Advice on reducing the grocery bill?

[RegulusLeonis]

One has to be practical as well..Feeding three adults plus one other sometimes is different than feeding two adults and a babe.

When our kids were younger feeding them was a breeze as they ate so little. Now as teens they eat alot. None of them are over weight and they are growing.

I find it is more expensive during the school term due to packing lunches..it is cheaper to eat at home.

I'm unsure if this was meant to be directed about how much I spend weekly (darn internet conversations), but I totally agree! I was mainly just giving an idea of why I spend what I do (family size). My mom is a thrifty lady and she spends way more than me because she has 4 adults to feed

[Orual]

Our biggest money saver has been meal planning. It has also been a time saver. I tend to use the same 15 meals until we start to get sick of something. I know them well enough that if I get to the store and find a better deal than the flyer I can easily change the plan and get what I need. Helps me to only stockpile what I need.

Avoiding prepackage and convinence food is a huge saver. We use the rule that half of the plate on the first helping has to be veggies/fruit. High fiber foods take longer to digest (keep you full longer) so you snack less, and then spend less money on snack foods. Bread seems cheap but you factor in how much it takes to keep you full, produce works out cheaper.

Check out a store called H&W for your produce. Comprible if not lower prices to Wallmart and RCSS and way better quality. I often find amazing deals there too, like $3 for precut fruit trays. They don't put out a flyer, but they do put thier deals online every week.

[aww]

H&W for produce is great.
McGavins for bread products is awesome too. You can get ten of their short dated products (things with only a few days left on the 'best before' tag) for $12.90 or something. If they have too much stock then they will post a sign for buy 10 get 3 free as well.
Their short dated stuff is all sorts of different things, not just loaves of breads. I've gotten packs of 16 hot dog buns in that deal, hamburger buns, bagels, pita bread, flat bread, even that oven fresh bread or whatever it's called that is mostly baked but you pop it in the oven for 10 minutes or something. We shop for bread once a month or less (family of four) by going there and just freezing most of it, and it's breads like McGavins, Dempsters, loaves that are often $3-4 at the grocery store.

Big thing is to stock up on good sales. Sobey's recently had BOGO on Oasis juices. And under each label is a pin you enter online for a coupon to be mails for another free oasis juice, so it ends up B1G3 free in the end. Sobey's was out of them when I went (got a raincheque) but I went to Walmart and the PM'ed it, but used their price ($0.50 less!). In the end for $16 I will get 16 juices, and they aren't the little 1L size! Needless to say, we are stocked on juice for awhile. I stock up on things like Bear Paw cookies when I can get them for under $1 a box because with 2 kids, I need peanut free snacks for school and preschool. Cereal I stock up on when it's $2.50 or less after coupons, the expiration on those is often 6 months from when I buy it, and I only buy cereal with coupons on it now (whether it be the $5 gas card promo, coupons for other products we'll use such as the one with Hidden Valley Ranch $2 plus Glad coupons, FPC's for yogurt or ice cream).
I'll stock up on the Hidden Valley Ranch dressing coupons when it's on for $2...using my $2 cereal box coupons, and on Newman's when it's 2/$5 at SOF and stack for at least $4 off of two. I bought the Newman pasta sauce when it was $2 at Walmart last week and used the $1 coupons I had.
I've switched toothpaste brands from Crest (hard to stack and get free) to Pronamel (stackable coupons) because it's way cheaper when stacking and the Crest irritated my mouth (I complained to them...they sent me FPC's for more toothpaste, lol). Toiletries like Shampoo, Body Wash, etc. I stocked up on with all the Dove coupons that were out in the last few months, I probably have enough of that stuff to last us for four months and will get more soon.
For cleaning we go through minimal cleaning supplies, I like using microfibre cloths, the cheaper ones work decently enough, even if they aren't anti bacterial like the Norwex brand (I have some of those too). We use Dryballs in the dryer instead of fabric softener, it's better for our skin and reduces drying time plus we don't need to buy fabric softener. There's lots of ways to reduce what you spend, it's a matter of how you spend it. You have to be organized with your coupons. Mine have gotten rather unorganized lately and as a result I know I am missing out on some good deals when I go shopping because I don't have all the coupons with me.

[Tweetybird999]

The biggest difference to our bills has been stock piling laundry detergent ($1/jug or less whenever I can get it that price), dishwasher soap ($1 or free), toiletries (Dove, Aveeno & lip balm), Advil/Motrin/Tylenol (on sale even for kids - coupons), toothpaste (any sale with coupon for husband, but I only use Sensitive Pro Care Relief so I stocked up with the $3 coupons on a $4 sale) and feminine care items ($1 or less with sale - coupons). I used to spend a lot and now even $3/jug of detergent is too much. Fabric softener is bought when it's free and we don't use much. Same with household cleaners and bleach ($1 to free). We also get Bear Paws, Dare goods, juice boxes on sale and stock up (we have a peanut allergy, which is actually good because it stops us buying a LOT of packaged products). We work a lot and need suppers ready prepared as 2 little kids can't wait too long. So we sometimes cook the night before to have it ready to heat up. We like salmon and other fish so we have that once a week usually and ground beef with Newman's sauce goes quite far. We also like chili and burritos (home made bean dip or rice and beans, shredded cheese, tomato, pita pockets or wraps). I try to cut more veggies than we need at once so they are ready to eat. We have frozen pizza about once a week, but that's way cheaper ($4 ea - coupon) than eating out. We use a list to shop and if it's not on the list, I don't feel obliged to buy it. If we can't come up with a big list, great...we eat from the cupboard and freezer. My favorite stores are the Italian Bakery on 97 St where they have bread $1.50 every day and the Italian Centre Shop for $1 pasta. I've become a flyer-a-holic and price match and stock up when possible (this is not every week). This means you will find me shopping at 8 - 10 pm at night, but that's when I can go without family. LD is also very happy to have pre-orders even for 9 packages of dishwasher soap and as it was out of stock for weeks, they were happy to have the sale. It's taken about 6 months to accomplish this, but now I've been able to share with family and hope it helps them out.

[LindaPinda]

I must admit that although I have tons of coupons...I don't use many. I find that it is such a hassle dealing with cashiers who don't honor the coupons that it isn't worth it. Maybe I'm just shopping at the wrong places... I haven't had the courage to do any price matching.

Some of the stores (like Giant Tiger, HW, and No Frills) aren't close to me so I figure that the added driving time and cost of gas isn't worth a shopping trip.
I make my lists from flyers from each store and then look to see if they are offering the same products and will shop where the cheapest one is for that item. I also look at the store's clearance section...some great buys there (found ABC laundry detergent for $2 a bottle at Zellers on the weekend - not advertized). I am a sucker for buy 1 get 1 free but only get what I know we will use.

I don't buy "smellies". I have 2 dogs and 2 cats and no way can burn candles or use plug ins. Instead, I will boil cinnamon and cloves in a small pot of water on the stove. It is an incredible aroma and I sometimes will go room to room with the pot to scent other areas. Boiling the scented water is also great in the winter when the house is very dry as it adds some humidity to the air.

I found a recipe for home-made febreeze and it is fab!!!! A spray bottle with a little bit of fabric softener, a pinch of baking soda, and water. A little goes a long way.

I love Bisquick because it is soooo versatile and recently found a recipe to make your own for much cheaper.

We try to skip meat twice a week and will often do "breakfast" for supper (pancakes, french toast, omlets, etc) and pasta at least once a week. Cooking at home and freezing really has made a difference. Making your own bread is another way to save...super easy with a breadmaker.

Creativity with leftovers is one of the best ways to save. Same meat...turned into a few different dishes and you are set for 2-3 dinners. And making soup is a great money saver too!

[LG1385]

I wish I had done this with my daughter! lol Definitely will try it with the next one.

The choking thing would still worry me, though.

Most basically it's letting the baby lead the way! We skipped pureed food completely. My mister can feed himself completely. We give him toast strips, steamed carrots and other veggies, cheese, chicken, etc ... he learned to chew by watching us eat and started to practice when he was interested enough to try. I've always encouraged him to do it himself and let him try lots of different foods. He has his favourites already! He will absolutely not let you feed him. If you try he moves his face away very quickly, but if you put it in front of him it's in his mouth in 2 seconds flat.

As first I was a bit wary of trying it as I was scared of choking, but I learned fast that in the beginning he was mostly "playing" with the food and still getting all his nutrition from milk. It was funny to watch him staring at us as we chewed and then air-chewing, but it really did work. It's also saved us lots of time and money!

[Inlovewithblue]

I wish I had done this with my daughter! lol Definitely will try it with the next one.

The choking thing would still worry me, though.

I have been doing it to for the last couple weeks and they get it really quickly and learn. My 5 month old has been playing with food (eating a bit but not much). I think it's more of a wants to do what we're doing thing right now.

I got the book from the local public library - the Baby Led Weaning book itself isn't much of a book but the cookbook explains everything and gives recipes that feed adults and child. I really like it.

[JackieL]

WOW!! thanks so much for all of the advice!
Orual - I have just found H & W!!! You are right, it's a goldmine!
LindaPinda - I am going to take your challenge and try making my own bread.
FrugalKitty - I have never thought of using 1/2 a dryer sheet. I do use way less laundry soap, but it didn't occur to me to use less in the dryer! Brilliant!
RebulusLeonis - I will definitely check out SDM... I don't know about this program, so I will have to read up!

THANKS TO EVERYONE!!!

[jmae]

Also, I love superbucks at Superstore. Don't know if anyone has mentioned this yet, but if you're going to be filling up with gas anyways....it's free money that you can use on anything in the store!!

[jmae]

I'm glad that you posted this question, I have also learnt a lot of great tips on this thread!!

[Daisiefire]

SDM points have helped us a lot. I always intend to spend it on beauty products for myself, but for some reason or other we need it for food or other needs. next year it will be all for ME. lol

I like the baby led idea..i may incorporate it into her diet, since she is 7 months now. I got a baby bullet as a gift and would feel like it's a waste if I don't use it more lol..then again I don't have a blender so I can use it for anything..

[Kelkens]

I know this is a little off topic but when our kids were babes the health nurse told me that the biggest way kids choke is by not making them sit down when they are eating.

So if you are going to do the baby led eating make sure your babe is seated.

Meal planning is huge especially using up what you have in the fridge and what is on sale.

[Blk_rose]

A person would be surprise at how young a baby can eat real foods! my sons been slurping up spaghetti since he was 4 months.. now 6 and if i let him he will eat it. thought I still feed him pablum for 8 months old and organic jarred foods. He got a killer appetite lol

[RegulusLeonis]

I know this is a little off topic but when our kids were babes the health nurse told me that the biggest way kids choke is by not making them sit down when they are eating.

So if you are going to do the baby led eating make sure your babe is seated.

Meal planning is huge especially using up what you have in the fridge and what is on sale.

This is a good point that I'd like to expand on!

One of the things we did was to starting giving our LO food when he could sit on his own and hold it in his own hand. That way he is 100% in control of the food situation and his body can respond to it. This helped alleviate my fear of him choking.

Also if anyone goes this route you will notice they have VERY strong gag reflexes. May sound gross, but I've seen him spit out food that was too big to swallow before he even had a chance to try because his body forced it out.

Also make sure you read up on foods to make decisions on what is safe to present to your babe to eat

[Kelkens]

In terms of saving money, you can also make almost everything from scratch that is packaged.

As an example microwave oatmeal can be made from oatmeal. Oatmeal is much cheaper than packaged cereal and a lot healthier especially if cooked with milk.

Google is my best friend in this respect. I see something I want to make and i google how to do it.

There is also great site for recipes from the State of Oregon( I will find the link) for recipes that are not only healthy but cheaper.