The media screams that the sky is falling, and the first credit cards bills from Christmas may be starting to hit (if that is you…CUT THEM UP NOW!)
Maybe your family of seven is without a job as of this coming week
(oh, that would be me…remember our GOD WATCH?)
Yes, it happens to the best of us, but I am more incentivized than ever to get back on the wagon.
Are you thinking it just might not be worth the hassle of putting together that coupon binder?
One great addition to my blog is that I am featuring wonderful deals and steals on my side bar, and here (click to get to that page). I have such fun getting new samples, and printing coupons right from my computer, so daily I will be trying to update things that I find on my internet searching.
Last week, most of the steals I got on cereal were the coupons I printed directly from my side bar. The cereal coupons have unfortunately reached their limit for the month, but they will reload on March 1st – I’ll remind you. People, I GOT 6 boxes of cereal for $.25 EACH!!!
I realized that it may be of some encouragement to see how I shop ever week, and only spend $500/month for our family. We may be able to sharpen each others shopping skills and I would love to learn from you in my comments. This may be goofy..would it help?
Here’s a quick over view of last week. My total for all of this was under $40.
And I so sad because I am searching for my receipt right now, but it’s gone.
The next post I will itemize, so you can see exactly what I spent.
One thing that has saved our family $thousands of dollars over the last decade is buying our milk in bulk when it comes close to the “sell by” date and then freezing it.
I have NEVER spent more than $1/gallon of milk in the last 10 years and $1.50 on ORGANIC, which I prefer. I will do a whole post on freezing milk since I am sure many of you are screaming, “what, you can freeze milk and it doesn’t taste nasty?”
This is where a relationship with diary/produce/meat managers come in handy.
Some stores do not mark down their milk as it comes near to the “sell by” date, but many are very willing if you ask.
*edited to add….the “sell by” date refers to the date stamped on the side. They can’t sell it after that date, so instead of throwing it out, many dairy managers will mark it down (if you live local..I’ll tell you where to go and where not to go).
Some won’t, it’s just a matter of asking at various stores. 🙂
Another area I will discuss is that of “stockpiling” food. Does that image conjure up some crazy old lady with 300 cats running wild in her living room, or maybe just a few good ‘old rednecks with shot guns (wait, that might be my kids :)?
What I mean in reference to stockpiling is just loading up those items that you can match up and get for a steal every once in awhile.
Right now I have 20 cans of soup in my cabinets (yes, crazy lady, but my kids love soup).
I got them for $.50 and most of them were the quality Healthy Select and Progresso brands which are typically $2.25 ish per can.
I will slowly use them, but I never want to pay full price again for those, so when the BuyOne, Get One free (BOGO) sale came along, and I had matching coupons for each item…..I bought.
Yes, it does mean that you have to have some storage space, but not as much as you might think. (Just a RubberMaid under an extra bed would do) More on that as well.
I did the same with these cheeses, and got each of them for under $1.
My sweet newlywed friend, Miss G, had a great realization into her new endeavor of couponing.
She noticed that all the coupons are not great deals….or practical….and that there is a huge learning curve.
Yep, there is. After all, couponing is nothing more than a marketing decision by the manufacturer to get you to buy their products.
They don’t care if you get it for free or dirt cheap. They just want you to buy.
It’s about finding out what is on sale in your store flyer and matching the coupons up with the sales. It’s also about slowly getting a nice bundle of coupons to choose from. That is why I started stockpiling. I have the ability to wait til they go on sale again.
It’s also about PATIENCE.
I will hold onto coupons for months, until the items finally go on sale, then the wait is worth its weight in gold.
Now for those of you who see this meat…no, I don’t use a coupon for it, but the meat manager marks things down extra cheap for me at the end of the day.
Most meat departments mark things down first thing in the morning, and then again at about 3:00 in the afternoon. Just ask….that is where you will get some steals.
This trip I bought 6 lbs of meat, 6 gallons of organic milk, grapes, syrup, tortillas, pound cake mixes, frozen items, more dairy items and some misc. all for under $40.
Now back to shopping the house with some spray painting. Wait for what comes next 🙂
Wow! You’re good! 🙂
Your coupon binder looks like my kids merrit badge binder… yikes girl! I’ve done the couponing thing and have feel the thrill of the kill… hubby I thinks tries not to roll his eyes when I come home and tell him what I should have spent and what I actually spent and how I didn’t narrowly brought home dog biscuits (we don’t have a dog) just because they were such a great deal. I now do the ad matching at Walmart with a spreadsheet (I’m a dork) and pick up all the deals in one place… but no triple coupons.
My sister…. Blissdom next year. We must meet!
You did so well!
Is this a regional thing with the marking down? There is no way there is any wiggle room on milk here…
🙁
I feel like I still need pointers in this area. I really, really try, but don’t feel like I’m doing it right.
I’m excited to see this string of advice coming back. I’ve gotten a little lax on my couponing too. But I definitely want to get back into the habit! Can’t wait to read about freezing milk…sounds interesting.
I can’t believe you got all that for the price you paid. I have got to learn the tricks!
I will be praying for your family as your hubby’s job comes to an end. I am from Houston (and my parents still live there till they manage to get retired) and I don’t think you could pay me enough money to move back into that rat race!
Wow, you are so good, Jen! I have never been very good at couponing; I’m just not that organized in keeping up with it. But you are doing so well for your family, I might just need to try again.
I love these posts. Keep 'em coming & how did you know I was sitting there going…
"you can freeze milk????"
this is a really good post with some great ideas….thanks!!
Jen — where do you freeze all your stuff? I only have one fridge, so my freezing capacity is limited.
Okay..I saw your title on my blogroll and I thought should I read this…I just went to a hoity toity store and spent $50 bucks on nothing…BUT did get beautiful flowers…your binder is AMAZING!
-sandy toe
Jen, this is so great. I'm all about binders, so using one for coupons is something I'm ready to do!
Question for you: Do you plan your meals for the week and THEN shop? OR do you shop for the best deals with best coupons & then make what you can with what you have?
You Rock! Looking so forward to the future posts….
OH, my goodness! I am truly impressed!!
My hubby is always telling me I need to clip coupons, but I have never had the desire to do so…to me it was too much trouble!!
But now that you commented how to “match” the coupons with the sale items at the local grocery store, that makes a lot of sense to me!! And I might just have to try it out….anything to help cut down on grocery expenses!!
Thank you!!
~Beth
Oh, I have gotten so bad about not using coupons as much lately! Still try to shop sales, but since I eat gluten-free lots of coupons don’t apply. It wasn’t worth the cost of the newspaper! Do you like coupon websites?? Any problems using these? This may be my way to go! 🙂 I love your tips!!
I have fallen off the couponing bandwagon, too. And this weekend, when I was ready and willing, there were NO coupons in my Sunday paper! ACK! Oh, well, I’ll just wait till next week and use the ones I already have.
I used to stockpile stuff in my linen closet and my husband just laughed at me with all the Lysol products I had in there. He thought I HAD gone crazy! : )
Hmmm….I did try couponing but I honestly wasn’t doing any good. Our stores don’t accept printed out coupons (like from the internet) nor do they double or triple coupons. I don’t get the Sunday paper…it just seems like I’m out of luck! I do try to stock up when stuff comes on sale (like butter- I stockpile that in my freezer).
Awesome deals!!! I love this post and am going to send it to some friends who are just getting into couponing. I try to explain how, but you did a much better job!
Great job. I fell off the coupon train around the holidays too. Time to buckled down again and start saving. Seeing all your stuff for so little is motivating.
Toni
http://thehappyhousewife.com
Girlfriend!!! You just rocked my socks off~ I love how you can save so much. I wish I had some awesome advise to share with you but Im just learning. If I do come across any tips I will head straight your way to offer up. Just the money you saveed on milk alone makes me want to sing~ I adore you and think your are such a blessing an a big inspiration~
You seriously amaze me. 🙂
Stopped in from SITS! What great kits!
Okay! What have you upgraded too? I still use my little folder thing…the one you told us to throw out….but I could not fit all my coupons into the baseball slots…..sorry!! Tell me what you use now??
Please tell us more about the coupon binder!! I am so into the coupon thing because of you and this blog, and I have saved TONS!!But the stacks and stacks of coupons I have is intimidating. I tried the binder but just couldn’t get it to work. The organization part is thing I just can’t get a handle on.
i am a big fan of couponing. i love that cvs(the biggest drug store in my area) seems to run specials on items that match up with the items the sunday paper has coupons for. from what i’ve heard other drug stores and even some grocery stores such as target do this. when i find a good deal this way, i stock up. in fact, i haven’t bought deoderant in almost a year since i got so many for $.50 this way.
online coupons are such a help these days to as you can search for items you are planning to buy anyway and may not have found in the paper especially weeks like this one where their were no coupons.
one thing i learned from my family was coupon swapping. my mom would get coupons from other family members in the mail or in person when we visited for items that they might need, but she could use. they started doing this with me when i was in college. for instance, i am the only one in my family who colors my hair; so they sent my all the hair dye coupons. now, i do this with friends. i always bring to work coupons for things like dog food that i have no need for, but others can.
and, who doesn’t love free samples of products. i have a post on my blog every day of free things i’ve found, so i can share them with others. and, many samples i find come with a handy coupon included.
i can see how your binder can work for you with such a big family, but i used the mini expando file that fits right in my purse since i’m only buying for 2.
petty organizer mentioned ad matching at walmart. they are not the only place that does that. several grocery stores in my area do that as well and may not even advertise that they do it. a few minutes with a customer service rep finding out can save some time and precious gas money going store to store.
i had no idea you could freeze milk. wow good tip especially since we use so little milk often just for a specific recipe at our house that even a half gallon is too much the few times a year we buy milk. thanks for that tip. we do freeze other items bought in bulk or that aren’t used a lot to save money such as cheese and even bread.
Jen, I am very impressed! I have never been one for couponing, mainly because I shop once a month instead of weekly & I assumed (maybe incorrectly) that it wouldn't be beneficial for me since the sale would probably be gone by the time I got to the store. (Good GRIEF, what a run-on!)
However, I may have to reconsider.
Would you consider doing a post about your upgraded coupon binder?
Forgot to say, that we are on a “God Watch” too. We are unemployed and have 2 houses. I’m interested to see how your situation works out while we are waiting, too!
Holy Cow! Our local news channel just ran a small story about a woman in Milwaukee that saved tons of money.
I think it’s time for me to do my research and jump on the band wagon! Hope you have a great week! Great post today!
Jen- Thanks for stopping by my blog! You made me feel special! I think my biggest problem is the organization/planning part of couponing. I didn’t grow up in a financially smart/stable home, so now that I’m a mom and trying to do things the RIGHT way I feel lost. I have thought about trying the “grocery game” list to make the most of stockpiling and sales. I was proud of myself today when I went to the store and used a coupon (which was doubled) and it was a BOGO item. Yay!
So, I just went to Walmart today (as I do once a week) and was kind of pleased that I spent a total of $175 for 7 day’s worth of meals (for a family of five) and household items. I have never seen any of our local grocery stores (mostly just Publix) mark down things like meat or milk when they are near their expiration date. BUT, I am so into saving money on coupons. I’m going to read your previous posts to learn more about this. Thanks so much for the tips.
Thanks for all of the info. I just recently got into the coupon thing and am amazed at how much I save.
I really need to get back to using more coupons again…I use to be so good at it!
Wonderful tips here…and wonderful post!
I will definitely want to read about how you go about freezing milk!
I really must remember to come back here a lot more often! (But I’ve just been behind in blogging in general lately.)
Oh, and I know it’s late notice, but if you can, come join in on the Home School Open House tomorrow! Doesn’t have to be elaborate…it can be short and sweet!
Blessings,
~Tammy (Lattes and Lollipops)
Great post! This is one area I keep working on and I’m working on a post about my coupon experience, in the near future. One thing I’m wondering – do you know anything about grocery stores that double your coupon? None of the stores in our area do that:(. I’m really trying to do the coupon when an item is on sale. Also, do you find yourself purchasing something because it is just a “good deal”?
Hey Jen! Please don’t sweat it if you can’t join in…
but yep, almost any topic related to learning or teaching would work and I’ll have my link up in just a bit! 🙂
You are an inspiration. I’ll admit, my newspaper sits in my driveway…sometimes the next week rolls around and the paper boy doesn’t throw the new paper (probably thinks he already did) when he sees the old one still sitting there. I know, the least I could do is throw it away. Oh and my fancy shmancy coupon binder I made…Jaxon’s turned it into his fancy shmancy Yugio card holder!
Looks like I’ve got some work to do. 🙂 Thanks for incouraging!
Ok, I started the coupon binder after seeing your a while ago, it works great. I have been checking my grocery stores on-line ads and the papers and it is working great. – thanks for the constant encouragement!
Heres the prob, I cannot, no matter how hard I try, get coupons to print via the coupon system on your sidebar! I added the coupon printer thing – and do I really have to go through all those adds of what I dont want – clicking “no” lots and lots of times…is there an easier way?
You are so darn organized! I love seeing this type of inspiration!
You GO GIRL!
Happy terrific Tuesday! Les
Loving your post…we’re cut from the same cloth, girlfriend! I can’t wait to hear more about freezing milk. I tried that once and my husband and son hated it, but my daughter didn’t seem to mind and I was able to use it for baking, so it worked out. But I haven’t tried it again.
Hey – I could use some of your mommy wisdom over on my blog on this post. Thanks, Jen!!!
Your organization looks great! I really need to get some of those baseball card holders!
I had become lazy with my coupons too…but I am now back on track. great tiips!
OK, I feel like a pro at couponing and our budget is about $225 a month. However…I need the milk freezing lesson. We don’t drink much but I use it for baking/cooking. Plus, I’ve been buying it at “whole” price! YIKEs, OH the HORROR! PLease save me $2.oo a week!!
wow, I have questions. I am a pretty good couponer but no where near as good as you. How did you get that cereal so cheap? Can you use a STORE coupon (Kroger) and then a manufacturer one on the same item? And am I understanding, BOGO you use 2 coupons and THEN the free coupon? Or is that the sale?