Coursey 5

Taking every opportunity that's given!

2011-10-13T22:34:00.000-07:00

It took a while but we GET IT now. Husband has been in the Marines for a little over 8 years now and it's impossible to plan a REAL vacation. We've never been on a real vacation in our 12+ years of being together. When I think about "real vacations" I think about a pre-planned trip to a place or places for more than a weekend. Weekend trips are just weekend trips. I think vacations are a week or so. Anyway, we've never done anything like that. I don't feel bad though because in the past 3-4 years we've learned to take full advantage of everywhere the Military takes us. That doesn't just mean full on PCS's, I'm talking about DETS, training schools, etc. (In civilian terms, sometimes the Military sends him to other locations for random amounts of time for different training stuff, could be a few days, could be a few months, just depends on what's needed)

In May 2010, we were stationed in Norfolk,VA and hubs got sent to New York City to participate in Fleet Week so since it was mandatory, the military paid for his hotel. He happened to get an amazing larger suite type room, let me know about it having plenty of room, so the next morning, I packed up, loaded 2 kids and an infant in the car and drove the 7 hours up the east coast to NYC! We spent 4 days in NYC doing the tourist thing, it was so amazing! He still had to fly some of the time, but we spent one whole day in the city and did a few other little things when he had a few hours off here and there. I'm from Southern Cali and would never ever ever have made the effort to travel to NYC just to be a tourist so this was a fantastic opportunity that I'm soooo thankful I didn't lazily pass up.

Summers are always tough for vacations because the Marines tend to do a lot of deployment stuff during the summers so we're stuck kinda sitting around waiting for weeks or months at a time. Last summer I was determined not to allow us to miss out on a summer of exploring and having fun, so I loaded 3 kids up and took them to Colonial Williamsburg, the beaches, the pool 3-4 days a week, the movies, etc. I couldn't help the fact that hubby was gone, might as well have some fun to keep our minds off missing Dad!

Recently hubby had a week long class at Camp Pendleton near Oceanside, the class was super easy going and he had a lot of time to hang out so we skipped school for 2 days and spent a long weekend down there with him in his (paid for) hotel near the beach! It's only 3 hours away, might as well! Once he was done with that class for the week, we rented another hotel in San Diego and used our annual Military FREE PASS to Sea World, thanks to Annheiser Busch, we get to go to Sea World or Busch Gardens once a year for free! We had a blast at SW, none of the kids had been there yet so it was really fun!

This weekend (starting tomorrow) the Chaplain's office is sponsoring a couple's retreat in the mountains near Big Bear, lots of near marriage enrichment stuff along with some fun stuff too! I'm most excited about zip lining!!! I'm scared out of my mind but I've been dying to try it!! This retreat weekend is FREE because someone anonymously donated money for couples to take advantage of this neat program! I'm super excited to get out of this house for the weekend with my man! :)

Anyway the point is that we're learning that we may not ever get the "perfect" week long vacation due to many circumstances but what we DO get is a lot of really neat experiences that add up to amazing memories and I'll take it!!!

Forever 21, wtf??

2011-10-09T07:38:00.000-07:00

I can't be the only one that doesn't understand what the hell is going on in Forever 21. I know I've been out of the loop a bit for the past few years because I got pregnant in April 09 and I've been slightly too large to wear itty bitty teenager clothes since then but wow, things have really changed since 09! I used to shop in junior clothing stores all the time! I come back from wearing maternity and stretchy clothes and now Forever 21 is ginormously huge, and has it's own wing of the mall! I was pretty excited about it at first... WOW, a department store size F21?!? Nice!

The more I ventured in, the more confused I got. Ok, I *get* that there are different "styles" in different sections, that helps a little, because I don't like to get my "80's southwest design" mixed with my "hipster cowgirl" outfits... and God forbid my "romantic Jane Eyre skirt" be anywhere near my "slutty studded biker bitch" choices. My problem is, I develop ADD when I go in there. On any given rack, there are 92 choices. Any normal rack at any other store has like 6 choices. I cannot focus long enough to look through the clothes.

I did buy a few things there last week but only because the items were on the end of the rack where I could see them. 2 shirts, a scarf and a pair of earrings is all I could manage in the 2 hours I was LOST in the there. Which brings me to another issue.... where the F&*% is the exit?!!? Omg I thought me and Delaney were trapped for life! After the first hour I was done. I think I spent another hour looking for the exit. I got vertigo, disoriented and time deprivation in that hour.

The last thing I would like to complain about is the INSANE NOISE LEVEL in there. Maybe I'm just showing my age here but, does it need to be THAT loud?? Like, I can't even hear my toddler screaming, that's how loud it was. (I know, why am I complaining about not hearing my toddler screaming??) Point is, customers shouldn't have to SHOUT in a store to hear each other. I also *get* that the target shopping audience is like 12 and that's "cool" or whatever but it's really extreme.

Luckily everything I bought fit me and looks good so I don't have to go back to return anything because I might not return after being sucked back in!!! :)

Back in action

2011-06-30T12:42:00.000-07:00

Back from my moving/PCSing hiatus. I'm back to Edwards, in Cali, life is great!

The move went smoothly, got a house right away, love the house, hate the location. My school age kids are 9 and 11 but I don't want them walking to school from where we live. Not because it's too far (about a mile) but because there are no crossing guards on the way there and the high schoolers drive right by them on the way. The last thing a HSer is thinking about in the morning (or ever) is being extra careful for little kids. So I either walk or drive them. Luckily summer is here so I get a break from it for a bit.

Things are going well for this family, we're a bit bored this summer. Gas prices aren't helping. We had plans to do stuff and we just haven't. One small camping trip on Fathers Day weekend is it. The entire month of July will be taken up by husband's work schedule including a 2 week DET to AZ. My 30th bday is July 16 and our 12 year anniv is July 17 and he leaves the 17th. Of course. We're ALWAYS separated on my bday/our anniv. ALWAYS. I think we've been together .... twice? since he's been in the USMC.... eh well. Anyway, the kids are happy to be back, Chad's cool with his old/new shop. Lots of new faces around here so it's practically new again. I haven't started working yet, I was hoping to get my old job back but there are no full time positions open right now so I guess I'm going to wait it out and hang out this summer. Better than paying day care for 3 kids FULL TIME during the summer hours.

Well, not a lot to talk about, just trying to keep these kids from dying of boredom! :)

Progress.... or not.

2011-03-15T16:56:00.000-07:00

On the PCS front; no progress is being made. We're 10 days out from our pack up and we've only cleared out like a half of a closet. We're doing a partial PPM (DITY) and actually it's just that we're bringing our liquids, consumables, meds, as much of my coupon stockpile as possible, our clothes (as many as I can pack for 5 people) Chad's uniforms, some pillows and blankets, toys, the PS3, an ice chest and our personal firearms with us in both vehicles. Because we're taking all of that anyway, we may as well get paid for it, right? The problem is, we have to separate it all from the stuff the movers are packing and loading and we don't want to do that yet because it's still a bit pre-mature but we can't wait much longer because there's a ton of stuff to separate into separate closets and areas.

I'm sure I've complained about this in the past, it's just really continuing to get on my nerves. Maybe I'll just start separating early and save myself something to complain about. haha Yeah, then I'll be annoyed that things aren't in their place for too long.... oy!

Other than that, the baby is sick, she's 14 mo and it's only her 2nd cold. She's all boogery and gross and whiney and fevery. I feel terrible and I'd love to sit and cuddle her but she's not the type, still on the go even when she's sick.

The older two are great, my son got his progress report home the other day. All B's except his history grade went down to a D!!!! WTH?!?!? There was a note with it saying he was part of a group project that forgot to do like, the main writing assignment part of the project so they all got an F on the project. That's fine, if he's 1/4 of a group that forgot the main point of the project than he deserves the grade. What I can't wrap my brain around is why ONE project brought him down two whole letter grades! That seems a bit extreme, like, why even do the regular daily work if this one project is going to effect you that much? So he's kind of in trouble but I understand that it was one project they screwed up on, not a bunch of missed homework or unfinished class work.

Not much else going on around here, hopefully I can get motivated to make something happen with this moving stuff!

MilSpouse Friday Fill-In 3/11/11

2011-03-11T10:49:00.000-08:00

1. During military separations (whether short or long) how do you keep yourself positive and motivated? submitted by Married/Single Parent

It's all in your head really. Anyone can do it, you just have to want to. Making a pie chart rather than counting down days, thinking of the amount of time apart in terms of "paydays" or "trash nights" helps mentally. There's no getting past the fact that missing your other half SUCKS and the kids missing their Dad SUCKS. But the husband and the Dad missing all 4 of us SUCKS even more so we find a way to have some fun, find a way to relax and have some down time, find some time to visit family and friends, etc. There will always be bad days, just breathe and get through to the next one, then the next one, and soon enough, you'll have your arms wrapped around your hubby again! :)

2. What is your favorite concert you have ever been to?

Brad Paisley puts on the BEST shows!!! I've been to a few of his concerts. My fav was when he played with Taylor Swift, SOOOOooo exciting!!! My daughter and I have been HUGE fans of hers since the first week they started playing Tim McGraw on CMT.

3. What do you miss most about your “hometown”?

I kind of have 2 hometowns. I mostly grew up in Bakersfield,CA but I also spend a LOT of my childhood in Morro Bay,CA. I don't miss much about Bakersfield. It used to be a decent place to live but it's gone WAY downhill and I don't have a lot of fond memories of the place. Morro Bay on the other hand, I definitely miss that place! The smell of the ocean as you're coming into town, seeing the rock and the stacks, hanging out at the Embarcadero shopping with my friends, walking the island streets all day, going to A-Beach and crossing that heinous highway to get to it. haha! Tons of fun stuff to do there. Can't wait to take my kids there more often!

4. If you could run in any race, which charity would you choose to support?

Well, I'm not a runner but if I was I would donate to St. Judes. Anything to help sick kids.

5. You find out Willy Wonka is your father, what 3 course meal do you INSIST he create in that stick of gum?

Bacon cheeddar fries, pastrami sandwich with pickles and mustard and apple crisp! Yummmm!

Farm Fresh 3/11

2011-03-09T14:11:00.000-08:00

Well, I did the header and it's super blurry for some reason so I'll try again later.

Here's a pic of my Farm Fresh trip today 3/9/11

Here's the breakdown:

2 Zone bars $1.25ea
-2 .55c/1 (2/28 Smartsouce insert) doubled = .15c ea =.30 both

4 packs of Trident Vitality gum $1/ea
-2 BOGO coupons =$2 for all 4 of them

10 boxes Ronzoni pasta
- various prices and coupons. Some were free, but the most I spend was .79c per box.

3 boxes of Lucky Charms and 1 box of Cheerios 2/$5 = $10
-2 $1/2 doubled = $4 =4/$6
PLUS if you buy 4 select cereals you get a coupon for next shopping trip for FREE milk!

2 boxes of Honey Bunches of Oats 2/$4
-2 $1/1 from 2/27 smartsource doubled = 2 boxes FREE

Total before coupons = $38.15
Total after coupons = $14.54!!! That's a savings of $63%

Goodness, I'm going to miss Farm Fresh!!! Albertons really needs to start fully doubling like Farm Fresh does!!!

Header?

2011-03-08T19:03:00.000-08:00

I am CLUELESS on how to make a cute header. Anyone have a REALLLLLY easy tutorial for me? Mine sucks at life.

Military Monday Blog Hop

2011-03-07T07:47:00.000-08:00

Jumping on board here!

Show me your ring

2011-03-07T07:08:00.000-08:00

SHOW ME YOUR RING!

I'm participating in "Show me your ring" over HERE

So, I actually have had 3 different wedding rings.

The first one was an itty bitty cute diamond solitaire

A few years later, we upgraded to a bigger diamond solitaire

In October 08 I went in a different direction and got a vintage ring. Brown is my fav color and this is just an easy ring for me to wear. So this is my current ring.

Did you look at rings together?
With the first one, no. I looked at them with a friend who was getting engaged, she told Chad which one I loved and he went and got it! haha

The second one we went together and I just upgraded the size so we could get a new credit account. (We didn't have any credit at the time)

The 3rd one I got because the bigger diamond was having issues with the prongs, I was constantly bumping it on things. Also, I'm totally in love with the vintage looking rings.

Do you like your ring? Did you from the beginning?...and be honest!
Totally, it was the one I loved!

How often do you wear your rings?
I haven't been able to wear it since about October 2009. I had preeclampsia (again) when I was pregnant with Delaney and I haven't been able to get it on since then. Gotta lose weight! (I put it on for that picture but it's TIGHT)

Do you clean your rings?
When I regularly wear my ring, I clean it on an as needed basis.

What went through your mind the very first time you saw your ring?

Wow!!! This is happening.........!!!

I know, it's kind of sad and weird that I have exchanged my ring a few times, and I should probably have an emotional attachment to it, and I guess I kinda do but times change, tastes change, and needs change so if it works for me, it works for me. I'm still married to the same guy so that's all that matters. :)

Photo challenge day 6

2011-03-06T15:17:00.001-08:00

Day 6: a photo of someone you love

Well, this was a very obvious choice. From left to right is my 11yr old son Jake, my husband Chad, my 1 year old girl Delaney and my 8 yr old girl Brooklyn.

Good deals to pass along

2011-03-06T07:13:00.000-08:00

March's All You Magazine has a $5 coupon for Gerber Good Start exp 3/31. CVS has a great sale running this week (starting 3/6) if you buy $25 in specific products, you get a FREE umbrella stroller! So if you use two of the $5/1 coupons on the formula ($20ea for the big cans), you'll get 2 huge cans of formula and an umbrella stroller for only $30!

Tanga (a daily deal site) has some good deals on magazine subscriptions. Family Circle is only $3.99/year when you use the coupon code "CIRCLE" at check out and Taste of Home is only $3.99/year when you use the coupon cose "TASTE" at check out. The deal is only valid for new subscribers and you can add more than one to your cart at this price. I got 4 years of Family Circle for $15.96!

20% off your entire purchase at Big Lots TODAY ONLY HERE

40% off one item at Borders (unless your local store is closing, they wont allow coupons at the going out of business sales) HERE expires tomorrow

$10/$50 at Fresh and Easy (for my Bakersfield friends) HERE

That's all today, we're off to see Rango with our LivingSocial movie ticket deal! Saving $15 for our family of 4! YAY!

Update on PCSing

2011-03-05T05:52:00.001-08:00

We're 26 days out and I've gotta say, I HAAAATE this part of the process. It's like, this weird in-between stage where I have a ton of stuff to do yet I can't do any of it right now or I'm jumping the gun.

I'm a planner, a list maker, an organizer, etc. and I want to start crossing things off, but it's too soon for a lot of it.

We had our yard sale, sold our washer and dryer, went through the clothes and shoes and toys, tossed, sorted and gave stuff away. Now we wait. Ugh. I hate waiting.

Our next big thing is we need to move everything we don't want the packers to pack into the closets. The closets will be closed and labeled with big huge papers "DO NOT PACK!" but if we do that now, it's too soon and we're going through dark closets looking for the things we need. This in-between stage is just annoying..... so we wait.

GOOD NEWS is the house we live in now is scheduled for demo so we're the last people that will live in it so we don't really have to clean it much. We have to clean the appliances and do a general sweep and wipe down of the bathrooms and kitchen but that's about it. In fact, the housing office said I can let the kids paint on the walls for fun. We might let them finger paint and do hand prints and stuff just for fun! YAY!

Housing at Edwards is driving me nuts, they aren't allowed to offer us a house until we check in with orders so I'm in limbo trying to decide if I should look seriously for a rental or not. I keep hearing conflicting stories from friends out there and the housing office saying there are plenty of 4bd houses available or unavailable. So we wait.

Story of my life. :)

Photo challenge day 5-ish

2011-03-05T05:40:00.000-08:00

Wow, screwed that up yesterday and repeated one. Anyway, today I'll do day 5 which is:

A photo that makes you laugh.

In November 2010 after my husband got back from his MEU/deployment/SPMAGTF thing, we went to Colonial Williamsburg for the day. He put Delaney in the backpack carrier and she loved it! It's not hard to take her out but when babies are happy and comfortable, you DON'T MOVE THEM! haha So we didn't want to take her out of the carrier to give her a bottle so this was Chad's solution! People that walked by were giggling and pointing (in a good way) and complimenting him on his idea. Makes me laugh every time I see this pic!

Food Lion trip 3/4/11

2011-03-04T13:43:00.000-08:00

Food Lion trip 3/4/11

12 pack Yuengling - $9.79

3 cases Mt. Dew - $9
-$1.00/2 (peelie attached to one of the cases) = $8 ($2.66 ea)

6 Sunny D OJ's - $1 ea
-6 .25c/1 from 1/16 Smart source insert= .75c ea = $4.50

3 Philidelphia Cooking Cream - $2.50ea
-3 $1.50/1 = $3.00
+ In ad promotion - donate $1 to Easter Seals and buy 3 items (listed) and get $3 off your grocery total. So I donated the $1 and got $3 off my total which brings the cost of all 3 Phili Cooking Creams down to only $1 for all 3!!!

6 packs of Pampers jumbo - $7.99 ea (3 days sale started today)
-6 $2/1 any Pampers in the P&G 2/27 insert = $5.99ea for a total of $35.94
+ In ad promotion - buy $25 in select Proctor and Gamble products you get $5 off your shopping total so my total for the 6 packs of diapers was actually $30.94!!

Total before promotions and coupons = $117.62
Total after all promtions and coupons = $54.46!!!
Saved $63.18!

I've got 6 more diaper coupons so I might go back over there and get some more. $5.17/pack is definitely a stock up worthy price!

Picture challenge

2011-02-14T05:21:00.000-08:00

I didn't blog over the weekend so I'll play catch up

A photo of you at least a year ago
In honor or Valentines Day, this was almost exactly 4 years ago. My BFF Amy and I went to an Anti-Valentines Day party with a few other girls, complete with fake bloody tampons hanging up and fake bloody pads stuck to the wall. Very festive. haha!

A photo that makes you happy

This pic was taken on November 17 2010 when my husband flew in from his deployment. Reunions are always happy times! This is also just a really awesome shot of the helicopters formed in a V!

A photo of a place you'd like to visit

Washington DC
With our orders taking us back to the west coast in a little over 6 weeks, we realize there are multiple things we want to do before we leave the east coast. Most important is DC. We've been here 2 1/2 years and haven't gone there and it's only like 4 hours away. So a few days after we got our orders, I booked our hotel there! We're going this weekend for President's Day holiday! BONUS: my sister is driving down from Michigan to meet us there for her bday!!! I can't WAIT!

30 Day picture challenge

2011-02-11T09:40:00.000-08:00

Since I'm PCSing, I'm not stockpiling anymore. It's time for us to start shopping from our stockpile to save us from throwing away a lot of food. I'm cutting back on couponing and scouring the ads for good deals. It's hard to stop though, it's been a constant in my life since Oct 2009 and it's such an odd feeling to NOT run out and get those good deals!

Meanwhile, lots of stuff is keeping me busy these days. The moving process is a big deal, but most military families get approx 6 months to coordinate their military move, but we got 8 weeks! Don't think I'm complaining about this though, I am BEYOND happy to get out of here ASAP! I'd leave in 2 weeks if I could! :) I got a lot done so far. Housing application submitted, TMO scheduled, TLF's reserved on both ends, hotels in route reserved, etc. Not much else to do now, just getting the house in order and waiting for the packers to come and take our stuff to Cali!!!!

Meanwhile, here's something fun to do to keep me busy on the blog!
30 Day Photo Challenge
Day 1: a photo of you

Day 2: a photo of yourself at least a year ago

Day 3: a photo that makes you happy

Day 4: a photo of a place you'd like to visit

Day 5: a photo that makes you laugh

Day 6: a photo of someone you love

Day 7: a photo of someone you miss

Day 8: a photo of your favorite band/musician

Day 9: a photo of yourself as a baby/child

Day 10: a photo you like for any reason

Day 11: a photo of a night you loved

Day 12: a photo of when you were happy

Day 13: a photo of one of your favorite movies

Day 14: a photo of your best friend

Day 15: a photo of you and a family member

Day 16: a photo from your childhood

Day 17: a photo from a trip you'll never forget

Day 18: a photo of your town

Day 19: a photo of last summer

Day 20: a photo of something you ate today

Day 21: a photo of somebody you find attractive

Day 22: a photo that you associate a good memory with

Day 23: a photo of something you want to do some day

Day 24: a photo of what you want to be when you grow up

Day 25: a photo that inspires you

Day 26: a photo of your favorite subject in school

Day 27: a photo of something you are looking forward to

Day 28: a photo of something/someone that made your day

Day 29: a photo of your favorite person from history

Day 30: a photo you find beautiful

So here is today's.... a photo of you... This is prob my most recent pic. I chopped all of my hair off on New Years Eve!

So long Virginia! Hellllooo again California!

2011-02-04T16:34:00.000-08:00

We've known about impending orders for a few weeks but we didn't want to say anything until things became final and official. So the other day we finally got our orders!!!! We're going back to Edwards AFB in Cali! I'm from Bakersfield CA which is only an hour away from Edwards so it's nice to be near home. We were stationed at Edwards 3 years ago for about 4 years. We requested the orders that brought us to Norfolk and we regretted it like the millisecond we got there.

We leave Virginia on March 31 and we should arrive at Edwards on April 4th. We're driving 2 vehicles and doing a partial PPM (DITY) but the majority is going contract.

So now it's time to plan an entire move across country in 55 days!!!! Bring it on!

All about stockpiling

2011-02-01T17:38:00.000-08:00

I would like to say a few things about stockpiling today. The reason is because today I went to Kroger and got a few things and I saw a lady in there that was buying about 50 packs of feminine pads and about 40 packs of cheese. I have no problem with stockpiling and getting a lot of something you know your family can use but there's a not-so-fine-line between stockpiling for your family's needs and hoarding, crazy person style. Buying things just to buy things or just because it's free or cheap is not the way to coupon. Free is awesome and sometimes I get stuff I'll never use if it's free and I'll donate it. But getting 28850989676627837 things because they're free and letting them sit in your pantry/garage is ridiculous. The thrill of the hunt and seeing the receipt at the end of the transaction say "you saved 88%" feels amazing but remember to play fair.

The lady that bought the 50 packs of pads was definitely older, she may or may not even need those pads anymore but if she does, I doubt she'll be using them all before she dies. There were a LOT of pads there. I realize there may be a situation I don't know about, maybe she has bladder issues and uses them frequently and daily and really will need them. That's cool. But remember there will always always always be another sale on the same thing within a few months. Going crazy and clearing the shelves of all of that product is pretty crappy and sucks for other shoppers.

I went to Kroger with 14 coupons for free toothbrushes. I wont use those but I will donate them to the Troops or the school or wherever. I was hoping to see a large bin of the toothbrushes because Kroger usually keeps up with the demand but I couldn't use all of the coupons because there were only 2 small rows of them available and I didn't want to take them all and clear the shelves so I only bought 4 and I'll come back another day. If I don't, it's no biggie. It's nice getting free stuff but being obsessive is crossing the line into crazy town. As a couponer, you've got to learn to shrug your shoulders and say "oh well, they'll be more next time, these will get us by for a while!"

At the moment I live in an 1100-ish sqft house with no garage and no pantry. 5 people, 4 bedrooms, no extra space. We have a small storage closet I jammed some plastic shelving in and I turned half of our small linen closet into a stockpile area and that's it! I don't go overboard and if I start getting crowded, it's time to go through it and donate!

So how do you start a responsible stockpile? You've got to re-learn how to shop. You probably make a menu, make a list of items you'll need on that menu and then turn around and spend way more than you should on that list. Well that's not how coupon shopping works. What you do is go over your circular ads with a fine tooth comb. Look at what's on sale, look at the promotions the store is doing for certain items, ex: "Buy 5 of these products, get $3 off at checkout" ok.... which items are in that promotion... Hmmm.... French's mustard is there. The sale price is $1.50 and if you buy 5 you get $3 off of those 5 items so that automatically brings those 5 mustards down to .90c ea! Already a great price! But if you have coupons to go with it then you'll be even better!!! Let's say there's a .50c/1 and you manage to acquire all 5 coupons, that means each mustard is only .40c ea! So instead of paying $1.50 for one mustard on sale, you're getting 5 mustards for $2!!! This is the "ah ha!" moment you'll have. You'll feel like you're "beating the system" but the stores know this and they're okay with it. Coupons (when used legally and according to that store's policy) are very welcome in stores. The store gets paid very well by the manufacturer for sending in those coupons so don't feel like you're taking money out of your local grocer's pockets. So now you can cross mustard off your list for a few months!!! That's a great example of responsible stockpiling!

Here is an example of overboard unnecessary hoarding. These are all boxes of dryer sheets. There's no possible way any normal family will EVER use this amount of dryer sheets. Having this many is useless and pointless. There will always be another sale. I always have about 3-5 extra packs of dryer sheets for my family and I use one a day. I like to keep a few on hand so I can use them while I'm waiting on another sale to come around. When it does, I'll buy 3-5 more so I don't have to buy them when I'm out and they aren't on sale. THAT is the entire point of stockpiling. Buy them while they're at rock bottom price so you don't have to add them to the list and pay full price later.

Below is an example of what looks like a normal average amount of stockpiled items. A few shelves, 5-10 of each item, nothing crazy. This is similar to my stockpile as well. I should take a picture of mine sometime but my little closet is so awkward and I'm not sure the pics would turn out but I'll try.
Well I hope this informative lecture didn't sound too much like a rant. That's not what I meant by it, I just want to help people re-train themselves to shop different and start doing a little more work to save a lot more money! :)

National Daily Deals anyone can use!

2011-02-01T04:13:00.000-08:00

Check out today's Groupon in Oklahoma City for a $50 credit at CafePress.com for only $25!!! You can make customized items here or buy something already made from someone else's store. I'm going to make an iphone case for Chad with the USMC emblem on it!
Also check out today's extra deal Groupon in Albuquerque for $35 you get $84 credit for a large wall mural from LTLPrints.com
Atlanta's extra deal Groupon has a $20 credit for electronics at everydaysource.com for only $10!
Bakersfield's Groupon is a $150 credit to Indochino.com for only $50!!! Nice mens suits and accessories here.
Baton Rouge's Groupon has $50 worth of photo books, cards etc. at MixBook.com for only $15!!!
Boise's extra deal Groupon is $30 for $60 at ideclarecharms.com and they have adorable personalized jewelry. (kids names, etc. Great Mommy necklaces!)
Boston's extrea deal Groupon is $15 for $35 at shopthelook.net They have very cute and affordable jewelry and accessories
Colorado Spring's Groupon has a $15 for $30 at addalines.com which seems like an eclectic personalization shop online.
Corpus Christi's side deal Groupon is $13 for $26 at viewsport.us which is a site that sells workout clothing
There are lots of other national deals. I only made it to the C's before my kids needed me but you can look through them all and find the ones you can use online!
Plum District has a $50 credit to Beauty.com for only $25!!!

Remember Christmas comes fast, it's already February and getting these Groupons well in advance is an excellent way to shop cheap for the family and friends year round and to put gifts away for Christmas which always comes way too fast!!

Great weekend!

2011-01-31T05:17:00.000-08:00

I'm super excited because all weekend we went car shopping (SUV) and found an amazing deal on a 2005 Ford Expedition Eddie Bauer. We traded our 2009 Dodge Caliber in for it and now we have a big enough vehicle for everyone plus more! I've never considered myself very materialistic (although of course I like nice things, nice doesn't necessarily equal expensive) so anytime we've gone car shopping I always always get the lower end model of the vehicle. Cloth seats, no fancy bells and whistles, etc. In Chad's truck he doesn't have power door locks or auto windows, no carpet, etc. Some things just aren't necessary in our lives. Well, we just happened to find a great deal on the Eddie Bauer edition which is the high end model of the Expedition! It's got leather seats, premium sound, a DVD player for the kids (thaaaaank GOD!) automatic 3 row seat buttons (to put them up and down) auto dimming mirrors, power seats, etc. We're still discovering all of the fun stuff, we're like little kids, soooo excited and amazed at some of the features this thing has! And to think, it's 6 years old!

Anyway the other really exciting part of the weekend is that we paid off Chad's truck and one of our two credit cards! We only have a little bit left on the other card (Hopefully 6 payments) then our only debt will be the Expedition! It feels so good to be in the clear!!! We're making a debt thermometer tonight so we can get a visual of it and take an active role in paying it off, it's really exciting!

Jan 27, great deals and freebies!

2011-01-27T04:44:00.000-08:00

PlumDistrict (like Groupon) has a $30 gift card to 5th Ave Chocolatiers for only $15. You can order online. Great gift and they have some cute affordable stuff!
Groupon has a great deal today, $10 off $20 or $15 off $30 for Bath and Body Works. Even if you're not a B&BW user, there are always really great gifts there!
REDBOX (the movie kiosk) has a code for a FREE rental today only!!! MOVIENIGHT is the code you'll use although they'll still have you swipe the card, it wont charge you unless you bring it back late.
Keep your eyes peeled for Orville Redenbachers's popcorn with the movie night packaging, inside should be a coupon for 2 free Redbox codes, a coupon for $1 off Poppycock popcorn and a free 2ltr soda. There's also a coupon for $1/2 in the 1/23 SS!!
If you use Pampers Points, there's a 42 point free code! VMF776C7HMXXT4A

Not much going on today so far other than these deals. Tomorrow will be better, there should be more retail and restaurant deals for the weekend.

Just some matchups

2011-01-26T11:25:00.000-08:00

Wednesday is my usual shopping day so I don't spend a lot of time online in the morning other than at Farm Fresh's website checking out their new ad. Also at TheCouponConsultant's website because she's the one that posts matchups for Farm Fresh every Wednesday morning for us!

Yesterday I hit up Target with some coupons. Most of the good stuff was picked over and gone.... that's what I get for waiting until Tuesday (Sunday as early as possible is the best bet for Target because the ad comes out that day and everything is still fully stocked.) Here's how I did at Target:

Sorry it's so small, here's the breakdown:

Transaction #1
2 packs of Huggies $8.99 ea
-2 $2/1 manu Q's in the 1/23 Smartsource (SS)

1 pack Pampers (my fav but I only had one coupon) $8.99
-1 $2/1 manu Q from the packaging of a previous box of diapers I used in the past

Buy 3 jumbo packs of Pampers or Huggies and get a $5 gift card for next transaction

Total before coupons = $26.97
Total AFTER coupons = $22.18

Transaction #2
Secretariat BluRay/DVD combo (Brookie's Val Day gift) $24.99
-$8 HERE making it cheaper than the regular DVD =$16.99

2 M&M Val Day candy heart things .99c ea =$1.98
-$1/2 HERE (search for the $1/2 Valentines MARS candy) = ..98c (.49c ea)

1 Market Pantry cereal bars (no coupon, no sale... just really wanted Delaney to try them) $2.54 (ugh!)

1 Dole Spinach (no coupon but not a terrible price) $2

1 Ramen noodles $1.24

1 Ortega taco seasoning packet .67c
1 Ortega taco sauce $1 (huge bottle!)
-.50c/2 from the 1/23 SS = $1.17 for both

Feta cheese (no sale no coupon) $3.99

1 Market Pantry parm cheese $2.79 no coupon no sale

1 Activia yogurt 4 pack $1.89
-1 $1/1 from the 1/9 SS = .89c

1 Vaseline lotion $2.50
-1 $1/1 from HERE (it's a Target store coupon) =$1.50

1 Rimmel Mascara $2.29
-1 $2/1 HERE = .29c (Target store coupon, look for the one that says "any Rimmel cosmetic item)

2 Blistex chapsticks $1.02 each = $2.04
-2 .35/1 in the 1/16 SS = $1.34 (.67c ea)

2 pairs of fleece pants on clearance for Delaney $1.75ea = $3.50

2 Kraft Singles $2.39ea
-Target coupon STACKED WITH Manu coupon =?
I honestly can't remember which coupon I printed for this and the receipt is confusing and isn't helping me desipher it but check kraftfoods.com and target.com for printables. You can use a Target and a manu together for very cheap cheese!

My total before coupons for the 2nd transaction was $66.09
Total after coupons was $41.14
THEN I used the $5 gift card from transaction #1 and my total with tax was $36.14!!

So this trip was a great example of why coupons are so important. There were several things I didn't have coupons for and there will always be items there are no coupons for but using coupons for most of the things you buy will bring your shopping bill down to a very manageable price so you can buy some of the stuff there are no coupons for.

Farm Fresh 1/26

Farm Fresh does double $1 coupons on Wednesdays, here is my breakdown:

4 Cinnamon Toast Crunch $2.50 each
BUT if you buy 4 you get them for $1.75ea and you can still use coupons so I used
2 .55/1 (doubled) HERE = .65c ea (It's a manu coupon on Target's website, even if it prints with a Target logo, it's still a manu, print 2 of these!)
1 $1/2 (doubled) HERE = .75c ea (it says they're all out for now but check back, sometimes they reset the coupons)
= $2.80 for 4 boxes of cereal!

2 Lipton Veggie soup packets $2 (no coupon)

2 Kens dressing $2 ea = $4
-2 $1/1 (doubled) from the 1/9 SS = FREE!

4 Small French's worchs. sauces $1 ea =$4
-2 $1/2 (doubled) from a coupon booklet I picked up from Food Lion at Christmas time (be sure to check the cardboard displays and watch the shelves carefully, keep all coupons, you never know when you can use them!) = FREE

1 Franks Hot Sauce $1.19
-.50/1 (doubled) -the coupon fairy left this coupon on the shelf so I'm not sure where it came from
= .19c

2 Old Orchard apple juices $2.39 ea = $4.78
-2 $1/1 (doubled) from the same insert as the worsch. sauces
=.78c (.39c ea)

4 Starkist Tuna packets $1.39ea = $5.56
-4 .50/1 (doubled) also from the same coupon booklet as the above items
=$1.56/4 (.30c ea)

1 Wholly Guacamole $2.39
1 Wholly salsa $2.39
-2 $1/1 (doubled) (same booklet as others) = .78c (.39c ea)

2 Zone bars (these were only $1 last week so I got 2 for free, this week they went up but I LOVED THEM so I got more) $1.25ea = $2.50
-2 .55c/1 (doubled) from 1/16 SS =.30c (.15c ea)

Total before coupons = $39.44
Total after coupons = $9.04!!

I am going to miss Farm Fresh if/when we move ever! I don't know what I'll do without double dollar days!!! ACK!!!!

Early morning, already some great deals!

2011-01-25T04:50:00.000-08:00

Amazing high value coupon $3.99/1 New York Style product HERE *click on download coupon, then register (I always use the misc email address for stuff like this)
Free book called Dads and Daughters by James Dobson (faith based book) HERE
Go to Plum District (similar to Groupon) to grab a Regal Cinemas gift card worth $10 for only $5! Yay for cheaper movies!!! (click on Orange County or Baltimore for this)
Get a free photobook from Snapfish HERE. 8x11 classic photobook $24.99 value, just pay shipping! (approx $6.99) This could be a great gift for someone, Val Day, Mothers and Fathers day coming up in the next few months!
Play the game HERE to get a $2/$5 produce coupon for Food Lion!
"Like" Nesquik on FB HERE to get a coupon for a BOGO chocolate milk *I tried and it said I already printed this even though I didn't. Sometimes it gives that error message if they've reached their max. Check back because sometimes they re-set the coupon!

Well that's all I've got this morning. I'm off to Target to stack some coupons for some great deals! Check out TheKrazyCouponLady's Target matchups for some great ideas! (Diaper deal is excellent!!!)

Walgreens trip

2011-01-23T09:47:00.000-08:00

Today was a major Walgreens score! Here's the breakdown of what I got, how I got it and how much everything was.

Transaction #1

Huggies Little Movers diapers (back page of the ad)
$8.99
used a $2/1 coupon from today's Smart Source insert (1/23)
out of pocket (OOP) = $7.44 (tax included)
Then I got a $2 register reward once I paid for the diapers. **Register rewards are just free money that prints from the Catalina machine after you pay. They can be used on the next transaction and typically expire within 2 weeks. **

Transaction #2

6 bottles of liquid Maalox 12oz $5.09 each
-6 coupons for $5/1 each in the 1/9 smart source insert = .09c each = .54c for all 6
**On page 11 in the ad, you'll see "Buy $30 in these products and get $10 register rewards for next purchase." Well before coupons, these items were $30.54! So my register rewards will still print even though I used coupons.**

1 Stay free pads (24 count) $1.99
- 1 Catalina coupon (the machine at the register) that printed a few weeks ago $1.50 = .49c

4 Valentines Day gift bags 4/$1.00 (I used this to offset my coupon/item ratio that Walgreens has... it's annoying but luckily there are plenty of cheap things you can use as "fillers."

Total = $2.18 with tax OOP
- the $2 register reward I got from the diaper transaction
= .18c
ALSO I got $10 in register rewards because of the Maalox for the next purchase!

Transaction #3

4 cases of Mt Dew
4/$13
-in store coupon of $3.00 = 4/$10
-$10 register rewards from the last transaction = FREE + .33 tax! OOP

Total of all items before in store and manufacturer's coupons = $55.52
Total OOP for all items after coupons = $7.95!!!

Walgreens may seem like it's expensive or maybe it's not the first place that pops into your head for anything other than filling your prescriptions but if you read the ad carefully and you have allllllll of your coupons available, you could easily do this too!

Jan 22, wow two days in a row!

2011-01-22T05:09:00.000-08:00

Some good deals I've come across this morning, there are sure to be more later on so check back and I may add some later in the day!

Herbal Essences is giving away coupons for free shampoo at NOON EST! These will go super fast so be ready for it a few min before noon!
If you plan on flying anywhere, check out this deal on Kodak's website. If you buy $50 in Kodak products (photo books, etc) you get a free companion airfare. I didn't read through all restrictions but it seems like there are a lot of airports to use. Check this one out carefully before buying, Kodak is legit but airfare deals can get tricky if you don't read through them carefully.

HURRY and use this one! $10 off of $30 at Office Max, expires today!
Yankee Candle always has pretty good coupons, here's a $10/$25
77Kids is American Eagle's kids line. Cute stuff. HERE is a $10/$50 and it can be used online. Not sure where the actual stores are located. Check out the "store locator" link.
Speaking of American Eagle... they also have a $10/$50 HERE to be used in store or online.
Free Anti Bac at Bath and Body Works if you spend $10 HERE can be used online too!
I LOVE Kirklands! HERE is a $10/$50 to be used in stores only
This weekend only use THIS coupon to get an additional 20% off at the Coach Outlet!
Carters in store only, HERE is a 20%/$50 which is $10 off.
If you're in need of some nice work clothes, NY & Co always has decent coupons HERE
Childrens Place! 15% this weekend! HERE

Baja Fresh has a few coupons HERE
FREE Taco Deluxe at Del Taco with any purchase HERE
BD's Mongolian Grill has a 15% off entire check HERE
Bakers Square has a lot of REALLY good coupons HERE
O'Charleys has a coupon for a FREE appetizer when you buy one entree HERE

Be sure to check the links from yesterday's posts also, they should still be active at least through the weekend, and now I'm off to get ready to go to Big Lots with my 20% off coupon from yesterday!

Dangit!

2011-01-21T05:56:00.000-08:00

I forgot I have a blog AGAIN. Well since I post deals and great sales on FB, and I know that a lot of people couldn't care less, I figure I'll post them here instead and link this to FB for those that care. So here goes!

Deals for Friday Jan 21

Big Lots has a 20% coupon HERE
Hampton Roads families may want to check out the Pilot Online Daily Deal HERE for cheap CiCi's Pizza, only $9 for 4 people!
A few high value printable coupons HERE including Cracker Barrel cheese and Oscar Meyer lunch meat! **Remember after it prints, click your back button (you'll get an error message screen) then refresh the page and it should give you an option to print a second one! (turn your paper over to save paper!) **
Rare Kraft singles printable $1/1 (use this at Farm Fresh on a double $1 Wednesday for possible free cheese!) HERE
There's a Beech-Nut toddler welcome kit for free HERE, it looks like a packet including coupons
Kohls has a 15% off coupon HERE
"Like" Sears on FB for some new coupons including a $5/$10, they expire soon so hurry!
Bath and Body Works has a free lotion HERE
Going out to eat this weekend? TGIFridays, Olive Garden, Denny's, Chili's, Lonestar Steakhouse, Jack in the Box (I miss you!!) and Smokey Bones have coupons!

That's all I've got today! I'll try to get another list done for tomorrow!

Fall pics!

2010-10-13T07:25:00.001-07:00

We had a fall craft day last weekend, this is what we ended up with:

Our pumpkins! I hate carving them and they rot out very fast on the humid East coast (I'm a Cali girl, nice and dry!) So we got creative with the decor!

Daughter made an owl!

Son made a mummy