Why I resemble a truck driver and a few good deals…

For the past couple of years, my husband and I have rarely paid for more than one entree when we go out to eat, and it’s not just because we eat like birds (I know for a fact that as a nursing mother I am more likely to resemble a truck driver or vacuum cleaner in my eating habits, but that’s another topic…)

It’s because of one of our favorite purchases each year- our Entertainment Book!

These incredibly handy little books come stuffed full of coupons for relevant, local-to-you restaurants, family activities (zoo, aquarium, Science World, museums, etc.) as well as services like oil changes, deals on hotels and car rentals and other random coupons.

Our favorite part is the restaurants, because most of the coupons are buy one entree get one entree free. Basically, it means that we can go out for a decently nice meal, without having to spend $40-50. It allows for date nights, and the odd family dinner out. It also lets us go to the zoo, for instance, paying for only one adult and one child, instead of two adults (which is nearly $20 extra!).

The really great thing about these books is that last year I discovered that if you don’t buy them right away, they go on discount in the new year! Unfortunately, it means we lose out on 3-4 months of the year, depending on when we buy our new one, but we save on the cost of the book (and we just eat and go out less during those months).

Right now, the books are 50% off, which means they are around $20-25 (they range in price slightly depending on where you live). I was a bit bummed out that they weren’t as cheap as last year (I paid $13 plus shipping last year), but I don’t want to hold off any longer, so I’m going to get ours anyway. Here is the link to check them out for yourself (by the way, I make nothing off the sale of these, I just wanted to pass on a deal that we love!).

And a second deal that our sweet tenant told us about yesterday (is having a good tenant not the best thing in the world?) is that you can purchase certificates that entitle you to free photo books at Shutterfly, for very, very little off of ebay! Who knew?

She showed us a couple of the books that she’s had made, and they are beautiful! What appeals to me so much about this is that we have been needing to make photo albums of our family since, oh I don’t know, since our daughter was born (I know, I know, that’s really bad- she’s almost 3 and a half!).

By the time I purchase the albums and print out all the photos I need to fill it, I will spend far more than I would spend to buy these certificates! For example, ending in 31 minutes is an auction for two 8×8 photo books, like these- going for the whopping price of $6.00 (so far, it could go up a bit more before the end). You still have to pay shipping, which is $7 for one book, $11 for two (to Canada- to the US it’s $1 more). Check out the auction link here.

I figure even a decent album on clearance will cost me $5 (at the very least, probably closer to $10), and then I need to print 100 pictures to fill it at $0.16 each (that’s a cheap estimate), so I’m looking at $21; minimum for my album. If I won the certificates for $8, that’s $4 per book, and then even if I did the shipping individually, that’s only $7 shipping= a grand total of $11 for a book far more beautiful than I would probably end up with otherwise!

Not to mention, what great gift ideas for grandparents! Christmas, here I come!

So there you have it- a few little deals that struck my fancy this week. Works for me!