Walmart Price-Match
- The Walmart near us, and other Walmarts I’ve been to, offer Price-Match: they will match competitor’s advertised pricing. Bring current flyers from other grocery stores, and be prepared at the check-out to give competitor’s pricing to the check-out clerk. It helps to put your price match items on last, so you have a chance to get all your grocery items on the counter and still have time to quickly pull out your flyers. Let the check-out clerk know ahead of time where your price-match items start at – eg. the jugs of milk. It also helps to have them memorized or written down and which flyer to look in if you need to show proof. They will not usually match dissimilar items. For example, don’t expect to get a different brand than what is listed on sale – for instance, don’t expect to get Land-O-Lakes butter if it’s the store brand on sale in the flyer. (They will match another store-brand with their store-brand).

Shop the Sales
- Seems like a no-brainer, but at the same time, you have to count your gas, and time, too, so try to limit it to two, or at the most, three stores. Pick the ones with the consistently lowest prices, the best sales, the products you favor, and the closest to home.

Save Gas
- Shop close to home, with the most efficient drive route, and try to shop no more than once a week, on your way home from work, or along with another appointment or errand. As an example, gas is currently about $3.13/gallon (actually, it’s gone up quite a bit now!). A Honda Odyssey minivan is supposed to get 18 – 19mpg in the city (27 – 28mpg on the highway), so going 5 miles to the grocery store and back (10 miles round trip) will cost you about $1.65. That’s not bad, but double or triple that and it can eat into the savings you’re trying to get by shopping the sales.

Fry’s and Coupons
- Fry’s will accept all grocery competitor coupons (eg. Safeway, Bashas’, Albertsons, Fresh & Easy, Walmart, Target, Whole Foods, etc). All manufacturers’ coupons are worth $1 (except those worth more than a dollar, which are redeemed at face value).

Bring Your Own Bags
– Fry’s (Kroger) will credit you $0.05/bag, as will Sprout’s (Arizona). Ask at other stores to see if they will, too. It doesn’t seem like much, but if you’re getting 10 bags of groceries, that’s still $0.50 a trip.

Read Over Your Receipts
– If at all possible, watch while the groceries are rung up, especially the sale items, and definitely read over your receipt to make sure there has not been any mistakes. If you can read it over before you leave the store, all the better. It’s easier to correct if caught immediately and it will possibly save an extra trip back to the store.

Count as You Shop
– Add prices as you fill the cart so you have at least an estimate of the final total. You can either round the prices and keep a running tally in your head (or the side of your grocery list), or bring a calculator. If you’re on a limited budget, this also helps save hassle and embarassment at the checkout.

Know Your Prices
- Know a good price when you see it and avoid buying things when the price is too high. Learn what the regular price is for the items you usually shop for, so you will know when it is overpriced (maybe you can get by without it until it comes down in price or goes on sale), and when it really is a good sale. Often a store will make up for the loss-leaders (those really good deals on the front of the sales flyer) by raising prices on other staples. Some stores do this more than others, and you really have to be careful if you’re trying to watch those dollars and cents.

Try a Cheaper Brand
- Especially if it’s an item you eat a lot of, or is generally high-priced, try a cheaper, no-name, or store brand. If after tasting it, it turns out totally unacceptable as a substitute, most stores will give you your money back if you bring the item back in to return it (mostly uneaten/unused, in original packaging, with receipt, of course!).

Bring Coupons!
– Cut (or print out) coupons, at least for the items you buy frequently or are likely to use. Don’t buy something just because it’s a good deal, if it may sit on the shelf until it’s covered with dust and past it’s expiration date!! Remember to bring those coupons to the store with you, and to pull them out at the check out!! They’re no good if you don’t remember to use them! It’s a good idea to have some kind of organization system, even if it’s just an envelope in your purse, and to go through them regularly to remind yourself of what you have, and discard those that are out of date. There are some real coupon-cutting pros out there on the web (I am not one of them) who have lots of tips and tricks, and coupon websites, as well.

Take Stock of Your Cupboards (and Fridge)
- It’s easy to lose track of how many cans of tomato sauce you have in the cupboard, or carrots in the bottom drawer of the fridge. Take stock of your cupboards while planning your shopping trip. You don’t want to waste money on things you don’t need, while at the same time, you don’t want to miss a good sale on something you are almost out of (like toilet paper!)

Bring a List
- Don’t go to the grocery store without a list! Unless you’re only going for a couple items, it’s just too easy to forget. Plus, know what you HAVE to get on that list, and what you can live without. You can even do a little math ahead of time in your head, if you’re able, to get an estimate of the final cost. This will help in prioritizing and give you an idea of how much leeway you have to stock up on a good sale, or for extra treats (but not too many of those, or you’ll regret it next week when you need that money)!

Plan Menus Around the Sales
- Within reason, of course. I’m not suggesting that just because something is on sale that you have to feed it to your family. Rather, for example, if chicken is on sale, maybe roast chicken will do nicely for Sunday dinner; while if ground beef is on sale, then meatloaf instead.

Stock Up on Good Sales
– Stock up as much as you can on items you use when they are on a good sale. (But not too much or you’ll constantly blow your monthly budget and end up with a cupboard (or freezer) full of goods that may expire before you get around to eating them all.)

Keep Your Receipts and Don’t Be Afraid to Return Things
- If there’s a rotten potato in your bag, or the milk tastes like it’s turning, if the product is outdated, if the meat smells even though it’s dated for today, generally if the product is spoiled, damaged (not by you!), outdated, stale, or just tastes bad or doesn’t perform the way it should, RETURN IT! The only logical reason NOT to do this is if it will cost you more in time and gas than it is worth. Keep your receipts!

If you use grocery delivery from Safeway.com (and I have), you will find that although you will sometimes end up with a selection you would not have chosen had you been at the store yourself, especially when it comes to perishables (eg. fruits and vegetables), they are very good about giving you a refund if the problem is reported promptly. Just call the customer service number with receipt in hand.

Make your own prom outfit, including an accessory, with fabric and other products from Jo-Ann Fabric and Craft Store or JoAnn.com. Open to students ages 14-19. This contest began on January 9, 2011, at 12:01 a.m. Eastern Time. All entries must be received by 11:59:59 p.m. ET on June 15, 2011.

Grand Prize Winner will receive $50,000 cash.
Second Prize Winner will receive $5,000 cash.
Third Prize Winner will receive $2,500 cash.

“Student entrants must make a prom garment AND an accessory using materials purchased at a Jo-Ann Fabric and Craft Store or from Joann.com®. Accessories include, but are not limited to, purses, jewelry, headwear, corsages and shoes for females and capes, jewelry, headwear and boutonnieres for males. Student entrants may make the garment and accessory for themselves, or for a family member, or for a friend. Student entrant must make the garment and accessory with little or no assistance from others.”

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Google Science Fair
$50,000 Grand Prize (Scholarship)

The competition is open to students aged 13 to 18 from around the world working on their own or in a team of two or three. Apply now! Project must be submitted by 4 April 2011. For more details, see Science Fair Rules page.

There will be 3 Finalist Winners, one in each age category 13-14, 15-16, 17-18. One of the 3 Finalist Winners will be selected as the Grand Prize Winner.

Grand Prize Winner – $50,000 scholarship from Google (split equally between team members should a team win this prize). Plus, a 10 day trip to the Galapagos Islands with National Geographic Expeditions.

Finalist Winner Prizes – $25,000 scholarship from Google (split equally between team members should a team win this prize). Plus, one of their Once in a Lifetime Experiences.

Peoples Choice Award Prize – $10,000 scholarship from Google (split equally between team members should a team win this prize).