Get Organized from the Start

Get your 2011 couponing game off to a great start by getting organized.

Check out these binder kits from The Q Hunter. There are several different choices to choose from and they are on sale 20% off. Plus, use code 20%offNewYear for additional savings!

If you are like me, I wanted to make my binder look cute, so I covered it with one of these amazing covers from The Coupon Clutch. It is beautifully made and makes carrying a binder so much easier! Use code TAKE 5 to get $5 off a $25 purchase.

Now is the time to get serious about couponing. You can stretch your dollars further in 2011!

Prepping for a New Year

I just tallied up my 2010 spending and was thrilled with my savings for the 2nd year in a row. Now I'm getting ready to move into 2011 and I need to get organized for the year ahead.

The first Sunday of the year always has tons of coupons. They are new printables, and 4 or 5 inserts in the newspaper. In order to handle that many coupons and get off to a fresh start, I have to have an system that is cleaned out and ready to go. I use a binder to organize my coupons.

Most coupons tend to expire at the end of a month but a ton of them expire on the last day of the year. After I've made my last shopping trip of the year, I go through my binder and pull out all my expired coupons. Then, I prepare them for shipment to an overseas military base.

Now I have a clean slate and I'm ready to clip, print and load in my new coupons. Bring on the savings in 2011!

If you are new to couponing, please start with my Frugal 101 series for more tips and tricks!

2010 Savings

I finished up my last shopping trip of 2010 and sat down to do the math. I kept track of my totals with this spreadsheet from Couponing 101.

In the end, my totals looked like this.

Total Spent: $2587

Total Saved: $6582

Percentage: 71%

Weekly Average: $49.74

My budget last year was $60 per week. I set a goal to reduce my weekly spending to $50 and I did it!!! If you include that extra $10 per week in my savings then it is safe to say that I saved my family over $7000 this year. Whoo Hoo!! I still say that couponing is the best part-time job I've ever had. :)

A further breakdown shows how much I saved at each store:

Publix: $2035

Walgreens: $1628

Kroger: $1569

CVS: $685

I tracked these totals with my own spreadsheet. I also had savings from Food Lion not reported. Since my store closed half-way through the year the number would have been really skewed in comparison.

Overall, I am again thrilled with my totals and especially my savings! I love looking back at the end of a year and tracking my spending trends. I was really surprised to see that I had more savings at Walgreens than Kroger. I, however, was not surprised to see Publix at the top. :)

How did you do this year?

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas from me to you!

EVERYONE Wins!

Today Cellfire is back with another promotion where you can win a $-off coupon. In this promo, EVERYONE will win a coupon for either $0.50, $1.00, $2.00 or even $5.00!!

Login to your account today (Dec 16th) between Noon-4 pm CST to see which coupon you have won. While there, you can also clip some of their newest E-coupons that were loaded this week.

Stop back by and let us know which coupon you received. *Fingers crossed for the big FIVE!*

75 FREE Prints from Snapfish - TODAY ONLY!

Here's another awesome photo deal!

Use code ISTOCK75 at Snapfish to get yourself 75 FREE 4x6 prints!! This deal is valid TODAY ONLY.

If you are an Ebates member, shop through them to get 11.5% back.

Note: Shipping is $4.42 making this about $0.05 per print. Still an awesome deal!

Thanks Faithful Provisions!

CVS Gift Card Promo

The $5 gift card promotion is back from CVS this year.

When you buy a $25 gift card online, you will also get a $5 gift card FREE! You can personalize it for a friend or just get it for yourself. :)

If you ask me, that's an easy way to get five bucks!

Thanks Faithful Provisions!

20% off at CVS & 15% off at Walgreens - ENTIRE purchase!

Both drug stores have put out some pretty impressive coupons.

The CVS coupon is available on their Facebook page and it will be emailed to you. It is valid 11/29-12/3.

The Walgreens coupon is valid tomorrow only (12/1) and can be found here.

CVS is also promising a 30% off coupon available this weekend on 12/4 and 12/5.

These coupons will certainly help to sweeten the deals!

FREE Christmas Cards

Have you ordered your Christmas cards yet? I ordered ours last night complete with our picture in front of Cinderella's beautiful castle - squee!!!

If you still need cards this is a pretty cool deal. You can get 25 FREE 4x8 cards from by signing up at SeeHere.com and using code 25cards.

Note: Shipping is only $2.49 when you order 24 cards or $4.99 if you order 25+.

If you shop through Ebates you will also get 12% back. Plus, new members get $5 just for signing up.

Note: Ebates rewards you on your pre-coupon price! :)

Thanks Mommies With Cents!

Where have you been? You are going WHERE?

{Me and my girl - Halloween 2010}

I've been a little bit absent over here on the blog. Maybe you've noticed. We are gearing up for the holidays and this year is no different. Actually, this year our schedule is beyond crazy. I've been in major preparation mode.

Side note: Make sure you are a fan of the Coupon Queen Diaries FB page. I tend to post quick little tid bits over there when I don't have time to write a full-out blog post.

The biggest thing we have been preparing for is our upcoming trip to DISNEY!!! That's right! We leave in just 2 days for the "happiest place on earth." We are spending the entire Thanksgiving week with my husband's family in Disney. There are 14 of us total. Yes, I am fully aware that this is a potential logistical nightmare but we are just going to overlook that part and have an amazing time. We've been planning this trip for almost a year and have been saving for almost 2, so I am beyond thrilled that our vacation has finally come.

Black Friday will come and go while we are visiting Mickey and I'm really bummed about all the good deals that I'm gonna miss. I haven't missed a Black Friday in .... goodness, maybe never. I love it! I hate the cold but I love the thrill of getting awesome deals. I also love that Starbucks opens REALLY early in honor of the special day. Smart thinking!

To get a head start on Black Friday you can check out sneak peeks of the Black Friday ads here and here.

Since I'm missing out, I hope to live vicariously through all of you. Stop by the Facebook page and let me know about the stores you are planning to shop and the deals you find.

Ok, back to my to-do list. It's pretty long at the moment. Look out Mickey, here we come!

Oh, and Happy Thanksgiving (a little early)!

Get $1, $5 or $10 from Cellfire - TODAY!

Starting today (11/18) at Noon PST, Cellfire is giving away 10,000 coupons until Friday (11/19) at Noon PST.

Simply login here and Kroger Plus Card members will randomly be awarded a $1, $5 or even a $10 E-coupon that you can use on your next purchase.

While you are there, you might as well load your card with the new E-coupons that were released this week. My favorites are all the Pillsbury coupons!

Fingers crossed for $10! Report back and let us know what you won.

Found 2 New Coupon Booklets at Publix

While shopping today I came across a holiday display with 2 new booklets. They both have recipes in the front and manufacturer's coupons on the last page.

Deliciously Simple Holiday Recipes - all exp. 03/31/11

$1.25 WYB 3 Kraft Dessert Brands (Baker's Bars, Jell-O Pudding or Gelatin, Nilla Wafers or Philadelphia Cream Cheese)

$1.50 WYB 2 Ziploc Holiday Containers

$1.00 WYB 2 Ziploc Holiday Bags

$1.00 WYB 3 Dole Canned Fruits

Nabisco Holiday Fun Guide - all exp. 01/02/11

$1.00 WYB 2 packages of Maxwell House

$1.00 WYB 2 packages of Maxwell House International Cafe

$1.00 WYB 2 Nabisco Crackers

I was SO happy to find the first booklet. That $1.25 coupon will make for some great deals! The Ziploc coupons will also be great for holiday clearance because they don't expire until March.

Let us know if you find this in your store and which location.

New Cellfire Coupons Released Today (11/2)

There were 26 new Cellfire coupons were released today. These coupons are available until Nov. 15th and will expire on Nov. 29th. If you are new to couponing, check out this post on E-Coupons.

Go load your E-coupons onto your shopper's card!

FREEBIE: 2011 Calendar from Betty Crocker

Go sign up to receive a FREE 2011 Betty Crocker calendar. Can't beat free!

Thanks Mommies With Cents!

2 new Pampers Codes

Here are two new Pampers Gift to Grow codes. Both are worth 10 points each.

• FBHALLOWEEN2010
• NOVFACEBOOK2010

What have you redeemed your points for? Are you saving up for something special?

Merry Christmas... from Disney!

It's November which technically means it's okay to start talking about Christmas cards, though I have been thinking about our 2010 card for a while now. See, I have it all pictured in my mind as to how it will look.

We are going to spend our Thanksgiving at Walt Disney World and you know I want a family shot in front of Cinderella's big, beautiful castle! Of course I'm gonna slap that photo on the front of our 2010 Christmas card.

Have you seen the new holiday card collection from Shutterfly? Their new Christmas cards are so awesome! They have tons of different styles and sizes.

My favorite part of the selection process is that Shutterfly gives you options for colors, # of photos, designer, price, ect. By simply using the checkboxes, it narrowed down the choices to reveal the perfect card for us! It's called Paper Snowflakes. It's a simple design with a little blue outline which I think will tie in perfectly with the infamous blue castle. :)

Are you hosting a Christmas party? You might want to check out their invitations as well. They have trendy and traditional and just plain cute designs.

I can hardly wait to send out this year's Christmas card. This trip to Disney is really a dream come true and I'm dying to share this special memory with our family and friends.

*I was compensated by Shutterfly to write a post promoting their new holiday designs. However, all opinions are my own. Are you a blogger? You can also sign up to earn 50 free photo cards.

FREEBIE: $3 Amazon MP3 Credit

Use code STUDENT3 to get $3.00 in Amazon MP3 credit. Since most songs are $0.99 this will get you 3 tracks. You can also use this credit toward the purchase of an album. This promo code ends tonight (Nov.1) at midnight.

I saw several Christmas albums for $5 and the new Taylor Swift album is only $3.99. You will need to enter the code in your account and then Go here to start shopping.

Beautiful Roses - $5.00 a dozen

Sue sent me this picture of these beautiful roses. She found them at Whole Foods for only $5.00 a dozen. This sale is going on through November 9th.

What an inexpensive way to bring a little color and fragrance into your home. Thanks Sue!

Save 50% on Sunday-Only Tennessean Subscription

If you hate running out to get a paper every Sunday, you are in luck. Today's Groupon is for 50% off a 6-month subscription to the Tennessean newspaper and it includes Sunday-only delivery!

1. If you are new to Groupon, sign up here.

2. If you are already a Groupon member, login here.

3. Search for Nashville and purchase.

*This deal is valid for new subscribers only.

End of the month PRINT reminder

The last day of the month is here. That means that printable coupon sites will update their list of available coupons. One of three things can happen.

1. A coupon will reset. In this case, if you reached your print limit (2) in the previous month, you are now eligible to print that coupon again.
2. A coupon will disappear. This is a bummer if it was a coupon you really liked.
3. A new coupon will show up. Hopefully this will make up for #2.

Be sure to print any coupons you like now today. Remember, most coupons can be printed 2 times!

Some of my favorites printable sites are:

• Coupons.com
  
• SmartSource
• Red Plum
• Betty Crocker
• Pillsbury
• Campbells
• Snackpicks