At CVS: I went to a CVS in Houston on vacation and the store did not take printable CVS coupons. I convinced the cashier to use the printable beauty coupon because it had a bar code and she could scan it but I was okay with her not taking the welcome coupon (even though the register would have accepted it if she had typed it in.) She said “We can’t take those printed coupons, people actually come in here and get all their stuff for free and we can’t give everything out for free!” I laughed and had to tell hubs. So just FYI~ CVS stopped giving everything out for free. Unless you have extrabucks! (My local store is still taking that welcome coupon so it must be vary by store.)

At the Gym: I went to work out at 24 Hour Fitness with my friend Carleigh. I always check their clothes racks because one time my dad went with me and he found a pair of nice work out shorts for $3! This time, I found a pair of addidas shorts for $7 and I decided I needed them. When she rang them up they were half price! I ran to tell Carleigh so she could get the other $3 pair! Moral of the story: You never know where you’ll find a great bargain!

At Target: I went to Target last week and I overheard two ladies talking about the great Target coupons they saw on a web site. I thought, I want to listen and hear about this web site! Then they went on to say “has she moved yet?” Then it hit me, they were talking about Our WEB SITE! I went over and said hi and told them my ears were burning! They were laughing. I have to send them a shout out. Hi Jenny and Paula! It was so fun running into you!

Would you like to try free products and tell your friends about them? Become a Buzz Agent! It’s a really neat company that believes in word of mouth advertising. They let you try things out for free and let you buzz your friends about it. It’s free to sign up!

This month by being a buzz agent, I was able to try two half gallons of Horizon Organic Milk for free. The milk is so good that I have been adding a half gallon to the mix of my groceries and using the rest of the coupons they sent me! (Two try me free’s and six 55 cents off, which I share with friends!) They will ask you if you want to join a campaign to try something as soon as they have one available. If you are one of the first to sign up before their maximum number is reached, you get accepted to try that campaign. They ask you to write a quick report of how you “buzzed” your friends after you try the products. In the past I have gotten a free night’s hotel stay. I love being a buzz agent!

Print off a $5 off $25 coupon for Babies R Us! (Exp 4-1)

It’s Frugal Friday!

This is the time where you can share all things frugal. If you went to Target to get some of the great deals, we want to see your pictures!

I went to Target and got a weeks worth of groceries for $35. I am also very sad to say that my car is in the shop and my digital camera is in the console. I did get some great things, including Luvs diapers for $3.49! They are on sale for $6.99- $1.50 coupon from our Target Generator- $2 manufactures coupon= $3.49!

Share your Frugal Friday stories. You can post about anything that you are doing that is frugal.

Here’s what to do: 1.) Post about it on your blog and publish the post. 2.) Try to copy and past that exact post (instead of just your web address) so that readers can still find it if you post again later. 3.) Paste it into the Mr. Linky along with your name. 4.) Make sure that you mention something about this in your post and link back to me so that others can find this. 5.) Come back and read all the frugal tips that everyone has contributed! That’s it!

If you don’t have a blog I will let you post your idea or bargain in the comments section but you have until next Friday to start a blog! If your link was deleted, it is because I am technically challenged. Please try it again and make sure you link back to us here!

I have had my eye on this one!

Dell Home has the Inspiron 1525 laptop only $649 (before tax, fees, shipping & handling) after $320 instant savings- Expires 03/31/08

• Intel Pentium Dual Core T2370 (1.73GHz/533Mhz FSB/1MB cache)
• Windows Vista Home Premium Edition
• 15.4″ LCD Display (1280 x 800)
• 3GB Shared Dual Channel DDR2 at 667MHz
• 250GB SATA Hard Drive (5400RPM)
• Dell Wireless 1395 802.11g Mini-Card
• 1Yr In-Home Service, Parts + Labor,24×7 Phone Support

Get $20 off a $20 purchase at Spring Hill Nurseries! You can buy any item, over $20, exactly $20 or even if it is under $20 it will still take the amount off and you just pay shipping (around $7.95).  The $20 off coupon code is 414465.  It’s a great time to stock up on stuff for the garden! (Thanks iMommies)!

Join the General Mills Advisory Panel here! They will put your name on file and then email or call you when they need you to test their items. They will compensate you for your time with cash and you get to try their newest items! (Thanks Ashley!)

We are going to start a new concept called Frugal Friday. It is for sharing all things frugal. Just to give you an idea, you will write on your own blog and you can share a bargain shopping tip that works for you, show your great savings or share about a great deal. (I want to see your Target pictures if you took them from all our great deals on Friday!)

We are going to try Mr. Linky again. (Back in December we did Mr. Linky and you ladies did great.) Here’s what you will do on Friday. Get a post ready for Frugal Friday on your blog. You get to link it on my page to get maximum exposure for your blog (1100 moms may view it if they all head over to your page). Then I want you to link back to my page on your blog telling others about Frugal Friday. It’s a great way to share linky love!

*Hot* These sell out fast!

Robert Wayne has little girls Mary Jane Crocs in Navy, Black and Celery for $9.99 with free shipping!

(Use online coupon code MC10OFF for 10% off!)

Update: Sold out!

Have you been keeping track of the deals on this CVS site? If not, you should head over there every week to check them out. If you go into CVS, you can get a booklet that tells you which items you can buy to earn extrabucks for the month of March. The extrabucks, or instant rebate, will print out as a coupon on your receipt. This coupon is good to buy anything in the store, such as milk or bread. This month you can get extrabucks for toothbrushes, mouthwash and tons more making them free after extrabucks. If you look on the back of the extrabucks booklet, you can get free Vitamin C. My children and I have not gotten sick for two months (knock on wood) because of the great advise of my parents to start taking vitamin C. Last year we were all sick the entire month of March! You want to give kids about 100 mg (the free one is for 500mg so take that one yourself) but it does not hurt you to have too much vitamin C.

Example of an Extrabucks deal this month: Oral B Cross Action Toothbrush $4.99 get $4.99 ECB’s! Limit 2 so you can Get 2 FREE! (You can also use the $2/2 coupon from 3/2 P&G insert to make $2!) (but I don’t want to make it too complicated if you are new at couponing, you don’t need any extra coupons to get this for free.)

Get a free sample of Starbucks coffee! (Thanks Terri!)

You really need to take advantage of this deal!

Shutterfly.com - Enjoy 25 free prints to get started today!

Go and sign up for a new account and upload your Easter pics! You can even ship them to grandma or a great aunt!

After all “a picture is worth a thousand words!”™

After that long Target post, I am taking a break to tell you some fun boy “stuff.” If you have a little boy or two you may know that little boys may give you more than you bargained for- in the ewe department!

I have been talking with a few friends lately about the ewe factor that comes along with having boys. Boomama wrote a very thoughful post about it last week that confirmed my conclusion that with boys, you just never know what might happen! (I am sure some girls would give some boys a run for their gross factor as well.)

Here is something that I could have used when my boys were little. The Wee Block, avaliable in Lil Squirt or Super Wee Wee Man decor.

My son started to give me a caring look this morning and said in a sweet voice, “Mom…” (as he brushed my hair back, I though I was going to get a treasured I love you.) I instead got what he thought was a very meaningful “Mom, I tooted for you!” “Oh, (silent moment, trying to take it all in)… thanks sweetie.”