Entertainment Deal, Groupon, the Bonton, and $100 at Aldi's

Here are just a few deals I've spotted today.

Entertainment is offering their coupon books for $5.99 for the next three days. These may be good if you're going on vacation. Plus, if you shop purchase the book through Shop At Home, you'll get 20% cash back on your Entertainment.com purchase. We've saved well over the cost of the book just using the rental car coupons for business trips, and the Joann Fabrics coupons.

Groupon has those cute little flirty aprons for half off.  I absolutely love the style of these aprons but the frugality in me won't even spend the $15 on them. However, it does make me want to hit Joann Fabrics, head over to my craft room and whip up one of my own!

Aldi is giving away three $100 gift certificates each week for their store. First, you have to like them on Facebook. So head over to Aldi and give them a "like" for your chance for a $100 Aldi gift certificate. I love saving at Aldi so the idea of a free $100 to put on my table is a pretty nice idea to me.

Lastly, the Bonton is having their final hours of $50 off a $100 purchase in their stores. This is not available online. I've actually managed to get some really good deals (if I could get past all the exclusions) from the Bonton but it is very important to check the store exclusions or what you think is a great deal may end up being a purchase that will sink the pit of your stomach.

Easy Crockpot Recipes and Menus

Stretching Your Laundry Detergent and Your Budget

I've made my own laundry detergent for a few years now but when I began using coupons, I was able to buy laundry detergent at a cheaper price and stocked up on it. I actually like the way my laundry recipe works on my clothes and it lasts even longer than the laundry detergent I buy out of the store. So I decided to put my already great detergent into super mode.

My recipe is pretty basic, what you'd find online pretty much anywhere - Fels Naptha Soap bar, Arm & Hammer Washing Soda (not baking soda), and Borax. I melt the soap in some water and add the soda and borax, place it into a 5 gallon pail and add water to fill. I do add some clean cotton fragrance oil to give it a nice fragrance because, without it, my clothes smell pretty blah. Once that's done, I have a pretty basic homemade laundry detergent.

Since getting a good number of Purex laundry detergent for little or nothing with my coupons, I decided to add a 33 oz bottle to my already wonderful laundry detergent and now I have a super stain removing laundry detergent. Grass stains that were once troublesome were gone! I even got the breastfed baby poop stains out of baby Cee's onesies very easily (and they can be quite stubborn stains). I suppose since Fels Naptha has a long history of it's stain fighting properties, it shouldn't have been surprising that the stains came out so well but I honestly didn't get the those particular stains out so easily until I combined both the Purex and the Fels Naptha.

Now I have 5 gallons of super charged detergent that will last me for months (even doing four to five loads daily). I've now filled the original Purex container with my mixture and use about two tablespoons per load in my front loader. (One of these days the Lord will bless us with more than one machine for all of this wonderful laundry but until then, I praise Him for the one we have now!) It's always good to find ways to stretch the precious dollars that seem to be harder to come by than they are to spend.

40% off Carters Site/Store Wide

Right now you can save 40% in store or site wide at Carters. This is off all store items so it's a good time to get many of those cute tees that can be worn this fall. In addition, grandparents can shop on Wednesdays and get an extra 10% off in stores. So if you want a few new things for the children but you don't like to spend a lot, take a look at Carter's and save 40% on some of those really cute items you'd never spend full price on.

Nordstrom and Sheetz Savings and a Disney Freebie

Today only, in support of the new Batman The Dark Knight Rises movie, get your next 20 oz Mountain Dew for $.99 at Sheetz with your Sheetz card. Since Sheetz does accept coupons, if you have one, you can use it to snag a real deal on your Mountain Dew. This deal is limited one per Sheetz card holder and

Also today only, Shop At Home is offering 10% cash back on Nordstrom purchases. You'll have to shop through the Shop At Home link to get the cash back.

New to Shop At Home? It's a site that rewards you cash back on items you purchase everyday online. I've received checks for purchasing many store seasonal and clearance items for my home and children, business items such as business cards from Vista Print and hotels from Priceline, and even purchases from department stores such as Macy's and JC Penney's. The savings really do add up. There are also grocery coupons, free samples, and restaurant coupons as well. Visit Shop At Home to sign up today.

Disney Store Water Bottle Free when you purchase through Shop At Home. This is another today only offer. Check it out!

Free - Today Only!

50% Off Sandals at Kohls

 

 Kohls is having a 50% off sale on sandals with a one day shopping "Yes Pass" for 15% off the sale price. Plus you can get $10 cash back on a $50 purchase until today that can be used starting tomorrow. This sale is good online also with the checkout code "SUMMERFUN" for their sandals as well as a number of other items that are included in the one day sale. Some of these items include swimwear, absorbent towels and comforter sets. There is also a men's end of season dresswear event that is on until 8/4. This is the time to start planning for next year, gifts, and last minute needs.

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Save 60% at Coldwater Creek Today Only

Today only, Coldwater Creek Outlet is having a 60% off sale. This includes factory online. If you're not familiar with Coldwater Creek, they have a more modern/contemporary store. I don't generally purchase from them because it's a bit pricey for my budget. But when there's a good sale, you can get some nice things at a really nice price. If nothing more, I can skim the site to get some nice ideas for outfits if I run across similar pieces in a consignment shop. Nevertheless, if you want to check out this sale, it's only for today. Here's the fine print:

Factory Online included. Promotion is valid through 7/18/12, midnight (ET). Prices shown are available online only and may differ from those in our Outlet stores. Quantities, sizes and colors are limited to stock in the online Coldwater Creek Outlet, and may differ from those in our Outlet stores. Our normal shipping fees apply. Prices final on day of purchase. Not valid on previous purchases. While intermediate markdowns may have been made previously, all reductions are based on original prices. Coldwater Creek Outlet reserves the right to add or remove items from our website, at any time, at our discretion. Product selections offered during promotional periods may differ from product selections offered during non-promotional periods. 

That not-from-concentrate orange juice? It's not so good for your budget

If you thought that you were getting freshly squeezed orange juice from Minute Maid Premium or, my favorite, Simply Orange, you may want to check this out. This is an article from Yale University Press that may change the way you look at your orange juice selections. It's not a fresh article but it's still very relevant for those of us who want to watch what we put in our bodies while also watching our budgets. You may be surprised at what you'll find out from not from concentrate juices. Read on.

SimplyOrange.com

Save $1.50 on Children's Advil

There's a Children's Advil (R) coupon on Facebook for $1.50 off any Children's Advil (R) Product so head on over to their Facebook page and print your coupon. I was able to print two from my computer, and it looks like the expiration date on them is 8/10.

Moments of Forgetfulness

Have you ever walked into a room and completely forgotten what you went in there for? Well with nine children and over a million things to do, I'm constantly forgetting what I went in a room to get. Sometimes it's a diaper. Sometimes it can be something I needed to take out for dinner. It could be almost anything. Just yesterday, my husband asked for a cup of coffee. Coffee was made so I placed it in the microwave to make it piping hot, just the way he likes it. Well, let's just say that my poor husband waited almost 30 minutes before I remembered the coffee was sitting in the microwave.

For this reason, I have to stay extremely focused and put God's word into action, "a season for every thing." To help me with this, I've decided to get myself one of those goofy timer watches to wear around the house. I mean, does anyone really use them anymore? I have a kitchen timer that I use but I'm always going to another room where I can't hear the thing go off and I forget that I've even set it (sigh). I'm guessing that, with a timer watch, it'll go with me and when it goes off it will trigger. This will really be helpful since I imagine it will be a big help when I'm doing my 15 minute clean up exercises, setting laundry, or helping me to remember my dear husband's coffee. I'm thinking that my seasons to do things will be a bit better organized with a timer watch.

I'm also using my wonderful Franklin planner to prioritize my day. I'm using the "Seasons" classic pages for my planner because I love the beautiful theme of the seasons. I find the two page daily helpful because there's plenty of room for notes. This way, even when things come up to distract me, I can still see what I have to get done in the day and can jump right back in the swing of things.

With my planner, my new timer, and the helpful hand of the Lord, I'm praying for more productive days and fewer forgetful moments.

Chi Chi's Salsa Coupon and Giant/Martins Deal

Hurry to print your $1 off two Chi Chi's salsa coupons for this week's Giant/Martin's Foods deal. The sale is 2 for $3 and with the dollar off of two coupon, you can score them for just $1 each. No, this isn't quite the best deal I've seen on these (with a coupon) but if you're in need of some salsa, it's a good way to pay less than the advertised price. There is a two print limit per computer so if you hit backspace and refresh your browser, you should be able to print it again. Click here to print yours.

Kid's Consignment Pre Sale $10 for a $20 Purchase

Plum District is now promoting a pre-sale for Kid's Consignment. In addition to the pre-sale, you can get a $20 spending voucher for the cost of just $10. The voucher is good for online purchases as well as purchases in the store in Manassas. The reviews looked great so I'll be heading over for mine. This flash sale won't last for long. I believe there are another five days on it so don't procrastinate.