Coupons Organized

Since I have started CouponSense, I have spent a lot of time trying to figure out the best way to make this work. I can't claim origination on this one, I'm a total copier. My problem was that they tell you to not clip your coupons, but file them away under a letter and they will tell you when it's best to use them. Ok, makes sense to me. Problem: I need batteries, I'm at the store, I know there is a coupon somewhere in my file box at home, just not sure where. Bought batteries with no coupon. Frustrating. Soooo, a friend tells me to cut all the coupons each week and file them in a binder.

Here's what I did. Got an old binder, filled it with trading card holders. Found some old dividers and some scrap cardstock. I used the dividers to divide into sections such as frozen, canned, snacks, cleaning, etc. I cut little squares of cardstock to fit in each pocket. This lets me use both sides of the pocket. It is a divider now as well.

I (my children) sat and cut all the coupons out of the papers I had. I sorted them, then put them in the pockets according to category. This was a long and not fun task. They don't all fit right and some could go into different categories, but I did my best. Now, every time I get new coupons, I just add them in. As I shop, I take this with me in case I need something that wasn't a "great deal", but I could still use a coupon for. I just flip through, find it and pull it out. I also keep a calculator in with it so I can figure out prices per ounce. I spent a pretty good amount of time at Wal Mart writing down their prices on things so I could compare the sales at other grocery stores with their prices. Sometimes Wal Mart has better prices than some other store's sales. I just need to type those all up and then I will stick those in my binder as well so I have an easy reference. With the pockets in the binder, I can just slip the calculator and the weekly adds into them and have a nice organized shopping companion.

I'm sure if I am shopping with my kids, this will not be as easy as it seems, but I'm trying now to fit my shopping in at different times when my kids are not with me. If I need to take them, I guess I just throw this into my backpack and carry it that way. I'm starting to see the rewards of the program, but not in full swing yet.