SO, It's Been Awhile

Okay, I know it's been awhile since I've blogged.  Been a rough and very busy week, BUT, I have got some good deals along the way!  Today's deals looked like this:
At Walgreens I got 4 Jumbo Packs of Huggies Diapers 2 for $18, had $3 coupons for all 4 packs, and got two $3 register rewards in return.  (Basically, each pack cost me $5.)  Then, I took the register rewards (and one extra $3 one from berfore) and got two Banana Boat sunscreens, some raisins, and a bottle of juice. 
At Target tonight I bought Trashbags (which I LOATHE buying because I can rarely seem to find a great deal), a large jar of Planters Peanuts, and Hersey's Bliss White Chocolates.  With all of the coupons, etc., I spent $7.00.  It's the cheapest I've bought trashbags since I've started the couponing.  (It's one thing I actually have brand preference for, Glad Flex.) 
So all in all, a good couponing week, not to mention my grocery stockpile is high enough that I didn't really have to buy groceries this week.
As far as indulgences, well, I'm leaving for vacation Satuday and we are taking Bryton to the Zoo tomorrow :)  Great fun! 
I'm also going to Old Navy tomorrow.  They are offering 50% off all of their already clearanced items!  More to come on that! 
Also considering doing a coupon class, I'll keep you posted!
-Alicia

Couponing Today

Today was a good day for coupons and free stuff... here's how today went:
B and I packed up and drove to Marion to get the free tickets to Holiday World we won on W3D.  On the way, we stopped in Benton and got gas at Murphy's Gas.  I had a $3 off any $10 gas purchase, and gas was only $2.55.  I got $18 of gas for $15.
Then, we got the free tickets in Marion and went to Walgreens where I bought some Goody's hairclippies for myself, two bags of gummy worms and I got Bryton some little swimmers.  I spent $3.78 oop, but I got back $3 in register rewards.  All of the above, .78. 
Then, we went to Old Navy where I scored two shirts for two different people for Christmas gifts, a shirt for myself, a shirt for Aaron and a shirt for Bryton for the winter.  I spent $4.20 there.
Then, I dropped off all of our leftover clothes from our yard sale at Good Will on the way out of town, in which I was given vouchers for B1G1 Cardinal tickets. 
That, my friends, was a good day! 
Just the day itself would count in my book as an indulgence, but I'm checking into those Cardinal tickets right now, to make it official ;)
-A

May 23rd Indulgences

Sundays are so busy for us.  Sometimes it is hard to 'work in' an indulgence, not much of an 'indulgence' if you have to work it in. 
Today was no less busy, but the indulgence parts seemed like indulgences, so that's good.
We started off the day, after church, visiting with friends with a new baby.  We fixed a big lunch for them and took it over... and let them eat while we played with Gannyn ;)  It was good to get together and a good time was had by all ;)
I had to run to Kroger this afternoon to get some excedrin for the headache I had.  I think it got a little better when I saw they were on sale for $1.99 and had $1 off peelies on them.  I bought 3 bottles ;)
I also had a friend I haven't seen since High School stop by today.  It seems like this has been the week for reacquainting!   
Then, I got to hang with some friends for a few minutes while I had my eyebrows waxed. 
Overall, a good day.
Tomorrow should be equally as hectic, and vacation happens at the end of this week, so it should be crazy.

A lot to catch up on

Life has been so hectic lately, so let's catch up on indulgences:
First of all, Thursday was huge.  On Thursday night I hosted a Scentsy Party for a dear friend of mine.  I'm totally excited about the 1/2 price products I earned and the free scents I'm going to end up getting.  All of that being said, the indulgence part of that wasn't the free stuff or half price items, it was just a great night of hanging out with friends.  Lots of church family stopped by, which was fun, and lots of old high school friends of mine stopped by and hung out.  It was kind of like our old high school group all together again.  So nice!  I sure love those girls!  So that is Thursday's indulgence, good times with good friends!
Yesterday was hectic but wonderful.  Aaron, Bryton and I went to breakfast together, something we rarely do.  We chose a little sit down place on Main Street in our home town.  It was a nice relaxing morning.  Then we had to run a few errands after that.  Things then got crazy, Bryton's new, not recalled, crib came in on Wednesday, so yesterday was our first free day to get it out, get it put together, get his other crib taken apart, and get it all set back up.  So, between that, getting stuff ready for today's yard sale, and getting all three of us ready for graduation last night, it was a hectic two hours or so. 
As I mentioned, last night was 8th grade graduation, so we attended that to watch our adopted kids (the youth kids) graduate!  (Congrats guys!)  But then, a wonderful, dear, friend / youth of ours came and watched Bryton and put him down so Aaron and I could have a much needed night out. 
We went and walked the mall, did some cheap Old Navy shopping, then went to Applebees and split an appetizer and dessert, and then ran a few Carbondale errands.  I'll sure be glad when they get their new Chili's!  Yum! 
So, that being said, basically all day Friday was an indulgence.  We'll count the date night out as the real one. 
Now, today... I'm currently having my yard sale.  It's going alright.  I didn't do much to advertise it except facebook, so I'm not completely disappointed with the outcome, but the sole purpose for this yard sale was to get rid of crap.  We have got to get that basement cleaned out to get stuff going down there!  And that, my fellow readers, will be exactly the result of this.  Everything not sold is going to the dump and that gets it out of our way. 
AFTER the yard sale, though, we're taking our recalled crib back, and when Bryton naps, I'm going to lay out!  (There's the real indulgence!)  Time for a tan!
Well, that's it for today.  I already know what tomorrow's is going to be too, so I'll keep you posted!
-Alicia

Indulgence, And You Guessed it... Coupons

12. Girls random trip anywhere.  I can't elaborate on this one because I don't even know what it'll be.  I just know it'll be cheap and spontaneous... something we don't always do... or ever do.  Woo hoo, here we come!
Alright folks, it's been a couple days because I've been way under the weather.  My Zyrtec has finally kicked in and I'm doing much better.  Thank you Jesus!
That being said, I bought a bouncer and swing off of facebook, it cost me $40 for both (not out of my blow money), and they are in great condition!  Today, Heather and I decided to head to Marion to get them.   We picked those up and met Stacey at lunch at Red Lobster (that was out of my blow money... indulgence, yeah!).  It was wonderful!  Then Heather and I ran to Target.
At Target I bought:
Kraft Mayo with Olive Oil
Nexcare Bandages
Classico Spaghetti Sauce
Total:  .92

Tonight I went to Kroger and WalMart:
At Kroger I bought:
2 Huggies Value Pack of Wipes
2 Tubs of Wipes
2 Bags of Texas Toast Croutons
1 Large French's Mustard
1 French's Spicy Mustard
Total:  13.66

At WalMart I bought:
2 Bacon Wrapped Sirloin Steaks
1 Deluxe Mac n Cheese Dinner
1 Nexcare Bandages
6 Pack of Dananino Yogurt
1 KC Masterpiece BBQ Sauce
1 French's Honey Mustard Dipping Sauce
Total:  4.43

I was really excited about my Wal-Mart deal.  I have never done that well at Wal-Mart!  

And the winner is...

Rachel Kremer!  Which means, Rachel, I'll be working on you a great prize pack in the next month! :)  
I'm excited to share, here on my blog, all of the great deals!  

I actually was really proud of myself on couponing today... had a great kroger trip.  Actually, I spent $52 on all of the groceries, aside from like extra milk / bread, etc., for the next two weeks!  AND, that included two bottles of laundry detergent, a large package of chicken, huggies diapers, a large thing of wipes, and a small tub of wipes!  
I also couponed at Walgreens today and saved about 50% there as well.  
All in all there's a lot to share on here, but to be honest it's been a rough day health wise for me.  Migraine on top of allergies = 1 sick momma.  
I'll try to catch everyone up on life stuff tomorrow.  Praying I feel better then!  
Congrats Rachel!  I'm excited to shop for you ;)  

Blog #100!

And it's the giveaway blog!  I've told you all it's been coming and I'm good with my promises!  So here it is!  Here is the just of this give-away.  It's also a challenge for me.  I'm shopping for 1 person for one month.  On June 16th, the winner of the give-away will receive (or be mailed) a prize pack of items bought during my couponing just for you.  I'll allow myself to spend no more than $10 and we'll see what all I can rack up for you in between now and June 16th. 
How do you enter?  Easy.
Leave a comment on this post (below) stating your name, email address, and 5 random facts about yourself that may help me coupon for you.  (Please no more than 5, just five will give me the info I need ;)  Could be a favorite food or flavor, your favorite color, a hobby, etc.  So go ahead, I'm drawing the winner at 11:00 p.m. tomorrow night using randomresearcher.org.  You have 24 hours to get entered! 
Times a ticking...
BTW, indulgences today did not go well.  In fact, I think I should have stayed in bed today.  More on that tomorrow!  Hurry up and enter already!
-Alicia

May 15th - Indulge

Well, as you could have guessed, the yard sale did not happen this morning.  I woke up at 7:00a.m. to get stuff out and ready and it was pouring and thundering.  SO, I went back to bed.  So, for the second day in a row I've slept in PAST 9:00!!! Holy Cow!  I don't think this has happened since before Bryton was born, and remembering what I do about pregnancy, since well before Bryton was born.  So, if that counts as an indulgence (and I vote that it does), then woo hoo for that! 
If that DOESN'T count as an indulgence, then please let me add that despite the weather's raining on our, ah hem, parade (or yard sale), I still managed to make over $85 by selling items today.  LOL, have I mentioned that I love facebook?  I do.  I really do. 
If only I could get rid of the whole huge pile of stuff out there.  Hey you all, we still have tons of cds and clothes left, with an occasional odd thing here and there.  Feel free to come check it out if you want to see what's left.
So, I call $85 with little effort a good turn out for having no yard sale.  And that, my friends, is indulging ;) 
I plan on making sure we get the roku and Aaron's pedal on ebay tonight. 
Also, readers, don't forget that blog 100 is going to be a give-away blog.  I've not seen anything like what I'm planning on doing done on any blog that I follow, so this is completely experimental.  Don't miss the first ever give-away... keep checking back everyday, you'll have 24 hours to respond after the post goes live!
-Alicia

May 14th - Indulgence

Well, today was rough.  I've been fighting what I think is allergies, just that constantly scratchy throat, occasional watery eyes and sneezy / stuffiness.  B is fighting it too, so together we struggle I guess.  Despite how we feel there are still things that have to be done.  
Tomorrow is the scheduled yard sale.  I hope it ends up feeling like an indulgence like I'm planning on it feeling.  The goal is to make enough money that I don't panic over the summer by working on the basement and to get stuff out of the basement so that we can start work on the basement.  One way or another, we're getting as much gone tomorrow as possible... so for the few of you who read my blog, if you come by about 12-1 things may be really, really on sale ;)
So I spent most of my time, scratch that, all of my time this morning working on yard sale stuff, and I still really don't have everything done that I need to.   I just guess I'll stress with it in the morning.  Then, I paid bills, worked on some couponing, did a quick run to town, and we left to go get us all haircuts, go to Starbucks (bad call, more on that in a minute), and eat out. 
It did end up being enjoyable but that was despite:
- Making a trip to CVS and deciding I don't shop there enough to make the extra care bucks worth the purchase.  (For all the successful trips I have couponing there are some like these.  I didn't buy anything this trip, which I concluded was successful because I weighed the pros and cons.)
- Going to Starbucks in Barnes and Noble, with the hubby and the offspring in order to 'indulge' for the day.  We made sure to go between 3-5 to get our half price fraps, but low and behold this particular Starbucks was not honoring that special.  SO, we paid full price for two frappacinos that were NOT good.  By far the worst we ever had.  We aren't complainers and Aaron mentioned several times he wanted to take it back to her and tell her they weren't made well, but, we sucked it up and moved on.  (I'm all about couponing, but have not yet become that person who demands refunds when things are perfect.  I don't think I want to be that person.)
-THEN, we went to Great Clips (I know, right?), to get the three of us haircuts.  Low and behold it's attached to Kroger, which has a Starbucks on premises that IS honoring the happy hour at Starbucks.  BUT we showed up at 5:03.  Are you kidding me?  Figures.  I did end up getting 2 free 7-Up 2-liters and a really cheap baby item to put in a gift bag for a shower coming up, so that did make me somewhat happy.  Oh yeah, and we did get the haircuts, and B did great again as usual... so besides being peed on for the first time EVER since having a kid, it was an overall success.  (Seriously, was holding him and my shirt go real warm real fast.  We had NEVER had a leaky diaper until this point.  Beautiful.)
-So, we ended up at Steak N Shake (I had coupons) for supper.  Aaron had a double cheddar cheeseburger and fries with a side of chili and a vanilla shake.  I had a frisco melt, fries, cottage cheese (which I fed all of it to Bryton), and a strawberry shake.  With coupons we spent a whopping total of $14.50.  I didn't think that was too bad to feed 3 of us on a night out.  So that was deemed a success.
-We got home and watched a movie, Everybody's fine, with a free promo code from the Redbox.  I like free so that was good.  The movie, on the other hand, not recommended.  Kinda boring and sad. 
So, I guess the indulgence today was the shakes from Steak n' Shake.  I attempted it everywhere else but nothing else really nailed the 'indulgence' idea. 
So anyway, that was today.  Check back tomorrow to see how the big yard sale goes.  :) 
On another note... I'm considering doing my first give-away for my 100th blog.  Haven't decided yet what it is for sure that I'm going to give away, but I think I have an idea.  :)  You'll want to stay tuned for that one and be ready to sign up!  Blog 100 will be popping up in the next few days! 

Honest Indulgences

Yep, got to be honest, I forgot to blog yesterday, and found myself so busy doing housework that I really forgot to indulge at some point through the day.  Now, I will say that the satisfaction of having all of that housework done was quite the indulgence.
So, since I forgot yesterday I remembered today.  I have a hot cherry pie cooling in the kitchen as we speak ;)  We've had the pie in the freezer for a couple of months.  I bought it on sale and with a coupon, I think the actual cost was around $1.00.  So if that counts towards my total so be it ;)
My updated total (including that $1) is exactly $15! 

Indulge Your Girls! Hairbows!

Okay you mother's of daughters (or nieces or little sisters or friends of mothers of daughters ;), however you look at it, if you've got a girl in your life then you need to check out a dear friend of mine's new blogspot.  Her name is JaLyn and she's a sweet, crafty little thing who makes amazing hairbows!  (And cakes too, hopefully that blog will be coming soon!)
Anyway, you need to go check out her blog here and take advantage of these introductory prices!!!  (It's like a coupon!  Isn't that great!?)  You won't want to miss these deals... prices go up on June 1st! 
Just a little bit about JaLyn:  She's an amazing Christian friend, a great wife, and a mother of one little boy, and two little twin girls that she is currently carrying in her belly :)  She's a stay at home mom, and a load of fun!  Here are some of her bows:

Just in case you missed it above, here is her link again: Handful of Hairbows

Saving 95% at Kroger / And an Indulgence

I'm getting ridiculous at the couponing thing.  I seriously buy hardly anything if it isn't on sale and I don't have a coupon for it... I'm only happy if I save more than 50% grocery shopping, and I've started in on my Walgreens register rewards.  (Got paid to take a Schick Hydro Razor home this week, and paid $2 for two bottles of laundry detergent.  Woot Woot!) :) It's really become a hobby I enjoy!  (Thanks, Molly!)  It's amazing how meeting an amazing woman of God could not only bless my spirit, but my pocket book after she taught me and inspired me to coupon from hundreds of miles away.  (When I was disappointed because we don't have a publix ;)  What I learned from her?  Make money for your family by being an amazing steward with the money you already have, pray that God will get glory from your efforts and will bless them accordingly, and that a little bit of work is worth a lot (they say on average a couponer "makes" or saves $20 for every hour they 'work' on couponing.) 
So, here is my pretty amazing deal from Kroger this week:
I bought:
6 two liter pepsi products
4 Old Spice Fresh Zone Full Size Deoderants (I'm a stocker so I never have to buy anything full price, and I have PLENTY of deoderant.  It's time for me to start donating.  I'm excited about getting to do this!)
1 Box Kraft Cheesy Explosion Mac N. Cheese

The two liters were buy four get two free, making each .84. 
The deoderants were a P&G (Proctor and Gamble) special where you buy 4 participating items and get $4.00 off your order.  (Made each deoderant 2.50)
The Kraft Mac n' Cheese wasn't on sale, but it didn't matter ;)

I used:
2 B1G1 Free Coupons for the Old Spice Fresh Zone Deoderants
1 eCoupon on my Kroger Card for $3 off 2 Old Spice Fresh Zone Deoderants
1 Free Coupon for the Mac n' Cheese
2 $1 off catalina manufacturer coupons good on my next order (from my last shopping at Kroger)  (Catalinas are the print outs you get after you complete a transaction, watch for what I got from this transaction in a minute!)

I saved $14.97 from manufacturer coupons
I saved $14.10 in Kroger plus savings
And I saved $29.07 overall.

My total out of pocket was $2.99!!!
AND I got a catalina for .75 off of Barilla whole wheat pasta and 2 catalinas for free redbox codes!  Woo hoo!  Free movies! 

AND, my indulgence for the day was treating myself and Bryton to Tropical Sno with $2 of the money that I saved from Kroger :) teehee

May 10th - Big Indulge

Today was the spa day, the day I've been looking forward to for a LONG time.  I don't think I was looking forward to it enough to be honest.  I thoroughly enjoyed it!  Every single second!
My spa day included a 50 minute full body massage, a french manicure and a pedicure.  Wooo buddy do I feel refreshed!?  Yes I do!
But the spa wasn't the only part of the indulging!  On top of that I've had some time to myself, a trip to Walgreens to coupon (gotta go back in the morning ;), a banquet tonight with the hubs, and a night away from home!  What more could a girl ask for!?
I must admit, I think I needed this more than I thought I did.  It's been insanely nice to just get away for awhile, and my feet feel good, my skin feels good, my hands are soft, and I'm freshly painted!
Ahhh, this is nice!
You know, for all the diapers the hands change, for all the weight the feet bear with baby on the hip, I can afford to do this for myself from time to time.
Thanks, honey.  Happy Mother's Day to me!
P.S. - Did I mention I had coupons for the spa ;)  Awww, even bigger bliss hehe.

May 8th - 9th - Indulgences

7.  Two words.  New underwear.  Even if it's just one pair.  I recently just got the two pair for almost nothing, but it's rare that I ever buy myself new underwear.  (Yet it's one of my favorite things ever!) I usually get all new underwear once a year with a gift card to VS from my mom for my birthday.  Now I'll get one pair on one day in May, too ;)
11.  New music on itunes.  Some new tunes for mom.  I'm getting the ipod ready!
Well, I'll be honest, I forgot to write yesterday, but I didn't forget to indulge.  As a matter of fact, the indulge came just a few minutes after midnight when I purchased a pair of underwear for $3 from Kohl's website ;) That purchase (plus the Dairy Queen from the last post, I forgot to put it), makes my total $14.  Remember, my goal is to stay within $50 for the entire month.  We'll see how I do.
Today is a freebie for me because I intend to purchase music off of itunes with a gift card we still haven't used!  The music I'm adding is:
Louis Armstrong - What a Wonderful World
Pretenders - I'll Stand By You
Matt Maher - Hold Us Together
TobyMac - City On our Knees
At Last - Etta James
Darius Rucker - It Won't Be Like This for Long
Neil Diamond - Sweet Caroline
Hallelujah - Jason Castro
Earth, Wind, Fire - September
Stevie Wonder - Isn't She Lovely
Journey - Don't Stop Believin'

So there you go, a nice little compilation!  :)

May 7th - Indulge Number7

19.  Dairy Queen. 
So far many of these things have just kind of 'worked out' for the day.  Today Aaron was home with Bryton and I had to work, so I just went at lunch to grab lunch.  I decided to have a Dairy Queen Burger and Watermelon Arctic Rush float (don't knock it until you try it!).  It was wonderful! 
We'll see how tomorrow goes. 

May 6th - Indulgence Number 6 and Couponing Adventures

Bryton had his 18 month well check today, which I was for sure meant shots, but apparently I was wrong.  More on that later.  Anyway, so the mom in me decided to include him as part of my indulgence today.  I had to stop by the post office early this morning before we left, which conveniently happens to be located across the street from the bakery.   Bryton hadn't been to the bakery until this morning, but this morning we made that little haul across the street, and I got to watch him push his face against the glass of the doughnut cases and oooh at everything.  He ended up with a snickerdoodle (the cleanest thing I could imagine him eating on the way to the doctor's office by himself), and I got a doughnut.  My total was $1.80, but I gave her $2 and told her to keep it, making my total now, $8.40. 
NOW, for the couponing part of my blog.  I must first say that I'm really starting to learn more about this couponing adventure I'm on.  Just recently I've figured out that sometimes things they say are 'on sale' really aren't 'on sale', and it's really the 'normal' price at that particular store.  I've also learned that the longer you are at this the better you become at randomly 'spotting' deals.  I'll be honest, 6 months ago had you asked me how much a particular item was I would have had no idea.  BUT, you start couponing and budgeting, making every penny, literally, count for you and you learn that $1.00 off frozen chicken breasts is a huge difference.  Knowing how much stuff costs helps me know whether the new 3 for $5 deal is really a deal at all or if I'd be better to wait the next week when they are no longer 'on sale' and are back to $1.50 and no longer $1.67ish. 
I've also learned that knowing your stores coupon policy is huge.   I started as a Kroger couponer, and they are pretty easy.  Kroger takes manufacturer coupons, their sales are per product (meaning if it's a $10 for 10 sale you don't have to buy 10 items to get the one item for $1), and they double any coupons .50 and under (that don't state otherwise). 
I'll admit.  Walgreens scared me.  Why?  Because you have 3 options for coupons there.  You have manufacturer coupons, walgreens coupons, and register rewards (the tickets printed at the register when you buy participating items that give you a dollar amount off of your next visit.)  Register rewards are considered manufacturer coupons, so if I were to go back in and buy an item with a coupon and wanted to use my register rewards I'd have to buy another item.  I'd already used a manufacturers coupon on the one.  Here, this may be easier.  My deal at Walgreens today looked like this, I bought:
1 12 Pack of Cottonelle Toilet Paper
2 Dove Deoderants (on sale for 2/$4)
and a pack of Starburst for .49

I used:
$1.50 Cottonelle Toilet Paper Manufacturer Coupon
.50 Cottonelle Toilet Paper Walgreens coupon (stack these!!!  you can do that!)
$2 off of 1 Dove Deoderant manufacturer coupon
$1 off of 1 Dove Deoderant manufacturer coupon (I ran out of the $2 off 1, darn ;)
And $2.00 in Register Rewards

To start, I only had the deoderants and toilet paper in my cart, but in order to use my register rewards I had to have another item that I wasn't going to use a manufacturers coupon on.  The good news about Walgreens is they always have something on clearance or cheap!  I almost bought a .33 pencil sharpener instead of the .49 Starbursts, but I thought I'd get more use out of the Starbursts ;)

My total after coupons and register rewards was $4.57. 

Now, at Kroger I saved 70%!!!
I bought:
2 Cans of Bush's Grilling Beans
1 Regular Size Tub of Huggies Wipes
1 Lady Speedstick deoderant (it was free... give me a break ;) )
3 Hamburger Helper meals
1 Nivea Body Wash
1 Package of Nestle Morsel White Chocolates
2 Old El Paso Burrito Seasonings
1 Suddenly Salad Pasta Salad Box Kit

My total at Kroger was $8.28! 

My Exciting Walgreens Trip - and May 5th Indulgence #5

Well, I've wanted to go to Walgreens since Sunday, but didn't because I knew we'd already be to Carbondale twice this week for doctor's appointments of different sorts, so today when I finally made it there I didn't have my hopes up of their being anything left of what I planned on getting.  All the other couponers had done bought them out ;) BUT - I did still get a reallllly great deal at Walgreens.  It pays for me to carry my coupons with me... I definitely wouldn't have had all the right ones for this deal had I left them at home!  Here's what I got:

In total, it's four Hallmark cards (lots of showers and things coming up), two Dove deoderants, and one shampoo/conditioner (Pert Plus), and another Pert Plus Mens 3 in 1, shampoo, conditioner, and body wash.  Overall I spent $3.87 out of pocket and earned $2 in register rewards.  I was pretty excited about this one!  If you are in So. IL and have printed the dove deoderant $2 coupons, these dove deoderants are 2/$4!  FREE after coupons!  I like free deoderant.  I have five sticks now ;) 

Also, today's 'indulgence' was my kindness to stranger indulgence.  So I'm not going to talk much about it ;)  Check back tomorrow.  

-a

May 4th - Indulge Number 4

28.
Well, today's wasn't quite as exciting as far as frugality is concerned.  Today was just rough for some reason.  I had a poor attitude and a migraine all day sooooo....
I was craving Sonic for lunch today, so I stopped by and got myself some mozzeralla sticks and a watermelon sprite (my personal fave).  SO, with tip and all I spent $5 for lunch, making my running total $6.40. 
More to come, and maybe a couponing blog tomorrow.  Or better yet, maybe a completely random blog tomorrow. 
-a

May 3rd - Indugle Number 3

2. Enjoy a snuggle from Mark's bakery, not an affection, a confection ;)
There's not much to say about today except, since I was working today, I treated myself to Mark's Bakery before school.  I enjoyed my usual, their snuggle.  I really should have taken a picture of it.  They are wonderment in a cinnamon glaze hug ;)  That's a good description ;)
So anyway, my going total for the month of May is $1.40 for indulgences :)
Woo hoo!

What $6.42 Buys You at Kroger this Week

I actually took a picture for this blog and am too lazy to currently put it on, but I'm pretty sure you guys can picture it.  (I may add the pic later.)
I bought:
2 Cans of Grillin' Beans by Bush
3 Hamburger Helpers
1 Betty Crocker Cake Mix and 1 Betty Crocker Tub of Icing
2 Regular Sized Bags of Lays Kettle Cooked Potato Chips

After coupons my total was $6.42!  That's less than $1 per item!  Woo hoo!
Here's the pic!

May 2nd - Indulge Number 2

13.  Movie night in with the husband.  I'm ashamed to admit I don't know how long it's been since we've curled up on the couch and watched a movie.  It's about time.
Well, Sundays are hard for us because of how busy they tend to be.  Today will be no different, so I started early this morning thinking about what today's frugal indulgence would be. 
Today I decided that we'd have a movie night and popcorn.  The cool thing?  It cost me zero!  I had a redbox code for our dvd and the popcorn is a free sample sent to us by Orville Redenbacher.  It's cheddar ;) 

So my current total on May Indulgences... $0!  :)  That's a great start! 
Keep an eye out, I have some exciting couponing to do this week as long as I get their early!  I have a good husband who puts up and participates in my couponing ;)  Woo hoo! 
-a

May 1st - Indulge Number 1

21.  Antiquing and yard sale hopping.  Aaron and I went when B was little this time last year.  I want to go again this year.
Well, I've been REALLY excited to start my May month of indulgences!  Today I woke up thinking about it, and when the hubs asked me what I wanted to do today, I was already searching for flea markets and good antique stores!  :)  I didn't really go with much in mind of stuff we would 'need.'  I know the basement is going to be getting finished in the next five or six months or so, and we'll need furniture down there, so that sat in the back of my mind while we rummaged.  I also knew that I had a piece of costume jewelry on my list of indulgences for May, so I searched for that too.
We didn't come home with anything today, except ideas.  I've decided I'd love to have a little school desk downstairs for the kids to work with and work on.  Something like this:

I came home and found one on Craigslist that is only $10.  This may end up being my project thing, too! 
Also, as far as the costume jewelry is concerned, I've found a ring on Old Navy's website that I love love! With the Wholey Moley 30% off sale right now it makes the ring only $7.00 I'm all about that!  Unfortunately, I've not seen the ring in store and shipping is $7 also.  Not that I don't love the ring, but I don't love it $14 worth, so I'm going to keep my eye open and either they will carry it in the store or I'll find something similar somewhere.  Here's a picture of it:

I think it's totally cute! 
One way or another, today completely served it's purpose!  We had a great time out as a family skimming through the shops.  Bryton did great too!  And OOP (out of pocket) cost so far for me is $0 on day one!  Woo hoo!

Groupon!

I'm beginning to earn a reputation for my couponing.  I haven't figured out, for sure, yet if it's a good reputation or a bad reputation, but one way or another, I'm getting lots of texts from friends asking where they can find a good coupon for this or that or where it is on sale.  :)  What can I say?  I like couponing.
That being said, I had to share this site!  I am an experience driven individual and this seems like a great way to fulfill that! 
Anyway, you can sign up for the website here: groupon.  Also, watch the video to understand the website better!  You don't want to miss this!
Here is the basic idea:
Every day there is a new updated deal.
If you like the deal you select 'buy.'
If enough people 'buy' the idea, it sells and you receive the coupon for the discount you bought.
If there are not enough people who like the idea, you are not charged for the deal. 
Tell people about the deals you like to get enough purchases for the deal to take off!
I looked back through the last few weeks and saw dental exams, spa trips, orthodontics, food certificates, etc!  It really could be ANYTHING!
Sign up yourself and refer friends!