I had a convo today with a friend of mine about grocery shopping. I know that doesn't sound very exciting but hey, it has to be done. Her normal approach to this less-than-fun task is to go down every aisle of the grocery store and try to remember what her family needs and then get it when she sees it. I am way too much of a planner for this approach to work for me, plus it most likely costs more and so I shared with her some things that I do to prepare for a grocery store run. 
1 - First, I always take a list. I keep a magnetic shopping list on my fridge and when we run out of something it gets added to the list. I've actually gotten my husband in on this and he will add things to the list that he needs too.
2 - Plan your menus for the week. I look over our family calendar for the week and see how many nights we will be eating at home. I go ahead and plan what I will cook for those nights and add the ingredients to the list. I will usually browse through the sales circulars and see whats on sale and plan my meals around that, which saves more money. 
3 - This may sound a little OCD to some of you, but I keep a shopping list on my computer. I sat down one day and wrote out everything we usually get at the grocery store. I broke it down into groups (paper products, bathroom items, and so forth). It helps a lot to print this out and use it for my list. I look through it and mark through the things we don't need, leaving what we do and then my list is done. Since it is saved on my computer I can print it out anytime and get my list done fast. It also means I don't usually forget things that I should have gotten.  
4 - If possible, I try to go shopping alone. It is quicker and cheaper. If the kids or the husband go with me they always put extra "stuff" in the cart.

There are a few more things that can help your grocery shopping trip be less of a chore. I don't always do these but they can be helpful. Don't go shopping when you're hungry. Trust me, you will buy things that you shouldn't. If possible, go on a weekday before people start getting off of their jobs. For me, the less crowded the store, the quicker I can get out, and the less stressed I get, which results in clearer thinking and smarter purchases. Also, using coupons is a great idea if you can. I do this occasionally but not like I should. 

Feel free to add other tips and ideas to the comments. We can all help each other with this required task!