you can see how it works!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

'twas the weekend before Christmas..

and the entire house was exhausted! I have resorted to what I call the 'cop out' of parenting...turning the TV on and leaving the child to be glued to it like a brainwashed robot. Why you ask? I is tired! and I have much to get through, and whilst I want my little guy to help me with all the fun stuff, the style of whinging that only comes from a nearly 2 year old is the very last thing I wish to experience today. The weather is dreary, again, which makes standard housework even more unappealing. Who wants to hang washing out when it isn't sunny and beautiful outside?! I have sneakily switched the channel to an animal doco, still enticing enough that the little person will let it capture his attention for a few minutes at a time (hello going to the toilet in peace!) but not enough to have him glued to it for the entire day. Perhaps after his nap I will put my responsible parent cap back on and turn the TV off.
Post a Comment
Read more

Be Kind To Yourself...

Sleep when the baby sleeps Eat to keep up your strength Make time for yourself Have someone else feed the baby so you can have a break You hear all of that and more when you're a new Mum, all of it with good intention however it often seems like hounding and honestly how many of us heed it? It all comes down to this... Be Kind to Yourself. Recently I have learnt from a medical professional how important it is to be kind to yourself. If you are not then you will suffer for it. Maybe not straight away, maybe not in a dramatic way but you will feel it. You may feel depressed, anxious, cranky. You may put on weight, your skin my appear dull & listless. No doubt you will be tired to the point of exhaustion. And you will say to yourself and others... I'm just tired, you know having a baby is tiring...or any excuse along those lines. Be Kind To Yourself and you WILL feel better. Get some sun - just 10 minutes in the morning before it gets too hot. Have your cup of t...
Post a Comment
Read more

New Direction

Today I discussed with a friend, what next. My little boy starts prep next January, we aren't having any more children. And after doing some recent research into a franchise, we aren't moving forward with our own business for some time yet. So, what next, was the question I put to my "bestie" She says "Have you thought about writing a book?" I nearly spat my coffee on her, laughing I asked, "About What?!" The serious look she gave me made me realise it wasn't a joke. A book is far from my reach, and commitment level I'm sure. I reminded her I do blog, or more to the point, I HAVE blogs, that I don't write in. But that I did have some ideas about what those said blogs could contain. Tonight, I decided to test myself. Can I write, in a blog I already have, rather than open another blank page and start again. I'm here. I did it. One step closer to the book my best friend would clearly love to read.... (shame about...
Post a Comment
Read more