With the TLC show Extreme Couponing, people have jumped on the extreme couponing bandwagon, clipping coupons and literally hoarding their successes but is this really healthy?
Who needs to have 50 tubes of toothpaste stock-piled in a closet or garage? Is extreme couponing just another form of hoarding?
Many people are trying to stretch a dollar today. Food costs are rising and many of us are desperately trying to make ends meet. Is using coupons really the way to save money at the grocery store?
Health and beauty aids can be costly and I always advise people to not fall prey to the temptation of using a coupon for a brand or product that you are not familiar with. What is the use of paying a few cents for a shampoo that doesn't work as well as a more expensive brand.
The same goes for food. Being someone who mainly cooks from scratch, coupons for sugary cereals, hamburger helper and other packaged foods are something I don't bother cutting out. Who cares if I can get it for free if we don't even eat it, what is the point?
My husband works a second job in a newspaper distribution warehouse. He can bring me home coupons every weekend. Often he does and I breeze through them cutting out very few.
I cut out coupons for cat food ( I currently am feeding 7 cats), hair color, other health and beauty aids, and paper goods. I am careful to only use coupons that are going to be a deal not ones that tempt me into thinking I will save money.
I always comparison shop and I always try to plan a weekly menu around what is on sale.
When I see friends post about how they got 5 boxes of granola bars for free or little money and read their list of what they purchased with coupons, I wonder why they go through so much trouble.
Sometimes the people who do extreme couponing seem to be hoarding items that they cannot possibly use. If they were donating these products to the local food bank I may be more impressed but to fill your garage with 50 boxes of Ronzoni pasta, well, that just seems greedy.
Maybe I should be taking the time to pick up these free or nearly free items and donating them but honestly, who has the time?
We have a system in our house that works for us. Eat seasonal, plan meals and waste nothing. If there is a coupon for something we use- great, if not, well, we shop sales and do the best we can.
What about you? Do you extreme coupon and if you do- why?
Looking for recipes, shopping and cooking tips? You came to the right place.
Showing posts with label coupons. Show all posts
Showing posts with label coupons. Show all posts
Smarter Grocery Shopping
Quick- do you buy a 5 lb. bag of Eastern potatoes for $1.49 or 2 - 32 oz. packages of frozen french fries for $4?
If you answered yes to the frozen fries, you just spent more money than necessary.
Here's another one. A 14 oz. box of Aunt Jemima pancakes for $1.99 or a 1 lb. box of complete pancake mix for $1.79?
The answer here is the complete pancake mix. (complete means all you add is water)
A 5 lb. bag of potatoes can yield far more servings than those two bags of frozen french fries. And really, you are not saving money buying those frozen fries. Peel some potatoes (or wash the skins up real well), cut them up yourself and prepare as desired.
With the complete pancake mix, it is technically a convenience food but unlike buying frozen pancakes or waffles, it is far less money to buy a mix and you will get more servings this way.
To go a step further you can make your own dry mix for pancakes and waffles using flour, powdered milk and other baking ingredients to save even bigger. But, a Complete pancake mix is a good base for chocolate chip pancakes (throw chocolate chips in) blueberry waffles (add fresh or frozen berries) and many more ideas for diy cooking at a savings.
If you are concerned that the 5 lb. bag of potatoes will go bad before you get to use them all, prepare them ahead of time and put in freezer bags.
You do not need to be a chef to eat well. Eliminating some of these convenience food items from your grocery list and replacing them with smarter cost-cutting choices will not make your life harder. You will be able to spend less at the grocery store.
Yes, I will not lie. It is going to take a little bit of prep time but once you get into the habit, it will be like putting the groceries away once you get home from shopping.
Choosing the bag of carrots instead of the more expensive "baby" carrots can save 50%. Pre-packaged veggies for snacking? Really? Compare the costs. If you have money to throw away you probably are not reading this.
Most people I speak to are living on less and paying more for the basics. We all need tips on how to stretch a dollar. Momma Vicky comes from a large family and has one herself. No one is starving around here and there are always leftovers for brown bag lunches.
Smarter grocery shopping involves planning by looking at the flyers and cutting coupons for the items that you use on a regular basis. Take advantage of sales and have a pantry stocked with the basics. (next post)
You can eat healthier and not break your food budget!
If you answered yes to the frozen fries, you just spent more money than necessary.
Here's another one. A 14 oz. box of Aunt Jemima pancakes for $1.99 or a 1 lb. box of complete pancake mix for $1.79?
The answer here is the complete pancake mix. (complete means all you add is water)
A 5 lb. bag of potatoes can yield far more servings than those two bags of frozen french fries. And really, you are not saving money buying those frozen fries. Peel some potatoes (or wash the skins up real well), cut them up yourself and prepare as desired.
With the complete pancake mix, it is technically a convenience food but unlike buying frozen pancakes or waffles, it is far less money to buy a mix and you will get more servings this way.
To go a step further you can make your own dry mix for pancakes and waffles using flour, powdered milk and other baking ingredients to save even bigger. But, a Complete pancake mix is a good base for chocolate chip pancakes (throw chocolate chips in) blueberry waffles (add fresh or frozen berries) and many more ideas for diy cooking at a savings.
If you are concerned that the 5 lb. bag of potatoes will go bad before you get to use them all, prepare them ahead of time and put in freezer bags.
You do not need to be a chef to eat well. Eliminating some of these convenience food items from your grocery list and replacing them with smarter cost-cutting choices will not make your life harder. You will be able to spend less at the grocery store.
Yes, I will not lie. It is going to take a little bit of prep time but once you get into the habit, it will be like putting the groceries away once you get home from shopping.
Choosing the bag of carrots instead of the more expensive "baby" carrots can save 50%. Pre-packaged veggies for snacking? Really? Compare the costs. If you have money to throw away you probably are not reading this.
Most people I speak to are living on less and paying more for the basics. We all need tips on how to stretch a dollar. Momma Vicky comes from a large family and has one herself. No one is starving around here and there are always leftovers for brown bag lunches.
Smarter grocery shopping involves planning by looking at the flyers and cutting coupons for the items that you use on a regular basis. Take advantage of sales and have a pantry stocked with the basics. (next post)
You can eat healthier and not break your food budget!
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