Emergen-C Review

I received Emergen-C pack from Smiley360.  I got to try all of the different flavors they have to offer.  They all tasted great, even the Cranberry and I hate cranberry juice.  All you do is mix the packet with 4-6oz of water.  I added some ice to mine.  I ended up drinking a package every other day and did not have to take an allergy pill on those days.  I highly recommend Emergen-C.  Check it out on the link below.

http://smiley360.com/1823747.cfm

~S~

Saved $102.56 and spent $80.14 at Kroger

I just got back from Kroger and saved 56% on my total.  I was shocked when I saw my savings.  I didn't expect to save 56% or $102.56.  I was only expecting around 40% savings.  I bought many items that I did not have coupons for.  It is hard for me to buy things I don't have coupons for, but when it comes to corn on the cob, lemons, apples, eggs and sugar coupons are rare to find.  I ended up getting some baby bottles off the clearance shelf for a future baby shower, dog treats, jelly, toothpaste, toilet paper, ice cream, butter, candy, crackers, BBQ sauce, pies among other items.

~S~

We are now on Pinterest

I am working on getting us on Pinterest.  I have us set up and started pinning onto the boards.  I have created boards of recipes I have tried and liked, Couponing to Disney, food shortcuts and gardening to get started.  Let us know what you would like to see us pin.  What other boards do we need to add?  We want your input.  Without your help we would not be doing this.

http://pinterest.com/siblingsavers/boards/

~S~

Website I watch for savings!

I know on the survey many of said you wanted to know websites that also help with money saving offers.  So, here is a list I have compiled of bloggers and sites that I follow.  These are of course are in no particular order.  I have won giveaways from several of the bloggers (so if you are interested, check out their giveaways).  I have left off some websites that you need referral links for or one that helps us when you go through the email link.  If you would like to be added to that link, just leave a comment with your email or email us and we will send you the link.  On those sites you take surveys for a chance to try products for free and all you have to do is write a honest review of the product. 

My email is sjbcoupons@gmail.com.  Sibling Savers email is siblingsavers@gmail.com.   

1. www.CouponProBlog.com
2. www.Hunt4Freebies.com

3. www.FreeSamples2FillUpYourMailbox.com

4. www.VocalPoint.com*  (women only)

5. www.Week99er.com

6. www.KrogerKrazy.com

7. www.CouponCrazyinKY.com

8. www.Coupons.com

9. www.SmartSource.com

10. www.RedPlum.com

11. www.SouthernSavers.com**

12. www.KouponKaren.com

13. www.RightAtHome.com*

14. www.CouponKatarina.com

15. www.TheCentsableShoppin.com

16. www.WholeCouponInserts.com

17. www.MyInsight.com*
18. www.KraftFirstTaste.com*

*Watch for coupons and freebies exclusively for members only.

**Log on starting on Thursdays for the coming Sunday’s ad inserts.

~S~

Small Haul, HUGE Savings

Today I went to Walgreens.  I purchased a tube of Crest, 2 tubes of Walgreens brand aloe, a 16 pack of Charmin, an 8 pack of Bounty, a tower fan, and 1 piece of caramel.  The Crest, Bounty, Charmin and fan were all on sale.  My pre-tax total was $53.30 at sale prices.  Without the sales, my pre-tax total would have been $68.30.  I had a $1 off coupon for Crest and I had six $8 Register Rewards to use.  Between sales and coupons I saved $64.30, that's 94% savings!  For everything I paid $4.30 plus $3.20 tax for a total of $7.50.  To top it off, I also received Register Rewards worth $4 to use on my next trip.

The key to this trip was having 6 Register Rewards worth $8 a piece.  Due to a bleeding ulcer a few years ago, I have to take Omeprazole every day.  I normally purchase a 6 week supply of Omeprazole at Sam's Club for $18.  This week, Walgreens has their store brand Omeprazole on sale for $18, regular $23, with $8 back in Register Rewards.  I purchased a 9 month supply of something I have to purchase no matter what, got it at the price I normally pay but managed to get $48 back.  To get the $48 worth of Register Rewards I had to have each Omeprazole rang up on a seperate receipt.

I had 6 Register Rewards and 1 coupon to use so I had to have 7 items to be able to use everything.  A $0.34 piece of caramel will count as an item and that was what I picked up as my 7th item.  However, Walgreens does not give cash back so your total must at least equal the amount of coupons you plan on using.  Coupons will not cover the tax, you do have to pay the tax.

Watching sale ads for rewards offered on items you will purchase regardless of having a coupon or not can really pay off.  Like I said, I was able to get something I had to have, I got it at the price I normally pay for it, and I got $48 back in store rewards to apply towards other purchases.  In a nut shell, I bought what I would always buy at the the usual price and got over $64 worth of free stuff!  Free stuff is good!

If you have any question do not hesitate to leave a comment because someone else probably has the same question.  If you have a question but don't want to leave a comment, feel free to email us at siblingsavers@gmail.com and we will get back to you as soon as possible.

G.

Memorial Day

Thanks to all who served but especially those who gave all.

Greg and Sara

NO Coupons Tomorrow!

Because of the Memorial Day Holiday, there are no coupons scheduled to be released tomorrow.  Very rarely is there coupons when we have a Holiday that week.  If there is it will be a rare Proctor and Gamble.

~S~

What to do with your expired coupons?

Have you ever wondered what you should do with all your expired/unused coupons?  Recycle or just throw them away?  Why not donate them to the Military?  With the economy the way it is and with the current sequester they can use help just as much as anyone.  Military families are able to use your expired coupons up to 6 months after their expiration date.  You can go to the post office and get free priority boxes that are just for the military and mail it for $14.85 (price can change at anytime).  You can also order from USPS.com.  They are for APO addresses only.  The boxes are 12x12x5 1/2.  I have always used boxes and filled it up with the expired coupons along with free items for her to send to her husband's company unit.  I have avoided using the envelopes after the first time.  The envelopes are buy weight, where the boxes are not.

Now you ask how do I know where or who to send it to?  There are several groups out there they will set you up with someone who has requested to have a "sponsor" to send them coupons.  I have used CouponsToTroops.  They quickly got a hold of Jacqueline for her to email me.  She told me there are several families she shares coupons with in Germany.  So you are not just sending them to one person on most occasions  you are getting a group.  If you don't have many coupons.  Some of the sites will let you send them to their headquarters as you get them and then will mail them to someone.  If you have several people who coupon or know of someone who is not sending them to them, ask them for their expired, unused ask them if you can have them to send to them.  You will be surprised who gives you coupons.  When I was in line at Walgreens waiting to purchase papers one Sunday several of us woman were talking and I told me what I do and they just started pulling out coupons left and right and handing them to me to mail off.  They didn't know you could.  The next time I saw them they had baggies waiting to hand me to take and mail off.

If you are interested in signing up please visit any of the FaceBook pages below.

CouponsToTroops  https://www.facebook.com/CouponsToTroops

Expired Coupons for Overseas Military  https://www.facebook.com/ExpiredCouponsforOverseasMilitary

To get the APO boxes sent to you free here is the direct link to the boxes.  https://store.usps.com/store/browse/uspsProductDetailMultiSkuDropDown.jsp?categoryNav=false&navAction=jump&navCount=0&productId=P_MILI_FRB&categoryId=subcatMSS_PriorityMail

~S~

Tornado Relief

Yesterday's tornado in Oklahoma cost many lives and destroyed homes and displaced many people.  These people can use all the help they can receive.  If you have been watching ads and matching up your coupons you have probably been able to accumulate personal care products like shampoo, soap, toothbrushes and toothpaste.  These products can really help those affected and since you can get them through couponing for pennies, if not free, it is a way you can help the people of Oklahoma even if you otherwise couldn't afford to help.  Your local churches and community organizations will most likely be taking up collections to send to Oklahoma.

I never advocate buying something just because you have a coupon or getting a product you wouldn't use but this is the exception.  If I can get personal care items for free, I will get them to donate.  I normally don't stockpile these items to donate when situations like this arise but instead donate them to local charities as I collect them.  With a quick look through my coupon book and through the sale ads I can probably come up with a few things for free to send.

 Please consider helping those affected.

G.

Product Sales Cycle 2

Here is the second list.  I personally like the first list better.  But it could be regional on which list is more accurate.

January:         Chips, snacks, sodas, frozen foods, diet foods, tea, and high fiber foods.

                        Winter coats, Christmas, furniture and linens

February:        Chocolate, Chinese, canned foods, soups, snacks. Heart-healthy products,

                        Winter clothing

March:            Frozen foods, video games

April:  Eggs, ham, lamb, kosher foods, asparagus, whole-grains, soy and

                        Electronics

May:               Paper products, condiments, BBQ sauce, soda, strawberries

June:              Yogurt, cheese, milk, ice cream, tools

July:                Hotdogs, ketchup, picnic items, school supplies, furniture

August:           Fresh produce, pool toys, swim suits, patio furniture, back to school

                        Supplies

September:      Breakfast items, summer clothes

October:         Candy, wine, pizza, pasta, lawn mowers, garden tools

November:     Canned vegetables, soup, turkey, frozen pies, baking supplies 

December:      Baking supplies, prime rib, cars, wedding dresses

The above information is from the book:  How I paid $8 for $170 worth of groceries by Charmaine Gerber

~S~

Product Sale Cycle List 1

I have two list of when people say Items go on sale.  This is the first list.  I will make a separate post of the second list since they do vary.

January:  After Christmas Items, towels, linens, oranges, tangelos, split peas

February:  Sodas, chips, snacks, crackers, cabbage, potatoes, onions

March:  Allergy items, Kleenex, broccoli, dried beans, grapefruit

April:  Ham, eggs, baking ingredients, salsa, corn chips, refried beans, carrots, frozen orange juice, greens

May and June:  Barbecue sauce, marinades, condiments, country time lemonade, charcoal, hot dogs, diary

June:  Chicken, strawberries, dairy products

July:  Toys, green beans, squash, peaches

July and August:  Back to school supplies

August:  Corn, watermelon, tomatoes

September:  School lunch supplies, Capri suns, pop tarts, cabbage, grapes, pears

October:  Apples, cauliflower, pork

November:  Cough Medicine, cold medicine, soup (Campbell’s), Jell-o, Oats (Quakers), tissues, cranberries, turkey, turnips, squash

December:  Carnation milk, baking ingredients, wet wipes, boxed stuffing and potatoes, canned vegetables, frozen orange juice, potatoes, tangerines.

Also, some products like toilet paper, paper towels, soft drinks, and cereal cycle every 6-8 weeks.

The above information is from the book:  Savvy Saving: Couponing secrets from the Stockpiling Moms, by Melissa Jennings and Shelley King.  Book available from walmart.com. bn.com and amazon.com.

~S~

Organic Food Companies that Offer Coupons

I got this list out of the book How I paid $8 for $170 worth of Groceries by Charmaine Gerber.

And before you ask I did not see how to save that much.  My goal is to save 50% every time I go to the grocery.  I did that one time, but I used a $50 gift card from my debit card rewards.

After the fall                                                  www.atfjuices.com

Alexia Foods                                                www.alexiafoods.com

Apple and Eve                                              www.appleandeve.com

Back to Nature                                             www.backtonaturefoods.com

Batter Blaster                                                www.batterblaster.com

Blue Diamond                                               www.bluediamond.com

Borden                                                         www.bordenorganic.com

Brown Cow                                                  www.browncowfarm.com

Cedar’s                                                        www.cedarsfood.com

Coleman Natural Food                                 www.colemannatural.com

Country Choice                                            www.countrychoicenaturals.com

Delallo                                                          www.delallo.com

Dogswell                                                      www.dogswell.com

Dreamfield Foods                                         www.dreamfieldsfood.com

Earth’s Best                                                  www.earthsbest.com

Earthbound Farms                                         www.ebfarm.com

Enjoy Life                                                     www.enjoylifefoods.com

Hansen Beverage Company                           www.drinkjuniorjuice.com

Horizon Organic                                            www.horizonorganic.com

Knudsen and Sons Inc                                   www.knudsenjuices.com

Laura’s Lean Beef                                         www.laurasleanbeef.com

Mambo Sprouts                                            www.mambosprouts.com

Mrs. Meyer’s                                                www.mrsmeyers.com

Nature’s Oasis                                               www.naturesoasismarket.com

Northland                                                      www.northlandjuices.com

Oikos                                                           http://www.oikosyogurt.com

Organic Valley                                              www.organicvalley.coop

Rice Select                                                    www.riceselect.com

Santa Cruz Natural                                        www.scojuice.com

Seeds of Change                                           www.seedsofchangefoods.com

Seventh Generation                                        www.seventhgeneration.com

Silver Spring Foods                                       www.silverspringgardens.com

Simply Organic                                              www.simplyorganicfoods.com

Smart Chicken                                               www.smartchicken.com

Soy Dream                                                    www.tastethedream.com

Stonyfield Farm                                             www.stonyfield.com

Wild Harvest                                                 www.wildharvestorganic.com

~S~

I got 50 items at Kroger and saved 48%

I saw on the survey where someone doesn't want to see that we saved a huge amount and only got 5 items.  I complete understand them.  If I post something like that I will do it so you know where to get that savings that week.  Normally those come from the drugstores.  I did go to Kroger yesterday and saved 48% on 50 items.  I had a coupon for almost everything that I bought.  I buy Sunflower brand flour and there are no coupons for it.  I try to buy it on sale but I was out and it was not on sale.  I did not buy milk but every so often Kroger runs a special where you buy so much cereal of a certain company, you get a free gallon of milk.  I also was out of fries and again did not have a coupon and bought the Kroger brand because it is cheaper than Ora Ida (even with the coupon I had).

I do try and use a coupon on everything I buy and also buy it when it is on sale.  Doing this gets the most bang for your buck.  I am attaching a picture of the savings on my receipt with the total items purchased.  On the receipt you will see where it says "Your Kroger Savings Today."  In that section it tells you your manufacturer coupon savings, bonus coupon savings (from doubling), Kroger Plus Savings (normally the biggest amount) and the Total Savings with percent of savings.

Also watch the fuel points at the bottom of the receipt   This gets you 10 cents off per gallon of gas at Kroger Stations and Paducah's Pockets (Exit 3) for every 100 points.

~S~

Don't buy newspapers just because they have coupons.

Don't buy newspapers just because they have coupons.  Today many people get their coupons from the internet but newspapers are still a great way to get coupons.  If there aren't any coupons in the paper that week that you will use though, it's not worth the cost of the newspaper.  Many times I have not bought any newspapers because I wouldn't use the coupons that were in there that week.

How do you know what coupons will be in the paper?  I subscribe to several couponing websites and several of them will send out an email that will have a link to see that weeks coupons.  However, I personally visit SouthernSavers who has a tab on the top right of the page that says Sunday Ad Inserts.

When I do buy newspapers, I don't always clip all the coupons.  Even at a reduced price, an item you aren't going to use isn't a deal.  I only clip the coupons for products I know I will use or for products we will donate to the troops or local charities.

G.

Store Loyalty Cards

Store Loyalty Cards are great things to have.  Most of the time they don't cost you anything to have.  Some do so see if the cost for the card is worth the savings.  Are you going to at least save what the card cost?  If not do not get the card.  Places like Walgreens (Wag), CVS, and Kroger (my local stores) have cards that are free.  I'll explain some about each in a bit.  Getting cards is like having free cash in your hand at each time.

CVS has a card called ExtraBucks (EB).  EB come on certain items each week.  Watch their ad to know which items has EB.  These items can be free after EB.  Normally you can only get one item with your card.  I do not count them as free cause up front I had to pay for them.  The EB's are good on your next transaction and normally have an expiration date of month (always look).  Now you can get items for free and have moneymakers.  Moneymakers are where you save more than the item cost.  For example:  CVS has Thermacare wraps 3 count box for $2.99 (free after EB's) you have a coupon for $2 and you have EB's from a previous transaction of $2.  So you You need to pick up another item because CVS will not give you cash back.  They have caramels at the register that cost 33 cents.  Buying a caramel(s) (Wag does it too) is still saying money because the coupon is more than the caramel.  So for it to look simple:

Thermacare wrap $2.99
 coupon                -2.00
                                .99
EB (already had)   -2.00
                             -1.01
buy 3 caramels          .99  
                                -.02

You have to pay tax so that will get rid of your negative balance.  Then you will get $2EB to use next time.

WAG is every similar to CVS.  Wag does not (at this time) have a limit on how many you can purchase.  Their restrictions come from having Register Rewards (RR) (like EB's).  You can not use your RR to buy the same item and get more RR's.  WAG also will not give you RR's for multiple times for the same item on the same purchase.  You will need to have the cashier ring your products up separately.  Say you are buying three razors that have RR's.  If you buy all three on one ticket you will only get one RR but if you ring them up and pay for each separately you will get RR's for all three.  For example they have a sale on razors you can buy what you like buy you can not take the RR's from the first one and buy the second on and get another RR.  Wag also allows you to stack coupons.  Each month they have a coupon book of Wag store coupons with the ads in store.  These coupons come from Wag and not the manufacturer. There is almost always a coupon for Cottonelle toilet paper in there.  You can use that coupon along with a manufacturers coupon from the internet or Sunday paper and get double the savings.  Their catch is that you have to have as many items as coupons.  If you have 2 coupons you have to have 2 items.  Again this is where caramels come in handy.

Kroger has a Kroger Plus Card that saves instantly with each weeks ad.  They also have digital coupons on their website that you can load to save without having a coupon in hand.  The catch:  the digital coupons do not double like paper coupons.  Our Paducah Krogers double paper coupons up to 60 cents.  If there is a digital coupon loaded to your card you can not also use a paper coupon.  It is one or the other.  See which saves more before you ad the digital coupon.  You can also go to savingstar.com and link your card for additional savings.  I have not saved enough with it to get any benefit from it.

I know this may be confusing.  If you have any question you want me to clarify please let me know.  I will gladly try to explain it better.

~S~

Like companies on FaceBook and websites

Be sure to "Like" companies on FaceBook.  Companies often do giveaways for free samples and full sized products.  They also offer higher value coupons, normally with limited prints so you have to be quick.  The companies can do this at their pleasure at any time.  Plus, don't just Like companies, Like stores for specials and coupons as well.

Next, after you "Like" them on FaceBook find the companies websites and sign up for emails.  You will also get emails with recipes and sometimes more coupons.  If you like a company and they are not offering coupons, do not hesitate to call or email them asking for coupons.  Tell them how much you like their products and leave your address in the email.  You might be surprised with what shows up from them.  Don't be afraid to tell them what you don't like.  I did a review for 5 Hour Energy from Smiley 360 (send us your email for a direct link to sign up) and had a bad review and they called me to personally talk to me about my experience to see what went wrong so they could fix the problem.  I only drank half the bottle and they wanted the rest of the bottle back.  They sent me a self addressed envelope to mail it back so they could do their test to see what was wrong.

~S~

Don't use coupons just because you have them.

Please be patient when you have coupons.  Just cause you have it doesn't mean you have to use it right then and there.  Being patient does pay off.  Wait for sales to use your coupons.  You get more bang for your buck that way.  You get the sale price plus your coupon for more savings, sometimes making items free.
~S~

Tip #2

Use Facebook to your advantage.  Follow your local restaurants on Facebook.  The more followers they have, it goes to reason, they will be more inclined to do more on Facebook, especially special offers and free meal give aways.  Here in Paducah, both of us have won free waffles from Gold Rush Cafe simply by entering the waffle contest they have on Fridays.  Sara has won multiple free meals from Whaler's Catch.  You may occasionally get a coupon by following one of the chain restaurants but you are far more likely to get something substantial following your local eateries.  Supporting the locals are good also because it helps create more jobs and you are more likely to get something homemade which is always better than frozen.

G.

Survey

We would like to hear from you so we can provide the information you want to see.  Please take a few minutes and take our 10 question survey here.

I got to try $75 worth of AMDRO weed and pest spray for free from bzzagent.com

<img src="http://img.bzzagent.com/image/amdro.jpg?Type=activity&Activity=5926910342&Campaign=6021188704&Uid=1461715&token=4f0e6cdc7b65b67b78ebeef6daf65c4c" alt=""/>

With AMDRO it is easy to switch back and forth between using the pest spray and the weed killer.  The power sprayer means you don't have to keep squeezing a trigger which is great for those with hand issues.  The absolute best part is it only takes 10 seconds to clean up.

It is definately worth signing up for BzzAgent!


G.

We're now on Twitter!

Be sure to follow us on Twitter!

Tip #1

One of the best tips I can provide is for you to set up an email account dedicated just to couponing.  From web sites we will recommend you sign up for their emails to a company to get special deals you can flood your primary inbox.  Creating an email address just for couponing will also provide you an email address to use when asked without giving out your primary email.  To date, I haven't had a problem with receiving spam but my primary email is protected from it since I don't have to give it out and just give out my couponing email address. It's easy to get a free email address from Gmail.

G.

Hello!

We are Greg and Sara, the Sibling Savers.  Sara started couponing before Extreme Couponing made it popular and she got Greg into it too.  Many of our friends asked us how we get the deals we do so we started www.siblingsavers.com.  The wesite is not up and running yet but we are going to get started here.  We will provide links to find useful information, score some great deals and answer any questions you have.  We hope to eventually provide product reviews as well.  Any questions may be posted on here or by emailing siblingsavers@gmail.com.  Anything Greg posts will be signed with a G and anything Sara posts will be signed with an S.  If there isn't a signature then it's a joint post.

We hope you all enjoy, learn something, and save some $$$$$!