personal finance in a coupon blog

It's the week before Mother's Day, and that means procrastinators unite to figure out what to do for Mom. And if you're on a budget, it might be difficult to come up with some good ideas for a gift. Well DealPro Mary from MissionToSave.com has some great tips for us! 

Be sure to watch her video and tips for 5 budget-friendly Mother's Day gift ideas. 


1. Instead of flowers that won't last longer than a few days, go for a hanging basket or other potted plant. It will last longer and may possibly be cheaper than a bouquet.  Read More »

With the cost of fuel and food on the rise many families have nixed the idea of going on a family vacation. But, that doesn't have to be the case! A family vacation doesn't have to be expensive to be memorable.

Think Outside the Box
Summer travel typically involves long car rides--or even air travel, motel stays and lots of restaurant eating. With a little bit of thinking outside the norm and pre-planning you're still able to create a memorable family vacation, without breaking the bank. As adults we tend to complicate things, when the reality is--simple is best. In the end, the time spent together and the memories created are all that's left. Read More »

Have you finally reached the end of that oppressive (and expensive) two-year contract with your mobile phone carrier? Time to start shopping for cheaper alternatives.

It's a common misconception that you have to stick with the same service provider after your contract expires. But there's a very good chance you can indeed shop around, as a number of upstart prepaid carriers now offer similar (and in some cases better) service for considerably less money.

I'll use myself as an example – or, rather, my daughter. She has a hand-me-down iPhone 4 that's currently part of our AT&T Family Plan. But her phone is out of contract, so we're under no obligation to stick with AT&T. (My wife and I will be out of contract as well come October, so this will be a great chance to test the waters with another, cheaper, service.) Read More »

Two years ago, instead of flying, I decided to drive down to Florida for a business trip in order to save money. For some reason, I wanted to listen to NPR all day.

Did you know that during a week day, they repeat the same stories over and over and over again? I think by hour four I was done and decided to finally put some music on (don't ask me why I lasted that long...).

But most of us know you can usually save some good money on shorter trips by driving instead of flying right? But what about some other tips that most people don't know about? 
Read More »

Can you believe that it's already May 1st? This month will be a very busy one with Cinco De Mayo (5th), National Teacher Day (7th), Mother's Day (12th), Memorial Day (27th) and many birthdays as well.

With a busy month ahead of us, hopefully you've had the chance to sit down and create a spending budget so that you don't get yourself in trouble at the end of the month. If you haven't, take a moment to create of list and put a budget on each of them (you'll thank yourself in the end).

Once you have your budget in place, it's time to go shopping and get the most bang for your buck.  Here are this week's top 5 deals: Read More »

I still remember the time I traveled all the way from Atlanta to Colorado Springs in a van with two kids and a grasshopper that was determined to navigate from the steering wheel. 

26 hours in a car, 1 stop at the laundromat, lots of coupons for restaurants along the way, and a really cool app on my phone from Valpak to help me find local deals. 

Summer is fast approaching, and that means we're all thinking about ways to save on that vacation this year. Maybe you've already booked your travel, or maybe you haven't. Either way, yo - I got some tips for you. 

How can you really save? I'll tell you my ultimate secrets right now....

1. It's road trip time! Seriously, with the cost of airfare these days, plan a trip with less distance and hit the road. This will especially save you if there are multiple people coming with you on a trip.  Read More »

While relaxing on your vacation this year, don't relax that budget too much! It's never fun to come home to the stress of having spent too much while you were away. Thankfully there are lots of easy ways to save while enjoying your trip.

Start racking up the savings before your vacation even begins by taking advantage of gas reward programs. Many grocery stores offer discounts on gas for shopping at their store. Start accumulating those gas points leading up to your trip and then cash them in for a cheap tank of gas. Last year we saved $0.70 per gallon of gas when we filled up for our vacation. Read More »

Recently we had an amazing Stamp Out Hunger Twitter party in conjunction with our sister company, Valpak.com. 

Tweeters came out in droves to show their support and share tips for helping your local community. Here are some top tips from the party. 

What tips do you have for getting your family involved in helping the community? Read More »

Pregnancy is a time of high emotions, and can often result in emotional, physical, and financial stress. Today we're going to discuss four ways you can save costs and stress by pre-planning while you are pregnant.

1. Shop the Sales Now. While there are certain things you can't buy until you know the sex of your child, there are a lot of things that can be purchased in advance. While my husband and I are preparing to adopt our second child, we have shopped the sales for diapers during the last three years, and currently have a stockpile of diapers to last throughout our child's entire diapering experience. I purchased these diapers by following the deals at sites like Diaper & Baby Coupons and many more.

One of my favorite times to buy is when CVS has diapers for $9.99 a pack, and you get $10 in Extra Care Bucks to spend in the store when you spend $30 on diapers. This means I've paid a net price of less than $7 for each pack of Jumbo diapers that would have been much more expensive at the grocery store. Also, once you do know the sex of your child, then you can really shop the sales for gender specific items. Read More »

Twins – double the fun, double the trouble! But is it also double the cost?

When I found out we were having twins last year I was overwhelmed with excitement. I couldn't believe it, it seemed like a miracle. However, any parent of a twin will admit that along with the joy comes anxiety when you are expecting not one, but two (or more!) bundles of joy. Will we be able to cope with two? Almost immediately I began to do the math in my head, was it going to cost twice as much?

While there is no doubt that having a baby, let alone multiples, comes with a hefty cost, I was delighted to find surprising ways to save when you're having twins. And while unfortunately I have yet to find any discounts on extra sleep for parents of twins, hopefully this will help ease the stress on your wallet. Read More »

Finding out that you're pregnant is one of the greatest news you can get. But with the wonderful news, reality sets in. You may start to ask yourself if you can afford having children or what your diet should be like since you're now eating for 2 or more.

From prenatal vitamins to foods that aren't good for your growing fetus and your checklist for baby essentials, there are a lot of things going on at once.

One thing you'll quickly realize is that having a baby does not come cheap. However, you can make smart choices that will make it affordable. Read More »

Spring is in full bloom, Tax Day is over and done with and Mother's Day is right around the corner.

With this year going by very quickly, it seems that something is going on every week. I've found that gift buying has tripled this year from last. Not only is my friend getting married, I also have 2 kids in school and all those birthdays add up.

With shopping being on my constant to-do list, coupons have become my newest best friends and because of them, I've spent a lot less than last year. So without further ado, I've got this week's top 5 deals for you: Read More »