Coupons, Sales, and Bargains

Thanks to some friends and a few blogs I've been pursuing the coupon craze that has hit the stay-at-home mom community.  I'm not totally sold on the idea, but it does have it's advantages.  The drawbacks?  I think many of the coupons are good for items I don't or won't use.  I'm not willing to falling into the "but I used a coupon" trap for things I don't need or want.  Many of the food items are prepared food.  Let's face it, isn't food made with fresh ingredients better and better for you?  Lots of the blogs I see show their bargain shopping trips with carts full of canned soup and Hamburger Helper.  I do not eat those things.  The only canned soup I use is "cream of" soups for casseroles.  But, I digress.

I have discovered that if you're willing to use any brand, you can get things on sale.  Take tootpaste, for instance.  Had two $1.00 coupons for Colgate.  One was a Target specific coupon, the other a manufacturer's coupon.  Many times as long as the item is the brand on the coupon it doesn't matter what model/flavor/etc. you get.  I got the cheapest tube of Colgate, priced at $1.94 so I actually made $0.06 on the tube.  I had enough coupons to get two tubes.   Plus, the tubes were packaged with a free toothbrush.  Score!

So, what have I learned?

1. You can stack manufacturer's coupons with in-store coupons, it's more bang for your buck, especially if the store (like Target) doesn't double coupons.
2. You can get coupons out of Sunday's paper, but can also print both manufacturer's and in-store coupons on-line.  Target has great on-line coupons, just go to their home page and scroll to the bottom where it says coupons.  Many places limit the number you can print and/or require you to install a special program for coupon printing in an attempt to prevent forgery.
3. Walgreen's has great sales, in-store coupons, and Register Rewards. Register rewards are like the coupons that print with your receipts at other stores (Dillion's, Target, etc.).  Instead of being item specific, they are dollars off your next purchase. 
4. Other people are willing to share their advice about coupons or deals they have found.  There's so much to learn that no one single person can do it on their own.  

That's all for now, let me know if you have coupons to get rid of, coupon advice, or know of any good sales.  I'm always looking for clothes for the boys.  So far the consignment sales have been a bust.