Each month, the average family of four spends around $600 or more on groceries and toiletries for their family, says Aimee Guess, couponing expert and writer of the nationally known blog, www.SaveAtHomeMommy.com.  She spends countless hours finding deals and coupons that will help families save money.  She encourages families to stock up on necessary household items when you see a good deal for two reasons:  you can save money, and you’ll have them when needed.

“When it comes to saving money for your family, it’s important to stock up when you see a good deal. This will keep you from buying items at their highest price. For instance, my family’s favorite cereal can run as high as $3.99 per box at some stores. When grocery stores have a promotion on this cereal, I look for a coupon I can use to go with that sale. Then, I can get our favorite cereal at its lowest possible price. I would never pay more than $1.00 for a box of cereal,” says Guess.

“What is nice about SaveAtHomeMommy.com is we go through all the grocery store ads (Albertsons, Vons, FoodsCo, Smart & Final, Save Mart, and Fresh & Easy) and drug store ads (CVS, Rite-Aid, Walgreens, Target, and Walmart) each week, find the best deals, match those deals with coupons, and share all those deals with you. It’s completely free for you to use,” she says.  “I typically buy the majority of my groceries at Vons or Albertsons. I find that when I can buy items on sale and use a coupon, I’m able to get much better deals at those stores than the warehouse grocery stores.”

Monthly Spending

Breakdowns

According to Guess, the average family of four spends the following each month on these household items:  

Toilet Paper - at least $30.00 

Milk - $25.00

Cereal - $28.00

Eggs - $15.00

Local organizational expert and mother of four boys, Joy Rodriguez, says she organizes these bulk purchases in her pantry and plans her meals according to what items she already has on hand.  Keeping your pantry well-organized also reduces the amount of clutter in your kitchen.  “When organizing your pantry, keep in mind the way your favorite grocery store is organized. Keep canned food on one shelf, breakfast items on another, and snacks in another area,” she says.  “They pay experts to organize their store efficiently, so why not use them as a model?”

For more organizational tips, visit Just Organize Yourself on Facebook or Joy’s blog at justorganizeyourself.blogspot.com.