Editor’s Note: Today’s guest post is from Sara Daugherty. Sara is a Christian wife and mother who likes to cook with nourishing whole foods and heal her family through natural medicine.
Once a month grocery shopping has become quite the rage among mommy bloggers. I was very hesitant to try it because I believed it wouldn’t work for my whole foods lifestyle. In my mind, I only saw this working for people who ate packaged, processed foods. Well, I bit the bullet and tried it without straying from my whole foodie ways, and it worked! I am going to share with you reasons why to shop once a month, how to plan for it, and the printables that helped me pull off such a monumental task.
Why Shop Once a Month?
Honestly, I can think of nearly a dozen reasons why this is a good idea but am only going to share my two favorites. The first reason this is a good idea is that it saves money.
You will save money on gas because you aren’t driving to the store frequently. Gas is expensive nowadays, and it’s nice to save money on it when you can!
You are also going to save because fewer trips to the store mean fewer opportunities to impulse buy. When you plan for once a month shopping, you really look at exactly what you need to survive the month and which foods your family really eats. Wants and extra things fall to the wayside. Personally, I was able to save $30 last month because of once a month shopping. Over time, saving $30 a month really adds up!
More family time is the second reason I like to shop only once a month. My husband works long hours and is barely home during the week (something many of you can relate to). I don’t want to waste my weekend shopping when we can be together as a family. By going to the grocery store only one Saturday a month, I am able to free up the rest of my weekends. For those of you looking to “trim the fat” in your life, here is one way to do it!
How to Plan for Once a Month Shopping
Planning is key to pulling off this trip! Before even planning a meal, you should take stock of your pantry, freezer, and fridge. This will help you so you can plan meals using what you have. Remember, the goal is to save money! After taking stock of your items, check store ads. Make notes of the things you will use that are on sale. I split my shopping trip between two stores that were having the best sales. If you are a coupon person, now would be a good time to check coupons.
Once you know what is on sale and what you have in stock, start planning. If planning 30 meals seems daunting, plan a smaller number and repeat. The beauty of this is you can tailor it to make it work for you.
Something to Consider
In our house, we mainly eat fresh produce and eggs. When planning, I used this chart to decide on when we would eat certain fruits and veggies. The ones that ruin faster will be eaten at the first of the month. The ones that will last longer are scheduled for later in the month. I did budget $25 to be used bi-weekly for fresh eggs, fruit, and dairy. My husband made a stop every two weeks to grab those few items. If you are like us and cannot live without fresh produce and eggs this may be something you want to consider.
However, I know several people who do not make this exception. They eat fresh produce and eggs the first two weeks and eat frozen produce and boxed liquid eggs the rest of the month. Like I said before, tailor this for your family!
Do you shop once a month? If so, how do you make it work for you?
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Eggs can last up to 6 months in the refrigerator and milk can be frozen. Cheese will also last- longer if it’s not opened. The only dairy product that *really* needs to be bought on a more weekly basis is milk- and actually, even than can be frozen.
Fruit and veggies can be an issue- for that, I am trying to grow as much as I can. I’m not great at it yet, so I have found a couple local farms that I like and I go to one of them each week to stock up on produce. Bonus! It’s also what’s in season and supports my local economy. I know that’s not available everywhere though.