Fun Finds at Aldi

As many of you may know, Aldi is one of my favorite places to buy groceries. I had heard about Aldi for years, but until one opened in my town two years ago, I had not shopped there.  Now I shop there for 90% of my groceries, and rarely shop in other stores.  I have been able to cut my families food expenses almost in half without cutting coupons. (though I still love coupons, I just used them mostly for other things)  For the last two years I have been feeding three teenagers for on average only $70 a week.  Today while doing our shopping, my daughter and I really looked at all of the items. There were some really cool products you would not expect to find, and it was very inexpensive. We even bought several of the items we saw to try out in future posts.  I was not asked by Aldi to write this post, I am doing this on my own because of how much I love shopping there.  

The specialty salsa was not a surprise to us, I have been buying it for awhile, but it might be a surprise to others. One of my good friends used to buy something similar at Costco and pay a lot more. There are several flavors to choose from.  My favorite is definitely the Mango Peach salsa, and it costs only $1.89.  

We did not buy these, but we were tempted!  The Chocoate Coated Butter Cookies looked really good and at only $1.69 almost too good to pass up.  

Movie theater popcorn was also not a surprise, but a box with 6 bags for only $1.69 was.  At that price each bag is only .28 way less than the $5+ bag at a the real movie theater.  This popcorn would be great to have for a movie night at home. We picked up a box, because we might add in some goodies for a some fun new flavors in a future post. 

Always be sure to check the wire racks on the endcaps.  There you will find really good bargains such as these Jif Peanut Butter and Chocolate Whips for only .99.  That is way cheaper than a regular store. We may have bought two so they last for awhile. 

You never know what you are going to find in the household section. Right now they have a huge selection of organizing products for the kids going off to college.  I am not sure how much the purple polka dot bean bag was, but it was really cute.  The over the door shoe rack that hold several pairs of shoes was on sale for only $9.99. I could probably use one, as I have a problem with shoes. I love them, and have too many. 

I am always looking for easy snacks or dinners on the go.  I was very excited to find a three pack of mini pizza crusts for only .99. We bought a couple, and are going to try them out very soon.  

I believe that the Journey to India line is new, as this was the first time I had seen it in the store  If you like Indian food, you will want to check this line out. Everything was only $1.69-$1.99.  

I do not use coconut water, but I know there are some people out there who do. It was very reasonably priced at about $3.00 

These flavored mayos caught our eye.  I bought the Mayo Sriracha for my son who loves to make sandwiches for only $1.69.  My daughter thought the Mayo BBQ sauce looked interesting. We are going to buy it on our next visit, if it is still there. 

You might not be able to tell in this picture, but the striped bow tie pasta was really cute. We are going to try the Basil and Tomato for only $1.89

I was very excited about this find.  The Churro and Tres Leches baking mixes sound really good, and at only .89 it will be okay if they do not turn out. I am really hoping they do though.

If you like fancy restaurant salads, but not the price I found this bag of salad toppers for only $1.99.  In it was sweetened cranberries, glazed pecans, walnuts and almonds. I put them on a bag salad that was only .99 with a little blue cheese crumbles at dinner tonight.   It tasted like it was the much higher priced salad at one of my favorite restaurants.  

The S'Mores and Cinnamon Pecan pancake mixes were also in the bargain bin. At $2.49, I am not sure if they were marked down, but they sure did look good.  The box of S'Mores mix came home with us to be used in a future post. 

If you ever have a party, and want expensive looking cheeses without the expensive price, check out their cheese section.  There are also some really good cheese for about $3 a package.  

I am also not a green smoothie drinker, but Aldi does have some flavored specialty drinks that are working checking into. This smoothie was on sale this week for $1.99, which is probably away cheaper than if you bought the ingredients and made it yourself. 

Love making your own cookies?  We found these fun flavors for only $2.49 a package.  We would have bought some, but we found them toward the end of our trip when we had a pretty full cart. We will be keeping an eye on them for a future purchase though! 

One do have one  tip about buying food at Aldi.  Their stock changes frequently. If you find something you really like, stock up, because it may not be there for long.  Some products like their Salsa and their Guacamole Chips do come back in stock often.  The broccoli and cheese stuffed shells that my family LOVED,  we have not seen in months.  

Do you have a favorite product that you like to buy at Aldi?  

Read More »

Shopping Apps that Pay You to Shop

Disclosure:  This post contains referral links. If you have any questions be sure to check out my disclosure page at the top of the blog. 

People ask me all the time how I save money on groceries.  I share with them how I match sale ads with coupons, but I also share another secret.  I tell them how I use shopping apps that pay me to shop!  Yes, I really said, pay me to shop. 

Read More »

IKEA Dreaming

I have an IKEA about 45 minutes away, but I do not get there very often.  Today I was in the area and had the opportunity to go.  I probably should have realized that was not a good idea on a Saturday, with a preteen who kept asking to leave.  She survived, and even got a few things.   You will have to excuse the photos, they were taken on my phone, and it was so crowded I did not always get great picture taking  angles. 

I forgot what this is called, but I have been wanting one for a while.  I think it would be a great addition  to our kitchen/eating area.   I might have to dream a bit longer since $299 is not in the budget at the moment.

I would also love to have this in out family room.  Look at all that storage for DVDs and Video Games! Right now our family room holds several mix matched storage cabints. 

I want a combination desk and storage unit for the craft room.  This looks like a good possiblity someday... 

but to stay on budget, I might need to use small Expedit shelves.

I would also love to have  this in the basement or craft room. It is huge, but but would hold everything.

Finally something I was able to buy today.. The large Bygel bar is only $3.99, and fits perfectly in the craft room. We also got 6 purple buckets to hang from it. You will see this again if I ever have the chance to  finish the craft room.

Loving this floating book ledge.  At $9.99 it is in the budget, but I have no idea where we would put it .

These paint brushes for only $1.99/5 are perfect for Kara's Art Party this summer.  I may have to go back and get some more.. 

On the way out this billboard cracked me up.  It actually says on the sign that the giant 10 foot hotdog is not actual size.  For 50 cents, I would certainly hope not!

What IKEA items are you dreaming about? 

Read More »

Our First Trip to Aldi

This week a new store opened in our town.  I have known about Aldi's for many years, but had not been to one before.   Now that I have,  I know I will be going back often. 

There are many ways that Aldi is able to offer  such low prices. One is by having their customers "rent' their shopping carts. If you want to use a cart, you put in a quarter to unlock it.  Once you are finished shopping and put it back where it belongs,  the red box gives you  your quarter back.  

The main reason why I wanted to shop at Aldi's is their amazing produce prices.  They had a very nice selection of produce  

Here are some of the items where I was  very happily surprised by the price.. 

Bananas were  only .18 a pound.   2.5 pounds were only .44!  At other stores in my area, a pound of bananas are .54. 

Cucumbers were only .17 each. 

A 3 pound bag of Clementines was only $1.59.  A 3 lb bag at other stores in my area is usually $3.99-$4.99. 

A whole pineapple was only $1.49

I knew that Aldi stores only take cash or debit cards, but I didn't realize that did not have grocery bags! Not bagging your groceries is another why they save money. Luckily I had my cloth bags in the car, so bringing all of these groceries home was not a problem.  Though it would have made a funny story if I did not have bags in the car.  

The total for all of the items on my table (most of it produce) was only $34.76.  It would have been even cheaper if I had remembered to bring my Grand Opening coupon.  (I will use it next time as it is still good through the week) 

It will be interesting to see  how shopping at Aldi's will affect my monthly grocery budget.  I will keep you posted! 

  

Read More »