Source of Pic: Unknown
We’ve all been there. Out from early morning til late afternoon running errands, being Mom Taxi Service, or working late. By the end of the day, you’re so tired you think the very sight of your stove will be the proverbial straw. When that happens, most of us turn to take out. Take out is one thing that the average American family spends way too much on but if you plan in advance you can really stretch your take-out dollars so that even if you’re stuck feeding extra kids you won’t hear your wallet groan!
I jokingly call them “glove box coupons” (I’m bored, OK?) but what I refer to is any coupon that saves you money on fast food, restaurant food, or services you may get while you run errands like hair cuts or oil changes. I don ‘t know about you but I get some of these in my Sunday newspaper and in my mailbox each week it seems. Don’t throw them away! Unless your family knows you will absolutely never, ever eat fast food or in a restaurant, keep those. Even if so, ask your family or neighbors if they need them because they are money. Why throw away money?
Anyway, get one of those accordion coupon holders like in the picture from Target or Walmart, or wherever you can get a decent quality one the cheapest. Target used to sell some plastic ones in their Dollar Spot I really liked, and Walmart sells a few but they’re a bit pricier for $2-$4 depending on the size. You don’t need fancy, you need functional with probably 6-8 pockets. Label them in a way that will be easy for you. I actually have 2 for my car, one for restaurants and fast food and another one for services and stores like the 20% Bed, Bath and Beyond coupons. I find that I forget those at home so I like to have them with me at home just in case. Now, I’m a bit picky and make things more difficult than need be. One is just fine- I recommend at least labelling one “car”, one “personal serv.” for hair cuts and stuff, one for fine dining, one for casual dining, and then fast food. Those are just suggestions, and sometimes my thinking makes people’s heads spin so just do what makes sense to you.
Most of the time, my tip of the day won’t be so long!! I promise. I started looking at the amount of food coupons I have when I was going through my stash of coupons and I was just in shock. I had Subway, Shoney’s, and so much more. Some of the coupons I had were for free items, too, and they were expired!!! How awful is that?
Of course you’re not going to change hair stylists or your favorite “whatever” just because you have a coupon but if it’s something that you just want a good price and you need it in a hurry that day, why not have these coupons with you so you’ll et extra savings? They still don’t always provide the best prices, though, so call around just to make sure because some places will match the coupon price and beat it!!
I am way behind on gathering my goovebox coupons, so that will be how I spend my evening tonight. Luckily my years of couponing leave me with an abundance of accordion file organizers!
Have a fun evening!!
