milestone monday #3--tax return and ALDI!

here it is again,
another monday to highlight some things
we are doing to get closer to our goal of being debt free.

1.  this week, we received our tax return--Holy Humungo!
(thank you children and school)
and were able to put the majority of it
right back into jon's MBA school loan.
it felt great to watch that total number
 go DOWN dramatically!  Woot!

(don't believe for a second, i didn't contemplate using it for a vacation or how many pairs of shoes i could buy,........ahh, a girl's gotta dream :))

2.  sunday was my, now, once-a-month trip to Aldi.
aldi is the grocery store that i can consistently get the best prices (without coupons) and always feel like i have a lot of food for a lot less than i expected to spend.   where i live, milk is $3.69, the local stores are always overpriced, and i seem to not be able to go in and leave with a receipt less than $70.00.  the produce is great tasting and remarkably cheaper than our local grocery stores.   how do they keep everything so cheap at aldi?  well, you pay for it in inconvenience and a little "leg work."  this is why, i do NOT take children with me on this particular grocery excursion.

my friend, kelly, and i are starting a monthly outing, including lunch/dinner and groceries--ALONE with no kids and nothing but some good ole' girl talk and money-saving adrenaline!

here are a few of the inconveniences differences

you will notice at Aldi:

you have to pay a quarter for your cart

(don't worry, you get it back when you return it safely before going home)

the products are stocked in a "warehouse" style, 

there is nothing fancy or beautiful about the store,

but, for the most part, 

the food is just as tasty as the beautiful displays you'll see elsewhere

this is a big one for some people,

aldi isn't a One Stop Shop.

they don't have things like cilantro, organic products, or tofu.

they sell their own brand of foods and so you can't use manufacturer's coupons either.

the checkout lines are super fast,

but you can't use check or credit cards.

(cash or debit only)

oh yeah, and the number one most inconvenient part is....

you bag your own groceries 

with your own bags 

or you can buy plastic ones for like $0.25 each

(think of it this way: 

you're helping the environment, right?)

you may be asking yourself, why do i shop there if there are so many inconveniences?  well, i believe that each aspect is meant to save me money and not to tick me off, so i appreciate it and don't begrudge it.
granted, i have to adjust accordingly to the differences, but i'm telling you what, this place SAVES ME MONEY!

and for that, i'm thankful. 

127 total items

this is only about half of what i got yesterday,

all of the cold/frozen stuff is already put away.

my cart was packed full of stuff and i brought home 10 big bags of product

the list of goods included: 3 gallons of milk @ $2.49, 3 bottles of wine, 8 cartons of stock,

cereal, bacon, toilet paper, tons of cans of diced tomatoes, rice, pastas, snacks,

vegetables, fruit, and much more!

Grand total:  $195.33

this will feed us for the whole month, based on my march monthly menu guide

(minus a couple gallons of milk and a fresh vegetable here and there).

so grab a friend,
set a date, and
try it for yourself.
with a little planning and a little leg work, you can save your family big money! 


if you want to check out the official aldi website,  click here.