Walgreens

Another good place to shop and save money on toiletries, household cleaners, etc.....is Walgreens. They have a program called "easy saver coupons" they are instore coupons (that you pick up, it looks like a little brochure, at the front of the store) you can combine these coupons with manufactured coupons.

Here is an example.....

1. Garnier shampoo, conditioner, and styling products

*price $2.99

*easy saver coupon $2.00 off (in their ad they will tell you what coupons apply to what product so you don't have to search the brochure every week)

*Manufactured coupon $1.00 off

*ending price+$0.01 (so with the $3.00 worth of coupons you get the product free plus 1 penny)

2. Colgate toothpaste

*price $3.49

*easy saver coupon $2.50 off

*manufactured coupon $0.75 off (often times they have $1.00 off but this time I had the $0.75 off one)

*ending price $0.24

3. Revelon emery boards

*price $0.99

*easy saver coupon $1.00 off

*ending price +$0.01

4. Fushion Razor

*price $8.99

*register rewards $4.00 off(which is basically a reciept that equals money. They print this coupon off and you can use it towards your next purchase.)

*manufactured coupon $4.00 off

*ending price $4.99 (but I took my register rewards and bought 5 more tubes of toothpaste for $0.95)

So all in all I spent a little over $6.00 and saved $88.00

Getting Started

I have had a couple people ask me about coupons and saving money and so I decided that I would try to start this blog again, because it really is SO rewarding to save 50% off of your grocery bill or come home with free stuff from the store!! So these are the things I would do to get started in saving money...
1. Buy the Sunday newspaper. I usually buy one copy and then if they have alot of coupons that I like I will go back and buy multiple copies. In Texas you can buy the newspaper first on Saturday night and then they get another shipment Sunday that stays on the shelf throughout the week until it is all sold out. This takes care of not having to shop on Sunday if you don't want to. In Utah they only have coupons in the Sunday edition, so you may want to ask around, to see if your friends or neighbors don't use their coupons. You can also order multiple copies of the newspaper to be delivered on Sunday. The only problem with this is, if you don't like the coupons you will have lost that money.
2. Coupons!! There are tons of places on the internet that offer free coupons. Google "free coupons" and you will come up with some different sites. One of my favorites is Penny Pincher Gazette. Another website that I like to look at is freebies4mom.blogspot.com this website lists different coupons, free samples, and instore promotions that are awesome!!
3. Shop the Ads. Call around to the different stores in your area and have your name put on a mailing list to send you their weekly ad. When you get your ads in the mail, plan your menu according to the sales and what coupons you can use. For instance, last week the split bone-in chicken breast were $0.77 so I bought about 10 lbs, and froze them in meals size portions. Making about 6 meals, By throwing some frozen chicken in the crock pot with a can of italian tomatoes, making mashed potatoes, and a vegetable you have a very healthy meal for 5 for under $2.50.

I'll add more to this list tomorrow, but for now these are just a few things you can do to save money on your grocery bill!!