The Original Coupon Coach

Amy | October 31, 2009

Visit Tabasco’s website to get a printable coupon for $0.50 off any Tabasco Sauce!  Enjoy!

Category: Printable Coupons | No Comments »
Tags: Printable Coupons

Amy | October 30, 2009

If you are anything like me, you are probably very vigilant about your childrens’ safety.  And the one subject I am constantly looking for information on is car seat safety.  I have found some resources in the past, but I never knew if I could fully trust the information because I didn’t know where exactly that information was coming from.

Then I found out about the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), which is actually a government agency dedicated to helping parents make safe choices when it comes to car seats.  Additionally, this agency offers help on how to install and use car seats properly to ensure maximum safety.

So, what types of free resources does this agency offer?  I’m glad you asked!

• Twitter:  You can find the NHTSA on Twitter (@ChildSeatSafety).  The person who mans this Twitter handle is an actual safety expert.  This person is available to answer any questions parents might have about child seat safety.  How many other government agencies do you know who do that?  Not too many, I’d bet.
• Facebook:  On the NHTSA Facebook page, parents can read about everything regarding child seat safety.  This includes information on LATCH, locating child seat inspection offices, etc.
• Website:  Check out the Child Passenger Safety website where you can read articles, watch instructional videos, take quizzes, find inspection stations, diagrams of the LATCH system, etc.

Keep your kids safe in your vehicle with the help of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration!

Category: Freebies | No Comments »
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Amy | October 30, 2009

So, you’ve started using coupons to save money at the grocery store.  Good for you!  But now that you’re really getting into couponing, you have tons of coupons but no system for keeping them organized.  It’s time to get serious!

People regularly ask me how they should organize their coupons.  This question is a difficult one because there is no one best way to organize coupons.  This is a personal decision that only you can make.  The answer will depend on your personality, organizational process, and shopping style.

What are the options for organizing my coupons?

I have seen many, many clever coupon organization systems over the years.  The most popular include:

• Envelopes: I see a lot of people using envelopes for their coupons. This is a nice, cheap option if you have only a handful of coupons.  If you like this system and have more than will fit into one envelope, you can try using a different envelope for each category of coupons.

• The Accordion File: The accordion file is a compact organizer with built in divided sections.  These usually come with a snap or band closure.  This is a great organizer to start with if you have a small to medium amount of coupons.

• The Index Card Box: When your accordion file is overflowing, you can graduate to the index card box.  This system uses an index card box with index dividers for the categories.  The coupons are kept freely between the dividers.

• The Binder System: The binder system is very popular.  This system uses a 3-ring binder with clear baseball card or photo pages.  Slide the coupons into each slot in the pages and viola!  Use divider pages to separate each category.  This option is great because you can see the coupons at a glance and they’re expandable.  The zippered type of binder works well to hold everything neatly inside.

• The Briefcase: I have only ever seen this type of system once, but it’s so incredible I had to include it.  This person uses the bottom of the briefcase for the coupons, using index dividers. The top of the briefcase is used for coupon supplies such as store flyers, a stapler, scissors, a calculator, pens, etc.  This briefcase topped the scales at 17 lbs, so it is not for the casual couponer!

Which system you use will be driven completely by personal preference.  You may try one system and decide after a while that it’s simply not working for you.  Go ahead, try a different approach.  It’s all about finding what works for you.

So now you have your system.  What next?

How should I organize the coupons?

Like the system, choosing the organizational method will be solely based on personal preference.  There are tons of variations on organizing coupons. Here are some ideas:

• By Category: This is the method I personally use.  Each section of my organizer is a different category (in alphabetical order).  For example, my categories include Baby, Baking, Canned/Bottled, Cereal/Breakfast, Cleaning/Laundry, Dairy, Drinks, Frozen, HBA – Body, HBA – Face, HBA – Fem. Hygiene, HBA – Haircare, HBA Medications, HBA – Oral Hygiene, Meat, Paper Products, Prepared Foods/Pasta, Produce, & Snacks.  Within each category are pages labeled with more specific categories.  So, within the Paper Products category are pages labeled Tissues, Toilet Paper, Paper Towels, and Plastic/Paper Dinnerware.

• By Aisle: Some people like to categorize by the aisles in their favorite stores. So one section would be Aisle 1 and within that section would be all the coupons for items in that aisle.  You can even order the coupons in the order they appear on your store shelves.

• By Brand: This can be done a couple different ways. You can do this alphabetically by brand, separating each section by letter. Or you can separate by category, alphabetizing all brands within that category.

In choosing an organizational method, I always urge people to use a method that suits how they think. Some people organize best by color, while others might feel more organized dealing with numbers.  And the best part is, if you try a way that doesn’t work, you can always change it.  Make a mental note of what isn’t working for you and tweak it to better suit you and your shopping style.

Should I take all of my coupons to the store with me?

Absolutely!  I know there are some people out there who only take those coupons they plan to use (after all, that’s why we plan, right?)  But it only took me a few trips without all my coupons to realize I was missing out on unadvertised sales and clearance items. Stores can only fit so many sale items in their flyers.  You won’t know about the other sale & clearance items until you get to the store.  You don’t want to be without your coupons when you find out that your favorite shampoo is on clearance for $1.00 and your $1/1 coupons for that shampoo are at home!

However, this only applies to those who are still building their stockpiles.  For those with well established stockpiles, you might not need to take all of your coupons with you.  It all depends on your current needs.

What about my expired coupons?  Do I have to constantly go through my coupons to weed out the expireds?

I may be in the minority on this, but I never spend extra time weeding out expired coupons.  I simply don’t find it necessary.  Instead, I take them out when I see them.  What I mean by this is that when I am going through my coupons while planning my trips, I may see some that are expired.  I take them out and put them aside to send to military families (they can use expired coupons).  While I’m at the store looking through my cereal coupons to see what coupons I have for an unadvertised sale and I see some expireds, I take them out and store them separately.  I have not found any reason to diligently go through and weed them out each week or month.  It’s just not necessary!

Now you’re ready to create your personal coupon system.  Remember, the most important thing about organizing your coupons is making sure it works for you!

Category: Couponing 101 | 2 Comments »
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Amy | October 30, 2009

Here are the coupons that will be coming out in Sunday’s paper. Remember, these vary by region, so yours may end up being slightly different in value.

SMARTSOURCE
Campbells V8 Soup $1/2 (1/15/10)
Comtrex Cough Cold $1.50 (12/31/09)
Dannon Activia $1 (12/31/09)
Dannon Dan Active, 4-pk or 8 pk $1 (12/31/09)
Dannon Danimals $1 (12/31/09)
Dannon Light & Fit, 6 packs $0.60 (1/15/10)
Dixie Crystals Redi-Measure $0.35 DND (12-31-09)
Dixie Crystals, any $0.50/2 DND (12/31/09)
Dole Frozen Fruit $0.75 (12/31/09)
EggLands Best Eggs $0.35 (3/31/10
EggLands Best Cage Free Dozen or Organic Dozen Eggs $0.50 (3/31/10)
EggLands Best Hard Cooked & Peeled Eggs $0.35 (3/31-09)
4-Way Nasal Spray Product $1.50 (12/31/09)
GE Reveal CFL Energy Smart Covered Glass Product $1.25 (12/31/09)
GE Energy Smart Halogen Product $1 (12/31/09)
General Mills Cheerios $1/2 (12/12/09)
General Mills Total Cereal (Total Raisin Bran, Total Honey Clusters, etc.) $0.75 (12/12/09)
Glade Jar Candles, 4 oz $1.50/2 (12/19/09)
Glade Refill Pack Free up to $3.99 wyb Glade Scented Oil Candles Holder (12/19/09)
Glade Scented Oil Candles Refill Packs B2G1F to $3.99 (12/19/09)
Glade Spray $0.75/2 (12/19/09)
Glade Plugins Scented Oil Lasting Impressions Holder $3 (12/19/09)
Glade PlugIns Scented Oil Refills $1/2 (12/19/09)
Glade Warmer Free up to $3.99 wyb Glade Plugins Scented Oil Refill (12/19/09)
Gold Bond Ultimate Concentrated Therapy or Soothing Lotion or Cream $2 (3/31/10)
Gold Bond Ultimate Healing, Softening, Protection or Restoring Lotion or Cream $1 (3/31/10)
Gordons Grilled Shrimp $1 (1/11/10)
Hormel Pepperoni Pack $0.55 (1/3/10)
Hormel Compleats Microwave Meal $1 (12/28/09)
Kleenex $0.50/3 boxes or 1 bundle pk (12/27/09)
Lloyds Ribs or Lloyds Tub $1 (1/4/10)
Mitchum or Mitchum for Women Product, any excl trial $1 (12/1/09)
Mt. Olive Pickles, Peppers or Relish $0.50 (1/3/2010)
Nonnis Biscoti or Tusoni $1 (12/1/09)
Oberto Beef or Turkey Jerky, 3.25 oz+ $1/2 (1/1/10)
Oberto, 3.25 oz $0.55 (1/1/10)
Pepperidge Farm Baked Natural Snack Crackers $1 (12/31/09)
Sargento Salad Finishers or Potato Finishers $0.75 (12/31/09)
Sarna Original or Sensitive Anti-Itch Lotion, 7.5 oz $2 (1/31/10)
Scott Long Lasting or Mega Roll Paper Towels, 4 rolls+ $1 (12/13/09)
Scott Extra Soft Bath Tissue, 8 rolls+ $1 (12/13/09)
Scrubbing Bubbles Bathroom Cleaner $0.75 (12/27/09)
Scrubbing Bubbles Automatic Shower Cleaner Starter Kit $3 (12/27/09)
Scrubbing Bubbles Automatic Shower Cleaner Refills $2/2 (12/27/09)
Scrubbing Bubbles Toilet Cleaning Gel $1 (12/27/09)
Scrubbing Bubbles Fresh Brush 2-in-1 Starter Kit or Refills $1 (12/27/09)
Scrubbing Bubbles Mega Shower Foamer $1 (12/27/09)
Soyjoy, 6-pk $1 (12/31/09)
Soyjoy B1G1F up to $1.39 (12/31/09)
Sucrets Ice $1.50 (1/31/10)
Sucrets, any $1.50 (1/31/10)
Umcka Product by Natures Way $2 (4/30/10)
Free $5 giftcard wyb 4 cleaning products Windex, Scrubbing Bubbles (11/30/09) (TARGET)
Free $5 giftcard wyb Windex Outdoor all in 1 Starter Kit (11/30/09) (TARGET)

RED PLUM
Bounty Paper Towels, 6-pk $0.50 (12/31/09) (TARGET)
Bounty Paper Towels AND Bounty Napkins $1.50 (12/31/09) (TARGET)
Carnation Famous Fudge Kit, 1.95 lb. $0.50 (12/31/09)
Carnation Evaporated Milk $0.50/2 (1/31/09)
Eucerin Baby Product, 2 oz – 16.9oz $1 (12/31/09)
Hefty OneZip Bags $1 (12/31/09)
I-Caps Vitamin Formula $2 (1/31/10)
Jimmy Dean Fully Cooked Sausage $1 DND (1/31/10)
Jimmy Dean Bowls or Entrees $1/2 DND (3/6/10)
Jimmy Dean Sandwich Product $1/2 DND (12/31/09)
Keebler Crackers, any 7.7 oz+ $1/2 (12/13/09)
Libbys Pumpkin Bread Kit, 3.5 lb. $0.50 (12/31/09)
L’Oreal Preference $2 (1/24/10)
L’Oreal Makeup, Powder, Blush or Concealer $2 (1/24/10)
L’Oreal Kids Product, any $0.75 (1/24/10)
L’Oreal EverPure Shampoo, Conditioner or Treatment $2 (1/24/10)
M&M Premiums Chocolate Holiday Candy $1 (12/30/09) (TARGET)
McCormick Spice or Extract $0.50 (12/05/09)
McCormick Gravy Mixes $0.50/2 (12/06/09)
Maybelline LipColour, Lip Liner, or Lip Gloss or New York Lipcolor $2 (11/30/09)
Nescafe Tasters Choice Stick Pack Carton, 20 ct+ $0.50 (02/01/10)
Nestle Coffee-Mate Powder Creamers $0.50 (02/01/10)
Nestle Coffee-Mate Liquid Creamer $0.50 (02/01/10)
Nestle Nesquik 100 Calories, 4-pk $0.50 (1/03/10)
Nestle Nesquik Product $0.50 (1/03/10)
Nestle Toll House Morsels $0.50 (12/31/09)
Nestle Toll House Refrigerated Cookie Dough $1 (12/31/09)
Nivea Body Wash for Women, 16.9 fl. oz-500ml $1 (12/31/09)
Nivea Body Product, net wt 2.7oz-16.9fl oz $1 (12/31/09)
Nivea Body Lotion (13.5 fl oz) FREE up to $7.99 wyb any 3 Nivea Lip Care Products (12/31/09)
Nivea Lip Care Product (.17oz -.35fl.) B1G1F up to $3.99 (12/31/09)
Opti-Free Solution $4/2 (10 oz.) or 1 twin pack (12/31/09)
Oral-B Manual Toothbrushes, excludes Indicator Toothbrush $1.50/2 (3/1/10) (TARGET)
Ovaltine, any $1 (1/31/10)
Plackers Dental Flossers, 60 ct+ $1/3 (12/31/09)
Sun Crystals All-Natural Sweetener $1 (1/31/10)
Systane Product $2 (12/31/09)

PROCTER & GAMBLE
Bounce Dryer Bar $1.50 (11-30-09)
Bounce Dryer Sheets, any $0.50 (11-30-09)
Bounty Towels or Napkins, any $0.25 (11-30-09)
Cascade, any $0.50 (11-30-09)
Cascade Rinse Aid, any $1 (11-30-09)
Charmin Bathroom Tissue, any $0.25 (11-30-09)
Clairol Hair Color, any excl Balsam $2 (11-30-09)
Clairol Perfect 10 Haircolor by Nice n Easy $5 (11-30-09)
Crest Glide Floss, 35m+ or Glide Picks, 30 ct.+ $0.75 (11-30-09)
Crest Premium Toothpaste, 4 oz+ $0.75 (11-30-09)
Crest Rinse, 440mL+ $0.75 (11-30-09)
Crest Toothpaste or Liquid Gel $1/2 (11-30-09)
Crest Whitestrips Advanced Seal, any 14 ct. $7 (11-30-09)
Crest Whitestrips Classic, any $3 (11-30-09)
Crest Whitestrips Premium, Pro-Effects, Daily Whitening Multicare, etc. excluding Classic $5 (11-30-09)
Dawn Dish Liquid, any $0.25 (11-30-09)
Dawn Hand Renewal with Olay Beauty, any $0.50 (11-30-09)
Downy Liquid Fabric Softener or Dryer Sheets $0.40 (11-30-90)
Duracell Coppertop, PowerPix, Ultra Digital or Ultra Photo Lithium Batteries $0.75 (11-30-09)
Duracell Hearing Aid Batteries with Easy Tab, 6-pk+ $1.50 (11-30-09)
Febreze Air Effects $1 (11-30-09)
Febreze Candle, any $2 (11-30-09)
Febreze Fabric Refreshers $2/2 (11-30-09)
Febreze Flameless Luminary Starter Kit, any $4 (11-30-09)
Febreze Noticeables Starter Kit or Refill, any $1 (11-30-09)
Febreze Scented Oil Reed Diffuser or Soy Blend Candle, any $2 (11-30-09)
Gillette Body Wash, 12 oz+ or Deodorant, excl trial size $1 (12-31-09)
Gillette Body Wash Free up to $2.99 wyb Gillette Deodorant, excl trial size (12-31-09)
Gillette Fusion Cartridges, 6ct+ $3 (11-30-09)
Gillette Good News Disposable, 12-ct or Custom Plus, 10-ct $1 (11-30-09)
Gillette Mach 3 Disposable 3ct, Sensor3 4-ct, or CustomPlus3 4-ct $2 (11-30-09)
Gillette Mach 3 Disposable 6ct, Sensor3 8-ct, or CustomPlus3 8-ct $3 (11-30-09)
Gillette Mach 3, Mach3 Turbo, M3Power, 8ct+ Cartridges $2 (11-30-09)
Gillette Series Shave Gel, 7 oz, or Foam, 9 oz, any excl trial sizes $0.55 (11-30-09)
Head & Shoulders Shampoo or Conditioner, any $1/2 (11-30-09)
Iams Dog or Cat Food $1/4 cans or one Multi Pack or Variety Pack (11-30-09)
Iams Dry Dog or Cat Food, any $1 (11-30-09)
Iams Smart Puppy or Kitten Food, any $2 (11-30-09)
Metamucil Capsules, Fiber Singles or Wafers $2 (11-30-09)
Metamucil Clear & Natural Product, any $3 (11-30-09)
Metamucil Product, any $1 (11-30-09)
Olay Bar Pack, Body Wash or In-Shower Body Lotion, any $1 (11-30-09)
Olay Facial Cleanser, any $2 (11-30-09)
Olay Facial Moisturizer or Facial Cleanser, any $1 (11-10-09)
Olay Hand & Body Lotion, any $1 (11-30-09)
Old Spice Anti-Perspirant/Deodorants or Body Washes, excl trial size $1 on 2 (12-31-09)
Oral-B CrossAction Power Refill, any $1 (11-30-09)
Oral-B CrossAction Power, CrossAction Power White or CrossAction Power Max Brush $3 (11-30-09)
Oral-B Pro-Health Battery Brush $3 (11-30-09)
Oral-B Pulsar, CrossAction, Advantage $0.75 or two Indicator Toothbrushes (11-30-09)
Oral-B Stages or Zooth Manual or Power Toothbrush $1 (11-30-09)
Pampers Diapers or Pants, any $1.50 (11-30-09)
Pampers Easy Ups Trainers, any $1.50 (11-30-09)
Pampers Wipes, any, 60 ct.+ .50 (11-30-09)
Pantene Products, any excl trial size $1/2 (11-30-09)
Pantene Styler, Hair Spray or Treatment, any excl trial size $1 (11-30-09)
Pepto-Bismol Product, any $0.75 (11-30-09)
Prilosec OTC, any $3 (11-30-09)
Prilosec OTC, 42 ct. $7/2 (11-30-09)
Puffs Single, any $0.25 (11-30-09)
Scope Mouthwash, 710mL+ $1 (11-30-09)
Secret, any except trial size $0.50 (12-31-09)
Secret Products B2G1F up to $2.99, excl trial size (12-31-09)
Tag Body Spray or Invisible Solid B2G1F up to $2.99, excl trial size (12-31-09)
Tide Laundry Detergent or Tide To Go, any size $1 (11-30-09)
Tide Stain Release Product, any $0.50 (11-30-09)
Vicks NyQuil or DayQuil, any $1.50 (11-30-09)
Vicks Product, any except NyQuil or Dayquil $0.55 (11-30-09)

Category: Sunday Coupon Previews | No Comments »
Tags: Sunday Preview

Amy | October 30, 2009

I hope you had a spooktacular week! Here are some scary good freebies!

Lysol Healthy Habits Activity Book (Thanks Freebie Blogger)

KY Intrigue Personal Lubricant

Telescope Keychain

Nescafe

Rachel Ray Nutrish for Pets

Tropical Breeze Fragrance for Him

Olay Total Effects Body Wash (requires registration)

Zyrtec

Category: Freebies | No Comments »
Tags: Freebies