buying groceries, meal planning and stocking up

Jan 23, 2024

Talking to those pesky neighbors yesterday, they explained they purchased their groceries for the month. A month! I can barely go a week without NEEDING something. I have a delivery coming today from Wal-mart that was supposed to be just a few items since my freezers are full. I only spent $175 bucks. (ONLY?)

My grocery shopping is as willy nilly as Indiana weather. For example, the photo below is from yesterday — and today we have rain with a forecasted high in the 50’s.

snow yesterday, but rain today

Meal planning made simple?

Wal-mart has partnered with emeals — a subscription service that creates your shopping list after you plan your meals from recipes they provide. You can shop yourself, or your shopping list can be sent directly to your grocery store of choice. Plans start at $5 bucks/month and they claim you’ll save money.

While this might work for some, I’m not a planner when it comes to food. There are nights I don’t cook but opt for egg salad sandwiches or something similar (like last night) — and I doubt they have recipes for fried potatoes with smoked sausage thrown in (a quick and easy hot meal we like).

At least I stock up on some things!

I make sure I never run out of paper towels and toilet paper. I stock up on those items. I keep plenty of coffee, peanut butter, and dog food ahead too. My freezers are full and I have beans and rice in bulk. Other than that… it’s pay as you go.

What about you?

Do you plan meals for the week? Month? If so, do you save money that way?

Let’s face it, groceries are a chunk when it comes to regular household expenditures and that’s not likely to change any time soon. Whatever steps you implement to keep those costs lower is great — I just don’t know how that looks for me yet.

Now you know: Humans are the only animal that has a chin (some have a couple or more). As an aside — I googled this because I thought monkeys had chins — but nope — just us humans. 🙂