Groupon Deal: The Produce Spot

Have you used Groupon yet? Lately, these group deal sites have been popping up everywhere, although Groupon is the first one that I have heard of. I've bought a few restaurant deals, a 50% off Gap gift certificate, and a $20 Soap.com gift certificate for $10.

I get a daily email with the Groupon for the day (there is one email for San Francisco and one for San Jose; I subscribe to both).

Today's Groupon for San Jose is a $20 gift certificate to The Produce Spot on Berryessa Road in San Jose for $10. The limit is one per person, but you can buy 2 additional ones as gifts. The Produce Spot carries organic and conventional produce, some baked goods, and dairy products. I have not been to the Produce Spot, but I have been to a similar store in South San Jose.

So if you are ever in the area of East San Jose and would like to stretch your grocery budget a little further, maybe it's a good idea to pick up this Groupon today!

***You have until Midnight Tuesday night (tonight!) to purchase this particular Groupon, but you have until March 29th, 2011 to use it.***

Whole Foods' Chicken Sale Friday

This Friday only, my local Whole Foods is having their Rocky fryer chickens on sale for only 99 cents/pound. This is a great price for good quality chicken. I think I'll stop in and pick up a couple of chickens for my freezer.

Check with your local store to see what they've got on sale this week.

Whole Foods' Grass Fed Beef Sale

My neighborhood Whole Foods will have ground grass-fed beef on sale this Friday, September 3rd. $3.99 per pound is a super great price for this. That is about my stock up price for Whole Foods "regular" ground beef. Check to see if your Whole Foods store is participating in this sale...and then stock up!

Shopping for Me!

My closet has been so sad lately. Clothes stained by toddler tears and sticky-handed hugs, pulled out of shape by a nursing babe and little ones wanting attention. Getting dressed has become a dilemma: dress for battle with the kiddos or dress for the hot mama that I hope still lives inside me?

Earlier this week, I cleared out some items that no longer fit, flatter, or (as Pioneer Woman would say) make my skirt fly up. Then I found out that Gap was having their "Give and Get" sale (formerly known as "Friends and Family") this weekend and I could give my closet the boost it needed for a lot less moola.

I decided to check out the Gilroy outlets (since the Gap coupon works there, too) and took my three babes with me. Though they made difficult work of my closet boosting assignment (it is so hard to think "hot mama" when little ones are wrestling with mannequins), I did get some deals that will make getting dressed a whole lot more fun.

J. Crew Outlet was my first stop and I picked up two pairs of corduroy pants for $39 each. They fit like they were made for me; I couldn't pass them up.

At Gap, they didn't have too much for the kiddos, which made me sad. I really wanted to get them some cute fall clothes. I found a lot for me; their women's section is huge. I limited myself to one knit cardigan ($24.99 before my 30% discount) and my deal of the day: a pair of Long and Lean jeans ($27.99 before my discount). When I pulled on the jeans in the dressing room, I actually said "hello, old friend". They fit me that well.

I hope to check out Gap and Old Navy tomorrow to see if there is anything else I can't live without. I am bummed that this coupon only works in store: I really prefer to shop fromGap and Old Navy online, but I'll take what I can get.

To get your own coupon for the Give and Get event, just google "Gap Give and Get August 2010" and you should be able to print one out. And don't worry if you can't make it out this weekend; if history repeats itself, Gap will do another Give and Get event close to Christmas time.

Cage free chicken drumsticks $0.99/lb.

I have been trying to feed my family healthier food options. That includes eating better meat and dairy products (antibiotic free, hormone free, vegetarian feed, cage free, etc.). That is not always the most wallet-friendly choice, however. And I admit that lately, I've been picking up irresistable deals in the marked-down meats' section of my Safeway.

With a new month comes a recommitment to put my money where my values are. I went to Trader Joe's to pick up some chicken breasts this week. I ended up getting their chicken tenders at $4.99/lb. Ouch.

So I was excited to see the weekly specials from Whole Foods this week include their Rocky Jr. drumsticks (cage-free and antibiotic free) on sale for $0.99/lb. in a value pack. That's my stock up price for drumsticks at Safeway!

There you have it: a healthy choice that doesn't break the bank.

Prices are good from Aug. 4th through Aug. 10th. Check your local store's ad to make sure these prices are available in your area.

Save on baby supplies at Amazon

Have you ever tried using Amazon to get your diapers and wipes? Amazon offers a 15% discount when you sign up for their "Subscribe & Save" service, which signs you up for automatic deliveries every 1, 3 or 6 months. The great thing is that you can change your delivery frequency at anytime...or even cancel it altogether.

Right now, Amazon is offering an additional 15% off their already marked down price, making their Subscribe & Save option even better.


I just ordered two boxes of Huggies wipes through Subscribe & Save. Each box had 3 refills with 216 wipes in each refill. After discounts, each box cost me only $12.16! I used a giftcard I earned taking surveys to lower my out of pocket expense. Nice!

Shipping is free for Subscribe & Save items, so you don't have to meet the $25 quota they normally reserve for free shipping.

***Update: I just checked the price on these and it has gone up to $14.22, which is still a great deal at 2 cents per wipe. Amazon's prices do tend to fluctuate. The Pampers wipes are actually a better deal right now at $13.47 for 720 wipes or 1.87 cents per wipe.

July 4th Summer Sale at Gilroy Outlets

Did yesterday's post whet your appetite for some outlet shopping? It got me thinking about how long it's been since I've stopped in to check out all the great deals they always seem to have there.

If you're going to be in the South Bay, Gilroy Outlets is celebrating July 4th with their annual summer sale. On top of the discounts I mentioned at Gap and Banana Republic, several other stores will have some pretty great deals, such as:

• BCBG Max Azria: 30% to 50% off
• Book Warehouse: 10% off your entire purchase July 2-5
• Champion: Entire store is 40% through July 11
• Ann Taylor Factory Store: Entire store is 40% off lowest ticketed price through July 6
• Carters': $3.99 clearance sale through July 7
• Coldwater Creek: 40% off Storewide Sale through July 11
• Eddie Bauer: Super Sale with savings of 20% to 70% through July 13
• J. Crew: 40% off all women's footwear and accessories, graphic tees, Jackie cardigans, and denim through July 7, Kids' flip flops $6.99
• Lucky Brand: 25% off lowest price July 1-5, 30% off your purchase July 10-11, and denim is buy 2, get 1 free July 15-18
• OshKosh B'gosh: Clearance sale through July 7

For more July 4th weekend deals, check it out here. While you're at the website, sign up for the VIP Shopper Club. You'll get extra coupons and updates on sales and special events at the outlets.

With over 145 shops, you are definitely sure to find a deal! And I never make a trip to the Gilroy Outlets without picking up a caramel apple at the Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory. In fact, I'm craving an apple pie one right about now.

Outlet shopping this weekend

Does the upcoming holiday weekend make you think "shopping"? Well here's a way to make your money go a little further at Gap Outlet and Banana Republic Factory Stores. July 1-6, Gap Outlet is having a big sale, with up to 70% off original prices. Banana Republic Factory Stores are advertising 40% off everything in the store.

In this past Sunday's USA Weekend, there was a full page ad about the sales, with two coupons attached. One is for 15% off your Gap Outlet purchase of $75 or more and the other is 15% off your Banana Republic Factory Store purchase of $100 or more. This could work out to be a pretty great deal if you need to stock up on some summer clothes for the kids (and maybe something for yourself, too).

Not sure if there's an outlet store nearby? Gap and Banana Republic have Outlet stores in the following Bay Area cities:

• Milpitas (Great Mall of the Bay Area): Gap and Banana Republic
• Gilroy (Gilroy Premium Outlets): Gap and Banana Republic
• San Leandro (Marina Square): Gap only
• Tracy (Tracy Outlets): Gap only
• Napa (Napa Premium Outlets): Gap and Banana Republic
• Vacaville (Vacaville Premium Outlets): Gap and Banana Republic
• Petaluma (Petaluma Village): Gap and Banana Republic
• Folsom (Folsom Premium Outlets): Gap and Banana Republic

Traveling outside the Bay Area for the holiday? Check here for more outlet locations.

Earth's Best Organics: Sale at Babies R Us

This week I stopped in to Babies R Us to get some baby food for my 9 month old, who is now ready to try some meat in her diet. The 1st and 2nd foods jars (4oz.) of Earth's Best Organics are on sale 10/$5. If Id' had a coupon with me (like $1/7 here), it would have been an even better deal, but it was pretty good just the same.

The 3rd foods jars (6oz.) are 10/$10. These prices are good until 5/8/10.