The Couponizer has a new fan!

For a long time I’ve been trying different ways of keeping track of my coupons so that I could actually be organized for shopping trips. I needed a simple, “no brainer” way to to it and a way that was easy enough that my husband could grab coupons quickly when we goes to the store.

I tried my own three-ring binder with the baseball card type slots. I tried an index card filing box. I tried just piling up the coupon inserts and grabbing them to clip right before a shopping trip. All of these methods (that may work perfectly well for others!) just did not work for me and left me frustrated and too often going to the store empty-handed and spending more than I needed.

I was hesitant to pay for any type of solution. Of COURSE I was hesitant to spend money if I didn’t need to – that’s the whole point of being frugal. Why spend money you don’t have to spend so that you have more money for the things you DO need and want? So I gave up and gave in. I’d seen some ads for the Couponizer online and I was intrigued. It said Save MORE than Money with The Couponizer! So, I went to the website and ponied up the dough in a last ditch effort to get my coupon clutter under control.

My Couponizer in its pouch

Let me tell you, this is the easiest, most organized way I have ever come across to handle coupons. I am SO pleased with it. The Couponizer book came with a handy clear pouch, a small pair of scissors and the awesome organizing mat. I LOVE the pouch because it gives me a place to stick my inserts, mailers and random coupons I get until I decide to sit down and get to clipping and organizing.

See how full I can stuff the little pouch? Nice, eh?

SO…now it’s time to clip and organize (with the help of my lovely daughter).

Clipping Coupons with The Couponizer!

The labeled mat makes it SO simple. The way it works best for us is we grab all the inserts and coupons we’ve collected and just sit and clip for a few minutes, ONLY clipping ones we will actually use. Then when we have a nice pile of coupons we will use, we use the sorting mat to put them in logical categories which, of course, correspond to the pockets inside the Couponizer book. I LOVE the pockets because they are big enough for any size coupon unlike the little business card or baseball card plastic inserts for three ring binders. The categories are obviously well-chosen because I never stare at a coupon and wonder “where does this one go?” There’s a logical place for it, always. Amen.

Organizing Coupons

When it’s time to make a store run, I just grab my Couponizer and start making my list and pulling the coupons for that trip. Once I pull the coupons for the trip, they go in the handy pocket in the front reserved for “this trip.” I love it, too, because it makes me create my grocery list in order so that “like” items are in the same place on the list. It makes my time in the store more efficient. The Couponizer is also small enough that it’s easy for me to toss it in my bag and take it to the store with me. That way if I see an item not on the list that I think I want, I can scan quickly to see if I’ve got a coupon for it.

In the back of the book there are also pockets for coupons like restaurant, service and other stores that aren’t grocery items. Nice to have a separate place for those to live.

So…there you have it. As you can tell, I’m smitten with my Couponizer and would highly recommend it to those of you who need a good solution. Give it a shot – you won’t regret it!

So, who are your frugal favorites to follow on Facebook and Twitter? Leave a comment and share with everyone!

Our hotel room view of the Beach Club from The Boardwalk Inn in the wee hours of the morning

So – how are we going to get back there? Here are some not-so-painful things I’m doing to get us closer to our next Disney World adventure:

1. Quit a bad habit. We all have them – or at least most of us do – a habit that costs us money that we would be better off without. Let’s not name names or talk about the pros and cons of said habits. I know what mine are, you know what yours are. So pick one and quit, then set that money aside for your goal.

2. Look for savings. And I mean savings on stuff you are going to buy anyway! If you don’t clip coupons, give it a whirl. Find awesome printable coupons right here on my site: http://www.myfrugalyear.com/coupons.htm. Check out your local Groupon savings to find deals on stuff you would buy or do. And remember – it isn’t savings if you spend money on something you wouldn’t normally in order to get “savings”!


3. Stash the cash! Once you have saved some money, what do you do with it? That’s totally up to you. For me, if it’s sitting around in cash or in my checking account, it will dwindle away without me even noticing and next thing I know my savings is gone, so I do a combination of putting it in a savings account and purchasing Disney Gift Cards. The gift cards from Disney don’t expire and don’t lose their value or have any fees attached. Money that I am willing to make unavailable for anything BUT our Disney trip, I get the gift cards. They can be used not only at Disney Stores, but you can use them to pay for your Disney resort hotel, Disney Cruise Line, your park tickets, food and souvenirs at the parks, so they are VERY flexible! If you’re saving for a Disney vacation I recommend this, but again: only put money in gift cards that you can afford not to be available to you in case of emergency!

Those are the main things I’m doing right now. I check sites like Couponing To Disney to find deals and for inspiration. I try to cut out unnecessary expenses to a certain extent, but still want to live a fun life while saving. It’s all about balance. Set your goal then find ways that work for YOU to achieve them.

So – what’s your next vacation plan?? Got any good saving tips to share? Leave a comment!
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SO…with summer coming up, I figured I’d go looking for some ways to save money for vacations and good vacation discounts out there to share with you!

First of all, I’m a fan of online surveys. As I’ve said before, you won’t get rich doing it, but every little bit helps, right? For over a year now I admit I’ve been horribly lazy about completing surveys, so the income isn’t what it could be. Still, last year I earned over $500 and so far this year close to $200. Here are some of my favorites:

Those are my favorites and ones I get checks from regularly. Now of course, there is MyPoints. While they don’t pay cash, you can trade in points for great vacation stuff like airline miles, Marriott certificates, restaurant gift cards and all sorts of wonderful things. You earn points by clicking on links from emails and shopping through the links on the site if you choose.

Now for some travel savings:

Expedia is a great place to shop for flights, hotels and such:

Priceline lets you set the price you’ll pay:

Southwest is running some great deals right now!

So there are some vacation savings ideas for you. I’m already throwing my spare change in a jar to plan for a real vacation next year too!

10% OFF

on select items with coupon code SAVENOW at checkout!

Hurry, coupon code expires May 31st!
10% off all Couponizer products
minimum purchase $19.95 for code to apply
expires: May 31, 2010
(excludes already discounted combo offers)

Click below to go to the site and start saving!!

Something we were able to accomplish this year was to save enough to be able to take our first ever family vacation. We’re anxiously awaiting our departure this summer for Walt Disney World! It’s been so much fun doing the planning and plotting to make this a fantastic vacation. I’m happy to report that I found us great savings and are able to stay on property at a deluxe resort for our 5 night/6 day Disney extravaganza.

So…the new goal…now that we have a taste of what a real vacation is like – we need to plot and plan and save so we can do another vacation next year! Woo hoo!

Through a great Disney-related message board, I found a terrific budget board and joined a “Coupon Train.” Ever done this? It’s where each week you clip all the coupons you can find – set aside the ones you will use, then send the ones you won’t use along to the next person in the train. Each week you receive a lovely envelope stuffed with coupons in your mailbox. I’ve found this to be very useful as folks in other areas of the country get different coupons sometimes than we do here, so I’ve gotten some great ones to use and have been able to pass along some great savings to others.

Grab some of your own coupons here: