A few years ago they introduced a fee for plastic shopping bags in South Africa.

They also started selling reusable shopping bags at all the major retailers.

I must add that the quality of those shopping bags at Pick and Pay has deteriorated as we still use the two we originally bought but the newer ones always have to be replaced after a couple of months.

When you have to suddenly pay for plastic (and you’re a wannabe greenie like I am), you become a lot more diligent about remembering the bags.

We’re in a routine now and store the main stash on a hook at the side of the pantry cupboard.

Dion and I both keep about two bags in the boot (trunk) of our car for those impulsive, non-scheduled shopping trips.

But over to you – do you use plastic? (no judgement here) If you use reusable shopping bags, what are your tricks for remembering to take them with you?

The rule in our house is that when we start running low on something, anything really, it goes on the shopping list. We then buy it when I do the weekly grocery shop.

Kendra is on a special formula that only comes in these tiny cans. It’s also very difficult to find as only two stores near us stock it, so we have to be organised about the timing.

At her current rate of eating, we need 6 of these tins every month.

I learned my lesson once when I had to drive to about 4 different places to find her formula!

I’m very strict about not going to the shops except on my designated shopping day (the more I go, the more I spend – is that only me?) so here’s how I keep track of when we’re running low.

I mark the top of the can with numbers and then I stack the cans with the highest numbers in the front.

When I reach out and finally pull out the can marked 1, I know it needs to go on the shopping list.

Just in case someone else opens the can, I also write last can on the lid so there is absolutely NO confusion about when it needs to go on the list.

How often do you go grocery shopping and do you use a shopping list?

P.S. Happy Thanksgiving to all my US readers! Enjoy your day.

I LOVE grocery shopping.

I love browsing through the cleaning products aisle and looking through all the gorgeous fresh fruit and vegetables to see if anything inspires me to cook.

The only thing is it wasn’t working for me.

Why?

Because it took FOREVER to do and I’d still get home without everything I needed and have exceeded our grocery budget!

So I changed a few things:

1. I eat before I set out the door
If you go shopping on a hungry stomach, you end up buying all sorts of rubbish, like chips, chocolates, sweets, doughnuts, etc. Not only that, I also noticed that I’d throw in other bits and bobs that were not on my list but somehow I justified to myself that I had to have it!

Anyone relate?

2. I plan my menu for the following week before I go shopping
I know exactly what I need to have to cook the meals on my menu planner, so I do a quick scan of my pantry cupboards to check the essentials, and then add things to my shopping list.

I then check to see if we have enough cereals, milk and yoghurts for breakfasts, fruit for snacks and milk, cheese and beef slices for lunches.

3. I make it into a game
I like to leave an hour total for driving there and back, and doing the shop. This has forced me to shop at a different time to the masses which is an hour before the shops close on a Friday night.

I also divide the monthly budget into 4 weeks and deduct some money for incidentals (bread and milk) during the week. Now armed with my budget, I see if I can get it all done and still come in under my target amount.

That’s how I get it done and stay within my budget.

What works for you? Please share in the comments.