Katie the Frugal Lady!

Winner Winner Chicken Dinner!! :)

2011-01-09T17:20:00.001-08:00

The winner of our contest was Angela R!!

Thanks for a great couple of months guys:) I will miss blogging...but might be back some day:)

This is Goodbye..... :(

2011-01-09T14:20:00.000-08:00

After a lot of prayer and thought...I sadly have decided to close my Katie the Frugal Lady blog. This was a hard decision for me, because I LOVE to blog, and I love sharing how to save money with you all. I however have started to notice over the last few months how time consuming it has become, and what it has taken away from my school work, family, and home making! I really think that someday I will start it back up again, but for now, I need to concentrate on what needs to be #1 in my life: my family. I try hard to only blog or post when they are sleeping, but as Ryan's naps get shorter and my classes get harder, I am finding that it is too much. I have SOOO loved the last 2 1/2 months of blogging! And I thank you all for your constant support and spreading the word for me! (Don't worry...I am still going to have the give away drawing this evening!)

Tonight will be my last post for a while...but in the mean time, here are some other GREAT money saving blogs to follow that give just about the same information that I do:

The Krazy Coupon Lady
Maven of Savin' (One of my favorites!!)
The Frugal Girls
Kingdom First Moms

Thanks for all the fun and support! I am sorry to go out so suddenly!! Hopefully I have you on your feet well enough that you can do this on your own now:) "LIKE" the other sites I just posted....they do a fantastic job!

Take care! And hopefully when I am in a different season of life, I can start this back up again! God Bless!!

Freebie Mailbox Check 1/8!!!

2011-01-08T14:39:00.000-08:00

Want to receive FREE things in your mailbox? See the posts here and here to see how!

Today in my mailbox I received:

3 issues of Woman's Day magazine. (LOL I have NO idea why...other than with the free subscription I am guessing they wanted to send me some previous issues they were going to throw away anyway;) )

Working Mother magazine (Nope, I don't work. But it was a free subscription!)

REBATE check for $9.98 for Organix hair products that I got at CVS for free with coupons anyways:) So they paid me to buy their product:)

What did you get in your mailbox today??

FREE Heated Ice Scraper! (Just pay $4.99 shipping)

2011-01-07T06:34:00.000-08:00

Every once in a while this website has a GREAT free deal! I heard about all the snow you all are getting this morning in the midwest and east coast, and thought this was an appropriate freebie post! ;) You just have to pay the $4.99 shipping, for a heated ice scraper (regularly $24.99). Its a little late for this snow storm...but maybe you would get it in time for the next one! :)

Go here to see the ice scraper deal on 1saleaday.com .
If you do not see the deal right away, click on the "family" box on the left hand side.

1/2 Off ADORABLE, Hand-made hair accessories for little girls!

2011-01-07T05:49:00.000-08:00

Oh my goodness...this deal had me wishing that I had a little girl soooo badly!! These hand-made bows, flowers, and such as SO stinking cute. The deal is pay $20 for $40 worth of hair accessories from Sweet Chic Hair Boutique! Follow this link. AND if this is your first deal purchased through them (Plum District) they will give you a $5 off credit. So it will be $15 for $40 worth of product! I do not think it will take you right to the deal, the deal is located under San Diego, CA, but it is an online company...so it can be purchased anywhere!! Someone buy those flower clips since I can't! lol

*Update*
When you log in, if its your first time, select "everywhere" when you are signing up to view this deal. It is not under a specific city.

BP's New Gas Reward Program!

2011-01-06T08:38:00.000-08:00

How rare that we actually get REWARDED for buying gas! Check out this new deal from BP:

BP has a new reward program going on right now:

Purchase 8 gallons or more of any grade of BP fuel and
present your receipt to the on-site cashier to get a Loyalty Card.
Scratch the card to reveal a unique code.
Enter the code on www.thankyoudays.com
Once you have filled up 5 times and entered 5 Loyalty Card codes,
you will be mailed your $10 BP Reward Card in approximately
4-6 weeks.
You can earn up to 3 gift cards ($30 worth) per household.

(Valid until 3/1/11)

Thank you Smart Couponing for letting us know about this great deal!!

Mystery Box Deal???

2011-01-05T19:24:00.000-08:00

Sorry! All sold out~
I have never done one of these...but I am VERY tempted! Graveyardmall is a website that sells anything from baby toys to furniture and dishes. How the deal works is you pay $19.99 + shipping. You tell them about yourself: age, kids ages, hobbies, likes, pets, etc....and they will put together a dream package for you! You will not know what you are getting...but you are guaranteed to like it! If you do not like what you received, you can send it back for a full refund AND they will pay for the shipping back! Its sooo tempting just for the effect of the surprise!! What do you think? And let me know if you decide to participate! I am anxious to hear what people get! I also have heard these deals do not last long as they are pretty popular!

~~Go here to check it out!~~

FREE Movie Rental Code for Blockbuster Express!!!

2011-01-05T18:15:00.000-08:00

I love these rental kiosks! $1 for one night with a new release! What makes me like them even more is when they give away FREE rentals! Use code SHTZFR1 to receive one day FREE rental from Blockbuster Express! Must be returned by 9 pm the next day to avoid getting a $1 charge for an extra day. Go here to find a kiosk near you! Code expires 1/10.

I Believe Its Time for a New Give Away!!!

2011-01-05T16:22:00.000-08:00

It has been a few months since our last FREE give away-won by the lovely Laura! I am going to give away one coupon for a FREE bottle of Excedrin Migraine. Yes, Yes, I know...there are a lot of these swarming around out there, BUT I will also include some VERY high value coupons...and some that I received NOT in the news paper, so they are more rare!

Here is all you have to do:

Find one of my posts that you really like on my Facebook wall.

Click the "share" button underneath the post.

Once the post is shared on your wall, comment on my Facebook page with which post you chose to share with your friends!

That's it! That's how you get your name in the drawing! I will hold the drawing on Sunday January 9, 2011 at 5 pm Pacific time. I will announce the winner, and also send the winner a private message notifying them that they won. You can then send me your address and I will mail you your FREEBIE and your other coupons:) Good luck!

And by the way...if you post your comment on my page and it disappears...do not fret! It is still there! Just click on the "just others" tab at the top of my page...you will then see all the posts by other people...not just me! :)

***UPDATE***
I am going to change the rules a smidgen...you can have ONE entry PER day! So every day you can "share" another post, write it on my wall...and get an entry! So you can have up to 5 entries total!!!

HOT $25 for FIVE Baby Genius DVDs!!

2011-01-05T16:08:00.000-08:00

Sorry...sale is done:(

This is a HUGE value deal! These DVDs are AWESOME! They are very similar to Baby Einstein. These are normally $10+ a piece! This Groupon deal gives you 5 DVDs for $25 with shipping INCLUDED! These would make great baby shower gifts!

~~Here is what you do:~~
~~Follow this link~~
~~If it does not take you automatically to the Dallas deal of the day, enter that in with your email.~~
~~The Baby Genious Deal is on your right hand side under "side deals."~~
~~Then click "BUY" and it will walk you through from there!~~

~~Wow! Thanks to Saving Addiction for sharing this awesome deal!~~

One more BIG way to save at CVS!!!

2011-01-05T13:56:00.000-08:00

I just found out via Smart Couponing's blog that CVS now has a Beauty Club! Its free to sign up, you just go here, enter your info and your Extra Care card number, and they do the rest!

In this club you will receive:

10% off Beauty Shopping pass just for signing up (I just signed up a few minutes ago, and I already was emailed my 10% off pass!!)

$5 ECB for every $50 you spend in beauty products (This even includes hair care and hair color!! And is the amount BEFORE coupons!!)

$3 ECB on your birthday! Woohoo!

You would be silly not to sign up! Its FREE, and requires no work on your part!

Two Free Issues of Family Circle Magazine!!

2011-01-05T11:25:00.000-08:00

Go here to get January and February issues of Family Circle magazine for FREE!! No strings attached...never receive a bill!!

Also, here is a link for 12 FREE issues of Sport Fishing Magazine for the fisherman in your life!! No strings attached, never a bill!!

HOT Pay Only $1 for a $5 Starbucks Card!!!

2011-01-05T10:18:00.000-08:00

Sorry guys! This one sold out SUPER fast!!
Bummer.
Family Finds is trying to get new members, and how they are doing it is running a SWEET deal! It is similar to Groupon, you pay $1 and they will mail you a $5 gift card to Starbucks within the next two weeks!!

~~Go here to get yours! And go fast, not sure how long it will last!!~~

$15 for for $30 Worth of Candles!!

2011-01-05T08:22:00.000-08:00

Sale is done:(
Groupon Buffalo has a deal today that is for an online candle company called Candleberry Candle. I looked at their site...and their candles seem "yummy" :) They also have the flame less candles, similar to Scentsy, that is a warmer with wax. I thought this was a great deal, and I love candeles!! So I thought I would share! The deal is under the location of Buffalo when you log in:)

~~Go here and check it out!~~

HOT $2 off Swiss Miss Hot Chocolate!!

2011-01-04T16:26:00.000-08:00

This is a HUGE coupon! $2 off ONE Swiss Miss Hot Chocolate! This will make it free in almost ALL cases...and even a money maker in some others! Go FAST this coupon will not last long, I am sure the print limit is already close!!

HOT FREE Subscription to Rouge Magazine!!

2011-01-04T15:11:00.000-08:00

I have never heard of Rouge magazine, but from what I gather it is a quarterly magazine about health and beauty. The best part is that I have heard from some very trustable source that they HAVE COUPONS IN THEM! :) I love free subscriptions to magazines, you get some really rare and high value coupons in them!

Go here to get yours!

CVS Heist-Week of 11/2-Spent $2.27 for $57.77!

2011-01-04T12:16:00.000-08:00

**Update 1/6**
I have a confession to make...I went back to CVS again!!! Aghhhh...its ok though...it was worth it:)
So technically now my totals are $6.27 spent for $93.73 worth of items:)

So this is my new addition, it actually belongs at the end, but I figured I would put it at the top for you to find easily, for those who have already read this.

4th Transaction:
I purchased 4 32 load bottles of Wisk Laundry Detergent. (Sale $5, REg $8.99)
-Used 4 $2 off Wisk coupons from this past weekend's Red Plum
-Used $6 ECB from previous transactions this week
Paid $6+tax, received $10 ECB back!! So in the scheme of things, counting ECB back, I only spent $2 for all four bottles of Wisk! So yes, this week I bought 6 bottles of laundry detergent. BUT remember, my husband is getting out of the military this summer, so I am stocking up on these things when they are free or almost free! That way when we take the small pay cut from his new job, I will not have to buy these items:) Make sense?

Its been a while since I have had a good CVS heist! The quarterly Extra Bucks were a big help though. I spent $2.27+ tax for $57.77 worth of items, and I walked away with $5 in Extra Bucks for next week! Remember, if there are not any good deals on things your family needs or would use, SAVE your extra bucks! No use wasting cash on something you normally would not buy. I could have made this deal a lot better, but I could use the $5 ECB for next week I am sure!

First Transaction:

2-Xtra laundry detergents (Sale 1.99, reg 2.99)
3-Excedrin Extra Strength 20-24 ct. (Reg $4.79-5.39)
1-Excedrin PM 20 ct (Reg 4.99)
USED
$5/$25 purchase coupon. I had one sent to me in a n email. I have also heard lots of people say that they received them at the price scanning machine. (Remember, keep scanning your card until it tells you that you have no more coupons! The lady in front of me got the $5/$25 coupon on her third scan.)
3-FREE Excedrin Extra strength coupons from coupons.com a while back
1-$2.50 off Excedrin PM from previous newspaper inserts
2-$1 off Xtra coupons that were print outs I posted in my Freebies and Deals last week. Hopefully you printed them...because they are all gone now!
Paid out of pocket NOTHING, received $10 in ECB from buying $20 worth of Excedrin product

Second Transaction:
2-boxes of Frosted Mini Wheats (sale 3/$10)
1-box of Raisin Bran Crunch(sale 3/$10)
1-Revlon nail clipper (2.99)
1-Revlon eye lash curler (5.99)
USED
1-70 cents off one Raisin Bran coupon, printed last month from coupons.com
2-$1 off Frosted Mini Wheats coupon, printed from coupons.com last month
$10 ECB from First transaction
$4.50 in ECB that I had received from my fall spending (Check your receipts! They started printing on the 1st!)
Paid $1.78 out of pocket, received $11 in ECB ($4 for cereal, $7 for two Revlon tools)

Third transaction:
1-Pack of Huggies Little Movers diapers (8.99) This is not a good price, I only did it because it was free with my ECB, and I am stocking up on more diapers when I can. I have not paid for diapers in a llooooonnnngg time:)
2-Life Saver Gummies (sale 50 cents, regular .89) This was my filler item to use the $7 ECB
USED
-1 $2.50 cent off Huggies Little Movers coupon from Huggies.com (The site says its for Little Snugglers, but it prints saying for Little Movers OR Little Snugglers)
-1 Buy one get one free Life Saver Gummies printed from coupons.com last month (See why I tell you to print out those buy one get one free candy coupons?? Don't use them just to use them, save them for fillers!)

-$7 ECB from second transaction (Received $1 ECB from Huggies diapers)
Paid .49 + tax out of pocket Woohoo for FREE diapers:)

I now have $5 in ECB stored up for next week!!

Want more tips and tricks on how to shop at CVS? See this post! Feel free to ask any questions:)

Who Needs Membership Shopping Clubs? Not This Girl!!

2011-01-03T21:09:00.000-08:00

So today at Von's, I bought 5 boxes of fruit snacks and 5 boxes of Nature Valley granola bars for $8.80, AND by buying 5 of each item, I received $6.50 in Catalina coupons. (Basically $6.50 in cash to spend on anything in the store.) Every week I realize more and more how I wasted soooo much money shopping at the membership shopping clubs like Costco and Sam's. Basically, I bought 10 boxes of treats for $2.30 today! According to the receipt, full price would have cost me $31.41 without my sales and coupons.) And I did not pay a yearly membership fee. I challenge you...stop using your membership clubs, see how much money you save by combing coupons and sales....you will be surprised!!!

Freebie Mailbox Check 1/3!!!

2011-01-03T16:29:00.000-08:00

Want to get FREE things in your mailbox? Check out the posts here and here to see how!

Today in my mailbox I received:

2 coupons for FREE Excedrin Extra Strength!! I SOOO was thinking just this morning "Man, I wish I had those Excedrin coupons to go along with my CVS heist tonight." My wish came true!! I am so excited :) With the $10 ECB when you buy $20 worth of Excedrin deal is going to ROCK with these coupons!!

Free sample of Burt's Bee's lotion, came with a $1 off coupon.

Free sample of Seatle's Best coffee (A full pot's worth!!)

What did you get in YOUR mailbox today???

Freebies and Deals Week of 1/3!!!

2011-01-03T13:17:00.000-08:00

Check back to see the freebies and deals I add daily! Signing up for free samples is one of the best ways to get coupons! Not to mention its FREE!

***Added 1/3***

Coupons.com has two coupons for buy 1 get 1 free Stay Free feminine pads or liners! The coupon says "available at Family Dollar" but it is a manufacturer's coupon, so you can use it anywhere.

The Purina One dog and cat food sample from Target is back! This is a reset, so you can request it even if you did it before!

Go here for a HIGH VALUE coupon for $2 off 1 Wholly Guacamole. My husband and I LOVE this stuff! And $2 off in some situations can make it almost free! Coupon expires 1/8! So not much time!

Go here for a high value coupon for $1 off 1 Emerald Nuts products. It is for 5 oz. or larger. I know that CVS has some deals on Emerald Nuts this week.

***Added 1/4***

Go here to get your FREE sample of Nature Made chewable Vitamin D!!

***Added 1/5***

Go here and "like" Vitamin Water on Facebook and print a coupon for Buy 1 Get 1 Free! (Prints twice)

Go here and "like" Comida Kraft on Facebook and print a coupon for $1/1 off Chips Ahoy made with Heath Toffee bars, or Reese's Peanut Butter Cups!! The page is in Spanish, but the coupon prints in English. "Like" them, then click on the "Chips Ahoy" tab, then "ahorra un $1 orange button. You can print it twice.

Go here for a free sample of 3M's Durable Tabs! I could always use some help with organization!!

Go here for 12 free issues of Sport Fishing Magazine! No bill, no obligations.

Here is a link for 2 FREE issues of Family Circle magazine! No bill, no obligations!

Go here for a coupon for Buy 1 Get 1 Free Special K cereal!!

***Added 1/6***

Here is ANOTHER Buy 1 Get 1 FREE coupon for Special K! This is a different link than the one above!! You will have to log into the Special K website though. Print it twice. WOW four coupons for buy 1 get 1 free Special K! Super good deal!! Save them for a good sale though! Like next week at Rite Aid ;)

***Added 1/7***

Every quarter, P&G brand solutions has a page where you can select from a list of freebies that you want! You can only request once a quarter. One time when I was requesting my samples, I received a box full of FULL size cleaning products! It varies from person to person what you will be offered. Go here to sign up and request your samples! On the lower left hand side of the home page you will see a box that says "P&G Brand Sampler."

Here is a neat freebie! Get a free sample of Ningxia Red! What is it? -you ask? Well, good question! LOL just kidding...according to the website it is: "A super-nutritive, delicious premium fruit blend carefully prepared with legendary Ningxia wolfberries."

***Added 1/9***

Go here to print a $2/1 coupon for Bic Triumph roller!! These are on sale for $1.99 at Walgreen's this week!! If they give you trouble...their coupon policy says they will lower the amount of the coupon to the price of the item. I usually just avoid Walgreens all together. Just take their ad to Target or Walmart and they will price match for you:) Walgreens is a pain.

HOT Coupon to get 40% off of clearanced clothes at Baby's R Us!

2011-01-02T07:23:00.000-08:00

Take this coupon to BRU Guest Services before 1/23/2011 and get a reusable bag. All of the clearance you can fit in the reusable bag will be 40% off!!! There are some other high value coupons on that page as well!

CVS $5/$25 Coupon Alert!!

2010-12-31T15:34:00.000-08:00

Check your email! I just received an email notification telling me how much I am getting in ECB for my fall purchases, AND they sent me a $5/$25 coupon that expires 1/3/2011!! I am so excited about this! Its going to be a GREAT heist week for CVS! (Coupon is specific to your CVS Extra Care card, so cannot be shared)

If you have not registered your CVS card at CVS.com, I suggest you do so with your email address! I have also received other coupons for free CVS brand items in the past.

Freebie Mailbox Check 12/29 and 12/30!!!

2010-12-30T19:40:00.000-08:00

Want to receive FREE things in your mailbox? See posts here and here to see how!

Yesterday and today I received in my mailbox:

Shape and Cooking Light magazines (Free subscriptions from filling out surveys.)

Ideal artificial sweetener samples! This came with brown, confectioners and regular artificial sweetener!

I also received my FREE wall clings from the Eversave deal a few weeks ago! I had the Christmas credit and another credit from a while back...free wall decorations! woohoo!

Share with us what you got free in YOUR mailbox!!

HOT Save your Excedrin Coupons!!!

2010-12-30T10:14:00.000-08:00

I know many of you have or have requested the coupons for FREE Excedrin. CVS, starting 1/2 will have a deal that you buy $20 worth of Excedrin products, you will get $10 ECB! So if you have a couple of these coupons, this could be a possible money maker for you! If you have not requested yours yet, go to coupons.com and click on "health care" on the left hand side, or keep browsing until you see the ad on the right hand side for free Excedrin. You should be able to request one for Excedrin Extra Strength as well as one for Excedrin Migraine. There is also a high value coupon on the same site for $3 off Excedrin PM that will go great with the deal also. Unfortunately, I doubt if you request the coupons now if you will get them by the end of the sale:( But you can still get some free Excedrin!! :)
**Update** There is also a $1 off Excedrin coupon at redplum.com Remember that the coupons will reset on the first of January...so print now if you want to use these!

CVS Mini-heist 12/30!! Paid $1.74 +tax for $21.97 worth of merchandise

2010-12-30T09:14:00.000-08:00

So my husband needed some eggs (because I have been sick and I have not been doing very good on my grocery shopping:) So I decided to run to CVS and get a dozen. Their price wasn't great, but I knew they were on sale for $1.49, which for a drug store is not too bad. And of course when I said I was going to CVS to get eggs my husband said "OK, see you in a couple hours." He knows me too well :) Though I was gone 25 minutes, not a couple hours.I bought $21.97 worth of merchandise for $1.74. Not a huge heist...but the eggs alone were $1.50!

Here is what I did

First Transaction:
Tone body wash is $3.99 and you get $3 back in ECB. I lucked out and found one type of Ton body wash that was on clearance for $2.74!! I used the $1 off Tone coupon from coupons.com
Paid $1.74 +tax and received $4 in ECB!! ($3 for the body wash $1 I earned for my Green Bag tag! Go here to read more on what a green bag tag incentive is)

Second Transaction:

One dozen eggs-$1.50
Faith Hill "True" perfume and body lotion set was originally $14.99, on clearance for $7.49
-Used $5 off coupon from November All You magazine (I have a free subscription)
-Used $4 ECB from first transaction. (She had to make the $3 ECB $2.98 because I was 2 cents short, it wasn't worth getting a filler for 2 cents. You can always just ask them to mark the ECB down. I rarely do this as its throwing away money...unless its something like 2 cents.)
Paid nothing out of pocket except for tax!!

I know that this was a transaction with some coupons and ECB's others might not have...but I am just sharing this to help you see how you can combine coupons and clearance deals to MAKE money:) After all...I only paid $1.74, and they gave me back $4 to spend how I wanted :) Go here to learn more on how to save money at CVS!