Saving with Mel- Sunday is Coupon Day!

By popular demand I have posted another youtube video. Today I wanted to demonstrate how exactly I go coupon hunting. Because I've had so much on my mind, I actually forgot my coupons on this grocery store run. However, that does not mean I didn't get any savings at the grocery store. I still saved about $19 on this trip. I can always go back to the store and redeem my coupons at a later time.

I hope my demonstration cleared up some couponing questions.

Happy Savings,
Mel

Just a quick update on how much I've saved since beginning my saving money journey.

Grand Total Savings = $502.90

Saving with Mel: Video Blogging

Hi Internet. I wanted to spice things up a bit this week with a podcast that includes a few tips on how to save money. This was my first attempt of a youtube video. I hope you all enjoy it and one or more of these tips is useful for you.

Happy Savings,
Mel

Lost Receipts Make My Day!

Good day fellow savers! I finally found a reciept that I have wracked my brain trying to find for weeks now. This was my pride and joy, my best saving at Publix to date! OK, alright, this isn't Extreme Couponing amazing BUT for anyone who shops at Publix Supermarket knows getting an almost $50 savings on your grocery purchase is AMAZING!

Which is what I did, my savings was $49.28 and I am so proud of myself. My mom didn't believe me but here it is. This was just when my girlfriend was laid off, we received food stamps, also known as EBT.

This purchase was plenty of buy 1 get 1 free (bogos) deals. I bough a few bogo pastas with bogo pasta sauces, some bogo sodas, meats on amazing sales, chicken discount, and lots of other yummy goodies. I don't know about you but food tastes better when you make it with lots of love and get it an amazing deal.

I have tried my darnedest to try to beat my record for savings, but alas I have not. Doesn't mean I will stop trying, just means I haven't met the right deals as of yet. I still hunt, I still coupon, I still feverishly coupon hunt online for those deals that will make my day, my week and even my year.

Happy savings everyone,
Mel

Purchases of Saturday, August 28, 2014

Normally, I do the dreaded grocery store run once a week. This weekend was about convenience because I was on a time crunch. Lately, my weekends have consisted of house hold cleaning, homework and grocery shopping.

This weekend I needed to make a detour. I absolutely had to buy a pair of flat shoes for work. Again, normally I have both Saturday and Sunday to run my errands. Alas, I only had time for one store to find shoes and one store for a grocery run.

The only reason I went to Kohl's was because I received a 30% off coupon in the mail this week. I figured I could get a good deal and I did. I found a pair of copper colored flats that are cute, comfortable and cheap.

Publix Supermarkets are usually more expensive than Walmart or Winn-Dixie stores. Today, I couldn't really afford to be incredibly picky. Publix had some really awesome buy 1 get 1 free (aka bogo) deals that I was more than happy to take advantage of.

Kohl's Savings: $36.10
Publix Savings: $19.22
Total Savings Today: $55.32

Happy Savings,
Melissa

Some Banks Give You Money Back?!?! What?

Just recently I found out some Banks give you money back on shops you frequent. Isn't that amazing? I know Bank of America offers a certain percentage back on stores like California Pizza Kitchen, Petco, Starbucks, etc. Usually, there is a list of 15-20 stores you can receive cash back for purchasing items.

You can find your deals using the Banking Online feature and selecting Cash Back Deals. Make sure to click on the store or stores you plan on buying from so you can get those deals. Below you'll find a very simple way to find the Cash Back Deals.

As of now, I will receive $1.50 in a few weeks. Not much, but it will continue to grow.

Word of advise: Be careful. What may look like a deal, might not be a deal at all. Just be aware of pricing. I noticed Petco was one of the stores. Petco is also one of the most expensive pet stores I have ever walked into. I have only shopped at Petco when Lucky or Max needed food and it was on the way home and of course I was in a super hurry to get to the house. But other than that I stick with Walmart for pet food.

Happy savings,

Mel

Find your deals

You can choose cash back deals right in Online Banking. Visit theCash Back Deals tab to see all your deals and the cash back you’ve earned.

Halloween Horror Nights 2014 Tickets Purchased!!!

HHN 2014 Ticket Prices

I am so excited to announce I have purchased our Halloween Horror Nights tickets for a steal of a price. As I am trying to save as much money as possible for this trip, I am even managed to snag a super savings on our tickets purchase.

The least expensive tickets for this event are the Sunday- Thursday tickets. Which means you only have admission to HHN Sunday, Wednesday and Thursday nights, no Friday or Saturday nights included. Which is fine with me because the most crowded nights are indeed Friday and Saturday.

Normal price for these tickets are $100. The last couple of years Coca-Cola has partnered with Universal Studios Halloween Horror nights to offer significant discount on tickets if you buy a Coca-Cola product with a special code you enter in the Official HHN site to purchase your tickets. Or you can also purchase your tickets at Publix with the special discount without actually purchasing any Coca-Cola product. Which is what I did.

Each ticket on the HHN 24 online purchasing portal is prices at $95.99. However, with the Coca-Cola discount each other Sunday - Thursday tickets come out to $45.99 (including tax). That is a $50 savings on each ticket, which means I saved $100 on HHN tickets! That makes me deliriously happy!


Happy Savings,
Melissa

Saving by Switching Cable Providers and a bonus $200 Visa Gift Card

Hello fellow money savers. This weekend I received a letter in the mail from a competitor cable provider, AT&T. Currently, I have Comcast and pay way too much for cable and internet. There is no reason I should be paying $165 for internet and cable.

I grabbed the letter, called the number provided and asked how much my bill would be if I had the same options I have now. Basically, it will come out to about $50 a month cheaper and I will be receiving a $200 Visa gift card that I can use on whatever I'd like. Can you guess what I will be using my gift card on? That's right folks, Halloween Horror Nights!

There goes $200 towards my big goal of saving $500 for my trip to Orlando, FL to have the living crapatosis scared out of me at Universal Studios Halloween Horror Nights.

Moral of the story is that I will be saving $50 a month on cable and internet by simply shopping around for better prices. And I get a nice little bonus of $200 to spend as I please in a few weeks. I hope this gives you an idea on how to save some money on your end.

Happy Savings,
Melissa