Proverbs 31 Homemaking - Grocery Shopping, Menu and Budgeting Notebook

Proverbs 31:10-31

A wife of noble character who can find?
She is worth far more than rubies.

Her husband has full confidence in her
and lacks nothing of value.

She brings him good, not harm,
all the days of her life.

She selects wool and flax
and works with eager hands.

She is like the merchant ships,
bringing her food from afar.

She gets up while it is still dark;
she provides food for her family
and portions for her servant girls.

She considers a field and buys it;
out of her earnings she plants a vineyard.

She sets about her work vigorously;
her arms are strong for her tasks.

She sees that her trading is profitable,
and her lamp does not go out at night.

In her hand she holds the distaff
and grasps the spindle with her fingers.

She opens her arms to the poor
and extends her hands to the needy.

When it snows, she has no fear for her household;
for all of them are clothed in scarlet.

She makes coverings for her bed;
she is clothed in fine linen and purple.

Her husband is respected at the city gate,
where he takes his seat among the elders of the land.

She makes linen garments and sells them,
and supplies the merchants with sashes.

She is clothed with strength and dignity;
she can laugh at the days to come.

She speaks with wisdom,
and faithful instruction is on her tongue.

She watches over the affairs of her household
and does not eat the bread of idleness.

Her children arise and call her blessed;
her husband also, and he praises her:

"Many women do noble things,
but you surpass them all."

Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting;
but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised.

Give her the reward she has earned,
and let her works bring her praise at the city gate.

Grocery Shopping, Menu and Budgeting Notebook

You have probably seen people talking (well, posting) about their household notebooks. Some call it a home management binder, or something similar. I have one and absolutely LOVE it, so I took the idea and adapted it for another area where I felt it would help.

We have recently began bulk shopping at Sam’s and Costco in an effort to become more efficient and also to save money. I have research new recipes and planned menus to use ingredients that we can buy in bulk. With all of this research and new way of shopping, I needed something to help me stay organized, thus the new notebook.

I keep a clip on the front to hold my shopping list (yes, I take it along with us, and yes, I have gotten a few comments about being very organized, hehe). In the front pocket I keep our current menu for the week, and any recipes I might need. I punched holes into a zip-lock bag to store my highlighters (yes, I color code, hehe), a pen, and a calculator. My first divider is titled “Grocery Price Lists”. In this section I have a spreadsheet where I write each item and it’s size, cost, and unit price, and what store we bought it from. As I write the price down, I highlight the item on the receipt so that I know it has been entered. I use color coding to know whether it is a recurring expense, a one time purchase, or an item that needs to be returned. I then put the receipt in a pocket under the last divider, titled “Receipts”. I have a pocket for each month.

My second divider is titled “Shopping Lists”, and that is where I keep our shopping lists once we are finished with them. I like to date them and keep them so that we can track whether we are staying on track or buying items that we did not include in our list. (we are sooooo bad about doing that, especially at Wal-mart, hehe).

The third divider is “Menus”, which is where I keep all of our menus.

The fourth divider is “Pantry Inventory” which has a spread sheet to inventory our pantry. I have not completed it yet, but it’s on my to-do list.

The next divider is “Freezer Inventory”. Same deal as the pantry one, and also on my to-do list.

Then I have a section for “Notes”, which is there in case I need to jot something down, or make a note to myself while shopping, or menu planning.

And then the last section is “Receipts”. Here I have a sheet protector for each month, and after logging a receipt I just slip it into the pocket. I like to staple my receipts into categories (Wal-mart, Bulk Shopping, Restaurants, Gas…) to make it easier for me to find a receipt. I have found this makes it so simple if we need to return an item, we know exactly where the reciept is.

Ok, so reading back through this, I have to acknowledge that I am a total dork and probably have obsessive compulsive tendencies (probably?), but hey, it works for us. I have to admit that I have my household management notebook, and a notebook for homeschooling in addition to this one, oh and I have one where I keep activities for the liturgical calendar too. Well, ok, I probably have an organization addiction, but my husband thinks it’s cute:)