I pay myself in coupons

It seems these days my second job is coupon cutting. It consumes most of my weekends and a huge amount of my email inbox... I started this in earnest at the start of 2010. Each week I scan the Sunday paper coupon section and cut away. I subscribe to several listservs that distribute coupon tips. It is a pain, and just the kind of anal-retentive, attention to detail job that is totally unatural for me.

However... now that we have reached the end of January and I look back at my month, I am thrilled to see that including coupons, on-line deals, groupon and in store savings I have saved a total of $155.00 for the month. Whoopee!!!

Yesterday I took the whole thing to a new level when I created a spread sheet for our trip to the grocery store:


But, despite my nerdyness, or perhaps because of it, the trip was a total success. The shopping process was much easier because I had everything listed on the sheet by section of the store and we could just look and see what deals we had when we got to each section. It was faster than other trips. And, amazingly, we got a ton of stuff and saved $60. Eliot was pleased to review the recipt:


Now, clearly we cannot shop like this all the time. But I have found, by reading the words of several southern housewives who apparently do nothing but look for savings, that one key element to the whole couponing thing is to stock up. Thus, Dan and I created a new "pantry" of sorts for back up. He kept saying he felt like a mormon doing this, a reference that is lost on me. I have the smallest feeling like I am living someone elses life. Like a southern housewife. At least there seems to be money it in :)