As much as I just love spending my time clipping coupons {cough}, there are moments when I feel overwhelmed with the idea of sorting through Sunday’s stack, scissors in hand, waiting to pounce on the next deal of a lifetime.
And while I’m confessing: if clipping coupons is enough to overwhelm me, then pulling open my “coupon drawer” stuffed full of good intentions sends my blood pressure through the roof. I think it’s because I feel like I’m failing; I see that drawer burgeoning with unused papers and think that they may as well be dollars. But I’m not using them!
Enter: the kids 
I decided that it would be best for everyone involved to offer one of our little angels a few bucks to do the clipping and sorting for me. And whaddaya know, my daughter signed up with her girlfriend from next door! I paid them each $2 and asked them to do this:
1. I used sticky notes to create categories, and then asked the girls to find the expired coupons to put in the “BAD” pile.
2. Locate grocery coupons and restaurant coupons. Check the date, clip, sort.
3. Check the date on the MALL coupons and set them aside. [Mom likes those in her purse at all times]
After a half-hour or so, all my coupons were sorted, my daughter and her friend had a little extra money, and mom was happy! In the meantime, “The Coupon Experiment” helped to:
- remind my daughter about how to read dates written like this: 12/18/11
- re-teach the numbers of the months [Jan=1, Feb=2, etc.]
- teach before and after months, i.e, “We’ll recycle any coupons with expiration dates before October 23.” For a kids to understand what that means is very difficult. What does that look like on a coupon? This was a tricky concept that I ended up writing out on a piece of paper for the girls.
- As a side benefit, this activity presents a natural opportunity to discuss the potential to save money and stick to a budget.
