...the couponing bandwagon, that is. I've come to a realization that I'm very much a hot/cold person. I'm either really into something, or not into something whatsoever. That's how it was for me and couponing. A couple of years ago I was really into it. And I scored some really good deals. Remember the four days in a row that we were off of school for snow? I went out coupon shopping one of those days! That's how into it I was. And then, for whatever reason, I just stopped doing it. Stopped looking at coupon websites, stopped subscribing to the paper, and just started shopping for whatever we needed wherever I was at.
After looking at our grocery bill over the last several months I decided that I needed to go back to couponing. We were spending way too much money on groceries for two people. So I am now back on the coupon bandwagon! I went out today with my coupons in hand. I did OK...I'm definitely rusty, but I'll get the hang of it. The best decision we made is to pay for our groceries in cash. We set a specific amount on how much we'll spend on groceries every month, so we took that amount out of the bank and that way I can better track what we've spent, and how much we have left. If I go out with my debit card I'm tempted to not be nearly as careful!
I have found my new best friend when it comes to deal-shopping: Wal-Mart's ad-match guarantee! Rather than going to 4 different stores to get the best deal I only went to two. I took all of the ads that I had from various grocery stores (Brookshires and Sprouts were the main ones that I ad-matched from). My best deal was Dr. Pepper. Brookshires had 12-packs of Dr. Pepper products on sale 4/$10! And I just happened to have 2 $1/2 coupons, so I paid $8 for 4-12 packs of Diet Dr. Pepper and Dr. Pepper 10 (my new favorite drink). Considering when they're not on sale, a 12-pk is roughly $3.50-$4 I got a great deal! Thanks to the Sprouts ad I got lots of produce at a very-reduced price. Plus, now that I'm back into couponing I'm researching coupon sites again and I found us a coupon to use at Macaroni Grill tomorrow for lunch B1G1 free!! And I'll be going out to Macy's on Monday to buy some pants for work (I do actually need these; I'm not just buying because I've spotted a sale) and hopefully some jeans (again, I do actually need these) because they're having awesome sales, giving out $10 coupons for each pair of jeans you buy, and I have a 15% off coupon. See?? Coupons help you save in all aspects - not just groceries! I love keeping my same lifestyle, but not spending as much money doing so!
Way to go, Julie! Also, if you are going to do most of your shopping at WalMart, you can get a WalMart gift card with your set amount of money loaded on it and use that if you prefer. I've done that before and it keeps you from having to carry around so much cash in your purse. You can also use that card to save 3 cents a gallon on gas if you don't mind using WalMart gasoline. I'm really proud of what a money-saver you've become. You definitely didn't learn that from me. LOL
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