Tuesday, August 17, 2010

Couponing!

My friend, Mel, and husband have convinced me to blog about my couponing. I'll start by saying that I have been using coupons for a while, but little did I know that I wasn't using them to their full effectiveness! After seeing a few posts on Facebook and blogs about people that were saving more on shopping trips than they were spending and scenarios where people were getting $80 worth of groceries for $5. I had to figure out what I was missing. So, I started searching for blogs that gave me the info I needed. I'm sure I still have a lot to learn and figure out, but here goes.

This was my Meijer purchase today:
1st Transaction:

Buy 2 Similac Advance Powder Formulas - $19.99 each
Use 2 $5 Similac Checks
Get $5 Meijer Gift Card
OOP - $30.38

2nd Transaction:

Buy 5 Pasta Roni (5/$5)
Buy 4 Barilla Pasta ($0.89 each)
Buy 4 Pillsbury Sweet Rolls (4/$6)
Buy 2 Suave Deodorant (3/$5)

Use $1/5 Rice or Pasta Roni Meijer Mealbox coupon
Use $1/3 Rice or Pasta Roni manufacturer coupon
Use $1/4 Barilla Pasta Meijer Mealbox coupon
Use 2 - $1/2 Barilla Whole Wheat Pasta manufacturer coupons
Use 2 - $1/2 Pillsbury Sweet Rolls manufacturer coupons
Got $1 off Pillsbury Sweet Rolls due to buy 4, get $1 off
Use 2 - save $.50 Suave Deodorant (coupons double to $1)
Use $5 Meijer Gift Card from previous transaction

OOP - $3.20

Total Out of Pocket (OOP): $33.58

Total Savings: $25.00

If you haven't used coupons before, most stores accept 1 Manufacturer's Coupon and 1 Store Coupon per item. Also, at Meijer, you don't have to buy the full number of the item to get the sale price (ex: Suave deodorant - I only bought 2, but the sale price was listed on 3.).

From what I have read, you typically spend more money in the first three months building your stockpile, but after that you can cut your grocery bill by half or more. I am finding that sometimes I will get all excited about something that I think is a deal, but then realize (usually after I have bought it), that I can wait for a better deal! ugh! I guess it will take a little time to figure out what those "rock bottom" prices really are on items.

5 comments:

Kahla said...

That is awesome!

Mommy & Daddy said...

Amber, I have been following your blog over a year now. Never posted until now. Drake is just precious! I too did IVF, and now have almost 5 year old b/g twins. Wow! (that just hit me when I typed it):)

I too coupon and LOVE IT!!! What sites are you using? I have a couple of really good ones, if you would like to look at them let me know.


Amanda
twinmommy2005@hotmail.com

Beth said...

I love coupons!!! As a stay-at-home mom I figure all the money I am saving with coupons is my way of contributing financially (that and I don't feel as guilty on other splurge purchases then). Definitely share more!!

Anonymous said...

i have tried the whole coupon thing and i still use them when i can, but i have found that in general they are for things that we don't typically eat. it also seems like if there's a generic version of whatever it is, it's usually cheaper than the sale/coupon price. also, with certain products, once i find a brand of something that i like, i don't like to deviate, so that makes couponing a little more difficult for me as well. i'm glad it's working out for you though!!!

Flack Family said...

So glad you are watching those sales b/c those rolls were super yummy on Saturday! :) We would have been left with cereal had you not been such a smart shopper! :)