i heart freebies

some cool girl put together this site full of freebies that she's personally tried out - no more sifting through loads of crappy links to find out that you actually have to purchase something to get your "free" sample!

the pink wallet

another excellent shopping trip

here is the rundown:

container store:
returned $31.71 worth of christmas items that i received and wasn't going to use
purchased: receipt file, paper file for jared, travel toiletries case, travel makeup bag, small reusuable shopping bag
total cost after gift card redemption: $8.09

walgreens:
transferred a prescription to receive a $25 gift card
purchased: 2 bottles of water, 3 bottles of flintstones gummy vitamins, 1 bottle of one-a-day for men vitamins, 2 bottles of fructis styling products, 1 package of 9 volt batteries, 3 eyeliners.
total before sale: $77
total after sale before coupons: $61.94
total after coupons: $47.94
total after rebates: $27.95
total after $10 register reward earned for buying the vitamins: $17.95
total cost after giftcard: $0

the limited ( i needed a suit and some work clothes for my sales meeting next week)
purchased: 1 necklace, 1 ring, 1 brooch, 2 pairs work pants, 1 pair jeans, 1 blazer, 1 cardigan sweater, 1 cami, 1 shirt to wear under suit. everything except the jewelry and 1 pair of pants was full price. (the jewelry and 1 pair of pants were on super clearance and their tag prices totaled $29.36)

i don't think the clerk should have given me so many discounts, but she was super nice and i'm not gonna complain!

first she took off $8.99 from the jewlery, even though that was the highest priced item and the clearance jewelry wasn't buy 2 get one free like the others.
the she took 50% off of the higher priced pair of pants (they were buy one get 50% off, but is should have been for the lower priced item) so i saved another $34.75.
she gave me a 15% discount on every item because i am a student and it's a special they have going right now. that equaled: $43.69
then she took of $30 for a coupon that i had brought in with me
then she gave me another 15% discount because i used my limited card (i won't have interest for 90 days, AND i get free pant hemming!).
my total, had i not received any discounts besides the clearance items would have been: $360.98
what i actually paid: $226.51
this is a savings of ~37%

total spent out of my pocket for $477.78 worth of merchandise? $234.60
savings percent? 51%

i rock.

2009!

i am very excited about 2009. i have a fantastic boyfriend who will most likely propose this year. i love my job and am getting better and better at it every day. i will finally graduate with my MBA in december.

also, i plan to get the bulk of my debt paid off this year while j and i live on one salary. i'm excited about getting the debt gone and finally be able to save some money. this will be a huge weight off my shoulders. j and i are trying to plan out our financial future and finally make our money start working for us!

we also found the reward that we're going to do if both j and i meet our goals. he needs to stop smoking, and i need to lose 20 pounds. our friends are planning a trip to mexico at the end of april, so we decided that would be our reward! that gives us 5 months to meet our goal - and since we both really want this trip, we can encourage each other and have something to look forward to!

below is the plan on how i'm going to meet my goal. i only need to lose 20 pounds to meet my challenge goal, but if i'm able to stick to my plan, i might be able to lose 35-40. if i lost 40 pounds, i would be at a very comfortable weight and a size 8. 55 pounds would put me at my highschool weight and a size 6 - but i am not even going to think about that until i reach my first goal.

i plan to start out slow and add more each month. i also plan to allow myself one cheat day per week, where i can eat whatever i want. otherwise i will have visions of french fries and pizza dancing through my head.

January:
Goal: Lose 5 pounds
- play my wii fit* for at least 2 1/2 hours a week (can be 1 hour 2 days and 30 min 1 day, or 30 min every day - however i can fit into my schedule)
- phase out restuarant eating to <2 times a week (i'm sad to say its at about 3-5 times now)
- eat at least 1 fruit/veggie per day (not including things in recipes - this is extra)
- order water/tea instead of diet soda at restaurants

February:
Goal: Lose 7 pounds (12 pounds total)
- add in another hour of other exercise per week (3 1/2 hours)
- do some sort of activity at least 5 days a week
- find healthy receipes and focus on finding things both j and i like and will eat - collect 10 recipes that we can rotate through the month
- eat at least 2 extra fruit/veggies per day
- phase out restaurant eating to <1 time per week

March:
Goal: Lose 8 pounds (20 pounds total)
- add in another 15 minutes of exercise, for a total of 60 minutes, 5 days a week
- add in more whole grains and try to cut out white bread

April:
Goal: Lose 5 pounds (25 pounds total)
- work on maintaining current lifestyle
- start attending weekly yoga classes

if i am having a hard time meeting my goals, i will cut out alcohol and see if that helps. i don't drink too much right now - maybe a glass or two of wine 2-3 times a week. but if i'm not seeing a loss, i can cut it down a bit.

hopefully i will have the motivation i need this year! i have a trip riding on it, and i won't want to let down j if he is able to meet his challenge and i can't - because then neither of us can go on the trip!

*the hard activities - the fun balance games are extra