Join us for our Spring Cleaning Challenge to Organize and Clean for a Thrifty and Healthy Home!

I can’t believe I haven’t shared this yet! I thought I had, but as I was going through the list of 26 homemade natural cleaners, I realized that I hadn’t! I shared it’s similar counter part – the Homemade Natural Antibacterial Cleaning Wipes – towards the beginning of this series.

Well, honestly, it is pretty much the same recipe, just in spray form instead of wipes! Who knew, right?

Before we start, I use essential oils for many things, including cleaning. These are the “secret” ingredients to make these cleaners have their “antibacterial effect.”  Read up on the top oils for cleaning and how to get them cheap HERE!

Here’s the simple recipe and ingredients needed:

• 2 cups water
• 5 drops of lavender essential oil
• 5 drops of lemon essential oil
• 2-3 drops of melaleuca/tea tree essential oil
• 2-3 drops of oregano essential oil
• Spray Bottle

Step #1 – Pour the water into the spray bottle.

Step#2 – Add all of your oils to the spray bottle

Step #3 – Close spray bottle and shake to mix it up and get then go zap the bacteria without zapping health!

It is just that simple!

 The cost of this cleaner is only in the oils! I figure the total cost to be around .20 each bottle! Awesome!!

**As a side note, this spray can also be used as an alternative natural spray to Germ X or other personal use antibacterial sprays.  You can just spray it on the hands and rub together to rub it into your hands.  Please note, with the lemon essential oil (like all citrus essential oils) you need to be careful being in the sun for 24 hours after personal use.

Here’s a printable recipe that you can put in your home binder:

We also HIGHLY recommend that you put this in your home binder along with many more things we will be sharing! See all of the information on this in our previous post HERE about Put Together Your Home Binder with Free Downloads.

Finally, use this new thrifty and healthy cleaning product as part of our Spring Cleaning Challenge.

Who wants a #FreshMade Salad from Chick Fil A for FREE???  Well, we would because they look so delicious!

Before we tell you about the giveaway, you must see the video of hand prepared #FreshMade salads!  Chick-fil-A is helping you make today #FreshMade, by creating new menu options that you can feel good about! They are introducing 3 new premium salads and an improved wrap all under 430 calories made with premium ingredients.

Take your taste buds to greener pastures.

See what we mean?  We love that they make these fresh and handcrafted using produce from local farmers.

Chick Fil A has made it fun to engage with their new #FreshMade salads and wraps line by creating a space just for you to have some fresh fun:

•    Take the Are You A “Starter”? Quiz - Some of us wake up with pep in our step, ready to conquer the world. Others might need a little kick in the behind to inject something new into their lives! Find out if you’re already raring to to go or need a little help getting the good time rolling!
•   Participate in #FreshMade Activities - Select your mood and let quotes and images from film express how you’re feeling.
•    See How We Start Fresh - Behind-the-scenes – Get a behind-the-scenes look at how the new Chick-fil-A salads are #FreshMade just for you!
•    Get Social! Tweet with the #FreshMade hashtag to get excited about the new Chick-fil-A Salads & Wraps.

We each took the quiz and got the same result (I guess that’s why were married ) and our results were:

And yeah, that describes us… we go with the flow!

So here’s how to enter the giveaway where 2 winners will each receive a coupon by mail for a FREE Chick Fil A #FreshMade Salad

Just leave a comment below! That’s it!

• You can tell us the results you got on your quiz, or
• If you are excited about the new healthier menu choices at Chick Fil A, or
• Whatever you want about this topic!

The giveaway will run through Saturday, May 25th, 2013 at 11:59 pm MST. The 18 winners will be selected randomly and will be notified via email. Must be 18+ to enter and reside in the United States.  The information collected is utilized for entry into this giveaway only. Chick Fil A is sponsoring this giveaway.  We have also received 2 coupons for free salads for running this giveaway as compensation – which will be a nice cheap date for us one night We hope you enjoy this giveaway and have fun!

One of our favorite “non organic/natural” cereals is Chex! They have pretty simple ingredients and they are gluten-free! They are $3.28 each box at Walmart and occasionally we can use a coupon to take .50 off making them $2.78 each box.

Well, I was browsing on Amazon the other day and found out that I can get them for as low as $1.81 each box with a stock-up deal, which is a pretty good savings over the $3.28 everyday low price!

Here’s how to get this deal:

• Head to Amazon HERE where you will see a case of 14 Rice Chex on sale for $45.92, which is $3.28 per box (like I’ve said dozens of times before, Amazon’s prices are almost always equal to Walmart, but they have some extra ways to save, which means no coupon clipping, no annoying checkout, no leaving home and it all arrives to your door! I love that!)
• Then choose the subscribe and save option in the top right corner which will take another 5%-20% off (the discount is greater for more subscribe and save orders you have done in the past!), this takes the price down to $43.62 – $36.74 for 14 boxes.
• Finally, there is a 25% off coupon that you can digitally clip (by clicking on it!) and this will take another $11.48 off of the price and the price will drop to $32.14 – $25.26 for 14 boxes which is as low as $1.81 each box and shipped free!
  

Be sure to clip the 25% off coupon that looks like this:

You can also find a similar deal on the Corn Chex HERE, but please note, you can only use the 25% off coupon one time per Amazon account, so either on the Corn or the Rice Chex, but both qualify for the 5-20% discount!

See more Amazon Deals

Please note:  the 5%-20%discount is for the Subscribe and Save option.  Amazon states that you can cancel subscribe and save at any time, including right after the order.  So if you do not intend to continue having them automatically delivered, cancel the subscribe and save soon after so you do not forget (wait for your items to ship before canceling as it will cancel your current order)!

This is a great deal and perfect for us as we are on our last checkbook! With that, you can get a box of single checks for only $5, and this includes the shipping! There are over 200 designs to choose from too!

It is really easy, just follow these steps:

• Head to the Checks in the Mail site HERE
• Choose your favorite design, and select 125 single checks (not duplicates)
• Manually select “No Thanks” for FraudArmor Fraud Protection to get this price
• Manually select “Non-Trackable Mail”
• Insert code: BESTOFFER and your total should drop to $5 shipped!
• *Please note: if the above code doesn’t work, try 217A)

See more Hot Deals

Thanks Moms By Heart

We wanted to post this freebie for everyone! If you are not a current subscriber to World Magazine, then you can get 6 free issues! This is a great magazine that is very thoughtful and engaging with current world issues.  My family actually subscribed to this when I was a child, and we subscribe to it today.

In fact, they also have magazines that are for kids too for different grades and ages. In fact, we use a portion of our homeschooling budget (read about our $20K budget HERE) to subscribe to the kids’ versions.

Anyway, this is a great freebie and something worth grabbing! This is for the regular World Magazine, not the kid’s one

To get your six free issues, head to the World Magazine site HERE and type in world to receive your free issues.  There is no payment information required!

See more Free Stuff

Thanks Money Saving Mom

Legitimate Survey Companies can be a great way to earn a little extra.  They will no way replace a regular income, nor can you live off of them, but you can pay a bill or two each month.

Some are better than others.  I have done surveys before to help pay bills.  One thing that I find a little frustrating about just survey companies is that the surveys for my demographic (younger mom, homemaker with kids) is slim and I spend a couple of minutes each survey just to find out that I don’t qualify.  I still earn, but it is a bit more of an effort.

Well, last Friday (May 17th), I joined a new company called Send Earnings.  I joined for two reasons 1. They were going to give $5 just for signing up! It is a sign-up bonus that they are running right now, and 2. I always like to try these and see which is worth putting more of my time into.

Now Send Earnings has more than 1 way to earn money, not just surveys.  In fact, I earned $6.53 in just a few minutes of signing up!

I also like the fact that this one is very easy to use, that I can track my earnings real time and they provide to-do lists (they are optional tasks) and you get paid for each individual task, but you also get paid a bonus for completing the list!

This was my first list that I completed in around 15 minutes!

I quickly did these tasks on the list:

First was to activate my account.  It was an email I received after signing up and I got the $5 bonus.

I then did the first survey which paid me .50 (my second survey was $2.25, but of course this will vary every time!)

I then did my first search which paid me a few cents.  I searched for The Thrifty Couple of course

I then confirmed my first paid email when it arrived (It took time after I joined to receive this, but I spend 2 second clicking on the “confirm this PaidEmail” button.

So I got paid for each individual task and since I also completed the list, it gave me a bonus of .50.

This was my balance after doing 15 minutes of activities after signing up, then it added another .01 for a total balance of $6.53 the first day.  I then didn’t come back to this until this morning.

This was my new current list.  I was on for about 25 minutes this morning.  I took 1 survey and opened emails and I ended up with a balance of $10.87!  I haven’t completed the above list yet as I only had a few minutes to spend, but I was surprised how quickly my balance is climbing!

Now, you will receive  several emails and for each one that you open, you receive .02 (you can sign-up using your coupons, offers and spam email address if you have one).  I am finding that they send around 5-10 a day.  But this takes a click and I get paid.  These emails are from advertisers offering products and promotions, but I just skip through the advertisement quickly (unless something does catch my eye, which it hasn’t) and then quickly click on the “confirm email” button at the bottom and then I get my .02! It looks like this!

You can request payment after your balance reaches $30.  If you only earned $1 a day, that gives you $30 a month.  For us, $30 will cover a utility bill each month with just a few minutes of my time each day! That’s great!

So here’s how to get started. Head to the Send Earnings site HERE and complete the form that looks like this:

Then you will receive an email that you need to activate (and then get your $5 bonus)!

And then do tasks from surveys, opening emails, search the web and more!

I think you will like seeing your balance increase in real time like I do

We have posted about the above owl necklace before and it is really, really, really popular! It is CHEAP again! We bought a handful of these before Christmas for our gift bin and they are actually really nice!!

The above Vintage Owl Necklace with rhinestones is .73 in price with free shipping! You can find the Vintage Owl Necklace with Rhinestones on Amazon HERE.

In addition, there is a NEW Antique Owl Necklace that I actually like even more and it is really cheap right now too!

The above Antique Owl Necklace with rhinestones is $1.12 in price with free shipping! You can find the Antique  Owl Necklace with Rhinestones on Amazon HERE.

The better news is that shipping is FREE for everyone with no minimum required on both necklaces! So you can buy one or many (to go into your gift bin for future gift needs).

Please note: Amazon’s prices can change at any time, so this deal may not last long! Also, please note that they shipping is going to take a while (around 2-3 weeks).  I guess when shipping is free, you get the slowest option, but hey, it’s fine with me

See more Amazon Deals

We were recently invited to check out some of the new features at our local Kroger family store – Smith’s.  Why?  Well, they are rolling out with a few awesome new things for customers to make shopping more pleasant, easier, more rewarding and even better…. CHEAPER!!

As you may have noticed, we do a good portion of our shopping in a hodge-podge of ways to help save us time and money while at the same time buying more natural (or even organic when it fits in our budget) products:

• Much of our grocery shopping online on Amazon, Vitacost and Tropical Traditions
• We purchase some items in bulk at Costco
• We get our produce from Bountiful Baskets co-op or at the local farmer’s market
• We buy our beef and chicken in bulk from local farmers
• We have our milk delivered from a local dairy.

So you may think that we really have no need to go to the grocery store. The short answer is, yes, much of the time we don’t really have to go to the grocery store.  We would love to see our readers start making this transition too, because we hardly ever use coupons, only buy simple ingredient foods, organic and natural and whole foods….. so what it means is simpler, healthier living on the same budget!

So then why are we talking about Smiths (our local Kroger store)?  Well we still have to make a grocery store runs for specialty items and for the last nearly year, it has almost exclusively been Smiths!  We usually shop the perimeter of the store and pick up extra produce that we need and: cottage cheese, yogurt, cheese, sour cream, butter, sometimes bread (they have a brand of bread that fits in my healthy ingredient requirements that is only $2 a loaf!).  Then we will hit some of the middle isles and buy the Simple Truth or other natural and organic brands that are on sale for that week.

This is pretty much the only place I use coupons now.  I will use an occasional manufacturer’s coupon, but most of those items do not fit my “healthy requirement.”  But I do use a lot of in-store coupons.  Why?  Well, they send coupon packets to your mailbox that are savings off things you have frequently bought in the past! So now we get coupons for many fresh and healthy options since that is our buying habit.  In addition, we love the digital coupons as we don’t have to clip a single one…and you can even print a list of the coupons you have or use the app to help you shop!

The digital coupons are where I get any Simple Truth product coupons.  Last fall I committed to shopping at Smiths for the extras because they came out with a new line of foods called Simple Truth.  Some of the items are organic and some are just natural.  But the main point of these products is that they are made with very simple ingredients.

In my journey to health for my family, one thing that I determined was “the simpler the ingredients the better for health”.  I LOVE this line of products… they have a bit of everything from cereals, pastas, quinoa, canned veggies and beans, chip alternatives that are tortilla and veggie chips. They also have the fresh stuff: butter, yogurt, eggs, milk, etc.

So that is my short story…. but what I am excited about was that the everyday prices all throughout the store have dropped to a LOWER PRICE!!  That even means that some of our favorite, simple, natural and organic foods have too!

Let’s talk about the cheaper aspect.  I actually noticed this before we went to the event as I was shopping there the day before.  That day I saw the awesome everyday lower prices I bought Simple Truth Organic Butter; it is now $1 LOWER!  WOW!! Organic canned beans and veggies are now a new lower price of $1 (in our store) and both of these are cheaper than the equivalent at Walmart! These are just two examples with foods that I buy….. but there are thousands of items in the store that I noticed were much cheaper than Walmart’s everyday low price.  I can’t even begin to tell you how excited I am about this.

In a struggling economy and food prices increasing worldwide, this is such a blessing for any family.  Whether you are a coupon shopper, a natural/organic shopper… or a run in real quick and get what I can shopper…. your grocery bill will now be less!

But that’s not all!

There are a few more really cool things.  Now please note, although these changes have been released to Smith’s they are coming (if they are not already there) to the other Kroger affiliated stores.  In fact, we asked just that question because we know that all of you shop at different family stores of Kroger.  They did confirm that many Kroger stores have already made these changes and some are still in the process.  If you don’t see these things at your Kroger or Kroger affiliate store yet…. just wait, it’s coming!

1. They have this new technology (QueVision) so that your time in line is greatly reduced! How? Well, they explained it like this.  Scanners in the store gauges how many people there are, and how many checkers they will need at one time. Kroger is the only grocery chain in the US to utilize this technology and Smith’s customers now experiencing wait time at the check stands well under one minute (about 28 seconds).  It is so slick and awesome and this alone makes me want to shop there as a very busy mom of 5 littles that have usually had it by the time we get to checkout!
2. Smith’s (Kroger store) has rolled out a new commitment to make any situation right with our customers. If a product is not satisfactory, customers can now return the item with no questions asked and no receipt necessary.
3. They are increasing their social media outreach so that you can better communicate with them.  If you have any questions about a product or your local store, feel free to reach out to them on Twitter for a quick response. You can also reach out to them on their Facebook wall or email for any other inquiries. They now have a dedicated team available that are ready to answer your questions or respond to any feedback via these outlets.  For Facebook, I would recommend liking both Kroger and your local affiliate for the most current information!
4. Also, don’t forget about their great fuel rewards.  You can earn .10 off per gallon of gas for every 100 points you accumulate.  You can even get up to $1 off per gallon by accumulating 1,000 points! We filled up the other day and gas was normally $3.49 and we paid only $2.49 each gallon, saving nearly $19 on our fill-up! Their gas prices are already some of the lowest in the area, so these extra .10 – $1 discount per gallon is huge!! You can redeem these rewards at Kroger and Kroger Affiliate stores that have a gas station as well as Loaf N Jug, Quik Stop or participating Shell.  Your receipt will tell you the closest station from the store you shopped at!

So if you can’ tell, we were excited about all of the changes and new things that they are incorporating (especially the thousands of lower prices throughout the store) that we just wanted to let you know.  When we can combine savings (especially on natural products) with a better shopping experience you have a great combination!  Like I said above, we had already decided that this was our “go-to” store a while ago before these new changes came, but we are definitely going to stay and enjoy the extra savings!

Have you seen any of these changes at local Kroger-affiliated store?  And either way – what change are you most excited about?!

As the popular BBQ and food holiday as families gather together to eat and remember their loved ones is coming up very soon, there are a bunch of coupons that came out for popular foods and supplies for the weekend!

So print your favorites early before they are gone! Each one of the coupons is a link to it, so you can just click on it and get right there.

If you like this idea, please “Pin” it to Pinterest!

A while back, I mentioned that we eat rice for breakfast.  In fact, we eat rice for breakfast A LOT! Why? Well for SEVERAL reasons.

1. It’s super easy to make, especially with the rice cooker that I think is just as important or more than a crockpot! I love this one that is a 20-cup Aroma Cooker (you can make a little bit or all 20-cups!) by that I have referenced many times as it steams and is a crockpot while having the option to cook rice. 
2. It’s super cheap.  Whether you choose to get white, brown or even organic! It’s all cheap.  Especially when you compare it to cereals! You can pick up a 1-2 lb. bag of brown rice for around $2.  This small bag will last our family of seven for 2-3 meals (whether breakfast, lunch or dinner). We’re talking very cheap, even for large families like ours!
3. It’s super healthy. Especially if you opt for brown rice. It contains fiber and the way that we prepare adds extra healthy factors to it!
4. It’s naturally gluten-free!

So we’ve had a few people that thought it was quite strange that we eat rice for breakfast! But if you think about it, it’s quite an optimal and practical breakfast!

So let me share with you our “sweet” version.

• The first thing you need is to fry your rice in something.  Butter is a good option.  We personally love coconut oil or coconut creme concentrate (this one is like a coconut version of butter).  Any of these are good, but the coconut options add extra layers of health by easily and tastily including them!  We use Tropical Traditions and buy coconut oil and coconut creme concentrate when they have their 50% off (or buy one get one free) sales.  It is good quality too!
• The second thing you need are toppings! Honestly, you can add ANYTHING! In fact, consider the toppings we have included in our printable list of 88 Oatmeal Topping Ideas HERE.  Any of those would work beautifully for this too!  We personally almost always use Craisins, shredded coconut and cinnamon.  When it became a perfect combo for us, we see now reason to change, but rarely!
• Oh yeah, I just about forgot … the third thing is the rice! You will need already cooked rice whether you cook it on the stove or rice cooker!

Then all you do is this:

• Melt your butter, coconut creme concentrate or coconut oil in your pan.  Use as much or little as you want!

• Then add your cooked rice and “fry” until it is all coated and reaches the desired consistency you want.  Our family likes it “crispy” which means more frying time.  If you want it softer, then just fry for a shorter time.

• Then add your toppings and mix up! Some of your toppings can be added after cooking too.  We add our favorite three and cook for another couple of minutes.

• Then serve it up and enjoy! Here’s our daughter’s hearty bowl of delicious nutrition and give her a super jump start to her day!
• Note: one fabulous add-in is nuts of any kind.  These will also add some healthy proteins.  We have deadly peanut and treenut allergies in our home, but it would be fabulous! For our protein, we just add an egg on the side or something

This is our “sweet version.”  We also have a “savory version” which is sorta like a breakfast fried rice – again healthy and that one adds a bit of protein too! We will share that one soon!

In the meantime, get creative with rice for breakfast!

Right now you can get a FREE baby sling! This would even make a great gift.

Seven Slings wants to give you a promo code for a free baby carrier (a $40 value). The promo code is “ENBABY”. Go to their site HERE, click on ‘Shop Now”, select any baby carrier you would like – there are currently 16 different options!

Be sure to go to the sizing page so that you can get the right size carrier for you. Once you have selected your size, you will automatically be directed to the “shopping bag” where you can enter the promo code “ENBABY “ . This promo code will take 100% off of the baby carrier purchase and all you are required to pay are the shipping fees. You can use the code more than once- simply open a new browser window to do so.

The shipping is a little on the high side at $11.95, but to get this for $11.95 is even very difficult going into the store (like Walmart), so it is still the best deal you will probably get.  We imagine that they are making up some of their cost in shipping too But still don’t miss this!

This is only available for a short time and we do not know when the “limited time” is up, but it is available right now!

Head to their site HERE to get your FREEBIE

See more Free Stuff

Starting today and through tomorrow morning (May 21, 2013), you can get some great deals on organic, natural and whole foods from Vitacost.  I have mentioned Vitacost a few times, including most recently for the 7 Best Essential Oils for cleaning.  We’ve also mentioned that Vitacost is one of our go-to grocery stores.  It is like an online Whole Foods/Trader Joe’s, but with Amazon’s prices.  So when there is a further discount, it is a SUPER time for us to stock-up on our non-perishable foods, household and personal care items that would normally cost quite a bit buying them in-store in town somewhere.

Again, this would be a sale that you can save even more on the Essential Oils for Cleaning and get another 12% off the already low prices!!

Here’s a quick cart view of those 7 Best Essential Oils for Homemade Natural Cleaning to go with our 26 recipes for homemade cleaning products.  To find out all of the details, head to the previous post here.  If you are a returning Vitacost customer, use coupon code: SUNSHINE to get another 12% off. If you are a new customer, you will want to get the $10 off instead, so you can follow the instructions on the post.

If you already have your oils for cleaning, then I would also highly suggest checking out there 60% off clearance section.  I find so many great things each month that I order from Vitacost in this section! Plus with the extra 12% off…..it means even more savings!

In addition, they also have sale items that make their prices very affordable, especially when compared to other stores! So be sure to check out your shopping list and compare prices here!

STOP…. IF YOU ARE A FIRST TIME BUYER TO VITACOST… you will want to do this too as you will get further discounts! New customers get a FREE $10 to spend with orders of $30 or more.  This is great news for you as you will get another $10 off!!  You can use it on the foods, or you can use it on the 7 oils we shared previously to make now 26 homemade cleaners. 

Here’s the links to shop and get your discounts:

NEW Customers (first time customers to Vitacost) automatically get a $10 off coupon code HERE with registration.

Returning Customers shop HERE for the extra 12% off everything when you use coupon code: SUNSHINE

See more Organic Deals

It’s been about a year since we have shared a deal on newspapers, but we are finally excited to share these deals with you and find deals again after all this time! Why? Well, in our many years of couponing, one tool that we know that has contributed to the highest percent of savings is having the Sunday paper for the coupons! Let’s break it down:

• The #1 Resource/Tool needed to save the most money is coupons
• There are coupons from many places (mail, printable, newspapers) but 45 – 50% of the total coupons you use come out of the newspaper! THIS IS HUGE! That means that to save about 50% more than what you are saving now, the coupons from the newspaper that you are using!
• Although there are many sources of coupons, many stores will not take printable coupons (second major source of coupons) and so this means that your newspaper coupons are your RELIABLE source of savings = essential resource to achieve your low spending goals!

Facts regarding coupons!

• Even if you do not use one single food coupon, your savings alone from personal care items and household items alone brings in massive savings!
• The average coupon value today is $1.40 each – most packets include dozens and dozens of coupons = a lot of value
• We treat our coupons like cash because that is what they are!
• If you are strictly organic, you may or may not see the savings because there isn’t a lot of organic foods coupons.  We are still struggling to figure this out for this type of shopper, but at these prices, it is worth seeing if it will work!

HERE’S THE BEST PART

You can get the Sunday Newspapers for the coupons delivered to your door for as low as .38 each!

Why is this so great!! Well, we have not seen the newspapers this low in a while! Buying them in the stand is $1.50 – $2 each!! Even if you are a current subscriber, you can add more to your subscription at this cost.

We are highlighting two newspapers in Utah, but you can get similar deals in the following areas by clicking on the links below and order online! Be sure to mention that The Thrifty Couple referred you so that you can lock in your $20 per year (.38 each newspaper deal) and so that we can get deals like this in the future if they are popular enough!

• This is for the Salt Lake Tribune and Deseret Morning News (you can click here to go directly to this deal)
• These two newspapers deliver all across the state of Utah
• You will receive the Sunday Only edition
• PLUS they have extra coupon packets that the other newspapers in the state do not have.
• You can get up to 4 newspapers at this cost
• Even if you are a current subscriber, we can add more to what you currently receive.

And although the value of the coupons in each newspaper is over $100, you will probably only use around $10 – $40 worth of coupons for your families needs = investment of .38 and the return on investment = $10-$40!

Here’s how this works:

• One newspaper for $20 for the WHOLE Year = $20
• Two newspapers for $20 each for the year = $40
• Three newspapers for $20 each for the year = $60
• Four newspapers for $20 each for the year = $80

HERE’S THE BAD PART!

This deal is only good for a short time, the ending date is unknown, but usually only last a short time – then it will probably disappear for a while again!

So if you live in Utah and have realized that you are in need of the newspaper, or in need of adding more to your current subscriptions, then fill-out this form and your order will be placed.  If you have questions, please feel free to email us at thriftyus AT thethriftycouple.com and we will be happy to help you!

In addition, if you live in the following areas, you can get similar newspaper deals right now too! Just click on the links to be taken to the information on the current deals.

Note: For ease and accuracy to ensure your order goes through, we recommend going to the post on our site and clicking through the links to the forms on your web browser.  Please do not click through on mobile devices or if you are reading this article via RSS or email as the deals will not go through.

Utah*

Salt Lake Tribune/Deseret News - $0.38 EACH!

Standard Examiner – .81 each

Herald Journal – .88 each

* Please note most/all residents of Utah can receive the highlighted deal for the Tribune/Deseret News so make sure to check that first as it will be a better deal

California

Fresno Bee – .77 each

Los Angeles Newspapers – .50 each

Modesto Bee – .50 each

Orange County Register – $1.51 each

Press Enterprise (Riverside and Temecula) – .75 each

Sacramento Bee -.77 each

San Diego Union Tribune – .50 each

Nevada

Las Vegas Review Journal – .77 each

Idaho

Idaho State Journal – .83 each

*Please note, if the newspaper in your area is not listed, know that we are continually looking for newspaper deals in other areas so this list is expanding.  If you would like us to try and work with your area soon, then leave a comment and we will see what we can find for you!

Be sure to find out how to use them for maximum savings by reading our previous post!

We finally have a Goodwill relatively close to us! For years, they seemed to be everywhere except where we have lived.  Many of my friends across the country have shopped there for their families.

I finally got to visit one (I do visit a lot of other thrift stores in the area too) for the first time a few weeks ago.  I purposefully went looking for shorts for our kids.  We seemed to have a shortage and I just wanted to find cheap ones for outdoor playing and for the summer.

I honestly have struggled finding any great selection at thrift stores as the kids clothes are so picked through and hard to find anything good, I am not sure if this is just a problem in our area, or if that is the case everywhere! So it is always nice to have another thrift store in the area to help with more selection.

In the end, I did find a couple of pairs of shorts for some of our kids.  I wasn’t horribly impressed with the prices, but they were still much cheaper than buying them even new at Walmart.  Their prices were actually compared to ThredUp, and I love ThredUp as it is all gently used high quality clothing and it is easy to find the style, size that I want and I know it is good quality.

I wasn’t even going to bother looking for things for myself, mostly because I had tired kids that probably had not much time in them left before melt down and watching mommy sift through clothing was probably going to bring a fast roaring melt down.

But….. we passed the shoes.  I have to admit, I have a shoe fetish and it has absolutely drove Alex nuts in the 14 years we have been married.  I have gotten significantly better since our journey to become debt-free because there was no room to buy extra shoes.  since becoming debt-free, we’ve had 5 kids and now I am up to my ears in buying shoes for all 7 people in my family. So it practically feeds my obsession now when I buy 7 pairs, they’re just not all for me anymore

Well, as we passed the shoes, I instantly spotted a pair of boots which were exactly like what I had been wanting! I rushed over to them and saw that they looked practically new! I am not sure if they were ever worn as they had the original tags on them!

I was so excited because they were $9.99!  I haven’t been able to find anything close to this price.

I love these boots and they go many places with me Here’s pictures of my boots walkin’ around the zoo!

They are very nice and I love them and I love that I got a good deal on them!

Here we are at the bird show… kids are in the front row and that is my sweet Miracle Baby Josiah (if you haven’t read his story yet, please do so… he will be 2-years old soon!). He is sitting next to his brother who is wearing a shirt from ThredUp online kids thrift store and a pair of shorts that I bought at Goodwill!

Since this was my first time to a Goodwill, this has been the most exciting find there for me so far

What is the best treasure you have found at a thrift store? 

Have you been to a Goodwill and how does it compare to other thrift stores you have been to?

This is a very rare opportunity for All You Magazine, but it has been so popular this month that they have extended this Mother’s Day sale through May 31st! .  This comes out to be only .83 per issue, which is virtually un-heard of!

If you have tried to save money or live a frugal life-style in any way, then you have probably come across one of the most popular magazines for couponers and frugal thinkers alike – All You Magazine.  It is one of our favorites and one of the best magazines out there for the money-savers.  But, you may have also noticed that due to it’s high demand and popularity, it rarely goes on sale!

Well, for a short time, there is a super deal on this magazine! This deal is such a good one, that it is an opportunity to give it a shot and see if the coupons and ideas are a good fit for your budget and family?

First, if you don’t know, we share posts throughout the year on how to save on products using coupons inside of the ALL YOU magazine, plus these coupons matchup with deals in stores your area and finally, these coupons are also listed in our coupon database. This doesn’t even consider the fact that each magazine is packed with great tips on saving money and living on less!  Make sure to check out more information on what each issue of ALL YOU contains! We often find most coupons are higher value than other coupon sources and most are exclusive to All You Magazine as well!

So here’s the deal, All you sells exclusively at Walmart for $2.49 each issue, you can subscribe for the online promotional price of $20 for the year.  But, you can get it for 50% off the lowest subscription price with their 2 for 1 sale.  You can get 2 subscriptions for at the promotional price of 1.

So what this means is 4 things: (Please note, you should also be able to extend any current subscriptions on this deal too)

1. Get double subscriptions for double the coupons for your own family, or
2. Give a free gift to your Mother, friend, or anyone else that would benefit from this magazine, or
3. Split the cost with a friend who has been wanting to get this magazine and each of you will get a subscription for only .83 each issue!
4. If you already have a subscription, you can bless two other people for the cost of 1 with a gift subscription!

Click HERE for your 2 for 1 Subscription Deal to ALL YOU Magazine

Disclaimer: We receive a commission for All You subscriptions purchased through the link above, but we only post a deal on this magazine when we honestly think there is one. Thank you for supporting our site if you choose to order this magazine deal through our site.

Are you doing any retail shopping this week and weekend?  If so, we highly encourage you to spend an extra minute or two but save a lot of money by searching for a printable in-store coupon to save on your total purchase!

Full-List of Newly Available Retail Store Coupons for the 5/10/13 Weekend:

• Aaron Brothers Coupon – 25% Off Entire Purchase (exp: 5/18/2013)
• Aerie Coupon – 20%, 30% or 40% Off Purchase Mystery Coupon (exp: 5/19/2013)
• Aeropostale – Facebook Exclusive 25% off purchase Exp 5/19
• Aeropostale - $10 off $50 Exp 5/31
• American Eagle Coupon – 20%, 30% or 40% Off Purchase Mystery Coupon (exp: 5/19/2013)
• Banana Republic Factory Store – 10% off $100+ purchase Exp 5/21
• Big Lots – 10% off purchase for Armed Forces – Valid 5/18
• Big 5 Sporting Goods Coupon – $10 Off $50 Purchase (exp: 5/20/2013)
• Bonton/Carson’s Coupon - 25% Off Sale Price Apparel + More Coupons (exp: 5/19/2013)
• Cacique - $25 off $75 Exp 5/22
• Carter’s – Facebook Exclusive 25% off $50 Exp 5/19
• Children’s Place – 15% off purchase Exp 5/25
• Chico’s Outlet Coupon – 10% Off Already Reduced Clearance Items (exp: 5/28/2013)
• Famous Footwear – 20% off purchase Valid 5/23 – 5/27
• Gap Outlet – 10% off $75+ purchase Exp 5/21
• GNC Coupon – $10 Off $20 Purchase (exp: 5/31/2013)
• Goody’s - Various Coupons
• Hobby Lobby - 40% off regular priced item Exp 5/18
• iParty Coupon – 20% Off Entire Purchase (exp: 5/31/2013)
• JoAnn Fabrics - 40% off regular priced item Exp 5/18
• Kirkland’s Coupon – $10 Off $50 Purchase (exp: 5/19/2013)
• Lane Bryant - $25 off $75 Exp 5/22
• The Limited – $15 off $30 Exp 5/22
• Lord & Taylor – 15% off purchase Exp 5/20
• Macy’s – 25% off $100+ purchase Exp 5/19
• Michael’s - 25% off purchase Exp 5/18
• New York & Co – $50 off $100 Exp 5/18
• Office Depot – 20% off one item Exp 5/18
• Office Depot – $15 off $75 Exp 5/20
• Office Max – 20% off purchase Exp 5/18
• Old Navy – $10 off $50 Exp 5/19
• Old Navy – Facebook Exclusive $5 off $25 Exp 5/22
• OshKosh B’Gosh Coupon – 25% Off $50 Purchase (exp: 5/19/2013)
• Party City – Various Coupons Exp 5/19
• Party City - $5 off Custom Banner Exp 6/2
• Payless Coupon – 20% Off Entire Purchase (exp: 5/19/2013)
• P.S. from Aeropostale – Facebook Exclusive 25% off purchase Exp 5/19
• Radio Shack Coupon – $10 Off $40 Purchase (exp: 5/17/2013)
• Sherwin Williams Coupon – $10 Off $50 Purchase (exp: 6/30/2013)
• Sports Authority Coupon – 20% Off Entire Purchase (exp: 5/18/2013)
• Target - Various Coupons
• Toys R Us - Free $10 Gift Card with $40 purchase Exp 5/18
• ULTA - 20% off single item Exp 6/1
• Walgreens – Various Coupons in the May Coupon Books (found in-store)
• Yankee Candle Coupon – $20 Off $45 Purchase (exp: 6/2/2013)

• Bath & Body Works - Sign up for email newsletter for Coupons and Discounts
• Bed Bath & Beyond - Sign up for email newsletter and get 20% off coupon
• Burlington / Baby Depot - Sign up for email newsletter and get 20% off coupon
• Carter’s - Sign up for Carter’s Celebration Station for Coupons and Discounts
• DSW – Sign up for the DSW Rewards Program for various coupons
• The Container Store - Organized Teacher’s Program 15% off each purchase
• Express – Sign up for their Email Newsletter and get 15% off your next purchase
• Footlocker – Join their VIP Club and get a $10 off $50 coupon
• Gap Outlet – Free Coupons when you sign up for their email newsletter
• Goody’s - Coupons when you sign up for their email newsletter
• Gymboree – Get Gymboree Rewards for signing up
• Kohl’s - $5 off any purchase
• Naturalizer - $10 off any purchase
• New York & Co -  Get Offers for signing up for their Email Newsletter
• Payless Shoe Source - Special Offers and Coupons for signing up for their Email Newsletter
• Shoe Carnival - Special Offers and Couponswhen you sign up for their Email Newsletter
• Tanger - Get Coupons for your Tanger Outlet Mall
• Things Remembered - Special Offers and Coupons when you sign up for their Email Newsletter 

Finally, be sure to visit our Online Retail Coupon Codes Database HERE for hundreds of online retailers to save even more online! And if you want to be sure you are getting the best deals, don’t miss our post HERE where we teach you how to score the best deal every time!

Thanks to Your Retail Helper and Surviving the Stores

Here are the Eating out deals and coupons for this week of May 2013!

First don’t miss these other resources available on our site:

• How to save money at the restaurant when you don’t have access to coupons
• Our Deep in Debt to Debt Free Series, including Our Seven Debtly Sins of Eating Out.

Now on to the specials available for this weekend!

Restaurants:

Many Local Restaurant Coupons/Discount Gift Certificates: get $25 for $10

Right now you can purchase $25 restaurant gift certificates for $10. Head over to Restaurant.com here to see what’s available in your area!

Bob Evans

• Bob Evans Coupon – Buy 1 Get 1 Free Breakfast Entree WYB 2 Beverages (exp: 5/24/2013)

Boston Market

• Boston Market Coupon – Free Large Side WYB Family Meal (exp: 5/20/2013)

Bucca di Beppo

• Buca di Beppo Coupon – $10 Off $20 Purchase (exp: 5/27/2013)
• $10 off any purchase of Two Buca Small or Buca Large Pastas, Baked Pastas or Entrees from the 5/5 Red Plum Insert (exp. 6-13-13)
• 10% off any Half or Full Party Pan purchase from the 5/5 Red Plum Insert (exp. 6-13-13)

California Pizza Kitchen

• California Pizza Kitchen Coupon - FREE Arugula & Quinoa Salad (exp: 7 days after printing)

Chuck E Cheese

• Number of coupons found in the 3/10 Smart Source Inserts (exp: 6/15/2013)
• Number of coupons found in the 4/7 Smart Source Inserts (exp. 7-27-13)

Corner Bakery Cafe

• Corner Bakery Coupon – FREE Avocado & Spinach Power Panini Thin (must reserve online)

Honey Baked Ham

• $5.00 off any size Bone-in Half Ham, excludes Mini Ham from the 5/5 Red Plum Insert (exp. 7-14-13)
• $6.99 Lunch Combo Sandwich, Side and Drink from the 5/5 Red Plum Insert (exp. 7-14-13)
• $3.00 off any Boneless Ham from the 5/5 Red Plum Insert (exp. 7-14-13)

Longhorn Steakhouse

• $3.00 off two Lunch entrees or $1.50 off each single adult entree from the 4/14 Smart Source Insert (exp. 6-2-13)
• $4.00 off two Dinner entrees or $2.00 off each single adult entree from the 4/14 Smart Source Insert (exp. 6-2-13)

Marie Callender’s

• Marie Callenders Coupons Buy 1 Entree Get 1 50% Off WYB 2 Drinks (exp: 5/30/2013)

Mimi’s Cafe

• Mimis Cafe Coupon – $5 Off $15 Lunch or Dinner Purchase (exp: 5/23/2013)

Outback Steakhouse

• Outback Steakhouse Coupon – $8 Off 2 Dinner Entrees (exp: 5/21/2013)

Planet Hollywood

• Planet Hollywood Coupon – $5 Off $20 Purchase (exp: 6/30/2013)

Red Lobster

• $3 off any two lunch entrees from the 4/28 Smart Source Insert (exp. 6-9-13)
• $4 off any two dinner entrees from the 4/28 Smart Source Insert (exp. 6-9-13)

Ruby Tuesday

• $3.00 off any entree before 3 p.m. from the 4/21 Smart Source Insert (exp. 5-21-13)
• Buy any Adult entree and get a second entree 50% off from the 4/21 Smart Source Insert (exp. 5-21-13)

Shoney’s

• $5 off $25 or morel (Exp 10 Days after signing up)

Souplantion

• Souplantation & Sweet Tomatoes Coupon – 20% Off Entire Check (exp: 5/23/2013)

Village Inn

• $5 off purchase of 2 Entrees and 2 Beverages or $2.50 off 1 Entree and 1 Beverage from the 4/28 Red Plum Insert (exp. 5-17-13)
• $5 off purchase of 2 Entrees and 2 Beverages or $2.50 off 1 Entree and 1 Beverage from the 4/28 Red Plum Insert (exp. 5-17-13)
• 20% off entire guest check from the 4/28 Red Plum Insert (exp. 5-17-13)

Fast Food Restaurants:

Bruegger’s

• Bruegger’s Coupon – $2.99 Bagel Egg Sandwich (exp: 5/23/2013)

Carl’s Jr.

• A number of coupons found in the 4/14 Smart Source Insert (exp. 5-18-13)

Chevy’s

• Chevy’s Coupon – $10 Off $30 Purchase (exp: 6/15/2013)

Jack in the Box

• Jack In The Box Coupon – BOGO Free Chipotle Chicken Club Sandwich (exp: 5/31/2013)

Jack’s

• Jack’s Coupons Buy 1 Big Jack Combo Get 1 Free (exp: 6/3/2013)

McDonald’s

• McDonald’s Coupons $1 Egg White Delight McMuffin (exp: 6/20/2013)

Quiznos

• Quiznos Coupon – $2.99 Small Chicken Fajita Sub (exp: 5/22/2013)

Weinerschnitzel

• A number of coupons in the 4/28 Smart Source Insert (exp. 6-1-13)

Desserts/Treats:

Ben and Jerry’s

• Ben & Jerry’s Coupon – Buy 1 Get 1 Free Small or Large Cup or Cone (exp: 5/31/2013)

Coldstone Creamery

• $3.00 off any Cake, excludes Pies, Petite Cakes, Cupcakes and Cookie Sandwiches from the 5/5 Smart Source Insert (exp. 6-5-13)
• Buy 1 Like It, Love It or Gotta Have It Size Ice Cream or Yogurt, Get 1 of equal or lesser value for .99 from the 5/5 Smart Source Insert (exp. 6-5-13)
• Like It Size Create Your Own (Ice Cream or Yogurt plus 1 mix-in) 2 for $5.00 from the 5/5 Smart Source Insert (exp. 6-5-13)

Dairy Queen

• Number of coupons in the 4/28 Smart Source Insert (exp. 5-31-13)

Jamba Juice

• Jamba Juice Coupon – $2 16 oz. Smoothies (exp: 5/20/2013)

Seattle’s Best

• Seattles Best Coffee Coupon – FREE Frozen Caramel Candy Latte (exp: 5/21/2013)

Starbucks

• Starbucks Coupon – $2 Off Starbucks Refreshers (exp: 5/21/2013)

Wetzel’s Pretzels

• FREE Lemonade

Movies:

RedBox Movie Rental

• Check out this list of Red Box codes. Many of the codes listed are 1 time use codes but if you use different credit cards or debit cards you can re-use a code.

Fandango

• Buy one get one FREE movie ticket Fridays for Visa Signature card holders

Also, be sure to check our “Best Deals on Restaurants and Entertainment” throughout the weekend as any more deals or coupons that we find, we will be posting there!

Email or newsletter signup freebies

Continual Restaurant Coupons with email or newsletter sign-ups (most of these will arrive via email within 24-hours after sign-up!):

Applebee’s

• FREE Birthday Special and other offers

Arby’s

• Join the Arby’s email list to receive a coupon for a FREE Roast Beef Sandwich

Baskin Robbins

• FREE Scoop on your birthday

Boston Market

• Join the Boston Market VIP club  and receive a coupon for $3.00 off a purchase of $6 or more.

Burger King

• Join the Burger King email club and receive a coupon for FREE Whopper with Purchase of another Whopper.

California Pizza Kitchen

• Join the California Pizza Kitchen email club for a coupon for $5 off $15 Purchase Coupon.

California Tortilla

• Join the email club for a  FREE taco

Culver’s

• Join the Culver’s Text Club by texting CULVERS427 to 50101 & you will receive a text for a FREE scoop of custard. You can also receive a B1G1 FREE value basket when you sign up for the Culver’s email club

Dairy Queen

• Join the Dairy Queen email club for a FREE Blizard with email sign up

Del Taco

• Join the Del Taco Raving Fan eClub  and receive 2 Chicken Soft Tacos plus receive a FREE shake on your birthday.

Flat Top Grill

• FREE Appetizer Coupon

IHOP

• Join the “Pancake Revolution”  club. You’ll get one free meal right now, one free meal on your birthday, and one free meal one year from signing up.

Joe’s Crab Shack

•  Get a Free Appetizer when you sign up on Facebook

Macaroni Grill

• Join the Macaroni Grill email club and receive exclusive offers including an initial coupon for $5 off your next purchase at the Macaroni Grill.

Macayo’s

• Join the eClub at Macayo’s and you will receive a coupon for a FREE Spinach and Queso Dip.

NYPD

• Join the  NYPD Pizza’s email club and receive a coupon for a FREE slice of pizza.

On The Border

• Free Queso or Sopapilla When You Join Club Cantina

Papa John’s

• Join the Papa John’s email club and receive a FREE medium cheese pizza with a pizza purchased at regular menu price

Rubios

• Join the Rubios Beach Club to receive a FREE Taco.

Texas Roadhouse

• Join the Texas Roadhouse email club for special offers.  You can also receive a FREE Appetizer by referring friends to the Roadie VIP Club!

Wendy’s

• Join WendyMail and receive a coupon for $1 off

Weinerschnitzel Club

• Join the Wiener Lovers Club and receive a coupon for a FREE Original Chili Dog.

Thanks to Surviving the Stores and The Cents’able Shopping for some of the above coupons

First, let me start off by saying WHEW!

This topic is blowing my mind.  Why?  Because at first glance, it appears as if we are suggesting using a highly toxic substance in our homemade natural cleaner recipes that we have been sharing.

We started off posting recipes using natural materials, but we had the question a few times about the safety of Borax from you!

Before using Borax, I thought I knew it was safe based on many things I read about it and based on many homemade recipes that are “natural” and “safe” that contain Borax.

So the first time I got the question, “Isn’t Borax toxic and why are you using it in your recipes?” I sorta freaked out a little.

Well, after this question the first time, I began researching again.  The very first thing I came across on many places online was this statement:

WHAT!! Borax IS Boric Acid?!

I am not only trying to be thrifty, but healthy too and I thought my home grown cleaning and cleaning products weren’t natural and safe like I thought.

Well, a few websites out there touted Borax and Boric Acid as the same thing and using the words interchangeably in their articles about this toxic substance.

THIS.DID.NOT.MAKE.SENSE.TO.ME. because on many “green” sites and many other books and resources, they rave about the wonderful natural cleaning power of Borax… which is why I started making my own recipes using it!

I then pulled out my 20 Mule Team Borax yet again to examine the box for the 1000th time, AGAIN, looking for this information!

There is of course the caution about avoiding contact with the eyes.  But we also shouldn’t put salt, black pepper, corn starch or anything else in our eyes! (You can also see the 20 Mule Team Borax FAQ HERE which answers some questions too!)

The only ingredient listed is Sodium Tetraborate.

What is Sodium Tetraborate?

According to the EPA, Sodium Tetraborate is essentially boron!  This is a naturally occurring element usually found in sediments and sedimentary rock formations.

Boron has been used to treat physical elements and taken as a supplement.  No way am I saying to ingest it, but just letting you know what this ONE ingredient in 20 Mule Team Borax is sometimes used for!

It is also used in skin lotions, detergents, cleaners, mouthwash AND (surprise!!) in herbal bath salts as a primary ingredient! This is the short list, but it is widely used in natural and otherwise cosmetics too!

So what is Boric Acid??

Boric Acid is created by mixing Borax with Sulfuric Acid.  And YES, this is TOXIC and it is NOT the product I have been including in my recipes and I HIGHLY suggest that you do not use it either! Don’t confuse it when you buy it as it would be unsafe. Borax alone is an alkaline substance, it becomes a toxic acid after the mixing with other substances.

Boric Acid is used to kill ants, roaches and as a pesticide.  It’s bad stuff, but it’s not the Borax by itself.

So now that we have nipped that in the bud, let’s get back to the topic at hand. Now even natural products have warnings.  I know of a fruit that is highly nutritious and kills cancer cells at an alarming radical rate and far higher than chemotherapy.  And it is NATURAL. But pregnant women should not eat this fruit or drink the juice as it can be fatal to a baby as the fruit is effective in attacking new cells that show up in the body.

So here’s a warning for you:

You may experience abdominal pain, coughing, diarrhea, shortness of breath and vomiting. This may also be accompanied by high fever. Other symptoms that are not common are shock seizures and metallic taste.

These symptoms sound SCARY and like you are ingesting a toxic substance.  Well, this is toxic in high levels… It is SALT.  The above warning is for table salt!

So why is it a good cleaner for homemade natural cleaners??

So in the end, the moral of the borax story is that it is about as safe (or safer depending on your expert) than salt, don’t eat it or ingest it, only use it in cleaning products and for possible skin irritation… wear gloves! And don’t let children or pets get near it, just like you would keep the salt away from them! It isn’t a good idea to give any of them access!

If you use it carefully and properly and for it’s intended use, borax is a good, effective and environmentally friendly cleaner.

I personally would be classified as a health nut and try to be very conscientious about what I am exposing my family to (again I need to write that story of why I strongly feel we needed to switch cleaners for health one day, I will get to it )!  So with that background, knowing what is in household cleaners that you buy at the store, there is no question in my mind that this is a safer option for my family.  I personally don’t have concerns about using Borax, especially with my exclusive use of it in cleaning products (many use it in cosmetic and personal care, which I don’t).  You can omit the Borax if you want from most all of the recipes, but I think that the addition of Borax is a good addition for healthier cleaning as it kills bad bacteria, which would seem more unhealthy to me to not do that. And by including it in your cleaning products, it enhances the cleaning power of the other products in your homemade cleaning products so that they will do an even better job!

I think that it is important for each household to draw their own conclusions.  You can also read more information about Borax on Herbanlifestyle site.  I found that article to be quite helpful too!

So for some fun information…. 20 Mule Team Borax is mined in the California near Death Valley and was carried by a team of 20 Mules by wagon train from Death Valley to Mojave in the late 1800′s!   Borax is from a few places around the world, but this is for 20 Mule Team (Sodium Tetraborate).  Here’s the proof too

Photo Credit

Photo Credit

Picture of the ingredients for one of the 26 homemade cleaning product recipes.

Finally, you can check out our full growing list of Homemade Cleaning Product recipes HERE that currently has 26 different cleaning products, and some that do include the use of Borax if you choose to use it!

What are your thoughts??

Have you signed up for the Betty Crocker newsletter yet?  Well, newsletter subscribers get some great foodie perks! First, you get free samples every single month! Food samples are the most popular and so this is a great way to cash in on a food freebie.

In addition, you receive many other benefits, including free calendars, free cookbooks, $250 in annual coupons and more! Even if you won’t use all $250 in coupons, even using a few of them is more than worth getting these free enewsletters.  Also, they do have some great recipes to share as well!

Sign-up for the Betty Crocker Newsletter HERE to start your free samples, savings and recipes!

This Photo Tote Bag looks like so much fun. It measures 12×13.5, and it’s FREE.  You do need to pay the shipping, which is only $3.99.

This is a perfect bag for so many uses, including storing your coupon binder and couponing materials, to tote your home binder around with you or just as a reusable grocery bag.

It would also make for a great present for anyone special in your life as you can personalize it with your own pictures! Also, if you have a business, this could be a great way to make a logo based tote to advertise your business too!

Also, if you are a new member to York Photo you get 40 Free Prints!

To get this great deal use promo code: MYTOTE at checkout.

Head to the York site HERE to take advantage of these great deals and get your FREE tote bag.

See more Photo FREEBIES and Deals

It looks like Amazon is doing a Mom’s Appreciation Event again! The last one was in February and so it is a nice deal to go into the summer for any summer gear! We received the email and you may have too.  But even if you didn’t you are fine as the coupon code this time is not unique to each person, but a generic code for everyone to use and you may be able to use it multiple times during the promotion!

The coupon code is: BABY0513 and is good for an additional 20% off savings on hundreds of eligible baby products, up to $100 in total savings. If you are an Amazon Mom’s member, you probably received this email.  If not, you can still use the code since it is for everyone that is an Amazon Mom’s Member.  If you are not yet a member, no worries, you can sign-up (details HERE) for free and then in 24-hours from registration, you will be able to use the 20% off coupon code!

It appears like this code is good for your entire purchase in the qualified items baby categories, BUT a one-time use code per Amazon Mom’s account.  There are over 200 baby items that qualify (not as many as in the past, but still a good opportunity to save big).

With that, we wanted to share some ideas on how to use it! Unfortunately, it cannot be used on disposable diapers and wipes.  BUT, it is valid for some cloth diapering options, so you may want to look into that!

It is also valid for hundreds of items in the baby section on Amazon, but not everything! We have a link to make it easy for you to find the items it is good on.

Just head to Amazon HERE and it will take you to these hundreds of items that your 20% off coupon code is valid on.

Our suggestion is to think about items you have been wanting or needing, even items that rarely go on sale as this is your rare opportunity to get it for 20% off the lowest price on Amazon right now (which is typically the same or lower than any other retailer to begin with).

After you consider those items, here are some additional things that are rarely on sale or things to consider getting that 20% discount on.

• Cloth diapers, diaper covers, cloth diaper kits
• Strollers
• Cribs
• Moses Baskets
• Playpens
• Bassinets
• Car Seats
• Travel Systems
• Swings
• Other equipment
• Feeding essentials (formula excluded)
• Nursery Sets
• Rocking Chairs
• Snuggly type system
• Boppy
• Bumbo
• High Chair

Here’s also some extra things to think about:

Philips Avent BPA Free Classic Infant Starter Gift Set normally $39.99 on sale for $27.81.  With your 20% off coupon = final is $22.25 shipped free

Summer Infant Slim&Secure Digital Audio Monitor normally $49.99 on sale for $31.06. With your 20% off coupon = final is $24.85 shipped free

Deluxe Comfort Folding Booster Seat normally $22.99 on sale for $20.35  With your 20% off coupon code = final is $16.28 shipped free

Born Free 2 Count Deco Bottle 5oz. normally $21.99 on sale for $11.01  With your 20% off coupon code = final is $8.81 shipped free

Graco Pack N’ Play Silhouette Playard normally $199.99 on sale for $158  With your 20% off coupon code = final is $126.40 shipped free

As there are thousands of items included, we’ve only scratched the surface in regards to ideas and sales for using your 20% off code.  Please share in the comments what you found!

Plus you can check out all of the details of the Mom Appreciation Event on Amazon HERE.

If you like this idea, please “Pin” it to Pinterest so that you don’t forget about it and can find it easily when you need it!

Join us for our Spring Cleaning Challenge to Organize and Clean for a Thrifty and Healthy Home!

We have had many of you asking about our Natural Homemade Mold and Mildew Remover recipe and so guess what??  That’s what we are sharing today as we continue to share our 26 recipes for Natural Homemade Cleaning Products for $12!

One thing I want to mention about fighting mold and mildew naturally is that patience is required.  Remember, you are not using harsh chemicals and so it is going to take a bit more patience and persistence, but the rewards of a healthier home and hardly any money spent makes it all worth it!

As a second note, by using any of our homemade cleaners like the All-Purpose, Heavy Duty, Glass/Stainless Steel Cleaner, etc. all of these contain ingredients that help prevent mold and mildew in the first place.  But it still happens.  We have a bathroom that has no ventilation (none installed in this one bathroom even though the others have them… and it is a newer house!) and so because of that, mold and mildew will be tempted to build and grow in this room.  But between the cleaners and this mold and mildew remover, we can keep it at bay.

There’s only 3 ingredients needed:

• 1 TBSP Baking Soda
• 1 TBSP White Distilled Vinegar
• 5-6 drops of Tea Tree (Melaleuca) Essential Oil

Here’s how to make it:

Put the 1 TBSP of baking soda in a small bowl.  Then pour the 1 TBSP of vinegar into the baking soda.  A small reaction will happen, just stir it up until mixed.

Then add your 5-6 drops of Tea Tree Essential Oil and mix again.

You will then have a thinner/medium thick paste.  I apply this directly to the mold/mildew by either scooping with the spoon or apply with an old cleaning toothbrush.  Let this sit for a few hours on top of the mold/mildew.  Then come back and use the toothbrush to scrub away.  You may need to repeat the above steps a couple of times, but it will most likely eventually be cleaned up!

I am not even going to estimate price as it is literally less than .10 each batch.

If you get any of the items on sale, it would be even less!

Here’s a printable recipe that you can put in your home binder:

We also HIGHLY recommend that you put this in your home binder along with many more things we will be sharing! See all of the information on this in our previous post HERE about Put Together Your Home Binder with Free Downloads.

Finally, use this new thrifty and healthy cleaning product as part of our Spring Cleaning Challenge.

If you want even more ideas too, be sure to visit these links!

• Shopping list to be able to make 26 natural homemade cleaning products for a very low price tag of $12.
• And then if you wanted to make them anti-bacterial and anti-viral, we also shared the natural but effective add-ins for much less HERE.

This is quite cool! I am always looking for something to make my life easier and this new fee app could possibly be an extra easy way to help  me be more organized, stick to a menu and stick to a budget at the same time.

This new app lets  you find recipes and then it will create a shopping list for you by locating the best prices on those items in your area.  It also means that you don’t have to use coupons and still get some good prices.

Here’s a picture from their site showing how it works:

To me, it looks really cool.  I wondered if any of you have heard about it too??  I am really looking forward to trying it out.

Head to their site HERE to be notified to download this new money saving cooking app!

See more Free Stuff

Time to share our plan for this week 5/12 – 5/18/13.  How has your weekly planning going?  Are you accomplishing all you hope?  Well we hope this planner will help you to zone in on all areas of life and accomplish a lot each week with less time.   Be sure to see our Be Intentional Baby Steps for Whole Life Change.

This week is busy for us as we try to finish preparing our yard for garden, flowers and more landscaping.  For a birthday present from my extended family, I just requested that they help us finish up and so I am looking forward to having that project done! We are revamping and redoing many of our garden areas and so it’s been a bit of work!

As always, before I share our weekly plan and our menu, you can read about each of these on these links as we encourage you to do the same to save time, money and sanity:

• Menu Planning
• Our Weekly Planner with free download

Here’s my plan this week:

T – stands for Thrifty – what are my thrifty goals for the week?

• Refill Handsoaps
• Refill empty/low cleaners

H – stands for Home – what are some things I/we need to do around and for our home?

• Finish rotating seasonal clothes
• Wash blinds and drapes
• Clean out garden beds
• Lay weed barrier and bark
• Build garden boxes

R – stands for Relationships – a place where I write down who I need to call, send a note to or remember a birthday/event.

• Call Leona
• Email Janice
• Email Jessica
• Alex call parents about upcoming visit

I – stands for Involvement – this is the part of my planner that allows me and my family to be involved in our community and church in small ways each week.

• Email about 2 meals for new moms at church
• Collect and set out donations for 16th pick-up

F – stands for Finances – What financial tasks do we need to complete this week: (also as we continue to find our 2% cuts each month!)

• Send books/movies to Amazon to sell for $$
• Deposit Rebate Checks
• Deposit Garage Sale Money
• Call on Service
• Put large items on classifieds

T – stands for To-Do’s- misc. things I need to do this week!

• Take Shirts Back
• Call on concrete bid
• Vitacost order
• Next essential oils order
• Finish Jo’s Birthday details and invites
• Find sitter for Friday date night
• Order book for cousin

Y – stands for You – what are some things that I can do for myself to de-stress and relax for all of the hard work!

• Birthday week (so there’s eating out, date night, and family time which is perfect for me this week)

Plus I have my developing shopping list and other tasks list on the right for those extras.

Here’s our planned dinner menu for the week!

Monday – Lasagna Casserole

Tuesday – Stir-Fry

Wednesday – Chicken Marsala

Thursday – Taco Night

Friday – Birthday Date Night with Alex

Saturday – Birthday Dinner out with extended family after family birthday earlier

Sunday – Roast, potatoes, carrots, celery and onions

And… no matter whether you make a menu or not, don’t forget about “dinner by 10.”

If you would like to print your own THRIFTY weekly planner, you can do so below. Alex designed it to where it requires very little ink and in fact you can print it in fast draft/grayscale to use even less ink.  But either one uses miniscule amount of ink! I would recommend printing or copy several as I often write plans a couple of weeks ahead too!

Please note, if you are reading this email in our rss feed or our email newsletter, you may have to click to the post HERE to print this download. 

<== Download your printable Weekly Thrifty Planner HERE

Please share in the comments below what your menu and plan is for the week!

We get this question all the time – in fact its one of the age-old, top asked thrifty questions whenever someone mentions they are trying to save by cutting down expenses: How do you save on gas? 

We’ve addressed a few points here and there throughout many of our posts here on our site, but we thought we would just put together a quick list with many of our tips in one post.  I say many – and not all – because as time goes on, we learn more, find more information and as we drive, experience more in this area.  So we can’t say that we know it all.  Some of these tips are tried and true and you hear them everywhere, but we hope that some may be unique and new to you.

Either way, pull up a chair, take note and save some money on your gas budget.  Our gas budget is higher than we would like due to long commutes, but I think as low as we can get with our trips.

Probably one of the biggest recommendations we have is a fuel efficient car.  Our commuter car is just that… a small, fuel efficient commuter car.  It is paid for and it is racking up the miles, but it saves fuel because its rated at a higher fuel efficiency.  So with the tips we share below, it just makes it that much more efficient.  But before we share those tips below, we want to look at some of our thoughts on what are referred to as “super high fuel-efficiency” cars.  Just how high of an efficiency is worth it – especially worth the ticket cost of the up-front cost?

Is a Hybrid Car worth it?

Now you may ask my thoughts on owning a Hybrid.  I have looked into this, granted it has been a couple of years, but at the time, I had determined that they were not saving you money in the end.  I saw many reports a couple of years ago that said that you only gain an average of 10-12% better fuel efficiency and so with the cost difference of a hybrid vs. regular fuel car (hybrids costing quite a bit more), it would take over 15-20 years to save that money in fuel.  And that isn’t factoring in the high cost of the replacement batteries you need to consider over the lifetime of the car.  But, things could be different now, I would be curious to hear what you have to say about these cars?

What about natural gas?

I really like the idea of natural gas.  But, before you go out and buy one realize this is not a widely available option for many car owners.  We happen to live in a state where there are actually quite a few natural gas stations and the current average price of natural gas is $1.49 per gallon! That is a significant savings… but unfortunately a few factors have to take place.

1. You have to own a vehicle that will accept natural gas. My father-in-law recently bought a bi-fuel truck. It is absolutely brilliant! Why?  Because when and where he can, he fills up with natural gas at that incredibly low price.  But if he travels out of state or to areas where there are not many natural gas stations, he can fill-up with regular fuel.  He also got a super deal on his used bi-fuel truck! That is the best of both worlds and an option that we are going to consider for our next vehicle when Thrifty Helena, who is approaching 200K miles, gives out.  You can buy conversion kits, but we haven’t researched this enough to be able to say whether or not it is worth it to do this on a current vehicle.  We do know that with where our trusty Thrifty Helena is, it wouldn’t be worth it because in her age (don’t tell her we said this) she’s not going to make it much further.

2. There needs to be accessible CNG stations close to where you normally fill-up/live. Some areas of the country have many options, and others not so much.  If you can’t easily fill-up on natural gas, it is not a viable option for you.  Here’s a quick view map with the orange dots indicating CNG stations nationwide.  You can use the CNG station locator on the site HERE.

3. The third and final factor is that we need to hope that natural gas prices stay low in future months/years.  At this point, I think it should, but you never know and can’t rely on the fact that the prices will stay the same.  We have seen very little price inflation on natural gas in our area in the past four years that we have been watching it.

So there’s my thoughts on other options for fuel.  So now on with what the majority of us face…. how to save on gasoline everyday no matter your current vehicle!

Here are our 15 Tips on How to Save on Gasoline

1. Don’t fill-up when the gas truck is there – This is a really good tip because you will get bad fuel when the truck is filling the tanks.  Why?  Well, as they are pouring the gasoline into the storage tanks, it agitates and causes the dirt in the bottoms of the tanks to mix into the fuel…which in turn gets pumped into your vehicle with the result of dirty fuel in your tank.  Dirty fuel will take a toll on the overall fuel efficiency, not to mention the maintenance of your vehicle.  If you see a truck refilling at a station, wait a while after the fuel truck has left for all of the debris in the tanks settles back down.  Try this experiment at home with your kids.  Put a little dirt/sugar/salt in the bottom of a cup and then pour water in, it takes some time for the debris to settle back down.
2. Fill-up on the slower speed setting vs. the fastest speed setting – I do not have definitive or scientific evidence that this makes a big difference, but this is something I practice (even if it is annoying to be sitting there a couple of extra minutes).  Several years ago, I saw this on the news with some decent results.  Supposedly the theory is that the faster fuel pumping option creates more air pockets in which fuel is wasted and therefore measured inaccurately.  Secondly, it splashes up and triggers the pump to stop indicating that it is full, when it really may not be.
3. I truly believe that is is more than worth the investment to get higher quality gasoline – I am more specifically talking about the brand of gasoline.  It is not secret that we fill-up at Chevron and the reasons why – and yes, we still just buy the regular there.  We may be paying slightly more for gasoline, but in the end, we feel as if we are saving a lot more on maintenance, care, and life of our vehicle.
   
4. Fill up early in the morning – The earlier the better.  Why?  Well it has been scientifically proven that when it is warmer/hotter outside the gas is less dense and evaporates and so that means that you are technically getting less gasoline per calculated gallon of gas.  The cooler it is, the more dense and the more gas you are technically pumping.  In fact, in Canada, they know this theory to be true because their gas pumps calculate temperature differences and adjust price accordingly.  Thankfully, we have the upper hand in the United States and so pumping at the right time of day can save you more money!
5. Keep properly inflated tires – It is a well known fact that tires at the most proper inflation will get you the best fuel efficiency.
6. Tighten/secure your gas tank cap – This is an easy way to save money! Why?  Well, if your gas cap is not on securely/tightly, your money is literally floating into thin air as the gas is evaporating through the cap opening. It is a simple thing to do.  Plus if your engine light comes on, before you take it to the mechanic, make sure the cap is on tight – you might just save by not having to go if the last person that filled up forgot to tighten the cap.
7. Start driving briskly, not abruptly and not too slowly – It seems like an art, but having a brisk start at lights and stops vs. a very aggressive abrupt start or even a slow start supposedly saves fuel.
8. Don’t top off your fuel at the pump – I used to top off my tank as I always wanted to end with an even amount of gas (like stopping on the dollar or .50) as it was much easier for budgeting/spending purposes.  But I was told that in the end, I am literally just wasting fuel.  Especially if you are pumping on the slow speed (see note above) when it says your tank is full, it is full! There is no need to pump wastefully!
9. Get regular tune-ups – Again, I wholeheartedly believe that good maintenance on your vehicle will save you the most money and get the most fuel efficiency you can in the long run.  From our experience, keeping our vehicles on top of their maintenance schedule has saved us a lot of money at the mechanic.
10. Change out fuel filter on a regular basis (as directed by the manufacturer) - This saves you gas with better fuel efficiency and keeps your vehicle running slick and happy.
11. Avoid Idling – This is a pretty well-known common gas wasting factor.  Minimize it as much as possible to save money on fuel!  We try to shut off our vehicle if we will be sitting for more than 30 seconds waiting – less than that actually takes more gas to restart the vehicle.
12. Use an app/website to find the best prices – Gasbuddy.com is the most common.  It really is smart to find gas stations with the lowest prices around you – even if you are looking for a specific brand of gas!  You can filter the stations when viewing the list of prices by clicking on settings and clicking on the Filter option.
13. Avoid gas stations  close to highways – They typically have the highest prices in gasoline as they are nabbing the travelers.  Going into town just a bit can save you loads of money.  But as we just recommended, you can eliminate the guess work again by using Gasbuddy.com to be certain!
14. Use a trip planner to map out your gas stops or avoid heavy traffic - If you are going on a long road trip, a trip planner can help you map out the best places to fill-up on your route.  Even for shorter trips or a commute, I use the traffic app on my cell phone every time before I leave home.  If one route is congested, I will go another way – I save time and gas!
15. Windows Down vs. Air Conditioner – There are many, many theories on both sides of the fuel efficiency equation that have opinions about this.  For a while, we thought it was best to have your windows down/no air conditioner for city driving and then using your A/C and windows rolled up for the faster freeway driving.   It appears as if the verdict is still out for many theorists out there.  But we did see an episode of Myth Busters that claimed that driving with your window down is the most fuel efficient by 15%! Here’s the video on that segment:

What tips do you have? 

If you like this idea, please “Pin” it to Pinterest so that you don’t forget about it and can find it easily when you need it!

If you are a mom, then there is a company that is looking to pay you for a few minutes of your time here and there by taking surveys related to things moms deal with.  By taking these surveys, you are offering your opinion so that companies to make products or provide services and can real world opinions.  They use marketing survey companies who then goes and recruits the survey takers.

You do get compensation for your time in the form of rewards and cash.  As we have mentioned many times before, you will not get rich taking surveys, but you can pay a monthly bill or two or save up for your next goal (like a vacation or paying off debt a little quicker, etc.).  If you were to sit down for just a few minutes each day, you can accomplish this! You don’t even have to do it daily, you can do it as little or as frequently as you want! Obviously the more you do, the more you  will earn, but it is all in your control.

It is a quick sign-up, not much more than requesting a free sample.  They will ask for your birthdate and ages of your kids so that they can find surveys more specific to your demographic and age.  It took me just a couple of minutes to get started.

Once you fill-out the form, you are not done – before they start your account, they want to make sure you are legit and send you a confirmation email that you need to click on.  Once you do this, then your account is ready and you can go in at any time and start working!

In addition, they do have an extra promotion by filling-out three 5-minute surveys (I already took them and it was only about 2-3 minutes for me), then you will be entered into a $5,000 sweepstakes.  So if you want to take a few minutes and do this too, then you can!

Head to the site through this link HERE to take mom related surveys for extra earnings

*Please note, we tell you about the legit survey companies when they are open for applicants, but they can close at any time.

See our master list of Ways to Earn Extra Income: Over 100 and Counting

This is available again to get the extras with newsletter sign-up,  so we thought we would let you know about it again!

Have you signed up for the Pillsbury newsletter yet?  It is GREAT because you receive many benefits, including lots of freebies like real food samples, free calendars, free cookbooks and more! Plus they will send you coupons too! They send out about $250 worth per year, and you probably won’t use all of them, but even use a few of them is more than worth getting these free enewsletters.  Also, they do have some great recipes to share as well!

Sign-up for the Pillsbury Newsletter HERE to start your free samples, savings and recipes!

If you like this idea, please “Pin” it to Pinterest so that you don’t forget about it and can find it easily when you need it!

Join us for our Spring Cleaning Challenge to Organize and Clean for a Thrifty and Healthy Home!

Today I am sharing a super simple Homemade Laundry Stain Remover. It is quite effective and I find that it removes most stains.

But one thing I wanted to mention about stain removal (just like I mentioned on the homemade stain removal for carpets and mattresses), the sooner you can attack the stain, the better chance you have of removing it.  Especially when it comes to removing stains naturally and without harsh chemicals.

With that said, I did recently have a situation where I didn’t attack clothing stains immediately and to my amazement, my homemade stain remover did a beautiful job of removing it!

Our oldest was wearing this beautiful lace dress (that I bought from ThredUp online gently used children’s thrift store) and we went out to eat.  She dumped a whole bunch of ketchup on her dress; as it is very light in color and has 2-layers, I thought it was doomed.  I wiped it with a dry napkin, which just spread it more.  It was a busy day and so we didn’t get home for several hours, but not only that, she tossed it in the hamper.  It was there for a couple of days before I stumbled upon it and realized that the ketchup was sitting there for a couple of days now.

So I sprayed it with my solution and then let that sit for a couple of days (instead of washing immediately).  Then it was washed like normal (using my homemade laundry detergent) with the light clothes load and I had really forgotten about the stain when I put that load in to wash.

Well, a week ago, our daughter got it out of her closet to wear and she came running up to me to show me that I got the ketchup stain out!

This wasn’t my first experience with getting stains out with my homemade version, but it was the first time I was faced with set-in ketchup on a double-layer, delicate, light-colored fabric! So I was actually quite surprised because I didn’t know if it would do it.

I have examined this garment so closely to see if I could find any trace of it and NADA! It is completely gone!

This is a very simple spray version. I love spray stain removers like Shout and Resolve, but wanted a natural version

Here’s the very simple recipe and steps to make my Simple Homemade Natural Laundry Stain Remover:

There’s only 2 ingredients needed:

• 3% Hydrogen Peroxide

AND

• Lemon Essential Oil

Here’s how to make it:

For every 1/2 cup of Hydrogen Peroxide (I make it in small quantities as I don’t go through it very quickly), just add 5 drops of Lemon Essential Oil in a spray bottle!

That’s it!

Then just spray it directly onto the stain and let it set for a few minutes to a couple of days depending on how bad the stain is!

Wash your garment like normal after!

*Please note: I haven’t had any garments that have faded or ended up with a spot where this was used, however, you should always test an inconspicuous spot to be sure of color fastness.

The estimated cost per 4oz.

• You would be using 4 oz. of Hydrogen Peroxide which is .88 per 32 oz., so this is approximately .11 worth.
• Essential Oils – I estimate them to be around .01 a drop at the MOST, so in total, you are probably maybe using .05 worth

TOTAL per 4 oz. bottle = .16 – that’s a small price to pay to save your clothes!

If you get any of the items on sale, it would be even less!

Here’s a printable recipe that you can put in your home binder:

We also HIGHLY recommend that you put this in your home binder along with many more things we will be sharing! See all of the information on this in our previous post HERE about Put Together Your Home Binder with Free Downloads.

Finally, use this new thrifty and healthy cleaning product as part of our Spring Cleaning Challenge.

If you want even more ideas too, be sure to visit these links!

• Shopping list to be able to make 23 natural homemade cleaning products for a very low price tag of $12.
• And then if you wanted to make them anti-bacterial and anti-viral, we also shared the natural but effective add-ins for much less HERE.

This is a very rare opportunity for All You Magazine.  This comes out to be only .83 per issue, which is virtually un-heard of!

If you have tried to save money or live a frugal life-style in any way, then you have probably come across one of the most popular magazines for couponers and frugal thinkers alike – All You Magazine.  It is one of our favorites and one of the best magazines out there for the money-savers.  But, you may have also noticed that due to it’s high demand and popularity, it rarely goes on sale!

Well, for a short time, there is a super deal on this magazine! This deal is such a good one, that it is an opportunity to give it a shot and see if the coupons and ideas are a good fit for your budget and family?

First, if you don’t know, we share posts throughout the year on how to save on products using coupons inside of the ALL YOU magazine, plus these coupons matchup with deals in stores your area and finally, these coupons are also listed in our coupon database. This doesn’t even consider the fact that each magazine is packed with great tips on saving money and living on less!  Make sure to check out more information on what each issue of ALL YOU contains! We often find most coupons are higher value than other coupon sources and most are exclusive to All You Magazine as well!

So here’s the deal, All you sells exclusively at Walmart for $2.49 each issue, you can subscribe for the online promotional price of $20 for the year.  But, you can get it for 50% off the lowest subscription price with their 2 for 1 sale.  You can get 2 subscriptions for at the promotional price of 1.

So what this means is 4 things: (Please note, you should also be able to extend any current subscriptions on this deal too)

1. Get double subscriptions for double the coupons for your own family, or
2. Give a free gift to your Mother, friend, or anyone else that would benefit from this magazine, or
3. Split the cost with a friend who has been wanting to get this magazine and each of you will get a subscription for only .83 each issue!
4. If you already have a subscription, you can bless two other people for the cost of 1 with a gift subscription!

Click HERE for your 2 for 1 Subscription Deal to ALL YOU Magazine

Disclaimer: We receive a commission for All You subscriptions purchased through the link above, but we only post a deal on this magazine when we honestly think there is one. Thank you for supporting our site if you choose to order this magazine deal through our site.

We haven’t ever hidden the fact that Kohls is one of the places we go when we buy new items.  Why? Well, at the right times, the prices are amazing and the quality is better than many retailers for a discount department store price.  We can stretch our measly clothing budget quite far! In fact, the last one of these “do not miss” sales, was back before Christmas. Alex did an incredible job of buying me clothes for Christmas and he nailed it (which is quite amazing for any man to do!).  Not only did he nail my style, size and preferences, but he bought in-season styles and clothing and got it all for 68% off in total.  He paid far less than Walmart’s prices and even less or equal to thrift store prices…but they were new and high quality!

With that, this is another sale that is just too good to not tell you about.  Whether in-store or online. The just added a ton of clearance prices that are 60=80% off as they get ready for the next season.  They are clearing things out big time!

So what that means, you will get at least an easy 60% discount.  But if you combine these extra ways to save, then you will get in the 70-90% off range.

• Use you can use coupon code: FAMILY20 to take 20% off your entire order!
• If shopping online, you will receive free shipping automatically with orders of $75 or more
• Plus through 5/12, you will receive $10 in Kohls cash for every $50 spent (essentially a 20% discount per $50)
• Please note, they best time to do this is now through the end of the day on 5/12 – so you have only a few days, but selection decreases as time goes on this weekend too!

So if you have $75, $100 or more set aside in your budget for clothing needs, then we encourage you to spend at least that to get your Kohls cash and free shipping as additional ways to save!

So here’s how something like this could look.

Let’s say you bought $475 retail worth of stuff (a decent amount of items).  It is 60%-80% off for this clearance sale = $95 at 80% off.  Then use use the 20% off code = $76.  Then you receive FREE shipping for spending over $75 ($7.95 value) and you will receive $10 in Kohls cash to use in the future = final is only $66 for $475 worth of clothing with free shipping! It all amounts to around 86% savings!

As you can see, the same items at a place like Walmart will be lower quality and we would probably pay around $150+ for it. So you might be getting an idea why this is our “go-to” store when these sales hit.  We just save our clothing budget, Christmas money, etc.  A lot of our Christmas has come from Kohls or Amazon

Head over to Kohls site HERE and start shopping their Newly Added to and Marked at 60-80% of Clearance sale  and combine savings with the ways mentioned above!

*We also recommend shopping through Ebates for cash back and and if you are a new Ebates registered user (it’s FREE to join!) then you will also be able to pick a FREE $10 gift card to Macy’s, Walmart, Kohls or Target.  To get your FREE gift card, your first order placed through Ebates will need to be a minimum of $25. So be sure to not miss this on your first order! Please note, to get your cash back and FREE gift card, head to Ebates HERE and log-in or register and search for Kohls and click through to shop at the Kohls site and that is it as it will track your cash back rebate automatically by doing this! By taking the extra couple of mintues to do this, you could end up with 6% back and another $10 gift card to Kohls (or one of the other three options!).

They also have a lot of TOYS and really, really good prices and much lower than Walmart, Target and Toys R Us with this sale and additional savings! Shop for the household items clearances too.  Most everyone’s bedding, blankets, towels and bathroom accessories have come from Kohls in the past in our home!

And you know that when we post a deal like this, we really mean it is! The regular sales are decent right now, but it is the new clearance that is busting at the seams with savings to shop at this time!

If you would rather shop in-store, be sure to print this Kohl’s in-store printable coupon for 20% off too!