Think Globally, Shop Locally

I am shocked at the amount of money we are saving by shopping locally. I guess when we drive to a different city to shop, we feel like we should "stock up" so we won't have to drive there again for a while. But what ends up happening is that we just use up everything faster and stuff doesn't last as long as you figured it would. This is true for groceries, health items, household items, etc.

When I shop in town, I have to go to different stores depending what I need. This makes me really stick to my list. When we used to drive out to Wal-Mart in the nearby town of Berryville, we would buy all kinds of stuff on impulse and spend at least $50 more than we budgeted, not to mention the extra gas money spent driving there. I thought all the shops in town would be more expensive, but as long as you are comfortable using generic brands (we are very comfortable with them!), then you don't have to spend much to feed your family. Plus, since there are two local grocery stores, they have really good weekly specials to get your business. Hart's actually had bananas for 10 cents a pound one week!! We also got a 20 pound bag of potatoes for $3.99!