Open Mic is a post every Thursday that is a mini-version of a discussion board. You can leave a comment with whatever coupon, money-saving or debt reduction tips or questions you have and other readers chime in and answer.
When you leave a comment you’ll be able to choose whether you’d like to be emailed follow-up comments or not. Getting comments via email is a great way to stay connected without having to visit the site a bazillion times (although I don’t mind if you come a bazillion times).
As always, I look forward to hearing the voice of the Pocket Your Dollars community. Read through the Open Mic archives here.
Your turn: Leave a comment with your money-saving, coupon or debt reduction question, thought or suggestion.
Two tips: 1) If you are reading this via email or an RSS feed, click on the title “Open Mic” to come back to the site and leave a comment and 2) If you are concerned about your privacy, just reference yourself by your initials and know that I will not share your email address with anyone else.
About Carrie Rocha
The Science Museum in St Paul has discounted tickets to the Dead Sea Scrolls exhibit through Labor Day. Two Tickets for $40 which gives a savings of $16.
I just bought a $10 Caribou gift card for $5 at plumdistrict.com
With the Caribou gift card from Plum District, is this one of those deals where you have to use the entire $10 in one purchase, or is it a regular gift card that can be used mult. times etc.? I looked at the deal and didn’t see anything about this….
When I ordered it, they said the gift card would be mailed within 2 weeks…so I’m guessing you don’t have to use the whole thing…HTH
Daisy–good question, I’m not sure. But it’s pretty easy to spend $10 there if I have to.
You can also join Caribou’s e-mail club and they’ll e-mail you a coupon for $1 off any Wild drink to make this an even better deal!… might want to wait until you get your GC in the mail though cause I think it expires like 2 weeks after you join….. Here’s the link: https://www.cariboucoffee.com/asp/youraccount/emailsignup.asp
How many of you have sold things at kids consignment sale events? Treasure Hunt Sales in lakeville is having a sale in a couple weeks and you can earn up to 80% on your kids stuff. (www.treasurehuntsales.com)
I am planning to consign at one of the Just Between Friends sales. I’ll either do the Eagan one or Woodbury. http://www.jbfsale.org
I did my first consign. sale, at munchkinmarkets last spring — made $250, that’s after their consignors fee was taken. I was so excited – i’ve never made much at garage sales, even with clothes, etc priced at 50 cents – these sorts of sales gets you the targeted audience as opposed to random shoppers driving by. Good luck, ladies!!
Yes!! They are awesome! There is the Elk River JBF going on right now at the Elk River Arena. Lots of great deals. Last year I made over 600.00 on selling my stuff there.
Is there anyone on this board who has a FSA account in conjunction with a high deductible health plan?
I have a FSA question. Let’s say that I buy contact solution for $7.99 and used a $2 off coupon. My total comes to $5.99. When I complete the reimbursement form, do I put down that I spent $7.99 or $5.99? Thanks.
Jae–I would submit price after coupon. Better to be safe with government tax people.
And, it would be cheating the system to get back more than you spent? Kinda like Target and their coupon processing issues.
just for clarification-i’m not looking to cheat the system, just what i’m legally entitled to. i’ve mainly submitted reimbursements for copays and doctor visits so i wasn’t sure what to do. thanks for the response.
We have a designated credit card for our FSA and that would only deduct the actual dollar outlay, so I’d assume that’s how it’s supposed to be.
You said “FSA” I thought it was an “HSA”; Health Savings Account?
At our company, we have the option of a FSA or HSA with the high deductible plan.
What does the “F” stand for?
Flexible
You have to do the 5.99 amount.
FSA reimburses would only amount paid $5.99
Anyone receive their rebate for buying the Neutrogena Clinical night/day cream?? I bought mine the day after it was mentioned and sent it in immediately (7/12) but haven’t seen the rebate yet. Just wondering if anyone else did! I’m also waiting on my Snapple rebate (from June) and $15 Eat Better America rebate.
I’m still waiting too.
I just got my snapple rebate, and I turned it in before I saw it mentioned on here.
I appreciate PYD! It has helped me so much. Thank you to Carrie and everyone! I have a little issue I’m working on and want some advice how others deal with money temptation. I have improved my saving, do not charge things, use coupons and am paying down the principal on my house which is the only real debt I have left (not married yet, still a single girl:). Along with practical money matters, I’m also really working on the emotional side of spending/saving–being satisfied with enough and not just being a mindless consumer. I’m so fortunate already, thank God. I know that in my head but I still get tempted by pretty, shiny things. Impulse shopping-that extra sale eye shadow on sale, etc. It is one thing when I “need” something but often it is just an urge to shop or have something “new.” I’m moving to a cash-based envelope system for groceries and household things. That has helped but the impulse is still there when I see things in the store (especially Target-darn them and their cute things!:). I’m better at delayed gratification but I still want things I don’t need. Any advice? How do you talk yourself through wanting something and not getting it?
Only shop with a list and only get what’s on that list. However, you could give yourself a discrectionary fund in your budget. So you get the shiny thing you want but not every time.
I agree with Brenda, a list is huge…I find that I have tunnel vision when I have a list. Maybe if Target is your downfall, then limit your trips to once a month (or whatever is cutting back for you.) I found that not going to where the temptation is really helps. Also carving out the disc. spending and limiting yourself to that should also help. Congrats on only having a mortgage to paydown!
I have found over and over those “shiny” things we “want” always lose their luster but the things we need or we get to simplify our lives are worth the money. When you are tempted to spend more of your hard earned money on something you really do not need; think about your past “shiny” purchases and how you have either gotten rid of them or they are in the back of the closet. It is fun to then think when you don’t buy “oh hey I just made myself 20-30 bucks (or whatever it costs) here by not spending it. If you’d like to take it a step further put that money not spent in to a savings account or piggy bank then you will really find satisfaction in how much you save/earn from resisting impulse buying.
Jennifer,
something that has worked for us (my husband and I) is to have an extra envelope. We had a specific amount of money a month (normally about 50 dollars), and we have it for “fun things”. Things that we don’t need, but we like, for example we use it to go out to for dinner, or to buy clothes (something specific that we like, but we could easily survive without it)… In that way, you don’t have to feel guilty for spending something extra, but you are still on a budget.
Like every one said I think putting aside a certain amount of money aside for “what ever” is healthy. I had the opposite problem that you had. I could not spend a dollar on something that wasn’t “need”. My husband and I have had jobs sense we were 12 years old. We always were able to buy pretty much what we wanted. We got married, lost one income, had that income greatly reduced, had a child, and had bills. To survive on my husbands income there were no extra’s. Granted we always ate, had roof over our head, ect. But it was a HUGE strain to replace my husband work pants(I often sewed them up by hand as often as I could until they couldn’t be fixed anymore). We were lucky that we that nothing big needed replacing. We lived like this for 2 years. I was always scared. Last year my dad’s company turned around after a couple of horrible years because of the economy, and he made my husband a partner. We just had our 3rd child and I am able to wait on going back to doing daycare until my now 6 month son doesn’t need all of my attention. Well in the last year we saved enough in our savings account to get by for 9 months and the credit cards are paid off. In the last year we had to spend some money on large ticket items like tires on the truck, a new used car, and maintance around the house that was neglected. Then a few months ago my husband started spending money. Not much, but maybe $50 a month on things that we didn’t “need”. It drove me nuts. I almost resented him for doing it. He had to make me go buy myself new clothes and make up. I cried. I felt like I was going to throw up. I did need the clothes. I didn’t have anything that fit me very well. I was using the same make up from 4 years ago(I do know that it isn’t good to do that). He started making me spend money on myself. I was hard. So every month I have a certain amount of money to spend on “extra”. I did save it for a few months and I bought diamond earings that I always wanted(with a little push from my husband.) I think you need a happy medium. I don’t think my wanting to hoard every dollar was healthy. I know it wasn’t healthy on our marriage.
WCCO.com has an article about Target stores short changing coupons:
http://wcco.com/consumer/target.still.shortchanging.2.1879428.html
I’ve had this happen to myself!
I saw it on the news the other night, it happens to me fairly often :(
Glad to know it is not just me! It is really getting to be a pain!
Thanks for posting that link Therese. That has happened to me and the Target cashier told me that the manufacturer sometimes changes the amount of the coupon. I thought that was a load of poop so I contacted the manufacturer and was told that they never do that and then I was sent some new coupons for my trouble. I should have called a manager over but my two year-old daughter was done with shopping at that point and I didn’t have time to deal with it.
Okay, Target has been ripping me off too. We need to check each and every item/coupon to make sure it is correct. The worst I have seen is when I have a coupon for a free item. They just don’t honor it…oh, the machine acts like it does…and the clerk and I think it does but then when I check the slip it magically is not there. How does one prove it in a situation like this if you leave the store?
I’m going to start to check my slip before I’ll leave the cashier (I hate to do this as it is not the cashiers fault). And maybe ask the cashier to keep my coupons out until I verify all have been credited to me-but it is so hard to do this in a limited amount of time and not seem like a coupon freak!
Another idea is to tally the coupon amount prior to checking out so I know how much to expect in coupon savings…anyone have a better idea??
Does anyone have any tips on where to purchase a new laptop? Has anyone had any experience with refurbished laptops? If so, did you purchase off a website or in a store? I don’t need anything fancy, just a day-to-day laptop…preferrably under $400. Thoughts?
Thanks for the help!
This is the time to purchase any computer item since its back to school. As long as you buy a refurbished laptop from the computer company you should be good. They usually get their inventory from companies that upgrade. I know HP for sure has a part of their site that sell refurbished. However, since you are not looking for anything big, you could try a netbook. They are more cost effective they just have smaller screens and a little less memory.
My husband and I have bought several electronic items from tigerdirect.com
They are refurbished and have full manufacture warranty.
You can also try MicroCenter in St. Louis Park. http://www.microcenter.com/
I second MicroCenter! They have fabulous prices and service.
SarahBeth and Kristin – Agreed. When I started writing for PYD, I went to MicroCenter to get myself a netbook so I wouldn’t be chained to my desktop computer all the time. I love it and their service!
I purchased a couple off ebay refurbished. They looked good with only minor blemishes. Watch to see what tehy say regarding if battery holds a charge, what software and manuales etc come with. Both lasted about 2-3 years which is not bad for a used laptop. I then purchased a Dell brand new and have gotten 5-6 years out of it so far.
I’ve tried asking this question before and haven’t gotten a response so I thought I’d try again. My husband and I use a cash envelope system for our budget. The only debt we have is our house, with a plan to have it payed in 4 years. I definitely am frugal and my husband doesn’t spend money. He would never eat out if I didn’t ask. I feel that our budget for food for a family of 4 and one on the way is small. It’s $200 a month. Then we have $40 alloted for household personal- haircare, toothpaste that kind of thing and household supplies- cleaning products etc. Now I admit it is difficult to manage the $200 but I make it work most months. Here is where the problem comes in. If there is a great deal on meat or we go to Sam’s club we only have the $200 to work with. And although the meat and other things are several months worth how can I put money aside so we are not taking from the $200 as we need that for all the months essentials like milk, bread, eggs, fruits and veggies? Honestly, i don’t know how to average it as far as break down the cost of what it would be per month? And we don’t consistently shop at Sam’s. But when a meat deal comes along that’s the time to stock up so how can we account for it in the budget?
I would just account for it by spending less on groceries the next month
If you have a stockpile of other staple foods, buy the meat and skip the other “deals” that month by eating from your stockpile. It could work if you have frozen fruits and veggies.
You sound like you are in good financial shape, could you create a new budget item just for “specials”. $25 or $30 a month would give you a $300-$350 to play with during the year.
Marie, the truth is if you “stock-up” on the meat sale (I mean really stock up—-thats what we do—we call it “we can’t afford NOT to buy this deal”——then in the short or long end you WILL benefit!!! Lets say it’s bnless skinless chicken breast for $1.66/lb—we would buy, lets say, 30 pounds that would equal 49.80 (which REALLY isn’t that much out of your $200 budget) you could save money off your budget for the next 3-4 months!! Because if you only bought a few packages and then your needed that chicken during your NEXT months budget at the normal $3.99/lb (or more if you buy from MY store!!!) then we are talking a lot more money and a lot less food!!!! So if you were to get $49.80 for the $3.99 price that would only be 12-13 pounds—and that is a LOT less for your family size!! When you have a stock up sale, you NEED to take advantage of it even if it sets your budget in a little of a mess. To be honest, if you shop right and stock up consistentely for a few months, you will look at that $200/month and say, WOW I can get by with spending a lot less, because I have a nice cushion :-) Our family could HONESTLY live off our frozen and pantry for 6 months without buying anything but milk, fresh produce, bread and eggs!!!
I have a question about the coupon database on PYD.
I have found many coupons are available on Meijer Mealbox, however when I go to that site, I am unable to find the area that contains the coupons. If I click on any of the coupon links on Meijer, it just refreshes the screen and doesn’t bring me anywhere.
Has anyone else had this issue? Thoughts??
Thanks!!
There is a new P&G offer – Buy 50$ worth of P&G products between 09/01/10-12/31/10. (can submit more than one receipt), then get a -110$ worth of coupon book:
http://www.pgeverydaysolutions.com/pgeds/pgeverydaysavings/index.jsp?edstempseg=BB&utm_source=BB&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=September10Newsletter
There’s is also a deal from CVS starting this Sunday of buying 30$ worth of specific P&G products, then getting a free flu shot (29.99 value).
I’m trying to think of a way to combine those two offers with my existing coupons, but most of my coupons expire on 08/31/10.
Sounds like won’t be able to double up on that deal.
P&G usually sends out a coupon insert the first weekend of each month (but since the first week of September is a holiday – and there are never usually coupons for holiday weeks – you might see the new insert THIS Sunday instead.) So there will be more P&G coupons on the way and I’m sure a lot of good deals between now and 12/31!
I’ll wait for this Sunday’s paper and then work out my game plan.
Thanks :)
Does anyone know where are can find a good brand moblie (Tiny Love or Fisher Price, etc) for cheap(er)? I’m also looking for some infant toys (6 months).
Can be an online store or a chain store (I live in Rockville).
Thanks :)
I bought most of the stuff for my two boys either on Craigslist or at garage sales – they use especially the baby things for such a short amount of time (isn’t a mobile only safe for like 10 months anyway) and the infant toys never really get burned out. I find now that my older son is 3 I spend more on his stuff – the kids don’t grow as fast and they are much harder on their things – so not as much ‘gently used’ things available. Happy hunting.
For my daughters I’ve also purchased a lot of things in garage sales and e-bay, but this one is for a gift for a friend who made a very specific request (for the mobile), and the other toys are for my sister-in-law who had a baby a few months back, but I will only see her in November, so I wanted to buy some infant toys for her (although it’s a fourth child, so I might just get her some nice new outfits instead)
I find that Burlington Coat Factory has the best prices on new items in the Twin Cities. You often can find 15%off in baby magazines on one item at their stores too. Try calling Once Upon A Child too (that way you aren’t running store to store)….if you know a specific item that you want. I got a toy box last year for 15 dollars that usuall costs around 50.
I’ll try Burlington Factory, and I also found a 20% coupon that I got in the mail for Buy Buy Baby, so that might work too (especially for the mobile, because the store is carrying the high end brands)
Thanks!
Just got the Festival ad in our area yesterday. They have General Mills cereal 4 for $10, but then a store coupon at makes it 4 for $6. It is on select General Mills Cereal (Reese’s Puffs, Cinnamon Toast Crunch, Cocoa Puffs, Kix and Original Cheerios) use 2 $1 off coupons off of 2 boxes and get them 4 for $4. We love these cereals and have a harder time finding them for $1. Limit one offer per visit.
Where do I find the coupons to make this deal better?
I don’t have my coupons in front of me, but you can check the 7/18SS, 8/8GM and 8/22SS otherwise there are some printables available. Check out Carrie’s list of printables under the Rainbow list: http://www.pocketyourdollars.com/2010/08/rainbow-foods-copps-pick-n-save-coupon-matchups-822%e2%80%9382810/
Their were some coupons some time in the last two months for Fiber One. They were $1.50 off 2 and $0.75 off 1. My local store had a sale on general mills and those were the best I found. I was pretty sweet deal. With their coupon it made each box $1 and with my coupon it made them $0.25 each. Limit four. I stopped at all three stores yeasterday and two of them today. Used all of my coupons. Got 20 boxes of cereal for $5. I just started couponing and this is my best score. I’m making my husband build me a pantry in the basement so I can start stock piling on groceries so that I never pay full price for certain groceries again.
I shop at Cub weekly for our family of six. I typically use over twenty coupons per visit. I hand the coupons over and begin bagging since we have a cartfull to deal with!
I’ve been wondering if I should be paying more attention to my coupons. Do people typically stand and watch the cashier to make sure everything is being scanned correctly or do you tally up the total of your coupons before shopping and double check your total on your receipt matches in the end? Or just have trust that the cashier is a professional? :)
I watch very carefully at Target because I’ve seen the cashiers miss a coupon or enter the incorrect amount when it’s a BOGO and such. I’m wondering if I should start paying more attention at Cub?
I ALWAYS watch them scan in my coupons wherever I shop. Sometimes they “scan” it, but it doesn’t actually go through, so I alert them to that. This can happen at my local grocery store or anywhere I use coupons. I think it’s best to keep an eye on the cashier until you have paid, THEN bag the groceries. Sometimes I take my hubby with grocery shopping and he can bag while I pay and do the coupon thing.
Jo,
I would definitely pay attention at Cub! I don’t think I’ve seen any errors with coupons there, although I haven’t been going to Cub much lately. When I do it’s just for a few items and I use the self check out. Anyway, multiple times, I’ve had something ring up wrong. It’s usually on Sunday, right after the new sale starts. I think it’s just a good thing to do, being a consumer who cares about her money.
I find the Cub coupons are the ones that don’t scan very easy. Most cashiers are good about getting the Cub coupons to go through, but I would stay and watch.
I’ve been keeping a spreadsheet of everything I buy (Cub, Rainbow, Menard’s, Target, Walmart) since May. I’ve found errors almost every week. Sometimes in my favor, sometimes in the store’s favor. Once it was a store manager ringing up my groceries and even he made an error. I figure if it’s only a dollar or less, it all evens out. If I don’t get a Catalina coupon or some other big issue, I’ll bring it to their attention, because the computer probably hasn’t been programmed properly and other people will have issues too. I do notice that the Rainbow list of coupons on the receipt aren’t necessarily printed in the order that I give them to the cashier. I think it does help to give your first five $1.00 off coupons to them first, then the others.
I watch as every coupon is scanned. This is important as coupons may stick together.
What I do when grocery shopping is I keep a pad of paper and write down everything in my cart and include the price and coupon;
Before I check out, I total up everything in my cart and subtract all coupons and write down the total.
When the cashier totals my bill, I check to see how close it is to my number (it’s sometimes off due to taxable items) If there is a huge difference (more than $1.50) I go over to customer service and go through the receipt to compare prices.
I’ve had 50% off items not ring up correctly on the receipt many time….or a coupon is missed
I add up my coupons prior to giving them over, then before they ring them up I ask for a subtotal which gives me a ball park of how much the total should be after coupons. If this doesn’t match up, then I ask the cashier to double check.
I keep a mental total after I add each item to the cart (of what I expect to pay for it after sale/coupons) and then at the register I do all those items for 1st, get a subtotal and then add on items I don’t have coupons for. I need to go back and look at my last couple target receipts because they were busy days and I didn’t pay close attention and thought my total was higher than expected. hmmmm
For those of you who purchased the Cub Freezer earlier this year, remember that the coupons said they expire 5/31 – which means we have until Tuesday 8/31 to use them (if you haven’t already that is!)
When was that freezer special, anyone remember? do they offer it a couple of times a year? we are in the market for a freezer for our meat supply… thanks!
It was in March. Super great deal, but kinda small if you have a large family. http://www.pocketyourdollars.com/2010/03/cub-foods-chest-freezer-deal/
The have done it repeatedly – but not sure how often.
Anyone have any cheap date ideas for this Friday or Saturday (open to locations near the Twin Cities or Still Water)?
I’d recommend Vali Hi drive in in Lake Elmo. Three movies for $8/per person.
Vali Hi is a great idea (right off of 94 & Manning)
I would also check restaurants.com for a deal on dinner. They have a bunch of restaurants listed for Stillwater. Cheap dinner + 3 movies = a great date night : )
Have fun!
I saw that restaurants.com had a deal for Mad Capper in Stillwater. We used to live down the street and that was one of our favorite places to eat.
It is Woodbury Days in Woodbury. They have fireworks and a local banks playing on Saturday night.
sorry i meant bands
Woodbury has there “days” not sure what they are called but there is fireworks on Saturday evening…how romantic is that???!!! Pack your fav treats a blanket and Enjoy!
I have found two different Conagra offers (spend $10 get $25 in coupons). One states “Summer Offer” and one states “Back to School Offer” and each say one per household. Do you think I can submit both??
Summer Offer: http://www.allyou.com/static/pdf/Summer-Order-Form.pdf
Back to School: http://www.allyou.com/static/pdf/BTS_OrderForm.pdf
The first link purchases had to be made by 8/15.
Thanks Kae! I keep all of my receitps in a folder for 3 months in case I find rebates – so I still have them and there is still time to turn it in (by Monday).
I think I answered my own question. If you look closely there are small differences in the brands pictured. So I think it is ok to do both.
The “Back to School” looks like more kid items (peter pan, hunts snack pack, kids cuisine, manwich, etc) and you have until October to buy everything.
The Summer one is the one that includes Healthy Choice and Marie Calendars. Those have been on sale a lot lately so if you are the type that saves your recipts you can look back through them and still get it in the mail before Monday.
Payless online is having a buy one get 1/2 off sale. Discounted items are included in the bogo. Plus you can use an online coupon code for an additional 20% off. If you have your order shipped to a local store for pick up the shipping is free. I got six pairs of shoes for $37.18. Which works out to $6.20 a pair. At full price I would have spent $91.94. A savings of $54.76.
This is a helpful hint and it can also save you a load of wash too. I have done this several times…accidentally washed a dark shirt with towels. Then you end up with a shirt that is full of lent and I usually have to wait for another load of like clothes or just run it through a small load if I need it. Well I tried this once; threw the shirt in with a crocheted afghan and ALL the lint was off, better than I have ever seen before….since then I have learned that black/dark clothes come out the most lint free if washed with my crocheted Afghans! It must be the thread of the afghan than pulls all the lent off the clothes. I love it; finally a way to get the lint off my nice black shirts and pants! :) The plus is too that I get a fresh afghan since I usually forget about washing those.
That is a great tip! I’ll have to try it. Thanks so much!!!!
Parents check out this offer from National Geographic. I am certain that I have 4 Skippy UPCs after all the great deals lately!
http://images.nationalgeographic.com/wpf/media-content/file/SmallBookofBigFun-cb1273076438.pdf
very nice! have 4 items ( 2 suave, popsicles and skippy) at home currently, so I filled out the form. Thanks!
http://money.blogs.time.com/2010/08/11/qa-100-days-100-for-food-and-lots-and-lots-of-coupons/
A co-workers sent me this link yesterday and love that this guy lived on $1 day for groceries. I’m sure some of you have seen it before, but I thought I’d share for those of you who haven’t. Who wants to try this challenge?? I don’t think I can yet – still working on the couponing concept but maybe someday!
I cannot yet comprehend a budget of $31/month for groceries but what a great goal! I’m happy just to have cut my budget in half since following PYD for 1 year!
Does anyone have sites they recommend for buying a cruise? My husband and I are looking to go in Dec and the ones I’ve searched (Expedia, Orbitz, Hotwire) all seem about the same in terms of price. Is there a site out there that I’m missing?
Contact a good travel agent for your best experience in planning and purchasing your cruise.
Via http://minnpost.com:
http://wcco.com/consumer/target.still.shortchanging.2.1879428.html
FYI–Walgreen’s just released a new coupon policy today–head over to their website and check it out–maybe print up a copy of it to take with you.
Where do you find it on their web page?
V–
Here is where you shouldl be able to find Walgreen’s coupon policy.
http://www.walgreens.com/topic/help/generalhelp/coupon_policy_main.jsp?_requestid=37856
Shannon~ Thanks found it…
I was looking for Carrie’s buy price list….where is it again??? I am looking at stocking up on Ragu spaghetti sauce at 1.09 after coupons for a 26 oz jar is that a buy price??
Just do a search for “rock bottom price list” and it will come up with some links. Otherwise click on “frequently asked questions” under the toolbox at the top and you will find the question and link there.
Hey thanks found it and saved it on my favorites! And Carrie’s rock bottom price for spaghetti sauce is $1.00…so I am going to buy at 1.09; I do not have access to the large chain stores like you “city folk” ha ha…LOVE Pocket Your Dollars!!!!
Also does anyone have a good recipe to use Werthers hard candy? I have a bag I got free somewhere along the line and it is still sitting here…I thought maybe there was a dessert or something I could use them in?
I’d google Werthers and see if there’s a recipe section on their website.
Does anyone know how to get cheap tickets for the show Wicked?
Marie~
I know that you can stop by the box office 2.5 hrs. before show time and they do a raffle for tickets @ $25. It won’t guarantee tickets, but it’s worth a shot.
Ericka-
Pick the actual cruise line you want to go through and check out their sites- they can sometimes offer better deals. Another tip- sign up for their online deals and if you are comfortable, give them your number- Carnival will have a rep call you to talk to you about current deals and will be able to assist like a travel agent- do not ever buy your airline tickets through the cruiseline however- they will even tell you its a waste
I am a new mom and wonering where the best deals tend to be on diapers, wipes and formula? I haven’t paid attention to these items in the past (as they didn’t apply to my lifestyle). Does Sam’s Club tend to be the best deal?
Well I am past the diaper purchasing stage…but if I remember correctly on here that .10 cents a diaper is a buy price….Just the other day Carrie posted something about a great deal for diapers online…go to the home page; I think you will find a link to it…..and do some looking around they do talk about diapers a lot and I don’t hear Sam’s much as a place to get them….double check prices before stocking up.
I always get diapers at target (usually the small packs) -combine a target coupon with a manufactuer’s coupon & whichever one is on sale that week (about $0.13-.18 each). I usually dont’ pay more than free to .50/pk for wipes (huggies/pampers).
Thisweek Newspapers (covers the south metro) has started a Groupon-like deal called DealzOn. Today’s deal is for The Summit Golf Club in Cannon Falls
$25 for One 18-Hole Round of Golf with Golf Cart (A value of up to $52)
I’m not a golfer, but others might be interested in this.
Here’s the website for DealzOn:
http://thisweeklive.upickem.net/engine/Splash.aspx?contestid=18926
You can sign up to get an e-mail about the deals sent to you and they are currently having a giveaway for Burnsville Center gift cards for new registrations at DealzOn.
My husband and I have recently decided to buy a home and we will be starting the process of finding a mortgage lender. Our FICO scores range from 793-800. We are unsure of what we should ask lenders and how we should go about finding a good lender and getting the best rate. Any ideas would be appreciated.
Hi Kristin – great time to buy a house! With your excellent credit ratings, banks should love to lend you money. You can go online to almost any local bank and get their current mortgage rates. You really should try to find a lender you want to work with and get ‘preapproved’ before house shopping so that 1) you know what price home you’ll qualify for and 2) so when you do make an offer, the seller knows you’re qualified. With regard to questions to ask: all lenders are not considered equal! Many offer similar rates, it’s the fees you need to watch for. Ask for a ‘good faith estimate’. Find out if there are discount points or origination fees. A 1% Origination fee on a $200K home =$2000. (An origination fee is a fee the bank charges you for loaning you the money. You’ll find 1% is pretty common – but some lenders charge more and some less.) If you decide to pay “points” to get a lower interest rate, points can be another 1% (or more or less). So if it’s a 200k loan with 1% origination and 1 point, you’ll be paying $4000…and that doesn’t include appraisal fees, courier fees, title insurance and all the other misc charges… Some have “Application Fees” — these are typically nothing more than a way for the lender to make more money. This is why it is a good idea to ask questions about the fees and to ask the lender to explain what they are if they don’t make sense. (And don’t be afraid to negotiate — “With my excellent credit, I think a 1% origination fee is high…is there anything you can do to lower that?” ) Also – when it comes to title insurance, you can select your own title company and often save money over if the lender picks one for you.
IMO, you want to avoid paying ‘mortgage insurance’ which is a monthly fee you pay until you have 20% equity in your home or put 20% down. Again, on a 200K home, 20% down = 40k. If you don’t have that kind of downpayment, ask the lender what your options are to avoid paying mortgage insurance.
With all that said…I have financed and refinanced my home a couple of times with Ron Welle at Liberty Savings Bank and was really happy.. Their fees were often considerably less and Ron knows his stuff. Ron always did his best to get me the best rate with the lowest cost. I highly recommend him and have recommended him to a lot of my friends. 763.295.4411
Sorry for the long post but HTH!
Thank you! Fees are my biggest concern and I was really unsure about what fees to ask about and negotiate on. I also do not want to pay a fee just to apply for a mortgage. We will be putting down 20% (been saving for 8 years!) so I will not have to deal with PMI. Also, thanks for the reference for Ron but we don’t plan on buying in MN so he probably cannot help us.
10 free itunes code on starbucks website
http://www.frappuccino.com/itunes
Anyone know where I can get some Bunker Beach discounts? Last year there was $3 coupons everywhere.
Thanks
Hi,
I’m headed to the State Fair! Anybody know where I can get the greatest deal (regular price) for an ice cream cone for the kids?
I know this has come up before, but I can’t seem to find it when I do the search. Our Star Tribune subscription is up shortly. We had gotten a fantastic deal, but now the renewal is very expensive. I don’t mind paying a little more but really dont’ feel like paying $2/issue for the Sunday paper. Any ideas? Thanks!
I thought I saw a list of online deals like Groupon on the site earlier this week and now I cannot find it. Anyone know where it is or what the list was? A reader posted it and it was like 10 different sites……
Anyone know where I can find deals on cascade bay waterpark in Eagan?
Here’s an idea I saw to give away some of your massive stockpile: for new dorm/new home/wedding gift -fill a cute fabric/wicker/laundry basket with household supplies, cleaning, laundry, air fresh, etc.