Just Buy What You Need

For those of you that are big fans of scoping out sales and using coupons, you can save lots of money.  This weekend I bought $80 worth of groceries for $45. This is quite excellent for me, even though some "extreme couponers" would surely frown upon it.  I am sure they would be able to buy $800 worth of groceries for $45.  However, I try not to compare myself to others.  I feel like I achieved a great deal.

What you have to consider when making "extreme couponing" purchases is if you will actually use what you are buying.  Certainly it is a great deal to buy 10 jars of pasta sauce at once if it is on sale and you have coupons, but make sure to check the expiration date and consider how much pasta you actually eat.  If you do not even really like pasta and you might only use 4 jars, you have actually wasted money.  It does not matter if you bought 10 for 50 cents a piece.  If 6 go to waste, you just lost $3.

This sounds like a relatively simple concept until a person becomes obsessed with finding the best bargains.  Suddenly, it is not about what is practical.  It is about getting whatever is the cheapest.  Aside from losing money by looking for bargains, you also need to be realistic about what you like to eat. 

For example, I like to eat junk food.  I am constantly trying to eat healthier.  So say one day there is a great sale on apples.  That is perfect.  Apples are a healthy, wonderful snack.  I can buy a few apples and eat them during the week.  However, if even just one bag of candy goes into the cart, good bye apples.  Chances are, the apples will get tossed to the side and I will eat candy all week.  Now, the apples, even though they were on sale, will go to waste.

When shopping, be realistic about what you will really eat.  If you are trying to be healthy, buy healthy foods that are on sale, but DO NOT buy junk food.  Junk food will lure you away from the healthy food every time.  Right now, I have a bag of what was once delicious broccoli in my fridge.  Now, it looks terrible and must be thrown out.  Lesson learned - buy frozen broccoli even if it is more expensive.  Frozen broccoli lasts much longer.  You lose money when you are constantly throwing stuff out.