PRINTER PROBLEMS?

I get a lot of questions asking for help when it comes to printing Internet Print (IP) coupons. I wish I was computer savvy and could answer all your questions, but sadly my answer to all computer problems is to REBOOT. However, I do have some answers and tips for you that may help solve and overcome some of your printing problems.
* You can only print 2 of each coupon, your IP address is tracked by the website you are printing it from and you will be locked out once 2 have printed.
* You cannot copy printable coupons (much the same as you can't copy coupons from your SmartSource/RedPlum inserts) - if you notice in the top right corner of all printables is a unique serial code or number. Even though the coupon is the same, each time it is printed, this number is unique. This is what distinguishes your coupons as authentic - so if a cashier ever questions you (thinking it's a copy) point out the unique number to prove it's an original, authentic coupon.
* If your printer is not turned on or jams or you run out of ink in the middle of a print, you can't reprint that particular coupon because to the website, the coupon was sent to a printer - it doesn't know that you ran out of ink or that your printer jammed so it still counts as one of your prints.
* Don't skimp on ink... if you print on a draft or fast setting and the barcode is too light to scan, the store doesn't have to honor it. To save on ink, set your printer to grayscale or black and white, the coupon does not have to be in color to be valid.
* Is printing coupons worth the paper and the ink? ABSOLUTELY! I save an additional $8-10 per week from my printables alone and that is far more than it costs me to print them. That's about $40 a month in EXTRA savings!
* What do you do if your computer or printer has trouble printing coupons? Because everyone's computer and computer settings are different, it's hard to offer an easy solution for everyone having print issues... but here's a few links I found that address common problems:
Troubleshooting with Printables
How to Print Your Coupons
Troubleshooting Guide for Printing Coupons
HTML Help for Printing Coupons

Grocery Smarts is expanding!!!

Great News!!! Grocerysmarts.com is expanding! We are now not only in Utah and Nevada but have recently branched out into Idaho, Southern California, and Eastern Washington. Below are the passports for these areas. So go tell your friends and family the great news!! Soon we will be available in Northern California, Western Washington, Oregon, and Arizona so hold on tight for those announcements!!!

Utah g84cjg

Nevada g89cjg

Idaho g83ro1

Southern California g92ro1

Eastern Washington g99ro1

***Remember, no inserts this weekend***

I will be out of town this weekend for the holiday so no posts til Tuesday. If anyone wants to email me a picture and breakdown of your shopping trip I'd love to post them! jodigardner@yahoo.com

Happy Memorial Day!

Pinching Your Pennies

If you haven't logged on to Pinching Your Pennies yet, your missing out! Here are 10 reasons to go check it out...
1- It's a place to learn and share how to save money in all aspects of your life. Utilize the search feature to find specific deals or messages.
2- A community of members who share the common goal of saving money. Share your deals by creating or replying to messages in the forums.
3- Read about unadvertised deals found by other members.
4- Advance info on upcoming sales. Sunday coupon previews, and info on printable coupons that you'll need for future sales.
5- Links to ready-made Grocerysmarts lists, and thousands of other shoppers to help you
understand them. If you have a question, chances are someone has already asked it!
6- SCREAMING online deals. Save as much money on your other purchases as you do on your groceries!
7- Savings on entertainment, local restaurant savings, and discounts on events going on in your area.
8- Mail in rebate offers, freebies, contests, and a whole forum for printable coupons.
9- Great recipes based on items you've gotten free or cheap using coupons and Grocerysmarts shopping lists.
10- Forums for discussing children, family life, hobbies, and more.
So log on to Pinching your pennies and browse around!

Walgreens Coupon

I know I already posted today but I had to let you in on the Walgreens coupon. May 20th and 21st you can get $5 off $25 purchase! Go HERE to print your out today and add it to your savings!

Alphabetical Coupon index is new and improved!

We have added a bonus feature to our website! The Alphabetical coupon index is now searchable! Now all you have to do is pop into the index and type in the coupon your looking for and up will come your coupon, info, and location! It's so much better than scanning through all of the hundreds we have in there. For more info about the coupon index go HERE. I went to Wal-Mart yesterday to price match other stores such as Target (which is not on grocerysmarts list). I had to find and clip my own coupons, which only took seconds longer, no biggie! I Saved $32.50 just using coupons alone!(Walmart doesn't tell you what you saved on the sales but I probably would have been close to $132.50!)This is a great tool, so next time you go shopping, go check it out!

Advanced Class Update!!!

I am so sorry, but it looks like we will be doing our advanced class on Sat. May 30th at 10:00am. I changed the day because we have quite a few that couldn't make it on Friday. I will be emailing your official Evite shortly with address and other info.

See you there!

Summer is a few days away! Let's get prepared!

Let's get ready for the heat, kids, and vacations! Here are some great picks from each store that will get us ready for this summer! Hurry cause sale ends Tuesday!

Albertsons - remember to use your doublers!
Ball Park Franks 2/5.29 plus free sara lee buns
Cream cheese .38 - double for -.12 overage
Kelloggs Cereal FREE
Hunts Ketchup .75
Suddenly Salad .35
Pepsi soft drinks 24-pack $4.88
Green Giant Steamers .50 My fav!
Yoplait Go-gurt 1.13 great to freeze for tasty summer treat!

Smiths
Bar S jumbo franks .39
Big K 2 liter sodas .67
Breyers ice cream 2.04

Harmons
watermelon .25 lb
corn on the cob .33 ea
USDA Choice Rib Eye Steak 5.99 lb
USDA Choice Petite Sirloin Steak 3.99 lb
These cuts are the best quality for BBQ's Just FYI
Oscar Meyer Franks .49
Meadow gold ice cream novelties 1.25
Creamies 1.79 My fav!
Cool Whip .75
Powerade .59

Sorry I didn't post all the stores, that would be too time consuming and I gotta scramble out the door to catch these deals while they last! Remember to check grocerysmarts website for the complete sales info!!
Let's bring on Summer!!!

Parade Magazine

I just learned something new recently. I went to GrocerySmarts to get ready for a shopping trip and when clipping out the coupons I needed I saw something strange. One of my items coupon was found in the Parade magazine! What???? I had no idea that there were coupons inside this magazine (probably because I've never opened it)! Well ladies, my suggestion would be to browse through it to see if you would ever use the coupons in it. I found 2 coupons in this weeks issue. $3 off Mall Cop DVD, and $1 off Healthy Ones oven roasted deli meat (on the back). So I clipped this out and will add this to the weekly inserts. Now when it says this I will be ready. It only takes a second for this and you'll be happy when you see it on sale!

Oodles of inserts!

Today I woke up to a pleasant site, Oodles of coupons packed into my papers! Some of you may wonder why we got 2 Smart sources. It is because next Sunday is Memorial Day Weekend! And that means time to spend with our families. It also means no coupons inserts. Remember that our inserts are not printed over Holiday weekends, but they double up on Smart Sources either the week before or the week after. So we will enjoy them while we can! You may notice that I only got 4 Red Plum and 4 of one of the Smart Sources. This is because they were missing out of my SL Tribunes. I called the 800 number (which is located on the right of my blog) and told them of the error. They were great to work with and told me that I would have them within the hour! This is why you need to go through your papers before noon ladies. The earlier you catch these kind of mistakes the better. If you call Monday they are usually out of them and you will be out of luck. The best they can do for you is add another week onto your subscription plan.

Don't forget to grab the Albertsons "3 day sale" sheet too! These are full of Albies coupons that you can combine with manufactured coupons. This isn't even the best part! 3 "Twice the Value" coupons! You can double up to 3 coupons with these, which even makes your deals better!

I also love restaurant coupons in our Sunday Papers! Make sure you grab these bad boys out and use them! I keep resturant coupons in my purse so I have them with me all the time in case my family decides at the spur of the moment to eat out! My husband also takes clients out to lunch frequently so I put a few in his wallet also. Saves you 5 bucks!

Always looking for ways to save, right!!!

Feeling Stressed?

Does this look like you when you Grocery shop? Hopefully without the dog! I have some people come up to me and say, "I just can't do it, its too stressful!" I have some simple tips to help you out!

1-Start with a small list, go to the store and stock up on just a few items. Don't overwhelm yourself with a 2 page grocery list. Check out my shopping trip HERE that was simple, easy, and rewarding (cause i saved so much).
2-Leave the little ones at home. Until your better at the Grocery Smarts process, don't bring your children with you to the store. Even if you have to go later in the evening or early in the morning, it's worth the peace and quiet while you work your magic!
3-Don't chase deals all over town. Just choose one store and stick with it. Remember, everything goes on sale every 3-6 months in a store, so just be patient and you'll see the sale come to your store eventually.
4-Set reasonable expectations for yourself. Know why you are doing this. Is it to save for a trip, pay off debt, save money for a special purchase, to pay the water bill, to give your family a little wiggle room in the budget or to help ease the burden of a spouse's job loss or wage reduction? Maybe you are a student family and just need every penny. Know your expectations, know your personal limits and try to find a happy medium of the two.
5-Start scaling back when you can. Most of us start out gangbusters the first few months stocking up on everything that's 4 and 5 stars. If there's an average sale week, just relax a bit and just buy perishables that week. There have been weeks go by that I didn't stock up. Of course I've been doing this for over a year now so I can do that, but it's nice to take a week or two off if you feel overwhelmed.
6-Stay organized. Keep your coupon organizer up to date, don't get behind. There's nothing worse having to organize yourself before you can clip coupons. Remember it should only be taking you minutes on Sunday to slip your coupons in your organizer. I love it when my file is current and I can print, clip, and go!
7- Plan Ahead. Take those few minutes after your list is printed and your coupons are cut to tell yourself how many of each item you are gonna buy. Pay attention to the sales/Promos. To maximize your dollar stay within the guidelines of the promos for that week. This can all be done before you leave.
8- Track your savings. Keep track of your monthly budget and savings. Print off one on my blog on the right side. When you can literally see a difference in your monthly spendings it is so rewarding that it makes the little stress here and there worth it!

Advanced Class Notice

Attention Hostesses!!!

We finally have a day set for our next advanced class. Sorry it's been awhile, my life is so crazy until school gets out so I've set the date for my next advanced class on Friday, May 29th at 10:00am. I will email all who have qualified an evite which will show the address and more details. Sorry for the delay but it will be worth it!
For those wondering what in the heck I'm talking about, check out how to hostess a class to qualify for one of my Advanced classes HERE!

Forever Stamps at Costco!

Forever Stamps display has been sighted at Costco. I'm pretty sure they are still selling them at the 0.42 cents a stamp package. I hear they're getting low so hurry over so you don't miss out! Post here if you see them!
Thanks Michelle for the tip!

Interesting Tips

I love finding a new tip for my home or other money savings advice. Here are a few I've found.

*Take your bananas apart when you get home from the store. When they are connected to the stem, they ripen faster.

*Store your chunks of cheese in aluminum foil, it will stay fresher longer and not mold.

*When you buy a tub of cake frosting from the store, whip it with your mixer for a few minutes. You can double it in size. You get to frost more cake/cupcakes with the same amount. You also eat less sugar and calories per serving.

*To warm biscuits, pancakes, or muffins that were refrigerated, place them in a microwave with a cup of water. The increased moisture will keep the food moist and help it reheat faster.

*No mosquito repellent? No worries, Place a dryer sheet in your pocket. It will keep the mosquitoes away.

*To vacuum something out of a heat register or under the fridge add an empty paper towel roll or empty gift wrap roll to your vacuum. It can be bent or flattened to get in narrow openings.

*Before you pour sticky substances into a measuring cup, fill with hot water. Dump out the hot water, but don't dry cup. Next, add your ingredient, such as peanut butter, and watch how easily it comes right out.

*Use your hair conditioner to shave your legs. It's cheaper than shaving cream and leaves your legs really smooth. It's also a great way to use up the conditioner you bought but didn't like when you tried it in your hair.

*Put small piles of cornmeal where you see ants. They eat it, take it 'home,' can'tdigest it so it kills them. It may take a week or so, especially if it rains, but it works and you don't have the worry about pets or small children being harmed!

*Peel a banana from the bottom and you won't have to worry about the 'stringy things'. That's how the monkey's do it!

*Easy deviled eggs...Put cooked egg yolks in a zip lock bag. Seal, mash till they are all broken up. Add remainder of ingredients, reseal, keep mashing it up mixing thoroughly, cut the tip of the baggy, squeeze mixture into egg. Just throw bag away when done. Easy clean up!

Post a comment and share a tip or money savings advice to all us bargain hunters!

Last minute shopping!

I think my new title should be "queen of last minute shopping!" It gets so crazy for me, I can hardly find time to sneak away to the store. Anyway, along with last minute shopping comes the lack of items in stock. My Albertsons was out of 6 items I wanted! This is upsetting to me, and I know you all know how it feels. I ended up not being able to get my $10 off $30 group. Out of bandaids and Sudafed. I am definitely emailing ole Mike (My store manager) to complain. I urge everyone to do this so they will get on the ball. Anyway I didn't save as much as i'd like, I'm sure you all did better than me but here is my breakdown.
Total Value of purchase $96.29
Total Saved $53.13
Total Spent $43.16
Total percentage saved 55%
The worse part about this trip was that I forgot my double coupons at home!!! Good Grief!!!
I did pick up 5 rainchecks that I plan on taking advantage of.
My favorite buy this trip would have to be the Capri Suns for $0.75 that I was running low on, and just in time for Summer! Also the $2.00 off peelie that was on the Wheat Thins display! It said to buy a Family Size Nabisco Cracker and one pkg of Crystal Light and get $2.00 off! The Crackers were on sale for $1.99, so they were free! Of course you had to buy the Crystal Light but we love it!

Albertsons Preview list for this weeks sale

I hope everyone had a wonderful Mothers Day! I loved getting breakfast in bed, even though it's just once a year! Hey, we have to take it where we can get it, right? Anyway, here's the LINK to this Wednesday's sale. Don't forget to use your 3 double coupons we got in this Sunday's papers. They're good through tomorrow (5/12)

Stock up on Postage Stamps!

After you shop using Grocery Smarts for awhile, you will get the urge to save money on everything you buy. Anytime I have to spend money I think to myself, how can I get this cheaper? 80% of the time there is a way. I will try posting things here and there that I find a great deal on other than groceries, and I hope you will also post comments on anything you find that is a deal too! i.e. clothing stores, entertainment, restaurants, etc. So here's my first one. You have to act fast because on Monday, postage is going up but you can buy online HERE to get the Forever stamps. The forever stamps are guaranteed FOREVER! No matter what the going rate is. So stock up as much as you can tomorrow (Sunday)!!!

Stamp Out Hunger

What a great opportunity to give back. Tomorrow, May 9th, is the nationwide "Stamp Out Hunger" food drive. Place non-perishable foods by your mailbox and your letter carrier will pick it up and deliver all the food to your local food bank. So let's all go through our pantries and donate all the excess food that we get such great deals on. I bought tons of peanut butter about 6 months ago and the expiration date is in June/July of this year. There's no way we will use it all up by then, so what a great way of rotating through our food storage too! Let's get our kids involved so they can gain something from giving!

www.helpstampouthunger.com

KFC Rainchecks

I am assuming from the overwhelming response, that KFC was floored by the number of free meals they had to give out the last few days! My husband and I went for lunch yesterday (wed) and the lines were huge and we had to wait 30 min for our meals. Poor KFC, see what Oprah does! Wouldn't you like to have that kind of power that she has? LOL! Anyway, they cannot redeem anymore meals at this time but will give you a raincheck if you were able to print out the coupon in time. Read below their instructions to redeem them by 5/19.

"We are so sorry, but due to the overwhelming response to our FREE Kentucky Grilled Chicken™ meal coupon, we can no longer redeem the free coupon at this time. But we will honor our commitment to giving you a free Kentucky Grilled Chicken meal.
Please visit a participating KFC restaurant for a rain check form. Complete the form, attach your original coupon , and give it to the KFC restaurant manager or postmark per the form’s instructions, by May 19, 2009, and we’ll send you a rain check for your free Kentucky Grilled Chicken meal at a later date, plus a free Pepsi with our compliments. Your participating KFC restaurant will provide you with the form you need.
Please note that the redemption periods of the rain checks will vary. All other terms and conditions of the original free Kentucky Grilled Chicken coupon will apply."

Free 2 piece meal at KFC!!!

Many of you may have already seen this deal on Oprah! KFC is offering free printable coupons seen HERE for a free 2 piece grilled chicken meal with 2 sides and a biscuit for FREE! Don't we love free!!! So click on and redeem yours today because who knows how long we will be able to print them. You can print as many as you want, but be polite and only print what you really think you will use. Hurry cause you can only use them through 5/19!!!

last day shopping and bread follow up

I ran to Albertsons today (my first time this sale) and grabbed a few items I needed and wanted. I had two goals today, get my 10 items so I can get another set of movie tickets, and get a few items I needed for dinner. This is my spread. I know what your saying, "what is she gonna do with all those pop tarts!" I also ask myself that question. They were out of the rice krispy treats, and I already used my $1.50 coupons on cereal a few weeks earlier. Sometimes you have to compromise right there at the store and get other items to replace the items out of stock. It's not that pleasant, but I try to have a back-up plan before I leave the house just in case. So the treat at my house for the next few months will be pop tarts! Hopefully my kids will get so sick of them they won't want me to buy them after this!
My favorite item this week would have to be the ground turkey, bogo (buy one get one free). Brings them down to $2.99 each and I had a $2/2 off coupon. Final price is $1.99 each! This is good quality ground turkey! Also everyones gotta love the free flour tortillas, right? This is a staple at my house!

Okay my favorite part is my breakdown...

Total value of purchase $73.16

Total Saved $49.08

Total Spent $24.08

Total Percentage saved 67%

plus, here's the kicker...2 FREE MOVIE TICKETS!!!! (valued at $24.00) so realistically I got all this stuff for FREE. Who doesn't love shopping when it's this much fun!!!

So I tried out the whole wheat bread recipe and it was a success!!! This is at least $12.00 worth of bread, and my family will actually eat this wheat bread. My favorite ingredient would have to be the instant yeast. No longer are you waiting around all day for bread to rise. From start to finish this only took me 45 minutes! I hope you try this out, and let me know how you liked it!

Preview Albertsons upcoming sale!

Click HERE to view the upcoming sale for Albertsons this coming Wednesday. I see some good stock up items in the pharmacy!

Whole Wheat Bread Recipe!

I don't know what it is about making homemade bread. Doesn't it make you feel good inside!?! Well, maybe it's just me. I feel like such a good homemaker, a good mom, a good wife, and living frugal. Plus, there's nothing better than eating homemade bread right out of the oven! I wanted to share a super great whole wheat bread recipe that I heard is the bomb! I got it from one of my favorite blogs that I will share with you ... myfoodstoragedeals.blogspot.com. I am going to make this bread today for the first time, so I will let you know how it turns out. I hope some of you will try it with me and let me know how your turns out!

Emilie's Whole Wheat Bread

Makes 4 8/4 inch loaves.

7 c. whole wheat flour (grind your own if you have a wheat grinder)

2/3 c. vital wheat gluten

2 1/2 T. instant yeast

5 c. steaming hot water (120-130 F)

2 T. salt

2/3 c. oil

2/3 c. honey or 1 c. sugar (I like honey the best!)

2 1/2 T. bottled lemon juice

5 c. whole wheat flour

Mix together the first three ingredients in your mixer with a dough hook. Add water all at once and mix for 1 minute; cover and let rest for 10 minutes (this is called sponging). Add salt, oil, honey or sugar, and lemon juice and beat for 1 minute. Add last flour, 1 cup at a time, beating between each cup. Beat for about 6-10 minutes until dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl. This makes very soft dough.Pre-heat oven for 1 minute to lukewarm and turn off. Turn dough onto oiled counter top; divide, shape into loaves place in oiled bread pans. Let rise in warm oven for 10-15 minutes until dough reaches top of pan. Do not remove bread from oven; turn oven to 350 F and bake for 30 minutes. Remove from pans and cool on racks. This recipe can be halved to make 2 loaves.

*She ONLY uses Bakers Secret 8x4 inch non stick pans (we could only find them at Smith's grocery store, strange enough).

**Another tip..when the dough is put into the bread pans, squish the dough softly into the corners of your bread loaf pans. This will make your bread cook more evenly and not have the large lump in the middle of your loaf.