Shopping online for Cyber Monday? Get cash back with Ebates!

If you're like me and avoid the Black Friday crowds like the plague in favor of hitting up Cyber Monday online deals from the comfort of your home computer, make sure you sign up for Ebates if you haven't already. 

Ebates will give you a percentage of your online purchases with hundreds of retailers as a cash back reward.  As a matter of fact, I just received a "Big Fat Check' from Ebates in the past week or so. 

Sign up here and start getting cash back on all your online purchases!

Money Saving Challenge - week 29 in review

Here is a run-down of things I did to help save money this week:

• I matched sales and coupons at Tops to help lower my grocery bill.
• I submitted a Staples rebate online, which will return some of my spent money to me plus I saved the cost of a stamp by not mailing it in.
• I returned an empty printer cartridge to Staples and will get credit to use on a future purchase.
• We utilized the local public library for books and kids' activities.
• I combined errands on outings to help save on gas.
• I avoided using the oven on the hottest days in order to keep the house cooler and help save on air conditioning costs.
• I opened the windows to catch the cooler morning and evening breezes to also save on cooling costs, and avoided using the AC completely on a cooler day.
• I picked a lot of free raspberries from our plants at home.
• I cut the dishwasher tablets in half for each load.
• My kids played several games in a free softball league.
• I paid a bill online and saved the cost of a stamp.
• I used a free rental code at Redbox in order to enjoy a free movie at home.
• I noticed the condensed water dripping outside from an air conditioning window unit, so I placed a bucket underneath it to catch the drips and used it to help water my plants.
• I placed an online order through Ebates in order to get part of my purchase price returned to me.
• I redeemed my 3300 Tops gas points in order to get gas for just $0.29 per gallon.

Did you do anything in particular this week to help save some money? I'd love to read it in the comments below!

Money Saving Challenge - week 20 in review

I'll be honest: I spent a TON of money this week.  Even though I had a lot of money leaving my bank account, there were still a lot of things I did to help lessen the impact:

• I received free samples of Lipton Tea & Honey and Gevalia coffee in the mail.
• We ate leftovers for dinner 2 nights and 1 day for lunch.
• I ordered pizza for dinner 1 night (bad!), but I used a coupon to get a second pizza for free (and there were enough leftovers for the lunch and 1 of the dinners mentioned above).
• I paid several bills this week online and over the phone, which saved on stamps and gas.
• I combined my errands on outings to help save on gas.
• I cashed in my Tops gas points to get $1.10 off per gallon, which saved over $15.
• We ordered a wooden playset for our kids.  This was a huge expense for us, but we shopped around online and ordered where we found the lowest price for the one we wanted (Home Depot, which surprised me).  It's getting shipped free to us, and I was able to purchase it through Ebates so we will be getting a portion of the purchase price refunded back to us.
• I cashed in my Swagbucks for another $5 Amazon gift card, which I will use towards Christmas gifts later in the year.
• I matched sales and coupons at Tops and Wegmans to lower my grocery costs.
• I returned bottles when I went grocery shopping and used the proceeds to lower my grocery bill.
• I cashed out my Savingstar balance.
• I picked up some decent coupons for products we use from the reception desk at my daughter's orthodontist appointment. As a side note, I don't think I've ever mentioned that we paid for her orthodontia treatment in full upfront last year, which gave us a 10% discount, from my coupon savings over the course of a few months.  I am super proud of that accomplishment. :-)
• I only ran the dishwasher when it was full, and cut the tablets in half each time.
• I received All You and Wegmans Menu magazines in the mail, both of which contain coupons I'll use to lower grocery expenses.
• I received a free sample of Dr. Scholl's high heel insoles to test, along with coupons, from Bzzagent.  This comes at a great time, because my feet have been bothering me lately and I was planning on purchasing insoles for a few pairs of my shoes.

I love hearing about new ideas for saving money.  Feel free to share any things you do to save money and stretch your budget.

Money Saving Challenge - week 7 in review

Here is a look back at the things I did this week to save money...

• I matched sales and coupons at Tops to lower my grocery spending, earning a gas discount of $1.00 per gallon in the process.  I also matched sales and coupons at CVS to buy my husband his toothpaste of choice.
• I combined errands on outings to help save on gas usage.
• I received a "Big Fat Check" from Ebates from my online shopping.
• I returned my cans and bottles when I went grocery shopping, which helped lower the out-of-pocket cost of my groceries.
• I took my son out for lunch for the first time in ages, which cost me more money than if we'd stayed home, but I did use a coupon to take $3 off our bill. :-/
• I made sure my dishwasher was full before running it, and I cut my dishwashing tablets in half.

Overall, I don't feel like this was one of my strongest weeks in the saving money department.  Hopefully I'll feel better about next week. :-)

Hot Old Navy deal from Groupon!

Groupon is offering a hot deal: get $20 worth of Old Navy apparel and accessories for only $10!  Great, right?  Well, it gets better...order through Ebates and get the deal PLUS earn 3.0% cash back!  If you're not already an Ebates member, sign up here then shop through the Groupon link to earn your cash back reward.

Just be sure to read the fine print: Limit 1 per person, may buy 1 addt'l as a gift. Limit 1 Groupon per visit. Purchase of Groupon may take up to 24hrs to process. Valid from 11/26-12/24/11 at US Old Navy Stores only. Product restrictions apply. Not transferable. Not valid for cash or cash equivalent. $20 minimum purchase required at Old Navy. Good for $20 of merchandise: $10 Paid For value (never expires) plus $10 Discount Offer value (expires 12/24/11).

Holiday shopping with Ebates

Planning on doing some of your Black Friday shopping from your computer?  If you're not already an Ebates member, you will want to sign up and earn double cash back at over 500 stores this Friday.  All you have to do is search Ebates for the online retailer you're looking for (there are over 1000, including sites like Groupon, Lands' End, JC Penney, and Walmart just to name a few) then shop from their Ebates link.  Checks are mailed out quarterly -- I signed up earlier this year and have received 2 checks from them!

11/21 Target shopping trip

It seems like it's been forever since I shopped at Target (the horror!), but there were a few deals that made it worth it for me to swing by yesterday:

1 Mossimo cardigan sweater - $5.99

On sale for $9.99 (which is a deal in itself, since the regular price is $19.99!), used $4 off any women's sweater Target coupon

I have access to 4 coupons, so I'm seriously contemplating going back and buying 3 more in different colors.  After the sale and coupons, it's almost like buying 1 at full price and getting 3 free!

1 package of up & up dental floss - $0.34

Priced at $0.84, used $0.50 off any up & up oral care item Target coupon

This will make a cheap (and useful) stocking stuffer!

1 jar of Market Pantry pasta sauce - $0.50

I box of Market Pantry pasta - $0.50

The pasta sauce is on sale for $1.00 (regularly $1.52) and the pasta is $1.00 (regular price), used $1.00 off when you buy both Market Pantry pasta and pasta sauce Target coupon

I also grabbed a bunch of dollar spot items (no coupons, but more cheap stocking stuffers!) and 2 games to be used as Christmas gifts (used the $5 off 2 coupon from the Target ad and also available here).  And to lower my out-of-pocket cost even more, I used a $10 Target gift card I received after signing up for Ebates.  I paid $30.94 after the gift card, and saved an additional $30.04 in sales and coupons!

Note: My Target doesn't carry Philadelphia cooking creme so I don't know the price, but there is a $1.00 Target coupon and a $1.00 printable manufacturer coupon a while ago (not sure if it's still available at coupons.com, but I had printed it already).  If your store stocks it, it may be a great deal after stacking both coupons!

Tip of the day: Printing coupons for less

Even though I have ink and paper expenses from printing online coupons, I'm positive I save more than it costs me to print them.  That being said, I do try to keep my expenses down and thought I'd share with you how I save money.

The most expensive aspect of printing coupons is purchasing ink.  I used to always buy new HP cartridges at office supply stores but a few months ago I switched to buying refurbished and have seen no difference in print quality or quantity.  Not only do I save money buying refurbished over new, but I also earn cash back from my purchases.  I buy ink at 123Inkjets (I've had no issues with refurbished ink cartridges, but if your printer won't use them they also sell some new cartridges, too) through Ebates.com and get a check back for part of my purchase price (currently the offer is cash back for 16% of your purchase price!). If you're not already an Ebates member and you do any shopping online, you will want to sign up.  All you have to do is search Ebates for the online retailer you're looking for (there are over 1000, including sites like Groupon, Lands' End, JC Penney, and Walmart just to name a few) then shop from their Ebates link.  Checks are mailed out quarterly -- I signed up earlier this year and just received my 2nd check from them recently!

Another option for reducing ink expenses is to set your printer to print in black and white and/or to set it on the draft or economy print setting.  I've recently experimented with the economy setting on my printer and my coupons don't seem to have any problems scanning at the register.

When my ink cartridges are empty I recycle them at Staples, where they give you $2 in Staples Rewards credit for each one (recently they were running a $3 special on HP ink, I think).  I watch for deals on paper and use my Staples Rewards towards my purchases.  Just this summer, I've been able to get reams of paper for free up to $2 each after Staples rebates.  If you're not a Staples Rewards member, you'll want to sign up.  (I think OfficeMax also offers an ink recycling program, but I rarely shop there since Staples is much more conveniently located to me.)

Even though I still have some expenses associated with printing coupons, I can do it without feeling the least bit guilty because of the amount of money I'm saving!

I'd love to hear about any other cost-saving printing tips any other readers have.