Our weekly grocery shopping- this is always fun. I love grocery shopping with Chad- thankfully we both like to read labels, seek out cheap bargains and try new things. Grocery shopping with Chad isn’t a weekly chore- it’s a fun and exciting adventure. Today our total bill was $174.50 and we ended up paying $80.67 out of pocket. Between coupons and store discounts we saved $93.83. This is a sampling of our purchases this week-

We got fresh fruit, veggies, soups, trail mix packs, granola bars, protein bars, yogurt, soy nuts- plenty of healthy food for us this week.  (We don’t normally ever buy candy bars but those 2 Twix bars were free with coupons today)  This is only a sampling- we actually got 10 bottles of V-8 Fusion juice too (The “Fusion” version of V-8 does not have the high fructose corn syrup and they are yummy!!); as well as some frozen items I had to put in the freezer right away.

Coupons have become a way of life for Chad and I- with me giving up a full-time job to go to school we really have to watch our nickels.  We do very well- I spend maybe an hour on Fridays gathering all the coupons and circulars we need for the weekend shopping trip. (We could probably save more but we don’t eat meat, high sugar items and a lot of processed stuff- we will pay a little more to get a healthy version of something and we eat lots of fresh fruits and veggies which rarely have coupons for them).  We manage to get a lot of things free that we end up stockpiling.

My favorite is our “drugstore” – we certainly don’t need to buy shampoo, body wash or deodorant for awhile.
I NEVER EVER will stockpile like those guys on that “Extreme Couponing” TV show- as a matter of fact- I can’t stand that show. It makes anyone who uses coupons look bad- as a COUPONER, one should NEVER clear the shelf of an item (sharing is caring), one should NEVER checkout with 17 carts, and one should NEVER break up your purchases into 18 transactions- please!! That show is sooooo unrealistic…..ugh…just ask any true couponer nowadays- they will cringe at the mention of that show. Anyway, back to our “drugstore”- it’s cool to just open the closet and pick a flavor of hair stylant or toothpaste- whatever you are in the mood for!!

Now we are home – Sunday night-hmmmm….well football is on, homework is due and groceries need to be put away. One day I will blog as I am planning the grocery trip from beginning to end and share some of our secrets.  Well- hope you are enjoying the rest of your weekend!!  Later-