Super Savings Saturday: We Survived the Two-Week Grocery Experiment!

We made it to Saturday! Aside from a few trips to CVS, I did not darken the door of any supermarket for two weeks.

Two. whole. weeks.

It felt like an eternity. Well, almost! At any rate, we made it through two weeks of no-shopping and we learned a lot along the way:

1) It is hard to let good deals pass by, especially when I have the time to snag them, the right coupons, and the store is only a few blocks away. 

2) A half gallon of milk does not last two weeks. Um, yeah, I should have known that one; don't ask me what I was thinking.

3) Even if it was painful to miss a few deals, it is rather nice to not have to even think about menu-planning or shopping-list-making for two whole weeks.

4) Finally, yes, it saved me time. Yes, it saved us money (well, in that we were able to buy more with $80 than we can with $40. Do not ask me how that works, though, because I'm still scratching my head over it!). And last of all, we made it through two weeks without running out of food (ahem, except the milk bit!) and we even had quite a bit to spare.

The consensus? I think I'm going to try doing my grocery shopping every two weeks. However, instead of only going once every two weeks and spending all $80, my current plan is to do a bigger stock-up shop (say $65 worth) every two weeks and then use the leftover money ($15 or so) to make a quick run to a store to buy milk and the rock-bottom deals the week I'm technically not shopping.

This plan seems like it would give me the best of both worlds as I would still save time and have more wiggle room for stocking up every other week, but I'd also not have to miss out on exceptional deals the week I take off nor would we have to worry about going without if we run out of something like milk. That said, while it seems like a good plan, I have to try it out for awhile to really know it's effectiveness.

I'm curious to know: Does anyone else shop like this--a big trip one week, a small trip the next? Do you think it could work?

We just got back from a two-hour shopping trip to multiple stores and got some wonderful deals but I need to head for bed so I'll try and share those tomorrow or Monday.

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How'd you do this week? Post about the deals and bargains you were able to snag this week on your blog (with pictures, if possible!) and then come back here and leave your link below.

Comments

[Recritique.com]

I know this will sound funny but I got fresh whole pineapples for a dollar this week. I thought that was a fantastic deal!

Robyn

Recritique.com

Restaurant Printable Coupons and More.

[Edwena]

We shop like this all the time and love it.

[Katie]

I do the every other week "big shopping" and off week "milk, bread, eggs and produce" shopping. It works really well for me and I have to say that I've even noticed a pattern (for some reason) the "better" ads are sometimes every other week. Or maybe it's just the food I know I need at that time. -?-

My "big" shopping tends to be at Costco once a month then Super Walmart (they price match ads) the other time of the month, then I do smaller trips to Trader Joes and Sprouts for the more natural stuff that we eat. I don't think I could ever go a full 2 weeks without stepping into a store at ALL! It makes me itchy just thinking about it...

[amanda]

it must be a relief to not worry so much about all the sales! i need to start limiting my time spent more :)

[Carrie]

We do one big shop a month, then a small shop every 7 - 10 days. I have a list of about 45 meals that we rotate, and I usually only cook 6 days a week. So I choose 24 meals, making sure that everything is balanced, then make my menu, check my cupboards, make a list and pull out coupons. Because I can buy bigger things of meat we save more, then we just seperate and freeze. Then I keep back about $20 a week to pick up milk, bread, produce, or the chicken that goes on sale super cheap. This works well for us. Because it's been so hot out lately and we have been very busy, I probably have only cooked twice a week, the other nights were a sandwich or a salad...so our 'meat' supply from May 1st is practically still all there.

[Melissa]

I shop like this. It takes the pressure off when its not a great sale week. My DH gets paid twice monthly. The check at the beginning of the month has his commission for the entire last month included with his salary. The check at the middle only has the salary. So I have stock up trips and cherry picking trips. As far as an impact on our gas budget, there are no affordable groceries in the nearest town. My DH travels some as part of his job. He can pop into Aldi's or stock up from my list weekly or more often if necessary. He is driving right by there - so no gas cost. One of my seven children needs allergy shots so we are in a town with a great Kroger, an OK Walgreens and a CVS with a scanner once or twice weekly. I have a CVS in my town as well. It's not affordable time or gas to travel to Aldi's weekly but its too expensive to buy basics anywhere else. So I check the pantry and freezer, make a general 2 week menu to utilize what I have, check online to see what Kroger and CVS have for next to free, and make the Aldi list to cover the rest. I do hate asking my husband to pick up the longer Aldi lists. He is an excellent shopper and knows prices. I just really do not like asking him to take on one more thing. He has told me he doesn't mind and is thrilled to save the money in gas. I have noticed it is cheaper to shop this way too. I think it is the law of diminishing returns. At some point the ammount of something (money, energy, time)you invest in a project/outcome is maximized and both sides of the graph - too little and too much investment get you less(outcome). I have no other explanation for it but I have seen it happen for the last 10 years. Another advantage to shopping this way is that if the baby is sick on your planned market day, you can probably still make dinner with going to the store or for takeout.

[heavensabvus1]

I do this type of shopping every THREE-FOUR weeks. I live in NYC but shop in NJ. It costs $8 toll plus gas and time, but there are much better prices and much better selection and all the stores are close. I load my car to the hilt of whatever is on sale and use coupons and still end up more than paying for gas and tolls. I am able to buy almost 100% organic foods for the same price that I would pay for non-organic local foods. I can also hit a bunch of thrift stores first...and find all sorts of things. I purchase my clothes there, kitchenware, housewares. Many things are brand new, yet dirt cheap. Between trips, I just visit the weekly farmer's market for a few pieces of fruit. But most of the fruit I get in NJ...if you use (and reuse) the special fruit bags, I have had apples keep nice and fresh for 8 weeks in rhe refrigerator!

[Kat]

That's how I shop, a big trip every 2 weeks and small trip (for milk, produce) in between. I menu plan for 2 weeks at a time. We love it and we save a lot of money, and I have no idea why, either! Maybe because we eat more leftovers than I realized and I can stretch the menu farther? I always have at least one meal that gets bumped into the next menu cycle.

[Marin]

I do my major grocery shopping at the Commissary every two weeks, because it is 15 miles away and we want to save the gas. Then I run to Publix on the off week to take advantage of the BOGO sales and my husband picks up milk, lettuce & bananas at the commissary after work. It is working really well for us, and nice not to have to grocery shop every week! It definitely saves time & money.

[Rachel R.]

We have been grocery shopping once a month. This works especially well for us in our current location, because the health food store, Trader Joe's, Sam's Club, etc. are all an hour away in the nearest city, across a toll bridge.

Just this month, though, I have started to try to add a quick run by Farm Fresh and/or Food Lion (the only supermarkets here besides SuperWM) and/or RiteAid (the only chain drugstore we have here) to our weekly errand trip if they have good deals going on, and I think it's working well. We'll see, though, as this is the first time I'm really trying it this way.

[Jan]

where are the CVS deals this week?

[Kristen]

We are military so I used to meal plan and shop once a month for all the non-perishable items 45 minutes away at the commissary. Then I would go to the local store to get perishables when needed and the farmer's market for veggies. we've moved and now I shop the sale papers and plan meals accordingly every two weeks. We budget about $125 to $150 a month for two of us and thank God that the money stretches each month.

[Amy]

I tend to shop one big trip one week followed by a smaller trip the next week, since my hubby gets paid every other week. But since we seem to max out my household budget every time, which includes cleaners, diapers, stuff for the kids, house and garden, leaving me with very little wiggle room until the next payday, I'm trying to do a minor shopping the first week followed by a bigger trip the second week. This makes me buy only the essentials the first week and leaves the extras or optional deals for later when I can tell better if we can truly afford it.

I should just have a food-only budget, but since I mostly shop at walmart, and we try to limit how many trips we do, things get lumped in together. I hate it when I think I've left myself enough for the second week and fall short before payday.

[Riannon]

Had some trouble with the Garnier Nutritioniste producing ECBs but other than that, had a great week!

Riannon

[denise]

I would miss leaving the house if I could only go every 2 weeks. I have tried to consolidate the trips due to the $4.30 gallon for gas. BTW Target has their summer things for 75% off.

[Julie]

I do a once a month grocery shop. Our family spends $260 a month on groceries, toiletries and cleaning supplies. I usually go to Aldi, Walmart and BJ (like Sams) and then leave a bit for if we need milk or bread. I recently read that every rip to the store adds more to the budget. I had been getting these $10 off coupons form a local store and found that while I was saving those $10 I was some times buying stuff at BAD prices or junk we didn't need just because I had ten free dollars to spend!

[ModestforHim]

I shoppped every two weeks for years until I found your blog. I was stocking up on no frills items every two weeks, but still ended up shopping in between for milk and other staple items. I was spending way too much money.

Now, that I go more often I spend a lot less because I am shopping by sale not by payday or meal planning which was what I was doing before.

[Stephanie @ Keeper of the Home]

Crystal, that's pretty much how I do it. One big shop, where I buy based on a one week meal plan, and whatever is seasonal, a good deal, on discount, etc.

Then the next week, I meal plan based on what I have left from the big shop, and if I have to, I make a very small trip for just a few items to fill in the gaps. This works really well for us!

I'm glad to hear that the two-week shopping went well for you!

[Monica]

Crystal - I've typically done the two week thing, but lately am seeing the value in getting the deals each week. Like you, I think there is more wiggle room with a larger chunk to spend one time over two weeks - but I think what would be ideal for me is one trip the first week and then a small trip the next week for produce or a few sale items. I hope you settle on something that works great for you!

[6orrs]

I have 4 young children, and have reached a point in my life where I dread almost all shopping. I have started going to the grocery store once every 3 wks. I enjoy the challenge of making my food stretch past my planned menus. For minor shopping (milk, fresh fruit/veggies)I stop at our local farmer's market (which I pass every day on my way home from work), or send my husband with a list (he sticks to it, and isn't led astray by the deals I would see). I have found I ALWAYS save money doing my grocery shopping this way!

[Caitlin Domanico]

I think you've just inspired me to give it a try!!!