Caring with Coupons

I frequently give away things that I have gotten for free or very cheap to charitable organizations but this week I had the honor of blessing an individual personally by sharing my abundance.

I was talking to a friend one day and she mentioned that she couldn’t get groceries until payday and that there was nothing at their house to eat.  It bothered me that I had extra and someone I knew would be going to bed hungry.  The next morning, God spoke to me as I was reading my Bible.  One of the verses I read that day was Proverbs 21:13 which says “He who shuts his ear to the cry of the poor will also cry himself and not be answered.” (NASB) When I read that, I knew that I HAD to do something.  I grabbed a bag and just started putting stuff from my pantry in it.  It wasn’t very much but I knew that it would be helpful to them.  I dropped the bag off on their porch and drove off feeling good about what I had done.  I was trying to do it anonymously and wouldn’t have even posted about it if she hadn’t called me later that night to thank me…she figured out it was me. It was a joy to take some of my things to a family in need.

I want to help others learn how to use coupons so that they can bless people also.  There are numerous sites out there that offer lists for you to use when shopping.  The very first site I ever used for this was CouponMom.com.  I always sort my list by most savings and she shows you which items you can get for free.  Even if I won’t use them, I will get them so I can give them away.  I also check out what my friend Shana posts on MyMemphisMommy to see if there are any local deals that she has found.

Another way I use coupons to care for others is by sending my expired coupons to our troops stationed overseas.  They can use them up to 6 months after they expire.  I include my children in this special project and have been collecting more from friends in my area.

Start to make a difference today.  Use coupons and pick up a few extra things to put away for someone that may need it.  Share the savings! You don’t have to do a lot…every little bit helps.

Stockpile Sharing

Last year around this time, many of my friends lost all they owned when our community flooded.  Some of them have JUST recently been moved back in to their homes.  When we had storms this week and the potential for flooding was high, I was afraid for them.  The storms we had here this week were not too bad. There were many trees and homes damaged but all in all, my area was ok.  Last night I started seeing posts on Facebook about deadly tornadoes in Alabama.  This morning I saw pictures and videos that people posted.  I couldn’t bring myself to watch the videos but I was thinking that I want to do something for the people who have lost so much in the recent storms.  What could I do? Then I saw this post from Couponing from Disney about the people needing basic necessities.  I have an abundance of some of these items thanks to being able to get them for free or very cheap with my coupons.  In fact, this week you can get toothpaste, deodorant, soap and body wash for FREE at Kroger with the right coupons according to the list that MyMemphisMommy posted.  So, let’s join in together and share the stuff we have with those who have nothing right now.  In my area, there is a drive where people can drop their stuff off and they are taking it to Alabama. If you know of an organization taking donations in your area, that is great!  Take your stuff there.  If not, send them to First Baptist Church of Moody.

Disaster Relief

c/o First Baptist Church of Moody
902 Church Street
Moody, AL 35004

Baskin Robbins 31 Cent Scoop Night

Hopefully you were able to go get your free scoop at Ben & Jerry’s today. Well, mark your calendar now and get ready for 31 Cent Scoop Night at Baskin Robbins on April 27th from 5 – 10 pm.  Not only are you getting some yummy ice cream at a really low price, you are also able to honor America’s Firefighters.

Eat at BK to support JA

Have dinner at the Atoka or Covington, TN Burger King on Thursday from 4 pm – 7pm and support Junior Auxiliary of Tipton County if you present this ticket to the cashier before ordering.

Coupon Lesson

At the end of each month I try to gather up all of the expired coupons and mail them to an overseas military base because the service personnel can use them for up to 6 months after they expire. I pick a different military base each month from the list on Grocery Saving Tips.  Unfortunately I was a little behind because I have not done it since September (when I was in the hospital) so I decided that we would do it and make it part of our school work for today. I know you are thinking that there is no way in the world  cutting out coupons can be educational…wrong!

First of all, the preschooler got to practice cutting with scissors.  No, I didn’t give her coupons to cut out.  She got the pages that we already removed the coupons from and she just cut away.  She really concentrated on cutting that paper up!

For the actual school agers, they had to do a little more than just practice cutting!  I mean, we are talking about kids who are in 10th, 8th & 5th grade here.  I don’t think scissor technique is exactly on their list of required subjects.  They had to cut out the coupons, sort them by expiration month, put them in the appropriate envelope and then (here’s the best part) figure out how much money someone will save with the coupons.  A little bit of FUN, real life math!

What else?  Well, how about a little geography? We find the location where we are sending the coupons on a map and we can usually find pictures and info about each base online.

Sometimes there are even products that we are not familiar with that we will look up and find out info about.

I believe that everything can be made into an educational experience and it can be fun.  Learning should not have to all come from textbooks.  Not only are my kids learning life skills and how to be frugal but they are also learning about how to take the extras they have and give them to others.  I think that is a pretty successful morning!

Now, on to other lessons!  Have a great afternoon.

My First 5K

Well I did it! I walked in my first 5K this morning. Here I am with my friends, Amy and Renee, standing at the starting line when it was still dark and early outside.

These two are really the reason I did this. Last year they ran in the 5K and Amy, the one in the green shirt, challenged me to walk it this year…so I did. I have to tell you, she is just amazing. Although she ran it last year and could have very well gone at a faster pace than I did, she stayed with me the entire time and cheered me on to the finish line. At one point I started feeling like I couldn’t make it and thought they were going to close the finish line before I could complete and I wanted to cry. I could feel the tears coming and my throat felt tight. I said “My throat is closing up because I am going to cry” to which she replied “Well quit crying then!” LOL Yeah, I needed her to be there. She said she was going to turn “Jillian” on me. No, she wasn’t all tough and mean…she was an encourager too by reciting Philippians 4:13 over and over. She promised that we would cross the finish line together and we did! Then I asked her to take this picture of me.

When we were done, Amy went to go cheer Renee on in the half Marathon and I talked to My Memphis Mommy’s Shana Moland and Tracy Knight, host of The Everything Wellness Show on AM 990 about my experience of my first 5K and my plan to lose at least 100 lbs by my next birthday (November 30th). I plan on achieving this goal by following the new Weight Watchers PointsPlus program and walking a 5K every 3 months. I have already picked out my next one. It is the Jackson Culley Mito-What? 5K in Millington on March 26, 2011. By committing to doing it, I will be motivated to keep walking.
Thank you to all of you who motivated me to do this today. Please don’t stop encouraging me. I need it! I look forward to keeping all of you up to date on my progress of shredding these pounds with each step I take.

Share the Savings

Here is my “stockpile” of dental products. These items are always on sale and there are coupons for them frequently so you can get them for free or for less than $.50 each. Do I need this much toothpaste or this many toothbrushes at my house? Of course not! What can I do with them? Give them to a charity! Think about an organization that can use these items and donate them.
There is more to saving money with coupons than just getting stuff for yourself. Stock up on items to give away. You will be blessed tremendously by sharing your savings with those in need!