Drug Store Deals

Lately I have really been paying attention to the deal at the drug stores in our area - CVS, Rite Aid and Walgreens. They all have their quirks, but if you pay attention, you can get some good deals at all of them each week. Thanks to them, I no longer "buy" shampoo, conditioner, deodorant, toothbrushes, body wash, lotion, band aids and so forth unless it is free or less then a dollar. I have quite the stash of these items now and my husband is starting to question where we are going to keep it all. So take the time to review the ads for your local drug stores and check out their rebate programs. You just might be able to pick up some great deals.

Frugal Appreciation & Giveaway

This weekend I was at Starbucks with my husband and I used the last of the gift card I got free from My Points. After I got my drink, my husband asked for my gift card. He said he wanted to put some money on it for me because he knows that I use it as a special treat for myself. Imagine my surprise when he handed me back my card and said he had put $100 on it for me. He said that he did it because I have been doing so well with saving us money on all the stuff we need. He said my savings has more then paid for my card and that the card would probably last me the rest of the year anyway. It made my morning to know that he appreciated my efforts that much.

When he refilled my card he also picked up some of the Pick of the Week cards they had. I already had some of them, so I am going to give them away here. Complete the form and I will pick a winner at random on Saturday, July 19. I will email the winner the codes to input in iTunes to download the songs. There are a total of three songs.
#1 Priscilla Ahn - Dream
#2 James Hunter - Jacqueline
#3 Pacifika - Me Cai

Customer Service

This weekend I was out at a party with my husband when I noticed that the sole of my sandals had completely split. These sandals were only a year old and they weren’t cheap. I had picked them up at Aerosoles last summer when I needed a comfortable slip on casual shoe. So when we left the party we headed over to the Aerosoles store where I had purchased the sandals. I wanted to get a new pair of shoes and I figured we could get their customer service number while we were there so I could call about my shoes. I love Aerosole shoes and have quite a few pairs of them. This is the first time I have had a problem with them. My thought was that I would call customer service and try to get some of my money back or at least a discount on a new pair of shoes.

When we got to the Aerosole store I started looking at the shoes and my husband went over to talk to the woman working there. He explained the problem with the sandals and that I was there to pick up a new pair. When we showed her my broken shoe she agreed that they shouldn’t have broken like that and said that if I brought in my original receipt they would give me back my full purchase price in store credit. After I found a pair of shoes that I liked and was ready to check out she asked if I gave my phone number when I purchased the shoes. I was pretty sure that I had so tried looking up the receipt that way. She found it fairly quickly and printed out the receipt, gave my the store credit and put it towards my new shoes. The new shoes were on clearance so I was able to get the new shoes and still have a $16 credit towards the next pair I buy. I was very pleased with the resolution of this situation. I have been telling everyone about my new “free” shoes and the great customer service I received. Thank you Aerosoles; I will definitely be back to buy more shoes when your full Fall line is out.

So if you have a product that you don’t feel lived up to its expectations, don’t be afraid to talk to someone at the store about it or call their customer service number. Not every company will give you a great response, but you just might get an even better response then you expected.

Surprise Bargains

This weekend we were at our local fish store. My husband had promised our daughter we would stop there for her to watch the fish if she took a good nap. She did so we had to stop. When we arrived I was surprised to see that it was their 10th anniversary and they were having giveaways. So my husband entered the drawing and I took our daughter around to watch some of the fish. We wound up being there longer then expected because he decided to also buy some fish. We're glad he did though because while they were getting the fish they called his name as a winner in the drawing. You had to be present to win so if we had left we wouldn't have gotten a prize. The end result of our trip to the fish store, some new fish for $11 and a new light for the aquarium. It is a very nice light too. It even still had the price tag on it so it would have cost us $300 to buy this light. We were both very happy with our visit.

Employee Benefits

Don't forget to check with your employer to find out about all of their benefit plans. In addition to the standard medical, dental, flex spending accounts and so forth, they may have programs to get you discounts on stuff you already use. For example, my husband's employer offers a lot of discount programs. By going through them I was able to get 50% the purchase of my cell phone, 3% off my monthly cell phone bill, a great discount on our homeowners insurance, and a 0.25% discount on our mortgage. They also have discounts setup with various major retailers.

Not everyone is lucky enough to work for a company with benefits like this. My job offers only the basic medical, dental, life and 401k. But it is worth checking with you HR department to see if your company offers anything similar. If you do have it, make sure to take advantage of it whenever you can.

Aquarium Visit For Free

We have a large aquarium in our basement and our daughter loves to watch the fish swim around. So we thought it would be nice to take her to the Aquarium. I just don't want to pay their admission fee because she's so young that I doubt she will remember the trip. Fortunately, my husband's employer has passes that he can get for free. So we will be able to visit the Aquarium for free. Ok, not exactly free since we'll have to pay for parking, but it will certainly be cheap. The soonest we could get the passes is in October so we have to wait, but I'm willing to wait for free. The Aquarium certainly isn't going anywhere.

Don't forget to check with your employer to see if they offer any free passes to local attractions. You may have to sign up for them in advance so be sure to check before you need them.

Family Opinions

My family likes to tease me about my couponing. My husband will tease me, but he enjoys seeing how much I save. He loves being able to tell people about all the stuff I get super cheap (thanks CVS). I really do think that he's proud of me for saving us an much as I do. He's been telling his one co-worker so much about me that she wants me to give her lessons in saving.

My mother likes to remind me about how my brother and I used to pick on her for using coupons and buying things on sale when we were kids. We did, but I can understand the need to save a lot better now that I have my own house and child. Stuff is expensive and you need to save any way you can. She also passes coupons on to me for stuff that she knows I use.

My brother seems to get the biggest kick out of it. He refers to my shopping as pillaging and tells me that I should wear a Viking hat and carry a sword. He was with me on one of my CVS trips where I picked up diapers, shower gel and candy for a dollar and change. When we left the store he actually asked me if I felt guilty. My answer was an immediate no. Why should I feel guilty? I'm playing their game by their rules. I dedicate several hours a week to seeking out the deals, clipping and organizing my coupons and planning my shopping trips. It takes work to save that kind of money.

On Sunday my brother was with me during some of my shopping. When we were at Target I checked out first. I wound up getting three bags of household stuff for $8.46. He wound up buying 2 items for $6 and change. So I got to tease him about how I got so much more for only $2 more. Our next stop was at Walmart. There I was able to purchase a box of cereal and three bottles of Power Aid for $0.53 and he purchased a box of 8 cookies for $2.88. Once again I got to tease him. It was a fun trip for us. I think he enjoys seeing how much I can get for my money. Plus he knows if he shops with me I'll give him coupons for items he's buying if I have them.

My daughter is still way too young to be able to voice her opinion on my shopping methods, but it will be interesting to see how she reacts to it as she grows. Since she is with me on a lot of my shopping trips I keep telling my husband that I'm showing her the right way to shop. We'll have to see if those lessons sink in though.

So how does your family react to the way you shop and spend your money? Do they support you in frugal ways or do they give you a hard time about it? I guess I'm very lucky that despite all the teasing, my family does support me.