Quest to Lower my Grocery Bill

I feel like I am spending a ton of money in an effort to save it. I think I am...sort of. The whole concept of couponing is to buy it while it's cheap and stock up so you don't have to pay full price when you are in desperate need of it. Therefore, I am building up my "stock pile." I did it when my makeup went on sale and purchased like 8 bottles of foundation and powder for less than half the price. I've been buying razors, toothpaste, shampoo, conditioner, and deodorant for about a quarter of the cost, even though at the moment, we don't need it.

The last couple days, I've been taking advantage of the buy-$30-P&G products-get-$10-certificate at HEB, in which I've stocked up on $80 worth of toilet paper, paper towels, and tissues for $40 and earned $20 in certificates that I plan on using for meat and produce. This was an amazing deal because the paper goods were buy-X-get-Y free STORE (code B or S) coupons as opposed to their in-store manufacture (code M) coupons -- very rare -- so that I could actually combine manufacture coupons, plus the price of the free item counted towards the minimum purchase price required for the certificate. They didn't have the prices advertised in their circular, so I had to bring in my coupons and calculator to make sure I stayed around $30 on each transaction (which you can do one per day for the duration of the deal, but I only wanted to do it twice). Plus, P&G has a $15 mail-in-rebate if you buy $50 worth of specific P&G items.

Target is generally a lot more expensive than Walmart too. But each week, they usually feature a Buy-X-Get-$5-Target-Card. Sometimes it's an item I'd actually buy and I will take advantage of it, combining it with a coupon or two, or even a rebate. I did that with kitty litter a few weeks ago. This week, I did it with cat food. And a couple months ago, I did it with Glade air freshener/candles.

I subscribed to Amazon Prime for $79 so that I could get free shipping on almost everything, which I am already using so I figure it will at least pay for itself, if not better. I am also buying clearance toys I know the kids will like for their birthdays in 4-8 months.

In other words, I am paying out a ton of money right now for things I will be needing in the future. The way it is supposed to work is that, in the long run, once you have a stockpile, you won't be paying out and paying out and paying out; you should be able to just replenish the stockpile as more deals arise. However, it is very hard to do here in Texas when grocery stores don't have to compete with each other. Grocery stores don't double coupons, nor do they have reward programs or loyalty cards like they do in Utah or California.

Fortunately, I have recently become aware of two smaller grocery store chains that most people don't even realize are here because they cater to Mexicans. They are far and few between, the nearest one to me being a 30-45 minute drive. However, when I scouted out La Fiesta, I found it to be clean, big, spacious, great selection, and some awesome deals! Furthermore, they offer in-store coupons that CAN be combined with manufacture coupons, AND they give rain checks (for items out of stock) that don't expire. While they won't mail me their circulars, I can look at La Fiesta's circular online and plan my trip AND Walmart has recently changed their policy that they will price match WITHOUT the store's ad in hand! That means I don't have to drive over to La Fiesta at all (unless I want to combine a store coupon with a manufacture coupon). I saved a lot on meat the other day at La Fiesta, and then I also price matched a few of their items at Walmart that are normally very expensive. Walmart even price matches the Dollar Store ads and member-discounted ads (like if you could get an advertised discounted price at Petsmart because you had a member-benefit card). So even though the couponing for FOOD ITEMS doesn't go as far, I have found ways to work around it due to the little-known stores and Walmart's new price matching policy.

I can't help but feel like I am spending like crazy right now. But I am only buying things we actually need/use at prices well below normal. I hope in the near future, I will be able to see the difference in the budget. My goal is to lower my grocery bill by $200 and my household supply bill by $100, and I think I may actually be able to do this, despite price increases. (Yes, according to the price lists I've compiled, most of the same products I bought in 2007 have increased 20-50%. If you consider the per unit price, it has increased even more, since the packages shrink as the price goes up.)

Addendum 3/7 Groceries: I just saved some money with price matching! The cashier was new so it helped that I printed out the pages of La Fiesta's ad. I saved $0.20 each on 6 yogurt, combined with a coupon ($1.20 savings), $0.15 cents on an avocado to go with tonight's dinner, $0.50 on tomatoes, $2 on 6 oranges, $1.06 on Blue Bell ice cream, red and yellow peppers ($1.64 at Walmart) were cheaper than green peppers ($0.84 at Walmart) for $0.50 each (savings of $0.68 cents for two comparing green peppers). So I saved a total of $5.59. Not much, but it's a start.