This is 'coupon arsenal' I put together this weekend!

As a kid, I always watched my mom clip the coupons in the Sunday paper and thought that always looked like fun, see stuff you want to buy and cut along the lines! But I went for the comics and she always went for the coupons. I quickly learned that those coupons are some serious business. I always loved to go grocery shopping with my mom [we always went to Shaw's because they double coupons, which is still a huge advantage for any couponer, extreme or not!] because chances were, I would get a honey glazed donut and a juice out of the deal. However, I knew that volunteering to go grocery shopping meant I would be handed a stack of coupons upon arrival and told “OK go get that stuff and follow the rules on each coupon!” [Hold on a sec, before you think to yourself, "Your mom let you wander the grocery store by yourself with strangers running rampant?... I was at least... like ten years old, and was in no danger during these trips ] It always got a little interesting when we would check out, if something rang in wrong or twice or anything, the cashier would hear about it and it got fixed. That was OK because she would save money every week. It wasn’t any extreme savings like you see on TV, and there weren’t bottles of barbecue sauce under my bed, but she was saving our family money and who the hell doesn’t want to save money?

It got a little interesting when I started working at Hannaford when I was sixteen. I started as a Service Clerk. [Yes, I was a 'bagger' and I had to push carts and a little side note about pushing carts... It sucks!!!  So put your cart in the damn corral... Do that people! Getting them out of that thing and only being 'allowed' to push five at a time sucks enough as it is... So try to help them out if you can!] My mom did her grocery shopping at that Hannaford because it was closer to our house and I worked there, but Hannaford doesn’t double coupons and they don’t have a little key tag thingy that gives you ‘special permission’ to save money. If she came in when I was working I would say a little prayer to myself, “Oh God… Please make sure her coupons match what she puts on the belt and everything scans correctly.” I just didn’t want to have to try to find the evidence that she did in fact get the item for the coupon or prove that it was marked incorrectly on the shelf. It went smoother at Hannaford than it did at Shaw’s, which I think is because Hannaford isn’t as wild with their deals and coupons. If I wasn’t working I would still go with her to try and make sure her coupons matched up exactly to what she was putting on that grocery belt.

My point is, I grew up seeing my mom always use coupons and shop the sales and I think that the reason I haven’t been proactive about clipping and saving is because I always made fun of her for her extreme ways in making sure she sure was saving the most possible. I guess that is because it was her money, not my money. Now that it’s mine, it matters a little bit more and it’s time to start saving!

This past Saturday morning, fifteen aspiring and current extreme couponers, including me, [I'm an optimistic beginner!] all got together for an ‘Extreme Couponing Workship’ presented by Chrystie Corns! [She is going to be on TLC's 'Extreme Couponing' reality TV show next month, so keep watching! She also runs the website ILovetoGossip.com where she shares her savings scenarios and tips so you can save just like she does. You can also book a party with her, to dive a little further in on the extreme savings tips and tricks!] It was an hour and a half of hearing and sharing tips and tricks on how to save money everyday. If any of you have been watching the show on TLC on the past few Wednesday nights you know how exxxxxtreme this whole ‘couponing’ thing can get, but the savings of 95% on a $600 shopping bill was enough to get me listening. In some episodes, it does seem as if you are watching ‘The Real Housewives’ meets ‘Hoarders’, but you have to keep in mind it’s a TV show and they have producers that put in a little extra effort to make it seem more dramatic than it truly is.

The idea behind couponing and the stock piles that you see is to remove the convenience fee. Chrystie explained to us that when she runs out of a bottle of shampoo, she goes to her stockpile [yes, her closet and another shelf in the bedroom] and grabs a bottle of the good stuff that she paid no more than 0.25 cents a bottle, not to the store. When you are able to ‘coupon stack’ [matching a Manufacturer's Coupon with a Store Coupon... Stores that do this are; Rite Aid, CVS, Walgreens, Target and Shaw's] that is how to save the most. If you find that item on sale or clearance AND then ‘coupon stack’, that is how you get bottles of brand name shampoo, as well as other personal care items for pennies.

So this past Sunday, I bought six copies of the Maine Sunday Telegram to begin compiling my coupon arsenal and started printing coupons for things I know I will use online at Coupons.com, SmartSource.com, Redplum.com and Target.com. I don’t have an extreme savings shopping trip story to share with you, but I am excited to get started and see just how extreme my savings can be!

The fact is, anyone can do it, you just need to make an effort, PLAN ahead and pay a little more attention when you shop. Everyone seems to be in such a rush these days, but if you wait a second, open your eyes and use coupons to your advantage, you can literally save hundreds of dollars! You will say to yourself, “Why the hell didn’t I do this SOONER?” I am excited to be able to share another post with in the very near future you about an extreme savings shopping trip, so stay tuned, but in the meantime… What are your favorite couponing tips or stories?