Digital Scrapbooking and a $10 off coupon offer

We all know that making a scrapbook takes time and makes a mess, but I like to do it anyway.  I have now discovered digital scrapbooking and its wonderful--no mess!!  Anyway, I wanted to share this great deal with you.  If you go to http://www.mymemories.com/digital_scrapbooking_software to order, and enter the code of STMMMS29337 you get $10 off of your order, and $10 off anything in the MyMemories.com store. (for a total of $20).  Feel free to pass the code on-it doesn't have a limit on it as to how many people can use it.  It is a download, so you don't have to wait on receiving it in the mail either.

You can make scrapbooks, photobooks, cards, calendars and gifts that make great Christmas presents.  Christmas is't that far away, so this is a great time to get started.

savings

Combining sales with coupons is really is a good way for single family incomes to save money. Most homeschooling families are single income families or run a business from their homes.

Last week I shopped at CVS and Walgreen. My Walgreen receipt started out at $38. Then off came the Walgreen receipts, then a $5 Walgreen register buck, then my coupons from the Sunday paper. I walked away paying around $10 for 4 deodorants, 3 shampoos, 6 candy bars, 2 boxes of band aides and a Free air wick fresh matic ultra machine.

Then we went to CVS. I got a free welches grape juice and stocked up on rechargeable batteries. I got two brands--for a total of 4 packs of batteries. Name brand ones were on sale for $7.99. I bought 2 because I earned $5 back for spending $15 on energizer products. Then I bought 2 packages of the CVS brand batteries as they were buy one pack, get one pack free. Rechargeable batteries are another way we save money here at our homeschooling farm. We now have (along with what I bought the last time they ran the same sale) rechargeable batteries ranging from 9V to AA, AA, C and D. We now have 2 sets, so one set can be on the charger while the 2nd set is in the camera, flashlights, weather radio and lantern. Before winter I would like to get one more set of batteries for the flashlights. We have our share of ice storms in northern MO. On this trip I also got some free air freshener, and BIC razors for 50 cents.

Anytime I can get a nonperishable item for free or near free by combining coupons with sales I do. As long as it is stored properly, shampoo, toothpaste, deodorant, razors and such will have a fairly long shelf life. I would rather get it for free now and store it than pay for it at full price later.

I also don't drive to a store and waste fuel just to get one item. I shop at the CVS that is near the library we visit, and the Walgreen that is near our church. I am not brand loyal except for a few items. Even on those few item may still get them to donate.

Now, for this weeks deals go to couponmom.com. I recommend you sign up for a free account. You can select your state for special deals. This site shows you what i on sale and what coupons from your local paper you can use for the very best deal. They also have additional coupons you can print off.

FREE is the best price--Get Super Drugstore and Grocery Savings 8/30 to 9/5

New feature! Print coupons for sale items directly from our individual store deals lists--we'll tell you all the printable and electronic coupons available for each sale item so that you can save the most and stock up on more than one deal! Check out our drugstore and grocery deals lists to see how easy we make it for you to save!

CVS deals this week include FREE Bic products, FREE Cover Girl products with purchase, FREE glucose monitors, bargains on Revlon, Sally Hansen and Dawn dish liquid.
Walgreens deals include FREE Carefree liners, FREE Colgate toothbrush, FREE monitor, FREE Mens razor system, FREE Rembrandt toothpaste and more!
Wal-Mart deals include bargains on Clairol haircolor, Febreze, 409, Hartz cat treats, Pringles and more.
Rite Aid deals include FREE GE light bulbs, FREE Reeses candy, FREE Listerine, bargains on Clairol haircolor, Maybelline mascara, Emerald nuts, Sea Breeze, and more.
Target deals include Edys ice cream 48 oz. for only 50 cents (or free if you have the Target printable too), FREE Schick razors, only $1.54 for Tide Stain Release, and more.
Find hundreds of deals at thousands of grocery stores across the country with our deals lists in our Grocery Deals by State section !

Newspaper Coupon Preview! There will not be any newspaper coupons this weekend since it's Labor Day weekend.

Deals from couponmom.com

"FREE is the best price--Get Super Drugstore and Grocery Savings 8/2 to 8/8

CVS deals are GREAT this week, Weeklong deals include 99-cent Softsoap wash, 74-cent Dawn dish liquid, and FREE Blink Tears drops. This list has a new feature: The CVS Deal Preview! Beginning Saturday afternoon, look for the link on the CVS list that says "Preview Next Week's Deals" to see next weeks sale prices matched with the new week's coupons.


Walgreens deals include stock-up prices on school supplies for pennies each. Get Kelloggs cookies and Cheez It crackers practically FREE by combining Register Rewards, sale prices, and Sunday's coupons from the Kellogg's coupon circular. Print this Keebler cookie coupon (you can print 2) to pay only $3 for 5 packages of Keebler cookies when you combine the $5 Register Rewards savings with the two $1 printable coupons and the $2 sale price. Also get 99-cent Clairol haircolor, 50-cent Crest toothpaste, 75-cent Oral B toothbrush, FREE 2 pack Gum toothbrushes, 25-cent Kraft Jello, $3 Loreal haircolor, and FREE Vitamin shampoo. See our complete Walgreens list for details and more deals!

We're the only game in town with a full list of Wal-Mart deals, over 200 every week. Your store's exact prices may vary slightly, but you'll be able to use our list as a helpful guide. Use this week's newspaper coupons to get great deals on Vaseline lotion, Suave deodorant, Tag body spray, Oust spray, Glade spray and more.

Find the best Target deals when you combine Target coupons with your newspaper coupons, including FREE Mars candy bars when you combine the Target printable store coupon with the newspaper coupon from 8/2RP. Check our list for details.


Rite Aid deals include a $25 prescription transfer coupon in the ad, and too many FREE deals to list, including Renu solution, tape, Garnier hair care products, Gillette Venus razor, Werners candy, Zantac, Crest toothpaste, GE lightbulbs and more--ALL FREE! Plus, print a 10% off coupon for Rite Aid so you'll be making money on your mail-in rebate items!"

Go to couponmom.com for the rest of the info!

Do you know couponmom.com???

This is a great website. It takes a lot of the coupon work in couponing out for you. They have a newsletter which you can subscribe to, that you will receive weekly.

This week by following their site, you can get these for free or next to nothing deals:

CVS deals include free large Hersheys Dark chocolate bars, 50-cent Right Guard or Dry Idea, and get Dry Idea free if you print the $2 coupon from Coupons.com. Save over 70% on Cover Girl lipcolors, Bic Soleil 3 ct. razors, Bic Multipurpose lighters, Revlon cosmetics, Dial soap and Colgate Sensitive toothpaste. Check the CVS list for all the deals!


Walgreens deals include free Colgate toothpaste (value $4.49), free Bayer Quick Release Crystals (value $2.49), 24-cent Edge shave gel, 24-cent Skintimate shave gel, 99-cent Clairol haircolor, 99-cent Right Guard or Dry Idea Clinical deodorant, and get ultra-bargains on Huggies Little Swimmers, Bic Utility lighters, Breyers ice cream, Excedrin (print coupon too), and Lysol cleaner. Check our Walgreens list for all the deals.

At both CVS and Walgreen, you can use both the store coupon and the manufacturers coupon from the paper. (yes 2 coupons for the same 1 item). **Last week CVS had V05 shampoo and conditioners on sale for 77 cents each. I had 75 cent off coupons and got 7 bottles for 2 cents each.

Rite Aid deals include free Bayer Quick Release aspirin 10 ct. (value $3.99), free Wound Wash saline (value $5.49), free Bausch & Lomb eye drops (value $7.99) and make a profit of $4 if you have the newspaper coupon from the 4/5 RP circular. Also get free Right Guard Clinical Strength deodorant or Dry Idea roll on deodorant (print Dry Idea coupon from Coupons.com), pay only 24 cents for Kraft barbecue sauce, only 25 cents for single candy bars, only 50 cents for Old Spice deodorant. Use our list of Rite Aid deals to really stretch that value and get items for up to 75% off with our coupon strategies.

A good source of freebies is Walmart.com
Here you can sign up for free samples that are mailed to your home.

Reorganized Basement Pantry

I finally got the pantry straightened out. After our last trip to Alidi, it was sort of a mess. The girls put everything away, and some of the shelves were too high for them to put cases up on. It took the twins and I about 2 hours to get it neat and rearranged. Emily will be glad that we got it done while she is gone on her winter retreat at church camp.

I had someone ask me why most homeschooling families have large stock up pantries, or as my husband calls it, the emporium... I don't think it is a matter of being a homeschool family, but rather I think it is being more common for single income families to have a stock up pantry. And, most homeschooling families are running their household on a single income. Therefore, we tend to be a little more frugal.

I don't stock up on everything. I don't on TP, paper towels or paper items, because I have lost those items before due to a broken water pipe, and they are bulky to store. Items in plastic or cans are easier. I also don't stock up on short shelf life items.

Most of my stock up non food items come from sales at CVS, Walgreen or Dollar General. CVS and Walgreen will let you use both their sale flyer coupon and the manufactures coupon on the same item. By doing this you can often get the item for free. Yes, I have a years supply of shampoo, conditioner, toothpaste, soap, dish soap, deodorant, razors, shaving cream.....but a good part of it I got free or very close to it. For example, this week CVS had V05 shampoo on sale for 77 cents. I had 4 coupons for V05 for 75 cents off. So, I got 4 bottles and paid 2 cents each, so 8 cents for 4 large bottles of shampoo. If I just waited to get it when we needed it, I would be paying full price possibly, my current coupon would be expired and they may not come out with another sale and coupon combo when I needed it.

I also am not brand loyal on many items. This allows me to take advantage on any shampoo that is on sale and combine it with coupons, instead of having to wait for a certain brand to come on sale. Each week you can count on at least one brand being on sale.

Hopefully in the next couple of weeks I can get some more work done in the basement and make the pantry a little larger. Right now it is just along one wall and I am wanting to make it in an L shape to also go along a short wall. Then along the opposite wall I would like to set up our sewing area. That wall is long enough that I could set up an area where each of my girls and I could sew and leave our machines up all the time. But, for now, that is a future project.

Today it got up to almost 50 degrees, and the sun was out all day. All our snow and ice is gone. I am ready for spring, but I am sure we will get hit with more cold weather shortly.

Our windsock arrived in the mail yesterday, so as soon as the ground thaws enough to drive in the conduit, we will get that added to our weather station. It is bright orange, aviation style. JD says we are likely to have airplanes landing in the yard.

Busy Saturday & Sunday, Slow Monday

Our big news is that Rebecca was on the front page of the Liberty Section of the Kansas City paper on Friday. (You have to live in Liberty to get that edition of the paper, so we even missed it, as we don't live in Liberty.) A reporter had come to the library during the Discover Club class last week and took some pictures, including ones of her. They came out very good and she is rather proud of herself. Discovery club is a weekly class for homeschoolers at the public library. This area of Missouri has so many homeschoolers that some libraries repeat their classes 2-4 times a week so that all the kids can attend.

Saturday the girls and I went to Sheffield Church in Kansas City for JBQ. Emily and I were both judges, but in different levels. Rebecca and Elizabeth are on the same team and they quizzed. They are on their former school team, from Centerview MO, Johnson County Christian Academy. They were grandfather in on their old team when we moved here, as there was no JBQ team on the Christian School we went to for the first year we were living here. (JBQ is Junior Bible Quiz-similar to Bible Bowl).
Elizabeth and Rebecca were both called up front to be recognized for receiving their first seal. A seal is an award that they get for testing and answering a certain number of JBQ questions correctly.

After JBQ, we headed home and stopped in Liberty at Aldis. Aldi used to be my favorite store, but lately I have noticed their prices have gone up, but then again so have they all. Still, there are some products that are cheaper to get there by the case then elsewhere. I bought a case of mushrooms, chili beans, red beans, koolaide mix, cereal, green beans, corn, peaches, and pears. After I got home I realized I forgot to get a case of olives. I generally buy everything by the case at Aldi. That way it lasts for several months. I go about every 2 months, and get a different set of case items each trip. If you are not familiar with Aldi, it is a "stock up store". Prices are cheaper, you sack your own groceries, and they only take cash or debit and no coupons. Most items are their own brand, but they do carry some name brand items as well. They have very good produce, and it is much cheaper than that at a regular grocery store. Also, you need to take your own bags and a quarter to get a grocery cart, but, once you return the cart, you get your quarter back.

Sunday after church the girls delivered some of their Girl Scout cookies. It was our first Sunday in awhile that everyone was home. Lately it seems one of the girls has been gone or JD has been working. Next Sunday Emily will be gone as she is going on a youth retreat with the youth group.

Then Sunday afternoon the youth group helped one of our church families move. Last month a tree fell on and into their house and their insurance company moved them into a rental house. The tree came all the way through the roof and attic and into the living areas.

Sunday night, the youth group continued their project of revamping the church library. Emily helped enter the books into the computer. I had been doing it, but had a committee meeting during the same time frame.

Today we took it easy. We did the chores, math and spelling. Emily made two pineapple upside down cakes. (For math we use Saxon)

I finally got my coupon book reorganized. The little coupon folders just don't work for me as they only have 12 pockets and I need about 40. So, I made my own. I used a 3 ring binder and photo refill sheets. Then in the back I have larger plastic protector sheets to put the weekly sale ads in so that I can match up my coupons. I mainly use my coupons at CVS, Dollar General and Walgreen. By using coupons on sale items, I often get our dental and hair products, as well as deodorants for free. But, this doesn't work as well if you are brand loyal. I am loyal only to the brand on sale.

Here is a picture of Emily entering the books, and my coupon book. I did not make the quilt the coupon book is on. The quilt came from Shipshewanna, Indiana, an Amish town in La Grange County. It is an awesome place to visit or vacation. You can camp in Shipehewanna or nearby Howe, Indiana. Shipshewanna rolls up the streets about 8 p.m. During the summers, on Tuesdays they have a huge flea market--several thousand booths. If you go, wear your walking shoes. If you want a good meal, go to the Blue Gate Restaurant. You won't find fast food there. Also, don't plan on driving fast. There are more buggys on the road than cars (except for Tuesdays).