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Coupon Curiousity

What’s the most talked about topic of discussion when it comes to a conversation between two friendly people just trying to start casual small talk? The weather. Yes, the weather.

If you all read my last article, Homemade Products To Help Save Money, you know that I took an extended weekend trip to Texas to see my dad.

You may be asking yourself what the weather and my trip have in common, and especially, in an article that is suppose to pertain to couponing. Well, in all honesty, the weather is only a topic to lengthen this article, and I really did use couponing to my benefit while traveling.

As most of you have seen, Texas has been getting hit hard with tornadoes and heavy thunderstorms. The scenerio was much the same two weeks ago.

I left Ava Thursday morning with daughter, Zoey, a blessing as she helped with navigation and as an extra pair of eyes on the interstate. We arrived at our destination: Decatur, Texas around five that afternoon. We had dinner with my best friend from childhood and headed to her house shortly after eating. Within a matter of minutes of being back on the road, we found ourselves amongst heavy rains, hail that fits the description of “everything is bigger in Texas” and zero visibilty. It was as if my home state was welcoming me back in a very perculiar way, but still lended the comfort of home. After driving a short while with flashers on we put the Equinox in park as we finally arrived at Rachel’s house, the place we decided to stay for the night before heading to Abilene to see my dad, who was to have surgery the next morning. We no more than had our bags out of the vehicle before the sun came out once again and offered her rays as a peace offering for the chaos that filled the skies previously. As is typical with two friends who see each other so seldom, Rachel and her kids, along with Zoey, began to get so wrapped up in conversation that the mere thought of bad weather was no longer. Not until we turned on the news and realized that a tornado had just hit in the area, just missing her house. I do believe I said the words, Thank you Jesus out loud, and I meant it!

Early the next day, we again found ourselves on the road, this time on our way to Abilene. To cut the story short, weather was good Friday, dad’s surgery went very well and God once again showed His mercy, as we were able to find a room, with the help of a last minute cancellation, in a town where not just one, but two college graduations were being held, along with a big festival. Again, the words Thank you Jesus flowed from my lips.

Saturday, we visited dad in ICU before making our way back home. My older brother, whom I seldom see, was also there with his wife. We visited for just about a half hour and then he headed back to the farm in Cisco, where he wanted us to meet back up with him, to see the changes he’s made since the last time I had visited. He added a bunkhouse and a cleaning station used for hunting. Zoey and I decided we would do just that. After some time scoping out the new living quarters, the hog traps and a short four wheeler ride, we again found ourselves on blacktop on the open road. A few hours had passed when we received word that a tornado had just hit Cisco, destroying everything in sight at the farm as my brother’s truck windows had been forcefully blown out by the wind. He and his wife found shelter in a ditch, clenching a tree for support and praying to the dear Lord for comfort and protection. Once again, Thank you Jesus!

This was all overwhelming, I must say. No other feeling than blessed can describe the emotions of this trip.

This was a good trip, but you know what makes a good trip better? Saving money while on it with coupons. Here’s how to do it.

First of all, there are coupons circulating everywhere for eateries. Clip them from newspapers or search for them on websites. It doesn’t have to be a nice sit down restaurant or fast food either, but this is what I found out works best. Unfortunately, since it was a short trip, fast food was my best option. Have each person choose a coupon that best fits item desired. Order seperately. A minimum of two to three dollars was saved each time we dined and we ate out a lot! The drawback was I had to carry cash, but it was a very small amount. The perk was I made myself go in and dine allowing for a bathroom break, less mess in the car and a nice situation for my digestive system, plus, my daughter learned a little more responsibilty by being in charge of her money and ordering.

Another tip while traveling, use an app from your phone to find the cheapest gas in the area in which you might be fueling. Also, look for gas stations that offer a discount on food items with a purchase of so many gallons of gas. You might not want or desire the food item at that time, but it helps with cravings later and the savings is a plus.

Hope this becomes useful knowledge to those who are interested and before I say That’s A Wrap for this week, here are a few items on sale at Town & Country Supermarket this week that have coupons circulating: Johnsonville breakfast sausage, Hiland dips, Arm & Hammer Laundry detergent and Wonderful Roasted and Salted Pistachios and Almonds.

If you have any questions, you can always contact me at mindy@douglascountyherald.com. I am more than willing to help you get started. If you have something to add to this column, great! We would love to hear from you as well!

Now to make things interesting, the Douglas County Herald will be starting a coupon exchange since we all know that everyone doesn’t use the same products. We will have a box up front with coupons in it. Feel free to look through and take any coupons that interest you and that you will use. All we ask is that you help give back by bringing in the coupons you don’t use. This week we have a few coupons on the items mentioned on sale at Town & Country.

Until next time, keep calm and coupon on!