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I'm on vacation, and I took my coupon binder with me. I'm looking forward to extreme couponing in South Carolina and Florida -- and if those of you attending BlogHer Food '11 want to make a coupon run while we're in Atlanta, I could probably have my arm twisted and shop there, too.
I booked my BlogHer Food '11 trip months ago, long before I started couponing, and it wasn't until I really grasped the concept of the stockpile that I knew I'd be couponing while on this trip.
Two of our grown children live in Florida and live paycheck-to-paycheck, so every time we visit, we stock their kitchen with food. This year I'll be using coupons, and I'm bringing non-perishables from my stockpile to supplement that shopping trip.
I spent several hours last weekend cleaning out my binder -- ditching all of the coupons I wouldn't use before they expire this month and pulling out coupons for vegetarian and vegan foods that I know they will want to buy. The only problem is that the weekly ads for the grocery stores in Gainesville won't come out until I'm already on the road -- which means I'll have a lot less planning time than I'd normally take for a really big shopping trip. Still, I think we're going to save a good bit of money this time around, because I've got a ton of great coupons to use.
If you've read any of my live Chatter/Tweets on Wednesday nights, during TLC's Extreme Couponing or read any of my comments or forum posts in the Coupon Lovers Group, you'll have heard me say two things over and over again:
- I really wish there was a Rite-Aid close to me
- I'd kill for a double coupon store.
Both of those things are true, so you would think I'd have realized that the surprise anniversary trip I'd planned for TW, just prior to BlogHer Food, meant that I would have the opportunity to make both of those wishes come true. But I didn't -- not until last week, when it suddenly hit me. I can shop at Bi-Lo, a doubling store! And there is a Rite-Aid, too!
You should have seen me breaking the couponing news to TW, (and to my mother, who we'll be visiting in Anderson.) Thankfully, they were both amused by the idea, and I'm already plotting a toothpaste purchase for my mom -- at two different drug stores.
If you're a couponer, do you take your coupons with you and shop? Lots of people do!
I wonder how much I'll save -- between lower prices in the south and the doubling coupons in SC, it could be quite a lot. Be sure to check back next week when I'll update you on what it's like to shop in a doubling store.
I'll be live Chattering and Tweeting the new TLC Extreme Couponing show at 9:30pm ET with three new tips posted for the Extreme Couponing Challenge. Join the fun and share your questions and your savings with us.
~Denise
BlogHer Community Manager
Life. Flow. Fluctuate.
