How to DIGITAL Coupon at Dollar General

For years, I have loved the $5 off $25 purchase coupons at Dollar General.  Dollar General is a great place for inexpensive items, and that coupon has helped me get some super bargains over the years.

Now that Dollar General has an app where you can load coupons to your account, there are so many more savings opportunities!

It seems that most Saturdays you can download a $5 off $25 coupon right in the app.  The wonderful thing about this coupon is the discount is taken BEFORE coupons apply.  (A few stores may do it differently, but my stores take it from pre-coupon discounts).  So in theory, I can make sure I buy items using coupons.  The original pre-coupon price only needs to hit $25 for the $5 off $25 coupon to be deducted.  The $5 off $25 coupon also works on sale and clearance items.

Save Big by Shopping at A Grocery Store Outlet

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If you have been following my blog for any time, you know that I love a good bargain.  I have been using coupons for nearly a quarter of a century -- since I was in my teens!  But today I am going to talk about shopping at grocery outlets.  I am fortunate enough to have one about 20 minutes from me, and a different one, which I try to visit a couple times a year just two hours from me.  There are other things I do in that town, so it's not just a trip to visit the outlet, but the car sure does come back filled!

Grocery outlets usually don't accept coupons, but that's okay because many times you can get items as cheap if not cheaper than double coupons.

The most unfortunate part of outlets is if they run out of something, they might not get it back in stock.  So if you see your favorite cereal there get as much as you will use before it goes stale.

Christmas Without Debt: February Edition - Stationary

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Welcome to my monthly series on how we can plan to have a Christmas without debt.  Not having debt eases stress and anxiety, which means we will appreciate the holiday more and be able to enjoy the extra time with loved ones without worrying about the bills that will come due in December.

As I mentioned in my December Christmas without Debt post,  you should know how much you should set back each month based on your spending last Christmas.    You should plan on either spending that whole monthly amount through the year -- or setting it back for use at Christmastime -- or a combination of the two.

This month we are going to focus on cards and greetings.

Christmas Without Debt: January Clearance Sales

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Hopefully you made a tally last month of everything you will need for next Christmas.  January is the time to buy those items!  This is the month that many things go on clearance, sometimes as low as 90 percent off -- or even 25 cents an item.  Usually gift wrap can't be bought at this super low price, so I recommend that being bought right after Christmas and not waiting and watching sale prices so you can have the best selection.

This week, I stopped in at Target where all Christmas items were 90% off.  There wasn't much left, as I was a few days into the sale.

However, I stopped at Dollar General on Tuesday to buy something and saw their Christmas items were 25 cents each.  I ended up going to twelve Dollar Generals over the next few days.  I got Christmas cards as low as 30 for 25 cents.  The most expensive retail priced item was a huge package of decorations that was originally priced $18, and I paid a quarter for it.  I loaded up on all kinds of items -- some will go on eBay, some will be made into gift baskets for local schools' fundraising purposes, and some I will use.  There were adult coloring books, children's t-shirts, tablecloths, canned pumpkin, cookie mixes, plaques, lip balm, playing cards, wax scents, hand washing soap, air freshener, and much, much more.

After Christmas Planning : Christmas WIthout Debt Series

Christmas is over for another year, but it's time to start planning for next Christmas if you want to be able to put together a debt free holiday a year from now.

Very first thing to do is take stock of what you used this year.  How much gift wrap.  How many cards.  How much did your grocery bill go up because of special foods or baking?  How much did you spend on new clothes for holiday get togethers, gifts, and anything else related to the holidays.  Figure this amount out.  Be prepared for shock because in 2016, the average family spent nearly $1,000 on gifts alone.  (And for this exercise you will be figuring in any other expenses related to the holidays, including airline tickets home, etc.)

Is it better to save money or earn extra Cash?

I sometimes get asked the question if it is better to save money or to earn extra cash.

Well, honestly the answer is BOTH.  The key to being financially independent is to make all you can and save all you can.

But when it boils down to it, I say things like using coupons, when looking at dollar per dollar amount is more benefial.  Here's why:  You don't have to treat it as income.  It's not taxable.  Say you save $1,000 in the same amount of time it would take you to earn an extra $1,000.  All things are equal (providing that savings is on things you truly need.)  You don't have to pay state or federal income tax on that.

Why I believe in Giving Children REAL items instead of Toys (when appropriate)

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I've always been a bargain shopper.  I also always thought the things my grandmother could do with yarn was absolutely amazing.  When I was about six, I picked up a child's toy "Learn to Crochet" kit at a garage sale for a quarter.  I took it to my grandmother's house and asked her to teach me.  She took one look at it, and threw the plastic hook in the trash and gave me a REAL one.  She said she could never crotchet using that hook and she wouldn't expect me to, nor would she teach me using such a cheap thing.  That was the first time I ever had an adult replace a toy with a real item.  Now, looking back, there is no way someone could have learned to crochet with that little kit I bought, but handing a six year old a skein of yarn and an adult crochet hook?  Absolutely a six year old can learn with the right tools. (And even easier now with youtube videos and such.)

The Trick to Finding Cheap Items for Free Super Saver Shipping at Amazon

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It seems this time of year everyone is ordering from Amazon.  I sometimes order multiple times a day if I find a good deal.  I have Prime so it's not a big deal to me.  (Hint:  This would be a good month to sign up for a free trial!)

But if you don't have Prime, sometimes you need a small item to boost your cart up to the $25 or $50 amount for free shipping.

Here are some searches that often bring up inexpensive items:

I chose to link to books because it works for book orders or other item orders.


Dover Sticker
Dover Activity books
Dover Classic Books   (some of these are as low as $1.00!)
Decorative notebooks

Preparing for Black Friday And Cyber Monday: Christmas without debt

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If you have been following the Christmas without debt series, you should have some money saved up this month for buying the things you want to purchase for others as gifts.  But hold on, let's save money money while we're spending, don't you think?

First off, have a list of everything you want to buy.  Check prices NOW, before Black Friday and Cyber Monday and jot down prices at three stores.  So now you know what price you want to beat.  Sometimes the sales over Thanksgiving weekend aren't the best deals out there and that's not what we want.  We want to save money.

How to Win a Skill Contest

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My favorite type of sweepstake or contest is a skills content.  The reason is, the more creative and off the wall I can be, the more likely I will win.  These are usually fully judged.  Sometimes they are judged and then go to voting.  You can read more about how to win a voting contest, but in this post I am going to concentrate on how to win a skill contest.

As we learned in the basic of entering contests and sweepstakes,  be sure and read the rules.  I have seen all kinds of unique rules ranging from no animals may be in a photo to no people may be in a photo to people and/or animals required to be in a photo.  Just make sure whatever you submit follows the rules because if it doesn't you won't be able to win.  If it's an essay contest, make sure you say within the word or character count.  No matter how good your entry is, it will likely be disqualified if you go even one word over the amount allowed.

How to Get Free and Cheap Candy at CVS

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I have been a coupon queen since before it was popular.  The only thing consistent about it over the years is my desire for a good deal.  If I was plunged into the current world of bargain shopping when I was 18, I wouldn't have the first idea where to begin (or even how to use the Internet).  The way I used coupons when I was 18 wouldn't be something I would want to do today because it would take too much time, and I'm all about time saving while saving money!

There is a lot of information in this post, so follow closely and I'll sum it up again at the bottom of the post.

So I try to do as much savings as I can electronically.  I've been recently getting lots of candy deals, and someone on my Facebook page asked for more information as to how I do it.

How I Learn New Skills for Free

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I love to learn.  I always have.  I graduated high school at age 15, and I spent my summers reading books.  I am a non-fiction aficionado, and I have discovered that there are amazing resources out there to learn pretty much anything you want for free (or very inexpensively).  It doesn't come with certification, but there is so much knowledge available you can implement to make your life better, more efficient, saving money, or fun!

About a year ago I decided I wanted to learn more about blogging and what kinds of items sell best on eBay.  Now I'm wanting to learn how to use coupons most effectively at Dollar General and homesteading skills.  Why am I switching?  I feel like I have the knowledge I want to cut back on the time I invest in learning the first two topics.

Saving so you Can Give to Others

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When I was a teenager, there was about a year that my mother and I had nothing to eat but potatoes because we were trying to make ends meet.  That is when I decided I was going to do what I could to figure out a way we could afford a bit more variety in our food as well as being able to have the heat set above 58 degrees in winter.

That's when I started reading books like The Complete Tightwad.  Although this book has advice from 20+ years ago, much of it is still quite useful, and one I would recommend to be in any penny pincher's library.  I still read my copy from time to time, usually getting it out every two years or so for a refresher course to see if I'm still doing everything I can -- or even if I can implement something new.

How to win #AmazonGiveaway Sweepstakes

In 2015, Amazon started a service called "Amazon Giveaways" In it, an author or company or blogger can give away an item that Amazon sells. Amazon fulfills everything that needs done from picking the winner to shipping the prize.  The sponsor just pays for the item!

While this can be a way for people to increase their twitter following, the majority of giveaways happen to advertise the product.  The author of a self published or small press published book may use this to promote their work.  I've seen a few companies turn to Amazon because it's just easier for them to have Amazon do all the work than themselves.

How to win a Blog Giveaway

If you have been reading blogs for any amount of time, I'm sure you have come upon what is called a blog giveaway.  These are individuals hosting a giveaway and because it's on a smaller platform than a national sweepstakes, often your chances are better of winning.  How do you increase your chances even more?

First, as with any giveaway or sweepstakes, read the rules.  Make sure you are eligible.  Sometimes these are open worldwide, sometimes only to a certain country (usually the USA, Canada, or Australia.)  I even have seen one where the marketing agency the blogger is working with was
willing to accept winners from Canada, but the service they were giving the code away for was not able to be used in Canada.  That would be disappointing if you spent time entering that only to find out you couldn't use it.  Otherwise bookmark their blog.

8 Tips for Listing Your Items on eBay

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I've been an eBay member since 1998 and have been selling most of that time.  That's a long time, and I'd like to share a few basic tips for anyone who would like to sell a few things.

Get Free Money With the Qricket App!

I signed up for Qricket a while back but wanted to wait until I cashed out to write a review about it.

What is Qricket?  It's an app found both in the app store and Google Play that allows you to earn spins by watching ads.  With those spins you can try spin the wheel and see if you win free money.  I do this when I have extra time -- such as when I'm cooking, waiting on my husband, or even in the bathroom!  

How to Win Twitter Party Sweepstakes And Giveaways

It seems that there is no lack of opinion among people who enter sweepstakes about the phenomenon known as twitter parties.  It seems they are either loved or hated.  Personally, I enjoy them although I don't win as often as I would like.  But, the one down side of them is they are live.  Sometimes I have things planned during that time, and it means I miss out on the party.

First thing you need to do is be very active on your twitter account.  You don't want to have your account restricted for tweeting too much during a party.  Believe it or not, I have actually seen that happen to a sponsor of a twitter party.  The slang for this is "twitter jail", and it basically means you can't tweet for a certain amount of time after your account has been flagged by the computer as spam.

That Week of the Pantry Eating Challenge where I landed in the hospital

A month ago, my pantry eating challenge started.  The whole idea was we would eat things we had in the house and not buy groceries. Seems simple enough, right?  Especially for a couponer who has a pantry that screams that is a hobby of mine.  When our house insurance agent did a walk through, she took asked me without prompting how long I had been using coupons.  It surprises people when I say twenty five years because I just don't look old enough.  But I digress.

Using Credit Cards to Your Advantage

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As much as I appreciate the financial advice contained inThe Total Money Makeover: Classic Edition: A Proven Plan for Financial Fitness by Dave Ramsey, I disagree with him on one thing:  I never pay cash when I can pay for something with a credit card.

Granted, this is only good advice for someone who has the discipline to pay off a credit card each month, but although I have heard Mr. Ramsey say that no one has ever gotten rich using a credit card, I have received some wonderful reward items including:  thousands of dollars in gift cards and cash back, an airline ticket to New York City, an airline ticket to Grand Rapids, an airline ticket to Nashville, and nearly a month's worth of hotel stays.