Belgian Waffle Makers For Sale

I normally sit down and plan my meals for a week or two at a time, make out my grocery list, and then go shopping. But these are not "normal" times. Our family budget has hit the skids. Cutting back on spending has become topic number one in our household, and the grocery store seems to be the best place to start. Now instead of starting with a list of our favorite meals for the week's menu, I start with the grocery store sales flyers.

If you shop the sales at grocery stores already, you are familiar with all the "Reduced" sections, the buy-one-get-one-free specials, the "Today Only" sales, and all the store brand deals. Now ask yourself, what would my grocery cart, and my grocery bill, look like if I ONLY bought those items? What would my dinner look like?

This creative cooking may take some getting used to, especially if you are a person who normally sticks to recipes. But, you know what sorts of foods your family will eat, and what they won't, so you already have a guideline. When you decide to give this a try, be sure to plan on shopping at the grocery store on a weekend. It may be busier, but there's a reason for that. The biggest sales occur on the weekends. You'll find that the same item you looked at on Wednesday or Thursday may be half the price on Saturday.

You will need a little strategy when you walk into the grocery store. Plan to shop the exterior aisles of the store first as that's where most stores display the "main ingredients"; vegetables, meat, fish, poultry, cheese, and dairy. Fill your cart first with these items, only the ones you find on sale, and you will see your meals start to develop. Don't worry... you'll find plenty of specials in all these sections of any grocery store.

Time to take a spin through the other aisles, the ones in the middle. Don't ponder too much about what exactly to pick out; just let those little "prices cut" signs guide you. If your family likes black beans, and they're on sale, grab some, and move on. As you fill your cart, you will notice that, with very little thought, your menu is being formed. With the pantry items at home, you will certainly be able to plan dinner.

We need to discuss coupons. Are you a coupon clipper? That's a great way to take advantage of every sale possible. One warning though; only use coupons on things that you are actually going to use. If you buy a food item and leave it sitting in your cupboard gathering dust, it really isn't saving you money. Paper and cleaning products, however, are another story. If you are agreeable to trying new products, then by all means, clip and buy. In other words, if your family is not "married" to a certain bath soap, why not save a few cents on the brand that offers a coupon?

This is an opportunity to get your kids involved sorting your groceries using the food pyramid. You've got some protein, vegetables, fruit, dairy, and grains spread out in front of you. Once you sort all your grocery items into groups, you can start pulling food from each group and creating meals right then and there! Select some pantry items like pasta and rice and you are well on your way to a full menu plan. Wasn't that smart of you?

If you do this sale-items-only shopping a couple times a month, the savings will start to add up. And, you may just find out that you can do more than just follow a recipe you can cook! Is it time for you to take a hard look at your budget and make some changes in your old routines?

Now it's up to you; here is some helpful information on saving on food and some grocery budget guidelines for your family. By implementing a few of these tips, you can start saving money this week.