Kid restaurant savings

Good Morning everyone!

With gas prices so high, most of us have to save elsewhere to stay within our budgets. Saving on restaurant bills is a good start! Cooking nutritious home cooked meals is the best way, but of course we don’t live in a perfect world with time to cook everyday. Also, sometimes, kids enjoy a treat.

Many restaurants that used to offer free kids meals, no longer do so. To find restaurants in your area where kids eat free, go to www.kidseatfree.com, www.mykidseatfree.com and www.mommysavers.com/money-saving-ideas/kids-eat-free.shtml

Traveling with kids can also be a challenge. Prepack nutritious snacks and sandwiches to prevent the "I am hungry..." complaints when you're in the middle of nowhere.

Tips for meals on the road when kids don't eat free:
- Mexican restaurants often serve a complimentary big basket of tortilla chips with salsa
- don't be shy about asking, nicely, for an extra plate so that two kids can share a meal
- for car trips: pull into a place with a ball room; parents eat their meals while the kids play; share out the kids' food once you're back in the car.

That way, you can share out (cheaper) giant-sized portions. Handy to have: tupperware containers, for saving food for later; plastic cups for sharing out drinks.

Happy Savings!
Thrifty

Feeling blue?

It's that time of year again with sniffles, sneezes and sore throats. Remember there's the Minute Clinic at CVS pharmacies which charge a lesser rate than doctors. Locations can be found at http://www.minuteclinic.com/en/USA/Clinics.aspx.

If you are doing online shopping, many online retailers have free shipping if your purchase is greater than a certain amount. Amazon is $25 for qualifying items, JC Penny is $49.

Kohl's is having 50% - 55% discounts up to tomorrow (Thursday) on clothes, and accessories, 50% on toys and 20% off sterling silver jewellry that's already 55% off.

Apparently the best day to fill up on gas is a Wednesday as gas prices tend to go up on Mondays and Thursdays. Also avoid gas stations right next to a highway.

For some gas saving tips go to http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/driveHabits.shtml, http://cars.about.com/od/helpforcarbuyers/tp/ag_top_fuelsave.htm and http://www.edmunds.com/advice/fueleconomy/articles/106842/article.html

Happy Savings!
Thrifty

A little bit here and a little bit there....

Good morning.... Today I’ll be giving you a few random tips to get you thinking about ways you can trim your unnecessary spending. This can get you started on a few new year's resolutions!

Coffee lovers remember that the Starbucks brew of the day costs under $2. This changes on a weekly basis. Of course, if you cut the habit completely, you’ll save even more! J Get yourself a coffee cup and make your brew at home!

Linens & Things and Bed, Bath and Beyond coupons are interchangeable. Don’t worry too much if the coupon has expired, they take it any way. Remember too that you can use more than one coupon at a time as well.

Chic-fil-A restaurants also are not sticky with expired coupons. Call ahead and make sure that the location you have a coupon for is ok with this. I have not had any problems with this in the past.

Fees: Look at your bank statement and add up your monthly fees. If necessary, switch to an account (or different bank) which has no unnecessary fees. If you are paying any accounts late, stop getting slammed by late fees by using automatic bank drafts or setting yourself a reminder on you cell phone to make timely payments.

Pay up your credit card balance on a monthly basis. This will force you to buy only what you can afford to pay at the end of that month. Remember to cash in on any credit card rewards you earn for using the card. If you have to make monthly payments, make the payments before the due date. If the due date is before pay day, get the due date changed. This may take a month or two to kick in, but would be worth saving on those late payment fees.

Interest: Paying an extra $100 a month toward the principal on a $150,000, 30-year mortgage with a fixed interest rate of 6.5%, will save you more than $51,000 in interest and be able to retire your mortgage about seven years early. An extra monthly payment of even $20 or $25 can make a surprising difference. Now you would benefit more if you invest the extra money in an interest-bearing account offering a guaranteed higher rate of return than your mortgage rate. Paying off your mortgage early means you will not have the tax benefits of home ownership for the same number of years. However, spending less interest and knowing you own the home is a plus!

Happy saving!
Thrifty

Cyber Monday

Good Monday Morning to you all!

After Black Friday comes… Cyber Monday! According to wikipedia.com, the term Cyber Monday refers to the Monday immediately following Black Friday, the ceremonial kick-off of the holiday online shopping season in the United States between Thanksgiving Day and Christmas. Whereas Black Friday is associated with traditional brick-and-mortar stores, "Cyber Monday" symbolizes a busy day for online retailers.

You can find some interesting info on where to go today at http://chris.pirillo.com/2007/11/24/cyber-monday- sales/ and
http://shopping.yahoo.com/articles/yshoppingarticles/63/stylish-cyber-monday-steals. The official Cyber Monday site is shop.org where more than 500 retailers offer discounts for the 2007 holiday season.

overstock.com, cybermondaydeals.com, cybermonday.com are more sites to visit today. Of course, 72% of retailers will offer specials today, so remember to check your favorites for specials which include free shipping or discounts.

Remember that you only save when you buy items that you would have bought anyway. Saving 50% on an unnecessary item is not really a saving. You’d save 100% if you did not get it at all!!

Happy saving!
Thrifty

The day after...

Good Morning! I hope you all had a good shopping day yesterday with lots of savings. I got my best savings at Kohl's where I bought 1/8 diamond 14kt gold earrings for $19.99. The original price was $99.99. That's a great saving, but shows how huge the mark up is on jewelry. It was my first time shopping on Black Friday and a very positive experience. I managed to find all the items I was hoping for except for two. Not bad for a day when everyone seems to go crazy and buy up everything. Also, I hit my first store at 7am and it had opened at 4am.

Many stores are continuing their sales today and a handful go on until tomorrow. Happy shopping and I'll be back on Monday with more savings.

Have a good one....
Thrifty

After Thanksgiving Sales

Hope you're having a super Thanksgiving, with lots of family, friends and food! Thanksgiving day is followed by.... shopping!

"Black Friday" is the day after American Thanksgiving and also the unofficial start of the traditional Christmas shopping season in the U.S. This day is also one of the BUSIEST shopping days of the year.

According to wikipedia.org, "Black Friday" was originally so named because of the heavy traffic on that day, although most contemporary uses of the term refer instead to it as the beginning of the period in which retailers are in the black (i.e., turning a profit).

Some of the stores in the CARD area having door busting/early bird specials are:

Belk: 5am - 1pm; $25 off $75; close 10pm
Big Lots: 7am - 11am; $10 off $50; 3 day sale; close 7pm
Burlington Coat Factory: 7am; close 10pm; Sat 8am - 10pm
Game Stop: 7am - 11am
HHGreg: 5am - 11am
JC Penny: 4am - 1pm; Extra 10% off; 3pm - 11pm $10 off $50 or $15 off $75; close 11pm
KB Toys: 5am - noon
Kmart: 6am - 11am
Kohl's: 4am - 1pm; close midnight; Sat 6am - midnight
Linens & Things: 5am 2 day doorbusters
Macy's:6am- 1pm, $10 off $25; 150 morning specials; close 11pm
Michael's: 6am - 9am; 25% off; 9am - 10pm $5 off $25, $10 off $40, $30 off $100
Sears: 5am - noon $10 off $50
Staples: 6am - 10am
Target: 6am; 2 day sale; close 11pm; Sat 8am - 11pm;
Toys R Us: 5am - noon;
Walmart: 5am - 11am

The times stated are for the early bird specials or door busters. Closing times are stated separately.

Happy Shopping!
Thrifty

Last minutes Thanksgiving info

Happy Thanksgiving! If you have not planned and/or purchased your dinner yet, here are some last minute tips to help. So for those who want to cook from scratch, buy take out or dine out, you will find helpful information here.

Harris Teeter has fresh whole turkeys or Butterball turkeys for .99c per pound, frozen Tom Turkey at .69c per pound, frozen Hen turkey @ .79c per pound and fresh natural turkey @ $2.29 per pound.
Kroger has the ready to heat and serve Private Selection Spiral Sliced Ham Dinner- Or - The Traditional Private Selection Turkey Dinner Ready for $43.99. Serves 8-10 In select Kroger stores you can also buy a Chef prepared Rosemary Turkey Breast for $8.99 per pound or the uncooked turkey breast for $2.19 per pound. Sweet jumbo yams are only .33c per pound!

Remember to sign up for your Harris Teeter Vic and Kroger loyalty cards to get these special prices. Harris Teeter also doubles all coupons up to .99c while Kroger doubles all coupons up to .50c every day. Find coupons in the Sunday paper.

Restaurants open on Thanksgiving are listed below. Please let me know if you know of any more.

Enjoy stuffing the Turkey and then stuffing your face!
Thrifty

Restaurants open on Thanksgiving
Acme Food & Beverage Co.110 E. Main St., Carrboro929-2263 www.acmecarrboro.com
Angus Barn9401 Glenwood Ave., Raleigh787-3505 http://angusbarn.com
Brasa8551 Brier Creek Pkwy. In Brier Creek Commons, Raleigh544-3344 www.brasasteakhouse.com
C & H Cafeteria1720-70 Guess Rd., in Northgate Mall, Durham286-7303
The Capital Room1520 Blue Ridge Rd., in the Ramada Inn, Raleigh832-4100 http://blueridge.pmcproperties.com
Carolina Crossroads211 Pittsboro St., in the Carolina Inn, Chapel Hill918-2777 www.carolinainn.com
Carvers Creek2711 Capital Blvd., Raleigh872-2300www.carverscreek.com
Chops Steakhouse10920 Cleveland School Rd., Garner550-8100www.chopsteakhouse.com
Fairview3001 Cameron Blvd., in the Washington Duke Inn, Durham490-0999 www.washingtondukeinn.com
Fearrington House2000 Fearrington Village Center (8 miles south of Chapel Hill on Hwy. 15-501), Pittsboro542-2121 www.fearringtonhouse.com
Four Square2701 Chapel Hill Rd., Durham401-9877 www.foursquarerestaurant.com
Gallery GrillOne Europa Dr., in the Sheraton Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill969-2144 www.sheratonchapelhill.com
George’s Garage737 Ninth St., Durham286-4131 www.ghgrestaurants.com/garage/garage.html
Golden Corral, 5707 Dillard Drive, 27511, Cary (919) 816-0352 from 10am - 7pm. Buffet $9.99
Herons100 Woodland Pond, in The Umstead Hotel and Spa, Cary447-4200 www.heronsrestaurant.com
Il PalioThe Siena Hotel, 1505 E. Franklin St., Chapel Hill918-2545 www.ilpalio.com
Irregardless Café901 W. Morgan St., Raleigh833-8898 www.irregardless.com
K & S Cafeteria3620 Bastion Ln., in Tower Shopping Center, Raleigh; 9420 Forum Dr., in Six Forks Station, Raleigh; in South Hills Mall, Cary231-8040 (Tower); 676-7781 (Six Forks); 462-8404 (Cary)
Margaux’sBrennan Station, 8111-111 Creedmoor Rd., Raleigh846-9846 www.margauxsrestaurant.com
Midtown4421-115 Six Forks Rd., in North Hills Plaza, Raleigh787-8963 www.115midtowne.com
The Old Granary2000 Fearrington Center, in Fearrington Village, Pittsboro 542-2121 www.fearrington.com/village/granary.asp
The Old Place289 Elmore Moore Rd., Bear Creek837-5131 www.old-place.com
ParizadeFirst Union Plaza (in Erwin Square), 2200 W. Main St., Durham 286-9712 (restaurant); 265-9985 (reservations) www.ghgrestaurants.com/parizade/parizademaster.html
Note: vegan Thanksgiving buffet sponsored by Triangle Vegetarian Society
Rio Churrascaria9650-145 Strickland Rd., in Harvest Plaza, Raleigh846-6560 (Raleigh)www.riosteakhouse.comnNote: Only the Raleigh location will be open on Thanksgiving Day
Spice StreetUniversity Mall, 201 S. Estes Dr., Chapel Hill 928-8200 www.ghgrestaurants.com/spice/spicestreet.html
Ted’s Montana Grill3701-150 Sumner Blvd., in Triangle Town Center, Raleigh; 6911-102 Fayetteville Rd., in Renaissance Center, Durham 792-2022 (Raleigh); 572-1210 (Durham)www.tedsmontanagrill.com
Top of the Tower320 Hillsborough St., Clarion State Capital Hotel, Raleigh832-0501 (ext. 3) www.raleighclarion.com
Ye Olde Country Kitchen327 Drama Rd., Snow Camp 336-376-6991

For more open restaurants, take out turkey, catering options and gourmet stores, go to:
http://triangle.citysearch.com/roundup/38070/

How do you do with AAA!!

Good morning! My intention with this blog is to tell you about my money saving adventures and to point you in the direction of a few to use yourself. I will have tips that can be used nationally as well as those focused on NC and more especially the Cary, Apex, Raleigh, Durham(to be referred to as the CARD in future) area.

Feel free to email me your money savings tips and/or sales and specials you are aware of.

Today I will be reminding you of savings you already should be aware of! AAA members often forget about the deals associated with this card. Aside from the hotel accommodation discounts which we usually remember to use, there are several others. Trying going to www.aaa.com/target for a 10% saving on online purchases from Target or www.aaa.com/dell website or 866-609-1139 for a 6% discount on products and services. Best Buy offers a 20% off car electronics installation services with a downloadable coupon. Circuit City gives 10% savings on purchases* of $199 or more with coupon for online and in-store purchases!

At Carolina Premium Outlets in Smithfield, NC (), members can find remarkable savings at 80 different stores. AAA members receive a free VIP coupon book at the information center.
http://www.premiumoutlets.com/outlets/outlet.asp?id=48)

Seniors, here are some tips for you to use.
Anyone 55 and older, remember that Kroger offers a 5% discounts on Tuesdays;
Kerr Drug offers a 10% discount on most items to Tuesday shoppers, 60 years of age and up. Mail-in Rebates on adult diapers, canes and bed rails range from $1 to $20;
Ongoing savings can be found at Southewest Airlines;
Remember to ask for discounts for banking services and auto insurance;
For more senior discounts, go to seniorliving.about.com, seniordiscounts.com and seniorjournal.com/Discounts.htm today.

Remember... a penny saved is a penny earned!

Happy savings today!
Thrifty