It can seem impossible to feed a large family on a budget, but it can be done! I feed our family for $400 a month, and we aren't eating ramen noodles. We eat a gluten free, real food diet due to allergies and a daughter with autism.
One of my favorite ways to save money is to create a price book. I know, it can be tedious to set one up but once you do you'll be amazed at home much money you'll save. I always thought Costco would be the cheapest for shredded cheese, but GFS has a better price by a $1.00 per pound. Our local Aldi is more expensive than Costco when it comes to butter by $.50 a pound.
Here are some tips to starting your price book. I used to use a notebook but recently I've starting entering certain prices into my cell phone so I always have the lowest prices available while I'm grocery shopping.
* Write down your most common things you purchase weekly at the grocery store. My top weekly purchase are milk, pop for my husband's lunch, strawberries and other fruit, yogurt, and lunch meat.
* Some people recommend that you write down the three cheapest prices per store. I only keep track of the cheapest price per store. Make sure you note what size is the cheapest.
* I keep track of the following stores: Aldi, Kroger, Gordon Food Service (GFS), Costco, and Walmart.
* Each month add three or four new ingredients to your price book. If you try to do it all at once, you might get overwhelmed and give it up. Baby steps!
* I also shop a variety of close out stores like Big Lots, Ollies, and local Amish bent and dents. I note things that I've found at these places but I don't normally use those as price points because their stock changes so much. For example, a few months ago I found gluten free mac and cheese at Ollie's for $.89 and our favorite gluten free granola bars for $1.25 a box. I bought several ( as in 20 or more) boxes because I know that price won't come around often.
Do you use a price book? Have you found it helpful in saving money?
This post is linked to Making Your Home Sing Monday
