Chicken BBQ Shredded Sandwiches

BBQ Shredded Chicken
(my photo, NOT my recipe)


This has been one of our go-to meals lately for those busy weeknights since everyone in the family loves it, and it is crazy-easy. Don't you just love meals that cook themselves?

I usually end up doubling the recipe so it gets us through 2 nights. First, I whip up a quick batch of homemade BBQ sauce (you won't believe how it tastes as good as the store-bought kind, but without the High Fructose Corn Syrup) in a big measuring cup:

• 3/4 cup ketchup (NO HFCS kind!)
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon vinegar 

Place 3-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts in the crockpot. They don't even need to be defrosted. Pour sauce over the top. That's it! 

Cook on high for 3-4 hours or low for 6-8 hours. At this point, you will just need to shred the chicken. I don't even bother to take it out of the crockpot. I just grab 2 forks and start shredding. Scoop chicken onto hamburger buns, add a side of veggies and maybe some mac and cheese, and you have yourself a very tasty meal with almost no effort at all! 

Oh, and did I mention that this meal costs less than $5.00? Woot! Woot! {pumps fists in air}

(Thanks to Hoosier Homemade & $5 Dinners) Check out their sites for LOTS of yummy recipes & other inspiration. 

Couponing Lessons

Lesson #1: Why use Coupons?

Lesson #2: Couponing 101 Getting Started

Lesson #3: Coupons, Coupons, & Coupons, Oh My! Where to Find Coupons

Lesson #4: Organizing Coupons

Lesson #5: How to Find Good Deals

Lesson #6: Deal or No Deal

Lesson #7: How to Prepare for Shopping Trips

Lesson #8: What to Stockpile

Lesson #9: How to Plan Meals from Your Stockpile

Lesson #10: Walgreens 101

Lesson #11: Coupon Lingo

Lesson #12: Couponing: Shopper's Secrets

Lesson #13: Couponing: Bonus Tips


Come join us at  The Coupon Club on Facebook for general discussions on couponing. This is a place for readers to share tips, ideas and experiences, ask advice, trade coupons, etc. 

What's for Lunch? Lunch box Round Up

apple & peanut butter quesadilla, colby jack cheese,

Snapea Crisps, strawberries & blackberries

As much as I love to make healthy lunches for my kids, I often find myself in a lunch rut. Eventually, my morning lunch-making routine became......

1. Make some kind of sandwich

2. Add a piece of fruit

3. Throw in something crunchy (or junky)

4. "Oh great, I'm all out of baggies" 

BOOOR-ING!!

After doing that for a while, my routine became:

1. Google "healthy lunch ideas"

During one of those many, MANY searches, I discovered something awesome....

Easy Lunch Boxes!

These containers have changed my whole way of thinking when it comes to making my kids' lunches! Now, when I make lunches, it goes something like this:

1. What kinds of fresh fruit and veggies do I have on hand right now to pack in here? Ooooh, how 'bout a little of this & a little of that.......

2. How about some dip or yogurt?

3. Now add some protein

4. What about something fun like Snapea Crisps or sprinkles? 

5. Let's look at the lunchbox ideas photo gallery and see what looks good......

The possibilities are endless! And now, the first thing my kids say when I pick them up from school is, "I LOVED MY LUNCH!" It makes my day. Every time.

To get your own Easy Lunch boxes, just head over to the website. You can also choose to get the lunch totes that go with them. The website also has TONS of yummy lunch ideas from readers. You will never run out of options! Here are a few of the ones I created when I first got my containers:

Pretzels, hummus, bell peppers, string cheese,

carrots, celery, peanut butter,

marshmallows with chocolate chips

"Mexican Fiesta!"

Blue corn chips, Colby-Jack cheese, salsa,

refried beans, guacamole, dried fruit strip

Ham, cheese & spinach wrap, grapes,

vanilla yogurt with blackberries,

Snapea Crisps

Ham & Cheese wrap, banana, strawberries,

Kix cereal, vanilla yogurt with sprinkles

Homemade pb & j uncrustables,

yogurt + peaches + granola = yogurt parfait

These containers are very sturdy & hold up really well in the dishwasher & microwave. Love, love, love em! Oh, and did I mention these containers are BPA FREE? 

Stay tuned. I will be posting more lunchbox ideas in the coming weeks!

Lunch box Round Up #2

How to Plan Meals from Your Stockpile

Once you have an idea of what to stockpile, you will still want to create your meal plans for each week. Of course, you won't have any of the items you need for meals stockpiled yet, but you will get there eventually. For now, you can base your meals on things you are able to get at low, low prices with store sales & coupons. This is quite different than the usual meal planning method of just deciding what to cook based on the store sales alone, or just making whatever you're in the mood for.

Since you will be building your stockpile based on what you typically cook, you will eventually have most of the items needed for your recipes already on hand. I would also recommend stocking up on meat when you see a good deal, IF you cook with meat fairly often. One way to do this is to find out when meat that is going out of code (reaching its sell by date) is marked down at your stores. For some stores, this might be done at a certain time each morning or evening, for other stores it is done at random times & you just have to get lucky & catch it.

It would be wise to get to know the people who work in the meat dept. Build a rapport with them & you'll be able to score some really great meat deals. On a recent shopping trip, I noticed several packages of ground sirloin tip that had a sell by date of the next day. I asked the meat guy if he would be marking it down soon. (It was still priced at $4.79lb) He said he was running behind that day & hadn't had time to pull the case to mark down the meat. He asked me how many pounds I wanted, marked it down to $2.89lb, double-wrapped it for the freezer, and sent me on my merry way. I felt that it was a very fair price for that type of meat that technically still had 36 hours left on the shelf before having to be marked down. This was my first time dealing with this particular meat guy. It never hurts to just ask. You'd be surprised what you can get.

I knew this particular store marked down meat in the mid-morning hours, which is when I stopped by. But ANY TIME I am in a grocery store, EVEN IF I'M NOT THERE TO BUY MEAT, I will go scan the meat case to see if I can snag any newly marked down packages. Some days I don't get anything, but other days I hit the jackpot. Everything from boneless, skinless chicken breasts, ribs, strip steak, pork loin.....LOTS of different cuts of meat & poultry marked down for 40% off or more. I buy as many as my budget will allow & freeze it.

Now, when you first start couponing, you might not see a huge savings in the very beginning since you are still having to buy things for your household & meals, but as you do find those awesome deals, you will suddenly see your grocery bill starting to shrink.

Here are some tips to keep in mind with meal planning:

• Try to keep your meals simple in the beginning so you're not having to buy lots of ingredients at high prices
• Try to look for deals on the items you must buy and buy in quantity if you do find good deals
• Clean out your freezer
• Try to get some really good deals on meat by finding out when they get marked down & freeze it for later use in your meal plans
• It helps to make a list of 10 or even 20 meals, (AND their ingredients) that you cook often. This will give you a good idea of what you will need to stock up on.
• If you typically have a few busy weeknights, try to stock up on a few easy-to-throw-together meals or other options like frozen pizza, pasta & sauce for spaghetti, cheese, refried beans & tortillas for bean burritos, sloppy joe mix & buns, frozen veggies, TV dinners, or whatever your family likes to eat.

Once you get some of your usual ingredients on hand, you will be able to minimize last minute runs to fast food restaurants, pizza ordering, etc. & you will save even more money.

But how will you know exactly how much you're saving AND; if you're staying within your budget?

I HIGHLY recommend tracking your grocery spending & saving. This can be on paper or in a spreadsheet. This is a very important step in couponing so that you will know exactly how much you're shaving off your grocery bill each month, and how well all of your hard work is paying off.

Coupon Lingo

How to read a coupon match-up:

Dole Pineapple (20 oz cans) $.96
Use $.50/2 Coupon (4/10 SS)
Final Price = $.71 each wyb 2

Line #1: description, size, & store price of item

Line #2: coupon amount, date & name of insert

Line #3: final price for each, after using coupon listed


Coupon Insert Abbreviations:


SS - Smart Source
RP - Redplum
PG - Proctor & Gamble
GM - General Mills
PE - Pepsico (Moments to Save) 

Here is the breakdown of all coupon abbreviations.

$3/2 - The first number is the amount you will get off. The 2nd number is the amount you have to buy. So you will save $3 when you buy 2 of the product.

$5/$25 - The first number is the amount you will get off. The 2nd number is the minimum you are required to purchase to receive the discount.

Blinkie - coupon machine located on store shelf

B1G1 - Buy 1 Get 1 (free, 1/2 off)

BOGO - Buy One Get One (free, 1/2off)

CAT - Catalina: Coupons which are printed at the register. Also called Register Rewards at Walgreens

ECB - Extra Care Bucks: Coupons which print at register at CVS Pharmacy, good on next purchase.

EXP - expires

FAR - free after rebate

FARR - free after Register Rewards

GM - General Mills - refers to the GM insert found in Sunday paper

IP - Internet Printable coupon

IVC - Instant Value Coupon from Walgreens coupon booklets & its store ads

MFR - Manufacturer - Used to indicate manufacturer's coupon

MIR - mail in rebate

OOP - out of pocket. The amount you will pay at the register

OYNP - on your next purchase

Peelie - a coupon attached to a product

PG - Proctor & Gamble - refers to the Proctor & Gamble coupon found in newspaper

Q - short for coupon

RP - Redplum - refers to the Redplum insert found in Sunday newspaper

RR - Register Rewards - Walgreens coupons printed at register, good on next purchase

SS - SmartSource - refers to the SmartSource insert found in newspaper

STACKING - combining a manufacturer coupon & a store coupon on one item

UPC - Universal Product Code or the bar code found on a product

WYB - when you buy

YMMV - Your Mileage May Vary - This means what worked at one store, or for one person, may not work at another store or a different person. Coupons, Stores, & Managers are ALL regional.

Now you can speak couponese!

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Couponing: Bonus Tip #1 - How to Clip Your Coupons Faster

Clip Your Coupons Quicker

Here is a quick and easy way to clip several coupons at once, making the process go much, much faster, especially if you have multiple sets of inserts.

First, clear your kitchen table, or wherever you have plenty of room to spread out, and gather your "like" inserts. Start with one insert and "dissect" it. Turn to the first page that has a coupon(s) on it that you want to clip. Remove this page from the insert and use it to start a row on your work area. Now, go to the next page that has a coupon you want and place it next to the first page you took out. Go through the rest of the insert in the same fashion. You should now have insert pages spread out, 1 layer deep.

Now, using the next "like" insert, remove the same pages as you did from the first one and place them on top of the first set of removed pages. You should now have your insert pages spread out, 2-layers deep. Get it? Okay, good.

Eventually, you will have several stacks, each containing the EXACT SAME PAGES. Pick up each stack, making sure all the pages are perfectly aligned, and STAPLE TOGETHER all of the coupons you want to clip from that page, front and back. Just be sure and avoid stapling the expiration date or bar code. Just staple somewhere near the edge of the coupon. You will now cut through the layers to clip your coupons. Do this with each stack.

You will now cut through the layers to clip your coupons. Do this with each stack of insert pages.

You will end up with a tiny stack of all your "like" coupons, stapled together. Depending on how many inserts you had, you have now clipped that many coupons in the time it takes to clip just one! 

Once you have your stack of stapled coupons, it's time to put them into your binder, accordion file, or whatever method you use to store your clipped coupons.

This "dissection method" makes the process go super fast and you'll be done in no time! Do it while you're watching TV, listening to music, watching the kids, or whenever!

I hope this idea helps you to become a coupon-clipping machine!

Would you like to know a simple trick to organize your coupons as you clip them? It will make it that much faster when you tuck them into their holding slots. 

Walgreens 101

Walgreens is probably one of the most complicated stores when it comes to couponing, but it is also one of the best when it comes to great savings. Once you learn all there is to know about how to shop at Walgreens, you will see that it is totally worth it. Here are several basic tips for shopping at Walgreens.

1.) Get your weekly Walgreens store ad. These come in the Sunday newspaper & can also be found in the store near the entrance. These will let you know about all the deals for that week, plus it has several Walgreens coupons inside. These coupons do not have to actually be clipped. Just hand the ad to the cashier & have her scan the coupons for the items you’re buying. One scan will take off for each multiple you’re buying of an item.

2.) Register Rewards are Catalina coupons, good on your NEXT purchase. They are printed at the register and are triggered by certain purchases. The coupons come from the manufacturer & are considered MFR coupons when you use them.

A.) Register Reward promos will only work ONCE per deal.

Example: “Buy 2 Reach toothbrushes, receive $2 Register Rewards” means that if you buy 4 Reach toothbrushes in the same transaction, you will still only receive $2 in Register Rewards. To get $2 in Register Rewards for EACH set of 2 toothbrushes, do separate transactions.

B.) Register Rewards can NOT be used to purchase the same item that generated them.

Example: Using the example above, you could not use your first $2 Register Rewards to purchase the 2nd set of toothbrushes. You can use OTHER Register Rewards or pay for them out-of-pocket.

C.) The easiest thing to do is save your Register Rewards and use them on NEXT WEEK’S purchases.

D.) Register Rewards are only good for 2 weeks before they expire. Keep them in a safe place, like wherever you keep your coupons or in a envelope in your purse.

3.) Get your monthly coupon booklet & other savings booklets. The monthly coupon booklets are located near the ads in the store & other booklets are located throughout the store (cosmetics, pharmacy, etc) These are mostly Walgreens coupons with occasional MFR coupons. The Walgreens coupons work the same as the in-ad coupons. *See tip #1

4.) Your # of coupons (including RR’s) CAN NOT EXCEED your # of items being purchased. You might need to add “filler” items such as a pencil, piece of candy, etc. or get your newspapers, milk, eggs, or something you need to buy anyway. Don’t wait until you’re at the register & grab something in haste. Items near the register are usually not cheap. *Walgreens coupons DO NOT COUNT towards your coupon total.

5.) The store can not give overage if your coupon $ amount exceeds the $ amount of the item. If you are buying something for 99cents and using a coupon for $1 off, they can not give you that penny back. However, they CAN adjust the coupon down to 99cents off. This is stated in their coupon policy.

A.) Print a copy of their coupon policy, available on their website, and keep it with you.

B.) It’s very likely that you will know more about their coupon policy than the cashiers will. Try to be nice when explaining it. It's really not their fault. ; )

6.) Even if you have 10 coupons, don't totally clear the shelf by buying 10 of one item, unless you know for a fact the store has more cases in the back. It's rude & not fair for the other shoppers & couponers. You can go later in the week or to a different store to collect multiples. Just sayin'. ;)

7.) When using coupons, try checking out at the cosmetics counter. No one ever checks out there & that way, you won't be holding up the main register at the front of the store while they scan all of your coupons, e s p e c i a l l y if a deal didn't work out the way you thought it would. If you're at the cosmetic counter, & there's no one else in line, often times they don't mind if you need to go back & grab a different item in the middle of your transaction. It's just a courtesy to everyone, & also avoids a panic attack when something goes wrong and you have 10 people staring you down with nothing but a Coke in their hand. ( I know this from experience.) :o

9.) Know ahead of time how much $$ in Register Rewards you are expecting for each RR promo item. Sometimes you won't get the right item or quantity or the RR machine is not printing them for an item that should generate them. (This problem comes from corporate.) The managers are usually good about correcting the issue or helping you resolve the problem (looking over promo in the ad to figure out why your RR's didn't print.)

And that brings us to the final & possibly most important tip: 

10.) If you get to the register, and your deal(s) don't work out as you planned, and you're too much in a hurry, flustered, tired, hungry, crabby, sick, etc. to fix it....DON'T BE AFRAID TO WALK AWAY. Just say that you need to return some/all of your items and you'll just come back later. You are not obligated to follow through with your purchase. You can stop right in the middle or even after you've paid and CHANGE YOUR MIND. This will alleviate SO MUCH STRESS in the long run, just knowing you have this option if it gets to that point. You should never walk out of a store feeling bad about a purchase because a deal went wrong. Even if you don't end up going back to the store that week and you totally miss out on the deal, DON'T WORRY, it will come back around soon enough and your sanity will still be intact. Just trust me on this one. : )

Now, that you've learned the basics of couponing, it's time to learn the lingo!

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What to Stockpile

Most items in the store are on what's called a "sale cycle." This means the product will go through a series of different prices over the course of it's cycle, which usually lasts about 12 weeks. These prices will range from full retail price, and eventually go down to a "rock bottom" price. It is when it reaches its rock bottom price that you will stock up on that item, hopefully with a coupon, and this quantity will last you until it hits its rock bottom price again.

If you are new to couponing, you'll want to begin building your stockpile with the most frequently used items. Health & Beauty items are a good place to start since they are usually the easiest to buy in quantity using coupon match-ups & they will build up very quickly.

Another important tip when it comes to stockpiling via coupons, is to try not to be too "brand loyal." Being loyal to one particular brand of each product is going to limit you, and it will take a whole lot longer to build up your stockpile.

Being able to buy items at rock-bottom prices, or getting them for free, is a great way to try new products. Although it would not be wise to stock up on an item you have never used, but if you come across a no brainer price on something you 'need' (think toothpaste, toilet paper, etc) perhaps you can purchase 1 or 2 of the product to try it out.

Since I was 15 years old, (that was over 20 years ago. Sigh.) I have used Arm & Hammer Dental Care toothpaste & NOTHING ELSE. Well, this brand of toothpaste happens to be very expensive & coupon match-ups don't come around too often. The next time they do, I plan to really stock up. But in the meantime, I have discovered that I don't mind some of the other toothpaste brands that also have the "baking soda & peroxide" kind, and I'm able to get them mostly for free. So don't be afraid to try other brands. You just might discover that you like them just the same, or at least good enough to get you through until you can stock up on your favorite again.

You'll want to be realistic about how much you choose to stockpile. First of all, you'll want to consider your space availability. Can you put up a few shelves in your basement or garage? Perhaps you don't have a basement or garage, and in that case, you'll need to get creative. Perhaps there is room throughout your home that you can use to store different items in your stockpile. This would be a great time to clean out cabinets, closets & pantries. You'll probably discover you have a lot more extra space than you thought you did. Maybe there's room in your bathroom closet/cabinet to store extra toiletries. How about your bedroom closet, kids' closets, or under beds? You'll want to find safe & discreet places for your stockpile items. You want to consider pets & young children & the access they might have to unsafe items (meds, razors, cleaning supplies, etc.) I've also heard stories of dogs tearing up entire packages of toilet paper! If you have older children, you might want to set some ground rules about "shopping" in the stockpile. Let them know that the items are supposed to last for a specific amount of time, and that it's not a 'free for all." (Not that I'm speaking from experience or anything. Ahem.) So, these are all things to be considered when choosing where to store your stockpile items.

So now you'll want to think about how much of an item you will buy for your stockpile. First, considering your space & budget, you'll need to decide how far into the future you want the products to last. 3 -6 months is a reasonable amount of time for stockpiling products.

Stockpiles don't happen overnight. It is VERY IMPORTANT that you still stay well within your grocery budget while building your stockpile. The amount you spend will gradually decrease as your stockpile builds. The items you buy will vary from week to week. One week you might be stockpiling toothpaste, canned tomatoes, & cereal, the next week it might be laundry detergent, copy paper, & raisins. Eventually, you will have collected quantities of everything and you will just be replacing what you have used as you are able to get them cheaply. For example, if you have 10 tubes of toothpaste for your 6 month stockpile, & you use 3 of those tubes, you will then only need to buy 3 tubes of toothpaste to refill your stockpile.

In order to figure out exactly how much of a particular item to stockpile, you will need to know how long it takes you/your household/individual family members to use up each item. Again we turn to The Power of the Sharpie. Using your handy-dandy Sharpie, start marking items with the date that they were opened. Keep a list somewhere, either on your fridge & in your bathroom or near your stockpile shelf, so you can jot down the length of time for each item. It might look something like this:

32 oz. Ketchup - 5 weeks

12 oz. kids shampoo - 4 weeks

Becka's body wash - 3 weeks

Of course, this is not going to be exactly the same every time, but it will give you a good idea of how long it takes to use some of these common items. I know that 4-6 bottles of ketchup is plenty to get us through until the next great deal rolls around, and if I'm not "brand loyal" I'd probably be safe to just get 2 bottles when I find a great deal.

Let's go over the key points on stockpiling:

• Figure out your space availability
• Decide how much (3 months' worth, 6 months' worth, etc.)
• Start marking items with "date opened"
• Start your stockpile with Health & Beauty items
• Stay within budget
• Don't be "brand loyal"
• Set rules for shopping the stockpile

Now that you know how to build a stockpile, let's talk about meal planning.

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Deal or No Deal

Don't be fooled by those bright yellow stickers that promise a good "sale" price.

As we learned HERE, products go through "sale cycles" and not all of those prices will necessarily be a good price. A good way to figure out when an item hits a "stock up" price is to create a price list. This is a list of items which you have purchased, allowing you to recall how cheaply you were able to get the item at some point in time. It may take a long time to really get your price list established, but down the road it will help you save tons of money by knowing when to stock up on an item and when to pass. Over at OrganizedHome.com there is a free printable price list sheet. If you use The Binder Method for your coupons, you can just 3-hole punch your price list sheets and stick them right into your binder. Always keep a pen in your binder to jot down prices while you're in the store. If you wait until you get home and try to use your receipt, you might not recall which items you had coupons for if the coupon discount is not listed with the item on you receipt.

The price list will also help you to discover which store has the best 'overall' prices, and also the best time of year to stock up on particular items. To give you an idea of 'seasonal' sale cycles, take a look at this list. Be sure to click on the months of the year also.

Hopefully these tips will help you to become a savvy shopper and know when to pass up those pretty, yellow stickers.

So we've learned all about how to find good deals, now let's learn how to prepare for shopping trips.

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How to Prepare for Shopping Trips

You've collected, clipped, sorted & filed your coupons. Well, it's time to get "paid" for all of your hard work!

Let's talk about how to get your supplies ready for your shopping trip. Now that you're a savvy couponer, you will have 2 different kinds of shopping trips. One type of shopping will be "stockpile shopping" & the other will be "need now" shopping. The 2 can either be combined or stand alone. First, we'll talk about "stockpile shopping." This is where you'll mostly be using your coupons & purchasing multiples of items for later use.

The more time you spend preparing for your shopping trips at home, the less likely you are to run into snags at the store, & you'll minimize the time you actually spend shopping. First, let's talk about what you're going to buy...

You will want to use a coupon match-up site to find lists of the best deals in your area for the week. I like to start with Couponmom.com. On Sunday, I will create my lists for Walgreens & Target, which new sales weeks start on Sunday. I will print out the lists & get ready to gather the needed coupons. For me, that means grabbing my coupon binder. When I have gathered all the coupons for the 2 lists, I will put them in the coordinating envelopes for those stores and put the lists inside the binder. I will jot down any "need now" items to my lists. Now my coupons & lists are ready to go. By Tuesday, all of the grocery stores in my area will have started a new sale week & the lists are available online, but my method for these stores is slightly different.

All 3 of my grocery store circulars arrive in my mailbox on Monday. I go through each one, along with my handy-dandy Sharpie, and circle any deals that I might be interested in buying. Once I've gone through all 3 ads, I spread them all out, side by side on my kitchen table so I can get a good visual of which store(s) has the most deals. These include both stockpiling items AND need now items. This will help me to determine which store(s) I will go to that week. I usually try to go to only ONE grocery store per week, but they are all close by so if the deals are equally great at 2 stores, I might hit both in the same week.

Once I've got all of my deals circled, & I've become somewhat familiar with what they are, I will create my coupon match-up lists online. At this point, I will also create my meal plan for that week. This list is based on items I already have, & what's on sale at the store. It's a good idea to stockpile items that you typically use in your recipes. For instance, if you cook a lot of Italian dishes, you might stockpile things like pasta sauce, canned tomatoes, tomato sauce/paste, pasta, cheeses, Italian seasonings, etc. If you make a lot of casseroles, you might stock up on "cream of" soups, etc. Stock up on these items when you can combine coupons with sale prices, & your "need now" list will be that much shorter. Your "need now" list should consist mostly of perishable foods like produce, fresh herbs, etc.

Once I've created a meal plan, I will then add any "need now" items to my lists, gather my coupons, put everything in the coupon binder, and now I'm ready to go shopping.

*TIP: When preparing for a Walgreens stockpiling trip, check and see if you'll need any filler items since your MFR coupons, including Register Rewards, can not exceed your number of items. Filler items can be pencils, cheap candy, etc.

*TIP: For Walgreens, you'll also want to know ahead of time how much you are expecting to receive in Register Rewards. Learn more Walgreens tips in Walgreens 101.

Happy Shopping!

Now that you've learned how to prepare for your shopping trips, it's time to learn how to stockpile.

Or...

Jump to another section.

The Power of the Sharpie

The Sharpie is a couponer's best friend. It comes in handy for many things so I would highly recommend getting yourself a pack of these. Here are some ways to use it to maximize your couponing experience:

• Use it to circle the deals you like in your store ads

• Use it to mark the date on the front of your coupon inserts before you file them

• Use it to mark the "date opened"on products in your home

• Use it to mark the date IN LARGE PRINT on items in your stockpile so you can use them up before they expire

• Use it to mark the description & date of items in your freezer....in REALLY BIG letters so you can use them before they go bad

• Become "one" with your Sharpie.

Okay, maybe that last one is a bit over the top, but seriously, this is a very useful tool.

How to Find Good Deals

Finding good deals is easier than you think. Most of the work has already been done FOR you & it's just a click away. There is a plethora of websites & blogs that will post weekly lists of all the great deals at each particular store. A good place to start is Couponmom.com. I always check her site first, to create lists for my national stores. She only lists one of my local grocery stores, so I check a different site for those.

These types of sites are typically very user-friendly. On Couponmom.com, you can choose to have your list sorted by coupon date, description of item, sale price, final price, % saved. I always click on "% saved," and I usually don't go below the 50% mark, meaning I don't even bother with items that are not at least 50% off.

You can create a customized shopping list just by clicking the box next to each item you might want to buy. When you're done choosing the items, just click "display selected items", then you can just print out your list and go shopping! It's THAT easy! And best of all, it's FREE! There are a few sites that charge a fee, but I prefer to stick with the free ones. These are a few that I like to use:

Couponmom.com

TheFrugalFind.com

TotallyTarget.com

WildforWags.com
STLMommy.com (local to St. Louis)

SavingmoneyinMissouri.com (local to St. Louis)

It's probably not practical for you to go to every single store every week, so you will need to choose only 1 (maybe 2) grocery store(s), 1 drug store, and depending on the week, 1 discount store. Here in St. Louis, we have 3 major grocery stores. The way I choose which store I will shop at each week, is by looking over all 3 store's circulars at once. With my Sharpie in hand, I will circle all the great deals I see. This gives me a great visual of the comparison of each store's deals. I will narrow it down to 1 store based on coupon match-ups and sale prices for items I need whether I have a coupon for it or not. You can take this method a step further and make a hand written list on ONE piece of paper of each store's deals in which you are interested. This will really help you narrow down your decision for which store will make it worth the trip.

Later we'll talk about how to plan your meals based on what you already have. It's a different way of thinking, rather than planning your menu, and then shopping for those items.

For now, we'll discuss what makes a good deal a good deal in Deal or No Deal.

Or....

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