Normally when I go grocery shopping, I do it spur of the moment, on my way home from work, when I finally decide what sounds good for dinner. I always cringe, because I usually lay down between $40-$50 for these one meal shopping trips.
Last week, I decided that I would sit down, make my menu for the week, create my shopping list, and go to - ugh, do I have to say it? - WalMart. I normally shop at our local King Soopers (Krogers) but I have noticed how on some of their groceries, they just want an arm and a leg for it. Take a loaf of potato bread from Orowheat (or similar brand). $4.59! That's highway robbery. So I decided I would go to WM and do a major grocery shopping trip, plus I had to get some toiletry essentials.
When I used to shop WM way back when, I found their prices of shampoo and stuff to be very affordable. Herbal Essence shampoo and conditioner was about $1.97 for a bottle. Now? $3.27 or so. That's basically the same price as at Target!
But, I did find that many of the grocery items are much less expensive, especially if you are willing to buy their Value Brand, which I did on several items, like tomato products (sauce, diced, stewed). They really don't have much of a selection in some areas, like granola cereal. I could only find organic. But this was okay as there was a $1 off coupon on the boxes.
I made a mistake though before I went shopping. I didn't eat! So I'm going through the store, my stomach is rumbling, I am getting hot and shaky, and could really use some food. I had drank my coffee earlier that morning, but didn't stop to eat anything (well, I couldn't - no food in the house! lol). I go by the frozen pizza and think, yummmmm, I want some of those, but I resisted as they were not on my list!
Finally, after finishing up my shopping, I stopped by the deli case, got some okra, potato wedges and a couple of chicken strips, then headed to the checkout. Grand total? $252. About $60 of it was for the toiletry items. Absolutely no junk food (unless you count the Dorito chips that were part of the menu for Tuesday).
Speaking of menu, here's what we've had this week:
Monday - Pan fried meatloaf in tricolor pepers (Sunny Anderson recipe from the Food Network), with asparagus and glazed baby carrots, crescent rolls
Tuesday - Meatball sandwiches, nacho cheese Doritos, and mixed veggies (yellow and zucchini squash, corn, and pimentos).
Wednesday - Grilled chicken breasts, spinach mushroom salad, mashed potatoes with chicken gravy, and biscuits.
Thursday - Grilled pork chops, stuffed zucchini halves, and corn bread.
Friday - I'm taking the night off from cooking and Hubby is taking me out!
Saturday - Roasted chicken with red potatoes, baby carrots, and onion.
Sunday - We normally go out to eat after church, then we'll have left over chicken that night.
I haven't gone out to each for lunch at all this week! I made plenty the night before so I could have leftovers the next day. This has also saved so much money!
Tomorrow I need to sit down and make my list for next week. The amount I spend won't be as much as last time, because I also had to buy a lot of staples (food staples, not paper staples), plus I bought a couple of roasts to have on hand.
If you have a favorite dish that you'd like to share, leave a comment. I'm always looking for new things to cook. Thankfully, I have about 10 years worth of Taste of Home cookbooks, so I can easily cook a different recipe all year long.
