Extreme Couponing for Dummies

Like many single moms I know, I'm on a serious budget. I'm in school full-time and work a part time job and work really hard to make ends meet. So after watching my first episode of "Extreme Couponing" I was inspired to clip a few coupons of my own. I soon learned that couponing for some is not only a way to save money but an extremely competitive sport. Wow! I thought coupons where only something you get in your Sunday paper. Not true, there are many websites devoted to coupons.

A few that I have tried are:
coupons.com
freecoupons.com
couponsavingsclub.com

Most of these sites run the same or similar coupons. I avoided all sites that charge a fee. Most give free coupons in exchange for information. In order to not go crazy with too many emails, I created an email address just for this. Now unlike the moms on Extreme Couponing, I don't plan on devoting a room in my house for 50 bottles of shampoo, 20 cans of tomato sauce, etc. but it would be great to save a few bucks on things I already use. After a little research I realized that places like Target and Walmart offer free coupons on there websites. Target offers coupons on their brands. This is great because these products are usually the most economical. Also, a retail store like Walmart will match and accept all competitor coupons. I haven't tried taking advantage of stores that will double you coupon, but I found this site that lists lots of places that honor double coupons:

http://couponing.about.com/od/groceryzone/a/doublecoupons.htm

If you aren't flexible with the brands of products you use you can try visiting the website for that product. They often will offer coupons for free. Also, you can also find lots of coupons for organic and ecosafe products. Wood Foods is a place I love to shop but find their prices very high. Their website has lots of downloable coupons for many different brands.

"I'm right here, why are you shouting?"

My son is 7. We have a blast talking about all things from legos (which I hate) to helping him plan for his first zombie movie. I swear that talking to most children has been far more interesting than most of the adults I speak with. (I guess I don't get out much). These days I have noticed that my son insists on speaking at a volume that not only hurts my ears, it also hurts my body, mind and soul. Ouch! "I'm standing right next to you, why are you shouting"? His response is "Mom, sometimes you aren't a good listening, I thought shouting might help". I love that in an instant my 7 year old brings me back to earth, real fast.