New Year's Resolution Update: $5k in Savings

Here we are in April. While I didn't save as much as the last few months, I'm still making progress.

Here are my April savings (as stated on the receipt):

Date          Store                            Total Spent        Savings (coupons and/or sales)
Apr. 2        ShopRite                        $100.97             $50.61
Apr. 4        Lowe's                           $886.86             $81.90
Apr. 5        Kohl's                            $8.04                 $19.50
Apr. 6        Bed, Bath & Beyond      $33.13               $7.00
Apr. 7        ShopRite                        $10.70               $11.45
Apr. 10      ShopRite                        $116.60             $44.30
Apr. 15      ShopRite                        $140.67             $65.92
Apr. 22      ShopRite                        $55.80               $16.96
Apr. 22      McDonald's                   $6.29                  $1.00
Apr. 23      Pathmark                       $26.55                $3.70
Apr. 29      ShopRite                       $197.94              $73.35

TOTAL SPENT TO DATE = $375.69
TOTAL SAVINGS TO DATE = $1,945.49


I fell off the wagon on hitting $100 per week for my grocery shopping. Ooops!! I've been trying to stock up when there are sales. I need to reel it in a bit. I'm hoping that I can start paring back from $150 a week, to $140, $120, etc.  My monthly savings goal in order to hit the $5,000 mark is $400+ per month.

Here's how the year is shaping up:
Jan.   $481.66
Feb.   $502.31
Mar.   $585.83
Apr.    $375.69
TOTAL  = $1,945.49

I'm just shy of the halfway mark. June will be telling. I need $3,054.51 in savings before Dec. 31, 2012 to reach my goal.


Stay tuned for more updates. I'd love to hear your tips on how I can save even more.

New Year's Resolution Update: $5k in Savings

Happy April! I feel like March was gone in the blink of an eye.  Before you know it, summer will be here!

I'd like to provide an update on my New Year's Resolution of saving $5,000 in sales and coupons.

Here are my March shopping trips (stated savings on receipts):

Date        Store          Total Spent          Savings (coupons and/or sales) 
Mar. 1       Macy's          $49.99                       $20.00
Mar. 3       McDonald's  $5.33                          $1.00
Mar. 4       ShopRite       $183.35                     $74.70
Mar. 10     Macy's          $15.34                       $48.25
Mar. 11     ShopRite       $89.94                       $46.29
Mar. 18     ShopRite       $139.51                     $97.62
Mar. 21     Target           $81.08                        $5.29
Mar. 22     ShopRite       $9.78                          $2.88
Mar. 24     Kohl's           $76.61                        $221.37 (they had some killer deals!)
Mar. 24     Macy's          $60.68                        $14.00 (this is a $300 Tahari suit!!)
Mar. 24     A&P             $8.70                          $3.18
Mar. 25     ShopRite       $13.51                        $4.40
Mar. 25     ShopRite       $89.73                        $45.97
Mar. 30     ShopRite       $4.56                          $0.88

TOTAL SPENT TO DATE = $585.83
TOTAL SAVINGS TO DATE = $1,569.80


I'm doing a little better on hitting $100 per week for my grocery shopping (except in the beginning of the month. LOL!). As that monthly cost goes down, so will my savings. As I say to my husband, you have to spend money to save money.  My monthly savings goal in order to hit the $5,000 mark is $400+ per month.


Here's how the year is shaping up:
Jan.   $481.66
Feb.   $502.31
Mar.   $585.83
TOTAL  = $1,569.80


Stay tuned for more updates. I'd love to hear your tips on how I can save even more.

New Year's Resolution Update: $5k in Savings

How did March sneak up on us? Only a few short weeks until spring -- you've gotta love it!

As I mentioned in my New Year's Resolution post, one area I'm trying to focus on is creating a decent price book (still working through that -- way more work than I first thought) and saving $5,000 in sales and coupons.

Here are my February shopping trips(stated savings on receipts):

Date        Store          Total Spent          Savings (coupons and/or sales)

Feb. 3       KFC          $26.95                  $9.40
Feb. 5      Shoprite      $124.98                $75.34
Feb. 11     Target         $21.98                  $2.00
Feb. 11    B&N           $0.49                    $3.74
Feb. 12    Shoprite      $178.38                $89.31
Feb. 18    Staples        $0.79                    $10.00
Feb. 18    Kohl's          $102.48               $236.66
Feb, 19    Shoprite       $114.42                $91.90
Feb. 20    CVS            $5.90                   $15.99
Feb. 20    Jun Lung      $26.21                  $3.00
Feb. 22    Kohl's          $130.33                $53.69
Feb. 25    A&P            $5.98                    $2.00
Feb. 26   Shoprite        $46.14                  $52.12
Feb. 27    A&P            $33.56                 $6.82

TOTAL SPENT TO DATE = $651.97
TOTAL SAVINGS TO DATE = $502.31



I still have some work to do to get my grocery shopping under $400 per month. But with a goal of saving $400+ per month to reach $5,000, I'm pretty much on track. Last month, I saved $481.66, so I'm ahead of that savings.




I have $4016.03 left to save after saving $481.66 in Jan. and $502.31 in Feb. Stay tuned for more updates.

New Year's Resolution Update: Save $5k in Coupons/Sales

As I mentioned in my New Year's Resolution post, one area I'm trying to focus on is creating a decent price book and saving $5,000 in sales and coupons. I've had a few shopping trips with much success.

Here's my savings so far for January (stated savings on receipts):

Date     Store          Total Spent          Savings (coupons and/or sales)
Jan. 1     Michael's     $27.23                 $4.40
Jan. 1     ShopRite     $121.93               $94.85
Jan. 2     CVS           $0.16                   $12.40
Jan. 7     CVS           $2.00                   $4.78
Jan. 8     ShopRite     $154.15               $109.07
Jan. 9     CVS           $25.73                 $37.20
Jan. 9     Vitamin Shoppe   $23.98         $5.00
Jan. 11   Old Navy    $11.40                 $50.99
Jan. 12   CVS           $2.52                   $6.80
Jan. 13   ShopRite    $0.98                    $7.00
Jan. 15   ShopRite    $111.58                $63.23

TOTAL SPENT TO DATE = $481.66
TOTAL SAVINGS TO DATE = $395.72

I still have some work to do to get my grocery shopping under $400 per month. But with a goal of saving $400+ per month to reach $5,000, I'm pretty much on track.

As I may have mentioned, I've started following My Frugal Adventures and Living Rich With Coupons. Both offer a variety of coupons, sales match-ups and other great info for the frugal-minded (i.e., me). If you're new to couponing, or a seasoned couponer looking for a few new tricks, I highly recommend checking out these sites. They've been a huge help when it comes to matching up grocery sales and coupons.

New Coupon Tactic
My husband is convinced that I'm buying items we don't need just because I have a coupon. This got me to thinking. Could he be right? *Gasp* The horror! Now when I shop, I really think about whether I'm buying an item that I would not otherwise buy just because I have a coupon. It has actually kept me from buying products on more than one occasion. Now the other side to this is that if an item is extremely discounted (70-90%) or free, I'm getting it regardless! Do you have parameters when it comes to using coupons?

Do you set savings goals for using coupons or sales? I'd love to hear about them!

Happy Belated New Year -- Green and Frugal Resolutions

Do you create New Year's Resolutions? I love creating them! A new year is like a clean slate. It lets you reflect on what you want to accomplish and start anew. *Sigh* What a glorious time of year to really think about goals. I took a break last year from creating resolutions and I really felt like something was missing.

Anyway, this year I'm back to my list of resolutions -- goals I want to focus on achieving before Dec., 31, 2012. Here's my list:

2012 New Years Resolutions

• Run a 5k in 25:30; a half marathon in under 2 hours; 18 miles in under 2:45
• Limit TV watching at night (less than 2 hours); spend at least 30 min. of quality time with kids each week night; yell at them less ;)
• Write & self-publish a book; dedicate more time (at least 1 hour each day) to my blogs (fitmomsofnj.com, acommunicationsolution.com, and greenandfrugalliving.com)
• Create a decent, usable price book; save $5,000 in coupons/sales
• Go to church at least 2x/month

One goal that I'll be tracking on this blog is: Create a usable price book and save $5,000 through coupons and sales.

I've tried creating price books in the past without much luck. For starters, they take a lot of time and effort. But I know I could see significant savings in my grocery shopping by having one as a reference.

Finding $5,000 in savings from coupons and sales may be a stretch, but I think it's doable. It will be approx. $417 per month. We're refinancing our home in the next few weeks, which should save us $350+ per month, so I'm well on my way!!

I'd love to hear your resolutions. Do you set goals each year? What are your 2012 green and frugal resolutions?