Ways to Save $$$$

I just saw on the news - go to nbcdfw.com and search Penny pinching they have a blog that tells you awesome deals and there are also listings of places for ideas!!

Good Luck!

I use www.menus4moms.com there are many links on there about being a frugal mom. It's hard to switch over to a new system, but it can be done!

good luck!

I agree with some of the other ladies--coupons are great, but only if you buy a lot of brand-name items. I can't tell you how many times I've been in the store with my coupons and realized that if I will buy the store brand, it'll be cheaper than buying the name brand even with the coupon! Be prepared to do a lot of math as you shop so you don't spend more just because you have a coupon for something.

The best way to save money on grocery shopping is to stay out of the store. :) We pack up leftovers from dinner for my husband to take to work for his lunch. I try to use up any other leftovers and odds and ends in my refrigerator. Some weeks I do better than others. If I have leftover ham or veggies or cheese (and I always have cheese in my refrigerator!), I make a quiche or an omelet for dinner. If I have rice and meat or chicken and a few fresh veggies, I make a stir-fry or make fried rice. Sometimes I make soup. Other than milk and lettuce, I can stay out of the store for ages if I stock up well when I go.

Good luck to you!

Here are some local websites written by moms in the DFW area that are about saving money:
http://www.couponing101.com/
http://kingdomfirstmom.com/
http://www.survivingthestores.com/
http://www.tipjunkie.com/

I write at www.BurbMom.net and am always looking for websites/blogs written by DFW moms, please let me know about others (and obviously I will check back here!)

Good luck!

try www.shortcuts.com

I am a perimeter shopper buying mostly fresh produce, meats, and dairy - so coupons are not a big thing for me. Walmart meets competitors prices. I take my weekly flyers from the newspaper, sit down with a cup of coffee and some 1 inch post-it notes. I write the store name, item, and price on the note and stick them next to my shopping list. I have about 8 stores that are in our area. Then when I go to Walmart, I pick an item, stick the post-it to the item and put it in the cart. It makes check out a breeze and the cashiers appreciate not fumbling with flyers and holding up the line. I save TONS of money this way. I try to time my Walmart trip to weekday mornings when the lines aren't long. The store managers keep the weekly competitor's flyers in case they need to check prices. If you don't get the flyers in the newspaper, you can go online to: www.weeklyadcirculars.com and find the stores in your area. Don't forget to check http://sprouts.com for their weekly specials. They honor two weeks worth of specials on Wednesdays and they always have some good loss leaders in meat and produce. It is not unusual for me to save 50% on a cart of meat,dairy and produce. While I am not wild about Walmart, I sure enjoy saving big money on our grocery budget!

www.mygrocerydeals.com

I absolutely hated TheGroceryGame.com. As a full-time working mom of 3 beautiful girls, it was just way too time consuming!

I save about $50 month with coupons clipped from the Sunday newspaper and internet coupons from this site: http://www.couponsurfer.com/.

Another suggestion is to shop at Walmart! Practically all of their regular prices are lower than other grocery stores. There are certain specialty items you may not be able to get there, but I'm able to get at least 95% of my grocery items there, and they do take coupons.

And if you can, try browsing through the grocery flyers that you get in the mail or that come in the Sunday paper. Walmart will honor a competitor's price if you just bring in the flyer. For instance, this past week Walgreen's was selling Kraft mac 'n cheese 3/$3.00. The regular Walmart price is about $1.20/box. So if you bought 3 at Walmart and showed them the Walgreen's flyer, they would give you the Walgreen's price. Again, this is a bit more work, and it will slow down your checkout, but it will save you money.

I also agree that buying store brands on many items is cheaper without giving up quality.

Finally, warehouse stores are a great way to go on those items that make sense to buy in bulk, such a paper towels, toilet paper, etc.

The CBS Morning Show did a piece on saving on groceries a few weeks ago: http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=4928319n&tag=c.... I would classify myself as the "savvy" shopper.

I would look at www.couponmom.com . Unlike the grocery game, it is free, so it would be a good place to start. They also provide links to coupons on that site for a lot of name brands.

A couple of tips: Don't use a coupon unless it is for something you would already use. Brand switching is ok, but if you don't already buy air fresheners, for example, you're not saving money if you start buying them because you have a coupon. Another biggie that I need to work on is don't let the food in your fridge go to waste. Think about how much you end up throwing out, be it limp veggies or that leftover meat you forgot because it got pushed back to the fridge. If you are diligent about using what you have, whether by reheating leftovers or incorporating them into a new meal, you will save much more.

I like www.moneysavingmom.com. There is a "getting started" section that is helpful.

Hi, I would recommend coming to afullcup.com we help people with the couponing world lol, and help each other by telling where the best deals are and what coupons to use. We have alot of newbies right now and I just read one of the newbies that just started two weeks ago already made a target trip, and subtotal was like 125. and she walked out paying 48. So please feel free to come join a fun community and ask all the questions you need and save your hard earned money.

I am not like an advertising, but after reading this, i certainly sounded like it. lol lol

T.,

I am giving a couponing class at my Church on June 26th at 6:30 if you are interested. (Cost $30 or $25 if you bring 5 items for our food pantry) I partner with Your Coupon Buddy and we give classes all over the metroplex area. If you are interested please email me at ____@____.com. I will show you how to put your binder together and give lots of tips on how to coupon (including Wal-greens & CVS), also check out the website, www.yourcouponbuddy.com. Hope this helps, L.

Hi-

Kudos to you! Sunday papers have lots of coupons but I find they're for brand name things which end up being more expensive with coupons compared to generic or store brands...lots of people wait to do their shopping after making out menus according to what's on sale in the sale papers. I'm not yet that good..but it's an idea.

Other things I do to save are- I dilute my dishwashing liquid way down 'cause it's so strong that it works even when very diluted. I run my dishwasher with just one loaded detergent cup instead of both and everything gets clean. I have lots of tips for saving money when it comes to pets without compromising good care for them if you need that...

I hit resale shops and am a big fan of hand-me-downs for children and make sure my friends and family know it! We're learning to recycle more and I'm teaching my children the resoursfulness of reusing things too.

Eat left overs or remake them into new foods to make your groceries last longer! Use filtered water to avoid the costs of buying water...

Drink a full glass of water and make your family do it too before meals and before snacks. Sometimes we're thirsty instead of hungry but we confuse the two-it never hurts us and best thing-is that we usually all eat less than what we would have otherwise. We are so excessive as a Country that this is actually a simple thing that seems to have big impact. Besides, it's summer and so hot! We need the water. :)

Wash your laundry on cold. Hang out clothes to dry. The sun kills germs and saves energy in drying the laundry-it also saves energy because you don't have to cool the house after the dryer heats up that space! On the other hand,if you're concerned about something needing to be sterilized-the dryer DOES sterilize the laundry because of it's high heat. So like underwear loads are worth running through the dryer. LOL

I save my soft soap pump bottles and then use the cheap gallonsize bubble baths diluted by half and half-because it is cheaper than soft hand soap, bubbles up nicely and there are several trendy scents to choose from. They're usually pretty colors too that complement any bathroom in the soap pumps. No one ever knows (unless they ask me of course) but I have gotten many people who complimented the good scent of the hand soap-and it's just cheap bubble bath that suds up easily! It lasts much longer than soft soaps do too because there's plenty to refill with! It's less messy than bar soap by the sink too.

Fruits and veggies that go "blinky" before all out bad are distained at my house by my kids and husband. You know-the bananas and apples that go mealy before bad- or have bruises that are mushy to eat...items like stale bread and chips-or left overs that aren't comming back to life but that are totally unappealing...this stuff gets reused. Fruit gets baked into something or along with the on the edge of rot veggies- it gets fed to pets or goes into a compost pile to feed veggies/flower beds/house plants later on. Other on the edge of bad foods go to other pets. Dogs and chickens both are well suited to finishing off most unwanted leftovers! So it gets used, isn't wasted and nurishes the animals as well-which also cuts back on commercial feed buying...many vets will tell you not to feed people food to pets but dang! It wasn't that long ago that commercial food DIDN'T exist. Dogs got scraps and that's it. (I am not saying it's bad to feed your pets well-just saying people food hasn't harmed ours and they're not overweight either and not starving. Plus-variety is like a treat to them!)

So... those are the tips I can think of off the top of my head. Something else to consider- I recommend you read the Tightwad Gazette for dozens of ways to save that others use to make things last longer, reuse everyday items and ways to make life easier in the long run. Tightwad Gazette can be bought in book form or checked out from the libraries.

Happy Saving!

I do something that is a lot easier.

www.angelfoodministries.com

It is about 50 - 60 cents on the dollar.

It's like a buyer co-op, a buyer club.

You pay for the food around the middle of the month, and you get the food on the last Saturday of the month.

It is in 36 states, and feeds over 550,000 families each month.

P.

I haven't had a chance to check all the way through this, but it came recommended from a good source.
http://www.choystercash.com/ecourse.html

It's already been said, but I have to tell you, The Grocery Game is the best. I've used it for 7 years..
Save ALL your coupons for at least 4 weeks. Then, sign on for the 4 week trial for $1 and test the list. Like all things, it takes work, and practice. In total, once you have the hang of it; cutting the coupons, reviewing the list, choosing my items, printing the list and matching my coupons up to it, takes about an hour. It will take you around 4-6 weeks to get the hang of it. It costs between the paper and the list about $4-5/wk. I save between 35-60% a week. (about $2,400/year). It is SO much easier than going to websites to find coupons, printing them, going from store to store, and reading the circular ads. All the work is done for you. Just trust the list. It will tell you the BEST time to use your coupon to maximize your savings. Coupon Savings + Lowest Sale Price = bigger savings. There are plenty of ways out there to save, but I have found this to me the most reasonable/moderate way for the time and money. I've taught this system to dozens of women. If you need help, give me a holler. Good luck!

I heard the website http://afrugalfriend.blogspot.com/ is really good. L.

We just started the coupon thing too. We use a website called The Grocery Game. http://www.thegrocerygame.com/ It's great! It gives a weekly list of what is on sale at different grocery stores and tells you exactly when to use what coupon so that you can get the max amount of savings. We have even seen other people in the grocery store using the same thing and comment on how we love it. Check it out!

Hi T.,

I go to Couponmom.com and Moneysavingmom.com almost daily - both are great! Choystercash.com, which someone else mentioned, is also good. The best tip I've learned is to combine your manufacturer's coupons (from the newspaper and the web) with store specials or in-store coupons for the greatest savings. Stock up when things are a really good deal! I may start doing the Grocery Game, but for now I've already cut my spending by about 1/2, just by shopping for only the best sales and clipping coupons. (To get the best deals, my husband and I usually split up for an afternoon, each taking a kid, and go to two stores - Kroger, Tom Thumb, Albertson's, and Target or Walmart (both are cheaper than the grocery stores unless you have coupons)). Kroger doubles your coupons up to a certain amount. I've only been couponing for a month or so, but I've been amazed at how much we're already saving.

If you have a bread outlet nearby (like Mrs. Baird's or Wonderbread), check it out - they have great deals. Last week I got 6 loaves of bread (various kinds), English muffins, bagels, and sub rolls for less than $11. I just put them in the freezer for later.

As far as store brands go, there are certain things we buy that are store brand, but I've found that certain things are definitely not the same as the national brands. Through trial and error we've learned which ones we like and which ones we don't.

You might try the Grocery Game. www.grocerygame.com
You can try out the first month for $1. If you plan on doing it, it will work. I've been doing it for a year or so and have saved a TON on my groceries.
I also just started E-Mealz. The website is www.mealtimemakeover.com and if you decide to try it you can use the code DAVE to get a discount on the first month. I heard of it on the Dave Ramsey show.
Good luck and let me know if you have any questions!
D.

Hi T.!
I look for ways to save $$$ in everything but honestly I don't have time for clipping coupons so what I do instead... Buy the store brands, they are actually the same as the national brands typically made in the same plants just labeled on an alternate day. (If your family/friends are turned off by generic labels save some national label packaging and when no one is looking put the generics inside no one will notice.) Also I hit the clearance section for meats and breads both of which can be frozen if close to use by date and remain good for weeks. But if you are really seeking a coupon system go to Upromise (I have it bookmarked so I forget the exact web address) but there you can get coupons that also help you save money for your children's college education.
Happy Saving & Shopping!
T.

My friend has an awesome blog about this kind of stuff.
http://wendypsaves.blogspot.com/
Check out the "popular posts" over to the right

I think coupons are great if you buy mostly brand name items, but I think you can save even more if you buy generic items. I buy mostly Kroger and Target generics, and save a bunch. For produce and meat, Sprouts has very good deals. You can also buy in bulk there for savings on things like rice and spices.

www.babycheapskate.com is a very thorough daily blog of deals on baby items and other stuff. There is a coupon trading group you can even get into once you get good at spotting and collecting deals.

Also, I like www.cellfire.com for coupons because you can load them directly onto your grocery store cards and not have to print and clip. When you buy the product and scan your card, the coupon automatically works. It's great.

There are other sites that work in a similar manner, too.

I am not a coupon clipper but I do save money by using my time wisely. TIME = $$$$

I buy bulk items from Costco....butter, cheese, tp, paper towels, condiments, and many other items can't be beat at a grocery or superstore.

I read the ads on Wednesday mornings..... My primary shopping places are Market Street, Tome Thumb and some Target (if I can't find it at Costco)

They run great weekly deals and when I see a deal, I stock up. For instance...My daughter's favorite cereal which is usually $4+ a box was on special at Market Street for $1.99. I bought 6 boxes because we will use it. Same goes for deals on water, sodas, etc.

I just carefuly go through the ads for those 2 stores and I will shop them. About once every 6-8 weeks, I have a Costco run.

My hubby is proud because I keep my freezer and pantry well stocked (about 6 month supply) in case the worst happens and we are unable to grocery shop for some reason other that the dairy and fruit products.

Best wishes!

I love www.moneysavingmom.com and www.thethriftmama.com

Two more suggestions:

Find where the clearance areas are in your store(s). There will often be a rack of baked goods somewhere in the store (one of the stores I go to has it near the milk, so there's no guarantees it will actually be near the bakery, and another has theirs tucked in a corner between bakery and deli that almost looks like an employee walkway). There are usually sections for butcher meat, packaged lunch meant, produce, and dry goods (often in different places throughout the store). Ask and employee if you can't find them. You can often get 40% or more off of these items.

Wal-Mart price matches all other local stores. I can check all of our ads (Sprouts, Market Street, Albertsons, Tom Thumb, Kroger, Walgreens, etc.) and make a list of everything on sale that I'd like to get. WalMart will match most things except "get one free" deals. They'll also match generic for generic, so if Tom Thumb has their brand for sale, and WalMart has a comparable house brand item, they'll match it. They accept coupons, too, but don't double or triple them.

Good luck!
www.familyeguide.com Your free guide to affordable family activities in Lewisville, Flower Mound, Highland Village and the surrounding communities.

Check out this website: http://mommyswishlist.blogspot.com/

She blogs about coupons and freebies 24/7 and you can sign up for her email list to get a regular update on deals.

catagorize your coupons. get those notebook pencil holder zipper bags and label them according to what coupons. then put them in date order inside the zipper bag. when making out your grocery list, clip the coupon to your grocery list. with the money saved from the coupons... put in a jar for future vacations, christmas presents...

One way I organize my coupons is in a binder. I purchased some trading card holders from WalMart (the 3-hole-punched ones) and insert my coupons there. I label sections based on my primary store's layout. This way I can quickly see what I have as I go down each aisle and can take advantage of any deals that may be too good to pass up. (For example, I had no intention of buying some seasonings, but the coupons I had combined with an in-store sale made them free! Couldn't pass that up.)

Another group I'd suggest in addition to the ones everyone has listed here is DFWCOUPONCUTIES (a Yahoo group if you're on Yahoo.) They're good about Good Deal Alerts and how to combine your coupons.

Happy savings!

If you aren't already a "seasoned" couponer I highly suggest the grocery game as mentioned below. It will help you learn the ins and outs and save you a ton of money in the process!

I think coupons are great. I just do the ones in the newspaper. I live in an area where they do not double or triple the values so that is sort of sad. But, I am careful about checking the price of the store brand compared to the name brand that I have a coupon for and I buy which ever is less. Walgreens and CVS also have coupons about every Sunday and great values can be found in their stores with their coupons. Get an organizer so you can put the coupons by the product to save time. Everytime you save a few dollars a week it adds up. I am not big on the computer coupons as a lot of times I can't get them to download and print.

GL

We just wrote a review of grocery coupon websites on our site RubbingNickels.com. The link is http://rubbingnickels.com/b-frugal-family/c-around-the-ho....

Good luck!!

I haven't done it yet but my sister in law participates in the grocery game and has great things to say about it. i plan to do that as well when i can remember to look itup. she showed me a few receipts from groceries and it showed her savings...each was over $50 in savings!

I am a coupon fanatic. When I do my weekly grocery shopping I always use coupons. Just last week I saved over 38.00 with the ones I used. It's like a game for me, to see how much money I can save and how cheap I can purchase something for. You have to be willing to invest the time to compare your coupons to the products and the prices. It does pay off in the end if you are willing to spend the time in the store. It usually takes me 2-3 hours but I enjoy it so it goes quickly for me. I also go alone so I am not distracted. I cut coupons out of the weekly paper and you can also go to coupons.com and print them out there. I know there are other websites but I just don't want to use a bunch of different ones. Sometimes I wind up with several of the same coupon and although I know I won't use them all before they expire I cut them out anyway and put them in my box. Then when I am at the store if the coupon extras that I have are getting close to expiring or I just have a lot of them I will place them with the product on the shelves so someone else can use them, too. My husband calls me the "coupon fairy." I have noticed now at my primary grocery store that others are doing it as well! Hope this helps and good luck coupon shopping!

just one comment

One mom said not to clip coupons that you will not use....

My daughter is a member of a group that you trade coupons for coupon for. So remember if you won't use it, someone at your church or office might so set up a coupon trade among friends or search for one on the web.

It has been mentioned by others, but I love thegrocerygame.com. It is a bit time consuming but you ccan save so much. The regular prices at Walmart are cheaper than the grocery stores, but the grocery store sale prices are WAY cheaper than walmart and the grocery stores do double and triple coupons. Best wishes for big savings!

I like www.thegrocerygame.com and have used it for 2 1/2 years. I save an average of 35% each week. And yes, you can print coupons there too.

Hi T. - when you find out will you let me know too? I have started using coupons again too. We average $50 a month in actual savings right now.

My only tip - as little as it is - only clip what you use. Saves all that sorting time. My friend has an index box that she uses to sort hers.

I would love to find a good web site for additional savings. Great moms think alike! :)

C.

A friend turned me on to couponmama the other day. Don't have to organize other than by date. I have also started shopping on line for my cleaners, etc and love the natural green thing which is good for my family and the environment. It has also turned out to be a cost savings too.

I like to shop organic by all means, because it’s much healthier and the food tastes better too. I stay away from things that have toxins, hormones and pesticides. If your looking to save money on your groceries and items that you use on a daily basis, I can let you know where I do my shopping. I pay wholesale prices and receive other excellent benefits too!! If you’d like more info, give me a call and I can tell you all about it. My name is M. and my phone number is ###-###-####.

www.thegrocerygame.com

You don't really get coupons from here, but it's a subscription to a list that tells you what is on sale & which coupon to use with that sale to get the best price. The majority of the coupons come from the Sunday newspaper. Definately do the trial....4 weeks for $1. It gives you an idea whether or not the list will work for you.