At the beginning of this week, I joined in the Coupon Teacher's Become a Savvy Shopper in 12 Weeks online class. She did give us assignments for everyday this week, but seeing as how she listed them all in one post, I thought I would post my "homework" in one post as well.
Monday - Set a budget.
This is definitely a very hard assignment for me. I know what I spent on groceries last time I shopped, which was 2 weeks ago (since JGD was out of town). I knew that I wanted to be lower than that. Though I was really happy when I saved $30-something.
This week I had a number in my mind and was hoping to stay under it, but I went over by $20. When I looked at receipt to see what I could have done differently, I couldn't really come up with anything. I felt really defeated, and wasn't sure how I was going to fix it in the future.
Then I got an email from the woman who heads up the Organic Buying Club I help coordinate for asking me if I wanted to go to weekly coordinating instead of biweekly. After debating the time this would entail, and if we would be able to eat the food, I went back to this week's receipt and added up my dollar amount for produce which was $20 - $30. Between taking part in the No Dining Out In June Challenge and trying to make a dent in our grocery budget, I decided to go for it! Hopefully, that will help.
Tuesday - Choose a coupon organization method. Be sure to check out Become a Savvy Shopper in 12 Weeks for more information.
Well this I did quite some time ago. I use the Couponizer.
Wednesday - Set up your organization method.
Thursday - Make a space for the stockpile.
Well, I guess I still need to do this. I'm working on clearing the cabinets in the master bath so we can use those for stockpiling toiletries. Paper goods are going to go down in the laundry room, and food goes in the pantry.
Friday -
1. Biggest newspaper circulation in the area. - Well we already get the one paper. It is suggested that I get 1 for every person in the house. I am having a tough time with this one because I don't want to waste a newspaper by buying or subscribing to a paper we're not going to read. I feel like it's a waste. Though it will go in the recycling bag later, I'm still a little iffy on this one.
2. Frugal blogger that covers my area stores. There are several.
The Prudent Patron
Frugal Follies
I Heart Publix
Looks like we survived week 1.
Sounds like you did great! If you buy a ton of produce, I recommend doing something like what you are saying or visiting local markets for cheaper prices.
ReplyDeleteIf you want to get the best deals, sometimes you need two coupons. Maybe you could find a family member or neighbor who already gets the paper to save the coupons for you (so you can save the waste).
Southern Savers also covers Publix. I love her site. I have trouble with throwing the paper away too. I love my coupon holder. I do wish JDaniel didn't grab it out of the cart and dump it a week ago all over the cart. It was a mess.
ReplyDeleteThat is the nice thing about this book. It keep everything in pretty well. Sprout likes to pull them out when she can though.
ReplyDeleteThanks. I'll give it some thought.
ReplyDelete