Couponing 101 - Now what?

If you did your homework a few weeks ago you checked out The Grocery Game, Money Saving Mom, and Thrifty in the Cincy. Hopefully you've been clipping (or at least saving) the inserts from your Sunday paper. So now what? I had some doubts and questions when I started.

1. I don't have any of the coupons that I need.

This is where you have to be patient and diligent about clipping your coupons. If you notice the expiration dates on your coupons, you'll notice that they expire in 4-6 weeks. What this means is, it will take you a good 4-6 weeks before you have all of the coupons you need for a particular week. This part is frustrating in the beginning. Trust me, give it a good 6 weeks before you give up.

2. I didn't spend any less at the grocery.

Another frustration in the beginning. As you begin stockpiling (buying items when they are at their lowest price, before you need them) you will notice that your NEEDS list will still be pretty long. As your stockpile grows, your needs list will continue to shrink, as will your grocery bill. This can take a few months time. Once you feel that your have a pretty good stockpile, I would suggest starting a grocery budget. Look at what you are currently spending per week and what you think you could easily manage to start. We used to spend at least $125 a week in groceries. I cut back to $100, and then to $75. Could I cut it more? Sure, but $75 gives us plenty of wiggle room, room to buy all natural and organic products, and works for us. By cutting $50 a week in groceries I've freed up over $200 a month for other things. What would you do with $200 a month??

3. I don't see anything that I use.

Some weeks are better than others. There are definitely weeks that I don't see much on the list that we need/use. Those weeks I spend less than our weekly budget or stock up on some organic products/meat/etc. I also suggest being open to trying new things, and new brands. Would you try a new deoderant if it were free? Would you try a different brand of bread/milk/butter/vegetables if it saved you money? We've tried different cuts of meat that were on sale, but weren't cuts we would typically buy.

What I don't suggest is buying items just because they are a great deal. Even if I can get it for free, I don't let my kids eat sugary cereal. Daniel doesn't like boxed lunch meat. These are a couple of items that we NEVER buy, even if its free. It wouldn't be used and would go to waste.

couponing 101 - where to find the deals

Since numerous people have been asking about my mad couponing skills (hahaha), I thought I would dedicate a post (or two or three) to explaining what I do. Please note that I am by no means an expert, but have been able to drastically cut our grocery budget over the past year and a half. I honestly can't even remember how it started, but I believe it was while I was on unpaid leave after Bitty was born. (I hadn't built up enough sick days after Bugman was born and decided to take an extra 2 weeks off making my maternity leave 8 weeks instead of 6).

Many people are able to look through the Sunday advertisements with their coupons and figure out some great deals. I am not one of those people. I was not given the gift, the patience, nor the time to do it, SO I have found some great sources that find the deals for me!!!



The first place I started was The Grocery Game, which is an online subscription. The Grocery Game has a computerized database that matches the best sales with the best coupons each week. This guarantees that you are getting the best prices for the items you need. The database also tells you the best sales on non-coupon items each week (such as meats, milk, etc.). Many of the deals are not listed in the weekly flyer you find in your local paper. The subscription is $10 every 8 weeks for one store and an additional $5 for each additional store. I use both the Kroger and Meijer pages. I would highly recommend starting here because it is EASY PEASY! You simple click on the items you plan on purchasing and print the list to take with you to the store.

Later in my couponing journey I discovered Money Saving Mom. I think I ran across her website when Jenny from Mommin' It Up starting participating in her Super Savings Saturday. She posts a lot of great deals and freebies as well as where to find online coupons. (This is the one downfall of The Grocery Game, while it tells you what coupons to use from the newspaper, it does not take into account very many of the printables out there.)

*Note - If you are planning on using any online printable coupons I highly suggest creating a "Junk E-mail" account to use anytime you are asked for your e-mail. If not you will get a lot of junk in your regular e-mail*

Money Saving Mom also has a great explanation of how to start working CVS for freebies here. I highly suggest reading it to learn more about stacking coupons, rolling Extra Care Bucks (ECB), and getting PAID to shop!

I also frequent Thrifty in the Cincy. Jamie is a couponing mom in Cincinnati who figures out some of the best deals at both Kroger and Meijer. Combine her internet coupon deals with The Grocery Game and you will absolutely save some $$$.

Now, for your homework... check out these three sights, and clip your coupons from Sunday's paper. Remember to clip ANYTHING you would use if you could get it for free or close to free!!

and because a post isn't a post without a picture...