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Marie-Madeline Studio: Giveaways

Posted by juju_mommy on November 17, 2009 | Comments (0) | Trackbacks (0)

Thanks to a post on one of my favorite blogs, MoneySavingMom, I found out about a wonderful family business called Marie-Madeline Studio. This is a sewing business ran by a mother and her daughters and they have some beautiful and feminine products! They sell ready-made items such as skirts (for both women and girls), aprons, handbags, jumpers, etc.  they also sell a couple of patterns for their items and some lovely fabrics for those of you who sew. Though I believe their products are very reasonably priced considered they are hand-made and come from a small family-owned business, I know that it still may be out of budget for most of us "Dollar Stretchers". But I thought that it was worth sharing this great find. Especially since….

They are having a free giveaway each week until Christmas!  Visit their blog

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Black Friday 2009

Posted by juju_mommy on November 16, 2009 | Comments (0) | Trackbacks (0)

It's that time of year again! Let the craziness begin! Wink

Perhaps I'm being an optimist for once, but I'm thinking that we may see even better deals this year than we've seen in a long time. It's no secret that the economy is in the tank and it doesn't seem to be improving much. Stores are reporting some seriously low sales. In order to encourage more spending, stores have started to run holiday ads even earlier this year. I'm hoping that with all this going on, there will be some great deals to be had the day after Thanksgiving. Let's hope I'm right! See below the ads I've been able to find so far. I will also post information that I've found about what we can expect from certain stores. I'm also posting my gift ideas (just throwing in my 2cents). Let's start our game plan!

The Stores

Walmart –> this ad hasn't been released yet. But there are some major changes to note. After last year, when a store employee got killed in the stampeed (seriously!), they are changing their Black Friday plan. Stores will open Thanksgiving day at 6am and stay open through Friday evening. Depending on what the ad has, I may consider going Thanksgiving morning.

Kmart –> opens 6am

Target –> opens 5am, I think Target gets my "best deals" vote so far! I've never gone to Target on Black Friday (usually go to the mall) but I may consider it this year.

Home Depot –> open 6am

Lowes –> opens 6am (be sure to type in your zip code to pull up ad for your area)

Toys R Us –> opens midnight on Thanksgiving Day. I think this place is an over-rated nightmare. You can find most of these toys elsewhere. Plus, they usuallly have just as good online deals (check there Cyber Monday instead!)

Best Buy –> opens 5am; not that great this year

Sears –> opens 4am YIKES! This is my favorite place to go b/c I usually get DH tools for Christmas. I'm going to skip this year, though. I find that they have the same tool deals after BF.

JcPenny –> opens 4am

Kohls –> opens 4am; $10 in Kohl's Cash for every $50 you spend!

CVS –> the ad hasn't been posted yet but see this blog for info on the freebies.

Walgreens –> opens 9am Thanksgiving day; lots of great RR freebie deals

Office Depot –> opens 6am

Tanger Outlet Stores –> I have one of these near me. It looks like they have some great deals this year. They usually have a great Thanksgiving sale too that is at night.

 

Idea Note: I'll be adding more adds as they are released. So, be sure to check back often!

Idea Send me a comment: Do you plan to shop Black Friday this year? Do you plan to stand in line or sit in your pjs at home and shop online? What are your Black Friday traditions? Do you think all the chaos is worth the deals? Last year I noticed a whole lot more after-Black-Firday-deals that were pretty much the same as what you get that day. So, if you noticed the same, do you plan on staying home this year?

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Categories: Tips

Tips of the Week: November 15-21

Posted by juju_mommy on November 16, 2009 | Comments (0) | Trackbacks (0)

Great Deals

CVS Weekly Deals 11/15 thru 11/21

View Ad Here

Inflation fighter For information on how to get a $5 off $30 coupon go here. Also, get a $5 off $20 coupon here.

Cold and Flu Remedies 

Deal = $10 Extra Care Bucks When You Buy $20 Worth of Cold and Flu Remedies

This has endless possibilities and is totally worth taking the time to go through your coupons, search online and put together some deal scenerios. Stock up! Here are a few online coupons ot help you out:

Lindsay Olives

Price = $1.99 Buy One Get One Free

Manf. Coupon = $1.00 off 2 found here

Final Price = 99cents for two!

 

Walgreens Weekly Deals 11/15 thru 11/21

View Ad Here

Ocean Spray Jellied Cranberry Sauce

Lindsay Olives

Betty Crocker Au Gratin Potatoes

Healthy Choice Cafe Steamers

Welch's Sparkling Grape Juice

Pepperidge Farm Goldfish

Skippy Peanut Butter

Ricola Mixes Berry Cough Drops 19ct

Aussie Hair Care Product

Robitussin DM To Go 2pk (this is a deal for the month!)

Almay Pure Blends Foundation (this is a deal for the month!)

 

Cool Coupons

If you haven't done so already, be sure to check out Coupons.com, SmartSource and RedPlum for their latest coupons. Be sure to print out any and all baking, soup, canned goods, holiday-related coupons. You'll definitely be able to use them within the next few weeks!

Check out Eat Better America for a variety of coupons, including Progresso! Also, as a side note, be sure to take some time to glance through all the great recipes this site offers. They have some wonderful "healthified" recipes of your favorites. I've tried several from here and think they are great!

More Progresso coupons, along with coupons for those Betty Crocker Potatoes that are really cheap right now, can be found at Betty Crocker's coupon page.

Go here for this deal: Save $2.00 on a Butterball® Turkey when you buy any combination of 5 6oz. Stove Top® Stuffing Mix or 12oz. Heinz® Homestyle Gravy.

$1.00 off Campbell's Select Harvest Soup

$1.00 off 4 Campbell's Cooking Soups

$2.00 off a box of Huggie's Diapers

$1.10 off Progresso Panko Bread Crumbs

$1.00 off 3 Heniz Homestyle Gravy

This Tylenol Calendar has some printable coupons in it.

 

Awesome Freebies

Tampax Pearl

3 Year Subscription to Town and Country Magazine

1 Year Subscription to Dime Magazine

1 Year Subscription to Wine Spectator Magazine

Huggies Little Movers

Pampers Extra Protection

TENA For Men

 

Other Tips/Deals

A Cool Deal on Food Saver Items

Here is a post about a great deal on a bundle of food saver items. This would be great if you already have a food saver and could also be a great gift to someone who already has one.

Get $10 More When you Change $40 At Coinstar

This is a great deal, just in time for holiday shopping! Go to any Coinstar location (found in many places such as Walmart and other grocery stores) and change $40 for a giftcertificate (i.e. instead of just getting cash back) and you'll get an extra $10!!! This would be a great way to take care of someone on your Christmas list! Just gather up all the loose change you have and cash it in. Go here for more details.

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Categories: Tips

I’m Baaaaaack!

Posted by juju_mommy on November 11, 2009 | Comments (0) | Trackbacks (0)

Ok guys. I'm sorry for such an extended (and unannounced) dissapearing act. LOL. Things have been very busy at work and at home. There just hasn't been much time for blogging and, to be honest, my heart hasn't been in to it lately. But I think I'm back on track now.

Here is a brief update: Work is work and it's been busy. I'm very thankful for my job (especially at a time when so many are laid off). But I don't enjoy my job or the environment the least bit. I've done my best to "make the best of it" but sometimes that is easier said than done. Anyway. I interviewed for a new job that I was super excited about. Same pay (possibly more), same benefits, MUCH closer to home, great work environment, friendly people, etc. I learned I was the top pick for the job, they even contacted my current employer to reference check…… and then…… nothing…….. Make a long story short: after a long and stressful wait for a call back, they decided to hire the runner up who was already an employee there (which, I do believe is good policy. If I lost the opportunity I'd rather it go to someone internally). I've been pretty dissapointed and feel stuck. But, again, I keep trying to remember that I'm blessed to have the job that I have and make the best of it. But, it has gotten me down for a while.

On top of that (which is the main reason why I shouldn't be complaining LOL), DH has been out of work for a few months now. In his line of work, time between jobs is usual, expected and planned for (as much as possible). But the money is running out. Thankfully we had SOME money saved, I get a paycheck that covers most of our bills and he's done a few side jobs here and there to buffer things some. But I'm starting to get a little nervous. Christmas is around the corner and I'm desperate to get back on track with paying off our debt. We were doing so great but had to put off the pay-back-plan until he went back to work. But, we are making it. We are very blessed and all my frugal learning for the past few years is really paying off lately. It's a challenge to finally put things into practice more out of need than just… well…. practice.

As a little side note, I want to remind you all of something that I know I've been posting alot about lately: the importance of food storage!!! It's important to learn how to make your grocery budget stretch both for the short and long term. When you do your weekly shopping, if possible, try to pick up a few pantry extras for a rainy day. Money isn't so tight now to where we can't afford groceries (and we haven't had to request food stamps assistance by any means). But it has been a big blessing to have the food storage that I have on hand so that our money can be spent elsewhere to get us through this time between jobs (notice the positive tone? LOL).

On a more positive note, regarding updates, we are all VERY blessed.

So, stay tuned. Regular posting is now resuming. LOL. Thank you for your patience and thank you for continuing to visit Stretching Dollars Mommy Style and the Dollar Stretcher website.

Have a blessed day,

Julie

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Categories: Tips

Cool Site Alert: NDSU Extension Service

Posted by juju_mommy on October 17, 2009 | Comments (0) | Trackbacks (0)

Thanks to a link I found on one of my favorite blogs (Survival Blog), I found a really cook site: the North Dakota State University Extension Site. This site has tons of free plans for things like making your own meat cure box, veggie cellar, a smoke house, roadside stand, sheltered BBQ pit, a fruit drier, a rabbit hutch, etc. They have the pdf plans for free but you can also pay $4 for blueprints. What an awesome resource! It's definitely one to check out (and drool over!) and add to your bookmarks for later.

And, that brings up an important side note. It's a really great idea to check out the resources available from your state's cooperative extension system. I'm pretty sure that each state has at least one. These university programs (or whatever the technical name actually is, I don't know LOL) offer tons of information. For instance, the program for the university in my area offers TONS of gardening info that's specific to my area and zone. They have these wonderful pdf print outs on their website on just about every veggie, fruit, nut, tree, etc. that can and is grown in my state. They also have many great (and free) publications on things like nutrition, household topics, emergency topics, they do soil testing, etc. They also have extension offices in each county that offer additional resources. You can go here to see a list of the programs in each state to find one near you!

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