Do you use a list when you grocery shop?

skinnybitchbarbie27

ALWAYS! I even nerd it out with a clipboard, pen, and calculator. It 1) helps me stay in my budget and 2) helps me keep unwanted food out of my cart. I list mine by departments (meat, dairy, ect) and so I don't have to run around the store like a crazy person.

laughingdani

I never ever ever make a list. I think it's a nice thought. But I never do it. Inevitably I forget something. Oh well.

wikitbikit

If I don't make a list I will face palm myself when I get home and realize I forgot the very thing I went for.

Exactly. I don't know how many times I've gone to get milk and come home with $75 of everything but milk. I don't drink milk so I don't think of it, but others in my household are obsessed with having it with cereal EVERY morning and to drink with dinner EVERY night.

Actually, the past few times I've gone shopping I've bought milk even when it wasn't on the list because those people are complete guzzlers and they'll be sending me out for it again sooner or later.

Milk. It makes a girl crazy.

sarahsue001

I use pepperplate, you can put all of your recipes in (I put only healthier recipes so I am not tempted), then it lets you plan out online what you are going to cook in the planner section, and you can add the recipes ingredients on to a shopping list that you can print out or access with a smart phone. It separates it by category at the store. This works really well for me and my husband. He can see what we are planning to eat for dinner to gauge his calories, or pull up the recipe to help out/start cooking if I am running late. He can also add stuff on the grocery list manually so I don't have to ask him EVERY time before I go shopping if he needs anything.

UrbanLotus

I recently started using the Grocery IQ app on my phone - I add ingredients from recipes I am planning on trying, and enter items whenever I run out so i don't forget. Much better than my previous method of wandering around aimlessly

PriceK01

I always make a shopping list...and leave it on my kitchen counter when I go to the store. Every single time.
-___-

I do this, too. Luckily, the act of writing it down is usually enough to help me remember. Looking down at my desk, I have a stack of five sticky notes. All forgotten shopping lists, all items have been purchased

avababy05

I make a list,forget to bring the list,try to remember what was on the list,get home and remember the one thing I wanted/needed the most,I didn't get.

I also cut coupons I never use.

simplycorey

A list is a must for me! I use the Ziplist app for my phone and I can import recipes from skinnytaste.com directly to my list. Plus, I always have my phone with me, so I don't forget my list.

Helen_Luvnlife

I always use a list. I plan my meals carefully and write down what I need to make them. Although I do just put fruits and veggies for snacks so I can look and see what is on sale and looks good.

concordancia

We only have a list for extraordinary things, like I need to write down onion powder, because I just used the last of it.

Mostly, we stop in the produce section and get whatever looks good, especially if it is on sale. Then we stop at the deli and get a pound of sliced turkey, maybe some other stuff if there is a "buy this, get that" coupon for things we like (he made me get store brand crystal light last week because if you bought deli ham and cheese, you got paper towels and drink mix, and we needed the paper towels, but he couldn't stand the thought of leaving behind something free). While he is in line at the deli, I pop around the corner and get feta cheese and check if there are any deals on hummus. Then we each take one side of the meat freezer and compare deals. From there, he goes along the outside to get cheese, eggs, milk, yogurt and cereal, while I run up and down the aisles getting anything else we might want. We meet back in the middle so that he has another chance to tell me anything special he wants, then we head to frozen foods, where the bags of chopped spinach are across the aisle from the lean cuisine. Unlike the aforementioned Crystal Light, he frowns upon the "buy 10 lean cuisine, get free ice cream" deal and reminds me I now have a Yonanas and should probably avoid my ice cream trigger.

Every week. We probably look like maniacs we go through so fast. We will drive past the same brand store on other errands to avoid the frustration of not having everything in its place.

That reminds me, I used up all the falafel mix, which our store doesn't carry.

melinda200208

Most definately!! I have to. I plan out my meals for the next week and make a list of everything I need. I still pick a couple extra things up sometimes but usually I pretty much stick to my list

MercenaryNoetic26

I always get the same stuff and dump spontaneous misc crap in the cart for fun.

jade2112

I do and I only get what's on the list which is only the loss leaders in the weekly sales ads. Lure me in but I'm not falling for them figuring I'm going to buy the other expensive stuff in the store.

I go to wal mart for everything else and I still stick to my list.

Moxie42

I write a list for the staples I definitely need, and for any specific recipes. But sometimes I write generic things like "fish" and choose whatever healthy fish or shrimp is on sale.

pucenavel

You want anal-retentive? I got it covered.

For all the meals I cook, I have the necessary ingredients written on 3x5 cards.

Before I go to the store, I pick out what meals I want to eat that week. I then write down all the ingredients from each card onto my shopping list.which is grouped and sorted by which department of the store the item is in.

Alex_is_Hawks

i have a grocery book....i have my meal plans in there...and then my resultant shopping list. After the shopping trip I note in the margins the cost of things so I can budget for next time.

It's incredibly OCD but I like it....and it 's fun....in the sense that my daughter has gotten into it and likes to check the meal plan and the list and keep track of things...

so yeah I do

jerber160

Yup! I actually use a grocery list app on the phone so no paper.

didja ever leave your phone next to the apples?

chooselove

I usually make a flexible 'mini' list. I grocery shop pretty much every day, so I never need to buy much at once.. Here's an example of my mini-list.
Bananas or some other kind of fruit
Lettuce or another leafy green
Carrots
Onions
Garlic
Nuts, nut butter, nut milks, or trail mix
Non-fat greek yogurt (infrequently)

RobinsonDawn

I do it online, much cheaper and I dont get distracted by the chocolate isle etc haha
I pay roughly 50 pounds a week on food for 2 adults and 1 child

darlilama

Yup. Grocery IQ app! If I didn't have a list, I would buy everything but what I went in for because I'd forget about it! LOL The phone app makes it great for my husband and I to have a common list so, no matter who stops at the store, we know what to get!

Jennloella

yes I use a list, and I also do it on my phone, then I can delete as I make my way through the store, and I can add something to it anywhere.

F1uffy123

If I go in the shop I always just shop around the outside. This is where all the fresh stuff is. Veg, fruit, milk and meat. Dot even bother with the other aisles

Or

Online shopping. Structured so I spend less and also have the opportunity to price compare against other super markets

alsoagood1

I won't walk into a grocery store without a list. I make a detailed list of everything I need and how many (like 5 bananas, 4 oranges, 3 apples, 2 cans of tuna, etc.). If I didn't have a list I wouldn't know what I have on hand or what I'm out of and would buy the things I don't need more often that things I do need. If I have coupons I also write that on my list so I don't forget to use them.

mkcmurphy

Absolutely. As a family, we sit down on Saturday evening or Sunday morning to plan our meals for the coming week. (I even print our menu out and post it on the fridge with a great big "DEAL WITH IT"!) We write it ALL down, and stick to the list. It keeps junk food out of the pantry, and the kids know what they can snack on. If something disappears before the end of the week, too bad. It also helps us keep to our financial budget!

Right there with you!

MyM0wM0w

I detest grocery shopping so yes, I write scribble a list during the week. Just before I go I rewrite it so it's legible and I list everything in order to aisle. I don't want to spend a SECOND in there longer than I have to or walk back and forth looking for stuff.

IbiH

Back of an old envelope!!!
Sectioned as; perishable; fridge/freezer; fruit & veg; household items; wine.

Works for me, although a few other items sneak in.

JenniTheVeggie

Yes...but 99.9% of the time I leave it at home. :indifferent:

BlueObsidian

I always use a list. Otherwise, I inevitably forget one thing that we're out of and end up having to make another trip back to the store. It's always something like eggs or olive oil that I really don't want to be without for a few days.

I also use the back of an old envelope, which is doubly helpful since I tend to have a few coupons with me.

LYNN8SUPERSTAR

I always use a grocery list!

heidihorton

Yup! I actually use a grocery list app on the phone so no paper.

This