Groceries

We finally made it the the store for our month's supplies...did pretty good and found some bargains. Our first stop was Aldi's to restock some of the canned goods and check out the produce. We found strawberries for $.99 a pound and they were very nice...got 2 pounds. Fresh mushrooms were $1.29 a carton and celery was $1.19. We bought corn to roast on the grill for $.99, 4 ears. Three pounds of Vidalia onions was $1.99, and bagged salad was $.99. Fresh cantaloupe was $.99. We got 2 cases of canned veggies, this time green beans, peas, kraut and tomato sauce. I bought 2 dozen eggs @ $.89 each, 2 pounds of real butter @ $1.99, wheat crackers, frozen waffles, pasta, 2 bottles of salad dressing, soup, graham crackers, a jar of spaghetti sauce and a bag of large frozen raw shrimp (Hubby's birthday) and a few odds and ends. The total bill at Aldi's was $46.89, less than half our budget.

Country Mart was the second stop where I used my coupons. We got a 10 pound sleeve of 80/20 ground chuck for $19.14, 10 pounds of chicken leg quarters for $3.79, a double package of pork tenderloin $5.68, 2 pounds of bacon, $5.00, 2 pkg. hot dogs, 2 pounds of  sliced ham, on sale and a coupon for $3, a large pack of country style ribs for $5.68, and a whole fryer. I had coupons for the condiments they had on sale...I got Hunt's Ketchup for $.80. All total I had $6.70 in coupons and by using the Country Mart card and additional $18.46 was taken off for a total of $25.16 in savings. Hubby also received a birthday coupon from Country Mart for $5 off the total purchase price, bringing the savings to $30.16. We did splurge (birthday) on tri tip steak for $10.89, enough for 2 meals. We used the entire remaining balance of food stamps for $68.11. We went over our budget by $15.37...non-food items.

With the things I am putting in the freezer...okra and berries, and the canned tomatoes and salsa I have been able to put up so far, we have plenty to go on. We are going to Conrad's Produce for corn soon, it is usually under $20 a bushel for first day pick. A bushel contains 60 ears of corn. I am also looking at a bushel of green beans for the freezer. My recipe for sweet pickles calls for 7 pounds of cucumbers. Two batches make us enough pickles for the year.

It is a lot of work, but nothing in a can tastes the way our fresh produce does in the middle of winter. We always have fresh corn and green beans for Thanksgiving and my home grown sage seasons the dressing. How lucky we are!

May groceries!

We didn't do too bad...I got $157.24 worth of groceries from Country Mart and Warehouse foods for $103.75...a savings of $53.49. I had $18.50 worth of coupons and by using my Country Mart card I saved an additional $31.19. We also had $3.80 worth of "Magic Coins".

We used almost all the in store coupons at Country Mart and got free Oscar Mayer Jumbo Franks, Velveeta, Miracle Whip, Kraft Ranch dressing, 2 bottles of barbecue sauce, 10 lbs of 80/20 ground beef for $1.99 a lb., packaged into 5 packs of 2, 1 lb pieces, bacon for $1.79 a pound, 3 pkgs. boneless skinless chicken breast @ $1.99 lb, 1 pkg. chicken leg quarters @ $5.90, and a whole chicken.

At Warehouse Market we got Best Choice stewed tomatoes for $.25 each (I got 8 cans), and 2 bottles of vegetable oil for $1.29 each using the coins, a large pkg. of pork steak, a boston butt roast, assorted chops, 2 pounds of breakfast sausage, 20 lbs. potatoes for $4.99 (that comes out to $.25 cents a pound), fresh mushrooms for $1.19 a pkg., and lots of other food items for which I had coupons.

All in all, we ended up with plenty of ground beef, chicken and pork to last a good while - our freezer is full.
I also got the stuff to make MORE CAKE BALLS! Onions are still outrageous...I think there's been an onion blight. And as I sit here typing would you believe I forgot to get eggs. Oh, well, as Scarlett says, "tomorrow is another day."

More Super Savers

I found another super savings site you might want to check out...it's http://www.couponchief.com/ and it's huge! They have coupons for 15,000 stores of every kind and a search feature. Some of the coupons are shared by readers, some are direct store coupons. You can search by store name or by item or by coupon code, http://www.couponchief.com/coupons/ . While I am mostly into cheap food and gardening, there are tons of coupons that offer free shipping or percentages off internet purchases. That's a pretty good deal when you shop at home on the computer. All of the stores I tried were featured. Sears, Lowe's, Burpee, KMart, Park Seed, WalMart, Home Depot and on and on. I especially like the free shipping coupons, you get your cheapo item without having to add the extra cost of shipping. My favorites are www.couponchief.com/gardeners , a gardening supply store, and www.couponchief.com/cafepress, where you can find EVERYTHING...custom designed tee shirts, books, calendars, novelty items. You might want to have a look see!

Today is grocery day - hooray! I got all my coupons clipped and sorted and I'm ready to go. Hopefully I can do as well this month as I did last. I'll try to have my breakdown listed today. (If we don't get blown away...the clouds in the south are looking BAD!!!) I had to quit working on my floor for a little while...I got a crick in my neck from looking up to talk to Hubby. Have a good day!

Number 1

We just found our very first strawberry of the year...we're hoping it's the first of many. In honor of the first one, I want to share a really good recipe for jam. No pectin is used and the berries are suspended in the jam. My dad used to make it and served it only with homemade bread. It does not make a lot, but the results are wonderful