This was a fantastic week for shopping at Publix!  I made several trips as I decided I needed to make the most of the super deals.  I went over my typical $20 per week “budget”… but it will all average out since I spent less than $3 last week 🙂
So–here is my massive haul this week:
Skippy Peanut Butter x 6
Starkist Seasations x 20
Publix water (penny item) x 2
Yoplait Go Gurt x 8
Kingsford Charcoal x 5
Meat (various types) $46.35 worth!!
Glad straws x 6
Gallon of milk x 1
Sara Lee Bread x 1
Hillshire Farms Deli Meat x 2
Lays chips x 1
Hillshire Farm Smoked Sausage x 1
Barnum’s Animal Crackers x 1
Fresh Express Spinach x 1
Reynolds Recycled Alum Foil x 1
Onions (3 lb bag)
Bell pepper x 1
Teddy Grahams x 6
Ziploc Evolve X 3
Right Guard Deodorant x 2
Strawberries (carton) x 1
Heinz Vinegar x 1
Red Seedless Grapes 1+ lb
Bananas 1+ lb
My total should have been $240.61 but I spent a total of $34.10 (that included $5.88 in tax). I am more than thrilled as you can see that my total included over $46 worth of fresh meat!! I will be able to get at least 11 meals from that amount of meat (probably more since the boys and I will eat some as leftovers for lunches). My savings was about 86% and will be even better as some of the charcoal will be used at my son’s T-ball end of season party — thus the cost of at least one bag will be pulled from the team funds and put back in my pocket!  The Starkist Seasations will also be great for those days that I need (or want) to throw a quick dinner together.  The 20 packages will be used to create at least 10-12 meals. 
If you look at my list you will see very little “junk”!  I am constantly met by critics of coupons that insist coupons are only available for junk food and/or overly processed foods.  I think my shopping list really disproves that myth!  I was able to get a ton of healthy proteins including pork, beef, fish, and peanut butter. I got several pounds of fresh produce and dairy items including milk and yogurt. The “junk” food that was purchased was completely free –otherwise it would have never been put on my list!  The Lays chips were free since I had a “Buy Sara Lee Bread and 2 Deli Meat Get a FREE bag of Lays chips”  coupon.  The Teddy Grahams were free when I stacked $1/2 manufacturer coupons with the $1/1 Target IP’s. 
Another perk is that I will be getting a full rebate of $2.99 on the Reynolds Recycled Foil even though I used a $.50/1 coupon that doubled to $1.  Also, since we have a gas grill I was able to give my friend several bags of charcoal as a thank you for sharing some great coupons!  As I mentioned before I will also be able to provide charcoal for my son’s T-ball party at a fraction of the cost of retail–saving the other parents’ money as well!
I would also like to address something that I have been asked about in several emails. You will notice that this is not a standard weekly shopping list. The amount of food purchased will actually be used over the next few months. Had I only purchased a week’s worth of groceries, I probably would have only spent a few dollars!  BUT–I chose to purchase large quantities of the items now while they were on sale AND  when I had corresponding coupons.  In the long run this saves me time and money!  I am able to stock my freezer and pantry with items that will be readily available when I am ready to use them.  This is important because now I have enough stockpiled so that I am not forced to buy the item at full price when I do need it.  I also have the luxury of time–I can wait for another sale to come around and replenish my stockpile when it is cheap or free! My stockpile also allows me the option to completely skip a week of shopping if I chose to do so…not that I do that very often–there are usually a few great deals that I just can’t pass up.  Having a stockpile is very helpful in menu planning as well.  I typically write my weekly menu based on my current inventory as well as the weekly sales–this makes my life much easier.  Just a few things to consider as you write your grocery list!
So–how did you do this week?