FREE Ball Canning Supplies

This looks like a fun sample. Want to try canning? Get a free sample of Ball Real Fruit classic pectin.

FREE Floral Reeds

Here's a cool freebie for diffusing reeds. This is a smaller company, so often they are so overwhelmed with freebie requests that they stop sending them.

FREE Bic Pens!

Looks like Bic will be giving away free pens through their Facebook page. Go ahead and like them now, then it will show up in your feed when it goes live. Here's the link to them saying they will do it on 8/1, and here is the link to their main page.

Amazing Amazon Shoe Sales

I have to share these deals!   You can see both deals on the main shoe deals page HERE.

I found that Amazon has an extra 25% off sandals for the family.  Many of these are already 50% off, so that makes this an awesome deal!  These Teva sandals were on sale for $30, and the discount brought them down to $22.50.




You'll have to look around a little--make sure they're sold by Amazon, and some sizes and colors are different prices.  Here are the links to sandals for everyone.  The 25% comes off when you go to check out, no coupon needed.  I think you might be able to use the clothing coupon code I mentioned in the uniform post and make it even better.  (sign up for the newsletter, get the code in your mail)

• Boys sandals.
• Girls sandals.
• Womens sandals.
• Mens sandals.

 The second big deal will be great for back to school shoe shopping!  Take $20 off any $75 order for certain kids' shoes.  Again, the discount is taken at checkout, so you may be able to pair it with a coupon code.

Let me know what deals you get!  This looks like a great savings potential.  Also, please post if you're able to use the coupon with the sale.

Great Quizno's Printable Coupons

Here are four great coupons from Quizno's.  They have FREE sub, two meals for $9.99, free chip or cookie, or $1 or $2 off.  You may have to join the club, but that's also a great way to get more coupons in your email.

FREE Churro!

Here's a coupon for a free churro when you buy Mexi Rolls at Taco John's. It's good through July 28, so hop to.  It looks like you need to also like them on Facebook for this to be official.

Deals from my Inbox, 7/25

Here are a few good deals:

• Woman Within stocking stuffers (Christmas in July) are here.  I always think there are some good ones to choose from.  My favorite is this tote, coffee cup, and water bottle for $5.99.  It would make a good gift, but also nice to keep for yourself.  Some coupon codes to try: WW59199 will get you 20% off first item, 40% off second if you buy 3 items.    WW59207 for 20% off $60 or more.

• NY&Co, today only.  Get $40 off $100 with code 6536, and their jeans are buy one, get one 75% off.  Just trying out the two promotions, I was able to get 4 pairs of jeans for under $100.  When they're originally $50, that's a great savings and almost cheap enough for me. 
• Bath and Body Works has a lot to add together.  Get the antibacterials for $7 for $20, candles 3 for $5, signature collection are buy 3 get 2 free.  You can also print a coupon to get a free FULL SIZED item or use code FREESC10.  There's a new bag now, coming on July 28.  It will be $20 with a $30 purchase, see more HERE.
• Lands End Warehouse Event.  It looks like there are some really great deals on this sale.  You can try this coupon, though I'm not sure if they'll let you combine savings.  PARENTSA11 and pin 8355 for $10 off $50 and free shipping.
• i'll add throughout the day...

Story County Fair

I was remiss in not posting about the Story County Fair, which started Friday night!

Since not everyone is local to me, I found a comprehensive list of all the county fairs in Iowa.  I know people who have never been to the fair, but it was a big part of my life growing up in rural Iowa.  If you have never been, go and check it out.  You won't be disappointed.

I put the dates for the Story County Fair into my calendar, but I also wanted to highlight some of the best events.

• Tuesday they will have a fair tour and kids' activities at 9 am and 2 pm.  This will start in the 4H Hall building.  In the past, they've had this every day of the fair, but I only see Tuesday, then again on Wednesday at 9 am. 
• TODAY should be a great day for smaller children.  They will have the small animal shows beginning at 11 am, with dog and cat shows and a rabbit hopping show in the afternoon.  There is also a petting zoo that day from 3-7 pm.

• Go try out the food!  The Methodist Church has a stand with tons and tons of homemade pies, and the food prices are so reasonable!  Get a corn dog for $1.50, a walking taco for $2.  They even have root beer floats for dessert for only $1.50.  They will be serving all day long, with homemade breakfasts starting at 6 am.

•  Check out the full schedule HERE.  And did I mention that admission to the fair is FREE for everyone?  Couldn't be better.

Give and Get FREE Books

What's better than a good freebie? How about if in the process of receiving YOUR freebie, you're giving something to someone in need?  The kids and I love We Give Books.  In partnership with the Pearson Foundation, they donate books to children in need to help expand early literacy skills.  How can you help?  I'm sure a donation of cash would always be helpful, but if you're low on that, try this:

Just let your kids have some fun computer time, reading some really great books!  There are so many books to choose from, and most are award winners and favorite classics.  Check the book list out HERE.

Do you know of any other resources like this?  Let me know so I can feature them on my blog.

Cheapout at the Iowa State Fair -- Updated for 2011

This is a (mostly) repeat of my 2010 post.  I've updated the information and fixed the links to make it current for 2011.  I also added some more cute baby animal pictures, because there can never be enough of those, right?  Enjoy! 

I posted earlier about my love for the fair, and the Iowa State Fair is my all-time favorite. It's been featured in the book "1000 Places to See Before You Die," and I think it would take the whole 10 days to be able to see everything there is to see.  The fair can get expensive, so I want to show all the ways that you can do it for less.

 Cheapout on Ticket Costs

• Kids 5 and under are free every day!
• Half price admissions--the last day of the fair (August 21) and every day after 5 pm.
• Pre-purchase your tickets and buy bundles online.  An adult admission to the Iowa State Fair is $10 this year, but only $7 if you buy them early.  I just went to look for the information on this, and July 29 is the last day to have the tickets mailed to you.
• NEW! Print your discounted admission tickets at home, fee free!
• Purchase admission and activity tickets online and have them mailed to you (a shipping and handling fee will apply).
• Beginning approximately July 1 through August 10, tickets will be available at participating Hy-Vee, Hy-Vee Drugstores, Dahl's Foods and Fareway stores (fee free). The State Fair Ticket Office opens July 11.

Cheapout on Activities

• Skip the midway, and focus on the free activities.  There are more than enough free things to do at the fair.  If you do want to go to the midway, buy a Fair Play pack ahead of time.  This gets you some of the basic activities for a very low cost.  

• Here are a lot of activities your kids can do beforehand to get excited about the fair.  There are coloring pages and scavenger hunts, or you can make your own list up.
• Sign up for Blue Ribbon Kids.  It's free, and it allows you to gain access to more free activities. 
• The Paul Knapp animal learning center is my little one's favorite.  She's very young and still remembers the day we watched a litter of pigs being born.  They have expectant mothers of many different species having babies throughout the course of the fair, plus eggs hatching.  Even if you aren't able to witness the miracle of birth firsthand, they have tons of brand new baby animals and videos showing the births that have already occurred.  

 

• We also love Little Hands on the Farm.  The children get a chance to go around a path and harvest crops, then turn their crops in at the market for a dollar, which buys them a healthy snack.  They also get a free hat.

• We loved the GRAPE STOMP at Grandfather's Barn!  What fun, and it makes a mess.  You know they love that.  Our kids even got ribbons for participating.

• Don't forget all the stage shows!  There are areas specific to kids, such as the Fun Forest, but the other free events can still be fun for kids.  Mine love the talent show.  Check out my 2011 post on free fair entertainment HERE.

• There are animal barns all over, and you can certainly go through each and every one of them.  I love the Avenue of Breeds, because you'll see a few of each type of animal all in one place.  You can't forget the big boar.  That's where you'll find him.  The big bull will be in the cattle barn and the big ram will be in the sheep barn.

•  The DNR building has aquariums and an outdoor pond with ducks, geese and turtles.  They also have many fun activities and coloring pages.

• There is also a free Petting Zoo (though you buy food to give to the animals)

 

• To see the daily program, you can click here and enter the day you plan to attend to see what is going on and help you plan your visit.

Cheapout on Food

This really isn't all that possible, since the food is all expensive, but there are free food samples to be had.  There are also some less expensive and healthier options, though sometimes we save money on everything else so that we can have the money to spend on fair foods.   Here are some ideas:

• Free samples at the Agricultural Building.  This is also where you see the Butter Cow, and it's a can't miss activity.  While you're there, get a hard boiled egg on a stick or try some ostrich meat.  There will be representatives from every industry with samples to taste.
• For good food, your best bets are the Cattlemans Beef Quarters for good, Iowa raised beef, or pork chop on a stick at the Pork producers booth.  Dinner Bell is great for homemade breakfast, and Stockman's Inn for a better sit-down meal.  The Cattleman's Beef Quarters is doing daily coupons through their Facebook page!  Check it out HERE.
• This link lists all the foods available at the fair and where to find them.  There really are healthier options (The Salad Bowl) and some vegetarian options.
• We all know why you're really going to the fair, though, so here is a list of all the foods on a stick at this year's fair.

Enjoy!  I hope to see you all there.

Oh, let's get it all together.  Cheapout on Parking at the Iowa State Fair with the shuttle busses.  Check out the information in this post.

FREE Burger from Ruby Tuesday

Check out this page, "like" them on Facebook, and get a free burger from Ruby Tuesday. I know it's been a while since I posted. I've got a big trip coming up, and it may be even longer without me. I will TRY to schedule a few posts to keep things moving along.

You can still get free lettuce wraps from P.F. Chang's, and this might be a good time to remind readers about the freebie tag.  Click on that tag to see all the posts that have freebies.  Some may still be available.

FREE Sample of Fiber Choice

Might come in handy some time. If you'd like a free sample of Fiber Choice, fill out the form HERE.

FREE Bowl Giveaway

This is a pretty great giveaway. I signed up for it the last time through, so I'm letting people know about the next time.

Due to popular demand and the unanimous results of our poll, the next free giveaway from EMI Yoshi will be the Square Wave Bowls!! We are so excited to be having another giveaway and give everyone the opportunity to win! Winners will all receive a 10-pack of our brand new just released 5 oz. Square Wave Bowls. The giveaway will go live on Tuesday, July 19th. We will be posting a link on our Facebook page sometime between 12 noon EST and 3 pm EST that day which leads to the giveaway form. This giveaway is open to both residents of the U.S. and Canada. Entrants must follow us on Facebook to be eligible to win. Check out the Promotions tab to the left for more contest details. Also, click the link below to view the bowls before the contest goes live. 

Here is their Facebook page.  Go ahead and like them now so you'll be ready for the giveaway when it goes live.  

GAP 30% off Coupon

Take 30% off your entire order at Gap with code GAP30. This coupon is good through Wednesday, July 20. There are quite a bit of fine print "not good ons," the most significant being school uniforms and backpacks.

Remember that you can score a great deal on school uniforms with the 20% off at Amazon--and sign up for their clothing email list for a 20% off coupon.

Beech Nut Baby FREEBIE

This looks like a great freebie from Beech-Nut. Sign up for their newsletter and get a free toddler welcome kit.  I'm not sure if you get full sized items like in the picture, but I've gotten some neat items from them in the past.  They're usually good for sending some high value coupons as well.

New York and Co. sale + coupon

This looks like a great opportunity! New York and Company has a few good coupons right now--but you can also use one in conjunction with a BOGO 50% off sale. If you are a MyPoints user (and why wouldn't you be? Check out the information on MyPoints here) you can click through them and get 2 points per $1 spent.

• BOGO 50% off blouses
• BOGO 50% off pants
• Use code 3222 for $70 off $150
• Use code 6400 for $50 off $100
• Use code 3192 for $60 off $125
• Use code 3193 for $20 off $60
• Use code 3224 for $30 off $75
• Use code 2173 for $20 off $75

If you'd rather go through Ebates, you can get 3.5% cash back (either by check or PayPal).

The Childrens Place Friends and Family!

Use code FRIENDS online to save 25% off your total order from the Children's Place today and tomorrow (16th and 17th) only! There's a great savings opportunity for your back to school shopping!

FREE Sample of Nivea Body Wash

Get a free sample of Nivea Touch of Cashmere body wash. It sounds wonderful, anyway.

FREE Sleep Number Pillow

Like Sleep Number on Facebook, and they'll give you a free pillow.  Sure, it's a free travel sized pillow, but free nonetheless.  It doesn't say anything about printing anything, and I don't see a coupon on the page, so you may just need to mention it when you go into one of their locations.  It looks like you have until August 17, or "while supplies last."

Sale on Uniforms from Amazon

Looks like a good time to get your kids' school uniforms--what? Didn't school just get out? I've already started getting in on the school supply deals, so I guess it needs to happen.

There are several clothing sections that are 20-50% off right now, BUT you can also get a 20% promotional code to make the deals better.  Simply sign up for their clothing email, they'll send you a 20% code, and then you can apply that to your next order (before July 31)  Once you get the code in your email (mine came in minutes!), choose one of the sales and have fun!

• Main page for all sale clothing items.
• School uniforms from major brands on sale here.
• 30% off Reebok athletic products.
• Sale on Under Armour.  Good stuff, but you hate to think of winter approaching.
• Extra 20% off clearance contemporary clothing from big name brands, with code BFASHION.  It did not allow me to stack the codes, though. 

BOGO Carvel Ice Cream

Here you go! BOGO ice cream from Carvel, and this coupon is good till September 30! That gives you lots of time to find all the places in your area that serve it.

Amazon Grocery Deals 7/13

The deals are starting to come now in groceries. As always, strike fast when you see them drop, because they will sell out fast.

As always, the main July Amazon grocery deals post can be found RIGHT HERE.  It will show the coupon codes and markdowns for the month.  I just highlight when I find irresistible deals.

$21 for 3 big jars of almond nut butter.  Even better!  This is $18, and use code JUSTIN55.  I didn't notice the code earlier when I posted.  There are some other great deals on this brand as well.


$5.50 for 4 cans of organic chunk chicken! I like to keep these on hand for a quick casserole or chicken salad sandwich.



$8.89 for four boxes!



$7.52 for four boxes!


$10.88 for 30 organic fruit leathers!

FREE Pretzel Bun at Weinerschnitzel

Free Pretzel bun or chili dog. Sounds yummy. This coupon expires on July 24, and it says only one per person.

FREE Sample Face Serum

Here's a free sample of face serum. Try it, you may like it.

FREE Meal from Panda Express

This is only for July 13, but you can get a free Garlic Lover's Chicken with any purchase from Panda Express.  It says one per person, so looks like you can have a double date for the cost of drinks.

Amazon Movie Coupons

I've recently discovered that Amazon has movie (DVD/bluray) coupons in addition to their toy coupons and grocery coupons. I'll add this link to the main Amazon page so that it's always easy to find.

This month, it looks like all the coupons are for musicals. This is pretty great, because they're also on sale.  The King and I is $18.49 and has a $3 coupon, bringing it down to $15.   They also have coupons for The Sound of Music, South Pacific, Moulin Rouge, Rocky Horror Picture Show, and History of the World Part 1, among others.  My favorite deal is $15 off (yes, FIFTEEN) The Sound of Music special edition.

Check out all the coupons here, and refreshing the page may help more coupons show up.   If you click on the movies below, the coupon SHOULD already show up as being clipped for you.




There are also some great pre-order deals on Disney releases, so check these out as well.

Save $8 when you pre-order The Lion King Combo Pack with one of the eligible Disney Combo Packs listed below. This offer is valid through October 3, 2011.  So, you'll need to pre-order The Lion King, then one other title--there are a lot of good options.  Bambi, Beauty and the Beast, Dumbo, and many others.  See all the details here.

Save $6 when you pre-order the new Pirates of the Caribbean movie On Stranger Tides along with one of the other movies in the series.  Check that out here.

Rango Pre-Order Deals

If you're looking to pre-order Rango, there are a few options right now. You can save $5 at Target with code Rango555, or you can print this one and take it to the store with you on July 15th. 

One other option is Amazon pre-order, with code RANGO5GO to save $5 off the price.  I like the pre-order guarantee from Amazon, and knowing that I will definitely get the lowest possible price.

Amazon Grocery Deals 7/11

I've found a few great buys to share this morning from the Manager's Specials section.  You can click the link to see all the deals they listed, but here are the ones I think are worth getting excited over.  (warning, there are quite a few good deals here)  You can see all the July grocery deals and coupons HERE, though I do individual posts when I see short term sales.

Remember, with all of these deals, Subscribe and Save figures into the sale price, bringing it down an additional 15% beyond what the price is listed.  You're able to change or cancel your subscriptions at any time, and it's no hassle at all.   Just go to Manage my Subscriptions in the "My Account" section.

Our favorite applesauce! When this gets to $30, we jump. It's $25ish for 40 organic applesauce pouches, and my kids love them. They're great for lunches and on the go snacks.


Some cereal markdowns!

• Four boxes of Apple Jacks for under $8.
• Three boxes of Honey Nut Cheerios for under $7.50.
• Three boxes of Lucky Charms for under $7.

Organic smoothies, around $1 each.


Silk soymilk deals. I love these individual packs for the lunchbox.


You'd have to really like this kind of pudding, but around 50 cents each!


I haven't tried the Hershey's individual boxes, but these are going to be under 75 cents each.


Some juice drink deals.



What are your favorite deals?  Share them, and I'll get them added to the post.

FREE Sierra Club Button

Here's a good freebie, and you'll probably get some good information from their online community as well. You actually get to choose your freebie from among several items.

Target Black Friday In July

This page was emailed to me, showing Target's Black Friday sale page--they're going to have great savings every Friday in July, and you can see a preview every other day of the week.

So--check out their page and tune in first thing Friday morning to see what the prices are. You can also sign up to have the deals emailed to you so you don't forget.

Deals from my Inbox, 7/10

Here is a roundup of the best deals I see:

• Through July 12, get 25% off at Old Navy, Gap, and Banana Republic with code BRONGAP25
• EXTRA30 and pin 2387 will get you an extra 30% off in season savings on swimwear (includes a lot of shoes) from Lands End.
• 20% off from Woman Within with code WW59371 through 7/11, then 15% off with code WW59389 through Tuesday, then 10% off with code WW59397 on Wednesday.
• I thought I had found more, but they weren't as great.  The Snapfish deal with 99 prints for 99 cents has been extended through July 12, so if you thought you'd missed it, you haven't.

Redhead Appreciation Day at Marble Slab

Ankeny's our closest one, but you may want to check out Redhead Appreciation Day (July 11) for a free ice cream from Marble Slab. No coupon necessary, and I don't think they will care if your red hair is from a bottle or a wig.

Amazon Camera Deals July 2011

I have found a lot of good camera deals on Amazon for the month, and since the camera posts seem to get the most looks, I thought I should make sure to share them here.

I'm a Canon girl, so this one has me the most excited.  There is a whole pile of Tamron lenses with mail-in rebates up to $150 right now.  Unlike some previous deals, this is just a matter of buying the lens you want and getting a rebate.  You don't have to buy the camera, or two lenses, or anything else special.  If there's one you've been drooling over, now is the time to buy.

Some of my favorites:


Because I'm all about equal opportunity, there are also some great Nikon deals right now.  Some are good for the point and shoots, and there are also some price breaks on the SLR and Nikkor lenses.  Here's the link to the Nikon store and list of bargains.

My highlights:

• The Nikon Coolpix P7000, regularly $499, marked down to $374, and then take an extra $50 off instantly when you check out. 
• Choose from several different Coolpix S80 cameras with an instant $50 off, bringing some of them down to $169 (the pink one below, for example).  That's a GREAT price.  Add in this cool little waterproof kit for free.

• First, if you buy one of several qualifying Nikon DSLR camera, you will get up to $250 off an extra lens.  See the link here for all the details, but it includes the D90, D3000, D3100, D5100, and D7000.  The other freebies and discounts snowball, so hold on and read through it all.  Here's my best buy scenario.

Buy the Nikon 3100, marked down to $641.80.  Add in the Nikkor 55-200 mm zoom lens, which is already marked down to $149.99.  Use coupon code HET4HUMZ to save $100 instantly at checkout.  With that lens, you'll also get $9.95 off a Tiffen filter (details HERE) making the one below free.  So, you've gone from around $860 down to about $700 that quickly.



I know this is complicated, but you can also get $100 off a Coolpix when you buy an SLR.  If you're in need of a really good point and shoot camera, you can also get the P7000 shown above for an EXTRA $100 off with coupon code COOLPIX3.  Remember above, this one is already marked down.

Here we go!  I just added all 4 items to my cart, and came up with this:

Items (4):	$1,175.74
Shipping & Handling:	$0.00
Promotion Applied:	-$9.95
Promotion Applied:	-$100.00
Total Before Tax:	$1,065.79

There's no tax where I live, and there's free shipping. It's only letting me add one coupon code, but I think if you call Amazon, they'll take the extra $100 for the Coolpix, which would get it under $1000 for all of that.

Here are the rest of the coupon codes for the all the lenses.

• $250 off Nikon 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6G AF-S ED VR II Nikkor Telephoto Zoom Lens. Enter code 8ZYPZGEX at checkout.
• $200 off Nikon 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6G ED IF AF-S VR Nikkor Zoom Lens. Enter code G9SZSJ8F at checkout.
• $100 off Nikon 85mm f/3.5G AF-S DX ED VR Micro Nikkor Lens. Enter code J39Q4J5J at checkout.
• $100 off Nikon 55-300mm f/4.5-5.6G ED VR AF-S DX Nikkor Zoom Lens. Enter code 2TMTQOJ8 at checkout.
• $100 off Nikon 55-200mm f/4-5.6G ED IF AF-S DX VR Nikkor Zoom Lens. Enter code WS3A4ZGW at checkout.
• $100 off Nikon 55-200mm f4-5.6G ED AF-S DX Nikkor Zoom Lens. Enter code HET4HUMZ at checkout. 

You can do any combination of camera and lens, so this can change.  If you prefer the D5100, it will come with a free kit.  You could then get the lens and lens discount and the free filter.  See details on the free kit here.

See what you can do!  It looks like a great opportunity.