Ways to Save - Part 1

Yesterday, I told you guys (er, uh girls, mainly) that I'd be posting a few entries on things I'm doing to save money on groceries.

Before I post my first couple ideas, let me make this disclaimer: I don't know for certain that these are all money-saving ideas. They are things that I'm trying. I haven't perfected them, so I don't know exactly how much I'll save with them. That is to say, I don't know if they are all worth the effort. Dollars saved may not be worth the time invested, but since I have more time than I do money, I think they are probably worth my while. You'll have to decide on your own if they're worth yours.

Also, let me define the word "groceries" for you. When I say groceries, I pretty much mean anything I buy. I don't buy anything... ever. Okay...that's not totally true. I spent $5 on some shoes for Ashlyn just last week, but mainly I just buy necessities, so things like toiletries, food prep or storage tools, etc. are all considered groceries as far as our budget is concerned.

So now... the moment you've all been waiting for.


1. Buy AngelFood boxes.
AngelFood ministries is a nationwide distributor of low-priced, but fairly high quality food. For $30, you can get about $75 or more worth of food. I'm not sure how they accomplish that, but it's been a good thing for us this month.

You have to pre-order their boxes, and then pick up at the scheduled 2-hour window. I would recommend picking up at the beginning of the window or your meat will be thawed out.

In order to use everything that comes in the box, I've enrolled in Menus4Moms menu service, which is $2 a month. (The site is a bit hard to navigate around, so expect to have to be patient with it!) They will send me a meal plan for the ingredients in this month's box. This has helped me because in the past, I've wasted AngelFood because of not knowing how to prepare it.

This brings me to my next point...

2. Eat what's available.
AngelFood has stuff in it that I wouldn't normally want to eat, such as pork and beef. But the price is so good, and the meat is actually fairly lean, so it's a good choice for saving money and staying healthy. So, since the food is available to us, we're eating it, whether it's our first choice or not.

This also goes for things I buy. For example, this week Kellogg's reduced sugar Frosted Flakes were on sale for less than the store brand's regular frosted flakes. They don't taste quite as good, but they are better for us and cheaper -- this week, anyway.

And speaking of sales... tune in tomorrow. :)