Good morning, friends! Can you believe that Thanksgiving is over? It always seems that the anticipation building up to these kinds of big family gatherings lasts longer than the actual event. I'm glad I have pictures to remind me of how much fun we had! Now, though, we're back in Iowa and we've moved on to the Christmas planning, and I must say, I do enjoy the planning! I don't know about you, but I started my Christmas shopping last summer, so now we just have a few odds and ends to pick up and I can focus most of my attention on Christmas baking!
I've been slowly stocking up on my baking supplies for the last few weeks. It seems that the grocery stores alternate running super deals on flour, sugar and butter - the Holy Trinity of baking! I've been picking up 5 lbs of flour here and 2 lbs of butter there. Today, I want to give you a little pre-Christmas present, something to help you spend less time at the grocery store and more time actually baking! I know that it can get a little confusing knowing which stores are having which sales and when. Most of us don't have an hour or two a week to look at the ads, make comparisons, plan a strategy of what to get and where, and then make our grocery list. So, I took one of those steps out for you. Behold, The Grocery List:
You're still going to have to compare your local store ads - and while we only have two grocery stores here, I know that it takes time to compare ads and stretch our dollar the farthest. I like to print my grocery list and then make an additional list on the back side of each store and the sale items that I want to get at that store. Sometimes the stores have the same item on sale, for the same price, but one will have a limited number that can be purchased, so I make a note of that. I also make a note if I have a manufacturers coupon to go with the sale item - always a good thing! On the original side, I highlight the items that I need and as I pick them up at the store, I make a check in the small box to the right of that item. I've listed the things that we purchase most often and have left spaces to add things that we don't buy on a regular basis. It's also much easier - and faster - to shop your grocery store by section, rather than running from one end to the next multiple times (been there, done that; no fun with a small child in the cart!). I find that, with a list, I'm less tempted to pick up things I don't need or am less likely to have to make extra trips during the week because I forgot something. Of course, the key to being a prepared shopper is having a weekly menu! I'll share some of my tastier (and easier!) weekly menu ideas with you next week. In the meantime, if you'd like a copy of the Grocery List for your own use, send me an email to hchefter@gmail.com and I'll send you a copy.
I think we're almost completely ready to get started with our holiday baking, made easier by smart grocery shopping, of course. Although it will be a couple of weeks before I do any actual baking, today I'm going to pull out my old stand-by Christmas recipes and I'm going to start searching for one or two new ones to try this year. I can't wait to get started!
Have a good week!
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