Until next time...

I will be taking a hiatus until next week. My mom is visiting me and I am spending some much needed time with her! She has been gone on a mission for the past 19 months so we are catching up on lost time.

See you next week!

Until next time...

Rite Aid 10/25-10/31: Huggies deal

Head on over to the PYP blog to read my post on how to get some freebies and great prices on Huggies this week!

Rite Aid 10/25-10/31: Huggies deal

Frugal Living Friday: Frugal Recipes

Welcome to Frugal Living Friday! Each week I will feature a tip that can help us stretch our budget and live more frugally! If you have a tip that you want shared on Frugal Living Friday, let me know and you could become a guest blogger for a day.

We all know that eating out can add up. If we want to eat well but go easy on our budget then the solution is to stay home. It can be a challenge to find meals that fit into our budgets as well as our tastes.



Many of the recipes that I use regularly are frugal because I make them with items I got for free or really cheap...like the Ragu sauce at Albertson's I got for .30 a jar. Also items like pasta, baking goods, chicken, beef, etc. Having a stockpile of these things allows me to be flexible when I am planning menus or even making something spur of the moment. Then I can supplement the meals with fresh veggies and not feel like I spent a fortune on dinner. GO HERE to see a list of several meals I like to make that don't cost very much.

Here are some good resources for finding some recipes that don't cost much.

Nourishing Frugal Recipes
Hillbilly Housewife Frugal Recipes
Ms Frugal
$5 Dinners

Do you have a favorite frugal recipe you would like to share?

Frugal Living Friday: Frugal Recipes

Free Menu Planner

I do like to menu plan but I don't do a very good job at keeping it going every single week. Maybe I need something like this to keep me organized:

Isn't this fun? Seven-thirty-three has made a cute menu planning book and get this....she is offering it to anyone for a FREE download! She printed off a ton of the sheets then had it spiral bound. Great idea. GO HERE for the download.

Thought I would share if you could use it. Oh, and while you are on her blog download some free digital recipe cards to match the planner! Find those HERE.

Free Menu Planner

Get $15 from Kodak!

Thanks to PYP for this great deal!

I just got my code. Sign up now, its easy!

Go to Kodak Gallery to sign up for your free 15.00 gift card! They're giving away a minimum of 300,000 cards in three different stages: Oct 20 - Oct 28, Oct 29 - Nov 5, Nov 6 – Nov 13. During each stage, they're giving away at least 100,000 gift cards. If you sign up after they're done giving out gift cards for that stage, you'll get a 15% off discount code instead, but you'll still be eligible to sign up for a 15.00 gift card during the next stage.

1. Head on over to Kodak Gallery.
2. Click on "Get Your Free Gift,"
3. Enter your e-mail address to start the signup process.
4. Complete signup.
5. Check your e-mail address, including your spam folder, for your gift code.

Get $15 from Kodak!

$2/1 candy coupon!

Coupons.com has put out a $2/1 bag of Wonka and Nestle candy bags, 24 oz or larger. Print it now to have on hand for after Halloween clearance. I bet you could score some free candy!

Remember to print both coupons twice, so you have 4 coupons total.

Print these coupons before they are gone!

$2/1 candy coupon!

Albertson's Double's Trip

Are you looking for things to use your Abertson's Twice the Value coupons on? They came in Sunday's paper (to much of the Northwest) and expire tomorrow. Here is what I did this afternoon.

Rhodes Dough Rolls $2.69
Use any of these:
Rhodes Warm-N-Serv Rolls, any $1/1 (10-31-09) SS-7/19
Rhodes Warm-N-Serv Rolls, any $1/1 (11-30-09) SS-8/16
Rhodes Warm-N-Serv Rolls, any $1/1 (12-31-09) SS-9/20
Final price after doubling: .69 cents each!

Wonka and Nestle candy $2.49
Use these two printables for $1/1 (print them each twice)
Final price after doubling: .49 cents each! (I love cheap Halloween candy!)

Sun Chips $2.79
Use the $1/1 from All You magazine (I don't remember what month...sorry)
Final price after doubling: .79 cents!

Mountain High Yoghurt $2.49
Use the .75/1 printable (available to Utah & Idaho)
Final price after doubling: .99 cents!

2 lb brick cheese $5.49
Use the $1/1 2 lb any brand cheese printable (available to Utah and Idaho)
Final price after doubling: $3.49 each!

GO HERE for many more double ideas! What did you double this week?

Albertson's Double's Trip

Rite Aid FREEbates!

Head on over to the PYP blog and see my post on this week's Rite Aid deals!

There are over $76 in free items after rebate this week! I even give you three different shopping scenarios to give you an idea on how it can work.

Here is my post.

Rite Aid FREEbates!

Pet Coupons

Who can use a ton of pet coupons? I have A LOT of pet coupons from the last month of newspapers. I don't need them!

Pet Coupons

FREE shipping on any order Oriental Trading!

This deal is HOT!!!

Get free shipping on any order at OrientalTrading.com. This would be a great chance to get some fun Halloween or other holiday party supplies!!!

Use code FREEOCT. Expires October 19th.

Thanks PYP!

FREE shipping on any order Oriental Trading!

Weekend Freebies and Deals

• Get a new Homemade Simple coupon booklet. This is different than the other one posted awhile ago so order again! There are always high-value coupon in these booklets.

• Get Neosporin Lip Health for only .23 cents! Find out how HERE.

• While at Walmart, grab some Lea and Perrins for only .22 cents! HERE are the details.
  

• If you live in IL, KS, MI, MN, MO, OH, or OK you can get a free tote bag from Red Gold. HERE are the details.

• Join Victoria Secret's Secret Pink Nation and get a coupon from a free pink panty.

• Get a free sample of Aquafresh toothpaste. Click on the upper right corner, savings and special offers.
  

Weekend Freebies and Deals

Frugal Living Friday: Halloween Fun

Welcome to Frugal Living Friday! Each week I will feature a tip that can help us stretch our budget and live more frugally! If you have a tip that you want shared on Frugal Living Friday, let me know and you could become a guest blogger for a day.

Halloween is just around the corner! Did you know that Halloween is the highest money-grossing holiday after Christmas? You can spend a lot of money on Halloween. But you can keep it budget friendly too!

• Make homemade costumes. Family Fun always has THE BEST ideas. Many times you can make costumes from stuff you have on hand at home already! They even have last minute costume ideas that are so cute. One of my classic favorites was when my friend Sherri made this airplane costume for her son.
  
• Don't buy too much candy. Set a limit on how much you are purchasing for trick-or-treaters and stick to it. When its gone, its gone.
• Decorate simply. You don't have to spend money on all those decorations at the store. Get your kids involved. Make cotton ball ghosts, a pumpkin garland, egg carton spiders or salt dough ghosts. Its fun too! Go visit Make and Takes and Skip to My Lou for many more fun Halloween crafts to do with your kids.
• Shop ahead for next year. This year when you see Halloween items on clearance, snatch them up for next year! Most of the Halloween decorations I have were all purchased at 75% off over several years. You can even find good costumes this way. Keep an eye out!
  

Here is a post I made last year on Halloween freebies and fun you can find online.

What do you do for Halloween? Do you have a favorite website with ideas of Halloween on a budget?

Frugal Living Friday: Halloween Fun

Target Price Matching Specifics

Have you been price matching at Target yet? I did it today, with success, but the kind associate at customer service told me some things I think you need to know if you plan on price matching at Target.


1. You must have the printed ad with you.

2. The item you want much match exactly. There are no size substitutions.

3. You cannot match prices that you get by using a savings card at another store. For example, if granola bars are $1.50 per box when you use your savings card at Albertsons, you cannot match that price at all.

4. They will not match percent-off savings.

5. They will not match additional saving promos (like the promos Walgreens have of buying 5, get an additional $2 back).

6. It must be a current, weekly price to qualify.


If you have price-matched at Target, did it work for you?

Target Price Matching Specifics

Free photo book from Shutterfly!

Get a FREE 8x8 20 page photo book from Shutterfly just by following these simple steps!

1. Go here and login to your Facebook account.
2. After logging in, scroll down to the bottom of the page and you should see banner advertising. Refresh the page until you see the Free photo Book offer from Shutterfly. The first few ads of mine were for Facebook "skins." It took me 3 or 4 times refreshing before the Shutterfly ad came up. Once you see it, click on it and up will pop your unique promotional code to use! **For me, I logged in and I didn't see any banners, so I closed the browser and opened it up again and the code was right there.** Remember that you can get one book per Facebook account!
3. Open another web page and log in to your Shutterfly account. Click on "My Account" and then "Enter promotional Code." You can then cut and paste that code to save for later use! Offer is valid through November 15, 2009.

Thanks Utah Deal Diva for this awesome deal!

Free photo book from Shutterfly!

Product Review: Bounce Dryer Bar

Did you get the great Bounce Dryer coupon from Vocalpoint last month? I ended up getting my Bounce Dryer bar for just over $1. After using mine for a month I thought I would give you a product review.

CLICK HERE to see my review.

Product Review: Bounce Dryer Bar

Evernote

Have you heard about Evernote? I. LOVE. IT.

I read about Evernote online a few months ago and I have been using it ever since. It is the perfect organizing tool! Here are just some of the things it can do:

• Keep recipes organized
• Save web searches
• Clip complete articles, including photos
• Ability to click to the original web address from your note
• Record audio clips & memos for later
• Write handwritten notes in digital ink....to do lists, notes, and reminders

There is a free portion of Evernote, which I use, and there is an upgradeable version for a monthly fee. But the free edition works for me just fine.

What do I use Evernote for?

You know how you run across blogs, websites, and all sorts of ideas online? Ideas you want to remember for later. So what do you do? You bookmark the site, only to have a HUGE favorites list or it gets lost in the shuffle. I love Evernote for this every reason! I can immediately save what I am looking at in Evernote, put it in the proper category and done!

I have made all sorts of notebooks in my program....birthday party ideas, home decor ideas, projects, inspiration, recipes, etc.

Plus, when I put in the photo or post, Evernote automatically copies the direct link. So I always know where it originated from!

Here is what I love about Evernote:

• Clean layout and simple design
• Easy to figure out and understand how to use
• Organizes everything!
• Keeps all your different notes in ONE SPOT
• Eliminates clutter
• Is hooked up with IE 6 so I can add a note in seconds (right click on your mouse and you will see the option if you have IE 6)
  
• I can always find the original source for things!

Try Evernote today! It's free! You will love it.

Evernote

Free baby bath set from Johnson's

Right now if you purchase a Johnson's Baby Bath or Lotion by December 1st, 2009, you can receive a FREE baby bath toy frog gift set, which is a $10 value!

Purchase your baby bath or lotion between 9/28 and 12/1 2009. Send in your receipt to get the free gift set. CLICK HERE to read all the details.

To make this deal sweeter, get a $1/1 printable coupon here or here.

Thanks, Coupon Cravings!

Free baby bath set from Johnson's

Rite Aid and Walgreens 10/11-10/17

There are some great deals to be had this week! Rite Aid alone has over $59 in freebies! Here are the links with all the shopping lists and coupon info.

Rite Aid

Walgreens

Rite Aid and Walgreens 10/11-10/17

Frugal Living Friday: Frugal Crafts

Welcome to Frugal Living Friday! Each week I will feature a tip that can help us stretch our budget and live more frugally! If you have a tip that you want shared on Frugal Living Friday, let me know and you could become a guest blogger for a day.

As a mom I enjoy doing fun crafts...for my kids and for myself. Here are a few links that I thought you would enjoy. Have fun crafting without hurting your budget! If you have a frugal craft you would like to share, leave a link with your comment so we can check it out!

Isn't this the cutest thing ever! Make and Takes gives us the how-to on painted toast. And you can eat it too!

Last February I showed you how to make your own crayons. I made heart shaped for Valentines Day but you can make them in any shape you want!

Mrs. D. Lightful has a GREAT idea! Make your own decorative balls! Ingenious.

One Mom, Five Boys shows us how to make penny banks from things you have on hand at home! She made these with empty frosting containers. Formula cans would also work great.

What frugal crafting do you do?

Frugal Living Friday: Frugal Crafts

Quaker sale at Albertson's!

If you live in the Northwest, you can't miss this sale at Albertson's this week! You can get AMAZING deals like:

Life Cereal for $1 a box
Quaker Chewy granola bars for .63 a box after coupons
Quaker Instant Oatmeal for .88 a box after coupons
Aunt Jemima syrup for $1 after coupons

There are also other great promos going on too! Here are just a few.

Ronzoni Healthy Harvest Pasta for .20 a box after coupons
FREE Playtex gloves after coupons
Smart Balance peanut butter for .75 each after coupons

GO HERE to access the printable shopping list (complete with coupon links) from Pinching Your Pennies. It has all the details for the sale!

Quaker sale at Albertson's!

What's worth the money?

Yes, I love to use coupons. I find thrills off getting freebies and super great deals.

But face it. There are many things that cost you money. Good money. And many of those things are WORTH spending the money on! Granted you can still try to find the best deal on those things...however, it is worth it sometimes to spend some money on items that are better for you or that make life better.

I want to share today the items that for me and my family are worth spending money on.

I buy clear aloe vera gel for me. I use it as hair gel. It might sound a little weird. I have naturally curly hair which tends to get dry. This gel not only keeps it hydrated but it does it without adding any other harmful chemicals or alcohol to my hair. I have been using it on my hair for a few years now and I won't use anything else.


Our family has always been high dental maintenance. If you want to know where all our money goes, look into my mouth. (Plus we don't have dental insurance so it can add up fast). But since getting Sonicare toothbrushes two years ago I have not had one cavity! Not one! That is a big deal around here. My teeth have been healthier and stronger since using them too. Both my husband and I use them. I want to get some for my kids too.

Last week I told you how I am finally excited to have my Dyson vacuum! Now that I got my husband on board with it. I am so happy with it already. I have hated replacing vacuums every couple of years. Cheap things. This one was worth every penny...especially since I got it at half the price!

I try to get these wipes on sale and many times I do. I even got 3 canisters for free a few weeks ago at Albertson's. But even if I can't find them on sale I will buy them. Usually at Costco. Having these wipes makes my life easier, and I am willing to pay for them!

Some other items that I will spend the money on for me or my family:

• Certain Dri
• Mountain High Yoghurt
• a good router (we went through several cheap ones)
• new mattresses

What is worth spending money on to you?

What's worth the money?

Making the Most of your Coupons

If you are starting to accumulate lots of coupons you might be wondering the best way to use them. Just heading out to the grocery store and using your .35 cent coupon on tuna fish is not the best way to utilize your coupon. If you know how to use your coupons you can make your money stretch farther than you thought possible!

1. Wait to use your coupons. Don't use them right away. Wait closer to the expiration date for a good sale. For example, take a $1/1 Colgate toothpaste coupon. When Walgreens, Rite Aid, CVS, Albertson's or your local store has them on sale, THEN use the coupon on the sale price. many times these stores will have toothpaste on sale for $1, then you could get the toothpaste for free! Or when Walgreens offers Register Rewards on the toothpaste you can actually come out ahead when you use your coupon on the sale price, then get back a RR for the full purchase price!

2. Combine B1G1 free coupons with a similar sale. Let's say that Albertson's is having a sale on their Colgate toothpaste, B1G1 free. The sale price is $3.99 each. But let's say you also have a coupon for a B1G1 free tube of Colgate. Use that coupon you have with the sale of B1G1 free and you will come away with two free tubes! You pay for two and get four.

Or, like the sale at Rite Aid this week. The Herbal Essences shampoo/conditioners/stylers were B1G1 free. Use the following coupon with it and you will come away with getting both items free! Only pay sales tax.

Herbal Essences Styler FREE when you buy any Herbal Essences Shampoo, Conditioner or Styler(11-30-09) PG-10/11

Here is how it would work: Buy one shampoo or conditioner or styler. Get another free. But when you use the above mentioned coupon with it, the one you bought is also free! (as long as one was a styler). Make sense?

3. Combine your coupons with current rebates available. This is one of the main ways I have gotten ahead over the years. The Kraft rebate at Albertson's in August is a recent example. Kraft was offering a $20 rebate for purchasing certain items. I combined the sale prices at Albertson's on those items with current coupons I had, which was $7 worth. I spent $14 plus tax and got $20 back! I just received my rebate check a few days ago in fact.

4. Use manufacturer coupons with store coupons on the same product. Target, Fred Meyer & Walgreens are the stores in my area I do this at. These stores offer store coupons in their weekly ads or in their monthly coupon booklets. Many times there are manufacturer coupons (from the Sunday paper or printable coupons) that are for the same item. You can use these two coupons together!

For example, let's say that you want to purchase Garnier shampoo at Walgreens for $3.99. Walgreens has a store coupon for $2/1. You also have a manufacturer coupon from the Sunday paper for $1/1. Use them together to get the shampoo for .99 cents.

5. Use your cents-off coupons to get free items. Did you know you can get many free things with regular cent-off coupons? You can! One way to do this is by purchasing trial size items. If you have a $1/1 coupon for Tide, use it on the .99 trial size. Just make sure you read the coupon to make sure it doesn't mention that trial sizes are excluded. Many stores will apply the overage to your total as well! Walmart usually does. Target would adjust the coupon down to .99.

How do you make the most of your coupons?

Making the Most of your Coupons

SWEET Target deals

I. LOVE. TARGET.

Those who know me know it. If I wasn't married already I would marry Target. Okay, not really but I love that store!

Here are some GREAT deals to get this week! Thanks to Coupon Cravings and Surviving the Stores for these matchups. GO HERE for more Target deals this week! Please keep in mind prices may vary at different Targets around the country.

Buy 1 Jar of Skippy Peanut Butter at $1.79
Use $1/1 Target web coupon
Use $.75/1 coupon from 10/4 Red Plum insert
Final Price = $.04

NO COUPONS ARE NEEDED FOR THIS DEAL!
Buy 5 packs of Mott’s applesauce or bottles of Mott’s apple juice at $1.75 each
Receive $5 Target gift card
Final Price = $.75 each

Buy TWO Gillette Fusion Manual Razors or Venus Embrace Razors @ $7.94 each, Get a $5 Target Gift Card
Use $4/1 Fusion coupon from the 9/27 P&G
Use $2/1 Venus coupon from the 9/27 P&G
Pay $7.88 – $11.88 out of pocket
Get back a $5 Target Gift Card
Final Price: $1.44 – $3.44 each after coupons and gift card

Buy Chex Mix (3.75 oz - near registers) - 99¢
Use $1/1 Target printable coupon (exp 10/24)
Final Price: FREE after coupon!

SWEET Target deals

Free nursing cover, pay only S&H

Thanks to my cousin Rachelle for passing this info along!

Head over to Udder Covers where you will find fashionable covers for nursing mothers. Enter the code cranberry2 to get a $32 nursing cover free! All you pay is shipping costs of $8.95.

I have not tried this myself so post if it works for you.

Free nursing cover, pay only S&H

Menu Plan Monday: October 5

Happy news: My parents are coming home after a 18 month mission for our church. I get to see them next week. I am so excited! :)

Here is what is on the menu this week at our house. Join Menu Plan Monday at OrgJunkie!

Breakfasts:
cold cereal/toast
oatmeal
omelet

Lunches/Snacks:
salad
protein shakes (me)
sandwiches
Campbell's soup
apples & peanut butter

Dinners:
Lasagna
Chicken Noodle Soup w/rolls
Fabulous Fettuccine
Pasta & grilled chicken
Enchiladas
leftovers

FHE treat: Cinnamon rolls

Menu Plan Monday: October 5

Deals worth checking out this week

Check these posts out to score this week.

Rite Aid deals and freebies

Walgreens deals and freebies

Current Walmart deals

A couple of freebies:

Free 2010 calendar

Burts Bees Acne Solution

Clorox Wipes (for teachers)

Herbal Essences Giveaway

Deals worth checking out this week

$10 from Emergency Essentials

Do you have your own website or blog? If you do, you can get a $10 gift card from Emergency Essentials!

All you need to do is put their button on your blog or website. Read all the rules HERE. It's easy! I got my gift card a few days ago in the mail.

Freebies aside, Emergency Essentials is a great company. I have gotten many things from them in the past 10 years. Check them out!

$10 from Emergency Essentials

Save $7 in Glade products

Remember the $15 rebate from SC Johnson I told you about?

Well, Common Sense with Money tells us how we can get more bang for our buck with some great printable coupons. Check out her post HERE for all the details.

Save $7 in Glade products

High Value Toy Coupons

Get a jump start on your holiday shopping with these great toy coupons! Coupons.com has 13 new high-value toy coupons ready to print. These will go nicely with upcoming sales I'm sure. Target and Toys R Us always have toys sales in the next month or so with store coupons that you could combine these manufacturer coupons with. PLUS, these coupons don't expire until 1/15/2010! Remember: you can print each one twice!

CLICK HERE to print the coupons!

These are the toy coupons available:

• $5/1 Mr Potato Head Silly Suitcase
• $2/1 Mr Potato Head toy
• $5/1 Playskool Busy Ball Popper
• $3/1 Playskool Gloworm
• $5/1 Playskool Step Start Walk'nRide
• $5/1 Mr Potato Head Spud Buds
• $10/1 Musical Sit N Spin
• $5/1 Playskool Activity Ball
• $5/1 DinoRoars Hatchlings
• $10/1 Dance Cam
• $5/1 Tumble N Twirl
• $5/1 Swing N Score Baseball
• $10/1 DinoRoars Stompers

Thanks Utah Deal Diva!

High Value Toy Coupons

Frugal Living Friday: Green Tomatoes

Welcome to Frugal Living Friday! Each week I will feature a tip that can stretch our budget and help us live more more frugally! If you have a tip you want shared on Frugal Living Friday, let me know and you could become guest blogger for a day.

Now that fall is here, are you left with lots of green tomatoes? Don't throw them out. There are many things you can do with green tomatoes.

Fried green tomatoes

Mexina Salsa Verde (green tomato salsa)

Green tomato Relish

If you don't want to make anything with your green tomatoes that's okay! Did you know you can get them to ripen after you pick them? It's true!

Just pick all your green tomatoes before frost hits. Put them in a cardboard box in the garage. Wait a few weeks and they will ripen into red tomatoes. I do this every year and it's my favorite thing to do with my green tomatoes. It stretches my fresh tomatoes from the garden even farther into the year.

What do you do with your green tomatoes?

Frugal Living Friday: Green Tomatoes

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