Cheapo = Money I Keepo

I am currently self-proclaiming myself as a cheapo!  Well, I guess I'd have to restate this: I don't like spending more money than I have to on things, especially things I have to buy ALL THE TIME, like groceries and bills.  I like to save all this money up to spend on things like traveling with my husband!

You would think I used coupons like a crazy person, but I really rarely use them.  I am particular about my food - I like certain things, including lots of produce, and I buy what I eat.  I'm not very good about buying what's on sale or making menus around what's on sale.  I make what I make, so I buy what I buy.  I know that's not a very good excuse, which leads me to excuse number 2: I am lazy.  And a little confused.  I don't take the time to clip coupons (I mean, how would I have time to do that between blogging, Facebook and Pinterest, right?), and when I do I never seem to quite get the knack of how to make the add up.  So, if anyone is with me, but also too lazy, confused and picky to do the whole coupon thing, let me share a secret I have discovered with you. 

ALDI

Enough said.  I have been shopping at Aldi for about 3 weeks now and I have about cut my grocery bill in half (more, some weeks).  I am so very not kidding. 

But let me explain a few things about Aldi:

1. It's not a frilly grocery store, which took me a while to get used to.  Things aren't displayed festively and there aren't big aisle signs.  Packaged items are just lined neatly up on their palates with prices displayed above or below them. 

2. You have to pay for a cart and you don't get bags.  HAHA!  Well, sort of.  To get a cart you put a quarter in, and then when you return it you get your quarter back, so keep a quarter on hand!  Also, take your own bags if you want to bring your groceries home in neat little bags - when your groceries get rung up, the cashier puts them back in your cart and you can choose to put them in your personal bag or not.  They don't have to worry about people stealing their carts and they don't have to pay a cart-person to go collect carts or a bag boy or buy bags, so they can charge less because there is less overhead.

3.  You can't be a "brand" person.  Aldi is pretty much all brands you've never heard of.  But if that doesn't bother you, then you'll love it because you've never heard of such low prices either!  Thomas is the more "packaged item" eater in our house, and so far he's had no complaints about the fake Cocoa Crispies or fake Sweet-n-Salty Peanut Butter Bars.  I can attest that the Greek yogurt is quite tasty, but the fake oreos ... only to use in baking where they're mixed with other things, because they can't do the originals justice.  Overall we've been really pleased with the things we have gotten there.  Produce prices are unbelievable, and I have found good produce and meats for the most part so far. 

4. Sticking to the basics is part of the savings.  There aren't as many selections, and there are primarily the basics there, which is helpful for me because it cuts down on my impulse buys.  However, especially around holidays, there is a surprisingly wide variety of cheeses and hor d'eurve-y selections.  The only thing I typically buy that I haven't found there is bagged spinach and deli turkey to my taste (I am WAY picky on the lunch meat ... they have many kinds, but I'm snobby so I only get the stuff from the real deli, not pre-packaged.  In my defense, I tried once, but I just couldn't do it).  So, occasionally I have to head by Kroger to pick up unusual things, but I've only had to do that once in the last month.  The variety of produce is also less: I haven't seen asparagus or kale or kiwi or purple onions, but they have the basics like lemons/limes, apples, oranges, bananas, mangos, pineapples (for $0.99, I might add!), tomatoes, sweet potatoes, regular potatoes, yellow onions, lettuce, cucumbers, peppers, stuff like that. Also they have some awesome prices on nuts ... and they have the most amazed dark cocoa dusted almonds.  Ellen, who got me started at Aldi, also reports that there $3 bottles of red wine are not too shabby either, but our Aldi doesn't carry wine, so I can't report on that. 

I know this all sounds potentially sketchy and crazy, and believe me, I was thinking the same thing at first.  I went there once a few months ago and just couldn't catch the vibe.  But then Ellen told me about her serious savings, so I gave it ago again.  Now I'm sold!  So far, I haven't spent over $50/week on groceries going there, which covers our breakfast, lunch and dinners!