I've been getting better and better about making a shopping plan for our weekly needs. Making lists comes pretty naturally to me so for years I've made a weekly meal plan. I've done well at cutting the grocery expenses just by making a thrifty meal plan. The part I have trouble with is hunting down the best deals for the items on my list. I usually end up at the most convenient grocery store, which is not the cheapest one near me, and just pick up everything I need at once because I'm always rushed for time. I do buy store generics but the weekly grocery tab has really been nagging at me. I know I can do better at reducing what we spend on groceries and toiletries by getting better deals.
This weekend I put together the meal plan and wrote out the grocery list, added all of the other household items and pet supplies we were running out of, then sat down at the computer to deal hunt. I'm amazed at how easy it was to find good deals for almost everything on my list! Just by going to multiple stores (all within a very reasonable distance from one another) I was able to pick up everything we needed for at least 30% less than I would normally spend! I even ended up with a $10 gas card from CVS for spending $30... and those $30 only went to items on my list. It did take significantly more time to get the weekly shopping done but I'm hopeful that once this sort of pre-planning will become second-nature and I'll get better at cutting down the time.
I know I've got a long way to go in changing my spending habits so I can get out of debt but it's shopping days like today that I realize that I've already made a lot of progress in my attitude towards the money I have to spend. Just because I have to buy something essential doesn't mean I can't spend a lot less on it than I used to!
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