As many of you know, I attended the Savvy Blogging Summit in Breckenridge, Colorado a few weeks ago.  I am so thankful that I had the opportunity to go to this conference as it was such an amazing learning opportunity.  The Savvy Blogging team worked hard to bring us speakers who effectively shared their expertise in ways that made it easier for us to understand.  It was an incredible experience to be able to connect & share with so many amazing bloggers as well.  The gals who were part of the Savvy Blogging team (Andrea/Mommy Snacks, Crystal/The Thrifty Mama, Erin/5 Dollar Dinners, and Toni/The Happy Housewife) also really impressed me by the fact that they were all so friendly & helpful, going out of their way to reach out to all of us.

They have just announced the date & location of the 2011 Savvy Blogging Summit & it will be taking place in Colorado Springs July 14- 16th, 2011 (thankfully not quite as high in altitude as Breckenridge, even though it was gorgeous).  I am excited to attend again & definitely recommend it to anyone wanting to learn how to grow & develop their blog further.

In the meantime, though, they are currently having a 50% off sale on the Savvy Blogging Summit Recordings. The regular price for recordings of all the sessions  is $97 – however, thru Friday at 9am pst (12pm est), you can get 50% off & pay just $48.50. This includes 13 sessions – audio recordings, class notes & power point presentations. This is an amazing deal for all of the information you’re going to get!   All you need to do is use the coupon code: CHEYENNE when you purchase the entire Summit audio package thru Friday at 9am pst. After that time, the entire audio session recordings will be back to the regular price of $97 – which is still a great price for the amount of information you’re going to receive.

If you are interested in just a few of the  individual sessions – they are $10 per session.

Here are some of my favorites:

-Business Law & Accounting – explains why you need to treat your site as a small business & the steps to take to do this effectively

-Media Kit Workshop – Super helpful class with information on not just creating a media kit, but also great tips on interacting with companies/brands

-SEO Tips – Excellent presentation by Troy Lerner on Search Engine Optimization (SEO) –  explained in ways that were understandable with specific tips & suggestions on how to improve SEO

- CSS Code & Design by Joy Miller (from Five J’s Designs – an amazing web designer) – very clear & helpful ideas on how to make your site more user-friendly

-Photography – David Meijas – Even if you’re not a blogger, but are interested in learning some practical photography tips, this is a helpful session from a very talented photographer

Here are just a few fun pictures from the Savvy Blogging Summit :

My four amazing roommates – (L to R) Jennie from Bargain Blessings, Sarah from Give Me Neither, Mary from The Writer’s Block & Me

Enjoying dinner out in Breckenridge one evening – (L to R)
Angela/Frugal Living NW, Me, Sarah, Jennie, Jennifer/Coupon Mommie, & Robin/Pink Coupon Cafe

Angela, Sarah & I even had a few hours to explore Breckenridge before flying back after a jam-packed weekend.

Here is what I found yesterday at my first Target (I got there as they were in the process of marking items down):

Leapster Didj System – $17.48 (Reg $69.99)

Thomas & Friends Take -n-Play Portable Train – $6.24

Curious George Game – $4.98

Strawberry Shortcake – $2.87

Playmobil 16 piece – $1.57

Fisher Price Ice Cream Game – $4.48

Nesting Blocks (Alphabet) – $3.34

Disney Floating Swan Salon – $3.72

Fisher Price Treehouse – $5.98

Disney Princess Doll – $4.24

Circo Train Tracks – $3.98

Tinkerbell Playset – $4.98

And here is what I found today (July 29th):

Shovel Critter – $1.04

Large Shovel – $.48

Small Shovel – $.24

Bubbles – $.24

Wood Cars – $1.74

Sand Wagon w/Tools – 2.97

I spent about $100 on these items, but saved almost $300!   This is such a great time to stock up on gifts – I was able to buy gifts for my girls, my nieces & nephews & other family members, as well as gifts for my mom to give her grandkids. And all those birthday parties during the year!  I was so thankful that my mom was down visiting to help me out as I did a small coupon class last night & it just happened to be during the Target toy clearance time – so I was able to shop without kids both days – thank you MOM!

The reason I show you the pictures with the items so that you can see how it really does pay to shop these huge clearance events – but also to help you look for items at your stores, if they haven’t marked toys down to 75% off yet.  And if they haven’t, you’re lucky because you’ll know all sorts of things to look for!

For a linkup of all the different items that people are finding at their stores, head over to Thrifty & Thriving & you can link up your deals there if you have a blog.  And check out her amazing deals, too – she found a ton of stuff that I never even saw at our stores! She is definitely the queen of Target clearance sales – she knows her stuff!

And send me your pictures, if you found some great deals at your Target store – you could send the details of what you paid for the items or just a total amount & how much you saved!

Family Christian Stores have come out with a new coupon which you can use in-store or online at FamilyChristian.com. The coupon is for 25% off any regularly priced item or 10% off any sale priced item.  The coupon expires Sunday August 8, 2010.

Thanks Queen Bee Coupons!

The Back-to-School sales continue strong again this week – definitely the time to stock up for not just back-to-school, but also the whole year!  The best deal at Office Max this week are the FREE after rebate backpacks (you can choose up to 2).  You will pay for them & then submit your receipt online for the Max Perks reward.  You’ll then receive credit to use at Office Max by phone, online, or in-store.

Here are the FREE after Rebate items using Office Max Perks:

-Any backpack (limit 2) – available in store or online – you will get the full purchase price back from the backpack in the Max Perks reward (in September for regular Max Perks rewards members & in October for Max Perks Teacher rewards).

Included online in the sale are even laptop backpacks – including this bag above  for $59.99. You will get the full $59.99 back after rebate to use at Office Max.

*Go thru Shop At Home for 4% cash back or Ebates for 3%  & this will be a moneymaker after Max Perks Reward & cash-back.

-Hammermill Copy Plus Paper (limit 3) – great way to stock up for printing coupons!

-Sharpie Black Fine Point Permanent Markers (limit 3)

-Uni-ball Gel Pens (3 Pk) (limit 3)

-Office Max Durable Non-View Binders (limit 3)

-Office Max Poly Notebooks – wide or college-wide ruled (limit 6)

Other Deals to Check Out:

-Westcott 5″ Blunt or Pointed Scissors (limit 3)- $.20/ea

-Office Max Glue Combo Pack (limit 3) – $.25/ea

-All Sharpie Singles (limit 3) – $.25/ea

-BIC Cristal Pens -10pk (limit 3) – $.50/ea

-Schoolio 12″ Flexible or Shatterproof Ruler – $.50/ea

-Just Basics Cap Erasers  (25 ct) – $.50

-Helix Protractor & Compass Set – $1/ea

What are your favorite back-to-school deals at Office Max this week?

I’ve heard from a number of readers & this sale is continuing this week! Yay!

I headed to Fred Meyer last night (& again this morning) to check out the toy clearance after hearing reports from many of you that there were some awesome deals with the select 60% off clearance toys.  And boy, were you right! We are still expecting that Target should be marking their toy clearance up to 75% off hopefully this week (typically toy markdowns are on Wed or Thurs, but you never know, they could surprise us).  However, you should definitely check Fred Meyer today,  if you get a chance.  I’m not sure how long their 60%  off toy clearance sale is going on -it may be ending tonight. But, there are definitely some great deals to be had.  If you end up finding a better deal at Target’s toy clearance, save your Fred Meyer receipt & you could return the items. But, I did notice different toys on sale between the two stores.

One of the best deals I found was select Leapfrog Tag books on sale for $5.99 – combine this with the $3 off manufacturer’s coupon from Leapfrog.com & you’ll only pay $2.99/ea.  While Target only had one Tag book on clearance (Bakugan book), Fred Meyer had a number of different books on clearance.

Scenario:

Leapfrog Tag Book – $5.99 on sale (regularly $14.99)
Use $3/1 Leapfrog Tag Book coupon (you must  have a leapfrog account & be logged in to print the coupon)
Final Price: $2.99

Here are some of the other toy clearance deals I found at Fred Meyer:

Leapfrog Tag Reader System –  $19.99 sale price (cheapest I found is on Walmart.com for $27.66)

Tag Jr Books – $4.39 sale price

Leapfrog Didj System – $27.99 (Regularly $69.99)

Leapfrog Didj Game – Indiana Jones – $11.99 sale price

Playskool Kota & Pals – $11.99 (reg. $29.99)

Disney Princess Tiana Doll – $5.19 (regularly $12.99)

Lego Bionicle – $5.19 (Reg. $12.99)

Lego Racers – $5.99 (Reg. $14.99)

Star Wars Figure 3.75″ – $3.19 (Reg $7.99)

Transformers – $3.59 (reg. $8.99)

Here’s what the Upcoming Event Calendar will feature:

National Events:

-Entertainment & Dining Deals (e.g. AMC $1 soda/popcorn Sunday 7/25)

-Retail store sales, freebies, coupons (e.g. Free Estee Lauder samples this past Thurs evening, Walmart samples this weekend)

Northwest Events:

-Free or inexpensive local events – fairs, festivals, & more (e.g., Pike Place Market Fruit Festival – Sun 7/25)

-Special NW deals, freebies, coupons

Benefits to using the new calendar feature:

• Find new events added every day on the calendar- the calendar will be updated automatically as I add new events to the main calendar.
• Add the events you are interested in to your own calendar, if you use the Google Calendar system.  Your calendar can then be set up to send you alerts to remind you about coupon or freebie events, local events & more.

Since I’m located in western Washington, I’ve listed local events in this area that I’m aware of; however, I’d love to add more events for different areas such as eastern WA, Oregon & Idaho. Feel free at any time to leave a comment on the Thrifty NW Mom Facebook Fan page or email me thriftynwmom {at} hotmail {dot} com.  While I can’t include all the events, I will include it if it’s something that I think the majority of readers would be interested in.

Let me know what you think of this new feature & if you think there’s anything that needs to be changed or added to be the most beneficial for you.

I told you about this great Kraft Cheese deal in my weekly Fred Meyer post (thanks to FB Fan Heather for the details) & I wanted to share it again, since it seems to be working very well for many of you readers.  This is definitely a *HOT* deal & I’d stock up (I’ve found that shredded cheese works very well to freeze).  This sale is going on thru Saturday – so make sure you go today or tomorrow!

And for those of you who are not really into couponing & haven’t started collecting coupons – this is a deal that ANYONE can do without coupons as your coupons will be found at your local Fred Meyer (note: there have been a few locations where this blinkie has not been found – let us know if your store does not have them yet, hopefully they’ll have them soon!)

I’ll share about a similar deal going on at Safeway & with the Kraft Cheese catalina in another post.

Kraft Cheese Catalina:

First of all – here are the details about the Kraft Cheese catalina which runs from July 19th – August 15th (plenty of time to get some great deals on cheese!).  This catalina has been confirmed for Fred Meyer, Safeway, Albertson’s, QFC & more (should be a national promotion):

Buy 5 of the following products, receive a $5 off-your-next-order coupon (catalina that prints from the box next to the register):

Scenario Idea for Fred Meyer: (I’ve changed this slightly from the original promotion):

Kraft Shredded Cheese (7 & 8 oz) – on sale 2/$3
Buy 5 bags of Kraft Shredded Cheese – $1.50/ea
Use 2 $1/2 blinkie coupons (you should be able to find a blinkie coupon dispenser near the cheese)
Pay $5.50, Receive $5 catalina (to use on your next order) when you buy 5 or more
Final Price: $.50 for 5 packages of cheese

2nd transaction (you can “roll” the catalina & use it on your 2nd transaction):
Buy 5 bags of Kraft Shredded Cheese (7 & 8 oz) – $1.50/ea
Use 2 $1/2 blinkie coupons
Use $5 off catalina from previous transaction
Final Price: $.50 total for all 5  + Get a $5 off catalina to use on your next purchase

LiveNation.com has a special promotion going on for 3 days only – Monday July 19th – Wednesday July 21st.  They are offering $10 concert tickets for select concerts around the country, with different shows featured each day. I’m sure the popular shows might sell out quickly so check each morning to see which concerts are featured.

The two shows that are discounted today for the Northwest are American Idol Live tour 2010 shows, one at the Key Arena in Seattle, WA & the other at the Rose Quarter in Portland, OR.  The show dates are August 20th at the Key Arena & August 21st at the Rose Quarter.

See today’s list of $10 concert tickets HERE.

Here are some of the other concerts around the country, which are featuring $10 tickets today:

• Creed with Skillet & Theft
• Jonas Brothers with Demi Lovato & friends from Camp Rock
• American Idol
• Sheryl Crow
• Goo Goo Dolls
• Natalie Merchant
• Maroon 5

…..and much more! Check back each day thru Wednesday to see what new $10 tickets they’ve released.  Let us know what you find!

Thanks FB Fan Karisse!

I’m getting excited about Target & have been checking every few days as they are gearing up for their big semi-annual toy clearance event, when they clearance out a number of toys up to 75% off regular prices! They typically hold this sale in mid-late July & early January.  At this time, they also have select baby equipment/gear at 50-75% off prices, too.

I’ve been scoping out several of my local Targets in the past week or so & I’ve found that the majority of the clearanced toys are still at 30% off, although they are marking more & more of the toy clearance to 50% off. So, we’ll need to all help each other out in the next week or two as we keep checking in with Target to find out when the clearance will get marked down further.

Summer Outdoor Clearance – 75% off::

I did find today that the summer outdoor items have now been marked down to 75% off at one of my local stores (South Hill mall location).  It should even go to 90% off as it’s consider “holiday” merchandise, but I have a feeling it will be quite picked over at that point. My other Target location was already getting picked over a few days ago at 50% off.   Items which were 75% off included pool toys, outdoor dining accessories (beverage tubs, plates, napkins, plastic cups, plastic tablecloths, etc), water bottles, sidewalk chalk, & more.

Here are the items I purchased for a total of around $22, all 75% off the original price:

Sorry about the bad picture – I used my cell phone (my camera battery died & is charging) & it turns out my cell phone camera is quite dirty obviously!  I thought the beverage tubs might be a fun planter for my flowers as I love the vibrant blue color for my porch.

Target Toy Clearance:

After checking out 2 local Targets, I found that they were different in how you could find the toys that would be on clearance.  At my first Target (S Hill mall location) – they had several rows marked as clearance with signs at mainly 30% off.  However, they also had clearance signs interspersed throughout the rest of the toys & I found a number of those items were marked at 50% off.

At the other local Target (Sunrise location), there was only a small section marked at 30-50% off and the majority of the toys were interspersed throughout the toy section & you just  had to look for all the little red clearance stickers as you went up & down the  aisles.  Most of the items were at 30% off, but I did find some items already marked to 50% off.

If I were you, I’d definitely go & check it out so you can see what items you’re interested in & what the prices are like right now.  If there’s something that you think will be very popular & will go quickly, then you may want to get it at 50% off (which should  be this week if the majority of items are not already marked at 50% off yet).  Otherwise, I recommend waiting till the 75% off sale.  But, you’ll need to get there early when the toy clearance goes to 75% off. Those toys just fly off the shelves with all the major bargain hunters out there!

Target Baby Clearance:

I also checked the baby section at both Target’s & so far, found items around 30% off.  However, the baby gear/equipment items will go very quickly, so if you’re interested in something specific, make sure you’re checking Target regularly.  Typically, the baby gear items will really get snatched up when it’s around 50% off.  You’ll just need to look for the clearance tags or even just the red clearance sticker on the box as it’s not always marked well in that section.  And don’t forget to scan to see if the price is lower than what is actually marked (this is often the case as they mark down items in the system often faster than they can mark the stickers down).  Last year, we were able to get a Graco DuoGlider double stroller for over 50% off, around $60.

Tips to remember when shopping Target’s clearance sales:

1) Always grab the item first & then go check the prices or decide if you really want it (especially when the clearance has gone to 75% off). People move quickly & if you snooze, you lose! That’s why it’s good to scope things out now, so you can see what you’re most interested in & find out where they’re located. I learned this lesson on Black Friday at Walmart – it was amazing how quickly large stacks of items would be gone within 10 minutes.

2) Scan, scan, scan – I’ve been shopping the Target toy clearance for several years now & I’ve found so many items that are not priced correctly.  If there’s something I’m interested in, I just throw it in my cart & then take a big batch of toys over to the price scanner & start scanning to see if anything is coming up at a higher discount.  And that’s so fun to realize that something is 75% off versus 50% off & no one else knows that!

3) Shop early! Typically Target marks their toy section down on Wednesdays or Thursdays, so that’s the best time to check – although it really has seemed to vary the last year or two, depending on the store. If you hear that Target has started marking down toys at 75% off, though, you’ll want to head there early in the morning.

You can read more tips from the January sale HERE. And you can see that last year’s July toy clearance sale didn’t start until later in the month.

We have such a great community of thrifty readers who are always sharing the best tips, so let’s keep each other up-to-date on what we’re finding at our stores.  Feel free to share in the comments section on this post or on the Thrifty NW Mom Facebook page. I’ll be posting quick updates on the Facebook page as well, so if you’re not already a fan, this is a great time to sign up so you’ll stay up-to-date on the clearance sales. Make sure to check the fan page regularly, too, as readers will often post their tips/deals on the Thrifty NW Mom Fan page.

Bath & Body Works has a new printable coupon for a FREE Signature Collection travel size item with any purchase (up to $5 value).  You can also use this online at Bath & Body Works.com if you won’t be heading to a store anytime soon.  The coupon is valid thru July 28, 2010.