April 18, 2012

My Way of Shopping is not Glamorous

I've never liked the word "hoarding" when it comes to stocking my freezer and pantry with sale items.  I buy many items on sale and
I am a prolific couponer, but I have never gone into a store with hundreds of coupons and walked out with carts loaded to the brim with free products.  For many of us, that is an impossible feat as we don't live where there are stores that double coupon.  So we have to hone our skills to get a good value.  We can't rely on getting a lot of things for free.


My world of shopping starts with the sale flyers that I review to see if there are any good deals and I then look through my coupons to see where I can team up a good sale with a coupon. The only time I ever bought 50 like items was when store brand spaghetti sauce went on sale for 59 cents for a 28 oz can.  With an expiration date out there for 2 years, I stocked up knowing that there was no way I would get that kind of deal again.  I was right.  That deal came and went and there hasn't been anything like it since.


Free is nice, but in my opinion 59 cents was a phenomenal deal.  There are no TLC shows for the way I shop and yet isn't this way of shopping the way it usually is for most people?  We may get the great coupon deal every now and then, but it is not the norm for the majority of us to have our coupons doubled.  


I get tired of reading or watching t.v. shows showing people with great cart loads of stuff that they have paid next to nothing for.  Why watch what I will never have?  It just makes you feel like a failure because you can't get stuff for free all the time.  So, I quit watching.


Just do your best with the resources that you have.  It may not be as glamorous as walking out of a store with cart loads of free food, but it is rewarding when you know your prices and can stock up when a sale is a sale.  

5 comments:

Maureen said...

I am a sucker for extreme couponing, and a jealous sucker at that.
Why not here in Australia I want to know....

Debby said...

Your right about the show on TV, many of the people are now being investegated for fraud. The other thing is in our area the Sunday paper runs $2.50, some of the people have 100 papers each week, the cost would be $250.00 to get the coupons. They don't figure that into the price. Like you I stock my freezer and pantry with rock bottom prices and use coupons but it's rare to get things free and our stre does double coupons under $.99

Bernice said...

Hi Martha
I enjoy watching the show, but have
no desire or patience to clip/organize hundreds of coupons.
I am curious,I love getting the lowest price I possibly can. I was curious when you say the spaghetti sauce was 59cents and had a 2 year expiration date so you stocked up..how many did you buy?
I have a nice storage area for extras, and my grocery budget could be adjusted for the extra purchases but I couldnt see purchasing more then 6-8 jars.
The newest addition to your family is so cute!!

Martha said...

@Bernice:

I bought 50 cans of spaghetti sauce.

Anonymous said...

If I came home with 50 cans of spaghetti sauce, my son would be so happy. He loves spaghetti and would eat it every night. Even at once a week that would still be a years supply. Great deal!!!

Just found your blog and will be reading lots of older posts.

blessings, jilly