Couponing for Thanksgiving: Part 2

As you know.....my family is on a strict budget in order to keep us as stable as possible in this very unstable economy.  So my plan was to use coupons for Thanksgiving.  I gotta say....it worked better than I thought it would!  So here's how it went:

Originally I was only hosting a small group of people on Thanksgiving....but that changed rather quickly!  Now I am hosting for my husband's entire family!  EEEEK!  Along with getting enough food to feed the masses, I still had to shop for my own household (two weeks worth of shopping to be exact!).

My local store runs a special once a month: $10 off of $50 or more (this sales excludes milk and turkeys, don't know why...but it does!)  Now....since you can only get the $10 off once....I had to make two trips that day.  I stratigically bought items that would result in me getting catalina coupons good for my next trip (which would be about 20 minutes later)!  I would rather not get into details about everything I bought, but to sum it up, my first trip was $70.47 before coupons....after coupons, I only paid $19.78!  A 72% savings!

Now, for my second trip, I had to get the turkey.  I needed to get the biggest bird they had to feed everyone and have leftovers for me!  If you remember, I could not use the turkey with the $10 off deal, which only meant I had to get $50 worth of groceries plus the turkey.  My total before the turkey was $82.15 (no coupons scanned yet).  I got a 21.99 pound bird @ $1.39/lb which cost $30.57.  Now, my store was running a special....the turkey would be $.67/lb if I bought $50 worth of groceries with it!  This dropped $15.83 off of my bird!  Before coupons and before my turkey savings, my total was $96.89.  After the $15.83 turkey savings (biggest coupon EVER!) and my coupons, I only paid $35.47!  A 62% savings!

My store does not double coupons...but if they did....boy....I may have walked out of that store paying almost nothing!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Couponing For The Holidays!

It seems as though the one time of year it is vital to save money...we spend the most!  I love cooking for groups of people, so it's no surprise that I love Thanksgiving!  This year, my husband has to work, and my side of the family is going out of state.  So I have left an open invitation for family to come to my house for dinner!  Problem....we are living on a very strict budget!  One income is no joke!  My goal this year is to do "Thanksgiving with Coupons"!  Let's see if I can make a traditional dinner, with all the fixings, and spend as little as possible!  Now...what should be my target budget?

The Art of Couponing

I have used coupons in the past.  For me, nothing special.  The savings weren't big enough to keep me interested.  Last week however, I watched TLC's Extreme Couponing for the first time!  Seeing the savings they had inspired me!  So last week I started clipping coupons.  I learned that in order for me to get the biggest savings, I have to match my coupon with sales as well as any store coupons.  I went through and printed up the coupon policy for all of my local stores.  That way I know what I can and can't do!  Week one proved to be a big week for me!  I got free product already and stocked up on bathroom cleaner for at least two years!  People are gonna start looking at me like I'm crazy.  But it's ok, cause I'm spending less and getting more!

My first time out and I think I did very well!  I left home with a $10 bill and some change in my pocket, and this is what I got:

ALL Detergent: Was $5, I got it for $3

Cover Girl Blush: Was $3.74 each, I got all 4 for FREE!

Fatastick Cleanser: Was $1.50 each, I got them for $.50 each

Ajax: Was $2, I got it for $1

Nivea Lip Treatment: Was $2.99 each, I got them for $.25 each

Suave Professionals Hair Care: Was $2 each, I got them for $.87 each

Playtex Sport: Was $3.97, I got it for $2.13

Old Spice Deodorant: Was $3, I got it for $1

Total before coupons: $41.41

Total after in store savings and coupons: $10.87

I saved $30.54 my first time!

Here is a site that I have found most helpful: http://www.hip2save.com/