Couponing 101~ My Way

Alright, so I'm taking a little break from posting pictures because well, it takes a long time and gets a little boring. But there will be more pictures posted today if not tomorrow. So keep a look out grandparents and family and of course friends!

I'm not sure I coupon like most couponers. Frist of all I'm not in the Extreme Couponing league. I only coupon what my family eats and uses as well or are willing to try for a good price. So I don't clip hair dye, makeup, or all bath and kitchen product coupons, etc. Maybe that's a big no no in couponing but I don't do that. Couponing already takes time and I'm mostly interested in obtaining only what we use.

So for those of you who want to start couponing, this is my take on it and what I do and how I got started. Here are some tips to keep in mind.

1) Don't stress!!! It takes time. And don't overwhelm yourself because then you'll be more than likely to quit.

2) Read blogs and articles on couponing. For me a big motivator was watching Extreme Couponing on TLC. I literally felt ill in my stomach watching them buy hundreds and even thousands of dollars on food and other things and only turn around and pay nickels and dimes (well if in the thousands range maybe $100- $150). Sometimes, I even saw episodes where they profited $50 dollars in a gift card. Yowzers!

3)Coupons are found everywhere!!!!! Best source is your Sunday paper. You can even get a special where you get 5 papers on Sundays. In the Sunday paper you'll get coupon booklets from Smartsource, Redplum and P&G Saver. BUT, don't forget the internet!!!! I'll leave this for #4

4)Coupons from the internet! If you use a product, go to their website and look for promotions and offers! If you join their mailing list they'll email you with savings! It's so easy and that will save you on things you buy anyways.

5)If your budget is tight and you want to start building a stockpile in your home, then this is a simple way to start. Save money by couponing what you use, then take the extra savings and apply it to couponing products on sale. Matching a SALE with a COUPON is BIG! That's where the savings is!
- Example: Sale on shampoo/conditioner-- Regular price $2.99 each. Sale price half off $1.50 each, add a coupon for $0.75, now your getting the shampoo for $0.75 each instead of $3!!! If this were me, and I usually buy two bottles at $6, I would now apply my savings to a stock pile. Now that I'm only spending $1.50 on both bottles, I'll go ahead and buy 8 bottles, using 8 coupons(4 shampoo/4 condtioner) and spend my normal $6. Walah! Now you don't have to buy shampoo for a few trips and you take that $6 you'd normally spend on the next few trips to buy shampoo and start a stockpile on other items. I started with deoderant. Funny as that sounds that's where my savings started. Then once I had a surplus, I moved on to shampoo, conditioner, toilet paper, toothpaste, etc.

6)Coupon websites!!!! Use them! I personally LOVE coupons.com. You can print up to 2 coupons per computer. There are many more sites, but this is one I use a lot. I have memberships to a lot, but I can't think of them off the top of my head. They email me, so I don't have to navigate to their websites anymore. Now all you have to do is check your email. You don't even have to scout for them anymore!

7a)Watch the sales ads! I watch ads from 5 grocery stores in my area. I compare prices and where I can get the best deals. Sometimes I'll only two stores on shopping day. Other times I hit all of them. It just depends. I usually get some of the ads in the Sunday paper, and then I look the others up online at the stores site. Maceys and Smith's Marketplace have their ads posted Tuesday evenings or sometimes you have to wait untill Wednesday morning. What I love about their sites is that you can make a grocery list using their site and print it off.

7b)smiths Marketplace has e-coupons. So if you have a loyalty card, you can load coupons from the website to your card and it's ready to use when you go to the store-- give it an hour to process through completely. I like this, but I hate it and let me tell you why. Like because it's a coupon!!! And I've gotten FREE things with this because they sometimes have a GET ONE FREE deal with no purchase necessary. Hate it Because you only get to use the coupon once. I like having a lot of coupons and being able to buy a lot. With this you only have one coupon. But I'll take any savings on diapers and such. And sometimes their coupons is the same a a paper coupon I have. So if I have 10 paper coupons, I'll be able to go to Smiths and buy 11, since I have an e-coupon as well. It's a great tool! Use it!

8)Save coupons! Watch expiration dates and watch the ads so you can match the coupon to the best sale.

9)Don't be afraid to NOT use a coupon. Yes, I mean that.... If there's not a sale, don't sweat it. Sometimes using a coupon just because you have a coupon can be costly to your budget. of course if you buy that product anyways and you need it, use the coupon. I'm talking about buying something you don't use or need just because you have a coupon for it. So, just because you have a coupon doesn't mean you have to use it.

10)when I cut my coupons, I pile the same page of the coupon ad together and clip all the same ones at the same times. I use to paperclip them together but that just gave me heartache in organizing them when I pulled one out or if came undone. So now I leave a little extra edge of paper on the coupons when I clip them and then staple the stack of the same coupons together! World of difference! Now all of the same coupons are bundled and I have a mini booklet for them. If you do this, be sure to leave an extra edge so you don't actually staple the coupon itself and rip it when you take a coupon off.

11)Use a binder to store your coupons, or an accordian file. Most of everyone uses binders with photo sheets in them and they can see all of their coupons with a flip of a page. That's too expensive for me... I use an old accordian folder I have with 12 pockets and I've labeled them accordingly. Snacks, Kids, Fridge Goods, Frozen Goods, etc. And then I have a carry case I also store coupons in. I'll explain more in a minute.

12)I use the binder for all my coupons! But I use the carry case for all the coupons I'll be using on my shopping trip. After I've gone through the ads and know what I'll be buying I take the coupons I need out of the accordian folder and put it into my carry case. Why? Because it saves me time and I don't have to search for it in the store. However, I still bring my accordian folder with me just in case I missed a coupon and didn't pull it out, or I see a sale that wasn't advertised and then I can easily find that coupon for the sale. This system works for me. This part is very personal and really just has to do with how you keep organized best.

13)Email sites for coupons! Write them letters! I hear that this can really score you big. I have yet to do this... Time is of an essence and I haven't tried this yet.

14)Facebook has coupons! Yes folks! Search for products there! Like the pages of products and a lot of the time they'll have printable coupons!!! I got a free bottle of Herbal Essence this way.

15)Restaurant Coupons! If you want to eat out, check and see what coupons are available to you! Check the promotions on their website or search for restaurant deals. Groupon.com and Coupons.com have local restaurant deals. My favorite one I've joined so far, Pretzelmaker.com. For joining we got a buy 1 get 1 Free. I had Jason join too! I do this alot.... :D And we recently got more email coupons from them. Love it! In fact we're headed to pretzelmaker in the mall again this week!

16)BOGO. Buy One Get One FREE! This is also great to combine with a coupon! It's just like half off!

17)If you can, go to the stores and scout it out before you go shopping. Not all sales are advertised. Bring a pen and paper. How I wish I could do this. But we live 30 minutes away from most of my shopping destinations not to mention my kids would hate this... So I rely wholly on ads.

18)Be focused on your shopping trip. Watch for deals. Maybe you planned on using a coupons for one particular fruit snack, and you get to the store and find out there's a better sale on another brand even without using your coupon. Bag the coupons for the fruit snacks and score the sale deal instead! Saving money is key.

19)Think ahead. Maybe you don't need deoderant or soap right now... but there's an amazing sale and you've got coupons..... Use it! Especially if it's a savings of 50% or more!! Be flexible in what you buy with coupons to benefit you in the longrun.

20)Watch the REGISTER! Make sure everything is going through priced correctly and that your coupons are scanning!!!!

21)This doesn't happen often, but sometimes there is a limit of how many coupons you can use of the same kind. Or the store has a limit (I haven't ran into the store problem, but I've seen it on TV). For the coupon limit it's usually 4 of the same kind. So, ask if you can do separate transactions and split them up. Or bring someone else with you. Or go back to the store again. One lady said she would load her groceries in the car, and then go back in again. LOL

22)Don't go crazy with coupons! This goes back to tip #9. You can go completely the other way and instead of saving money, overspend. So be serious, and watch what you're putting in the cart. Be realistic.

23)Now that you've got your goods and lots of it, organize it and mark expiration dates so that you can view them better. There's no use in a stockpile if your goods are all bad.

24)I forgot to mention this, but with Smith's Marketplace and having membership and a loyalty card there are benefits! As in cash reward, they mail you money vouchers, or you get fuel rewards. Every time you swipe your membership card when you pay, you get points added. As you walk around the store, there are things marked as double points. Also, I belive prescription drugs at their pharmacy also scroes double points. Check out their website if you have a Smith's near you and look at the reward options and thieir e-coupon set up. www.smithsfoodanddrug.com

Other Benefits to Couponing~ other than the obvious of saving money.

1)There comes a peace of mind with having a stockpile. It helps me to know I have the means to feed and care for my family if money were tight. We have groceries in the house no matter what for a good period of time.

2)My kids are learning at an early age the value of a buck, or a penny in this case. Cents add up.

3)Being able to give to others. We have a lot of some food items and so I feel that my family is able to give to individuals in our community who do not have as much.

4)I think it's important for kids to feel secure in food. I've heard stories of kids going hungry and not having food in the house and how it really hurts them mentally as well as physically. Security in food for kids, to know that they have it when they want it or need it is big. Even when money has been tight in our family, sacrificing our food budget has NEVER been an option. Or limiting what our kids eat or snack on is not something Jason and I have done. We've made our cuts elsewhere or woked more hours to provide.

5)Flexibility! I don't know about you but have you ever felt your budget was limiting you? We have a $230 budget every two weeks, or $460 a month I need to stick to, so before couponing I felt extremely restricted. Expecially with prices the way they are today. And it's still climbing... Since I've started couping, there is now flexibility with my shopping. I don't have to buy shampoo, conditioner, toothepaste, toothbrushes, femanine products, paper towels, fruit snacks, cereal, and etc for a LONG time, so I have extra money to build my stockpile with. And now I don't feel restricted. This is an amzing feeling!

6)And it's plain fun for me to coupon! It satisfies my want to go crazy shopping and grab tons of stuff. :) And it's fun to see the savings and see what we take home from the trip.

So, go on! Start couponing! Start slow or hit it fast, but don't get overwhelmed. And it takes about a month to get into the groove of things. So hang on. Hope this helps! It's my little coupon journey. Smile! You're saving money!!!

Saving Money 101~ Viator Way

Obviously you're reading this if you want to save money. Couponing is not the only way. So here is more tips regarding savings. Don't worry this won't be a novel like it is up there, just some brief notes.

1)Look at your expenses. Do you eat out a lot? Do you set a budget for yourself or your family? Make cuts where needed. Pack a lunch instead of buying. Occasionally treat yourself of course (using a coupon). Life is dull without perks!

2)Cut cable expenses. Look at your cell phone plan. Are you paying to much or paying for services you don't use?

3)This is a BIG ONE~~ If you're buying a house, buy at the BOTTOM of your budget!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Do not buy at the top! That's insane and you'll regret it! It's basically maxed you out on what you have available to spend monthly and saying that you can pay that to your mortgage. You're broke! Will that leave you with money for emergencies? Repairs? When you own a house you are the landlord. If the furnace, water heater or fridge cut out on you, well, there's no one to call to take care of the bill.

4)I hate hearing this... But I see and hear it a lot... We'll have kids after we buy a house big enough for one. So what happens is this, couple buys a house on two incomes, they can afford it right now, with two incomes. But what happens when they have kids? Is it still going to be two incomes? The mortgage was set up with earnings of two incomes and what they could afford. And even if Mom and Dad continue to work there are now medical bills, child care bills, upgrading to a family insurance plan costs more money, and if you don't have insurance, each wellness check/immunization visit is going to cost you at least $100 and more if your getting shots (and there are a ton of them the first two years). The cost of caring for a baby in general~ formula a diapers are EXPENSIVE!!!!! A can of formula is $22- 27 dollars in the lower range. And you can't just buy different brands that come on sale. You have to stick to the same one once you start, because babies have sensitive stomachs. And at 11 months old, one can would last Lily 3 days. We were on WIC and they gave us 7 cans a month, but towards the last three months we were spending $150- $180 on Similac formula. Do the math. I get irritated with this comment of waiting to have kids until I have this or do this... For Jason and I it worked out best to have two kids then buy a home. We already knew the expenses of having kids and are already paying for their care. So we didn't get into a huge, nice house but we got into one we could afford. So that is my spill on buying a home. Be realistic. Honestly, kids cost more than parents in my opinion. Kids have helped us save money. I really mean that. And have blessed us significantly!

5)Live within your means. If you don't have the money don't buy it. As in new clothes, and I-Pod, things that you dont' need but more so want.

6)Credit cards are BAD! It's not your money! It's someone else and they are charging you interest! Have one credit card for emergencies. Emergencies!!!! ONLY!

7)Take good care of what you have.

8)Go to free entertainment when possible. The fair that came into town was fun for the kids, the animals, parades, fireworks. FREE of Charge! My kids did want a Navajo taco at the fair, but they were like $5 each and I dont' carry cash. So I went home and made it for them within 20 minutes. Hmmmm..... 2 cups flour, 1 cup milk, salt, baking powder oil.... I made like 15 for less than $5 for sure. Don't get me wrond, I do buy my kids stuff and heavens we do take them to eat out 2-4 times a month. But I teach them the value of money this way and show them, look! We made our own, got a lot more for it and saved tons of money!

These are just tips and what not. They work for my family and maybe they can help yours as well! Take care!