Since I met my husband 16 years ago, I've bought almost nothing without a coupon of some kind. At first I thought cutting and using coupons just wasn't worth my time. In a short amount of time, I began to see saving money as a game! It amazed me that I could get $200 worth of groceries for less then $100 or getting all my groceries for FREE.

I've learned to scan the coupons quickly, clipping only those I will be using. Each time I clip coupons, I organize them into a coupon holder by categories. Before I place my new coupons in a category in my holder, I take out the expired coupons. Removing expired coupons will save you time and frustration when you go shopping. You can by the E-Z Coupon holder for $3.99 through Amazon in their section below. You can see and read about coupon organizing at the following lens : http://www.squidoo.com/organizing-coupons

Call your local newspaper/s and ask which days they insert coupons. Ask what their weekly rates are or if you can get a subscription for just the coupon insert days. Can you get a lower subscription rate if you pay a year in advance? Most papers will give you a discount for paying in advance. If you have more then 1 local paper, does one insert more coupon then the other? Check out the Sunday papers at the grocery or convenience store to check this out. Is it best to subscribe to one over the other? You will need to decide which is the best deal financially for you. We personally get both the Arizona Republic and The Tribune so we usually get double coupons. Seems the Arizona Republic actually has more inserts, but since we use so many coupons they pay for our subscriptions in the end.

Buy yourself at least one if not two of The Entertainment Book for your local area. These books pay forthemselves over and over again. Most of the book is for buy one, get one free for meals from fast food to fine dining. There are also discounts on museums, haircuts, care washes, hotels, grocery stores and more. www.entertainment.com (Also see number 3 below to get the 2008 book for free!)

There are plenty of online areas to get coupons or coupon codes to shop online or in person. For grocery coupons check out the following:
1. Cool Savings - http://www.coolsavings.com/home.aspx?SessionID=17ca1ffe-0803-4fe2-a7a8-4b0565a2b227-2

2. Working Mom - Takes you right to printable coupons and says you don't need a newspaper. Searchable by category and zip code.
http://workingmom.coupons.smartsource.com/WEB/index.aspx?Link=EIFC76RTFBG3W

3. Coupon Mom - Be careful after you sign up here as a bunch of screens will come up with all sorts of offers from her sponsers. I got tired of saying, "Skip" and just went back to the main page to sign in. She has coupons by state, printable grocery coupons, free samples and free offers. There is also currently (July 11, 2008)a link that you can get a FREE 2008 Entertainment book when you reserve one for 2009. http://www.couponmom.com/