Saving Money Always Makes Me Feel Better, Etc.

Well, I'm starting to feel "healthy" again but poor Abby has succumbed to The Bug as of yesterday. Ethan's still clinging to The Bug as well (or should I say, the bug's clinging to him). Which means we stayed home from church and we're going through an awful lot of Children's Tylenol! :o/ Good thing I bought a bunch when I did. (Yikes)

I just hope she's able to beat this thing sooner than Ethan. He's working on his second week, which is a bummer in itself. But Abby's in the middle of learning her ballet recital, and every missed class quickly adds up. (Not good!) *Speaking of ballet, the pic to the right is Abby during last week's Parent Watch Day. Isn't she cute? :) *

On a lighter note, I've been feeling rather proud of my recent coupon transactions. Yesterday, I scored 3 half-gallons of almond milk and 3 boxes of cereal for $2.80. Then today I scored 4 boxes of fruit snacks for $2.50 then received a $2.50 catalina (receipt coupon) off my next transaction. This basically made those fruit snacks totally free! :) Hooray!

These little deals make me even more excited to get the Sunday paper and all those yummy coupons! :) I took advantage of a special deal on the local paper to where I'll get 5 Sunday papers each week for dirt cheap. Woohoo! If you're in my neck of the woods (Lynnwood/Edmonds/Everett WA) check out the deal for yourself here. (Thanks, CouponConnectionsNW! :) ) What's more, is that I've got my Mom all coupon-happy now, too. Hee hee! She also signed up for the newspaper deal, so you can tell what the two of us will be doing tomorrow! "Did you see the coupon for XYZ in the RedPlum flyer?"..."Oh goodness, yes!" {Snip, snip!}

And on another happy note, I've received a few books to review in the mail which always makes me happy. (I mean, hello? Free books!) These aren't "school" books either, but actual fiction/brain candy books. :) The good stuff!

Now, I have to get back to "work" and hammer out a few reviews that are due this week. I meant to get them done last week but I was sick sooooo.....yeah. Time to play catch-up!

Couponing Strategies

Couponing strategies. That's the topic of the day! (Or at least, the topic in my head.)

I was on the coupon bandwagon for a long time, then got off for some stupid reason. Not sure why. Well, yes I do. I didn't have a decent strategy for it. And carrying my little folder (it's actually a photo file) around the store got to be a royal pain.

If I'd been smarter (and I hope to be now), I would've planned my menus according to store sale flyers and my coupons. I'm a planner for the most part, but for some reason it doesn't transfer to meal planning. But that's probably because I don't like to cook and thinking about cooking makes me zone out. (Ahem)

So anyway, I was reading a nifty article about a pair of local moms (whom I kinda-sorta know, as my oldest babysits for them occasionally and I had one lady's daughter in my Awana class a few years ago), who've done an amazing job playing the coupon game. Seriously, their stories are incredibly inspirational! Then I paid a visit to their blog which is primarily geared toward those in Washington state (but does offer great advice for newbies as well as those who need a bit of encouragement to get started again).

This then prompted a huge clip-fest for me and the kids. Armed with scissors and a stack of Red Plum circulars I'd been meaning to go through (for weeks now..ahem), we got down to business. Ethan exclaimed, "This is fun!" as he happily snipped away. Abby was pleased to find coupons for candy; Sierra found .50 off Gatorade. Life is good.

So with all that said: What's YOUR coupon strategy? How do you organize them? Do you plan your meals in advance? Do you purchase multiple papers and if so, how many? The comment section is officially open. :) (Not that it ever closes but whatever...)