SO here's what I did:- I went to the Commissary and grabbed a stack of each coupon book that they had up front in their doorway. Some are military coupons, but a lot of them are manufacturer coupons. I also grabbed a stack of military papers that have coupon books such as the P&G saver, Red Plum, and Smart Source coupons. I also ran into another lady saying that you can buy the Seattle times from the dollar store for even more coupons...the paper is only a $1. I didn't even think of that. I also went to my favorite brand websites and signed up to receive free samples and coupons in my email and mail such as Kellogg's, Downy, Gerber, stuff like that. You can also print coupons online. I haven't started to do that yet, but its my next step.
- I went to my Krazy Coupon Lady website and printed off her template for my coupon binder. I have a 2 inch binder that I am using with photo sleeves inside from an old photo album. The baseball ones were just too small and hard for me to see what the coupons were for.
- I clipped coupons for items I use or might like to try. Great coupons come out for new items and sometimes you can get them free.
- I called our local store to find out when they have double coupon days and went online to find their coupon rules. I also went in the store and spoke with the manager. The worst thing that could happen is that I put all the groceries up and then my coupons wouldn't work and I'd be stuck with a giant bill. No thank you, I want to prevent that. They were so helpful and explained all of the rules....and there are a lot of them. I see why it can be so confusing and hard to do.
Here are a few things I have learned:
- You can use manufacturer coupons one per item, if its the same coupon. For example: $1.00/1 Downy Fabric softener from P&G, $0.50/1 Downy Fabric softener from Red Plum. You can actually use as many coupons as you like, just not double of the same coupon. SO collecting them makes it much easier to get these great deals
- Follow the weekly ads to find the best deal and use your coupon on top of their store deal.
- You're not going to go to the store to buy your normal grocery items. Each week you will get a few really great deals creating a stockpile. Depending on how much you want to save or what your overall goal is is how much you can stock up on. Since I am just starting, I plan on stocking up on free items as much as I can, but not obsessive. We do not have the space in our home and we don't need 100 tubes of toothpaste. But I would like maybe 10 free tubes, that will last us a while.
Here's my first trip $16, not too shabby huh!: 
I went to albertsons on one of their double coupon days. I was under the impression that they would double all of my coupons up to a $1.....wrong. They will double up to 3 coupons for 3 items, per transaction. You also must clip the coupon out of their flyer since they have to scan them. They do not mail these out, you have to go in the store and get them. I talked the manager into letting me do multiple transactions since I had done so much planning and worked so hard. He was very nice. I purchased about $80 in product for a grand total of $16.00. Not too bad for my first trip, but I can still do better. My best deals include a free can of infant formula. We currently have Lily on whole milk, but when we are on the road, it would be nice to have powder formula for when we can't have cold milk on hand. I received 4/$5.00 coupons for the formula making it free for me! Another great deal was on Reynolds Foil Wrap. Tin foil is expensive. I had a 1/$1.00 coupon and albertsons doubled the coupon making each box $0.29. So I bought 5 boxes. Pretty good stock pile started. Another great deal was on General Mills Cereal, they were $1.88 each if you buy 5 boxes. I used 2 coupons that were save $1.00 on 2 boxes, and then $1.00/1, and then $0.75 off of one. They doubled my coupons making each box $0.88 each. Not bad for cereal that was priced at $5.99. We never buy cereal cause its so expensive. Now we have a little stockpile. I bought Cheerios and kix for crunchy snacks for Lily and golden grams for the hubby. He loves them, but never gets them cause I refuse to pay $6 for a box of cereal. So now he is very happy. I got a few more deals, but those were my awesome deals :) Pretty proud of myself for giving it a try. I'd like to try and stick to this and get a nice little stockpile going, especially with another baby on the way, more expenses, less time. Worth a try right? I may even start a little Oka Harbor Coupon club or something. Pretty lame? Uh No! I'm awesome and saving money at the same time.
This past weekend we celebrated her birthday outside with a bin fire, bubble machine, and BBQ. It was perfect. Marc and Anna did a wonderful job putting together such a fun and relaxing party for her with really yummy food made by Anna's mom :) We got Audrey her very own hair care kit, Toy Story bubble bath, lipstick (starburst chapstick), nail polish, and nail stickers. She was really excited about painting her nails blue. 
Cousin Lily, Aunt Nikki, Uncle Brad, and our sweet 4 Year old niece Audrey....sniff sniff....here I go again. 
Lily and her cousin Ezra. He is such a lover boy....he takes such good care of his little cousin, so protective and so sweet.....he will steal little girls hearts everywhere. 
He loves her so much and she loves her Ezra or as she says...Eeeerrra.
Lily's faces crack me up...she has so many expressions. 
Afterwards we went out to lunch with our friends Wil and Marcy. Wil is Lily's Godfather and Lily just loved playing with Marcy, cuddling into her and falling fast asleep. 
We've taken many vacations together visiting Saskatchewan, Newfoundland, and New Jersey. She's a very protective mom making sure I'm okay and always watches over me. She is a wonderful travel buddy. 
We both like aisle seats and will talk someones ear off until we both get what we want. 
We have mommy and daughter days that I cherish.
She was so helpful in planning our beautiful wedding and made me feel like a princess all day. 
My mom is so beautiful. 
She threw me a beautiful baby shower, took care of me when I was on bed rest, cleaned my home, and fed my husband. 
She has been by my side helping me learn to be a mom.....hopefully as good as a mom as she was to me. 
On top of being a great mom to me, she is an amazing grandma to Lily. 
The baby's heartbeat was 184 beats per minute and the little one was very active. 
My due date has now been changed to November 6, 2011. Wow. I'm having another baby. Time to start being Nikki and start organizing and planning. Come on baby....give me the mommy energy that I need along with some nesting please. How cool are these ultrasounds, 2D, 3D, and 4D video!!!! Technology is awesome! 
I'm loving this maternity dress from Bella Blue
and this adorable shirt from Gap Kids for Laney...very hip right?
and the sweetest little dress you've ever seen for my little Lily. 
