Meal Planning and Grocery Shopping for the Month

Well the end of the month is drawing near and it is time to get ready for next months meals and grocery shopping.  I only do one large grocery shopping trip (two different stores for the most part) for the month.  I do have to go back to pick up milk, bread, and other items I may have forgotten or ran out of.  My goal is not to go over $350 a month for the four of us.  Nine times out of ten it works.  Some months I go over due to entertaining friends and family or not finding things on sale or finding things on sale, or running out of items that I didn't plan on having to get.
   
How do I do this? 
1. I make a list of 20-25 meals we plan on eating during the month.
2. I put a star next to the items that have perishables that need to be made first.
3. I make a master grocery list of what we will need to compete those meals.
4. Add to the list any items we may need to go with these meals or things I have ran out of.
5.  Go through my coupons and see if there are any for what I am making this month.

Go shopping:

• I shop at Aldi's, Walmart, and HyVee 
• I did my own test of shopping at Walmart, HyVee, Target, and Walmart/Aldi.  The Walmart/Aldi mix came out about $50-60 cheaper.  About $600-700 savings a year...
• I do everything I can not to bring the kids with me.  (I spend more than I have with them)  There have been times when I have shopped at Walmart at 10:00 at night...  (Although, I do take my youngest when I have to go to Aldi's, however, there isn't much she really cares about there)
• I start at Aldi's.  They are much cheaper on dairy, chips, salads, veggie, fruit, frozen garlic bread, Parmesan cheese, canned veggies, brown rice, breakfast bars, whole grain pasta, and much more)  Once again, I have price compared all of these items...
• Then I go to Walmart and get everything else I need off the list. 
• I only go to HyVee for certain items I can't get at the other two, or depending on the produce at Aldi's and Walmart, I might have to go to HyVee.  I like the frozen chopped broccoli at HyVee  and the Chicken Grillers there.  I also hit up their 2-3 day sales, they are usually well worth it. 

Saving Money:

• I pretty much by only generic of everything, especially dairy, frozen veggies and fruit, and apple juice
• Buy only one impulse item for yourself
• The more times you go to the grocery store, the more money you spend! 

Healthy:

• I try to only buy whole grain products or 100% wheat.
• A lot of Aldi's products are whole grain or organic surprisingly
• Read the ingredients, the labels and titles will mislead you

I have much more to share,  but this is the bulk of it.  I will keep adding to the list of ideas I have for meal planning and savings as time goes on.  Hope this is helpful!