Amy's Couponing Handout

Save where you can...Spend where you want to!!

Where to find Coupons

Sunday Paper - Smartsource, Redplum and P&G

Printable Coupons
http://www.bettycrocker.com/
http://www.boodle.com/
http://www.coolsavings.com/
http://www.coupons.com/
http://www.eatbetteramerica.com/
http://www.eversave.com/
http://www.everydayeating.com/
http://www.redplum.com/
http://www.smartsource.com/
http://www.couponbug.com/
http://www.boxtops4education.com/Promotions/

Magazines - Almost every magazine has coupons in it, just keep your eyes open.

Tear Pads - In grocery stores and drugstores, usually on end caps you can find what are called tear pads. These are the little pads of coupons that the vendors place near the products for you to take and use on that product.

Blinkies - These are also found in grocery and drugstores. They are the little boxes that have a blinking light at the top, when you pull out a coupon a new one automatically is refilled in its place.

E-coupons - e-coupons are coupons that are linked to your customer car cards from stores, like the little cards you can put on your key chains. You can go to certain websites and "load" coupons to your card. When you scan your card at the store when you check out they are automatically taken off your balance. You can combine these coupons with other manufacturer coupons, but they usually do not double or triple. Some sites are softcoin.com, p&gesaver.com, cellfire.com, and shortcuts.com.

Coupon Clipping Services - Websites like Coupon Clipping Crew and Taylor Town Preview clip the coupons for you. You just go and order the ones that you want. They usually charge anywhere from 10% of the value of the coupon to $.10 a coupon. Sometimes there is a minimum of $5.

Ebay

Excellent Websites for Couponers...
southernsavers.com
hotcouponworld.com
commonsensewithmoney.com
dealseekingmom.com
totallytarget.com
couponingtodisney.com
mylitterofsix@blogspot.com
mommysnacks.net

Always scan you loyalty card before you hand over your coupons!!!

Store Coupon Policies
Target - 1 target coupon and 1 manufacturers coupons per product
Kroger - double and triples 3 like coupons
Randalls - doubles and triples one like coupon
Walmart - face value coupon
CVS - face value coupon, 1 CVS coupon and 1 manufacturers coupon per product
Walgreens - face value coupon, 1 Walgreens coupon and 1 manufacturers coupon per product.

Price Matching
Target
Walmart

Deals!
Betty Crocker Potatoes at Kroger
Kelloggs at Target
$3 off Huggies at coupons.com

Food Storage Workshop Part I

Thank you for everyone who made it to the Relief Society Meeting yesterday!!! It was great! I'll highlight the details briefly and post some of the documents handed out last night.

I took the first half of the meeting and talk about getting your year and three month supply food storage started.

First, I pointed out the most basic foods needed in a year supply and their quantity recommendation.

• Grains (wheat rice, corn, or other cereal grains) (25 lbs/person/month)
• Dried legumes (5 lbs/person/month)
• Nonfat dry milk (75 lbs/person/year)
• Salt (5 lbs/person/year)
• Fat or oil (20 lbs/person/year)
• Sugar or Honey (60 lbs/person/year)

Second, I listed the Seven Major Mistakes in Food Storage taken from a LDS Living magazine article I have on file.

• Variety—Many people only store the four basic items: wheat, milk, honey, and salt. Most of us could not survive on such a diet. Some people are allergic to wheat and may not be aware of it until they eat wheat meal after meal. Wheat may be too harsh for young children. They may be able to tolerate it in small amounts, but not as the main staple in their diet. Be sure to add other grains, particularly ones your family enjoys eating, such as oats, rice, and pasta. Also store a variety of beans to add an array of color, texture, and flavor. Store flavorings such as tomato, bouillon, cheese, and onion. Put away a good supply of the spices that you like to cook with.
• Extended Staples—Never put all your eggs in one basket. Store dehydrated and/or freeze-dried foods as well as home-canned or store-bought canned goods. Makes sure you add cooking oil, shortening, baking powder, soda, yeast, and powdered eggs. You can’t cook even the most basic recipes without these items.
• Vitamins—Vitamins are especially important if you have children, since children may not be able to store reserves of nutrients in their bodies as well as adults can.
• Quick-and-Easy and “Psychological” Foods—Quick-and-Easy foods can help you through the times when you may be under too much stress to cope with preparing food. Quick-and-Easy foods include freeze-dried foods, MRE’s, and canned soups/chili. “Psychological Foods” are goodies such as Jell-O, pudding, and hard candy.
• Balance—Too many people make the mistake of buying all their wheat, then buying all of another food storage item. Keep balance in mind as you build your storage. If you suddenly needed to live on your present storage, you would fare better having a three months’ supply of a variety of items rather than a year’s supply of two or three things.
• Containers—Always store your bulk foods in food-grade storage containers. So often food is thrown away because it was susceptible to excessive sunlight, moisture, insects or rodents.
• Use You Storage—not knowing what to do with food storage is one of the biggest problems. It is vital that you and your family become familiar with the things you are storing. Learn to prepare these foods. This is not a skill you will want to acquire during a time of stress. A stressful situation is the worst time to dramatically change your diet. Learn how to prepare these foods and begin eating them.

Third, I talked about Ordering from the Cannery. For that you can go the How do you get your food storage and the Cannery Schedule posts.

For the last bit, we talked about three month supply. I don't think I personally covered more than what was in the Three Months Supply post, but I did appreciates everyone's comments and questions. Several people shared their experiences and what they do for food storage. That definitely inspired me to make my food storage better and not be so intimidated by the Cannery.

Amy gave an excellent intro to couponing class! I don't want to take away from the awesomeness of her handout, so I'll make it it's own post.

Upcoming Relief Society Meeting

On Thursday, April 15 at 7:30 at the church, we're having a food storage kick-off meeting. We're going to talk about how to start your year supply of food as well as your three month supply. We'll have order forms for the Cannery there, too. Our stake's next Cannery date is Friday, May 14.

Also, Amy Galant is going to teach about Couponing!!!

Hope to see you all there!

Just to let you guys know. I'm personally not going to go into Hurricane preparation. I just found out that someone else is getting that calling. However, if anyone wants to post anything about hurricane preparation on this blog, you're more than welcome to. Just email me at gibby_wirght@hotmail.com.

Best wishes!

Smoke Detectors

When's the last time you checked your smoke detectors?

The majority of tragic fires involve homes without smoke detectors or homes where no smoke detectors were working.

Usually, the smoke detectors weren't working because the batteries were either missing, disconnected, or dead.

I've read one source that says to change the batteries every six months, and another source says to change them once a year. Maybe check to make sure your smoke detectors are working every spring during general conference and change the battery every October conference or something like that.

Anyway...I think it's an important question to ask from time to time.

When's the last time you checked your smoke detectors?

Thinking about Hurricanes

Hurricane season isn't for another couple months, but I think it's important to keep it in the back of your mind.



It's interesting to note that the Church itself doesn't stress having 72 hour kits anymore, but it does encourage members to prepare a simple emergency plan. Telling us to consider having ...


Three-month supply of food that is part of your normal daily diet.
Drinking water.
Financial reserves.
Longer-term supply of basic food items.
Medication and first aid supplies.
Clothing and bedding.
Important documents.
Ways to communicate with family following a disaster.



Knowing that hurricanes strike where we live, we should make sure we add what's needed to be prepared for hurricanes to the above list.



I was looking at a website run by the National Weather Service, and it gives a lot of good information about hurricanes and how to prepare for them.



A quote on the website says "preventing the loss of life and minimizing the damage to property from hurricanes are responsibilities that are shared by all." In other words, do your part in preparing for the hurricane.



The website suggests to...

• Develop a Family Plan


• Create a Disaster Supply kit


• Have a Place to Go


• Secure your Home


• Have a Pet Plan

Before I mention anything else, I should say that if you are asked to evacuate, you should do so without delay. But unless you live in an extremely high risk area, it's unlikely you'll be asked to evacuate. So, it's important for you to have a plan of what you're going to do.

To develop a Family Plan, the website says to...

• Discuss the type of hazards that could affect your family. Know your home's vulnerability to storm surge, flooding and wind. If you live in an apartment, the leasing office should know.


• Locate a safe room or the safest areas in your home for each hurricane hazard. In certain circumstances the safest areas may not be your home but within your community.


• Determine escape routes from your home and places to meet.


• Have an out-of-state friend as a family contact, so all your family members have a single point of contact.


• Make a plan now for what to do with your pets if you need to evacuate.


• Post emergency telephone numbers by your phones and make sure your children know how and when to call 911.


• Check your insurance coverage - flood damage is not usually covered by homeowners insurance. National Flood Insurance Program


• Stock non-perishable emergency supplies and a Disaster Supply Kit.


• Use a NOAA weather radio. Remember to replace its battery every 6 months, as you do with your smoke detectors.


• Take First Aid, CPR and disaster preparedness classes.

Their suggested Disaster Supply Kit includes...

• Water - at least 1 gallon daily per person for 3 to 7 days


• Food - at least enough for 3 to 7 days (non-perishable packaged or canned food / juices, foods for infants or the elderly, snack foods, non-electric can opener, cooking tools /fuel, paper plates / plastic utensils)


• Blankets / Pillows, etc.


• Clothing - seasonal / rain gear/ sturdy shoes


• First Aid Kit / Medicines / Prescription Drugs


• Special Items - for babies and the elderly


• Toiletries / Hygiene items / Moisture wipes


• Flashlight / Batteries


• Radio - Battery operated and NOAA weather radio


• Telephones - Fully charged cell phone with extra battery and a traditional (not cordless) telephone set


• Cash (with some small bills) and Credit Cards - Banks and ATMs may not be available for extended periods


• Keys


• Toys, Books and Games


• Important documents - in a waterproof container or watertight resealable plastic bag— insurance, medical records, bank account numbers, Social Security card, etc.


• Tools - keep a set with you during the storm


• Vehicle fuel tanks filled


• Pet care items— proper identification / immunization records / medications, ample supply of food and water, a carrier or cage, muzzle and leash

Interestingly, if you're keeping up with a three month supply and having enough water to last 14 days for your family, you just need to set a little bit aside to use for your Hurricane disaster kit for the season.

A day or two before Hurricane Ike a year and a half ago, the grocery store selves for canned items and dry goods were almost completely barren. I'd never seen anything like it. I was grateful to already have water and food stored at home. The funny thing, however, was that I was at the grocery store to get quarters to do the laundry before the storm hit because I didn't know the next time I could do it and the laundry needed to be done. To my annoyance, the service desk at the grocery store was closed during normal hours, and I didn't want to waste gas driving to the bank (they probably were closed anyway). Luckily, I was able to borrow quarters from a friend. Otherwise, our family wouldn't have had enough clothes and bedding for the next week. From that experience I learned that any suggested list for a disaster kit isn't all inclusive. If I would have put some thought into what my family needed to be prepared for the hurricane, I would have seen that we would've been out of clean clothes the day before the hurricane strikes and seen that shoot...I don't have any quarters.

Not wanting to over stuff this post, I'll talk about having a Place to Go, securing your Home, and having a Pet Plan in another post.

Best wishes.

Cannery Date in April

Our next scheduled date at the Cannery is Friday, Apr 16, 9 am - 2 pm, so Sister Peacock would like all orders emailed to her by Mar 16.

For more information about ordering from the Cannery, see the "How do you get your food storage?" post.

For Cannery guidelines, see the Cannery Schedule post.

Also, you're more than welcome to email me with questions or give me a call. My email's in the weekly Relief Society emails, and my phone number is correct in the ward directory and the ward website.

Best wishes!!

Bay leaves vs. Bugs

According to several sources, bay leaves work as a good bug deterrent, especially for Flour Weevils. One person online says that she buys bay leaves in bulk and places them in and around her canisters that hold flour, pasta or rice. She's also read that people scatter the leaves in the back of the pantry as well.