Most of the time, a transaction with a specific desired result at the grocery store goes smoothly… Then there is that time when EVERYTHING goes wrong and you are left standing at the register trying to figure out what to do. This happened to me last night at Kroger.

I was exhausted from taking my Mom to the airport at 4am and wanted to go to bed, but of course, we needed milk and I wanted to see what unadvertised Mega Event deals they had for you guys. It was 10pm and I was planning on 10 minutes in the store, 45 minutes later I get to the front and all they have are 2 self checkouts open. This always bugs me, as I do a lot of BIG shopping at night because I won’t have kids with me. Fine. I start checking my stuff out, sadly I only had a few coupons with me but it turned out better because I am not sure this trip could have taken a lot of coupon to deal with!

I was expecting a Tide catalina to print, I wanted to have it to take a picture for you. When I was done paying nothing printed out of the catalina machine. Upon further inspection, the “out of paper” light was blinking. AWESOME. I called over the lady managing the self check out. She didn’t know what to do. I suggested putting in new paper. Then I explained I was supposed to get a catalina, again she had no idea what to do. As she was trying to change the paper, I noticed on my receipt that NONE of the Mega Event items were the right price, rather the Mega Event $4 off each 10 did NOT come off. That was $16!

At this point there were now 10 people either checking out or waiting to check out, all at the self checkout. The one cashier was getting frazzled, so I kept telling her to help them and I could wait. One cashier who was not working but came in to buy something noticed she needed help and walked over to help her manage the self check outs (I thought that was nice!) he was also the same kid that checked us out when we were there for the EC show.

Now a regular manager shows up and I explain what happened. He gets the off – duty kid to show him how to refund me the Mega Event $16, we still can’t figure out why it didn’t come off. The nice cashier lady tried explaining to me how a Mega Event worked and that I didn’t buy in 10′s. I did, I kept nicely telling her, so check your receipts guys!

Then the manager hands me $2 in cash and says it is for the catalina. Now, I seriously did not want to be a pain in the butt, but I really wanted the catalina and not the cash. He looked at me like I was crazy, and tried explaining that he gave me cash, which I know is probably the more desired result! BUT I REALLY wanted to see the catalina! I suggested returning the Tide and ringing up the Tide again, but as I said it I realized I wouldn’t get the right price because it was a Mega Event item and I didn’t want them to have to return 10 items and ring 10 back up.

What a mess. I was irritated because many cashiers and managers never have any idea what to if something doesn’t ring up right. Especially with catalinas, you are better off calling the catalina company and taking care of it there. I have no idea why the mega event money didn’t come off, and I won’t be able to verify the Tide catalina without buying 10 more mega event items, which I will do for you guys this morning!

What can you do if your transaction gets messed up: 

• Stay CALM!
• Ask for help
• Make sure it isn’t your error (I double and triple checked that I put in my Kroger number)
• Make sure the catalina event is still running
• Ask for a manager that can help you further if the cashier seems confused
• Ask to void the transaction and start over if you need to
• Have a store ad with you to verify prices
• Don’t worry about everyone behind you, if you need to, suspend that transaction and take your in question items up to the customer service counter

Catalina can be reached at 888-826-8766 and press 3. I have this number in my phone do I don’t forget to call if there is a problem. They can look up the transaction by receipt and clubcard number.

Things like this will happen, but for the most part everything goes smoothly!

Real men coupon? The other day, I posted a question about whether you are embarrassed to be seen with your binder in the store. One of the comments was left by Michael and I think it is really interesting:

I am a husband and I do nearly all the shopping for my family groceries. I spent 3 years working for Kroger in high school and I kind of have the grocery game figured out a little. I am no expert but I know more than my wife. She will not even look at a price half the time. She could care less because milk is milk, eggs are eggs, etc. There is a large stigma for men couponing. I am constantly ribbed by my friends about it and I always respond that they can continue to pay full price but I will not. Recently I attended a coupon class taught by Paul  and I was the only male there with about 25 women. It is just not considered manly I guess. I even coupon for makeup for my wife and daughter, especially when CVS runs a clearance and I know their colors etc. It can feel awkward but I keep telling myself I am saving money and I always carry my binder with me everywhere. But I made sure to get a masculine black and silver binder instead of hot pink or purple

This is my question; Do you think it is NOT manly for Men to coupon? 

I am not really sure where the stigma from using coupons has come from for either men or women. Why the very act of saving money was ever looked down on, is completely beyond me. I remember when I had my first baby and was discreetly nursing him in public. My Grandma was so embarrassed for me, not because of the physical part of nursing him, but for the fact that someone might think I was too poor to buy formula. She was raised that only poor people nurse because they could not afford to feed their babies better. Couponing I am sure got a negative reputation when someone at some point looked down on the fact that you HAD to do it to buy food for your family. Which would explain why it would be “worse” for a man to coupon, he should be able to take care of his family without having to use coupons. Plus, it probably seemed like woman’s work because of the transition from the men picking up the pre-ordered groceries, to woman going to the store themselves and shopping once in the store because the men were at work.

Remember the scene in Mr Mom, where Michael Keaton and all the neighborhood women are playing poker with coupons? All his friends look down on him for staying home and using coupons. That is one of the best movie scenes however!

Personally I think it is pretty dang HOT when a man will use coupons. Honestly, because it means that they had the forethought to even think about what we might need ahead of time, and that is pretty cool. It is cool, because they have to have enough self confidence to not care what people think and that is attractive in a man.

I love it when my husband comes home with something from the store and says, ” I saw this and thought you might like it.” WHAT? you were thinking about me in the store?? Wow! I really love you! Plus you used a coupon on it and paid $1 for lip gloss you thought would look good on me!! Let’s go make out! Wait? I am thinking that men who coupon are not only just WAAAYYYYY smarter financially, but are MUCH smarter at figuring out what what will make their wives happy!

It is the responsibility of both the husband and wife, or if you are single, your personal responsibility whether you are a man or woman to make the most of what you have IMO. Coupons are such a HUGE part of this, it just seems absolutely stupid and ignorant to not use them when possible. To look down on someone or think they are not “manly” for couponing is also stupid and ignorant and really needs to change, this is 2012, not 1912.

BRAVO to Michael and all the men out there that coupon and take care of their families, and have the self confidence to coupon no matter what people might say or the looks they might get!

What do you think?

This baby has nothing to do with the post, I just think he is darling….
Thankfully he has grown into his ears!

This is a question from Tracy:

So, you do shop with your binder? I am still embarrassed to pull out all of my coupons. I have been thinking about getting a binder, and this encourages me to go for it. Do people stare at you?

YES! I shop with my binder. I put it right up in the front of the cart where you would put a little one and buckle him in! Honestly, and this could be a post in itself, I am used to people staring at me when I shop because I have a lot of kids.  But, in the beginning I was very embarrassed to be shopping with that many kids AND using coupons.

I also live in an affluent area. Let me assure you we do not qualify! But, for good and bad we happen to live in a very nice community. That being said, more and more people are learning the value of couponing. A few years ago no one would be caught dead in our Walmart shopping, let alone with coupons but I see more and more people everyday and MORE with binders of some sort.

At the grocery stores people are very curious, I ALWAYS get asked about my binder and the kids. I love it now, people are very impressed and I have had only positive coupon questions from people. Comments on the number of children I have on the other hand…

** If you are a single Woman and looking… I have more Men stop and talk to me and look through my binder than Women!! They are super curious and think it is brilliant to use baseball card holders! I have had men follow me around the store chatting about coupons and how they are interested and how they wish their wives would do it! They stay around and will watch me check out, it is really funny.

Like my husband always reassures me, who cares if they stare, you are the one saving the money you should be staring at them for being so dumb as to not be using coupons!

Are you ever embarrassed to use a binder?

This weekend you can expect to find 3 coupon inserts in your Sunday paper. The P&G, the Red Plum and the Smart Source! This is a good week to pick up a few extra papers as the P&G is so nice to have a few extra of!

** FIRST - I want to tell you something you already know… when you have a clean, organized binder or storage method and coupons cut out, life is soooo much better! When you need to go to the store and have no coupons to take with you ready, it is frustrating as you know that you are just wasting money. Start off the New Year by giving yourself the gift of saving money by being able to find those coupons! 

If you have inserts just piled around start by getting them all together by insert.  OR this also applies if you get really behind in cutting them out.

Always start by cutting the most recent inserts out first. These can be the most import ones to get cut out for a few reasons.

• Have the furthest expiration date
• You are not yet sick of cutting and will cut out more
• None are expired
• Coupon matchups are currently out for them

I store my coupons 2 different ways. Each week I cut out 3 of my inserts (every coupon) and I organize them in my binder. You can see how I organize my binder HERE and how to make one. The other 6 or so inserts I store in a file box as whole inserts. 

I label in big huge numbers the date that the insert came out. You can find the date by looking on the spine of the insert like in the picture above. Then I store them in the file box until I need a coupon and cut them out as I need them.

I started doing it this was because my binder was getting too big when I cut out about 10 inserts a week. Plus it was taking me too long and I was putting off doing it. If I can have at least 3 of each coupon with me in my binder I am really happy with that. If it is a HUGE sale and I have planned ahead I can cut out the additional coupons I will need and add them to my binder OR I might have to actually try and come back to take advantage of a deal if I don’t have enough coupons on me.

If you get too far behind get some help, or just start over! No worries just jump on in where ever you can! Last night I paid this little girl $5 to pull all the inserts out of the papers and sort them for me. It took her 2 hours, it would have taken me an hour, but sooooo worth $5!

Heads up! This FAKE $8 Huggies coupon has been making the rounds lately. It is usually sent by well meaning friends as a PDF or Word document. This coupon is fraudulent and should NOT be used for any reason!

There are a few clues that should let you know that this is a likely fraudulent coupon:

• It is “high value” – $8 off Huggies is a REALLY big coupon. They just don’t make these.
• They are sent in a PDF format and do not come from the manufacturer.
• They just don’t “look” right.
• There are multiple coupons in the PDF from different manufacturers.

If you ever have any questions about coupons please go to the CIC (coupon information center) and look at the fraudulent coupon list and see if they are on there.

I have a favorite blog that I followed when I first started couponing. I almost quit following them because she always posted deals for King Soopers and Dominick’s. I loved her other deals but I needed someone who had deals for stores in my area.

Then one day I realized that many stores are affiliates of 1 main store or company! I also realized that although she was posting King Soopers deals, there were really the same as my Kroger deals!

Take a look at the images above, those are all Kroger affiliate stores. You might have 1 of those stores but can look at the ad for any of the other stores and see the same deals.

**Of course, prices can vary from state to state.

These images illustrate all the Safeway affiliate stores. I have Randalls here in Houston, Dallas has Tom Thumb and so on. Also, some regions ads come out on Sunday with a new ad and some are Wednesday. For example, Safeway ads usually come out on Sunday, my Randalls new ad comes out on Wednesday, so from Wednesday to Saturday we have the same ad.

Why are they not all called Kroger or Safeway? When these larger companies buy smaller chains, many times they keep the same names so people are comfortable shopping there.  (The buyout of Randall’s marked Safeway’s return to Texas ten years after the original stores in Houston were sold to AppleTree.)

Here are the Deep Discounted Stores:

• Aldi – U.S. operations of a German group
• Cash & Carry (Chicago)
• Food 4 Less (Los Angeles area and northern California; Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Nebraska, Nevada)
• Grocery Outlet (West)
• Marc’s (Ohio)
  • Xpect Discounts (Connecticut)
• Sharp Shopper (Pennsylvania, Virginia)
• ShopRite (New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Delaware, Pennsylvania) – affiliates owned and operated by Wakefern Food Corporation
  • PriceRite (Connecticut, New York, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Pennsylvania, Maryland, California) – owned by Wakefern
• Smart & Final (West), also owns Henry’s Farmers Market and Sun Harvest
• Supervalu (Midwest, mixed franchisee-and directly-owned stores, also owns banners including Cub Foods, Save-A-Lot, Acme)
• WinCo Foods (West)

Here are the National Chains:

• Aldi

• Costco Wholesale

• Delhaize Group
  • Bloom
  • Bottom Dollar Food (Maryland, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Virginia)
  • Food Lion
  • Hannaford
  • Harveys
  • Sweetbay Supermarket

• Kroger
  • Baker’s
  • City Market
  • Dillons
  • Food 4 Less
  • Foods Co.
  • Fred Meyer
  • Fry’s Food and Drug
  • Gerbes
  • Hilander
  • JayC Food
  • King Soopers
  • Pay Less Food
  • QFC
  • Ralphs
  • Smith’s Food and Drug
  • Scott’s Food & Pharmacy

• Piggly Wiggly

• Safeway
  • Carrs
  • Dominick’s
  • Genuardi’s
  • Pavilions
  • Randalls
  • Vons
  • Vons

• Sam’s Club

• Sears Holdings Corporation
  • Kmart Supercenters

• SuperValu
  • Acme Markets
  • Albertsons
  • Cub Foods
  • Farm Fresh Food & Pharmacy
  • Hornbacher’s
  • Jewel-Osco
  • Lucky
  • Save-A-Lot
  • Shaw’s
  • Shop ‘n Save
  • Shoppers Food & Pharmacy
  • Star Market

• SuperTarget

• Walmart Supercenters

• Whole Foods Market

Thanks to Wikipedia!

This is a guest post from my friend Danielle at Motherhoodmania! Have you wanted a better way to store your cans than stacked all over? Plus, you need to keep them rotated so that the last one in, is the first one out!

I am totally crazy about this and have a set up that I love and works well for me. You can see it here.

But if you want to make your own it is really easy!

Cardboard Can Rotator:

Supplies: You can use any cardboard boxes you have but I have found those that are used and bent are harder to use. You can easily purchase a 14x14x14 box in the office section of Wal-Mart for approx. 67 cents. They are perfect to use for this project!

• Need cut and have:                                          Also will need:
• 2- 14×14 cardboard pieces                                   Utility (Exacto) Knife
• 2- 7×14 cardboard pieces                                     Elmers Glue
• 2- 5×11 cardboard pieces                                     Popsicle Sticks
• 1- 2×7 cardboard piece                                         Ruler
• 1- 5×7 cardboard pieces                                       Pencil
• 1- 2×5 cardboard piece

To see the directions and more photos visit Motherhoodmania!

When you live in the south, unfortunately  you do not have a basement, attic or garage that you can keep food or stockpile items in. You have to be creative and organized in the ways that you can store items.

A friend of mine asked me to post what I store in my garage. I am NOT an expert on this at all, it is mostly trial and error. Who knew deoderant would melt?? Well, I do now! It was also nicely pointed out to me by a friend that I was killing my batteries by keeping them in the hot garage. Honestly, I had forgotten my basic 11th grade science class about how batteries work and that I really needed to keep them in the cold if possible.

Also, there is the issue of the cement, the chemiclas from it will leach into your food products so you have to store everything up off the ground. This also goes for anything you are storing water/liquid in. Do not store your food or other products near gasoline, insecticides or other chemicals. The plastic that these chemicals are stored in is porous and can leach into your food and products also. These items should be in a separate cabinet on the other side of the garage.

Most people have the same problems with garage storage. Either your summers are too hot or the winters are too cold. I am not sure there is a perfect climate for all year long non-climate controlled garage storage.

These are the things that I store in my garage:
Razors
Laundry Products
Wipes
Cleaning Supplies
Soap
Liquid Hand Soap
Shampoo and Conditioner
Paper Products
Air Fresheners
Toothbrushes and Toothpaste
Body Wash
Band-Aids

Things that I don’t store in the garage anymore or never have…

Lotion ( it all separates in the heat, even shaking it something happens to it!)
Deodorant
Batteries
Diaper’s ( they smell milldewy to me… call me crazy!)
Candles (obvously these melt!)
Make Up (I never kept this in the garage, but the heat will ruin it)
Medicine
Food, canned or boxed or otherwise!

Although I do not keep food in my garage out in the open, I do have a refridgerator and chest freezer in my garage.

What do you keep in your garage?

Download the MyLitter toolbar HERE and never miss a deal!

This week at Randalls (or your Safeway store) I was talking about what good deals they had. The image above is from the back of the regular ad that came out yesterday. These are all Randalls STORE COUPONS. This means that these are reimbursed by Safeway and are called “store coupons” which are a promotion from the store itself.

You can tell they are a store coupon because at the top of each coupon they say “Randalls Coupon.” These coupon can be combined with a regular manufacturer coupon that you either print off the computer, load to your Randalls card, or get in the Sunday paper.

You will know that these are manufacturer coupons, because at the top they will ALWAYS say “manufacturer coupon.”

This is the only time that 2 coupons can be used for 1 product. This is why I really love Randalls in-store coupons! Because they make for really great deals when you can use 2 coupons on 1 item! When you are using 2 coupons like this, it is called “stacking” not doubling.

Later, we can get into using these at Walmart. Check back tomorrow and I will post a little tutorial on that.

For now though, you can get this ad either in your mail or in the store itself. When you check out you must HAVE the in-store coupons for them to scan to get the price and your regular coupon, or even e-coupon.

To see the weekly Randalls match-ups go HERE. These are the store coupons and manufacturer coupon match-ups from that weekly ad.

::GROCERY::

Safeway Russet Potatoes 10lb bag – $2.99
Limit 2

Silk Half Gallon Milk Soy or Almond – $2.79
$1.25/1 Silk Half Gallon Milk printable
$0.75/1 Silk Pure Coconut Milk printable
$0.75/1 Silk Soy Milk printable
$1/1 Silk Soymilk or Almondmilk, exp. 3/31 (Kellogg’s Great Days)

Minute Maid OJ 89oz – $3.99
$1/1 Minute Maid Orange Juice, exp. 3/31 (Kellogg’s Great Days)
$1 off Minute Maid Pure Squeezed Light Orange Juice Beverage wyb Special K Cereal or Cereal Bars, exp. 2/29/12 (Take the Special K Challenge Booklet)
Limit 2

Safeway Orange Juice 128oz – $3.49
Limit 2

Campbell’s V8 V-Fusion Juice or Smoothie 36-46 oz – $1.99
$1/2 Campbell’s V8 V-Fusion Juice (Campbell’s, Make Game Day A Snap Booklet)
$1/2 V8 V-Fusion Regular or Tea, exp. 2/19/12 (SS 01/08/12 #2 R)
$1/1 V8 V-Fusion Smoothie, exp. 2/19/12 (SS 01/08/12 #2 R)
$1/1 V8 V-Fusion Smoothie Beverage printable
$1/1 V8 V-Fusion Smoothie Beverage printable
Limit 3

Gatorade 32oz – $0.89
Limit 12

Dr Pepper 6pk, 16.9oz bottles – $2.49
Limit 4

7 UP, Select Varieties, 2 Liter – $0.88
Limit 4

Kraft Shredded Cheese 16 oz – $4.49
$1/2 Kraft 2% Milk Block, Shred or Singles Cheese, exp. 5/31/12 (Kraft 20 Top Seasonal Recipes For 2012)
$0.50/2 Kraft Natural Shredded Cheese Product printable
Limit 2

Kraft Cracker Barrel Cheese 10oz – 3.49
$1/2 Cracker Barrel Products printable
$1/1 Cracker Barrel Natural Shredded, Block or Cracker Cuts Cheese (Kraft 20 Top Seasonal Recipes For 2012)
Limit 2

Deli Counter Cheese Cups 4-6oz – $3.49

I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter or Brummel & Brown 8-16oz – $1.99
Limit 4

Dannon Danimals or Danonino Kids Yogurt 4-6 pack – $1.69
Limit 3

Jell-O Gelatin or Pudding Snacks 6pk – $1.99
$0.60/1 Jell-O Refrigerated Snacks, exp. 2/8/12 (SS 01/08/12)
Limit 3

Honey Bunches of Oats Cereal 14.5 oz or Fruity Pebbles 11oz – $1.99
$1/1 Honey Bunches of Oats Cereal printable
$1/1 Post Honey Bunches of Oats Cereal printable
Limit 4

Cheerios Original 8.9 oz, Frosted Toast Crunch 12.3 oz or Trix 10.7 oz – $1.77
$1.10/2 Cheerios Original, Honey Nut Cheerios, Frosted Cheerios, Fruity Cheerios, Multi Grain Cheerios or Apple Cinnamon Cheerios  printable
$1.10/2 Cheerios Original, Honey Nut Cheerios, Frosted Cheerios, Fruity Cheerios, Multi Grain Cheerios or Apple Cinnamon Cheerios  printable
$1/2 Cheerios Original, Honey Nut Cheerios, Frosted Cheerios, Fruity Cheerios, Multi Grain Cheerios or Apple Cinnamon Cheerios printable
$1/3 Campbell’s Select Harvest Soup printable
Limit 4

Nature Valley Granola Bars 6.7-8.9 oz – $1.77
$1/2 Nature Valley Granola Bars, exp. 9/30/12 (Product Package)
$0.75/2 Nature Valley Granola Bars, Granola Nut Clusters or Granola Thins, exp. 3/3/12 (GM 01/08/12)
Limit 4

Campbell’s Select Harvest Soup 18.6-18.8 oz – $1.29
$1/2 Campbell’s Select Harvest Soup, exp. 2/19/12 (SS 01/08/12 #2)
$0.50/2 Campbell’s Healthy Request Chunky or Select Harvest Soup, exp. 2/12/12 (SS 01/01/12)
$1/3 Campbell’s Select Harvest Soup printable
$1/4 Campbell’s Healthy Request Chunky or Select Harvest Soup, exp. 2/12/12 (SS 01/01/12 #2 R)
$1/3 Campbell’s Select Harvest via Shortcuts.com
Limit 6

Prego Pasta Sauce 23.25-24 oz – $1.49
$1/2 Prego Italian Sauce (Campbell’s, Make Game Day A Snap Booklet)
$0.75/2 Prego Jars of Italian Sauce, exp. 3/31/12 (SS 01/08/12 #2)
$0.75/2 Prego Jars of Smart Italian Sauce, exp. 3/31/12 (SS 01/08/12 #2)
Limit 6

Pasta Prima 8-12oz – $2.99

Pace Picante Sauce or Salsa 24 oz – $1.99
$0.50/2 Pace Product printable
$0.50/2 Pace Product printable
$1/2 Pace Salsa, Picante Sauce or Queso Sauce (Campbell’s, Make Game Day A Snap Booklet)

Bulls Eye and Jack Daniels Barbecue Sauce 17.5-19oz – $0.99
Limit 4

Pepperidge Farm Baked Natural 5.8-10.2oz – $2.50
$1/1 Pepperidge Farm Baked Natural Cracker Chips, exp. 1/29/12 (SS 11/06/11 R)
$0.50/1 Pepperidge Farm Baked Natural Snack, exp. 1/29/12 (SS 11/06/11 R)
$0.75/1 Pepperidge Farm Baked Naturals Snack, exp. 1/29/12 (SS 11/06/11 R)

Frito Lay Variety Pack 20 count – $4.99
Limit 4

Pop Secret 3 count – $1.49
$1.50/1 Van’s Natural Foods printable
Limit 4

Pepperidge Farm Tray Packs 9 count – $3.99

Oroweat Steak Rolls 15oz – $1.99

Mission Flour Burrito Tortillas 8 count – $1.79

Any Deli Party Tray – $5 OFF
Any tray over $29.99 or more

::FROZEN::

Van’s Waffles 7.5-8.5oz – $1.99
$1.50/1 Van’s Natural Foods printable
$1/1 Van’s Products printable
Limit 4

Safeway Select Pizza 14.25-32.7oz – $3.49
Limit 3

Morning Star Farms 5.25-14.5oz – $2.99
$1/1 Morningstar Farms Veggie Foods Product (Kellogg’s Great Days)
Limit 3

Hot & Lean Pockets 54-58.5oz – $9.99
$1/6 Hot Pockets Brand Item printable
Limit 3

Safeway Frozen Fruit 12-16oz – 20% Off
Limit 3

Safeway Frozen Vegetables 12-16oz – $1.29
Limit 4

Waterfront Bistro Large Cooked Shrimp 31-40 count, 2lb bag – $7.99
Limit 2

Dairy Glen Ice Cream 4qt – $4.49
Limit 3

::HOUSEHOLD & PETS::

Listerine Mouthwash 1-liter – 3.99 
$1/1 Listerine Antiseptic Mouthwash printable
$1/1 Listerine Antiseptic Mouthwash, New Total Care Zero Anticavity Mouthwash, Total Care Anticavity Mouthwash, or Listerine Zero Mouthwash printable
$1/1 Listerine Antiseptic Mouthwash, New Total Care Zero Anticavity Mouthwash, Total Care Anticavity Mouthwash, or Listerine Zero Mouthwash printable
$0.50/1 Listerine Antiseptic or Zero Mouthwash, exp. 3/31/12 (SS 01/08/12 #2)
$1/1 Listerine Antiseptic Mouthwash printable
$1/1 Listerine Antiseptic Mouthwash, New Total Care Zero Anticavity Mouthwash, Total Care Anticavity Mouthwash, or Listerine Zero Mouthwash printable
Limit 4

Olay Skin Care 6 count bars or Body Wash 15.2-23.6oz – 5.99
$1/1 Olay Bar, Body Wash or In-Shower Body Lotion, exp. 1/31/12 (P&G 01/01/12)
$1 off Olay Bar, Bodywash, In-Shower Body Lotion or Hand & Body Lotion wyb Secret, exp. 1/31/12 (P&G 01/01/12)
$2 off Secret wyb Olay Bar, Body Wash, or In-shower Body Lotion, exp. 1/31/12 (P&G 01/01/12 R)
Limit 4

Pantene Hair Care 6.6-12.6 oz Shampoo, Conditioner or Stylers – $3.49
$3/2 Pantene Product, exp. 1/31/12 (P&G 01/01/12)
Limit 4

Dial 8 count bar, 16-18oz Body Wash, 12oz Lotion or 32-52oz Hand Refils – $3.49
Limit 4

Crest or Colgate Total Advanced Toothpaste or 1 count Oral-B Cross-action Toothbrush - $2.69
$0.50/1 Crest Toothpaste or Liquid Gel, exp. 1/31/12 (P&G 01/01/12)
$0.75/1 Crest Toothpaste, exp. 1/31/12 (P&G 01/01/12)
Limit 4

Safeway Nasal Decongestant 12hr, 10 count – $2.99

Kleenex Facial Tissues 70 or 100 count – $0.79
$0.50/3 Kleenex Boxes or Bundle Pack, exp. 1/29/12 (SS 01/01/12)
Limit 2

Downy or Bounce Fabric Softener 34 oz liquid, 80 ct sheets or Bounce bar – $3.99
$0.50/1 Downy Liquid, exp. 1/31/12 (P&G 01/01/12)
$1.50/2 Downy or Bounce Product, exp. 1/31/12 (P&G 01/01/12)
$0.50/1 Bounce Product, exp. 1/31/12 (P&G 01/01/12)
$1.50/1 Bounce Dryer Bar, exp. 1/31/12 (Vocalpoint Mailer)
$2.50/1 Bounce Dryer Bar, exp. 1/31/12 (Vocalpoint Mailer)
Limit 2

Duracell Batteries AA or AAA 8-10 count, C or D 4 ct., 9 Volt 2 count – $2 OFF
$1.50/1 Duracell Coppertop, Ultra Power, Ultra Photo Lithium or Specialty Batteries, exp. 1/31/12 (RP 12/11/11 R)
$1/1 Duracell Coppertop, Ultra Power, Ultra Photo Lithium or Specialty Batteries, exp. 1/31/12 (RP 12/11/11)
$0.75/1 Duracell Coppertop, Ultra Power, Ultra Photo Lithium or Specialty Batteries, exp. 1/31/12 (P&G 01/01/12)

Glad To Go Containers 3-8 count – $1.99
$1/1 Glad To Go Containers w/Dressing Cups printable (if included)
Limit 2

Reynolds Wrap Foil 35-75sq ft – $2.99
$1/1 Reynolds Wrap Product printable

Chinet Plates 15 count or Cups 18 or 25 count – $2.49
$1/1 Chinet Product printable
FREE Chinet Napkins wyb Chinet Plates printable
$1/2 Chinet Cut Crystal Cups or Plates, exp. 2/26/12 (SS 11/20/11 R) (if included)
Limit 2

Swiffer Refill 24-32 count or Clorox Wipes 150 count – $6.99
$0.50/1 Swiffer Refill or Dust & Shine, exp. 1/31/12 (P&G 01/01/12)
FREE Swiffer Sweeper Refill wyb Starter Kit printable
Limit 3

Febreze Air Effects, Set & Refresh or Glade Decor Scents – $2.50
Limit 3

Oxi Clean Stain Remover 6.2-21.5oz, 10 count packs or Safeway Ultra Detergent 50oz - $3.49
$1.50 off OxiClean Pre-Treater AND OxiClean Versatile Powder, Liquid, Gel, or Power Pacs printable

Fancy Feast Canned Cat Food 24/3oz pack – 10.99
Limit 3

Tidy Cats Scoop Litter 20lb – 5.99
Use $1/1 Purina Tidy Cats Cat Litter printable
Limit 3

Kingsford or Match Light Charcoal 6.3-8.3lb – $4.99

There are some great resources on MyLitter and I want to make sure that you know how to use them and where to find them! Many of these actually cost me money to have on my site and so I want to make sure that you take advantage of it!

One of the coolest tools to help you save some money and make your meal plans is the Coupon Database. What that is, is a place where all the unexpired coupons are listed. There are over 4,000 coupons cataloged at a time in this baby! You can find Target coupons, sort by brand, or item or even value.

First thing to do (see picture at top) hoover over the “Printable Coupons” tab in the navigation bar at the top of my blog.

After you “hover over” the “printable coupons” tab you will see the drop down in the picture below:

From here, just click on the “Coupon Database” image.

Did you know that you can even add coupons to it? If you find a great coupon that is not listed you can have it added to the database for others. This is a great way to share and help others coupon. Just go HERE to add a coupon. 

Once you are in the Database, go to the “search” and type in anything you are looking for. It can be ANYTHING! If you don’t find it the first time, try another brand.

Lets say for example that I am making spaghetti  for dinner. I can come to the database and look for all the coupons I will need for dinner before I go to the store. I might type in:

Pasta
Barilla
Tomato Sauce
Hunt’s
Garlic
Olive Oil
Garlic Bread
Diced Tomatos

Just type in your recipe and see what coupons you can find. As you can see, I typed in both the item I was looking for AND a name brand, just to make sure that I found the best coupon! Obviously, just type in 1 thing at a time.

In this search I needed diapers, so I typed in “Huggies” 33 different coupons matched. It breaks it down into the value of the coupon, where to find the coupon, any restrictions, and if it is a printable coupon the link to where you can print it.

Just because I always get this question! NO, you can’t print every coupon that is listed. Only the coupons that say “Printable” and have a blue link can you print from here.

What it does, is show you where you can find ALL the Huggies coupons out right now. Both printable and ones that come in the Sunday paper, in the mail, tear pads, blinkies, and peelies plus in the magazines!

If you have any questions, please ask them! I want this to be as easy as possible and for you to save the most money. Also, take advantage of the resources that are free on here for you!

As much as I love my MacBook and iMac, I will admit I have more problems printing coupons then others. I have noticed a big difference since the latest update of os Lion. Thanks to Mich-ael on Facebook for finding a solution. I hope that this helps you also if you are having problems not only on a Mac but on a PC as well.

This is what Mich-ael found:

We’re sorry to hear about your trouble printing. An update has been released to support printing on Safari 5.1 browser in native 64bit mode on Mac OS X Lion. You should also be able to print from your Firefox browser. If you have previously installed the Coupon Printer and cannot print coupons, please uninstall the Coupon Printer and reinstall it from this link http://print.coupons.com/c?ouponweb/help/print/instal?l.html to get the latest version. We hope this information has been helpful, please let us know if you continue to have issues printing by sending an email to support@couponsinc.com. Thanks for your support and cooperation

When you go to that link there is also the coupon printer update for Windows!

Hopefully that will help, I also have a few older posts that you can look through if you need more info and help.

How to print bricks coupons if you are having trouble.

Trouble finding and printing coupons? This might help!

How to save money on ink!

Let me know if that worked for you!

Does your coupon binder look like mine right now? I hope not, but at some point they do need some TLC! My kids went back to school today so that will give me a little time to get it taken care of! I know some of you have kids home until Wednesday or even later, so you might have to wait until then, OR get them to help you!

** FIRST - I want to tell you something you already know… when you have a clean, organized binder or storage method and coupons cut out, life is soooo much better! When you need to go to the store and have no coupons to take with you ready, it is frustrating as you know that you are just wasting money. Start off the New Year by giving yourself the gift of saving money by being able to find those coupons! 

Sadly, we have not gotten a lot of coupons in the past few weeks. This will make it easier to get everything sorted out though.

If you have inserts just piled around start by getting them all together by insert.  OR this also applies if you get really behind in cutting them out.

Always start by cutting the most recent inserts out first. These can be the most import ones to get cut out for a few reasons.

• Have the furthest expiration date
• You are not yet sick of cutting and will cut out more
• None are expired
• Coupon matchups are currently out for them

I store my coupons 2 different ways. Each week I cut out 3 of my inserts (every coupon) and I organize them in my binder. You can see how I organize my binder HERE and how to make one. The other 6 or so inserts I store in a file box as whole inserts. 

I label in big huge numbers the date that the insert came out. You can find the date by looking on the spine of the insert like in the picture above. Then I store them in the file box until I need a coupon and cut them out as I need them.

I started doing it this was because my binder was getting too big when I cut out about 10 inserts a week. Plus it was taking me too long and I was putting off doing it. If I can have at least 3 of each coupon with me in my binder I am really happy with that. If it is a HUGE sale and I have planned ahead I can cut out the additional coupons I will need and add them to my binder OR I might have to actually try and come back to take advantage of a deal if I don’t have enough coupons on me.

If you get too far behind get some help, or just start over! No worries just jump on in where ever you can! Last night I paid this little girl $5 to pull all the inserts out of the papers and sort them for me. It took her 2 hours, it would have taken me an hour, but sooooo worth $5!

Readers Amber & Jeri found these on clearance at her store, the Danimals were only $.99. I find these on sale and clearance a lot.

The reason that I use a coupon binder is so that I have all my coupons with me all the time. Most of the really good deals I find are unexpected. The cool thing is that unless they have marked out the barcode you can use a coupon on clearance item. There are always coupons for these items and you could possibly get them free depending on the coupon amount!

Thanks Jeri for sending the photo in!

Because today is Wednesday, and the grocery store matchups come out today, I wanted to make a quick video to show you how to find your store deals! There have been a few changes and it is better to be safe than sorry, you will need to find your deals!! They are not hiding they have just been moved!

It is early still, so hang in here with me!

Plus, for those of you who watch the video, there is a surprise!

So did you watch it? Did you learn anything? It was really boring huh?! I know, it was early, I just wanted to make sure you knew where to find a few things!

There is not a big surprise, I am just going to do a quick 24 hour giveaway… although these are really good!

Leave a comment on my blog to be entered to win a $49 Voucher to Peeled Snacks.  These are really yummy dried fruit snacks that are so naturally sweet they taste like candy! Shipping is $7, which I will send you $7 via Paypal to cover that so you are not out anything. Just leave a comment and let us know which Grocery Store matchups you look for! Winner will be picked Thursday morning and posted at 8am.

I would like to thank those of you who emailed me to let me know that you were missing my series… that was a complete FAIL on my part! I wrote them all out this weekend and was pretty proud of myself for having them all scheduled this week, only to have you guys point out that they were not posting. NICE. Sorry about that!

This week I want to talk about money saving apps for your phone. There are just about millions to choose from, most should be free or only about $.99 to buy, but it is hard to know what is worth having cluttering up your dash!

This week I want to highlight the apps I use (and the ones you like!) and see if there are any that can help you save some money! I have found that the apps I use, have paid for the extra service fees for having Internet and a data plan on my phone.

Gas Buddy - This FREE app helps you find the cheapest gas on the go. In one click, locate gas stations near you and see their current gas prices. Never overpay for gas again. I love this esp. since I have so many stations to choose from, now I know where to go!

Coupons.com - Of course! I love this app because it help me with matchups. BUT I see so many people in the store using it also. If you get to the store and wonder if you forgot a coupon or if there is a coupon for a product you can look it up now! If you can use a wireless printer you can also print from it as well! FREE also!

I got home from the FOX 26 segment I do on Monday’s and was so frustrated to see the problems that you are having with certain coupons and the CRAZY things that cashier’s and managers MAKE UP at the registers to explain why they will not take your coupons for no reason.

Also, there is a RUMOR going around in management at Walmart that they can not take any coupons that have a Del Rio, TX remit address. This rumor goes around every so often and I actually posted about it 2009!

THIS IS NOT TRUE!!!!

About 90% of coupons are submitted to either Del Rio, TX or El Paso, TX!

Del Rio Texas is the location of the processing center for International Outsourcing Services (IOS).

IOS is the United State’s largest coupon clearinghouse for grocery store retailers’ and manufacturers’ coupons.

Pull out a stack of coupons and look at the remit address… it is probably Del Rio, TX. For Walmart to not take any coupons that will be remitted to Del Rio, is completely incorrect!

O.K. I am done now… I just want management and ill informed cashier to STOP making things up. As the consumer, we need to be as educated as possible to know when they are not telling the truth. If you are ever unsure, please call the corporate office of that store and ask them to find out the answer for you.

This week I want to talk about money saving apps for your phone. There are just about millions to choose from, most should be free or only about $.99 to buy, but it is hard to know what is worth having cluttering up your dash!

This week I want to highlight the apps I use (and the ones you like!) and see if there are any that can help you save some money! I have found that the apps I use, have paid for the extra service fees for having Internet and a data plan on my phone.

Red Laser - LOVE this app! We have used it, I can’t even tell you how many times. Shop smarter. RedLaser Barcode Scanner searches for low online and local prices from hundreds of thousands of retailers. Features product results from Google, eBay, Milo, Shopping.com, Buy.com, Half.com, and TheFind!

We use this in the store to make sure that we are getting the best price. Recently we were shopping for Sperry shoes for my daughter, the store sis not have her size and they were a little pricey. We scanned the bar code on the box and found them for $20 less online and in her size! This app can be found for iPhone and Andriod. It is free.

Card Star - This app allows you to put ALL of your store loyalty cards on your phone so you can loose those annoying key chain fobs! All you do is type in your card number and the cashier just scans your phone, so there is no fumbling with trying to find the card! You can also add your library card, fitness club and any other card you scan and use! This app can be found for all iPhone and Android phones. It is free.

Stay tuned tomorrow, I will have more money saving apps for you!

A few weeks ago I posted the information below about fraudulent coupons below. I am still getting quite a few emails from readers that know people are using them and what should they do about it.

This is a hard one.

All you can really do is point them in the right direction. Show them this blog post or print off the CIC information sheet below.

After that if they choose to continue to steal from the store that is on them.

Now, here is another issue that I think needs to be addressed. A few people have said that they have been told the $6 Schick coupon from Coupons.com is fraudulent. They have even talked to corporate at Walmart and they said it was. This is a comment from a reader:

“I called customer service at the corporate headquarters who told me this coupon was fraudulent, they had flagged the coupon, and would no longer accept it. They cautioned me to be very careful when using Internet coupons as many are counterfeit or are a fraud.”

If I was to be told this at the register and embarrassed in front of people I would be furious. To be told it on the phone is bad enough, but they are not giving the entire story when they say things like this. Fraudulent is a word that is being tossed around a little too much. This coupon came from Coupons.com the MOST legit site to print coupons there is. I am sure they would not be happy to hear that they are being accused of fraud.

This is what I believe is going on.

This coupon is COMPLETELY legit, if YOU printed it off your computer from coupons.com. Someone decided to photo copy this coupon (which YOU CAN NOT DO!!!!) and once it is copied THAT particular bar code is what is fraudulent. Not the legit coupon YOU printed off! Because corporate and many store managers do not know anything about coupons, or the lingo, or how to read the reports from the CIC they assume falsely that ALL those coupons are fraudulent. Not the case.

What to do if they refuse your coupon saying it is fraudulent? Take a deep breath! Make sure you know where YOU got the coupon. Don’t take printable coupons from anyone and NEVER buy them. There is a phone number on the coupon that you can call and verify that it is legit. Call the manufacturer if you have to, to get confirmation that is is legit. Once you know that it is use it somewhere else. Never let anyone belittle you at a register. I would say, “Please do not accuse me of fraud or stealing, as I take that very personally. Let’s take a second to verify this coupon.” Be polite, step aside and call a manager. They will not want to spend the time to call and verify you will probably have to do that. Even if it is a $.25 coupon, I will take the time at this point in my life to feel better about a situation and to educate a cashier and manager if needed. Mostly because I don’t want the same thing to happen to you.

I have gotten a few emails this week regarding the above coupons. For some reason these are really making the email rounds right now. There are a few clues that should let you know that these are likely fraudulent coupons:

• They are “high value” – $3 off Oscar Mayer deli meat will likely make it free, at the most you might see $1 off.
• They are sent in a PDF format and do not come from the manufacturer.
• They just don’t “look” right.
• There are multiple coupons in the PDF from different manufacturers.

If you ever have any questions about coupons please go to the CIC (coupon information center) and look at the fraudulent coupon list and see if they are on there.

Here is the direct link to the Nestle coupon CIC info.

Thank you Lisa and everyone else that sent over these coupons this week!

**THIS DEAL IS ENDING SOON… CALL NOW IF YOU WANT IT!

After a very long and frustrating ordeal, I have been in contact with management who is able to help us with this deal. You can get the Houston Chronicle delivered to your home for $.50 each paper UNTIL September 26th. After that, the price goes up to $.75- $1.

YOU MUST FOLLOW THE DIRECTIONS

These are the details:

• Up to 5 Sunday papers delivered each week.
• Must pay for each subscription for the entire year in advance (so $26 each or $130 for all 5 a year)
• If you already have a subscription, you can ADD to the one you have. If you get 3 now, you can add 2 at the $.50.

To get this deal you need to call  1-855-753-8265 (toll free).

This is not the Chronicle. This number is to a service that is hired to handle phone calls.

** DO NOT call the 713 number you must call the 855 number and TELL them that you want the multiple subscriptions delivered Sunday each.

IF you call the 855 number and they tell you they con’t do this deal. Hang up and call back to get someone else.

** If you have a problem with your subscription, DO NOT call the 713 number they will not be able to help you. You will  need to email doug.windsor@chron.com to get your order straightened out.

I get emails often asking if I sell coupon binders. I don’t because I would have to charge too much to make it worth the time to put together. Plus, we are all frugal ladies/men here and I figure you want to save some money and do it yourself! I have had a few different binders but I almost always have the same things on the inside.

You can watch a video HERE of how organize my binder.

Places to buy supplies. I would estimate it to cost about $40 to put together a good binder.

Binders:
I use a Case It Dual ring Binder. It has 2 sets of rings inside. In one side I put all my coupons for everything I would find in the grocery store and on the other side I put everything I would find at the drug stores. You can find a Case It binder HERE for $16.33 (this is a good price!)

Baseball Card Pages:
I use baseball card holder pages to store my coupons. I might have to fold them a little bit to get them to fit but I love being able to see everything that I have, and it makes it easy to pull out the expired ones! I get mine on Amazon because I need the thicker plastic to hold up longer. You can get them at Walmart, they are about 35 for $5.98. These pages at Walmart are cheaper quality and you will have to replace them after a while. They are located in the front of the store by the baseball and Pokemon cards. Target has a bigger pack for about $15 but they are always sold out. Go HERE to see the Pro Series for $14.99 on Amazon.

Page Dividers:
Use heavy duty ones, if they are the paper kind they will just tear, you need to use plastic.
Avery 8 Tab Write on Plastic $5.47
Avery Big Tab pastic dividers $2.99

I used a label maker to label mine so they look nice

Page Dividers (another method):
If you would like FREE binder divider pages, you can go HERE and get some I made. The file is very big and will take a minute to download, but they are really cute! If you do it this way, slip these pages into sheet protectors and use these as your dividers!

Finally, I ALWAYS have copies of all the coupon policies of the stores in my area. Your stores will be different then mine. To find the ones that you need, just Google your store name and add “coupon policy” at the end. That should bring them up.

• Walmart Coupon Policy
• Target Coupon Policy
• CVS Coupon Policy
• Walgreens Coupon Policy
• Kroger Southwest Coupon Policy
• Randalls Coupon Policy

Last but not least I always keep a pair of scissors and a small calculator in my binder