Category Archives: Uncategorized

Homemade Taco Seasoning

imageToday, I made a double batch today of homemade taco seasoning! A neighbor was kind enough to give me huge containers of Chili Powder and Garlic Powder and the main ingredient is Chili Powder so this has made making my homemade seasoning even cheaper. I also love not having to run to the store because I forgot a taco seasoning packet. If we run out, I simply whip up another batch. Click HERE to see my original post on this and to see the recipe.

2-27-13 Publix Shopping Trip

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Although I did get some great deals at Target during this trip I also bought a lot of meats and vegetables because we are still trying to eat very healthy. It definitely costs more to eat healthy!

Spent- $37

Saved $73

I also used one competitor $5 off of $25 purchase Save-A-Lot Coupon for each transaction.

If you are interested in doing any of the deals that I have done in these transactions I will refer you to couponaholic.net and southersavers.com for their deal listings.

What to Do With Shampoo and Conditioner Samples

imageI always seem to end up with more flatish shaped shampoo, conditioner, toothpaste and hand cream samples than I can remember to use up. We do use these on the off chance that we run out of something and we could try using them instead of our regular products. However, we are going out of town soon with a group of people and I decided to bring this sample stash with me. Everyone will have their choice of toiletries to use while we are out of town, they are almost entirely flat so they won’t take up room in my suitcase, our hosts won’t have to supply any, I won’t have to buy or pack other toiletry bottles, and I won’t have to remember to take them home with me. Overall, I think this is a good money, time and energy saving plan.

Free Victoria’s Secret Underware

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Look for this flyer in the mail from Victoria’s Secret (the cover is on the left side of the photo) because it has a coupon for free undies (see the left side of the photo).

Do You Have a Fruit Tree That You’re Not Using?

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We live in Florida where fruit trees are everywhere. In fact, people often get so much fruit from them that you can see beautiful oranges, grapes fruits, lemons, etc. dying on tree branches in their owners yard. We have three orange trees in our back yard that for some reason haven’t produced any oranges this year but they did last year (see- Waking Up to Cold Florida Air and Oranges).

My Mother was actually the one to point out that she has the huge Loquat tree you see in the picture above in her front lawn. Every year as kids we would pick some to eat and some to throw at each other but we never really ate a substantial amount of them. This year, my mother decided that she was going to try to learn more about them. She found out that they are also called Japanese Plums and that they are jam packed full of vitamins and minerals. She has been faithfully giving us bags full of them every since.

It occurred to me that especially since I am trying to eat healthy I like to keep small fruits like grapes and cherries in the house to snack on which can also be expensive. Why don’t I just eat Loquats instead? They are just as healthy, they are free and they are also going to waste. Waste not, want not. It’s never too late to start taking advantage of an overlooked resource.

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Why I Print My Coupons Through Swagbucks

I'm a Swagbucks Influencer - Start Earning Now

Many of you have probably heard about Swagbucks.com. It’s a search engine powered by google that allows users to earn points for searching and other activities and then redeem them for gift cards or other prizes. I personally have earned over $80 in Amazon.com gift cards.

I was very excited when they started allowing people to print their coupons.com coupons (the same coupons which can be found and printed on many sites) through their site and then earn 10 Swagbucks for each one you redeem. Those of you familiar with my site know that I use a lot of printable coupons so these Swagbucks add up quickly without me having to do anything I wasn’t already doing. In fact, it saves me time because their coupon interface is easier to use than the current coupons.com system which is hard to navigate. It does take a little while for the points to be added to your account but they are consistent about it. I look at it as just one more perk for using coupons.

verifiedgiftcardsAbove is a picture of my rewards screen showing some of the gift cards I have won. In fact, this Christmas I was able to use them to get most of my Christmas gifts for free! And our motto here is “Shopping is Better When It’s Free!” So if you want to give Swagbucks a try you can click on the banner (my referral) at the top of this post to join.

Recent Free In The Mail

imageI haven’t receive that much stuff for free in the mail lately but what I have received was really nice and useful stuff.

– Venus Embrace Razor- I believe costs about $10 in the store

– Beneful Dog Food Can and coupon for B2G1 Free

– A Sample of Seattle’s Best Coffee

-Beach Nut Coupons and Booklet- I know that the $1 off of a Stage 4 Item makes it free (I believe this is still available, see details HERE)

Getting $1 Croft & Barrow Towels with Kohl’s Cash

imageI had recently gone shopping at Kohl’s with my mother and sister and I was surprised to receive $10 Kohl’s cash with my purchase. That’s $10 I can spend at Kohl’s at a later date. I had almost completely forgot about it (which is probably what they hope will happen) when my sister reminded me to spend mine before it expires. So on the last day I had before my coupon expired, I went to the store. I couldn’t find any clothing I wanted and didn’t honestly feel like shopping (yes it actually happens!). Then it occurred to me that I  wanted some nice towels for our guest bathroom when we have company over. The towels I bought from Walmart when we moved in for $2 looked worn after the first time I washed them.

I found these two Croft & Barrow towels for $5.99 each. After my $10 Kohl’s cash they were only $2.19 for both. I always associate Kohl’s with clothes and shoes but they do have very nice household items. I’m glad I got something that we will use in our home instead of buying something just because I needed to use up the ‘free’ $10. So if you have Kohl’s cash to spend (they have different expiration dates) and don’t want to buy clothes you might want to look in the housewares for something you need.

Stocking Up at the Publix Viva Italia Sale 2013

publix-viva-italiaI did three separate shopping trips this week to stock up on a lot of great deals. Every year during the Publix Viva Italia Sale I stock up on canned goods. I wasn’t actually planning on doing much couponing this week but this sale literally saves us money all year long because canned good last forever. See my last years shopping trip HERE. These are some of the lowest prices I see all year and they make it really easy to buy canned items in bulk with B1G1s and extra in store / printable coupons (same coupons, two ways to get them). Safe to say I saved a lot of $ and we just this month have run out of the canned items I bought last year. We were also fortunate enough to have been given $45 in Publix gift cards by family members so I used those to pay for most of these items. I also used one competitor $5 off of $25 purchase Save-A-Lot Coupon for each transaction.

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Shopping Trip 1- (The couch isn’t from Publix although I did get a great deal on it lol)

Order Total- $22.44

Saved- $64.60

Out of Pocket Costs- Paid With a Gift Card so ZERO out of pocket

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Shopping Trip 2-

Order Total- $30.42

Saved- $98.70

Out of Pocket Costs- Mostly Paid With Gift Cards so only $8.77

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Shopping Trip 3-

Order Total- $14.75

Saved- $42.39

Out of Pocket Costs- $14.75

 

Weekly Total-

Out of Pocket Costs- $23.52

Saved Before Gift Cards- $205.69

Saved Including Gift Cards- $250.69
Now I think we are also ready for the Zombie Apocalypse should it hit within the next couple of months.

If you are interested in doing any of the deals that I have done in these transactions I will refer you to couponaholic.net and southersavers.com for their deal listings.

Saving Plastic Takeout Silverware

imageI like to think that we eat out less than the average American family, but like anyone else we enjoy takeout. It always surprises me how many disposable take out accessories we end up with such as silverware packs, sauce packs, etc. Originally, certain people around me thought it was odd that I saved them, but then I explained that I save them for our work lunches. They are free and convenient and I don’t have to worry about bringing silverware or small containers home to wash. They are already packaged for fast food on the go so it saves time and energy. Plus, they are free so why wouldn’t you use them to make your life easier?

So the next time someone asks you, “Do you want plastic silverware, napkins, BBQ sauce, ketchup, etc?” Say, yes!

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