Reusable Produce Bags, another option!

SET OF 5 REUSABLE PRODUCE BAGS $10.95 plus $1.99 shipping

Head over to REUSEIT.COM for another great buy on reusable produce bags. These are another alternative to those cute green produce bags I posted about HERE. The bags are see-through, which would make it easier on the cashier when checking out at the grocery store (Or Farmer;s Market, of course). They are also are slightly larger than the green ones, but do not come with the handy dandy carry sack. Whichever you prefer, please please please join me in eliminating the plastic waste on the environment!! Thanks Kari for the heads up!

Finally! Reusable Produce Bag Deal!!!

This makes me beyond ecstatic! You may know, my New's Year's Resolution was to eliminate plastic bags from my vocabulary. So far so good and this deal makes it even easier for me! For 48 hours, REUSEIT.COM has a 

SET OF 4 MESH PRODUCE BAGS for $9.95 plus $1.99 shipping.

 I just got mine and they should arrive in time for my next shopping trip. Think of the impact these reusable bags would have on the environment. I am so excited about this deal that I can't type fast enough. Please, pass this deal on. Let's make a difference together!!

Hilarious Father's Day gift!

Check this out

Are you kidding me? My husband will love this! Head over to Tanga to get this offer. This will be an AWESOME Father's Day gift. Today only they have it for 11.99 + 4.99 shipping. Not super cheap, but I couldn't resist!!

Where do you get your coupons?

So where do I get coupons?

EVERYWHERE! Hehe well, kind of. Here is where I get most of mine from:

Sunday paper GET ONE! I currently do not have a subscription, but as soon as I find a great deal on one, I will jump on it (And of course I will share it with you). Right now I buy 4 papers a week from my local mini mart, but if you are just starting out, 1 seems to work just fine. If you have lots of kiddos or you live far from grocery stores, you might want to pick up a couple extra. The best resource is to ask your friends, family, coworkers, basically anyone who doesn’t use their inserts to hand them over to you. Usually we get 2 inserts per week, RedPlum, and SmartSource. Every month or so we get a Proctor & Gamble insert and sometimes extra Red Plums or SmartSources also.  At one point I was getting 4 sets of inserts JUST FROM MY FRIENDS and I didn’t even have to buy any.

Internet Printables Most coupon blogs will provide certain links for good deals, but you could always browse sites like these: coupons.com, redplum.com,smartsource.com. Some coupons are the same as you will find in inserts, but they are usually pretty different.  These are worthless without a computer, good printer, and ink of course. I recommend something fast and cheap that has a black and white only option. You can usually print 2 coupons per computer, so if you have access to more than one computer-YOU LUCKY DOG!

There are also blinkies, tearpads, catalinas, peelies, and random store coupon books, but we will learn more about those in the future. For now, let’s concentrate on the Sunday paper and Internet printables.

Next I will explain how to organize your coupons!!

How do you get such good deals?

So we have established that we as couponers try and stock up on items we use when we find them at the lowest price possible, right? And our goal is to not pay retail for anything and ultimately shop from out pantry as much as possible. But, how?

Each week (usually) retail stores release their store ads.  We take the items that are on sale and match them up with coupons to make them cheap or even free. In my experience, I cannot simply make every meal from my pantry because you can’t stock up on perishables, duh! So, each week I stock up on whatever killer deals are going on (i.e. spaghetti sauce, laundry detergent, etc. ) for my stockpile and I try to make the rest of my meals from what is on sale that week. The other day Safeway had zucchini on sale for $.39/lb and they are usually $2.99/lb so I grilled up some zucchini to go with our steak, and made baked zucchini fries with our turkey burgers. Make sense? Or sometimes when I plan our meals out, I scope out my pantry (well, in my case, the shelves in my garage) and see what I can come whip up and my shopping list only reflects what I’m lacking. Usually I only have to pick up fresh veggies, fruits, milk, and occasionally bread! Wahooo to that!

Still haven’t answered how we do it, right???

Well, for every item (look for sale items usually) you can use a manufacture coupon AND a store coupon (if available at the time) AND a double coupon (if your store has those, usually Albertsons and Safeway offer these)…

For example:  Say Wheat Thins are on sale at Safeway for $2.50. You found a manufacture coupon in your Sunday paper last weekend for $1.00 off a box of Wheat Thins. So your deal will look like this:

Wheat Thins $2.50/ box

Use $1.00 off manufacture coupon

Final Price: $1.50/ box

Sweet? Right? No, still not a good enough price for me, but hey, it’s better than paying full price right?

The deal gets even better when you find a store coupon in the ad at the front of the store. Then your deal would look like this:

Wheat Thins $2.50/ box

Use $1.00 off manufacture coupon

Use $.50 off Safeway coupon

Final Price: $1.00/ box

Much better. BUT, if my local store DOUBLES manufacture coupons (as long as they don’t read DO NOT DOUBLE) up to $.50. Recall that my manufacture coupon is for $1.00 off, but they only double up to $.50 So my deal would look like this:

Wheat Thins $2.50/ box

Use $1.00 off manufacture coupon

Use $.50 off Safeway coupon

Use $.50 Safeway Double

Final Price: $.50/ box

Now, THAT is my stock up price. Is this making sense?

It sounds really complicated but once you get the hang of it becomes second nature, and FUN FUN FUN!

Stay tuned to find out where I find my coupons! 

Crazy for Coupons-How I got started

My coupon story?

A good friend of mine gave me a handful of Target baby wipe coupons. At this point I had only bad monkey 1.0 and baby wipes were one of our new family staples. I could not believe I could get wipes for so cheap. I really had no idea the new world that awaited me. Then another girlfriend of mine explained how coupons, sales, and coupon blogs worked. The first coupon blog I followed was Frugal Chic Living (At the time the gal posted all store deals but she has since decided to concentrate mostly on Fred Meyer deals.)

There are so many strategies and ways to coupon. I have been couponing for about a year and a half. The first month I started I spent $59 on over $800 in groceries! I was hooked. I love shopping, but I don’t like spending money and I get the biggest thrill from finding killer deals.  That is why the world of coupons is so wonderful!

Coupon guidelines I follow:

• Buy items at the lowest price possible (or FREE even)
• Stock up on items I use, my family uses, or on items that are good to donate  
• Shop from my pantry (or my stockpile)

I have never been too proud to buy generic items and I of course thought I was saving the most money that way. UNTIL I learned to coupon. Now I can buy name brand, high quality products at rock bottom prices. 

How can you do that?

Well, from my experience, items like household goods, cereals, sauces, and salad dressings and less perishable items go on sale every 4-6 months, while more perishable items like cheese, eggs, and yogurt go on sale every 4-6 weeks or so. This can vary from store to store or by region, but it’s generally cyclical. It would be a good idea for you to start checking out your local ads to see what kinds of cycles you notice. It is also a good idea to note prices you are comfortable paying for certain products. For example, I don’t like to pay over $.75 for a box of cereal. Before I started couponing I thought 2/$5 was a great deal!

So basically, if I can get an amazing deal on items that my family uses or items that are good for donating, then I usually try and get as many as I have coupons for. Sometimes people think it’s ridiculous that I have 15 tubes of toothpaste in my stockpile. But ask yourself this; aren’t you always going to be using toothpaste? Doesn’t everyone you know use toothpaste? Then why not stock up on it if you can get it for free!!! A good goal is to stock up with enough of an item to last you to the next sale.

The more I can stock up my pantry at amazingly cheap prices, the less I have to budget for our meals, and the less likely I will have to stop and pay full price for an item on my way home from work for that particular night’s dinner.

Please stay tuned and I will explain more on how to get started couponing!!

Camping Life Magazine 8 issues for $3.99

Another great Father's Day gift!

Head over to TANGA and get your subscription for Camping Life Magazine for only $3.99 & FREE SHIPPING!

Skil Tool Set for $3.99 + $5 shipping

Fathers Day is coming!

Head over to WOOT.COM for a great Father's Day present TODAY ONLY! (or Mother's Day even)

For a total of $8.99 you get:
Skil 22pc Precision Screwdriver Set,
Skil 20pc 1/4” Driver Set,
Skil 21pc Ratcheting Screwdriver Set

I know some Papa Monkeys that are going to be getting this for Father's Day!!!

Monkey Nuggets & Zucchini Fries

One thing I am really trying to focus on is feeding the entire family healthy and delicious meals. With both of us working over 40 hours a week, I need my meals to be quick and easy. This turned out even more delicious than I could have imagined. Even Bad Monkey 2.0 devoured it! One bonus for me is it does not require any measuring whatsoever. Here is how I did it:

Ingredients:
Boneless skinless chicken breast (gotta use my 40 lbs of Zaycon chicken)
zucchini (on sale now at Safeway for $.49/lb)
Italian bread crumbs
Parmesan cheese (in the green can of course)
olive oil and a little cooking spray

I cut up the zucchini before I went to work in the morning and took out the chicken to thaw. When I got home I preheated the oven to 400degrees, put my gloves on, diced up all of my chicken into typical nugget sized pieces and tossed with olive oil. In a mixing bowl I threw in a good amount of bread crumbs and some Parmesan cheese. After that I dunked each nugget with a satisfying amount of coating I placed them on the baking sheet and baked them for 8 minutes, flipped them, and tossed them back in for another 3 more minutes. I sprayed a tiny bit of cooking spray on the top for aid in baking them. I basically did the same exact thing with the zucchini and viola! A healthy, delicious, quick, and easy meal! For all who desire exact measurements and instructions, and nutrition info, I adapted the Baked Chicken Nugget Recipe recipe from Gina's Skinny Recipes HERE and the Zucchini "Fries" HERE.



.

GROUPON: Space Needle and Hawaiian Cafe

Get your GROUPON on!

Today's Portland deal is for one of my FAV restaurants in Vancouver: Patrick's Hawaiian Cafe!
Get $20 worth of food for only $10! Yuuuummmmmy!

Other details: You must use by Oct 14, 2011, Limit 1 per person, may buy 2 additional as gifts. Limit 1 per table, 2 per table of 5 or more. Limit 1 per visit. Not valid for purchase of alcohol. Dine-in and carryout only. Not valid for Mother's Day.

Seattle's Deal of the day is for $49 for an Annual Pass or $75 for a Family Annual Pace at the Space Needle
You have two options:

For $49, you get an individual annual pass and four complimentary passes (a $99.99 value).   

For $75, you get a one-year family membership for two adults and up to two children (ages 4-12) (a $149.99 value).

New to Groupon?  Click here to sign up! You will be so glad you did, I promise!

For those who aren't familiar, Groupon is a site that offers daily deals while supplies last. I have gotten Groupons for Portland Trailblazer games, Haunted Mazes, Ebay, Picaboo, and for lots of Restaurants. I highly recommend it!

Photo Credit: KB photography

TTTTarget TTTuesday

Target Lunch Haul
6 Degree Men’s Deodorant priced at $2.07 x 6 = 12.42

Use $1/1 Target coupon x 6 = (6.00)
Use $1/1 coupon from 3/27 RP insert x 6 = (6.00)
.42 or $.07 each


2 Frank’s Red Hot Sauce priced at $2.34 x 2 = 4.68
Use FREE coupon from 3/13 SS insert (4.88)
FREE


Suave Deodorant priced at $.99 x 7 =6.93
Use $.75/1 coupon from 3/20 RP insert
1.68 or $.24 each

Bic Disposable Razors-12 pack 3.07
Use $2/1 coupon from 3/27 SS insert
1.07* Not a screamin deal, but my dad uses these a lot

3.07 Total after a .10 disc.for using my own bag 

Total Savings 17.10, THAT IS 84.8%


For more Target matchups, head to My Frugal Adventures

Hurry, this will go fast!

One thing that drives me crazy is when I am out and about and I have to pay 1.69 for a 20 oz Diet Coke when I just saved $50 using coupons. I am going to carry a couple of these in my wallet for emergencies.

Get $1/2 20oz. Coca Cola or Dasani products by clicking HERE.

Thanks Rose Knows Coupons for the heads up!

MUST HAVE: All You Magazine $9.79/year

If you are thinking about getting serious about couponing, this magazine is a MUST HAVE! It comes monthly with high value coupons for a ton of great (or free even) deals. I just got mine through Ebates. It takes a couple of steps, but well worth it!!! First, go to the link : EBATES for two bad monkey friends

Create an account (takes 10 seconds)

Type in Magazines.com in the search field

Click on the "Shop Now" orange button next to Magazines.com Save 51%

You will be sent over to the magazines.com site. Choose ALL YOU for 19.97

You will initially have 19.97 out of pocket but you will get a check from ebates for 10.17

Sound like a lot of work for a magazine??? Ebates has EVERYTHING and I have heard nothing but amazing things about it. PLUS, you get $5 added to your account just for signing up!

New CPR Guidelines

Just cracked open my new April 2011 PARENTS magazine and read the following, "The American Heart Association now recommends starting chest compressions right away for an unresponsive child-instead of doing mouth to mouth resuscitation as previously advised"

1. Place one hand on top of the other in the center of the kids chest, If your child is under age 1, use two fingers (For infants, place your fingers just below the nipples)

2. Push firmly on the chest for 30 compressions, at a very quick rate. Press 2 inches deep for children and 1 1/2 inches for babies. Make sure you press deep enough!

3. Close the child's nose and tilt her head back to open up the airway; or place your mouth over the baby's nose and mouth together, Then give two one-second rescue breaths. Repeat the sequence. Continue for two minutes, then stop and call 911. Resume CPR until child recovers or help arrives. God forbid any of us ever have to use this info, but at least we can be a little more briefed if the situation arises.

Less than $5..FOR REALS!

Went to Target on my lunch today and scored this coupon haul. You are probably asking yourself the following questions:

Q: Why in the world would you buy PepsiOne?

A: Yes, I am a die hard Coke fan, but with this kind of screamin deal, how could I pass it up?

Q: What is that bottle of red stuff?
A: mmmm, glad you asked, it is Frank's Red Hot Sauce, yum yum! You can put it on ANYTHING!

Q: Why would you buy two People Magazines?
A: I'ts fun to share when it is FREE and who doesn't love People Magazine

Q: Wait a minute, you are on a low carb diet, are those Skittles sugar free or something?

A: Of course not, but Easter is coming and the Easter Bunny is all about FREE CANDY!

Q: Do you have a body odor problem, why would you need 5 deoderants? A: Well, at .24/each this will restock my pantry and it is a GREAT item to donate!

And the million dollar question... Q: HOW DID YOU GET ALL THAT FOR $4.51?
A. It's simple really:
4 Skittle Blenders Single-serve bag .69 =2.76
Less $1/2 printable TARGET internet coupon x 2 = (2.00)
Less $.50/2 printable MANUFACTURE coupon X 2 = (1.00)
= FREE

1 Franks Hot Sauce 2.44
FREE coupon from 3/13 SmartSource insert

5 Suave Deoderant 1.4 oz. .99 =4.95
Less .75 coupon from 3/20 Red Blum Insert x 5 = (3.75)
Final Price 1.20 or .24 each

2 Reach Dental Floss .97 = 1.94
Less $1/1 printable MANUFACTURE coupon x 2 = (2.00)
= FREE

Target is running a promo if you buy 1 People Magazine & 1 Pepsi Skinny pack you get an instant $3 off so...

Buy 2 People Magazines 4.49 =8.98
Buy 4 Pepsi Skinny Packs 1.99 =7.96
Get $6 off instantly at checkout = (6.00)
Use $2/1 printable People Magazine MANUFACTURE coupon x 2 (4.00)
Use BOGO Pepsi Coupons x 2 = (3.98)

Final Price: 2.96 plus .60 deposit = 3.56

GRAND total for all of these steals: 4.76

You can find many more Target deals at http://www.thrifyandthriving.com/ Cheers!

lucky #7

Just finished week 2 of my "diet" and I am down 7 lbs! Wahooo. Only 11 more lbs til I reach my wedding weight. I AM GOING TO DO THIS!!!