Samples, Freebies, Coupons, oh my

I've been busy getting kids ready for school to start and haven't been as faithful in getting coupons cut, sorted and organized, but my last two shopping trips for groceries have show that the effort pays off.

I started buying two Sunday papers every week. Yeah, it's $5 but in my past three shopping trips, I've saved over $65 due specifically to the coupons I've taken with me. It's great. I love being the lady who puts all that stuff on the belt to be scanned and then hands the cashier a fist full of coupons to watch with great anticipation while the discounts come off the grand total.

And I'm eager to get home and get the mail every day now because instead of just receiving bills and credit card offers, which I have NO interest in, I now usually get at least a coupon in the mail every day, if not a free sample or something along with it. My kids love to get the mail because they never know if there's gonna be some new brightly colored little box to help mom open when we get inside.

So, yeah, it's a good thing. I am really working to get a system down. I am also really working to find other ways to trim the spending. I thought I'd have time for email surveys, but I find I don't have as much time as I hoped to do them. I don't even manage to keep up with paid to read emails these days. So, I may step out of those. But coupons, those keep me challenged and I just love free money and things. I consider them to be free money because I just don't pay as much for things as I used to.

I do have to tell you that my husband is getting used to trying new varieties of things, but he's still hankering for his usual brands on some things. It all evens out though. If I can find a balance between the brands he's loyal to and some new and exciting brands that cost less and work better, it's a good thing. Every little bit helps!

So, there ya go. That's my update. It's late in coming and I hope to find a way to be more consistent. I need to do like so many of my online mentors do... take pictures of the free stuff, keep track of what I save, and detail out my shopping trips. I think I'll find more motivation to do what it takes to keep every penny that comes in to our accounts in our accounts instead of just blindly spending them.

Until next time...