Talked to my friends at some of the pharm companies about upcoming offers. Found out it is true, the vouchers etc. they leave at with doctors are generally not as good as the offers they post online. Marketing online is to bring in new patients, if you are at the doctors, they figure you will be getting the meds anyway.

An example, the Actonel kit available from the doctor has a voucher for 4 free tablets. The kit available by online request has a voucher for 30 days free trial! Don't take Actonel myself, but that is a huge difference in savings if you are paying for scripts! I am definitely going to watch these offers closely. Our meds are $2K a month, so anything to bring it down helps.

Well, some savings. I told my doctor the new meds were too expensive, and insurance would not cover them. He gave me samples, two weeks of one, which is a savings of $110. Every bit helps!

Another savings started this week.

We called the number on the back of our credit cards and had them convert the cards into 5% cashback dividend rewards cards. The interest is slightly higher than on "stuff" reward cards, but we pay off our balances each month, so that's not an issue. And I need the cash, not the STUFF.

Our banker advised us to change all four cards, since each one has a separate cap on total cash back. We can use each card to receive the max, and 5% cash back on groceries and gas is great.

Another advantage, I used the online account management to set up alerts if we charge/spend more than a certain amount in a certain period (week, month), if we are within so many dollars of our credit limit, weekly updates on the balance, etc. Nothing like an email alert to remind you to STOP SPENDING, and to track your balance, especially during the holidays!

When we decided to get back to proactively cutting costs two months ago, we started looking for all those hidden costs and things we could do without. One thing I did was go through our magazines and decide what I really read, what we skimmed, and what we tossed without even looking.

I went online and canceled People, which I had picked up a few years ago as a freebie, with "auto renewal". I was SHOCKED to find they were charging me over $150 a year!!!!!! I canceled and they said they would refund the balance.

I received a check for $75 from them today!!!!!!

So, now I've gone through and canceled most of our mags, and signed up for new scrips with a clearinghouse CHEAP, and also went to the site througheBates, so got % cash back too! Also renewed some this way. MUST remember to redo this every year.

I had not even thought about the autorenewals coming in, since they appear on the bank statements under a clearinghouse company name that seemed pretty generic.

Okay, haven't shopped for groceries/cleaners/med supplies in 3 weeks. I followed my usual rules:

1. Make a list of MUST HAVE
2. Make a list of items from the ad
3. Cross check for coupons. If the discount from the ad plus coupon is not 50% or better or an item we don't use much of, cross it off the list. Put a star by the items with coupons. Separate out the coupons to be used and put them with the list in the front of the coupon box.
4. Shop.
5. I do always take the coupon box with me, because there are always in-store unadvertised specials. My control is that I don't cut out coupons for things I don't need, so the temptation of a "super buy" on something I don't need isn't there. Also, take hubby with me. He is good at calculations and a reality check on what we are stocking up on, etc.

So, first shop of the month, store cost was $288, final price paid was $147. Not as good as usual, but we had 7 6 packs of ensure and extra med stuff for the dog, so I will cut myself some slack.


Also noticed that SMARTSOURCE has restocked the store throughout with those electronic coupon machines, so grabbed what I needed for the future, when they go on sale. Also had some rebates. Will sort through and post what is available.