Master Grocery Lists

I don't think there is any use in kicking, screaming, sobbing, or pulling your hair out over high food and gas prices.  I've already done that and all I got was a headache.  And puffy eyes.

We need to be wise.  Very, very wise.

We need a plan.

If you never listen to another thing that I say, remember this.  You will not save money unless you plan to.  Yes, you may hit a clearance sale occasionally, and thank the good Lord for that, but you're not going to save real money unless you get organized and get a plan.  It doesn't have to be my plan.  Everyone is different.  It just needs to be an organized and consistent way to go to the grocery store and get out of there without going over budget.  My suggestion is to make a master grocery list.

I am a neurotic list maker.  I think that the major reason that I make lists is that once I write down whatever it is that I need to remember, I can release it from my brain and forget about it.  My brain is crowded and very, very busy.  Too much information and I overheat.  Writing things down helps me.

Sometimes I watch women wandering aimlessly through the grocery store, with no list in hand and an overflowing grocery cart full of Hot Pockets and frozen pizzas.  I get scared for their families.

I write some lists by hand, but for grocery shopping, I have a master list on my computer.  It took me a while to type it up, but it has been an invaluable tool for me over the years.  Each month I print it off and since the bulk of the items I need are already listed, I just fill in the gaps.

We get paid once a month, so I do one big grocery shopping trip at the beginning of each month and buy everything I need except for a few perishables like fresh fruits and vegetables.

I typed in "master grocery lists" into my Google search and there was a lot of info to come up.  There were even some master lists to print off.  I looked at several, but none of them had the majority of the things on them that I normally buy.  You may find this problem, too.  It will probably be easier to just create your own list according to what you buy.  I'd be willing to bet that you already have some software on your computer to make lists.  Even if you don't, it wouldn't be hard to do.

Once you have it done, it is saved to your computer and ready for you to print out when you are ready to go grocery shopping.

Let me give you a few tips about creating a master list on the computer.

1.  List all of the things you would normally buy in three months. Your staples.  Your pantry items.  Anything from light bulbs to cream of mushroom soup, uh, IF you buy that sort of thing.  I'm saying three months because you don't want to forget anything.  This does NOT mean you have to buy a three month supply of everything.  When I'm going through my cabinets, I might overlook the fact that I need light bulbs, because I am not out yet, and they are hidden in a very dark place in a bottom cabinet.  They are not something I buy every month.  However, when I look at my list, it jars my memory and I can specifically open the cabinet and check on my light bulb supply and see that I only have one 40-watt bulb left and need to pick some up.  This way I never run out.  Just go from room to room, cabinet to cabinet, listing everything you see.

2.  Organize your list in sections of where it would be in the grocery store.  Don't just do a "refrigerated items" section.  That's too broad.  Do a "dairy/juice" section.  A "lunch meat" section.  Think about your grocery store aisles and how they are set up.  You don't want to wander in there for six hours, going back and forth across the store.  Be specific.  Every grocery store is a little different.  For example, on my Super Wal-Mart list, the juice, eggs, milk, sour cream, butter, etc. are all grouped together because in my Wal-Mart, they are all on one aisle.  I can get all of these items in one fell swoop.  Kind of like a hawk swooping in to pick up a field mouse.  Swoop!  On my grocery list, I call this the Dairy/Juice section.  You could call it the Cold Aisle, the Dairy Row, or whatever.  It doesn't matter what you call it.  It does matter what you list in that section.

Do you know where I have to write in caramels?  On my make-up/skin care section.  Those wrapped caramels are on the other side of the store from the grocery section on the candy section that is the same section as the make-up and skin care. If I don't write it that way I will have to backtrack.  And then I would be off schedule for the rest of the grocery shopping trip.  And that would be awful.  I might get a rash.

3.  Leave extra lines to write in things in each section.  Half and half is not something I buy on a regular basis, so I don't want it on my list permanently.  If I know I am making a recipe that will use it, I have a blank space to add it to the section.

4.  I have two big grocery lists, because there are two main stores I shop at that I buy a lot of items.  But there are several stores I only buy a few items from, so I have a section for each one of those on one of the lists.

5.  Remember that it will take time to create and perfect your master list.  Although the majority of it can be written in a few hours, several trips to the grocery store will probably be needed to fine tune it, because it's hard to think about every little thing you buy at one time. It could even take a few months to organize it and make sure it is efficient.  The great thing about computers are that things can be deleted and moved around with just a click.  And you thought computers were just for mindless blog surfing.

6.  While I'm thinking about it, an important part to my list is not on the computer, it's on the refrigerator.  I have a dry erase board on the side of my fridge and whenever I run out of something, I don't stop what I'm doing and go type it into my computer, I just jot it down on the board and at the end of the month, when I print off my list and do inventory, I grab the dry erase board and transfer the items I need.  This works especially well with my teenage daughter.  She'll make sure that board is nice and filled up with important life-sustaining items like "Sleek, Smooth, and Sexy Designer Hair Balm" or "Extreme Triple Vanilla Mint Gum in the 4-pack."  It's REALLY important to have sleek, smooth hair and extremely minty breath when you're eighteen.

7.  Keep in mind that your not buying things because you're out of them.  You're buying things to restock your pantry.  I don't wait until I run out of something before I buy it.  When you run out of something, you are forced to call your husband at work at tell him to pick it up on the way home.  He undoubtedly (and unknowingly) will buy the most expensive of whatever.  Or you might have to run to the nearby convenience store where you will pay five times the price you would have paid at a bigger store.  This is where your pre-made list comes in handy.  You can check your inventory and make sure that you have enough of each item to get you through until the next pay period when you go grocery shopping again.

As much as I plan to get everything I need ahead of time, I still occasionally forget things or run out.   A couple of weeks ago, I asked my husband to pick up some tomatoes at Wal-mart because I ran out.  He picked some up alright.  Special 'Hot House' tomatoes at $4.95 per pound!

8.  I arrange my list in columns.  You can use bullets or whatever format you want.  My template did have bullets, but I don't check them off.  When I don't need something on the list or as I'm going through the grocery store, I draw a line through the item.  It doesn't really matter which format you use, as long as it is organized.   

I really think being as organized as possible is the key to saving money.  Time is money, isn't it?  I've heard that before.  My lists are several years old.  I am in the process of updating them and making them a little more efficient and more precise. Our eating habits and meals have changed in the past few years and there are products now that I buy that I never bought before and vice versa.

One more thing.  Even if you're not eating rice and beans every night, and we definitely don't, I am still convinced that a steady diet of home-cooked meals is cheaper and healthier in the long run than eating out all the time, even if they are not the cheapest meals on earth.  Not that there is anything wrong with eating out.  I love to eat out.  Most people can't afford to do it everyday, for financial and health reasons.

Comments

[Lisa]

I am forever wandering aimlessly around the store because even if I have made a list (which is rare), I either leave it in the car or forget to get it out of my purse. I backtrack across the store all the time. Time is money and I spend much more of each than I should!!!!! I do plan on starting the master grocery list like you suggest...you have once again inspired me. Thank you.