Organization and money saving

I have decided that its time buckle down and save some money where possible and Im starting with the grocery store. ha!! Why the grocery?!?! First off, I have several friends who are always telling me how much they saved at the grocery etc.......... Let me remind you I DO NOT like the grocery store one bit! It could have something to do with HOW MUCH is in the store. I tend become overwhelmed when faced with a HUGE amount of anything. Its like I dont know where to start....I have always been this way. As a child my mom would send me to clean my room and thirty minutes later she would walk by and there I would be sitting and staring at the mess. She would literally have to point me to one corner and tell me to work my way around the room....that was the only way I could overcome the overwhelmed feeling and get the room clean. haha!! I love Marshalls and TJ Maxx but I can honesltly say that I have very few items from either store. Why? Because Im so overwhelmed with ALL the clutter and amounts of EVERYTHING they have. If its not on a mannequin or screaming buy me then I dont see it. Im not very good at digging through racks and piles....its just too much for me.

Okay so back to the grocery store! I have decided its time to clip coupons and make grocery lists! Aaron and I are very guilty about just going to the store and grabbing what looks good. We have zero dinner ideas....we just grab the basics.....egg, milk, chicken, pasta etc. I then spend all week going back to the store for all the extras that my recipes call for!!! Crazy I know! Aaron and I both enjoy cooking so this is something we do often however we could make this easy for both of us. I just recently signed up for Shortcuts.com.....this is wonderful!! Here I created an acct for my Kroger plus card and all I have to do is go through the coupons on this site and simply click the ones I want....they go directly to my Kroger card so all I have to do is give the clerk my card and it will apply the coupons for the items purchased. BRILLANT! I dont even have to sort through the paper ones in my purse....but keep in mind sometimes those paper ones may not be on Shortcuts.com so they are worth cutting and keeping. Ive also started reading the grocery ads {you can do this online} to see who has the best deal on items I need.

So Monday {Im going to start on Sundays though} I sat down and made a simple dinner menu for the week.
For Ex....This is literally how it looked......

*Taco Salad

*Poppy Seed Chicken Casserole, rice, green beans

*Spaghetti and salad

*PorkChops or Chicken, baked Mashed Potatos, Salad

You can see its simple and gives me an idea of what we can eat for the week...no specific nights just dinner ideas for the week. So I then went through and jotted down the items I needed from the grocery store for these meals. Of course lunch and breakfast stuff was added but I keep lunch and breakfast quick and easy. Once I had my grocery list I then searched for coupons and the best deals. SO SIMPLE all it takes is a little time and planning! Im very excited to watch the weekly reciept amount dwindle down each week.

Does anyone have any other TIPS to share....I NEED THEM!! I have never made a budget or really watched my spending but Im very excited to start!!