Couponing Definitions

It can sometimes be very confusing when you first start couponing and looking for deals. You see terms and abbreviations that you've never seen before.

To help you better understand these terms and definitions, I've created a basic couponing definitions list.

(This is still very much a work in progress. Eventually, I will have it alphabetized. I will also continue to add new terms to make this a fairly comprehensive list. I didn't want anyone to be confused or wondering what on earth I or other couponers were talking about between now and when this project is finished so I decided to go ahead and post it as is and let you see the work as it progresses.)

If you have come across any terms or definitions that you'd like to see included here, please send me a message or comment here so I can get those added.)

• ac=Ad coupon (a coupon found in an ad that must be scanned to get the deal)
• b1g1f, b1g1 or b0g0=indicates a "buy 1 get 1" coupon which means that when you buy the indicated item, you get another item for free
• Blinkie=A coupon found in the red blinking machines hanging off store shelves
• Cat=Another term used for "Catalina"...see below
• Catalina=Usually used at grocery stores to denote a printable coupon you get at the end of a transaction which can be used on your next transaction)
• DAY=Diabetes and You book found in the pharmacy of Walgreens
• DND=Do not double
• DND-5=The coupon says to not double, but it is coded TO double which means it will unless it is manually overridden by a cashier (doesn't usually happen)
• DND-9=The coupon says to not double and it will not double unless a cashier manually doubles the coupon
• ECB=Extra Care Bucks (used at CVS to denote a printable coupon you get at the end of a transaction which can be used on your next transaction)
• ESR=Easy Saver Rebate (Used at Staples to denote their rebate items. You can submit these rebates online very easily. They have the best rebate program out there right now.  I have done their rebates many times and have always received the rebate amount back.  The rebates are often in the form of Visa gift cards which can be used anywhere, but are sometimes actual checks which you can deposit into your bank account.)
• GM=General Mills (an insert with coupons that comes in the Sunday paper)
• IP=Internet printable (coupons that are printed off the internet)
• IVC=Instant Value Coupon (used at Walgreens to denote their monthly store coupon books)
• Lt or lt=Limit (usually meaning that the deal is limited to a certain number (like 2) per household)
• MC=Manufacturer Coupon (the coupons found in the Sunday paper inserts)
• MIR=Mail-in-rebate
• oyno=On your next order (It means a coupon prints out at the register for a specific dollar amount that you can use on your next order.  It's off ANYTHING in your order and is not for a particular product.)
• Peelie=Coupons found on products in the store
• PG=Procter & Gamble (an insert with coupons that comes in the Sunday paper 
• RB=Reinventing Beauty magazine sold at CVS for $.99. It contains CVS brand coupons that can be combined with a manufacturer's coupon.   It can be found in several different place in the store including by the other magazines, up at the front near the registers, near the pharmacy, in the cosmetics area, etc.
• RP=Red Plum (an insert with coupons that comes in the Sunday paper)
• RR=Register Rewards (used at Walgreens to denote a printable coupon you get at the end of a transaction which can be used on your next transaction)
• SC=Store coupon (a coupon found in an ad or elsewhere in the store that must be scanned to get the deal)
• Staples Rewards=You purchase an item and they give you the promised amount back in a rewards check at the end of that quarter.  You can only use this reward check at Staples.  I have done their rewards programs many times without any difficulty.
• SS=Smartsource (an insert with coupons that comes in the Sunday paper)
• V=Valassis (an insert with coupons that comes in the Sunday paper, now called RP)

Mom Tells School Not to Feed Her Child

If you're like me, you're first thought is, "WHAT?!? What's wrong with this mom?"

Then, I read the story. Ah. Not quite so bad as I first thought.

In fact, I'd have done the same thing with my child. If I tell you to do something and you don't obey...then you will face the consequences of your disobedience. As most parents know, the best consequences, the ones that stick the most...are those born of a natural consequence.

Johnny leaves a nearly full jug of milk out on the counter? Johnny will be paying you $2.50 to replace that milk. Johnny's also not likely to do that again...because he felt the hurt of that $2.50...that he WAS saving to buy a new video game.

The difference between my situation and this mom's situation is that I homeschool. If I tell my child to get their lunch together for the park picnic we're having today & they do something else instead; then they won't eat until we get home. I have the ability to enforce my consequence because I'm with my child.

I'm not a bit surprised that the school chose not to honor the mom's request. I am beyond angry that they made the decision to tell the child that what his mom did was illegal. It was not anything close to illegal and for that I think the school SHOULD apologize! I think they should go TO THE SON & tell him that mom wasn't doing anything illegal. They were wrong. He should listen to mom.

How hard would that be?

I don't think that I would have actually expected the school to honor such a request, though. I would have told Johnny that he had to pay for his lunch since he didn't get his lunch together. If he had the cash, it would come out of that. If not, I'd loan him the money and he'd pay me back...with interest. THEN it would be JOHNNY'S choice to feel the hurt of spending his own money on his lunch or to feel the hurt of not eating lunch. There would be nothing for mom to ask the school to do. If the school told Johnny that he MUST eat, then he would be required to purchase the lunch with his own money.

If you choose to have your child educated by someone else, whether that be a private or a public school, then you have to accept that you have given up your right to parent your child during a part of the day. As such, you'll have to alter the consequences accordingly should your child disobey. You might have to get more creative with your discipline, but you can still find a way to have Johnny feel the consequences of his actions...while not expecting the school to play an active part in his discipline.

A Peanut is Born

I was instructed that I couldn't post this until at least 9:30 tonight since that's when she was born. 9 years ago today, God blessed us with a precious peanut.

Happy birthday, Miss Whit. You're my "mini-me". Your Daddy says he knew from your first oh-so-passionate cry that you were just like your Mama. I love you so much. I can't believe you've gone from that little one who cried with so much passion to my little lady.

You went from my sweet, passionate baby to the sweetest toddler there ever was:

Now, you're learning the finer points of shooting from Daddy:

I wouldn't have believed you 9 years ago if you told me my baby girl would one day be doing this:

You're growing up so fast. I love you so much, Gracie. I pray this year is more blessed than you can even imagine.


(Mommy)

School Watches Kids on WebCams

I am sickened. Literally sick to my stomach. I'd say that this is one of the many reasons we homeschool, but that's not even right here.

EVERY person, EVERY student, EVERY child has the right to privacy. NO person, NO student, NO child should have their trust violated by a school! I homeschool my children, but I want to know that their future spouses, friends, & relatives who may not are in as safe and secure an environment as possible.

I am...speechless.

According to the AP article, "A school in suburban Philadelphia prides itself on being ahead in technology. It prides itself on being able to give each of its 2,300 students their own laptop computer." No one thought for a minute that these school officials would attempt to violate the trust, privacy, and very lives of EVERY. SINGLE. STUDENT. NO ONE suspected they would attempt to remotely watch the students as the laptops sat in their bedrooms. I won't even say anything else. That, sadly, says enough.

The Lower Merion School District apparently thinks it okay to record students & their families without their permission and then to remotely access said recordings without the permission of those students or their families. The opportunity for impropriety here is unbelievably high. It sickens me.

A lawsuit has been filed by a student & his family. They are hoping to make it a class-action lawsuit filed on behalf of every student.

The school district doesn't deny the charges. In a letter on their website posted this evening, Dr. Christopher McGinley (Superintendent of schools), ADMITS that they had the ability to take still photographs of the computer screen & the operator of the computer (his words). He also admits that they had the ability to access these photographs remotely. They say it was in the name of security & so they would have the ability to find a lost or stolen laptop and that the feature has now been disabled.

In the name of security? Where have I heard that before...

Free Deals This Week

Today's frugal tip takes you to CVS for a couple of quick freebies!

Find your closest CVS, grab any coupons you need & start saving! You can find this weeks ad at CVS.com.
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This week, CVS has 2 definite freebies! These items are free after ECBs (Extra Care Bucks). What that means is that you pay for the first one up front in full (minus any coupons). You get your ECBs at the end of your receipt. You can use these on your next order (which can be immediately). They expire a month after issue.

This week's freebies are:

• Crest Pro-Health Enamel Shield Toothpaste (4-4.2oz) or rinse (14.8oz) $3.50-$3.50 ECBs (limit 2)=FREE after ECB's Those are items you can get FREE without ever having to pick up a coupon!! Have coupons? Check THIS out:

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  • Crest tp (see above) $3.50- ($.75/Crest toothpaste MC(manufacturer's coupon) from the 2/7/10 P&G (Procter & Gamble) insert) = $2.75 oop (out of pocket) and get BACK $3.50 in ECBs!!! That means that even AFTER taxes, CVS & Crest just PAID you to take toothpaste home to your family!

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  • Crest rinse (see above)$3.50- ($2/Crest rinse MC from 2/7/10 PG)= $1.50 oop and STILL get back $3.50 in ECBs!!! That means that, again, even after taxes, CVS & Crest have just PAID YOU to take their products home! Does it get any better than this? I think not! (We don't use rinse so although this is a fantastic deal, I'll be getting the toothpaste instead.)

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  • There is a limit of 2 for this offer which means you can get a total of 2 items with your Extra Care card. You can either get 2 toothpastes, 2 rinses, or 1 of each.

• Aussie Shampoo or Conditioner (13.5oz) or Styler (5.1-14oz) $2.99 = $2.99 oop & you get $2 in ECB back. (limit 1) No, this isn't free. However, it's a pretty incredible deal for a high-end shampoo. Can it get better than this, though? Can we get it for free? OF COURSE we can!

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  • Aussie (see above) $2.99 - ($1/any Aussie product from the 2/14/10 RP (Red Plum) insert) = $1.99 oop & you get $2 ECB back. They pay you a penny to take this high-end shampoo home! Essentially, this means you get a penny off your taxes. Look at this way, though, you'd have paid taxes anyway regardless of which product you bought!

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  • There is a limit of 1 for this offer which means you can only purchase one item total for this deal (not one of each item).

You do need to obtain a CVS Extra Care card in order to obtain these deals. It is easy to obtain & you can do so when you go in to do your shopping. The card will also include a keytag card which I keep on my card at all times.

Below, I've laid out for you how I would purchase these items in the store to have the least amount of money out of pocket:

• Buy 1 Aussie shampoo, conditioner, or styler as detailed above:

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  • *$2.99 sale price - ($1) MC 2/14/10 RP = $1.99 oop (out of pocket). Get $2 ECB back for use on your next order.

• Buy 2 Crest Pro-Health Enamel Shield Toothpastes as detailed above:

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  • *$7 sale price - 2($.75) MC 2/7/10 PG - ($2) ECB from above = $4.25 oop. Get 2 $3.50 ECBs back.

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  • *I purchased both of these together because you won't have enough oop to use the ECB from one order on another. That's okay, though. There will be enough deals in the next month so you'll have ample opportunity to use your $7 in ECBs.

Confused about some of the terms I've used? Find explanations and a breakdown of how I list my deals on my definitions page.

Grumpy Husband

We have one hard and fast rule at our house. It comes from the knowledge that my husband is a self-professed addict.

Coffee would be his drug of choice. Everyone knows the rule. If Daddy's grumpy, someone needs to brew some coffee...QUICK! Or some of us may not make it out alive.

A moment of this...


...gives us "happy Daddy".

Cheap Doesn't Equal Low Quality!

I read an article on Photo Focus today that just irritates me. The article's sole purpose is to bash photographers who charge under market value for their work. ("Market value" in this case evidently being established by those who charge the most.)

I totally disagree with Mr. Bourne's premise that because someone "under charges", they are also under-talented. That couldn't be further from the truth! I know several novice photographers who are VERY talented!

I'm sure this author would say my friends under charge. I see it differently. I think they are very competitively priced. Sure, they give the high-priced photographers a run for their money. It's called competition, honey. Competition. You don't like that others are taking business from you because they're charging less? Then YOU charge less, don't rant about them degrading the entire photography industry because they don't charge enough. Perhaps YOU'RE charging TOO MUCH?!?

If the "common man" (that would be me and my family) can't afford your services, and you're okay with that then fine. Shut up and enjoy your high-paying clientele and accept that you won't earn the business of commoners who cannot (or will not) pay exorbitant prices for a service they can get cheaper...with equal or better quality.

Von's: Can We Talk?

Dear Vons,

I fear our relationship has not started off on the right foot. I tried. I really did.

I did everything in my power to ensure that you & I would get along. I did what every good couponer would do. I went to your website & attempted to find your coupon policy. When I only found your policy for printable coupons, I kept searching. As any good couponer who desires to follow proper coupon policies would do.

I could clearly see by your site that you were owned by Safeway as the printable coupon policy listed was that of Safeway stores. Perhaps the Safeway site would help me. Unfortunately, I found no help there either. I attempted to e-mail your company ahead of our move to ensure I had the coupon policy in writing. I wanted to make sure I knew what to expect as I had heard horror stories about you and your sister store, Dominick's. Alas, I got no reply.

I finally found responses to coupon policy requests online. The kind ladies and gentleman at Couponer's Wanted posted responses they had received in hopes of helping others; or just in an attempt to see if this week's policy was different than last week's. I hear they change frequently and on the whim of the manager for that day.

I know your sister store Dominick's is talking to couponers about their problems through Jill Cataldo. Do you think, that perhaps, just maybe you might listen to us too? (Especially since nearly every.single.complaint. had by a Dominick's customer could be echoed by a Von's customer?)

But I digress...and dream...

And then, we met today. I've been in your store several times in the past month. I had even used coupons while there. I was behaving as most couponing shoppers do, though. I used only a couple of coupons. I had an issue my first week where a manager tried to tell me I couldn't use a coupon because the item was a good price already since it was on sale. He finally agreed to take my coupon "just this once".

And again, today. Today. My first day back to "super-couponing". You see, Von's, I'm not your average couponer. I am a bonafide super-couponer. I have been doing this for 12 years. Not months, not weeks, YEARS. I know what it is to coupon. I also know that you must make sure you clearly know each store's coupon policy before entering that store.

I have tried. I have talked to your corporate office. I'm told you only limit internet-printable coupons. I'm told you don't take copied coupons. (Who would? That would be fraud.) I'm told you reserve the right to limit the use of OTHER store coupons (like a Walgreen's Register Reward that is a manufacturer coupon).

I've not even yet attempted to use another store's manufacturer coupon at your store. I've not yet attempted to use a printable coupon at your store. I would never copy a coupon as that is illegal.

Why, then oh help me why, did I have a problem today when attempting to use coupons FOUND on a product IN YOUR STORE!!!!!???!!?? I peeled the "Save $1 now" coupons off the product while standing in your aisle. I then proceeded to head to the registers to check out.

I met, "the man". We'll call him "the man" because I think he felt like the man when he attempted to stop me in my alleged fraudulent use of "duplicate" coupons. HUH? They were what us couponers call "peelies". They were coupons I had to peel off of a product while in the store. They said "save now" which indicates that the manufacturer hoped I would purchase that product because of the incentive they were offering to save $1 now if I did so.

I do appreciate that your managers finally agreed to let me purchase all of 14 of my items with all 14 of my coupons "just this once". Unfortunately, I fear that "just this once" is more often than you or the Safeway corporation would like. As in, "I'm only in your store 'just this once' because of the way I was treated when I attempted to legally and properly use a legitimate coupon". For your sake, I hope I'm wrong, but I fear I'm not.

Seriously, can we stop this before it gets bad? I hate to go up the corporate ladder, but I will. I've done it before, and I will do it again if necessary. Really, though, can't we just agree to get along if we all play by the rules? Please? Pretty please?

It would make it MUCH easier the next time I walk into your store with this:

You Made Your Bed...

...or did you?

My son swears that he DID make his bed! He told me to go look again. He just checked. "It IS made, mom!"

I'm thinking we need to define what it means to have actually made a bed.

My Old Man

No, I'm not talking about my dad. I'm talking about the love of my life who turns 35 today.

I don't think he's old, but he's having somewhat of a mid-30's crisis. Then he saw his bald spot in a store mirror the other day, and all was lost. For the record, I LOVE his bald spot! I think it's incredibly cute. He doesn't agree. It doesn't help any that certain someones with whom he works have given him a hard time about becoming an old man and going bald.

Bald spot or not, old or not, we love you babe. I'm thankful that God brought you into this world 35 years ago, and even more thankful that He brought you into my life. It has been an incredible journey watching you grow into a man of God. The man He created you to be. It's not one that I'd trade for anything. I love you.

Happy Birthday, babe.

It's So Good to Be Settled

There are no words to describe how wonderful it is to finally be settled into our new home. The boxes aren't all unpacked yet, but we are home. It's so wonderful to be home even if we are still surrounded by mounds of boxes.

We started back to full-time schooling this week, and are LOVING our new school room! This is the first time we've ever had a dedicated school room. It's incredibly nice not having a bookshelf in every. single. room. We actually have room to move around!

I appreciate your patience as we've made this move. While I love blogging, my priorities get all thrown around when we move; especially when we're living in a hotel, looking for a house, and looking for new car all at the same time!

I was hoping to get pics of our house up today, but it's raining. Instead, we're going to go car shopping in the rain. Because THAT sounds like LOADS of fun!