Feeding 5 on $50

Part of trying to stick to my budget better is getting back into the swing of couponing. Is it the only way to save money? No way! The vast majority of the time store brand items are the cheapest per volume, even when the brand name is on sale. But sometimes the brand actually comes out cheaper when you use a coupon in combination with a sale, especially when it's a Buy One Get One (BOGO) sale.

I'm not into "extreme" couponing, but using a few coupons matched up with sales each week does make a difference to my budget. I don't have a pantry so I can't stockpile months worth of food at a time, only what I have space for. (Although I would like to make the laundry room do double duty and put some shelving in there... one day.)

So, again as motivation for myself to get back on the bandwagon, I'm going to try to post my shopping list each week as well as the results. Sometimes I come across deals and sometimes I splurge, but this will help me see if its coming out even close to my budget ($50 per week for a family of 5) in the long run.

(I'm starting it as "Week #2" just so it will sync up with the To Do list weeks and keep me from getting confused.)

Shopping List - Week #2

Publix-
2 x Banquet Breaded Chicken Tenders, 24 to 36.5 oz BOGO $4.99
2 x -$0.50/1 Banquet Frozen Chicken Tenders 24oz or larger (Manufacturer Coupon)

2 x Keebler Club Crackers, 9.5 to 16oz, BOGO $3.69

2 x Nabisco Honey Maid Grahams, 7.04 to 14.4oz BOGO $4.35

2 x Hunt's Ketchup, 24oz BOGO $1.85

12 x Yoplait Yogurt, 4 to 6 oz cup 20/$10.00
2 x -$0.40/6 Yoplait Yogurt Cups (Internet Printed Coupon)

4 x Birds Eye Frozen Vegetables, 50% off
2 x -$0.35/1 Birds Eye Steamfresh 100% Whole Grain Blend (Internet Printed Coupon)
2 x $0.50/1 Birds Eye Steamfresh Chefs Favorites (Internet Printed Coupon)

3 x Kleenex Tissues, 60 to 184 ct, 4/$5.00
-$0.55/3 boxes of Kleenex Facial Tissue (Internet Printed Coupon)

4 x Aunt Jemima Waffles, 12.5 to 14.8 oz BOGO $2.89

2 x Kid Cuisine Snack Stix, 4ct $0.50
2 x -$0.75/1 Kids Cuisine Snack Stix (Competitor Coupon)

Food World (aka Belle Foods)
12 x Hamburger Helper 10/$10.00
4 x -$0.75/3 boxes of Hamburger Helper (Internet Printed Coupon)

Winn Dixie
2 x Peter Pan Peanut Butter, 27oz BOGO $3.99
2 x -$0.50/1 Peter Pan Peanut Butter 16oz or larger (Manufacturer Coupon)

Estimated Total - $43.86 (before tax)