Couponing

I have always loved a good deal and have been known to scour the clearance racks everywhere I go.  I guess I have been burned one too many time after buying something at full price and then seeing it discounted a few weeks later, so I have learned to be very strategic with my purchases.

I have gone to get a Sunday newspaper for the past year just to see what great deals I can get that week. Since the beginning of 2011 I have really gotten into couponing for my groceries.  At first it was a way for me to save money on groceries, but it has become more like a game for me.  Now every time I go into the grocery store I am looking back and forth between my coupons, my list, any deals that were not listed in the weekly ad.  Eric thought it was silly until he realized how much money I am saving us every month.  In January, I saved an average of 25% on all of our groceries, in February it was up to 37% and in March my savings was up to 44% on our groceries.  Keep in mind that I do not separate my couponing and non-couponing purchases, which is what a lot of extreme couponers do, so they can see their savings clearly.  Frankly I do not want to make multiple trips to the grocery store per week if I can help it--the only reason I want to go back is if there is a really great deal I missed!

Most of my coupons come in either the Sunday Newspaper or web sites like couponmom.com.  Since I work full time and don't have time to sit and match the ads up, I rely heavily on some awesome blogs to let me know what's on sale and which coupons to make sure I have.  My favorites are I Heart Publix and Hunt4Freebies.  They update throughout the day with great deals and freebies and most of their posts tell you what is on sale along with a link to find coupons for the items so you don't have to try to find them.  Although I have been known to google an item with the word coupon if I have a specific item in mind (hello $1 off Blue Belle Ice Cream when it was on sale for $3.99/gal @ Winn-Dixie one week and $4.50 @ Publix the next--needless to say Eric was a happy camper those weeks).

I am not quite on the level of the people on Extreme Couponing on TLC.  Although I am psyched to watch the series that starts this week to see how these people do it!