September 30, 2011

FREE Full Size Olay Moisturizer

Every day at noon EST (that's 11 am for people in my area), P & G is giving away 10,000 full sized freebies through Allure. These types of freebies go so fast! Be there and ready to click the button at 11:00.01 or risk missing out.

September 29, 2011

FREE Olay Embrace Body Bar

Every day at noon EST (that's 11 am for people in my area), P & G is giving away 10,000 full sized freebies through Allure. These types of freebies go so fast! Be there and ready to click the button at 11:00.01 or risk missing out.

FREE Endangered Species Activity Book

I love getting these free books for my kids! They are great to have around when you need some extra entertainment for road trips or church, and I love the educational aspect as well. My older daughter is very interested in endangered species, so this book is right up her alley. You can click the link HERE, where you can either request the book be mailed or you can print it yourself.

September 28, 2011

FREE Coffee from 7-11 at 7-11

Is that clear enough? From 7 am until 11 am on Thursday, September 29, you'll get free coffee at participating 7-11 locations. It looks like this is for the US and Canada, except Quebec.

Looks like it's National Coffee Day!  Crispy Creme will also be giving away free coffee on September 29, all day.

Amazon's New Kindle FIRE

This one makes me so glad that I've been saving so long to get my Kindle. Amazon just released news of their newest Kindle--the Kindle Fire. It's not going to go on sale till November 15, but you can pre-order now for only $199! Be one of the first to see it here.


Another thing about this release that makes me happy is this. Due to the release of the new Kindle Fire, they've dropped some prices on other e-readers. You can now get the Kindle for only $79, the Kindle with keyboard for $99, and the new Kindle Touch (November 21) for $99!



Read up about the whole Kindle family HERE.

$2 in FREE Amazon MP3 Downloads

I don't know how long this code is good for, but you can go to the Amazon MP3 store and enter code FALLMP3S for $2 in MP3 downloads.  What do you want with your credit?  There are a ton of really good whole album downloads for only $5, and this awesome Patti Smith album is today's $3.99 deal.



You could also get almost 3 of the 69 cents singles.  Check out that list HERE.

FREE Full Size Secret

Every day at noon EST (that's 11 am for people in my area), P & G is giving away 10,000 full sized freebies through Allure. These types of freebies go so fast! Be there and ready to click the button at 11:00.01 or risk missing out.

FREE Cookie Cookbook

Compliments of restaurant.com, get a free cookie cookbook and a free issue of Better Homes and Gardens.

September 27, 2011

FREE Tummy Meds

Get a couple of free samples here:

Farm Crawl

(random cute animal picture)

I haven't been to or heard of this farm tour before, but we're always up for a fun weekend event! This Farm Crawl covers areas south and east of Des Moines, and it includes EIGHT local farms.  It will be held from 11 am until 5 pm on Sunday, October 2.

I won't list all the farms here, but I will post the link to all the information.  You can take your family to taste and see many different home grown Iowa products, including eggs, honey, different meat animals, pumpkins, dairy, apples, and many more.

Special mention goes to Dairy Air, which gave me a good giggle this afternoon.

FREE Chameleon Picture Book

What a cute book! You can print this picture book called "Why is Coco Orange" or you can request a copy to be mailed to you. HERE is the link to the book.

FREE Catfood Samples

This looks like a good freebie--get a box with several different cat food samples from Royal Canin.  Sign up here for the sample.  They'll send you a reminder to vote for your cat's favorite as well as a $2 coupon for more food.

September 23, 2011

$5 Outback Steakhouse Coupon

Well, this isn't necessarily a free lunch, but $5 off is still nice.  You'll need to click this page, then log in through Facebook, then like Outback to get your coupon.  It will be emailed to you, so be sure to put in the email you check.

September 22, 2011

Disney Movie Coupons

If you're in the market for some of the new Disney releases, looks like you can save $5 on some:
Enjoy!

September 21, 2011

The Amazon Nikon Deal Just Got Better!

If that previous post about the Nikon deal interested you, I think it's time to hit it. The price of the camera (with kit lens) just dropped another $20, so now you can get the camera, the kit lens, the zoom lens, and the free Tiffen filter for an even lower price. NO shipping or sales tax.

Items (3): $638.09
Shipping & Handling: $7.75
Shipping Discount: -$7.75
Promotion Applied: -$9.10
Promotion Applied: -$100.00
Total Before Tax: $528.99
Estimated Tax To Be Collected: $0.00
Total: $528.99

As I mentioned in the last post, finding a Nikon deal is pretty rare.  Get all the details below:

So, the details and the page for choosing lens/camera can be found HERE.  Get a Nikon D3000 with the kit lens, and add the Nikon 55-200 lens and a Tiffen filter (always get these when you can, and it's free!)  With an original starting price of $550 for the camera and $199 for the lens, you can get your total cost down to less than the original camera cost.

You'll need to use coupon code QA3J6YX5 if you choose the lens pictured below (best price/value).  Each lens has a different discount, so make sure you hit up the link above to see your choices and the associated coupon code.

September 20, 2011

Oktemberfest in Marshalltown

Here's another festival our family has missed so far, but from the schedule of events, I think a family could have a LOT of fun in Marshalltown this weekend.  On Saturday, you can start out at 7 am with all you can eat pancakes, move on to a grand parade at 10 am, then wander through a ton of craft and food vendors.  Watch dance and Tae Kwon Do demonstrations, check out a battle of the (marching) bands, and end the day with a good old-fashioned street dance.

It looks like most events are free to get in, so go on over and give it a shot.

FREE Museum Day September 24

Smmithsonian Magazine will email you the coupon for two free admissions to participating museums, but the free say is Saturday, September 24 only. See the details on their page.

September 19, 2011

Iowa Outdoor Expo

This looks like it will be a great event! We haven't managed to ever attend it, but I think it's one we'll try out this year.  Your family will get a chance to fish, canoe, see and touch wildlife, all in the beautiful Isaac Walton League and Water Works Park in Des Moines.

Check out all the details HERE.

September 18, 2011

Sunday Only NY & Co Deals

This one could give you a great opportunity to get your fall/winter wardrobe going. New York and Company has a BOGO 50% off sale right now, and today only, get up to 50% additional off your total purchase.  There are three different coupon codes for three different price points:
  • 1003 will get you $90 off $180
  • 1005 will get you $60 off $130
  • 1007 will get you $30 off $75
Here's the link to the BOGO50% off items.   You can get 2 points per dollar if you shop through MyPoints--read more about it HERE.  Ebates will give you 2.5% cash back (and $5 if you're a first time user).  You can read more about Ebates HERE.

Lands End Backpack and Lunchbox Deal

Here's a great price (with added coupon!) on some really high quality stuff for your kids for school. This is the main link to the girls lunch items (it's where I shop), where you'll find backpacks as low as $9.99 and lunch bags for $6.99 and lower.  You can save even more with the coupon code DISCOVER and pin 6956--this gets you 25% off AND free shipping!

Don't forget to look at other lunch accessories.  For me, after school starts is the best time to pick up these items.  You can put them away for next year, or retire the shabby ones you've been using for a while.  The best part about Lands End is that these items will look great for years.

September 16, 2011

Amazon Nikon SLR Deal

Whenever I post the Canon deals (which seem to happen more often) I get questions about Nikon. I am happy to report a Nikon deal that is almost as cheap as this latest Canon one! This is a rare day indeed, and it is available through October 1.

So, the details and the page for choosing lens/camera can be found HERE.  Get a Nikon D3000 with the kit lens, and add the Nikon 55-200 lens and a Tiffen filter (always get these when you can, and it's free!)  With an original starting price of $550 for the camera and $199 for the lens, you can get your total cost down to less than the original camera cost.

You'll need to use coupon code QA3J6YX5 if you choose the lens pictured below (best price/value).  Each lens has a different discount, so make sure you hit up the link above to see your choices and the associated coupon code.






Items (3): $655.85
Shipping & Handling: $7.75
Shipping Discount: -$7.75
Promotion Applied: -$9.10
Promotion Applied: -$100.00
Total Before Tax: $546.75
Estimated Tax To Be Collected: $0.00
Total: $546.75

September 15, 2011

Amazon Canon SLR Deal

It's not QUITE as great as the one I posted a week ago, but this one is good through October 1. It gives you a little more time to get your money together and get it done. It's the same basic deal...the Canon T3 Rebel, a lens (or two) and a free Tiffen filter.

First off, you're saving $60 off the cost of the camera right now. It's regularly $599, on sale for $539.



Then add one of these lenses (or both--you'll get a discount for every lens you add.  If you use THIS LINK, it will have all the camera options and all the lens options on one page, then you can add them all at once.

This one is originally $270, on sale for $199, and you'll get $100 off when you add it AND the camera to your cart. No coupon code needed, but they have to both be sold by Amazon.  (When I tried this out, it only took off $80.  I'm not sure why?)



The next lens is originally $400, on sale for $299, and get $150 off when you add it and the camera to your cart.  This one only took off $100.  I would check with Amazon to see why the full discount isn't applied.  At any rate, this is the Cheapout, so I dumped the more expensive lens.  They serve a very similar purpose.



As mentioned earlier, you can add both lenses and get both discounts.

Next, add this Tiffen filter (it will protect your lens, so very important) and get it free.




Original cost, if you paid full price for all three items: $890

Items (3): $748.87
Shipping & Handling: $9.12
Shipping Discount: -$9.12
Promotion Applied: -$10.87   (price of the filter)
Promotion Applied: -$80.00   (for the lens)
Total Before Tax: $658.00
Estimated Tax To Be Collected: $0.00
Total: $658.00

Still a really great deal!  I like last week's better. 

The printers are back in stock, too, so buy this one for $444 and get a $400 American Express reward card by mail.





Last Day to Stock up On Snacks with Amazon!

This is the LAST day for many of these items on Amazon, in order to use their Back to School coupon codes.


Most of these coupons expire TODAY, so get them now.


Organic snacks right here!

Annie's Homegrown snacks, an additional 25% off with code Y7RBIXY3 through September 15.  Check the link for all the included products, and here are a few that look like good deals!




GoGo Squeeze Applesauce!  I know I push this stuff, but we love it here.  When you can get these for 25% off code GOGO4343, you can bet I'm buying them all.  This is also through September 15.



Revolution Foods (code REVFOO23) will be 30% off total.  These are similar to the GoGo, but have fruit and veggies and a few more options.

Back to Nature nuts and snack foods.

And there are a MILLION great deals on crackers, cereal, and other snack foods from many of the major name brands.  I'm going to list all my favorites, but you'll want to check them out for yourselves.

72 little cracker and cheese packs -- with the coupon, they'll come out to under 25 cents each!  This would do 3 days' worth of snacks for kids' classes.



Snack foods--Crackers
Use code KRAFTAUG for a total of 20% off these crackers (you can sort by clicking on the link for the brand you like, or see the whole list HERE:

And COOKIES!
MORE!  All these Kellogg's products will use code KELBTSII for 10% in addition to the 15% for Subscribe and Save.  I think I'll skip the individual links and just post the general link and the name brands.  Cheez-its, Frosted Mini-Wheats, Keebler cookies, Nutri-Grain, Pop-Tarts, Club crackers.

Here's the link to all the Kellogg's cereals in this promotion.

All these Quaker granola bars and snacks are 25% off with QUAKBTS.  Many of the Quaker Chewy will end up around $1.85 for a box of 8 granola bars, or 23 cents per bar.  Not bad!

Just two more deals to share, and then I think I'm done for the day.

These aren't snacks, but are necessities in my house.

Community Coffee, 30% off with  coupon COMMCOF7.  I think the best deal out of all of these is buying these 10 one pound bags--for around $3.81 per bag!  With the price of coffee these days, this is a great price.  There are a couple of different varieties offered this way, but I love the chicory.




Kitchens of India has 35% off total with subscribe and save and coupon KITCHNOI.


What are your favorite deals?  I'd love to share more.

Kmart Payday Plus

Here's a program I've never heard of, but I think Kmart's marketing department and their discount program writers really need to get together and start sharing information. All over the ad, there are really good deals and mention of payday plus. What is payday plus? I didn't know either, so I've been researching to find out. Again, if I figure it out for me, I might as well share it with you.

So, my best information.  Shop Your Way rewards have been around for a little while.  You get points for buying everyday items (usually 10 points for every $1 you spend), and then you get to use your rewards for a discount.  It's actually a pretty easy program to use.  For every 1000 points on your Shop Your Way rewards account, you get $1 discount.  You just tell the associate how many rewards you want to use when you are checking out.  Read all about it here.

Now, what is payday plus?  Again, this is a disconnect with the marketing department.  I have searched all over, and Kmart isn't saying.  From my understanding, it may or may not change every week.  THIS week, if you spend $40 this week on items with this label, you'll receive a coupon for 10x your points for next week's purchase.  Other times, it looks like you would get bonus SYW rewards.  A couple of weeks ago, we got a coupon for 70 bonus Boxtops for our school. These seem to always be a catalina sort of printout that comes with your receipt.

So, here are the good deals that I see in this week's ad:
  • BOGO Free items like Ritz, Smart Sense snacks, Russell Stover, Tyson, Capri Sun, Crystal Light, Purex, and Nature Made.  My experience has been that you'll get to the store and see more items marked, and maybe even a full list of items on a tear pad in the aisle.  I love BOGO, because I'm then going to give them some coupons to make it as close to free as possible.
  • Get 5000 bonus points if you purchase any scooter, skateboard or skates.
  • Get 3000 bonus points when you spend $15 on Nivea products, which are also BOGO50% off.
  • Get a coupon for $5 off your next purchase if you spend $15 on Glade products.  They have many 2 for $6, and I just noticed a ton of high dollar Glade coupons.
  • Several Kellogg's cereals are on sale 4 for $12, and you'd again be able to save with coupons.  When you purchase these, you'll get a catalina for 1 free gallon of milk.
  • BOGO Cosco no back boosters, so two of them for $18.99.
  • This one is great for the toy closet or Toys for Tots!  This week only Kmart will double the Playsaver coupons from this week's newspaper insert (or print them HERE), making several Hasbro games $4.99 or less.  This includes Jenga, Cootie, Candy Land, Memory, Monopoly, and Scrabble.
  • With all of these savings, you'll also get 10 SYW reward points for every $1 you spend.

If you have any other covert knowledge of this program, post it in the comments section.

September 14, 2011

Time to Stock up on Salon Products!

This is one of my favorite types of sales!  JC Penney's ad from Sunday showed a great sale on salon hair products, most notably a buy 2 get 1 free sale on Matrix, Biolage, and Paul Mitchell.  They also have a good coupon to pair with this.  Print this out to take with you, and get $5 off $35 or $15 off $75.

Here's my best buy scenario.  Buy 6 of the liter sized bottles.  The kind I stock up on is $21.50--but I'm only paying for 4 of them, or $86.  Take off the $15, and it's $71 for 6 liters of shampoo and conditioner--we're down in Pantene price territory for Paul Mitchell quality.  Now, your store will do what they want, but my store would also let me give them this $10 off $50 coupon, dropping the price even lower.

The sale lasts through September 27, which is also when the first salon coupon expires.  The $10 off $50 expires on October 1. 



One last plug, for the Paul Mitchell tea tree oil shampoo.  I buy this in bulk, because tea tree oil is supposed to repel headlice.  I don't know if it works, but (*KNOCK ON WOOD*) my kids have managed to avoid this common school plague.   We all use it and love it. 

Sample Sunday -- 13th Birthday Magic!

Oh, how we love Sample Sundays in this house.  I've posted before, but this weekend would be a great weekend to attend the Sample Sunday event at the farms near Woodward, Iowa.  The weather will be fabulous, and perfect for these outdoor events.

So...the three stores included in the Sample Sunday are (click the links for details):

You can't have more fun than this!  Free pony rides, great food from local farmers, and tons of items you can buy from local artisans.  Take some time to go and check it out for yourself.  I'll add the dates for other Sample Sundays to my free fun calendar, or you can mark them down from here.
  • Sept. 18
  • Oct 16
  • Nov 20
  • Dec 11
  • Dec 18

September 13, 2011

Story! Festival

This looks like a fun event!  I see many activities have a cost, but there are some free ones and many are still relatively inexpensive.  For the full schedule of events of the STORY! Festival, check out their link HERE.

We haven't experienced this one, but Sunday might be the day to go if you don't have a lot of time.  They'll have a story teller at the North Park bandshell, and then the Carousel will be open with $1 rides.  If you've never tried out this carousel, you really must!  It's beautiful, but it's also one of the fastest carousels I've ever ridden.

They've also got the most interesting animals!  I love the chicken.

Enjoy!

Chick Fil-A FREE Audio Books

We don't have a Chick Fil-A close enough to us to really take advantage of this offer, but free Veggie Tales audio books might make me swing by if we're in the area.

from their Facebook page: Veggie Tales audio books are now in Chick-fil-A Kid's Meals – filled with your favorite stories and songs.

September 12, 2011

FREE Pet Food Sample from Purina

Looks like you can get cat food or dog food sample, and you may be able to sign up for one of each. Check it out HERE.

Fall Festival Season



Where did the summer go?  It seemed like I was just posting all the sanity savers for summer, and now there's a chill in the air, the leaves are starting to change, and my kids have headed back to school. 

The summer fun doesn't have to end just yet.  I help out, right over there on the upper right corner of my blog.  I try hard to keep the calendar packed with free or cheap activities that are family-friendly.  I like to have a lot of choices for getting out and having fun with the family, and if I'm doing the research, I may as well add it in for others to use. 

Local readers will receive more benefit because I tend to focus locally, but perhaps the posts can give some inspiration for fun ideas.  Maybe if I post about our local apple orchard or pumpkin picking, it will give out-of-area readers ideas of where to search for similar places.

As we are moving into fall, what is your favorite fall activity?  We welcomed some cooler weather last weekend by cooking s'mores over our fire pit in the backyard.  The bugs are still biting, but it's getting closer to pumpkin patch time. 

Keep checking out that calendar, and I'm going to feature a few of our favorite fall activities throughout the next couple of weeks.

September 9, 2011

FREE Twinings Tea

And, even if the samples are all gone before you get your three free teas, you can still get a good discount. They even let you choose the three types of tea that you want them to send.  LOVE it.  Here's the link, and here's the discount information.

So, stock up and get
15% OFF
any online purchase when you
enter 15PERCENT at checkout*
Good through 8/31/12
Not valid with any other offer. *Minimum order value is $15

September 7, 2011

FREE Slim Jims Swag -- Local Only

I know he's gone, but I'll always think of Randy Savage when I think of Slim Jims. That is totally irrelevant to the subject at hand, which is FREE stuff.  Only in the Ames Mortensen Road Kum & Go, and only from 3-5 pm on Friday, you can sample some of the new Slim Jims, pick up some swag, and maybe eat your way to a Kum & Go gift certificate.

Check out the details at the Facebook Event HERE.

September 6, 2011

FREE Sample of Calvin Klein Beauty

If you'd like to test it out, now's a good time to get a free sample of Calvin Klein's Beauty perfume.

September 5, 2011

NEW Casey's Pizza Coupons

You can join their email club to get these delivered to your email inbox--it's on this same page. This month's printable Casey's coupons is two medium pizzas for $15.99 or three cake donuts for $2.00. Check the link out to print or sign up for Casey's coupons.