Using holiday coupons

During the holidays companies are handing out lots of coupons to get you in their store. Today the hubs and I went on a coupon only shopping trip to use up these coupons and get a few free things. Obviously going to one store isn't worth the time and gas for $10 off, so we hit up three stores and used 5 coupons. The Hallmark coupon was posted on this blog, Lowes was facebook only and Kohls were from a mailer. Make sure and sign up your spouse to get extra coupons. They are customers too and thankfully mine doesn't mind checking out with coupons. :)

Retail: $69.04
Paid: $4.40 (mostly tax)

Hallmark:
*Melissa & Doug Magnetic Pretend Play $13.99
  20% off, plus $10 coupon (no longer available) $1.01

Lowes:
*2 draft dodgers $9.98, $10/$10 coupon (facebook, no longer available) FREE
*kitchen rug $12.09, $10/$10 coupon (facebook, no longer available) $2.09

Kohls:
*Carters outfit $17 on sale for $10, used $10/10 coupon from mail(must sign up for mailing list) $.70
*Carters outfit $16 on sale for $10, used $10/10 coupon from mail(must sign up for mailing list) $.60

Tips:
*Sign up your spouse for coupons and promotions.
*Read the coupon carefully. Some will let you use them with discounts, others will not.
*Be flexible in what you buy. Obviously, you want to find items closest to the discounted amount for the biggest savings. The point of the coupon is to get you in the store and spend, spend, spend! Stick to what you need.