Getting Groceries...Cheap!

As a stay-at-home mom, I am always looking for ways to save money on groceries. I am proud to say that in the last couple months I have become a coupon clipping, price shopping master. Most weeks I spend about an hour looking through ads and clipping coupons. This week I spent $75 on groceries (which actually included a few high price items including 2 packs of diapers and 2 bags of dog food) and saved $80! My husband pointed out that if I spent an hour looking for the specials, I had made $80 for an hour of work. Not a bad salary! I am still perfecting my craft, but it has become a game to see how much money I can save. I thought I would share with you my recipe for success:

1. Pull out the ads for the stores you frequent (I normally shop at Super Target, Fry's, and Sunflower Farmers Market).
2. Look for the best deals on meat products. From these deals decide on your nightly main course. (Check out this article on "How to Spot a Great Price on Meat").
3. Use sites like Stretching a Buck , $5 Dinners.com or Moms Need to Know to find great deals at your favorite stores + coupons.
4. Take out your clipped coupons and compare with ads. Also, check out coupon sites like coupons.com and redplum.com.
5. Know your store's coupon policy. For example, Target will accept their coupons plus manufacturer's coupons, so you are often able to get items for free or very cheap.
6. Look for stores to have double, triple, quadruple coupons (most will honor up to $1). When these promotions occur, use your coupons to buy lower priced items to get them for free or close to free.
7. If you find a super deal on meat, frozen/canned veggies, canned foods, etc. buy extra and stockpile.

Plus, check out my favorite website Stretching a Buck for weekly deals at these stores:

Kroger (Fry's)

Target

CVS

Walgreens

These are just a few of my ideas. Please leave a comment about how you save money on groceries.