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I’ve been emailing with Kelly about how I shop and trying to get her back on the couponing train! (Hi Kelly!) She’s had some great questions and I wanted to touch on one of them.

Kelly wanted to know, “Do you coupon more to stockpile or do you generally plan your meals for the week off of what is on sale (for example, meat)? Or maybe you do both.”

My answer “I shop to stockpile. Being that I already have my stockpile, I plan meals out of what I’ve got. For example Tyson Chicken Breasts are on sale this week at Kroger for $1.99/lb. That’s my stockup price so I’ll purchase 10-15 packages. There sure to go on sale again at this price within 2-3 months (if not sooner) so that’s plenty for my family. You have to plan ahead! Since we are coming up on the fall/winter seasons I make a lot more chilis, stews, soups, etc. so I’m looking now to stockpile those items.”

When you are just starting out using coupons, think ahead. You know that you’ll always use toothpaste, deodorant, shampoo, beverages, soups, cheese, etc. So if you see a good deal, go ahead and grab them up. Be sure to check out the “Yeah, I don’t Pay for That” post. This will make you aware of what you shouldn’t be paying for!

I can’t plan my meals on what is on sale that week. If I did that, I don’t think I would feed my family. I tried shopping weekly for what’s on sales for that week’s dinner when I first started couponing and I couldn’t do it. We like what we eat and I’m not going to change that! If I wanna make steak kabobs, I’m going to make them because I have most of the ingredients in my stockpile. But, if that’s what works for you, go with it!

Now that we are heading into the fall months, I’m watching sales. Like I need Campbell’s Cream of Mushroom soup in a BAD way and waiting for a sale on these. I can typically purchase a can for around $.35-$.40 with a sale & coupon. I am not paying $1.80 for a can! Once I find a sale, I’ll purchase about 20-30 cans. I use the Cream of Mushroom soup in my Chicken Over Rice dinners and we eat a TON of Green Bean Casserole in the fall, along with other recipes.

If you are a baker, like I am, you’ll wanna start watching sales on Nestle Morsels. Again, I’m not paying $3.99 a bag. I was able to purchase the Nestle Morsels at Kroger last year for $.99 a bag during a Mega Sale. I stocked up (froze the bags) and just now ran out of chocolate morsels! I made “Sweet Baskets” for friends and neighbors (12 families) last Christmas. The entire cost was about $40, including the baskets. Plus, we had a lotta fun making the sweets!

I typically stick to a budget of $75 a week for my family of 3. However, there are weeks that I spend less and may even spend up to $40-$50 more, if there’s a good sale. It evens out in the end. So just because you’re short on your budget one week, doesn’t mean you’ll have that savings next week. But, in the end it’s worth me to save my family $116 a week on average by shopping smart and using coupons.

I am a HUGE believer that everyone can use coupons and shop smart. There’s no excuse to not be able to save your family money. By saving money at the grocery store, I’m sure you’ll become addicted to saving money and will get your family saving money every way possible.

Be sure to check out my Guide to Becoming Addicted to Saving Money. If you’ve got any questions, don’t hesitate to ask. I just love teaching!

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