Trader Joe's isn't terribly expensive, but they don't have as good of a selection of many things, so you can't really do 100% of your shopping there.

I don't do Whole Foods because it's too expensive. I do TJ's instead of Giant/Safeway about half of my trips because it is (a) 2 blocks from my saturday morning yoga class, on the way back to my car, and (b) better staffed than my neighborhood safeway, so the trip takes less time. My neighborhood safeway is woefully understaffed, so you can wait a long time at checkout.

Anonymous wrote:We have spending issues and for a family of 3 (2yr old kid) we spend over $1,200 at Trader Joes and Whole Foods. She refuses to shop at regular grocery stores. I bet it would cut our bill by $250-300 if she just went to Giant.

I bet it wouldn't. It's a mindset youhave to change here, not just the location.

Can you start the conversation with her less confrontationally than "you need to stop shopping at WF"? like "how can we spend less on food?" and then go through a few receipts and let suggestions like seasonal food, etc. come out of a discussion when you point out that you're spending $50 a month on organic berries in winter?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Did you ask her why she does not want to shop at cheaper grocery stores?

Yes. She's of the impression that everything sold there is inferior. That the produce will end up giving our kid a 3rd arm. Even though you can buy organic from there. Hell you can buy organic at WalMart. But I'll settle for Giant since it's close enough. We're also spending another $400 a month of dining out at Crisp & Juicy, 2 Amys, MeiWah etc. This is bullshit. And when I brought it up she started yelling about not having time to cook etc.

If she doesn't have time to cook, then I do not understand why she's going to a grocery store at all.

Does she work outside the home? If not, she needs to learn to cook. If so, y'all need to figure out a better division of labor.

Yes, produce is where it's made or broken. I used to waste tons of money on fresh produce that we threw out. Now I only get one fruit that will spoil quickly, like peaches OR raspberries, one fruit that will ripen, like bananas OR pineapple, and one that will be good for the whole week, like apples OR pears. Same thing with vegetables. Plan all dinners, and no trips to the store midweek. We splurge on organic meat and chicken, but only cook meat twice a week and have leftovers or vegetarian meals for other meals.

Do you ever cook? My husband does not cook or pack lunches and so when he goes to the store he thinks he has saved us a whole pile o' money, when really, he just didn't buy about 2/3 of what I needed, so I end up having to go back later in the week. It is ridiculously annoying.

Anonymous wrote:Did you ask her why she does not want to shop at cheaper grocery stores?

Yes. She's of the impression that everything sold there is inferior. That the produce will end up giving our kid a 3rd arm. Even though you can buy organic from there. Hell you can buy organic at WalMart. But I'll settle for Giant since it's close enough. We're also spending another $400 a month of dining out at Crisp & Juicy, 2 Amys, MeiWah etc. This is bullshit. And when I brought it up she started yelling about not having time to cook etc.

Anonymous wrote:So, she spends $300 a week? That's not crazy, but I am sure if you just did TJ, and not WF, you could get it down to $200 a week easily. Giant is about the same for what we buy, and we do $200 a week at TJs -- we do very little meat, and a lot of produce.

It might not be crazy, but he said they are having spending issues so it is important to cut down where you can.

I don't spend anywhere near what your wife does, but I spend a lot I guess. My husband was telling me to stop buying strawberries as a blanket statement, which didn't make sense. What I started doing we buying more seasonal stuff. I used to "collect" produce - raspberries here, blueberries there - and it was expensive and not much in terms of quantity. Now I buy 2 pineapples and a bunch of oranges (seasonal is key) in winter and apples and pears in fall and go all out in the summer. We don't eat a lot of meat, and we buy crackers, pasta, etc... at Target. I spend about $600/month and we have all we want and need. Some organic, hardly ever meat though.

So, she spends $300 a week? That's not crazy, but I am sure if you just did TJ, and not WF, you could get it down to $200 a week easily. Giant is about the same for what we buy, and we do $200 a week at TJs -- we do very little meat, and a lot of produce.

Did you ask her why she does not want to shop at cheaper grocery stores?

Trader Joe's is a bargain -- don't fight that one. Dump the Whole Foods from you life. Be strong. Does she also carry a Louis Vuitton purse? If so, you are not going to be able to change her. She is too far gone...

It would probably cut your bill in half.

one word: Produce

Take over the shopping duty. And I don't mean that in a "guys are terrible they do nothing to help" but in a "you're probably not going to convince her to cut her spending, so you might as well take over"

We have spending issues and for a family of 3 (2yr old kid) we spend over $1,200 at Trader Joes and Whole Foods. She refuses to shop at regular grocery stores. I bet it would cut our bill by $250-300 if she just went to Giant.