Chicago Savings

Happy New Year!

2009-12-30T10:07:00.002-06:00

Wow! What a crazy month of December. I have tried to keep up with blogging more recently, but December hit and I had no free time. I'm afraid now, we have some serious Christmas clean up to do, and I need to update my coupon box, but I am hoping to be back early in January to continue. :)

Happy New Year everyone!!

Weekly Grocery Deals

2009-12-09T18:02:00.001-06:00

Alli over at Couponing For 4 has a great breakdown of this week's grocery deals. Check them out here!

Dominick's Deals

Jewel Deals

Thanks, Alli!

Mailbox Monday

2009-12-07T06:12:00.001-06:00

My list of mail freebies:
1. ESPN Magazine (free subscription no longer available.)
2. Mueller's Plan on Pasta calendar and coupon book (Still available here. Don't enter a birthdate into the form - there is some kind of a glitch.)
3. Playtex Sample with 1.00 off coupon from Walmart. (Go here to get yours.)
4. My $50 NFLShop.com Gift Card (I won this from Alli at Couponing for 4!)

Check out all the rest of Mailbox Monday posts at A Frugal Friend!

Weekly Drugstore Deals

2009-12-06T07:24:00.002-06:00

Check out Hip2Save's list of CVS and Walgreens deals! I love how she lays them all out. It's so easy to follow and the lists I use every week!

CVS Here

Walgreens Here

This Week's Shopping Trips

2009-12-05T09:43:00.005-06:00

Walgreens Trip:
Original Price: $80.40
Sale Price: $61.37
OOP Price: $15.66
I used $35.21 in Q's and $10.50 in RR, and earned back $6.00 in RR.

CVS Trip:
Original Price: $28.44
Sale price: $28.44
OOP Price: $0.47
I used $17.97 in Q's and $10.00 in ECB, and earned back $10.00 in ECB.

Friday Favorite - Coupon Mom

2009-12-04T08:48:00.000-06:00

One of my absolute favorite sites is CouponMom.com! Actually, this is how I started on my whole coupon journey. I happened to be home one morning when Stephanie Nelson (aka Coupon Mom) was on Oprah. I watched the entire show and was fascinated at the video footage of Stephanie shopping at her local grocery store. She started with $100 dollars worth of groceries and cut it down to under $20!! It was truly amazing! That week, I jumped on her site, read her ebooks, checked out the forums, and learned so much about saving money! I highly recommend you check out this site whether you're a beginner or have been couponing for ages! I learned a lot from Stephanie and the members on the forum. My favorite feature on the site is the Grocery Coupon Database. You select your state, then search for a certain product and a list comes up of what week's insert your coupon is in. Super helpful! Check it out!

Some Noteworthy Deals

2009-12-03T11:54:00.000-06:00

Hip2Save has a post on how to get free International Delight Coffee Creamer for Facebook Fans. Check out all the details here.

Alli at Couponing For 4 has a great deal on magazine subscriptions for only $5! Chech out all the great deals here!

The Thrifty Mama has a deal to get your Christmas cards and return address labels for free! Check out the details here.

The Bargain Jargon has a link to an awesome 2.00 off Clean and Clear coupon! Go here!

Fistful of Coupons found a great score! Check out her post here on how to get a a free Aveeno tote bag.

Weekly Grocery Deals

2009-12-02T16:41:00.003-06:00

Alli over at Couponing For 4 has a great breakdown of this week's grocery deals. Check them out here!

Dominick's deals

Jewel deals

Request for a friend

2009-12-01T13:48:00.002-06:00

A friend of mine entered a contest to win a trip to Copenhagen to attend and report on the UN Climate Change Conference. All votes for Divina would be greatly appreciated! Click the link here to see her video and vote on the right side! (It will prompt you to log in. You can select facebook, twitter, or just their site to log in.)

Thanks everyone!

Mailbox Monday

2009-11-30T10:34:00.004-06:00

My list of mail freebies:

1. Gameinformer magazine (We got this free from Gamestop when we reserved a game.)
2. 2 Different Forbes magazines (no longer available.)
3. Shape magazine (no longer available.)
4. Coupons and recipies from Bridgford. (You can sign up here.)
5. 4.00 coupon for Iams dog food. (This came from P&G. You can sign up here.)
6. Free sample and coupon of Oregon tea (no longer available.)
7. Free sample of Olay Body Wash (sign up here for yours.)
8. Coupon for a free box of Little Debbie cupcakes (for being a facebook fan, no longer available.)
9. Free sample of Kashi trail mix bar. (availble here.)
10. Free jar opener and lots of Del Monte coupons from Vocalpoint. (Sign up here.)

Check out all the rest of Mailbox Monday posts at A Frugal Friend!

Weekly Drugstore Deals

2009-11-29T10:29:00.000-06:00

Check out Hip2Save's list of CVS and Walgreens deals! I love how she lays them all out. It's so easy to follow and the lists I use every week!

CVS Here

Walgreens Here

I can't wait to use my abundant ECB and RR!!

This week's Shopping Trips

2009-11-28T07:31:00.000-06:00

Walgreens Trip (on Thanksgiving):
Original price: $97.26
Sale Price: $65.86
OOP Price: $38.28
I used $22.58 in Q's and $5.00 in RR. Then got $35.00 in RR back.

CVS Trip:
Original Price: $75.67
Sale Price: $67.06
OOP Price: $30.94
I used $15.12 in Q's and $21.00 in ECB. Then I got back $57.45 in ECB.

Mailbox Monday

2009-11-23T09:17:00.000-06:00

Here's my list of freebies in the mail this week:

1. ESPN magazine (free subscription no longer available.)
2. Elle magazine (free subscription no longer available.)
3. Coupon for a free Marzetti Apple Dip (The link is no longer available.)
4. 6 Pantene coupons. 5 are $1.00 off and 1 is $2.00 off (These are from vocalpoint. You can sign up here and get lots of good freebies all the time!)
5. $1.00 coupon for Stayfree products.
6. Sample of Stayfree overnight pads. (You can get both of these through All You.)
7. Free full size Loreal Mascara. (No longer available.)
8. Some great coupons for a local restaurant, Chicago Joe's.
9. My giveaway win from Tia Saving Cents. I won a temple thermometer!

Check out all the rest of Mailbox Monday posts at A Frugal Friend!

Weekly Drugstore Deals

2009-11-22T09:03:00.000-06:00

Check out Hip2Save's list of CVS and Walgreens deals! I love how she lays them all out. It's so easy to follow and the lists I use every week!

CVS Here

Walgreens Here

This Week's Shopping Trips

2009-11-21T08:39:00.000-06:00

Walgreens Trip:
Original price: $38.69
Sale Price: $28.41
OOP Price: 10.67
I used $11.47 in Q's and $6.00 in RR. Then got $8.00 in RR back.

My quick Aldi Trip.
Total spent: $6.10

My CVS Trip:
Original Price: $63.03
Sale Price: $43.99
OOP Price: $14.74
I used $21.25 in Q's and $8.00 in ECB. Then got back $21.00 in ECB

Friday Favorite - EBates

2009-11-20T07:16:00.002-06:00

One of my favorite sites is EBates! I use EBates every time I shop online. EBates offers a cash back percentage on your online shopping. Each store has a specific percentage (JCPenney is 4% back). But there are always specials. Like right now, Old Navy is 10% back! This is the highest I've ever seen a store on EBates. The best part is, you can still use all your coupon codes! This is just one more way to rack up the savings! They also offer a $5.00 sign up bonus! Sign up here!

Some Noteworthy Deals

2009-11-19T05:25:00.000-06:00

Thrifty Jinxy has a post here on how to get a free sample of Stacy's Simply Naked Pita Chips.

Hip2Save has an amazing deal on Kraft Food and Family magazine and cookbook. Check out her writeup of the deal here.

Coupon Geek has some great ideas for Christmas crafts here. You can also link to add your own ideas!

Check out Walgreen's Black Friday deals and ad! I heart wags has it here, complete with coupon match ups!!

Money saving Mom has a great upcoming coffeemate deal here! I love this stuff!!

Weekly Grocery Deals

2009-11-18T17:14:00.002-06:00

For whatever reason, I no longer get the Jewel and Dominick's ads on Wednesday. I used to get them every week, but all of a sudden they stopped coming. So, I always forget to look at the ads until I decided to head out to the store and then I have to look at the ad online and try to find one in the store. And, to make things worse, i am still just not great at the grocery game. (I have much better luck at drugstores.) So.... check out Couponing for 4's great lists here:

Jewel Deals

Dominick's Deals

Check Out This Great Giveaway

2009-11-18T07:38:00.001-06:00

Over at Couponing for 4, there's a great giveaway going on! You can enter to win a $50 gift card to NFLShop.com. Check it out here!!

Mailbox Monday

2009-11-16T05:45:00.000-06:00

I got some great freebies this week:

1. Martha Stewart Living magazine (free subscription no longer available.)
2. Everyday With Rachael Ray magazine (free subscription no longer available.)
3. Kraft Food and Family magazine (free subscription no longer available.)
4. $5 off $5 coupon for Hallmark found inside my Martha mag.
5. Pocket calendar from Food and Family mag.
6. 1.00 off Starbucks bagged coffee coupon found inside my Rachael Ray mag.
7. Coupon for a FREE box of Uncrustables (go here and submit an after school organizational tip and they'll send you a free coupon.)
8. Home Made Simple coupon book with $35 worth of coupons (go here and get yours.)
9. Free Post It pen from Office Max (no longer available.)
10. Being Girl Sample Pack - this includes some samples of tampons, pads, and a coupon for a FREE box of Always Infinity (go here to sign up for yours.)
11. Some cute Christmas stickers and To/From labels (from the American Lung Association.)
12. My $10 Visa gift card from my Staples Easy Rebate. (This came pretty fast, considering I bought the product not even a month ago.)
13. Some great KMart toy coupons.
14. Some great Jewel coupons.

Check out all the rest Mailbox Monday posts at A Frugal Friend.

And the Winner is......

2009-05-12T10:54:00.002-05:00

Random Integer Generator

Here are your random numbers:

Timestamp: 2009-05-12 16:03:22 UTC

Using random.org, the winner of the $10 gift card is:

dneese26!!

*I have contacted the winner via email. If I don't hear anything back by Friday night, a new winner will be chosen. Thanks to everyone for participating in my first giveaway!*

Don't forget!! Cheap Ice Cream Tonight Only!!

2009-04-29T15:51:00.003-05:00

Tonight only!! From 5 til 10 PM! 31 cent scoops!! You can read more info here. I would recommend calling ahead to make sure your nearest Baskin Robbins is participating.

I love JCPenney!!

2009-04-29T15:17:00.003-05:00

I love JCPenney!! I think they have the best doorbusters, and it seems that everytime I need something and am dreading trying to find a good price on it, Penney's has a big sale shortly after that. I have to say, I also have been very impressed with their customer service! For me, that's a big plus!! The last time I shopped when they had coupons off for $10 off $50 or $15 off $75. I was only trying to use the $15 as I had a lot of stuff that I was purchasing. The cashier explained to me that the coupons will take off percentages of each iem, so that it totals at $15 and then proceeded to use BOTH coupons, saving me $25!! (Your milage may vary on this though, I don't think all cashiers would be willing to do this.) I have also found that I have never had problems returning anything, EVER! Even online orders or catalog orders. I placed an order online over the weekend, and even got a phone call just to thank me for ordering and to let me know when the item will be shipped. I just want to give credit to my favorite department store for a job well done!!

JCP Deals:
$10 off $10 code: MOMSGR8
Checkout the Wednesday clearance deals here.
Big sale this weekend!! Preview here.

Make sure you shop through ebates for 4% back!!

Blog Break Last Week

2009-04-28T11:13:00.002-05:00

Sorry for the lack of posts last week. Unfortunately, my uncle passed away last weekend and I spent last week with my family. As I'm sure you all understand, I will be slow getting back on a blogging schedule. Since I have been back home, I am catching up on other things and blogging is just not top priority. But I hope to get some shopping done by the end of this week, and post some deals when I'm done. Until then, check out this weeks deals from Hip2Save:

CVS here
WAGS here

100th Post Giveaway!!!!!

2009-04-28T11:01:00.003-05:00

I can't believe this is post number 100!! I have been frugally shopping now for 7 months, and I can't believe how much I have learned. I'm also really excited about what I've been able to share with other people, so to continue that, I have a $10 Walgreens gift card to give away to one lucky reader.
Rules to enter: Just leave a comment on this post. Please leave an email address or website so I can contact you. One entry per person please.
Deadline to enter is 5/7. The winner will be chosen via random.org and posted on 5/8.
The winner will have 48 hours to respond, or another winner will be chosen.