The On Being Budget-Minded Edition
Tell me: are you the coupon-clipping type? I try to be, but it does require a bit of foresight. And oy, all those little scraps of paper!
I’m much better at grabbing the grocery store circular on the way into the building, which, I know, means tearing out the coupons at the checkout. So annoying.
Still, I’m all for saving a buck (or two) when and where I can, because the more I save at the grocery store the more I can spend at Michaels! (Last night’s bill? You don’t want to know!)
Here, then, is a heads’-up for all locals. Reader Jess works for Rainbow and has alerted me to a promotion coming out tomorrow—Rainbow’s “Extreme Savings Coupon Book” valid at all Twin Cities Rainbow Foods stores. Savings of up to $29.00!
The coupon books are valid from April 25 through May 8, and can be found in the Sunday newspaper tomorrow.
Happy clipping! Do share your money-saving tips in the com-box, and oh, tell me your favorite grocery store. I’d love to hear the names of some non-local grocers! Also, do you find yourself loyal to one store in particular, or do you shop around according to the sales?
Ed. Note: I am not getting paid to promote Rainbow Foods. I wish I were, though.
I don't clip coupons (sigh). I do buy meat on sale and plan my future menus around it. I think planning my menu really helps save money because I buy less expensive whole foods and don't impulsively buy prepared food for meals — that saves bundles. I can always tell when I've picked up some"prepared" treats — like Pop Tarts and frozen dishes because my grocery bill is always considerably higher.
I am a super coupon clipper….I am kind of fanatical about it and get excited when I save a lot (I know I need to get out more!)…we have the same book coming for Pick n Save here…WOOHOO!
I don't clip manufacturer coupons. It is rarely worth my time or money.
I buy very few name brand products, mostly private label instead and rarely will a coupon take the name brand product below the private label price. Our local stores also utilize in-store coupons/sales that can NOT be combined with anything else. Most coupon clippers really make the killing when their local store has a sale AND they also have a coupon, well I can't do that. It is one or the other. Shopping elsewhere is not an option. We have two choices and one is a store I loathe for a multitude of reasons.
So I shop sale meat and produce and plan my meals around that and stick to private label foods and skip the coupons.
I'm so happy to see your boy reading Harry Potter. My 12 and 11 year old just got into them and have been in a reading frenzy. A 740 page book in 4 days? Even I can't do that. Why am I so glad? Because many of the Catholic homeschoolers around us have been giving me and the kids "that look". You know the one that reveals the truth of their thoughts a little too clearly. Anyway, love your blog. It's a good mix of laughs and cries.
I love coupons!
I do not clip coupons…our children do. We made a "deal" with our oldest children when they turned about eight. If they clipped and organized the coupons…we would place the $$$ saved at checkout into initially a cookie jar, which eventually became a savings account. The week we leave on summer vacation we divide the funds between the clippers and that becomes their spending money for our trip. The kids have become better and better about hunting coupons for items we use … and in the average year the fund ends up being about $500. Over the years it has paid for admission to "Cedar Point" amusement park, Martha's Vineyard sweatshirts, very cool necklaces, and this coming summer the kids are already planning for kyak rentals.
I don't clip coupons. I try every now and then, but I usually the items aren't anything I'd buy in the first place.
I do clip coupons, only for products I know we'd eat. I'm not brand loyal except to a few items. (DH converted me to Claussen pickles and now I'll never go back:)
I check in regularly at http://www.moneysavingmom.com and really like the new store search function on her site. We shop frequently at Publix (live in Florida). Great chain. I am looking for better price for the quality of meat, though. I've heard to check out Costco, but still researching and talking with folks. Do you do Costco? If so, is it worth it?
I like to put the savings toward fun stuff that I might not budget for: trips to Joanns, Michaels, books, etc.
Happy Savings!
Not a coupon clipper. My time is worth more than the money I would save. I simply don't buy enough processed food for coupon clipping to make sense. And don't you find that looking through the coupons tempts you to buy things you wouldn't have bought otherwise? Otherwise why would the manufacturers be sending out the coupons? You'll save more by making a one-time decision to always buy the private label, i.e. the store brand.
But I do like the idea of letting kids do it.
Another idea: never buy nonfood at the grocery store. We buy food once a week at the grocery store, but we buy things like shampoo and paper towels once every three or four months, and at a different store, much hated for the way it sells stuff at prices so low, even the people who work there can afford to shop there. You'll save time, too, doing it this way.
But maybe the best way to save money is to have a budget when you enter the store, and stick to it.
I clip them and then forget them on the way out to the commissary (military grocer). Sometimes I remember. Either way, I will grab coupons next to items I was planning on buying (sometimes if the expiration date is long, I'll grab a few extras for my next planned trip). For spot shopping, I've been known to grab a few things at Target and Safeway. Lately, I make more trips because we are eating more fresh foods . . . but for our health it's worth it. My sanity can take a backseat (I don't like grocery shopping.at.all.).
now blogging at http://prayer4thejourney.wordpress.com (used to blog at So, this is the road I'm traveling on).
we don't really have grocery coupons here in New Zealand anymore. Now the stores run instore card promotions, and if you have the card you save money on those promoted items. The store fliers arrive weekly in the letterbox. I've always rather wished we still had coupons for the excitement of it, but the computerised/card way is quicker.
I love coupons and couldn't imagine not using them! For the last two years I've kept a spreadsheet of how much money I saved by using coupons, and each year I've saved over $1000 using coupons. There are some stipulations though…if the generic label, or any other label is less than the couponed label (even with coupon) I go with the generic or competitor. I also take a calculator with me because, when using the coupon, the smaller sizes sometimes turn out to be the better deals. There is a store in our area, Meijer, that allows you to combine their store sales, along with their store coupons, AND a manufacturer's coupon all on the same item purchased. Those are my favorites! As you might have been able to guess, I only have three children, and rarely is more than one of them with me at the store so I have more time for this than others might. Thanks for blogging…I always look forward to reading!
Our grocery is called Schnucks. I used to think that was funny when I first moved here, but after twenty years, it sounds normal to me.
My favorite here in Virginia is Kroger. They double coupons up to 50 cents, and since there is a store discount card instead of store coupons, the combined sale items with double coupons added on can be a great deal! I enjoy the challenge. It is time-consuming, and I do it now because my children are older. My other favorite is BJ's, our discount warehouse store. BEST prices on meats, and though the quantities are large, we have 6 big eaters at this house and a freezer in the garage, so that works. I also shop at Farm Fresh and Food Lion. Recently some stores in our area converted to being called "Bottom Dollar." Have not been there. Cannot bring myself to shop for food at a place which has "bottom" in its name. That's our name for the derriere!
HAAA HAAA! This is great timing to share my news! I have been reading the Coupon Mom (.com) book and have been saving quite a bit weekly. Take this week- I saved $50! That's a whole lot! It does require me to plan ahead and clip away, but also I can print coupons (then clip!) and even do the electronic coupons which require no clipping at all! THose are great. I hope you get some good savings! I try to beat my amount saved every week, even though sometimes I don't. But it is a nice challenge to see what I can save for our family of 8. No easy task!
God bless,
Mary @ Cheerios
I clip coupons when I can. I agree coupon shopping with a sale on the smae item in the store is the best. I enjoyed a few good deals when having a coupon for $1 off of a sale item on Double Coupon Wednesday (Rainbow Foods–MN). I shop where the sale is most of the time. Not big on processed food either, too bad there aren't coupons for all the produce–hey!
Cheri
Expectantes: I don't do Costco (except when I go with a friend) but I do do Sam's. I like the discounts on their meat & bread.
I used to clip coupons, but now I rarely clip. The store out here doesn't 'do' coupons. If I shop in Fargo, I always go back to Cashwise. That store had the best deals and the freshest produce/selection at the best price.
Selcom do I buy brand names, unless they are at a significant sale price. I usually go for the store brand at Cashwise. Each UPC label is worth 5 cents for our homeschool group. So, that's worth it to me. I do shop their sale flyer & will try to get to town for the truckload days.
Sam's Club is a favorite stop; buying in bulk saves me time and money, especially when we live so far from town.
I shop mainly at the commissary (military grocer) and the savings are worth the 40 minute drive every 2 weeks. They do not have generic brands, but I don't really like generic brands (a rejection of my childhood and my mother's frugal ways, I suppose). I subscribe to the Sunday paper strictly for the coupons. I do not buy things I would not normally buy. In my current stack are coupons for garlic bread, yogurt, kielbasa, cupcake holders, pasta sauce, peanut butter, tuna, salad dressing, sugar, and chicken nuggets (a mom's gotta have a break sometime, right?).
Yesterday's shopping ran me $239 and I had $22.50 in coupons for about 20 minutes of work. If I earned $22.50 for 20 minutes, that is $67.50 per hour. That 20 minutes included clipping, sorting and putting all the coupons in order so I could find them easily in the store. My grocer list is in the store order and I have a column where I check off if I have a coupon or not. I am not naturally this organized, but I have developed the skill after calculating the benefits. I know I could do more to save money, but I'm not there yet. Baby steps.
I also shop at Sam's (you have to be careful because not everything is a good deal) and the Publix is right across the street with good BOGO deals. I get my milk there because the hormone free stuff is under $3 a gallon and everything cheaper (like at Walmart) is NOT hormone free.
And I just signed up to buy organic veggies and fruits from a local farm. We'll see how that goes. And I have a very small garden of my own this year.
Meats: I'm seriously considering buying a half of a cow from the mom n pop butcher shop.
I do clip coupons… the first time I was able to get stuff for free, I was hooked. Sure, it does take time, but when I'm no longer paying for toothpaste, deodorant, shampoo, and various other things, it's worth it (to me, at least).
According to my spreadsheet that I've used to keep track of all of my shopping, I've managed to save 45-50% off my grocery bill!
(The key is getting several newspapers and having 4+ of the same coupon… so when there's an amazing sale, you can buy several and stock up, or donate to the food pantry.)
I love Costco!! but our freezer broke and it just isn't convenient to buy in bulk when I can't store it efficiently. The closest Costco is also about 45 minutes away and totally out of my way so I just don't get there at all. Rumor has it they are building one out my way and if they do I am sure I will be there a lot more.
Oh, I try to clip. Have you heard of the website pocketyourdollars.com. Carrie is a local mn gal and has sale lists posted every week. I try, but I also think a lot of coupons are for things I do want to eat – even if they are cheap, cheap, cheap.
My family recently bought a CSA share for the same. (Box of local produced delivered to us..well we have to pick it a little ways away) We are hoping this will cut the grocery bill and get everyone to eat a few more veggies.
Whoops…my post should say "for things I do NOT want to eat…"
here in virginia we have giant, martin's, safeway, harris teeter, shopper's, and food lion- some of which we transformed into the "up-scale" Bloom and others were transformed into Bottom Dollar… have not been brave enough to visit that one yet!
Michelle G
I don't do coupons, but I do have those loyalty cards for the 3 grocery stores I shop in.
I go to one because they prepackage their deli meats and I don't have to wait on line at the deli counter.
I go to another because it's next door to the girl's ballet studio and has good deals on frozen food.
I go to the third one because it has fresh flowers (2 doz roses for 9.99) and Keurig coffee.
That said, family of 6, food budget is approx $200 per week. It hasn't gone up or down in a few years. I'm sure there are better ways to shop but I just don't have the time to do it all at once and those big stores really freak me out and confuse me. So I plan my menus each week and just buy what we need when we need it.