How did you financially make it through Nursing School? (Looking for some advice)

MassagetoRN · Nov 24, 2008

ok...please send me a pm on how you get out of paying for toiletries...this is a huge budget-buster for us.

i'll go ahead and share the info here, as we all can use alittle help in this area. and if you don't, toiletries make great items to donate to homeless ministries.

its called the drugstore game. basically walgreens and cvs (and all retail stores really) have whats called loss leaders. these are the cheap or free things listed on the front page of their ads. they want to get you into their store to shop for everything else. well, by watching for these loss leaders, using store and manufactors coupons, and using price match, you can get tons of stuff for free, or pretty close to it. for example, cvs last week (this is expired, so don't look for it!) had right guard and soft & dry deoderant only sale for $2.99, but if you used your cvs card, you got $2 ecb (money off your next purchase, printed at the end of your reciept) back, making it $.99, which is a good deal. but once i got there, i found that each item had a $.55 off coupon in it, making it in effect, $.45 each, and there was a limit of 5 per cvs card. i have 2 cards, registered to two address, so i picked up 10 deoderants for $4.50 plus tax. yes, i had to pay $24.40 up front, but got $20 back to use next time. well, i do this every week, so once you've laid out a bit of cash, you don't have to again, cause you have the ecb to use next time. walgreens has weekly and monthly deals like this as well, but they use store coupons (see next paragraph) and rebates, as well as rapid rewards, or catalinas. these are those little coupons that print out with your reciept at the second printer at the register. you can submit the rebates online and get a check back, or better yet, get an additional 10% when they put it on a walgreens giftcard. again, after laying out some cash the first month, you have giftcards to roll over.

there are 2 types of coupons, store coupons and manufactors coupons. you can use one of each type per item. for example, at target (this is good through wed 11/26, so use it) there is a deal on leapfrog fridge toys. the fridge phonics set is $19.99 (i've heard this is an awesome and educational toy, so my toddler is getting it!). however target has their toy coupon book out that has a $5 off leapfrog fridge toy coupon. when you go to leapfrog.com and register and set up a child's learning path (free) they will email you some coupons (it takes a day or so). 1 is for $3 off any fridge toy, this is a manufactor's coupon. stores submit these coupons for reimbursement from the manufactor. so, i paid $11.99 for my kid's christmas present (she's only 2.5, and gets tons of other stuff from family!).

you can even work your coupons for moneymakers (mm). one that comes to mind is a listerne deal a few weeks ago (again, expired). cvs had cool agent blue mouthwash for $3.99 with $3.99 ecb back, but there was a coupon in their pharmacy booklet (manufactor's) for $1 off. so, after both, you got paid $1 to take the mouthwash.

common items to get cheap or free are: shampoo, conditioner, bodywash, toothpaste, toothbrushes, deoderant, and razors.

now, i know what you are saying, i hate clipping coupons, and how do i find these deals.... i hate clipping coupons too, so don't! leave them whole in the booklet, and only clip them when you need it. i just recently started buying a sunday paper. yes, it costs $2 but i get atleast $10-$20 out of it, and i get a coupon booklet (redplum in the mail weekly. living in an apt complex, i usually get a few from neighbors that throw them away). but most of my coupons i get and print online. also, i am not that diligent in keeping up, i use my websites.

here is what i look at:

http://slickdeals.net (go to the drugstore/grocery store forum) or search for walgreens or cvs. this can be alittle overwhelming, so look for threads about getting started or look at the blogs i subscribe too.

http://forums.slickdeals.net/showthread.php?sduid=282061&t=888872 yes, this advise works at the grocery store too. here is a thread dedicated to az grocery stores. i just stocked up on free toilet paper.

blogs i have emailed to me:

http://sahmmoney.blogspot.com/

http://www.kingdomfirstmom.com/

these are two great women, mothers, that keep up on the deals, and email you the savings scenario. after each item you will see the coupon match up. if there is a printable coupon, there will be a link. after it prints, make sure you hit your back button a few times to get it to print again. you can get 2 coupons per computer ..... if you see something like hersheys bar, 1.45 oz - 1.55 oz b1g1f up to .79 (11-30-08) ss 9/28/08

that means the coupon is for hersheys bar, buy one, get one free, it expires 11/30/08 and you can find it in your smart source booklet from the 9/28/08 paper. ss= smart source, v or rp= red plum. if you look at the spine of the booklet, it will tell you the paper's date. again, leave your coupons in the book, and only clip them when you need it.

the whole trick here is to stock pile things when you don't need them. if you buy these items when you need them, then you pay a premium. i just cleaned out my stash for my church today, and literally i donated about 10 pairs of pp/conditioner, 10 toothpastes, 5 toothbrushes, 5 bodywashes, 7 deoderants, etc. i paid probably under $10 for all that i donated. so, get what you need for your family, and be a blessing by donating the excess!

hopefully this helps you all save some money. again, i search slickdeals.net before i buy anything, anywhere. i can usually find a discount or coupon or something to help me save money. just be careful, because it becomes addicting!! have fun!!

p.s., to those of you that mentioned the upcoming christmas and the hardships of gifts. remember the reason for the season. i stopped buying for adults a few years ago. i was going broke, and thats not what christmas is about. also, limiting your spending teaches your kids about finacial responsibility and to appreciate what they have.