Grocery Savings (in which admit I am a lunatic who took pictures of my Meijer receipt)

and am now blogging about grocery shopping.

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Now that I’ve weeded out the blog-readers-who-aren’t-really-all-that-invested in this, uh, incredibly boring topic, let’s talk coupons.

Tonight, I spent a total of $.21 on $28.26 worth of groceries. (Actually, we returned 10 pop cans, so they sort of paid us $.79, if we’re getting all detail-y).

I then got more awesome coupons at the register.

And that was after I found this coupon on the floor.

I don’t know how these things happen to me. But it is awesome when they do. So, even though Kenny mocks me when I pick up coupons off the ground, I’m still going to do it, just in case this ever happens again. An embarrassed husband is worth it.

Saturday I faced the throngs at Meijer and got $13 worth of groceries for -$3. THEY PAID ME. Thus, I will keep shopping there.

Here’s how I do it (apart from scouring the ground for coupons).

Saving Addiction is a West Michigan-based blog that (in my opinion) posts the most comprehensive Meijer deals around. They look at what’s on sale each week and match it up with what coupons are out there. Then, they go above and beyond the call of duty and put a red check next to what deals are awesome (like run out the door right now type of awesome) and a green check next to what deals are good but slightly less awesome.

Here’s an example of their weekly Meijer match-ups. You can find this by going to their “Store Deals” tab and clicking on Meijer and then looking for the correct date range (“Meijer 9/23/12-9/29/12” for example). It takes a bit to learn coupon lingo, but Saving Addiction has some good info on the whole process.

Another great deal-saving site is Hip2Save. Just click over there right now, and you’ll see what I’m talking about. Hip2Save is a great source for freebies and national deals.

If you love Target as much as I do, Totally Target has all of the best deals there. And did you know that TARGET HAS COUPONS? Here. They’re lovely. My favorite are the occasional apparel coupons… I’ve gotten free clothes that way.

If your shopping habits are exactly the same is mine, these three sites should do it for you. But if you have the exact same shopping habits as I do, that’s creepy. Go find your own money saving blogs for the stores you shop at on a regular basis and do your wallet a favor. 🙂

Here are some general tips I like to keep in mind while shopping:

*Have access to a printer for printable coupons. You don’t actually need a newspaper to get coupons. And SmartSource sends coupons out in the mail on Fridays, at least in my area (they’re just jumbled with a mass of other coupons that are definitely throw-away-able).

*DO NOT throw away those Meijer coupons they spit out at the register. They are sometimes really awesome, especially lately.

*Always carry your coupons with you. You never know when a good deal will bite you in the face.

*Purchase items when they’re a good price, and don’t just wait until you need that item. Having a stockpile isn’t all that bad, and you’ll definitely save money in the long run.

*Only buy things that you’ll actually use at some point. No use in having a gajillion Hungry Man dinners clogging up your freezer if you detest the stuff. Trust me, I’ve learned the hard way.

Now tell me about all of the money-saving secrets you’ve been keeping from me. It’s time. I think our friendship has at least progressed to that level, right? And I definitely want to know about your greatest deal. This might be my favorite topic ever.

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