I am often asked how I do my grocery shopping and grocery lists since I am one of those "crazy coupon people".
When you think crazy coupon lady, you probably think 50 bottles of mustard in the pantry or hundreds of boxes of spaghetti noodles. For the record, I don't even have 3 bottles of mustard in the pantry or spaghetti noodles. So there. HA!
I am a couponer and grocery list maker, but definitely not the TLC tv show type. I'm pretty good at it, but not that good and I don't have that kind of time to devote to it. I do have a binder, which I showed you before, and it definitely helps me stay organized with both my list making and my shopping ! Typically, my rule is "no coupon, no purchase".
Usually, I keep a list of items we need or that we run out of then add it to my master list when it's time to go grocery shopping. I also try and match up what is on that list with what is on sale that week.
First, I get the weekly sales ad from the store I like to shop at. I go through it one time very quickly to browse, then I go back through it with pen in hand and circle anything that I know is a good price and that is on my master list. I also circle any BOGO items that we need or that I have coupons for and that I know we'll be needing in the near future. For example, we go through Ritz crackers like crazy, so even if I don't have a coupon for them, if they're BOGO, I'm buying 'em.
I tend to go to the store either really late at night or very early in the morning. I don't like lines and I don't like taking my kids so those times work for me. Hubby is either home to keep them or they are with my loving in-laws. It's not unusual for me to offer to pick up whatever my mother-in-law needs if she'll just keep my kids and vice-versa (many times she'll call me to say she is going to Sam's and ask if I need anything)....
I keep my coupons close by and make sure I get everything on my list, as extra trips to the grocery store are not in my time budget!
That's my quick n easy guide to grocery list making and grocery shopping! HA!
~CB~
I love that you are offering tips! You know we all need them :)
ReplyDeleteI have a funny Publix story from last week, speaking of taking your kids shopping...I had Allie in the buggy and Whitt on my hip. He spit up all over me as I was trying to buy baby food (with my coupon!) Then we get up front to pay with a buggy full of stuff and the bag-my-groceries-man drops a bag of groceries, in his defense I think the handle broke on the bag. My groceries go EVERYWHERE! I had two containers of blueberries and they busted. Blueberries went a-l-l over the floor. The bag man yells D-*-*-*!!!! and then walks off. Allie starts crying and says, "My blueberries are ruin-ed!" Chaos, pure chaos and there I am trying to hand the lady all my coupons. Glory, hallelujah!