Another Day...Another Dollar (or Six Dollars in Our Case)

One of my favorite ways to get coupons is printing them online. We don't have a printer in New Hampshire, so I've been doing without, but there have been quite a few coupons that would have come in handy (especially since groceries are quite a bit more costly up here!) Fred and I have been looking on Craigslist, eBay, and various store websites as well as looking in stores. We finally found a printer, scanner, copier at WalMart for $39. We were pretty impressed and we brought it home last night. We were so tired when we got home that we never took it out of the car (which turns out to be quite a good thing!).

Today we went garage sale-ing...which is one of my favorite pasttimes. I was looking for lampshades and a sewing machine and Fred was looking for power tools. I also hoped to find some books and puzzles for the girls. At our first garage sale, we were able to get a bag full of new earrings (over 10 pairs), 2 puzzles (100 piece and 500 piece), a 3D puzzle of the White House that had a $20 price tag and hadn't been opened and an old picture frame for $3. Our next garage sale was even better. We got a Lexmark printer/copier/scanner and a 9 books (Nancy Drew and Baby-Sitters Club) for $3! The printer was in it's original box and doesn't look like it's ever been used! We were able to take the other printer back to Wal-Mart today for a refund. I love getting good deals like this! I can't wait to try out my new printer.

I have a list of things that I am looking for this summer and a price limit in mind for each. It doesn't do you any good to buy a bunch of random things that you don't need. Our cottage is extremely small and I need to be getting rid of stuff, not adding to the clutter. With that being said, I still need a few pieces of furniture, some bedding, some decorative stuff, a sewing machine and a few lamps and lampshades. I'd also like to get a few more puzzles, books, and board games for the girls. Although I usually get books from the library, it's nice to have a selection of books around here that the girls can take with them to the pool or the park without worrying about them getting lost or rained on.

I hope you are taking advantage of your area garage sales. It's a great way to spend a morning or afternoon and it's a great way to stretch your dollars! I usually check Craigslist or the paper to find local sales that have what I'm looking for and then I head off in that direction. I'd love to hear what great things you've found lately!

Free Paint from Glidden

One of the cheapest ways to change the look of a room (or a piece of furniture) is with paint!  As I mentioned earlier this week, this summer I am going to attempt to fix up our cottage on a shoestring budget and I have spent the last few days looking at paint.  I stumbled across this deal from Glidden and am so excited to share it with you!  

Starting today, June 25th, Glidden is offering a free quart of paint!  I know that a quart of paint won't paint a room, but it will paint a piece of furniture or a small wall.  It's also great to have around as touch up paint!  Simply go here to pick out your favorite color of paint or call 1-800-GLIDDEN!  

Enjoy your paint!

Prescription Eyeglasses for Less Than a Buck!!!

Right now, you can get a great deal on prescription glasses through Cashbaq for only $6.26! (The top pair is available for $6.26 and the pair below which I really like is $6.95) That's a great deal for glasses in and of itself, but it's about to get even better!!!


For starters, if you are new to Cashbaq, you can sign up here for a free account. They will also give you a $5 sign-up bonus, plus they'll give you 10% back on the glasses. Cashbaq is a site that gives you money back for purchases you make through their site. It's like Ebates or Mr. Rebates!

Once you've added the glasses to your cart, you can use the coupon code upromisejunenew to get an extra 15% off your purchase for new customers!

If you purchase the glasses for $6.26, you'll get the $5.00 Cashbaq signup bonus, plus the $.62 cents back to make your glasses cost only $.64 plus shipping! You definitely can't beat that!

Thanks to The Frugal Muse and Money Saving Mom for pointing out this smoking deal!

Never Run Out of Toilet Paper Again

I have to admit, back when Kroger was still carrying 4 packs of Cottonelle and I was getting them for free, I never thought I'd ever run out of toilet paper again, but unfortunately, it has happened! And to be quite honest, that's not the only thing I've run out of. I find myself running to the store for pesky feminine products on a regular basis! Well, if you're like me and have dreamed of having someone like Alice from the Brady's come and rescue you from these every day dilemmas, I have good news!

Alice has arrived!!!

So the bad news is, Alice doesn't do laundry, but Alice will deliver laundry detergent to your door (and shipping is free!) Alice is a new site that is free to join that allows you to pick your favorite products and have them delivered to your door! You can schedule auto-reminders to help you remember to replenish your supply! Plus, for those of you who are looking to save money, they automatically apply available coupons to your purchase! This is especially great for those of you who complain about the time and effort needed to clip coupons!

If you sign up using my referral link here, I get a little extra moolah! (and that would make me quite happy!) Plus, after spending $50, your account will be credited $10! (which will get you even more toilet paper!)

I'm back!

What I thought would be a break of a few days ended up being a break of over 2 weeks. I haven't been on an actual computer in over a week. I've checked email and Facebook from my phone, but that's been it! These past weeks have been a complete and total whirlwind. In the last week alone, we have driven over 2000 miles, traveled through thirteen states, spent the night in 5 different states, attended my sister in law's wedding and rehearsal, visited with my in-laws, visited with my sister, spent time with my mom, and celebrated Father's Day in addition to all the regular family craziness with my kiddos. I'm sure that's more than any of you wanted to know, but since lots of you have emailed to check on me since I haven't been posting, I thought I'd give you a glimpse into my last week! :-)

We are now in New Hampshire and will be staying in our cottage for the next 7 or 8 weeks. Our cottage is definitely a "fixer-upper" and we will be doing what we can on our shoestring budget! If any of you have great ideas for how to do a budget makeover, I'd love to hear them (and when I say budget makeover, I'm talking about how to redo a whole cottage for under $100!) :-)

I'm also re-learning how to coupon. I have to shop at different grocery stores, use a different newspaper, and figure out what prices are "good" for this area! This summer will definitely not be boring!

I'm going to post on what I'm learning about couponing in a new area and I'll probably post pictures of our home improvement projects as we tackle them! Hope you are all enjoying your summer so far!

FREE John MacArthur book: The Jesus You Can't Ignore

I love reading good books...especially when they're free! John MacArthur is a great teacher and author and you can get his new book for free!!!

Join the mailing list for Grace To You ministries and in August you'll be mailed an offer for John's soon-to-be-released book, The Jesus You Can't Ignore.

John MacArthur’s new book, The Jesus You Can’t Ignore, explores the Lord’s many personal, often-explosive encounters with the influential teachers of His day. You’ll see how both Jesus’ message and His manner have direct application for believers who love truth in this age of accommodation and compromise.

Thanks Alyssa! I'm really looking forward to this one!

FREE First Aid and CPR Training for residents of DeKalb, Noble, and Steuben counties

If you live in DeKalb, Noble, or Steuben counties in Northeast Indiana, you are eligible for free First Aid and CPR Training from the Red Cross.  This normally costs $55 and is a great opportunity!  One of my daughters is taking this class with me!  Click here for more information and to find out the training dates!  (If you want to take it with me, I'm signed up for June 12th at Eckhart Public Library and as of this afternoon, there were still spaces available!)  You do need to pre-register!

Free Donuts and Free Ice Cream

This week is a great week for Freebies...free root beer floats from Sonic (tonight only), free donuts from Krispy Kreme and Dunkin Donuts, and free ice cream from Friendlys.  Unfortunately (or fortunately) depending on how you look at it, I gave up sugar over a month ago.  For those of you who have not sworn off the wonderfully yummy white stuff...these freebies are for you!

June 5th is National Donut Day!  And Krispy Kreme and Dunkin Donuts are celebrating by giving away free donuts! 

Krispy Kreme is making life just a little sweeter for everyone on National Doughnut Day," says Ron Rupocinski, executive chef at Krispy Kreme. "So, on Friday, June 5, head to a participating store with your friends and family to share the sweet joy of a free Krispy Kreme doughnut."

Click here for the yummy details!!!  Thanks Krispy Kreme!!

Dunkin' Donuts, America's all-day, everyday stop for coffee and baked goods, is marking National Donut Day with a sweet nationwide offer to help Americans celebrate the joy and fun of donuts. On June 5, 2009, participating Dunkin' Donuts restaurants throughout the country will give every customer a free donut of their choice, with the purchase of any beverage, limit one per customer.  

Click here for these yummy details!  Thanks Dunkin Donuts!

Those of you who know me well know that I love ice cream...and I really love it when combined with peanut butter.  One of my very favorite places to get ice cream is Friendly's!  This Saturday, you can enjoy free ice cream from Friendly's!!! (I highly recommend the Hunka Chunka PB Fudge, Cookies and Cream, or Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough!)

Click here to get the scoop!!!!  (Aren't you impressed with how clever I am?)

Hope this makes your week extra sweet!!!

Free Root Beer Floats at Sonic Tonight!!!

Tonight is Free Root Beer Float night at Sonic from 8 pm to close.  Make sure you call your local Sonic to make sure they are participating!!!  Thanks Frugal Plus!

UPDATE:  After a long night at my daughters double-header softball game, my husband and daughter thoroughly enjoyed their FREE floats!!!  Hope you got a chance to make it out to Sonic tonight!