You don't have to break the bank

I don't know about you, but going grocery shopping in my house is a process.

See that picture? No one in the grocery store is that happy. No one. Because they are dreading the total at the end of the trip.

With a family of four and a limited income I had to come up with a way to feed everyone and stay on budget. When I tell people that I can buy all of our weekly groceries -including kids' school lunches- for under $150 (and usually under $120) they have a hard time believing me. 

Want to know the secret?

Of course you do!

You think I'm going to tell you it's couponing. No. I live in Canada and we can't go coupon crazy like they do in the States. Besides, who needs 200 tubes of toothpaste and 57 bottles of mustard anyways? Seems like a waste of time, and a lot of those couponing people actually SPEND quite a bit of money to get all those inserts. Feels a little bit counter productive to me. All the power to you if you have figured out the trick to coupon and it works for you- but I have a full time job, two kids, and I can't commit the time to that.

It's prepping. That's the key. Simple right? I know. Sometimes it's a hassle. Who has the time to look through the cupboards, look through all the flyers, etc, etc.? I get it. Trust me. But look, we both know that when you get bored chances are you pick up your phone and start going through all of your apps trying to keep yourself occupied (at least that's what I do). So here are two apps that you can use when you're "bored" to help you with your prepping process: Pinterest and Flipp

If you don't have a cell phone (what?!) these are also easily found on the interweb here: Pinterest 

and here: Flipp

Before you can make your grocery list, you need to know what you actually need to buy. 

First, go through your cupboards and fridge and jot down any staple items you may be out of: milk, bread, eggs, etc. Don't forget to check the bathroom for any toiletries you may need too.

Secondly, you NEED to meal prep. This is one of the most important parts in staying on (or under) your budget. And this is where Pinterest comes in handy. If you don't already have a Pinterest account it only takes a few minutes to sign up and it is 100% free. Trust me, you'll thank me later. Pinterest is good for much more than just meal prepping. Go through the "Food and Drink" section and see what catches your eye. "Pin" the recipes and pull them up later when you are ready to cook. Easy peasy.

Lastly, go to Flipp and start looking through the flyers from the stores that sell groceries. If you are using the mobile app there is a "clippings" feature which allows you to circle items that are on sale and will save them for you. You can also search for specific items if you don't want to go through everything, or just have to make a quick run to the store for a few items.

Most grocery stores will price match, and if you "clip" everything in Flipp, you can just show the cashier your phone at the register and they will adjust all the prices. This week I saved over $20 just by price matching alone. Obviously this varies from week to week, but that money eventually adds up.

And who doesn't like saving money?? I know I do. Hopefully this will help you save money like it has for me.