Grocery Budget Make-Over: Step 3 Use and Purchase Less of the Item

Remember, we are looking at our TOP FIVE expenses in our grocery budget first. We are now at step 3 in our budget remodel...using and purchasing less of the item. In this day and age of "stockpiling," this item doesn't seem to fit, does it? However, even if you stockpile an item, if you use less of it, you won't have to stockpile as much of it. Or, your stockpile will simply last you longer. I'll go back to my coffee example. Before my effort at reducing our coffee usage, Randy and I made a number of pots of coffee through the day...sometimes 4 altogether. We didn't always drink all the coffee, either. Since the cost of coffee has gone up so much, I decided to try to make less. Now, notice I didn't say I would drink less! I began turning off the coffee pot right after making it so that I could reheat a cup that didn't taste "burned" or "old" later in the day to prevent me from making another pot. We have reduced our usage quite a bit by that simple trick. I still stockpile coffee, one of mainstays, when I get a really good deal on. My stockpile will last us longer. I'd like to add at this point that you must resist the urge to use more of an item simply because you have a stockpile of it...unless that's your goal. If you stockpile broccoli because you want your whole family to eat it more...great! (I guess it would have to be frozen...)

Now, let's get back to reducing the use of an item. This is really when you can get creative. If meat is your largest expense, make sure you don't ever through any out...cook just the right amount for your family...use your leftovers if you don't. You can also substitute the use of  a lower priced item for some of the use of the higher priced item. In our meat example, choose more poulty and less beef, or have a "meatless Monday." Also consider serving a plate with more veggies and less protein. (We really could use more of that!)

Another way of using less of an item, if it isn't essential, is to actually buy it less often. Perhaps ice cream might fall into this category. Decide you will only buy ice cream when it is under $5.00 a gallon and only buy 1 gallon when you do. That works only for treats, not staples. However, treats are often the more expensive items

If one of your "Top Five" items is a packaged/boxed item, you might find that you can save money by making the item from scratch. Put aside a Saturday to make biscuits from scratch and freeze them to pull out for those portable breakfasts.

If one of your "Top Five" items is some type of drink...substitute one glass of water for one of the drink item every day.

You get the idea...

To be continued...

Budget Makeover Step 2: My Top Five Expenses and Steps 3, 4, 5 & 6 to Reduce Spending on the Top Five

So you have intrepidly gathered and tallied your grocery and toiletry receipts for a 30 day period. Good for you! That was a big accomplishment! Now you want to evaluate you spending. First, how much is your total spend You will want to know how much your total spending per month/30 days is so that What do you spend the most money on each week? I suggest that you choose the top five items in your monthly spending and seek to reduce the cost of those items each week.

How do you reduce the cost of a grocery line item? There are several ways. First, consider whether the item is really necessary. Perhaps your biggest expense is a (regular) impulse purchase. For example, I love coffee. I REALLY love coffee. I love it black, in coffee drinks *think frappuccino *, with expensive creamers. Yum. Now, I believe that coffee is necessary in our grocery budget. But, frankly, bottled coffee drinks at $1.50 or more per bottle are not. I can get the same effect by using milk and sucralose or sugar. For me, this is not really a necessary purchase if I am trying to reduce my grocery spending to meet financial goals that are important to my family. You get the idea. Honestly and prayerfully evaluate the top five in your monthly spending. Since you are looking at the top money users in your budget, you'll get the most bang for your buck reducing spending on these items.

So, now let's say you have looked at each of the top five in your budget over the past 30 days and determined that that each one is a necessary or sufficiently valuable element of your grocery spending. By sufficiently valuable, I mean those items that, yes, you could live without, but, no, you don't want to do so. For our family, I'll go back to the coffee example. My husband and I both love coffee and do not wish to give it up. It stays on the list. Now, the goal is to spend the least amount of money on that item. The next steps in our grocery budget make over seek to do that for each of the 5 items.

Step 3:  See if you can use and purchase less of the item.

Step 4: Determine less expensive alternatives to the item in question in order to reduce your cost.

Step 5: Shop sales for the item to reduce your overall spending on it. A price book page for those top five items is helpful to determine what a good "sales" price is.

Step 6: Add coupons on the item to the sales price and to get your best deal on that specific item.

I'll go into great detail on each of those steps separately in my next blog post(s).

To Be Continued...

Save-a-Lot April 15th to April 28th, 2012

There are several noteworthy deals at Save-a-Lot this period.
      Center Cut Pork Steaks or Country Style Ribs will be $1.49 per pound.
      Honey Bunches of Oats Raisin Medley 17 ounce cereal $1.77
      Kool Aid Jammers $1.77 60 oz 10 Pk.
      Beef Shoulder Roast $2.99 per pound
      Minute Maid OJ 59 ounces $2.39
      Welches Juice Cocktails Grape or Orange Pineapple Apple 64 ounces $1.99

Grocery Budget Make-Over

Does your grocery budget need a make-over? That's the reality show we really need...not "What Not To Wear," but "What Not To Buy." Like fashion, everyone has a different grocery budget "look." In other words, my budget won't be the same as yours...and that's fine. However, most of us could improve our grocery spending. Some of us simply have to do so in these difficult economic times. I'd like to take a look at how you can easily decrease your grocery spending, step by step.

Step 1: How Much Do I Spend?

I know this seems elementary, but I bet there are a lot of people out there who know they spend too much on groceries and toiletries and are struggling to make ends meet, but DON'T know how much they actually spend on groceries and toiletries. Now, IF you save every receipt, simply look back at the last month's receipts to determine your total spending. There are some great computer programs to keep up with spending, but you can simply use pencil and paper. If you don't save every receipt, but use checks or a debit card exclusively for grocery and toiletry items, review you bank statement online and tally up the info there. If historical data is not available, commit to take the next 30 days to save all your receipts and tally up the info. Get a basket, or shoebox or a zippered make-up bag you can keep in your purse to collect all those Publix, Save-a-Lot and Walmart receipts. After the 30 days are up, add up your receipts. You can use an Excel spreadsheet (a standard one is on my list of things to do), or simply that aforementioned pad of paper and a pencil. Having an accurate dollar amount of what you actually spend in a month on groceries and toiletries is VERY POWERFUL (School House Rock was right about that.) Now it's time for STEP 2...

To Be Continued

It's been so long...

For anyone who reads my blog regularly, it has been a while since my last post. How time flies! Our family has been busy with school, tax returns (well, my husband, anyway), planting a garden (that would be me) and coupon clippin'. In the grocery department, I have anxiously awaited $1.49 chicken breast at my local Save-a-Lot store, since my freezer was echoing when I lifted the lid. Over the next two weeks I will work to add as much poultry as possible to my deep freeze. Save-a-Lot is really good about keeping a great stock of inventory on their sale  chicken breast. (Thank you Save-a-Lot!)

Handcrafted Cleaning Products

As I promised in an earlier post, I plan to share the inexpensive homemade cleaning product recipes I've used as well as the new ones I find on the Internet. This one came from Pinterest and uses one of my favorite ingredients...vinegar. It is touted as a great soap scum/bathroom cleaner...which it is, I am happy to report. I also used it on kitchen cabinets after pan frying some chicken patties and it worked like a charm. It really isn't all natural, but it isn't harmful like many bathroom/kitchen cleaners. Here's the recipe:

Ingredients: 1 part Dawn dish washing liquid
                     1 part Vinegar

I used 6 ounces of each for my first batch. Heat the vinegar in glass measuring cup in the microwave to warm it. It does not have to be boiling hot! Add it to a new/clean spray bottle. Add an equal amount of vinegar and shake. That's it! A little goes a long way. Also, if you use it on your tile floor...make sure you have gotten it all up because a bit of a residue is slippery! (I know this because I used a squirt to clean up something stubborn on my Pergo kitchen floor and almost took a tumble later.) It really isn't a floor cleaner...

Blessings,
Donna

Resurrection Day Deals

I know Resurrection Day (also known as Easter) isn't until April, but, of course items have been in the stores for weeks now...since February 15, really. I suggest that, if you prepare a gift or basket for your children, family or friends, that you begin looking now for bargains to fill those baskets. There are numberous candy coupons right now...print them out or clip them from your inserts and tuck them in the front of your coupon binder or even in your wallet so you can take advantage of deals you see at Target, Walmart, CVS, Publix etc. with the greatest savings. Don't forget to hide them well so your kids don't happen upon them and assume you purchased an extra treat for them! I also find that I have to get them out of my sight.  (I love those new white chocolate M&M's from Target!) Also, you might start making some things for those baskets...cross and butterfly sugar cookies freeze well!(I'll have to post my favorite sugar cookie recipe.) And there so many cute Easter crafts that can adorn your gifts. Why not get a plain basket or bucket at Dollar Tree and decorate it? You still have time to do so! I think I'll go cruise through Pinterest right now to find some inspiration! Have a wonderful Sunday!

Blessings,
Donna