Hello, daddies, don’t make the same mistake you did last year! A wrong gift can be worse than no gift at all. Mommies may have told you that we need something for our house, or she needs to buy something. That doesn’t mean they actually want those for their Mother’s Day gifts.

Weight Loss
Weight loss books, DVDs, programs, software, gadgets, equipment, or supplements are ranked as number 1 of worst gifts you can give to your wife as Mother’s Day gift. It is OK for them to complain to you that they are over weighted, but they don’t want to agree with that. Even if they are using these products

 
Self Improvement
Your wife may love to cook, it doesn’t mean they need a cooking lesson, especially as a gift from you. Because it implies that she needs to improve her cooking skills. A book about how to improve marrage or how to cope with anger is only worse. Religious books aren’t any better.

 
Clothes/Shoes/Bras
Unless you know exactly her sizes and the manufacturers make the exact cut according to the size chart, don’t buy any clothes, shoes or bras as Mother’s Day gift. You will end up returning the items to the stores.

 
Cleaning Supplies
A toilet-bowl brush set, a vacuum cleaner, a roomba are the worst gifts for mom. They deserve to have one day break on Mother’s Day!

 
Cooking Supplies/Appliances
A set of pots, an apron, a coffee maker, a toaster, or a juice maker are as bad as above cleaning supplies.

 
Home Improvement
No women like home improvements, especially when it follows with spending time during the weekends. Moms are busy already, what good a screen door, blinds, or curtains can do to them?

 
Auto Accessories
Your wife complained that her car keeps getting dirty by spilled milk or food, or muddy from children’s shoes. Will a WeatherTech mat set work? Well, it will work for your car, but it is not a good Mother’s Day gift. Because it is supposed to be your job to buy one and install it for her car, not as a gift for the special day!

 
Coupon Books
Whether you made one by yourself, or bought one from Entertainment Book, it is a good idea for mom only if you are 10 years old.

 
Gifts Dad Like
Most dads want to get a new gadget for Father’s Day, such as a big screen TV, digital SLR camera, computer accessories. Please don’t assume that women like those too.

 
Pets
Moms can be dog or cat lover as you are, but they definitely don’t want to get one for Mother’s Day, especially as a surprising gift. Besides, raising a pet can be a big responsibility. Ask her in advance if she really wants one.

Children bring laughter to your life, children give you a happier marriage. But raising children is sure no easy. It is not about giving them food and clothing, nor pushing them to study to be a pianist or a doctor in the future. I do not agree with the tiger mom. I think she rasied her children in the worst way I could imagine. Maybe that’s because we have different expectations for our lives. I want my children to be happy, and be able to love in their life.

10 Priceless Experiences
1.Experience of A Happy Family
Children need the connection of a family. They need to have a feeling belonging to a family, no matter you are divorced or not. Give them a family that is happy, safe, and stable.

2.Experience Love
Love not only comes from the family. Show your love and help others in need. Your children will learn from you.

3.Tackle a problem independently
Let them solve the problem on their own. Let them try. You need to give them the guidance, but not doing it for them.

4.Participation in work
Give them a work that they can handle. Pay them if needed. They should be able to enjoy the work as part of their life.

5.Dealing with a different opinion
When children have a different opinion, listen to them, tell them to try. When you are able to listen to a different opinion from them, they will listen to yours as well.

6.Taste the failure
Nobody can be plain sailing in the entire life. Learn to accept failures. Ask them be strong. Stand up with them. Work a way out with them.

7.Go out with them
Go fishing, camping, hiking with them during the weekends. Or ride a bicycle with them if you don’t have too much time..

8.Share Your Emotions
Sharing happyness is easy to do. But there is nothing wrong to share your sadness with your children. They will learn how to deal with negative emotions from you.

9.Share Your Past
Tell them the stores in your childhood. Tell them what you did wrong or right, what you learned in the past. Children will open their hearts to you too.

10.The experience life and death
Tell them the truth about life and death. Help the young and the old that in need. Learn to respect the life.

We will continue next week for a list of 10 priced experiences you should give to children…

Some people are short of money all the time. It is not because they made less money than others, but because they spent a lot more than others. Are you one of them? See following 5 bad buying habits. If you have one of them, please think again that you may want to stop doing that starting from today. If you have all of them, I bet your life is a mess, you may need seek professional help.

Impulse Buy
This is the number 1 bad habbit, and it is very hard to change. Ladies, how could resist a new fancy dress, despiting you have more than 20 similar ones in your closet, right? It is also very hard for man not to buy a new gadget, such as the new iPad. Here is the trick that might help you to change your mind: when you are ready to buy, say to yourself “Let’s buy it tomorrow”. It is very possible that you change your mind a day later.

Buy Because of Promotions
Promotions are the tricks that retailers use on you to spend more than you should. Buy one get one 50% off, sounds attractive? The truth behind it is that you end up spenging more, and retailers make more money. 20% off with $100 order or more? That means you have to at least spend $100, while all you planed to spend was probably $10.

Stick to a store because of rewards points
Many retailers offer reward points for your purchases. Usually $1 is equivalent to 1 point. You can redeem these points for some free products (such as Sephora) or even use it as cash for future purchase (such as Buy.com). I am not saying that these reward programs are bad. Actually you should join them to save some money or get something free. But please don’t stick to these shops because of the points, other shops may provide same products as lower prices.

Financing Unncessarily
When you buy an expensive item, such as a large appliance, furniture, or a diamond ring, many retailers will offer financing options, with no interests for the first 6 months. You may be eligible for additional discounts and promotions. The truth is that if you can’t afford it today, you are very unlikely that you can afford it 6 months later. If you still think you can, wait for 6 months and see.

Pay Later
With BillMeLater or Easy Pay, you won’t get billed until 30 days later. And after that you can choose to pay in full, or pay month by month with APR rate as high as 19.99%. Sounds pretty much like the above financing plans, right? But only worse. Financing does not hurt your credit scores, but BillMeLater or Easy Pay will. With a lower credit score you will pay high interest rate on your mortgage and car loans, or affect even your inurance rate!

Mother’s Day is May 13th. You start to get a headache because of not knowing what gifts you should get for your mom and your wife, don’t you? Here is the rule: give the gifts according to how fat is your wallet. You don’t want to get an equity loan just to buy her an expensive gift. Mother’s Day is about appreciation, about love. Say something nice to her, help her to do the laundry, or a thank you from your deep heart is probably better than any other gift.

A Gift for Free
Handmake a mother’s card with paper flowers, or dry flowers from your backyard. Write something nice on it. There are many craft ideas for Mother’s Day here. If you are too lazy to do anything, at least you can send an e-card via email. Not recommending, though.

$10 Gift
10DollarMall.com is my favorite place to shop for gifts under $10. See following necklaces, only $5 or $7.50 each! They look like $100 pieces at Nordstrom, don’t you think so? For gifts under $10, the standard shipping cost is $2.99. That means with $7.99 to $10.49 you can get ne of these necklaces. There are more than 400 styles to choose from. No tax paid if you live outside of the state of California.

$20 Gift
OneHanesPlace.com is running a 50% off sale on Bali bras. It is valid on all Bali bras! See the following beautiful bras, only $18 each! There are 41 styles to choose from today, but will be gone fast. If you shop today (4/25) and tomorrow (4/26), there is an extra 25% off everything with promo code SAVE25, no minimum purchase required. If you buy a $18 bra, minus 25% off ($4.50 off), add a $5.99 shipping, a $0.56 estimate tax, the total brings $20.05! Customized T-shirt is another way of showing your love. Print your words on the T-shirt, or soemthing special between two of you, or even a picture of your last vacation. Try CafePress or Spreadshirt, you can one shirt at around $20.

$30 Gift
If you want to get some better jewelrys, try Chicos. Their designs are very unique. Prices are from $40 to $60. But there is a 40% off coupon for Mother’s Day gift shopping. Just enter code “17424” to get extra 40% off these jewelrys, which brings the total price down to $30 to $35.

$50 Gift
With $50 in your pocket, you now have a very large selection. You can get a pair of shoes at Payless.com. You can get a bottle of perfume at FragranceNet.com. Please don’t try to get skincares and makeups for ladies. You don’t know what to buy and you don’t know what your lady needed. Perfume is OK, as long as you buy the most popular ones.

$100 Gift
At Stauer.com, you can get a very decent jewelry for $100. From now to 4/30, you can get this Tanzanite Sunburst Necklace, with a matching studs for only $99! Must use promo code 38697 during checkout to receive the discounted price. There are many other $99 items to choose from, eg: Stauer Avalon Ring and Earrings, Item # 21020; DiamondAura Riviere Bracelet (20 1/3 CTW), Item # 20244; Amethyst Maiden Bracelet & Earrings Set, Item # 21747, etc. Shipping is free, no tax, all you pay is $99! So far I have not seen any other jewelry store who can provide such low prices.

Recently we have received many phone calls and emails regarding the issues people ran into while using our website. I have been using coupons for years, everything seems to be pretty straight forward to me. But apparently they are not to everyone. There are people who don’t know how to use coupon code, people wanted to find out why coupon doesn’t work, people called us complaining the order did not go through, people emailed us complaining that his credit card was over charged, people complaining shipping was too slow. For this reason, we list the frequent asked questions here and hope our answers can solve your questions, and help you to make full use our coupons and save your money you deserved to.

1.What is online coupon?
Like the coupons you clipped from your Sunday newspaper, online coupons are used to save your money while shopping online.

2.How to use online coupons?
There are two types of online coupons: coupon code and coupon link. Coupon code can also be referred as discount code, promo code, promotion code, offer code, promotional code, gift code, catalog code, referal code, source code, redemption code, priority code, key code, etc. When you are ready to check out from the retailer’s website, copy the code listed on our site and paste into the textbox on the retailer’s checkout page where it says “Coupon Code:” (or similar phrases we listed above) and click “apply”. Coupon link is a type of coupon without any code. All you need to do is to click on the link and enter the retailer’s website, do your shopping as you usually do, discount will be applied automatically when you check out.

3.What if coupon doesn’t work?
Well, if it doesn’t work, it doesn’t work. We can’t do anything about it. Retailers have the right to allow or disallow the coupon. And we do not guarantee the coupon to work.

4.What if I have trouble while shopping online?
I hate to say this, but we have nothing to do with your shopping. If you ran into trouble, please contact the retailer directly. You can always find their contact information on their website. You can either call, email or live chat. If you can’t find their contact info, stop shopping immediately!

5.What if I have questiones after I placed the order?
Again, please contact the retailer directly.

6.What if I did not receive the item?
If you have a tracking number, track your order at USPS.com, Fedex.com, and UPS.com. If not, contact the retailer, not us, and ask why.

7.How did you get those coupons?
Every day we read the retailers’ newsletters, read their tweets, read their facebook fan page, and check their websites to see if there are new coupons available. Some retailers also write or call us to list their coupons.

8.What can you offer to us?
We collect coupons and list as many and accurate as possible for you to use. But we can not gurantee all of them to work, and we do not have the man power to verify them every day. We list them all for free.

9.Can I use these coupons in stores?
It depends. Some stores will allow you to do that. But to make sure please call the store before you go.

10. When should I use your contact form?
We have a contact form. Contact us if you found a broken link or an invalid coupon. We will try to update our page within 24 hours. But please don’t contact us if you have trouble during or after shopping. We can not help either. All we do is collecting coupons for those online retailers. We had nothing to do with them.

A good mattress will usually cost more than $2000, and will come with a 30 year warantee. But do you really get a new mattress every 30 years? The normal lifespan of a mattress is 5 to 7 years, depending on the amount of use and original quality. The top quality mattress can last 8-10 years, but no more than 10 years. Actually the biggest issue is dust mite infestation, not the mattress quality. When you feel uncomfortable or when you get backpain after when you wake up in the morning, it is definitely time to get a new one.

Before you leave home to shop, watch the following video for some mattress basics and learn how to choose a mattress best for you.
 

Local Mattress Stores:
Mattress Firm is my favorite store to shop for mattress. Reason? Because it is closest to my home. If you are very picky about your mattress, you have to visit one of the local mattress stores. Take your time during the weekends, go visit Mattress Firm, Mattress King, or Mattress Giant, and try the mattress one by one. Do you know prices at these stores are negotiable? Don’t be afraid to ask the salesman for discount. If you don’t ask for a discount you won’t get one! You should ask for at least 50% off the final marked price. Don’t be fooled by the original price on the tag, because these retailers usually mark up the prices as much as 500% or more. If you don’t get 50% off, walk away. Here is te trick, leave your phone number to the salesman. Wait for a few days, you will most likely recevive a phone call from them. Ask for the lowest price they can offer. You should be able to get a 60% off the price.

Online Mattress Stores:
If you know what brand and model for buy, visit online mattress stores such as Sleepys.com or 1800Mattress.com. Sleepys.com is running a 1/2 off every mattress sale recently. But the truth is their prices are always around half of those in local stores. Don’t forget to use their online coupon codes. They currently have a 10% off coupon, sometimes even a 20% off coupon! Number1Direct.com is another place I want to recommend. They don’t offer cash discount coupon, but the mattress prices are usually 1/3 of the MSRP! If you could find te model you like, this is the best place to shop.

Department Stores:
It is hard to compare the prices between stores, because the matress manufacturers call the exact same product by different labels depending on who is selling it. But when you shop at wholesalers such as Costco and Sams Club, you should be assured that the prices are competitive. It is not easy to try mattresses at Costco and Sams Club. But it doesn’t mean you can’t try. Other department stores that sell mattress are JC Penney, Walmart, and Sears. Sears is the only one I would recommend. Their prices are good when on sale. Sign up their newsletter to get notified when their mattresses are on sale. Today there is 10% off all Sealy mattress at Sears online with coupon code SEALY10. Enjoy!

Tell me: how many times did you have sex every week in the first year of your marriage? Maybe 7 days a week, or even more? After more than 10 years, how many do you have now? A better sex will not only improve the relationship between you and your spouse, but also good for your health. Read a dozen reasons why sex benifits your body if you don’t believe me. Today we list 10 must-haves for you to improve your sex life, and where to get them at lower cost.

Condoms
Condoms can protect both man and woman from sexually transmitted diseases. They also can be as pleasurable as many other sex toys if you got the right one. Highly recommend to get this Durex Pleasure Pack – 48 Pack, inclucding 8 Sensi-Thin, 8 Intense Sensation, 8 Tropical, 8 Her Sensation, 8 Extra Sensitive, 8 Pleasuremax. It is only $12.29 at Costco. Please don’t take the risk to get those cheap ones at Amazon. They are mostly made in India, possiblely fake ones.

Massager
I bet this Hitachi Magic Wand Massager is originally designed for back massage, otherwise it won’t be so big! Now it is the most popular clitoris massager in America. Today the cheaptest place to buy is Amazon for $54.95, with no tax and free shipping. Eden Fantasys is offering a 20% off coupon site wide on full price items. But too bad this magic wand is so popular that it is sold out already.

Rabbit Viabrator
Every woman loves rabbit vibrator. Before you buy, make sure you find the right size. Its width can be as thin as 1 inch, or as wide as 2 inches! Get the right one you are used to. AdamEve.com or AdamEveToys.com is the best place to buy. You can find 68 different rabbit vibrators for you to choose from, prices range from $39 to $69. Don’t forget the use the 50% off one item coupon. After the coupon, you definitely get the best deal.

Annal Viabrator
Mini Internal Sensations Vibrator is the best annal starter for both men and women. It is rated 5 stars by users at Adam and Eve, and price is $24.95. But you can get it for only $15.59 – a 40% saving, at EdenFantasys.com.

Lubricants and massage oils
You can get them for free at EdenFantasys! This website offers free lubricant offer very often. Today it has a free Blueberry Glide lubricant with purchase of Waterproof turbo glider blueberry bliss – traditional vibrator.

Sexy Lingerie
ForplayCatalog.com offers the sexy lingerie at the most affordable prices. You don’t need them to last for years, cheaper is better, because you can get one every month at the cost of two cups of coffee at Starbucks. See the unbeatable price below: only $10.99 each! It would cost more than $40 a piece at other stores. If you want to something different, try Funlove.

Sexy Costumes
Get a new look with sexy costume, not for Halloween, but for your romantic night. Men will get turned by them. Amiclubwear is the best and cheaptest place to buy. Please wait for the 40% coupon to get a better deal, as it comes several times every month. Actually there is an active 40% off coupon, code: MOVING40. Prices vary from $50 to $100, but after the coupon it is not so bad, because you sure get some unique looking costumes with quality. There are hundres to choose from, dived into many categories, such as: Animal Costume, Pirates Costume, Bug Costume, Schoolgirl Costume, Nurse Costume, Gangster Costume, Storybook Costume, Army Costume, Sports Costume, and many more!

Sex Furniture
This is the one you must have. The original label Esse by Liberator can give many postions you have never experienced before. It comes with a position guide booklet for free with your order. Be creative, you will probably find hundreds more positions!

Adult Videos
There is no need to buy any adult DVDs. You can get many free ones from Adam Eve. At our Adam Eve coupons page, there are many coupon codes and coupon links for 50% off one item plus free gifts. The free gifts usually include 3 free DVDs. Sometimes they offer coupons for 40 free videos!

Sex Positions App
Get 400+ A Sex Postions Free! Try the ones rated 5 stars by hundreds of couples, you will know how good they are, or explore something new.

April 22 is the Earth Day every year. There are hundreds of ways to save our earth, but they all start with you! Start today and conserve water, converve electricity and energy, go paperless, etc. But when it comes to shop for earth friendly products, the first thought popped into your mind might be: are they more expensive? You are probably right. Paper bags costs more than plastic bags, hybrid cars are more expensive than regular cars, organic food are more expensive too. But it is not always true. We want to list some stores that offer Earth Day discounts:

Toms Shoes
Toms Shoes is not the only shoe maker that sells earth friendly shoes. But sure it is the most popular one. There are a few $5 off coupons for you to shop online at Toms.com. But you can expect a bigger discount on Earht Day. Mark your calendar and shop Toms.com on 4/22.

Read ebooks
Buy ebooks and save our trees! And eBooks are usually cheaper than paper books. If you are used to buy ebooks at Amazon or directly from your Kindle Fire, you are definitely overpaid. Shopping at Kobo Books can save you as much as 50% compared to those at Amazon. Plus, we have many 20% to 40% off coupons available. If you need college textbooks, try CampusBookRentals.com to rent one. Some 5% to 8% off coupons available on our site.

Eco-friendly Mattress
Mattresses, pillows and memory foam from Keetsa are all made from natural plants. In the month of April, you can save 5% on your entire purchase. Their mattresses are price competitive if you compare to those at Mattress Firm. For example, the best sell Keetsa Plus mattress is $471.45 for Twin, $576.45 Full, $681.45 for Queen, and $891.45 for California King.

Eco Friendly Paper
If you can’t go completely paperless, please try to use eco friendly paper, which are recyclable or tree-free. Earth friendly paper can be same cheap as normal paper. Go to Quill.com to find these paper at lower cost. Many coupons are ready for you to save at Quill.com.

Replace Light Bulbs
When you buy light bulbs, please spend a few dollars more to get engery efficient bulbs, or compact fluorescent lamp (CFL) bulbs. They will usually save 80% off electricity: a 13 watt CFL bulb is equilalent to a 60 watt conventional bulb. Shop online and buy bulbs in bulk to save money. BulbAmerica.com is the place I will recommend. You can expect a 10% off coupon once every month.

Organic Personal Care Products
It is ok to use synthetic ingredients in personal care products. In fact some synthetic ingredients are currently allowed under the USDA National Organic Program. But here are The 10 Most Unwanted Ingredients In Personal Care Products. Try to avoid them! If you can’t remember, look for “USDA Certified Organic” seal on the bottle. To celebrate The Earth Day, Taget listed all the organic personal care products on one page. You can shop with confidence at Target.com.

Green Cleaning
You can find top green names, such as Simple Green, Seven Generation etc., all at Staples. Here is the page for all the green cleaning products. Staples ships to your home if your order is over $50. And there are many coupons available. You will get a better deal than shopping at your local Whole Food for these green cleaning products.

Organic Gardening
SaferBrand.com offers organic pesticides products and organic fertilizer. If you are pregenant or have a little baby at home, you’d better use these safer gardening products. To celebrate The Earth Day, SaferBrand is running a 20% off discount on their entire stocks, enter code SBEARTH2 during checkout!

Review Expenses on Grocery Shopping
If you don’t have the habbit to review your credit card or bank statements, you should start to do it today. Do it monthly, it won’t take you more than 10 minutes. You should know how much you spend on groceries every month. Are they in your budget? Are they out of your budget? What had happened? This is the first step to lead a frugal life.

Simple things add up
Don’t neglect simple things. Do you buy a morning coffee at Peets everyday? Quit it and make one yourself. Do you buy washed lettuce? Wash your own lettuce instead. Are salad dressings in your shopping list. Erase them and make your own salad dressings.

Get Discount Cooking Gear
If you are familiar with cooking gear brands, you should be able to find cheap one at a flea market or yard sale. If not, don’t bother to try.

Save Energy
Do you know how much you spend on electrity or natural gas every month? Besides the air conditioner, most of your electricity or natural gas are used in your kitchen. The tips here could easily save you some bucks. And it is not just to save your money, but to save our earth.

Save Your Messed-Up Meals
Overcooked? Overslated? Overly Spicy Foods? Don’t trash the meals, because here are the tips to save them. All you need to do could be as simple as adding a few spoonfuls of sour cream. It is not just for saving money. You probably don’t have time to cook another dish, especially when you are preparing food for a party.

Shop Kitchenware Online
Williams Sonoma is a good place to buy top quality cookware. The prices are high, though. Visit them if you are rich enough and all you care is to get the best products. Otherwise shop cookware online. If you know what need and what brands are the best, try Overstock.com first. If you found what you wanted, it usually offers the lowest prices. Amazon.com is a good place to read customers’ reviews. But you are not likely get the best price. Wayfair.com and Stoneberry.com are the websites I would highly recommend to shop for kitchenware. You will always find the best prices at these two websites. Lakeside Catalogue may not offer as many items to fit all your needs. But they definitely offers some great deals on cookware.

Save on Wines
Statistics shows that Americans consume 15.5 bottles of wines per year on average. And it is growing year by year.
Buy by the case: If you drink wines more than average, you have probably spent more money than you should have. Ask the clerk for case discount. Most of time 12 bottles is one case, but sometimes you only need to buy 6. You will usually save 10% after case discount.
Try different Wines: Who is producing high-value, low cost wines? Spain is my number one choice, but don’t forget Chile, Argentina and Australia for good quality wines at competitive prices. When you walk into a wine store, don’t be afraid to ask: what is the everyday red for under $10 you would recommend? Try something different once in a while.
Join Wine Clubs: WSJWine.com, ZagatWine.com and LaithwaitesWine.com are the ones I would recommend. Only high quality wines are offered by them. After join the club, you will receive 12 bottle of wines selected by experts every 3 months at discount prices (20% cheaper than non-member). They are also good places to buy wines in cases.

Last week we wrote a post on how to save money on international travel. To continue on the topic, we want to share some secrets that airline companies don’t want you know. You can use them to get a better seat, a free meal, free upgrade, etc.

Waive Penalty Fees
It is very common you need to change your airline tickets. When something comes up – your kid may get sick and your mom may come to visit, you have to call your airline company to reschedule your flights. You will be hit with the penalty fees, often well over $100 per ticket – AA charges $150 per ticket! There is something you probably don’t know: the penalty fee is negotiable! The agent may deny it, – you have to make up a good story and ask for it nicely. If rejected, ask to speak to the supervisor. You should at least get the fees partially waived.

Don’t Settle for The First Bump Offer
When the airline is overbooked, the gate agents will offer a nice coupon for the future flight if you agree to take another flight. But don’t accept the first offer. Last Christmas, when I was sitting in the airport waiting for my flight to New York City, the speaker anounced that 5 volunteers needed to take the next flight. The first offer is $200 coupon for each passenger, the second attempt is $400, the third time is $600, while the one way ticket was only sold at about $500. Someone actually made some money from it! Don’t forget to ask for a free meal while you are waiting if you have been bumped from a flight.

Best Time To Get Last Minute Airfares
The price of non-seasonal airfares remains relative constant up to about 21 days before the flight takes off. Then it start to change constantly with time, but usually hits highest around 2 weeks before the flight is set to take off. Then it starts to drop, and hits the lowest 48 hours to 72 hours before the flight takes off. That is when you should start to look for the last minute deals!

Upgrade Your Seats For Free
It is nealy impossible to cash in your frequent flier miles or buy tickets. But you can use them to upgrade your coach seats to business or first class at no extra cost. You can do that at the gate, but it is better to call the airline a few hours before the flight takes off.

Get a Better Seat
Please don’t let anyone know that I told you this trick. You can “accidently” spill something onto your seat and complain it to air hostess. As long as there is another open seat available, you will be moved, or even moved to a business class. Please make sure there is another seat available before you do so, otherwise you have sit on your own wet seat!

Higher gas price, weaker US dollars, international traveling are getting more and more expensive these years. We want to share with you some tips from our long time friend, Jim (he asked me not disclose his full name), who had traveled more than 50 countries in all five continent in his life. These tips will help you keep your budget without compromising quality.

Explore New Countries
Euros are getting stronger in 2012, which means you need to spend more and more dollars on a same trip. So don’t lay your eyes only on Europe. There are many other countries for you to explore. How about Brazil? China? Or India? You need an expensive round-way tickets, but you end up spending a lot less in those countries. To save more, see the next tip “Fly local”.

Fly Local
After you arrived in the country you are visiting, book tickets through the local airline companies or travel agents. If you don’t know any one in that country, ask your friends or friend’s friends. Having someone in local could save you big on hotels and food as well.

Take A Cruise
If you still want to visit Europe, take a cruise. Taking a cruise to Europe is much cheaper than taking a flight, because your primary food and lodging costs are already covered on the ship. A cruise line that hits major ports of call around Europe is as fun as traveling on the ground if not better.

Check out Local Travel Agents
You are probably use to book your entire trip via Expedia or Travelocity. The truth is they are not the cheapest as they used to be. Do a price comparison online before you book. Take some time to do the research. Then print the deal and call your local travel agent you are comfortable with or refered by your friends. And ask them if they can beat the deal. The chances are you will get a better deal from your local travel agent.

Try Airline Companies
Some airlines, such as AA and Delta, offer cheapest airfair only through their websites or phone reservations. You can also book hotels or activities through them, at the same rate as other major online agents. Don’t forget to use your milages.

Go out of Season
If you are planing a family vacation to Europe in summber, consider to go in the winter. If you want to go to Caribbean, consider June/July instead of winter. Off season tickets and hotel costs are much cheaper. You could save 30% to 50% on your entire trip!

Try Road Scholar
If you are a senior, consider Road Scholar. Road Scholar, the not-for-profit educational travel created by Elderhostel since 1975, offers 6,500 educational tours in all 50 states and 150 countries. Not only you can get an extremely low cost domestic or world-wide traveling, you also get to know many freinds in your age. Check out their website: RoadScholar.org for details. Don’t know where to start? Click on the “Most Popular” on left navigation menu to find out what others are thinking. A two week adventure to ITALY / CROATIA / GREECE is only $4825, about half of the price compared to most of travel agents.

Before the Internet era, it could be very inconvenient for the big and talls to buy clothes, shoes or swimwear, especially for those live in a small town. The places I used to visit is Ross and Marshalls. They sometimes have plus size dresses and pants for sizes between 12W to 18W. Today everything is made easy when you shop online for plus size tops, pants, dresses, shoes, swimsuits and underwears. Besides, most of these e-retailers offer discount coupons from time to time. All you need to do is to search “store name + coupon” in any search enigine, such as Bing or Yahoo.

Discounted Plus Size
BCOutlet.com: At Bargain Catalog Outlet, you can buy pant and get top 50% off with promo code 15589 today. Coupons like these are offered very often. They also have a section called “9.99 and under”, everything here are 50% to 75% off the original prices. Anyway, if you want it cheap, this is the place.
OneStopPlus.com: The name says it all. It has everything you need, including clothing, bras, shoes, swimwear, even men’s big and tall clothing. It has 25% off coupon today, code: OSPSPRINGTOP. The best about it is the list of brands available, which has about 200 brands listed on one page.
Roamans.com: It is the same company as OneStopPlus. But everything here are slightly cheaper. You can expect 20 to 40% off coupon to come in the next few days.

Plus Size Undergarment
JMS.com: Just My Size is the one recommended by many of my friends. It has the most selections of plus size bras, panties and sleepwears than other stores. Today it is offering a 20% off coupon for all swimsuits on top of the swimwear sale with up to $15 off.
HerRoom.com: It is not designed for plus size. But their plus size section has a very large selections on bras and panties. No coupons ever.

Formal Plus Size
LongTallSally.com: Mostly for office lady. Today it is offering 20% off all their workwear. Request a catalogue for free if you like.
Avenue.com: It is not exactly for work women. But their workwear section is the one I like most, with lots of unique designs not seen anywhere else. 30% to 50% off coupons are very common. Never check out without using any coupon!

Fashionable Plus Size
LaneBryant.com: Plus size can be trendy too. Until this weekend you can get 40% off with $150 order, or 50% off with $250 order. Just enter Code STYLE4YOULB during checkout. Coupons like this come quite often. Don’t get upset if you miss this one.
Torrid.com: Prices here are much higher than those at Lane Bryant. But you can expect much better quality here. They have local stores in 40 states. Check out if there is one if you area by entering your zip code. A 10% off coupon can become valid for a few days every month. Currently it is offering $10 off for select tops.
JessicaLondon.com: Click on the Spring 2012 on the top, you will see the new spring/summer styles by designers. Today you can get 40% or 50% off all clearance items. Enter the websites to see the promo codes.

Plus Size Swimwear
We wrote a post in Feb on swimwear shopping, in which we mentioned these two for plus size swimwear.
SwimsuitsForAll.com: Many coupons running in April. Better get one before summer. Today you can use promo code SAVE to receive up to 50% off your entire order.
CyberSwim.com: Check out their Miraclesuit! No coupons ever.

For men
DestinationXL.com: One stop shopping destination for big and tall men, shop your favarite brands such as Rochester Big & Tall, Casual Male XL, BT Factory Direct, ShoesXL in one place. It has $20 off coupon with minimum $100 order.
JosBankBigAndTall.com: Big and tall branch from Jos A. Bank, offering formal clothing for mens only. No coupons ever,

Large Size Shoes
Masseys.com: Masseys offers shoes for all sizes for both men and women. But its women’s wide width shoes are designed with extra comfort. Highly recommended. You don’t see coupons for this website very often. But you can usually expect one during national holiday days.
ShoesXL.com: Part of Destination XL. Large size dress shoes, casual shoes, and athelete shoes.

Having a dog is much like raising a child, except that you will get tax credit by having a child, but not by having a dog. It is a big responsibility. Ask your yourself if you are ready. I didn’t mean if you are mentally ready, but if you are financially ready. Buying a dog costs a few hundred dollars. But that’s not it. Keeping a dog will cost you more, usually from $500 to $1000 a year, depending on its size. Pet care costs can add up. Do more research, ask people you know that own dogs how much they spend each year for their pets, call a vet and ask for the costs of spay/neuter, shots, etc. Don’t forget grooming cost, it could be a big expense for some dogs.

Minimize the Cost of Buying a Dog

Going to a pet store to buy a dog is the worst idea to get a new dog. Not only because its price are always higher than it should be, but also because pet stores usually can not take good care of dogs, especially new born dogs. You don’t want to beark your heart by having a dead dog a few weeks later. My first choice would be the local pet shelters. Try to find one by zip code online at www.petfinder.com. You won’t get one for free, because there is an adoption fee applied, usually $200 to $300. But if you are a senior, you can definitely ask for a discount. If you are OK to spend more, try your local breeders, you can easily find one at www.breeders.net. If you want to save more, try craigslist. If you are lucky, you can get a good and healthy dog for as little as $30.

Minimize the start-up costs

Before shopping for dog crate or toys, ask your friends that that own dogs if they have dog crate or toys ready to give away. You probably won’t get a crate, but I am sure you can get some toys for free, or even dog belt or clothing for free. If you are thinking to get one at your local Petco or Pet Smart, don’t. Look at the following popular dog house. Its price varys greatly from store to store. Wayfair.com is the one I would highly recommend. Their pet supplies are always much cheaper than other stores, even without using any coupon. Amazon is the worst online store to buy dog crates, – not only because its price is the highest, but also because it charges shipping costs sometimes. If you are not comfortable with online shopping, go visit Sears.

Merry Products Ice Cream House for Dogs

Wayfair.com $89.99
Sears: $98.69
Petco.com: $107.99
Amazon.com: $129.99

Spend Less on Pet Food

Again, there is no need to visit Petco or Pet Smart store for dog food. Wayfair is the winner for buying dog food online. If you prefer to shop at local, visit Wal-Mart for cheap dog food.

AvoDerm Natural Chicken Meal and Brown Rice All Life Stages Formula Dog Food – 15lb
Wayfair.com $29.95
Petco.com: $31.89
Pet Smart: $33.99

Do consider Petco.com’s repeated delivery if you buy same dog food every time. Repeated delivery can save you about 10% on each bag, for example, the above dog will be $28.70 each, instead of $31.89. It is a big chunk of money every year! You can schedule once every week, every 2 weeks, or up to every 12 weeks.

Spend Less on Pet Medication

Shop around for pet clinics. Fees charged by veterinarians varied case by case, you have to try a few to find out. Shop around for pet medications as well. Ask your vet for prescriptions, not pills. There are many only stores who offers discounted pet medication. PetCareRx.com and 1800PetMeds.com are the ones most people visit. Besides, these online stores offer coupons very often, which could save you 10% to 20% each time.

When it comes online shopping, most of people have the impression that shopping online must have lower prices compared to that of the local stores. Is that what you were thinking? That is what I thought. My son loves board games. I will purchase one for him once every month. Most items are from Amazon. Why? Because in my experience they always have lowest prices. Well, that’s find out if it is true. I went to Wal-Mart yesterday and took pictures of 7 most popular board games along with price tags.

1. Monopoly Electronic Banking

Amazon: $28.71; Walmart: $24.76

2. Monopoly Cars

Amazon: $18.51; Walmart: $19.84

3. Monopoly Classic

Amazon: $13.45; Walmart: $11.97

4. Sorry

Amazon: $17.14; Walmart: $15.86

5. Connect 4

Amazon: $18.94; Walmart: $15.86

6. Blokus

Amazon: $24.17; Walmart: $24.97

7. Guess Who Extra

Amazon: $18.61; Walmart: $24.97

4 out of 7 the Wal-Mart store is clearly the winner with lower prices. 3 out of 7 Amazon offers lower prices, but only slightly cheaper. When you add with the sales tax, Wal-Mart is still the winner, but not much this time.

In conclusion: If you go to Walmart regularly, there is no need to buy toys at Amazon. Beside, it is easy to return or exchange items at your local Wal-Mart stores. If you don’t visit Walmart very often, Amazon is a not bad choice though. If price is sensitive to you, go visit Walmart.com and click on “Value of the Day” on top, you will see all price rollbacks and all clearance items. All the items here are guaranteed to have lower prices than other stores. Buy them online at Walmart.com and pick up at stores to avoid shipping fees.

Clever con artists always taget the older, female, and people who live alone. If you are one of them, be sure to read the following article to avoid scams. This article is mostly about Internet safety, tips to protect yourself, and to introduce you some of the scams you should avoid.

1.Protect Your Identity
I put this in the number one position, because it is the most important rule. Con artists can only reach you if you have your identity leaked. Did you ever leave your name and address in a contest? Regiser a gaming site or a forum with your real name? Don’t do that!

2.Don’t give out your bank information
This is actually as important as rule number 1. What con artists wanted from you eventually? Money, of course! They will talk you into the senario that you are willing to give out your bank information. If you are in it, talk to your friends, your family, or police for help.

3.Don’t send a check to someone you don’t know
Did you ever receive mails or emails asking you for donation? They may come from your college you graduated 20 years ago. Or claim to help children in Africa. Or claim you have voilated some city code that you need to send money to correct it. Con artists are very creative, arn’t they?

4.Unbelievable cheap? Then don’t believe it!
A luxury bag or watch on sale? 90% off the retail prices? Bid starts from $1? Sounds familiar? Yes, they are scams. If you are lucky, you will receive a fake item. If not, you won’t receive anything.

5.Avoid Phishing Emails
Phishing emails can have thousand of forms. If an email tells you that you have won a prize, it is a phising. Or it tells you you need to update your bank or credit card information, it is a phishing. Or it will tell you that debit or credit card has an unauthorized transaction. But be careful, this one is very tricky, because many legitimate bank or credit card companies do send out such warnings. If you can’t be sure it is a scam or not, be sure not to click on hyperlinks in emails. Hand type in the URL of your bank, credit card company, or the site you want to visit.

6.Avoid Phishing Sites
Phishing sites are actually very easy to tell. First, pay attention to the address bar of your Internet browser. Is it the one you think it is? Can you tell the difference between Paypal.com and Paypa1.com? Second, when you shop online and during the last check out stage when you need to enter payment information, make sure the address bar shows “https://” and the address bar turns green or blue to indicate that it is a certified website. If it is red, leave immediately.

7.Install a Internet Secuity Software
To avoid phishing emails or phishing sites, the simplest way is to get a internet security software. You can get one from Zone Alarm, AVG, Norton, or McAfee. Or even get one from Microsoft, Microsoft Security Essentials, for free.

8.Avoid Nigerian money transfer scams
It is a very typical advance-fee fraud. It starts with an email from a government or a wealthy foreigner that there is a large amount of unclaimed money or gold which he cannot access directly, and need youe help to retrieve it. In return, you will receive a big share of it. But you will need to pay some fees in advance. This scam started more than years ago. But there are still many victims fell for it and lost millions of dollars every year. There are many variations of this type of scam. See more at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nigerian_scam.

9.Avoid ebay scams
No matter you are buyer or seller, there are many traps waiting for you on ebay. My suggestion is never use ebay! Read how you could be a ebay victim at http://www.scambusters.org/ebayscams.html.

10.You can’t get rich in one day
If someone, or some email, or some website tells you that you could be next millionair easily, it is a scam! It could be Pyramid schemes (or Multilevel marketing (MLM) schemes), detail is here, or Ponzi schemes.

I visited Nordstrom Rack yesterday. Just can’t resist the sale prices. Look at the price tag below, a Nike running pants was $60.00, now sale at $34.97; a Nike trainging pants was $75.00, now sale at $39.97; and a Under Armor was $24.99, now sale at $16.97! They fit very well on my husband and he is very happy about it. Guess what, today I found there are many websites have sportswear on sale. Let’s find out if we can find better deals.

ChristySports.com

Winter Clearance Sale – SKi clothing on sale with 40% off, Skies on sale with 40% off, and 40% off all winter jackets and pants. Opps, only ski gears are on sale.

—>Next

Sports Authority

See our Sports Authority coupon page, there is a 25% off coupon good for one item, valid through 4/10. It can be used both online and in store! You don’t see this kind of coupon very often. I am going to buy a bike for my son this weedend!

—>Next

Reebok

If you like Reebok, visit their online store at Reebok.com. With purchase of any RealFlex footwear, you can get 30% off apparel! This coupon will start from tomorrow(4/6), just enter code FLEX30 during checkout. A classics fleece pant costs $45. No good.

—>Next

Sierra Trading Post

Men, I love this store. It always offers many big discount coupons. For example, today it as a 40% off coupon, code: ALBRIGHT2. Not sure how long it will last. But you’d better hurry. It has many men’s running & fitness pants and tights on sale. I didn’t find the similar item I bought from Nordstrom Rack.

—>Next

East Mountain Sports (EMS.com)

Starting from 4/8 till 4/12, EMS offers buy one outlet item get second one 50% OFF sale. Find one in their outlet at deep discount: EMS Men’s Microfleece Pants was $39.00, now on sale at $19.98. If you buy two pairs, the second is only $9.99! What a deal, isn’t it? Tip: you’d better add them into your cart before 4/8, and check out in the early morning of 4/8.

In conclusion: I did not find similar items I bought at Nordtrom Rack for lower prices. But there are many other deals for your sports need. Particularly, you should check out EMS, and enjoy the buy one get one half off on outlet items. You need to click through the coupon link at our EMS coupon page to activate the discount.

Recently there are many coupons for buying shoes online. Here is part of the list:

Payless.com – 25% off, promo code: 65814.

Sears.com – 15% off Sears shoes with coupon code SEARSAPRIL.

Shoes.com – 10% off with code WANT10.

Shoecarnival.com – $5 off $40 or $10 off $75 with code BUNNY.

Puma.com – 20% Off Footwear & Free Shipping. No code needed.

Shoemall.com – 20% off Sitewide and Free Shipping with discount code EGGSTRA20.

If you are thinking to get one pair recently, don’t forget to use these coupons before Easter.

I bought a Chinese Laundry dress shoes from Shoes.com at $65 two weeks ago. It looks gorgeous, isn’t it?

But after wearing it to work for one day, I got a blister on the back of my heel! My husband gave me a terrible advise: wearing two pairs of socks. I actually listened to him. At first it feels alright. But one day later, it got worse. I figured it is because two pairs of socks made the shoes tighter than before. Well, my lovely husband gave me another advice, see the picture below. Guess what’s in the dust tape? A bandage! It is better than the first idea, but my skin react to the sticky dust tape by turning red.

The third day I have to leave the new shoes on the shelf. After asking my friends and did a little research online, I am supprised that there are many people talked about this and have come up with many ideas.

Heel Liner or Heel Inserts – Free!

Search heel liner or heel inserts at Amazon, I found many of them for $2 to $4 per pair. For a cheapskate like me, I don’t want to spend a dime on something I can do it myself. I found this video at Youtube which teaches how to make heel liner from scratch. It tooks me less than one hour to make one. I am proud that it actually worked! And I saved a few bucks!
 

 

Other products may be helpful

Band-Aid Friction Block: It forms a clear coat on your heel, reducing rubbing on skin. I have heard many positive feedbacks on this item. That’s why I would recommend this one to you in case you need it. Drugstore.com has the lowest price, only $5.99, plus free shipping and no tax if you live outside of Washington, New Jersey, Nevada, Connecticut, Illinois, and New York.

Dr. Scholl’s: Dr. Scholl’s is an expert on foot care products. You can find them easily at Target. Dr. Scholl’s Blister Defense Anti-Friction Stick is similar to Band-Aid Friction Block, but $1 more expensive at Drugstore.com. Or you can try Dr. Scholl’s For Her Rub Relief Strips, or Dr. Scholl’s For Her Rub Relief Stick.

Artificial Skins: 3M Tegaderm Transparent Film Dressings is the one. It is quite expensive though. Can be found at Walgreens.

To save money when shopping online, everybody knows that you should search coupons and deals online, or do price comparison for a certain item, or shop during the holidays. Today I want to share a few little-known secrets to save you even more.

1.Do Not Shop At Auction Sites

Well, technically, this is not a tip, but a RULE! Don’t ever shop at any auction site, especialy ebay.com. I have tried a dozen of times at ebay.com, each time I ended up with fake products or differnt items. And half of the time, I have trouble to get my money back. I don’t think I am the one with bad luck. It is human nature that people love lower prices, that’s why ebay attracted millions of users. It is also human nature that people love to make money in a dishonest way if they can easily get away with it.

2.Set a Price Alert

Some price comparison sites offer a function called price alert. Enter your email and the price you wanted, then sit back and wait. When the price reached the target,you will be notified by email. If you have the time to wait, this strategy works extreme well on electronics and computers. PriceGrabber.com is the one I love all these years.

3.Use Your Credit Card Wisely

First of all, if you don’t have a reward card, get one today. You can at least save 1% on everything you spent. Chase freedom card offers 1% cash back, while CapitalOne Cash Rewards card offers 1.5% cash back (in which 0.5% will be rewarded at the end of year). Currently they are the best reward card. Chase freedom card sometimes offers 3% to 5% back on select purchases, such as grocery this month. Don’t throw away all the mails sent by your credit card company. You may have missed many great opportunities. Also don’t forget to check out here if you are a Visa holder.

4.Check Coupon History

If you have visited our coupon page, you probably noticed that we have a section called “Recent Expired Coupons”. Click on the tab and review coupons expired in the past few months. Now you know how often the retailer will offer coupons, and how big the discount you should expect. Many retailers offer coupons only valid for a few days. If you found many coupons expired recently, then you should wait for the next coupon to come out.

5.Use Live Chat to Get Discount

Did you see a Live Chat button on the retailer’s website? If you do, click on it and ask if you could get a discount. Most of the cases, you will, but not for a big one. Still better than nothing, right?

6.Keep The Item In Your Cart for A Day or Two

If you don’t need the item right away, just add it to your cart and leave it for a day or two. Enter all your information except the credit card number. Within a day or two, you will probabaly received an email asking if you need any help to check out. Sometimes the retailer will just attach a coupon in the email to encourage you to check out. If no coupon, reply the email and ask for one.

Before the Internet era, in order to get something special, or something hard to find in the stores, the only way is to order via a catalog. Until now, it is still the number one choice for many people, especial for the older people. But is it still a good idea to do so today?

Are you paying higher prices on catalog mail orders?

Yes, you are

If you are ordering office supplies or computer accessories via catalog, you are most likely paying extra unnecessarily. I used to receive catalogs from Staples, Office Depot and Office Max. The prices listed on catalogs are same as those of in stores and on websites. But you don’t get the deals that offered in stores and coupons for online use only. Remember, these products have very thin profit margin. If companies have spent extra on catalog marketing, their prices are definitely higher than those don’t offer catalogs.

If you are ordering clothes via catalogs such as dELiA*s, Soft Surroundings, Woman Within, Jos. A. Bank, Alloy, Bealls Florida, or Blair, unfortunately, you are paying higher prices that you shouldn’t be. These retailers offer coupons, sometimes big discount coupons as higher as 40% off entire order, very often for you to use online. Browse these catalogs for fun. But when you decide to order, you’d better to place order online and try use some coupons.

If you like household items from Bellacor, Sure Fit, Terry’s Village, Lamps Plus, Miles Kimball, Fitz and Floyd, or BrylaneHome catalog, don’t just pick up the phone and place the orders from the catalog. Spend a few minutes to visit them online. It is possible you can find some promotions from their own websites. And you can easily find 10% or $10 off coupons for these retailers by searching at Google.

No, you are not

Some retailers hold one-price policy across all their marketing channels. Lego is one example. No matter you buy Legos from Toys R us, or from their chain stores, or from Lego.com, or from their catalogs, the prices are exact the same. They do not offer coupons at any time. Pillow Decor, Lakeside, Abc Distributing, LTD Commodities, Potpourri are this kind of retailers. You can order from their catalog, or from their website, all at the same prices. And they never offer coupons.

Some retailers offers coupons for their catalog orders as well as online orders. When you recieve the catalog, you should be able to find a coupon code hiding somewhere in the catalog. Just mention this code to the sales representative when ordering over the phone. Don’t use mail order, otherwise you won’t get the discount. Stauer is one of these retailers. Don’t knows how they manage to sell jewelry at such low prices, though.