Chrome Semi-Annual Sale

If you have a chance, check out Chrome's semi-annual sale. They have fantastic deals, and they also own Red Raider Outfitters, so you can stock up on your TTU gear! My guess is the sale will last thru this weekend.

Chick-fil-A Final Four

Chick-fil-A is having another fantastic deal in Lubbock. Visit Chick-fil-A anytime on December 28th thru the 30th from 6:30am - 10:00pm; just save your receipt from this day's purchase and redeem it for the same order FREE anytime in 2010!

Free Gillette Fusion Razor

Check out Money Saving Mom's post here on how to get a free Gillette Fusion Razor - just a short phone call or a few text messages!

CVS 12/20/09

Crest Toothpaste $2.88 Earn 2 ECBs Limit 1
$.75/1 from the 11/29 PG insert
$2.13 after coupon and get back $2 ECBs

Oral-B Single Manual Toothbrush $2.99 Earn 2 ECBs Limit 1

Nivea Body Wash $5.99 Earn 5 ECBs Limit 1
$2/1 printable here
$3.99 and and receive $5 ECBs

We walked in with $8.97 in ECB's. Our total purchase was $11.86. We had $2.75 in coupons leaving us with a subtotal of $9.11. Take off the $8.97 in ECBs and we paid $0.19!!! And we walked out with another $9 in ECB's.

$15 Off Your Next Purchase at Shutterfly

Check out this post about how to get $15 off your next order at Shutterfly. And, it doesn't expire for 100 years! What a great way to get free photos.

You'll want to do this quick, in case it's removed soon!

$5 off 4 Kellogg's

The $5 off 4 Kellogg's cereal coupon is available again here

Upcoming CVS Deal

You can print a $2/1 coupon for Nivea Body wash here. There will be a deal starting Dec 20th where Nivea will be $5.99 and you will get $5 ECB's back. Thanks to My Baton Rouge Mommy for this one. Make sure you print your coupon before it is no longer available.

Women's Nivea Body Wash $5.99

Use $2.00 printable coupon

Pay $3.99 OOP

Get back $5.00 ECB

Final Price, $1.01 Money Maker!!!

12/14/09 Deals

There are some pretty good deals out there this week. Here are a few of the ones we took advantage of.

Walgreens

Hunts Tomato Sauce 3 for $1.00
Print $1 off 3 coupon here
Free after coupon

General Mills Cereal $1.99
You can print $1 off 1 coupon here to get these for $0.99 each.
The Walgreens we went to did not have the General Mills cereals specified on that printable coupon so we used one from the paper that was $1 off of 2. Not quite as good of a deal but still got 2 boxes of cereal for $3

Gillette Fusion Razor for $8.99 get $4 RR
$4 off 1 coupon from 11/29 PG insert
Combined with the $5 RR that i had to make it free

So we got 3 cans of tomato sauce, 2 boxes of cereal and the razor for $2.97 and received $4 RR back

CVS

Advil PM 4 ct for $0.99 get $0.99 ECB's
Free after ECB's

Bic Disposable Comfort 3 Advance 4ct $4.99 get $4 ECB's
$0.99 after ECB's

Merry Brite gift tissue paper $1.99 get $1.99 ECB's
Free after ECB's

We combined these deals with the $6.50 in ECB's that we had to pay a total of $3.72 and then we received $9 in ECB's back. Also, the Bic razor's that I found were actually a "bonus" pack so it was 4 + 2. Even better!

Hallmark Coupon

You can get a $5 off any purchase coupon for Hallmark here. I printed this twice and used it to get free cards this weekend. Looking at cards is one of my favorite pastimes!

Muir Glen - Almost Free!

There is a $1/1 printable coupon here for Muir Glen organic products (make sure to hit the back button and print this twice). If you use this at United you can get tomato paste for $.07 or tomato sauce for $.25.

Who says you can't get good deals on organic foods!

Glade Deal at Target

Heidi and I like to use Glade candles to help the house smell a little better. We found a pretty good deal at Target today.

FREE $5 TARGET GIFTCARD™ with purchase of 5 selected Glade air care items!

By selected they are referring to the Holiday Collection. So here is what we did.

Buy 1 Scented Oil Candle Tin, Get 1 FREE Refill Pack from 12/6 SS
$2.00/2 Scented Oil Candle Refills from 12/6 SS
$1.50/2 Jar Candles from 11/1 or 12/6 SS

So we got 1 Scented Oil Candle Tin, 3 refills and 2 Jar Candles.
We bought 6 things instead of 5 since we didn't already have the tin to place the refills in and it coordinated well with the coupons we had. The tin was $2.64 and the rest was on sale for $2.50 each for a total of $15.14. After coupons it was $9.64 and then we received a $5 gift card.

Printer Ink

If you are doing the coupon thing you will find that there are many great coupons you can print online. This, of course, means using expensive printer ink. Since the point of this thing is to be frugal and save money you can try one of two things. First try going here to check if Walgreen's can just refill your empty cartridge for you. You can search for the type of cartridge you have to make sure they can do it. Right now its advertised online for $12.99. This is easily one-third of the cost of buying a name brand cartridge. Sometimes Walgreen's will run even better deals than the $12.99. If you can't get what you need at Walgreen's then you may go here and give Data Bazaar a try. You can search by your printer type to see if they have what you need. You can then get a generic brand for a much cheaper price than buying name brands and they ship it to your door for free.

Chick-fil-a B1G1 Breakfasts

My coworker told me that I certainly don't know what I'm talking about when it comes to freebies because I didn't know that Chick-fil-a has buy one get one free breakfasts from now thru December 24th. You will want to ask, because it may be limited to certain items. Seeing how I love the chicken minis, I may have to check in on this deal!

Free Christmas Cheer from ITunes

ITunes has a free Christmas sampler for download. Here's the lineup:

O Come All Ye Faithful – Amy Grant
The First Noel – David Archuleta
Silent Night – Sarah McLachlan
Carol of the Bells/Jingle Bells – Barry Manilow
It Snowed – Meaghan Smith
Above the Northern Lights – Manheim Steamroller
Baby It’s Cold Outside – Lady Antebellum
We Three Kings – Toby Keith
God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen – Rascal Flatts
Silent Night – Wynonna
12 Days of Christmas – Mexicani Marimba Band
We Wish You a Merry Christmas – Weezer
A Snowflake Fell (and It Felt Like a Kiss) – Glasvegas
Another Christmas Song – Stephen Colbert
Greensleeves – Vince Guaraldi
Dream a Dream – Charlotte Church
The Nutcracker, Op. 71, Act 2: Character Dances – Kirov Orchestra & Valery Gergiev
Angels We Have Heard on High – Aretha Franklin
O Holy Night – Musiq Soulchild
Auld Lang Syne – The Lonesome Travelers

Go here to get it, and click on Free Download. You will need to have iTunes installed on your computer.

Thanks to Common Sense With Money!

Get Paid for Taking Surveys

There are many survey web sites that will pay/reward you to take surveys about various consumer products. Some of these reward you in cash and some in gift cards or other free products. I have just gotten started on a few of these over the last couple of months so I thought I’d share what I know so far.

First off, you can check out any survey sites you come across at www.surveypolice.com . This site ranks all survey sites and allows users to file complaints so it’s a great place to find out if a survey site is worth your time or if it’s a scam.

Here are the sites I’m trying out:


E-Rewards

This is actually an invitation only site and I received the invitation from being on American Eagle’s email list. I’m not sure how else to get an invitation but this is definitely my favorite survey site so far. They send me several surveys per week and even if I do not qualify for the survey (this actually happens a lot with all of the survey sites because they are looking for a particular demographic) e-rewards still gives me some kind of credit for trying. Each completed survey puts $1 to $3 of credit into my account that can be redeemed for frequent flyer miles, Borders Rewards, American Eagle Gift cards, Magazine subscriptions and a few other things. I’ve only been completing surveys for a couple of months and I’ve already been able to redeem a $15 Borders Reward (which combined with two Borders coupons and free shipping got me $25 worth of merchandise for FREE!). I’ve already got enough credit in my account to redeem for another Borders Reward, however you can only redeem for that reward once per calendar year so I am waiting until January to redeem this credit.

Toluna

Toluna is taking a bit longer to earn credit because I do not qualify for as many of the surveys and I do not get credit for trying a survey that I don’t qualify for. But, I nearly have enough for either a $20 Amazon gift card or a $20 check.

I am also doing surveys for Valued Opinions and Opinion Outpost. No real results from either one yet but I think I’ll like Opinion Outpost because you can redeem your points for $5 Amazon gift cards as soon as you have enough points. I’m only giving summaries of these so I would recommend reading the information on the sites and on survey police so you know what you are getting into and how it works. Also, be sure and add the survey site email address to your contacts because I’ve had trouble with the surveys going to my spam folder. This does take some time but I’ve found that if I just take a few minutes and do the surveys as they come in that I don’t really notice the time it takes and I’m really enjoying the free stuff I’ve gotten so far!

Get Your Budget in Fighting Shape

Here is a great article posted on Investopedia.com by Andrew Beattie.

If you follow our blog for very long you will figure out very soon that we are big time advocates of taking control of your finances. Debt places such a heavy burden on the borrower. As Proverbs 22:7 says, the borrower is slave to the lender. And yet, even in the mess the economy is in today we are encouraged to run out and spend, spend, spend because spending is what will save the economy and lead to recovery. I want to encourage you to take a look at your personal "economy". Let's get our own finances in shape before we worry about others finances. Then you have total control. You can spend some money because you have become debt free and actually have some. You can save. You can give to support your church, a local non-profit, missons or even just bless a friend with a gift. We hope that you find this site helpful whether you are really depending on finding a great deal to be able to brush your teeth or whether you want to use the deals you find to donate to others. One of our main goals through all of this is to be able to use what we find to bless those in need around us and to be able to save money so we can support our missionary friends.

Adding to Alissa's deals...

We pretty much duplicated what Alissa did this week. We also got some toothpaste at CVS though.

Buy 2 Crest Toothpaste at $2.25 each, Get $2.50 ECBs (Limit 1)
Use $1.00/2 coupon

With the coupon it was 2/$3.50. I used my ECB's to make it free and get $2.50 back in ECB's.

Oh, and Blue Bell ice cream for $3 is a steal even when its 20 degrees outside!!!

Alissa's Deals of the Week

All of this cost about $5.50.

Here's my CVS & Walgreens shopping lists for the week, thanks to Money Saving Mom and Common Sense with Money (check out their sites for links to the printable coupons):

Walgreens

Chinet Plates, on sale Buy One Get One Free (2 for $2.99)
Buy 2 and use 2 $1/1 printable coupons
$.49 each after coupons

Kellogs Cereal - $1.00
Use $5/4 printable coupon on Target website (this is actually a manufacturer's coupon so Target will take it)
Pay $2.96 for 4 boxes

Blue Bell Ice Cream - 2/$8
Use $1/1 printable coupon
Pay $3 each after coupons

Finesses Shampoo, Conditioner, or Styler - $1.99
Use $1/1 coupon from 10/25 Red Plum Insert
Pay $.99 after coupon

(I used $8.50 in Register Rewards leftover from the Thanksgiving sale.)

CVS

Buy 1 Essence of Beauty Bath & Body at $4.99, get $4 Extra Care Bucks (Limit 2)
$.99 after Extra Care Bucks

Gillette Fusion, Mach 3, Series or Satin Care Shave Gel - $1.99
Use $1/1 from the 11/29 Proctor & Gamble insert
Stack with $1/1 CVS coupon from the $100 Flu Booklet (Ask for this from the pharmacy)
FREE after Coupons

(I used $4.00 in Extra Care Bucks.)

King Size Mattress Deal

In case anyone is looking for a mattress, I have a deal for you. Occasionally Haverty's donates brand new furniture to the American Council for the Blind Thrift Store (on 34th & the Interstate). I was there today and they have several brand new in the bag king size pillow top mattresses for $300! What a deal.

Andy and I actually bought our mattress this way several years ago and it's an amazing mattress.

Family Promise of Lubbock

some of the deals we find are for products we don't really use. for instance i don't have a need for diapers at this point in time, but the bargain at target was too good to pass up. although i am learning how not to be brand loyal, there are still some things i'm not willing to sacrifice. however, a deal is a deal whether i choose to use the product or not. as our supply cabinet began to fill, the perfect opportunity arose for us to share those extra products with people who don't have the luxury of basic toiletries. family promise is a local organization that provides for the homeless and needy in lubbock. they are always in need of various household items that they supply to the families they assist. our small group has been collecting stuff on their wish list for the past few weeks. check out all of the stuff we were able to give to those who don't have!!!

Being Frugal

I found this article on Yahoo! Finance yesterday. Most of us know that the credit crisis and what is going on right now was caused by American's, including our businesses, living well above our means. We have all heard that if you want to be able to save for the future and stay out of debt that you should live within your means. What would happen if you decided to live below your means? A good example of this is Warren Buffett. Here is a clip from Forbes.com. "Some billionaires don't even bother to flaunt their wealth. For instance, Berkshire Hathaway's Warren Buffett--with a net worth of $36 billion--famously lives in the same home in Omaha, Nebr., that he bought in 1958 for $31,500. " Just click here to read the article.

Target Clothes Sale

In case you need another reason to visit Target (I usually don't), Target has a great clothes clearance going on right now in the woman's section. There are several racks here that are 30-75% off. I found an adorable shirt for $3.50.

Coinstar Deal

If you're looking for a way to stretch your holiday budget, this is a good one. Coinstar is offering a deal right now where if you cash in $40 worth of coins, you can mail in a rebate receipt to get an additional $10 in e-certificates. If you choose to change your coins for an e-certificate, the coin cashing is free. There are several companies you can get e-certificates for, including Amazon - which is practically a goldmine in our house!!! Since we were already planning on making a Christmas purchase at Amazon, this worked out wonderfully for us.

So, here's what I did: Got $40 in quarters from my bank account at the bank. Went to the First United Bank at 4th & Frankford (it's the only Coinstar in town where you can get e-certificates & cash coins for free). Chose to change my coins for a $40 Amazon e-certificate. Wallah!

Now all I have to do is submit my Coinstar receipt, and they will mail me an additional $10 e-certificate in 4-6 weeks.

If you want to do this deal you had better act quick, the offer expires on 12/6/2009 (this Saturday), and First United Bank is open from 9am-3pm (I'm not sure what their Saturday hours are). If you want to read the Coinstar deals, check them out here.

12 Days of Whataburger

Here is the gang enjoying some complimentary fries from Whataburger on the way home from Carol of Lights. If you would like to sign up to participate in the 12 Days of Whataburger just click here

Krazy Coupon Lady

If you do not receive the Sunday paper and you are looking for coupons you may want to check out the Coupon Database at http://thekrazycouponlady.com/. You can also look to the right at My Blog List.

CVS Deals - 11/30/09

Here are the deals that we took advantage of at CVS this week. They are limited due to the great deals they had over the holiday weekend.

Buy 1 Accu-Check Aviva Monitor at $14.99, Get $5 ECBs (Limit 2)
Use $10 coupon

Buy 1 Oral B Manual Toothbrush at $2.49, Get $2 ECBs (Limit 1)
$1.00 coupon for the Oral B Zooth

Total purchase was $4.99 plus $1.49. We used $6 in ECB's making my total purchase only $0.52 after tax and we received $7 in ECB's.

You may wonder why someone that does not need to check their blood sugar would care to buy an Accu-Check monitor. We have started helping a non-profit in town that benefits the homeless and working poor. A lot of the items we get through these CVS deals are donated to them. We dont have children either so the Zooth will also go to them.

Living Large on Less in the LBK

Welcome! This blog was created as a collaborative effort to share all of our Lubbock specific deals with you and money saving tips. Since Lubbock isn't necessarily what we'd call a thriving metropolis, some of the deals here are different than those in large cities.

Please join in and participate! We'd love your comments, tips, ideas, and deals you might see around town.

Getting Started

For those of you who are new to couponing, I would highly recommend checking out several of Money Saving Mom's posts

1. Start here for an overview.
2. Go here for a lesson on how to get a nice stash of coupons.
3. Definitely check out "CVS 101" and "CVS: Making it Work for You'! And plan to stick with this for a month. It will pay off, I promise.
4. Once you've mastered these concepts and if you have time, check out "Walgreens 101".
   

Can you tell I like Money Saving Mom?

If you're new to this, leave us a comment with any thoughts or questions.