Tampa $10 off $50 Publix Coupon in Mail Today

If you're in #Tampa, check your Red Plum mailer, the junk mail ads for a coupon. Its been reported that there is a $10 off $50 Publix coupon on the BOGO ad. Coupon expires 9/14/10

$25 Target Gift Card

Don't forget to enter my #giveaway for a $25 Target Gift Card and General Mills gift package which includes Hefty bags, Cheerios, Grape Jelly, Granola Bars, Fruit Snacks and Hamburger Helper products. The giveaway closes tonight 8/31/2010 at midnight.

 

I just used my Target gift card to yesterday to score some cheap Mt Dew and Sobe water.

Ball Park Franks BOGO coming up at Publix

Last week there was a great coupon for Ball Park Franks on facebook, that I mentioned HERE. Well, lucky us! Publix has the Ball Park Franks on BOGO coming up this Thursday 9/2 - 9/8. Here's the deal: get 2 packs of hotdogs, use 2 prints of your facebook coupon and they are BOTH FREE! Stockup time.

Ball Park Beef Franks Regular, Bunsize, Fat-Free, Singles, Grillmaster or cheese or Fat-Free Smoked White Turkey Franks, 12.8 to 16 oz pkg (Excluding Angus) BOGO $3.99
-$1/2 Ball Park Products 8/1/2010 RP Insert (exp 9/11/2010)
-$0.75/2 Ball Park Products 8/1/2010 RP Insert (exp 9/11/2010)
-$2/1 Facebook coupon (no longer available)
-FREE Sara Lee Buns ( up to $2.00) with the purchase of 2 Ball Park Franks DND starts with 5 Tearpad

For the complete Publix Sneak Peek, check out www.iheartpublix.com

 

#Rays WIN & Get 10 Strikeouts Free Papa Johns Pizza

Well, last night Sunday, 8/29 the #Rays beat the Red Sox again, and they also got 10 strikeouts. For folks in the #Tampa Bay area, that means free Papa Johns Pizza! Just bring your ticket stub from the game or print your certificate HERE and bring it into the nearest Kanes Furniture store to exchange for your free 10" cheese pizza at Papa Johns. But hurry, you need to print your certificate TODAY, but you have three (3) days to redeem it at Kanes.

 

Also don't forget to enter my #giveaway for a Free $25 Target gift card and Boxtops gift pack (thanks to General Mills and Blogspark for providing the gift card and gift pack), you need to leave a comment on THIS BLOG POST and the deadline for entry is Tuesday, 8/31 at 11:59 pm.

#Publix Changes

My love affair with Publix is over, its moved onto the part of a relationship where there are some uncomfortable situations. My last three trips to Publix have sucked, and especially today. I walked away from the checkout and said forget it, I'm not shopping here.

 

I know things are changing and Publix tells us that the couponing has gotten out of hand. They are losing money, especially on honoring competitor coupons. Today I saw this sign: Attention Customers, Effective Sat 8/28/10 we will no longer accept competitor coupons from Albertsons, U Save, Save A Lot, and Whole Foods.  We will only accept, Aldi, Target, GFS, Sweetbay and Winn Dixie.

 

So at least I was warned, so I didn't even bother with pulling out my SAL coupon. But as luck would have it, there were 2 Thermacare on the shelf. That should have been a red flag. Whenever Thermacare is in stock it means the store believes the $5 off PQ requires 2 products, not one Thermacare. Anyway, I said I didn't want it then, but DH said NO WE DON"T WANT ANY OF IT. He was pissed, and called the store manager over to say we wouldn't be purchasing from their store any longer.

 

Anyway, we needed some fruit for making fruit salad and went to another store close to our house. I asked the store manager if I could use the $5 off $25 Save A Lot coupon and he said yes. But if there were a lot of other coupons they like to have that coupon used at the end. My order was $34 and I told him I didn't think it would be over $25 at the end. The young male cashier suggested we just use that coupon first, and the manager said "sure, that works" and walked away. I paid $0.79 and the dude complimented me on my great shop.

 

Thats the way it used to be and what my expectations are, to have a pleasant trip.

#Rays 10 Strikeouts Kanes Free Papa Johns Pizza

Its Friday night and the #Rays game isn't over, its only the 7th inning and they got 10 strikeouts already!. Yeah more free Papa Johns Pizza. Tomorrow (or maybe later tonight) you can print your certificate at www.kanesstrikeoutcontest.com. But hurry, you only have one day to print it, but you have 3 days to redeem it at a Kanes store near you. The certificates now are valid until 10/25/2010.

Ball Park Franks $2 Coupon

Did you get your coupons (2 per PC) from "liking" Ball Park Franks on facebook? Did you know that you can go to another PC and print another set too? You can. Although, I personally don't eat hotdogs (I used to work at Smithfields Meat Plant and know whats in them, and how they're made) - this could be a great deal when they go BOGO at Publix.

Green Advantage Buy Flyer 9/4-9/24

Here is a list of the coupons coming up in the new #Publix GAB

 

I'm glad to see they are coming out with another Thermacare coupon because that stuff has never been in stock for the past couple months.

All Publix Coupons -
Save $5.00 on any 2 Advil or Advil PM 32 ct or larger or Children's Advil or any ThermaCare 2ct or more
Save $3.00 on any Motrin PM 40 ct or larger
Save $2.00 on any Tylenol Precise 2.5 oz cream or patch 3ct
Save $1.00 on the purchase of any Axe shower gel
Save $10.00 on any SlimQuick 26-72 count
Buy any Halls 20-25 ct and get a Halls Refresh free 20 Ct (up to 1.99)
Save $2.00 on any Claritin, Claritin-D 10Ct or larger or Claritin Pediatric 4 ounce Syrup
Save $3.00 on Energizer hearing aid battery 6 or 8 pack
Save $2.00 on Energizer Ultimate Lithium or Advanced Lithium AA or AAA4 PK
Save $2.00 on Energizer Max AA 20 pack

What A Glorious Day for The Fair

Post #1
Well, I wish I were in Minnesota today going to the Minnesota State Fair, but since I'm not I have a special treat for you today. I'm going to pretend I'm at the fair and share my day with you of all the great things I ate and fun things to do. You too will wish you were at the State Fair.

Pooped Pool Pump

So, its another rainy day - which actually is really great for our newly seeded front yard - it is a carpet of green grass now. But not so good for getting in a walk after work. Well, then its onto other chores like checking on the pool. All the rain filled it up pretty high and it could use a back flush to bring it back to normal levels for good skimming action. So, I go out to the power switch to discover it wouldn't go on. The breaker switch had tripped so I flipped it back to on. We must have had a power outage from all the storms. Anyway, I turned on the pump and in a couple seconds it started smoking and smelling like burnt up motor before it popped the breaker again. Uh Oh. Not good. The old cooter was toasted. So, I got DH and we checked it out some more and decided we needed to get a new one. We disconnected the wiring and brought it to pinch a penny and they switched it out in a few minutes. We brought it home and connected it back up to the power, with just a few minutes to spare before another rainy downpour.

 

So we are the proud owners of a new $220 pool pump. We kind of knew we needed to keep an eye on the old one and it needed some new cones or something, But we waited too long and then it was toast. The new one is smooth and quiet though. Definitely worth it.

 

The point is, if you have home equipment that needs attention or maintenance to prolong its life, don't put it off. Emergency repairs have a way of popping up at at the most inconvenient time. Like Monday on our day off after our trip, we had planned to mow and trim the lawn. The problem was the fuel line on the weed wacker had disintegrated and the new one we replaced it with leaked gas, and it wouldn't start. So we called a small engine repair shop and they wanted $35 bucks to "look at it", and it would take a week. Instead we just searched for "fuel line weed wacker" on www.youtube.com and found a couple home videos that outlined exactly how to replace the fuel line. We fixed ours like it said, and it works just great now. Free and instant.

 

If you don't know how to fix something, but you think you have the aptitude or parts and just need a little guidance, youtube.com is definitely a resource that you should check out. There a tons of tips on how to fix and repair stuff, which can save you from an expensive repair.

Get USF Bulls Football Tickets 53% off

Today's 8/25/10 Tampa Groupon is for single game or season tickets for the University of South Florida football team. Choose one of the following options:

• For $80, you get a season pass, good for a lower-bowl end-zone seat in Section E (a $170 value).
• For $12, you get a ticket to the September 25 game against Western Kentucky, with a seat in the upper bowl around the 25 yard line, section 333 (a $25 value).
• For $12, you get a ticket to the October 2 game against Florida Atlantic, with a seat in the upper bowl around the 25 yard line, section 333 (a $25 value).

The USF Bulls play their home games in the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' sleek Raymond James Stadium, home of the famous pirate ship harbored in Buccaneer Cove. Single-game tickets against Western Kentucky and Florida Atlantic provide a taste of the festive atmosphere present in collegiate ball. The season pass, which is good for all seven regular home games against teams such as Connecticut, Syracuse, and the Tuscaloosa Technical Institute of Poetry, lets fans fill the football-shaped void in their hearts over the course of the season.
The USF Bulls are beginning a new era under head coach Skip Holtz, who looks to transform the team into Big East conference champions. This year's roster is lead by wide receiver Dontavia Bogan, running back Moise Plancher, and quarterback B.J. Daniels, whose ability to pass, run, and levitate has put him on the short list for Big East Player of the Year.
Read More...

Swag Bucks Swagstakes Tip

 

Even though I've been signed up with Swagbucks for over a year now, I didn't realize until just this week all the cool things you can get by entering swagstakes. As you know there are lots of ways to get swagbucks and sometimes the swag codes we get are for "sister sites" and can't be redeemed for all the usual stuff in the swag store. At first I didn't realize these sister swag codes couldn't be used for Amazon gift cards and I would gather them up, as they are quite plentiful. But, it was annoying to calculate how many "real" swagbucks I had and when I could redeem them for my favorite swag, the Amazon gift card.

 

But yesterday at the slickdeals.net swagbuck forum (where a lot of codes are posted) a discussion on these sister codes helped me learn that these sister swag codes can be redeemed for Swagstakes which are drawings where you can get entries using your sister swag points. So, the best thing to do if you've gathered these and want to redeem them is to use them for swagstakes right after you've redeemed your "real" swagbucks for some swag. This way, you won't use your real swagbucks for swagstakes entries. You don't really want to use real swagbucks for swagstakes because you can use them for more valuable exchanges at the swag store.

Twitter Hop Tuesday

1. Add your Twitter to the Linky below: when you add it, it will automatically appear on everyone’s page that posts this Linky so you do not need to add it more than once

2. Click on the top 5 Twitter Names and follow them: It would be a big plus if you adde the Twitter Hop Button to your Page.

3. Follow as many people on Twitter as you like: just make sure you at least do the Top 5. Also be sure to leave comments with your twitter name so they will know where to follow you!

4. If someone follows you from this Linky, PLEASE follow back.

5. You do not have to make a post to join: but it is always a plus if you do so everyone else can see and join in on the fun!

Below the Linky box, you will see see “What is a blog Hop? Get the Code Here" Click on it and just copy and paste that code into your post and the same Linky will appear. Your blog visitors can add their Twitter ID to your list and it will show up on all lists!
 


follow me @frugalapolis

Rays Get 10 Strikeouts Free Pizza

Its Tuesday night and the #Rays game isn't over, its only the 7th inning and they got 10 strikeouts already!. Yeah more free pizza. I went and picked up my certificate at Kanes today. Tomorrow (or maybe later tonight) you can print your certificate at www.kanesstrikeoutcontest.com. But hurry, you only have one day to print it, but you have 3 days to redeem it at a Kanes store near you. The certificates now are valid until 10/25/2010.

 

$15 Budweiser Beer Rebate Offer

You know I've been stockpiling beer in preparation for our racing road trip. As luck would have it, I found a tear pad in Publix today with a nice beer rebate. You too, can probably do this rebate because you can fill out the rebate form online HERE, print it off and mail in your receipts for qualifying items and your beer.

So here's the deal, get a $15 Prepaid card via mail in offer 28368 on the purchase of salty snacks, ice, charcoal, propane, coolers, dips, condiments, buns, meat snacks, deli sandwiches, bottled water and prepared foods from the deli, with the purchase of two (2) Budweiser 12 pks or larger (cans or bottles). Purchase price of qualifying items must exceed $20, and can be on multiple receipts. Purchases must occur between 08/01/10-09/06/10. Limit one per address. Postmark by 9/20/10. Valid in AK AZ CA CO DC DE FL GA IA ID IL KS MD MI MS MT ND NE NH NM NV OH OK PA SC TN VT WA WI WY.

You can presubmit your request online at http://www.abrebates.com/ and select offer 28368, print and sign the form and mail in with rebate certificate, your receipts (with items and beer prices circled) and beer UPCs. Offer Expires 09/06/2010.
Mail to: Bud Light Offer, Offer 28368, PO Box 752897, El Paso, TX 88575-5897.

I've been buying lots of SOBE water at Publix (its $1 ea) using the BOGO coupon from the instant win game HERE, stack it with the $0.50/1 Target coupon HERE and get it free. Just get 20 SOBE's and some beer and you're set. Since SOBE is bottled water, it meets the requirements of the rebate.

Frugal Travel

Travelling across the country is always an expense, but how you travel can save lots of money.  By planning wisely and saving where you can, this affords us the opportunity to travel more often. People who spend grandly and impulsively may need to travel less because they can't afford to travel as often.

 

We're planning to go to the NASCAR race this weekend in Bristol, TN, about 700 miles away. Here's how we're being frugal about our travel-

• Hotel - Make hotel reservations a year ahead of time using the government rate ($70/night), even if we aren't sure at the time that we'll be going. A reservation is free and easy to cancel if we decided not to go. While we're there, we'll book a room for next year too at a low govt rate.
• Drive or Fly - Investigate options for both modes of travel, surprisingly sometimes its cheaper to fly. We would have needed a car there to drive back and forth to the track and around town, so for us the cheapest method is to drive. Our 2004 Camry is reliable and has low miles so we don't need to do any maintenance prior to travelling.
• Stockpile drinks - Since we're driving, we can bring almost anything we think we'll consume while we're out of town. That means bringing plenty of water, powerade, sobe water, and of course beer. All these beverages were free or very cheap at Publix using coupons while we shop. The wonderful thing about NASCAR events is that you can bring a cooler of food and drinks into the track, so you are not forced to spend any money inside the event.
• Eating - we plan to bring and make snacks while we're on the road, also picking up a couple free Papa Johns pizzas from the Rays Strikeout contest. We have lots of Fusion Nut snacks and peanuts for the races. While we're in town, we may eat at some restaurants like Chili's, Outback and Olive Garden using our free gift cards that we earned on our credit card.
• Gas - believe it or not, we still have BP gas cards left from the Publix deals back in March. We'll use about $100 in GC that is already a sunk cost, so gas won't seem like that big of an expense.
• Tickets - we hope to score out tickets at the races, by paying someone on the road side cash. The event is not sold out and due to the tough economy, we expect to be able to get tickets easily for less than or equal to face value. The tickets are $57 for Friday night, and $142 for Saturday night. This is really our only big expense.
• Souvenirs - we probably won't get any Tshirts, Hats or trinkets unless they are free. NASCAR fan fest events are notorious for product giveaways so we always end up with a bunch of junk. We also always go to the Sprint booth and play PLINKO to win passes to special events, like pre race concerts, driver introductions, driver meeting or victory lane celebrations. We've been lucky to always win special events from Sprint.
• House sitting - our neighbor is nice enough to watch our house, come over and feed our dog, collect our mail and newspapers while we're gone so we give her a couple Publix gift cards in appreciation. These cards are free for us since we got them with our coupon overages while shopping.

So here are our expenses; $210 hotel, $100 gas (but use the BP GC), $400 tickets, and miscellaneous $100, for a grand total of $810 for the 4 day weekend.

#Rays Get 10 Strikeouts - Free Papa Johns Pizza Again

It wasn't too late a game tonight against the Texas Rangers and once again the Rays got 10 strikeouts - on the final play of the game. They won 6 to 4 and of course we get Free Pizza!

Go to http://www.kanesstrikeoutcontest.com/ and fill out the form and print on Tuesday. I'm hoping they'll get 10 strikeouts again Tuesday and/or Wednesday, so hold onto your certificate and turn in a couple at once at your nearest http://www.kanes.com/ within 3 days of the game for a Free 10" cheese pizza at Papa Johns.

These Tampa Bay #Rays are awesome! Only a 1/2 game back from NY Yankees!

Evil Scale Update 4 Weeks

Anyone who has ever dieted can tell you its not terribly hard to lose weight, but the real story is how to keep it off. Well, I've been really successful at losing weight in the last month, but unfortunately the yo-yo effect is more evil than the scale. Over the last 4 weeks, I have lost 11.4 lbs. That seems reasonable considering all the hunger I've endured and sweaty hot outdoor exercise I've done. Unfortunately, all the cool refreshing beers and chilled fruit snacks I've consumed have helped me gain 5.8 lbs, for a net weight loss of 5.6 lbs. Not exactly that rewarding.

 

However, I did make a change in my diet the last week by substituting vegetables like cauliflower, broccoli and shredded cabbage in place of bread, rice and pasta. The decrease in carbohydrates from over 150 gms a day, down to about 75 gms has helped me minimize hunger and maintain weight. Its kind of a little like the Atkins diet modified. I try to keep protein and fat around 40 gms per day, carbs 75 gms for about 1400 calories. I burn 2400 calories with my lifestyle and exercise, so a 1000 calorie deficit should give me a 2 lb weight loss per week. Remember 3500 calories equals one pound, so a deficit of 7000 calories per week is the 2 lbs. If I don't bike or walk for an hour each day, I need to cut back calories on that day.

 

So, I'm going on a road trip to the Bristol, TN NASCAR race this weekend and that means restaurant and track food, plus lots of beer. My diet is taking a sabbatical for a week. My hope is that I can just maintain this next week.

Publix Sneak Peek 8/19 -08/25

Lots of cereal and finally some coffee is BOGO. Here's the Publix Sneak Peek posted on Hot Coupon World. Also if you're in Tampa Bay area, I found the Toss 4 Cash booklets at the Plant City Publix just off I4. That stores also accepts Target coupons.

Friday Follow

Welcome to Friday Follow, hosted by Never Growing Old. Look around, leave a comment and I'll follow you back.

Enter To Win Tampa Bay BUCS Tickets

This contest is my only chance this year to attend a home Tampa Bay #BUCS football game, unless I want to work security for $10/hr and stand on the gates touching fat bellies of sweaty football fans, pretending I'm trying to prevent them from sneaking in suicide bombs at RayJay Stadium. But I can't ask them to empty their pockets (wink wink - if you want to sneak in a beer!)

You too, can win tickets Click HERE to enter to win 4 FREE BUCS Tickets!

Cover Girl At Publix

None of the coupon sites, forums or blogs have this matchup and its probably because they haven't updated the Green Advantage Buy Flyer with new coupons. I think its a moneymaker at #Publix for a few days from Thursday 8/12 thru Sat 8/14. So unless I'm really confused (which sometimes I am) here's the deal with Cover Girl makeup. Remember last month when they had the sale for $2 off on CG makeup - nail polish and lip products? Well, that sale stacked with both a Target coupon and a manufacturer coupon to be a good moneymaker. I got a bunch of nail polish for $1.29 and used the $1/1 TQ + $1/1 MQ to make $0.61 on each item. I happened to have the $2/1 Cover Girl MQ home mailer coupons that made even more.

 

So here's the deal now, but I don't have a price on the concealer, powder or blush - I'm hoping they can be had for less than $2.50 during the sale, so its a moneymaker. Its possible the sale may include CG Beauty Tools (file, tweezer, etc) and I know those are cheaper than $2.50, and there is a $1/1 PQ in the GAB that could stack with the MQ. 

 

 CoverGirl Foundation or concealer, pressed powder, or blush, .04 to 1 oz pkg or each, $2 off
-$1/1 CoverGirl Cosmetic Item, excludes trial size TARGET Coupon 6/27/2010 P&G Insert (exp 8/30/2010)

-$1.50/1 CoverGirl or Queen item, PUBLIX Coupon - Green Advantage Flyer (exp 8/14/2010)-$1/1 Covergirl product, any 8/1/2010 P&G Insert (exp 8/31/2010)

Prime Happenings

This week while trying to order a couple different items on #Amazon, I've noticed a change in Prime Shipping. I was trying to order an auto headlight restoration kit to make our lights nice and shiny for our upcoming 12 hour drive to Bristol, TN. But my online shopping cart wouldn't let me select 2 day shipping - which is free if you have prime, and the item is selected for prime (which this item was). The same thing happened yesterday when I tried to order a new tarp to cover our boat. It qualified for prime shipping, but it won't get here for 3 days. According to Amazon, from Tuesday to Friday is 2 day shipping. Go figure.

 

I think they probably are getting killed on shipping costs. I know that I use Amazon more since I get #SwagBucks pretty often, and cash them in for the maximum $25 a month for Amazon gift cards. I wonder if more people are using Amazon for that reason too.

 

Anyway, I think something is going on here and I don't like it.

Publix Sneak Peek 8/12-18

The Publix Sneak Peek for 8/12-8/18 is posted at HCW, so check it out now for next weeks deals.

You Still Haven't Signed Up??

I just cashed in 450 points for another $5 Amazon gift card.

 

Have you cashed in lately?

No?

What the! - you haven't signed up for Swagbucks yet?

What in the world are you waiting for?

A special offer?

Well, here it is!

 

Right now they are are offering an extra 40 Swag Bucks when you enter the code BackToSchool while signing up which means you get 70 bucks just for signing up! Valid all week until 8/15.

Bonus Features of the Week:

• There will be five one-of-a-kind Back-To-School themed Swag Buck bills in varying amounts – collect them all throughout the week and you'll earn yourself a 50 Swag Buck bonus!
• As part of their Back to School promo, you can win five different limited edition back-to-school themed Swag Bucks adding up to 50 more swagbucks! If you follow on Twitter and "Like" them on Facebook, you'll find even more rewarding opportunities.
• On Thursday they are having a Swag Code Extravaganza, no less than 5 Swag Codes!

Click HERE and register for a new account. Then enter BackToSchool (case sensitive) and you will get 70 bucks.

 

If you want to know how to earn lots of points on a regular basis, check out a previous post HERE.

Evil Scale After 3 Weeks

This is getting really old. Talking to my friends they ask why are you denying yourself food you like when you don't lose the weight when you diet. Why not just eat what you want and still not lose the weight? That's a very good question, one I ask myself everytime I drool over chicken wings or when DH is eating Ben and Jerry''s ice cream - half baked. So, I had that extra beer on Saturday night, and the chicken wings using the excuse that I did lawn work, rode my bike 10 miles, walked for an hour and other sweaty outdoor things in Florida. And I paid the price. I was up 1.6 pounds from my lowpoint of week on Sunday morning weighin.

 

More determined than ever on Sunday, I rode my bike more, walked faster, ate less and then it turns out this morning that the evil scale was going to just show me I'm down 1 pound this week, for a total of 4.6 lbs in 3 weeks.

 

I'm not looking forward to many more weeks of this to lose 10 more pounds. I'm thinking it might be worth it to just stop the madness, quit eating ANYTHING fattening, and lose 5 lbs a week. Then in two weeks it would be over and I could do maintenance eating.

Rays 10 Strikouts Coupon Double Day

I don't what the criteria is, but the Kanes Strike Out Contest certificate for last nights game is worth 2 Pizzas!

Thermacare At Publix

For all you Publix shoppers frustrated at not finding Thermacare Wraps (the moneymaker this month), supplies have been limited at the warehouse. As luck would have it, the same $5/2 coupon will be running in the next Green Advantage Flyer valid Aug 14.

Free Museum Weekend Aug 7-8

If you are a Bank of America customer, you are invited to enjoy the Museums on Us program this coming weekend, and every first weekend of the Month. Check Museum Locations here to see where you can go for free. It also includes many botanical gardens, zoos, and science centers in 27 states.

 

In Tampa, the new Tampa Museum of Fine Arts is free with your Bank of America ATM, Debit or Credit card. Its that new building downtown by the new Curtis Hixon Park. We haven't been there yet, but probably will check it out this weekend.

Hurry! Print Your Kanes Strike Out Certificate Now

It was a late game last night against the MN Twins, with the storms causing a power outage - delaying the start. And then all those extra innings to break the tie, but our Rays couldn't quite get the win. But, once again the Rays got 10 strikeouts. And we know what that means - Free Pizza!

 

Go to http://www.kanesstrikeoutcontest.com/ and fill out the form and print TODAY before the afternoon game starts! I suspect they'll get 10 strikeouts again this afternoon, so hold onto your certificate and turn in a couple at once at your nearest http://www.kanes.com/ within 3 days of the game for a Free 10" cheese pizza at Papa Johns.

 

The loss to the Twins puts them back into a tie for first place in the standings, those pesky Yankees jst won't go away.

My Publix Plan

I always shop on Thursdays, so here's my plan for tomorrow. I have a couple rain checks that will turn into money makers this week, and of course the $10/$50 Publix coupon from the mail yesterday. The BIC Soleil razors were BOGO a couple weeks ago and of course they were sold out in all the stores I shopped. But the rain check deal is better since there was just a BOGO coupon in 8-1 SS that I can stack with the rain check. I also have some of the $3/1 coupons and will use on the deal to make each pair give me $3 overage. I also have a rain check on the Crest toothpaste 10/$10 from last weeks sale, on these I'll use the $1/1 peelies or the $0.75/1 8-1 PG stacked with the $0.50/1 Target coupon, to give me 0.25 to 0.50 overage each. If there's any Thermacare or Vitamin D, I'll get a bit more overage - except I don't really ever count on that since I haven't had luck getting it lately. So with the overage I'll get a $15 Gift Card for my neighbor who watches the dog when we travel, since we have a long weekend out of town coming up.

 

So, here's my list:

 

5-Aug	34		89.10	14.57	76.48	tax	0.99	39	-98.89%
Product	qty	price	subtl	-B1G1	-Q		total	Q#	Q details
banana	2	0.32	0.64				0.64
mushrooms	1	1.69	1.69				1.69
garlic	1	0.10	0.10				0.10
cucumber	1	0.50	0.50				0.50
avocadoes	2	1.50	3.00		1.75		1.25	2	$0.75/1 PQ+$1/2 MQ print
strawberries	1	2.50	2.50				2.50
peaches	1	0.89	0.89				0.89
Dole Salad Blend BOGO	2	3.59	7.18	3.59	2.00		1.59	2	$1/1 MQ print ( Winn Dixie bogo 2.99)
Bulls Eye BBQ sauce	1	1.50	1.50		1.50		0.00	1	free coupon
Hormel bacon bits	2	1.59	3.18		2.00		1.18	2	$1/1 simply entertaining bklt
Glad cling wrap	1	1.00	1.00		0.75	0.07	0.32	1	$0.75/1 simply entertaining bklt
Publix gift card	1	15.00	15.00				15.00
Bic Soleil razors raincheck	4	5.49	21.96	10.98	16.98	0.77	-5.23	4	raincheck+$3/1 MQ + BIGI MQ 8-1 ss
Sundown vitamin D	2	2.99	5.98		8.00	0.42	-1.60	3	$6/2 PQ+$1/1 MQ peelie or 8-1 RP
Thermacare 2ct	2	6.99	13.98		16.00	0.98	-1.04	4	$5/1 PQ+$3/1 MQ 7-25
crest toothpaste  raincheck	10	1.00	10.00		12.50	0.70	-1.80	18	$1/1peelie, 0.75/1 8-1+ 0.50/1 TQ 8-1
$10/$50		2.79	0.00		10.00	0.00	-10.00	1	$10/$50 PQ x8/17
$/$$ coupon		0.00	0.00		5.00		-5.00	1	$5/$25 competitor x8/12

 

Check Your Mail for Publix Q

In the Tampa Bay area, people have reported receiving a $10 off $50 Publix coupon in Red Plum mailer today. Its in the Publix BOGO ad, so check your mailbox. For coupon matchups to the upcoming ad, check out iheartpublix.com.

 

A Cool Tax Credit

Did you know that your summer daycare expenses may qualify for an income tax credit?  Many parents who work or are looking for work must arrange for care of their children under 13 years of age during the school vacation.  Those expenses may help you get a credit on next year's tax return.
Here are five facts the Internal Revenue Service wants you to know about a tax credit available for childcare expenses.  The Child and Dependent Care Credit is available for expenses paid during the lazy, hazy days of summer and throughout the rest of the year.

• The cost of day camp may count as an expense towards the child and dependent care credit.
• Expenses for overnight camps do not qualify.
• If your childcare provider is a sitter at your home or a daycare facility outside the home, you'll get some tax benefit if you qualify for the credit.
• The actual credit can be up to 35 percent of your qualifying expenses, depending on your income.
• You may use up to $3,000 of the unreimbursed expenses paid in a year for one qualifying individual, or $6,000 for two or more qualifying individuals to figure the credit.

For more information check out IRS Publication 503, Child and Dependent Care Expenses. This publication is available on the IRS Website, IRS.gov or by calling 800-TAX-FORM (800-829-3676).  Please note that Revenue does not guarantee any tax credit and employees should consult a tax specialist if you have questions or concerns about filing your federal taxes.     
Source: Internal Revenue Service web site

Florida Sales Tax Holiday 8/13,14,15

It's back!  Florida's popular "back-to-school" sales tax holiday returns after a two-year break.  From August 13 through August 15, you and all Florida shoppers will not pay state or local sales tax on books, clothing, footwear, and certain accessories priced at $50 or less.  School supplies priced at $10 or less are also tax exempt.  Even if you don't have kids at home, you can also buy any of these items and donate them to schools and other volunteer organizations. 
What's In, What's Out?
A tax-exempt book, priced at $50 or less, is a set of printed sheets bound together and published in a volume.  It doesn't include newspapers, magazines, other periodicals, or audio books.
Tax-exempt clothing, priced at $50 or less, is any article of wearing apparel, including all footwear (except skis, swim fins, roller blades, and skates), worn on or about the human body.  However, "clothing" does not include watches, watchbands, jewelry, umbrellas, handkerchiefs, or sporting equipment.
Tax-exempt school supplies (priced at $10 or less) include:

• pens
• pencils
• erasers
• crayons
• notebooks
• notebook filler paper
• legal pads
• binders
• lunch boxes
• construction paper
• markers
• folders
• poster board
• composition books
• poster paper
• scissors
• cellophane tape
• glue or paste
• rulers
• computer disks
• protractors or compasses
• calculators

Frugal Vacuum

I have this Hoover-U5180-900-Cyclonic-Bagless-Upright Vacuum Cleaner that I purchased over two years ago for forty bucks on Amazon. It has worked pretty good and I'm always amazed at how much dog hair it picks up from just one room. I empty the bagless canister a couple times whenever I vacuum because it just seems gross to have all that dust and hair whirling around. Anyway, its been a pretty good vacuum, but the front wheel carriage broke a short while ago, and its a hassle to have to push the thing around, instead of wheel it around.

 

So I was watching www.slickdeals.net for a deal on vacuum cleaners, but I missed out on a good deal a week ago. So, now I'm going to do the frugal thing. I'm going to just repair the thing by purchasing a wheel carriage part for $3.49 and fix it myself.

 

A lot of times it is really easy to fix things rather than replace them. Google is your friend. Just google your item and part needed and see what comes up. Usually, for a fraction of the cost of the item it can be repaired. 

Evil Scale Update Week 2

It was a disappointing week of dieting. I still managed to burn more than I ate, but only lost 1 pound this week for a total loss of 3.6 lbs. Remember my goal is to lose 15 lbs, but at this rate it will take a while. Its been so hot and steamy, that its hard to get plenty of outdoor exercise without getting fatigued from the heat. I did get a bicycle ride in on Sunday morning and it felt harder to ride my bike with no panniers, than it does with them loaded down on my way to work riding.

 

I did ride my bike to work today despite the 40% chance of rain in the forecast. One of my favorite treats to eat this past week has been a fruit cup. We got pineapple, mango, cantaloupe, watermelon, strawberries, grapes and blueberries mixed into little fruit cups and they are the perfect snack - low calorie and satisfy the thirst and hunger.