Hallmark $5 coupon

What a great coupon!!! Hallmark has a $5 coupon good for $5 off your TOTAL purchase! Valid only until 12-24-09. I was able to print Two. Hurry before they are gone.

Updated with the link to the coupon

Free Stacy's Pita Chips!

Sign up as a Fan on Facebook and they will mail out a coupon for a FREE bag to the first 65,000. So hurry!!!

Free Gift Basket from Right-At-Home

Here

The first 20,000 will receive a gift basket from Right-at-Home. Hurry to sign up!

Free Aveeno Bag

Get a FREE Aveeno gift bag - available until supplies run out so hurry.

here

American Greetings FREE stuff!

Starting Dec 1st,
the first 20,000 who click on http://www.americangreetings.com/
and click on the blinking banner that says "TODAY ONLY FREE GIFT"
will receive either a free photo clutch, photo paper, free calendar, or a free $25 gift!!!

Very easy to do!

Just make sure to print out the page with the gift code because you WILL NOT be given a second chance to go back.

Free Cookbook

Visit this site to enroll and receive a free cookbook.

Makes a great gift!

Black Friday Sneak Peek at Walgreens

Follow the link here to see a sneak peek for Black Friday!

Do you know what this is?

Feed Your Freezer!

Have you ever wanted to have food on hand that you only have to reheat? What about snacks - nutritious snacks that are simple to pull out a serving ready to "heat n eat"?

I love Feed the Freezer ideas, so as I come across great ideas and recipes I will post them. I love to be able to make up a large batch of items and stick them in the freezer for later. Then if I want a little something, I just pull one out of the container and reheat it. Simple, easy, not a lot of prep and cleanup.

If you come across some great recipes or ideas, let me know. I'll share them and your link.

Well, I can't have a post about it without a recipe now can I? So here is another one, from Jane's blog that I have edited to make it a Feed the Freezer item:

Not-So-Sloppy Joes

What you need:
1 large or 2 small cans grands biscuits
1 lb ground beef
2 cans sloppy joe/manwich mix - or ketchup, mustard, and seasonings
cheese (sliced or shredded)

Open your biscuits and place on a cookie sheet. Center a 2 inch diameter cup and press down onto the biscuits to cause an indention.

If using ground beef and seasonings - Cook ground beef and onion. Drain any grease and add ketchup, mustard, and seasonings to your liking or add the sloppy jo/manwich mix and drop 1/3 cup of meat mixture into wells in biscuits.

Bake at 375º for 12-17 minutes, until biscuits are golden.

Allow to cool, then place on a cookie sheet so that the sides are not touching. Place in the freezer until frozen (approx 3 hours). Remove from freezer and place in freezer bag or plastic freezer container. Place cheese in freezer with the container.

When you are ready to use, simply remove as many or as few as you would like, place on a cookie sheet, bake in the oven at 350 until warm throughout. Sprinkle with shredded cheese(or place sliced cheese on top) and place back into the warm oven until cheese melts.

These are a great afternoon snack!

To make in bulk - just multiply the recipe to suit your needs.

FREE CHIK-FIL-A!!!!

Once again, Chik-Fil-A is giving away FREE food!

Tomorrow - July 10, 2009 - is Cow Appreciation Day! Dress like a cow and get free food.

Click here for more details

or
Click here for a Cow Costume Kit (pdf)

My Cherry Tree

Does anyone recognize this variety? It is pure yellow - these are fully ripe.

I'm at Cash Duck

Free Reynolds Wrap!

RUN! Don't Walk! Today only, April 22, 2009, Reynolds is giving out rebates for FREE Aluminum Foil to celebrate Earth Day! Limited Quantities - so Hurry

Reynolds Wrap Rebate

Clutter = Wasting Money

I recently visited another blog that wrote about a Happy Home. Many things help to make a Happy Home - one of which is getting rid of Clutter! But did you know that getting rid of Clutter can save you money?

It really can! Think about it . . .

Less Clutter means less Stress - less Stress means less sickness - which means less visits to the doctor and less medication.

Did you know that Clutter can cause depression? If your home has a lot of Clutter, and you feel as though you can't keep up with the cleaning, organizing, purging, etc it can make you feel down in the dumps. If this goes on for a longer period of time, it can lead to mild depression, sometimes even leading to severe depression. *note, I am not a doctor, not have I done a lot of research on this, however, I am speaking from experience*

When our homes are clean, our spirit feels clean, too.

Why do I mention this on a Thrifty blog? Well, I have been decluttering and purging and it amazes me to see where my money was lost. For example, wrapping paper. I have bought wrapping paper on clearance and packed it into a box to save money for future use. But with the clutter in my storage closet, I could never find that box when I needed it - Yes, it was labeled - I just couldn't find it. So I would stop by the store on my way to wherever and BUY wrapping paper!! A waste of money!! I KNEW I had it at home, but I couldn't FIND it! So I put money out for something I already had.

Another example, dust! Dusting is a necessity I have discovered. Why? Well, off the top of your head you would probably think allergies . . . and you would be right! But how about damage? hmmmm . . . think about it. If you don't dust regularly, dust can build up on surfaces and stain. Think of curtains (which is where I started thinking after I read that post). Dust makes them look dingy, but wash them and they are beautiful. However, let the dust stay on certain fabrics for too long and mix with sunshine and viola! stains + fading. Now you have to buy new curtains. All I had to do was wash the curtains on a regular basis!

There is more to this, but I will have to save that for another rainy day!

Make your own Toaster Strudel

At my home, we love the Pillsbury Toaster Strudel but not the price. I will only buy it on sale and hopefully with a coupon. Even then, it is still not cheap. So, when I saw a post about Hot Pockets on Jane's Blog I got to thinking about how to make my own in a Thrift-Worthy way.

Recently, there was a great sale on Pillsbury canned breakfast products and I stocked up. One of the items I stocked up on was the Crescent Rolls - which we LOVE! I used them with some homemade Blueberry Jam to make my version of the Toaster Strudel.

Cost:
$0.00 : Crescent Rolls (actually a moneymaker during the sale)
$0.00 : Blueberry Jelly (homemade from blueberries given to us, we just had to pick and can them)
$0.00 : Butter (free during another sale)
$0.00 : Powdered Sugar (I paid $.35 for a box during a sale, and used only a Tablespoon

Really, other than time and power, these cost nothing to make. Granted you only get 2 strudels per little can, but you can make these smaller for bite-size snacks.

You will need:
softened butter (optional)
canned Crescent Rolls(this was the tiny 4 count) or make your own flaky pastry dough
fruit jam/jelly
powdered sugar
vanilla flavoring
water or milk

Step 1 - Lightly flour your work area and open the Crescent Rolls and unroll. Using your hands, seal the seams in the crescent rolls and stretch the dough a little.

Step 2 - (optional) Spread a thin layer of butter on the surface of the dough

Step 3 - Cut the dough in half cross-wise (not length-wise).

Step 4 - Spread about 1.5 Tablespoon of fruit jam/jelly onto each half. Stay about half an inch away from the edges. You can add more or less fruit according to your taste, but be careful not to put too much or you will have a mess.

Step 5 - Fold each piece in half and use a fork to seal the edges.

Step 6 - Bake according to the Crescent Roll directions.

Step 7 - Cool on a wire rack, then line a baking sheet with wax paper, layer the pastries and freeze. Once frozen, remove and package into Freezer Bags.

To reheat - place in your Toaster Oven for 5-7 minutes, just like the real Toaster Strudels add topping and enjoy.


To make Topping:

1 Tablespoon Powdered Sugar
1 Tablespoon water
mix together, add dash of vanilla for flavor
add water as needed to mix to correct consistency.
Drizzle over hot pastry and enjoy.
(Milk can be used in place of the water for a richer topping. But if you make a large batch of topping ahead of time, remember that milk will spoil)

Movie Mondays - Redbox Code

Redbox Code for April 13, 2009

J89LA2

expires at midnight

visit http://www.redbox.com/ for a location near you!

Redbox Code - March 30, 2009

Redbox Code for March 30, 2009

89ZQJ3

expires at midnight

visit http://www.redbox.com/ for a location near you!

Earn with Swagbucks

Hey - interested in earning money?

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Movie Mondays - January 26, 2009

Redbox Code for Monday 1/26

57VH9L

Triples at Ingles - I made it!

I FINALLY made it to Ingles on Saturday! And now I am kicking myself for not being organized and going several times this week.

I made two trips before they closed:
$65.26 on the first - savings $260.20
and
$42.99 on the second - savings $204.76

The first one they had to give me $3 back because we forgot a coupon
AND
I realized once I got home that on my second transaction, I purchased $29 too much!!

In order to get the coupons to triple, I carried a 2 not a 1 - simple math error, but my oop would have been around $15 instead! argh. oh well

So total oop = $108.25
Total savings = $464.96
Total = $573.21 for $108.25 :: a savings of 81% not too bad - and it included chicken and milk and frozen pizza

Chenille Socks Giveaway

follow my link here:
http://coupon-queen.blogspot.com/2009/01/giveaway-kn-chenille-lounge-socks.html
for a chance to win some wonderful chenille socks

Free Giveaway - Hotsack reusable totes

I love the reusable bags that most stores have available now. I don't love having to pay for them - even if they are $1 or less. So when I find deals to get the bags for free, I partake of the opportunity.

Right now http://jane4girls800dollarannualbudget.blogspot.com/ is having a giveaway on her blog for 5 of these reusable bags from Hotsacks with matching Meshy Hotsacks.

If you have never tried the reusable totes, please do so!
Here are some of my top reasons why I love them:
1 - They are much roomier than standard plastic bags
2 - They decrease the amount of plastic we use
3 - Because they are roomier, you need less of them to carry your groceries
4 - They are very strong, I did have one handle break on one bag but the store replaced it for free
5 - They follow the three Rs - Reduce, Reuse, Recycle
6 - They fold nicely and will fit inside each other.
7 - Some stores will give you a discount on your groceries if you use them instead of paper/plastic
8 - They will hold a lot!!! -> 6 half gallons of milk, or 36 cans of Campbell's soup, or 6 bags of potato chips, or 50 packs of Knorr pasta sides, or 20 boxes of cake mix, or 12 boxes of instant oatmeal, or LOTS of bags of after Christmas clearance chocolate and candy!

So many more reasons why I love them, but I want to hear from you!

Movie Monday

On Mondays, Redbox issues a code that can be used at any of their machines to get a free movie rental. The code must be used by midnight on Monday, it expires at that time, and the movie must be returned by 9pm the next day or you will be charged $1 per day rental fee.

The code for
Monday January 19, 2009

K6W3G4

Please visit www.redbox.com for further information

The rest of my post

This is the rest of my post on HCW - I amuse myself and get a giggle from it sometimes and decided I couldn't let it go to waste, even if I am the only one who is amused.
> Please note the following is more for laughs than anything else, hope you see the giggle in it<

Most coupons state "One coupon per purchase/per item purchased" A manufacturer uses the coupons to get people to buy their product. And it works.
A customer is walking down the aisle and a blinkie flashing at them catches their eye and that persuasive red light convinces them to take a peek. (We know the dangers of the redlight district, right? lol) Well, the customer sees that the coupon is for an item similar to what they would normally purchase, so they take the coupon and buy an item - wait - it's on sale, let's get 2,3 or even 4 boxes. C'mon, c'mon spit out another 2 coupons so I can move on. Okay, got 'em.
The customer get to the checkout, buys the product and may or may not remember to use the coupons, may even have lost the coupons.
That is what the manufacturer wants - not only has the customer been persuaded by the "redlight district" to buy the product, but now the customer may have bought it without even using the pursuasive marketing tool. The manufacturer wins. Let's count how many ways: 1) the item was purchased, 2) It may have been purchased at full price, not a discount, 3) The number of items sold has increased, 4) The product is getting publicity - now increase this by the number of purchasers and multiply by the number of stores that carry the product and the coupon and now - 5) It shows on their company spreadsheet which can increase their profitabilty, 6) They may have new consumers who will return to purchase the product again which will 7) continue to look good on their profitabilty

Additionally, do you really believe the manufacturer only wants us to buy one of their products? oh no - they want their product to have the larger piece of the market pie and predominant shelf placement. Please, buy as many as you want. They know they will take a hit from the coupons, but it is a planned, assessed loss and written off with their advertising costs, not their production costs. They will still make out on the positive because of those customers who refuse to use a coupon and pay full price for the product.
Even though most blinkies are programmed to spit out a coupon every 15 secs +/-, many times a coupon will generate immediately. Is a customer not to take that one as well? Do you really believe that a manufacturer would want to stand by the blinkie and slap the customer's hand if the customer tries to get more than one coupon in order to purchase the product?
Newspapers - Yes, generally there is only one set of inserts in each paper - that is to reach a wider market and more households. A manufacturer doesn't really care if one family refuses to use coupons and gives their copy to another family that will use it. They know this happens and if it really was an issue for them then they would revise the wording on the coupon to discourage them.
Would the manufacturer prefer for customers to purchase their product without using a coupon? Of course they would - it means a higher percentage of profit for them. However, the manufacturer wisely realizes that any sales, even discounted sales, are better than no sales. And in the current economical crunch there are 2 options: 1) charge full price, refuse coupons and have a lower number of sales which will lower your company's value on the market or 2) allow coupons, generate more sales even at a reduced price that is still a profit and keep or increase the value of the company on the market.

What about when we call the company and ask for a coupon? Most of the time I receive 2-3 coupons - identical coupons - for the product. Am I supposed to only use one and toss the others? Should I give the others away? - they didn't tell me to share my coupons with other people. They said "sure, we will send you some coupons for you to use" They think "Hey, its goodwill for the company - we sent them coupons - they are going to buy our product. HAHAHA! hooked another one! We give them 3 items for free and they will forever buy our product" ---- Sounds like that drug analogy you used. The coupons are a "step up" and once a customer finds a product that they love and want and have to have; they will buy that product, coupon or not, sale or not. The manufacturer has just created "brand loyalty" in that customer - and that is what they want.

New Year - New Look

Well, maybe. I am looking into changing up some things on the blog. I will also be doing some cleaning. So stick around and soon there will be lots more going on in this blog!