I have a coupon for that!

Today was our first time at the store since I decided to give this whole coupon thing a try.  I don't plan on going crazy as seen on TLC's Extreme Couponing, but I'd like to save some money on whatever groceries we can since we'll be debt free upon moving back to Kansas.  And, two kids eat a lot, even more when you add a husband!  So, the more money I can save the grander the vacation my husband will take me on.  Or at least that's how it plays out in my head.  :o)

So, since we only plan our meals a few days in advance we don't usually have a long list of items to buy.  (I realize this probably isn't the best idea, however when we plan far in advance it's our experience that the meals don't get made because we are either not in the mood for whats on the menu or something else comes up.  So this schedule works for us.)  So, today we basically got the essentials. 

Schnucks, our local grocery store, was having a 10 for $10 mix and match sale this week.  I always try to keep toothpaste on hand since Luis seems to think it's candy or something.  However, after researching how to be coupon savvy I have learned that while a dollar is cheap for toothpaste it is very easy to get it for less.  Today, I was able to do just that - $.25!  I also had a coupon for cinnamon rolls that were part of the 10 for $10 deal and baby food was included as well.  So, we got 1 tube of toothpaste, 2 cans of cinnamon rolls and 7 Gerber two-packs of baby food for a total of $8.45.  I also had some coupons for a few other items on our grocery list like pickles and mustard.  All in all I saved a total of $11.99.

We also stopped by Target since they had some diapers on sale.  They were on sale for 19.79 a box and when you buy two you get a $5 gift card.  I bought four boxes and had four coupons.  So, I got $10 in a free gift card and $9.00 off in coupons.  Our total savings for the Target trip was $27.00 for everything we purchased. 

It might not seem like a lot of savings but considering I am new at using coupons I will take my almost $50 and be happy.  Heck, that's a new pair of shoes!  :o)