My favorite pair of boots lost a button, so I emailed Born to see if I could buy a replacement button. They told me to mail my boots to them and choose a new pair! A brand new pair of Born boots!!! I am not being paid for this post, I'm just a really happy customer. Sometimes it pays to spend a little more on a nice brand like Born, because of their great customer service.

I wanted some boot cuffs for my new boots, so I went to the thrift store and found a brown sweater with some cute buttons. There are a ton of tutorials on how to make these so I will just list the simple steps I did.
1. Cut the sleeves off to desired length.
2. Sew a zig zag stitch on the bottom to prevent unraveling
3. Remove buttons from the sweater and sew them on the cut sleeves.

252nd Penny Pinching Party - Costco Tips

I learned something new today while shopping at Costco. The asterisk (*) at the top right of the price tag sign means that item won't be reordered. So if you see one of your favorite items with that asterisk on the price, stock up.

I already knew the price codes, but for those that don't:

If a price ends in .97 it has been marked down. If a price ends in .49, .79, or. 89, Costco got a special deal from the manufacturer. 

An InLinkz Link-up

When to Purchase a Warranty

I NEVER buy warranties because they are usually never worth it. Usually the appliance/electronic breaks down after the warranty ends and rarely breaks down during the warranty period. However, I have found a very worth while warranty to buy:

2 1/2 Years ago I bought this Banzai Water Slide at Toys R Us. It was $399 on sale for $299 and I paid $281 after some birthday coupons. The day after I bought it a coupon came out for 20% off water slides and Toys R Us refunded me the coupon amount making the total $221. After reading many reviews I decided to buy a 3 year warranty for $79 (water slides don't last longer than 2 years according to reviews). It is now 2 1/2 years later and after my 13 yr. old son and his friends played on it really roughly, the seams ripped apart. I called Toys R Us and they promptly mailed me a gift card in the amount of $439. Now if you are keeping track, the total amount I paid for the water slide with the warranty was $300, but they sent me the full price amount (I don't know if this was a mistake, or policy). Now I can buy a new water slide for free and I will be buying the 3 year warranty with it again. I imagine I can keep buying new water slides every couple of years without spending a cent.

*Make sure you get on the Toys R Us mailing list because they randomly send out great coupons. I am on the mailing list, but I did not get the 20% off coupon when I wanted to buy a swing set and had to buy my coupon on ebay (I paid $15 for it). It was so worth buying it because it saved me $60 on my swing set that was already on sale. It is also worth signing up on their email list. That is where I got my 20% off a water slide coupon.

3 Knives You Must Have!

Last month CSN Stores gave me a $60 gift certificate to buy anything I wanted at any of their 200+ stores. This was the post I did about it: Tons of Unique Items at CSN Stores. I had a very hard time deciding what to get, but it finally became very obvious to me what I really NEEDED to get.

Next month I will have been married for 14 years and I have never boughten myself a good set of kitchen knives. I have been using the same $10 Walmart chefs knife for 14 years and I have never had it sharpened. I have always been afraid of having sharp knives because I am a bit of a klutz and being the thrifty person I am I have never been able to justify hundreds of dollars on a nice knife set. I have spent a lot of time deciding where to put my dull knives and even did this post last year:

Where Do You Keep Your Kitchen Knives?

An an anonymous commenter pointed out to me that most kitchen knife accidents are caused by dull knives.

It was very obvious to me that I needed some new knives with my $60 gift certificate. I spent several hours researching which knives to buy and this is what I came up with:
All of the cooking blogs love Victorinox and the best part is that they are affordable! Just do a google search for "victorinox reviews" and you will find a ton of cooks praising them.
Victorinox is by the inventors of the Swiss Army knife and they have a whole line of kitchen knives. I knew that I didn't want a big block of knives and after some more research I found out from the professionals that I only needed 3 knives.

1. A chef's knife. I really wanted a Santoku knife for this. The santoku knife is a modified variation of the chef's knife with origins from Japan. It has a finer edge which allows for finer precision-cutting. The blade width and weight usually matches that of the handle so if feels more balanced in the hand. It is also made from harder tempered steel. It is shorter, lighter, and easier for smaller hands (like mine). I also love the divots on the sides of the blade that help prevent the vegetables from sticking to the knife.
I got this one for $34.99 at CSN Stores Cookware.com

I am LOVING this knife! It fits perfect in my hand and feels so light that I can cut a ton of vegetables without cramping. I can't believe how thin it cuts too. I did cut myself the first time using it though. I was used to my very dull chefs knife so when I used my fingers to slide the vegetables off of the knife it sliced my finger a little. The blade is VERY sharp. I have learned my lesson and am more careful now, so hopefully I won't have any more accidents.

2. An 8" or larger bread knife. I mostly use this for bread, but it comes in handy for slicing pineapple and other fruits.

I got this one for $22.99 at CSN Stores Cookware.com

3. Paring knives are great for fine precision work like peeling, coring, etc... I got a set of 3 (you really only need one, but they are so cheap and often come in sets). I have used these quite a lot and have enjoyed how easily I am able to core, peel and make precision cuts.

I got these for $12.00 at CSN Stores Cookware.com

Thank you to CSN Stores for my new knives that didn't cost a fortune! I wish I would have done this research 14 years ago, but better late than never.

Tons of Unique Items at CSN Stores

I am so excited that CSN Stores contacted me about doing a review for them. They have over 200 stores so you can find pretty much anything you need. They have some great and affordable home decor like wall sconces, but they also have furniture, toys, shoes, kitchen appliances and tons of other great items. I love their selection of educational toys and I actually bought my kids the Wacky Wigglers from their site several years ago. My kids LOVE this toy and still enjoy playing with it since they can make it into so many different things. They have a lot unique toys and items that other stores don't carry and many items have free shipping.

After spending several hours looking at their 200+ stores I realized the perfect thing that I should get. It is something that I have needed for a very long time and I even did a post about it a year ago. Stay tuned to find out what great item I am getting!

*Disclosure: CSN Stores is giving me a gift certificate to use at their site. However, I was not paid or compensated for buying the Wacky Wigglers several years ago.

Cyber Monday 2009

What is Cyber Monday?

Cyber Monday is the online version of Black Friday. It always falls on the Monday after Thanksgiving which will be November 30th this year. Most websites offer really great deals and many offer free shipping. Some items are in limited quantities, so shopping early is always a good idea (Try midnight or even 10:00 pm or 11:00 pm if you don't live in the eastern time zone).

If you know what you are looking for online, you can usually find it cheaper on Cyber Monday.

Find online stores participating in Cyber Monday:

Dealio's list of Cyber Monday deals

www.dealio.com/cyber-monday

www.cybermonday.net

www.cybermonday.com

www.cybermonday.fm

If you find a great deal I would love to hear; Post a comment below.

Happy Cyber Monday!

Real Simple Magazine Subscription $5

Sorry, this promo is over now.

1 year magazine subscription to Real Simple for $5. That is 12 issues for only $5 total! I LOVE this magazine, but have never had a subscription. I usually just look longingly at it when I am checking out at the grocery store. I love organizing and simplifying my life.

I recently discovered The Inspired Room blog and love it. I thought that I would share this post at her Beautiful Life blog party because I think being organized makes life a LOT more beautiful and I wanted to share this great deal with everyone.

What is WOOT and What's a WOOT-OFF?

www.woot.com sells one item a day at a discounted price until that item sells out. They don't list an item for sale again until 12:00 AM the next day. Shipping is only $5, no matter what the item or how many you buy. About once a month they have a "woot-off" where they sell things even cheaper and they list new things one after another until they are done selling everything. This can last a day or two. During every "woot-off" they list a "bag of crap".

I thought this was a joke at first, but I have discovered that the "bag of crap" is highly coveted among wooters. The "bag of crap" is a bunch of random things that they decide to send you. It can be 100 Star Trek bobble heads, some ram, hard drives, T-shirts, or other miscelanious items. Once someone actually got a car and a few people have gotten TVs.
Click Here to see what some people have gotten. I try every "woot-off" to get a bag of crap, but am never fast enough. You have to keep checking their site and refreshing to see what the next item is.
So happy Woot Off and let me know if you are lucky enough to get a "bag of crap".

Toys "R" Us Coupons and Deals

Here are some deals that many of you may already know about, but I have discovered that some people don't know about these:
Geoffrey's Birthday Club at Toys "R" Us: Sign up your kids for this and they will get a card in the mail a week before their birthday. You can take the card to the store and they will give your child a balloon and hat and wish him "Happy Birthday" over the store intercom. You will also get a coupon for $5 off a purchase of $25 or more and a $3 gift certificate.
Rewards "R" Us at Toys R Us: This is FREE to sign up for. Every time you spend $150 over a 3 month period, they send you a $5 gift certificate in the mail. They also have rewards for diapers and other baby items.

If you combine the birthday coupons, the reward certificates, and promotion coupons, you can do something like this:

I had $10 in reward certificates from buying a swing set (the swing set had been on sale and I bought a 20% off coupon on ebay to get even bigger savings so I really scored with that purchase). I also had my son's $5 birthday coupon and his $3 birthday card. I used all of those coupons to buy this:

Banzai The Plunge Water Slide

It was $399 on sale for $299 and with the coupons and certificates I paid: $281. The day after I bought it another coupon came out for 20% off water slides so I took the coupon in with my receipt and they refunded me the coupon amount making my water slide $221 (not to mention the $10 in reward certificates that I earned for spending $150). If you ever buy anything at Toys R Us and it goes on sale or has a coupon within 30 days of purchase they will refund you the amount. I purposely buy things just before a coupon or sale before they go out of stock and then I get my sale price the next day. It is a strategy that has worked well for me.

I read all of the reviews on this water slide and decided to do something that I have never done before to protect my investment. I bought a 3 year warranty that cost $79. This will pay off in the end because all of the reviews said that this slide only lasted a year or 2 but was worth it. Anytime a part breaks down in the next 3 years they will ship me a new part or completely replace the water slide for me.

Now if it would only stop raining so we can have some FUN!

*Make sure you get on their mailing list because they randomly send out great coupons. I am on the mailing list, but I did not get the 20% off coupon several months ago and had to buy my coupon on ebay (I paid $15 for it). It was worth buying it because it saved me $60 on my swing set that was already on sale. It is also worth signing up for their email list. That is where I got my 20% off a water slide coupon.

Save $$$ Dumping cable and Using TiVo

I hate bills coming in the mail with a passion. I hate paying monthly bills and try to reduce the number that I get each month. I only have 1 credit card so I only get one bill in the mail for that. I have to pay for gas and electricity, but I don't have to pay for TV. I am the type of person who thinks ahead and you really have to think ahead with this. Some people are happy paying $13 (not sure the exact price) a month for their TiVo service thinking it is a lot cheaper than the $300-$400 you pay for lifetime service. But what about 2-3 years from now when the amount they have paid is equal to $300-$400 and they could be paying nothing if they had just bought the lifetime service? So if you are the type of person who thinks ahead this deal is for you!

I was just emailed this promotion and thought I would pass it along. It is a great deal! If you are looking to get rid of cable or satellite TV and save $60-$100 a month, or whatever you are paying, this is for you!

Get TiVo and dump your cable. You will never miss it, I promise. You can subscribe to Netflix and get tons of movies and TV shows for $8 a month. You can also rent movies from your TiVo and tons of other cool features that will have you wondering why you have been paying for cable. I do not get paid to advertise for TiVo, I just love it. I researched every system out there very thoroughly before deciding that TiVo was the best deal around.

To see my post about TiVo click on this link: I Heart TiVo and Netflix
To go to TiVo's website just click on the picture.

Bed Bath and Beyond

Bed Bath and Beyond is one of my favorite stores. They have really great quality bedding that is comparable to Pottery Barn and I love it when it goes on clearance. I always wait until I have 2 BB&B coupons (one for 20% an item and one for $5 off a purchase) before going. I don't always buy something or even use my coupons, but yesterday I hit the jackpot. They had a bunch of really nice quilts in their clearance section. About 8 years ago I bought a really nice queen quilt on clearance for around $30. When I switched to a king size bed I sold the used quilt for $80 on ebay. I bought a beautiful new king size quilt right after for around $30 (original price was around $150). The quilt on my daughters bed is hand quilted with flowers and a really cute design. I paid $17 for her quilt with an original price of $150.
Yesterday they had 33-50% off the clearance price of some really great quilts in all sizes. This last winter I had to steal a blanket from another room on some of the colder nights. I bought a great king size blanket that will fix that problem for next year. It was originally $149.00 on clearance for $49.99 and 33% off the clearance price. My 20% off coupon brought the price down to $26.79! I bought a twin size quilt for my toddler's bed (he will move to a big boy bed next year). It was $99.99 on clearance for $39.99, and 33% off the clearance making it $26.99. I had just taken my kids to see Bedtime Stores at the dollar theater last month and saw this quilt on the kid's beds in the movie. The last quilt I got was another twin that was originally $99.99 on clearance for $39.99 and 50% off the clearance price with my $5 off coupon I paid $14.99! I debated buying more and selling them on ebay, but decided that I didn't want them taking up space until fall when I could list them (They wouldn't sell for a good price until fall or winter). So they are still there at the Orem store, but I'm sure their other stores have great quilts.
 For great bedroom furniture click here.

This one is in the kid's bedroom in the Movie Bedtime Stories

This one was a steal at $14.99

I also bought some bathroom rugs at 50% off. I had one of those rubber back rugs in my basement bathroom and after washing it a few times it was all crumbly on the back. I really like these rugs because they can go in the washer thousands of times and still look great.

I was happy to throw this mess away.

Today I used my $10 Kohls card to buy a swimsuit for my daughter that was already 50% off. Every once in a while Kohls will send out these cards and I love them! I also signed up my email and will be getting $5 off in my email soon.

Kraft Coupons

I just got my free issue of Kraft Food and Family magazine in the mail today. I have always enjoyed getting this free magazine and have even tried a few recipes and ideas. I wanted to share this free magazine with all of you so I went to www.kraftfoods.com for the link only to find out that the magazine is no longer free. I was able to print a bunch of coupons for $1 off mayonnaise, crackers, cream cheese, and lots more items. If you are interested in these coupons go to http://www.kraftfoods.com and sign up.

Gymboree Sale!

I love these Gymboree sales! I just ordered about $140 worth of clothes for all of my kids, the 30% off took my total down to around $100, I got free shipping, and I get $50 in Gymbucks to use next time!!! All of the clothes I bought were on sale or clearance for about 50% before the 30% came off. I ended up getting 17 items from shorts to shirts and gymmies (jammies) all from the comfort of my computer. If you want 30% off just use the code "gymfamily" You have to order quick because they run out of stock fast.

Shopping More Efficiently

I hate shopping and I usually put it off until I absolutely have to go out. I used to read all of the adds and go to several different stores getting all of the good deals. I now only go to 1-2 stores for these 4 reasons reasons:
1. My time is valuable, especially when I have a toddler with me.
2. The more stores I go into, the more spontaneous "extra" things I end up buying that were not on my list.
3. Gas to get to all of the stores costs money
4. I just remembered another big reason and had to come back and add #4: I hate stores that require a value card, key chain card, whatever you want to call it. I hate having to have a different card for every store! I do still enjoy Costco and make an exception there.

I now try to get all of my things from 2 stores. I get a lot of items at Costco and then I get the rest at my favorite grocery store. When all of the adds come in the mail I don't even look at them. I throw them all away, except for my favorite grocery store. I have learned not to shop at less popular grocery stores, because the stock is not rotated as frequently. I have found expired items and moldy food in these stores. I usually get all of my shopping done at my favorite store that has good prices and lots of people who shop there so that I am assured to have fresh groceries.

I usually try to write up my grocery list and put everything in order of the aisles I can find them. This means spending about 10 minutes writing up my list before leaving the house. I almost always forget something and have to go back out later. Sometimes I will be out and spontaneously stop at a store to get something I need. When I get home I realize that I could have gotten several other items, but I did not have a list with me. I have finally found a solution to this problem and am now super efficient which means I save time and money!!!

I recently bought a used iphone for $325 (Retail price is around $500). The used phone had a crack on the back so we took it to the Apple store and they replaced the whole phone since it was still under warranty! My DH unlocked it for me so that I can use my T-mobile pay as you go account on it. I spend about $100 a year on my cell phone by using the T-mobile pay as you go. It costs 10¢ a minute and I only pay for the minutes I use. My iphone also has a gps on it so I won't ever get lost again.

I have been finding all sorts of fun apps for my iphone! Just this week I found a great shopping list app and love it!!! I paid 99¢ and can keep track of everything I need to buy. I can make multiple lists for different stores and it automatically puts my items in the proper sections for which aisle they are on. Every time I think of something that I need, I just select it on my iphone. When I went to the store today I had a complete list of everything I needed and which aisle it was on. I was in and out twice as fast and I didn't forget anything! As I found an item I marked it off the list until I was finished. There were a couple of items that the store didn't have and they are saved on my list. I usually come home from the store and have to write those items down on a new list. I love my iphone and shopping is now fun! If you can't afford an iphone, I highly reccomend getting an ipod touch. You can buy a used one on craigslist or ebay and you can get all of the same apps for it as you can for the iphone.

The app that I bought is called Groceries and is on sale for 99¢ for a limited time. There are many other apps that do the same thing and would probably be just as good.

Here are some screen shots of the app:

Thriftying for Side Tables

After I refinished my new dresser/entertainment center I had more space in my family room. I decided that the sides of the couch were very lonely and needed side tables. I then began searching KSL Classifieds and craigslist 5-10 times a day for several weeks. Anything I found was just too expensive and I soon forgot about my side tables.

I decided that my baby was not such a baby anymore and I should start taking him to the library and let him choose books. As I was leaving the library I saw Savers (a local thrift store) directly across the street calling me. It had been a while since I had been thrift shopping or any shopping. I am not one of those Mom's who can run around shopping with a baby, so I stay home bound for the first year or so. Now that my baby was a toddler I felt up to the challenge. When I got to the furniture section, I couldn't believe my eyes. 2 beautiful solid wood country rustic looking side tables for $9.99 each!!! I also found a couple of toys. Every time we go to Walmart we have to play with the Imaginext Dinosaur that chomps and roars when you press the tail. My toddler loves it, but I never thought it was worth $12.88. We found one in perfect working condition at Savers for $2.99. I also found a cool globe game that I thought might be fun for my older kids if it worked after putting fresh batteries in (Also $2.99).

When I brought the side tables home, I thought they could use some cleaning. I didn't have any furniture polish so I made a furniture polish/cleaner with olive oil and vinegar (The vinegar cleans). I used about 1 cup of olive oil to about 1/4 cup of vinegar. Here is the finished, cleaned and polished table next to the unfinished one: (When we got home my toddler immediately started loading his things onto the tables).
I put new batteries in the globe game and it worked. I looked it up on the internet and it sells for $50-$60! On ebay it sells for $20-$40 used. I also looked up my end tables and found out they were from RC Willey and cost about $200 each. Total spent for 2 toys & 2 end tables = $26. Retail Value = $463! I saved $437! Not to mention all of the free books from the library (It gets so boring reading the same book all the time.)
I found a couple of baskets that I already had that fit perfectly in the bottom of the tables!!! I sewed some liners out of leftover fabric I had that matched my blanket and curtains.
It is a great place to keep the library books so we don't mix them up with our books.
I am now addicted to going to the library and Savers every week. It is for my son, he needs books to read, right?