It is time to make your grocery money work harder for you. Finding ways to stretch each dollar and to utilize what you already have will help you eat well and still save big bucks on your groceries each month.

1. Angel Food Ministries – this is a wonderful Christian based co-op service that buys bulk and sales at cost. Angelfoodministries.com We double our blessing by buying for a family that can’t buy for themselves.

2. Shop during sales – keep a list of items that you need (but not immediately) and watch for sales on those items. Pantry items that you can buy on sale and with coupons are almost like free groceries.

3. Make a list – inventory every thing that you have in your freezer, pantry and refrigerator. Use this list to make a menu and also to review before going to the grocery store. It will keep you from overbuying items that you already have AND it will help you utilize items that you have so that you won’t even have to go to the store (we try to go one month every few months using nothing but pantry and freezer items).

4. Re-use leftovers – not all families are in to eating leftovers so plan new meals from what you have left. Mashed potatoes become potato soup by adding just a little milk and some seasoning (and cheese if you like it that way). Mashed potatoes can also become BAKED mashed potatoes by adding all the ingredients for a baked potato and then heating them in the oven.

5. Buy during (and after) the holidays. Many grocery stores run specials on items just to get you through the door. It’s during these events that you should stock up (4th of July – hotdogs, Thanksgiving – turkey or ham, and dessert items). Watch your newspaper for sales items or keep up on the internet.

Saving big does not mean you have to skip out on all the things that you love. There are ways to buy the foods that your family eats and still make your budget work. Buy in bulk, buy on sale and use what you have so that you don’t over buy items. You will enjoy the grocery store more and your family will enjoy mealtimes (and your bank account will be happy for you all).

The only thing left for me to do is to get creative.

1. We are going to plant a garden. It’s already fall, and most people are putting their garden tools away, but we are going to buck the tradition and plant a fall garden. It will also be done in a new way – using a square foot system instead of rows. This means it will be easier for us to extend our growing season even FARTHER and maybe even into a year round program.

2. There will be lots of pasta in our future. Meat is getting more expensive, and unless I stumble on some that is on sale, the odds are that we will be eating meatless much of the week. We may even try making some of our own, fresh pasta to get the kids more involved in the process.

3. Drink more water. It’s amazing how much money we spend on convenience drinks – even the ones that we buy at the grocery store instead of buying at a gas station. I’ll promote drinking from a sports cup each day and trying to fill it up four times with water. If it’s a competition then the kids are much more likely to get excited about it.

4. Waste not, want not. Not only are we going to eat the leftovers, but I’m going to plan meals that will incorporate the leftovers (call them “planned-overs”) so that it won’t be the same meal all week long.

It’s not a lot, but it should help me squeeze a little more distance out of my grocery budget. What are your tips for surviving these amazing prices?

Day One: Breakfast – scrambled eggs, English muffins, bacon, bananas
Lunch – hot dogs and French fries
Supper – lasagna, salad, and garlic bread

Day Two: Breakfast – cream of wheat and cinnamon toast
Lunch – grilled sandwiches and tomato soup
Supper – tacos

Day Three: Breakfast – cereal and cheese bagels
Lunch – hamburgers
Supper – Chicken ‘n Dumplins and biscuits with apple sauce

Day Four: Breakfast – pancakes, and fried bananas
Lunch – Cheesy ramen noodles
Supper – Barbequed pork chops, dinner rolls, green beans

Day Five: Breakfast – French toast and bacon
Lunch – Sandwiches and chips
Supper – Beef stew and cornbread

Day Six: Breakfast – sausage, biscuits, and gravy
From here on out – it’s left-overs

My goal is to get three such menus written out – including the recipes – so that I will have my shopping lists already made out for me. I’m getting there. Another thing that I do, to save time, is cook once a month or so (ground beef, roast some chicken, put together casseroles – lasagna – and things like that) that way I have my dinners half way done before I even start AND I have a lot less clean up.

It’s not really a challenge to make money saving changes in you life, but it probably will require some changes. What is one thing that you can start doing to day that will save you some money (be it $1, $10, or even $100)?

There are people out there who find ways to save over 50% on their grocery bills. I was always amazed by this idea. I clip coupons. I look for extra savings (where it’s already on sale AND I have a coupon). I even write the manufacturers for coupons. But I have yet to reach the Mecca that these ladies have found.

Part of the reason is that I live in a small community. We don’t have a multitude of grocery stores to choose from. The two stores that we do have are small and don’t offer as much variety as some of the mega grocery stores (that I would LOVE to have around here).

My second problem, and it is probably the larger one, is that I do all of my shopping at the same time. I do my stocking up and weekly essentials at once. Going to the store just to buy items that are on sale is just not an option.

Most weeks find me saving about 15% on my total grocery bill. Some weeks it has been as much as 30%. I don’t spend hours hunting coupons or spend money on services to find the sales for me. Here are the easy, time saving things that I do to save at the store.

1. Use someone else’s coupons. My husband’s aunt and dad both share their coupons with us. I simply cut out the ones that I might use with our family.

2. Keep it organized. I have an expandable folder that I found at the dollar store for just fifty cents. I made each pocket a category (breakfast, breads, dairy, etc) and then I store the coupons in the folder.

3. Check out the sales. When I am at the grocery store, I try to look at the sales and compare them with my coupons. Often there are items I don’t have on my list but that I can get for a great deal. (The other day I got two pounds of baby carrots for $1 – I’ll freeze most of them for cooking with later).

4. Don’t get it just because the coupon will expire. Unless it is something I HAVE to have anyway then I just let the coupon expire. It seems that some companies are always putting out coupons, so I just wait until the next batch.

5. Never, never, never buy cereal without a coupon.

As the grocery prices continue to climb, every little bit help. You might try looking at some of the online services to see if they could benefit you. Which ever route you take, planning and organization will get you a long ways to saving at the grocery store.