Manage My Budget

I don\’t have to turn on the news to see how bad the economy is; I just need to check my wallet. There isn\’t an area in my family\’s life that hasn\’t been scrutinized and squeezed for every cent we can save. One of the first places most people look to save money is in the grocery store. I normally swear by a weekly menu and a grocery list, but these are different times. Maybe what I want to cook isn\’t what I ought to cook. Maybe I should let the sales do the talking.

If you shop the sales at grocery stores already, you are familiar with all the \”Reduced\” sections, the buy-one-get-one-free specials, the \”Today Only\” sales, and all the store brand deals. Now ask yourself, what would my grocery cart, and my grocery bill, look like if I ONLY bought those items? What would my dinner look like?

It may take some time before you feel comfortable restricting your meals so dramatically. But, you know the kinds of foods you and your family like. Also, be aware that your best sale days are most likely on the weekend. I\’ve been in a grocery store that didn\’t have any sales on Thursday, but they were practically giving the store away on Friday.

You will need a little strategy when you walk into the grocery store. Plan to shop the exterior aisles of the store first as that\’s where most stores display the \”main ingredients\”; vegetables, meat, fish, poultry, cheese, and dairy. Fill your cart first with these items, only the ones you find on sale, and you will see your meals start to develop. Don\’t worry… you\’ll find plenty of specials in all these sections of any grocery store.

It\’s time to quickly push your cart through the inside aisles. You\’ll want to grab only items that are on sale and that your family will eat. It\’s amazing how quickly you begin to get ideas for dinner. But don\’t think too hard or take too much time struggling with ideas. When you get everything home, you\’ll find items in your pantry that you can use as well.

One word about coupons here. Coupon clipping is certainly a money saver, but only if you clip coupons for items that you use. Don\’t buy an item that you INTEND to use someday. You won\’t save any money by having a jar of marmalade sitting in your pantry for a year. Do clip coupons for those paper products that never seem to go on sale. If you are not absolutely committed to a certain paper, beauty, or cleaning product, purchase the product offered by the coupon to save a few cents if the price turns out to be less than your usual product.

Once you return home with your sale items, the assortment will be a little baffling because you don\’t have a menu to follow exactly. Now your creativity will come into play. Pile your veggies in one spot, your meat, fish, and poultry in another place, your cheese or other dairy products in a pile, and your inside aisle items in another pile. Look in your pantry for any rice, noodles, or potatoes. Can you see where this is going? Pick an item off each pile, review your choices for feasibility, and there you are. Your dinner choice has been made. Now don\’t you feel smart?

If you do this sale-items-only shopping a couple times a month, the savings will start to add up. And, you may just find out that you can do more than just follow a recipe you can cook! Is it time for you to take a hard look at your budget and make some changes in your old routines?

Now it\’s up to you; here are some great tips on saving on food and some guidelines for a family food budget. By implementing a few of these tips, you can start saving money this week.