Paying The Debt Down :-)

I just wanted to let it be known that we have been paying on our debt....I did the total post here, and so far we have paid off:

Loan - $3223 :-) :-) :-)

Paid $20 on Dr of 480 making it 460
Paid $375 of other loan of 1875 making it 1400 

This brings our grand total of debt to $20,520.04
down from $24,138.04!!!!!! 

We also received our transcripts from PCC and are looking around and praying about which college to start in the next few months! We are going to do correspondence, and I think we've found the right one, but now we have to find the right time -and make sure it's the right one!! :-)  Life is exciting! :-)

Naptime is basically over, so now I need to go get a few more things done before church tonight :-)

Hot Coupon World - Another of my Loves!!!!

It does take a while to learn to navigate the whole site (I still don't know all of it!!!), but this is an amazing investment of your time (but, be cautious - it can become a distraction if you don't monitor yourself!!!).

Hot Coupon World is the couponing forum that I have become most familiar with and used it to trade soooo many coupons!! There are people out there who "dumpster dive" for coupons - go to their local recycling center and pull the coupons out of it each week - or get the leftovers from the gas stations, etc - they only have to turn in the front page for credit!. These people can obtain hundreds of coupons each week of the same item! I, unfortunately, am not one of those people! Our recycling centers consist of closed bins and I haven't found a gas station that sells papers in here around here - only in the boxes.

Anyway, different regions get different values of coupons also, and if there is a specific one you want a lot of, it's a great place to go.

You can trade coupons, some people take paypal for them, some take stamps, some take concealed cash, some even take Box Tops For Education. I am currently sending in 30 BTFE to a lady for (15) $1.50/1 Phili Cooking Creme coupons (I'm going to try to up my freezer meals!!! lol.

This is also where I got all of my $3/1 Gain and $3/1 Purex coupons (both moneymakers!!!) from since I haven't bought a paper in quite a few weeks. I've been trading to get the ones I really need, and it's working quite well for me right now. Btw, if anyone needs dryer sheets, just ask!!!! I'm getting 10 more in this week in a trade :-)

When you do sign up for HCW (totally free forum), get in there and comment on things that interest you - it helps build your post count up and people tend to trust you a little more. Also, if you have feedback at Ebay or Diaper Swappers or another forum, it helps to put that in your signature to show trustworthiness too until you get a higher iTrader rating :-)

Their Couponing Basics section is here, and this is the main forum section. They also urge people to keep back a reasonable amount, but not to do like some of the people they have been showing on the Extreme Couponing shows (I have yet to watch!!!). It's nice to be able to have things on hand to throw someone together a basket when needed, and know that you paid next to nothing for it! But, I also have to watch myself to not get the "hoarder" mentality of "but, I like that smell!!" There will always be another day, another week, another wonderful sale :-)

Wal-Mart: Liking it a lot better!

I was once a HUGE fan of Wal-Mart! Then, I learned how to coupon, and Wal-Mart quickly became one of my least favorite places to shop! Ours was just not very coupon friendly. Wal-Mart's advertising would even say, "So cheap, you don't have to use coupons," etc. Now, they're finally jumping on the bandwagon with the other stores, and you can get some good deals there, finally!!

Wal-Mart now has a corporate coupon policy in effect. They have changed it in a good way, and I went to ours last night to check it out (I think I went EVERYWHERE last night!!! lol). You can now use coupons to gain "overage" which is my FAVORITE part of it. I bought:
(5) Purex 3-in-1 Travel size .97 each = 4.85
and various other items.
I used (5) $3/1 Purex coupons which gave me 10.15 in overage to cover my other items!!!!

Some stores do take Register Rewards from Walgreens, but our local one does not,. and in the coupon policy, they do not have to take them since they are not for a specific item :-( But, that's ok.....at least they're doing the others!!

One thing I do encourage you to do is to print out the coupon policy and take it with you!! There are some cashiers or CSMs who may not be clued in to the new policy (or just not like it!) so they may give you a hassle about it. If they do, smile and pull out  your policy and show them, then if they still will not let you use your coupons, ask for a manager. If all else fails, call corporate! - there, in the store, in front of them, and they will do as they are supposed to a lot faster :-) 1-800-925-6278

I Really Am Back :-)

I really am back! And, that's all I have to say :-)