How to Organize Coupons Part I

I thought it was about high time I shared with you how I organize my coupons. I've hesitated because it's been a while since I've kept them organized. Since I've started blogging, I've learned more about deals and coupons than I can keep up with. And I've quickly outgrown my simple methods.

I've been perfectly happy with this coupon purse. It's really just a tickle file I bought about 3 years ago for about $3.50.

I used legal sized envelopes, one per alphabet letter. The envelope was sealed with the top cut open so I could easily slide the coupons inside. Since I alphabetize my coupons by brand, it was so EASY to just clip and file.

But this only worked when I would buy one newspaper. Now I often buy two plus I print lots of coupons. Soon my simple clutch-like organizer grew so fat that the button kept popping off and I had to hold it together with a rubberband!

There was another system I heard about but I put it off for a long time: The binder system. You had a large binder or those Trappers we used in middle school. Coupons would then get sorted in these baseball card organizers. It seemed unappealing and complicated! But I had clearly outgrown the coupon purse.

So now I have a binder and it's blue and kinda blah. I might show you a picture. It took a long time to transfer all my coupons into the tiny pockets. I still have more to transfer! Now, I'm just waiting for them to expire so I can just get rid of them. One thing that's great about this new system is that I now think about which coupons to keep. After all, it's got to be worth the struggle squeezing it in there. There's a lady at my church who sends expired coupons overseas so she gets lots of coupons from me (many not expired). I figure, if I really am desperate for some coupons, then I can always get them on ebay.

It may be hard to get coupons in the binder, but it sure is easy getting them out! Many times I've seen store clearance and flipped open the binder to quickly pull out a coupon. I've done this for strangers and friends I've bumped into at the store. So far, this ease has made the hassle of organizing worth it.

Publix Shopping 12-3-09 and Sneak Peek WEDS Deals

Publix deals pictured here are good through Tuesday. This is all I bought there this week. I paid $2.97. These "healthy" garden goldfish tastes pretty good. The cookies are not healthy but cheap! The plus side is baking fun with the kiddos. As much as I love homemade cookies, I like saving time better.


We also got this train for $37 mentioned in the post below. Some of the cars open and are perfect for stashing little treats! I'm excited to use it since I never had one growing up (no boys in our house).

Check out how others did with their shopping here or here. Many saved 80% or more this week!

Also, Michelle at I Heart Publix has the Sneak Peek for Weds Ads by Monday. See what deals you might partake this week here. You could even buy coupons now online or ebay to get ready.

Here are my faves! Please note that we can't verify all these deals until the ad comes out on Weds:
Campbell’s Select Harvest Soup, Assorted Varieties, 18.6 to 18.8-oz can or 15.3-oz bowl, BOGO $2.39
-$1/2; $.40/2 from 09-20-09 SS
-$1/1 PRINT
-$1.50/3 PRINT

Kashi Instant Oatmeal or Hot Cereal, Assorted Varieties, 11.28 or 12.1-oz box, BOGO $3.59
-$1 Target Q Peelie
-$3 Manuf Q Peelie
*Boxes of TLC bars at some Target stores have a $4 Peelie with above Qs. Check to see if your Publix will take Target Qs as some do not (like Orange Beach- Boo!)

Sargento Shredded Cheese, Assorted Varieties, 5 to 8-oz pkg, 3/$5
-$.40/2; $.50/2; $1/2 from 11-15-09 SS
-$.55/1 All You, November 2009
-Free Dozen eggs wyb 2 Sargento from All the Trimmings Booklet

CVS Shopping 12-7-09

I listed highlights but you see more deals I posted earlier or at MSM.

The total was $56.21. I used $8.50 Qs, $5 off $30 CVS Q, & $40.45 ECBs. Final cost: $2.26+tax, plus $38.47 ECBs back!

Monday night, all Merry Brite Hats and ornaments are sold out at my store! But I got a rain check and they may get more in next week. Last year I was able to get the ornaments on 75% off so I'm being optimistic that I can get them FREE this year!

Heads up! There's a $2 peel-off coupon on Zantac 150. It covers the whole box and is hard to spot without the small red $2 off banner on top. Hubs is still amazed at how I can spot these coupons!

$8.99 Zantac 150
-$2 peelie
-------------------
Pay $6.99, Get $8.99 ECBs, make $2!

Don't forget to scan your CVS card in the price scanner. I got a $2 off $10 CVS brand coupon. Both nuts and lotions are CVS brands (Essence of Beauty and Gold Emblem).

$4.99 x 2 Essence of Beauty Lotions (or other products)
$0.79 Gold Emblem Cashews
-$2 off $10 CVS brand
---------------------------
Pay $8.77, Get $8 ECBs from lotions

We got this new train set at Publix last week for $37 + tax. Sale price is $50. I used $5 off $30 from the new 9th Ave Publix, $3 off in Winter Savings booklet, and $5 Walgreens RRs. It's a beautiful train but battery-operated not electric. So it's great that CVS is having another Energizer sale. Now we're set!

$5.99 x 3 Energizer (from $8)
-$1 x 3 Manuf Qs
------------------------------
Pay $14.97, Get $5 ECBs

I used up all my ECBs a few weeks ago and decided to reign in the CVS spending by getting $50 CVS e-gift card. They also had a promo where you get an extra $5 e-gift card for any $25 card purchased. Then I would only use these cards and see how far I could go. Apparently, not far at all, more like one shopping trip! But I got $50+ ECBs back that same trip. So now I locked myself into having too many ECBs to rollover every month. Eeek! Hence, the Zantac and most of the items I bought. I still only paid $4.39 out-of-pocket today for all of these products. Which is great, if I was planning to open my own drugstore or something. So lesson learned: stick with small transactions!

Target Deals Dec 6-12

Kashi Waffles on clearance, $1.46 each-FREE after Qs!
Get 2 Kashi Go Lean Waffles in the Frozen Section
Get $4 Peelie from TLC bars ($3 off 2 Manuf Q and $1 off 1 Target Q)
*coupon does NOT say you have to buy the TLC bars to use Qs
Get a filler item for $1.08 because you will have overage! Heart to Heart was also on sale but it's sold out at my store. Regular price only $1.99 so would still be 2 FREE boxes.

(I've been doing this deal for about a month because my store has tons of these peelie coupons left. I get about a couple of free items every time I go so as not to wipe out the store. Although it is very tempting. Free and good for you convenience food is hard to come by.)

Check out Hip to Save's lengthy post of Target sales with coupon match-ups here. Also, Target coupons are here. Some are manuf Qs and there's no way to tell until you print them. Heads up: score two FREE Swiss Miss Hot Cocoa 10packs by printing two $1 Target Q on page 15.

This is my favorite:
Buy 5 Select Snacks Get $5 Target Gift Card
Cheez-Its, Keebler Fudge Cookies, Keebler crackers --$2 each

Coupons you can print (list from H2S and HCW):
Cheez-its: -$0.75 coupons -login first
Keebler Fudge Stripe Cookies -$1/2 coupon- login first
Keebler Flipsides crackers- $1/2 coupons + $1/3 Target coupon
Keebler Wheatables -$1.50 Q (no longer available)
Keebler or Kellogg's products -$1 Manuf Q from Save-A-Lot

Some or all of these coupons may be applicable.
If you find Keebler crackers with Toy Logo on them, you can submit for a $10 Toy Voucher.
Here is my deal scenario:
Buy 2 Cheez-its, use 2 $0.75 Q
Buy 3 Keebler flipsides, use $1/2 and $1/3 Target Qs
Pay $6.50 out-of-pocket. Get $5 Target Gift Card
Only $0.30 each after the Gift Card!

Also: If you have USA Weekend, clip $5 Boggle Q & do this deal:
DEAL: Buy $10 Hasbro game, Get FREE card game
Buy Boggle, $12
-$5 Q
Pay $7 for Boggle and Card Game!


Glade Deal: ongoing through Dec 26!
Buy 5 Holiday Glade, Get $5 Gift Card

CVs Deals for Dec 6--12

Just found out that my mom has been visiting my blog. Hey Mom! Thanks for showing me coupons when I was a teen. It's sure is different from how we shopped back in PI!

Go to MSM for more deals and scenarios!

Here are the best deals I see this week:
Merry Brite Santa Hats $3.99 each
Get $3.99 ECB back, limit 2

Merry Brite Mini Ornaments, $1.99 each
Get $1.99 ECB back, limit 2

Emergenc Immune Booster, $3.99 each
Get $3.99 ECB back, limit 1

Zantac 150 (24ct) or Zantac 75 (30 ct)
Get $8.99 ECB back, limit 1

Complete Multi-Purpose Solution, $9.99
Get $9.99 ECB back, limit 1 (December deal-not just this week)

Zantac & Complete have $1 Qs but our region did not get them.


On to the CVS $5 Challenge. See other ways to stretch your $5 here.

A couple of years ago, before using internet coupons and reading other blogs, I used to figure out my deal scenarios using very little cash. Since then, I've saved up enough so that I can get more and build up my ECBs. But sometimes I do think back on those simpler times when I only got what we needed and didn't have to worry about hunting down coupons or figuring out storage for the stockpile.

While talking to my mom this week, she told me that she's been trying to figure out CVS. Looking at the deals, she would ask herself "Do I need this?" I need to ask myself that too! I often get carried away with getting stuff for free, I don't even think about what to do with all the free stuff.

Now that I've got that off my chest, back in olden days when I had only about $5 to spend at CVS, I would keep rolling the ECBs by doing a few transactions. Since I shopped Sunday mornings or on weeknights when the store is slow, the cashier had no problem helping me. I paid for the first transaction then use the ECBs that would print from the receipts to pay for the other transactions.
Here is how I would do it using this week's deals:

Frist Transaction:
Merry Brite Hat, $3.99
Pay $3.99 out-of-pocket
Get $3.99 ECBs back

Second Transaction:
EmergenC Immune Booster, $3.99
Pay with $3.99 ECB from above
Get $3.99 ECBs back

Third Transaction:
2 Merry Brite Mini Ornaments, $3.98
Pay with $3.99 ECB from above
Get $3.98 ECBs back

Total out-of-pocket cost: $3.99
Total ECBs left for next weeek: $3.98
Total if you didn't rollover ECBs in 3 transactions: $11.96

Here are a few things that helped me get started:
1. Finding the store that I like and likes to work with me
2. Doing small transactions so it's easy to keep it straight
3. Calling the store to see if there are any sale items left if I can't shop until after Tuesday. The free one after ECBs go within a day or 2.

I remember being frustrated many times finding the shelves empty and vowing never to shop at CVS ever again. But really, I just needed to have a different shopping strategy and get a raincheck!

Menu Plan Monday 12.7.09

We survived another week in the kitchen! Sunday for lunch, we had pita bread stuffed with grilled turkey and cucumber sauce. The turkey breast was marinated with vinegar, soy sauce, olive oil (and juice of one lime added at the end). The sauce is half cup light sour cream, half diced cucumber and these spices: paprika, parsley, salt, onion, garlic and black pepper.
Lunch on Thursday, sloppy joes with cranberry green salad. (Only $0.25 for the salad & $0.15 for the cranberries!) One fine breakfast we had sausage quiche. For a healthier version I used yogurt instead of milk and cut cholesterol using egg whites for half the eggs. I could tell it was healthier but I had to do it this way because of all the extra calories added by the pie shell. Normally, I skip the pie shell and make this quiche with grits.
We also had beef stew with carrots and peas for dinner. I cooked it from frozen in 15 minutes in the pressure cooker!
Cranberry porkchops also took only 15 mins in the pressure cooker. (It's porkchops with half a cup of whole berry cranberry sauce and 1/4 c bbq sauce.) Served with stir-fry sweet and white potatoes.

So this week this is what I am thinking for dinner:
Chili and cornbread
Tacos
Tetrazzini
Black beans and rice
Leftovers
Eat out on Saturday
Adobo Porkchops

Check out orgjunkie for more.

Walgreens Deals Dec 6-12 (plus 4 Day Sale starts Dec 9!)

See MSM for more coupon match-ups and deals.
For the next few weeks, Walgreens will have a sales ad on Sunday (7day sale) and then another on Weds (4 day sale). I've listed highlights for both below:

Weeklong Sales:
$3.50 All Laundry Detergent, 26-40 loads (-$2 Q from today's paper)
$3.50 Snuggle Fabric Softener, 32 loads (-$2 Q from today's paper)
$0.99 dozen eggs (get 2 w/ BOGO Q from Good Egg last week)
$0.99 Chex Mix 5.5 or 8.75 oz (-$0.50 Q if you still have print Qs)
*can be price-matched at Target or Wal-Mart

$0.50 Christmas Village figurines

2 for $6 Tropicana or Trop 50 Juice (-$1 Q from Q dispensers/blinkies at store)
Get $1 RR if you buy 2

$2 Nabisco Crackers (Wheat Thins, Ritz, Triscuits)
Buy $10 get $3 RR
Use $0.50 store Q from Diabetes & You (by pharmacy)
Stack with $1 Q from 11/8 SS
Submit for $10 Rebate if you buy 10 (do transaction 2x!)
*If you do this 2x and have all Qs, you'll get 10 FREE boxes(after RRs), $1 overage, plus $10 Rebate! Thanks A Thrifty Mom!

$5 Theraflu
-$1.50 Q from Q dispensers/blinkies at store
-$2 store Q from Diabetes & You or Healthy Savings Booklet
Buy 2 get $3 RR
Use both coupons and pay $3
Then get $3RR back!

$5 Triaminic
-$3 Q from 12/6 SS (regional)
-$2 store Q Healthy Savings Booklet
Buy 2 get $3 RR
Use both coupons and pay $0
Then get $5RR back!
You'll make $5 extra just for using Qs!

Use the in-ad Qs for the following deals:
2/$3 Ragu Sauce, page 3 (-$1 off 2 Q from here)
BOGO Chinet plates, 2 for $2.99, page 9 (-$1 Q, print 2x)
$0.59 Envelopes or writing tablets page 12
$0.39 Posterboard page 12
lots more Christmas items on sale with in-ad Qs!
============================================


Four-day sale: Weds-Saturday, Dec 9-14

Get an extra $5 RR for spending $25.

Buy these 6 items below for $28 before Qs, get $28 RR
Plus $5 RR for spending at least $25
Plus, Make $7 more with Just for Men Rebate
Use all coupons, get $5 more!
Total possible money-maker: $17, plus all FREE items

1. Conair Brushes or Scuncci Hair Accessories $2 get $2 RR
2. Stim-U-Dent 100 pack $2 get $2 RR
3. Neutrogena Men's Skin Care $4.99 get $5 RR
4. Just For Men Touch of Gray Hair Color $6.99 get $7 RR
-$2 just for men Touch of Gray
-$7 mir just for men Touch of Gray
5. Renu Multi-Purp Plus Solution Twin Pack 8 oz , $9.99 get $10 RR
-$2 Renu Multi-Purpose
-$1 Renu Multi-purpose (try zip 85013)
6. Stayfree Femine Care Maxi 16 or 24 pk or Ultra Thin Pads 16 pk $1.99 get $2 RR
-$1 Stayfree

Thanks, IHeartWags for ad scan and deals!

Other deals:
12-Pack Coke Products, $3 for $10, get $2RR for 3
Milk $2.39/gallon
BOGO Reusable Tote Bags, 2 for $2.99

See other challenge entrants here.
With only $5 to spend at Walgreens, I would use it like this:

First Transaction:
Buy 2 Triaminic, $10
-$3x2 Q
-$2x2 store Q
Pay $0, Get $5 RR

Second Transaction:
Buy 1 Con-Air Brush, $2
Buy 2 Theraflu, $10
-$1.50x2 Q
-$2x2 store Q
Cost $5, pay w/ $5 RRs above
Get $5 RRs back

Third Transaction:
Buy 1 Neutrogena Men's Skin Care, $4.99
pay w/ $5 RRs above
Get $5 RR back

Total out-of-pocket: $0!
Have $5 RR left for next week.
Total cost would have been $27 without coupons