With the way the economy is, everyone wants to save money. The first thing we should do is cut out all of the non essentials. The next thing we could do to save is to look at our grocery budget. Every one's budget will differ a little. These variables could be due to the part of the country you live in, how many people is in you family, what kind of diet you have, and the list could go on and on. What is the best way to save money?Well lets take a look at a few ideas.
If you do not shop according to sales, start. Adjusting your grocery list to only buy what is on sale could be very beneficial to you. Most important is to not be brand loyal! If you are flexible with buying whatever brand that is on sale, then that will benefit you. You could start making menu plans out that incorporates the sale items. This could greatly reduce your food bill.
If you have a Save A Lot and a Aldi store near you, then try them out. These stores tend to carry off brands. However they are good quality items. The items may even be the same item that you normally purchase with a different label on it. I have shopped both of these stores before. They both offer really good deals. The only real difference that I have found between these stores and the large chain stores is that you pack your own groceries instead of having someone else do it for you.
Another way to save without putting out to much effort is to buy from Angel Food. I have tried their food in the past and I have never had a problem. Angel Food is linked through churches in which you place your order by a certain date and then pick up your food a few weeks later. They have different packages that you can order from. Click on the link and check them out. See if there is a church near you that participates.
My next tip for saving money is the most exciting and fulfilling. It is using coupons! I have tries to use coupons here and there. However I did not seem to save very much because I was not applying myself to get the most bang for my buck. There is really a coupon movement that is happening now. What does this mean to a new coupon user? This means that there are a lot of resources available. You can even print coupons off of the web. There are a lot of sites that bless coupon users by doing coupon and sale ad match up. My favorite grocery store to do my coupon shopping at is Farm Fresh. I do my shopping on Wednesday because they double coupons up to $1 on Wednesday. Talk about a way to save. My favorite pharmacy to shop is Rite Aid. They have a loyalty card that really helps to save.
So don't be scared off about using coupons. There are some really good sites that do the work for you. All you have to do is buy a paper to get the coupons or print them off the web. The Coupon Consultant does match ups for several grocery stores and drug stores. Money saving Mom is also a really good site that I frequent for my match ups. You can learn so much from both of these ladies, it is amazing.
When you implement just one of these items then it will save you so much. However if you put all of these tips together it will allow you to save so much that it will really bless your family. I try to save as much as I can on groceries. This is an area that I feel I can control a little more than say the gas prices. As the price of gas rises then so will your grocery bill. However when you implement these tips and search for more money saving ideas then you can still eat well on less.
I know first hand that when I go to the store unprepared that I will do my family a disservice because I will not get as much for my money. This happened to me yesterday. I went to the store with my coupons but I did not have my store match up. I wandered around like I was lost. In the end I spent way to much for way to little. Today I did my Rite Aid trip. I was prepared and was blessed to get free toothpaste and floss. A little preparation goes a long way. In another post I will go into more detail on saving with coupons.
Blessings
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