Where did I go?

"Where have I been?" will probably be a theme until October.  Things have been really crazy and stressful.  I just really like doing the blog and was really difficult for me to just stop checking for deals.  It took me probably three weeks to get my priorities in order.  It hit me one day that Alaska sets my priorities as far as chores/tasks.  Berry picking is not more important than planning my shopping list.  But there is only a short time that I can blueberry pick.  So I'm starting to look more at the time frame I'm dealing with.  It has really cut down on feeling like "I'm running out of time!"  I'm just having trouble picking what is actually important to accomplish.   

Very important family time is going to keep me away until October.  Until I leave for my trip I have a lot of summer stuff to wrap up and prepare for winter.  Summer has always been short and I'm going to have to cut it even shorter this year.  But it is for good reason.  And since this trip is going to be on the longer side I want to spend as much time as possible with the husband.  So until I type again...  I hope you all have a great rest of summer and enjoy the sunshine!

Famous Footwear $10/$10 Deal- Ends Tonight

  I took this coupon with a grain of salt because I know how expensive the shoes are at Famous Footwear.  My son needed new sandals, sneakers and my husband needed sneakers.  Rethinking my shopping, I'm a little disappointed in myself.  The women next to me had it right.  She got sandals for her son for $1.99.  And then she had a second $10/$10 coupon and got 6 pairs of socks for $.99. 
  Well I did it a little differently.  I dragged my hubby along so we could both use one.  I thought they might be picky but they let the woman beside me use two (note that they were two separate purchases).  I got a good deal on the sandals.  They were $24.99, markdown to $14.99, $10/$10 off, final price $4.99.  And they are really nice.  They even light up.  I know, I'm a nerd.  The lights make my son happy, which makes me happy.   And then I got sucked into the buy one get one 1/2 off deal.  Grrrr!  That deal always messes with my head.  The deal only makes their overpriced shoes equal to the price of Fred Meyers daily prices.  But we need the shoes so I'm going to let this little glitch in my great shopping slide.  My husband's shoes were $59.99 (LA Gear sneakers so that is way over priced), marked down to $39.99.  Son's shoes were $29.99, half price $15.00.  Total $54.98- $10/$10= $44.98 for both pairs of shoes.  Ok, just one more time, yuck!
  So there is my shopping story.  If you can wait for a better deal to come along in August with the back to school deals, wait to buy multiple shoes there.  If you need shoes right away it isn't a terrible deal.  If you need kid's sandals and socks it is a great deal.  HERE is the Facebook link.
 

Chili's Email Club

What won't I belong to for free coupons?  I got an email that if I joined Chili's email club I could get free food.  It is frustrating for me to see promotions on TV but know that Alaska doesn't participate in them.  But the website said that Fairbanks, AK is a participating location so I'll definitely be stopping in with coupons in hand.

I got two coupons...
1) Free Chips and Queso- Cheese dip with seasoned beef.  Served with warm tostada chips and house-made salsa.  The coupon expires two weeks from printing.  One coupon per table.
2) Free Brownie Sundae- Warm, rich chocolate brownie topped with vanilla ice cream and hot fudge.  The coupon expires three weeks from printing.  One coupon per table.  You have to enter the last four numbers of your credit card to get the brownie coupon.  The credit card I used didn't really fit the description of the credit card I most use at Chili's.

Go Here to sign up.

Free Back-to-School Ziploc Gift Pack!

The first 10,000 people so hurry!  Right At Home is giving away Back-to-School Ziploc Gift Packs!  HERE 

The pack includes...
~One box of 50-count Ziploc Brand Sandwich Bags
~One box of 25-count Ziploc Brand Storage Bags with the Smart Zip Seal
~One package of Ziploc Brand Containers with the Smart Snap Seal, small bowl 
 
*If you received another Right At Home Gift Pack in the past 180 days you are not eligible.
**Mails October 15th, so think of it as an early Christmas present!

Fred Meyer's 6 Hour Sale Monday

Fred Meyer is having a 6 Hour Door Buster Sale on Monday morning.  They posted an AD already.  I just signed in to check the 4 Day True Blue Sale AD that runs through Sunday.  I really haven't had a chance to look at it yet.  Though this does answer my question about if they will put out a savings certificate.  Well last year they put one out during the first week in August so hopefully soon.

I really like the "new" Freds so much better than the one on Airport.  The "old" Fred's coupon exchange is disgusting.  It's a trash can.  I'm so glad that we have two to pick from.  I'm sure there are good employees in the "old" Freds but I keep catching attitude with every visit.  It is just not worth it.  I just don't understand how two stores can be so different.  Good Job "New" Freds!  (And it isn't about being new.  My favorite Safeway is the one in North Pole.)   

School Supplies Coupons, Stock Up Before August!

I debated about passing these by.  It seemed like if I admitted to myself that Back to School Sales are on there way, summer would be over.  I saw The Krazy Coupon Lady had posted coupons for school supplies and I finally broke down tonight and went back to her post to print them off.  I like these coupons because they work well with using the Fred Meyer's Saving Certificates.

Let me stop right here for a second.  I need to just give a little talk about the blessed Savings Certificates.  I have a listed called the "$25.00 List."  You don't have much notice that they are offering this savings certificate.  It is basically a 20% off deal ($5/25, $10/50, sometimes they go higher) on everything but the groceries.  So I have an emergency list of things we want/need when the ad pops up for a day or two.  I go to the store with the savings certificate, 7 day coupons, bonus coupons and manufacturer coupons.  And I SAVE BIG!!!  Once I saved 92%.

Ok, back to the savings...
$2/10 purchase of Post-It Products
$1/1 Post it Cube
$1/1 Wall Mounted Pop-Up Dispenser
$1/1 Post-It Flags or Tabs
$1/1 Post-It Flag & Highlighter
$1/1 Post-It Removable Label
All Here

And there is about 8 Scotch Tape Brand Products HERE (sorry I don't have a chance to write out the list).

Wendy's Summer of Real

Wendy's has a new instant win game.  You can obtain codes from Wendy's products but it is also a "no purchase required" game.  I love no purchase required.  You can request a code but here is one floating around online to use (thanks Cha-Ching on a Shoestring) 329492855844.  They have some pretty big prizes but they are giving away a lot of My Coke Rewards points.  Try your luck HERE.

Nivea Lip Care Coupons, 2 Locations for $2/2

Nivea Lip Care Coupon $2/2  HERE  Many blogs had a similar one posted today through the Nivea site but I found a different one through sheer luck because that one was dead.  And then there is one HERE also, $2/2.  So if you print two at both locations you can get 4.  Safeway in the lower 48 are selling the lip care for $.99.  I'm hoping it is $1.25 up here.  I definitely need to stock up on this before the winter.