Earning My Keep

Today I did get my coupons cut and sorted, I was also able to make a list of the things that were on sale at CVS and Shaws that we use and were a good deal.  Shaws has a "card" that allows you to get things at the sale price, no card no sale price!  I only shop there for the sale items as most everything is marked up and in the past when I have done my weekly shopping there it costs me $10-20 more than at Hannaford or Walmart.  Here is what I use to organize my coupons, it is sturdy and large enough to hold what I have and much smaller than the plastic shoebox tote I use to bring!!  Normally, I put the coupons that I plan to use in the front section then when I place the item in my cart I slide the coupon under the paperclip, this save time and confusion at checkout :0)

So at Shaws ... I was happy to get cereal that we eat regularly for Buy One Get One Free (BOGO) and I had a coupon to boot so that made it a very nice price.  I like to compare prices by the unit price so I know if I am really getting a good deal, I used to keep a price book like Amy Dacyczyn author of The Tightwad Gazette Series.  I got out of that habit too, I'm not sure if I will get that detailed again or check as I go along???  I also got eggs on sale and will check on some egg recipes for the coming weeks and lastly bologna, I did well to only get the sale items. 

At CVS...I splurged and got a Thomas' English Muffins 12 pk for 1.99 on sale it's even a savings over the store brand I usually purchase.  I might go back and buy one more pack for the freezer, if I get over there again this week.  I also stocked up on hand dishwashing liquid, personal products BOGO w/coupon, and paper towels.  I missed out on the VO5 shampoo but that comes on sale regularly and I still have some for now. 

At Hannaford I bought a few items that I had coupons for(that would expire today) and were a great deal.  I was happy to see that I had a total of 9.25 in coupon savings for my small order today.  Unfortunately, that doesn't happen every time but it's a REstart on my couponing! 

Here are photos of my two "pantry" closets, one is a shelf in the linen closet in our bathroom and the other is a hall closet that I "repurposed" into a pantry a couple of years ago for food items and overflow kitchen stuff.  You can even see the corn that I got by the "pallet" lol :0) I know it is very full so I need to start planning the menu, but for me having a full pantry allows me to sale shop better, but I still need to use more of what I have!!  I'm also stocked for plenty of baking when the temps outside are cool.  Sorry this post is so long but I got carried away sharing.  Gail, Rose, and Granny J I guess I have repurposed before, still not as nice or creative as what you have done.  Have a great evening.

Meal Planning & Couponing

Thanks to Debbie J at Homemaking Dreams and Maryann at Mrs. Maryann's House for motivating me try again to get back in the groove with my grocery coupons, lists and menu planning.  Keep posting about your progress girls so I will stay motivated to continue until it becomes habit AGAIN!

I consider myself very fortunate to be a fulltime homemaker and an I feel that an important part of that job is save and make the best use of our family funds.  The money I save with couponing and proper planning is what I call my  "financial contribuition" to the family income.  It may sound like a silly thought, but when I was working full time I was spending more money on food and household supplies because I didn't have time to coupon and make extra stops at various stores for sale items.  Kudos to you Debbie for being able to juggle both. 

Here is what I plan on working on today, cleaning expired coupons, clipping the ones from Sunday's paper.  I also will be checking my flyers for deals at CVS, Rite Aid  and the two local grocery stores.  Menu planning will also be part of this adventure while checking the pantry to see what I have, etc.  We also have a surplus store called Marden's that purchases merchandise in large lots that I like to frequent regularly, I never know what they will have, for instance yesterday I found a 16 pack of the brand of soap we use for 7.99 (.50/bar) and felt that was a great deal, so we will be set hopefully, until I find some on sale again.  A while back I found flats of 12 can of Green Giant Nibblets Corn for a great price and purchased 2 and when I came home my son keep teasing saying "we will be eating alot of corn, mom bought a 2 pallets of it" lol.  In the past I have done a great job stocking my pantry with CVS Extra Bucks savings, coupons, etc and love it when I don't have to pay full price for shampoo, paper towels, toilet paper, etc but when I don't keep up with  it I feel like all that work is for nothing when I run out and have to pay full price for those items.  Here is my workstation all set to go!!

Also wanted to let you know that my son Nathan returned from Kansas City on Saturday and although he didn't win first place, he placed 6th overall, he had a great time.  They had alot of activities planned and I was jealous, Mike Holmes from Holmes on Homes was a guest speaker at the opening ceremonies!

Gotta get to work.