Ways to cut your grocery bills (and feed your family more than just Ramen)

January 3, 9:29 AMPhiladelphia Family & Parenting ExaminerMaria Neels

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Illustration by Maria Neels

Even though times are tough, you and your family still need to eat more than mac and cheese and Ramen noodles. My hubby and I have been actively cutting down our grocery bill mostly because our son's medical costs have made things very tight for us. We obviously can't cut out the medical costs and have cut back on most of the extras. Here is what I have found:

There are a lot of Web sites where moms combine coupons and weekly sales. I never used coupons because I didn't have time to make them worth it, but it takes the work out of them. These two I follow most - they are mostly PA moms.

http://www.moneysavingmom.com/

http://www.momsneedtoknow.com/ 

I also started shopping at CVS and Walgreens - sounds crazy, but a lot of times I can get things about 80 percent off there with coupons and special deals and so it accounts for the mark up they always have. I mostly get razors, shampoo, conditioners and Tylenol. (Example: I got 5 large containers of Children's Tylenol brand Tylenol for about $2 a bottle a few months ago and they will last us until next summer, well before they expire. I often get shampoo and conditioner for free or less than a dollar as well and I know we're generally stocked up).

You can get the weekly paper, with coupons, at the dollar stores for $1 a week. Buying multiple copies of good weeks help stock up for weeks there are not good ones. It also helps you take advantage of buy one get one free deals. Say Juicy Juice is BOGO at Acme - about $4- and you have two $1 off coupons, you can get two bottles for $2. That's a lot less than the store brand juice.

I have been buying our fruits and veggies at Tanner Brothers Dairy Farm in Ivyland, PA  http://www.tannerbrothersdairy.com/ , but know there are similar farms around. They have local apples for $.69/pound, blueberries for $1.70 ish a little box and a lot of their produce is local so it tends to last longer. Their milk is hormone free and is cheaper as are their eggs. They only accept cash and checks, but I go there once every 10 days and bring $30 or so and can feed my family lots of fruits and veggies for that. We round out the meals with pasta and meats.

Hope this helps your family save more, spend less and still eat healthy!