Coupon World

I know that I have been M.I.A. from blogging. I wanted to tell you about my new hobby. I guess you could call it that. I have been getting into the couponing world. It really takes a lot of time if you want to do it right. I have found myself spending way too much time doing this. I have not been doing it long enough to know if we are spending less money over all. But I know that I am getting some good deals. I love getting free stuff. I have been able to get free and almost free items either through the mail or with coupons.

This all started a few months ago when I took a coupon class. A friend of mine told me about it, and I had been trying to use coupons but I just felt like I was not saving money. At the class the lady told us about how she set up her coupon binder. She would cut out coupons and put them in this binder according to categories. She used baseball card holders in the binder to hold all of her coupons. I can tell you right now that I have not done this. I just don't have time to cut out every coupon, and plus I know that I would never use all of those coupons. But here is what I am doing. I get the Sunday paper every week. I don't cut any of the coupons out unless I am going to use them. Then I just save the coupons and put the date on the front of the first page. Usually we get the Red Plum and Smart Source. Then I learned about reading blogs at the coupon class. There are probably hundreds of people that blog about using coupons. They will list the store and what is on sale from the Sunday ad. Then they will match up the sale price with a coupon so you get an even better discount. On these blogs they will list SS for Smart Source or RP for Red Plum. Then they will give the date of when they were sent out. Since I have been saving all my coupons, I just go through my stack and look for either SS or RP and the right date. Then I find the coupon and cut it out. It is just easier for me to do this then keep a huge binder.

There are a few stores that I like to go to. I use to just shop at Wal-Mart, but now I have branched out. I still go to Wal-Mart but not as often. I go to CVS, Walgreens, and Homeland. I will occasionally go to Target. I think that I have found the best deals so far at CVS. They have similar prices to Walgreens, but usually they are just a little bit cheaper. What I like about CVS and Walgreens is that they have Register Rewards or Cash Back. That means they will give you a print out with your recite to use on your next visit. If you use the money from week to week they call that "rolling." Who knew that couponing had its own language. They also call it playing the drug store game. I like this game because I have gotten shampoo, toothpaste, toothbrushes, deodorant, body wash, and many other things for very cheap. The only problem that I have is that I have very little space to store these things. I try not to go overboard and just get what we need. The lady that taught the class talked a lot about paying it forward. That means she likes to give away many of the items that she gets. She works at her church as a volunteer, and she has been able to provide her church with many food items through her couponing. I hope to also be able to give away the items to those in need.

I thought that I would share a few blogs that I like to read.
This one is my favorite one from a local lady. It really helps having someone local because they have the same stores and get the same coupons. Here is the website http://www.simplesavingsavvy.net/.

Here are some other local ladies that have blogs.
http://www.couponprincess.net/
http://www.consumerqueen.com/ ( she lost almost everything in flood that we had a few weeks ago, my heart just goes out to her)

Another blog that I really like but is not local is http://www.momsbyheart.net/

A blog that just has tons of stuff on it everyday is http://www.moneysavingmom.com/

Then if you like Target you should check out http://www.totallytarget.com/

There really are so many more, but these are just a few that I like to look at.

This has just been something that I have started to get into that I thought that I would share. I am sure there is still more that I need to learn. Chad and I have been blessed with money, but I want to make wise spending decisions. I also love to shop for a good bargain. I think I have a little bit of my dad in me.