Girl Meets Coupons - Love at First Deal

Mystery Shopping - Have You Tried It?

noreply@blogger.com (Crazy Mom) — Tue, 12 Jan 2010 03:01:00 +0000

I've been doing a small amount of research on mystery shopping in the past week. At first, it seemed a bit overwhelming to sort through what was real and what was not. I have found a blog called The Mystery Shopper's Manual that has some very informative information regarding what it takes to be a mystery shopper. You'll also find links to 200 or so legitimate companies that accept mystery shoppers.

Have you done any mystery shopping? My interest in it is as a small supplement to my income. I shop a lot, love it, and I enjoy the type of paperwork that is involved in doing a shop. I'd love to hear some thoughts an opinions from my readers. What is your experience?

Free Magazine Subscriptions!

noreply@blogger.com (Crazy Mom) — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 11:19:00 +0000

Sign up here for free magazine subscriptions! There are hundreds to chose from. Global Finance and Renewable Energy World are two that I am interested in. Which ones look good to you?

50 Free Prints At CVS Photo Center

noreply@blogger.com (Crazy Mom) — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 10:53:00 +0000

&amp;lt;br&amp;gt;&amp;lt;script language="JavaScript" type="text/javascript"&amp;gt;&amp;lt;br&amp;gt;document.write('&amp;lt;a href="http://partners.mysavings.com/z/4064/CD2305/" target="_blank"&amp;gt;&amp;lt;img src="http://view.atdmt.com/QTS/view/195956617/direct;wi.300;hi.250/01/"/&amp;gt;&amp;lt;/a&amp;gt;');&amp;lt;br&amp;gt;&amp;lt;/script&amp;gt;&amp;lt;noscript&amp;gt;&amp;lt;a href="http://partners.mysavings.com/z/4064/CD2305/" target="_blank"&amp;gt;&amp;lt;img border="0" src="http://view.atdmt.com/QTS/view/195956617/direct;wi.300;hi.250/01/" /&amp;gt;&amp;lt;/a&amp;gt;&amp;lt;/noscript&amp;gt;

Sign up for CVS photo center and get 50 free prints. You get 20 for registering for an account and you get another 30 when you add your Extra Care card to your account. The best part is you can have these free prints sent to your local CVS store so you don't even have to pay shipping!

Just register your account, add your Extra Care card, upload your photos, and then select to have to picked up in store to get free shipping! Registration also includes free photo storage and sharing!

Click here to sign up!

Sunday Savings Roundup

noreply@blogger.com (Crazy Mom) — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 01:08:00 +0000

Here's a few great deals I've found today. If you have some others, please be sure to post them in the comments section for all of us.

Swaggrabber shows us where to get $10 in Downy coupons by email or mail - There's quite a few nice coupons in this group.

At Deal Seeking Mom, you can find a link to print a coupon for $1/1 GE CFL lightbulb - There's a special at CVS on these!

You can find CVS Bonus Offers at Common Sense with Money.

Money Saving Mom has found a free downloadable Excel savings tracker - This is awesome! I've already started using it and since it's the beginning of the year, you'll have a great start.

Find out how to get ALL 2X Ultra for $4.04 after coupons at Totally Target.

Opinion Outpost - December Earnings

noreply@blogger.com (Crazy Mom) — Sun, 03 Jan 2010 15:10:00 +0000

At the beginning of December, I joined Opinion Outpost which is a survey panel. Since I have joined, I have redeemed $37.40 in Amazon Gift Cards. This has been my favorite survey panel where I am a member.

Every 10 points earned is worth $1. You can cash out to get Amazon gift cards or choose to receive a check in the mail. We like to do the gift cards since there are a few things on Amazon that we are saving for. Plus, you get instant gratification. It takes only a few seconds to get your gift card code.

Check it out! Personally, I think it's a great program. The surveys are realistic and while one doesn't always qualify, there are still plenty to make it worth your while.

Online Auction Research

noreply@blogger.com (Crazy Mom) — Sun, 03 Jan 2010 02:33:00 +0000

After some research, we found that eBay now allows sellers to list 5 auctions every 30 days for free. After that, regular listing fees apply. The final value fees are 8.75% for the first $25.00 and then 3.5% after that. We looked into some other auction sites and have found eBid where there is no listing fee and the final value fee is 3%. Has anyone had any experience with this site? There are a lot of auctions listed, but I wonder what the traffic is like.

I'd love to hear your thoughts!

Another Source of Income for Us?

noreply@blogger.com (Crazy Mom) — Sat, 02 Jan 2010 14:51:00 +0000

My husband and I have been brainstorming not only on ways to save money, but ways to increase our income. Swagbucks, MyPoints, surveys, etc. are different things we are doing now. While it's not much, it does add up. Some people don't realize how those little things add up to something larger over time and this is what I am "banking" on.

Early this morning (or was it late last night?) my husband came to me and started talking about eBaying our old video games that we don't play anymore. They are all in mint condition so we decided to research it today. Some of the games we have are selling for $50-$100 each and we have quite a few! I'm really excited about seeing what we can bring in with the items we're not using anymore!

Do you have something that you're not using anymore? Something that could bring in a little bit of extra cash on eBay or Craigslist?

Money Saving Mom's FABULOUS Financial Milestone

noreply@blogger.com (Crazy Mom) — Sat, 02 Jan 2010 02:28:00 +0000

I just want to share an inspirational story from Money Saving Mom. She and her family have managed to save 100% down on their first home. Congratulations to you! I am so inspired and cannot wait to read about her story!

Money Saving Mom's Major Financial Milestone

Our Journey Towards Saving 100% Down For Our First Home: Part 1

I hope my readers find inspiration in this as well.

Eat From the Pantry Challenge!

noreply@blogger.com (Crazy Mom) — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 16:44:00 +0000

So, here's a challenge that interests me. Using items from my pantry, freezer, and refrigerator this month and minimizing trips to the grocery store. Can I do this? I'm sure going to try!

This challenge is from Money Saving Mom and Life as a Mom.

Here are some of my goals:

Only hit the grocery store once a week. Normally I go 2-3 times a week which is bad, bad, bad for the wallet.
Spend $100 the entire month on groceries. Milk, cheese, and produce are things we need. Eggs will be easy since the turkey is laying right now and she's producing some beautiful ones!
Make our own baby food. Our daughter is pretty much eating adult food, but she still enjoys a bit of pureed food with oatmeal in it. So, I'll be stocking up on apples, sweet potatoes, and other produce to cook up and blend for her.

All I have to say is if we can get by spending only $100 this month for groceries, it will be great! That could put an extra $200 in savings this month!

Today we are starting with a curry coconut chicken recipe that was shared by my sister-in-law. It's in French so I'll have to sit down to translate it. I'll also be making some Spicy Oatmeal Raisin Cookies from Allrecipes.

New Year's Savings Roundup

noreply@blogger.com (Crazy Mom) — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 15:33:00 +0000

Happy New Year!

Here is the New Year's savings roundup for you today.

Swaggrabber has the Winn Dixie Deals of the Week.

Publix weekly deals are at I Heart Publix.

The weekly coupon insert preview is at Deal Seeking Mom.

Common Sense with Money links us to coupons worth $5 off 5 Healthy Choice Meals.

Money Saving Mom tells us about a Walgreens Moneymaker!

Don't forget to activate your Upromise coupons!

Free Sample of Nicoderm CQ

noreply@blogger.com (Crazy Mom) — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 09:45:00 +0000

Here's a little kick start to that New Year's resolution to quit smoking! Get a free sample of Nicoderm CQ and a $7 coupon for Nicoderm CQ with Smart Control.

$1.00 / 1 Yoplait YoPlus Yogurt

noreply@blogger.com (Crazy Mom) — Tue, 29 Dec 2009 18:51:00 +0000

Now that I've posted about making homemade yogurt it's inevitable that a great coupon like this one becomes available from Yoplait. Even though one can make their own yogurt, sometimes it's good when you don't have to. Print this twice and cross your fingers that there will be a BOGO deal on YoPlus soon! You'll have to use Internet Explorer to print it because I can't seem to get a link for Firefox.

Tuesday Savings Roundup

noreply@blogger.com (Crazy Mom) — Tue, 29 Dec 2009 17:40:00 +0000

Here's my first savings roundup. I've decided to pick my favorite deals, coupons, rebates, etc. from the blogs that I regularly read.

Deal Seeking Mom is giving away a free 1 year subscription to All You Magazine - This is a great magazine that pays for itself with the coupons it contains. I have two subscriptions to it.

Common Sense With Money has blogged about a free sample of Yoplait Yogurt - Sign up for Betty Crocker's newsletter and you'll get a coupon for some free Yoplait yogurt!

Swaggrabber has posted about a Toys R Us Leapfrog Games Deal

I Heart Publix shows us a great deal on Emerald Nuts

Crystal the Coupon Mama - $10 in Savings Bayer Healthcare Coupon Book at Publix

The Krazy Coupon Lady - $0.75 off Shake N Bake Printable Coupon

Hip2Save - FREE Home Made Simple $35 Coupon Booklet (New Link)

Have you seen any great deals today? Leave a comment and let me know!

Savings Roundup

noreply@blogger.com (Crazy Mom) — Tue, 29 Dec 2009 11:00:00 +0000

I love sharing deals with my readers! It's wonderful to be able to search all of the other great coupon and finance blogs to let you know what is out there. Having said that, my goal is to have a daily savings roundup shoeing the great deals that I have found that day. I'll be posting it in the afternoon/evening each day. I hope it helps everyone!

Posted with altBlogger.

Homemade Yogurt

noreply@blogger.com (Crazy Mom) — Mon, 28 Dec 2009 02:46:00 +0000

We eat a lot of yogurt in our family. My baby especially loves it. The problem is, it can be pretty expensive if you can't find a good deal on it. Making yogurt is very simple and inexpensive. Also, by making my own yogurt, I control the ingredients that go in. A yogurt maker is not needed.

I buy my starter yogurt in the grocery store in a 32 ounce container. Plain is what you want. To make life easier, I spoon 2 TBS of yogurt into each section of an ice cube tray and freeze. Once frozen, I remove them from the tray and place in a zippered freezer bag for storage. You can re-culture yogurt from the yogurt you make, but after time that fizzles out and you'll need to use a new starter from the freezer. 32 ounces lasts a pretty good while.

Items needed:

32 ounces of whole milk
2 TBS of live culture plain yogurt (this is your starter)
Thermometer
Boiling Water
2 Thermoses

Preparation:

Pour boiling water into the thermoses to sterilize them. You may also want to sterilize the thermometer and spoon that you use to stir the yogurt.
Heat the milk in a pan to 200 degrees. Hold the milk at that temperature for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, allow the milk to cool to 110 degrees. While the milk is cooling, pour the water out of the thermoses. You do not want them so hot that they kill the bacteria in the yogurt starter.
When the milk reaches 110 degrees, pour off 1 cup into another container and add the yogurt starter. Stir well and then add it back to the original pan of milk. Stir again. Now, pour this mixture into the thermoses and close tightly.
Allow it to incubate in a warm area for 12 hours. As the yogurt sits, it becomes thicker and more tart. Let it incubate until it has a flavor that you like. This yogurt is not going to be as gelatinous as commercial yogurt, but you'll become used to that.
After the yogurt is done, place it in the refrigerator and enjoy! You can sweeten it with sugar, honey, Splenda, etc. I like to add wheat germ and frozen fruit that I thaw and puree. Fresh fruit is good too.

Additional notes:

If you like a really thick yogurt, you can allow it to sit for 24 hours. You can also strain it like you would make a yogurt "cheese" for additional thickness.
A heating pad on low can be used to help hold the heat in the thermos if it's especially chilly.
If you prefer to use skim milk, add 1/2 cup of non-fat powdered milk to the mixture to help make the yogurt less watery.
I've added a vanilla bean to the cooking milk for vanilla yogurt. You can add a sweetener after it's incubated if you'd like.
Don't have a thermos? Put the yogurt in a jar with a lid and insulate by wrapping a towel around it.
The liquid that forms on top of the yogurt is the whey and can be stirred back in or poured off. Stirring it in will give you a more tart yogurt.
You can make creme fraiche with whipping cream by culturing it with a spoonful of your own live-culture yogurt and making it the same way.

My Grocery Shopping List This Week

noreply@blogger.com (Crazy Mom) — Sun, 27 Dec 2009 04:26:00 +0000

PUBLIX

Tombstone Pizza - $2.99 x 2 = $5.98
Bertolli Complete Skillet Dinner for 2 - $4.99 x 2 = 9.98
minus $2/1 Sav-A-Lot coupon - $2.99 x 2 = $5.98
Publix black eyed peas - $0.79 x 2 = $1.58
Bumblebee Premium Tuna BOGO - $3.69
Pace Salsa BOGO - $2.79
minus coupon for free Pace Picante Salsa - FREE
Cantaloupe - $1.50
Chiquita Bananas - $0.39/1 lb x 4 lbs = $1.56*
Boston Butt Pork Roast - $1.19/1 lb x 5 lbs = $5.95*
Whole Boneless Pork Loin - $1.99/1 lb x 6 lbs = $11.94*
Publix Milk, 1 gallon - $3.19
Cracker Barrel Cheese - $3.00 x 2 = $6.00
minus $1/2 coupon = $5.00
Viva Paper Towels - $6.99
minus $2/1 coupon = $4.99
plus 7.5% sales tax = $5.36

WINN DIXIE

Boneles Chuck Roast - $1.99/1 lb x 3 lbs = $5.97

Approximate Grand Total - $57.70
Approximate Value of Groceries - $106.43

That's 45.8% savings!!

While this is not a deal like some couponers get, I do try to buy items that we actually use. This weekly trip is $92.30 less than my old $150 a week budget. Therefore, I have a nice hunk to go into my savings account this week! This is the first time I have tried to figure out my actual cost before hand so I'll update after I shop and let you know how it goes.

*weighed items are an approximate guess.

Leftover Turkey? Here Are Some Recipes to Try!

noreply@blogger.com (Crazy Mom) — Sun, 27 Dec 2009 02:35:00 +0000

I wanted to find some different recipes for using the leftover turkey from Christmas this year. Turkey salad gets a bit old after a while and isn't really pleasant to freeze. Here are a few that I'm going to be trying. We're a small family so a whole turkey, even though it's small, is going to last us a good long while. I'll do some changes to the original recipes to use what I have on hand and keep my costs low.

Tex-Mex Turkey Soup (from Allrecipes)

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon olive oil

1/2 cup minced onion
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons chili powder
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon oregano
1 cup water
3 cups homemade chicken stock (original calls for 4 cups water and 3 chicken bouillon cubes)
1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed tomato soup
1 (28 ounce) can diced tomatoes
1 cup salsa
4 cups shredded cooked turkey
1 tablespoon dried parsley2 cups cooked black beans (original recipe calls for one 14 ounce can rinsed and drained)
2 cups frozen corn
1/2 cup sour cream
2 TBS dried cilantro (original recipe calls for 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro)

Toppings:

6 cups corn tortilla chips
3/4 cup chopped green onion
1 cup shredded Cheddar-Monterey Jack
cheese blend1/2 cup sour cream

Preparation:

1.	Heat olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add minced onions and cook until onions begin to soften, about 4 minutes. Add garlic, chili powder, cumin and oregano and cook, stirring, for 1 minute.
2.	Stir in water, tomato soup, diced tomatoes, salsa, shredded turkey, parsley and bouillon cubes. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat, and simmer 5 minutes or until bouillon cubes dissolve. Add black beans, corn, sour cream and cilantro. Simmer for 20 to 30 minutes.
3.	Serve soup with crushed tortilla chips, chopped green onion, shredded cheese and additional cilantro and sour cream.

Turkey Curry (from about.com)

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons curry powder
4 tablespoons butter
1 1/2 cups chopped onion
2 tablespoons flour
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
2 cups chicken stock (homemade)
1 can (8 to 9 ounces) crushed pineapple, undrained
3 cups cooked diced turkey
2 tablespoons lemon juice
hot cooked rice

Preparation:

In a large skillet, heat curry powder in butter, stirring, for 2 minutes. Stir in onions; continue cooking, stirring frequently, until onions are softened. Blend in flour and ginger; add chicken broth and pineapple. Heat to boiling; simmer, uncovered, 5 minutes. Stir in turkey. Cover and simmer for 10 minutes longer, or until heated through. Stir in lemon juice. Serve with hot cooked rice.

And last but not least, I'll use the turkey carcass to make turkey stock. I love, love, love homemade stock. It's much richer and more flavorful than the stuff you get in the grocery store. There is less sodium, it freezes well, and can save you a bit of money.

I keep my homemade stock recipe pretty simple:

1-2 bird carcasses (chicken or turkey)
2 stalks of celery
2 carrots
1 onion
unknown amounts of parsley, rosemary, and thyme

Add all ingredients to a stockpot and cover with water. Bring to a boil, then lower the temperature to low. Simmer for 2-3 hours. Strain through a colander with a coffee filter into a bowl. Allow to cool in the refrigerator. Once it's cool, I pour it into quart sized zip bags and freeze.

Swagbucks Gift Card Swagananza: Amazon $50 GC!

noreply@blogger.com (Crazy Mom) — Sat, 26 Dec 2009 19:13:00 +0000

Save 70 Swagbucks on a $50 Amazon.com gift card today only! The gift card is regularly 590 Swagbucks and today it's only 520 Swagbucks! What a deal! You can join Swagbucks here to start earning today.

Free Arm & Hammer Toothpaste!

noreply@blogger.com (Crazy Mom) — Sat, 26 Dec 2009 18:42:00 +0000

Copy and paste http://www.ahcleanfeeling.com into your web browser to be directed to a form to fill out for a free sample of Arm & Hammer toothpaste. Make sure you copy/paste or type it into your browser or you'll be redirected to something else on the Arm & Hammer website.

Merry Christmas!

noreply@blogger.com (Crazy Mom) — Fri, 25 Dec 2009 16:19:00 +0000

Learning to Save

noreply@blogger.com (Crazy Mom) — Thu, 24 Dec 2009 22:24:00 +0000

At the beginning of November, my husband and I started to work on saving money and getting ourselves out of debt. I am very amazed by how we have done so far. We live on one income and have a 15 month old baby. Our goal is to get our emergency fund established ($1000) and 6 months of income saved in case of a job loss. Here's hoping that job loss won't happen!

What we have done so far:

Refinanced our car and paid off all credit card debt. Many financial savvy people don't advise this, but the credit cards we had were increasing interest rates and starting to charge annual fees. The car loan is at 6.75% interest which is much less than the credit card APRs. This is going to be paid off in two years or less.
Couponing (of course!) is the next thing we started. I check out the sales ads each week and purchase 2 Sunday papers. I have a coworker who gives any unused coupons to me as well. I match up the sales ads to the coupons with a lot of help from other sites like Hot Coupon World, Deal Seeking Mom, The Krazy Coupon Lady, Common Sense with Money, and Swaggrabber. I've learned that the best deals are usually deals that are buy one item, get one item free. You can use two coupons (one for each item) and that makes many things so very inexpensive, free, or even a money maker. Stacking store coupons and manufacturers coupons can also give you a good bargain on something. Doing this has cut our grocery bill almost $300!!!
The third thing that we have done is cut way back on eating at restaurants. Actually, that's what I have done. My husband doesn't eat at restaurants often at all. I usually eat breakfast at a fast food place and go to lunch with my best friend 2-4 times a month. While I haven't completely given it up, I'm working on it. I'm also trying to do better by taking my own lunch and drinks to work. If I can manage to take my lunch and drinks to work each day (instead of eating in the cafeteria) then I would save and additional $75 per month. I do drink soda which some frugal folks avoid, but I try to pay no more than $0.25 per can which is half of what I would pay at work.

By doing the three things above for almost two months, we managed to save around $417 which is almost half of the emergency fund. I never realized how much one could save with coupons and good sales.

Our savings would have been even more, but my husband and I bought ourselves a Flip UltraHD Camcorder. We did take a bit from the savings to purchase it. It was regularly priced at $149, but we paid around $117 after using Amazon gift cards that I received by searching with Swagbucks.

Do you have any frugal tips to offer? I'd love to hear them!

Colgate Coupons

noreply@blogger.com (Crazy Mom) — Thu, 24 Dec 2009 22:11:00 +0000

Here are two great Colgate coupons that I just received in my inbox!

Save $1.00/1 Colgate Total Enamel Strength or Colgate Advanced Toothpaste
Save $1.00/1 Colgate 360 ActiFlex Manual Toothbrush

$0.75/1 Contandina Product

noreply@blogger.com (Crazy Mom) — Wed, 23 Dec 2009 18:26:00 +0000

Here's another great coupon from Contandina for $0.75/1 Contandina product. We use a lot of tomatoes and home and coupons like this one really help!

Free Whataburger December 24th Til 4pm!

noreply@blogger.com (Crazy Mom) — Wed, 23 Dec 2009 12:47:00 +0000

Today is day 12 of the 12 Days of Whataburger. Click here to get your coupon for a free Whataburger.

I've been a busy gal and some Walgreens Coupon FAQs

noreply@blogger.com (Crazy Mom) — Wed, 23 Dec 2009 00:47:00 +0000

Sorry for the lack of updates lately. Work and the holidays has been keeping me busy. Anyway, without further ado...

Mercedes at Common Sense with Money has passed along some great information regarding Walgreens and coupons.

Can a customer use both a Manufacturer’s coupon and Walgreens coupon for the same item in a purchase?

One Walgreen and one manufacturer coupon can be used for the same item, unless either coupon prohibits such use.
Walgreens Roto Ad Coupons, Instant Value Coupons (IVC), and a manufacturer’s coupon can be used towards the purchase of any one item. “One coupon per purchase” means one coupon must be tendered for each PIECE sold.

What happens if the Manufacturer coupon’s value is more than the retail value?

Walgreens does not provide cash back if a coupon is presented for more than the purchase value of the item (e.g., the customer is using the coupon to purchase a clearance item).
If the retail of the item is less than the face value of the coupon:
the coupon value shall be the retail value if the state requires taxes to be paid on that item,
the coupon value shall be the retail value plus taxes if the state does not require taxes to be paid on the item.

Can a customer use a coupon after a sale has been made?
All valid coupons must be presented to the cashier at the time of sale only!

If there is no quantity limit on a Walgreens coupon can a manager impose his/her own limit?

Yes, managers have the right to limit the quantities of all advertised items.

Does Walgreens price match or accept coupons from other retailers?

Walgreens does not price match with other retailer.
Walgreens does not accept coupons from other retailers or coupons for products not carried in our stores.
Walgreens does not accept expired coupons.

A customer purchased an item using a manufacturer’s coupon and wants to return it. At what price do we return the item?

If an item purchased with a manufacturer’s coupon is returned, the customer will get the retail price of the item. If the customer purchased an item with a Walgreens coupon, the customer receives the price paid.
Example 1: If the retail price for an item is $1.49 and the manufacturers coupon was 25¢ off, the refund amount would be $1.49 plus tax.
Example 2: If the retail price for an item is $1.49 and the Walgreens coupon was 25¢ off, the refund amount would be $1.24 plus tax.