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How to Save on Groceries When You Work Full-Time

10-Day Decluttering Challenge – Entryway Refresh (Day 2)

How to Save on Groceries When You Work Full-Time

Throughout the year, I’m regularly answering questions on money and/or budgeting. If you have a question you’d love for me to answer in an upcoming post, please submit it here.

This week’s question is:

“I love the idea of shopping markdowns, but if you are shopping sale items, how do you plan? Our family has a very tight schedule. I work full-time as the family breadwinner and run a home-based business. My husband works part-time but lately that’s been nearly full-time. He’s a cashier so the hours are unpredictable. I want — no, need — to save more money, but planning is also central to our week. I have to plan our week around our changing schedules. I usually plan meals on Saturday and my husband shops on Sunday when he is off. So do you have to give up on planning in order to live on this tight of a budget?” — Dee

This is such a great and honest question, and one I know many busy families can relate to. First, let me say this: You don’t have to give up on planning to live on a tight budget. In fact, planning is what makes living on a tight budget possible.

Planning doesn’t have to be rigid or time-consuming. It just needs to work for your life, your family, and your goals.

Grocery Shopping Hacks to Spend Less and Save Time

Trying to save money on groceries when you’re juggling a full-time job or a hectic schedule? Good news — with a few smart strategies, you can spend less at the store without sacrificing your time or the meals you love!

1. Think Flexibly About Meal Planning

If you’re used to sitting down and planning a full week of meals based on recipes, try flipping the process. Instead of planning then shopping, consider shopping then planning. For example, if your husband shops on Sunday, base your next week’s meals on what he was able to find on sale or marked down.

This way, you’re not trying to force your budget to fit your plan. You’re making a plan that fits your budget.

2. Use What I Call the Rolling Meal Plan

Here’s how it works: Buy sale and markdown items this week to use next week. That gives you time to plan around what you already have, and it keeps you from scrambling to make meals based on last-minute sales or unpredictable availability.

Let’s say your husband finds a bunch of discounted ground beef and potatoes on Sunday. You can add chili, shepherd’s pie, or taco night to next week’s plan.

3. Reframe “Saving Money” As Part of Your Income

Since you’re already juggling a lot, one shift that might help is to think of money-saving efforts as a side hustle in themselves.

For example, say you spend 30 minutes planning meals from sale items or prepping some freezer meals with discounted ingredients. If that saves your family $40, that’s essentially like “earning” $80 an hour. That kind of return is better than many business tasks!

Maybe you could trade one home business task that doesn’t have a big ROI for 30 minutes of deal hunting, meal prep, or quick stops at the store. It might not be “billable” time, but it’s money in your pocket.

4. Make Quick Store Stops Work for You

Do you ever drive by a store during your weekday routine or maybe after drop-off or during errands? If so, consider using that time to quickly pop in and scout for markdowns.

You don’t have to do a full grocery haul. Just give yourself 10–15 minutes to scan the clearance produce, meat, and dairy sections, or stop at Aldi for some of their best deals. Sometimes I save $20–$30 just by stopping in and grabbing a few markdowns, and if it only takes 15 minutes, that’s a pretty great hourly wage!

5. Use Store Apps and Flyers Ahead of Time

If Sunday is your shopping day, take a few minutes on Saturday to browse store flyers or apps like Flipp. Look for sale items and digital coupons that you can plan around. Even five minutes can help you go into the store with a better plan, and your husband can shop with more direction, too.

6. Create a Rotation of “Go-To” Budget Meals

On weeks when planning falls through or time is short, having a list of 5–7 inexpensive, quick meals you always have ingredients for can be a lifesaver. Think:

Bean and cheese quesadillas
Pasta with sauce and frozen veggies
Baked potatoes topped with leftovers or canned chili
Scrambled eggs and toast
Fried rice with frozen veggies and eggs

Build a stash of ingredients for these meals when you find them on sale or markdown and keep them stocked.

7. Teamwork and Communication Make It Work

It sounds like you and your husband already have a great system with him shopping on Sunday while you plan meals Saturday. Try sitting down together (even for 10 minutes) to brainstorm ways to tweak the process so it works even better. Can he keep an eye out for markdowns? Can you both create a shared note on your phone to track deals or meal ideas?

Remember: You’re a team. It’s okay to experiment and adjust as life changes.

I know how overwhelming it can feel to juggle everything from work, business, and your family, to budgeting and saving. But you don’t have to do it all perfectly. Start small. Pick one strategy above and test it this week. Don’t be afraid to make changes as you go.

There’s no one “right” way to save money or meal plan. The right way is the one that works for your life and gives you peace in the process.

You’ve got this!

10-Day Decluttering Challenge – Entryway Refresh (Day 2)

It’s Day 2 of the FREE 10-Day Decluttering Challenge and we’re starting with our purses! When you join, you’ll get a quick, 15-minutes project to do each day to build momentum and create a calmer, more peaceful home without adding more stress to your plate.

Before I show you pictures of what I decluttering today, here are more details on the challenge…

How to Participate & Enter to WIN!

Go sign up for the 10-Day Decluttering Challenge to get your free printable plan.
Every week day of the challenge, I’ll be posting on Instagram, Facebook, and here on the blog as I work through the challenge myself.
I will invite you to do the daily challenges with me and to share your successes! Every day that you complete the challenge and submit it, you’ll be entered to win a $50 Amazon gift card we’re giving away randomly at the end.
You can participate every day or just some of the days — whatever works for you! But every day that you participate and fill out the simple form, you are entered to win!

Day 2 Challenge: Entryway Refresh

Focus Area: Front porch, mudroom, or the area just inside your door

Remove all shoes, bags, papers, and other random items.
Toss any trash and put misplaced items back where they belong.
Sweep or wipe down the area.
Create a simple “landing zone” — a basket for shoes, hooks for bags, or a tray for keys.
Add one welcoming touch — a candle, a plant, or a framed quote.

Snap a “before” pic, set a timer for 15 minutes, and take an “after” pic. Celebrate the difference

How I Keep My Home “10 Minutes to Company Ready”

One of the practices I’ve adopted over the years is to keep a handful of rooms in our home ready for guests at almost any time. For me, that usually includes the entryway, dining room, living room, main floor bathroom, and library.

My goal is that with just about 10 minutes of quick tidying, those spaces can be company ready. Since we typically have multiple people in our home each week, it makes such a difference to know these areas are presentable.

Now, don’t get me wrong, I can’t promise you the same for our closets or bedrooms! If you were to open those doors, I couldn’t guarantee what you’d find.

Today’s Decluttering Project: The Entryway

Our entryway usually stays fairly tidy, but it does sometimes become a landing zone for boxes and packages. Today’s project was tackling a stack of boxes that came in. This time it was David’s monthly shipment of medical supplies plus some wipes.

I honestly never realized how much space medical supplies could take up until David came into our lives. And truthfully, his needs are minimal compared to many. For him, it’s mainly feeding tube supplies, but even that adds up to quite a few boxes every month.

Keeping the entryway clear not only makes our home more welcoming but also gives me peace of mind knowing the first thing guests see isn’t a pile of cardboard.

Little by little, I’ve found that focusing on keeping a few key areas “guest ready” makes hospitality so much easier and less stressful.

What about you? Do you have certain areas of your home that you try to keep company ready?

Enter to Win a $50 Amazon Gift Card

Go sign up for the challenge here! And just for fun — and to motivate you to join us for the challenge — if you do today’s challenge and fill out the form linked here, you will be entered to win a $50 Amazon gift card I’m giving away at the end of the challenge!

Note: We may possibly share a few of the best entries over the course of the challenge, so by submitting the form, you are giving us permission to possibly post your entry. If you’d rather we don’t post it, please note that on your entry.

Click here to sign up for the challenge now — it’s completely FREE!