Once you change your shopping habits and get into a routine with using coupons there really isn't a lot of time involved with planning your shopping trips if you stay organized and on track.
I usually use Sunday evening, after my son is in bed, as time to go through the coupons, scan the ads and plan my trips. The first thing I do is look through the sale ads at the stores that I shop at. I take note of sales on things that I need for the week and I watch for items that look like a really great deal, especially with coupons. I also take a few minutes to sit down at my computer and check CouponTom for coupon match-ups. I look up coupons for all my items that I need and check for coupons on those sale items that are really great. If I find that there's coupons for these items I write on the ad which insert those coupons are in. I also search manufacturer websites (for coupons) and for printable coupons. Then I start a list for that store and clip my coupons from the inserts and use a paper clip to attach the coupons to my list. I do this for each store that I plan to shop at for the week and I keep the sale ad with my list for reference at the store. I make notes on my list if I have coupons for the items (manufacturer and store) and if I am expecting a catalina coupon on those items. Keeping these notes helps you cut down on time in the store and lets you easily know that your deals went smoothly.
Next, I scan through the coupon inserts and clip coupons for items that I KNOW we will use and file them in my coupon binder. I don't clip every coupon to file in my binder, that would just take way too much time. The inserts get filed in my hanging file folders by date.
Lastly, I read money saving blogs to make sure that I haven't missed any great deals for the week. The blogs are a great resource for a lot of deals that might otherwise go unnoticed. If I find something posted that I missed, I add it to my list (with notes) and find the coupons. I tend to check these blogs daily because new deals are added several times a day. They usually have coupon match ups and link you to printable coupons. A lot of the time bloggers post about clearance deals at stores that are not advertised in the sale flyers. They also post about unadvertised catalina promotions and freebies with coupons. It doesn't take much time to keep up with my regular blogs since I know where I left off on the blog - I just check to see if anything new has been added since my last visit.
I keep my coupon binder in a canvas bag where I also have all the week's ads. I don't leave the house without my coupon bag - you never know when the opportunity will arise to stop in a store and take a look around. Some stores will price match competitors so I always keep the ads with me, even if it's for a store I don't normally shop at. They may come in handy for a price match at a store with a better deal.
If I am not able to get everything on my list in one trip, I cross off the items that I purchased and then keep the list for my next visit or store. Sometimes in a week I will visit several different Walgreens (or Wal-mart, Jewel, etc) locations to get everything on my list. Having the original list makes this a little easier, plus I can add to the list through the week if I find deals on the blogs.
You can find a list of the blogs that I check regularly on the sidebar.
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