Back to school on a budget

Graci and Randi getting back to school supplies.

I can’t believe it’s almost time for the kids to go back to school. As you get your kids ready, you need to make sure your kids have their current physicals, school supplies, and clothes for school. I found a few places that you can go to help you out, so you don’t spend a fortune.

And, don’t forget the tax-free weekend in Florida this year is August 4-6. This is a perfect time for parents to save money on school supplies, clothing, shoes, and other back to school shopping items. You can find all the items tax free at www.floridarevenue.com/backtoschool

Mother and couponer Barbi Pierson, likes to look at the ads before going to the store to get the most for her money when shopping for back-to-school supplies. “Couponers get excited for back to school deals," she said. "You want to make sure to get your Sunday newspaper to see the ads and get coupons. If you miss getting the Sunday paper on Sunday, most Dollar Tree stores sell the Sunday paper all week. The best deals are combining and stacking store coupons with manufacturers and topping it with a competitor total off purchase.” 

Pierson added, “Remember to shop the BOGO (buy one get one) free items at Publix. You can even use coupons from competitors at some stores.”

Several stores like Target, that have their own apps for coupons. Target has the app called “Cartwheel” and you can use the coupons they give you and other coupons from the newspaper and printable coupons together for more savings.

Another way to save money is by shopping on the internet. Sites like Ebates give you money back when you shop. All you do is log into their site www.ebates.com and shop at your favorite store. They have more than 2,000 stores you can shop at. Right now they are offering a $10 bonus gift card to Walmart or Ebates just for signing up. It will send you a check in the mail every quarter as part of the commission they receive for having you shop on their site. You can comparison shop with newspaper ads and online. 

A great place to go to find the best deals at hundreds of stores online according to Pierson is the site Slickdeals at www.slickdeals.net, where you can find coupons for stores.   

Back to school items at Walmart.

You can also price match at some stores like Walmart, Staples, Target, Office Depot/Office Max. If you find a lower price you can get that price and at Staples if you find a lower price they will match it and lower the price by 10 percent.

Hopefully some of these tips will help you get your child ready for school. Finding deals and saving money doesn’t have to be hard, it can be easy if you know what to look for and how to shop. 

Here’s to starting off the school year right!

Save money on gas

If you are doing your grocery shopping this weekend, make sure you get a $50 gas gift card for $40 at Publix. It really is a great way to save money on gas. $10 off adds up!

Save money on gas!

Gas can be so expensive. Are you looking for a way to save a few dollars? If you shop at Publix you can save at least $10. If you shop at both Publix and Winn Dixie in the same month you can save more. Every few weeks, Publix will do a gas deal starting on Friday and running through Sunday when you guy $50 worth of groceries. You can buy $50 gas gift card for $40. Gas cards varies by store. I am lucky because Shell is one of the cards my Publix offers. If you buy a Shell gas gift card and than shop at Winn Dixie you can save even more. Winn Dixie gives you fuel perks, which is deals on gas at Shell when you buy groceries. At Winn Dixie with the groceries I bought there I was able to save $.30 on every gallon. I saved more than $14 on my gas! You can too! Look for the flyer at the front entrance at Publix. For the deals at Winn Dixie you need the Winn Dixie card, which is free to apply for. Click here for more on Winn Dixie's Fuel Perks.

Publix Coupon looks similar to this.

Here's an example from the Winn Dixie Website on Fuel Perks!

How to Make Money by Transferring Prescriptions

If you take prescription medicines, this is a great time to transfer your prescriptions to Walgreens. If you transfer a prescription you can get a $25 giftcard to Walgreens. It is well worth it and very simple to do. You can do it online or you can bring in your old prescription bottle and Walgreens will transfer for you.

You can't transfer from another Walgreens, but any other pharmacy works. I know that any way you can save a little on prescriptions is worth it.

You can transfer as many prescriptions as you have and for each one they will give you a $25 giftcard.

Click here to for more information.

*** If you like CVS, you can also transfer to them and get a $25 giftcard. They accept competitor's coupons.