Regional Blogs = Savings at the Grocery Store

I've been a little bummed ever since Kroger's stopped carrying the 4-pack Cottonelle toilet tissue that I'd been able to get for free with coupons. So I was quite happy to see that Kroger's had Angel Soft toilet paper on sale this week for $1 and that there were 50-cent coupons floating around, making this free. But wait --- I wasn't going to go shopping until my next paycheck other than to pick up milk, so I hadn't even looked at the Kroger ad this week. So how did I notice this deal? What happened?

What happened was, I read a few blogs! I first noticed the deal mentioned on www.moneysavingmom.com, then on www.commonsensewithmoney. Then I checked the central Ohio blogs I follow, and they confirmed the deal was good in my area. This morning when I stopped at the store to get milk, I picked up 4 packs of the toilet paper, using two 50-cent coupons from the newspaper inserts and two 50-cent coupons printed off of www.angelsoft.com, making all 4 packs free!

While Moneysaving Mom and Common Sense with Money are my main go-to sites for every day deals, I have found several regional blogs to be invaluable. They save me time and a lot of money by matching up sales and coupons, and nearly every week I find a deal that I wouldn't have noticed otherwise. For example, I had stopped shopping much at Meijer because their prices are higher than Kroger and Wal-Mart, but since I found a blog that matches Meijer deals, I have been realizing some pretty good savings by shopping their sales.

If you live in central Ohio, please check out these blogs. They will help you stretch your dollars even further:

http://www.stretchingabuckblog.com/
http://bargainbriana.com/
http://www.dealseekingmom.com/

For other areas of the country, please check out http://www.becentsable.blogspot.com/2008/08/becentsables-original-grocery-gathering.html to find a blogger who specializes in deals and sales in your area.

Don't forget to head on over to www.lifeasmom.com for more Frugal Friday ideas!