No not this blog… but a real purpose for it!! I have found my blogging world calling. And, well, drumroll please—- A BARGAINS/SALES/COUPONS resource for everyone out there who wants to save a little money!! Those who may know me well know that I am a coupon fanatic I religiously print, clip, collect, etc. In my little world I see it as FREE money. WHO DOESN’T WANT FREE MONEY?!

The only complaints I ever get are, I don’t have time. It takes too much effort. It doesn’t save enough money. Well I am here to help you out so you can save in addition to telling you YES THE HECK IT DOES SAVE MONEY!!! So, for all those who want to be savers but don’t know where to start have no fear I am here to help you! I will post links, coupons, promo codes, advice, and personal projects on this blog solely for YOUR BENEFIT!!! Tell all your friends it’s time to impress their families, friends, boyfriends/girlfriends WHOEVER with their mad saving abilities!!

Also if anyone has any tips, help, or anything they want to share PLEASE by all means e-mail me or leave a comment!! I’d love to learn more myself!!

lillkate88@yahoo.com

Hello everyone!  Hope your Black Friday was as prosperous as mine.

I didn’t get a chance to take pictures like I wanted; people were quite determined to get their deals, almost to the point of hostility, so flash photography may not have been what they wanted.

There are still many deals out there to jump start your Christmas shopping and continue to save you money on the things you’d like to buy.

This weekend I’ll be taking the time out to organize the site to update you on deals and savings in a timely manner.

Hopefully you got some great gifts and save a tremendous amount of money. I’ll talk to you all on Monday!

Toys R Us and Babies R Us have NEW COUPONS and DEALS available (valid 11/29/09 – 12/4/09)! Some of the coupons / deals are only available to “Rewards Members” – if you are not currently a member of this free program, you can enroll online, here. Some of the current offers include:

• Save $10 when you buy ANY two Pampers value boxes of diapers (92 – 252 ct.)
• Save $50 on select Shermag glider & ottoman combos (390340, 390337, 390303)
• Save 20% on Medela Pump in Style Advanced tote, backpack, or metro
• Save $3 on Dr. Brown’s 8-oz. bottle 3-pk. with bonus
• BOGO ALL Annie’s Homegrown products
• Save $10 when you buy any two Baby Einstein DVDs
• FREE $10 Gift Card when you buy ANY three cans of Enfamil powder formula (23.4 – oz. or larger)
• And More!

Today’s Featured Cause:
Houston Homeless Project – We are advocates for Homeless Veterans here in Houston, Texas.

Save yourself some money with coupon codes and and support Houston Homeless Project by shopping with Donation Street. Today’s top money saving offers:

Overstock- 10% off Toys
Restaurant.com- 80% off Restaurant.com $25 Gift Cert. orders. Use code and Pay $2
Savile Row- 20% off Everything*
Cambridge Soundworks- Take $50 off the SoundWorks i765 with wireless iTunes receiver.
Boden- Enjoy 15% off plus free shipping and returns on everything
Discovery Store- Get Discovery Black Friday Deals and Save up to 70%!
GlassesUSA- Take $25 off ANY order of eyeglasses over $100!
Baby Universe- Save 20% on ALL Diaper Dude items. Offer good 11.15.09 to 1.2.10

In case you missed the Thursday and Friday deals, Michael’s is offering a 20% off entire purchase coupon this Saturday November 28.

Click here print coupons:

http://www.mic.michaels.com/20091119ShopLocalUSA3.aspx

Consumer Promotions in India have been generally about using Below the Line Marketing to drive a particular single promotion. Give a freebie, use a scratch card to get gifts or a percentage discount on the current purchase or giving the consumer a bulk discount i.e. Get one soap bar free when you purchase 3 bars.

Even couple of years back, this was the most visible face of Consumer Promotions. Not any more. With the advent of coupons and deals, the definition and execution of this kind of Marketing has changed completely.

Read the full article on
http://officialblog.open2save.in/2009/11/27/changing-face-of-consumer-promotions-in-india/

Real Simple is my absolute favorite magazine – and you can get a one-year subscription for only $5!  And there’s a slew others you can order through Amazon for same low price.  The following are available:

• Real Simple
• Southern Living – reg. $60!
• House Beautiful
• Sports Illustrated for Kids
• Food & Wine
• Popular Science
• Travel & Leisure
• People Stylewatch
• Cosmopolitan
• Smart Money
• ESPN – reg. $130!

These are available through December 1st.

While everyone is camping out in front of large malls and mega stores, I would encourage us to remember the poor and widows.  Its tempting this time of year to begin to focus all of our attention on what we get, gifts for family and friends, but forget the real reason why we celebrate Christmas. I remember as a kid growing up there seemed to be more of a sentiment of Christ in Christmas.  In my neighborhood, I remember seeing more nativity scenes and listening to Christmas carols and hymns focusing on Christ.  Remember the greatest gift of all, the one that was given from God to mankind wrapped in the form of a small babe, who far from pitching his tent in front of Best Buy, rested in a feeding troff for animals according to the scriptures. Was Jesus poor?  Not in the slightest bit!  He lived life full, abundant and with more than enough to give away to those in need, ultimately he gave all he had…his very life to rescue sinners from the pit of hell and eternal separation from God.  He gave the ultimate example of the Fathers love.  He gave.  And he didn’t give left overs and he wasn’t cheap!  He gave the best, the purest and the finest of himself.  I would encourage you, if you are reading this, to find some way to give to a family who is in need, a single mother who doesn’t have enough at the end of the month this year or to support a LOCAL charity.  Don’t give into the temptation to get wrapped up in “door buster sales” and the nativity scene of corporate consumerism.  Get wrapped up in creating value and depth in your relationships with others this year.

Target has new coupons available! Many of the old coupons are also still available. Here are some highlights (click here to access these printable coupons!):

• FREE Nintendo Wii Nunchuk controller with purchase of Wii game system
• $4 off Disney’s Cars Piston Cup starter set
• $5 off Playskool Tonka Radio-Control Bounce Back Racer
• $10 off Fisher-Price TRIO King’s Castle
• $10 off Handy Manny’s Fix-It Right Motorcycle
• $10 off VTech Kidizoom camera Model # 80-106900
• $5 off LeapFrog My Pal Scout or Violet
• $5 off Barbie Rockstar guitar
• $5 off Disney’s Cars Drift and Jump track set
• $5 off Barbie B-Smart Learning Laptop
• FREE Woof Street Boutique accessory set with purchase of Woof Street Boutique Dog
• FREE Sony HDMI cable with purchase of Sony Blu-ray player
• $50 off 46-inch or larger TV purchase
• FREE PS3 Blu-ray remote with purchase of PS3 hardware
• $3 off Tech Deck Sk8 Shop bonus pack
• And more!

Photo by Sigismund von Dobschütz

If the past year has taught us nothing else, we’ve learned the relative value of spending time with loves ones rather than spending money we don’t yet have. 

My parents used to save up all year in order to give us a good Christmas without having to use credit cards — and I’m happy to say my Christmas’ are now credit card free as well.  Some years we just decide not to shop.  Others, we make lists of things we would normally buy anyway (i.e. crossword puzzles for bus trips across town).  And some years, we just enjoy spending a few bucks on a nice meal. 

My favorite year, when we were short on both time and money, we each got a small amount of cash & we gave ourselves just 1 hour to shop for each other in the shopping center by our house.  “Ready, set, go!”  It was crazy fun.  Like a game. And we had to get creative to really pull it off — which we did!

So what’s your plan for 2009?   

Ours isn’t well-defined yet, but I suspect we’ll be doing some of the following:

• Buy someone an annual membership to the zoo, museum, etc.  In 2004, I gave Laura an annual membership to the Experience Music Project/Sci-Fi Museum in Seattle.  It didn’t cost a lot, was recyclable AND reusable… and it served as a promise that we would actually move here.  It was a fantastic gift, and well-appreciated.
• Adopt an animal!   There are so many in need right now.  But if you’re not in the market for another family member, you can always sponsor a dolphin or adopt a guerilla from a zoo (i.e. San Diego Zoo has a green adoption program) or donate to the World Wildlife Federation in someone’s name.
• Concert tickets or theater tickets.  Some can be very affordable, depending on what you’re looking for.  Check out smaller venues near you, take a peek at the calendar.  You never know when someone cool is doing a small set nearby, or when the orchestra is playing a reduced-ticket holiday show, etc.
• Food has always been a staple of inexpensive gift giving.  People used to bake cookies and wrap them up in colored tissue paper.  Nice.  Not up for cooking, though?  No worries. Wine is usually a good bet.  Or something else your friends could really use — but higher end than they would normally buy for themselves. Good dipping oil & fresh foccacia bread.  Yum!   Kona coffee.  The Salt Lick’s barbecue sauces. Snoqualmie Falls Pancake mix & Vermont maple syrup.  
• Make your own coupons or activity box.  One year, we decorated a shoe box & we each entered little strips of paper with various activities written on them.  Later, we drew an idea from the box & went with it!  “Go to zoo” or “Enjoy a small town carnival” or “Have a picnic!”
• Gift certificates:  massages, farmer’s market shopping, movie tickets, restaurants… there are all sorts of gift certificates out there.  (Love that pre-paid iTunes card!).
• Books are great.  You can change someone’s life with a good book.  And travel guides are really awesome if you know someone who is planning or dreaming about a specific trip. I got a “Let’s Go Europe” the year before I went backpacking, and it was one of my favorite gifts ever.
• Magazine subscriptions.  I know, sounds boring.  But a subscription to The Atlantic will keep me happy all year!
• Make DVDs of your own photo albums to share with others. 
• Set up a blog for someone who doesn’t know how to get started yet.
• Artwork.  Your own, of course!  Knitting, poetry, framed personal photography, etc. 
• Get someone you love a webcam so you can see each other while you chat!
• Make a scrapbook or personalized recipe book for someone who would appreciate it.
• Scratch-off lottery tickets make great stocking stuffers.  And what could be more fun than gambling in your jammies while enjoying the smells of Christmas dinner wafting through your house? 
• Go visit somebody.  Few things are more appreciated than face time.

Okay, I hope these ideas can get you started!  Happy shopping (or not!)  What have I missed?  Do Tell!

Click here for this week’s printable Shaws store coupons (valid 11/27/09 – 12/03/09) :

• $1 off Swift Premium Boneless Half Pork Loin
• $1 off two (2) General Mills Cereal (Selected Varieties)
  • Can be stacked with: Save $0.75 on MultiGrain Cheerios
• $1 off Fresh Wild Boneless North Atlantic Haddock Fillets
• $1 off two (2) Simply Orange Juice
• $1 off Shaw’s Frozen Italian Style Meatballs
• $1 off Shaw’s Potatoes (5 lb. bag)
• $1 off one (1) lb. or more Shaw’s Roast Beef
• $1 off Shaw’s value pack bread (48 oz)
• $1 off 6-inch Poinsettia Plant
• $1 off 24-inch Decorated Wreath
• $2 off Kissing Balls (Selected Varieties)
• $2 off Norfolk Island Pine (1.4 Gallon Pot)

We now have a coupons available for the public.

Alice “Vicki” Becker offered to oversee the clipping and organizing of coupons for our patrons. Jim has been saving the color inserts from the Sunday papers for me and I will be passing them on to Vicki.

Jill and I found some old library equipment that will be used for organization. The wooden files that were used for date due cards will hold the coupons. Alice has typed the headings suggested by Vicki and we have labeled them. There is an old wooded in-box for the unclipped coupon inserts.

These are located on the end of the reference shelf nearest to the reference desk. If you have extra coupons you’d like to donate, clipped or unclipped, please feel free to bring them in.      – Paula

I’ve got the food storage blues this weekend.   We have a narrow storage area in our basement that we have filled with shelving.  I use about 30% of the shelving for longer term storage of non-perishables and things like cereal, crackers, noodles, etc.  I think of it as my own personal store.

Wednesday I was off work and went out for the last items we needed for Thanksgiving.  Since I was at Aldi’s, I did a bit of stocking up and brought home things like egg noodles, bran flakes, and graham crackers to put away in the basement pantry.  As I went to put the noodles away, I picked up the last bag of noodles on the shelf to move it to the front and noodles spilled all over.  Looking at the bag, I saw a ragged little hole that had clearly been made by little teeth – MICE!

I groused a bit and carried the bag upstairs to throw away.  My son is working on a physics project where he has to build a bridge out of spaghetti.  I went downstairs to check to see if we had any thick spaghetti.  Picking up the last bag of spaghetti off the shelf, and surprise, a jagged little hole in the end – the mice apparently love noodles.

OK, now I’m getting ticked.  A couple of dollars gone and I count on my food storage to be there when I need it.  Dug out a couple mouse traps and baited with peanut butter and set one on the shelf and one on the floor nearby.

Yesterday I go downstairs to check the traps and one is sprung, but no mousie caught.  I rebait the trap and start looking around at my shelves – could they have gotten into my cereal, my Cheezits, my crackers?  I have enough trouble keeping the kids out of my Cheezits and now I have to compete with the mice too??

I check the boxes and none are chewed.  Then I wonder about the 6 packs of Keebler cookies purchased at the Kroger mega event….

Pulling out the first bag, safe.  Pulling out the next bag – corner chewed, toss in trash.  Pull out the next bag of chocolate covered peanut butter wafers – not only is it chewed, but it is half empty!  Darn little mice must be rotund after that feast.  In all, 3 bags of cookies go in the trash – at least they only cost me about 25 cents each after coupons and the mega event.  So I pick a trap off the floor and set it on that shelf and pull all my favorite foods off the shelf and stuff them in a Rubbermaid tote.

As I wake up this morning I recall that I have several bags of leftover Heath Bars (our FAVORITE candy) left over from Halloween.  Oh no, the mice have gone after the crinkly packaging, did they get into my favorite candy??

Despite singing malicious little ditties about assassinating mousies, I knew I would feel guilty when I actually caught one.  I went downstairs this morning and one trap was still unsprung but completely licked clean of peanut butter.  The licker on the other trap was not so lucky – one plump mousie gone to great mouse beyond.  And I did feel guilty.  And a little sick.  But less so when I did indeed find a bag of Heath bars nibbled.  They couldn’t go after the Twix, which I do not love quite as much as Heath.  These mice are sugar hounds.  They even got into a bag of Splenda – yuk.

So there are now 3 new traps set for tonight.  I have whatever I can put into storage bins.  I hate to go after any living creature, but I can’t have them in my house nibbling on my food storage.  I kind of hope it was just the one guy.    We’ll see tomorrow.  For now, I’ve got the food storage blues….  In the future, may need to hire a cat….

You can expect the following inserts in this Sunday’s newspaper:

1 Procter & Gamble

For the full 2009 coupon schedule, click here.

*Remember to get the paper from the largest city near you.
It will have more coupons.

Holland enjoying the waves in Far North Queensland

As Seth said yesterday, it’s the only holiday that really matters.  I sometimes have to pinch myself to remember the good fortune – our health, families, friends, jobs, house, food, the incredible climate and beauty of the bay area.  Especially given that so many others have had such a challenging year, I feel blessed to have had such a good one.  Every year we do calendars and cards, using a service like shutterfly, and it was such a treat to go back over the amazing photos this year looking for the best ones.  The digital SLR has not only increased the number of pictures 4-5X, but also hugely improved the quality, and pictures of our daughter’s complete and utter joy playing on the beaches in Far North Queensland will grace our cards this year.  (BTW, if you never searched online for coupons, it’s totally worth it.  Shutterfly wanted $25 for shipping – a Gogle search for “shutterfly coupons”reduced that to zero in under a minute).

Personal highlights of the year in rough chronological order include: the alt-MBA, training our new lab puppy, finishing the back garden, switching jobs, the first trip to Oz with Holland, finally starting this blog, discovering yoga, getting serious about trail running again, and several iPhone apps (see previous reviews of balloonimals and stitcher).

Henry reminded me of the ability to download TED podcasts which has filled long training runs with amazing and inspiring tales from people have made a career out of following their passions like Amy Tan, Al Gore, Dave Eggers, Katherin Fulton, John Hodgman, Brian Cox and Brian Greene.

One of my favorites, in tune with the holiday was Martin Seligman, on positive psychology.  The video is embedded below – it outlines the three components of happiness: pleasure, flow and meaning. The good news is you don’t have to be born with a genetic predisposition to have it, 50% of pleasure comes from surrounding yourself with friends and family, and success at flow and meaning will provide much more lasting happiness than pleasure alone.  Check it out – a great intro to the field, and maybe it’ll set you up for a 2010 to be thankful for

I’m all about the savings, don’t get me wrong… but I braved the insanity that is early morning Black Friday shopping a few years ago and it just isn’t worth it unless you’re after a big ticket item. This year, I prefer sitting at home in my pjs, eating Thanksgiving leftovers and shopping online at sites like Amazon and Ebates. There are great deals to be had without having to deal with the rush and the crowd and the madness.

Such as…

Black Friday Magazine Sale on Amazon- $5 Subscriptions!

Or head over to Ebates where 100s of stores are offering Double Cash Back today!!!

Isn’t is so much more relaxing to shop online?

She was crushed to death on Black Friday.
First in line at the local Wal-Mart
she arrived at 2 am.
The crowd filled in behind her
got more antsy as the hours passed,
the temperature started to dip,
on a day approaching winter
more than Indian Summer.

Though the store was scheduled to open early at 5:30 am
packed like sardines
people started to push around 4:30.
At first just irritating -
then disconcerting -
finally the jostling morphed into joustling,
became a real concern.

Disoriented she tried to hold her ground
the back of her thighs ached, tightened
from being pushed to the tips of her toes
like a ballerina, which she wasn’t.
A rope divider in front of her
like the red carpet at the Oscars
cordoning off the line
to leave enough space so the store
could actually open the doors when the hour came.

About 4:55
pushed up a few inches at a time
she tried to yell for people to ease off
no one could hear -
except for the few in the same predicament, directly behind her -
the deafness of impending catastrophe.

The crowd acting as if in Times Square at New Years,
started a countdown to the opening hour.

By 5:25 no more than a few inches from the glass
she started to rap, with her purse.

She had no idea that her own death was imminent
it was not in the sales flyer -
although not prone,
fear spread through her veins
as if she lay flat over the pit with the pendulum’s blade
moving closer and closer to her chest.

When the blue coated attendants appeared
on the other side of the plate glass
the crowd surged.
Slapped against the pane
the way she had once slapped a rude patron in a bar,
crushed against the door
as if in a giant human vice,
she attempted one last futile call
just before she lost all breath.
Diaphragm and lungs flatted like a pancake.

Few of her Wal-Mart “shopping colleagues”
ever noticed her predicament
too busy reading the sales signs
or the coupons they held in their hands like prayer cards.

When they straightened out the hysteria,
- a story in and of itself -
her lifeless body slumped to the sidewalk.

Sobbing, crying, screaming hysterically
a 17 year old high school senior
working part time
saw the whole thing from the lobby of the store
inches away, separated from death by plate glass
watching Black Death’s work
as one would watch Piranha in an aquarium
eat the others.
Observed life’s form, as it left the shopper,
fog the outside of the door pane glass.

Later she would be haunted by the likeness
left in last breath’s steam on the panel
like’s Christ’s face on Veronica’s veil
this poor soul, human sacrifice to a strange god
which required attendance at the Churches of Commerce
on the Friday after Thanksgiving.

What was bred from us
that this crowd could continue on its way
walk right over the body
as they would walk past a homeless man
curled in a sleeping blanket on the street
on the sidewalk in New York?

To be only 17
stand helpless
in the face of another’s death.

Who can comprehend
why this should be -
why it came to pass -
crushed to death by her own people
on a day aptly named – Black Friday.

Ray Brown

Today’s Featured Cause:
Autism Child Care Connection Inc. – Non profit organization that runs an inclusive child care center in Chester County Pennsylvania.

Save yourself some money with coupon codes and and support Autism Child Care Connection Inc. by shopping with Donation Street. Today’s top money saving offers:

The Perfume Spot- FREE Shipping on All Orders over $50!
Arden B- Free Shipping on all orders over $15
CBS Sports Store- Save 20% off NFL Gear! Excludes Jerseys
Dunham’s Sports- 20% off your entire order
Total Bedroom- 10% off ALL orders!
KidSurplus- $5 Off Your Order of $50+
$10 Off Your Order of $100+
$15 Off Your Order of $150+
$25 Off Your Order of $200+
ProFlowers- Save 15% plus get a FREE Glass Vase at ProFlowers!
Scholastic Store- EXTRA 20% OFF plus! FREE SHIPPING on orders over $25

Black Friday Deals at Zazzle!

Black Friday Starts Today! 11 Deals – Ends Friday Night! Use code: ZAZZLEFRIDAY

* $8 OFF Binders
* 30% OFF Mousepads
* 40% OFF Calendars
* 50% OFF Business Cards
* $9 OFF Ties
* 50% OFF Posters
* $4 OFF T-Shirts
* $3 OFF Mugs
* 55% OFF Cards, Photo Cards, & Invites
* 30% OFF Major Brands
Star Wars
Disney
Hallmark
Looney Tunes
Barbie
Hot Wheels

BONUS: FREE SHIPPING on $35 or more!

Use this promo code to get these great savings: ZAZZLEFRIDAY

You won’t find me out packing the parking lots today. Oh hell no. I can think of any number of other activities I’d rather be doing instead of participating in the Black Friday madness. (Send a prayer to my brother and father who both work retail and are both working today.) A few years ago, my mother came out to vist and we tried Black Friday on for size. It was awful. The crowds, waiting, pushing, shoving, and all sorts of displays of outrageous human behavior. Never again. It was not for the weak of heart.

I’d much rather be at home, sipping a nice drink, cuddling with baby and playing on the computer. Ahhh…its a welcome Friday day off.

Good luck to everyone that is going out. Be safe! And believe me, that tv, toy or game isn’t worth fighting over! Cyber Monday is probably more my speed.

The Zest Air Voyager Pass is a whole new way of traveling to your favorite Z2 destinations. It’s a booklet with 11 one-way flight coupons sold for travel to Z2 destinations. What is even better is you don’t have to stand in line whenever you have to book your flight. All you have to do is call the hotline, fill up and write on the ticket yourself and check-in for your flight! No waiting, no queueing, no kidding!

MECHANICS

Hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving. Black Friday begins in a few hours. Let us know what you bought, how much you saved, where you shopped, etc. We’d love to know!