Sunday, February 1, 2009

Easy Stockpile Shopping & Menu Plan Monday

Since I have had my 3rd child I have become a huge stockpile shopper. When you have 3 young kids, grocery stores are not the place you want to really hang out. Let's just say not much fun! So, my grocery store goals are to go as infrequently as possible and spend as little time per trip as possible.

Stockpile shopping has changed my life! I haven't yet perfected it to the extent some people do, where they know when an item has hit its lowest price ever and then they stock up. I'd like to get to that point, but for now my thought is really this simple: If I am already in the store, on the aisle buying salsa and my family literally eats tons of it (including my 1 year-old -- it's Texas, y'all!), why buy one jar (which will last us about a week or two) when I can buy 4? It will save me a trip down that aisle for the next several shopping trips.

Basically anything my family eats or uses that is a non-perishable or lasts a while, I always buy several at once. I've been able to cut down on trips to the store, and it really takes no longer to buy 6 of something than it does to buy 1!

If you live along the Gulf-Coast, like me, another huge plus of stockpile shopping is that you will not only be able to feed your family, but other families as well when the stores are closed after a hurricane!

The key to stockpile shopping is to find storage for the extra items, but get creative. I converted the bottom of my dining room china cabinet into canned good storage and part of our garage into storage for paper towels, laundry detergent, cleaners, canned drinks, ziploc bags, etc.

Also, just a warning that initially stockpile shopping can kill your monthly food budget, but it will even out over time.

Our Menu for the week:

Sunday: Eat at Superbowl party
Monday: 13 Bean Soup, corn bread, broccoli
Tuesday: Chicken Fried Chicken, mashed potatoes, green beans
Wednesday: Left-overs
Thursday: Slow Cooker Sweet & Spicy Chicken Tacos, Mexican rice, corn
Friday: Homemade pizza, creamed spinach
Saturday: Out to eat


For more Menu Plan Monday visit Organizing Junkie.

1 comment:

  1. It's Renee Westcott, I just found your blog from Cassidy's. Hilarious stuff, I'm hooked on reading it now!

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