Getting the Most from Your Groceries

One of my new life goals was to evaluate our family finances and find ways to save money or new ways to invest money over the next year. After being back in the US for a few months now, we've finally been able to evaluate some normal household spending. What we found is that one of our big expenses each month like most other families is groceries. Food can be very expensive, especially "healthy" foods like fresh fruits and vegetables. My husband may be the sole bread-winner in our family now, but I'm the bread buyer and this is a key area of our finances that I can have a big impact on. Along with my responsibility to plan and prepare healthy foods for my family, I need to find ways to do it as cost effectively as possible.

I've experimented with couponing, sale shopping, bulk buying, making my own homemade items, along with doing loads of research on all sorts of ways to save money on groceries. Some things I've tried have worked well and some have failed miserably, but I continue to get wiser as the days go by. Ultimately I've found that getting the most out of your groceries isn't just finding the best sales, it's an investment in changing your lifestyle and how you and your family handle food at home and out and about.

Here are few topics that I'll be touching on over the next several weeks that maybe can help you save money on your groceries or invest in new practices to help get more out of your groceries:

• Meal Planning
• Pantry Stocking and Organization
• Making your own "Homemade Staples"
• Buying Meat in Bulk
• Making Meals Ahead of Time
• Common Sense with Coupons (a non-"extreme couponing" approach)
• Canning and Preserving your Own Foods
• Grow and Make Your Own Herbs and Spices
• Tips for Buying Fruit and Vegetables
• Reduce Fat in Your Foods and Save Money
• Easy Pantry Meals
• Healthy Low Cost Meal Ideas
• Maximizing your Leftovers
• Save Money by Preserving Food Quality
• Preparing Fruits and Vegetables for Freezing
• How to Avoid Expensive, Unhealthy Junk Foods
• Name Brands vs Store Brands
• Family Fun with Picnic Style Meals
• Eating Out vs Eating In

What are some topics you would like to see? Or what are some ways you've found that help you save money on your weekly grocery bill? Leave me your comments or advice.