Easter Bunny

My 8 year old daughter found the Easter baskets I made for my children yesterday morning.  I felt bad because I knew at that moment she would realize Mom is the Easter Bunny, and she would most likely question Santa Clause.  I braced myself for that conversation.  She looked at me with a huge smile and said, "How nice of you to make us Easter basket's too!  I wonder what the Easter Bunny will bring us!".  Guess what mom drove around town searching for Easter baskets last night, spending $40 on two freaken Easter baskets!  Either my daughter still believes in the magic of the holidays and the fictional figures that represent them, or I just got played into buying her more candy. 

Happy Easter!

Free E-Books - March 30, 2013

Here is a list of some of the FREE e-books available today.  Remember, these prices are time sensitive and could go up at any time.

 

 

A-Z of Cooking Herbs

 

Must Love Chickens

 

Raised Bed Gardening

Go Organic
 

132+ Delicious Salads, Dressings, and Dips

 

Simply Quinoa

 

Traveling Light - Poetry

 

The Accidental Hero

 

Les Miserables

 

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz

 

Tongue Twisters for Kids

 

Mission: Explore Food

 

The Ugly Duckling

How to Save Big Money on Groceries.

The ABC's of Money
 

 

 

$10 off $50 Thursday at Shop N Save

It's back!  Shop N Save is having their $10 off $50 Thursday sale!  A lot of us are still couponed out from Schnucks and Dierbergs Super Triple Coupon sales last week!  However, I think I'm going to push through my coupon exhaustion and get some more groceries for the house.  I like to stock up on shelf stable foods in the winter since the Spring and Summer is spent in my garden and at the local farmer's market (which you can't coupon at).  So this may be my last hoo-rah for a few months. 

 

Here are two shopping trip scenarios for this Thursday:

 

For scenario #1, I have a $2 off coupon for chicken wyb any 2 Miracle Whip.  Last night I saw Shop N Save has chicken on sale for $.99 per pound.......I also found a package for $2.75.  Let's assume I get my chicken for $2.81.

My total before coupons would be $50 even (I am not including tax since it differs slightly for every area).  I have $40.35 in coupons (this includes the $10 off and a $5 off coupon from this year's Entertainment coupon books).  My total after coupons would be $9.65!  Again, this is without tax and assuming that my chicken will be $2.81.

 

 

*I messed up.  My Coupon for the Kentucky Legend Ham is for $2 off, not $1.

 

For scenario #2 the savings aren't as great, but still an awesome deal!  I found the Kentucky Legend Hams from $6.25 and up.  Let's assume I find a ham for $7 here. 

My total before coupon would be $51.59 (again, without tax).  I have $30.25 in coupons (which also includes the $10 off an $5 Entertainment coupon).  My total after (before tax) would be $21.34.  Also, if you look near the beer section, they have been placing lots of rebates.  One is for $4 back when you buy a ham or turkey.  Check and see if they still have those rebate forms.  If the do, that would be $6 off any one ham.  Awesome deal if you are able to get it!

 

While you're at Shop N Save tomorrow, in addition to looking for those rebate forms, keep your eyes open for coupons on actual products.  Lots will have them tomorrow!

 

Get your coupons ready to head to Shop N Save tomorrow!  Lots of awesome deals with or without coupons to look for!

UPDATE

 

FREE gallon of Snapple Tea wyb ANY SIZE ham.  Check for the Kentucky Legend $2 off coupon (I got my ham for $4.56 after coupon) plus check the beer section for the $4 rebate wyb ANY size ham (over $4).

 

Duncan Hines Frosting Creations are $.75 -- the $1 off coupon makes them free!

 

The $3 off wyb any 5 of the products listed in the ad is taken off BEFORE the $10 is.

 

You can only use 1 Mircale Whip coupon (in ad) per purchase.

 

C&H Light supar packets are on sale for $1.75, check to see if you have a $1 off coupon from a few weeks ago.

 

Krave cereal has a $3 milk wyb any 3 Kellog's cereals peelie.

 

Product Review: It Works

Almost everywhere you turn you see something about these wraps from It Works.  You look at the photos and know that there is no way you can see results like that with just a wrap!  I decided to put them to the test (again).  I tried one about a year ago and saw no change at all (the person I bought the wrap from didn't tell me I had to drink a butt load of water).  I have an It Works rep that is local, so I decided to contact her and get set up with a pack of 4 wraps (cost me $65).  Ashley was very helpful through the process.  She gave me detailed instructions on what to do.  She also checked in with me every 3-4 days to see how the wraps were going and to make sure I didn't have any questions about them.  My main goal when doing these wraps was to focus on my mama pooch (you know mom's, that little bit of excess skin from having kids).  Before I had my daughter, I wore a size 9.  After I had her I jumped up to a size 16, where I stayed until my son was born.  After that I was in a size 22.  I work out multiple times per week, I eat right with the exception of a day or two, and I chase around my toddler all day long!  I don't consider myself a lazy person by any means.  I have dropped to a size 20 since the birth of my son (2 1/2 years ago!!!!!!!!).  With the help of the wraps, I am now able to fit into a size 18.  I am not saying these are a super miracle wrap that will cause you to drop a full pants size.....I was on the border of an 18 just barely fitting.

Here are my results:

 
I did not change my diet, I increased my water consumption, and up until last night, I did not change my work out routine (last night the hubby and I decided to push each other while doing sit ups and planks!).  While I do admit the results are great, these should be used in conjunction with a weight loss routine to get the maximum results.

Please note.....these are my actual results.  Results can and will vary for each person.  I was not paid to or asked to write this review.  I also paid for the product with my own money.  If the budget permits it, I would like to try the defining gel next. 

 

 

Contact Ashley Cox on Facebook or through her personal It Works website!

 

FREE $10 Credit to thredUP

So what is thredUP?  thredUP is an online consignment store where you can sell and buy gently used clothing for up to 80% retail price.  If you sell to thredUP, you send in a bag (which they send to you) full of your gently used clothing, then they will credit your account based off what the value the clothing at.  I have always gotten quality clothing from them and always in a timely manner.

When you sign up, you get a $10 credit in your account.  FREE money to spend!  To sign up and start shopping and selling, click HERE!

 

I used coupon code LUCKY15 for $15 off -- I'm not sure if this code is still available for use, but it doesn't hurt to try.

I used my store credit to purchase these shirts.

Coming soon.....thredUP will be buying and selling women's clothing too!  Sign up now to get a $5 credit when they launch!

Look At What I Just Got From Swagbucks!

I talk about Swagbucks an aweful lot.  I know a lot of you already use Swagbucks, but for those of you who still think it doesn't work, I just wanted to show you what I redeemed some of my points for this week.  I usually redeem them for Amazon gift cards, but what you don't know is you can also redeem them for physical items, like toothpaste and feminine care products:

 

 

Clicke HERE to sign up for Swagbucks!

Check out some past scores I got from using my Amazon gift cards from Swagbucks:

 



 

Free E-Books -- March 26, 2013

Here is a list of some of the FREE e-books available today.  These are time sensitive, so grab them before the prices go back up!





 

 

-100 Easy Recipes in Jars

 

-Muffin Tin Meals

 

-Wheat Fast Low Carb Cookbook For Weight Loss

 

-Low Gi Belly Fat Diet

 

-Healthy Kids Cookbook

 

-The Smart Parent's Potty Training Book

 

 

 

 



Why I Love Coupons!

Last year I really got into couponing.  I had started watching Extreme Couponing thinking I would be able to get $800 worth of product for less than $5.  Imagine my disappointment when I found out that was nearly impossible.  However, even after the disappointment, I realized that with proper planning, I could still save a good amount of money.  My family of 4 has been able to survive on about $150 in groceries because of coupons.  Last week two of my local stores tripled coupons up to $.75!  I scored some wicked awesome deals!

Check out my Triple Coupon score!  Over $90 worth of product for only $18!

This week another local store is having a $10 off $50 sale!  Right now I am looking through the ad and matching up the best deals!  I'll post my potential match-ups later!

FREE Atkins Starter Kit

I requested the Atkins Starter Kit a few weeks ago for myself and was pleasantly surprised.  The kit contains a pocket carb counter with acceptable food lists, 3 free (and super yummy) sample bars, a $3 mail-in rebate for the Atkins cookbook, and a coupon for a free Atkins frozen entree.  This offer is completely free.  You will even be registered for the Atkins online community which is a free resource.

 

Click here to get your FREE kit!

 

The Car Challange

This past week we found out that the median home value in St. Louis County dropped by 7%.  So What does this mean?  Even though we have spent the past 2 years pouring money into our home (which we bought in 2010), the value of our home dropped by $12,000 since last year.  This is pretty much the norm for homes in my area.  As if that wasn't enough, our taxes went up too.  We had planned on refinancing our home (which we bought for $70,000 and was valued at $115,000 in 2010).  We had hoped to use the extra money to pay off our current auto loan and buy a second vehicle for me.  Looks like those plans have changed.  Now I have challenged myself to save enough money to buy a car.  How will I do this with no job?  Through couponing, reward sites like Swagbucks, and from selling handmade hair accessories!  Yep.  That is my big plan!  With the money I save from my shopping trips, I will toss that into our savings (trick is to not spend the money that I save while couponing, but to save it instead).  I also plan on taking advantage of every rebate I possibly can. Again, all of those checks will go straight into savings.  Then with the rewards sites, I'm planning in on cashing out with PayPal.  My goal is to hit $5000 - $7000.  I am starting from $0, so let's see how long it takes to buy a car by using my saved money!

I will update my blog on my progress bi-weekly.  Wish me luck!