Cutting the grocery bill in half

I usually shop at Giant, CVS, Harris Teeter, and/or BJs for our groceries and family needs.  But when Super Doubles are going on at Harris Teeter, I do all of my shopping there and try to get as many deals as possible.

We always make a list of what we need and then match-up as many coupons or sale prices as we can. Sometimes I end up buying stuff without coupons because the sale price on a similar item is a better deal.  I also only buy things we will use.

Below are my two shopping trips from this week.  All of my coupons are from the newspaper from December or this weekend.  The super doubles at Harris Teeter are going on and that is when any coupon up to $2 is doubled.  So, my $1.50 off coupon is now $3 off the item.

I have been to Harris Teeter twice this week and I may try to go one more time tomorrow.


Trip 1, January 1:
For my trip on the 1st I was grabbing things that were inexpensive that I had good coupon match-ups for or things we needed.

(4) bottles of shampoo* 
(1) bottle of conditioner*
(2) 4-packs of razors*
(1) package of napkins
(1) 10-pack of Minute Maid Apple Juice*
(1) box of Special K bars*
(1) package of Pillsbury Cresent rolls*
(1) 10-pack of pens*

* I used a coupon for the item

A few notes on this trip:

Ben is not brand loyal when it comes to shampoo, conditioner, or soap.  So when I see good deals I grab them.

I had several napkin coupons, but the Mardi Gras were cheaper than anything I had a coupon match-up for.

Elizabeth's birthday is coming up, so I grabbed the apple juice for her birthday party.  It was on sale and my coupon doubled.  After comparing it to the other brands, I knew it would be the best deal to get it now.

Original total: $52.71
Total spent: $13.56
Savings: 74%

 The crescent rolls and pens were completely FREE!

(because of their regular price and my coupon doubling)

Trip 2, January 5:

For this trip I was doing our weekly grocery shopping.  Ben and I made a list of all of things we needed for breakfast and lunch.  Then we planned our dinners for the week and made a list of the things we would need for dinner.

After our list, I was going to look and see if I could find any more good coupon match-ups.

What was on our list:

Milk

(1) box Special K Bars*

(8) Yoplait Yogurst*

(3) Bananas

(1) bag of Potatoes

(8) Canned vegetables*

(1) Onion

(1) bag of shredded cheese

What else I got:

(1) 10-pack of Pens* (FREE)

(1) loaf of Bread* (29 cents)

(1) jar Alfredo sauce* (75 cents)

(2) Knorr pasta sides* (FREE)

(2) packages of Tuna fish* (50 cents)

(2) Zest body wash* (FREE)

(1) Dawn liquid dish soap* (50 cents)

(3) Digiorno Pizzas* ($10 for 2, 1 was FREE)

(1) Floss* (FREE)

(1) Conditioner* (49 cents)

(2) bags of shredded Lettuce* (FREE)

* I had a coupon for the item

 A few notes on the trip:

Our weekly grocery budget is $50. 

We just needed a few canned vegetables, but they were on sale and I had a coupon, so I got 8.

My pizza coupon was buy 2, get 1 free and they were on sale 2/$10.

We have bread, but I got this loaf for 29 cents and we are going to freeze it

I got the shredded lettuce because we are making tacos this week and I like it on my sandwiches for lunch.

Original total: $100.65
Total spent: $44.70
Savings: 56% 

The body wash, pasta sides, lettuce, pens, floss, and one pizza were completely FREE!