It has been a good 2-3 weeks since I’d done a decent-sized grocery shop, so I decided to head to Fred Meyer last night while the kiddos slept.
When I headed to checkout, I realized that this might have been one of the most “diverse coupon” trips I’d done in awhile. I used store coupons from the weekly ad, store coupons from the Extra Savings booklet, insert coupons, tearpad coupons, printable coupons, a Catalina coupon, a free coupon from Kraft First Taste, a free coupon from Facebook, and even an ecoupon I’d loaded to my Fred Meyer Rewards card! Thanks to the very nice cashier who rang me up. He looked like he was headed off shift, but he was so polite! THANK YOU!
Here are my finds (you might want to click the image so you can even decipher what I bought):
All told I spent $62 out of pocket, and then I earned a $3 Catalina coupon for the Sure Jell. (By the way, I DID find tearpad coupons for this item at Fred Meyer. At my store they were on the end of the paper goods aisle near dairy…so do look around a bit. $5 is NOT BAD for 4 boxes of Sure Jell and 15 pounds of sugar!!) While my overall savings rate was on the low side (31%), it was nice to restock my fridge with cheese, milk, and bread. I truly don’t mind having a $70 or even $80 shopping trip once or twice a month for need based items.
See my Fred Meyer deals post for more ideas.
The important part is sticking to your budget. I promised I’d do a better job of illustrating this with my tracker. So here’s how June is shaping up so far:
After rebates, I’ve spent $84 for the first week of June. In order to meet my budget of $300, this means I should target to spend no more than $71 for each of the three remaining weeks. You’ll notice I spent about $20 at Fred Meyer (on 6/2 and 6/4). These were random splurge purchases and not such a hot way to kick off the month. They definitely impacted my overall savings rate. I’m hoping the trip I did last night will keep us stocked well throughout the week so no further trips will be necessary. (However, I might just have to do a Walgreens run this week.)
I’ll report back next week and share how I’m doing.
Want to track your budget with me this month? Get your own Savings Tracker for Excel (Google Docs is still in the works).
{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
Did you get a Daisy sour cream coupon? I heard there was going to be one in the 6/6 RedPlum, but I didn’t see on anywhere!
Another great trip.
I used to really focus on how much I saved on each trip. Some things, though, you just can’t get at a reduced price. If I shop at farmers markets or bulk stores, there’s no percentage savings. In my state, for example, the price of milk is regulated. If it’s something I need (and I always do), the shelf price is the price. When my savings percentage wasn’t high enough, I’d get disappointed.
Now I challenge myself to stay under budget for the month. That helps me focus on not spending just because there’s a deal, too.
Julie, that’s just it. What does it matter if your savings rate is 80% but you’re overbudget by $200 (totally possible in my opinion). I’m happy overall with my spending for the week. I did pick up a few great deals this week that helped offset my other spending. How about a profit of $0.16 for a pack of diapers? Or $5 for 4 boxes of pectin and 15 pounds of sugar? HELLO! I’m hoping I’ll have some produce popping up soon to further drive down my grocery costs. (Which reminds me, I should really do another garden update soon!)
Morgan, finally thumbed through my SmartSource – I have the Tacoma paper – doesn’t appear I got it.
Who got the Daisy coupon? Which paper/region did you find it in?