Great Things Come in Small Packages

It has finally arrived, yes, the beloved Walgreens Rebate Giftcard. Great things do come in small packages. There really weren't THAT many great deals this week, not stuff we necessarily needed or really used. HOWEVER, since I got that nifty little gift card, I went coupon shopping at Wags this afternoon. I ended up purchasing:

• 4 rolls of Bounty
• 4 bags of Ghiradelli chocolates
• 2 things of tape
• Air Wick air freshner kit
• A birthday card (for sister)

These best thing is that I ended up making $1.01!!! And I get a rebate off the air freshner for this month's rebates at Wags. Life is good! I honestly do not know why this gives me such a thrill. I do like being frugal, being responsible with my family's finances. It is important to us that we have money to give back to the Lord, and money to support our family. I am slowly learning little tricks here and there to help us financial. Here are some big ones I've learned, that have worked for me:

• Always go in with a list (I list the sales price by each time, and a C if I have a coupon(s) for it.
• Have into the "Get in, Get out" mentality (Don't go to shop around; even when I do coupon shop, I do my research first. I coupon-shop for specific items).
• You're just headed for trouble if you go into a store with no list, no preparation.
• Don't shop when you're hungry.
• Get ONLY what's on the list (even my husband has to remind me of this one).
• Don't buy just because it's a "good" deal (I really don't pick up extras unless it is free, or VERY close to free).
• Don't be ashamed to ask prices and use coupons.
• Do frequent small trips, as oppose to few LARGE purchases. (I've saved quite a bit making small trips to Wags and CVS, and using the register rewards or CVS Bucks for subsequent purchases).
• Don't be lazy - look for rebates (then be patient waiting for the mail).
• I put rebate moneys back into savings until it's needed.
• Calculate an item's economicality (not sure if I made up that work, but what I mean it, which is cheaper per item - that small bottle of ketcup or the family jumbo size).
• Bigger is not always better (I used to buy TP at Costco, but there just isn't the space, and honestly, I can get TP and paper towels for pretty cheap hitting sales and coupons).
• Outside of dairy, bread, produce, there are FEW items I will buy if it's not on-sale AND I have a coupon for it.
• Self-discipline!

In closing, here's a picture of my little beauty that brought me happiness!

My New Shopping Companion

Those of you who know me well, know I'm always out for a good deal. Now, in attempts at finding the best deals, I've done everything from clipping coupons, scour Sunday ads, begged other people's coupons (no I'm not ashamed - desperate to stretch pennies perhaps), etc. I've tried many different ways of organizing my coupons - because I end up with tons each week, and yes, I do use tons. When I get groceries, I will save AT LEAST 65% of my grocery bill. I DO NOT pay for shampoo, toothpaste, shower gel, or toothbrushes anymore - this is simply because I can almost always get them for free, and when I can I stock up.

Well, with that background, I've gone from envelop sorting, to a little pocket file, to a little recipe box...it was just too difficult to weed through my coupons though. So in an attempt to save more time (and essentially money), I created my own version of a basic coupon organizing album. It's really simple. You take take a plain photo album. Figure out what categories you shop for. Label each tab with its corresponding category. I'd leave quite a few spaces if it's a category that usually purchase often, or have a lot of coupons for. For me, it's air freshner, cleaning products, lunch meat, paper products, and beauty products.

Below are some pictures of my "coupon" album. I acutally find this less awkward than my original blackbox. Surprisingly, I've received less stares.

Babys R Us Coupon

Here's a coupon for $20 off a Graco Quattro Tour Travel System - Catalina!

Babys R Us Coupon Here

Enjoy!

Free Glade @ Vons

Alright guys (gals), hurry to Vons! Right now, Glade aerosols are on sale for $1 each. If you hav ea $1 off coupon from Sunday ad or magazine, it's free! Also, baking mixes are on sale. I bought quite a few for under $1 (w/ coupon).

I just got back from picking up some milk and other "stuff." I used a coupon on EVERYTHING, except the milk. I saved 65% of my bill! It all originally rung up to $40+, and with coupons and Vons member discounts, I came out spending $14.16. Not bad!

Coupons Totally Blow My Mind!!!

I made a pretty neat discovery a couple days ago. So we all know there are store coupons and manufacterer's coupons (in Sunday paper). Well, I have discovered (since I'm new to the couponing thing), that "most" stores take manufacterer's coupons ON TOP of their store coupons. I was totally stoked. Yesterday I went to Target during my lunch break. I got Natty a box of wipes and a thing of head & body wash - both Huggies brand, because I love them. The totally was actually UNDER $2. I was totally excited. AND since I had the $5 giftcard from purchasing diapers from them last week, I actually spend NOTHING, and still have a little over $3 on the giftcard. Woo Hoo for coupons and Target!

Target Paid Me to Shop There!

So...today was a FANTASTIC day to find a deal. If you notice the picture below, I actually MADE $0.50 from Target! What a steal! I'm slowly learning how to stretch our dollar just a little bit more, and maybe even make some! Oh, and tomorrow, we're getting two boxes of Huggies at Target for 25 after coupons, $5 giftcard you get for buying huggies, and 2 $5 giftcards I earned today for purchasing Kellogg's products at Target. Woo Hoo!



Needless to say, I love Target...oh, yes, and coupon-bargain shopping!