The return of the Dust Bunnies!

I'm sorry to do this to you again BUT I felt I must show you the dust that collected on my bedroom floor in the one month since the last time I cleaned in the bedroom zone!

Note: I do vacuum/swiffer the main walking paths once a week so the dust you see is primarily from under the bed and under the other furniture. GROSS!!!!

Back to the 80s

Sorry so few posts today- I was traveling back to the 80s. Our Sunday School class had a "Pour Some Sugar on Me" Social tonight and everyone was asked to come in 80s attire. It was sooo much fun but I spent all day today getting ready. First, DH and I went to Goodwill to pick up appropriate 80s attire- I had lots to choose from but the men's side was very limited. I then went to Walgreens to pick up some bright pink lipstick and blue/purple eye shadow. Fun times! And can I just say I was feeling pretty good about my outfit until I saw everyone else- everyone went all out! I am posting a picture of our group.

I hope I don't lose any friends for posting this pic on the www BUT I figured we were all incognito so what was the harm! I only wish I had got a group picture with the boys too! They were hilarious with their tight-rolled acid wash jeans and mullets!

Scrapbook Saturday

Let me remind you- one purpose of Scrapbook Saturday is to record some of the funny/cute/sweet or just plan memorable moments with the kids. The following is one such moment:


Background information for story: Remember we have been reading the Dave Ramsey Financial Series for Kids with Colby. Well one day last week we made Colby's 3 envelopes- Save, Spend, and Give, and then divided up his chore money accordingly. We discussed how Colby was going to use each envelope. When I asked him what he wanted to use his "give" money for he said "he wanted to give it to his School so they could buy new playground equipment." How sweet- I didn't argue. Here comes the treasure chest moment......


Well the next day I had to go to Mail Boxes Etc. to send my Metabolism Machine back to the manufacturer for some necessary repairs. After shipping, insurance, packing, and 2 day air delivery the grand total for simply getting the machine to it's destination (doesn't include the repair cost or the cost to ship the machine back to me by next Friday for my upcoming Metabolism party) was..... are you sitting down...... $129.22!
I nearly croaked. So when I got back in the car I asked Colby "Do you know how many years of chores you would have to do to get to $129.22?" Well Colby was just real quiet for a few seconds, and then he said (here comes the adorable part) "Mommy, I changed my mind about who I want to give my "Give" money to. I want to give it to you!" I just melted! Talk about the widow's mite.... His willingness to give me his 64 cents meant more to me then if someone handed me $1000.00.

Devotional Time Confessions

Ok, I have to confess the reason I had no Devotional Time post today is because we did not have an "official" Devotional Time today! I know, I know I shouldn't have done so much shopping! But I do promise that we WILL have a devotional time very soon that will focus on God's Words regarding giving and helping those in need. I'll let you know the specifics at a later date!

DRS- more updates.

Well today I hit Walmart, Target and Walgreens. Guess which one I was most disappointed with? Walmart! Can you believe it. I use to shop at Walmart ONLY because I thought they had the lowest prices. But not only did I find that not to be true I also found that our Walmart prices are higher then others across the nation. Plus I now realize why I could never stick to my grocery budget when I was a Walmart shopper- IMPULSE BUYS! Yep, I walked by the toy section and noticed a neato toy that was 50% off so I got it for a future gift (not included in grocery budget nor reported below). No biggie, but I think I was sooo much more prone to those impulse buys when I use to be a Walmart shopper. On to Walgreens....

At Walgreens I was pumped to pick up my 2 free Yes to Carrots lip balm and I went ahead and got the rest of my FREE after rebate items. The big disappointment was the Nature Valley Bars I had wrote about. Across the Internet people wrote about the $1.19 granola bars, well folks I don't know what's up but our Walgreens had them marked at $4.19! $4.19 who in their right mind would pay $4.19 for a box of granola bars. I even had them do a price check because I was just sure it had to be wrong. So needless to say I did not buy the granola bars. But at Target.....

I was most excited about my Target purchases. I do need to warn you that the Kashi granola bars were marked at $3.29 instead of the $3 I had been told and reported to you. Regardless I got 5 boxes for $0.29 each and 1 box for free (Vocalpoint coupon). I also got 3 boxes of goldfish for $0.79 each. But what I was most excited about was that they had my Morningstar Black Bean burgers for... are you ready for this...........$2.99! That is a whole $1.40 cheaper then Kroger and $0.73 cheaper then Walmart. Who would have thought Target would have the cheapest food?! Oh and I also picked up 6 Johnson Buddies soap for FREEEEE!

Altogether my 3 trips cost me $64.15 out of pocket but only $47.69 after rebates. I saved $66.56 with coupons and rebates. Not bad But I am going to be WAY over my weekly budget once I tackle Kroger!

3 boxes of BeachNut Toddler Crackers

1 2lb bag of Frozen Tilapia

1 bag of Frozen Salmon

Quaker Rice Cakes

2 boxes of Pantyliners

6 boxes of MorningStar Blackbean burgers (1 at Walmart, 5 at Target)

2 bags Wheat Thins

Walgreens Multi Purpose Contact Solution

Thermacare Heatwrap

Garnier Fructis Moose

2 Yes to Carrot Lip Balms

3 bags of Goldfish

6 boxes Kashi Bars

1 Morningstar Chicken Nugget

Target Baby Wipes

6 Johnson Buddies soaps

TOTAL: $47.69

DRS Updates

Just wanted to update you on a few things:

First- We found Uganda. Sure enough there was a globe at the Library.

Secondly- Went to Walmart to try to cash in on some of those deals I posted on yesterday- big disappointment! Our sale prices (if on sale at all) were quite a bit higher then those I used for the deal match ups plus I couldn't find half the items for which I was shopping. I did pick up a bag of Tilapia that should cover 2-3 meals for $7.53 (quite a bit cheaper then Kroger) and 1 bag of Salmon ($4.48) and a package of the Morningstar Black Bean Burgers ($3.72).

Third- My Mom went to Walgreens to get her FREE 20 prints and was told the code was only to be used online. So order your prints online to get them FREE!

Oh and Uganda is in Africa!

Craft Time

For craft time- We are going to write Coline a letter. (The picture to the left is Coline's recent letter to us.) I am going to ask both boys to draw a picture to include with the letter.

That is all I have planned for craft time today BUT as always, I am sure Colby will have some additional ideas for us!

Learning Time

Last night Colby wanted me to show him where Coline lives on his map. Unfortunately, the map in Colby's room is only of the United States. Sooo, I told Colby we would need to look at a "globe" to find where Coline lives. I then proceeded to try to explain to my 4 year old what a globe was. I now have a better understanding of how Columbus must have felt when he was trying to convince people that the world was round. Colby just laughed at me!

Soooo for learning time we are going to try to hunt down a globe so I can show Colby that indeed the world is round AND to show him where Uganda is in relation to where he lives. I'm thinking the library is a good place to look. Plus we can go ahead and pick up some books since we didn't get to go on Monday.

PS Can anyone tell me where Uganda is?!

Familytime Friday- Meet our 3rd little boy!

His name is Coline (like all our boys his name starts with a "C"). Now before any rumors get started or my Mom falls out of her seat- you should know that Coline is our adopted child through the ministry Compassion International. We have never, and probably will never, meet Coline face to face, this side of heaven, but as his adoptive family our role is to love Him through prayer and a small monthly contribution.

When DH and I first learned about Compassion International I was excited because I had watched countless infomercials about children living in poverty stricken countries and had wanted to "do something" but didn't know enough about the infomercial sponsorship organization to feel fully comfortable with sending money. Well, we learned all about Compassion International at a Christian concert from Rebecca St. James herself- so I felt I could trust the source! Plus I thought "what an awesome opportunity to model God's commands to give to the poor and pray for those in need to our boys- by letting them pray and help give to another child" Not to mention the opportunity to eventually learn about another culture/country.

Well that was a couple of years ago, and while the bank is faithful to draft $32 a month from our checking account, I am very ashamed to say we often forget to include our dear Coline in our bedtime prayers. You know what is sooo sad about this- In every letter Coline writes us he tells us that he prays for our family. And you know what- I feel confident HE DOES! And yet in my busyness, I forget. Even more shameful- more often then not, it is my 4 year old child that will remind ME, the MOM, that we haven't prayed for Coline in a while. In fact, that was exactly what happened last night that prompted this post.

So once again I have used DRS for confession and now hope you will hold me accountable to pray for this sweet child. And in honor of Coline, Familytime Friday's devotional, learning, and even craft time will focus around lessons learned from Compassion International. To learn more about this ministry visit here.

Familytime Friday- Sound Off

TGIF! I'd love to hear about the fun things you did or are planning to do with your family this week.

Deal Alert

Walgreens is offering 20 FREE 4x6 prints tomorrow only! Just enter the code ONEDAY when you checkout! What a deal!

deal alert- Walmart

For a complete list of walmart deals and coupon match-ups I recommend checking out Deal Seeking Mom here (she is one of 11 Moms who blog for Walmart!)


Below are my favorite deals of the week:


Beech-Nut Baby Cereal for $1.44
Use $1 off 1 from 1/4 SS
Final Price: $0.44


Beech-Nut Let's Grow Microwaveable Meals on sale for $1.06
Use $1 off 1 from 1/4 SS
Final Price: $0.06


Huggies Baby Wipes (40 count) on sale for $1.46
Use $1 off 1 from 1/11 SS
Final Price: $0.46


Johnson's Buddies Soaps at $0.99
Buy 3 and use $3 for 3 printable here
Final Price: FREE


Sani- Hands for Kids wipes (18 ct) for $1
Use $1 for 1 printable here
Final Price: FREE


Activia Yogurt for $2
Use $1 for 1 from 1/11 SS
Final Price: $1


Baked Ritz or Wheat Thins (bags) on sale for $2
Use $2 for 2 from 1/25 SS
Final Price: $1 each


Green Giant Valley Fresh Steamers on sale $1
Use $1 off 1 from 1/4 SS
Final Price: FREE

Kellogg's Fiber Plus Bars on sale for $1.88
Use $0.75 off 1 from 1/18 RP
Final Price: $1.13

Ortega Taco Seasoning for $0.54
Use $1 off 2 from February ALL YOU Magazine
Final Price: $0.04 each

Quaker Rice Cakes for $1.36
Use $1 off 1 from 1/18 RP
Final Price: $0.36

Softsoap Ensembles for $1
Use $1 off 1 from February ALL YOU Magazine
Final Price: FREE

Disclaimer: Walmart Prices vary by region and I have not been to our Walmart yet to confirm prices!

Annual Budget Countdown

Last week I shopped at both Kroger and Walgreens. I used the remainder of my Walgreen Gift Card balance and my recent $15 Mastercard rebate from Olay to help pay for some of my Walgreens purchases.


Out of Pocket Money Spent at Walgreens: $17.70

After manufacturer and EasySaver Rebates I will get back $45.47! (This money will be applied to future purchases therefore will not be included in my annual budget status at this time)


I went to Kroger 3x this week. Once to take advantage of the 12 hour sale on Friday and to pick up ingredients for our Valentines Dinner, and then my normal weekly shopping trip on Saturday night and then once again because I forgot 3 ingredients I needed for prep day!


Total Spent: $70.66
Total Saved: $28.77



Total Spent for week: $88.36
Total Saved (just Kroger): $28.77
Total Spent for year: $703.13
Total Saved for year: $575.30
Annual Budget countdown: $4296.87

Good News/Bad News- Depends on how you look at it!

The Facts: Red Plums Vice President released the following statement regarding the Red Plum coupon booklets:

“Starting in February, the RedPlum coupon booklet will now be delivered in [select areas] through consumers’ mailboxes along with their weekly grocery circulars and other savings and deals. By using direct mail, the RedPlum insert will now be able to reach almost twice as many households as in the past. In these challenging economic times, it has never been more important to make these essential savings available to as many [people] as possible so they can stretch the dollars in their wallets.” -Thomas Murray, Vice President of the Valassis Corporation

The Bad News: In some major cities Red Plum will no longer be available via the local newspaper. It will be available through home mailer only. I am not sure "The Gazette" will be effected (or is it affected? anyways..) but if it is- this is bad. Many of us like to get multiple copies of the coupons but the home mailer system will only mail one per family. I plan on asking my noncouponing friends and family members to kindly save me theirs!

The Good News: Our local newspaper never carried this coupon booklet, so many of you have never had the "Red Plum" experience anyway. Now you can have these coupons delivered to your mailbox by signing up here.

In other news...

My friend Jennifer passed this rather disturbing news on to me last week. I have not personally confirmed the validity of the rumor BUT I feel it is my duty as your Head DRSer to pass on the information:

Rumor: April will be the last month for the EasySaver Rebate Program at Walgreens. GASP- I know!!! You can read more here.

Bad News: No more Free After Rebate products that often turn out to be quite profitable!

Good News: Good News? What could possibly be good about no more FREE after rebate products. Welllll supposedly they are going to really beef up their Register Reward Program- so I guess that's good. AND as far as I can tell this is just a rumor. I searched on Walgreens.com and could not find any mention of it. So we will see. In the meantime I am going to try to get all the rebate products I can so I can rev up the total on my Walgreens Gift Card (remember you get an additional 10% added when you choose to get your rebate back on a Walgreens Gift Card).

Deal Alert- Target

Welcome to my first edition of Target deal highlights!


Ok, here is the deal- Target has online printable "Target Only" coupons that you can print and stack with manufacturer coupons (just like Walgreens) BUT a while back (I'm talking 2008) there was a big stink about people using counterfeit "Target" coupons and therefore many Target stores (including ours) stopped accepting Target printable coupons. Welllll, I don't know if they have changed their policy or just relaxed but the Internet is a buzz about target printable coupons again AND I had a friend that used them this week at our Target with no problem. So with that being said......



You can go here or here to print your Target Coupons. Both links require registration before you can print coupons but it is FREE to register.

Here is a list of available coupons:

$1 off Archer Farms® cereal
$1 off Renuzit air care product
50¢ off 8-oz. or larger Chex Mix snack mix
$1 off Kashi Cookies or Crackers or Granola bars
$1 off With purchase of two 8-oz. Market Pantry® cheeses
$1 off 6-oz. or larger Pepperidge Farm crackers
$1 off 64-oz. Tropicana orange juice
$1 off Vlasic pickles
75¢ off Archer Farms® Naan bread
$1 off Fresh vegetable Broccoli or Cauliflower or 16-oz. Green Giant Hearts of Romaine
$3 off Gillette Venus razor Divine or Embrace or Breeze
$1 off Hillshire Farms Deli Select lunch meat

Following are my favorite target scenarios of the week:

Kashi Bars for $2.89
Use $1 off 1 target printable and $2 off 1 from the Kashi website (I was not able to find the coupon but supposedly it is there)
Final Price: FREE with both coupons

Pepperidge Farm Goldfish for $1.66
Use $1 off 1 target printable
Final Price: $0.66

Flat Earth Chips for $2.69
Use $1 for 1 target printable and $1 for 1 manufacturer coupon here.
Final Price: $0.69

Deal Alert- Kroger

Not much to report this week for Kroger. The following are the deals I am most excited about. If I find additional deals when I shop Saturday night I'll be sure to let you know.

Smart Balance on sale 25% off
Use $1 off 1 Catalina (this recently printed off with my receipt)

Select varieties of Kellogg's cereal on sale for $2.69
Use $4.50 off 3 Catalina (this recently printed off with my receipt)
Final Price: $1.19 each

Select varieties of General Mills cereals still on sale for 3 for $5
If you didn't already take advantage of this sale in the last 2 weeks you can still use your $.75 off 1 Multigrain cheerio coupon from recent coupons.com printout and $0.75 from Cellfire
Final Price: $0.16 after both coupons.

Green Giant Valley Fresh Steamers on sale $2
Use $1 off 1 from 1/4 SS
Final Price: $1

Kroger Brand Cheese on sale 3 for $6
use $0.35 off 1 from recent Kroger mailer
Final Price: $1.30

Several Varieties of Active Lifestyle products are on sale:
Active Lifestyle Oatmeal on sale for 3 for $5
Active Lifestyle Granola Bars $1.77 (similar nutrition and taste to Fiber One bar)

Mission Tortillas (select varieties) on sale 33% off
IF the life balance is on sale I am going to use my $0.55 off 1 from 1/4SS (coupon says do not double)

Kroger Brand salsa, refried beans, chilies, jalapenos, tortillas, taco shells, and seasonings are on sale 40% off

Kroger Comfort Diapers on sale for $5.99
Use $3 for 1 printable here
Final Price: $2.99

Red Seedless Grapes on sale $1.29 lb

Roma Tomatoes on sale $0.99 lb

Blueberries on sale 2 for $5

Tyson Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast on sale $1.88 lb

Kroger Milk 1/2 gallon on sale for $1.49

Deal Alert- Walgreens

Here are my favorite deals of the week:

Yes to Carrot Products are on sale 25% off

The Yes to Carrots lip balm will be priced at $2.76 with discount
Go here for a $2 off 1 manufacturer coupon and stack with $1 off 1 Walgreen coupon here

Final Price: FREE plus overages

Colgate Toothpaste 4.6oz on sale $0.99
Use $0.75 off 1 from 2/1 SS
Final Price: $0.24

Garnier Vibrant 100% Hair Color on sale BOGO or 2 for $7.49
Use 2 $3 off 1 from 11/9 RP
Final Price: $1.49 for 2

Bic Soleil or Comfort 3 Disposable razor 4 packs on sale for $4.99
Use $2 off 1 from 1/18 SS and $1 off 1 found in EasySaver Catalog (pg 17)
Final Price: $1.99 after both coupons

Register Reward Deals RR

Select Kellogg's cereals are on sale 4 for $10. Earn $3 RR when you buy 4

Use 2 $1 off 2 printables found on the DRS coupons.com sidebar
Final Price: $1.25 per box after RR and coupons

Nature Valley Granola Bars are on sale for $1.19. Earn $3.50 when you buy 5
Use 5 $0.50 off 1 from 1/4 SS
Final Price: Free after coupons and RR
(I did not see that this was an advertised deal, so I can not confirm this will work BUT DH was just requesting this particular granola bar yesterday so I will checking it out)

February Free after Rebate Items

Garnier Fructis Wonder Waves Shampoo, Conditioner or Styler up to $4.29
Use $1 off 1 from 1/4 RP
Final Price: Free plus $1 overage after coupon and rebate

Revlon Age Defying Spa Concealer or Spa Foundation up to $10
Use $2 for 1 from 1/11 SS
Final Price: Free plus $2 overage after coupon and rebate

Revlon Creme Lip Gloss up to $10
Use $2 for 1 from 1/11 SS
Final Price: Free plus $2 overage after coupon and rebate

Thermacare Trial Size Neck, Shoulder and Wrist Heat Wrap up to $2.49
Final Price: Free after rebate

Walgreens Multi-Purpose No Rub Solution 4 oz up to $1.99
Final Price: Free after rebate

Zucol Cold Care Lozenges 18 pk up to $7.99
Use $2 for 1 from 2/1 SS
Final Price: Free plus $2 overage after coupon and rebate

DRS Couponing 101- collecting coupons

Before you can utilize the money saving power of coupons- you got to get coupons! For that reason I have decided to kick off this series of posts with tips on how and where to collect a nice stash of coupons.


First and foremost-Newspaper Inserts. Most Sunday newspapers will have coupon inserts tucked inside. There are only a few Sunday's out of the year (mostly holiday weekends) with no coupon inserts. You can click here for the 2009 newspaper coupon insert schedule.


The 3 most common newspaper inserts are SmartSource (SS), Redplum (RP) and Proctor and Gamble (PG). Occasionally you will have other special inserts included by specific manufacturers. For example I can remember one time last year when Kelloggs put out a great insert full of coupons for Kelloggs specific products.


HINT: Our local paper does not have the RedPlum! To get the RedPlum I recommend "The Democrat- Gazette."
Another HINT: I have the most success with getting all scheduled inserts with a home delivered paper. Sometimes even the Gazette is missing coupon inserts when I have picked one up at the store.
Best HINT: Ask your Mom, Grandmother, Friends, Neighbors etc for their newspaper coupon inserts. Multiple inserts mean you have multiple coupons to really stockpile on products when they go on sale!


Internet Printables. Most of our local stores- Kroger, Walmart, Target and Walgreens do accept printable coupons at this time. (WARNING: there are always rumors floating around the internet that certain stores are starting to decline printables!) Internet Printables are found all over the internet. A lot of times manufacturers or specific products will have special offers and coupons on their website. For example when I went to YoPlus.com to research information for the "product of the week" I noticed there was a $1 off coupon.


Other sites that are ALWAYS a great destination for coupon printables:

Coupons.com (go directly or access through my DRS sidebar)

SmartSource.com



HINT: Most printables only allow you to print two coupons per computer!



Loadable Coupons. At Kroger you can load coupons onto your Kroger card from 3 different sites: P&G eSaver; Shortcuts; and Cellfire.

All three can be accessed through kroger's website. Once at Kroger.com click on the "In Store" link. A drop down menu will appear- click "coupons." From this page you can register with all 3 coupon vendors. Remember you will need to have your Kroger card available when you register so you can link your card with each site. Then once you have loaded your card your discounts will automatically be credited when you check out using your Kroger card.

HINT: Loadable coupons do not double! But you can stack your loadable coupon with your paper manufacturer coupons for really awesome savings!
Another HINT: Each coupon is only redeemable one time.
And Another HINT: Don't forget to add new coupons to your card at least once a month.


Blinkies. These are the coupons that are dispensed from cute little machines that stick out of the aisles in our grocery stores.

HINT: Go ahead and take 2-3 coupons from each dispenser whether your ready to use it or not. Then save to use when that particular item goes on sale.


Magazines. Most magazines, especially Women's magazines, will have advertisements that offer coupons. One magazine that I subscribe to specifically for the coupons is ALL YOU magazine. This magazine even has a coupon index to help you locate the different coupons found throughout each edition.


Peelies. Peelies are coupons that are found on products that you can "peel" off to hand to the cashier for immediate savings.

HINT: some products also have coupons printed on the inside packaging of the product. For example, there are a lot of cereal boxes that have coupons printed on the inside of the box to use for future purchases.


Catalinas. Catalinas are the coupons that print out after or attached to your receipt. Many times specific items purchased trigger certain catalinas. For example you may notice a catalina for baby formula if you purchased diapers. Sometimes a coupon will print when a competitor brand was bought. For example if you purchased a Kelloggs cereal, you might get a catalina for a General Mills cereal. And then sometimes catalinas print for $ off your next purchase- those are my favorite!


Kroger Mailers. If you have a Kroger card you should be getting coupons mailed to your house. These are some of my favorite coupons because Kroger sends coupons tailored specifically for me based on my past purchases. Many times they will even mail me a coupon for a FREE product. If you are not getting these mailers, contact Kroger. Forever I kept reading about these great coupons and wondered why I wasn't receiving any in the mail. So I called Kroger's headquarters and they fixed whatever the problem was and I now receive Kroger coupons all the time (at least twice a month!).


Walgreens EasySaver Catalog Each month Walgreens has a new EasySaver Catalog that is full of Walgreen specific coupons and rebates. The catalog is found at the entrance of the store on the same stand as the weekly Walgreen Flyer. The great thing about all Walgreen coupons is that you can stack them with manufacturer coupons for double the savings.


Coupon Swaps I have never participated in a coupon swap or trade but I read about them all the time. I'm sorry I have no words of wisdom on this particular method because I have not figured it out for myself quite yet. I'll have to get back to you.


Ebay Ebay is another resource for coupons that I have not taken advantage of. (I know your not suppose to end a sentence with a preposition "of" but I can't figure out another way to write that last sentence,) Anyways... Supposedly this is a hot market and you can bid on bundles of coupons for a great deal.

Thrifty Thursday

This week I am going to begin a series of Thrifty Thursday posts on how to get started couponing. Please note: I am not an expert in this subject, I have only been a couponer for a little over a year myself. But I have learned some valuable tricks along the way and I want to pass them on to you. Stay tuned the first edition of DRS Couponing 101 will post soon!

Use the Mr. Linky below to tell us about your favorite deals of the week!

SCREAM!!!!

Woo Hoo! I just popped over to thethriftymama to check out the latest deals and guess what was there....... my guest post!!!! I had nooo idea it would post today. Go here to check it out! I'm so excited!!!!