Grocery Game Update

It's been almost five months since I began playing the Grocery Game and it's time for an update... 

Just some quick background information... I have a family of 5, shop weekly at two large grocery stores and two national drug stores and pay $25 a month for the service. I am careful to strictly follow my list and don't make many impulse purchases. This program includes savings on produce, meat, cleaning products, health and beauty, as well as national brands. And, it is not just prepackaged food. Dinner planning has become much easier because I have so much to choose from and don't have to make last minute runs to the store. My kids also like that they have fun snacks to serve their friends when they come over.

Here's what's happened for my family.

The first 4 weeks were a little time consuming because I was learning how to use the Grocery Game and catching up on clipping coupons. I would spend two hours looking at the sale lists online, selecting the products, printing the lists, and finding coupons. (I only use the coupons found in the newspaper and do not clip coupons online.) Since stockpiling items is part of successfully playing the Grocery Game, it took me longer initially because my lists for the stores I visit were much longer which caused me to spend more time in the stores. But checking out is where the payoff (literally) began! 

The site said that at 12 weeks I would be on the same coupon clipping schedule as the Grocery Game and shopping trips would be easier. They were right on. At 12 weeks, the length of my shopping lists fell dramatically and I had stockpiled so much food that I didn't need to buy as much each week. Also, because the stores in my area are close together, I can now go to four stores and shop for my groceries in one hour; thereby drastically cutting down the time that I spend in the stores. Not only that, I spend, on average, $100 a week for groceries and I have more food than ever! Last week I bought 46 items and only spent $89. The purchase included four packages of chicken breasts and several items that weren't even on sale. I also saved $44 on that trip! I have estimated that the savings is similar to receiving a $3-4,000 raise during the year. But, my favorite part is when I lock up the register at one store because I save so much money.

One drawback is that we may not always have the exact product that everyone likes but it gives us a chance to try new things. Before the Grocery Game, even though we spent a lot of money on food, there seemed to be very little of it. My kids would eat more often because the treats would be eaten first and they wanted to be sure to get some before it disappeared. Now, having this much food in the house prevents my children from over snacking and they make better choices. Who would have thought?

I have looked at other grocery saving websites but find this one the easiest and least time consuming to use. Now, every time I save money my kids ask me if I'm playing the Grocery Game. To try the Grocery Game visit www.grocerygame.com.