Parents Blogs The Thrifty Frugal Mom

$55 Costco 1-Year Membership + $50 in Coupons!!

May 21, 2013 at 1:36 pm , by

Zulily is currently offering a 1-Year Costco membership for $55 plus you’ll get $50 worth of coupon savings that includes:

  • free rotisserie chicken
  • free 48-pack of batteries
  • free 35 count case of Kirkland Signature™ water
  • and more

If you already have a Costco membership you can also upgrade your existing Gold Star or Business Membership with this limited deal.

To get this offer, simply sign into or create a new Zulily account.  If you don’t see the Costco offer, click the “Shop by Category” link and then look under “Home”.

This offer is only available for 2 days, so if you want it, buy it now!

Tasty Tuesday: Creamy Ham N Macaroni

May 21, 2013 at 6:05 am , by

We love this twist on traditional macaroni and cheese.  The chicken bouillon and Parmesan cheese add an interesting pop of flavor and even if you’re like me and aren’t a mac ‘n cheese fan, I think you’ll enjoy it.

Creamy Ham N Macaroni
2 c. uncooked macaroni (or other pasta)
3 tbsp. butter
¼ c. flour
2 c. milk
4 tsp. chicken bouillon granules
¼ tsp. pepper
2 c. shredded cheddar cheese, divided
1 ½ c. cubed fully cooked ham
¼ c. grated Parmesan cheese

Cook macaroni according to package directions; drain and set aside. In a large saucepan, melt butter over low heat; whisk in flour until smooth. Whisk in the milk, bouillon and pepper. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Remove from heat. Stir in 1 cup cheddar cheese, ham, Parmesan cheese and macaroni. Transfer to a greased 2 qt. baking dish. Sprinkle with remaining cheese. Bake uncovered, at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until bubbly. Let stand for 5 minutes before serving.

* If you don’t care for ham, try it without- maybe just up the macaroni by 1/4 cup.  I think it would still be really good!

Yield: 6 servings

For other recipe ideas, check out Balancing Beauty and Bedlam’s Tasty Tuesday and Blessed with Grace’s Tempt My Tummy Tuesday.

Weekly Spending Summary (5/12-5/18)

May 20, 2013 at 11:21 am , by

Some of you have wondered where I get my printable coupons. Here are the main coupon sites that I use: Coupons.com, Coupon Network, Smart Source, Red Plum and Saving Star. Manufacturer websites and Facebook pages are another great source.

Favorite buys:

* Finish dishwashing detergent for $0.75/box
* Free Philadelphia cream cheese
* Oreos for $0.75/pack
* Breakstone’s sour cream for $0.69
* Planters peanut butter for $0.75 each

Total Spent: $99.52
Total Saved with Coupons: $77.49
Total Saved with Sales: $84.26
Total Saved: $161.75

CVS: $0 (gift card)
Saved with Coupons: $32.00
Saved with Sales: $23.92

Also purchased a small 4×6 photo book that is not pictured.

This week I again used a gift card that we had earned through our credit card rewards program to pay for my purchase which was $2.11.  (And no, we have never carried a credit card balance.  We pay them off in full every month.)

I was super excited to get Finish dishwasher detergent for just $0.75 each after coupons/sales!  I had gotten a bunch free about 2 1/2 years ago but was starting to get low again.  I missed a really good deal back when we were gone for 6 weeks in Jan./Feb. and was starting to think I would just have to resign myself to paying $1.50/$2.00 a box for it.  While that is still a good deal it isn’t what I was hoping for and I knew that I often can do much better.  So when I saw this deal I jumped on it.  I had 8 coupons from the coupon inserts I typically get (we get a subscription and I often get 3 inserts from family/friends.)  Then another 4 coupons came from a sweet lady on a couponer group that I’m part of.  She wouldn’t let me give her anything in return and happily sent me the other 4 that I needed.

The photo book is just a really cheap 20 page book that holds one 4×6 picture on each page.  I got it for a project that I’m making for 4 yr. old.  If he loves it, you’ll see a post about it in a couple of weeks.

Bought:

  • Photo book $1.99
  • 8 Finish Dishwashing detergents $4.00 each

Coupons Used:

  • Eight $1.25 Finish coupons from Sunday newspaper coupon inserts
  • $6/$30 CVS coupon received via email
  • $16 in Extra Bucks (CVS coupons that print at register for purchasing specific items)

Got Back:

  • $10.00 Extra Bucks coupon for purchasing the Finish (can be used on next purchase of any item)

Rite Aid: $1.32
Saved with Coupons: $12.00
Saved with Sales: $9.53

As much as I try to avoid processed foods and pretty much never buy store-bought cookies, I cave when it comes to Oreos.  They just can’t be matched with anything homemade.  And they.are.so.good!  So, when I saw that I could get them for $0.75 this week I happily bought them.  I have a couple of cheesecakes that call for Oreo crusts so things are looking bright for enjoying cheesecakes in the near future.

We don’t buy lots of chips either and I got these because I thought they were supposed to be free.  They ended up costing me $0.32 which is a good enough deal it was worth buying them.  I’m not crazy about the Hot Sauce flavor but the husband will love them and it will be a nice addition to his packed lunches.

Bought:

  • Herr’s Potato Chips $3.32
  • 4 Oreos $2.50

Coupons Used:

  • Four $1.00 Oreo printable coupons
  • $8.00 in UPRewards (Rite Aid coupon that print at register for purchasing specific items)

Got Back:

  • $3.00 UPReward coupon for purchasing the Herr’s (can be used on next purchase of any item)
  • $3.00 UPReward coupon for purchasing the Oreos (can be used on next purchase of any item)

Giant: $14.07
Saved with Coupons: $33.49
Saved with Sales: $50.81

Scored BIG at Giant this week!  I got $84.30 worth of groceries for just $14.07.

The Belvita, Oscar Mayer, Breakstones and Philadelphia Cream Cheese were part of the buy 10 get $10 off promotion.  When I was at the store I suddenly remembered that I had FREE product coupons for both the Belvita and the Oscar Mayer from past Facebook promotions that they did so I used them to make money on those two items!  The Belvita also had a peelie coupon on it for a free yogurt so the Liberte was free too.

The Philadelphia cream cheese was free after sales thanks to coupons from Kraft First Taste.  And because my total was over $25 originally, I was able to use the in-ad coupons and get the bacon for $1.99 and the carrots for $0.79.  (To use those coupons you had to purchase at least $25 worth of items.)

The Planters peanut butter ($0.75 each) and Sour Cream ($0.69 each) were amazing prices thanks to the buy 10 get $10 off deal. And I used a coupon from the Natural Organic Spring Savings Coupon booklet (found in Giant) to save $1 on the Nature’s Promise ketchup making it only $0.99. Not a bad price for organic ketchup!

The soups are not something that I would typically buy as I don’t like to use pre-packaged foods.  But I had 10 coupons from Smiley 360 which made them free so I decided to get them and use them in my husband’s lunch for those days when life is busy and I don’t have time to pack him sandwiches.  If he’s not crazy about them then I’ll donate the soups to our local food bank.

Bought:

  • 8 Planters peanut butter $2.00 each
  • Belvita breakfast biscuits $2.99
  • Nature’s Promise organic ketchup $1.99
  • Giant baby carrots 1 lb. $1.00
  • Oscar Mayer lunch meat $3.50
  • Giant bacon $2.99
  • 6 Breakstone’s sour cream 16 oz. $1.69 each
  • 4 Philadelphia cream cheese $1.99
  • Liberte yogurt $0.99
  • 10 Campbell’s Go Soup $2.00 each

Coupons Used:

  • Belvita Free Product coupon from manufacturer Facebook promo ($2.99)
  • $1.00 Nature’s Promise coupon from booklet found in store
  • $0.21 Giant baby carrots coupon (could use if you bought $25 worth of groceries)
  • Oscar Mayer Free Product coupon from manufacturer Facebook promo ($3.50)
  • $1.00 Giant bacon coupon (could use if you bought $25 worth of groceries)
  • Four $1.00 Philadelphia cream cheese coupons from Kraft First Taste
  • $0.99 Liberte coupon (found on Belvita box- could use to get any yogurt free if you bought Belvita biscuits)
  • Ten $2.00 Campbell’s Go coupons from Smiley 360

Aldi: $22.88

I forgot my shopping list and couldn’t remember what all I had on it and ended up buying several things I didn’t really need.  Not the worst thing ever since it stuff that we will use eventually, but I would have preferred not to lay out the money right now.  Oh well…it’s better than being out of something and needing to run to the store when I don’t have time!

The one thing I want to note is that the one package of tortillas was free.  One of the packages of tortillas that I purchased the other week had a weird greasy looking spot on the tortillas.  Since Aldi has a money back guarantee on their products they gave me a free package when I returned the old one.  I want to say that I buy stuff from Aldi all the time and love their store.  I think this is only the 2nd time that I’ve ever had a problem with anything I bought there.

Bought:

  • Saltines $0.99
  • Parsley $0.99
  • Canola Oil $2.69
  • Parmesan Cheese $2.39
  • 2 Black Beans $0.59
  • Tomato Paste $0.39
  • Pure Vanilla $1.99
  • Corn Chips $0.99
  • 2 Chocolate Chips $1.79 each
  • 2 Brown Sugar $1.29 each
  • Bananas $0.44/lb.
  • 3 Tortillas $0.99 each

Walmart: $0.74

If you read my Weekly Spending post last week you’ll remember that I got a $10 Walmart gift card from Smiley 360 to purchase a product that they wanted me to review and that there was extra money left over.  Well, I used that extra money to buy this flour.  I love Gold Medal flour and can tell a difference when I don’t use it.  I really love their unbleached flour.  The less processed my food is, the better in my opinion.

Bought:

  • 2 Gold Medal Unbleached Flour $2.14 each

Misc.: $60.51

The picture you see above was mushrooms and lettuce from our local farmer’s market.  The plants were a hot pepper plant, 2 zucchini plants and a 6 pack of zinnias that I bought at a local greenhouse.  I know, zinnias aren’t a grocery item but they were only $1.50 and I didn’t feel like trying to deal with putting it in a separate budget category.  I’m having fun trying to grow more of my own things this year.  We’ll see how it goes!

The money you see listed above was for a lot of different things.

* $7.73 was for printing paper.  I’ll get $7.29 back in Staples easy rebates, so it is almost free.  You might wonder why I put this under grocery.  I figure with all the coupons that I print at least occasionally I should put the cost of paper and ink in my grocery costs.

* $20.00 was cash for milk from a local dairy and produce from our local farmer’s market

* $30.14 was for a Rite Aid gift card that I bought online for 6% off the actual dollar value.  It’s not a lot of savings but every little bit helps and it was an easy way to save a couple of dollars.

* $2.64 was for heirloom, organic spinach seeds.  I’m still trying to decide if I should go ahead and plant them now or wait until fall.

Earn Money with Ibotta Grocery App- get $2 bonus just for signing up!

May 17, 2013 at 2:10 pm , by

Featured on Good Morning America and Google Play, Ibotta is a fun and easy way to earn each time you go to the store.  Here’s how it works.

1.  Sign up for Ibotta and download the app

2.  Before you shop, choose your favorite products and complete the tasks; the more you complete, the more cash you’ll earn.

3.  Buy your chosen products at over 41+ retailers where Ibotta works like Target, Walmart, CVS and your favorite grocery stores.

4.  Verify your purchases by uploading a photo of your receipt and scanning the product’s barcode.

5.  When you are ready to cash out, you can transfer the money you’ve earned to your Paypal account.

Ibotta adds new product offers all the time. The more you use it, the better and more personalized your offers become.

I don’t have a smartphone right now so I can’t try it out myself, but one of my friends uses this app and loves it.  She said it is super simple to use and has been a relatively easy way to earn a little extra money.

You might also like Saving Star e-coupons- another easy way to save!

Sell Used Textbooks and Books with Cash4Books (Get a 10% Bonus!)

May 16, 2013 at 8:09 pm , by

Buyback textbooks at Cash4Books.net
Do you have textbooks or other books lying around that you no longer need?  Cash4Books will buy your used books from you and even pay your shipping costs.  And even better you can earn a 10% bonus on your buyback total when you sell at least $15 worth of books and use bonus code ThriftyFrugalMom!  (Offer valid through June 30, 2013.)

Enter your book information and instantly get a price quote to see how much money you will make.  If you choose to sell your books, payments will be made via check or Paypal.

DETAILS ABOUT CASH4BOOKS:

  • Quick and easy to use. It usually takes less than 5 minutes to create an order.
  • Fast payment- will issue payment within 1 business day of receiving the books. Offer a PayPal payment option and cover all the associated fees.
  • Free shipping.
  • Excellent service. Cash4Books has a toll free number (1-877-243-5935) and customers can talk to an actual human. Customers can also check the status of their orders at any time and will be sent emails letting them know when their books are received and when their payment will be issued.