This Week's CVS Trips

I couldn't resist CVS this week....I made a tiny profit! Here's what went down:

Transaction #1

Garnier Style stuff $2.99
Crest $1.99

minus

$1.00 Garnier coupon
$1.00 Crest coupon from mailed P&G book
$2.89 in ECB

Total OOP = $.09 and I got back $3.00 in ECB

Transaction #2

5 Visines $18.95
Band-Aids $3.59

minus

(5) $2.00 Visine newspaper coupons
$2.00 CVS/Visine-A coupon from the magic coupon machine before Transaction #1
$1.00 Band-Aid newspaper coupon
$9.00 in ECB

Total OOP = $.54 and I got back $10.00 in ECB.

Overall, I spent $.63 cash out of pocket and I increased my ECB from $8.89 to $10. That's an ECB profit of $1.11, minus the $.63 cash I spent and I made a "profit" of $.48 this week at CVS. I also saved $40.89. But wait, there's more! I listed the four Visine Tears boxes on eBay ($9.99 starting price) and already have a bidder! It was another win-win week at CVS. :)

Tonight Is $.31 Scoop Night At Baskin-Robbins & More!

Tonight from 5-10 pm enjoy a $.31 scoop of ice cream at Baskin-Robbins, in honor of America's firefighters. Read the scoop (haha) here. We took the kids last year, it was fun!

Huggies Pure & Natural Diaper sample from Huggies. 3 sample diapers will be included!! Don't forget to check out the new Enjoy The Ride points program from Huggies. You get 10 points for signing up, can answer surveys for points, and obviously enter the points from Huggies products.

Sign up to receive great deals and tips on well known skin care products, and print a $2 (Avenno) coupon Click Here!! From PharmDaily.

My Walgreens Trip This Morning-April 27

I made a small money making trip this morning to Walgreens. We needed starch, but here's what I got:

Transaction #1

Nivea Bodywash $4.99
Rembrandt Mouthwash $5.99
Bayer Quick Release Crystals $2.49

minus

$3.00 in RR from last week
$3/$10 Walgreens coupon (I had to drive to Rockwall, it was a grand opening coupon)

Total OOP = $7.39 in cash and I got back $13.50 in Register Rewards. $5 from Nivea, $6 from Rembrandt and $2.50 from Bayer.

Transaction #2

2 Walgreens Starch $3.00
Ecotrin Aspirin $2.00

minus

$2.25 Ecotrin printable coupon

$2.50 in RR from transaction #1

Total OOP = $.50 cash and I got back $2.00 in RR for the Ecotrin.

Overall, I spent $7.89 in cash out of pocket. Ouch! But I ended with $13.00 in RR so that's an overall profit of $5.11. I also saved $12.49. On a side note, I submitted my last Walgreens rebate yesterday! Walgreens has done away with the Easy Saver Rebates. Pretty sad, but if the Register Rewards are anything like this week, I think I can cope.

I also picked up Disney's Bedtime Story's at the Redbox on the way out for free, for the kiddos.

Redbox Free Rental Code Monday April 27th

I got my text! I figure last week I was just too lame to figure my phone out. Hubby got us new phones (and lowered our cell bill)! Here's the promo code today:

4CW33N

Valid until midnight (central time) and your rental must be returned by tomorrow at 9pm.

Visit Redbox to find a machine, look at available movies, sign up for promo code text's on Mondays, etc.

On a side note, when you get a new cell phone please consider the following options for your OLD phone: 1. Recycle it. 2. Sell it (eBay...). 3. Trade it (like at Swagbucks).

I'm sending ours to Swagbucks this time around, but I made $42 when I sold hubby's old RAZR on eBay a while back. It was well used too. Older models are best recyled.

Do-It-Herself Workshop (Gardening!!) on May 14th at Home Depot

Is your yard ready for spring and summer? If not, check out the latest Do-It-Herself Workshop from Home Depot. It actually sounds really fun!!

Free Shopping Tote From Earthbound Farm

This is the last chance for this one! The first 10,000 people each week to take the "Sustain Yourself, Sustain the Planet Pledge" in April will receive this cute reusable shopping tote. Since this is the last week in April, you need to hurry!

Sustain Yourself, Sustain the Planet Pledge

Thanks Earthbound Farm!! And thanks to Freebies 4 Mom for the reminder.

Coupon For A Free Right Guard Fast Break-Hurry!!

The first 10,000 people who visit here can print a coupon for a free Right Guard Fast Break.

Note - coupon takes a minute or two to print, so be patient!

A big thanks to Deal Seeking Mom for the heads up. :)

Awesome Trip To Kroger- April 26th

As much as I hate to shop on the weekend, I took both kids to Kroger this afternoon. I usually try to shop on Thursday or Friday, but this week that didn't happen. Anyway, it was a great trip!!

Freebies and super cheap highlights:

Pillsbury Grands Biscuits $1.00/2 - $.50/2 newspaper coupon doubled = FREE

Pillsbury Crescent Rolls - use a $.25/1 or $.40/2 or $.30/2 coupons that were doubled or tripled = $.05 to .10 each

Soft Soap $.99 - $.35 coupon tripled to price = FREE

Dial Soap Pump $1.45 - $.35 coupon tripled =$.40 each

Birds Eye Steam Veggies $1.00 - $1.00/2 coupon = $.50 each

Angel Soft $.99 - $.50 newspaper coupon doubled = FREE

Quakes $.99 - $1.00 coupon = FREE

Suave Deodorant $.99 - $.50 coupon doubled = FREE

Brut Deodorant $.99 - $.55 coupon = $.44 each

Bananas $.39/pound

Strawberries $1.50

Sun Detergent $1.88

Overall I spent $40.42 cash OOP, but will submit the $2.99 rebate for the Sargento Potato Finishers. That will bring the trip down to $37.43. Since it has been 10 days since I shopped, that breaks down to $3.73 a day. My goal is $5 a day, so well done! I saved $43.78 using coupons and my Kroger card.

Don't forget to load the eCoupons before you go. I'm happy to say I've added a new Cellfire banner to my blog. Scroll down a bit, it's on the left. I checked it before I went and saved $.50 on my Fiber One yogurt.

Any great Kroger deals? Leave a comment!!

Wylie Mom's Weekly Recap-Week 17

Last week was bit of a "vacation" week for me. I had a lot going on towards the end of the week (show at daughter's pre-school, competition out of town for her twirling class, and she also turned 5!!!) so some errands got put on hold. But, I did make it to CVS! Here's what I managed to rummage up as far as savings and profits.

Savings - $31.73

-$1.00 at Redbox

- $.60 at Walgreens (huge, right?)

- $30.13 at CVS

eBay Sales - $138.36

Misc. Income - $124.84

- $10 cash at Half Price Books
- $2.99 Arm and Hammer fabric sheet rebate
- $111.85 check from Logical Media - It's an affiliate program for your blog, banners and offers and such. Check out the banner at the bottom for more info.

Weekly Impact $294.94
Yearly Impact $6,333.46

As far as eBay scoop, I only listed 15 things! Shame on me, I know! But I had stuff going on. What can I say? Out of the $138.36 in sales I did have, that was 8 auctions and 4 store items. I can definitely say I'm looking forward to summer vacation when I have less going on and can give eBay more attention. :)

My favorite recent sale is this Ralph Lauren plush sweater bear. I paid $.99 for it at a thrift store. When I listed it, I had a price plus the "or best offer feature". I was offered $30!! Yippee!! The key to having an eBay store is list often and have lots of patience. :)

Have a great week!

I Headed Into CVS At The Last Minute...

I really hadn't planned on going to CVS last week. But, after I read my SIL's post I decided to go ahead and give it a shot. I was so excited that everything I wanted was in stock, which is rare at the end of the week! Here's what I purchased:

Transaction #1

2 ACT Total Care $7.58
Edge Infused $2.89
Bayer Crystals $2.00
2 Extra Gum $2.58

minus

(2) $1.00 ACT newspaper coupons
B1G1 Free Extra newspaper coupon
B1G1 Free Extra coupon e-mailed to me from CVS
$10.00 in Extra Care Bucks

Total OOP = $.47 and I got back $8.89 in ECB ($2.89 Edge, $2.00 Bayer and $4.00 ACT)

Transaction #2

2 Crest Pro-Health toothpaste $5.76
2 CVS nuts $1.98

minus

$1.00 Crest P&G coupon
$.75 Crest P&G coupon
$2.00/2 CVS nuts coupon from magic coupon machine (be sure to check it first!!)
$4.00 in ECB from transaction #1

Total OOP = ZERO and I got back $4.00 in ECB from the Crest

Overall, I spent $.47 in cash OOP. I saved $30.13 and I only "lost" $1.11 in ECB (I started the week with $10 and ended with $8.89). Not bad!!

Once I decided to buy the Crest, I remembered I could sell it on eBay (I have in the past!!). Crazy I know, since toothpaste is something most couponers get for free. But, then that same day I see, Suzanne, the eBay Selling Coach post this. I decided to get a regular Pro-Health and a Nighttime Pro-Health thinking that will make a nice auction. Yay!!

Lots Of Fun Samples And Coupons To Share

I found quite a few fun free samples (and some coupons) tonight. Request, wait........, and try new products!

NIVEA Touch of Happiness Body Wash sample from Walmart.

John Frieda Root Awakening shampoo and conditioner sample from Walmart. Wait for the short video to stop, then the request a sample button will appear. Also, only the "Strength Restoring" sample is left.

L'Oreal Ever Pure haircolor sample AND/OR L'Oreal Advanced RevitaLift Deep-Set Wrinkle Repair sample from L'Oreal.

AVEENO® NOURISH+ Hair Care Collection from CVS and StartSampling.

Dove Ultimate go fresh Cool Essentials deodorant sample from Costco. You may leave the member number blank if you don't have one.

Thanks to Free Grabber and Freebies 4 Mom for the sample leads! :)

Now, as far as cool coupons...

$1.50 Off Kashi GoLean Waffles printable coupon from VocalPoint.

RedPlum loaded new coupons and here's the ones that caught my eye:

$.40 off Skippy
$1.00/3 Rice-a-Roni or Pasta-Roni
$.75/2 Knorr Rice or Pasta sides
$1.50 Huggies Natural Fit

Speaking of the $1.50 Huggies coupon, there's another here at Coupons.Com. I also have a cute green Coupons.com coupon bar on the left side of my blog. You can quick print just the ones you like. Some that I like are:

$.50 Cottenelle (if I could find the 4 pks again!)
$1.00 Off Kashi Honey Sunshine Cereal (there are more Kashi coupons)
$1.50 Off Dove Body Wash

Also, don't forget to check out the latest eCoupons at Cellfire and Shortcuts.

Good night!

Celebrate "Earth Day" Monday Through Friday!

Sign up with Ideal Bite for eco-living tips, emailed Monday through Friday. All sorts of topics are covered-travel, wine, clothes....etc. It's cooler than you might think. :) Happy Earth Day!!

A Frugal Run Around Town

Here's my frugal errands from Monday while my daughter was in dance class. My son and I:

1. Dropped off two boxes of books and magazines at Half Price Books and made $10 cash.

2. Went to Walgreens and got one more Skintimate Shave Cream stuff for $3.24 (with tax). I paid with my Walgreens gift card (zero OOP) and got back $3.00 in Register Rewards. I "saved" $.60.

3. Used the Redbox at Walgreens and borrowed Being Green for the kids. It was free using the Free Redbox code on Monday. Sign up and they send you a text on Monday's with a free rental promo code. Mine didn't come this week....ekk! So I searched the web. :)

Monday, I also hit up a thrift store and got my son a Ralph Lauren polo shirt for $2, my daughter a pair of Limited Too capris for $2 and a "new in package" pack of Color Wonder paper for $.59. Not to mention a few odds and ends for eBay.

Today in the mail, I got $2.99 from Arm & Hammer (dryer sheet rebate) and two samples! Yay!!

Anything fun and frugal happen to you this week? Leave a comment!

Iced Coffee On The Cheap Today!

You can get a 16 oz. Iced Coffee at Dunkin' Donuts today for only $.50!!!

Click here for all the info. Enjoy!!

Wylie Mom's Florastor Kids Giveaway!!

I'm giving away ONE of my Florastor Kids boxes! You might remember when I received 2 in the mail from MomSelect, one to try and one to giveaway.

A little about Florastor Kids: It's a "clincially-tested, natural, yeast-based probiotic that aids in the growth of good microorganisms in the intestines, while destroying and removing disease causing microorganisms to help maintain or restore optimal intestinal health.

Interested in giving it a try for free? Enter to win the 10 packet box pictured.

I'll make it easy to enter. Just leave me a comment. To get an extra entry you can also:

Subscribe to my blog
Follow my blog
Post this giveaway on your blog

Please leave an additional comment for each "extra credit" entry. Giveaway open until 9 pm (central time) on Wednesday night, April 22nd (Earth Day!!). Thanks and good luck!!

***UPDATE*** Thanks to all of those who entered. This was fun! I used random.org to pick a winner and it was comment (entry) #5.....you should be hearing from me soon. :) Thank You!!

Wylie Mom's Weekly Recap-Week 16

Here's how last week turned out for me:

Savings, detailed below - $122.94

- $39.59 at Kroger
- $18.59 at Albertsons
- $12.22 at Walmart
- $52.54 in products to try

eBay Sales - $92.85 (that was 6 store items)

Misc. Income, detailed below - $40.59

- $3.81 PayPal MasterCard cash back from March (I forgot to track this!)
- $.53 BigCrumbs
- $32.50 check from confidential panel (hubby and I both)
- $3.75 Caregivers Marketplace rebate

Weekly Impact - $256.38
Yearly Impact - $6038.52

It was not a huge week, but I'm not feeling too bad. Last weekend was Easter and I was out of town. Not to mention I had very few auctions ending because of that same reason. I did sell 6 store items. I'm very thankful for my store sales!! I listed 31 new items last week and will aim for 35 this week.

As far as something fun I sold, here's a cute Tommy Hilfiger dress that went for $9.97, the week before last. Another store sale. I bought this dress last year sometime at Once Upon A Child for about $5 or $6. I remember it being on sale and I got a few other things and used a $5/$25 coupon. Anyway, my daughter wore this dress a lot last year, and I still turned a profit on it! I will admit, I do spend a bit of time on the kid's laundry, I wash inside out in cold and hang to dry. And it wasn't a huge profit, but you can shop smart for kids clothes!!

For example: I'd rather spend $20 on a new Gymboree outfit ($15-20 considering a good sale at Gymboree!) and sell it later on eBay for $10 than get a new outfit at Target for $10 that has no resell value after it's worn. Both outfits "cost" $10, but why not get the better quality (and way cuter!!) item....? Just another crazy way I look at things, using the power of eBay. :)

Have a great week!

$52.54 Worth Of Free Stuff In The Mail

Check out the stuff that came in the mail for me yesterday and today!!

From Bzz Agent I received: A 2000 Calorie Extreme Lash Plumper Mascara (I love 2000 Calorie mascara and can't wait to try this!!!!), 2 Vivid Impact Lipcolors and a copy of D Beauty (D as in Dallas). Total value $30.59. Oh, and there were three $2.00 off Max factor coupons.

I talked a bit about BzzAgent here in this post. It's so much fun!!

From Mom Select I received: (2) 10 Ct. Packets of Florastor Kids. Florastor Kids is a probiotic. Total Value $21.95.

What's a probiotic you ask? According to the Florastor website, "Probiotics help the good organisms in your body to grow and protect your intestines against "bad" organisms that can make you unwell. Florastor Kids helps maintain the normal balance of microorganisms in the gut."

We'll see what the kids think! I will probably do a giveaway for the second 10 ct. box. Keep an eye out!

I also have 2 nice mailing boxes for eBay, so it's a win/win to try new products!!!! Join panels and marketing programs when you run across them. Later when they send you an offer, it's up to you to accept. You can only pick things that interest you! Have any fun panels to share? Leave me a comment! Thanks!

Gum Stock-Up At Walmart This Morning

I headed to Walmart this morning with the kids (yes, on a busy Saturday). We have a birthday party later today, and well, there's nothing like waiting until the last minute for gift shopping. Anyway, I used the last my Mentos Gum coupons that expire this month and picked up some tape and free Kashi.

7 Mentos Gum $1.28 each - (7) $1.00 newspaper coupons = $1.96

Tape $.97

Kashsi Entree - Free Entree mailed coupon = Free

Total OOP for my stuff = $3.01.

I also picked up some sidewalk chalk for the birthday gift bag (recycled...read:from my stash at home). The chalk was from the 75% Easter pile, so it was only $.50!! And some Hallmark cards are 50%, I unknowingly picked out a $.44 card. Yay me! Overall, at Walmart I saved $12.22 today.

On a side note, I looked at Walmart for the Sagento Salad Finishers (to use the $1.00 coupon and mail in rebate) but didn't find them. I've also looked at Super Target and Kroger. No luck at either one of those. Anyone know where these can be found?

Another side note, I'll get $.22 back on my PayPal card for using my PayPal MasterCard. My PayPal MasterCard is solely funded by eBay sales (and a few rebates and surveys here and there). The 1% rebate shows up as soon as the transaction (Walmart in this example) clears my PayPal account. :)

Have A Blog or Website?

If so, have you signed up with ReadySite yet? It's an affiliate program (to make money), but you can custom build your banners. They have banners to create for samples, sweepstakes, health deals, etc. You can also pick your banner's colors, size, etc. Click below to check it out.

A Quick Trip In To Alberstons As Well

I couldn't resist a few deals at Albertsons this week, here's what I got:

Kool Aid Burstin' Waters (I'm such a sucker!!) $.88

Community Coffee $3.99 - $2.00 newspaper coupon = $1.99

Korr's Sides $.88 - $75/2 newspaper coupon = $.51 each

Teddy Grahams $1.88 - $1.00/2 newspaper coupon = $1.38 each

Strawberries $1.88

I spent $11.59 cash OOP and saved $18.59. I got 5 game pieces, but none of them I needed. Better luck next time, I guess. :)

Super Deals At Kroger This Week!

It had been two weeks since I grocery shopped!! I think a couple of $1.00 coupons got missed, but I'm very happy overall. Just be sure to watch the $1.00 coupons on $.99 items. The cashier might not hear it beep and keep on scanning your coupon stack.

Here's some freebies and on the cheap highlights:

Quaker Quakes $.99 - $1.00 newspaper coupon = FREE

Fast Fixin' Chicken $.99 - $1.00 printable coupon = FREE

Birds Eye Veggies $.99 - 1.00 newspaper coupon (I think) = FREE

Suave deodorant $.99n - $.50 coupon doubled = FREE

McCormick's Grill Seasoning $.99 - $.75 newspaper coupon = $.24 each, I think there are $1.00 coupons out there as well, making this item free.

Kroger Bread $.99 each

Kroger Mouthwash $.99

Blue Bell pints $.99

Kroger 8oz. Cheese $1.50

Pillsbury Brownie Mix $.99 - $.35 newspaper coupon tripled (to purchase price)= FREE

There were lots of other great deals to be had. Be sure to check out the ad and the eCoupons at Kroger.com I spent $28.33 cash OOP and saved $36.59.

Nothing Like Freebies To Get Back In the Game!

Getting back on track seems harder than it should be! The good news is, I may have a lack of blog posts, but I've already listed 23 new things on eBay. But that's another story. Here's are some samples I found out in cyberspace.

Better Than Ears dog treat sample from Walmart.

Crest Whitesptrips sample from Walmart.

Huggies Pure & Natural Diaper Sample from....Walmart! :)

Cottenelle TP & Wet Wipe Sample from Walmart, yup again. Isn't Walmart the coolest?

Check out all of Walmart's samples here on their "Samples & Trials" page. Be sure to hit refresh, because a new sample (that wasn't shown before) might pop up!

Shower Caddy from Scrubbing Bubbles when you sign up for their newsletter.

TODAY ONLY (April 15th)- Cinnabon is offering free bite sized cinnamon rolls from 5-8 pm, it's "Tax Bite Day". Click here for a location near you.

Interested in more eating out deals for today??? Check out this great list at RedPlum.

Free Book Summary -Seven Habits of Highly Effective People - Powerful Lessons in Personal Change...this is a great book! Although, I'll admit it's been a while since I've read it.

Don't forget to check Shop 4 Freebies for sample listings. It's updated daily....which is more than you can say for me.

Wylie Mom's Weekly Recap-Week 15

I hope everyone had a great weekend! I did!! The kids and I went with my parents to Missouri for an Easter family reunion of sorts. Poor hubby had to stay home and work. Today, I've been trying to get back on track, you know how that goes after being out of town. Here's my brief recap of last week (finally!!).

Savings - $70.77 ($44.27 at CVS and $26.50 at Walgreens)

eBay Sales - $174.22

Misc. Income - $10.98 (Walgreens rebate from March)

Weekly Impact - $255.97

Yearly Impact - $5782.14

I listed 15 new items on eBay last week. I'll aim for a minimum of 30 this week. I also got 2 samples in the mail and 3 free magazines, keep an eye out for free subscriptions!! It was a pretty slow week due to the holiday.

Here's my favorite eBay sale from last week: Kentucky Bourbon Glass...nothing really special about it. It was first listed at auction a few months ago and didn't sell, so I moved it to the store. It sold last week for $9.97 and only cost me $.59 at a thrift store. This is a perfect example of why I love my eBay store!!

Have a great week! :)

Have A Great Easter Weekend!!

Great Deals To Be Had At Walgreens-April 8th

Gosh, how did it get to be Wednesday? I hope everyone is ready for Easter! Anyway, here's what I got at Walgreens this morning before and after Story Time.

Transaction #1

2 Visines $7.98

minus (2) $3.00 Visine coupons

Total = $1.98 paid to GC (zero OOP) and I got back $3.00 in Register Rewards, that's $1.02 profit. Yay!

Transaction #2

2 Visines $7.98
Skintimate $2.99
Colgate Total $3.49

minus

$3.00 Visine coupon
$2.00 Visine coupon
$1.00 Colgate coupon

Total = $8.46 paid to Wags GC (zero OOP) and I got back $3.00 in RR for the Visine, $3.00 for the Skintimate and $3.50 for the Colgate ($9.50 total in RR back). I did transaction #2 because the first Wags didn't have any Colgate or Skintimate.

Transaction #3

Black Ink Refill $10
Oust $2.99
Niagara Starch $1.99
One-A-Day drink mix $1.49

minus

$.99 Wags/Niagara coupon (saved $1.00)
$2.00 Oust coupon
$12.50 in RR from transaction #1 and #2 above

Total = $.97 paid to Wags GC (zero OOP).

Overall, I paid $11.41 from my Walgreens gift card (ZERO out of pocket). I saved a total of $26.50. Lastly, I'll get back $10.98 on my gift card from the Easy Saver rebates, so the trips "cost" me $.43 of gift card money.

A break down of the rebate money on the gift card, I'm getting back $7.50 for the ink refill, $1.49 for the One-A-Day, and $1.00 for the Oust. That's $9.99 plus a 10% bonus for having it loaded to the Walgreens gift card, so $10.98 total back. :)

Redbox Free Rental Code For Monday April 6th

TS473G

I just got back from errands with Mama Mia! Code good until midnight (central time) and movie needs to be back tomorrow by 9pm. Happy Renting!

P.S. I wrote the code on a sticky note and posted it on the machine as I left. Well, the lady behind me took it off after she used it!! That's not good coupon karma!!

Shopping Is Fun Again, At Least At CVS It Is!

This week felt like the old days at CVS, well a little a least. Here's what I came home with:

Transaction #1

4 Pringles ($.88 each) $3.52
Skintimate Shave Cream $3.49
Colgate $2.99
2 Revlon Nail Colors (B1G1 Free) $4.99

minus

(2) $1.00/1 Pringles coupon from the P&G mailed packet (they were burning holes in my pockets!)
$1.00/2 P&G newspaper coupon
$1.00 Colgate coupon
(2) $2.00 Revlon coupons
$2.00 CVS/Revlon coupon from the magic coupon machine
$2.99 in ECB
$1.00 in ECB (winter spending)

Total OOP = $1.00 and I got back $5.49 in ECB ($3.49 for the Skintimate and $2.00 for the Colgate)

I would loved have to have stopped here, with a nice little $.50 profit, but thought I'd better stock up on Pull-Ups again while they were cheap, and I could make some ECB while doing it.

Transaction #2

2 Pull-Ups $20.00
2 Johnson's lotions $6.00

minus

(2) $2.00 Pull-Ups newspaper coupons
(2) $1.00 Johnson's newspaper coupons
$5.49 in ECB from transaction #1

Total OOP = $15.83 and I got back $10.00 in ECB for the baby stuff.

Overall, I spent $16.83 out of pocket, and I saved a total of $44.27 over both transactions.

I always like to take the math a but further, in order to make this all sound way cheaper. Let's give that a shot. Since I started with $3.99 in ECB and ended with $10, I "made" $6.01 in ECB so we'll take that off the total, not to mention the $1.50 rebate from The Caregivers Marketplace for the 2 Pull-Ups. How does $9.32 sound for a total. Ahh....much better!

Also, in transaction #1, the cashier did not price adjust the coupons. So, I had a $1.01 overage on the Revlon which helped pay for the rest of the transaction. I had figured transaction #1 at about $2.50 out of pocket. Yay, overages!

P.S. The magic coupon spit out a $15/75 CVS coupon. Wonder if I'm up to the challenge?

Wylie Mom's Weekly Recap-Week 14

Here's my weekly recap of my savings and income (random $ and eBay sales) from last week.

Savings - $110.46

- $19.46 at CVS and $1.75 at Target and $1.00 at Redbox
- $30.00 at Texas Roadhouse with Gift Certificates (we only had to pay $1 and the tip!)
- $15.00 at Kohl's (hubby lost the receipt, so that's my estimate rounded)
- $42.25 at Kroger

eBay Sales - $286.29 -$4.99 unpaid item = $281.30

Misc. Income - $2.00

- $1.00 in Extra Care Bucks printed for my Winter spending
- $1.00 from Dollar Surveys

Weekly Impact - $393.76
Yearly Impact - $5,526.17

My P&G coupon book, with $120 in coupons finally came. Yay! I also received a few samples and requested more samples as well. As far as eBay, I only listed 14 new items. Ugh!! My goal was 30. But, here's why. Easter is next weekend. I didn't want any auctions ending Friday through Monday of next week, since people won't be sitting on the computer shopping. That all said, my goal will only be 15 auctions for this next week. Since I don't want to list until Tuesday, but will be out of town Friday. Sales wise, I had a great week. Listing more than 30 items a week has been paying off.

As far as eBay, I thought I'd add a new feature to the weekly recap. I thought I'd share my favorite sale from the past week. It could have been a good money maker, something totally weird that actually sold, something I got for free, etc. So, here's my favorite item from last week:

Dish Satellite Receiver - We dug this out of the attic a couple of weeks ago (we've been doing lots of cleaning and organizing the past few weeks). I almost tossed it in the Goodwill pile. Good thing I didn't, I made $20.49 on it.

Have any fun stories to share about saving or making money? Leave a comment!

Have You Looked Into BzzAgent?

Remember last Sunday when I mentioned BzzAgent a couple of times? Well, here's what it's all about!

From the BzzAgent site, BzzAgnet is a "word-of-mouth (WOM) marketing network". You get to to try new products (for free) and spread word of mouth. It's honest word of mouth, you're not to push the product, just tell people about it if it comes up in conversation.

Here's what I've been buzzing about lately:

Chili's Guiltless Grill - I received 4 free item coupons for this campaign. I shared two with my mom, and hubby and I saved $24.98 when we used our two a couple of weeks ago. We both got the Carne Asada Steak and the rub was awesome!

Glade Sense and Spray-I got one in the mail for this campaign, plus a few $4 off coupons. I loved the Sense & Spray so much, I bought another one at CVS this week. My kids think it's fun too! It senses when you pass by and will spray, but then won't spray again for at least another 30 minutes. It's so smart. :)

Afrin Pure Sea-I mentioned this last Sunday. It's a salt water nose spray, used to flush your nose like a Neti Pot. First go around it felt like I got water up my nose in the pool, but I got it down the second go around. What can I say, I was curious about flushing out my nose. It also came with a stack of $3 coupons.

Anytime BzzAgent sends you a new campaign, you have a choice to sign up or not. I have declined several campaigns. One was for allergies (I don't have allergies), two you had to pay for (umm...no thanks) and one was test driving a truck (with 2 kids in tow....I'll pass). So, that all said, you wouldn't have to get the Afrin Pure Sea.

Today, I just got offered a new campaign from Max Factor. Yay! I get excited about free stuff, can you tell?

After you try the new product and spread the word, you report back to BzzAgent with a quick report. Once they "accept" your Bzz report, you get rewarded with points from MyPoints. It's a win-win. There's way more to BzzAgent than all of that, so check it out here.

Have a great weekend!

Weekly Grocery Trip-Kroger April 3rd

So I get home, get everything all unloaded and set out all pretty on the table. One of the kids distracted me, and I put all the groceries away. I missed the step where I take the fabulous picture of all my goodies! Darn it!

This week, in addition to staples, my stock piles have been running low as well. I loaded up on all kinds of stuff and spent a whopping $60.90 OOP. Yikes.....well for me that a "yikes". I guess some of those $20 weekly trips caught up with me. I saved $42.25.

Some fun highlights-

Land O'Lakes Butter (1 pound) = $2.00 - $.50 coupon from last Sunday doubled = $1.00 each, I definitely didn't need butter but got 2 anyway and put them in the freezer. Remember to stock up when things are at their cheapest!!

Tiny Pillsbury Crescent Rolls are $1.00 if you buy 5, a good deal with a $.25 coupon tripled. Only about half of my Crescent Roll coupons tripled today. Oh well, you win some you lose some.

I grabbed 3 free packs of gum with the Wrigley's coupon from a few weeks back. More for the Easter stock pile.

Red seedless grapes are $.87/pound

I picked up some raisins to mail off the $4.00 rebate for purchasing Sun-Maid raisins and Pinocchio on DVD. I clipped it from the paper a few weeks back, but you can also look for specially marked Sun-Maid packages or print the $4 rebate form here. So that really brings my trip total down to, $56.90. Ahh....that's better.

Nothing for free, but I did get a Yo-Plus Yogurt for $.09. It was $2.59 and I used an old internet $1.50 printable coupon and the $1.00 Shortcuts eCoupon.

For some bad news, other than the cashier not carding me for my wine (He was about 16....I wonder how old he thinks I am?), Kroger no longer has the 4 packs of Cottenelle for $1.19. Boy, was I bummed!!!! I had a nice stack of coupons ready to go thanks to my mom and step-mom sharing with me. No more TP on the cheap!

Keep those coupons clipped and organized!!

Free Goodies In The Mail-Request Some Now!

Thought I'd round up some freebies to request this morning. Enjoy!

Dove Hair Therapy System sample-looks like the same one we requested a while back, but this was sent to me from Dove and my request went through just fine. Give it a shot!

Eucerin Plus Smoothing Essentials Lotion sample from Walmart.

Jergens natural Glow Moisturizer sample from Walmart.

Rachael Ray Nutrish Dog Food sample from....my favorite, Walmart!

I counted 9 samples on Walmart's sample page, be sure to check if you missed a good one. I don't always request (or post) them all myself.

Emergen-C Blue sample

Jiffy Mix Recipe Book

Food Pyramid Poster - I'm going to hang mine in the pantry for the kids.

Glad ForceFlex Trash Bag from Sam's Club-skip the member number if you don't have one.

Enfamil Samples and Goodies - I posted this yesterday! ***Update 4/3/09 The Enfamil offer is already over! Sorry!

Have any great samples or fun free things to share? Leave a comment or send me an e-mail. Thank you!

Zero OOP At Target, Using GC's That Is!

I've been trying to hit Target once a week, to scoop out the clearance stuff. For once I found nothing good on clearance but picked up some things on my grocery list. This was yesterday....

Kitty Litter $5.24
Sponge $1.39
Trash Bags $3.64
Johnson's Lotion $2.19

minus

$1.00 Johnson's coupon (the one that expired yesterday, just in time!)
$.75 Target/Johnson's coupon from Target.com


Total = $11.59

$3.59 was paid from a Target gift card and $8.00 was paid from the $15 MasterCard I got from Olay. Zero cash paid OOP and I saved $1.75. Not the most exciting trip, but it was zero cash OOP, so I got things we needed for free.

***Deal alert*** The Johnson's ended up costing $.44 after coupons.

I was sad that my Target GC was finally gone, but the good news is I have ordered a new one from Swagbucks. It took me 2 months to earn a $20 Target gift card. I just can't get over how easy that was, and $20 at Target should last me a few trips.

Last bit of good news, the new Target in Wylie should be open in less than 4 months!!

I Made It To CVS This Week!

I finally made it to CVS in time for the Sunday/Monday deal. I'm just a slow blogger! Here's what I got:

Transaction #1

2 Bags Jelly Beans 1.00
CVS Alcohol $.50
Glade Sense & Spray $5.99
PAAS Easter Egg kit $1.99
Mentos gum $1.69 (needed filler, as to not waste ECB)

minus

$1.00 Mentos gum coupon
$4.00 Glade coupon from Bzz Agent
$6.00 in ECB

Total OOP $.17 and I got back $2.99.

Transaction #2

CVS Vitamin D $2.99

minus $2.99 in ECB from transaction #1

Total OOP = ZERO and I got back $2.99 in ECB. Yay free!

Overall, I lost $3.01 in ECB and my total "expense" was $3.18. At least my OOP was low and I got more Easter supplies. Total saved $19.46.

The good news is that today, April 1st, your winter spending Extra Care Bucks will print. Plus, a new monthly catalog starts today. Sounds like another trip is in store for me. If your CVS has a "magic coupon machine" a.k.a. price checking machine, you can scan your card for the ECB without even having to shop! :)