I've said stated many times how
cheap tight frugal I am. I was raised in a coupon cutting home. We didn't really need to cut coupons, but my parent's understood the value of budgeting and not living beyond your means. I think every person can benefit from the bargain shopping and coupon cutting. As an adult, I am so thankful and appreciative that my parents instilled these values in me. I rarely buy anything without a coupon. I'm not cheap, I'm frugal! If I can save a dollar on my yogurt, why not? Whenever this topic comes up amongst others, I often hear the same responses.
"I don't have the patience."
"I don't have the time."
"You only save about $2.00, why bother?"
"I cut them, but I stick them in my purse and forget about them."
And, my favorite: "Are you one of those crazy coupon people? You should be on Extreme Couponing."
No, no, no, no:::BUZZ::: wrong.. that is
not this girl. :)
Patience
The Lord did not make me a patient woman, but I am learning to be. Even was I was more impatient, I still cut coupons. Everyone should be patient when it involves their wallet.
Time
I really don't spend a chunk of my day or week cutting coupons. I'm a busy lady! When the Sunday paper comes, I sit down and clip out all of the coupons that may apply to me at some point. I don't bother with denture creams, hair colors, etc. I won't bother if there's NO reason I will use it. Everything else is clipped. Most coupons are good for at least a month and sometimes up to 3 months. You never know what situation may arise, so I cut coupons that also may at some point be useful. That includes gluten-full products. I never know when I may bake something for another person, my co-workers, the kiddo, etc. I had to learn this lesson, because it irritated me when a situation did come up and I knew I failed to cut that coupon.
Savings
I use a handy dandy website called
The Grocery Game. There are others out there, but my mom used this one for years and introduced me to it. This is how it works: Depending on your area, you can choose various stores in your membership. With this, you'll be able to log in each week to see the new list for your stores. The list will give you the best deals for your store during that week. It lists the product, the original price, the sale price, where to get the coupons, the percentage you save, even your order subtotal and your lifetime savings through
The Grocery Game. You do have to pay for the service, but the benefits from it far outweigh (and out save) the membership cost! Membership costs differ depending on how many stores you choose to receive lists on. I pay about $15 every 3 months for my service, which includes 2 stores. I save anywhere from 40-55% of my grocery bill each week, so I definitely think it's worth it! I've had my own membership since July of 2012, and my lifetime savings with The Grocery Game thus far is
$1,248.53! WOW! When I looked that up, it actually shocked me!
Aside from cutting coupons from the weekly paper, many stores offer digital coupons that you can load to your loyalty card. Also, if there is a brand you love - check out their website! They will often have coupons available to print, or they will send you some when you register on their site. I have been known to email them to request coupons (yes, they've obliged!).
Organizing
After (or before) I've clipped coupons, I just go through The Grocery
Game list, and select everything I want for the week (time saver
also!). There are a few staples in my house that may not be offered for
the week, but I still get them anyway. No matter what if I am out, I
always get bananas, almond butter, peanut butter, almond milk, and bread
for the kiddo.
I have an expandable folder with tabs for different categories. I have categories set-up according to the aisles at my local Kroger. This is the store I shop at the most, so it works for me. Each week when I sort my clipped coupons, I also take out any expired coupons. The sorting is what takes the longest, but I've showed the kiddo how to take out the expired coupons (super mom). Since my list on the Grocery Game tells me exactly which coupons I need, I just go through and pull those out before I go to the store. I DON'T have the patience to sift through coupons in the aisles of Kroger.
I have recently embraced using Mint.com for keeping and eye on my
finances and budgeting. I LOVE this services, and it's FREE! It's been
around for years, and is provided by Quicken (which is not so free). I
found this
article last night, provided by Mint on their Facebook page. There are some awesome tips that I need to enforce. Here are the tips from the article. Visit
25 Ways to Lower Your Grocery Bill to see the full article.
25 Ways to Lower your Grocery Bill
1. Set a Budget, and Stick to It
2. Don't Shop the Same Store Every Week
3. Use Coupons
4. Buy Clearance Items
5. Look for Alternative Grocery Stores
6. Try Amazon
7. Participate in Meatless Monday
8. Stop Wasting Food
9. Make Economical Substitutions
10. Stretch the Meat
11. Stop Over-Eating
12. Look for Buy One, Get One Free Sales
13. Use the Cash Envelope System
14. Cut Your Shopping Trips to Once a Month
15. Sign Up for a Regular Produce Delivery
16. Chop Your Own Veggies
17. Don't Depend on Your Groceries for Your Self Image
18. Find Out Which Organic Items Really Matter
19. Investigate Buying Clubs
20. Make Your Own Bread
21. Try Costco — With Caution
22. Drink Water
23. Look at What the Rest of the World Eats
24. Layer Your Discounts
25. Skim the Best Deals Off the Top
I encourage (maybe even DARE) each of you to try the couponing, budgeting, or utilizing one of the steps above for at least a month. See the amazing steps you can take in your life. It's all about small changes and small steps!
If you'd like to try out The Grocery Game, visit use this
link. I do get referral credit, but even if I didn't I would still encourage everyone to use this service!
If you're interested in using Mint, just visit
Mint.com. No referrals here, but it's still awesome and eye-opening!
Giveaway
Remember the
Zevia post a while back? Well, Zevia has offered to give away a pack of drinks to a lucky reader! Just comment on this post about why you love Zevia or would love to try it, and I will select a random reader. The deadline to comment is Friday, March 15th at 11:59 PM. Get crackin' and commentin'!
