Free Coupon Classes now Available! (San Diego, CA rea)

I've teamed up with Grocery Smarts to offer free coupon classes to San Diego County area groups of 8 or more.  Great for Church groups, friends, family, women's clubs, HOAs, any kind of social group.

In just over an hour, you'll learn how to save hundreds of dollars on your groceries, toiletries and cleaning supplies. You'll save money and bring home more!

If you are interested, please email me at cacoupondiva@gmail.com to arrange a class.  These classes are free and hosts can earn free gift cards and other prizes!

I travel all over San Diego County to teach these classes!

 

Great Deal on Omaha Steaks!

Have you ever wanted to try Omaha Steaks?  Have the really high prices on their website turned you off?

 

There is a great deal through Plum District today.

 

$165 worth of Omaha Steaks for just $59.00 and use Coupon code SPOOKY30 at checkout and receive an extra 30% off!!

 

This deal includes:

• two (5 oz.) world-famous filet mignons,


• two (4 oz.) boneless pork chops,


• four (4 oz. approximately) boneless chicken breasts,


• six (4 oz.) Omaha Steaks burgers,


• eight (3 oz.) gourmet franks,


• and six stuffed baked potatoes.

Plus, it’s shipped free.

 

I have had all of these before and they are all GREAT.  Omaha Steaks makes the *best* hot dogs I have ever had. You can order more than one to stock your freezer.

 

I went shopping-JCP.com

My sale shopping skills are strong.  Mr. Coupondiva needs new pants for work. 4 pairs of dress pants isn't enough. And a few of the pairs are ink stained or just otherwise not up to par.

I checked a few local discount stores but none of them had dress pants, so I turned to JCP.com.  Turns out they are having a kick-ass sale on men's dress pants.

I selected 5 pairs.  2 on sale for $15.97 each and 3 pairs on sale for $19.99 each.

I checked Retail Me Not for a JCP.com coupon code.  I found a code for $10.00 off a $90.00 purchase (RMNAFF90).

I used a $10.00 JCP reward I earned using my JCP card buying pillows last month (all on sale!!)

I used a $10.00 JCP Gift Card I earned through mypoints.com.

And I used my JCP card to pay the balance.  This helps me earn points so that I can earn more $10.00 JCP reward certificates.

I started at Mypoints.com, and went through their website to get to JCP.com, so I'll earn 2 points per dollar spend, and I can submit my receipt to Endorse.com to earn 10% of my purchase. So I will learn 172 points through Mypoints and $8.69 in cash back!

[caption id="attachment_1359" align="alignleft" width="313" caption="Witness my Mad Shopping Skillz!!"][/caption]

Remember... Using coupons isn't limited to shopping for groceries or HBA.  You can use coupon codes for online purchases and use online rebate programs like mypoints and Endorse to save even more.

 

 

Making do....

It's the end of the month, and at our house that means there's weird stuff left in the fridge.  This morning for breakfast, instead of my usual zone bar and coffee, I wanted something a little more substantial.

 

I scavenged and found the ingredients for a breakfast pastie.

• 1 pie crust


• 2 eggs


• 1/2 c. salsa


• 1/4 c. bacon bits (the real stuff!!)


• 1/4 c. cheese

1. I scrambled and cooked the eggs with salsa and bacon bits poured it into the pie crust.


2. I topped the hot, cooked egg mixture with cheese.


3. Then I folded the crust in half and crimped the edges shut with a fork.


4. Baked it at 350 for 20 minutes on an ungreased cookie sheet, until the pie crust was cooked.

I doctored up my coffee with frothed fat free milk that I had melted two Tablespoons of chocolate chips in and topped it with a few marshmallows.

It was really good, and I used stuff in the cupboard and fridge, so we are staying within budget for the month.

Speaking of budgets, Mr. CouponDiva and I are going to not eat out next month.  We're taking it one week at a time, but to combat the cost of eating out, we'll be relying more heavily days where I can cook a few extra meals, so we will always have good, fresh food at our fingertips.  We've also planned a couple dinner parties/get togethers at our house with friends in addition to Thanksgiving Dinner with my parents.  I'll be using my Outback free steak coupon tomorrow night!  Little Man and I are having a date!

Freebie Friday... Twitter Edition

So many great Freebies today! Check out Our Twitter feed for awesome freebies and deals!

Endorse- My First Pay Out!!

[caption id="attachment_1351" align="alignleft" width="450" caption="WOO HOO!!!"][/caption]

Yup that's right! In my mailbox today, a check from Endorse.com for $137.36!  I'll be off to cash it soon, but in the mean time, I've danced around the living room for about 15 minutes.

If you haven't checked out Endorse.com, DO IT!!

Making Baby Food!

I never thought I'd be one of those moms who made baby food.  It just seemed like a lot of work and more expensive than buying it.

I had purchased 5 lbs of bananas at Food4Less for $2.57, and I decided to process a bunch (hahaha!!).

[caption id="attachment_1336" align="alignleft" width="308" caption="My Little Helper!"][/caption]

I only used half of the bananas, so we had 6 remaining for eating.  I peeled them, chopped them and pureed them with the hand mixer (our blender died a few months ago). I poured the banana into three containers.  I added rice cereal to two of them for the baby, and left one plain for later use in banana bread.  I froze two of the containers. It made about 6-8 servings for Little Man and enough to make a loaf of banana bread.

 

 

 

[caption id="attachment_1337" align="alignleft" width="112" caption="Before..."][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1338" align="alignleft" width="150" caption="And....After!"][/caption]

 

My little helper ate one of  the cartons yesterday. He seemed to like it!

 

 

 

 

 

I also processed a butternut squash. I cut it up into pieces, removed the seeds and membrane, and put it in a 9x13 pan with a little water in the bottom.   I cooked it at 350 for about 90 minutes. afterward, I cooled it, scooped the meat from the skin and pureed it.

I made a 2 cup portion for the Little Man (that's 3-4 servings), and 1 cup  I added brown sugar and cinnamon to for dinner later this week.

[caption id="attachment_1339" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="Squash... Yummy! Before the oven "][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1340" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="Afterward, soft and yummy!"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1342" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="The yummy part of the squash!"][/caption]

 

 

Making baby food was pretty easy, and with the price on the bananas and the squash (which was free- Thanks Mom!), I made about 11 servings of baby food for $1.28!

 

If you are looking for baby food recipes, visit this website.  There are a lot of really great recipes and ideas.

 

 

Endorse.com- The pay out!

Monday afternoon I received the following email,

"Thanks for using Endorse!

We wanted to let you know that we have processed your recent POP. You have earned $137.36 in new rewards, bringing your total balance on Endorse to $137.36."

Sweet!  That seems like a lot of shopping to be done, but we did buy a new TV and a PS3.  The rest is our monthly large shopping trip and weekly trips to 99 cents only to buy fruits and veggies.

Here are just a few of the stores that I endorse!
7-Eleven
Applebee's
Babies "R" Us
Bath & Body Works
Bed Bath & Beyond
Best Buy
CVS
Dollar Tree
JCPenney
Rite Aid
Sears
Starbucks
Target
Walgreens
Walmart

 

I just sent another envelope out the other day too.  It was bursting!

 

How many of you have signed up for Endorse?

 

This cash back is really going to help with holiday shopping!!

Weekly Meal Plan

Yesterday was a busy day- I had to go to the dentist.

Here's the weekly Meal Plan:

Tuesday:

* B:Zone bars and coffee with creamer
* L: leftovers
* D: Enchiladas, beans, salad

Weds:

* B:Zone bars and coffee with creamer
* L: Leftovers
* D: Salsa Chicken soup

Thursday:

* B:Zone bars and coffee with creamer
* L: leftovers
* D:Salad with chicken breast and hard boiled eggs, veggies and hummus

Friday:

* B:Zone bars and coffee with creamer
* L: leftovers
* D: Quesadillas and salad

Saturday:

* B:Pigs in a blanket, fruit salad
* L: lunch out (probably Mexican!)
* D: leftovers

Sunday:

* B:Eat Out
* L: leftovers
* D: Chili

All lunches include a piece of fruit, cut up veggies, bottle of water, granola bar and lollipop.

A couple more daily Deal sites that offer credit!

Most of you know that I am always on the hunt for daily deal sites that offer a shopping credit for new sign ups. I use these credits (as well as the credits I receive when people sign up through my links) to purchase holiday gifts and to purchase prizes for giveaways on this blog.

Here are just a few sites:

Plum District- They offer a $5.00 shopping credit when you sign up!

The Foundary- They offer a $10 credit when you sign up (there are some great deals that are free now- you just pay shipping!)

One Kings Lane- $15.00 shopping credit for new members.

Savemore Offers a $10.00shopping credit to new members.  This is great because right now they have a great deal of a $25 Boston Market Gift card for $15.00.  Use your new member shopping credit and you only pay $5.00 OOP!!

 

"Like" us on Facebook for an upcoming contest!

I just started the CACoupondiva Facebook page a few weeks ago. I'm hosting a giveaway for a family binder (pics to be posted later today) once we receive 50 fans on the Facebook page.

So... If you are interested in this giveaway, "like" the CaCoupondiva Facebook page.  Right now we've got 17 fans, so on 33 to go!

Freebie Round up!

I usually do a Freebie Round Up on Friday, but yesterday was hectic. No naps for the Little Man (despite my best effort), so I'm catching up today!

All You Magazine offers a new freebie each day, so you don't have to wait for Friday!

Heartburn got you down? Check out this awesome sample of Zantac OTC.

Snapfish has a new photo offer available.  You can get 100 4x6 prints for free PRINTSFREE at checkout (but you gotta pay for the shippin'). Exp. 11/30/11

Free samples of BioFreeze available!

Wal*mart is giving away boxes of John Freida Hair Color!  (Wal*mart has some other samples here too)

"Like" Nescafe on Facebook and request free samples!

Help Pete Win!!

Hey Savvy Shoppers.

Lisa from Drugstore Divas here. Abby has awesomely allowed me to chat on CA Coupon Diva, so super thanks from this Diva to that one.

If you haven't been to Drugstore Divas, it's a deals and savings blog, similar to CA Coupon Diva. We also have a weekly recipe column, <a href="">Tasty Thursday, which my boyfriend Pete writes each week. We basically take the weekly grocery store fliers, figure out what's on sale, and he creates a meal around it.

Yup, a man who can cook. Sorry ladies, he's taken. But, honestly, he can cook like no one I've ever met, so I encouraged him to enter the Healthy Food Fight recipe contest. He entered a Slow-Cooked Smoky Southwestern Chicken Stew, which is my favorite meal he's ever made.

If he makes it into the top 48 of his region, he'll head to Round 2, a cookoff in Philly. If he makes it into the top three of his region, he will get his accomadations paid for [[that's the goal]].

You can vote once a day per email address between now and October 24 [[so you can vote, your boyfriend, your mom, anyone with email]]. We've got four days left to get him into first! You do have to register to vote, but everyone who does will be entered to win a set of Circulon gourmet cookware. Each day you vote will get you an entry into that giveaway. Hopefully one of Pete's supporters will win the set!

Head over to this link and #VoteForPete.

Any questions, leave them on this post and I'll be happy to answer them. Thanks so much to the support. It means the world to me!

CVS trip: I went shopping!

I was in NEED of laundry soap.  We were down to a half bottle, which for a strategic shopper is crazy!

I hit up the trash can next to our apartment complex mail kiosk and picked out 5 Red Plum inserts and clipped the $2.00/1 Wisk Ultra Detergent Coupons.

 

[caption id="attachment_1318" align="alignleft" width="142" caption="Sample of the coupon we used. This is not a VALID coupon."][/caption]

I loaded up the Small Man and we headed to CVS. Our local CVS had a shopping trolley next to the Extra Care kiosk loaded with Day old bread marked down to .99/loaf, so I snagged a loaf of Sarah Lee bread to make Mr. Coupondiva toast.  He was just coming down with the nasty stomach virus that everyone around here is getting.

I loaded my cart with 6 bottles of Wisk.

At checkout:

6 Wisk's $4.99 each

1 Loaf of Bread .99

-(6) $2.00 Wisk coupons

Total after tax $21.25

And I received  $10.00 ECB

After coupons and the ECB, the Wisk was just $1.71/bottle!


Most CVS stores have all three varieties of Wisk available, and they are all included in the sale.  So if you have a HE washer, t you can enjoy this sale too!

 

Menu Plan Monday...

More like Tuesday!  I have the nasty vomit-y virus that's going around, so I didn't meal plan yesterday. DH is starting to come down with it too now. I've still got icky body aches.  This menu plan is contingent of neither of us being ill.

Monday:

We didn't eat much yesterday.  I spent the whole day in bed.


Tuesday:

• B:Zone bars and coffee with creamer


• L: DH has a business lunch.  I may just have broth


• D: Chicken soup

Weds:

• B:Zone bars and coffee with creamer


• L:  broth/soup


• D: toast, eggs, and melon

Thursday:

• B:Zone bars and coffee with creamer


• L: broth/soup


• D:veggies, hummus, dip, soup.

Friday:

• B:Zone bars and coffee with creamer


• L: broth/soup


• D: Chef salad with chicken breast

Saturday:

• B:Eggs and bacon


• L: lunch out (probably Mexican!)


• D: leftovers

Sunday:

• B:Eat Out


• L: leftovers


• D: baked squash, ham and bean soup

All lunches include a piece of fruit,  cut up veggies, bottle of water, granola bar and lollipop.

We're eating a lot of soup this week, because I think that DH is going to get sick and my tummy is still a little urpy.

 

Another great deal!

It's getting closer to the holidays, which means daily deal sites are going to start offering *sweet* deals for new sign ups.  Coupon codes, free shipping, $10 credit when you sign up, and today's super sweet deal from NoMoreRack.

When you sign up and have 5 friends sign up for NoMoreRack (you don't have to buy anything), you can order this sweet adjustable ring for *free*.

Remember that other daily deal sites like groupon, savemore, saveology, thedailysave, fab.com, One Kings Lane also offer sign up bonuses for new account holders.

Restaurant.com will be having some great discounts on their gift certificates too.  I recommend following them on twitter to keep up with their sales and deals.

Sign up bonuses for daily deals are how I do a majority of my holiday shopping.  I collect gifts throughout the year.  I am able to buy great, high value gifts for little to no OOP.

Daily Deal Site: One Kings Lane $15 credit!

One Kings Lane is offereing a new account credit of $15.00. And... When you use the code get-inspired at checkout, you'll save $15 off of a $30 or more purchase.  That is a potential savings of $30!

I just looked over the website and they have a lot of really great items priced at or a few dollars above $30.00, including, some really nice ceramics from Tunisia.  For my historical recreation buddies, these would make great holiday gifts!

Shipping is not included in the offer, however shipping starts at just $4.95.  (CA residents have to pay sales tax)

 

I know I'll be doing some of my holiday shopping there.  I think my dad might be getting a tagine.

Which is more important?

Saving money or using coupons? The two are not always the same.

The answer is simple, doncha think? Think again.

I talked with some couponers today and I was chastised for shopping at 99 Cents Only because they don't accept coupons.  I posed the question above and most of them said, "Using Coupons".  I set up the following scenario:

At Ralph's a bag of Dole salad is $3.49.

At 99 Cents Only the EXACT same bag of salad is .99.

Sometimes (maybe 2-3 times per year) I can get a .50 off coupon for a bag of Dole Salad.  Most of the time, it's now .50 off 2 or 3 bags (thanks to "that show").  Ralph's will double the first coupon, making it $1.00 off. So, the salad at Ralph's is now $2.49 if I can find a coupon that is only off 1 bag.

My family eats 4-6 bags of salad a week.  We like our greens.

Scenario:

So, let's say, I can get 20 .50/1 coupons for salad all year. Honestly, that's a STRETCH!  I do not use clipping services.  I only trade coupons.

• I buy 5 bags of salad per week.


• That's only 6 weeks worth of salad I can use coupons on.


• Ralph's will double the first to $1.00.


• The first coupon is doubled to $1.00, and since I can only use 3 like coupons at Ralphs, so the remaining 2 .50 coupons are redeemed at face value. A total savings of $2.00.


• 5 bags of salad at Ralphs will come to $15.45.

Meanwhile at 99 Cents Only, I can buy 5 bags of salad for $4.98.  No coupons, no muss, no fuss. It's the same price every day.  All of our local 99 Cents Only carry Dole bagged salads.

I can use the $10.47 I saved to buy more groceries or I can stash it away in our savings account for a rainy day!

Not everyone has a 99 Cents Only near them, but there are other low price grocery outlets, such as Dollar General, Family Dollar, Save-a-lot, and lots of other regional  bargain chains.

So which is more important to you? Saving money or using coupons?

Fun Stuff Friday!

I've got some great RedBox and Blockbuster Express codes for you!

REDBOX CODES:

• DVDATWAG-Walgreen’s code so sounds like you can only use it at the Walgreen’s kiosks.

• BREAKROOM

• DVDONME

No expiration date given for any of these. Hint: Redbox tracks it by credit card. So you should be able to use these once each per credit/debit card.

BLOCKBUSTER EXPRESS CODES:

• 26BPSP2

• 26SLRH6

• 33KJRD7

• 36MAYB5

• 37ABDP5

These all expire 10/17/2011 and should not be one time use codes so they should work for you.

(Thanks to tacatcon over at HotCouponWorld)

 

Free sample of Miss Jessie's hair Products

Free 2ounce Be Enchanted Body Lotion at Bath and Body Works this weekend in stores!

Visit you local Walmart this weekend!  There are all sorts of fun events going on!

Free Essensa Lemon Exfoliator sample

Free sample of Kleenex!

 

Have an awesome weekend! We'll be busy with a baby/kid stuff swap and a coupon swap on Saturday and visiting the San Diego Zoo on Sunday. Remember, October is kids are free Month at the San Diego Zoo!!

Help another frugal blogger!

Last night, I received an email from Lisa, the brains behind Drug Store Divas:

I know I usually send you all deals [[I have one for a TMF rebate a reader sent me for Renuzit Holiday Scents if you want me to send it]]. But, I'm emailing you because I have a favor to ask. My boyfriend entered a recipe contest and, well, sparing you the sob story, it's been a really rough year for him. He needs some good news. I would love for him to win [[winning, to me, is the top three -- I'll get to that in a minute]], and I'm doing everything I can to help. His recipe is here.

Voting started this morning and goes until October 24. You can vote once per day per email address. That link goes straight to his entry. People can register [[and opt out of emails]] and vote right away. You don't need a verification email.

To make it to Round 2, a cook off in Philly, he needs to make it into the top 48. To have his expenses for Round 2 paid for, he needs to make it into the top 3. I'm offering voters a chance to win an envelope of coupons every day they vote. They can win up to 14 times. When [[yes, when -- positive thinking, right?]] he makes the top 48, I'm giving away an Amazon.com gift card. If -- I mean, when -- he makes the top 3, I'm giving away either a Target or Walmart gift card [[winner's choice]]. The details about my contest are here.

So, if you have a few minutes each day, help a fellow frugalista out.  It's free and it's always nice to help someone out!

 

Waiting on large purchases to save money

Mr. CouponDiva has wanted a LCD/Flat screen TV since they have first come onto the market. However, $2000.00 for a TV is too rich for my blood. Our tube TV worked just fine, so I saw no reason to replace it. Oh yeah, and we couldn't afford it!

Fast forward 5 years, and we now have the little man.  Little man likes to watch Yo Gabba Gabba each morning, as well as his Baby Einstein video.  Our tube TV still works great, but it's very heavy, and I didn't want it to fall on Little Man if there was an earthquake (we do live in California!).

Mr. CouponDiva has also wanted a PS3 since they arrived on the scene.   He wanted it mostly for the fact that it can be used as a blue ray player, and it can stream Hulu Plus and Netflix. I didn't see the need for yet another gaming system. Oh yeah, and we couldn't afford it!

Fast forward to last week. We received the deposit back on our previous apartment. After considering what to do with it (save it, buy the TV, spend it on something else) we decided to look at a new TV.  Mr. CouponDiva took Little Man and away they went to look at TV's and compare options. I got the day off! After about 8 hours of comparing TV's in stores (after weeks of doing it online!), he selected a 46 inch Toshiba LCD TV that was on sale at Sears for $599.00 (non-sale price is $1200.00). I paid with our UPromise credit card, so we'll get 1% cash back for Little Man's college education.

We then scooted over to Target and picked up a PS3 Move bundle, which included the Kinnect, a game, and 2 controllers for $350.00, which was cheaper than when the PS3 originally came out.  The PS3 was originally $500 (and that was just the gaming system, that doesn't include the Kinnect, or controllers or a game!) We used my Target red card debit card to save 5% and the pharmacy rewards 5% discount to save a total of 10%.

In addition to saving because we waited and the prices of the items we wanted had dropped, we shopped sales, and used rewards available to us to save even more!

And we'll be saving even more! Using Endorse, when I submit the receipt for Sears and Target, we'll receive 10% back in the form of a check.  Mr. Coupondiva and I will put that money into our ING Direct savings account and use the money for holiday gifts.

The best part... We still have money left from our deposit after buying these two items! That money will go into savings.

 

 

 

Meal Plan Monday!

Monday means another weekly meal plan!

 

Monday:

• B: Zone bars and coffee with creamer


• L:Leftovers


• D: Quiche with egg whites, cheddar cheese and bacon. Salad and brownies.

Tuesday:

• B:Zone bars and coffee with creamer


• L: Leftovers


• D: Italian sausage meatloaf with italian cheese and marinara, salad veggies

Weds:

• B:Zone bars and coffee with creamer


• L: Leftovers


• D: Taco Salad

Thursday:

• B:Zone bars and coffee with creamer


• L: Leftovers


• D:Chef salad

Friday:

• B:Zone bars and coffee with creamer


• L: Leftovers


• D: black bean enchiladas

Saturday:

• B:Eggs and bacon


• L: lunch out (probably Mexican!)


• D: leftovers

Sunday:

• B:Eat Out


• L: quesdaillas


• D: Tortillas stuffers on salad

All lunches include a piece of fruit,  cut up veggies, bottle of water, granola bar and lollipop.

 

I meal plan each week so that I can effectively use the food in our freezer and stockpile and cut down on food waste.

Another inexpensive craft! Tulle tutu/Princess skirt

I'm house sitting for my parents.  I haven't lived with them in years, yet my stuff is still in their garage.  I am trying to be a responsible daughter and get my crap out of their space.

Today when I was over feeding the cat (and stealing the coupon inserts from their Sunday paper), I peeked into the garage and found decorations from my wedding... 4 YEARS AGO.  The bowls we put floating candles in will go up for sale on Craigslist today, but the leftover rolls of tulle will be turned into a princess skirt/knotted tutu for my niece.

The skirt is easy to make and won't take much time at all.  If you don't have these supplies laying around at home, you can pick up the supplies at Dollar Tree or Joanne's for less than $5.00!

 

I'll post pics when I'm done!

Burt's Bees Sensitive: My latest BzzAgent Campaign

I've had sensitive skin since I was a kid.  Red, blotchy, dry skin.  There have been lots of products that I have missed out on trying because my skin is just that sensitive. A lot of my family and friends also suffer from sensitive skin, so I was super excited when BzzAgent emailed me about their latest campaign.

Burt's Bees has an awesome new line of skin care products for people just like me! Burt's Bees Natural Skin Solutions for Sensitive Skin.

What is Sensitive Skin?

A formal definition for the condition has yet to be created, but most dermatologists characterize sensitive skin as skin that experiences:

• Redness


• Irritation


• Stinging


• Dryness


• Itching


• Blotchiness


• Breakouts easily


• Rashes

What Causes Sensitive Skin?

Environmental Factors:

• Weather – extreme heat or cold


• Sun and UV exposure


• Wind


• Pollution

Genetics:

• Sensitive skin can be hereditary for some

You can’t control your genes, but you can care for your sensitive skin naturally. Our new Sensitive Skin Products are 99% natural and are proven to moisturize and cleanse without causing redness or irritation.

Skin Irritants:

• Products can contain irritating ingredients like:


• 
  
  
  
  • Soap
  
  
  • Exfoliants
  
  
  
  
  
  
  • Alcohol
  
  
  • Salicylic acid
  
  
  
  
  
  
  • Fragrance
  
  
  
  


• Sunburn


• Dermabrasion


• Frequent contact with water can cause inflammation of the skin


• Allergies to ingredients in cosmetics and skin care products

Stress:

• Skin can become more sensitive and more reactive when stressed


• Stress triggers the body to release hormones and chemicals that can cause the skin to become irritated

Almost every case of sensitive skin has one symptom in common: Inflammation. That’s why Burt’s Bees Sensitive Skin Care line is crafted with natural ingredients that help soothe and soften your sensitive skin.

Burt's Bees Natural Skin Solutions for Sensitive Skin products contain Rice Extracts, Aloe, Eyebright and White Genepi, all products that support and heal sensitive skin. They are 99% Natural, and area great choice for those of us with sensitive skin. They are: Fragrance-free, Hypo-allergenic, Dermatologist-tested, and Allergy-tested.

I am giving away samples and coupons  of Burt’s Bees Sensitive Skin Daily Moisturizing Cream to readers.  The first 5 readers to leave a comment will receive a sample of the cream and a coupon for $1.00 off as well as a 20 coupon pot luck. I will contact you for your mailing address.

I am a member of Bzzagent, a great WOM (word of mouth) website that helps spread the word on tons of great products.  I received these products for free. The opinions of these products are all mine. I recommend that you check Bzzagent out!

Endorse: shop and save even more!

I'm sure that if you read other savings blogs, you've heard about Endorse. I am pretty excited about this new program.

Ok, this is a bit in depth, so grab a drink and sit down.

1- Endorse runs on the Facebook Apps platform, so you GOTTA have Facebook.

2-Sign up for Endorse. They ask for your mailing address. Endorse will send you envelopes. I'll get to this in a sec.

3- "Endorse" your favorite products, stores.  After you shop at your "endorsed" shops or for your "endorsed" items, place the receipts in the  envelopes that Endorse has sent you.

4-Once the receipts are received and processed, you will receive a credit of 10% of your purchased price in your Endorse account, once you reach $25.00 in your account, Endorse will cut you a check!

5-Here's a bonus: When five of your friends purchase the same product(s) or shop at the same store(s) that you have (they have to click and endorse that product/brand) you get your ENTIRE receipt total credited to your Endorse account.  That makes the entire trip FREE!!  WOO HOO!

I guess I have to start getting receipts when I go to Starbucks.

Important info: The 10% will be AFTER coupons and tax.  You cannot submit receipts from purchases that were made prior to your endorsement. If you endorse both the store and product on the receipt, you’ll get  10% cash back for both!

This is a long term way to save in addition to shopping with coupons and hitting up sales. Combine with Savingstar or Upromise e-coupon savings and you will be saving exponentially!

Just to be clear: CVS, Walgreens, Target, Walmart are all a part of this!  That means our trips to the drugstore and mass-merchandisers would become even better money makers!!

 

Here are the few reasons I am excited:

• I can do this to save at 99 Cents Only!  They carry a lot of the products that I Endorse. (Dole salads, Dole Canned Fruit, EggBeaters, Sandwich thins, etc.)

• I can get gift cards with my Mypoints Points and use them at restaurants like Applebees and earn more cash back with Endorse! It's a win win!


• I can use my Upromise credit card to earn cash for Little Boys college fund and earn cash back with Endorse at the same time!

 

I'm off to Endorse a bunch of products!!

What do I do with all those freebies?

I post freebies all the time, and I request them daily. A lot of people ask me what I do with all of the freebies.

The family uses a lot of them, especially the food and baby freebies.  Coffee freebies (including creamer and instant coffee) get used right away.  Baby freebies (diapers and wipes) get added to the diaper bag.

The deluxe freebies, like the bareMinerals lip gloss I got today, get added to the gift box.  We have a box in the closet that I store gifts in.  It's always someone's birthday around here, and with the holidays fast approaching, I need to fill up stockings on the cheap. The gift box is something that a lot of people grew up with, especially those of us with frugal moms or grandmothers.  Both my mom and paternal grandmother had a gift box/closet.

I'd post a photo of the box, but some of the people who read this blog are recipients of "the box presents" and I don't want to spoil any surprises.  In addition to freebies, the box contains items that I have bought using coupons that produce overage, and items that were free using sign up bonuses of money I earned with affiliate links (groupon, savemore, saveology, thedailysave).  I buy gifts throughout the year this way for people on my gift list. By the end of November, I am 99% done with shopping for the holidays.

Because I don't work outside the home, I rely on freebies and deals that provide overage as much as possible. Our gift budget is very small because of what I am able to get for free or very little OOP.

Recently I hosted a Thirty-One Party and I was able to pick up a few great items to add to the gift box using the hostess credit I received because of the level of sales we had reached.  That's 3 more presents I can check off the list!  I used the credit to pick up some of the monthly specials.  It changes each month.

 

Freebie Friday!

WOO HOO! It's Finally Friday!

That means Freebies! Lots and lots of great freebies!

Costco Members can request a sample of Kirkland Lotion (You will need your membership # from the back of your Costco card).

L'Occitane is giving away a 5mL tube of their famous hand cream on Facebook.  They will mail you a certificate to be used at a local L'Occitane Store.  If they get 250K "likes", we all get upgraded to a 10mL tube!

Fab.com is giving away a $10.00 credit for new sign ups.  There are a lot of great deals to be had and all you pay is $4.95 shipping!

Savemore.com has some great deals that are free when you sign up (free $10 credit for new sign ups!)

Print this coupon, head to the Sephora counter inside your nearest JCPenney's, and pick up a deluxe sample of bareMinerals’ Pretty Amazing lip gloss.

Visit Walmart's website for a sample of Aquafresh Extreme Clean Pure Breath Action Toothpaste.  Walmart has a few other freebies too!

Do you need some pep? Click here for a free sample of 5 hour energy!

Visit P&G Brandsaver to get samples of Prilosec OTC and Head and Shoulders!

Got Kiddos? Sign up for the Beech Nut Starter Kit.  Samples, coupons, and a newsletter!

Like Pasta? Sign up for the Romano's Macaroni Grill newsletter, and you'll get $5.00 free to use on your next visit!

Visit Cottonelle's Facebook page for a chance to win a roll cover (it's a toilet paper roll cover!)

 

Wow!  That's a lot of freebies!!

 

 

Facebook!

We're joining Facebook.  Instead of having deals post to my personal page, I've launched CACouponDiva's Facebook page.  I'll be posting deals, freebies, rebates and much, much more every day.  It's just one more way for us to help you save money and live better!

 

We'll be celebrating with some pretty sweet giveaways once we reach 50, 100, 150, and 200 followers!

Mail Call Monday!

Monday means not only a new meal plan, but it also means MAIL CALL!!

[caption id="attachment_1270" align="alignleft" width="577" caption="Mail Call!!"][/caption]

Starbucks sends free item offers to those customers who have a registered Starbucks cards.  Last week, they sent me a postcard for a free bagel and a postcard for a free beverage.

I also received a coupon for a free Sister Schubert product. I wrote them an email a few weeks ago, letting them know how much we love their rolls.

Free sample of Dove deo from Costco.

Coupons from Huggies.

A sample of Ojon hair serum (facebook offer)

Icy Hot Naturals sample and coupon (Wal*mart offer)

Now that we are settling in, I am starting to do more freebies.  I am trying to get stocking stuffer type goodies for the holidays.

What I've been working on!

I posted a few days ago that I'm making some crafts for an upcoming craft show.  Here are some photos of what I've been working on...

[caption id="attachment_1266" align="alignleft" width="225" caption=""Little House on the Prairie" Apron"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1267" align="alignleft" width="225" caption="Floral apron with cream ribbon"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1264" align="alignleft" width="223" caption="Christmas Apron"][/caption]

These aprons have grossgrain ribbon apron strings.  The little house apron isn't finished yet.  I need to go buy some ribbon for it.  I'm thinking pink or light blue to bring out the color of the flowers.

I've made 6 other aprons, a dozen plastic grocery bag holders, and a dozen of these (just a few are shown below):

[caption id="attachment_1265" align="alignleft" width="553" caption="Pot holder/Dish towels with button and loop for being attached to the oven door handle or fridge handle"][/caption]

 

Menu Plan for this week

Monday:

• B:Cereal for me, an egg and toast sandwich for hubs.


• L: Business lunch with hubs.


• D: Chicken casserole with savory garlic and herb cooking creme, broccoli, and gluten free pasta

 

Tuesday:

• B:Cereal for me, an egg and toast sandwich for hubs.


• L: Leftovers


• D: Italian sausage meatballs with marinara and whole wheat pasta (we're trying to use up the remaining whole wheat pasta).

 

Weds:

• B:Cereal for me, an egg and toast sandwich for hubs.


• L: Leftovers


• D: Roast Beef sandwiches, soup, and raw veggies with dip

 

Thursday:

• B:Cereal for me, an egg and toast sandwich for hubs.


• L: Leftovers


• D:Quiche with bacon and carmelized onions, salad

 

Friday:

• B:Cereal for me, an egg and toast sandwich for hubs.


• L: Leftovers


• D: Inside out cheeseburgers, sweet potato fries (oven baked), and green beans

 

Saturday:

• B:Eggs and bacon


• L: lunch out (probably Mexican!)


• D: Shepherds pie, salad

 

Sunday:

• B:Pancakes


• L: grilled cheese sandwiches, veggies


• Taco salad, Good Beans (non fat vegetarian refried beans, a can of Ro*tel tomatoes, and 1/2 c. of cheese)

All lunches include a piece of fruit,  cut up veggies, bottle of water, granola bar and lollipop.

Sunday is cook ahead day, so I'll probably whip up a batch of vegetarian chili in the big crockpot, bbq chicken in the smaller crockpot, and portion it out for dinners and a couple tupperware containers for lunches.

 

I don't have to do any major shopping this week.  99% of this food we have at home.  All I need to buy is 3-4 bags of salad and a bag of carrots from 99 cents only today.

 

Cheap Lunch Alert: L&L Hawaiian BBQ (10/8/11)

Mr. Coupondiva brought home a flier from L&L Hawaiian BBQ in El Cajon (356 Broadway).  On 10/8/11 from 11am-1pm, they will be selling your choice of 4 lunch plates for only .76!

 

Your choice of:

• BBQ Chicken


• Chicken Katsu


• Hamburger Steak


• Kalua Pork w/Cabbage

This offer is only valid at this location.

 

Yum Yum!

It's a new month!!

A new month means new printable and electronic coupons!

Check out the following sites:

Coupons.com (printable an e-coupons), Redplum (printable), Savingstar (e-coupons) Shortcuts.com (printable an e-coupons), Smartsource (printable), Cellfire (e-coupons), All You (printable).

 

Go Forth and SAVE!!!