"Cut Your Grocery Bill in Half" --with--America's Cheapest Family
by Steve & Annette Economides
I was very happy to get this book in my hands. Who does't want to save money on grocery bills? With the price of food going up, it doesn't hurt to save each and every penny we can.
In their first book, "America's Cheapest Family Gets You Right on the Money," they talked of money saving strategies from practically every budget.
The average family of three spends about $6,133 per year on groceries. That's $511 each month and $170 per person!
Their team effort in writing the book, allows you to read the book from your own life experience. You can apply the various ideas and tips to your level of your life. Test your grocery genius.
According to a 2006 survey, the average American family is eating out 1.4 times each week. Is that because we are too busy, hate to cook or it is more convient?
Meal planning is a must! Take stock of what you have and have a well stocked pantry. List your daily events that you have planned for the week and plan meals accordingly. Create your own menu planner or use the form they have in the book. If you are recipe challenged, research various cookbooks for meal ideas. Online recipes are great too!
Research the local grocery ads and note the sale items. Ad match between stores. Commit to spending less time shopping and avoid impulse buys. Know your prices and if you are getting a good deal or not. They talk of couponing and know that most of us don't want to sit down and clip coupons etc. Steve and Annette work as a team with the grocery shopping. Does your spouse go with you to the store? Not mine!
Once a month cooking can save a lot of time. Just pull your frozen meal out of the freezer on a super busy night. No meal prep and time for you.
Stock up and organize. Store it, find it, use it. They talk of tools and tips that they use. Make meal time fun! Have a garden. They share their favorite family recipes.
