Since they were kind enough to send me a free sample of Finish® Quantum® dishwasher detergent, I thought I would return the favor with a quick review of the product.

It should come as no surprise that my household uses whatever dish detergent I have a coupon for.  I've never used tablets before, only the liquid dishwashing detergent. so I was shocked after this load of dishes!

The lid where the detergent goes in my dishwasher, sometimes doesn't stay closed so I was worried that the little tablet would fall out before it was time to disperse the liquid. Well, since I wasn't able to see inside while the washing was happening, I don't know if the lid stayed closed but when I opened the door after the cycle, I was pleasantly surprised!  My dishes came out shinier than I have ever seen them!

Price will be a deciding factor in my decision to switch detergents all together but either way, I plan to use Finish® Quantum® before each holiday!

Thanks for the free samples!

I know I've said this before but I will say it again... it takes a lot of time and patience to save big money with extreme couponing.  Today, I should have known better than to make a stop at Wegmans, our local grocery store, because I am having one of "THOSE" weeks.  When things go awry, my patience goes out the window.  Either way, I still have three important things to say about today's trip.

ONE - Not every shopping trip will be an extreme coupon saving event.  There are many necessities that don't typically have coupon matchups.  Milk, eggs, meats, and poultry are some examples.  When I first started this coupon adventure, I thought I could find a way to spend less than $100 a month for our household food and items. 

My better half would eat meat and potatoes every day if possible, and isn't a big fan of money-saving dishes like tuna noodle casserole.   So at the end of the day, I save what I can and as much as I can but need to remind myself that it isn't always possible to get that 60% or more savings on every item, which was another misconception from early learning.

Since I am obsessed with saving money and using coupons for everything, I could say that today's trip was an epic failure.  I purchased 11 items, 3 of which were completely unnecessary.  I spent $41.62 and only saved a total of $4.39 in coupons.  That's a 10% savings - not a good money-saving day.   Especially since the 3 unnecessary items are for the dump cake that I plan to make this afternoon.  Also not a good day for the diet that I am supposed to be on. oops.

TWO - Wegmans has a new product on their shelves!! Wait for it.... wait for it...  it's the Rachel Ray line of dog and cat food!  I was thrilled to learn that I didn't have to make a stop at Walmart just for the dog food.  So, not everything has gone wrong today!

THREE - Be careful when you see the word "sale."  In my previous post, I wrote about this and noted that many times the stores will jack up their prices for a good sale.  A few weeks ago, Price Chopper was selling Lay's chips at $4.29 per bag, buy 2 get three free.  I had mentioned that they are regularly found on sale at $2.99 a bag or lower.  Today, I saw them at Wegmans for 2/$5.  Although the Price Chopper deal was still more of a money-saver at $1.71 per bag, this is a perfect example of the price increase when items go on sale.

Also, make sure the size is correct.  The dollar store is a rip off unless you can get things free.  The turkey bacon at the dollar store consists of 5 pieces.  Really?  Where are you going with 5 pieces? So, even if you get a great discount, even at the dollar store, you are probably wasting your time and your freezer space for all that packaging of 5 pieces of bacon!

I didn't do very well for my first month of couponing, but I will still pat myself on the back because I saved my family valuable money nonetheless. Better luck next month!  Keep the faith!

I haven’t been able to work since I was diagnosed with breast cancer 10 months ago so money is quite tight.  With nothing but time on my hands while I recover from treatments, I decided I would try my hand at this extreme couponing idea.  In an effort to learn, I have been reading blog after blog, while clipping every coupon I can find for the past 3 weeks. So far, I can honestly say that I suck at it.  They don’t teach patience in any of these how-to-coupon blog posts.

I am ready to save big bucks with my organized binder in hand and list that tells me what to purchase at what store and with what coupon.  Though, the stores never carry these items!  According to the list, I should have received Pantene shampoo for free with the store discount and the doubled manufacturers coupon.  Maybe this would be true, if stores sold 6.7 oz shampoo bottles.  All I found were the regular 12 oz bottles. Don’t waste my time with shit that isn’t on the shelf!

Oh, but wait… the first thing I learned about couponing is that it takes time… a lot of time.   I did take my $1.00 off coupon to the Dollar Tree and got one box of (20 ct) Gain dryer sheets for .08 cents, since there is no coupon for sales tax.  I have yet to get anything for free but with a determined mind and and a lot of time on my hands, I will get there.

TIPS: 1. Get organized with a binder and baseball card inserts to hold all the coupons that you should start collecting immediately.  I found the inserts at K-Mart. (Don't buy them from an extreme coupon kit you might find online, they are a rip-off - go figure.) 2. Sign up to receive coupons in your email from sites like smartsource.com, redplum.com and coupons.com.  3. Get a cheap laser printer - you will be printing and cutting a TON! 

For the first couple weeks, just create a stockpile and get organized.  Don't think you will be saving any money for a while.  There are only so many coupons given out, so if it was an awesome deal and you don't have it, don't expect to find it - even online.

The best blogs I have read for learning to extreme coupon, include: www.thekrazycouponlady.com and local to my Central New York location is  www.iamthatlady.com, although this site is full of annoying pop-ups. Here is a great article to get you started by Ruth of Living Well Spending Less: http://www.livingwellspendingless.com/beginners-guide-to-coupons/thebeginners-guide-to-coupons-2/