This page may contain affiliate links. As an Amazon Affiliate, I earn on qualifying purchases. Please see our disclaimer for more information.
Month two of my Once A Month Shopping. I went to two different stores this month. Baby Christopher was with me but so was my married daughter Angel. I’m so glad that she went along. At the first store (Smith’s), I ended up having to get a second cart and after checking out we had three carts. Total spent at Smith’s was $220.01. Next stop was the store that is so hot I can barely breath (also call WalMart). Got out of there as quick as I could for $122.72. Total for the 2 stores; $342.73 for everything. I didn’t divide out food and non food this time. I did forget a few things plus I didn’t buy anything for Thanksgiving since we don’t know our plans yet. I’ll be adding to this total in a few days when our beef CSA is delivered and my cow share comes due ($77 for both) plus our co-op is planning an order so that will be another $60 or so. I’m guessing that I’ll end up somewhere north of $600 again this month.
I have a few challenges with this kind of big shopping trip. My car was stuffed to the gills and even if I wanted to buy more I don’t think I could have. Plus trying to get it all put away. I’m good on cabinet space but most of the stuff I bought is either fridge or freezer food and all I have is a side by side. Even with those challenges, I think I’ll be sticking with this. It is so satisfying to have a plan in place for the month and not have to think much more on it.
>You've been so good about blogging, I hardly have time to comment!
I'm not sure I could do once a month, but maybe with a few more months of practice cooking/planning weekly.
It seems we have so much more waste when I cook something every night, so maybe I'll have to leave a leftover night or start freezing immediately-I'll work on it.
>The once a month is a challenge. I think easing into it is a good idea. I don't know if this helps you but on my menu each week I have one night that is essentially a pantry meal. Like salmon patties or pasta. That way if we have leftovers to use up or we go out or something then I can swap my menu around and sacrifice that pantry meal.
>Once a month shopping is a good idea. I've never tried it before though. I usually shop every week … raaaaarely, I can skip a week. I've been thinking about dropping it down to shopping every 2 weeks … especially with winter approaching and our van acting up.
>Brandy,
I'm still new at doing the once a month shopping and so far I still have to go back for things. But it feels so good to know that I have the bulk of our food on hand. And since I've started doing this I make up an entire months meal plan. It feels like it saves me time in the long run. If you need some tips on it be sure to look at the link to Donna's blog. And another blog that shows once a month shopping and has menus is Raising Arrows. http://raising-arrows.blogspot.com/2009/09/back-to-once-month-shopping-i-go.html
>Thanks Millie! I'm going to be doing a BIG shopping trip next week, so maybe if I plan it out ahead of time, I can get more than just 2wks worth. I'll check out those links you gave for sure!