Are you ready to hear about this week’s challenge?

The Challenge

Buy only products on sale and that you have a coupon for, excluding dairy, meats, and produce, which rarely offer coupons. For these products, you can only buy products on sale.

Was this a challenge for you?

It has never been a challenge for me to buy products on sale versus specific brands. I would have a harder time if someone told me to buy specific products without the option to swap for their cheaper alternatives. I’m cheap at heart and love sales. The challenge for me was finding enough coupons that coordinated with the sales in the stores. I have enough of a stock of dried and canned food in my cupboards that I am totally fine passing by a product that is full price. But what if I only find seven coupon and sale combos? That’s not going to work for a family my size. So I’m still working on finding more coupons. I did better this last week by printing a bunch of coupons off at Coupons.com through My Points. Not only do I get to save when I use the coupons, but every time I use a coupon, I am earning points to go towards gift cards of my choice.

Did it effect the quality of food you purchased?

Not at all. I am typically not picky about the brand of the food we eat, and I actually think that food I got for a great deal tastes even better (yes, it’s all in the head….and that’s totally ok with me!)

Were you successful or not?

I was successful in that I was able to use more coupons as well as pay better attention to the sales before I set foot in the store. I even carried the store’s circular in my purse to remind myself of the things that my store was featuring that week. I stuck with my list, and didn’t wander up and down aisles. I consider that a huge success.

Here are a few Sales Shopping tips from Clair:

1. Either get a newspaper or see if Beth or Clair cover the stores you regularly shop at and will then tell you what’s on sale that week. They’ll even show you which coupons to use with which sales.
2. Start reading the sales ads and buying things according to that.
3. Then you’ve got to meal plan around what’s on sale. It makes for fun variety. (Plus, I always store meat in my freezer for future use, so there’s always variety around)
4. Finally, walk into the store with blinkers on. No impulse buying, no brand specifics unless they’re on sale and definitely use lots of coupons!

How do you make combining sales with coupons work to your advantage? Don’t forget that Beth and Clair will have a Budget Bootcamp link up for those of you unofficially following the challenge. And definitely don’t forget the weekly giveaways associated with the Bootcamp!

Related posts:

1. Organize Those Coupons! – Budget Bootcamp Week #5
2. Grocery Price Book – Budget Bootcamp #7
3. Gathering Coupons – Budget Bootcamp #4

That’s how I’ve been feeling. Even my normal creative outlets (blogging and photography in particular) have seemingly run dry. After nearly 2 years of blogging it seems I’ve run out of something to say. Except that it appears that in my emptiness, I found something to say, didn’t I?

Luckily, my sister is still as creative as ever. I got this teaser picture of Reese in my email inbox over the weekend. I can’t wait to see the rest. While I was in Utah a week ago, Reese stayed with my sister, who dressed her up and took some glamour shots. My jaw hit the floor when I saw this picture of my 6 YEAR OLD. Wow.

My sister amazes me constantly. I am in awe of her talent.

Sisters are good. So are friends. They help me stay on track when I’m feeling uninspired. They keep me busy with projects to work on and phone calls to cheer me up (you know who you are!) and emails to keep me on my toes. It’s all good.

Kids are good. Thank goodness for kids that keep me busy and for a particular little boy who sings at the top of his voice so that I won’t forget he’s there. That same little boy who I find snuggled in my bed when I wake up every morning. He’s my companion. My friend. My Little Buddy.

Life is good. It really is. I just have to remember that when I’m feeling empty….

Here’s to the Sisters, the Friends, and the Kids in my life. What would I do without them?

PS–While you’re here, don’t forget to enter my current giveaways!

Visit my community!

Related posts:

1. Thankful Turkeys
2. The sweet taste of Accomplishment!
3. Writer’s Workshop–Busy, Busy, Busy

I feel like I’ve done quite a few introductions over the last few months. Like this one for my recent SITS spotlight day. Or this one for the Ultimate Blog Party in March. To sum it up, I’m Lolli, mother of 5 kids, ages 4, 6, 8, 10, and 12. My husband, CandyMan, and I have a business making foreign language software (www.peanutbuttersticks.com) AND I’m a photographer AND I blog AND I stay at home with the kids. I don’t get enough sleep and I eat too much candy. I have a weekly blog carnival called Give Me Your Best Shot where readers can show off their favorite photo of the week. I have regular giveaways (see links on the sidebar under my family picture) and photo tips and tutorials. Oh, and comments are my favorite treat (definitely like those in bulk, too!). Why don’t you comment here with your favorite kind of candy….

Have a wonderful 4th of July!

Related posts:

1. Chic Click Carnival
2. Give Me Your Best Shot! #1
3. Ultimate Blog Party – Ready to Party!