savings

Free 8×8 Photobook from Shutterfly!!

Abby H.

This offer has been extended until September 17th!

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In need of a late summer treat? Treat yourself to a free 8×8 hard photo cover photo book with promo code FREETREAT at checkout from your friends at Shutterfly! Show off all of those great summer memories or get a head start on Holiday shopping- Photobooks make GREAT gifts!

If you are new to shutterfly, you’ll also score 50 free 4×6 prints! No Coupon Code needed!

Boring Fine Print: Offer expires September 17, 2015 (11:59 P.M. PT). Offer is good for one free 20-standard finish page 8×8 hard photo cover photo book through shutterfly.com, our mobile-friendly site, the Shutterfly Photo Story app for iPad or iPhone app (some book restrictions apply via the iPhone app). Offer cannot be redeemed more than once per account and/or billing address. Taxes, shipping, and handling will apply. Customer may add options to their 8×8 book (additional pages, StorytellingTM styles and elements, photo book accessories, other cover types, etc.) at additional cost. Alternatively, customer may apply the current price of a 20-standard finish page 8×8 hard photo cover photo book (after taking into account any current discounts on shutterfly.com) toward the purchase of a larger photo book. Not valid on 5×7, 7×9, or 8×8 soft cover photo books, TripPix, prepaid plans, other products, prior purchases and purchases made on the Shutterfly apps. Cannot be redeemed for cash or combined with other offers or credits. Not valid for resale.

Score some food freebies from Ralphs!

Abby H.1 Comment

I love that Ralphs has their Free Friday Download each week where you can score something free each week. This week, there are THREE freebies!

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If you are new to Free Friday Downloads from Ralph’s, here is more info about how it works:

WHAT IS FREE FRIDAY DOWNLOAD? An exclusive benefit to having an account online at ralphs.com is FREE products (yes, we said FREE!). When you download the free product coupon, it will be loaded directly to your Shopper’s Card and applied at checkout in-store.

HOW DOES IT WORK? Visit this page on Fridays

DOWNLOAD the digital coupon for the free product (make sure to download between 12:01 am and 11:59pm PT). View the coupon under ‘My Coupons’ in your account online or in the mobile app.

You have two weeks to redeem this coupon in store! Pick up the product at your local Ralphs store and digital coupon will automatically apply at checkout.

A New Month means New Coupons!

Abby H.

file000786402730Here is your monthly reminder!  A new month means new printable and electronic coupons!

Check out the following sites:

One of my favorite website is the Sunday Coupon Review.  It helps me plot out scenarios in advance and I can email friends to ask for coupons in advance. Remember if clipping coupons isn’t your thing, but saving money is, check out my list of https://hewesfamilyfun.wordpress.com/2015/03/04/saving-money-with-your-smartphone/Smartphone apps that can save you the big bucks!

Here are just a few of the new coupons that have me excited:

$0.50 off ONE (1) package of HUGGIES Wipes
$0.50 off 1 Reese's Puffs cereal It’s our favorite family snack!
$1.00 off any 1 BOCA Foods product
$1.00 off any one HORMEL ALWAYS TENDER Meats

Frugal ways to help your Child’s School!

Abby H.

For most of us, school starts soon, if it hasn’t already started… That means the fundraising will start.  Wrapping paper, candy, candles, you name it, you’ve probably seen a catalog and a doe-eyed child selling something to raise money for their school.

We’ve got a pretty tight budget around out house, and $12/roll wrapping paper is not in my budget, but I do want to help Lil’ Man’s school. Here are a few ways that you can help your kiddo’s school. If your kid isn’t in school yet, ask the parent of your favorite mini-fundraiser if their school participates in any of these programs!


Screen Shot 2015-08-12 at 10.21.07 AMBox Tops for Education (BTFE): This Program has been around for a while, and it’s probably one of the easiest ways that you can help the school of your choice. Look for these little box top doodads on hundreds of products that you probably already buy (here is a list), clip them, and drop them by your school’s office. LIl’ Man’s class sends home a cute themed Sheet for us to attach up to ten each month. If I have more, I just staple a ziploc bag full to the worksheet. Any parent would be thrilled to receive an envelope of bag of BTFE from family or friends!

Screen Shot 2015-08-12 at 10.21.16 AMLabels for Education: Similar to BTFE, but this program is run by Campbell’s. To find products that are a part of the Labels fro Education Program, click here.

Screen Shot 2015-08-12 at 10.21.24 AMTarget’s Take Charge of Education®:
Choose your kids’ elementary school, the neighborhood middle school or any other eligible K–12 school. We’ll donate up to 1% of your REDcard purchases at Target stores in the U.S and at Target.com.

 You can learn more here. 

Escrip: Now this one has been around since I was in High School. It’s super easy. Once your school is registered, all you do is sign your various loyalty cards (like your Vons Card), and shop like you usually do. You school gets a percentage of your total purchase!

The best part about these four programs is that you just do what you already do: Shop and save money! Clipping Box Tops for Education and Labels for Education are not that much different than clipping coupons off of packages.

 

Free box of snacks from Graze!

Abby H.

Have you heard of Graze?

Each Graze box is made up of perfectly portioned snacks customized for each individual based on taste preferences and dietary requirements. Available as a weekly or bi-weekly delivery nationwide to your office or home. Several different box options that showcase our assortment of 100+ snacks including the Variety Box, Sharing Box, Calorie Count Box, Sugar Count Box, and more.

And NOW- Graze is offering a box for free!! I am stoked. I love snacks, and I love free stuff, so I’ve signed up for ours. I’ll post of photo once it arrives (before we consume it).

If you sign up for your free box, I’d love to see a picture too! Which box will you get?

What I do with all the free samples I receive….

Abby H.

bright boxesOn Saturday, my mailman asked me, “What’s up with all of the free samples?” She’s not the only one who asks. It’s one of the questions I get a lot when people find out I coupon and we live frugally (the other question I get a lot  is: “Do you have TP under your bed?”

Well, here’s the deal: I donate them. And no, there is no TP under my bed. Just out of season shoes and dust bunnies.

I donate about 90% of the free samples I receive in the mail. The local American Legion post collects small sized toiletries to make into care packages which are distributed to local homeless vets.

Additionally, the other local charity that my coupon club supports (Naomi’s Closet) also collects and distributes small sized toiletries to women’s in need.

If that sounds like something that appeals to you, you can collect travel/sample sized products and donate them to your local charity of choice.

I like MySavings to find top quality freebies. I also sign up for the P&G Brandsaver (it’s a collection of free samples from P&G available once a quarter).  Once the samples arrive, I take them out of their shipping container and I have a small box under my bathroom sink where I store samples and donation goodies.  I donate the contents of the box each month.

I also regularly donate full size products too.  For example, my donation budget is $5.00/month.  That doesn’t sound like a lot of money, but when I match sales with coupons, I am able to save big, and that $5.00 goes pretty far!

So the next time you that I’m posting free sample offers here or on Facebook, know that there will be one headed my way, to help someone in need!

Vacations of the Cheap, Part 3: Saving Money at the Park

Abby H.

Today we’re going to talk about saving money inside the park.  Specifically FOOD, but also souvenirs and other goodies.

I like most of the food choices at Disneyland (OMGoodness Gibson Girl Ice Cream), but it can get a little expensive. So here is what we do: Rent a locker and bring a picnic.

I pack a soft side cooler (like this one from Thirty-One) with a few frozen water bottles, lunch meat, fruit, frozen yogurts, and a small re-usable grocery bag with bread, individual packets of condiments (you can buy them at Smart and Final), and Ziploc bags with snacks, and we put all this stuff, plus our jackets and a few other misc. things into a locker.

We like the lockers on Main Street, but if you have a larger group going with you, there are bigger lockers immediately outside of the park.  More info about Lockers, including prices, and locations can be found here. Reviews of the lockers can be found here (I love Yelp!)

Screen Shot 2015-07-22 at 10.23.18 PMThere are various picnic areas inside the park (there is one up by Big Thunder Mountain, and various tables and benches scattered throughout the park), as well as one right outside the main gate by the large lockers.

For snacking during the day, I pack snacks that fit in our pockets (we both usually wear cargo shorts) like bags of pretzels, hard candy in Ziploc bags, and a 16oz. or so size bottle of water that we refill at the various water fountains throughout the park.  We’ll stop back at the lockers for fruit or a larger nosh if we’re nearby and hungry.

That doesn’t mean I’ll go without my beloved Ice Cream. We usually pick one treat a day and share it. Ice cream, frozen banana on a stick, Dole Whip…. Whatever we both can agree on.

We also save money by buying our Disneyland shirts before we go on vacation. The Disney Store usually has an end of summer sale, and I can stock up of D-land shirts for 50-75% off retail prices. The mall closest to our house has a Disney Store, so we cruise in frequently (Lil’ Man is obsessed with Mickey Mouse).  Other Disney Souvenirs like sippy cups I’ll buy in advance and sneak in our bags so he doesn’t see them until we arrive. In the past, I have scored a sweet new Disney shirt for $2.00!

99 Cents Only has a great selection of Disney Branded and Licensed items like crayons, coloring books, sippy cups, sandwich boxes, and other lunch/food storage containers. I’ve been sneaking 1 or 2 items into the cart each week when Lil’ Man isn’t looking!

We also set a budget when we go on a trip and stick to it. Bring cash with us each day of the trip, and when it’s gone we’re done spending. It’s just that simple.

 

 

Vacations on the Cheap: Part 2 (The Tickets)

Abby H.

I am really bothered by all of the mis-information that is available online surrounding the discounts available for Disneyland passes.

So, today’s installment in the vacationing as a cheapster is going to cover discounted Disneyland tickets.

I’m going to break it down this way: first the myth, then the truth.

1- Just have your dad/mom/friend/uncle’s cousin’s brother who is/was in the military buy you tickets at the discounted ticket office on base and use those. 

Waa waa waa- That’s the sound of the saddest trombone. Our local  ITT (information tickets and travel) office at MCAS Miramar says that’s no dice. From their website: “Name of sponsor or spouse will be printed on all tickets & that person must be present all days.” So, unless your dad/mom/friend/uncle’s cousin’s brother is coming with you on your family vaca, think again.  If you are a military family, ITT is a great way to go when buying tickets.

2-I’ll just join AAA and get discounted tickets through them!  I’ll be saving big bucks in NO TIME!!!

If you are joining AAA just for the Disneyland discount, think again, my friend, you may not be saving any money. Annual membership in AAA is $48.00 plus there is a  New Member Admission Fee of $20 (for the first year only). Depending on which type of ticket (number of days and which parks) and number of tickets you are purchasing, you will save approximately $4.25-$7.75 per ticket. So if you are purchasing multiple multi-day passes OR multiple annual passes, it might be worth it.

Bottom line- If you are already a member of AAA, this is a good deal!

3-I’ll just buy a ticket from someone on Craigslist. There is always someone selling the remainder days on the their multi-day pass on Craigslist. 

Please don’t. Here is why. The pass has the sellers name on it. The nice cast members working at the gate have the right to check your ID against the pass. The names don’t match? Guess what? They’ll confiscate your ticket. This was confirmed by a friend who is a cast member after reading some horror stories I read online about this. This may NOT happen, but do you really want to chance your family vacation to save a few bucks?

So how DO you get discounted passes? Well, many unions, fraternal organizations, student unions, and businesses offer discounted passes for sale. Ask someone in the organization’s office.  You can buy legit discounted passes online from aRes Travel (I found them through Mousesavers.com).  They offer tickets to a lot of Orange County and Los Angeles  area attractions for a discount, however, they do charge a $4.00 convenience fee.  So it may only be worth it to you if you are buying multiple passes.

 

Legoland: Kids go free with purchase of Adult Ticket!

Abby H.

LEGOLAND_California_main_entranceWe’re heading to Legoland for the first time this summer and I am stoked. Ok, not as much as Lil’ Man who is currently spending this rainy afternoon building  animals and a zoo with his Duplos.

If you’ve got kiddos that are Jonesing for a trip to Legoland, but your budget is a bit tight, check out this sweet promotion from McDonald’s. Visit any SoCal area McDonald’s restaurants (L.A. and San Diego) from June 29 to July 31 and you’ll receive a Kids Go Free offer with any purchase!

PirateShores22Kids Go Free with paid adult ticket to LEGOLAND® California Resort and your choice of LEGOLAND Water Park or SEA LIFE® Aquarium. It is a $104 value!

Hubs is excited because of the sweet new Star Wars stuff at Legoland! The 8 feet wide LEGO® Star Wars™ Death Star Model Display has been added to LEGO Star Wars™ Miniland.

In addition to Duplos and Regular Legos, we were gifted with some Friends sets not long ago and Lil’ Man loves building with those as well- There are so many cool pieces in the sets (like animals, perfect for when he wants to build a “delicate” zoo – which is how he refers to regular Legos and the Friends pieces: Delicate Legos), they are great for girls or boys.  Lil Man can hardly wait to visit LEGO® Friends Heartlake City.

Heartlake City has all kinds of great things to do and see: Ride the beautiful new carousel in Mia’s family ranch. Stroll through the LEGO horse stables. Sing along with Andrea at her stage. Or cool off with new friends in the Heartlake Fountain.  The adventures are endless in Heartlake City.  Visit LEGOLAND.com for details.

I can’t wait to see the big smiles when we go on the rides, and of course when Lil’ Man splashes Daddy at the water park!

I’ll be sure to post tons of photos and tips to save money at the park after our trip! And if you have tips that will make our adventure more fun (or frugal!), please leave a comment!

10 Reasons I shop at Target

Abby H.2 Comments

There are a lot of couponers who don’t shop at Target.

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“It’s too hard.”, “It’s too much work.” “They aren’t Coupon Friendly.” Those are some of the reasons I hear. To that I say, I love Target. I am a convert, I used to hate shopping at Target, but when we moved, I discovered that the two Target locations that are close to my home are both coupon friendly and always have plenty of sale items.  I think it all depends on the Target you shop at.

Here are my 10  (now 9) reasons for shopping at Target:

1. You can stack Target coupons and manufacturer coupons.  Target has printable coupons on their website here. 99% of them are Target coupons, meaning they are only redeemable at Target.  Stacking coupons leads to greater savings. If you are looking to print manufacturer coupons (redeemable at any store), click here.

2. I save 5% every time I shop by using my Target Red Card.  It’s a debit card and it’s Target branded, so I can only use it at Target, just like an ATM card (with a PIN).

3.  I’m a member of Target Pharmacy Rewards (it’s free).   This program has gone KAPUT at the end of 2015 when Target and CVS joined up to provide pharmacy services. SIGH.

4. When you sign up for a Target Red Card or start a registry at Target, you get added to their mailing list and about once a month, they’ll send you a packet of really great Target coupons.

5.  Target rewards you for using reusable shopping bags. For every re-usable shopping bag you use on your shopping trip, you’ll save .05! It may only be a nickel per bag, but it can add up!

6. They have a great markdown/clearance section! And they mark their clearance down pretty methodically too.

  • Monday – Electronics, Kids Clothing and Stationary (Cards, GiftWrap, etc.)
  • Tuesday – Domestics, Women’s Clothing, Pets and Market (food items)
  • Wednesday – Men’s Clothing, Toys, Health and Beauty, Lawn & Garden items
  • Thursday – House Wares, Lingerie, Shoes, Sporting Goods, Movies, Music, Books, Decor and Luggage
  • Friday – Auto, Cosmetics, Hardware, & Jewelry

7. Target Price Matches.  Currently, Target matches prices from  Walmart.com, Amazon.com, BestBuy.com, ToysRUs.com, and BabiesRUs.com. You can use coupons on a price match too! This is great if you have a Target Coupon and a manufacturer coupon to go with your price match! To learn more about price matching at Target, click here.

8. Their return policy is pretty good. Especially if you have a Target Red Card.

9. If you want to know if your local Target carries an item or has a specific item in stock, you can check online.  That saves you time, energy, and gas! (Thanks to Samantha for that tip!)

10.Target Cartwheel: Instead of the traditional dollar or cent off coupons, Target Cartwheel offers savings in a percentage.  You choose specific offers, based on what you buy, and there are new offers all the time! The best part is that you can use Target Cartwheel, a Manufacturer Coupon, and a Target Coupon all on the same item.

And you know what, here is another one- Target is a participating partner in most of the rebate apps (you check out a full list here). So, you’ll be saving a few extra pennies (or dollars) in no time.