Reader Spotlight: Addicted to Couponing & Saving

Today we’re going to hear from Carly, who is sharing the story of how she caught the coupon bug and shared it with family! Take it away, Carly!

When I graduated with my teaching degree in Elementary Education I was determined to find a job despite the major cut backs in my county. With encouragement from my fiancé, in July I turned to couponing to take my mind off of the dismal situation.

Eight cans of shaving cream, 6 deodorants and $8.15 later I WAS HOOKED! I started out doing it all myself, scouring the sale ads, combining the deals from each store to cross check and ultimately finding the lowest price. And then my brain went into overload. I found three “go-to” sites (including my favorite, I Heart Publix) that really got my coupon bug going. Now I have created a stockpile that allows me to throw any dinner together on short notice.

I just flat out enjoy couponing, and began clipping for my sister who had just celebrated her daughter’s 1st birthday. I helped her find the best deals on diapers, baby food, detergent, and several other staples in their home. And soon after she caught the bug too! I started her out with a small folder, and now (9 months later) she has a mini-version of my binder. We call them our coupon bibles, and are getting my niece started early. She joins us every week for our shopping trips, and points to peelies and blinkies and says “coop coop.” The girl knows what to look for. She gets excited when I pull expired Q’s to give to her. She puts them in her toy shopping cart and is ready to find some deals!

I feel so much joy seeing my sister save money every week. The first time she got an overage I felt so proud, and seeing her save 50% or more at Publix is better than double chocolate cake! I never would have seen myself living this coupon-a-riffic life a few years ago, but I wouldn’t trade it for the world! My in-laws think I’m crazy, my parents think I am going to put stores out of business, and my fiancé thinks I’m addicted, but being addicted to saving is just fine if you ask me.

Thanks for sharing your story, Carly!

I could really use a few new volunteers for the Reader Spotlight – so please write in if you have a story to tell! Your post can be about almost anything to do with couponing. You can tell us about a particularly good or bad situation you’ve dealt with as a couponer, about how you got into couponing or how couponing has impacted the rest of your life, you can make a list of things every new couponer should know…just about anything, really! If you think it’s interesting and it has to do with couponing, email me with your idea at contactiheartpublix @ gmail.com!