For the last several weeks, I have not read the grocery ads that come out on Wednesday until the weekends or even the next Tuesday, the last day for those prices. Today, I brought the paper right in the house and read the ads, mentally noting what I need that is on sale this week. Well, nothing.
Not having price-matching has not been a real downer like I thought it would. For one thing, the price of milk problem pretty much ended when I had to buy the expensive a2milk. Milk may be free elsewhere, but to avoid problems, I just buy the expensive $4.29 milk. Since it goes 2/$6 ever so often, I just stock up then.
Once price matching ended, Walmart had white grapes for about $2/lb. Other prices seem to have fallen there. Plus, Publix has beautiful, cheaply priced Delicious apples. I am not distressed any longer about the abolition of price matching.
There were still good sales this week, but nothing I needed or cannot wait to get the best price later. I need butter, I want cream cheese. Cabbage is cheap enough. I will get excited when the cream cheese is on sale but will not go overboard. Otherwise, there is nothing I need in the meantime. I don't even need cream cheese. It's a vague want. I did buy one box of Stove Top Stuffing that was on sale for $1 just in case for some reason I don't feel like making dressing at Thanksgiving.
I do need boneless, skinless chicken breasts. It seems they are the same price everywhere--$1.99/lb. That makes me think there should be a lower price coming along soon. Of course, if it is not a local store, I will not be able to buy at that price.
The price of celery at this time of the year pulls me. I cannot cut enough celery to dehydrate because of the broken bone in my hand. I may set exbf to slicing celery. He never minds doing things involving a knife when I need it. I will check before I buy five heads of celery...lol. I still have dehydrated celery from last year, so there is really no need to buy it for the dressing.
Onions, dehydrated last year are just about gone. So, I may buy sweet onions or white onions to dehydrate when they are on sale. I did look for those in the ads. I can only slice onions outdoors, so it will have to be a pretty day. Vidalias are tolerable when diced indoors.
There is plenty of ground pork here and I am slowing eating a center cut slice of ham. It is sooo salty that I only eat a tiny piece at one time.
I need no spices, no matter the price! I rarely buy cake or brownie mixes, but I have a few and that is enough for now. I even gave some spices to J as she was moving.
A friend gave me pecans and promised me more. Another person gave me about ten pounds of sweet potatoes, so I may not make my trip to the sweet potato farm. Of course, I usually buy forty pounds out there. We will see. I love free produce! It is the best price ever.
Reading and studying the ads this week was interesting, but nothing has shown up that I want or at the price I want to pay. Basically, I am looking for the things I use all the time. Plus, I will look for items to dehydrate, especially onions and celery on sale. Then, there are the seasonal items or things used in holiday cooking--cream cheese, eggnog, more cranberries to cook, freeze or dehydrate. I will have to have one small container of Cool Whip.
Your turn
Do you study the grocery ads each week? Do you shop at multiple stores? This time of the year are you planning on stocking up at the best prices of the year? What do you look for? Do you stock up before Easter and other holidays?
Linda, I don't remember do you have Aldi there? I am a confirmed. Aldi shopper. They just opened a great big new one nearby. They have everything I need in produce. Now meat, I prefer a store with a butcher on site. That's just me.
ReplyDeleteAldi,
Deleteis right across from WM. I have been in there three times. The produce looked like it had been trampled. The workers had boxes in the aisles. I cannot get the buggies out of the rack. It is just not worth the pain it causes me for what I want or can get in there. I know other people love it, not me.
Oh I wish butter would come down
ReplyDeletecarol,
DeleteSomeone said they got butter for $1.48 or some low price like that. I wonder where and what was the brand. It is expensive here.
Nothing much has grabbed me in the sale papers lately, either. I try to always buy meat when it's on sale, even if it's not a great deal at the time. I'm waiting for canned yams and cranberry sauce to go on sale; that's when I'll stock up.
ReplyDeletePenpen,
ReplyDeleteMaybe next week we will both see something to entice us to buy. Same here with the meat. I almost never buy canned yams, but I have a can from last year. I just bought one and never used it.
My husband and I were just talking about this. It seems the sales are not coming like we remember and we are paying a little more for everything. Hmmm. Holidays?
ReplyDeleteJennifer,
DeleteHopefully, the ads/sales will come and be good, just a bit later than usual. I like them spread out so I can buy a bit each week. I need a sale on Kraft cheeses because I am almost out of cheese bought on sale.
I just don't read the food sales anymore as I almost never find anything I'm interested in. We eat pretty much the same foods all the time so if there is a sale I'll see it. I will buy some extra celery and fresh cranberries closer to Thanksgiving.
ReplyDeleteWe just did a big shopping trip for staples like raw walnuts, raw almonds, large containers of unsweetened cocoa powder, almond flour, decaf and regular coffee, lemon juice, catsup, low carb wraps, english muffins, etc at Sam's Club. I check prices on line at Walmart, Publix, Amazon and Sam's. Sam's always wins for those things.
There are certain Walmart brands we buy - oatmeal, sugar free Strawberry jam, black tea, some personal care items and take advantage of free home delivery. We do that every 3 months.
So, for fresh produce, dairy and meat we just shop at Walmart Neighborhood store (their produce is much better than the big Walmart) every other week. I have not found Aldi's to be the great store others have - produce always looks very picked over.
Bellen,
DeleteAldi produce looks more walked on than picked over. I buy no WM brands of food. They are just too chummy with trade in China. Sometimes, like this week, the ads yield little!
I don't read ads for I am precise what I am going to buy - otherthan when I am disctracted by shiny objects at eye level.
ReplyDeleteurspo,
ReplyDeleteI rarely read just to find cheap stuff. I read for precise items, but I just wait until they are on sale. Yeah, those shiny objects are dangerous. Since I am sitting on an electric cart, eye level is different for me. Shiny object concept works for the ads, too.
my local supermarket emails me the weeks offers and because I have a customer card they also send me customised offers on things i have bought in the past. I don't have enough money to buy anything i don't need almost immediately so they don't g et to sell me anything extra but it's good to know what is on special in case of a windfall :)
ReplyDeletekylie,
DeleteThat is a great service for you. I wish we had stores that did that here. Of course, now you know they are watching you...lol. I buy ahead in order that each purchase is on sale. So, when I look on my shelf, everything is on sale there. Of course, produce can be bought on sale and dehydrated for later. I have even frozen milk and bread on sale for use later. Maybe we will both get a windfall. I don't have enough money either to buy much ahead, but even three cans ahead works for me.
I was laughing as I read over your comment and my reply, thinking about you winning a lottery and rushing to store to buy items on sale. I would.
Coffee can be marked down by half so if I can get that on special, it's very worth having
Deletekylie,
DeleteMost things marked down by half are worth having. I see coffee cheap but don't drink it.
kylie,
DeleteI guess I should have said most things we usually buy that are marked down to half are worth having. Some things marked down to half I still would not buy.