What's on your shopping list?

[Rachel Perlow]

I'll summarize some items, like "salad stuff" (means lettuce, tomatoes, carrots, celery, cucumbers, bell peppers, etc.) or "deli" (ham, roast beef, salami, etc.), but if I'm writing a list for Jason, I'll be very very specific, especially if I want that exact item, i.e. "Shout Concentrated Gel with the scrubby top -- NOT the spray bottle" was on Sunday's list.

Jason is usually very good at going to the grocery store, and I think he prefers to go without me. He gets everything on the list (as long as I write it down. Last minute, "get this too" verbal items are quickly forgotten), but if I'm not there he gets to indulge in items I usually wouldn't put into the cart. We get to try new products that way!

GG - thanks for the grocery list blog link, very funny.

[Gifted Gourmet]

have used this with ease and success!

simply print out and check off ...

[eunny jang]

I decide what to make for dinner while I'm at the office and make a little list. Usually I get bored and draw little illustrations too: a trussed and roasted chicken in a thicket of rosemary saying a plaintive, "Cluck cluck?!"

Because I'm trying to get better about timing dinner (and NOT eating at 10pm), I write myself instructions, too:

1) get potatoes in oven;

2) make chimichurri;

3) prep shrimp and bacon;

4) put steak on grill;

5) prep onions and tomatoes;

6) put steak to rest; put shrimp and vegetables on grill.

So my list looks like a little anal, but it helps me a lot.

My only problem is, I have to guess at what I have in my pantry - do I have a lime at home? Did I use all the flour on that last pie? This is how last month I ended up with two 5lb bags of white flour and four tubes of toothpaste.

Edit: this is my list for tonight. Can you guess what I'm making?:

Edited August 17, 2004 by eunny jang (log)

[suzilightning]

I group my items by the aisle in which I find them: produce, dairy, meat, cleaning products, paper products. I prefer to use old envelopes as my scratch pads!

plus you can throw the coupons you need in the envelope....

i shop in usually two stores each week. when i go through the circulars i write down what i am buying in each store in order of where i will find it in the store. if there is a coupon involved a c goes next to the item and i list the price on sale.

i don't abbreviate things - one time my grandfather was sent to the store with a list my mom made out; there was gr. che. on it and he brought home green cheer instead of grated cheese.

i pull the "i need to replace this staple somewhere" off the list on my fridge and pop it in with the to buy list. the only place i don't make a list for is my farm store or green grocer. i cruise those guys.

it's tough being a virgo librarian

[tryska]

we've got a dry erase. both of us faithfully write what we need on the board and then promptly forget to look at it when we make our lists.

i usually combine all my errands on one list, as i do everything on saturdays typically.

it usually goes something liek this:

coffee

half n half

laundry detergent

toilet tissue

meat for xxx recipe

veggies for above

any other ingredients for xxx recipe

meat for the cats

drugs

hair

mani and pedi

peanuts

shampoo

kitty litter

[irodguy]

Wow what low tech answers What everybody needs is one of the new refrigerators with the build in touch screen that is networked. It keeps track of everything that is in your fridge.

Then all you do is download tonight's menu and it figures out what the variance is and orders it online. You simply go to your neighborhood store and pick up your prepacked items.

Of course if you combine this with your recipe / menu software all you will need to do is push a few buttons. No more messy hand written notes or white boards etc.

Now all I need is the between 6 and 8 k for the fridge. Plus extra network lines to the kitchen and oh yah enter all my recipes into the recipe software.

[tryska]

and an online grocer.

man i miss webvan. :(

Edited August 17, 2004 by tryska (log)

[petite tête de chou]

I write a list over the period of a couple days- it gives me a chance to notice that we might be out of something.

The usual culprits are always included- milk, juice, TP etc. I walk to and back from my grocery store, so its very important that I don't forget something vital. A very pissed of lady am I if I have to make two store trips in one day.

Over the weekend I did a 'big trip to the city' to stock up on all my dried goods (a variety of beans, pastas, rices etc), spices in bulk (cumin, chili, bay leaf, etc), olive oil (5 one quart bottles at 4.99 each), vinegars (cider, basalmic, red wine) and many other staples. The list for this trip was compiled over a period of three months and was very detailed. I don't go to the city very often (obviously) so the list had to be thorough. But I did grab a beautiful basil plant that wasn't on the list.

[KateW]

when i go through the circulars i write down what i am buying in each store in order of where i will find it in the store

I wish I knew my store that well. No matter how many times I've been there I always end up aimlessly wandering the aisles for something. "I know the chip aisle is here somewhere..."

[Carrot Top]

...but does anyone find (as I do) that if I get the list completed, meals planned out, shopping done correctly...that THAT is when the entire week's schedules will go haywire...requiring freezing lots of stuff, losing fresh veggies to age, and having to re-plan the entire next weeks menus based on all the stuff that wasn't used...

[Nick]

I keep a folded up piece of paper in one of my back pockets. Whenever I think of something I write it down. Right now it has -

Eggs

Bacon

Lotus Root

Pears

Breadsticks

Matches

Foil

Down at the bottom are -

Paper (for computer)

File Folders

Camera Batteries

[dumplin]

I have my staples and then plan a weekly menu that is sort of flexible depending on what we want day to day. I have a list for Trader Joes and then one for the grocery store.

I completely understand about things going bad because your plans changed during the week, and you weren't home to cook. I was in the hospital unexpectedly last month and had to come home and clean out the fridge. So much for planning ahead.

[purplewiz]

I keep a running list. If I use up the last of something or notice we're running low on something, it goes on the list. I also explicitly list things I absolutely don't want to forget, like "cold cuts" or "cheese". I usually see what's on sale before deciding exactly what to buy.

I'll also list "unusual" ingredients that I just wouldn't think of if I'm planning to make something new.

It's also for my husband - he used to have a habit of saying "oh, I need X", which I would then promptly forget, causing all kinds of issues. Now the rule is: Put It On The List. If It's Not On The List, I Don't Know About It.

But for things like fruits and vegetables, I never bother to list them (unless they fit a category above), because 1. I know we always need them and 2. I buy what looks good/is on sale. I like to be able to take advantage of seasonal buys - I just went grocery shopping today, and didn't plan to buy string beans, but they were .99/lb, and looked good, and we've been enjoying them grilled.

I remember the list because the notepad is kept directly next to where I keep my purse, and the folder of coupons is kept right next to that. So when it's time to go shopping, I grab my purse, tear off the list, and grab the coupon folder.

Yes, I use a lot of coupons. I just checked the receipt from this afternoon, and I saved $12.30. An average week for me is about $10 in coupons, which is $520 a year - pays for the newspapers and a number of other things :-).

Marcia.

[tejon]

Another coupon shopper here . I have a dry erase board on the refrigerator where anything low gets written, to be restocked during the next grocery run. I do a loose menu plan once a week - main dishes for each night, staples for lunches and breakfast, and the afore mentioned list. Sides are usually determined at the produce store, once I get a look at the week's offerings. Part of this weekly trip is cutting out coupons to use, so I'm very specific there. The rest of the list tends to be much more vague unless there's some reason to be more precise. I also use an online coupon planning service that prints out what's on sale and which coupons go with those sales. Sounds pretty boring, but I usually save at least 50% on groceries. I'd save a lot more if I bought more processed foods, but I try to pass most of them by. Still, there are a ton of coupons for non-food items so it all evens out.

The lists themselves take up a whole page. Each corner has a mini list - upper right corner gets the week's menu, upper left the list for our regular grocery store, lower right is the Trader Joe's list, lower left is the produce store.

Aren't you glad you asked?

[Carrot Top]

Aren't you glad you asked?

Can I hire you to handle my shopping please?

[Fritz Brenner]

click here for grocerylists.org

That website rocks!

[Barb]

My shopping list is on my PDA.

I'm a big fan of HandyShopper, a great freeware program for the Palm. I'm really screwed if I leave my shopping list in the grocery cart though

[Porthos]

This thread was before my time. As I was starting my mid-month list I started wondering what other eGulleters do for shopping lists. I having been using my word-processed lists for a few years now. Since I am in a major metropolitan area I have many stores close by. My DW and I normally do the Costco and then WinCo shopping after she gets off of work. The rest I take care of. For instance, Ralphs is located on the same street as Costco. I will stop there tomorrow on my way to buy gas. Then I will swing by Stater Bros. If I find something at Vons then I will go there before returning home. It will be less than 10 miles total.

 

Anyway, here is how my not-completed-yet list is organized. I've shown you mine, wanna show me yours?

 

 

[lindag]

My lists are much simpler, but then, I shop for one and not a whole family.

I only go to one store each time I shop, but I rotate and will likely shop at a different store next time.

I try to list by store organization, i.e., produce first, then beverage, then canned, etc.

I pay no attention to sale items unless it's for something I need that trip; I sure the brochures mostly for inspiration.

Worst case scenario is I finish my list then forget it when I leave for the store.  (it's happened more than once, for sure.) Trying to recreate the list in my mind while shopping is the pits.

 

[Porthos]

8 minutes ago, lindag said:

I try to list by store organization, i.e., produce first, then beverage, then canned, etc.

 

When my DW and I were first married we shopped at one store, Ralph's. I created a shopping list for staples that was organized by the store's layout. This list was kept on the fridge and when we got low or ran out of a staple we would just mark the checkbox. This worked very well - until - they completely re-merchandised the store. This was before the days of home computers and I didn't have the heart to type out a new list in fear of them changing things again.

 

For WinCo, I will re-order the items to match the store layout when I am ready to print the list.

 

One other thought. For short lists I will copy and paste into an email rather than printing it out.

[Anna N]

 

Up here (on Manitoulin) it is obviously a work in progress. Things are jotted down as they occur to either me or Kerry.

 

At home I tend to be a bit more organized. 

 

 

I have tried to adapt to the digital way but in the end I go back to a loose leaf notebook for most things. 

Edited July 13, 2017 by Anna N (log)

[Porthos]

I started typing when I was 12 years old, and made my living in front of a computer for many years. Since I can't read my own scrawl word-processing works much better for me.

 

I once had a manager tell me that I didn't need to word-process my monthly reports. After I gave him a hand-written report he told me I could word-process i the future.

Edited July 13, 2017 by Porthos (log)

[Smithy]

And now for a much less orderly approach:

 

 

The contents are somewhat atypical because this was the final shopping list for a 4-day sailboat trip and for the 4-footed family to be left at home, but the approach is very typical.  The back side of this paper will become the next shopping list...or household chore list. Scraps of paper reign (and sometimes rain) in my household!

[Shelby]

You guys are light years ahead of me in organization 

[kayb]

Cell phone app, "Out of Milk." Free. You can sign in, create an account, and then anyone in the household (or that you want to have the login info) can add to it from any device. It separates into produce, dairy, pantry, etc., but sometimes it doesn't recognize my names for stuff. You can also organize different lists for different stores; I typically shop at four different ones, occasionally a fifth, though not all at a regular interval. And even though I work at home and mostly set my own schedule, I still find myself doing my grocery shopping on Saturday morning, for some reason.