... but free is fun!

In my mailbox today, a check for $15 from Beck's for the Stella Artois purchase I made on New Year's Eve. 6 packs were on sale for $7.19 that day, and I had to buy 2 to qualify for the rebate. Ah yes, that's two 6 packs for $14.38 - the $15 rebate = 62c profit. Yay!

Then, a post at MoneySavingMom reminded me that one could sign up for a free subscription to Women's Day magazine. I used to pay for this magazine ... back when we had no sense about spending money on luxuries ... and now, I will soon be getting it for free! Double yay!

Two days ago, I got 2 $10 gift cards from MyPoints. One for Starbucks, and one for Panera. Have you joined MyPoints yet? You click through emails and rack up points which you then turn in for gift cards of your choosing. If you need help, I'd be more than happy to refer you. (/shameless plug) They also threw in 2 discount cards for $15 off any order at FTD.com. They currently have 12 multi-colored roses on sale for $17.99, fyi.

That same day, I got an envelope from 1800-flowers.com that had a gift card inside for $20. I scored it through a rebate I found that I had happened to have already purchsed the items for. We had done our holiday baking shopping, and the items needed for the rebate were things we had needed. I dug out the receipt (a bonus of being woefully behind on updating one's pricebook) and sent it in. Free flowers abound this month!

I seriously love getting things for free in the mail. These are just a handful of the lovely things the mailman has brought me recently. There was also the Juicy Juice sippy cup, a veritable ton of coupons from Vocalpoint, and a ton of sample sized items. I find freebies a great way to add to my budget either by including rebate money in my grocery budget, or by supplementing the items we need with samples. Just last weekend when we travelled to Debate States, I packed shampoo sample packets instead of a full sized bottle. Keep your eyes open for freebies and rebates. They're everywhere, and they're almost always worth the couple extra minutes to do the paperwork.

What have you gotten for free recently?


Simply,

Em.