Last week, I shopped for week one of the Budget Keto Meal Plan, and I think I did pretty well. For week two’s shopping trip, I did something that should prove beyond all doubt just how much I like y’all: I went to WalMart.
Not to get too personal on you, but I’m a wee bit claustrophobic. WalMart is one of those public places that is usually insanely crowded, and wherein people simply aren’t paying attention to their surroundings or the fact that there are other human beings trying to shop there, too. It is what it is, but that combination of close quarters as you’re walking down the aisle and people who will flat out run into you (that is, when they’re not just standing in the middle of the aisle, blocking everyone else from passing) sets off my claustrophobic tendencies. I very quickly feel overwhelmed, and I simply cannot get out of that place fast enough.
I do realize, however, that in some locations WalMart is the only place one can shop for groceries at a discount, and so I sucked it up and shopped there this week in solidarity.
Once again, I was able to cross off basically all the spices on the shopping list. If you keep a stocked spice cabinet or drawer (and I certainly do!) you’re likely to already have all the seasonings you need for the week on a pretty consistent basis. I did have to grab a few of the canned goods this week, but my major purchase was eggs, bacon, sausage, and a 2 lb hunk of cheddar (which was just over $5, so not bad). Fortunately, because of the insanely awesome deal I got on ground beef last week at Aldi ($2 and change per lb, and I grabbed over 5 1/2 lb of it), I have all the ground beef I need for the week already stored up in my freezer.
Hooray for sale meat!
Once I grabbed my frozen and produce goods, I headed to the register and had quite the nice surprise! I actually spent LESS this week than last week. Getting that great deal on beef last week (and using the opportunity to stock up on it when I saw it marked that low) cut my bill down quite substantially, to $49 and change versus almost $68. And this is at WalMart, which is certainly less expensive than my native Publix, but usually a little bit more than Aldi.
By Grabthar’s Hammer…. what a savings.
It probably also helps that I was on a mission, and determined to ONLY buy what was on my list. I actually think that, many times, the excess we spend in a warehouse store like WalMart, Sam’s Club, or Costco is on the impulse purchases. It’s so easy to be distracted by the eighty-thousand things not on your list, or the busyness of the store and the craziness of the other people, that I personally find myself just throwing junk into the cart and moving on without really thinking about it, just so I can go. I think if you can focus, and only jump for something that isn’t strictly on your list if it’s an awesome deal and something that is going to save you money later (like my ground beef), you can definitely keep your food bill down by shopping in a warehouse store.
I’ll be checking back in next week with week three’s grocery haul.
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