Christmas Shopping and Savings!

Anybody who has been around here long knows that I love the sales and saving money. Part of that is necessity . . . being a single mom with five kids, ok, technically four are at home and one is a block away . . . Part of it is just the concept that if I can prepare healthy meals for cheaper, if I can save money on items I would be buying anyway, then why not.

About a year or so ago I joined grocergygame.com and began using that system. It shocked me how much money I saved going there. You pay a low fee and then weekly she gives you lists of the coupons that match your local store savings. It ads up quickly!!! My Sunday morning routine is getting up early and going to the local Albertsons. I buy 2 newspapers (a local and an Oregonian) and a dozen donuts. I come home and begin clipping my coupons, then match them with the ads and the list from grocery game. Today I went back to Albertsons, I had 202.52 worth of groceries, but after coupons and sales I paid 48.00.

The important thing is to stay away from the junk food that so much of the coupons are. I don't care if it is .25, I am not going to buy my kids sugar cereal or sugary drinks. However when you get sales like today . . . 8 boxes of Chex cereal for 4.00 then it really makes it worth it.

Other great sales are the current Toys R Us sales going on. I went the other day and bought games for 3.99 and 5.99 each. For every 25.00 I got a 10.00 gift card (making the games 15.00) then each game had a rebate so I got 12.00 back . . . I took the 10 dollar card back to Toys R Us during a short 4 hour sale. There were several items that my kids wanted that were on a drastic price markdown, one was a very popular toy (which remains unnamed since my kids read this) that my son wanted for 40 bucks . . . marked down to 10.00. SO, I filled the cart with the deals, got to 76.00 and walked away paying 66.00 (with the gift card) and have 2 more 10.00 gift cards for the big sale, so I would have payed 224 bucks, and really . . . I ended up paying 44.00. I love sales!

I ordered photo christmas cards for free from Kodak (they give you 15.00 free when you join) and free shipping. . . so 30 cards cost me 2.49. I then found another site which gave 50 photo greeting cards for 0.00 . . . so of course I made a second batch to go with the first! THEN they sent a coupon for free ornaments with your childs picture on it, so I did two of those for gifts for my mom and daughter.

Did I mention getting UP and Monsters Inc Blue Ray videos for uhmm 10.49 (yes, that is for both, not each)

I love freebies :)

I have knocked my Christmas gift list in half and have spend less then 100 bucks!

Life is good!