Grocery Shopping Tips for Single Working Parents
I'm a single mom with a full time office job. My commute is about an hour each way, so my evenings look like: Leave the office at 5, make it to pick up Cash from his after school program anywhere between 5:45 and 6:15, with zero time on the way for any stops. I also am on call some evenings, and every third Saturday. When the heck am I supposed to buy toilet paper? I've discovered something that has helped TREMENDOUSLY, and because I'm positive you all are just as busy as I am, I'm going to share.
Walmart Grocery pick up. Here's what I do. I have a job where I'm on a computer all day. I usually open up a tab to the Walmart Grocery site early in the morning I plan to shop. Throughout the day (or even into the next, if I decide to put it off) I can add items as I think of them. I'll be working on something, and think "I'm almost out of shaving cream!" Instead of trying to make a mental note, or writing it on a sticky note, I'll pop over to that tab, add shaving cream to my cart, then click back over to whatever I was working on. It takes about 20 seconds and I rarely forget anything.
Another awesome advantage is that I can stick to budget so much easier, because I can see the running total at the bottom the whole time. If I go over what I want to spend, I can think to myself, "Do we really need two bags of those chips? No? Okay, it's out," whereas when shopping in store it's way too much work for me to a) keep track of my total and b) put that second bag of chips back on the proper aisle. I can also comparison shop the different brands this way, and decide what is a better deal to shop name brand, and what I'd rather not. Another bonus? Avoiding any "bribe" purchases that I inevitably get for Cash because I'm tired and just say sure whatever.
When you go to check out, you can pay with your card and choose a pickup time. I usually pick up my order around 6:30 (on the way home from getting Cash), so my checkout deadline is generally 1:30pm.
Here's another way you can save money: Walmart Savings Catcher. Do you all use this? All you do is scan your receipt anytime you shop at Walmart (or you can enter in your purchase number, if you shopped online), and it will not only store your receipts (which is handy when I'm doing spending tracking), it will search all the nearby store advertisements and price match. If someone else has it advertised for lower, they will give you a credit! I usually store up mine all year and buy something fun, like our new fire pit!
Here's the links you need. If you use my link for the groceries, we both get a credit! Be sure and sign up, then share your own link with your friends and continue the cycle!
Update: The Savings Catcher program has since been retired.