Mailbox Love

Yay! Finally some goodies in the mail again.  In the mail today were:

1. Squeaky dog toy ball from Purina Beneful WagWorld.
2. Pack of Dentyne Pure gum.

What goodies did you get today?

Mailbox Love

Nada. Nothing but junk in the mail today.

How about you? Any goodies?

Making Sports photo trading cards

For many families with young children, the summer sports season is wrapping up.  That also means team and sports photos.  We all want to savor those special moments, and to also share them with friends and family.  I'm no different.  When my oldest wrapped up t-ball this week, I wanted to do something special to preserve those memories.  I'm a bit of an hobbyist photographer and my kids are not surprisingly, my favorite subjects.  They've been trained to not even think anything of having my camera shoved in their faces.  To them, it's as natural as a kid begging for ice cream on a hot day.

I got the idea to turn some photos into trading cards from one of my kid's teammates. They'd ordered some cards through the team photographer, but cheap ass me only ordered a couple of prints, figuring the cards were a gimmick.  When I saw them, I thought they were so cute that I decided to give it a shot to make my own.  (Really, there's no shortage of photos I've taken this season. I'm sure I annoyed the opposing teams plenty by sticking my butt in their faces while trying to get a great action shot.)  I'm fairly savvy with Photoshop so I knew it wasn't going to be too much of a challenge, but when I came across this easy to use template and interface from HP, I figured making it myself from scratch was little more than reinventing the wheel.

So if you have a little one in sports or know of one, give it a whirl.  HP has templates for a wide variety of sports from baseball to basketball, to hockey and more.  Give it a try!  It's free!  All you do is upload the photo, pick your design, type out your text, save it (you might want to format it in Photoshop....I did) and send it to print with your favorite photo finisher.

Quiznos $2.99 Meal Deal

Quiznos is running a Meal Deal promotion.  For just $2.99 you get any small sub, chips, and a regular fountain drink.  Click here for the coupon. 

Note/tip/hint:  coupon expires exactly 1 week from the day you click on the link. ;)

Making up for lost time

Yeah, I know I said there was a shortage of good free stuff up for grabs lately, but I might have stumbled on the mother lode today.

Here are some goodies that should still be available! (Many of which are restocks and new links.)

• Playtex Sport Tampon
• Rachael Ray's Nutrish dog food
• Aveeno Nourish shampoo & conditioner
• Purex Complete 3 in 1
• StayFree w/Thermo Control
• Dove Conditioner
• U by Kotex
• Flexitol Heel Balm
• John Freida Root Awakening
• Kotex sample pack (different from the U by Kotex offer)
• Nexxus

Source: All You

The Children's Place - up to 30% off!

For 3 days in stores only, The Children's Place is having a sale that's up to 30% off!

Spend $60 - 30% off
Spend $50 - 25% off
Spend $40 - 20% off

Coupons for this sale can be found here.

The fine print: *Valid now through July 31, 2010. Limit one coupon per customer. Coupon must be relinquished at time of purchase. Cannot be combined with any other offer except in-store PLACE Card credit application discount

Mailbox Love

In the mail today:

• A piece of junk mail
• Stride Rite ad/coupon, same one as this one I got in my email

Anything good in your mail today?

The Children's Place - 20% off!

Here's an awesome 20% off coupon to The Children's Place!  Even better? It works at their outlet stores! AND it's good through Sept 1, 2010!

Source: Live FabuLESS

Box Tops 4 Education - The Difference One Makes

Here's another easy opportunity for you to earn Box Tops for Education for your school of choice. (I posted of one with Kroger here if you missed it.) This one is called The Difference One Makes and it basically involves playing a game. You simply enter in your email address, select the school of choice, and a rotating tic tac toe sort of game shows up. You get to control when it starts and stops. If you match 3 pictures in a row, you win Box Top credits for your school of choice! How easy is that? Even better still, you get to do it once a day so you get a daily shot at scoring free points for your school!

Grand Prize - 500,000 Bonus Box Tops
Weekly Prize - 5,000 Bonus Box Tops
Instant Prizes - 450,000 Bonus Box Tops

I just won 15 Box Tops for my kid's school!  I'm excited!  Especially since school budget cuts are so rampant these days. :(

Mickey Moms Club magnet

(Click to enlarge)

Remember I mentioned I got a magnet from Mickey Moms Club here? Yeah, well, I finally got around to uploading the pic of it. :p

I remember seeing one on a minivan at my kids' school a few months ago and was jealous that that mom made the panel. Now I know it was a consolation prize lol.

Mailbox Love

In the mail today:

1. Taking it to the Street tip & recipe book from Kikkoman
2. Easy Seafood Meals recipe book from SeaPak
   The strange thing about this is, I don't really recall requesting it before and I JUST requested one today. A few hours later, voila! There's one in my mailbox. Weird. :p  Anyway, if you haven't requested yours, in addition to recipes, there are two coupons in there each for $1 off any 2 SeaPak items.

What goodies did you get today?

Recipe freebies

Here are a couple of recipe freebies for ya:

• Kitchen Basics Healthy Cooking with Stock
  (Source: Freebies 4 Moms)
• Easy Seafood Meals from SeaPak
• Jiffy Mix recipe book
  

New Swag Bucks video ads

If you're on SwagBucks, have you been checking those video ads? (They're in the middle of the front page, on a yellow strip under "Special Offers.") They seem somewhat random and regional so just because someone you know sees a vid doesn't mean you will, but it never hurts to check. I haven't seen any for a few days, then today, BAM! Several new ones sprung up for me. Here's what I'm seeing:

IKEA - 4 SB (new)
V8 - 4 SB (new)
bing - 2 SB (common)
Scion - 2 SB (common)
Reebok - 4 SB (new)

That's an easy way to earn 16 SB!

Are you seeing any new video ads?

Birthday Clubs

Like burgers? If so, here are some restaurants that offers free burgers on your birthday!

• Red Robin
• Ruby Tuesday
• Fuddruckers

Source: RedPlum


Other birthday clubs:

• Kmart birthday club - Get $5.00 Birthday Bucks, birthday crown, and certificate
• Toys R Us Geoffrey's birthday club - birthday coupon and most TRU stores may give the birthday child a crown
• California Pizza Kitchen CPKids birthday club - free CPKids meal on birthday

Where are my goodies?

You might have noticed that there's been a shortage of deals postings around here lately. It's not because I don't want to post good deals or freebies, it's because there just haven't been much going 'round the past week or so. It's like it's hot then it's cold. I think it goes in waves. That or I come across some screaming good deals that either doesn't pan out or that it makes you jump through so many hoops, a circus poodle gets less of a workout that it's not even worth it. (I personally test and try each deal I post on here so I am extremely picky about what I share with my readers. I don't want to waste your time.) I'll definitely keep you guys posted whenever I see something good come up.

In the mean time, don't forget to do your daily Swag Bucks where you can easily get 3 Swag Bucks each day by clicking through their No Obligation Special Offers, Trusted Survey, and Daily Poll. Plus there is "Midnight Madness" where you have a higher chance of getting SB via searches. Don't forget to check the video ads as well.

Then there's also the Kroger Sweepstakes. Don't forget that! There are still 46 days left on that promo! You can win up to 2 prizes each cycle and the new cycle starts August 8!

Mailbox Love

In the mail today were:

1. Grocery ads
2. 20% off Gymboree
3. Bodycology cucumber melon hand & body lotion sample from Walmart

What goodies did you get today?

Mailbox Love

I've been getting a lot of junk in the mail the past few days. Today, I got 2 junk letters from State Farm (they send me solicitation junk at least twice a month) a couple of catalogs...which reminds me I need to get my name off those mailing lists.  The best part was this:

• All-Bran Complete Wheat Flakes and Bran Buds samples, two $1 off coupons, and an eye mask! 

What goodies did the letter carrier bring you today?

Kroger Sweeps

It's time to play Kroger/King Sooper's Summer of Savings Sweepstakes! If you've been playing, what have you won?

No more winning for me. I'll have to wait till August 8th when they start their new round.

Talking yourself off the ledge

I know I post bargains, sales, and goodies on this blog, but if there's one thing I've learned from bargain hunting is, there's no point in doing it unless you NEED the item. Otherwise it's a waste of time, money and effort. There, you heard it from me here.  In other words, I don't want you to spend the money on the deals I post if it's not something that's right for you.  I love a good deal and often times, it's very hard to resist....especially with all those back to school sales going on right now!  You saw how many pencils I bought!  What I am desperate to resist are clothes.  My kids do not need new clothes. The clothes they have now are fine and even when they need new clothes, I'd taken advantage of so many deals in the past that they're set for a long while.  I stumbled upon this blog today with an article on how to talk yourself from buy, buy, buying. I hope it helps you save a few pennies. :)

TSG has a sense of humor

(Click on image to enlarge)

Only because it's amusing what I get Swag Bucks for. I often get a good laugh at the stuff I search for that nets me Swag Bucks. It cracks me up. It's rewarding and comical. Who knew?

Kroger Sweeps

It's time to play Kroger/King Sooper's Summer of Savings Sweepstakes! If you've been playing, what have you won?

I got my husband into playing it too and he just won a pack of Ball Park franks!

Mailbox Love

In the mail today:

• Coupon for a free kids meal to California Pizza Kitchen as part of their CPKids birthday program
• $3 off coupon for Olay Facial Moisturizer

What goodies did you get today?

Mailbox Love

3 pieces of junk mail, plus the coupon for a free bag of Natura pet food.

What goodies did you get today?

Aaron Brothers Penny Fram Sale - Last Call!

This is the last call for this round of Aaron Brothers' Penny Sale! If you're not familiar with the sale, it's buy one frame, get the second one (of equal or lesser value) for just 1 cent. The sale ends August 1, 2010.

Click here for locations.

Denver Post Perks

If you live in the Denver area, or in an area where the Denver Post services have I got some awesome news for you!

Starting August 1, 2010, the Denver Post will start their Denver Post Perks YES! delivery program. (Their website says it's just for subscribers, but that's not the case starting Aug 1.) Here's what it is: your local carrier will deliver a special bundle of ads, coupons, and magazines including Parade and USA Weekend. It's NOT the full Sunday paper so if you want the paper and comics, you'll have to buy that. It is just the ads, coupons, and magazines and it is all free with no obligation! If you would like to have this service, you'll need to contact the Denver Post Customer service at 303-832-3232. It's a quick and painless process. They'll just ask you for your name and address.

Enjoy your coupons!

Kroger Sweeps

It's time to play Kroger/King Sooper's Summer of Savings Sweepstakes! If you've been playing, what have you won?

I don't get to win anymore. :(  There's a max of 2 prizes per participant (by that they mean per card # and email address) and since I won my max of 2 prizes from the wheel, I no longer qualify, but it's looking like they're going to reset the prize pool on August 8th.  When I try to log in and play, I get a message telling me to come back then. Don't forget to play!

Mailbox Love

Nada.
Absolutely nothing good in the mail today. All junk. :(

Hope you got some goodies today. :)

P&G Brand Sampler reset

P&G Brand Sampler has reset! (They provide samples and coupons on a quarterly basis.)

Here are some stuff up for grabs this time:

• $2 off Gillette Fusion ProGlide
• Pantene shampoo & conditioner samples
• $1 or $3 off coupon for Tide Stain Release
• Prilosec OTC sample
• Bounty paper towel coupon
• $0.50 off coupon for Bounty Quilted Napkins
• $1 off coupon for Cheer detergent
• $0.75 off coupon for Zest

You don't have to request everything, just what you want...or all of it. :)
Get yours here!

10% off Stride Rite Outlet

If you haven't shopped for back to school shoes for those kiddos yet, here's a coupon for an extra 10% off that's good through July 25, 2010.

Kroger & Box Tops for Education

If you have a child in school or know of a child in school, chances are you're aware of Box Tops for Education.  If you don't, it's basically a program from General Mills that for every specially marked box top you give to a participating school, the school can cash those in for money to be used to purchase educational material for the school.  With education budget cuts all over, it's a very helpful program for schools.  Now Kroger has teamed up with General Mills.  When you register your Kroger shopper loyalty card here, they will instantly send 5 points to the school of choice. Plus there are also special deals when you sign up such as extra bonus Box Top points and coupons. It's a great way to help out schools.

Mailbox Love

It was a slow day for my mailbox today. I mostly got junk mail, but I did get one thing that was exciting to me.  A local gas station sent a coupon for $2 off 10 gallon of gas, plus a free bottle of 20 oz Coke or Aquafina.  Woot!  I will definitely take it! That's almost a free gallon of gas. :)


What goodies did you get today?

Goodies

• Snag yourself a free sample of Nexxus Therappe Shampoo and Humectress Conditioner from Walmart.
  
• Here's a sample for OXY Clinical acne treatment.
• Printable coupons for OXY Clinical and OXY Maximum can be found here.
  
• Then treat yourself to a free flip flop cookie from Cookies by Design.

Kroger Sweeps

It's time to play Kroger/King Sooper's Summer of Savings Sweepstakes! If you've been playing, what have you won?

I actually won something today! Two things, actually!

I won a Schick Hydro 3 or 5 Blade Razor just for logging in today, and I won a Free 20 oz Coca-Cola Sparkling Soft Drink from spinning the wheel. Woot!

Sample: True Lemon

Snag a sample of True Lemon right over here!

No idea what True Lemon, True Lime, or True Orange is?  Yeah, neither did I. :p  They are basically crystallized pieces of citrus fruit that you can use in beverages and other recipes. When signing up for the sample, be sure to use an email that you can access. For example, if you have a junk email that you use to sign up for things, make sure you use one that you remember your log in info because they will send you a confirm email which you'll need to click on a link to confirm in order to get your sample.

Walmart Customer Service

Time and time again I read about Walmart's poor customer service, and really, considering how HUGE Walmart is, it's really not surprising if their customer service is lacking. Truth be told, when I had troubles placing a photo order through their site last night, I expected crappy, "big company" customer service.

I normally don't go through Walmart for my photo finishing needs. Reviews from some trusted pro photographer sources (who do recommend commercial retail finishers) say Walmart photo finishing doesn't yield very good results. I went with Walmart because after much research, they were the only ones that had what I need at a convenient and reasonable price. I needed to turn one of my kids' photos into a baseball card. I could've designed them in Photoshop myself like I usually do with most cards and it's not exactly hard to do, but Walmart had them readily available for a great price of just $0.09 per sheet of 2 cards, with free shipping (promo is good through July 31, 2010.) I had everything designed and in my cart when it wouldn't let me complete the order. For several hours, it stuck me in a perpetual loop telling me that things in my cart had changed since I entered the ordering process. Needless to say, I was beyond frustrated so I went to bed and vowed to try again in the morning during normal business hours...but not before I fired off an email to their photo customer service to not only notify them of the issue, but in hopes of getting some kind of advice on how I can get my order to go through. They were to get back to me within 24 hours, which while not ideal, it was fine since I still had plenty of time to take advantage of the free shipping promo.

I tried my order again in the morning to no avail so left, vowed to just design them myself, and pay the little extra to have it done at Costco Photo like I often do. I came back in the early afternoon to try one more time before I quit for good and behold, the problem was fixed. Soon after I'd placed my order, Walmart photo's customer service emailed me back and much to my surprise, it was not only a nice email, but what surprised me the most was the fact that they admitted to having problems...something most companies will not address or willingly admit to the customer. Here's the response I got:

Thank you for contacting Walmart.com regarding the photo order error.

We are very sorry for this issue, it is a known issue and we are told that at this time it has been fixed. We see that you did place a successful photo order today and want to follow up to ensure you received a final resolution to your concern. If no further action is needed and you feel your issue has been resolved then no response is necessary.

Why yes, thank you! Thank you for getting back to me even though I'd successfully placed my order and clearly the problem I'd been having had been resolved. Importantly, thank you for acknowledging your errors and admitting to it. We all err. We all screw up. But few admit to it. So yeah, cool and thanks for admitting things didn't go right and not pinning the error on the customer, making them feel like an idiot for something that was not their fault. Thumbs up, Walmart.

Generic meds on the cheap

It's not a surprise that medications are EXPENSIVE, but you shouldn't have to resort to Mexico or Canada to get your meds. ;)  Consumerist provided a list of affordable options right here, state-side. 

Walmart
30-day supply - $4.
90-day supply - $10

Target
30-day supply - $4.
90-day supply - $10

Walgreens
30-day supply - $9.99.
90-day supply - $12.99
Membership: ($20/year individual, $35/year family)

RiteAid
30-day supply - $8.99.
90-day supply - $15.99

Kroger
30-day supply - $4.
90-day supply - $10

CVS
30-day supply - N/A
90-day supply - $9.99
Membership: ($10/year per person)

Meijer
Free Antibiotics, Pre-Natal Vitamins, and Diabetes Management Supplies

Kmart
$5-$25 including some non-generics in the women's health program
Membership: Free

Wegmans
30-day supply - $4
90-day supply - $10

Publix
Free Antibiotics

Of course, prices may vary depending on local and state laws.

I had no idea that some stores have antibiotics for free!  Of course none of those stores are in my area. Harumph!

Source: Consumerist

Ziploc coupons & bonus menu plan!

Snag yourself a coupon for $1.50 off any 2 Ziploc products by clicking here. (To snag 2 coupons, just hit the back button on your browser after the first one has printed. Of course you should maximize your paper by first figuring out how to load your paper so that it prints double sided and so the coupon prints on opposite ends of the paper. :) )

After you've used your brand spankin' new coupon to score 2 packages of Ziploc products, head over and snag a free copy of their Back to School Menu Plan. You will need the UPC codes off the packaging and then you will be directed to the Menu Plan and have the option to download the .pdf file. It over 20 pages of colorful, fun, and great ideas and recipes! Now of course if you want instant gratification and don't want to wait till you make a run to the store, you should check your pantry and kitchen to see if you already have some Ziploc products with UPC codes. ;)

Mailbox Love

I scored a good amount of coupons in the mail today, all from Bricks. :)

1. $1 off Kraft Homestyle Mac & Cheese
2. $1 off Aquafresh Extreme Clean
3. $1 off Aquafresh iso-active (if you got this one too, it should stack with the one found here from Rite Aid)
4. $1 off Sensodyne
5. $1 off Pronamel
6. A car magnet from Disney Moms Club! (I'll post a pic of it later. I applied to be on the Moms Panel last Fall. Unfortunately, I did not get selected to be on the panel, but they sent me a car magnet. :)

What goodies did you get?

Free WordLock on FB

If you're on Facebook, then you can score a free WordLock luggage lock here.

Source: Hip 2 Save

Mailbox Love

In the mail today:

1. Products test kit from MySurvey
2. Dove Daily Moisture shampoo & conditioner samples from Sam's Club
3. Right at Home coupon book

What goodies did you get?

Heads up, students & teachers - Old Navy sale just for you!

From Old Navy's Facebook page:

We love students and teachers! They’ll receive 25% off their entire purchase, this Friday through Sunday only. Students—show your college or high school ID to receive your discount. Teachers, show your school ID or pay stub to receive yours.

You’ll rule the school with your cool!

Legal stuff:
...Offer valid from 7/23/2010 through 7/25/2010 at Old Navy stores in the US and Canada. Not valid at oldnavy.com. Discount applies to merchandise only, not value of gift cards purchased, packaging or applicable taxes. No adjustments on previous purchases. Not valid for cash or cash equivalent. Cannot be combined with other offers or discounts including Gap Inc. employee discount. Must show either student ID, school ID or teacher pay stub to obtain discount.

Snacks: Snikiddy

Score yourself a coupon for a free bag of Snikiddy baked snacks.  It's a printable coupon, no download required and you have a while to use it. The coupon expires Nov 30, 2010.

Source: Hip 2 Save

Better Than Ears

If you have a dog or few around, snag them a sample of Better Than Ears treats from Walmart here.

Source: Hip 2 Save

Special K protein bars

Head on over here for a sample of Special K Protein Bars trial pack w/coupons.

Source: Freebies 4 Moms

Mailbox Love

Last call for the week! In the mail today were:

1. Stayfree Thermo Control pad sample w/$1 off coupon
2. Salonpas Pain Relief Patch sample w/$1 off coupon
3. AMF eClub coupons for 10 free games of bowling 

What goodies did you get today?

Quest: School supplies savings

Anyone want to join me on a quest? A quest to get school supplies necessary to help educate my kid without breaking the bank?

Surely you've read about me starting my school supplies quest months ago, stalking the sales. I think I've done pretty well so far. I probably could've done better, but not bad.

Here's what I need and the notes:

• Two large boxes of Kleenex -$3 Costco ($3.50 coupon in coupon book exp 8/8/2010)
  
• One clipboard (8 ½ x 11) - $1.44
  
• One spiral notebook - $0.15
  
• Three plastic folders - $2.25
  
• One pk markers (broad tipped) - free (left over from last yr)
  
• One box of CRAYOLA washable watercolors with brush - $2 (this chaps my hide...I paid 2x as much for Crayola than if I could've gone w/Rose Art. I had to pay full price for the Crayola ones, and you know I hate paying full price. Grrrr...I'm still hunting for a sale on them though)
  
• One box of 48-64 crayons - $2
  
• 24 No. 2 pencils - $0.40 - Walgreen's July 4-10 ad.
  
• Two large-sized (8 oz.) bottles of white Elmer's glue - $3.14 (again, this one chaps my hide...4 oz bottles are $0.25 ea! You do the math...)
  
• One bottle of rubber cement - $1.34
  
• Four glue sticks - $0.40 Target (they mislabeled them and the cashier was kind enough to give them to me for the price I saw)
  
• One pair Fiskar brand children's scissors with metal blades - $0.99 Walgreens July 11-17 ad
  
• One pump bottle of antibacterial hand soap - $0.48 SoftSoap - Walmart - $0.98 cents plus $0.50 off coupon
  
• Four pkg wipes - $5.96
  
• One package of four sponges - FREE! O-Celo sponges are 2/$3 @ Rite Aid this week w/Wellness + card. I had a $1 off UP coupon from buying BOGO1/2 Coppertone, plus the packaging of the sponges was a bit damaged so the cashier was kind enough to knock another buck off.
  
• One backpack - Free! I had a new one I got years ago
  
• One durable 11" x 10" plastic basket - $3.50 (I didn't care how much I paid for this damn thing, the specifications made it impossible to find!)
  
• One short-sleeved adult t-shirt for painting - $2 - I didn't have any usable shirts, and my DH's were way too big for our kid so I dropped $2 for some at Rite Aid.
  
• One old magazine with colorful pictures - Free! - I get free subscriptions to tons of mags!
  
• One box small (sandwich) zip-loc bags - $1 Dollar Tree
  
• One box gallon zip-loc bags - $1.67 Walmart
  
• Plastic/paper cups - Free - left over cups from MIL's bday party

Total spent: $31.72

Good crappiolicious! School supplies, even with sales, coupons, and bargains are freakin' expensive! I really hate that teachers get so brand and size specific. Glue is the one thing that bugs me the most. Little kids have little hands so they handle smaller, 4 oz size glue better anyway. Why do parents have to spend over 6x more for the 8 oz glue?

So...any one want to help me keep an eye on Crayola water colors, 8oz bottles of glue, and rubber cement sales? :D

Heads up, Swag Buckers

Have you noticed there's been a shortage of Swag Bucks earning video ads to watch lately? I noticed something today. I noticed 3 vid ads that did NOT have the little blue arrow indicating that it's a vid ad. I only noticed it because the point value was much smaller than the typical "sign up and buy" offer...it was only for 1 SB. You click on it and rather than it opening up a small pop up with the vid, it opens up a new browser or tab with the vid in it. Once you watch it in its entirety you should instantly get the SB.

Oh yeah, and I just received another Amazon gift card from them today. I'm just 25 SB away from another one! I hope to get it by the end of this weekend. Oh, and did you hear? Or should I say, read? They've improved their Amazon gift card redemption process. Now you can get it faster instead of waiting until the 1st and 17th of each month to get your GC. I like it! It's a lot less pressure on me to get those SBs in time. :p

Mailbox Love

In the mail today:

1. $5 off coupon for KY Intense lubricants (Bricks request)
2. $5 off coupon for Neutrogena Clinical (Bricks)
3. $2 off coupon for any Johnson & Johnson Red Cross Brand non stick pads (Bricks)
4. $1 off coupon for Roman Meal bread (Bricks)
5. July and August issues of Maxim magazine - free subscription for DH.  He was happy. When I asked him what all came in the mail, he said, "I dunno...I stopped looking when I found these" as he happily held up his prized freebies. :p
6. Two $1 off coupons for Charmin products
7. Parenting magazine
8. Family Fun magazine

 It was a busy day for my mailbox.  What goodies did you get today?

The Coup de Gras

Our dvr service was up for renewal this month and for the past 2 months, I've been getting emails reminding me to renew, otherwise they'd start charging me the pricier monthly option. (We prepaid to get savings.) But I intentionally put it off until the very last minute because I don't believe in giving people my money in advance until I absolutely have to. My money in my pocket is better than in someone else's. My procrastination paid off. I got an email promo that saved me $300 in renewal charges! Needless to say, I took advantage of that saving. :)

Today is also a vacay fund deposit day.  If you've been following my blog this week, I've had some pretty good luck at Rite Aid lately.  That amounts to a pretty good amount of savings.  I'm due some rebates back from Rite Aid, but I haven't requested the check yet so I don't count those savings. (Kind of like not counting my chicks before they hatch type of deal.)

Here's a break down of free money & savings for the last 9 days:

$10 Amazon gift cards from Swag Bucks
$5 from misc survey
$24 savings from Rite Aid
$35 savings from various stores & coupons


Total: $74
Add the dvr renewal savings: $374!  That's a huge chunk of change!

Mailbox Love

In the mail today:

1. GoodNites underwear sample  (click to snag a sample)

Slow mail day.  What goodies did you get?

Stride Rite Outlets sale

Just in time for back to school!
Starting Wednesday July 15, 2010, Stride Rite Outlet is having 25% off Kids Athletic shoes and 50% off original price on select styles. The deal runs through July 21, 2010.

Orange Julius

Orange Julius has some tasty deals right now. Click here for a $2.99 Orange Julius Fruit Drink coupon. (Good through August 31, 2010.

If you join their OJ Quench Club, they'll send you exclusive deals plus a birthday coupon. Right now they just sent out a coupon for BOGO Julius drink on Tuesdays until Oct 16, 2010!

Kroger Sweeps

It's time to play Kroger/King Sooper's Summer of Savings Sweepstakes!   If you've been playing, what have you won?

I didn't win anything today. :(

Get your free on!

Here are some goodies for you today:

• Get a bikini bra from American Apparel
  (Source: Hip2Save)

-----------------------------------------------------

• John Freida Root Awakening sample
• Origins™ Mega-Mushroom Skin Relief Advanced Face Serum sample
  (Source: Freebies 4 Moms) 

Mailbox Love

In the mail today:

1. August issue of Parents magazine
2. a bill *gag*
3. junk disguised as coupons

Kroger Sweeps

Are you remembering to play Kroger/King Sooper's Summer of Savings Sweepstakes?   If you've been playing, what have you won?

I haven't won anything since the free can of AMP. Boo :(

Mailbox Love

In the mail today:

1. Sennheiser head phones from Woot
2. $1 off 2 Sugar Free Jello coupon (Bricks request)
3. $1 off TRESemme Fresh Start (Bricks)
4. NatureMade Fish Oil sample

Have you been requesting the goodies I've been posting?  Have any luck with them yet? Get any in yet?  What goodies did you get in the mail today?

Goodies

Here are a few goodies for you today:

• Free Jiffy Mix Recipe book
• Home Made Simple coupon book worth over $30 in savings

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• Free single serving of Thai Cashew Chicken at Panda Express Wednesday, July 14, 2010 only. No purchase necessary. One coupon per person.  Not valid with any other promos or coupons.
• Free bag (good on any 5lb–6.6lb bag) of Natura dry pet (dog or cat) food.

(Source: Freebies 4 Moms)

Brands include: HealthWise^®, Innova^®, EVO^®, Karma^® and the new California Natural® grain free formulas!

My Notes:  You'll have to input your name, address, and email then the site will generate a retailer list in your area for you to choose from. The coupon, which they will mail to you within about 2 weeks, is only good at that retailer so choose carefully.  The site has been hammered all day long so it's running slow and wonky.  I tried all day long and even though I entered a valid address knowing the food is sold in my area, it wouldn't generate a retailer list. I tried one more time and it eventually did load so just be patient and keep trying. If it still doesn't work, use the contact info on their website and call customer service for help. They should be able to take your info and send you the coupon.

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• Kraft Homestyle Mac n Cheese coupon (Bricks)
• Tons of Nexcare bandages coupons (they're pdfs!)

(Source: Couponing to Disney)

Mailbox Love

My mailbox is a bit late tonight. Here's what's in the mail

1. Two O.B. Tampons coupons for $1 each (requested from Bricks)
2. Coupon for free DIGIORNO Deep Dish Pizza (requested from Bricks)
3. Mizkan recipe book, note cards, and coupon

Magazines for $0.00

Score yourself a magazine subscription for free!

Titles include:

Entertainment Weekly - 52 issues
People en Espanol - 11 or 22 issues
Time - 56 issues
W - 12 issues
Essence - 12 or 24 issues
Sports Illustrated - 56 issues
Details - 10 issues

and more.

Sign up for US Airways Dividend Miles (free) and use promo code NM15. It will start you off with 1500 miles, which should be credited to your account within 24-48 hours. (You'll get an additional email welcoming you to Dividend Miles, but it doesn't mention you got extra miles. You'll have to log into your account to verify.) Once you've received your miles, click here to redeem them.

What magazine do you plan on getting?

Source: Hip2Save

Score 30 Chuck E. Cheese tickets

Got a kid who loves Chuck E. Cheese? Then check out their Ticket Blaster game for a chance to score 30 tickets not tokens! You'll have 30 seconds to snag 30 tickets floating in the air. It's actually really easy to do. The game ends when you've snagged 30 tickets (they keep track for you) and you'll be subjected to a 15 minute video ad before you can print the voucher to redeem for your tickets. One voucher per kid per day. Voucher expires Sept 9, 2010. Each voucher has an unique code so you'll need one per kid. You may play the game more than once and print different vouchers each time.


Source: Couponing to Disney

Rite Aid shopping trip

Here's what I scored at Rite Aid today shopping this week's ad:

• Crest Scope toothpaste - $2.29
  -$2.29 SCR = free
• Crest 3D White toothpaste - $2.99
  -$1 manny from White Strips sample,
  -$2 SCR = free
• Coppertone sunblock - $8.99 W+
  -$2 in ad coupon
  -$3 AdPerk coupon = $3.99
• O-Cello sponges - 2/$3 W+
• Combos/Goldfish snacks - 2/$3 W+

Used $5 off $20 AdPerk coupon
Used $2 +UP from last week's Pantene purchase
Got new $1 +UP for buying Coppertone

Total cost: $2.99 +tax (not factoring the Coppertone $1 +UP since I'll factor that in my next purchase when I use it.)

(There's an even better deal involving SCR #555: spend $25 on qualifying skin care...Coppertone qualifies! get $10 gift card. Spend $50 get $25 gc.  Use W+ and SCR# 655 will get you another $5 gc.)

Terminologies:
* SCR = Single Check Rebate - Rite Aid's rebate program.
** W+ = Wellness + - Rite Aid's loyalty program
*** +UP = +UP Rewards - Rite Aid's promo coupon program

Rite Aid deals pt deux

I just came back from another trip to Rite Aid to take advantage of a deal I learned about on Couponing to Disney.

Buy Neutrogena Clinical (SPF 30, Night, or Eye) - $39.99
Use $5 off Neutrogena Clinical coupon (registration required)
Use $5 off $25 purchase coupon 
Pay $29.99
Get $1 off $10 hair care +UP
Get $1 off $10 pain relief +UP
Submit for this rebate
The rumor is this is supposed to be a money maker deal because of the rebate, however, that's really an uncertainty because it depends on how the rebate is processed. If they process it factoring the coupon, then all that work is rather moot because all you get is a free product out of it...with or without the coupons. (Well you would've paid the amount equal to the tax.)  If they do not factor in the coupons, then you made $10 out of it.

BUT then you can submit it for SCR #555 for $10 Rite Aid gift card.  Buy $50 worth of beauty products (the Neutrogena Clinical qualifies) and get a $25 RA gift card.  So I aimed for the $25 gc and got:

2 bottles of Aveeno lotion $8.99 each but it's B1G1 1/2 off so the total was $13.49 - $2 printable coupon $11.49
1 Coppertone - W+ = $8.99 -  in ad coupon $2 - $3 printable = $3.99

That's kind of pushing it, but it depends on how they allocate and process coupons so we will see.  I might have to spring another $5 in skin care purchase to qualify.  Buying the Coppertone also scored me another $ +UP coupon.

Rite Aid deals

Ya know, Rite Aid is a drugstore so I don't normally associate deals with them. In fact, I think their mark up is a bit ridiculous. You really have to know your prices well and be able to do the math on the spot to get a good deal. For example, they have Queen Helene Cocoa Butter as part of their SCR* this month. Get 50 cents rebate for a bottle, but here's the thing, it sells for almost $5 at Rite Aid. At Walmart? The same bottle size goes for $1.98. That's a big difference even with the SCR so that makes the rebate not worth it. Still, if you shop carefully there are some really good deals to be had there. Here's what I scored tonight:

• 2x Duracell AAA batteries 16 pack - normally $13.99, W+** price: $9.99, each pack had a $1 off peelie coupon = $17.98
• 1x Duracell AAA batteries 8 pack - normally $8.99, W+ price: $4.99, each pack had $1 off peelie coupon = $3.99
  Submit for SCR #10 final cost: $11.97 or .30/battery
• 3x Pilot Easy Touch retractable pens $2.29/ea. = $6.87, 3x $1 off Pilot pens coupon = $5.87. (Regular Easy Touch retractable are 2 packs, the Pro version is one per pack. Both were the same price at my Rite Aid.)
  Submit for SCR #140 = $1.87 (or .31/pen)
  (not as good as the Walgreens deal from last week, but with the $5 off $25 coupon, the pens were essentially free.)
  

$5 off $25 Rite Aid coupon

Final cost of entire purchase: $9.84 +tax.
Savings:
W+: $12
Coupons: $11
SCR: $11
Total savings: $32
Plus the following +UP***:
$1 off $10 pain relief purchase
$1 off $10 hair care purchase.

The prices I mentioned here are also posted in this week's (7/11-7/17) Rite Aid circular.

Terminologies:
* SCR = Single Check Rebate - Rite Aid's rebate program.
** W+ = Wellness + - Rite Aid's loyalty program
*** +UP = +UP Rewards - Rite Aid's promo coupon program

If you're unable to score a similar deal at Rite Aid, but you're a Costco member, then you're in luck. You can get a very similar price for batteries at Costco:

In the new Costco coupon book valid July 15-Aug 8, 2010, there is a $2 coupon for Duracell batteries (limit 10 packs.) It's $7.99/24 pk AAA or $10.99/40 pk AA. For AAA batteries, that breaks down to about .33/battery which is only slightly more than the Rite Aid deal.

Mailbox Love

In the mail today:

1. Chex Mix sample
2. Costco coupon book
3. Harriet Carter catalog - I haven't gotten one of these in years! I love HC catalogs! Some of the stuff cracks me up!  Things like these quilted appliance covers...stuff I'd see at my MIL's house. :p  Or how about the Hair Cutting Umbrella, eh? While I do cut my guys' hair at home, I'm not so sure they'd have the same happy jolly expression on their faces as the dude in this pic:

What goodies did you get in the mail today?

Dentyne Pure Gum

Snag yourself a sample of Dentyne Pure Gum on Facebook.

Source: Hip2Save

Johnsonville Deli Bites

Want to try the new Johnsonville Deli Bites for free? If so, then click here to fill out a form where they will send you six free packages of Deli Bites to try. They should be shipped out the first week of August, 2010.

Sweepstakes: King Soopers/Kroger

Have you been playing Kroger/King Sooper's Summer of Savings Sweepstakes?  I mentioned it a few days ago but shame on me, I've been forgetting to play on a daily basis!  I thought of it tonight and logged on to spin the wheel for instant prizes and I won a 16 oz can of AMP Energy Drink!  I must remember to play every day.  If you've been playing, what have you won?

Mailbox Love

In the mail today:

1. Survey pay check from Synovate
2. Valpak coupons
3. Rangefinder Magazine
4. My order of personalized labels from Office Depot that I got on the cheap 2 weeks ago. I paid $1.03 (after tax) for 250 color labels! I got them to identify my kids' belongings at school. I'm stoked!
   

What goodies did you get in the mail today?

Batteries galore

Need batteries? If you're a parent, I know you do!

Rayovac has some pretty awesome coupons available for print right now.  Save $3 on rechargable batteries, and save $1 on alkaline batteries.  You can print each coupon twice.  (Try to figure out how your printer loads and prints so you can print 2 coupons on one sheet of paper.)

Here's a tip for ya: got a Target near by?  Target has Rayovac batteries in their Dollar Spot section.  Use the two $1 off coupons and you get 2 packs of batteries for free. :)

Girlie sample: Stayfree ThermoControl

Get hooked up with a sample of Stayfree ThermoControl pads here!

The best things in life are free

Who doesn't like free?

Here are 33 things you can get for free online from All You.

And what you can't get for free, you need to know when is the best time to buy and when the best month to shop for what.

Customer Service: getting it right the 1st time

One of my gigs when I was in college was customer service, usually in a call center. While the pay sucked, it was also an eye opener for me, and helped me understand what it's like to be a consumer, and someone helping the consumer. One of the things I had pounded into my head was the mantra of "get it right the first time." Basically, if you serve a customer right and satisfactorily in the first place, you earn their respect, trust, and repeat business. Along those lines, I've come to expect the same mantra from those who serve me. What's good for the goose is good for the gander, right? I feel that if I'm paying for a service, I expect good service, otherwise I'd just do it myself or go elsewhere. Unfortunately, it's all too often that bad service is the norm. It's a mixture of a number of reasons from lack of communication, lack of training, not enough pay for the employees, the list goes on. My one biggest pet peeve in customer service is outsourcing. It's not that I don't want people in other countries who make pennies to our dollar to be employed. I do, but what bothers me the absolute most is the language barrier and lack of communication. The fact is, communication is integral in customer service. If you hire employees who cannot understand or communicate with your customer base, then you're going to run into problems, and lose business. I think hands down my absolute WORST experience with outsourcing was the time I lost my credit card and had to call Citibank to cancel it. At the time I had two credit card accounts with Citibank and the customer service rep with a thick Indian accent who couldn't properly understand the reason for my inquiry canceled the wrong account. This poses to be a HUGE problem especially since you are dealing with people's sensitive information such as credit, social security number, and ultimately identity. Needless to say, I was absolutely LIVID when I found out they canceled the wrong account. It created a heap of headaches for me as account cancellations affect credit, and I had to essentially reapply to have my account reopened. I demanded the CSR to transfer me to an American CSR who could understand me. That was years ago and to this day, I still feel bad about the incident because I felt like I insulted that CSR for not speaking English well. Unfortunately, it had to be done. I needed to be able to properly and clearly communicate with the person helping me with a sensitive situation and problem. The fiasco could've been avoided had Citibank not outsourced, and kept their customer service local to the market they intend to serve. But I digress...

No wait...there was the time my HP laptop died during a warranty period. I sent it back for repairs per their CSR's instructions. They did not fix it and sent it back to me. I sent it back to them and they sent it back with my hard drive completely wiped clean and with screws loose rattling inside the laptop.  When I called to complain, they told me I should've backed up my hard drive before sending it in for service.  Right, because I could've done that with a dead laptop that wouldn't even boot up. Uh huh.  Yeah that was a nightmare I won't soon forget.  I'm not sure which was worse...having all my data wiped or the wrong credit card canceled.

My experience with HP was also my first experience with EECBs.  (If you are not familiar with EECBs otherwise known as Executive Email Carpet Bomb, then please, click on the link and read more. It's important and very useful to familiarize yourself with EECBs.)  I happened upon an EECB accidentally. I'd ranted about my experience on a message board I frequented back then when a member, who happened to be a HP employee read my rant.  She sent me a private message asking me for permission to forward my complaint to Executive Case Management (which I had no idea what the heck it was at the time, but it sure does sound fancy, doesn't it?) who would take care of me.  I figured there was nothing to lose, so I went ahead with it.  Within a couple of days I got a call back from an executive CSR who had more power than the ones lower on the totem pole, listened to me, fought with me on the phone for over an hour, making me late to a dinner party, then offered me an extended warranty worth $230 for free.  It didn't bring my lost data back, but it was better than nothing should the laptop croak again....which it didn't.  It just nearly got recalled for an exploding battery...

Anyway...

The reason why I'm reflecting upon customer service again is because I had a customer service experience tonight that made me wonder, are companies and businesses really able to provide "good customer service on the first try?" Do they really care to, or does it just sound good to people?

A few weeks ago, I used my Swag Bucks Amazon gift cards to treat myself to a cake decorating set. I was so excited about it and planned on using it to decorate the cupcakes I had planned for my kids' birthdays coming up. When I finally got it, I played with it and noticed one of the metal pieces had paint sloughing off. That is not normal or safe for a product that's meant to be used with food. I contemplated keeping it because Amazon's return policy is kind of annoying in that they make you pay for the return shipping, but I knew I wouldn't use something with peeling paint with my food, so I called Amazon's customer service to see what I could do. I basically wanted them to spring for all the costs of shipping because they'd sold me a product that's just not safe to use. The CSR I spoke with was really nice, understanding, and assured me that I would not have to pay for any shipping charges involved. She helpfully emailed me a return label and instructed me to just drop it off at any UPS Store. Easy enough. I was thankful and did as instructed. I got an email earlier today letting me know that Amazon had received my return and they'd start processing it soon. Tonight I get an email from Amazon informing me that they've processed my return and have credited my account. I looked at the amount credited and they'd charged me a return shipping fee! Needless to say, I was miffed and annoyed. I called customer service to see what can be done about the discrepancy, and thankfully, the CSR who helped me was kind enough to make it a nice and smooth process for me. He requested a credit back onto my account. Now I just have to wait 3 days for the credit to show up. Yes, it's a bummer because I was hoping to get all the credit I was promised back so that I could use it to make another purchase I'd been eying. Oh well, c'est la vie. At least I'm getting the credit back eventually.

So the whole thing just lead me to wonder: do companies and businesses really care to make sure customers are served right the first time? Perhaps my incident with Amazon could've been avoided if there was better communication.

Edit: I got an email notifying me that the shipping refund has posted to my Amazon account. It was called "Goodwill Refund."  That made me chuckle.  Whatever, as long as I got my refund back.  Hopefully the "Goodwill" status doesn't affect any future returns/refunds I may request.

Tip: Coupons

Did you know, each year over 1.2 BILLION coupons are produced for non grocery items and a third of those are never redeemed? Yeah, that's a LOT of coupons and money wasted. Consumer Reports has a great article on how to take advantage of coupons and the tricks that coupon pros use to get the most out of those money saving pieces of paper.

Vacay fund

Tomorrow is vacay pay day and I had the most excellent savings weekend thanks to all the July 4th sales I took advantage of.  I saved an amount to the tune of $137 in just 2 days of shopping!  But I'm faced with a bit of a dilemma:  some of the things I bought, namely my Rite Aid scores, I wouldn't have bought if it wasn't for the spectacular deals, so do the savings count?

Thanks to the holiday deals...only counting the things I would have bought and needed, I'm now officially 68% into my goal.  82% if you factor in funds that have not been deposited yet.

Mailbox Love

In the mail today:

1. Sample of EOS shave cream
2. Sample Palmer's coconut oil hair milk

What goodies did you get in the mail today?

Coupons: TRESemme & Olay

Click here for a $1 off TRESemme Fresh Start hair product. The coupon is from Bricks so you can choose to have them mail it to you via USPS instead of downloading the software to print it.

Click here for a $3 off Olay moisturizer product.  You'll have to fill out a form and they'll mail it to you.

Ziploc Back to School gift pack

Click here for a chance to score a Ziploc Back to School gift pack from Right @ Home!

Each gift pack contains:
• One box of 50-count Ziploc® Brand Sandwich Bags
• One box of 25-count Ziploc® Brand Storage Bags with the Smart Zip™ Seal.
• One package of Ziploc® Brand Containers with the Smart Snap™ Seal (small bowl)

Available to the first 10,000 respondents. One per household. If you've received a gift pack from Right @ Home within the last 180 days you will not be eligible.

Sale & Coupons: Toys R Us

Toys R Us is having another R Us Members Only sale again tomorrow Thursday, July 8. Check out the coupons here.

Mailbox Love

In the mail today:

1. Sample of Dove shampoo & conditioner from Costco
2. Sample of Prilosec OTC

Have the samples you requested started coming in yet? What goodies did you get today?

360 in 5

I've always heard about people calling their cable company and trying to lower their bill by telling them they want to downgrade due to cost or threatening to cancel.  Heck, even my elderly mother in law does that, so why haven't the Cheapo Ninja household done that?  Well, the short version is, procrastination.  We are experts at procrastinating around here.   Unfortunately, procrastinating costs money...lots of money.  After getting our cable bill, I had my husband call the cable company and demand a lower rate. (Confession: I made him do it because I didn't want to. :p)  He wasn't even sure how to go about it either having never done it before.  I told him to press the # prompt that would get him to the downgrade department.  He did.  I heard him say, "well Jim, I feel we're paying too much for our cable."

pause

"Uh huh...ok, $30 less a month less for the next 12 months?  Ok, thank you Jim."

And that's how we saved $360 a year in five minutes.  Well worth the time, don't you think?

If you haven't tried it yet, give it a try.  Call your cable company and phone company and tell them you're paying too much.  See what kind of deals they'll offer you.  Chances are they'll temporarily lower your bill and you'll have to call them back in 6 or 12 months to renegotiate.  Be sure to set a reminder for yourself so you remember to renegotiate!  I'm an avid user of Google Calendar so I just set a reminder there to email me 12 months from now.

Now if you have contacted your cable and phone companies in the past, holla!  How much were you able to save?

Sesame Street Mag = Free!

Hey parents! Did you know you can download a free copy of Sesame Street Magazine? Yeah, I didn't know either until today! The downloadable version of the mag in .pdf format is chock full of activities for kiddos. It comes out on a monthly basis.

Source: Freebies4Mom

Sample: Purex Complete 3-in-1

Snag yourself a Purex Complete 3-in-1 laundry sheets sample pack here.

Source: Hip2Save

Want a Slurpee?

July 11 is coming up.  Do you know what that means?

That's right...

Free Slurpee at 7-Eleven!

It's coming up...this Sunday, July 11.

Entertainment Book - $8 or less

The 2010 Entertainment Book has been marked down to just $7.99!  You can sweeten the deal even more by shopping through Ebates.

Ebates gives 25% back for buying an Entertainment Book through them.  If you're a new member to Ebates, you get an additional $5.  The Entertainment Book has sooo many money savings coupon that at this rate, you can easily make what you pay for it back with just one coupon!

Source: Hip2Save

Mailbox Love

I was hoping that with the long holiday weekend I'd get a bit more mail today but nope, just a bit of ads/junk, BUT I got my paycheck from Opinion Outpost. Woot!

Share the love!  What goodies did you get in the mail today?

Cheesecake Factory - $1.50 a slice!

Become a fan of the Cheesecake Factory on Facebook, and score a coupon for $1.50/slice cheesecake on July 29!

You will have to allow their application on your profile in order to access the request form.  If you wish to remove the application you can do so by clicking on your Account > Application Settings then click the "X" next to the application you wish to remove, and click "ok" when prompted.

HURRY! - Secret Clinical Strength sample

Forget what your teacher said...RUN don't walk!  The Secret Clinical Strength sample from Walmart is back!  Hurry because these go lightning fast! I've been trying to snag one for the past 2 weeks and each time I get to the sample page I'm told they're out of stock. They've restocked and I was able to request one. Go snag yours now!


Source: Freebies4Mom

Aveda - free shipping & trio - today only!

If you've been following my blog for a while, you know that I looooove free shipping. It's really the only way I shop.

Today only, get free shipping at Aveda with all orders over $40 and get 3 free samples with your order!

The fine print: Three Free Samples plus Free Standard Shipping with all orders over $40. Offer ends on July 6, 2010 at 11:59 pm EST, or while supplies last.

Sweepstakes: King Soopers/Kroger

Got a King Soopers/Kroger near you? Do you pop in at least once in a while? If so, then you don't want to miss out on their Summer of Savings Sweepstakes. Sign in with your King Soopers Card, and spin the wheel for prizes! The chances of winning are decent. The last time they had a similar 'stakes for March Madness, I won a 20 oz bottle of Coke, a jar of peanuts, and $5 off coupon...and I'm one of those that never wins. Be sure to check back daily for your chance to win! The 'stakes is going on until Sept 11, 2010.

While you're there, don't forget to load your King Soopers Card up with e coupons!

Keep in mind that the coupons and sweepstakes is only one per household. It doesn't matter how many cards you have or how many cards linked to online accounts you have, it is still one per household.

Sample: Nordic Naturals

Get hooked up with a Nordic Naturals Omega-3 sample pack here.  You will need to sign up for the Taste for Life review panel by signing in or creating an account.

Source: Hip2Save

Rite Aid & Ace Hardware score!

I went to Rite Aid today to take advantage of the deals mentioned in this post, and I had an interesting/confusing but rewarding experience.

One of the deals I wanted to take advantage of was the 2/$7 Pantene shampoo and conditioner, especially since I had a $2 off coupon from a sample I got a little while ago. When I got there, there were sales tags on the shelves, but it was a bit confusing. The tags were in front of the larger 25.4 oz bottles so I grabbed those figuring it would be a better value. Now had I actually read the ad and didn't have my kids with me, I would've known the deal was on the smaller, 12.6 oz bottles. Of course, my kids distracted me during check out and I didn't see the shampoo ringing up as $7.49 each instead of 2/$7 as advertised. I didn't realize this until I got home. Thank goodness I don't live far so I had to run back to Rite Aid to exchange them. Problem was, I used a $2 manufacturer coupon that I got with a Pantene sample for my purchase, and that complicates the return since I want to get credit for the $2 manny, and not lose it. Thankfully I got an awesome cashier who just gave me full credit for my return without subtracting the $2 manny out of it so I got credit for it. Then when I went to pay for the correct size of Pantene, the cashier saw the coupons I got from my last purchase on my receipt and just went tear happy with them, yanking out 2 coupons from the end and rang them up. I honestly didn't think those coupons would work because I hadn't bought enough, but they rang up, so I got an extra $2 off my Pantenes. So my return trip back saved me another $2 making my error a money saving one. Woot! :D

In the end, after it was all said and done, for the 2 bottles of Pantene that are advertised as 2/$7, I paid $3 for them....basically $1.50 each for a bottle of shampoo and conditioner. I'll take it! ;D

I also took advantage of other deals while I was there too including the Dawn dish soap. I had 4 coupons from Home Made Simple: two $1 off and two .25 off. I got 4 bottles (small bottles) of Dawn for $1.48. I also cashed in a free Suave Professionals shampoo coupon and made a bit of money with that one too. The shampoo itself rang up $2.79, but the coupon rang up as $3 off. I also had a $5 off $20 coupon from watching Rite Aid ads on AdPerk.

I also took advantage of the Compound W SCR (Single Check Rebates) Kendall bandages deal and the t-shirts sale as well. (Great for arts project smocks for the kids! In fact one of my kids need one for school as part of their school supplies.) I should get a good chunk back in SCR. Not factoring SCR my savings at Rite Aid today between Wellness card and coupons came to $27 and I only paid $30 after tax...so close to a 50% savings. Plus, $20 is reimbursable by FSA. If I factor in the $9 SCR I should be getting back, I really only paid $1 out of pocket for my purchases at Rite Aid today. My return trip to Rite Aid scored me more Up rewards (they are coupons that print out at the end of your receipt for buying specific promo items.) I got yet another $1 off $10 hair care coupon, $1 off $10 pain relief coupon (I now have 2 of these since I got one my first trip there), and a $2 off non prescription purchase w/minimum $2 purchase. I guess if you factor in those coupons, my Rite Aid score was a $4 money maker!

I will admit, I don't associate Rite Aid with value since drugstore prices for every day items can be pretty high.  I kept reading about all these awesome deals with Rite Aid, CVS, Walgreens, etc but I was intimidated by them, not to mention, I don't subscribe to the Sunday paper anymore and I doubt I ever will again (long story) so I don't get the necessary coupons to score awesome deals. I'm not sure if this time was luck or what.  Maybe it's because I got the coupons already from the samples I request. I'm not sure if I'd have as much luck without manufacturer coupons from the paper, but I'm willing to try again.


I also made a trip to Ace Hardware to take advantage of their 4th of July sale. They had car wash soap on sale for $3.49, free after rebate. They also had caulk for 99 cents, and Jobe's plant food sticks on sale for $1.19, also free after rebate.

I got 2 bonus packages for Jobe's plant foods for free after rebate, car wash for free after rebate (savings of $5.87) along with 2 car wash sponges for 99 cents each on sale, the 99 cents caulk, and we all got free popcorn. :D After all the rebates, I only spent $3.