Kelly's Thrifty Tips

This weekend, I was visiting my family in California and my niece told me about all the money she has spent recently on her car. I imagine there are a lot of people in the same boat right now, and because of that, I just have to tell you about this site. Check out repairpal.com the next time you are going to get repairs on your car. With repairpal.com you can see if you are being charge a fair price for car repairs. It is simple and straightforward. Check out the site for yourself. :)

LINK: Repairpal.com

Can you believe that we are just weeks away from Thanksgiving? And shoppers know what that means. We are also weeks away from Black Friday! Crazy! Here is your website tip. There are many, many Black Friday sneak peek websites that give you some clues and more on what Black Friday sales are coming your way. Check out Black Friday 2010 for your sneak peek now. You can just search like crazy online too for other sites and links.

Who loves free food? I do! If you like Jack in the Box is offering two free tacos (limit two per person) just for the asking on November 16th after 2 pm. Mind you, do check with your local Jack in the Box because this offer is limited to participating locations. So once more: TWO TACOS AFTER 2PM AT PARTICIPATING JACK IN THE BOX LOCATIONS.

LINK: Jack in the Box 2 Tacos After 2pm

Try for your chance to win a sample of Thomas Coffee. There are 250 people chosen each month. I love coffee and will definitely give it a shot. :)

LINK: Thomas Coffee Sample

Looking for a calendar for the upcoming year? You can head over to Pilsbury's website, and sign up for one of their news letters, and an awesome Pilsbury 2011 calendar is yours!

LINK: Pilsbury Calendar

If you are a Betty Crocker fan, you can sign up for some of their email newsletters, and get their yummy 2011 calendar. Is it just me or is it almost crazy to think that we are that close to even needing a 2011 calendar?

LINK: Betty Crocker Calendar

At Everyday Health you can sign up for a free sample of Vaseline Intensive Rescue (first 1 million). There is a limit of one sample per household.

LINK: Vaseline Intensive Rescue

Today is Veteran's Day and participating Applebee's restaurants are going to again offer free entrees to all veterans and active duty military who come in on November 11th.

They can choose from a special Veteran's Day menu which has lots of favorites like 7 oz House Sirloin, Bacon Cheeseburger, Fiesta Lime Chicken, Double Crunch Shrimp, Oriental Chicken Salad and more. The link below will have details and the menu.

Again, check if your Applebee's is involved in this event and make sure to bring proof of service which includes: U.S. Uniform Services Identification Card, U.S. Uniform Services Retired Identification Card, Current Leave and Earnings Statement (LES), Photograph in uniform, Wearing uniform, Veterans Organization Card or DD214

LINK: Applebee's Veterans Eat Free on Veteran's Day

Chili's is also hooking up our veterans on Veteran's day. Again, proof of service is required, and it is limited to a specific menu (I will have a link to that menu here), but some of the items are Quesadilla Explosion Salad, Cajun Chicken Pasta, Chicken Club Tacos and more. Always check with your local restaurant for participation.

LINK: Chili's Veterans Eat Free on Veteran's Day

Golden Corral is having a Military Appreciation Monday on November 15th from 5pm to 9pm. Last year they honored over 335,000 veterans and active duty military with a free dinner buffet and beverage. Check to see if your local Golden Corral is participating.

LINK: Golden Corral Military Appreciation Monday

Dollar General is offering a 10% discount on Veteran's Day for Veterans, Active Military and their families. :) Follow the link to their website for details. Definitely again ask your local Dollar General if they are participating.

LINK: Dollar General

Let's not forget that EVERYONE gets free entry to US National Parks today! So if you are at home because you got Veteran's day off...go have some fun.

LINK: Free Entry to US National Parks on Veteran's Day

This Saturday, November 13th is Lowe's Build and Grow Clinic, and your child can make a fun periscope. November 20th workshop will be for a Snowman gift card holder. Check out the details.

LINK: Lowe's Build and Grow Clinics

While supplies last, sign up for a Style-n-Smile magnet frame from Scholastic and the American Association of Orthodontists. Also your order counts as an entry in their $1500 gift card sweepstakes so you may want to take the leap. :)

LINK: Style-n-Smile Magnet Frame

If you know someone who is expecting, how about taking advantage of a free download of Sing To Me A Lullabye Album at the WIC website.

LINK: Sing to Me Lullabye Album Download

iTickets.com has a free download this week of "The First Noel" by Revive. This is a great song to start off your Christmas collection for 2010!

LINK: iTickets Free Song Download

FreeCCM has a free download of Fee's song "Send Me" from their CD "Hope Rising." Also still available are songs by The Choir, Israel Houghton, Lincoln Brewster, and John Mark McMillan.

LINK: FreeCCM Free Song Download

While supplies last take advantage of the opportunity for a free sample of Purina ONE brand pet food.

LINK: Purina ONE

Kelly's Thrifty Tips

Some Freebies

A quick note about signing up for free samples. Don't forget when signing up for freebies, be careful on the information you divulge. I have never had an issue with the free items that I post. For example, I would not get involved with the free items that require you to complete several things in order to get the free sample (there are a few out there that require you to sign up for other things in order to get your samples). Most of the time I only go directly to the company's website. The exception is when I get samples through Start Sampling, Walmart, Costco or Sam's Club. An email address specifically used for freebies is a good idea too. Most companies do not require a phone number. If you are asked to give yours, I would only give in special circumstances. I have yet to get one phone call due to freebies and fishing. I use a special email address at gmail rather than my home email, and that address is great with regards to spam email. I have been trying free samples for about 13 years, and I have never had a problem.

Magazine

Focus on the Family is offering a free 6 month trial subscription to Thriving Family. LINK: Thriving Family

Music

iTickets has two free downloads. You Set the Rhythm by Newworldson and Bounce J-Rus from the soundtrack To Save a Life

LINK: iTickets free music download of the week

Free Hot Beverage

Nestle's ABUELITA is one of my favorite steamy treats. Try it out now by following the link.

LINK: Abuelita Granulado


Free Recipe Book

SeaPak Shrimp Company has a free recipe book featuring 15 meals that cost less than $10. This definitely is right up my alley. Special thanks to Hey It's Free!

LINK: SeaPak Recipes


Crest White Strips

Walmart has free Crest White Strips samples right now. Just follow the link below. Be sure to click on the white strips to request your sample.

LINK: Crest White Strips Sample

Hair Care

Walmart also has free samples for Fekkai Hair Care. Right now you can choose from Glossing Shampoo and Conditioner, Technician Color Care Shampoo and 3-Minute Mask or Glossing Cream.

LINK: Fekkai Hair Care

Free Candy Sample

Remember Lemonheads? I use to love these when I was a child. My son loves them now, and I am sure he will like to try out the new Tropical Fruit flavor. Get a free sample by following the link below.

LINK: Tropical Chewy Lemonheads

Free Underjams

This is the nightwear for kids by Pampers, and now Walmart has a free sample. Thanks to TopSavings.com

LINK: Underjams

Free Sample Lever 2000 for Costco Members

You do need to be a Costco Member, but if you are, this is a great chance to try out Lever 2000.

LINK: Lever 2000

Free Splenda

You can try the Splenda sweetner with fiber or either of the Splenda Flavors for coffee in either mocha or hazelnut. :)

LINK: Free Splenda




GROCERY SALES:


Safeway

Remember all coupons are still worth up to $1.00

-- Fresh 93% Lean Ground Beef $1.99 a pound
-- Green or Red Seedless Grapes 99 cents a pound
-- Saturday and Sunday only - 5 pound bag of Idaho Russet Potatoes just 68 cents each (limit 2)

Also, look for the $10 Rewards tag on Participating Procter and Gamble products. Buy $25 worth of select P&G products and get back a $10.00 reward off your next shopping order. Be sure to look for the participating items and their tags.

Fry's

-- Fresh Boneless, skinless chicken breast $1.67 a pound
-- Buy 10 and save $3.00 on participating items.
EX: Ragu Pasta Sauce $1.28
Chef Boyardee Pasta 67 cents
Dial or Tone bars (6 to 8 ct) or body wash $2.99 each


Albertons

-- London Broil $1.77 a pound
-- Broccoli 68 cents a pound
-- Jif Peanut Butter or Smuckers Jam 2 for $5.00


KNOW YOUR PRICES

We were watching the news the other day and a report gave me a huge reminder of how important it is to know your prices and check your receipts when you go shopping. The Arizona Department of Weights and Measures goes out and makes random visits to businesses to make sure customers aren't paying more than they should. Unfortunately they do find businesses that do not have all their prices correct. If they aren't, the stores get fined. I have made a habit of really checking my receipts since I lived in Rhode Island. One of the stores I frequented would actually give you an item free if they scanned it incorrectly. This was definitely a great incentive to double check your prices on both ends, and it definitely inspired me to be more diligent with my receipt checking. Still though, there are times that I didn't check items until I got home. This is annoying when you get home and realize that there was an error. As I mentioned this morning, had I not checked out my receipt after a shopping trip on Tuesday, I could have been out twelve dollars.

Here is what helped me in discovering the error and recovering my cash.

1 - Know the prices of the items you are buying even non sale items.
2 - When you are purchasing an group of items to get a special discount, be sure you are buying the correct items and sizes.
3 - Know the sale details. Ex: If it is mix and match or if you need to buy the same item to get the discount.
4 - If you miss an error at the register, don't be afraid to go to the service desk to make the adjustment.

If you want to read the story, follow the link below.

LINK: State Cracks Down On UPC Pricing Errors