Super Savings Saturday: The "Weekly-Report-Postponed-for-a-Wedding" Edition

As most of you know, my sister is getting married tomorrow so blogging has been on the very back burner the past few days as I'm knee deep (or maybe up to my eyeballs?!) in helping with wedding preparations, decorations, and so forth. I'm loving every minute of it, though!

We just got home from the rehearsal, rehearsal dinner, and last-minute decorating/organizing and I'm heading to bed since I need to have myself and two of my little ones at the church bright and early tomorrow morning to get ready for pictures.

I had planned to write about a big purchase we were able to make from an Amish bulk store this week using the money we saved by not doing our regular grocery shopping trip, but I'm going to save that to share early next week in favor of getting a little bit more shut-eye tonight.

Stay tuned for my full report on our savings from this past week after the whirlwind wedding weekend is over! I'm also hoping I can have my sister guest post on how she pulled off a beautiful wedding on a dime--but I'll let her life settle down a bit first!

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Did you snag any great deals or bargains this week or save money in other ways? If so, be sure to post about them on your blog and leave your link below. Please remember that this weekly round-up is to share deals you personally got and/or money you were able to save this week. In order to keep this weekly round-up focused on helping and inspiring others in their efforts to save money, links which have little-to-no content other than promoting affiliate links, etc. will be deleted. Also, to make it easy for everyone to navigate quickly through the links, your link must link directly to your Super Savings Saturday post.

Free sample of Honey Nut Cheerios and $1/1 coupon

Go here to request a free sample of Honey Nut Cheerios and a $1/1 coupon.

Thanks, For the Mommas!

Free Yoplait Whips coupon

The Yoplait Whips offer is available again. Go here to sign up for the Betty Crocker newsletter (if you haven't already) and you'll get a coupon for a free Yoplait Whips.

Thanks, For the Mommas!

Frugal Fun: Grocery Ad Playtime Menu (Guest Post)

Marie from Make and Takes shared this fun (and frugal!) idea for a way to recycle your old grocery ads into playtime menus for your children:

Supplies for Grocery Ad Menus:

• grocery ads - the kind that come in the mail
• scissors, glue, color pencils, art paper

First, gather all your grocery ads. Let the kids look through and see what items might be good to have in their menu, then cut them out. If your child is ready to use scissors, go for it but with supervision if they're small. Or you can have them point to the items they want and you can cut them out.

Next, fold a piece of art paper in half vertically. Glue the cut out food items onto the paper in a line. Now write in each price.

My son loved making up how much everything cost. He wanted to make the steak "1 Free" and the ice cream is $20 because it's sooo good. We even named our restaurant, LeBaron's Family Restaurant, with "Todays Special" as Shrimp, my son's favorite food. Have fun playing Restaurant!

Marie is a crafter, foodie, and mother of 3. She loves running, reading, and eating candy. Check out her blog Make and Takes for more Ideas and Crafty Tidbits for Home, Family, and Fun.

Free product coupons from Nakana

Go here to sign up for a free recipe booklet and a free product coupon from Nakana and Holland House. In addition, you can go here and fill out a short survey and you'll get a coupon for a free bottle of Nakana Rice Vinegar.

Thanks, Discount Queens!

Maggie Moo's: $1/1 Smoothie coupon

Sign up for a coupon for $1/1 regular or large smoothie at Maggie Moo's here.

Stop & Shop: Free Multigrain Cheerios and Yo-Plus

For the next week, Stop & Shop has Multigrain Cheerios on sale 4 for $6. Print 4 $0.75/1 coupons here, here, or here and Stop & Shop will double them to $1.50 off making them free after the store sale.

In addition, Yo-Plus yogurt is on sale for $2 and after the $1/1 coupon here (doubled), it's free!

Thanks, Ann!

If your Stop & Shop has a RedBox kiosk, through August 13, 2009, you can get a free rental when you use code 7sD4BWL8. Thanks, Frugal Living and Having Fun!

Walgreens: Starbucks Frappuccinos for $0.25 or less

Through tomorrow (August 1, 2009), single bottles of Starbucks Frappuccinos are on sale for $1.25 with the in-ad coupon. Use the $1/1 coupon here (or here) to get them for just $0.25 each.

And, if you purchase them today (July 31, 2009), you can also use the 15% off coupon here and get them for $0.06 each or lower if the 15% is deducted from the regular price.

Remember to hand the 15% off coupon first, then the manufacturer's coupon, and then the in-ad coupon.

A big thanks to Common Sense with Money for posting this great deal! See all the deals at Walgreens this week here.

Free copy of Healthy Eating for Life

Go here to request a free copy of the book, Healthy Eating for Life.

Thanks, Discount Queens!

Free Sensible Portions Cheating with Chocolate sample

Go here to sign up for a free sample of Sensible Portion's Cheating with Chocolate products.

Thanks, FreeStuff4Free.com!

Free bottle of Wisk HE laundry detergent?

According to Deal Seeking Mom, you can get a free bottle of Wisk HE laundry detergent when you leave a comment on this blog post. There's nothing on the post which states this, but it's worth a shot!

Free o.b. sample pack

Go here to sign up for a free trial pack of o.b. tampons. (Thanks, Thrifty Frugal Mom!)

Whole Foods: Free Back To Nature Mac and Cheese

I love great deals on all-natural and organic products, but who can beat free? Whole Foods currently has Back to Nature Mac and Cheese on sale for $1 a box. Use the $1/1 printable coupon here (click on "eCoupons" and go to the second page) to get these free after the coupon!

There's also a $1/1 coupon in the Whole Deal coupon booklet which is available at most Whole Foods stores.

Thanks, Common Sense with Money and The Thrifty Mama!

Printable coupon round-up

There's a new $1/1 Morningstar Farms product coupon here. Combine two of these coupons with the $2/2 Target coupon here to get $2 off each package at Target

More printable coupons:

$3/2 products from the Glade Fragrance Collection (Thanks, Amanda!)

Don't forget to print your $1/2 BIC coupons and the $5/$25 Rite Aid coupons here. The BIC Crystal Stic Pens are on sale for $0.50 each at Rite Aid next week which will make them free after the coupon. (Thanks, Charlene!)

Guest Post: How to Practice Hospitality on a Budget

Guest Post by Meredith from Like Merchant's Ships

One of our biggest frugal pleasures is sharing our home and food with others.  I can almost always whip up a neighborhood coffee or deliver a meal during hard times.

 

But how are you supposed to budget for hospitality? Will your own family end up eating rice and beans because you sent too many chicken casseroles elsewhere?

 

I struggled with this question until I created a hospitality envelope. Using our Dave Ramsey system for cash, hospitality gets its own category. Because I know I have money just for this, I'm no longer afraid to spend it.

 

When you don't budget for hospitality, money might always be your excuse for not sharing with others.

 

How I divide the money varies month to month. $50 could stretch to cover one big party, five $10 meal deliveries, or ten $5 muffin baskets. What we don't use one month rolls over to the next.

 

How much you earmark is up to you. What I can tell you is that when I spend in a way that honors our budget, God has a way of multiplying His provision.

 

One day I raced through the grocery store, putting together a delivery for a sick family.  Deals jumped out at me left and right, from super-clearance gourmet soup to Buy One Get One Free crackers and perfectly ripe pears. I ended up with a beautiful basket worth well beyond its $10 pricetag.

 

Here are some ideas for hospitality on any budget:

• Meet a new mother at the park. Bring the quilt, a jar of cold lemonade, and a listening ear.
• Open your home to a group meeting. You provide a clean, welcoming space, hot coffee, and muffins.
• Take a basket of sandwiches to the funeral home to help a family keep up their strength.
• Offer to watch your friend's children during her next doctor visit, serving up encouragement, quick pizza bagels and fruit.
• Develop a repertoire of tasty but inexpensive meals for others and stock up when those ingredients go on sale.

Hospitality can be rewarding, but never more so than when you practice it with purpose. Here's to sharing our blessings with those around us!

 

Meredith enjoys documenting her family's adventures in thrift at her award-winning blog, Like Merchant Ships.

From Money Saving Mom: How do you practice hospitality on a budget? You can see some of my ideas here. I'd love to hear your input.

Printable coupon round-up

Go here to print some coupons for Bob Evans products. (Thanks, Happy Homemaker Cindy!)

More printable coupons:

There are a number of coupons available here for Smart Balance products.

$1/2 Near East products

$2/1 Midol 20-count or larger

Rite Aid: Get a free Glam Bag when you purchase 3 $0.99 nail polishes

Purchase 3 NYC nail polishes at $0.99 each and you'll qualify for the free Glam Bag with beauty samples from Rite Aid. See more details here.

Go here to check out the rest of the deals and freebies available at Rite Aid this week.

Free Tag Junior ABC Animal Orchestra Book (if you have a LeapFrog toy)

If you have a LeapFrog toy at your house, you can sign up here and you'll get a free ABC Animal Orchestra Book.

Thanks, Mojo Savings!

Free samples of Gorilla Glue (first 2500)

Sign up as a fan of Gorilla Glue on Facebook and then click on the "Free Sample" tab here and follow the instructions to request your free samples of Gorilla Glue. This is limited to the first 2500 who sign up, so hurry and snag these while they are available!

I've heard great things about this glue so I'm excited to try my sample.

Food Lion printable coupons = great deals!

Wow! Food Lion has some great deals on produce and more going on this week. Go here to check out the deals you can snag using some of the new Food Lion printable coupons.

Walgreens: 15% off coupon (good July 31, 2009 only!)

Walgreens just released an excellent coupon here which is good for 15% off all eligible items in-store or 20% off all Walgreens-brand items tomorrow (Friday, July 31, 2009).

The last time they released a coupon of this nature, it was good off your entire purchase so paired with the sales this week, it could make for some very sweet deals!

Thanks, Mojo Savings!

Free Betty Crocker Gluten-Free Dessert Mix coupon

If you or someone in your home is eating a gluten-free diet, you can get a free coupon for one of Betty Crocker's new Gluten-Free Dessert Mixes ($4 value). Here's how to get yours:

• Call General Mills Consumer Services number at 1-800-446-1898 and select option #4 on the main menu.
  
• Tell the customer service representative on the line that you are interested in the free gluten-free baking coupons.
  
• You'll be asked a few questions regarding your household's consumption of gluten and then you'll be asked for your address so they can send you the free coupon.

Thanks, Tomorrow's Plight!

Barnes & Noble: Free eReader and six free ebooks

Download the free eReader from Barnes & Noble here and you'll get six free ebooks including: Sense and Sensibility, Pride and Prejudice, Little Women, and more.

Thanks, Tomorrow's Plight!

Chevy's: $5/$20 coupon

Go here to print a coupon for $5 off a purchase of $20 or more at Chevy's Fresh Mex restaurants. This coupon is good through August 22, 2009.

Thanks, Prime on a Dime!

Frugal Fun at Our House: Pudding Finger Paint

Remember all those Kraft coupons which were available not too long ago? I used the $1/3 Jell-O pudding coupons at the Double Dollar coupon sale at our local grocery store to buy a number of boxes of pudding for pennies per box.

In addition to making some yummy trifles, I used the pudding last week for a creative homeschool project. We mixed up some of it, donned some of Daddy's old t-shirts, and used it as finger paint.

In addition to just letting them play and draw and have fun with the finger paint, we also practiced writing the letters we're currently working on.

And then, since the finger paint was edible, the girls got to make pudding mustaches, too!

It was a fun activity--and it only cost a few pennies! Who says fun can't be frugal?

*****More Ideas******

::If you don't have extra pudding on hand, you can also make finger paint with Kool-Aid (see instructions here) or corn syrup and food coloring (see instructions here) or corn starch, sugar, and food coloring (see instructions here).

::I'm hoping to try Homemade Peanut Butter Playdough and Letter Pancakes soon. Do you have any other links to frugal, fun, and educational activities for toddlers?

***********

Many of you have asked for more specifics about what we're using for homeschool curriculum. We're doing the My Father's World Kindergarten program this year for our homeschool lessons and we're thoroughly enjoying it. It combines the best of Charlotte Mason's philosophies of education and Classical education and teaches it all from a Biblical Worldview.

Not only have I found this curriculum to be academically strong, it's fun--as learning should be, especially when you are 2 and 4 years old. The girls are loving it and they often beg if we can please "start doing school" as soon as they get up in the morning. I hope they never lose their excitement!

In addition to My Father's World, we also add in lots of extra reading from twaddle-free picture books and great classic read-alouds (we're reading through the Little House on the Prairie series right now) throughout our day because we just can't get enough of good books around here! We've found PaperBackSwap along with our local library to be excellent sources for very inexpensive or free books.