What is the best

[sanderson76]

way to managed supplies so that you only have to go to the grocery store once or twice a month? This is something I would love to do but I am having problems being able to do that. What would be the best way to get started with doing something like this.

I mainly want to do this because I seem to spend more than I need to when I go, eventhough I have a list...I stopped last week from running in to grab one or two things through the week, because i was spending way too much.

What meals can be cooked frozen in advance and things like that?

[StephanieEffler]

I'm interested in this too.

I'm really needing to cut back on little trips & buy more in bulk. I always run out of flour or sugar when I really need it.

[homesteadmamma]

Here's a good thread to get you started.

Spinoff from cj's stockpile thread

[Darlene]

One thing I do is try to have at least 2 of everything I use. When I start/open the 2nd one I put it on my list.

[sanderson76]

Thank you.

I try to do that with canned stuff...say if I need a can of cream..i will purchase 2 cans..it might be a month or so before I need that 2nd can, but it will be there when I am ready

I do buy some things in bulk but I also watch because some things end up being the same price in bulk as if I bought them seperate.

[Lori Biever-Launder]

I buy as much as I can when things are on sale and I have a coupon for them. For example, our local store had their brand of tomato and chicken noodle soups for .10 a can. I bought the limit of them (six each) so I could ahve them in my pantry. We don't eat much soup in the summer, but now that the weather is getting cooler, we will be having these for quick lunches on the weekends.

I make my own soups on a regular basis and freeze the extra. That way I have some on hand if time or $ is tight.

I buy bread a dozen loaves at a time. I freeze it and just pull a loaf out as I need it. This alone saves MANY trips to the store.

I have a milk man (yes, they DO still exist!) that delivers once a week. The milk is a bit more expensive but if this saves me a trip to the store, it saves me money that might get spent on an impluse item. I sometimes run out of milk, and then have to go to the store any way, but this cuts waaay down on the trips.

[pita1213]

plan your meals. this is easy for me because i have picky eaters that only eat so many different mealsso i just have to make sure i buy enough ingreidents for those meals to last me the month. not much figuring and planning for me, but come up with a meal plan and then write out your grocery list from that. look at what you have already and what you still need to buy.
when you make a meal plan, don't feel like you have to have meatloaf on tuesday and chicken on wednesday because that is what the plan says. if you don't have time to make the meatloaf on tuesday, have the chicken you planned for wednesday and make the meatloaf later in the week when you have more time. it's not set in stone, it's just there to help plan things out. if you need to deviate from it, the meal plan police aren't going to knock down your door.
but if you have a plan and then make your list, it will help keep you from running to the store for forgotten things.
if the budget allows, buy an extra of whatever you are shopping for, ie if you plan to have spaghetti 2 nights and need a jar of sauce for each night, go ahead and buy 3. if you plan on roast chicken 3 nights that month, buy 4.

things like flour, sugar, butter, things i consider staples in the pantry, are harder to plan for like that. you need to pay attention to how long it takes you to use them up. write on the package or on a calander when you open the package, then make a note of when it is gone. if you use 1 pound of butter every 2 weeks, then you know you need to get at least 2 pounds of butter every monthly shopping trip. if you go through a bag of flour a week, you need at least 4 bags every monthly shopping trip.

i usually end up making 2 trips a month. the first one around the 10th is the big shopping trip. one to walmart and every otehr month to sam's. this one is when the cart is usually full and my list is long.
the second one around the 25th is when i get bread and milk again. if i have run out of something, i'll add it to the list, but this list is usually less than 1/4 page if it is more than just a couple of items.
some perishables can be frozen, like milk and bread, and that can eliminate some of the weekly trips to the store. but other things like fresh veggies and fruits, it's sometimes just better to go twice a month. but stick to your list! the exception would be if there is a really good sale on something you use a lot of and need to stock up on and the budget will allow for you to buy a few of them.

hope that helps!

[sanderson76]

Thank you so much!!
Yes this will help alot!!