1. You may notice some construction on the blog this weekend! The makeover is due~ We are hoping to have it very soon!

2. The Mr. Linky… I really want to get Mr. Linky going to showcase your blogs and frugal tips on here. We tried a few things and most of you have written in saying that you like How To Tuesday but Frugal Friday just goes better with the blog. We’ll have somewhat the same concept but the Mr. linky is now going to be called ~My Bargain Bag!

3. My Bargain Bag- Before we have moved to New England, we donated almost all of our stuff to Wycliffe and our friends. We had over 10 truckloads of items that we were unable to move across the country. (It was really freeing though!) I knew God would provide a way for us to furnish our home and he has done that and more! Praise Him! Through a church barn sale, family members and freecycle, we have furnished our home for under $200 (We had to make an Ikea trip or it would have been under $35)! I can’t wait to share what God has provided so far (including a Singer sewing table for $5 and antiques beyond my wildest dreams!) I am going to share some of my savings to you in the weekly posting My Bargain Bag and I want you to share your great finds with us as well!

4. Target Coupon Generator~ It takes hours to set up each week, so I have decided to link you directly to A FULL CUP. Bless their hearts for all the hard work they do to put that generator together! You can access them directly from the Target Coupon Generator link!

5. We’ve move in to our new home and settled down a bit so I am hoping to get the online shopping deals back in action! You can look forward to more frequent bargain posts! I know you don’t want to miss a single Shoebuy or Coldwater Creek bargain!

Kristen wrote in to let me know of a huge sale: “The Children’s Place is having their Monster Sale right now! Almost everything that is marked down is an additional 30% off the already reduced price. I got my daughter a skirt, shirt and sweater and my son two shirts for under $15! The skirt and sweater were $1.99 each!”

And guess what else? Kristen used to work at The Children’s Place! So I am officially putting her in charge of notifying us of TPC deals!

I also found an extra 15% off coupon code at FindSavings.com!

Did you happen to see Stephanie from A Year of Crockpotting on the Rachael Ray show this week? She has taken on an amazing challenge to cook out of her crockpot for an entire year AND all of her recipes are gluten free! That means no eating out, for an ENTIRE year! WOW!

I have to say that I love this blog and here’s why:

1. This challenge is hard and Stephanie has stuck to it. I think she should write a book. I would totally buy it for all my gluten free friends! I know so many people who have a child who needs gluten free food.

2. She’s popular, but she’s not too big that she won’t write you back when you leave a comment on her blog. She shared with me that when you get this creative with your crock pot, it can save you a lot of money and it’s a whole lot cheaper than eating out!

3. She scored a slot on the Rachael Ray show and she did a great job showing off her ability to “crockpot!”

4. She’s adorable in person but cool enough to put this hilarious profile picture of herself on her blog!

Cool off on Friday with a free 7.11 oz Slurpee at participating 7-Eleven stores!

Shoebuy.com is having another sale! (Today is the last day!)
Get 20% off with code EMLJULYFOURTH08 ! (Register for an extra 10% off or automatically get 10% off if you have made a purchase in the last 60 days!) You just can’t get these prices on Crocs anywhere else! Check out this pair if you prefer a more narrow fit!

Rising gas prices are a huge concern for most families these days. How about free gas?

You can mystery shop a gas station and they will reimburse you for about 3-4 gallons of gas. It’s not much, but if you were able to get 3 gas stations in the same area, you just might get close to filling your tank, for free.

Unfortunately, as a mystery shopper, I have signed a contract not to disclose what clients a company represents, so I am unable to tell you which companies offer gas station mystery shops. You will need to sign up with all the different mystery shopping companies and check to see what types of shops they have available for yourself. There is a great list of reliable mystery shopping companies that hire mystery shoppers here, from the Mystery Shopper Providers Association website. If you tried to sign up for the companies all at once, you would probably be a bit overwhelmed. To make things easier for you, I recommend trying to sign up for one company each day. You may be required to take a test or quiz to work for the company so set aside at least a thirty minute block of time.

I know one place I really enjoy shopping during this tight financial time is a very popular coffee shop. Getting paid to drink coffee, now that’s what I’m talking about!

Happy Shopping!

~The Bargain Shopper Lady

This is also my Work’s For Me Wednesday for Shannon’s blog! Revised: There have been some concerns about fake mystery shopping companies.  This list contains all REAL companies, you never have to worry about anyone who is a member of the MSPA being fake. The rule of thumb is to never pay to sign up for a company.

Staples Deal (from Julie!)

Staples is having a great deal on school supplies today through Wednesday (July 9). For one penny each you can buy 2-pocket paper folders (limit 10), 8-pack of Dixon #2 yellow pencils (limit 2), and 0.5 oz bottles of Purell hand sanitizer (limit 2). If you are a teacher, you can get 25 of each item for one penny each!

Rules of this tag. Share five things in your life that make you happy! Go back and link your post on The Bargain Shopper Lady’s blog, even if she was not the friend who tagged you! After you are finished, tag five more friends! Let’s see how many moms we can get to participate!

Happiness is:

1. Time with family!

2. A bubble bath!

3. Homemade Ice Cream!

4. Ten minutes alone with God without any interruptions and talking to Him throughout the day!

5. Finding a great bargain!

I am tagging Heather, Carleigh, Cindy, Janelle and Nicole.

Don’t have a blog? Feel free to share five things that make you happy in the comments section!
Did you participate? Link your post here!

I wish you a blessed weekend with quality time with family and friends! Here’s Boston’s Half Price Hook Up! Check it out every Friday morning!

I want to introduce you to Restaurant.com! It’s a great site where you can buy coupons (or gift certificates as they call them) for local restaurants to save money! With Restaurant.com, you can still afford to eat out occasionally, even with rising gas prices! You can check to see what restaurants are in your area or if you are traveling for vacation, you can search that area as well!

Right now you can use code LIBERTY for 50% the cost of your dining certificate. If your certificate is $10, you only pay $5 with the code.