About the time we moved to our new house was when I first read Mary Hunt’s “Live Your Life for Half the Price.” The biggest piece of information I gathered from that book was about grocery shopping. Hunt suggests stocking your pantry by watching for sale items. Buy enough items to last until the next sale. This way you won’t run out of something and be forced to run to the store and pay full price. You can “shop” from your well-stocked pantry.

The trick is to watch the sales and match them with coupons to get the best deal. Of course, stocking your pantry does take a little up-front money, but once you’ve got a good stash, you can go a long time without going to the store (a real benefit when you live in the northwoods like me!)

There is a GREAT website called Couponmom.com. You have to register, but it’s totally free. Once you’re registered you can see what coupons to use at what stores to get the best deal. Stephanie Nelson has bargain information for stores like Target, Wal-Mart, and Walgreens, as well as grocery stores all over the country. Her mission is to help you save money, and hopefully, you will use your new bargain hunting skills to help cut out hunger by donating some of those finds to your local charity.

Bottom line: With a little research, you can find ways to get items for free or next to free.