For Kyle

What are OYNO deals, or ECBs & stockpile sales?Also in which state do you live (Cost of Living comparison), thou I am afraid once you answer I will be ashamed!
I am looking at my budget now and trying to drop it back down. We are a family of 5 on a $450 budget (recently increased from $400) We do have some medical issues (diabetes) that causes me to steer clear of pre-processed foods likes the boxed potatoes and I have to buy fruits & veggies until our garden and orchard start producing. Where do you get your coupons from?I have never seen a coupon for Bananas or lettuce, where is that from?
Please post again on your grocery shopping with more details on how you trim your budget.
Thanks
Kyle

Dear Kyle,

I'm going to do my best to answer your questions. If you still need help, feel free to ask! I will gladly tell you all I know. If ya need a little coaching privately, email me anytime.

OYNO deals are when a store has a promotion where if you buy certain products they will give you a coupon for money off your next order. Say if you buy Hillshire Farms sausage, you will get $2 OYNO (on your next order).
ECBs are essentially the same thing as OYNO deals, but they are exclusively at CVS. Walgreens has a similar system, and they call it Register Rewards.

I live in Tennessee, and I don't know how that compares to where you live, but tonight I bought a dozen eggs from a "discount" grocer for $1.89, so that might help you gauge your area to mine.

I did not start out with such a small budget, I worked my way down slowly. Building up a great big stockpile is the best way to be able to live on one deal until another one comes along. We have literally lived off our stockpile for months during tight times. It is very comforting.

I get many of my coupons from my little sister, who is a paper carrier, so I get her leftovers from her Sunday route. If I need something else, I go to my friend Angie at Ladybugscoupons. She has great prices and is a super sweet gal.

As for lettuce or produce coupons, Dole puts out coupons regularly for "salad in a sack" and you just find a good sale on one kind, or maybe even a bogo (make sure you use 2 coupons!) and you have (nearly) free lettuce. As for bananas, I buy them in a 50 lb. box and can them or freeze them for smoothies. They are oh-so-yummy. If we have a major hankering for them, I will just pick up a bunch when I find them on sale, because they are among the cheapest of fruits.

As for your diabetes problems, Glucerna puts out coupons often, so you might could use them to get some good deals on things your family could eat.

Just let me know if you have anymore questions. I hope this helps!