Using Time Wisely

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Tip: Combining Sales with Promotional Codes

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Though I may not be grocery shopping, I have been stretching our dollars through promotional codes, sales, and cash back rewards. When I shop on-line, I always search my favorite search engine, Swagbuck.com, for a promotional code for that business. For example, if purchasing through J. C. Penney, I will

  1. Go to www.swagbucks.com.
  2. Type in “promotional code for J C Penney.”
  3. Scan the hits for a valid code to save money on my purchase.

Some promotional codes are for percentages off, free shipping, or dollars off a specified amount. Taking this extra step to find promotional codes uses time, but time wisely spent.

Restaurant.com Deal

When taking advantage of the sale and promotional code for the restaurant.com deal, I was able to purchase 22 gift certificates valuing $455 for $39. These gift certificates make great gifts for birthdays, anniversaries, and Christmas. By using my time wisely, I was able to maximize my savings to the tune of $416. If you would like to get in on this deal, check out Becentsable.com’s detailed instructions. This offer is valid through June 13.

J.C. Penney Deal

Another great sale and promotional code combination can be had through J. C. Penney. As one of the official suppliers of school uniforms for my son’s school, J. C. Penney notifications have been added to my e-mail list. When I find a sale with a promotional code, I do the happy dance.

With this current sale, valid through today, June 11, I was able to purchase 3 IZOD pique polo shirts for a total of $26.46. These shirts are regularly priced at $19.99 each. Adding to the sale and promotional code, I was able to lower my out-of-pocket amount by using the “2 or more price” for the shirts which saved me another $3-6. Instead of paying $66.46 (regular price), by using my time wisely and waiting for the sale, I only paid $26.46.

You too can save $40 by stretching your dollars. To snag this deal, check out MoneySavingMom.com’s post for the promotional code, but go through Shop at Home from Becentsable’s post to earn the cash back rewards for your purchase.

In stretching our dollars, I was able to spend a total of $65.46 while saving $495. How are you stretching your dollars?

Lowering my Electric Bill

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Photograph Credit: MorgueFile (Earl53)

Our power company continues to increase pricing on the electricity. With the upward trend of gas prices and the increase in the electricity, our family is making choices to keep our out-of-pocket expenses as low as possible. To get low gas prices, we use fuelperks!, gasbuddy.com, and coupons. Since we do not have any programs, other competitors, or coupons for our electric bill, the only way we know to keep our power bill low is to use less electricity.

We accomplished this by keeping our ceiling fans running, spending time at the pool, and leaving the air conditioner turned off for the entire month of May. Some days were nice and breezy, but other days were extremely warm. Now that June has arrived, our air conditioner has been activated. The thermostat is set to 80 degrees with the fans still running. Hopefully, we will be able to stretch our dollars and keep our electricity bills reasonable for the summer.

What about you? How are you using your time wisely to stretch your hard earned dollars during the summer with hot temperatures, high gas prices, and increasing electricity bills? I welcome your input.

Choosing to By-Pass a Great Sale

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Do you ever by-pass a great sale? I do. The best way for me to stretch our dollars is to NOT spend them. Do I love a great sale? Absolutely! When CVS had a great moneymaker on makeup, I chose not to shop.

Why? Here are my reasons:

1. Did not need any of the sale or “free” items that week.

2. Decided not to take time to scan the sales ads. The weather that week was beautiful. I spent lots of time outside at the playground and taking walks with my children. For me, this was time wisely spent.

3. My Extra Bucks did not expire during that week. I did not lose out by not shopping the sales.

4. Enjoyed taking a week off from matching up coupons and searching for items in stock.

5. Kept some extra money in the budget for when a great deal on diapers comes around.

Do you give yourself a week off? I’m thankful for all the sales I have been able to claim which has kept our cabinets stocked with personal items and cleaning supplies. When the week passes me by and I choose not to shop, I can relax and spend time with family without regret.