So this was my second week of using the Kroger Boost program (it was $39 for the entire year + I’ll get double gas points all year — which will totally pay for itself and then some!)
I had two issues this week:
1) The Kroger digital coupons wouldn’t work on their site for awhile so I had to wait to place my order until they started working. I really wanted to order on Friday (they offer 5x gas points on Fridays!) so I could get my order on Saturday… and I had to wait an hour on Friday night to get it to work. (Now, obviously, I didn’t just sit there and wait. But it was a bit of an inconvenience to keep checking until the digital coupons started showing up and working!)
2) They gave me too much peanut butter. Now, this might not seem like a problem since we eat lots of peanut butter. But, the peanut butter was on sale for $0.99 and the limit was five jars. I’m pretty positive I only ordered five jars. However, I got my grocery order and there were 7 jars + a jar of natural peanut butter. It’s not a big deal in the grand scheme of things, but since the limit was five jars at $0.99, I paid full price for two jars. And I’m scratching my head wondering if I did, in fact, accidentally add more peanut butter to my cart or if they made a mistake. I don’t want to ask for a refund for those two jars if the mistake was mine. I wish there was a way to verify what I put in the cart, but I can’t figure out if there is (anyone know?)
Those two issues aside, I am still a big fan of having groceries delivered to my door for less than $1/week and was very happy with everything else I got. I was also super pleased with the quality of produce they picked out, too.
If you missed last week’s post, I shared more about the Kroger Boost program right here.
How I Menu Plan
If you’re new here, I don’t do a rigid meal plan most weeks; I usually just make sure we have enough on hand for 8-10 different dinners and then I plan that day what we’re having based upon the time I have and what sounds good.
I know that this system doesn’t work for everyone, but it’s worked pretty well for this season. I also make sure to have back-up emergency dinner options in the freezer (chicken nuggets/strips + frozen pizza) so that if I just don’t feel like cooking at all or run out of time, we still have options that are much less expensive than takeout.
If you are the type who needs a structured meal plan and you feel stuck in a rut, check out my 10 Weeks of Money-Saving Menus for some of our very favorite inexpensive and easy recipes — all done for you, complete with grocery lists! (And you can also download my FREE 60 Meals to Make Instead of Getting Takeout list for some great last-minute dinner ideas.)
Last Chance to Get My Slash Your Grocery Bill eBook!
Through Thursday evening at midnight, we have my popular Slash Your Grocery Bill ebook on sale for just $5! It’s regularly $17, so this is a GREAT deal and it’s your last opportunity to get it as we are retiring it along with all of our older products after Thursday. So it’s your very last chance to get it — and to get it for the best price we’ve ever offered it for!
In the Slash Your Grocery Bill eBook, you’ll learn:
- How to strategically plan a menu in just minutes each week.
- Multiple menu-planning methods that have worked well for me.
- How to set up a realistic grocery budget.
- How to use digital couponing apps.
- How to determine a grocery budget that will actually work for your family.
- How to stock your pantry on a limited budget.
- DIY and homemade mix ideas, short-cuts, and time-saving tips.
- Inexpensive and yummy snack ideas.
- Our favorite budget-friendly pantry meal ideas.
This eBook will inspire you and motivate you with realistic ways to save on groceries!
Go order your copy here for just $5 through Thursday!
This Sourdough Discard Waffle recipe is coming soon! Stay tuned! We had it for dinner + breakfast last week!
Isn’t she beautiful?? I’m having so much fun on this sourdough journey and keep learning and improving so that every loaf is getting better!
What We Ate This Past Week
Sunday: Takeout for Kathrynne’s birthday (she wanted to get The Cheesecake Factory — yum!)
Monday: French Toast & Bacon and Raspberries (I shared a video of me making this here and how much every cost.)
Tuesday: Leftovers (Silas had a basketball game and the school fed them dinner and Kaitlynn got her own dinner since she was at work, so Jesse and I and the younger kids just ate up lots of odds and ends.)
Wednesday: Fend-For-Yourself night (I went out to dinner with my youth group girls/co-leaders.)
Thursday: Ham & Cheese Pockets and apples (Silas had a basketball game and the school again fed them dinner. This was a great on-the-road meal for Jesse and the younger kids.)
Friday: GreenChef Meal (they sent us a box unexpectedly since they wanted me to review it for a podcast sponsorship they bought later this year)
Saturday: Sourdough Waffles (recipe coming soon!) and Scrambled Eggs
What We Bought at Kroger
I was excited for a chicken and cheese sale, as we go through a lot of that around here!
I also was excited about the blueberries and canned items that were on sale! And of course the peanut butter for $0.99 (see note at the beginning for more on that).
And we bought water bottles, La Croix, tomatoes, and avocados to bring to Community Group for Taco Bowl night.
My total for all these groceries, including tax, was: $143
Jill says
I’ve been experimenting with sourdough too and love making those artisan loaves, but how do you get those beautiful designs? I’ve tried using my sharpest serrated knife but still can’t get the detail that you have. Your loaf is beautiful!🤩 Any tips?
Crystal Paine says
Have you tried a razor blade? That’s what I’ve been using and it makes such a difference!
Lisa says
I’m so glad delivery is working for you! While I’ve done order pickup many times and have used Instacart regularly (not so much for our Kroger affiliate), my one experience with the delivery service wasn’t great. As in, the exact milk I ordered was apparently out of stock and the system didn’t substitute another brand but canceled the item. And the milk was pretty much the whole point of the order! As I live in Wisconsin, I highly doubt the warehouse was completely out of every kind of milk. At least with order pickup or Instacart, there’s a fairly good system in place for substitutions.
Maura Light says
When I want to check quantities from my order at HEB, I go to my account, find the tab for orders, and look up the order for that date. It lists everything I ordered and how many of them. Not sure Kroger works the same way, but that’s how I check other online orders.
I’ve also gotten in the habit of double checking quantities before I hit the checkout button because sometimes they are wrong. I don’t know if I hit the button too many times or if it was a computer/website glitch.
Hope this helps!
Crystal Paine says
Thank you for these tips!! I’m definitely going to do a better job of double-checking quantities!
Elizabeth says
Do they send you a confirmation email? Those sometimes, depending on the store, will have a list of what you ordered.
Crystal Paine says
They do, but it only has a link to your page to sign in and see your receipt once the groceries have been dropped of.
Faith says
I did Kroger pickup this week and got an extra carton of strawberries and two large cartons of blueberries I didn’t order, but I wasn’t charged for them. I think the pickers get distracted or are trying to meet their time quota and extra items get scanned or thrown in the wrong order.
Crystal Paine says
That’s fantastic you got some extras for free!
Melissa says
I wonder if the Boost program is priced differently in different regions? Ours appears to be $59/annually. We live close to the store so generally we don’t mind going, but should circumstances change I would want to look into the delivery options further.
Crystal Paine says
Ours is $59, too, but they had a coupon for $20 off in January!