36 Bags of Hope to the Women's Shelter!

This past weekend, my husband and the kids helped me deliver 36 Bags of Hope to the Helen Wright Women's Shelter in Raleigh.

It is a wonderful place that house 36 single ladies in recovery and working towards independent living.

Things have been busy here, still not healthy yet but I will be posting a few finds as I still have approx 30 Bags of Hope to make. I will hopefully get them out in time for Christmas.

On to my next project of BackPack Buddies - I will be scouring for deals with coupons to fill these as well.

BackPack Buddies is something I am starting at my son's elementary school. It allows us to fill a backpack with food for the weekend for children who otherwise may not eat from Friday at lunch until school breakfast on Monday morning.

I am super excited about this so I will be posting soon.

Rite Aid - Glucose USB Monitoring System - Money Maker

Rite Aid has an incredible deal on their Bayer Glucose Monitoring Systems for Diabetics who need to check their blood sugar often

Original price is $79.99

This week it is on sale for $29.99

The best part is if you go to the Rite Aid Ad Perks Rewards and watch a 30 second commerical you can get a $40 coupon off the whole system. These coupons are Rite Aid Video Values Coupons and can stacked on top of manufacturers coupons.

How does it work when the coupon is largest then the cost of the item?

Transaction:

Buy 1 Bayer Glucose Monitoring System - $29.99

Buy 12 Qtips Packages - .99 Each - $11.78

Before Coupons - $41.77 plus tax

Use - $40 Video Value Coupon off the Bayer Monitoring System

Total After Coupon - $1.77 plus tax

This coupon is taking off the whole $40 even though the system is only $29.99 so you have $11 in overage to go towards other items.

The only thing with this is that you need to purchase at least another $11 in item in the same transaction, as Rite Aid does not give money back as cash. So anything you spend up to $11 will essentially be free.

Here in Raleigh at The Open Door Clinic in Raleigh they give medical care to the poor and homeless and they accept all sorts of donations such as medical items, bandages, over the counter medication.

So the monitoring system will go to someone in need and all the Qtips will be put in the Bags of Hope that I am working on for all the women at the Helen Wright Homeless Shelter - for a few dollars out of pocket it is a win win situation for everyone!

Even if you pick up the monitor and use the coupon it will cost you nothing out of pocket except the tax. Remember this is an $80 machine that you are getting for free - please consider donating to someone in need, it could actually save someones life.

Please consider helping!

Rite Aid - FREE Makeup

Rite Aid has a great deal on NYC makeup and it is FREE without any coupons.

Buy one NYC eye color, or lip color makeup and get a NYC Nail Enamel Free

Transaction:

NYC Lip color - $1.99
NYC Nail Enamel - $1.99
Cost before Coupons: $3.98
After Deal - $1.98 Out of Pocket
Receive $1 UP Reward for each NYC purchased, so you receive two $1 UP Rewards

So each time you do it you actually make .02

There is a $1 coupon in the October issue of All You Magazine or use the $1.00 coupon from the All You website.

Use two coupons and this turns into a $2.00 Money Maker

I was able to buy 3 lip glosses and three nail enamel on the same transaction and the $1 Up reward printed out for each item, so all 6 items for free.

This is a great thing I will be placing in the Bags of Hope for the women at the shelter.

Also a great idea for Christmas gifts for teenage girls that are also featured in the next month at on the Angel Trees put up by the Salvation Army.

Rite Aid - Halloween Candy - Super Cheap!!

Here is the best deal that I have found for Halloween Candy.

The kids seem to need a bag for every party that they go to and there are a lot so I need to stock up for the week and for Halloween night!

Fun Size/Snack Size Candy or Snacks - 2/$5

Transaction:

Buy 10 Fun Size Candy = $25

Total before Coupons - $25

Use the following Coupons:

$4/20 Rite Aid Video Value Coupon

(3)$1.00/3 Reeses Kit Kat Candy - Smart Source Manufacturers Coupon

$1/1 Non Prescription Purchase - Video Value Rx Services Coupon

$1/1 Non Prescription Purchase - Video Value Wellness Coupon

$1/1 Kit Kat or Reeses - Video Values Coupon (from October)

Total After Coupons: $15

Receive: $10 Up Rewards when You buy $25 of participating candy

Total After Coupons and Up rewards: $5.00

10 Bags of Candy for $5 or .50 a bag!!

Walgreens Deals starting 10/24

I am on quest to fill 36 Bags of Hope for the Helen Wright Women's Shelter by this Thanksgiving.

So far it is going pretty well - I will post later my stats but I believe that I have delivered 30 bags to different shelters so far - so this will be the biggest one time donation and will take some planning.

Thankfully one of my friends wants to help me pack them up :)

Here is a scenerio to get the most for your money this week at Walgreens.

All these items either go into the Bags of Hope or will be delivered to other shelters.

Walgreens:

Transaction #1:

Colgate Sensitive Toothpaste

Before Coupons: $3.49

USe the $1.00 Coupon form the Smart Source insert from last week or go to the Colgate Website and register, you will be able to print out a $1.00 from there

Receive: $3.49 Register Reward

$1.00 Money Maker

After Coupons : $2.49 Out Of Pocket

Transaction #2:

Colgate Sensitive Toothpaste

Before Coupons: $3.49

USe the $1.00 Coupon form the Smart Source insert from last week or go to the Colgate Website and register, you will be able to print out a $1.00 from there

Receive: $3.49 Register Reward

$1.00 Money Maker

After Coupons $2.49 Out Of Pocket

Transaction #3

Contac Cold & Flu - $6.00

Before Coupons: $6.00

Use $2 off Coupon from the Glaxo Website

Receive $6.00 in Register Rewards

Walgreens Pantiliners - .50 use the Walgreens in ad coupon

Buy 2 = $1.00

Instant Hand Sanitizer - $1.00 Each

Buy 2 = $2.00

Total Before Coupons: $9.00

Total After Coupons: $7.00

Use the two $3.49 Register Rewards from Transaction #1 and Transaction #2 = $6.98

Out of Pocket = .02

Total $4.98 for:

2 Colgate Toothpaste

Contact Cough & Cold Medicine

2 Packages Pantiliners

2 Hand Sanitizers

Shelters are in short supply of cold medicine for the Winter - so please consider donating!

Rite - Free Medicine - Money Maker

Thanks for all the well wishes - I am feeling a lot better.

That being said, there are many deals to be had at Rite Aid this week in regards to over the counter medicine.

The following items are FREE after the Rite Aid Single Check Rebate Program.

Simply register online and input the information that it asks and you will receive your check at the end of the month.

To Sweeten the deal use the $5 off $25 coupon to make money on the purchase.
You can find the coupon here: http://www.redplum.com/pages/viewoffer.aspx?id=1603650

Boirion children's chestal honey homeopathic cough syrup 4.2 ounces - $4.99
use $1.00 off coupon here: http://www.boironusa.com/files/boironwebcoupon.pdf
Receive a $4.99 Single Check Rebate

Children's oscillococcinum natural flu medicine - $4.99
Find $1.00 coupon here http://www.boironusa.com/files/boironwebcoupon.pdf
Receive a $4.99 Single Check Rebate

Dr Thompson Cold Buster Warming Syrup - 4 ounces - $6.99
Receive a 6.99 Single Check Rebate

Theramax Allergy or Cold & Flu Spray .5 ounces - $6.99
Get $6.99 Single Check Rebate

Transaction:
Children's Chesteal Honey Cough Syrup - $4.99
Children's oscillococcinum Natural Flu Medicine - $6.99
Dr Thompson Warming Syrup - $6.99
Thermax Cold & Flu Spray - $6.99

Total before Coupons: $25.96

Use the following Coupons:
$5 off $25 Rite Aid purchase (hand them this first!)
1.00 off Chesteal Honey Cough Syrup
$1.00 off Oscillococcinum Medicine
Total after coupons: $18.96

Receive $25.96 in Single Check Rebates from Rite Aid

Total After receiving rebates & coupons: $7.00 Money Maker

If you or your family do not use these medication, consider donating them to a local shelter they always in desperate need of over the counter medication especially during the winter months.

I did the above transaction and with $7.00 I made I was able to buy three Toy Story toys for the upcoming Toys for Tots Drive.

Check your local Rite Aid for summer toys on clearance these were great toys at 75% off.

Really - is there a reason not to donate the medicine - you walk away $7.00 in your pocket?

Thank you

I have been down and out for a while with a nasty virus that landed me in the hospital for four days.

Thank you so much to all my friends who helped me and my family by providing rides, childcare, food etc..

Hopefully I will be blogging soon once some medical issues are cleared up.

I am very thankful for my husband who has been keeping things going at home and steping into my 'MOM' shoes.

Now if I could only get him to go out and get all the great deals to be had......wishful thinking :)

Cheap toothbrushes at Walgreens

Walgreens has an in ad coupon for $2.00 off Reach Toothbrushes

Pair this up with the $1.00 Manufacturers coupon from Coupons.com and you have got yourself .99 cent toothbrush.

These are cheap enough to stock up on or donate to your local shelter.

CVS Deals!

The magic coupon machine at CVS is spitting out some great coupons lately.

Today I scanned my Extra Care Card and I received a $3.00 in ECBs and $5 off any purchase of any Halloween items, Halloween decor or items.

I used the $5 off Halloween coupon to get some tea lights for the pumpkins and Halloween tattoos for my daughters dance class.

With the $3 ECBs I bought and three First Aid Kits for the Bags of Hope.

Click to Give - Support Your Favoite Causes. FREE

This is no cost you and you can help end homelessness, hunger, child abuse, pet neglect and sponsor children.

All you need to do is click on the abuse you want to give to and the organization, each time you 'click to give' it is recorded in their system and money is donated to your cause without money from you - How great is that.

Remember you can click once day and they even have a reminder that will send you an email to remind you to cl ck.

It doesn't get any easier than help others in need.

Please pass this on to all your friends.

http://www.clicktogive.com

Thank you!

Free Nivea Lip Care starting 10/3

There is a great deal at Walgreens starting this Sunday.

Nivea Lip Care - On Sale $1.00

Use the $2.00 of 2 Nivea Lip Care Coupon

or

$1.00 off Nivea Lip Care off Nivea Lip Care found at www.coupons.com

FREE NIVEA LIP CARE

These are going right into the Bags of Hope.

Rite Aid Deals 9/28 - Money Maker

There are some great deals at Rite Aid this week.

Deal:
EOS Lip Balm - $2.99
Maalox 90 Count - $4.99
Nexxus Shampoo - 9.99
Nexxus Conditioner - 6.99 - 50% Off - $2.99
Total before Coupons - $20.96

Use the following Coupons
Rite Aid - $4 off $20 coupon
$1.00 Maalox Manufacturers Coupon
$3.00 Maalox Rite Aid Video Values Coupon
$6.00 off Nexxus - Rite Aid Video Values Coupon
$3.00 Nexxus Manufactuers Coupon
$1 EOS Manufacturers Coupon
Total Out Of Pocket after Coupons: .96

Receive $2.00 Single Check Rebate for EOS

Receive - $2.00 UP Reward for Maalox

Total after Coupons, Rebate and UP Rewards - $3.04 Money Maker

Time to send Expired Coupons to Military Families.

Its that time again - you can send your coupons to help US Military Families Overseas.

They are allowed to use manufacturers coupons on their base for 6 months past the expiration date.

Please separate your coupons into Food and Non Food items.

Place each bundle in a Ziploc bag and mail away.

Pretty simple.

Mail all expired coupons to :

KCL Overseas Coupon Program

c/o Carly Romano

11357 Visby Avenue

Port Charlotte, FL 33981

Thank you!

Rite Aid - Deals.

The deals keep coming strong at Rite Aid this week.

Buy:

(2) NYC Color Cosmetics - $3.99/each - buy one get one free sale = $7.98 - $3.99 = $3.99

(2) Kashi Cereal - 2/$5 = $5.00

Total Before Coupons - $8.98

Use the following coupons:

(2) $1.00 Kashi Cereal Coupons = $2.00

NYC Color Cosmetics - Buy One Get one Free From All YOU Magazine October = $3.99

Total After coupons: $2.99 + .41 tax = $3.40

Use: $3.00 UP Reward from the transaction done the previous day

Pay - .41 Out of pocket

Receive:

$1 UP Reward for purchasing (2) Kashi Cereal

Total after coupons and UP Reward - .59 Money Maker

The cereal will go to the church's youth group as they are collecting 5000 Cans of food for the hungry and the makeup will go to lift the spirits of the women at the shelter.

A little bit of time goes a long way in helping others feel better about themselves and feed the hungry.

CVS Deals!

CVS has all their summer clearance at 75% - and that includes sunglasses.

This is great for me since I am always losing them.

Another great deal to snag this week is cheap EDGE Shaving Cream.

Buy:

(2) Edge Infused Shaving Cream - $2.79 Each = $5.58

Total Before Coupons - $5.58

Use Buy One Get One Free Coupon Edge Shaving Cream from www.coupons.com

Total Out Of Pocket - $2.79 plus tax

Receive $1.80 in Extra Care Bucks and it's like paying .99 for both shaving creams.

Rite Aid Clearance.

Rite Aid is having 75% clearance all school items which for some reason include mens and womens socks.

These packs contain ten pairs of socks each and retail for $4.99 so after the 75% I paid $1.24 for each package.

My deals looked like this:

Transaction 1:

(2) Huggies Diapers - $8.99/each = $17.98

U By Kotex Tampons - 2/$7 = 7.00

One Package of Womens Socks - $1.24

Total Before Coupons: $26.22

Use the following Coupons:

$5 off $25 - Rite Aid Coupon

(2)$2.50 Huggies Coupon = $5.00

(2) $2.00 Any Huggies Coupon - Video Values = $4.00

(2) $1/1 U By Kotex = $2.00

Total After Coupons: 10.22 plus tax

Use the following Up Rewards from previous transactions:

$3.00 UP Reward

$2.00 Up Reward

$1.50 UP Reward

$1.00 UP Reward

$2.00 UP Reward

Total after applying UP Rewards: .72 plus 1.64 tax = $2.36

Receive the following:

(2) $2.00 UP Reward for Huggies

$3.00 UP Reward from U By Kotex

Single Check Rebate - $10 Gift Card when you purchase $25 Kimberly Park Products

Total After Coupons: and UP Rewards: $14.64 Money Maker

Second transaction:

(7) 10 Packs of Womens Socks on clearance - 75% Off = $1.24/each = $8.68

Total $8.68

Use the $3.00 UP Reward

Use $2.00 UP Reward

Use $3.00 Up Reward

Total Out of Pocket - .68 plus .67 tax = $1.35

Total for the following:

2 Packs of Diapers

2 Packs of Tampons

80 Pairs of Womens Socks

Total: $13.29 Money Maker

These socks are going to be great for the Bags of Hope - the ladies will be having some warm feet this winter!!!

FREE Huggies Diapers at RITE AID.

Here is a great deal that you can snag at Rite Aid this week and perfect to donate to a local shelter as diapers are always in short supply.

Usually the larger size diapers 4 and 5 are always in need.

Transaction:

Buy 3 Huggies Pure and Natural Diapers - $8.99/each = $26.97 plus tax

Use $5/25 Rite Aid Coupon

Use (3) $2.50 coupons from Huggies.com

Use $1.00 Huggies Video Value Coupon

Total Out of Pocket = $13.47 plus tax

Receive:

(3) $2.00 Up Rewards to use on your next purchase = $6.00

$10 Rite Aid Gift Card from the Single Check Rebate Program

After using the UP Rewards and $10 Gift Card = $4.53 Money Maker

Buy these diapers for a local shelter and make $4.53...not bad for helping others.

Sunrise Methodist Church - Pictures

Here are the pictures from Sunrise Methodist Church.

Huge Thank You to Sunrise Methodist Church - Holly Springs

I gave a coupon class last night for a womens group at Sunrise Methodist Church in Holly Springs and the women there were incredible.

They we all incredibly sweet and EXTREMELY GENEROUS!!!

I was overwhelmed by there generosity - here are a few pictures of the tables full of item for the Bags of Hope.

At the end of the meeting we actually filled 10 Bags of Hope that Stephanie will deliver to a local charity.

I would like to thank all the ladies that attended as well as all who gave items through the church. There were literally bins of items.

A few women gave money which is amazing - this will allow me to buy items that are hard to find coupons for, especially underwear and socks.

A huge thank you to Stephanie for putting all this together!!!!!

I will post as soon as I know where she delivers the bags and the remainder of the items to a local charity to give you a total of what was collected.

A truly amazing group of people - we are very blessed to have people willing to help others in need.

Coupon Class

I haven't posted in a few days because I am getting ready to give me first Coupon Class at Sunrise Methodist Church in Holly Spring.

I met my friend, Stephanie, through this blog and it amazes me how much we can do when we band together.

She has been collecting things herself and through her church and tonight we are hoping to fill 10 more Bags of Hope for her to deliver.

I am so excited to teach others what I have learned and have been blessed to have met Stephanie through my blog.

I'll post tomorrow about the deals for the upcoming week.

Nivea Creme Tins - FREE at Rite Aid.

Thank you to fellow blogger - The Coupon High for listing this deal.

Buy (2) Nivea Cream Tins - .99 each

Buy One Get One 50% Off Deal Running

Total Cost: $1.49

Get back $2 Up Reward when You buy 2 Nivea Products

.51 Money Maker after you use the $2 Up Reward that you received.

I am really excited because I try to shop at Rite Aid once a week and was compiling my list and matching up my coupons and Up Rewards, I'll hopefully post tomorrow about my finds.

These are great moisturizers to put into the 'Bags of Hope'

My Points - Earn $$ for reading emails.

I want to tell you about another way to make $ when you are on the computer.

My Points is a reward based program that you earn point for various things and then redeem those points for gift cards or other merchandise.

First sign up and create a profile.

Based on your profile you will receive emails that you receive points for reading.

You may select up to 15 areas of interest, I suggest selecting 15 because the # of emails you receive is related to your profile. You may also change your profile at any time.

It takes my two seconds to click on them and just by checking my email and clicking these few emails everyday I have earned enough point to redeem into a $25 Gift Card to Walgreen's.

There are a lot of other ways to earn points such as downloading the toolbar, selecting certain offers and participating in surveys.

I did mine purely by clicking on the emails they sent me.

It took about 4 months for me to earn my $25 Gift Card - not bad for about 30 minutes of my time.

This was a simple way to make money to use to buy products for the Bags of Hope.

Target - Shaving Cream Deal!!

There is a great rebate and gift card deal going on now at Target.

Transaction 1:
Satin Care Shaving Cream - pack of three ( bonus pack) - $4.99/each - buy 3
Buy 3 = $14.97 and receive a $5.00 gift card
Total out of pocket: $14.97

Transaction 2:
Satin Care shaving Cream - pack of three - $4.99/each - buy 3
Olay Soap - Single Size - .97
Total: $15.94
Use the $5 gift card received in the first transaction
Pay $10.94 out of pocket

Send in for the Olay $10 off $30 Rebate
http://www.olay.com/PublishingImages/offers/rebate/june302010/crossbrand/10_Olay.com.pdf

Receive $10 Rebate

Total cost $16.88 for 18 cans of shaving cream and 1 bar of soap
or less than 0ne dollar per can of shaving cream - now that is a great deal!!!!

End of Summer Deals

Most area stores such as Walmart, Target, Bed Bath & Beyond, Belks etc..have great end of the season sales.

This is a great time to pick up birthday gifts, hostess gifts and teacher gifts to be used throughout the year.

Most drugstores have 75% off all their summer merchandise so think ahead for next year. Do your kids need swim goggles, flip flops, water toys,?

Usually drugstores will have great deals on sunscreen - but I haven't seen them yet, probably another week or two. If you are like me stock up for next year. As a family of four we go through at least 10 bottles throughout the summer.

Just make sure to check the expiration dates on the sunscreen, most are good for one to two years.

This is the time to get them.

No Coupons inserts this week.

There are no coupon inserts this week - but that does not mean that the deals stop coming.

Overnight Prints

Has free shipping and $15 off any order of $15 or more.

I am getting some great business cards that that have Bag of Hope on on side and then place them in a vinyl badge holder for the bags.

This way people can use the badge holder and insert any type of identifying things that they like to personalize it.

Use the online coupon code LABOR15 for some free or nearly free business cards, postcards and more....

Pantyliners at Target - Moneymaker?

I have not tried this out myself but I will in the next day or two and post back about it.

Right now some Targets have a Unadvertised GC - Gift Card Promotion going on.
Buy 2 Carefree or Always Products and get a $5.00 Gift Card for use on your next purchase.

One way to tell if your product qualifies is to go to the self scanners in the Target stores. If you see a prompt on the display that reads GC that means that the product is eligible for a gift card promotion.


Target:



Buy (2) Carefree Ultra Protection 32 Count - $3.14/each = $6.28
Use: (2) $1/1 Coupon - $2.00

Total Out of Pocket: $4.28

Get back a $5 Gift Card - total after gift card - 2 free Carefree and .72 Money Maker

Free detergent at Walmart

Here are a few deals that you can get at Walmart.



These are great for vacations where you may have a wash machine where you are staying and you do not want to lug a full jug of detergent, or having to go to the laundry mat if your machine breaks down.



Granted we are lucky that the later has never happened, but what about people who do not have wash machines? What about people who have no soap to wash their clothes?



What about people who have one only one or two sets of clothes to their name?



Maybe it would be a great idea to pick these free items up and donate them to a local shelter.



I doesn't cost anything but time!!!



Walmart:



Tide Detergent: Travel Size .97

Use $1/1 Coupon from this past Sundays Smart Source Insert

Final Cost: FREE



Detergent - Travel Size

Use $1/1 Coupon

Final Cost: FREE

Paper Money Maker at Staples

Some places received a coupon for Hammerhill Paper for $2 off 1 package.

If you were lucky enough to get these in your Sunday, Smart Source insert, have I got a deal for you.

Staples:

Hammerhill Copy Paper Plus - 500 Sheets - $4.99 each

Buy 1 - Total - $4.99

Use $2/1 Coupon = $2.99 out of pocket

Receive $4.39 easy Rebate from Staples (takes approx. 6 weeks)

= $1.50 Money Maker in your pocket

These deals are great for the kids when they are in school, the teachers love paper.

Consider each class has 20 students, say each student gets one paper reminder in their backpack a week, and the teachers use 4 other sheets within a day per student (which is not a lot).

A ream of paper is only going to last only the teacher 5 weeks.

Walgreens Deals starting 8/29

Here are the highlights for Walgreens starting tmorrw:

Carmex Moisture Plus Lip Balm 0.7 - 0.75 oz
Price $2.00 - receive $2.00 Register Rewards - FREE

Walgreen's Perfection Tampons 8 Pack
Price $2.99 get $2.99 Register Reward = FREE

Tampax 20 Pack or Always Maxi ads 14 - 22 pack
Cost: 2.99 Use $1.00 Manufactures Coupon = $1.99

Deal Idea:

Transaction#1
Carmex Lip Balm Pay $2 - get $2 RR
Total Cost - $2 Out of Pocket

Transaction #2
Walgreen's Perfection Tampons pay $1.99
Total Cost - $1.99
Use $2RR from transaction 1 to pay for transaction #2
Final Cost - FREE

Total Out of Pocket for Lip Balm and Tampons $2.00

Believe it or not that is actually a bit high to pay for em as there are no coupons to use for those products - I will be posting some other deal scenarios soon.

More Bags to The Raleigh Mission!

I have to say again how much I love, love The Raleigh Rescue Mission.

They are always so sweet when we go and grateful what we bring.

The sweet ladies even remember my kids names.

It makes bringing the Bags of Hope to he needy women of the triangle that much more rewarding.

Please consider making a donation to the Raleigh Rescue Mission or bring them gently unused household item, food, clothing, medicine and more.

Rite Aid Deals 8/28!

There are some great deals on feminine product at Rite Aid.

If you do separate purchases and roll your UP rewards you can basically get on to pay for the next transaction.

Transaction:

(2)Playtex 18 Count - $4.99/each = $9.98

Huggies Diapers Jumbo pack - $8.99

Schick Extreme razors - 4 count - $5.99

(2) Carefree Pantyshields - .99/each = $1.98

Total before Coupons: $26.94

Used the following coupons:

Rite Aid Coupon $5/25

Schick Razors $5.00

Huggies Coupon - $2.00

Huggies Video Values Coupon - $3.00

Carefree - $1/2

Playtex $2.50/2

Playtex - Buy One get one Free - $4.99

Total After Coupons: $3.45

Plus I used my 10% coupon I earned for using my wellness coupon

Total after all coupons: $2.99

I also earned the following Up rewards which can be used like cash on my next purchase:

$2 for the purchase of Playtex

$2 for the purchase of Huggies

Total after using my ups reward on my next purchase : FREE plus $1.01 overage

I love it when stores pay me to buy their products.

These are great products that go into the 'Bags of Hope' and the Diapers are for the Raleigh Rescue Mission.

Hopefully I will be delivering more bags to the Mission tomorrow.

Rite Aid Freebie and Deals starting 8/22

There are some great deals and freebies this week at Rite Aid:

Freebies:

ArthArrest Topical Analgesic $14.99
Get back $14.99 SCR (Single Check rebate)
Final Cost: FREE

Kerasal Exfoliating Foot $6.99
Get back $6.00 SCR
Final Cost: .99

Carefree Pantyliner - .99
Use 1/$2 Carefree Coupon
Final Cost: 2 for .99

U by Kotex or Kotex Pads 2/$7
Get back $3 Up reward on purchase of 2
Use (2) $1/1 U By Kotex MFC Coupon
Final Cost: 2 for $2 or $1 each

Playtex Tampons - $4.99
Use: Buy one 36 Ct Playtex Get One 18 Ct Free
Use (2)$1 Playtex Coupon
Get $2 UP Reward purchase on one
Final Cost: .99 for two boxes of Tampons

Combine several of these offers with a $5/25 Rite Aid Coupon and you could have a money maker on your hands.

Remember to UP Reward are usually limited to one per transaction.

For example if you are buying Playtex Tampons you must purchase each box in a separate transactions to receive the $2 Up Reward for that product.

Happy shopping!!

Womens Clothing Clearance at Target.

I was pleasantly surprised today when I ran to Target for a few things to see a lot of clearance signs in the women's department.

There were many. many racks at 75% off and many at 50% off.

Kids, men's and sleepwear were mostly at 30 - 50% and not as much was to be found.

Unfortunately, toy clearance at my Target was non existant.

I am working on match ups for Rite Aid next week so look for some upcoming freebies.

Kmart Double Coupon Days are here till 8/21.

I was about to give up for the week as the drugstore deals do not seem to be so great when I stumbled up Kmart doubling coupons up to a face value of .99.

This means that if you have a coupon for .75 of Suave Deodorant they will double it to take off $1.50,

You need to sign up at customer service for a hop Your Way rewards Cards, no cost to you.

Kmart allows usually five coupons to be doubled per day after the first five they will be deducted at their normal face value.

You can find a list of participating Kmart stores here : https://a248.e.akamai.net/f/248/47562/14d/ig.rsys4.net/responsysimages/kmart/__RS_CP__/20100818_KM_MBD%20-%20KM%20Double%20Coupon%20Stores.pdf?sid=IOx20100818KMSoloMBD&eml=92856505&rioptype=KC&ruid=1001417

I will get better at this blogging where the whole IP address doesn't show - I promise.

I am working on match ups for next week - but have a feeling things may slow down until Labor Day as parents get ready to send their kids back to school.

Happy Shopping.

Yeah for new friends!!

I finally got meet Stephanie today who I have been emailing back and forth with about Coupons for Change.

She is so awesome and her 4 year old is a such a cutie!

We talked about couponing and she has awesome ideas and she has gone to her church to recruit help.

So in September I will going to her church women's group and giving a couponing class..I am super excited - thank you so much Steph!!!

Raleigh Homeless Statistics

The more I read about the plight of the homeless the more I am shocked by what I find.

Let me share with you these sobering statistics.

Locally in Raleigh:

In Wake County each night approx. 2000 persons are homeless in the with an average of 1200 people in Raleigh.

This includes mens, women and children.

Family homelessness in Raleigh is growing by 11% every year.

Nationally:

Of the 3.5 million people that experience homelessness each year 1.35 million of them are children.

The fastest growing segments of the homeless population is families with children.

It amazes me that in a nation that has so much greed there are so many with so little.

It increase my resolve to provide a small amount of respect and dignity to those who have nothing and look forward to when my children are in school so I can donate more of my time at one of the Missions.

More Bags to The Raleigh Rescue Mission!!

The kids and I delivered 7 more Bags of Hope to the Raleigh Rescue Mission today and it felt so good. Each bag contained personal hygiene products for the women of a retail value of $64.

One of the bet things is that the products in the bags are full size and should last the women a month or more.

I estimated that it cost between .50 - .75 to fill each bag using all the coupons that people have so generously donated to me.

We were able to get everything in the bags that we wanted including a package of new underwear for each one. That is really exciting because it is almost impossible to find coupons for those.

The ladies there are great and know me and the kids by name - they are so grateful so everyone is happy.

I am scouting out some new deals for this weeks because we need to load up on some feminine products, shampoo and shaving cream.

I received my 10% coupon for using my Rite Aid Wellness card (yes that means I shop there way too much) so I will be trying to combine that with the $25 gift certificate I got from them for one of their skin care rebate.

I will try and see how much I can score with those together - happy shopping.

Amazon - amazing diaper deals!! Pull Ups .17 each delivered to you!

There is am amazing deal for diapers going on now at Amazon.com

Head over to the diapers area and if you sign up for the sign up and save program you will be given free shipping and a one tome 30% off coupon for you order.

You can cancel this membership at anytime - I plan on cancelling mine right after I get my order. The sign up and save program allows buyers to have diapers delivered to there door at certain intervals such as once a month, twice a month...

You can buy Pampers, Easy Up and I believe Luvs.

You can also sweeten the deal by using coupon codes fund in Parents Magazine (September issue); each coupon code can only be used once.

This gives you free 2 day shipping and and extra 20% off diapers.
it was a bit confusing but I looked at the total and was wiling to pay so little for Pull Ups that it seemed fair to me.

I bought 1 Package of Pampers Easy Up, girls size 3T - 4T- 66 count
Price - $23.46 plus Shipping and Handling - $16.42 = $39.88

Promotion applied through ship and save program Minus $7.06

Shipping and Handling - removed due to sign up and save program - minus $16.42
Promotion Applied 20% Off Diapers from Parenting magazine - minus $4.69

Total After Coupons - $11.73 for 68 Pull Ups delivered right to my door

Total Savings - $28.15

The average price is $11.99 for 23 Pull Ups or .52 each
Amazon Deal - $11.73 for 66 Pull Ups or .17 each

This deal is suppossed to go on till August 28th - but I wouldn't guarentee it will last that long.

Target Food Coupons

There are some great new coupons from the Target Website for $$ off bakery items, vegetables and cheese.

These do not come around often and usually don't last on the site to long, so I would print while they are still available.

There are also two new coupons for $ off kids jeans - if you can find some on clearance you may find a sweet deal.

We are headed to bring a few Bags of Hope to The Raleigh Rescue Mission today.....yeah!!

Secret Clinical Deoderant better than FREE at Walgreens.

Two kinds of the Secret Clinical Soothing Effects Deodorant are on clearance right now at Walgreens for $2.79 each and offering a $3 Register Reward.

This literally makes them free with .21 of overage for you to use on other items.

The best part is this is a Rolling Register reward.

Register Rewards usually only print out when you purchase the qualifying item(s) and then you can use that Register Reward on your next transaction, but generally if you try to use the RR that you got on the same product you will not get another RR.

Roiling means that not only will you get a RR for buying the first item, but you can purchase another Secret Deodorant on your next purchase use the first $3 RR as payment as long as you add a small item to make you r total $3 before tax.

They are having great sales on folders, memo pads etc.
These are terrific fillers for .09 to .29.

I was ablr to buy a lot of deoderant for the Bags of Hope and used the RR's to buy Hanes packages of underwear which have peelie coupons on them for $1. Use those and the buy one get one free deal they have gpoing on for Hanes underwear and you can score some great deals.

They did have packages of underwear for kids, men and women. The price is $5.99 and buy one get one free. Use the $1 peelie on each package, so even if you do not have any RR you can get two packages of underwear for $3.99.

These are goiing right into the Bags of Hope - I love getting deals on underwear because they rarely have coupons.

Better than Free Razor and Dulcolax at CVS this week.

Schick Hydro 3 Razor or 4ct cartridges - $8.97
Use Schick $5/1 Coupon
Get $4 ECBS
Final Cost: .03 Profit

Dulcolax - $9.99
Use Dulcolax $4/1 Coupon
Get $9.99 ECB
Final Cost: $4 Profit

Happy shopping.

Raleigh Rescue Mission - dropped of Bags today

The kids and I took four bags stuffed with feminine products, personal care items and toiletries to the newly opened location of Raleigh Rescue Mission on Corporation Drive Drive in Raleigh.

Each 'Bag of Hope' contained $50 worth of personal hygenie items for women in need.

How did couponing help me on my goal to fill these bags?

I was able to estimate the out of pocket cost of each bag to be approx. $1.60 and the retail value to be $50 per bag.

So 4 bags with the retail value of $200 I was able to fill for $6.40 with the use of coupons.

It is a very clean, big warehouse where they collect everything from food to clothes and personal items to furniture.

The women that work there are wonderful. They were very kind and offered us a tour of the inside so the kids could see exactly where their donations were going.

They had things separated so when a shelter calls and says they need "X" they are able to go over to the appropriate area to collect the items.

It was wonderful to see a lot of baby items, such as diapers and wipes as well as household items for when the women transition into permanent housing.

One of their largest needs right now is larger size undergarment. Please consider picking up even one package of underwear or find a Buy One get One Free sale at a local mall and buy yourself a bra and donate the other.

Either way it is a win win solution.

My favorite thing about The Raleigh Rescue Mission is that they provide all items free of cost to the women in need. Many of these women have small children and other family members.

If you live in Raleigh please condsideer donating your used household items, clothing or furniture here.

The Raleigh Rescue Mission provides:
Emergency Overnight Services
Recovery and Rehabilitation Services
Medical Respite Care
Mental Health Stabilaztion Services
Adult Education Center
Children's Development Center
Medical Clinic

Please check out their website here - http://www.raleighrescue.org/about-us

This is where we can really make a difference.

Thank you to all who have donated their copouns to me so I may put these bags together.
Seeing this warehouse gave me so many ideas of what other uses my couponing skills for..of to shop.

Walgreens Cheap Playtex and Bic Razors.

I finally got out today to Walgreens to take advantage of the 15% Family and Friends coupon that ran through today.

Bought:

(2) Boxes of Playtex Tampons - 36 Count - $8.49/each = $6.98

(1) Box Playtex Tampons - 18 Count = $3.79

(2) Packages of Bic Soleils Disposable razors - 4 ct each - $5.99/each on sale for buy one get one 50% off = $8.98

Total Before Coupons = $19.75 + tax



Used the following coupons:

$2.50/2 Playtex Tampons
Buy One 36 Ct Tampons and get one free 18 Ct Playtex Tampons
$3.00 off 1 Bic Razor
Buy One Bic Disposable Razor & get one free Bic Disposable Razor

Earned $3.00 Register Reward for buying 2 Playtex Tampons

Total After Coupons = $7.47 plus tax out of pocket

Total After Coupons and Register Rewards = $4.47 plus tax

Not the best I have ever done but OK .

The kids and I are off to drop off some more bags tomorrow.

Happy Shopping.

Kelloggs Cereal ~ $1.25 Box at Target.

Target has a great deal going on Kelloggs Cereal - 2/$5
By 5 and get one box free.

Targets website has some printable coupons for $1/2 boxes of cereal.

Stack that on top of Kelloggs coupons from various inserts for this deal

Buy 5 boxes of kelloggs Cereal @ $2.50 each = $12.50
Use (2) $1/2 Target Coupons from Website
Use (2) $1/2 Kelloggs Coupons found here: http://coupons.redplum.com/offers/default.aspx?Id=Hip2Save&DefaultZipCode==
One box is Free when you buy five.

Final Cost for 5 boxes of cereal = $5.00 or $1.25 each

Another Big Thank you!!

A great big thank you to Stephanie M. and Margaret V. for sending me all their coupons - they will be put to great use.

Also another big thank you to Ruth W. who sends me a stack of amazing inserts.

Another thank you to Stephanie B. who is working with me 'behind the scenes' and I will be posting later about her hard work!

I could not fill these bags with the coupons that I get alone, you ladies are making my dream come true to help these ladies - thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Stay tuned for some great deals that are fixing to come our way in the next day or two.

Target Olay & Ivory deals through 7/31

There are a few coupons that you can still use through today.

Coupons ( all expire 7/31)
Olay Total Effects Body Wash - $4.00 off one bottle
Buy one Total Effects Body Wash get one Ivory Soap Bar Pack Free up to $4.00
Buy one Olay cleanser and get one free
1.00/2 or .50/1 Ivory Bar Soap

So I combined them all together to make for a very sweet deal

Bought:

(4) Total Effects Body Wash = $6.64/each = $26.56
(4) 10 pack bars of Ivory Soap = $3.97/each = $15.88
Total Before coupons : $41.72 plus tax

Used coupons in this order:
(2) .50/1 Ivory Bar Soap = $1.00
(1) $1.00/1 Ivory Bar Soap = $1.00
(4) Total Effects Body Wash $4/1 = $16.00
Buy one Get one Free Olay Cleaner = $6.64
Buy one Total Effects Body Wash and get one Ivory Soap Bar up to ($4 value each) = $15.88
Total After Coupons: $1.20 plus tax

Forty bars of soap, I am so excited!! These will be directly put into the Bags of Hope - I may even have enough to put two in each bag

Happy Shopping.

A big, huge donation Thank you!!!!

We are visiting with family and I mentioned what I was doing filling up the Bags of Hope - my sister in law, Melissa and my brother in law, John just donated $100 to my cause.

Thank you guys so much - it means the world to me that you support me, you are the best!

The money is going pay off a large chunk of the actual shoulder bags that I purchased to fill.

Stay tuned for some great deals this week, including more free paper at Staples, free Sobe at Target and much more...

Coupon Program for Military Families Overseas

Time to send those unused and expired coupons for use by military families that serve throughout the globe.

This month you can send them to :

KCL Overseas Program
Carly Romano
11357 Visby Ave
Port Charlotte, FL 33981

Please separate coupons into food and non food items and pace them in separate Ziploc baggies.

United States Military families can use coupons for up to 6 months after they expire.

Coupons can be any manufacturers coupons or Internet coupons that are printed.
Please do not send any coupons from specific retailers such as Target/Food Lion as these will not be accepted.

Thank you Carly for collecting them!!

Rite Aid - Oral Care $8 Moneymaker!!

Great deal this week at Rite Aid that will qualify for the Oral Care Rebate #556.

Here is the deal I have worked out:

Buy:

(1) Colgate Total Advanced or Sensitive Toothpaste 4 - 6 oz. - $3.00

(1) Rembrandt Toothpaste - 2.6 - 3 oz - $5.49

(2) Reach Toothbrushes - Single packs - $3.98/each = $7.98

(2) Oral B Pulsar - Single Pack - $6.99/each = $17.98

Total Before Coupons = $30.45

Use the following coupons:

$5 off $25 Rite Aid Purchase - hand the cashier this first

$1 off Colgate Toothpaste

$3 off Rembrandt

$1 off Rembrandt printable from watching Rite Aid Video Values

Buy One Get One Free Reach Toothbrush Coupon

$2.00 off Oral B Pulsar Toothbrush

$.75 Off Oral B Pulsar Toothbrush

Buy One get One Free Oral B Pulsar Coupon

Total After Coupons $7.97 plus tax

For me I will use two Up Rewards of $1 each I earned last week and pay

Final Total $5.97 Out of pocket plus tax

Then - this is important to do:

Submit your receipt online for the Single Check rebates at Rite Aids site - super easy

Get Back:

Single Check Rebates for:

(1)Oral B Toothbrush - $2.00

(1) Reach Toothbrush - $2.99

Oral Care Rebate spend $25 of participating items and get $10 gift card

Get back Up Rewards (like cash to be used on your next purchase, printed on your receipt):

$2 from Rembrandt

$3 from Colgate

$1 from Reach

Total after coupons, single check rebates and Up rewards: $8.02 Moneymaker minus tax.

Happy Shopping!!

Bags of Hope delivered today!!!

Super excited, me and my kids were able to deliver 8 Bags of Hope today.

We took them to Interact.

Interact, is a private, non profit United Way agency that provides safety and suport to survivors of domestic violence and rape/sexual assault.

Interact is the only confidential domestic violence prevention program serving our county.

Coupon Request Please!!

Anyone who can print these coupons - please help.



I am trying to put First Aid Kits in the Bags and also trying to get some kids bags put together.

With these coupons I can get the First Aid Kits Free at Target and the kids toothpaste for .12



Just follow these links - and don't forget to hit your back browser, it will say web page expired but hit it a second time and each coupon will print twice!

Toothpaste:

Target Coupon for Aquafresh Toothpaste can be found at
http://www.target.com
Go to the bottom of the page to coupons and under the category personal you will see it.


Aquafresh Kids Bubble Mint Toothpaste can be found here: http://www.wealthoforalhealth.com/Coupons.promo?sessioncheck=true

First Aid Kits:

Johnson and Johnson coupon is here: $3.00 off two items
http://www.jnjfirstaid.com/special-offers.jsp

Thanks so much.



I will be posting pictures of the Bags of Hope that we delivered today t0 Interact - a Shelter for domestic violence victims.

Walgreens Deals 7/25 - $2.29 for $34 worth of items

Great trip to Walgreens today for some supplies for The Bags of Hope.

I am going to show you with this post that using coupons is not time consuming.

Today I bought:

Pure Silk Shaving Cream - Regular $2.29

Use Walgreens In store Ad coupon - $1.29 each (limit 4)

Bought 4

Hand Sanitizer_ Regular $2.99

On sale for $1.00

Bought 1

Memo Notebook Pads - Regular $.99

Use in Store Ad Coupon .19 ( Limit 3)

Bought 3

Chapstick - $1.99

Use In store Walgreens Coupon - $1.00 (Limit 2)

Bought 2

Reach Toothbrushs - Regular $4.49

Use in Store Ad Coupon for $1.99 Price (Limit 3)

Bought 4

Used all the in store ads first for the best savings and then used

(4)Reach Toothbrush Coupon for $1.oo off any Reach product

(2) Buy One Get One Free Reach Toothbrush Coupons

It is important to hand the cashier the coupons in the order above for maximum savings.

Use the coupons for $1 Reach toothbrushes first and it brings down the price to .99 each.

Then hand the ones for Buy One get One Free and it will deduct $12.99 which is the sale price with the Walgreens Ad, so this will deduct $1.99 times 2.

If you hand them the Buy One get one Free coupons first you will not be able to use 4 of the $1.00 coupons , you will only be able to use two $1 coupons.

Total Before Coupons: $37.06

Total After Walgreens In Ad Coupons: $16.88

So even if I didn't take the time to clip any coupons I would still have had an instant $20.18 in savings at the register.

All you do is bring the weeks ad to the register and point put the items that qualify for the instant coupons

Total after Walgreens Coupons and Manufacturers Coupons: $8.90

I then used two Register Rewards each $3.50 and one that was $1.00 for another $8.00 off.

Tax was $1.60 so grand total out of pocket $2.29 for $34.06 worth of product!!

The Register Rewards I earned the week before with two purchases of Colgate Toothpaste.

I bought one at $3.49 and received $3.50 Register Reward.

I did this twice, as buying two at the same time would not produce two Register Rewards just one, so you need to do a separate transaction for each one.

I got the two toothpastes for free and applied the money towards this weeks shopping trip.

It is important that if you do not use the Register Reward that it is like losing money because you have already put the money out first.

Happy Shopping!!

New Survey Site.

Sorry for the slow posts but good sales have been hard to come by lately as most stores are getting ready for back to school.

One new survey site that I have had some luck with is called Dollary Survey. net.

You have the opportunity to take several different surveys a day and payment comes to your paypal account.

Great School Supplies FREE at STAPLES starting 7/25!

Staples has a few great deals for those getting in gear for back to school shopping - and at these prices why not pick them up and donate them to a local school.

Free after Rebate

Staples Backpack

Free after Rebate which is a gift card for use to be used at Staples

**I would suggest checking out this deal first and if the rebate is an instant one than you can use the card to score the deals below - I would double check **

Deals 25 cents and under after rebates

Zebra Retractable Pens - $4.99

Limit 1 per household

Rebate $4.74

Final Cost: .25

Paper Reams - $4.99

Limit 2 per household

Rebate _ $4.98

Final Cost .01.

Staples Highlighters, 6 pack 

Limit 2 per household

Final Cost .25

As I said before Staples rebates are super easy!!! Happy shopping!

Back to School Deals!!

Here are some hot back to school deals - so grab your kid's supply list and start shopping.

Staples

Staples in one of my favorite stores for supplies because there rebate process is so incredibly easy, it is all printed out on the receipt and you can just enter the info into your computer and your done.

Hammerhill Copy Paper - 500 sheets  - $4.99

Rebate $3.99 - Total Out of Pocket $1.00 - Limit 2 

Westcott 5" Microban Scissors - $1.00 

Limit 2

RoseArt Washable Art Markers 10 count - $1.00

Limit - 2

For 25 cent you can get:

Slider Pencil Case

3 x 5 Ruled Staples Index Cards - 100 count

Bic Matic Grip Mechanical Pencils, Assorted 5 packs

Happy Shopping.

Neutrogena Clinincal - Free plus Profit!!

I forgot to mention a great deal on Neutrogena Clinical Facial Lifting Treatment.

You can purchase it at any drugstore/retailer because there is a rebate that will refund you the full purchase up to $39.99. Find the rebate here http://www.neutrogenaclinical.com/tryitfree

Product must be purchased by 7/18!

To make the deal sweeter use your coupons to make it the best deal possible.

Neutrogena Clinical bought at Rite Aid - $39.99
Used - $5 off $25 purchase
Used - $5/1 Neutrogena Coupon for signing up at their website
Used $12 in UP Rewards from last weeks previous purchases.
Total Out Of Pocket: $13.99

$13.99 Out of Pocket plus $39.99 Rebate = $26 PROFIT!!

Hopefully, I will be less wrinkly as well.

Bags of Hope

These are all the items that will be going into the Bags of Hope that I am bringing to the shelter tomorrow. This is only enough things to fill eight bags!

Only 92 more to go.

Each bag will contain:

Toothpaste

Toothbrush Holder

Dental Floss

Soap

Soap Holder

Shampoo

Hairbrush

Ponytail Holders

Nail Files

Pens

Notepad of Paper

Shaving Cream

Package of Disposable Razors

5 pack of Underwear

Pair of Socks

Hand Sanitizer

Benadryl Anti Itch Sticks

SPF Lip Care

Carefree Pantyshields

Tampons

Super Absorbant Pads

Regular Pads

Cosmetic Case

All of these are full size Items you would buy off any drugstore shelf.

Retail Price for all 8 bags: $80.00

Total I paid for each bag: $1.49

Thank you so much to everyone who has given me coupons so I was able to purchase these items for such little money and for supporting me along this journey.

I will continue to update the blog as I go and post great deals along the way!

5 Pack of Underwear - $1.25 at Walgreens!!

Wasn't really looking for his but on my trip today I saw a Clearance sign

Regularly priced 5 pack of women's underwear was $9.99 was on sale for $6 and then reduced to $3 and then 75% off of that. Grand total $1.25 for a 5 pack.

They also had boys/girls socks as well as baby 3 pack of onesies and sock for the same price.

I grabbed all that they had which was about 12 packages.

First I bought Gillette Fusion Razor for the men on sale for $9.99 used a $4.00 coupon and payed $5.98 out of pocket and received a $5.00 RR to use on my next purchase.

So I bought four razors and 12 packages of underpants for $7.02 out of pocket!!

I am really excited to be able to put these in the bags or the ladies. Personal items like that are hard to come by at a decent price.

I will be posting pictures later of the actual bags that were finally delivered - all 100 of them.

I will be filling 8 of them tonight so my family room looks like a drugstore exploded.

SOBE - FREE at CVS!!

OK, so this is my true addiction as I am trying not to drink so much soda.

Sobe is a water/vitamin drink that comes in about 20 flavors.

CVS has a Buy one Get One Free (BOGO) Sale this week and it is one of the few store that allows a BOGO sale to be paired with a BOGO coupon.

Pair up the sale with the Sobe BOGO coupon you can win from the playing the Heads or Tails Game here: http://headsortails.sobe.com (no purchase necessary) - and you have yourself some free drink!!!!

I am happy - I got 36 bottles!!!!!

And just to show some good karma I gave the girl in front of me a few coupons!!

Wahoo - got paid $25.70 from Surveyhead!!!!

I have talked before about making money online by taking surveys.

Yes, there are legit site and there are non legit sites.

Your best bet is to ask friends and family for the sites they have used and been successful with.

I got a payout today to my Paypal account from Survey head - I am so excited.

it took approx 2 weeks to get the money from when I cashed out but they have a lower cash out rate than most, I believe it is $20 or $25.

I also love Swagbucks which you earn digital bucks and can redeem for gift cards or money into your Paypal account.

I am off to pick up the actual bags tomorrow so this tidy sum is going right to them!

Kmart Deals - Free Toothbrushes

OK - so I tried my luck at Kmart with two kids in tow.

Probably not the best idea I had all day.

I had to speak to the manager and then the store manager - because they said they were not doubling coupons, then they said that they would only double them if the register rang it up like that..yada yada yada...anyways.

I was able to get:

Reach Toothbrushes (two packs) - $1.59

Used $2/2 Coupon - out of pocket FREE

I got 6 packages - so 12 FREE Toothbrushes

Tampax Pearls Tampons - $4.79

Used $2/1 Coupon - doubled to $4.00 off

Total out of pocket : 1.58

Grand total: $2.59 ( Gotta love tax) for 12 toothbrushes and two packages of tampons

I would call your local Kmart ahead of time to make sure they are participating in double coupons.

Kmart - Double Coupon Days

Kmart is not my favorite place to shop because they tend to have serious issues with coupons.

None the less - If you sign up at the service desk for a Shop Your Way Reward card, you can participate in their double coupon program.

This last only till Sunday.

The great thing about it is that you can double any coupon up to a $2.00 value. Potentially saving yourself $4.00

For example:

Use a .75 manufacturers coupon - save $1.50

Use a $2.00 manufacturers coupon - save $4.00

Each shopper may use as many coupons as they want, but only the first five coupons you hand the cashier each day will be doubled

So if you have some high value coupons, and can get to a Kmart easily I would suggest going each day - and using 5 coupons per day.

Call your local Kmart to make sure they are participating in this promotion!!

Have fun!

Bags of Hope - Understanding the homeless

I have spent a lot of time thinking and researching about the homeless and what items I should place in the bags.

I try to think if I were homeless what would be important to me - but upon researching more about it there seems to be such a need that it can seem overwhelming.

Here are the things that I can realistically buy and put in the bags, these bags are for women:

• Soap
• Soap Holder
• Toothpaste
• Toothbrush
• Toothbrush Holder
• Feminine Hygiene Items
• Hand Sanitizer
• Brush/Comb
• Nail Files
• Gum/Mints
• Razors
• Shaving Cream
• Qtips
• Lip Care

Items that I would love to put in the bags but don't have any resources for:

• Washcloth
• Towel
• Underwear
• Socks
• Bras
• Sunscreen
• Weater blanket keeps them cool in the summer/warm in the winter

The bags I am getting are great but I am also thinking of using backpack because of the durablility and theirability to hold mare things.

The more I research the subject of homelessness, the more I find need.

Many homeless can not find a job because they have no address, so they can not apply for a job or other benefits because there is no where to send the benefits.

Many things seem to be a catch 22 - many homeless work, therefore they can not get in line or the few beds at the shelters because they are working. Also, due to to lengthy check in and out procedures they can not afford the time to be late or leave work early.

Other factors that affect the homeless is that many shelter are set up for only women or women with small children or men. Women who have children who are boys that are a certain age need to be separated because they wont allow boys of a certain age to be in those shelters.

I can not imagine being able to take one of my children and have the other try to navigate a men's shelter at the tender age of twelve.

That is why many families decide to stick together, sleeping outside in the woods, in cars or on the street.

Many shelters also have no handicap access ability for wheelchairs and won;t allow people to being in walking devices such as canes.

Many people who have medical conditions are dependent upon one of their family members for care and to be separated from them is unthinkable - so they too stay on the streets, in cars or outside in the woods.

There has got to be a place where families no matter what can stay together.

I do realize that these shelters do the best they can but thee has to be a way that families can stay together.

My dream would be to open a shelter to help families that are homeless until they can get into there own independent living. These people would have jobs, the kids would attend school. There would be a security system in place. No drugs or alcohol would be permitted as no violence of any kind.

Can you imagine a safe place where you could be with your family, bath, clean your clothes, have an address so you could recieve benefits, and not have to worry about the few possession being stolen, or having to leave work early or put your job in jeopardy because you have to wait in line to get a bed.

There seems to be no easy fix, but it does seem that many of the agencies that are providing services do not have any way to coordinate their services to maximizes the potential for these families.

These families need a safe place to stay at night, a place to bath so they can be presentable to go to work, a mailing address so they can receive benefits, a place to wash their clothes and someway to access transpportation to get to various agencies and work.

Giing these Bags of Hope may seem a very small gesture but it is a place to start.

Thanks for all the positive feedback and for all those that have donated coupons I really appreciate it.

If you can think of any other otems that you think would be useful that I could include, please email nme.

If you have any ideas of where I could obtain some of the other items I would like to include please let me know.

My supportive husband thinks I should apply for a grant but that seems a bit overwhelming right now - but it is in the back of my mind.

I ordered the bags today!!!!!

I am super excited - I was able to find a supplier locally for the purchase of the actual bags that I am going to fill.

I was able to get durable bags that are large with bottom gussetts, handles and have zippers.

I thought this was important because most of these people don't have anything, so this way not only do they have a bag filled with personal hygiene items but they also have the bag itself which they can keep things safe and secure in.

It may not sound like a big deal to some people but to those who have nothing it is.

One third of the bags are blue, one third are green and one third are pink.

It was a little more than I wanted to spend per bag at $1.70 but to have the zipper was worth it.

Thank goodness that I am earning some money from survey sites and swagbucks to offset the cost, I ordered 100!

Expired Coupons for Military Families.

Time to send in those expired coupons!!

Military families stationed across the globe can use coupons that have expired, for up to six months past their expiration date.

What to send:

• Any manufacturers coupons
• Any Internet coupons
• Any expired ( no more than 30 days) or non expired coupons

What not to send:

• Coupons that are over 30 days expired
• Store Coupons

When to send:

• Once a month

How to send them:

• Place them in seperate Ziploc bags
• Label one Non Food Item
• Label one Food item (Anything that can be eaten or put in a human beings mouth like vitamins, gum etc..)

Where to send them:

KCL Overseas Coupon Program
c/o Cindy Carroll
215 Champion Hills Drive
Berryville, AR 72616

Lets support our troops and their families.

Thank you very much for all who have donated coupons to me - all coupons that have not been used to purchase items for the needy or are recently expired are on their way!