Saving Stephanie...

I think I found the way to break our addiction to the WalMart Neighborhood Market. Following the advice of a thrifty blogger, I've been clipping coupons for items that I buy regularly. I had not had time to actually go grocery shopping until today. The blogger said that she gets the best deals going to stores such as Publix, Target or CVS rather than Wal-Marts. I looked through the BOGO items at Publix and found a few items that I needed. I paired them up with the coupons that I've been collecting and I am HOOKED!!! Until I read the 'hip2save' blog, I didn't realize that you can use multiple coupons for the same item- store and manufacturer's, or that when I buy a BOGO item I can use two coupons (one per item). Today's shopping spree saved me $51.35 by using coupons for the BOGO items and other sale items. Yes, I did buy stuff that I don't need at the moment (baby wipes, baby soap, pasta for months, etc) but I will use it eventually. I only spent $35 out of pocket. This is nothing compared to the coupon pros I've been reading about but this is much better than I expected my first time around. I think Sunday night is a good time to go grocery shopping with coupons. The store was empty and the cashier was happy I gave him something to do (I think).