Tide is offering a free sample of detergent as well as a high value coupon of 1.50 off new Tide stain release. Sign up here the coupon and sample will be mailed to you in 4-6 weeks.
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Tide Free Sample & 1.50 Coupon!
Tide is offering a free sample of detergent as well as a high value coupon of 1.50 off new Tide stain release. Sign up here the coupon and sample will be mailed to you in 4-6 weeks.
Save money on your household bills!
When was the last time you checked to make sure you where getting the best deal possible on your household bills? I try every 6 months to a year to check competitor sites for my current service providers to ensure I am receiving the best rates. This is a tedious task, but it is worth it. Yesterday, I saved my family $16.00 a month by calling my cable company for 15 minutes.
I began by looking at competitor sites of my existing cable service and I was able to come up with a figure for what I could get service for at a different company. This is an important step, you need to research to know if you are getting the best rate or not.
I then called my cable provider and said, "I would like to know what I need to do to get my service canceled." The representative asked if I was dissatisfied with my service. I told her I was just wanting to lower my household expenses and could get a better rate through another service provided.
She immediately, told me she could reduce my monthly bill for the next 6 months by 5.00. I told her that wouldn't make much difference compared to other offers I have found. She then offered to reduce my monthly bill for the next 6 months by 10.00. I still refused and told her I was also unsatisfied with my DVR service. She then offered 10.00 off my bill for 6 months plus free DVR service for a total of 16.00 off my current bill.
I agreed to this offer. Reducing my bill by 16.00 made it competitive with the other service providers. Over the course of 6 months I will save a total of 96.00, for spending 15 minutes on the phone. Now I will mark on my calendar when the 6 month time frame will be up and call back and complete the same process over.
Service providers will offer incentives to keep you as a customer. They want your business! If you are dealing with a representative who is not working to ensure you the best rate, hang up and call back till you find someone who will help you. As a consumer it is far easier for me to get my rate decreased then to go through the hassle of switching my carrier.
Don't just think about your cable expenses, what about....
Phone
Internet
Cell Phone
Gas
Electric
Trash
Credit Cards
etc.
Snapfish 50% off Summer Sale
Snapfish is offering 50% off select photo gift items now thru July 4th.
Photo mousepad:5.00
Photo flipbooks: 2.50
Photo Magnets: 2.50
Click here for more details!
Arby's Freebies
I received an email that Arby's will be giving away Freebies on WEDNESDAY all summer long for participation stores in AR, IL, KS, MO, & OK. This Wednesday you can get a roast beef n cheddar sandwich with the purchase of any soft drink.
Monday, June 29, 2009
Couponing
Getting started...
Newspapers-Subscribe or begin getting copies to your local paper. The papers will be your means for getting coupons to score the great deals you read about on my site. How many papers to get? I usually get between 2-5 papers a week. It depends on what coupons are coming out this week. You can find a preview for weekly coupons here. When you first start couponing, I would recommend getting between 4-5 papers so that you are able to build your stockpile of items.
All You Magazine
-I have a subscription to All You Magazine. All You has the most coupons of any magazine. These coupons are great for matching with sale items. Click on the picture of the magazine to order a subscription.
Organize your coupons-You will soon realize that you will be overwhelmed with the amount of coupons you have. I organize my coupons in file folders, where I will label the folders with the date. When coupons are referenced on blogs they will tell you what weekly insert you can find a particular coupon. To find coupons easily, you will need to organize by week.
Don't cut coupons weekly-This may sound strange, but I will determine my grocery list for the store before I leave the house. I will also match up the coupons I need with the items I will be buying. This way I do not have to spend time cutting and organizing my coupons. There are different sites that have coupon databases if you want to find out if a particular item has a matching coupon. My favorite site is A Full Cup.
Store Reward Cards-Make sure you go and register for a CVS Extra Care Card if you don't already have one. Also register at your local grocery stores for reward cards as well.
Stockpiling- When you are able to match a coupon with a sale item you can often find items for free or very cheap. This is when you want to stockpile. Creating a stockpile will allow you to stock up on items so that you do not have to pay full price.
I like to stockpile items that are not perishable such as paper towels and aluminum foil. I also will stockpile cleaning supplies.
Newspapers-Subscribe or begin getting copies to your local paper. The papers will be your means for getting coupons to score the great deals you read about on my site. How many papers to get? I usually get between 2-5 papers a week. It depends on what coupons are coming out this week. You can find a preview for weekly coupons here. When you first start couponing, I would recommend getting between 4-5 papers so that you are able to build your stockpile of items.
All You Magazine
Organize your coupons-You will soon realize that you will be overwhelmed with the amount of coupons you have. I organize my coupons in file folders, where I will label the folders with the date. When coupons are referenced on blogs they will tell you what weekly insert you can find a particular coupon. To find coupons easily, you will need to organize by week.
Don't cut coupons weekly-This may sound strange, but I will determine my grocery list for the store before I leave the house. I will also match up the coupons I need with the items I will be buying. This way I do not have to spend time cutting and organizing my coupons. There are different sites that have coupon databases if you want to find out if a particular item has a matching coupon. My favorite site is A Full Cup.
Store Reward Cards-Make sure you go and register for a CVS Extra Care Card if you don't already have one. Also register at your local grocery stores for reward cards as well.
Stockpiling- When you are able to match a coupon with a sale item you can often find items for free or very cheap. This is when you want to stockpile. Creating a stockpile will allow you to stock up on items so that you do not have to pay full price.
I like to stockpile items that are not perishable such as paper towels and aluminum foil. I also will stockpile cleaning supplies.
Another great thing to stockpile is your toiletry items. CVS & Walgreens has great deals on these items throughout the year.
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Frugal ideas for the mom on the go
We all seem to live such busy life's, whether we are SAHMs chasing our kids around or we are working moms. It is hard to find time for all of our frugal living. I would love to frequent my favorite stores a couple of times a week, but with my busy schedule I don't have the time. I have listed below some of my time saving ideas to live a frugal lifestyle.
Shop at Wal-Mart-Wal-Mart is where I do all of my grocery shopping. I used to go to Wal-Mart once a month and would frequent 3 neighborhood grocery stores weekly. I cut my time down to 1 shopping trip a week when I learned that Wal-Mart honors competitor prices and will do Price Matching. I will take in the grocery ads from my local Hy-Vee and Price Chopper (if the ads don't come in the paper, I will print them online so I don't have to go to the stores). When I go to check out I will hand the cashier my ads and point out the prices I want matched. For example, If Hy-vee is running a special on Kraft chesse singles for .99, the cashier will adjust the price of my item down to .99. Voila! I have just shopped at 3 different stores in the time it took to go to one store.
Do Multiple Transactions-When I first started couponing I would go to 3 different Walgreens and CVS stores on Sundays to shop. I was spending anywhere from 2-4 hours shopping. I realized this was taking up to much of my time. I think I did this because I was self-conscious about other customer being held up in the lines or the cashier looking at me funny. So I have two options that work well for me. If the store is not very crowded I will do multiple transactions. If a customer comes up behind me, I will move my cart off to the side and let them purchase their items. Another thing I do is complete one transaction, then I will take my items to my car and go back into the store and get the rest of my items to complete another transaction. I feel like this is the equivalent of forgetting to get an item you needed in the store and going back in to purchase it. This saves me time and gas money, if we are trying to be frugal we need to consider the money we spend in gas.
Don't Clip Coupons-I know, I must be crazy. But, really I no longer clip coupons. Due to the great resources we have with blogs and coupon sites, we are able to determine sales and coupons that match sales before we enter a store. I do not leave my house without a list with the items I will be buying and a stack of coupons to match my items. I will organize my coupons in a filing folder according to the date. When I have my list of items I can easily go through my folders and cut out the coupons I will need for my store purchases. Some people might think that they might miss a deal on a clearance item that they had a coupon for. This may happen where I see an item that I know their is a coupon for maybe every other month. So in that case if I really need the item I will come back and get it the next day with my coupon. Making a second trip to a store every 2 months is a much better use of my time then spending 1 hour every Sunday clipping and organizing my coupons.
Make it a Family Activity-As busy moms it is hard to be supermom all the time. Involve your husband, older children, parents, and friends in helping you snag great deals. Sometimes I will send my husband to the store with my list and stack of coupons. Now this is not always the best idea and he is bound to come home with extra items, but it frees up your time. ( This is something I will do out of necessity) I will also go coupon shopping with my mom. We will drive the 20 minute drive together to go to Kmart when they are doubling coupons. Not only do we both get great deals, but I get to spend quality time with my mom. Husbands and family members are also helpful when you are trying to complete multiple transactions at stores.
I wish that I had more time to devote to increasing my stockpile, but I also think that we all must take on what is manageable in our lives. Using these techniques allows me to live frugally but still have time for my family.
Shop at Wal-Mart-Wal-Mart is where I do all of my grocery shopping. I used to go to Wal-Mart once a month and would frequent 3 neighborhood grocery stores weekly. I cut my time down to 1 shopping trip a week when I learned that Wal-Mart honors competitor prices and will do Price Matching. I will take in the grocery ads from my local Hy-Vee and Price Chopper (if the ads don't come in the paper, I will print them online so I don't have to go to the stores). When I go to check out I will hand the cashier my ads and point out the prices I want matched. For example, If Hy-vee is running a special on Kraft chesse singles for .99, the cashier will adjust the price of my item down to .99. Voila! I have just shopped at 3 different stores in the time it took to go to one store.
Do Multiple Transactions-When I first started couponing I would go to 3 different Walgreens and CVS stores on Sundays to shop. I was spending anywhere from 2-4 hours shopping. I realized this was taking up to much of my time. I think I did this because I was self-conscious about other customer being held up in the lines or the cashier looking at me funny. So I have two options that work well for me. If the store is not very crowded I will do multiple transactions. If a customer comes up behind me, I will move my cart off to the side and let them purchase their items. Another thing I do is complete one transaction, then I will take my items to my car and go back into the store and get the rest of my items to complete another transaction. I feel like this is the equivalent of forgetting to get an item you needed in the store and going back in to purchase it. This saves me time and gas money, if we are trying to be frugal we need to consider the money we spend in gas.
Don't Clip Coupons-I know, I must be crazy. But, really I no longer clip coupons. Due to the great resources we have with blogs and coupon sites, we are able to determine sales and coupons that match sales before we enter a store. I do not leave my house without a list with the items I will be buying and a stack of coupons to match my items. I will organize my coupons in a filing folder according to the date. When I have my list of items I can easily go through my folders and cut out the coupons I will need for my store purchases. Some people might think that they might miss a deal on a clearance item that they had a coupon for. This may happen where I see an item that I know their is a coupon for maybe every other month. So in that case if I really need the item I will come back and get it the next day with my coupon. Making a second trip to a store every 2 months is a much better use of my time then spending 1 hour every Sunday clipping and organizing my coupons.
Make it a Family Activity-As busy moms it is hard to be supermom all the time. Involve your husband, older children, parents, and friends in helping you snag great deals. Sometimes I will send my husband to the store with my list and stack of coupons. Now this is not always the best idea and he is bound to come home with extra items, but it frees up your time. ( This is something I will do out of necessity) I will also go coupon shopping with my mom. We will drive the 20 minute drive together to go to Kmart when they are doubling coupons. Not only do we both get great deals, but I get to spend quality time with my mom. Husbands and family members are also helpful when you are trying to complete multiple transactions at stores.
I wish that I had more time to devote to increasing my stockpile, but I also think that we all must take on what is manageable in our lives. Using these techniques allows me to live frugally but still have time for my family.
CVS Deals 7/5
Caliber or CVS brand invisible tape-$1.49 get $1.49ECB (Limit 3)
FREE
Caliber or CVS brand No. 2 pencils 10ct. or double blade pencil sharpner-$.99 get $.99ECB (Limit 3)
FREE
CVS brand pantiliners 22ct. $.89 get $.89ECB (Limit 1)
FREE
Febreze spend $10.00 get $5.00 ECB (Limit 5)
Possible Scenario:
Buy:
2 Febreze noticeables-6.50 X 2= 13.00
1 Febreze air effects-3.00
1 Febreze fabric refresher-5.00
=21.00
Use:
2-Febreze noticeable coupons-4.00 (P&G 7-5)
1-Febreze free air effects wyb refresher coupon (P&G 7-5)
Pay: 10.00
Get: 10.00 ECBs
FREE
FREE
Caliber or CVS brand No. 2 pencils 10ct. or double blade pencil sharpner-$.99 get $.99ECB (Limit 3)
FREE
CVS brand pantiliners 22ct. $.89 get $.89ECB (Limit 1)
FREE
Febreze spend $10.00 get $5.00 ECB (Limit 5)
Possible Scenario:
Buy:
2 Febreze noticeables-6.50 X 2= 13.00
1 Febreze air effects-3.00
1 Febreze fabric refresher-5.00
=21.00
Use:
2-Febreze noticeable coupons-4.00 (P&G 7-5)
1-Febreze free air effects wyb refresher coupon (P&G 7-5)
Pay: 10.00
Get: 10.00 ECBs
FREE
Price Chopper Deals 6-28 to 7-7
Ball Park Franks .97
1.00 off 2 (SS 6-07 & 6-28)
1.00 off 2 (SS 6-07 & 6-28)
.47 each after coupon!
Breyer's Ice Cream 1.97
1.00 off 2 (RP 5-17)
1.47 each after coupon!
Kraft American Singles 1.47
1.00 off 2 (SS 4-19 exp. 6-30 or here)
.97 each after coupon!
Other great deals:
-KC Masterpiece .77
-Hefty 50 ct. Plates .97
-Lay's Potato Chips 1.77
-Seedless Watermelon 3.77
Don't forget your $5.00 of $50.00 or $5.00 of $75.00 coupon from the entertainment book.
Free Captain D's Meal
Join the D's Club to receive a free Fish & Fries or Chicken & Fries just for joining! After registering an email will be sent to your inbox with the coupon.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
