Super Doubles Week at Harris Teeter...All Done!!!

Whew! I love to coupon shop but this Super Doubles (q-pons double with a face value up to $1.99) event was a real challenge.  I really love Harris Teeter but their prices are outrageous!  But, just like shopping at Neiman Marcus, you can find great bargains, if you know how to shop the sales. 
                                                                      
The greatest challenge to my shopping adventure was that I brought along my husband.  He is probably at the same level I was about a year ago when I began.  He had a list of items but did not really know how to gauge whether the price with the coupon was a good buy.  In other words, he did not have a "price book" embedded in his brain.  I actually have three price books (or price lists) in my binder.  I seldom refer to them anymore because I have the price lists for the items I buy most often memorized.  
 
My dear husband did not use the rain check with the Smart Source milk coupons and ended up paying $3 for milk that would have been free had he paired the coupons with the rain check.   He completely bypassed a great deal on Welch's grape juice because he did not realize that it was super doubles week at HT and thought the juice cost too much.  He did not realize that the $1 coupon would double to $2 this week and make the Welch's a good buy. 

I did not have the heart to fuss at him.  I gently pointed out his errors and he went back to the store to get credit for his mistakes.  He did great!  He got all the shopping errors rectified and they gave him back the rain check to use yet another time.  
 
What did I learn...I will have to provide my sweetie with a shopping "scenario" for each item rather than simply listing the items to purchase.  A shopping scenario for the Smart Balance milk  and Welch's he purchased would look like this:  

(1) Smart Balance milk special: buy 1 half gallon get 1 Smart Balance spreadable butter FREE
Buy 3 Smart Source 1/2 gallon milk - $3.99
Get 3 Smart Source spreadable butter (Free-no coupon needed)
Use 3 Smart Balance milk coupons $1.50 off one item (will double to $3 off each item)
Use rain check for Smart Balance milk 2 for $6
Out of pocket (OOP) Free!

(2) Welch's Grape Juice
Buy 3 Welch's Grape Juice @ $3.79 ea
Use 3 Welch's Grape Juice coupons $1 off 1 bottle (will double to $2 off each item)
OOP (Out of pocket) 3X $1.79 = $5.37
 
Yes, I know this looks like a lot of work but it serves a purpose.  My husband is slowly being groomed to learn how to shop wisely with and without coupons.  In addition, I have great hopes that he will become a savvy couponer once he is fully convinced of its merits.  He loves going shopping and watching the prices roll back once he scans his loyalty card and coupons.  But, if he does not learn how to spot a bargain or (better yet) make a bargain, he will never become a savvy shopper.

We shopped from two different lists to save time and effort.  On our shopping trip tonight, we bought $164.24 worth of groceries.  Our out of pocket was $45.52.  We saved $118.72 for a savings of 73%!!!
    
Is my sweetheart convinced?  Yes, he is convinced that coupon shopping definitely does save money and is worth the effort.  However, he says that it is worth "my" effort and not his.  He says he will sit in the car and listen to the baseball game next time.
     
Here's a little peek at my rain checking deal at Harris Teeter this week.  I love rain checks.  The last day of a big sale is the best day to go rain checking.

 

Happy Couponing and Rain Checking!

ShaRon, The Bizzy Coupon Bee

Rain Checks

I Love Rain Checks!!!

       Everyone loves a good sale.  Change that.  Everyone loves a GREAT sale. What if you could have a sale whenever you wanted?  What if you could catch a sale when you had the perfect coupons that could be stacked with the perfect store coupons to give you the best deals ever?

       Well, you can do just that!  Every single time you go to the store, you should be stocking up on rain checks.  At least once each sales cycle, you should make a trip to your favorite grocery store, dollar store, pharmacy, etc.  I love empty shelves.  Especially, during a really big sales event like BOGO (buy one get one).  
       The best time for rain checks is most likely during the middle days of the sales event.  The first day, the store is probably well stocked and the shelves will not be empty.  However, days two, three, and four of a week long sale will probably find the shelves bare.  So, don't fret about couponers who emptied those shelves before you had the chance to do the same thing. (By the way, shelf emptying is very bad couponing manners.) Make a list of the depleted sales items you want and take that list to customer service.  

        Most stores do not have a limit on the number of rain checks it will issue.  However, I would not ask for more than four or five per visit.  I have gotten pretty good at knowing who works the customer service desk at different times of the day and evening.  So, I make a trip in the early morning before 2 PM and then again later in the afternoon or early evening.  Or just go to a different branch of that store.  If you do this every single time you go to the store, you will soon have a large stash of rain checks ready to match to newly issued coupons from the manufacturers and/or store coupons for even better savings.  

       Rain checks usually do not expire quickly, if at all.  Be sure to check the rain check closely and note the expiration date.  For example, Harris Teeter, Bloom, and CVS (my local stores) do not expire.  Shop Rite (60 days), Target (45 days), Walgreens (30 days), and Safeway (90 days) rain checks do expire.  WalMart does offer rainchecks as long as the item is not "limited to stock on hand or clearance".  Rain checks are often overlooked as a valuable couponing resource but are just as valuable as your coupons.  Never leave your store without at least one rain check. 
        I use my cell phone camera to take photos of the sales price tags and empty shelves.  This usually saves time so that the customer service staffer does not need to go all over the store to find the item.  Also, always carry the store ad with you to the desk.  There are some stores that actually have two different fliers for each week.  I have visited CVS and other stores on the last day of a sale only to find that all of the current sales tags have been removed (in preparation for the next week's sale) and the current week's flier was not available.  Since I had my own flier, I was able to go around the store to check out the stock.  I took my sales flier to the customer service desk and was able to get my rain checks with the Extra Bucks noted on each one.  
       CVS  will make a notation on your rain check that will qualify that purchase for the extra bucks reward once the purchase has been made.  Don't forget to ask and/or remind the CVS associate about the extra bucks rewards for your rain check.  There are spaces on the rain check specifically for noting the extra bucks reward.   Riteaid will do the same for their Rewards, too.  I do not have a Walgreens near me and do not know about their raincheck policies. 
          So, don't go into spasms, if a great sale occurs between pay days or during a coupon drought.  Make your own sales event happen exactly when you want it and when you are prepared.


For more rain checking tips go to "Rain Check, Please"

Happy Rain Checking!

ShaRon, The Bizzy Coupon Bee 

Hoarding or Stockpiling?

Hoarding or Stockpiling?

       I have a special corner of my basement devoted to my growing stockpile.  My stockpile is a source of pride.  As a homemaker, I see my stockpile as an indication that I have provided for my family while being a frugal steward of the monetary funds the Lord has entrusted to us.
       A stockpile can take up to 9 months to get to a point where it can sustain the family that will draw upon it for sustenance.  My stockpile took approximately 9 months to get to this point.  In fact, the photo does not show the extra set of shelves to the far left.
        But is this hoarding or making provisions for my family?  I first heard about stockpiles as a little girl 50+ years ago growing up in the Nation's Capital.  It was the era still reeling from the atomic bombs unleashed on Japan.  During the cold war with Russia and the Cuban missile crisis, I also remember renewed interests in stockpiles of food stores as a way to live through the wake of a nuclear holocaust.
        My grandmother had a stockpile in her root cellar in a little hamlet in Virginia about 5 miles from Luray.  She had canned goods that could have fed our family and several others for months.  Canned jars of vegetables, pickles, jellies, apple sauce, apple butter, hanging salted pork hams, bacon, sausage, sacks of root vegetables, and other curing meats were all stored as a source of food for our family.  She did not store anything just to "have it".  Grandma did not can anything we did not or would not eat. 
       Like Grandma Ada, my stockpile consists of only items we use on a regular basis.  I am able to save because I use coupons and stack them with store coupons and sales.  Also, I no longer pay $25 to $150 for a loaf of bread or carton of juice.
        How many times have you stopped by the store just to get one or two items and end up with a cart full of groceries.  Each time I pull as item from my stockpile instead of stopping by the store, I save at least $25 to $50.  It is impossible for me to go to the grocery store and buy only one item whether I use coupons or not.
       Back to the hoarding question.  My stockpile is not hoarding because I use everything I have in my stockpile and my stockpile exists to feed my family, give to my church ministries, and save money. Nothing goes to waste. 
      I must admit that I am addicted to couponing and would continue to coupon even if I were a millionaire.  I would be able to help so many more people and save even more money because I could buy lots of newspapers.

Happy Couponing!

ShaRon, The Bizzy Coupon Bee

Getting Started

Getting Started

The first thing I tell all of my new couponers is to start slow.  Don't try go out and buy twenty Sunday papers; clip 200 coupons; and then try to shop the sales at 5 or 6 stores and pharmacies.  You will implode in a very short time.

  

Start with no more than 4 newspapers; scan the upcoming weekly circulars at a couple of grocery stores and/or pharmacies.  Try to decide which grocery store and pharmacy you will target the following week.  Remember, you will concentrate only on those two stores for the next few weeks (grocery store and one pharmacy). 

    

Subscribe to the newspaper that has the most coupon inserts in your city.  If you do not live near a large metropolitan area, then you may have depend soley on printable coupons (available online), store coupons, and coupon clipping services. 

    

Nearly everything I have learned about couponing, I learned from many of the websites listed in "My Favorite Coupon Links".  I share them with you.  I ask only that if you use them in your blog or on your website, that you include a link back to my blog.   

If you find a dead or dying link, let me know.  

Thanks a bunch!

My Favorite Coupon Links

All You Magazine Online

All You Grocery Circular Round Up

All You Magazine Subscription - $1.67 each

Best Grocery Price Book

Catalina Printable Coupons

Cellfire - Digital Coupons sent to cell phone

Cellfire –Electronic & Printable Coupons

Check for validity of printed coupons

Coupons and Forms

Faith and Hope Coupons 

Contact Links-P&G Brands

Coupon Beat

Coupon Carryout 

Coupon Database Saving Lifestyle -
Coupon Database –Saving with Shelley

Coupon Database - A Full Cup - 

Coupon Database - LivingRich with Coupons

Coupon Database ($$) The Grocery Game 

Coupon Database –Coupon Divas 

Coupon Database-MoneySaving Queen

Coupon Divas:  (weekly matchups, coupon policies ) 

Coupon Fraud List 

Coupon Policies –Grocery & Drug Stores Cuckoo for Coupons Grocery Deals 
Living Rich with Coupons

Price Pts - CouponLady 

Coupon Mom   

Coupon Network 

Couponing without Clipping Coupons  Hot Coupon World   
Couponing without Clipping Coupons You Tube Tips  
Couponing without Clipping Coupons How to Coupon

Coupon Clipping Services –  www.ebay.com (Enter "product + coupon" in search box)

Excel PriceBook 

 Expired Coupons for Military Families – Coups for Troops   &  Coupons to Troops

Grocery Price Book

Hot Coupon World 

How to Make a Price Book

Kountry Klippers

Living withCoupons 

Military Coupons (Expired Coupons):  Operation Expiration  & Military Coupon Program

My Savings  (Free Samples and Grocery Coupons)

Nicole’s Nickels – Couponing tips and instructions  

 Price Pts - Cuckoo for Coupon Deals (VA based stores)

Printable Coupons and Deals 

Printable  Online Coupons

Printable Rebate Forms

Proctor & Gamble (P&G) Brand Links - 

P&G Everyday Solutions (coupons, etc.)

Publix Coupon Book (while monthly supplies last)      

Saving Cents with Sense

Shortcuts Electronic & Printable Coupons 

Simply Forties: Creating a Price Book 

Snail Mail Coupons

Store Coupon Policies - The Krazy Coupon Lady

Southern Savers Buy Price List 

Sunday Coupon Preview

Sunday Coupon Insert Schedule 

Target Coupons 

The Krazy CouponLady - 

The Krazy Coupon Lady Stock up Price List 

You Tube Couponing Videos by the hundreds!!– Enter “couponing, organize coupons, coupons, etc” in the search box

Verify My Coupon (Kimberly-Clark Q-pons)

Verify Printable Coupons from Coupons.com

WalMart Coupons 

We Use Coupons 

Week’s Best DiaperDeals       

Zavers PaperlessCoupons

Couponing

 Why Did I Start Couponing...Again?

I started couponing nearly 60 years ago with my grandmother, Ada.  She collected S&H Green Stamps and Plaid Stamps.  They were collectively known as "trading stamps".   The more she shopped, the more stamps she got.  I remember licking stamps for those stamp books until I got a cramp in my tongue.  The glue was not very tasty but I kept on lickin' because I knew that we were trying to get a reward.  Pots, dishes, utensils, a television or whatever I saw in the catalog, I just knew that one more lick could mean the difference between a coffeepot and a radio.  Ironically, I can't remember any of the items that we received from the boxes of trading stamp books we redeemed.

My parents also couponed in the 60' and early 70's via the coupons in Raleigh's cigarettes. They soon stopped when the first rumblings of tobacco causing lung cancer began.  They had hundreds of coupons but yet again, I do not remember a single item we got from redeeming those coupons.

Fast forward a few years, I found myself in 1973 with a new husband and beautiful baby daughter and no job.  I was on maternity leave for 8 weeks.  The leave was unpaid because we adopted our daughter.  As a result, I was not eligible for paid maternity leave.

I remember going to the local A&P with a fist full of coupons hoping to be able to use a few of them to lower my grocery bill.  I don't remember how much savings I had but it must have been worthwhile because I kept on doing it for a few years while on unpaid summer vacations (I was a school teacher).

I don't remember when I stopped.  I continued to cut a coupon here and there but nothing on the scale of what I do now.  I have become obsessed!  I tend to have an addictive personality about things I enjoy and I love saving money with my coupons.

My husband and I are retired now and 38 years later, I have returned to couponing.  I, like many of you, saw the show, "Extreme Couponing" in the winter of 2010.  I watched with my mouth wide open for the entire show.  I was hooked! At the same time, I said to myself, "Oh, oh! The stores are not going to be happy with this revelation."  And they weren't.  Couponing is not like it used to be back when it was underground.  But, you don't have to be an extreme couponer to save tons of money on your groceries, cars, clothes, homes, etc.  Take what you learn from me and others like me and use it to change your shopping lifestyle and you will save money.

I love standing and watching the bottom line shrink when I scan my loyalty card, my store coupons, and then my manufacturers coupons AND then get more coupons with my receipt.  I love it!!!!

My goal is to help you begin to reap the rewards of couponing!