The way we shop

We {read I} shop monthly here at the Everyday Happenings house.
There is nothing special about it, I don't have magical shopping fairies who do it for me {I wish}. But people have asked how/why we do it.

There are many reasons why we do it...
Convenience.  
It saves us a lot of money. 
We can buy in bulk if we need

We meal plan to make it easier. I have also found that doing so there is less wastage and since shopping monthly there has been hardly any food wasted at all.
There is the occasional thing forgotten about that gets lost in the back of the fridge abyss. But we are only human.

Preparing myself for this mammoth task - because that is what it is... mammoth. Takes mental prep... sounds ridiculous I know but I have to physch myself up for it, it takes an effort here at home to get organised as to what we are actually going to buy and what we need to buy and then the task of making sure everything we need is on the list so that we dont forget it because if it isn't on the list then that's it to bad we dont get it till next shop. Unless of course its a necessity. 

Basically I break this task down as follows.

•  What meals we would like for the month.

I always make sure there is enough for 31 meals and sometimes I ad a couple more for safe keeping.

I include lunches for the three of us

I include snacks

I also include things that I might want to bake.

• I write all those things down on lists

These are lists that I have created because nothing I have found doesn't really work for me. From there I get layout that I have and write down each meal and write down each and every ingredient that is needed for that meal.

• I then transfer 

those ingredients onto my shopping list divided up into sections that work for us, Groceries, Cold, Clean, Hygiene etc.

• I then add

the things that we may need, things we have run out of, things that hubby would like to try etc.

The one thing I do use that is store bought is the kikki-k monthly planner, I use it to write out what happens for our month and I use another one and add the meals to. Easy.

I then do my magic trick of making it all happen at the supermarket in a sane manner of affairs.

Our son singing the house supermarket down

I usually tackle the task of shopping on a weekend because then hubby can give me a hand, we usually always end up with two trolleys.

Doing our bit for the economy

Its a task, it can be full on depending on the month we have ahead.

But, its only done once a month. BAZINGA!

The only thing we have to go back to the supermarket for are the fresh things... milk {which is almost every day at the moment!!!},  cheese {if we run out}
Vegetables we get from a green grocer usually weekly sometimes fortnightly.


So there you go. And to those who had messaged me on how I get it done, sorry its taken so long. 

Do you shop weekly, fortnightly??? Monthly???
What are your tips and tricks?