Creating a Shopping List

So I have a new baby and new babies eat a lot. Especially mine seem too. I was feeling a little bored as I sat and nursed Paxton and so I have been sitting at the computer while I feed him. I have come across different types of blogs and enjoyed reading some and others I will choose not to visit again. People have a lot of different themes and purposes and some people are making money just by writing down life events. My purpose of starting this blog was to keep in touch with family and friends. It has been so much fun finding old friends and seeing pictures of their families, etc. So that is still my main purpose. But I have really enjoyed getting tips from other bloggers and also reading the non-sugar coated entries of real life. Because life isn't always easy and sometimes in blogger world, not everyone admits that. So let's spice this blog up a bit and begin with a tip.

Creating a shopping list:

Why create a shopping list? Having a plan means you only buy what you need making the time spent there quite a bit less. And the less time we are in the store, the less money we spend and the less opportunity for children to melt down. I don't need to explain the benefit further do I?

Where to begin: We only have two options in Ephraim: Kents Market and the Wal-Mart Supercenter. We do most of our grocery shopping at Wal-Mart because they will match any ad price for any item. That will have to be another day's tip though. I began my shopping list by going to Wal-Mart and making a list of sections of the store. I started at the left and went clock-wise: health & beauty, cards & gifts, seasonal, home items, etc. And then the grocery aisles, I wrote down the number of the aisle and listed a few items that I regularly buy from that aisle. The first trip was just simply making a list of aisles and items. Then I typed a list in the clock-wise order of the store and left spaces at each. The next week I went shopping, I circled items on the list that I needed and wrote down the rest. I still didn't know where to find everything, so when I find something, I write down which aisle it is on and update the master list on the computer. I also use my receipts to keep track of what I paid for the item. I don't have to remember what the average price is, I look at my list and can see when a sale price is actually a sale or not. I hope that makes sense.

So here is my shopping list:
Dart Shopping List

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The format was changed a bit when I uploaded this, but it gives you an idea. And the list is still a work in progress. But a little bit of work at the beginning, saves me a lot now and I can skim the list and it sometimes reminds me of items that we need at the store.

So I just decided that the next few posts will be a tip of spending less on groceries and a easy, yummy recipe, so stay tuned. And please ask questions or tell me if this was just boring and a bad idea, I appreciate the feedback.