Boxed Set of Greeting Cards- I found this amazing set of cards at Costco for $12.99 and it is stocked with beautiful handmade cards for all kinds of occasions. This is a wonderful gift so that you always the right type of card on hand. These are a great communication tool for writing to friends and family without a constant trip to the store. It has come in so handy when she has a birthday party to attend or just wants to send a note to a friend.

Monogrammed Towels - I order them after the first month as an anniversary with our family gift. I find them very reasonably at Horchow, with free personalization and free shipping offers they are about $10 a piece or $20 for a set of two. Use this link and the coupon code “WELCOME” to save an additional 10%.

Memory Books - As a special memory book I have made pages on How Fast They Grow. These photo scrapbook pages are 12×12 and fit into the standard albums you can buy at Target. The website allows you to drag and drop the images from your computer and you can custom journal the script to personalize the information. Each page is about $6 printed, so you can make a very deluxe album for about $75 shipped. The owner of the website offered readers of my blog a discount by using the coupon code “TRIPLETS” and the pages arrived in the US Mail and are beautiful.

Personalized Stationary - My husband designed some amazing note cards, magnets, calendars and t-shirts at VistaPrint. The website has promotional offers that allow you to try many products for free and you just pay for shipping. We combined several gifts for Aupairs, teachers and other friends so that the shipping cost is reduced. The custom screened t-shirts are terrific if you have a photo of your children with your Aupair or Nanny. If you are already ordering photo holiday cards from them you can add on some other items for free. Note pads, post-it notes and the hats all turn out so cute when you use their own photograph. We made the cutest calendar magnets for the following year using a great photo of our Aupair.

Free Samples - About once a week I go to Start Sampling and sign up our Aupair for a bunch of trial sized merchandise. It arrives in a few weeks and gives her a chance to try products just for kicks. I use our mailing address with her name so that it is always fun to check the mailbox. The best offers are for health and beauty stuff like shampoo, shower gels and snacks. This would be a great idea for an elderly relative too!

Holiday Clearance - I wait until about 7-10 days past a major holiday such as Valentines, Fourth of July and Halloween and I stock up on decorative items and gift products at clearance prices. I keep these tucked away for the following year. Target and CVS clearance items at around 75-90% off and we just stash them for 11 months until it is time to bring them out again. This is true for winter items like hats, gloves, fuzzy slippers and OSU sweatshirts.

Custom Made Coupons - We had our kids make these on the computer and then we printed them on certificate paper from Staples. The offers were for random pampering like breakfast in bed, a morning to sleep in, a pay per view movie, an ice cream sundae, her night to pick a restaurant choice and a custom burned CD with her playlist.

Movie Gift Card - It will encourage her to go and see the latest hit.

Written by Helene, who is a “fly by the seat of her pants” mom with 6 kids, well really 7 if you count her husband. She is a die-hard bargain shopper, designer-clad domestic diva who writes reviews to maintain a sense of sanity and unleash her creative side. You can also keep up with their busy family at their blog.

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Jig-A-Loo is hosting a new promotion where if you purchase a can of Jig-A-Loo or Jig-A-Patch and mail in a form with your receipt you will receive a refund check in the mail for the price you paid.

Who couldn’t use a little extra money in your pocket? Plus this is a great way to check out Jig-A-Loo for free! Head to this site for more information.

Written by Emily, who is a married working mother of a very energetic 6 year old son. They recently moved out in the country and live on a rock road. Emily had to give up high-speed internet and she blames the realtor for not informing her ahead of time that it was not available. She writes at her personal blog, Fenicle and loves to review new things.

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I’m a sucker for makeup. I always love trying something new, especially when that something only needs to be applied once. After all, I’m a busy mom and don’t have time to retouch my look during the day.

One of my new must-have products is Revlon Colorstay Mineral Lipglaze. I love the subtle gloss that the Lipglaze provides and the fact that it glides on without feeling sticky. It moisturizes my lips and like the other product in the Colorstay line, the Lipglaze does stay put. It doesn’t rub off on my cup of morning coffee, on my kids when they get their goodbye kisses at drop off, and even lasts during lunch. While Revlon says that it coats lips for up to 8 hours, as a part time working mom I’m always home wiping it off before then but am sure it would truly last the entire time.

Also a true bonus is that I can usually get Revlon Colorstay products for much less than regular retail price at my local CVS. A tube usually sells for $8.99 but I like to clip the coupons for Colorstay products that I find in the coupon section of my paper good for $2-3 dollars off and take them to CVS during their buy-one-get-one promo for added savings. After all, I love to look good but I don’t like for it to cost me a fortune especially when there’s always something new to try!

by Leticia

Rarely do I boast about websites as a must have thing, but the Coupon Mom site is a definite must have in your bookmarks! I originally stumbled upon this money saving website by accident, but since then I’ve seen Stephanie Nelson - the blog writer and publisher - in magazines and on Oprah.

I know there are a lot of good websites out there that give you links to coupons and free samples, but I think Coupon Mom is the most organized site I’ve seen and doesn’t send you clicking through cyberspace to get what you’re looking for. It’s all neat and orderly for mom’s in a hurry who just want to save a little money.

You can join for free and once you’ve got a login you are free to roam through all the cool deals. I love the main page because on the left hand side you can cruise through grocery deals by state, restaurant coupons, online discount codes, printable coupons and a whole lot more. If you like to save money on groceries and other household items, then this site is a must have in your files.

by Emily

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Maybe you’ve seen Kashi’s new commercial asking you to trade in your unhealthy snack for a free sample of their new line. I checked the map and they aren’t setting up a stand in my neighborhood (and probably not yours either), but you can go online and get a free sample here.

I encourage you to give this a chance. Many people do not like their cereals and call them bland, dry rabbit food. I’m not a fan of the fiber either. Words like “flax seed” just sound like gnawing on raw hide to me.

Kashi is offering 3 new snack lines that are nothing like their cereal. These snacks have more taste and pizazz, but still fall under the “good for you” category! You can choose from an oatmeal cookie (dark chocolate), chewy trail mix granola bar or 7 grain crackers.

Before this snack drive started I had tried the chewy granola bars and thought they were a little tougher to chew than others, but very filling. My son loved them! So I know he’ll love the oatmeal cookie and crackers which are on their way. I don’t feel as guilty handing him a wholesome snack with fiber, whole grains, nearly zero saturated fat and no artificial ingredients. This is a much better option than the sugary fruit snacks I typically reach for.

Recently I’ve tried filling our house with more vegetables and fruit and less starch and sugar. The Kashi website also offers a lot of recipes, health and wellness information and nutrition tips. If you’re trying to move toward a healthier lifestyle, this would be a good place to start.

The program, which is available for both Windows and Mac, took me all of 45 seconds to download, install, and open. Switching between the view of my music and the view of the calendar is an easy ctrl-t click away. (click image to see a larger screenshot)

In under a minute, I had found that one of my most favorite bands is playing less than 5 miles from my house on July 3. This is a fact that would have most likely escaped me otherwise.

Listed to the left of the calendar is a list of the concerts. Just click on the show you are interested in seeing, and iConcertCal opens your internet browser to a page with ticket and venue information.

These days, I don’t pick up the weekly local entertainment paper. I don’t have time to cull through it looking for that one show a month that I am enthusiastic enough to go see. We love concerts. We love going out. We just aren’t inspired enough anymore to search for the opportunities.

I don’t love my iPod, but I do like iTunes for easy access to music. I just love a beautiful CD jacket way too much to be strictly an iPod girl, though. However, with addition of this lovely little concert calendar plug-in, iTunes has suddenly become even more appealing.

And don’t forget that it’s free!

Even better, though, is that I have been using a site that sends me free samples of a variety of products and I never even have to leave my house. Now I want you to have the same opportunity.

Go to Wal-Mart and scroll over “In Stores Now” on the right hand side. Click on “Free Samples” and it will take you to the assortment of products available. Or just click here!

The selection changes frequently and some products may only be advertised for a few hours, depending on the number of requests they receive. Simply fill in your name, address and birth date. Some will ask a few questions about the products your family may have purchased in the past. You may volunteer to answer follow-up questions after receiving the sample by e-mail, although I never have.

A friend introduced me to this last summer and over the months I’ve tried a massive amount of items. Our mailbox has included everything from microwave popcorn to deodorant to laundry soap. My favorites included a brand new Gillette Mach 3 razor for my husband (worth $9) and samples of medicines.

Many times I put the toiletry samples in a basket under the cabinet. It’s so much easier to pack a few samples of shampoo when you go on a trip, rather than a large bottle.

As I write this they are offering Biore skin care products, Almay Hydracolor lipstick, Alavert allergy relief and many others of which I’m waiting to arrive. Delivery may take 4-6 weeks, but in my experience, it doesn’t usually take that long.

Whether you just like free stuff or want to try out a product before purchasing it, it’s worth a few minutes a week to request some samples. Let Wal-Mart send a few your way!