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.

Sample/free: Dove shampoo (new), Ensure

Get a sample of Dove shampoo & conditioner from Sam's Club. You do not need to be a member to request a sample.

Sign up to get a coupon for free Ensure.  You'll have the option of either printing your coupon or having it mailed to you.

Rite Aid deals

Couponing to Disney has a wonderful listing of awesome deals from Rite Aid this week right here. BUT before you round up those coupons to head out to Rite Aid, you need to check out Rite Aid's AdPerk coupons. It's quite common for drugstores like Walgreens and Rite Aid to issue $5 off $25 purchase coupons, but AdPerk has sweetened the deal even more. When you watch their vid ads and earn 20 points (that's roughly twenty 15-30 second ads) you'll get a coupon for $5 off $20! So you can spend less and get the same savings as the common coupon.

Assess the ads you watch. Some ads will give you more points (2 points per ad) but they're also longer ads. Unless you need or want the coupon that watching a longer ad (often 1.5 - 3 minutes long) will give you, your time may be better spent watching several 15-30 second ads to get your points.

Extra Pennies: YouData

Are you doing YouData?

Just what the heck is YouData anyway?
In a nutshell YouData is another way to earn a few extra pennies. You take a few seconds to view ads, and they pay you for viewing the ads. You'll need a cell phone with texting capabilities to join as they'll text you an activation code.

If you are already a member, don't forget to clear your cache and cookies every so often to ensure you're getting the ads you're supposed to, and thus your money. In addition to clearing your browser cookies, make sure you fill out your profile survey. Apparently, I hadn't done this when I first signed up and I missed out on some money. Boo! I poked around and discovered the survey section, filled it out and voila! I instantly had 4 different ads to view. To access your profile surveys, sign in and click on the tab that says Your MeFile. Then on the left side of the screen there should be a link/tab that says "Surveys"click on that and it'll take you to a list of quick surveys you can fill out to see if you qualify for some extra ads to view for $.

If you're not a member and is interested in joining YouData, click here.

Sharpen those No. 2s - Walgreens

Are you thinking about school supplies yet? If not, you should! Back to school sales are starting now!

This week, July 4-10, Walgreens has no. 2 pencils (10 pk), mechanical pencils (5 pk) and ball point pens (10 pk) for 19 cents each pack with a limit of 3 packs each. No coupons necessary. Check out their weekly ad here.

Be on the lookout though.  I'm sure all you shop savvy readers already know this, but keep an eye on the register to see how things ring up. Just because something is an advertised sale item doesn't mean it'll ring up correctly. For example, the PaperMate pens that are on sale for 19 cents at Walgreens this week...I grabbed some blue ink ones and black ink ones just to mix it up.  The blue inks rang up correctly, but the black ink pens rang up as $1.49/pack.  Why the different ink pens rang up differently, I don't know. The ad does not specify ink color on sale.

4th of July sales - Kohl's

My husband desperately needed some new jeans so I took advantage of some 4th of July sales to snag him a couple pairs. I found what he wanted at Kohls.com (is it bad that I went there because that's where his mother always buys his jeans?) and I went on a search for savings options.  They mentioned a free shipping offer on the front page. Momma likes free shipping. Free shipping is how I roll.  Unfortunately, 2 pairs of jeans still came up $2 short of free shipping so I was off to the clearance section to find myself something. Three tops for me later, I had enough for free shipping, but I wasn't done yet.  I had a 15% off shopping pass that said it was good online as well, only I couldn't figure out the code to use it online.  I tried everything including the UPC number to no avail so I had to do some sleuthing...and I found something even better!  A 20% off code!

In the end, I saved over $30 on my purchase!  That's almost a free pair of Levi's! Plus, shopping through Upromise gave me another 3% back.

Speaking of Upromise, here's a tip for you:
Every time you shop, check your merchant through Upromise and/or Ebates. They'll give you cash back.  Here's the skinny.

So for those of you who may be shopping at Kohl's this holiday weekend, here are some codes for you:

Free shipping with $75 purchase: SEND2ME
20% off through July 4, 2010: TOPSECRET
15% off through July 5, 2010: LOWEST4U

Kohls.com allows you to stack 2 coupon codes per order so you can stack the free shipping code with a % off code to sweeten up the savings!

Source for the % off codes: RetailMeNot

Buy Costumes - 50% off clearance prices!

A couple of weeks ago I posted about a BuyCostumes.com sale that included a 40% off clearance price discount.  Now the deal has gotten even sweeter...it's 50% off clearance prices!  Click here to take advantage of the deal and use code clear50 at check out.

Admittedly, I took advantage of the sale when it was 40% off. It was a great deal then, but when I saw that just a week after I placed my order, things went on an even steeper discount, I got a little annoyed.  The difference wasn't huge, just $5, but hey, I'm not Cheapo Ninja for nothing.   I had nothing to lose by emailing them and ask for a refund of the difference.  Within about 12 hours, I got an email back from their customer service informing me that I will be getting a $3 credit to my credit card. But um, the difference was $5?  Eh, whatever, I wasn't going to nickel and dime that much.  I still got a great deal and it was kind of them to refund some money.  A few days later, I went to check my credit card statement and behold...a $5 credit was on my account.  Needless to say, I was pleasantly surprised and happy.  Despite the confusion with customer service's response, the result was correct and they provided me with great service. For that, I am happy and they will have my business and rave.  Thank you, BuyCostume.com for being awesome, helpful, and caring of customers.

Independence Day

To all my American readers, Happy Independence Day.

I hope you and yours have a great and safe 4th.

Tip: Upromise & Ebates

Every time I shop online I always check 2 places for savings Upromise and Ebates. Here's why: both sites offers savings discounts and special sales codes to their members. In addition to special sales and deals, they also give you a percentage back for your purchases if you shop through them. Upromises gives you money back for education (to be transferred into a 529 account and it can only be used for education such as college) and Ebates gives you cash back which you can cash out once you've accumulated $5.01.

How do I choose which one to go with? Well, I check both sites and which one would give me a bigger percentage back for the store I want to shop at. Sometimes Upromise gives a bit more back, sometimes Ebates does. It really varies and depends.

Another thing to think about is, the money given back from Upromise can't be touched or accessed without penalty. It cannot be withdrawn from the Upromise account and the only way to access it is to link a 529 educational account to it. There are pros and cons to this of course, with the biggest pro for me being that it forces me to save for my kids' college fund. The con is I can't access it...which is actually a good thing.

In addition to online savings and cash back towards education, Upromise also have tons of coupons you can load up your grocery store cards with! You simply add your grocery cards (all of them!) to your account because buying select brands of items also gets you cash back. Then go to their list of eCoupons, and with a few clicks, all available coupons you want have been loaded to your grocery cards. No software download, no printing, no ink, no paper.

The pro with Ebates is you get the cash back in a check or PayPal. The con is, well...I personally haven't had too much luck with Ebates. The one time I remembered to shop through them I never got the credit and because I shop through Upromise so much more, I couldn't remember which merchant it was that I used through Ebates to get them to give me the credit so it was lost. I'm not ready to give up on them yet. I personally know someone who has received a check from Ebates (I've seen the physical check myself) so I know they're legit. I recently shopped through them again. Hopefully I'll get my credit without problems.

On occasion, you'll come across a merchant who isn't very on top of the ball when it comes to their donations, so you have to contact Upromise or Ebates to get your credit. For me, Best Buy was the worst in this. Every single time I made a purchase through Best Buy I've had to wait the 45 business day period to see if my credit showed up in Upromise and every single time, it wouldn't make it there and I have to contact Upromise to investigate. Upromise has always been great about it and always saw that I got the credit I deserve.

Mailbox Love

Goodies in the mail today:

1. Bridal Guide (I just love looking at wedding gowns and such, plus it was a free subscription)
2. All Oxi-Active detergent sample and $1 off coupon from Walmart
3. Crystal Light Pure Fitness samples and $2 off coupons from VocalPoint

Girlie sample: Playtex Sport

Here's another girlie sample for ya.  Nab yourself a sample of Playtex Sport Tampons here.

Philosophy Facial Cleansing Cloths - Facebook

Philosophy is offering a free sample of their Purity one step facial cleansing cloths on Facebook.

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.

Source: Freebies 4 Mom

Freezing food

It's a commonly known fact that freezing food is a great way to save money. Do you freeze food? Do you want to start but don't know the skinny? Do you know how long frozen food is good for?

The Consumerist has a list of articles that can steer you in the right direction!

• Freezing food - how to get started
• 20 ways to make the most of your groceries
• How long will frozen food last?
• Keep it or toss it?

Mailbox Love

Popchips...oh how I love thee!

In the mail today:

1. MORE popchips coupons! They sent me 2 more free bags coupons and another hand written note!
2. Starbucks VIA Ready Brew Italian Roast sample from Costco
3. Zantac sample from Walmart
4. Nature Made Vitamin D3 sample with $1 off coupon
5. Quiznos coupons
6. $2 off UnderJams coupon
7. Cottonelle toilet tissue sample with a sample of Cottonelle Fresh moist wipes and 2 coupons

My husband was the one who brought in the mail today and he said to me, "wow...it's amazing all the free stuff you can get if you just ask!"

Yep honey, yes indeed.

Stride Rite Outlets sale

If you're still looking for some sandals for those kiddos, Stride Rite Outlet is having a sale this weekend! 25% off sandals, and up to 50% off original price on select styles. Click here for the location near you. Offer valid July 2-5, 2010.

Canned Kin

So Microsoft has killed the Kin due to sluggish sales. I have to admit, I chuckled when I read the news. Why? Because they've been heavily marketed in the last 2-3 weeks. Swag Bucks, for example, has been running their video ads like mad last week and earlier this week. Personally, I loved it because each time I clicked and viewed one, it got me 3 Swag Bucks. But what struck me as interesting was that I would watch the ad once, check my balance, come back to the ad list and behold, there's another ad for the Kin to watch. That would repeat itself several times. I could easily net 9 Swag Bucks in the span of under 3 minutes just watching Kin ads. I mean, they were really pimpin' those things out.

Then there's Pretty Little Liars. In just last week's episode Lucy Hale's character Aria stood next to her friends by their lockers and literally said, "oh, I can just check my Kin!" Um, hello! If that doesn't scream PRODUCT PLACEMENT! I don't know what does. In fact, here's a screenshot from this week's episode which aired on Tuesday, June 29, 2010:


Admittedly I can't say I know all that much about the Kin, but there is one thing I can say: I sure am going to miss their video ads on Swag Bucks because they were some good buckaroos from being pimped so much. Now I know why. Which brings me to something else:

Bing was heavily marketed on Swag Bucks for about a month too. For a while there, every time I logged on, there was a vid ad from Bing which could often be replayed for credit several times. Those were only 2 Swag Bucks each, but still they added up. Does that mean Bing is struggling too? Can anything compete with Google? What search engine do you use most often?

Disney Store - Free Shipping!

The Disney Store is offering free shipping this July 4th weekend. Use promo code FREESHIP
Offer ends July 5, 2010.

Mailbox Love

In the mail today:

1. Purina ONE SmartBlend dog food sample from Walmart
2. Sample of Bounty paper towels from Walmart
3. Green Genius biodegradable plastic tall kitchen bag sample plus $2 off coupon

What goodies did you score today?

With a bang

I know I said I wouldn't make another savings post until next Friday but I couldn't help it. The deal I just scored was way awesome. I was put in charge of procuring lots of ground beef for burgers for my mother in law's birthday party coming up. It's going to be a huge party, which means $$$. For once I put our spendings on a strict budget. We're splitting the cost with my husband's siblings but I wasn't going to let them run amok with our money on the party so I set a limit of just $160 for everything...our share of the venue rental was $60 so that left $100 for food, decorations, and everything else.

Normally I would just hit up Costco and buy stuff in bulk to freeze. Having done enough shopping at Costco, I know that ground beef there is $2.59/lb. There's a great sale going on at a local grocery store for ground beef. It's $1.59/lb so I save $1/lb. I needed at least 15 lbs of beef so I'm guaranteed a savings of at least $15 if I shop the sale.

So now I went, I loaded up, (ended up getting over 21 lbs of ground beef) and I saved. I saved huge! If I would've compared it to the price at Costco, I saved $28. I bought other stuff and produce too of course. Here's what my receipt said:


I saved a smidge more than that because I brought reusable bags with me. The store's system wasn't working right so the cashier just gave me 30 cents cash for my bags. I ended up only paying $40 for $110 worth of groceries! I'm excited! I just started my July savings off with a huge bang! I'm optimistic about July. I hope it pans out well. :)