Coupons, saving money or wasting time?

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Saving money                   Wasting Time 

Are you like me? I was constantly battling with my desire to save money vs the guilt of not using coupons I had taken the time to keep and feeling like I was wasting my time.  Each time I'd watch the TLC show Extreme Couponing I'd get
a surge of inspiration and motivation to do couponing.  But it's a lifestyle, not just something you do once in awhile and I'm not sure I'm willing or interested in committing to that extreme.

So here are some tips and tricks I've found in my experience that will hopefully help you-

• only take the time to keep/cut the coupons of products you already use, or are 100% sure you want to try. (you don't save money if you're buying something you wont use or normally don't buy)
• I like to keep the coupons of things I use regularly in a small file folder in my purse.  That way if I come across a sale I already have the coupon with me, or it just allows me to always be able to use my coupons to buy them.
• Check online coupons and print off only the ones you use regularly or you're just wasting ink and paper.
• Watch grocery smarts website for a easy refrence on coupons/sales (especially the day you're going shopping)
• Stock up on good sales (stores usually rotate their sales every 12 weeks, so if you buy enough on sale to last for 12 weeks you'll never have to pay full price again!)
• Combine manufacturer coupons with store coupons/sales every chance you can!
• Sometimes it's worth it to go to 3 different stores for the sales (unless you want to just price match everything at one store)  If the sales are good enough I will totally drive around making a couple of different stops! (but only if it's worth it time/gas wise)
• Look through the grocery store ads while making your shopping list.  Sometimes you'll find extra sales on items you know you have coupons for.
• If your store doubles/triples coupons on a certain day- first of all count yourself lucky!, secondly plan all your shopping on that day.

Don't feel discouraged if you're not like the Extreme Couponers on TV.  Any savings is money in your pocket!  I like to look at how much money I saved and think, "now, what is something I could buy with this savings?"- not that I go and buy it, but it helps to put the savings into perspective.  And it gives me something to tell my husband and get praised for (yea I like to be praised for my efforts).  Plus the next time I do want to buy something I can remind him how much money I've saved in the past hahaha!

Some great resources:

www.grocerysmarts.com - you can find a person in your area to teach a coupon class for free
www.coupons.com- great place for online coupons.  (you can print each coupon twice!)
www.target.com- they have online coupons you can print off and add to manufacturer coupons!

Be sure to check out your local grocery/retail stores online to see if they offer other coupons/deals.  You can also find their coupon policies online usually, it's nice to get familiar with those if you've ever had trouble using coupons at their store.

Other resources to find out the latest deals and online specials is by following some coupon groups or pages on facebook and in blogs.  I'll be putting together a page full of great sites that update coupons and deals.  If you have or know of one let me know and I'll add it: atozformomslikeme@gmail.com