One of the most frequently asked questions that I get is….
“How do you keep your coupons organized?” and “What do you use at the store”
Here’s a small peek into my world to show just how I do it….
First off, let’s start at the very beginning…..
When I first started couponing, I did the big notebook thing – giant notebook with baseball card holders to hold all the coupons. Sounds great right? Let’s just say this most definately did NOT work for me, especially with 3 kids in tow. Most people can put the binder in the top part of the cart, but when you have a wiggly toddler in that position, it makes things a little difficult. I tried laying the binder in the big part of the cart but as the groceries piled up, it ended up being quite a pain. I also used to use a giant box to hold all my coupon inserts. That also became a huge pain when it came time to dig through and find the ones I needed to clip. Here’s my before picture:
Quite disturbing isn’t it? Don’t even get me started on how hard it was to find anything (and what an eyesore! ICK!) Then, my wonderful mother thought that another method would suit me much better. In hindsight, I’m thinking “Wow – why didn’t I think of that!”, but hey, you know after having kids that our braincells start leaving! Anyways, here’s the current method. It works MUCH better and is clearly labeled so I can tell exactly where to find what coupon. Just a simple milkcrate type box with hanging file folders! PERFECT! They are even GREEN to make me remember how much GREEN I am saving! 🙂 It also is compact enough to tuck away in one of my kitchen cabinets.
Before I go to a store, I make a list of everything that I need and pull all the coupons out. I put the coupons in a little expandable file that I believe is designed to store index cards – it’s a small one. As I shop, I pull the coupons out of the file and put them into my nifty coupon holder. I LOVE this thing! It velcros right to a cart. Interested in snagging one of this little gizmos? You can purchase them HERE! When I get to checkout, I can just grab the coupons that I am using from the coupon holder, hand them over, and go about my merry way!
There you have it! I like to keep it short and sweet when I go to the store since 99% of the time, I have all the kids with me, and you all know simple is better when it comes to shopping with kids! My best tips are to plan ahead, spend several hours planning your trips if needed (I typically take over an hour to completely organize an outing!), make sure you bring your coupons and have everything organizesd and ready to go. You’ll be in and out quick and your cashiers will love how simple you make their job!
Any questions? I’d also love to hear how you guys keep your coupons organized and plan your shopping trips! Feel free to leave a comment!
