Homemade pizza dough

Now that I've been couponing and saving for a while, I'm looking for alternative ways to cut our spending even more, and I believe I've found a great way to do so. I can't believe it took me so long, but a gift of a Kenwood mixer from my sweet mama really kicked me into gear.

So what is this new saving method? Homemade pizza dough, of course! I know, I know, all of you experienced bakers and fabulous home-keeping moms must be rolling your eyes at me, but a Betty Crocker I am not, so this is huge for me. Usually when we have pizza, it's take out, which can definitely add up.

I thought I'd try 2 recipes at once for variety, and chose a thick, chewy crust recipe and a thin crust one. I followed these dough recipes pretty closely and I was really happy with both, so I thought I'd share with you if you were looking for pizza dough recipes.

I can't believe I baked 3 pizza pies (1 ham/cheese, 1 hawaiian and 1 ham/veggie) while watching the Canadian Mens' Hockey team take on the US team, but just like the gold medal, the pizza turned out golden.

I used the first recipe to make a large thick crust pizza and I loved how thick and chewy it was. If you love more dough vs toppings, this one's for you. I split the 2nd recipe into 2 balls of dough and made 2 thin crust pizzas which were delicious and crisp.

I spent $12 on the toppings which included ham, mozzarella cheese, tomatoes, onions, red peppers and pizza sauce, so $4 per pizza is pretty cheap - especially since we all had several pieces each for lunch, and there's almost 2 whole pizzas left. I also have onions, half a block of mozzarella cheese, some ham and 3 red peppers left over. Great value, and what a great way to save. I'm really looking forward to to making more of these and I can see us saving so much more already. These really are easy to make up on the day you are needing them, but I'm planning on making extras for freezing as well.

If you're looking for a quick breadsticks recipe, this one turned out great for me as well.

Happy baking your way to savings!

An easy way to earn swagbucks every day

Here's an easy way to earn swagbucks that was posted on the SB site.

Basically, once you are signed up for Swagbucks, you can review their Special Offers and skip each offer, and at the end you will be rewarded with swagbucks. You can do this once a day. I just tried it and got myself 3 swagbucks.

Giveaway - Nature's Path bars and coupons!

UPDATE: Melanie and Naomi, you are the 2 winners of the Nature's Path giveaway! You both each win 5 bars of your choice and 5 $1 coupons - congratulations! Please email me with your information and I'll send your package out. Thanks everyone for participating and thanks, Nature's Path!


Thanks to Nature's Path, we have some fabulous goodies to give away today. See the video for more details. My family's tried these bars and they are so tasty, and good for you too! I love their variety and their packaging is pretty snazzy too. Cam can't get enough of them and is so sad that I have to ration them, and gets upset when I tell him the bars are for Mrs.Smith class students, blog readers and Facebook fans!



So, to win, you must: (complete all 4 steps)
1) be a Facebook Fan
2) be a Mrs.Smith-ExtremeShopper blog follower
3) post which bars you would like (you can choose a variety of up to 5 different bars) and
4) tell me if you've tried Nature's Path products before

I will pick the 2 winners via random number generator on Saturday night (Feb27) at 9pm PST!

Good news, I'll be giving away these bars and coupons to upcoming classes too (while supplies lasts) and there will be more coupon giveaways here on the blog and on Facebook as well!

Good luck!

Disclosure: No compensation was received in exchange for this review or mention by Mrs.Smith except for the sponsorship of the product and coupons to be shared with Mrs.Smith-Extreme Shopper students, blog readers and Facebook fans.

Shop with Mrs.Smith

Hi Extreme Shoppers,

Here's a video of a small shop I did this week, hope you enjoy! If you have any comments, questions or requests of video topics (having to do with shopping/couponing) please post below! Thank you!



By the way, did you catch the savings? $29.99! Woohoo!

SWAGBUCKS - 10 times your points!

Well, that was a surprise, I woke up this morning to find that I had 10x the Swagbucks I had when I went to bed. Overnight, the Swagbucks Fairies multiplied my account, and now everytime I use Swagbucks for my searches I can potentially win 10-20 points instead of 1-2. Bad news is that everything in the SwagStore is also 10x more expensive, lol. But it's all relative. I'm still saving and making $ just by searching the net like I would normally. We're on track for covering Christmas gifts with our points so I'm happy with that. Thank you to everyone who has joined under Mrs.Smith, I really appreciate it. Getting referrals is the fastest way to earn points so go tell your friends and family and get them to join under you.

Another way to get Swagbucks is to use Swagcodes, and Stacey had a question about what Swagcodes are, so here's the information from the Swagbucks site:

- Swag Codes are strings of text that you can apply for instant Swag Bucks.
- Swag Codes can appear anywhere, and at any time, throughout the Swag Bucks network. Here is a list of strategies you can use to maximize your odds of finding Swag Codes:
1) read the swagbucks blog
2) sign up for the swagbucks newsletter
3) download the swagbucks toolbar
4) Submit a poll
5) follow SB on Twitter/Facebook/Flikr/YouTube
6) Download the SB widget

Once you find a code, copy and paste the code to your SB Home page - there should be a box under your account info that says "GIMME" and your account will be updated.

Note, do not share active codes as it is grounds for account deactivation! You can share hints but not exact locations as to where to find it. I've been able to find codes by following on their FB page and on their blog sometimes.

Not yet a Swaggernaut? Join here and start searching and saving!

Swagbucks birthday - 6 points tomorrow!

If you don't have a Swagbucks account yet, don't sign up... YET! Wait til tomorrow which is Swagbucks' birthday, and as part of their celebrations they are giving a code for 6 Swagbucks to new accounts. So come back tomorrow and click here to open your account, get the code and get rewarded right away.

For those of you who have not heard of Swagbucks, it is a search engine powered by Google, and you are rewarded with points at random times and these points can be traded in for prizes and giftcards!

Note: All links are my referral links, thank you for signing up under me!

Coupon Trade

I've started a post on the discussion tab on the Facebook page, go here to post your trades, hopefully we can get some coupons traded and save each other some money!

Upcoming Classes

If you're looking to join a class, here's my upcoming class schedule:

March 8 (surrey)
March 10 (Maple Ridge)
March 15 (Port Coquitlam)
March 18 (Walnut Grove)
March 26 (Surrey)
April 1 (Langley)
April 20 (Langley)

I book classes around my family's schedule and only book a limited number each month, so if you are wanting to host a class, please contact me asap with a few potential dates in mind.

If you've attended my class, feel free to refer the class to your friends and family, and when they host a class, you'll end yourself a referral fee!

Thank you!

RCSS - Great flyer this week!

Can't wait to get my RCSS flyer - looks like there are some awesome deals and freebies available this week! Stay tuned!

Glade coupons

I have several Glade coupons that are expiring Feb 28 available for grabs on the FB page... post there if you want them!

Coupon Swap at Mrs.Smith's Facebook Page

This Wednesday and Thursday, Mrs.Smith will be hosting the first coupon swap on the Facebook page here. Do you have coupons you won't be using? Why not list them (for free) and see if someone out there wants them and perhaps they'll have coupons you might want? Check it out - let's get those coupons traded and used!

Rules:
1) You must be a Mrs.Smith FB page fan.
2) Include # of each coupon you have, coupon name, UPC and expiry date - so your listing should look like this:"2x .50cents off any Dempsters Bread, 047129520, June 20/10."
3) You must make your own arrangements with whoever you are trading with to mail/meet up to exchange coupons
4) Only family-friendly coupons will be accepted for posting. Mrs.Smith reserves the right to delete any inappropriate coupons.
5) Mrs.Smith is not responsible for any coupon trades.

Hopefully this will be successful and everyone will get coupons they are looking for!

The Bachelor and Olivieri

Is watching The Bachelor one of your guilty pleasures? If so, why not parlay that into possibly winning a trip to St.Lucia? I received an email today from Olivieri and they are having a contest where you and 5 friends can win an exclusive trip! Go here to enter - you have to tell them what you like best about The Bachelor (they give you a few choices) and you are also asked 2 questions about what your favourite Olivieri sauces/pastas are. Good luck!

If you're in the mood for Olivieri, go here to get your $1 coupon.

Saving on Food: Grow your own

Growing up, I hated gardening. Mainly because the only exposure I had to it was not the planting or cultivating of all things beautiful, but rather, the gathering and disposal of a gardener's nemesis - weeds. My dad would inevitably call for me, show me a bucket and a weeder tool and point me to all the messy patches in the garden, and I would spend hours upon torturous hours, weeding.

So it didn't surprise me that when I became a teenager, I avoided the garden like the plague. Yes, there were still times my services were still required, like the time when my dad bought a truckload full of topsoil with manure and my brother and I had to spread it out all over the garden in the rain. Good times.

However once I got married, I found a love for growing vegetables. In my first condo, we won a lottery for a garden plot and I planted the heck out of that small plot - growing tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, salads, beans, peas, strawberries, carrots and more. My daughter grew up learning how to pull out little baby carrots and washing it with the garden hose before chomping down in its earthly, freshly picked goodness.

I've since moved houses, and now I'm in a house with a small yard so I do all my gardening in containers. I yearn for land that I can grow rows and rows of veggies, but my humble containers still make me happy each summer when I can send the kids out to pick fresh tomatoes, pick a fresh salad and more.

Being in the zone I am living in, I try to wait til March before planting but this year February's been so warm I think I'm going to start earlier, at least by turning over the soil and prepping it. I have a lot of work to do to bring the garden up from its winter dormancy. I'm hoping to grow enough to cover a big portion of our summer veggie needs this year. I'm dreaming of summer days of zucchini, beans, peppers, tomatoes, strawberries, chives, carrots and lettuce...

more to come...

Neutrogena sample offer

Living Well is having a freebie right now, get 1 of 5 Neutrogena products! Go here to sign up - supplies are limited!

Payless 15% coupon

Spring is around the corner and perhaps you're looking for new goodies for your tender tootsies? If you're in the market for new shoes, get a 15% coupon from Payless by signing up for their newsletter. Once signed up, you'll receive a 15% coupon, good online or instore. In Canada, go here to find a location near you.

TODAY - Free pancakes at IHOP! (ONLY IN USA)

As posted previously, today is Free Pancake Day at IHOP *ONLY IN THE USA*, where between 7am-10pm they will serve you their famous 3-stack pancakes for free! Go here to find a location near you.

For us Canadians, they have all you can eat buttermilk pancakes available with any combo order.

Coupon shopping in the USA

Mrs.Smith does USA: Shopping and saving, that is. Introducing a NEW class to our lineup, this class is called "Guide to Extreme Shopping in the USA." This is a 3-part class, and the cost is $45 per person.

Part 1 (Skype or video): I will walk you through various resource sites and coupon printing sites. I will discuss my favourite sites to get US deals, and work on deal scenarios at various shops for that week and show you coupons and other coupon items such as catellinas. During this class, we will pick a date as to when we will continue part 3 which is a trip down to the USA.

Part 2 (remote): Once the trip date is set, we will, via a private blog, discuss various shopping and savings scenarios and you will be responsible for deciding what you want to purchase and where, and printing out the appropriate coupons. I will be available to discuss your shopping scenarios, discuss what coupons to use, what deals to work out, etc.

Part 3 (in person): we will drive down to the USA and hit the stores we've discussed with the game plan we've discussed. We'll shop the stores and I'll share tips/secrets, and discuss how coupon shopping is different in US/Canada and show you real life, real time examples (such as catalinas, RR's and so forth). I'll introduce you to various stores, go over their store policies and discuss best prices for items. I'll go through check out with you at each store as well.

This class is for you if you:
1) shop often in the US and want to learn more about coupon shopping and saving for grocery/household items
2) have never shopped in the US for groceries/household items but would like to
3) are considering whether it is worth your time/effort to drive to the States to shop
4) want to explore other ways to shop/save

This class is NOT an endorsement to shop USA or a battle cry against shopping in our Canadian stores. This class is just simply an introduction for Canadians to US shopping/saving and the decision on how and where you spend your grocery/household items dollars is up to you.

Please note parts 2 and 3 will happen within the same week, or at mutual agreement, can happen later if everyone in the class is ok with working up their own deals with some help from me.

A minimum of 3 people must sign up for each session and a mutual date for parts 2 and 3 must be agreed upon during class (part 1). The first 6 people to sign up for each session will have their transportation included in the class cost.

Please contact me at kmemeric at hotmail (dot) com if you are interested in attending a US class/session.

For those who are interested in just the class and not the trip portion, you can audit this class (no participation) by viewing a video I have set up on a private blog. Cost is $25. Access to the blog will be granted for 2 weeks from date of payment. If you're interested in this option please email me as well! This class option begins April 15.

(Why the higher cost for these classes? First, the original Extreme Shopper class is offered at an extremely lower price as it is my hope to positively impact as many people as possible and want to offer this class at as low a rate as I can. Secondly, the US classes are very indepth, and takes a lot of time/effort and include videos, not to mention 3 sessions (part 1, 2, 3). Gas costs are factored into the costs. And lastly, the benefit of having another market and source of savings is considered in the price of the classes).

Free McDonalds' coffee

McD's will be offering free coffee all day from March 1 - 14, no purchase necessary. The freebie is supposed to be for any size but ask first, just to be on the safe side. The last time there was a freebie giveaway, they were giving away mostly small's but I heard some people were able to get upgrades for free or for pennies.

No Frills Dollar Days

Today is the first day of No Frills Dollar Days, which a lot of us have been looking forward to. I went specifically for the Catelli sauce which is $1 for a 700ml jar, and I had .50cents off coupons for them, so I stocked up at .50cents per jar! I stocked up my freezer with some cheap hams ($7-$9!!!!), various desserts ($1) and Egg Creations (free!) Kudos to the NoFrills on Como Lake as their shelves were FULL, so they should not run out anytime soon.

Go here for a list of GVRD area No Frills stores.

Go here for a list of the Dollar Day items.

Living Well coupons

There are some printable coupons at Living Well, including:

- $2.00 on PEPCID® Complete
- $2.00 on TYLENOL® Muscle Aches & Body Pain (72s and 110s only)
- $1.50 on Children’s and Infant’s Pain Reliever.
- $1.00 on any REACH® ULTRACLEAN™ toothbrush
- $2.00 on MOTRIN® Cold & Sinus
- $2.00 on Tylenol® Cold Plus Mucous Relief
- $2.00 on ZANTAC®
- $5.00 on new NICORETTE® Extreme Chill™ Gum
- $10.00 when you purchase a box of NICORETTE® Patch 7’s and a box of NICORETTE® Gum 105’s.
- Get a FREE**** OneTouch® meter with the purchase of 100 OneTouch® Ultra® Test Strips

What I especially love about these ones especially the Tylenol, Reach, and Motrin ones are that there are other coupons out there that can be stacked with these ones, which will make for cheap meds when combined with a sale.

Shop with Mrs.Smith : London Drugs, Langley BC

Hi Extreme Shoppers,

I've decided to name my videos "Shop with Mrs. Smith" - and I'll be sharing how I shop, tips, receipts and so on. This video is just one I did, and I hope to do more videos with blog readers and Facebook fans soon! I hope you enjoy!

The loot (guess how much I spent?):

- 6 Glade 3-wick candles
- 2 Old Spice deodorant
- 2 Covergirl Continuous Colour Lipstick
- 4 Pampers wipes boxes
- 2 Tylenol 100's EZ Tabs
- 1 Ocean Spray Diet drink
- 2 Knorrs Ready to Serve soup
- 2 OB 18's packs
- 1 Jergens Lotion
- 1 Jergens Handwash
- 8 Catelli Healthy Harvest pasta

The video:


Please forgive the filming and audio, I'm just getting used to it and am working on getting better filming equipment! I was also hoping to get some Luminary candles (6 of them) for free, but they were out so I got a raincheck for them. Also forgot to get some free REACH toothbrushes, and they didn't have a few other items I had planned to get, but all in all, a pretty good haul, and I must say the service the the LD Langley branch was top notch. The cashier was smiling and pleasant during the entire transaction. So was her supervisor, who had to open up another till to help other customers, so I was grateful for that. Hats off to the London Drugs in Langley!

Why I Stockpile, part 2

This is post 2 of Why I Stockpile, the first post can be found here. Today I wanted to address 2 of the main concerns that come up in class whenever I mention stockpiling. Before I do that, I want to reiterate that stockpiling should not be synonymous with hoarding, but stockpiling is just to ensure you have stock on hand when you need it. A good rule of thumb would be "buy what you use, and use what you buy."

The first issue is always COST. When you purchase more items, the more they cost, right? Not in the Extreme Shoppers' world. With coupons, the more you buy, the more you save. Stockpile one or 2 extra of things you buy each month. They will tide you over until you find more coupons or a better deal comes along. Only stockpile more than 2 of the items when they are at their absolute bottom price - ie, when they are free or close to it. And truthfully, if I run out of anything, I've been known to tell my family that we'll eat something else until that item comes back on sale or until I have coupons for those items. With the variety of food available in my stockpile, this has worked well for us. The most common item that comes to mind is cereal, as my kids tend to eat their favourite kinds first. I do admit there has been times I have purchased items WITHOUT coupons, and I try not to beat myself up for it. I figure with what I'm saving each month, a little splurge here or there is acceptable, and sometimes, a little couponing break is good. I have been stopped at grocery stores by students/readers and they teasingly ask me,"you've got coupons for all those things, and are getting them all free, right?" LOL.

Personally, I stockpile about 2 months worth of canned food. Some might say that's too much, others will say that's too little. I'm not sure where I stand on that yet, I'm still trying to figure this out for myself as well. I do have enough to last me for at least 72 hours in case of an emergency. My stockpile can probably feed my neighbourhood for at least a day or two as well. If you are just starting on a stockpile, getting ready a 72-hour ration kit might be a good place to start - just change up the items every few months to make sure they don't go bad.

The areas that I am completely overstocked on is household cleaning/paper goods/toiletry items. I really have no need to shop for any cleaning item, tp, shampoo, creams or razors, feminine products or even laundry detergent, swiffer stuff, and so on. I'm not saying this to brag, but to show you, after just a couple months, you can cross these items off your monthly shop list, thus saving you money. In fact, the only real items I need to buy each month are perishables like diary, vegetables, meats and fruits. I do restock the canned goods, shampoos, paper goods, etc as they get used up, only if I can get them dirt cheap or free, which is yet another benefit of stockpiling: I can WAIT until the best sale comes around, where I can get the items for cheap or free with my coupons - no more paying full price for anything. Nowadays my "buy" rate is at about 10% and getting lower : if I can get the items for 10% of retail or less, I will consider it. Recently I have even passed by some FREE deals just because I didn't want to have to pay tax on those items, even if they were free, because I knew I had enough of those items in my stockpile. Now THAT's extreme!

Nowadays if I buy stuff that I already have, it's for classes as I give items away as door prizes or hostess gifts. It is a blessing NOT to have to scramble for our daily items, and my hope is for everyone who reads this blog or takes my classes to be able to say the same as well.

Now, WHERE to store the stash? I tell my students, don't compare stashes with anyone. Because everyone's lifestyles, homes, availability of storage space, etc is different. Store what you can and make sure you can get to the stash when you need to. There is no need for your garage or spare room to look like a mini grocery store. If you have a small home, use hidden space like under your bed, above cupboards, under the stairs. I would recommend you keep like items together just so it doesn't get too disorganized. As for myself, right now I have a toiletries cabinet in my guest bath that I use, and a small cupboard in my kitchen for canned goods. Overflow canned goods and tp and paper goods are stored on a shelf in my garage. I do have a freezer in my garage that holds meats, frozen fruits and so on. In each of my bathrooms, I have the basics: cleaning products, paper items, feminine products, etc - tailor-made for the occupants of those bathrooms, and probably just 1-2 months' worth.

My favorite item to stock up is pasta because in the last few months, I've been able to stock them absolutely free. I love making meals where I know the only items that cost me money was the meat and vegetables. :)

Things I'm planning to add to my storage: sauces, oats, sugar, peanut butter, chocolate chips, peppers (I will dice them up and freeze). This summer I am really hoping to be conscientious in my garden growing and buying fruits/vegs to freeze.

Things I DO NOT stockpile on a regular basis: chips, chocolate and pop. Only because I would be eat/drink those up right away. Right now we have chips and pop due to the Superbowl deal I did, and the chips are already almost gone. *sigh*

I'm now looking for a Kitchenaid mixer as I am ready to start baking more and making breads, rolls, etc. I've been making do without a mixer for a while now and it's time I got a mixer stand but can't make myself pay for a new one. So if anyone knows of a great price for a mixer or if you have one you're not using, please let me know and we'll work something out!

The next post of Why I Stockpile will be about alternative ways to save on items like vegetables, jams, honey, meat, etc. If you have any tips, please feel free to send them my way and I will share as well!

M&Ms coupon

Here's a fun way to get a 2 for 1 coupon for M&Ms - a cyber egg hunt!

Go here and register, then start the search. I'm making it easy for you and giving you the list of where to find the eggs because I know you want some free chocolate, just like I do! It's a fun thing to do if you have a few spare minutes or have kids who want to help look for eggs.
* Egg near newspaper on park bench
* Egg in the pink flower bed
* Egg in the green lawn under the pink flower bed
* Egg to the right of the fountain
* 3 eggs on the climbing frame
* Egg behind the roundabout
* Egg in front of blue shutters near top of the Candy Shoppe
* 1 egg in right window of Candy Shoppe
* 1 egg in left window of Candy Shoppe
* 1 egg behind flower box on ground at Candy Shoppe
* Egg behind red bucket in garden
* 3 eggs near deckchair in garden

Mmmmmm, M&Ms!

Some free phone accessories, perhaps?

Go here to complete a survey, and upon completion, you'll be able to print out a $10 coupon to any Telephone Booth store. Click here for locations. Good only in Quebec, Ontario, BC, Alberta, Manitoba and New Brunswick.

No Frills Dollar Daze items

Here's a list of items that will be $1 at NoFrills during their Dollar Daze sale, beginning Feb 19:
Real Canadian Water 15x500ml
Red or Green Seedless grapes 1.00/lb (not available in BC)
Hot House tomatoes 1.00/lb
Whole or Sliced Mushrooms 227g (not available in BC)
Empire or Red Delicious Apples 1kg bag (various types in BC)
Golden Mill Vienna white or Whole Wheat bread 570g (Old Mill in BC)
Old Mill bagels 6's
Schneiders Lunch Kits or Smart Snax
Marc Angelo pork Souvlaki pkg of 2
Stewing Hens 1.00/lb
Schneiders bologna or mac and cheese loaf 175g (not available in BC)
Maple Lodge chicken weiners 450g or chicken bologna 375g (no name in BC)
Pillers Black Forest ham or San Danielle mortadella 100-110g
Green Ocean flake Style crab flavoured seafood 227g (? in BC)
Heinz Bagel Bites
McCain Delite cakes or cream pies
McCain French Fries 680g
Nestle Real Dairy ice cream or Smarties Frozen dessert 400ml
Five Alive beverages or Nestea iced tea 1.89L (? in BC)
Neilson Tru Taste milk 1%, 2% or TruTaste Lactose free or Beatrice Purfiltre milk 1% or 2% 1L (? in BC)
Yoplait Source 4x100g (not available in BC)
Egg Creations 500g
Powerade 946ml
Christie Bits and Bites or Crispers
Chef Boyardee pasta
Campbells Ready to Serve 540ml or Soup at Hand 284ml
Unico solid light tuna in oil 198g
101 Bleach 2.84L
Irish Spring bar soap 3x90g
Colgate Ultra Fit toothbrush or Total toothpaste 90ml
Cooks Ham shank and butt portions 1.00/lb
Catelli Garden Select pasta sauce 700ml
Surf fabric softener sheets 50's

(borrowed from Smartcanucks)

Yay! I have never tried the Egg Creations but have some $1 coupons so they will be free, so I might try them now. I am also excited about the Colgate Toothbrush, Catelli sauce and Yoplait as I have coupons that will make them Free or cheap!

Free pancakes at IHOP! *USA ONLY*

Did you know yesterday was Shrove Tuesday? Did you have your pancakes? If not, don't worry as IHOP will be offering free pancakes on February 23 at participating branches *ONLY IN THE USA*. They do ask that you consider a donation to your local Children's Miracle Network. Will you be participating in IHOP's Free Pancake Day?

Swagbucks - get paid to surf the net!! AWESOME.

I am a Googler - I spend hours and hours googling everything from recipes to health issues to religion, so when I found Swagbucks, it was like the heavens parted and the angels sang. I mean, to get paid while surfing? It sounds too good to be true, right? Well, I'm glad to tell you that this is a legit, wonderful and easy surf for money program. It doesn't cost you anything. All you have to do is search the web using swagbucks' search engine instead of Google. The Swagbucks search engine is powered by Google so you get the same abilities to search, but the bonus is that at random times you get awarded points, which you can then redeems for prizes. My favourites are the gift cards especially the Amazon.ca, Starbucks and Target ones.

Go here to sign up (remember, it's free). Full disclosure: the link brings you to Swagbucks and a referral is linked to my account, and I get points for that. I can't see what you search (and vice versa).

I'm saving my swagbucks points for birthday and Christmas gifts this year - what will you do with yours?

Why I Stockpile: Sharing the savings - stockpiling and shopping from one's cupboards

My mom was just over and shopped at my stash cupboards - she was telling me that Dad has been having these "spur of the moment cravings" for things like soup and beans and was buying them when he felt the urge to, and has been buying loads of toilet paper at Costco "because they were cheap or on sale."

I was groaning my way as she was speaking, and threw open my stash cupboards, stocked with, you guessed it - soup, beans and tp - among other things. I told my mom yet again, to save her money and shop at "my store" - where everything is free.

It is one of the biggest blessings of this couponing/savings journey - to be able to share freely with people I know and love, I'm finding this ability to be generous blesses me more than I would have ever dreamed it would. As my parents and I transition in our roles in life, I'm finding I want to care and provide for them in any way I can (although they are still very much young, active and independent seniors). I just love that my mom can call and say,"do you have such and such" and I can check my stash and say,"yes, how many would you like?"

I just wanted to encourage you today as you are building your stockpile, or are even wondering why you should stockpile - that the returns on having a stockpile are more than what you would think automatically. Yes, a stockpile will save you a trip or two to the store to pick up stuff you need, a stockpile will help keep your food budget on track, a stockpile will come in handy when you have unexpected guests or emergencies, but more so, a stockpile will enable you to share with others, within your circle of influence and beyond, especially if you donate to shelters or foodbanks.

Stockpiling is different from hoarding - I buy what I plan to use, and then I use it. I don't hold on to them and have them sitting in my cupboards just to look pretty. I use them, give them away or donate. When my cupboards are full, I stop shopping and that impacts my bottom line positively as well: less shopping = more savings.

What do you think of stockpiling?

Aeroplan points from your food and drink

Did you know you can get Aeroplan points from specially marked products such as Tostitos, Quaker and Tropicana? Well, you can! Go here for more information.

Here's the list of current participating products.

I found to my delight, as a bonus, that the Tostitos I purchased for the Free Pepsi / Tostitos MIR here, had the PINS for Aeroplan points too - yay!

Facebook - a great place for freebies!

You've heard me talk about getting freebies or FPCs via Facebook, here's another one - become a fan of Pizza Hut and you may win a $100 gift card!

Potential Bluewater Free Product Coupon (FPC)

Here's a contest where you can win $5,000, PLUS when you sign up for the newsletter, if you are one of the first 500 to do so, you'll receive an FPC for a Bluewater product, up to $13.00 value. Good luck!

Welcome, new Extreme Shoppers!

Wanted to welcome the ladies who attended tonight's class, all 17 of you, and thank you to Stacey who hosted the class!

Please scroll through all the pages - there are tons of information and links for your viewing (and savings) pleasure!

Welcome to Mrs.Smith - Extreme Shopper!

New Pampers DryMax sample and coupon

Pampers is giving away a free sample for their Cruisers with DryMax diapers. Go here to get your free sample - sometimes these come with a coupon or two as well!

Scott Printable coupon

There's a great $2 printable for Scott paper towels available here!

20-10 Winner!

The 20-10 Mrs.Smith - ExtremeShopper contest is over, thanks to everyone who played along! Congratulations to Diana, who said,"Really looking forward to the singles figure skating now that we got to see team Canada's free practice skate in Port Moody! Especially looking forward to Patrick Chan's performance."

Diana, please email or FB me with your address to get your coupons and coupon holder pages!

Sign up for Rouge Mag now!

One of the ways I get great make up / bodycare product coupons is via a magazine called Rouge. I believe it's put out by the P&G folks. I know you can subscribe to the online site here and they put out a magazine once or twice a year. I received one in the mail last year but I also got one in the local paper, while others didn't get any with their papers. So to be on the safe side, sign up to get on their mailing list because I know there will be a magazine out this spring! Their coupons are great for stacking so don't miss out!

Olympics 2010 giveaway - MrsSmithExtremeShopper edition

To celebrate the opening of the Olympics 2010 Winter Games, MrsSmith-ExtremeShopper is giving away 20 coupons and 10 coupon holder sheets! For your chance to win at our own "20-10," join both our FB page and become a follower on the blog, and post on the FB page about what sport you're looking most forward to watching or attending! Winner will be picked on Monday at 10am. Go Canada!

New Best Product Shopping Spree

The Best New Product Awards, now in its 7th year, is the only competition judged by 25,000 Canadian consumers coast to coast. With over 100 new products entered in the categories of Food, Personal Care and Household, the winners make for one great shopping list.

Now you can enter to win all 47 of the Best New Products, not once but twice! Enter here and here. Good luck!

New Emergen-C sample

Go here to get your free Emergen-C sample, good for both US and Canada.

Free Catelli pasta coming this week!

Yippee, Catelli is 2 for $3 at SDM from Feb 13-26, so use 2 .75 coupons per pack and get them free at LD! Time to stock up!

Powerbar sample

Get a Powerbar Gel Blast sample here!

Huggies Pure and Natural Samples and Coupons!

The Huggies Pure and Natural free sample pack deal has reset, so you can go here and order your samples (3 diapers) and it will come with a coupon as well! Good for both USA and Canada.

London Drugs printable coupon - Aveeno

London Drugs has a printable $3 coupon out for Aveeno lotion, baby wash or baby products, 227ml - 354ml. Coupon is good Feb 8 - 21.

Thanks, Bargainmoose!

Free NY Fries with drink purchase

Become a Fan of NY Fries on Facebook, and a receive a coupon for free fries when you purchase a drink! Coupon valid from Feb 8 - 28 2010.

Welcome!

To the ladies who took my class last night at Ethos Coffee House in Burnaby, welcome! Glad you're here. Look around, there's lots of information and remember, small steps will lead to big savings.

Also, anyone taking advantage of the free Denny's breakfast this morning? I was thinking I would take the kids but Cam and I felt sick last night and so I'm nixing the idea today. I'm all for sleeping in.

Free Biore Nose strip sample

Biore is giving away a free Nose Strip sample to the first 10,000 people who request it, so go here to get yours!

Free Pepsi and Tostitos for Superbowl!

I have been looking all over for the MIR (Mail In Rebate) form that is out there for a $20 rebate back on Pepsi/7Up/Tostitos products in honour of Superbowl 44, and FINALLY found it today at the Coquitlam RCSS (Westwood). For those of you looking for it, I saw it in 2 places - towards the front entrance by the clothing (there is a display of Tostitos and Pepsi) and in the chips aisle. There was a demonstrator there today who was giving out samples and also .44 cent coupons for Pepsi Lime and also for Tostitos salsa.

So what's this all about, you ask?

Well, the MIR says that when you purchase a minimum of $20 (before taxes) of certain Pepsi/7Up/Tostitos products from participating Loblaws companies, you can send in the receipt and UPCs along with the MIR form and you will receive 2 $10 Presidents' Choice giftcards - that's "spend $20, get back $20!" Free food and drinks = awesome.

Now I don't stock up on chips and pop for many reasons, but this was a great chance to stock up because I'm hosting a baby shower this weekend so some chips and pop will be laid out with the rest of the food, plus it's Superbowl weekend and I plan to send Mr.Smith to work with some goodies for his workmates since they have to work while the pigskin's being thrown around.

Note that the deal says you must purchase the $20 worth by Feb 7 and the MIR/UPC/receipt must be postmarked by Feb 28 2010.

To confuse you even more, there is ANOTHER similiar Pepsi/Tostitos rebate, but for this one, you can download and print off a rebate from from here, and instead of getting gift cards back you get coupons for the following:
1 Free 2L bottle of pop
1 Free bag of chips
1 Free case of 12 cans of pop
1 Free bag of chips
1 Free 6 pack of bottle pop
1 Free Gatorade

You can purchase the items at various participating merchants, not only RCSS for this offer. The addresses to which you send your rebates to are different, so I think you might be able to take advantage of both offers - but since I'm only doing one offer I can't guarantee you that, so proceed at your own risk.




The other great deal I found today was a $1.50 coupon off milk - I have never seen a milk coupon (besides the Natrel and Beatrice milk ones, brands that are not carried around my area), so I was excited to see this coupon. It's a limited time special at Safeway, good til Feb 7. I found that the milk was $4.06 there, and with the $1.50 off it came to $2.56 - cheap for 4L in my area. Yay! I didn't need a coupon, I just brought the milk up to the front, asked about the special, and the cashier had a special coupon at her till and swiped it for me. Easy.

Happy weekending, Extreme Shoppers!

Always Flexistyle pads - FREEBIE - ACT QUICK!

Always is giving away coupons for free 50-pack new Flexistyle pads via Beinggirl - go here and get your coupon. Hurry as I don't know how many packs they have to give away!

Stouffers Rewards - Potential moneymaker!

Stouffers has a new rewards program that is running until April 30 2010. (UPDATE: New program runs until August 31 2010)

From the Stouffers site, here's how it works:

1)Sign up to become a member of Stouffer’s Rewards and enter PIN codes from the specially marked STOUFFER’S products you love.

2) Enter 12 PIN codes from specially marked packages and you will receive $25 in FREE groceries*, consisting of $15 in Free Nestlé product coupons and a $10 grocery gift card to the store you selected at registration.

When you qualify, we’ll contact you by email and mail your reward to the address you supplied us when you registered.

You’re eligible to receive two $25 rewards within the promotional period (January 1 – April 30, 2010), so keep collecting. (*UPDATE: New program runs til August 31 2010)

3) For every PIN you enter, you get a chance to WIN† an amazing STOUFFER’S Rewards prize.

Plus, just for registering we’ll give you one bonus contest entry.
They have a bonus prize package here as well.

A couple of suggestions / cautions:
1) Make sure you purchase the specially marked boxes and not the older entree ones, the PINS on those will not be valid towards this promotion. Look for boxes with the word "REWARDS" on it.

Here's a link to a visual of the specially marked boxes and where to find the pins. If you do happen to have bought the SPA ones, call Lean Cuisine at 1-888-809-9263 and they will send you replacement pins by email. Or contact Nestle via email here.

2) Get your coupons and stack with RCSS instore coupons when they are available. I've seen .75cent instore coupons and $2.50 Stouffers, which combined with your coupon could make the boxes $1 each (or less). So if you purchase 12 boxes for $12 and submit for the reward, you would get $25 back ($10 in gc and $15 in free purchase coupons), which would be a $13 moneymaker (minus tax)! Free food and some free cash in your pocket, sounds good!

Limit 2 rewards per household.

You have til April 30, so get your coupons and watch for a good sale / instore coupon stacking opportunity! (*UPDATE:New program runs til August 31 2010)

3) I've never tried these products, so buy at your own risk, I cannot vouch for taste, quality, etc. If you have, feel free to post your review in the comments and share your thoughts with the rest of us!

Heads up - No Frills Dollar day!

No Frills is having another Dollar Day promotion coming up, February 19 - no word whether it is a one day promotion or not, but hopefully it will yield some great deals and freebies!

For those in the GVRD area, there are 3 locations - 2 in Vancouver which are Joe's No Frills on Denman and Paul's No Frills on Alma, and the new one, Dennis' on Como Lake in Coquitlam.

New coupon site - ThinkCoupons

Yet another coupon site - this one does not offer new coupons but compiles links to coupons all onto one database. Looks pretty good - give it a try:

London Drugs internet coupon!

Buy a Medela product and get a free Medela Lanolin product, up to $10.99 free! Get your coupon here.

Red Plum insert coupon list

Here's what's coming in this weekend's insert:
10 cents -Iams - any size cat or dog wet food
$3 - Iams - any size dry dog food
$3 - Iams - any size dry cat food
$1 - Spot Shot - any product
$1 - any WD-40 Smart Straw
$1 - any 2000 Flushes
$1 - Arm & Hammer Plus OxiClean laundry det.
$1 - Arm & Hammer Essentials laundry det.
$1 - One Step 236mL hand sanitizer or 250mL alcohol free foaming hand sanit.
$1.50 any One Step hand sanitizer
B2GOF - Oral B Cross Action Toothbrush
75 cents - Febreeze Fabric Refresher
50 cents - Febreeze Air Effects
$3 - Febreeze Noticeables Starter Kit
$2 - Febreeze candles (excludes Home Collection)
Buy one Swiffer Starter Kit, get a Swiffer Sweeper wet or dry refill
$1 - Swiffer WetJet refill
$1 - Swiffer Sweeper dry refill
$1 - Swiffer duster refill
$2 - any two Mr. Clean
50 cents - Mr. Clean Magic Eraser
50 cents - Mr. Clean spray
50 cents - Mr. Clean liquid
$1 - Ester-C Vitamin C
$1 - any Old Spice
$3 - any two Old Spice
$3 - any Gillette mach 3 disposable razor
$2 - Pure Protein ($5 or more)
$2 - Met-Rx energy bars ($5 or more)
75 cents - any BlueWater prod
$2 - any Disney kid vitamin
$2 - Natures Bounty Vitamins/Supps
$4 - LaKota
$1 - any Kozy Shack prod

Offer for free Bluewater Collapsible bag WYB 3 BW prods - go to website

(Thanks, Smartcanucks!)

Free breakfasts and Red Plum

Give yourself a break and eat breakfast out this Friday, for FREE! Burger King is giving away a free breakfast sandwich per person this Friday, enjoy!

Also on February 9 from 7am-2pm, get a free Grandslam Breakfast at Denny's!

Lastly, don't forget to be on the lookout for the Red Plum insert this weekend, due on February 6.

It's a (Shopping) party in the USA!

I live about 45 minutes from the USA/Canada border, and everytime I go across the border, I wish I lived closer. Because even with all the great deals and stacking opportunities we have here in BC, we just can't beat the fantastic sales and coupons available in the USA - so all you in the US, count yourselves blessed!

Every so often, I go down for business and I try to squeeze in a quick shopping trip, and such was the case last week. Note that I missed some catalina deals by a few days (could've gotten more items for free), and also, I didn't have some insert coupons since I don't get the papers from there.

Still, it's pretty fun to shop there and we can still get some coupons here, which I'll share with you in another post.

First, I went to Fred Meyer, which I hadn't been to in years:




I got 3 blocks of butter and 4 bags of cheese for $8. Just for comparison sake, the same size Kraft cheese (380g) goes for about $4-$5 here, and I got the 195g packs for .75c each.

Next up was Target, where I was disappointed with some empty shelves, and also I missed the Kashi deal I was hoping to get, by a few days. Still...





I got 2 boxes of Kashi cereal, 4 boxes of Kashi bars, 4 individual Kashi cereal cups and 2 travel sized Johnson& Johnson lotion and shampoo for $5.34. I would have paid about $22 for them here.

Right after Target I headed to Walgreens which turned out to be a big mess as I hardly shop there and I was not familiar with its policies. I was given wrong info by the cashier which I followed, and that ended up costing me $ so my deals ended up not being great. That's a good warning to know your store policies, so you don't get taken advantage of.

First, I bought 2 Neosporin lip chapsticks, which were on sale 2/$8, and I had a $6coupon, which would generate a $3 Register Reward and thus a $1 moneymaker:


Next, I bought some Chex with coupons:




Then I bought 4 pop, and that was a mistake. WG had a sale which was 3 for $4, and get a $2 RR in return. I should've just bought 3 but bought 4 in error.





Also, I had planned for paying for the pop with the previous RR I had received but was advised I could not. Not knowing the store policies, I complied and paid with real cash. Totally not an Extreme Shopper thing to do! LOL.

I then tried to buy Glade candles with coupons which would have netted me a $2 RR but when I bought them I did not get a Catalina, so I returned them.

At this time I had a $3 RR and a $2 RR and I wanted to spend them but was so overwhelmed with all the wrong information the cashier was giving me, so I just scanned the shelves and got $5 worth of Valentine's stuff - so all this was free:




I noticed after the fact that the cashier did not put in 2 Chex coupons I had, and she actually "hid" my $2 RR by her register, and only gave it to me when I asked for it. Throughout the transactions she was also sighing and punching in the keys really hard to show me she was not liking having to deal with coupons, etc, so that really put me off. I spent about $12 for the 2 Neosporin sticks, 4 pop, 8 Chex and the Valentines stuff - and I have mixed feelings about this deal... but what I know for sure is, the next time I enter Walgreens, I will have the store policy down to a T!

Lastly, on my way home I hit Safeway:


I got 6 boxes of cereal, 4 boxes of oatmeal, 4 boxes of Cheese Nips, 4 boxes of roll ups, and 4 packages of tortillas, all utilizing the specials that Safeway was having at that time and stacking with coupons. I also used an FPC for free creamer.

It was a real pleasure to see my total decreasing with every coupon I used, and there was an older couple behind me who were cheering me on, and the cashier even said,"great job!" I ended up paying $13.62 for 23 items.




I saved 80% off my bill!!

This is what I got on my quick trip, for about $38, and no customs at the border!


On top of that, I received a catalina for $1.50 and another for $1 from Safeway to put towards future purchases!

Before I get any emails about how it's all packaged stuff, I must say this is the first time in a LONG time that I've gotten fruit roll ups for the kids as a treat. The Chex is for my hubby as a treat as well, and I think it was my first time buying Cheese Nibs. And cereal, well, we go through it like crazy.

All I used were instore specials and coupons I printed off the internet. If I had access to the Sunday papers I would've been able to get more $ off with the coupons from there but I'm ok with it, since I was pretty happy with my purchases.

And that's how you have a shopping party down in the USA!

Next up, a video on shopping in the USA and some explanations on some coupon lingo and also how I plan my USA shopping and get my coupons.

NEW Poise sample

Go here to get your sample of pads, liners and more. Hurry as samples are limited.

Tresemme $2 coupon

Tresemme is sending out $2 coupons by mail, go here to get yours.

New Jergens coupon

Take a very short and easy survey here and get a printable $1.50 coupon for Jergens!