Back Due To Popular Demand: 7 ways reading blogs is saving me money!

I have such a HUGE following that I've decided to give this blog another try. Hahaha, not really. In all seriousness, Michael goes to Full Sail, a school for the entertainment arts (computer animation, recording, etc). All of his friends hear about his steals and want in on the goods. So, I've come back!

What I've been up to:

1) CVS update: better than ever, totally in love with cvs!
Spring spending: 10.11.
Year to date savings: 1677.77
That's right, I've been ballin it up! I've pretty much mastered the system, but still depend on a few blogs to get me through.

2)Publix: I have found that you can score some pretty sweet deals at this TERRIBLE grocer. I find it over priced, but when you combine manufacturer coupons, b1g1 deals, and competitor coupons some pretty crazy stuff can result. Yesterday, for instance, I scored 112 dollars of grocerys (ALL of which we will use) for a low 4.69. Not to mention, we will be getting back 36.50 in mail in rebates and a home depot giftcard. The home depot gift card will be especially useful for:

3)My Garden! : After planting a few tomato plants, some zuchini and other good stuff, I have made a full fledged apartment garden! I'm now growing zuchini, squash, tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, spinach, salad mix, basil, and some other stuff I can't remember. I hope this goes amazing. I got all my potting soil, pots, and miracle grow FREE from CVS. I got the plants and seeds from home depot with a gift card! Price of garden: FREE! Gotta love it :)

4)Garage Sale: My community had a community wide garage sale at the beginning of May. I found out about it a few weeks in advance and started saving my CVS extras. In only a few weeks of saving and 6 hours garage sale-ing I made 108 dollars! WHOOOP! (whoop is the official sound of my University, TEXAS A&M, the best school in all of history!) My new plan is to save up all of my extras and sell them at the bi-annual community garage sale. GOAL: 1,000 dollars profit next time (almost a month of bills :) )

5)Grocery Budget: I now have my grocery budget down to 20 a week. In reality, I will be spending ZERO dollars :). This is how I do it: take EVERY survey pinecone research sends me, buy stuff with ECB's that I can use a mail in rebate on, etc. These sources amount to about 20 a week, or all we need for groceries. AWESOME!

6) Energy Saving: I have been really into saving the planet (and my energy bill) for some time. I am even more into it now! I have been reading up on how to conserve gas, making a conscious effort to turn off lights whenever possible, and finding ways to use less energy around the house. It is really paying off. Our bill has been ALOT lower. If it wasn't for the hubby and sister, I wouldn't even use the AC!

7) Best Rate Guarentee: This blog has made one of my dreams a reality. I absolutely love to travel. It is amazing. NOW, I will be able to see ALL of Florida while I'm here for the price of gas (which is insane, but still). This blog can get you a free hotel stay, or multiple hotel stays, or should I say INFINITE hotel stays. Tomorrow night will be my first stay in a hotel! We're going to Kissimee for a MUCH needed vacation. Dinner at Landry's (on rainforest cafe because they SUCKED), a hotel, mulled wine from the winery we visited in gorgeous St Augustine, the pool, and lunch for 11 bucks thanks to restaurant.com.