I’ve become quite an avid coupon user (read: totally & completely hooked on it). Once you start to learn all the tips/tricks and find yourself some good resources, couponing can become a little bit of an OBSESSION! I think I’ve officially entered the “Crazy Coupon Lady” phase and I have the giant coupon binder to prove it! I seriously get so freakin’ excited about saving big money and stockpiling items my family needs. Four months ago, when I quit my job to become a SAHM, couponing was a way to still purchase the items we need/want within a drastically reduced budget. Now, couponing is a way of life and every day I get a little better at scoring awesome deals. But rather than just jabber on about how much I totally rock for couponing, I’ll show you an example of a couple of recent shopping trips.

Before I do that, here’s a brief rundown of some of the couponing “lingo” I use in this post. For a more comprehensive list, go here:

- B1G1F = “Buy One Get One Free”
- Q or CPN = Coupon
- MQ or MFR = Manufacturers Coupon
- BC = Before Coupons
- OOP = Out of Pocket (actual cash paid)

Target shopping trip - 9/25/2009

TARGET
Total BC = $26.99
Total OOP = $3.67 !!!
Saved = $23.32 (or 86%)

The breakdown:

Scotch Lint Roller – sale priced $2.19
- $1 Target CPN
- $1 MFR (Yes! You can “stack” a Target coupon with a Manufacturer coupon!)
= $0.19

Wonka Gummies – $1.59
- $1 Target CPN (a treat, AKA: bribe, for my boys to get them to behave during this trip)
= $0.59

Purina One Dry Cat Food – $5.89 x 2
- $2 Target CPN (used 2 Qs)
- $3 MFR (used 2 Qs)
= $0.89 ea. (x2 = $1.78)

Fancy Feast Appetizers – $1.29 x 8
- B1G1F Target CPN (used 4 Qs)
- B1G1F MFR (used 4 Qs)
= 2 FREE (x4 = 8 FREE)

Walmart trip - 9/25/2009

WALMART
Total BC = $47.79
Total OOP = $23.63
Total Saved = $24.16 (or 50%)

The breakdown:

Glade Sense & Spray Starter Kit – on rollback for $5.00 x 2
- $4 MFR (used 2 Qs)
= $1.00 ea. (x2 = $2.00)

Ajax Anti-bacterial Dish Liquid – $1.78
- $1 MFR
= $0.78

Nature Valley Nut Clusters w/Almonds – $2.28 x 2
- $1.60 MFR (used 2 Qs)
= $0.68 ea. (x2 = $1.36)

Hot Wheels Cars – $0.92 (x2 = $1.84)
No CPN, another bribe for the boys. When you have both a 2 and 1 year old with you, “whatever works”, works! Dum-dums help too!

Cottonelle Soothing Clean Wipes – $1.98 x 4
- B1G1F MFR (used 2 Qs)
= $0.99 ea. (x4 = $3.96)

Colgate Total Plus Whitening Toothpaste 2-pack – $3.00
- $1 MFR
= $2.00 for 2

Pull-ups Flushable Wipes – $1.64 x 4
- $2/2 MFR (use 2 Qs)
= $0.64 ea. (x4 = $2.56)

Wet Ones Travel Pack – $0.97 (x2 = $1.94)
No CPN for these

Spiderman Mini-Poster/Sticker – $0.50 on clearance

Listerine Total Care Mouthwash – on rollback for $5.00
- $2 MFR
= $3.00

Scrapbooking 3D-Dots – $1.50
No CPN

I forgot to give the cashier a $1 CPN for the Ajax, but in the end I made out anyway because he accidentally rang up one of the $2 CPNs twice. He knew it too and let is slide because it was “too late” to fix it. The Walmart trip wasn’t quite as lucrative as the Target trip, but 50% ain’t nothing to scoff at!

These are just two examples of countless similar shopping trips. So how do I get all my coupons? How do I know how to match up MFR and store specific coupons to get the best deals? I print LOTS of internet printable coupons in addition to the inserts in the Sunday paper. I visit many couponing blogs every day that give fabulous tips and tricks! I have myself SUPER organized (more on that in another post). Lastly, I have family/friends who save & send coupons to me as well. If you go to the “Links” section at the top of the page, you’ll see I have 20+ “Money Saving Sites” listed, but these are by far the Top 5 blogs I visit:

LOVE THESE MONEY SAVING BLOGS:
- A Thrifty Mom
- It’s Hip to Save!
- Cha-ching on a Shoestring
- Coupon Gal
- Common Sense With Money

And of course, the following sites are stalked often, if not weekly:

INTERNET COUPONS:
- Coupons.com
- P&G eSAVER
- RedPlum.com
- Shortcuts.com
- SmartSource.com
- Target Coupon Generator

Happy shopping!

I’m in a serious funk! My energy & mood levels are down, my impatience & irritation is up. Oh no! I’m failing the SAHM test! Already?! I called my girlfriend Mary and kinda unloaded via voicemail (sorry girl, love ya!). By the time she called me back, I was totally over it. How did I get over it so quickly? I took the kids to Target and I spent money. BEST DANG THERAPY IN THE WORLD!

But seriously, let’s just say that today was “one of them days!”. I’m learning (the hard way) that toddlers cannot be entertained with a DVD for a “few moments”, while Mom squirrels away to do some graphic work on the computer. Because even though it’s relatively quiet on the other side of that office door, total secret mayhem is actually taking place in your living room. This time the havoc came via an entire bag of potato chips turned upside down and spread throughout the living room (I still curse the day that Quentin learned how to open the pantry door). Also, a torn off diaper and lovely poop trails scattered down the hall. I really should have taken a picture, you’d have been much entertained! In their defense, what was supposed to take a few minutes ended up taking MUCH longer (not even sure how long, I lost track of time) because I was having serious technical difficulties. But, we live and learn, right? Next time, I’ll just have to wait until after their bed time before I decide to go all “Office Space” with that piece of sh*t printer that keeps eating my freakin’ labels. So much for doing productive personal stuff during the day. I guess I must resign myself to the fact that my kids 0wn m3. If I could just come to terms with the fact that this life is truly now “my job” and that I’m not just on vacation! And God, if you could just send me a tiny bit more of that magical stuff called “patience” (or a valium). KTHXBYE.