The last couple days, I have been really crunching numbers at our house. Living on a tight budget is hard, but we are making it and I have couponing to thank for it.
Since the weather has been so nice and with camping coming up we have been wanting to, rather craving, to eat some of the local fresh produce, and since Aimee's appetite is coming back (she loves Cheetohs & grapes!), I thought to myself, how can we afford to get produce since there are hardly any coupons out there for produce. My attempts emailing Dole and Del Monte have failed and then off went light bulb #1 in my head: check the ad. Low and behold, Safeway was having a lovely 10/$10 deal on a lot of produce. Light bulb #2: I still have a Safeway Simple Nutrition Coupon for $1 off my purchase of $5 or more in produce.
There were a few more great deals in the ad, especially in the $5 Friday section (where certain items are marked as low as $5 if purchased on Friday only). I then wanted to challenge myself so let's see what I can get for $20 as that is what my budget allows for this week. So I created my list and went with it. Here is how I did:
Transaction #1:
1 24 pk Pepsi
1 24 pk Mt. Dew
1 pk Cheetoh Twists (Aimee's fave chip)
1 Barilla Pasta
1 Barilla Sauce
1 Artisan French Bread
2 Ham and Cheddar Lunchables
1 Avacado
6 Cucumbers
1 Green Pepper
1 1/2 lbs. red seedless grapes
2 bags Fresh Express Salad
Total Before Savings/Coupons $ 55.30
Final Cost $ 24.27
Transaction #2
4 boxes Suddenly Salad
4 Powerbars
Total Before Savings/Coupons $ 17.56
Final cost $ 1.92
Total Trip out of Pocket $ 26.19
I was bummed that I went over my $20 budget. I thought I had done the match right, but then to realize I forgot to include the bottle deposits on the pop and I didn't know how much the grapes would be (they were more than I had hoped but I promised them to Aimee so I got them anyway). Was pleased though, as over all, I saved 64%. Oh and I went to Rite Aid right next door and scored 2 bags of Ritz Bits crackers for only $0.19. :-)
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