As time goes by, though, I've become less ashamed and more proud of what I've done to help my family with my frugal ways.
For years, a was a self-employed, single mother. I tried to keep up with the Joneses by shopping at the nice, fancy, and even trendy supermarkets. Around here that means, HyVee, SuperTarget, or New Pioneer Coop. I got the satisfaction of a cushy shopping experience, but I could not afford to stock my pantry without spending a good chunk of a mortgage payment.
Then I started shopping at Aldi! Night & day difference.
My then boyfriend, now husband... I will admit it... He was a supermarket snob! The first time my secret Aldi lifestyle was introduced to my now husband was years ago when he was going away with me for a weekend, to a huge family reunion. He met my ENTIRE family that weekend, for the first time. :-) A big weekend with my family at a hotel, away from home, means that there will be food, beverages, lots of fun & festivity. As I said before, I was a self employed single mother, and at the time, my finances were strained to say the least. I was in charge of contributing a cooler full of snacks for our little family hotel party. I wanted good food, but could NOT afford to spend hundreds of dollars on brand name items. So, for a fraction of the price, I loaded up at Aldi. One thing in particular that I bought was the Aldi brand soda. When rummaging through the cooler, my boyfriend called out, "woah, who brought the ghetto pop?" I was mortified! See what I meant earlier? He was a supermarket snob! He was used to shopping at the big name stores and was a slave to brands. Little did he know that years later he would not only LIKE the quality and taste of Aldi products, but he would also look up to me for my savvy shopping skills and my money saving ideas. Here's to you, honey, my REFORMED supermarket snob! :-)
