Today my roommate and I went grocery shopping. I’ve been grocery shopping in a pretty similar way for the past three years now. On my mission we always went on Mondays, and now my roommate and I normally go every week and a half or so. We usually go to Walmart and I usually get very similar foods.

I try to get everything I need to complete the daily dozen: Fruits and vegetables, whole grains, cruciferous, almond milk etc. I already have beans and steal cut oats in bulk so that’s helpful.

About 8 months into my mission I discovered a helpful trick that helps me save money and buy healthier foods: a shopping snack.

The problem is that if I’m shopping hungry it’s easy for me to get impulsive and buy things that I really don’t need and usually aren’t good for me. ie. processed foods, easy snacks, etc. So to combat this, I buy a shopping snack. What is my shopping snack? It’s a .75 cent mini pie. Is it good for me? No. Well, it’s good for me in that it helps me to not buy other treats, and it satisfies potential hunger so I don’t buy unnecessary foods. Recently I’ve even started eating it right when I get it off the shelf and then I just scan the empty box and throw it away. Truly, it’s a shopping snack.