No matter how much money we make, we're called to be good stewards of what we have. -Tiffany Terczak

Those grocery prices, they are a’risin’!!!

It’s a little scary out there, between the prices going up constantly and stock being low or even gone on the things we love.

What’s a family on a budget to do?

Tiffany of Don’t Waste the Crumbs is a MASTER at saving money on groceries while not compromising her whole foods ideals, and even though we’ve been friends (who talk weekly on the phone!) for years, somehow I’ve never had her as an interview guest before. You’re in for a treat. 😉

We dive into pandemic grocery shopping, and you’ll learn:

  • What’s the point of a grocery budget?
  • How we keep our priorities in check by saying no to certain things
  • How you can use your Dave Ramsey ideas and learn even more from Tiffany about a SYSTEM that works for everyone, no matter what special eating styles you have or how many people are in your family
  • Why shopping once a week doesn’t work for everyone (and alternative for your phase of life)
  • My horrible Costco story!
  • A crazy question you can ask yourself to help you re-learn how to look at the food in your house
  • The importance of flexibility in the grocery store and in your meal planning, and a sweet challenge to learn the skill of being flexible with food
  • Why we don’t need to panic about inflation and rising grocery prices, because we can use one snowball to fight another

Tiffany’s husband doesn’t eat ground beef and is on a special gut healing diet, AND she has a picky eater with food sensitivities, so this won’t be a couponing lesson, don’t worry!

Right now you can register for the Grocery Savings Made Simple Challenge that Tiffany mentioned in the interview and close your curiosity loops on the 3 topics she told us about!

Can’t see the video? Watch Grocery Budget Tips here on YouTube!

No time for the video? Here are the notes!

Grocery Budget Tips with Tiffany

  • 0:10: In all 150+ episodes of the Healthy Parenting Connector, we’ve never done an episode about grocery budgeting! Many parents ask me to teach kids about budgeting as an add-on to my Kids Cook Real Food™ course, but here we are today, finally talking about it!
  • 1:20: My guest, Tiffany paid off $100,000 in debt by creating a grocery budget. 
  • 2:17: Let’s start with the basics: why do we even need a grocery budget?
  • 3:25: Tiffany shares more about how creating a grocery budget has impacted her family. 

Having a budget keeps our priorities in check. You have to say no to certain things to say yes to others. -Tiffany Terczak

  • 4:45: I’m big on savvy ways to save money, but I’m not an expert on creating a budget. Tiffany shares some specifics on types of budgets. She doesn’t recommend getting super-specific by separating out cash for meat, produce, etc separately. 

Strategies to Save Money on Groceries

  • 7:34: Costco is great, but it’s so easy to spend a fortune there! If you track how much you spend at certain stores it can help you see the cost correlation between spending more at different stores. 

Don’t compare your grocery budget to someone else’s. -Tiffany Terczak

  • 11:15: Tiffany teaches grocery budgeting in a very flexible way. She shares how her method is different from what you’ll find on Pinterest, couponing sites, or Dave Ramsey. 
  • 14:04: Let’s get practical. Is it better to do one big shop a week and stock up or several smaller shops and only buy what you need for specific recipes? Tiffany has used several different systems that have served her well in different seasons of life.

Forgetting what foods you bought is an organizational problem, not a shopping problem. -Tiffany Terczak

Grocery Budgeting With Food Allergies and Special Diets

  • 18:07: 1/3 of our KCRF members have food allergies or sensitivities. Many people see allergies, picky eaters, or even healthy eating in general as a roadblock to saving money on groceries. Focus on whole foods that you can eat instead of focusing on what you can’t eat or processed foods. 
  • 19:33: Educate yourself on food labels. They are marketing food to you with enticing packaging to make you spend more money. Gluten-free flour is the same whether it’s in a bulk bin or a fancy package. Focus on the food itself rather than packaging.
  • 20:47: Tiffany’s system will help you save money even if you have allergies, are on a special diet, eat paleo, or all organic, etc. You name it, Tiffany has had someone in that situation save money through her course. 

Flexible Meal Planning for Uncertain Times

  • 23:12: Grocery prices are out of control right now. It can feel scary, but don’t panic! Tiffany shares some encouragement if you’re concerned about inflation of food costs. 

We need to view our grocery shopping with an attitude of gratitude. -Tiffany Terczak

What if your food budget was zero? You would look at the food in your house in a completely different light. -Tiffany Terczak

  • 26:55: Tiffany shares a couple of practical strategies to avoid wasting food. 
  • 29:13: When we’re faced with food shortages and inflated prices, we need to be flexible with our meal plan and list. Plan meals that can be adjusted and have ingredients switched depending on what you find in the store. 
  • 32:00: Tiffany tells us what you can expect if you take her course, Grocery Budget Bootcamp. She runs free grocery budget challenges several times a year as well. 

Kids don’t need plastic knives. They need real skills.

Teach safe technique, focus, and confidence in the all-time fav lesson from our kids cooking class! (ages 2-12)






Or find out more about the free knife class here.

  • 35:55: One of the lessons Tiffany teaches is sales you should ignore. She gives us a teaser by sharing one of the sales to ignore. 
  • 38:37: We end with a message of hope for those of you who feel paralyzed knowing that grocery prices are probably going to keep going up while your income may not be.
  • 44:53: Take Tiffany’s challenge! Even if you don’t need to avoid going to the store, pick a week to not go grocery shopping and get creative with your pantry. 

Resources We Mention for Grocery Budget Tips

TiffanyTerczakTiffany Terczak is a married mom of two who paid off over $100,000 of debt by creating a grocery budget. Once an extreme couponer, she learned how to ditch processed foods and feed her family a whole foods diet without increasing the budget. Over 2 million people visit her blog https://dontwastethecrumbs.com every year, enjoying her family-friendly recipes, affordable meal plans, and grocery shopping tips and tricks. Considered a grocery budgeting expert, she teaches her tried-and-true grocery budgeting system in her course Grocery Budget Bootcamp and has helped thousands of families collectively save over $7M.

Save money on groceries