We had a wonderful trip to San Diego last week, but it was not without a few mishaps–one which cost us pretty dearly.

We’d watched the sales, compared lots of prices on many different websites, and ended up getting an excellent travel deal through Travelocity for our trip package. To further sweeten things, we had shopped through ShopAtHome during their double cashback days around Thanksgiving so we also got a nice refund on our travel purchase.

And we were paying with cash we had set aside for this celebratory vacation, so we were feeling pretty happy about how inexpensively we were pulling off this trip to San Diego. We should have known better than to be patting ourselves on the back, though, for we were about ready to make a silly and costly mistake–all in an effort to save more money.

We’re not seasoned travellers and we’ve only flown a few times in the last few years so we haven’t done a great job of keeping up with the rules and regulations for air travel. The last time we’d flown, we’d brought in our two smaller hand-me-down suitcases and ended up having to pay $80 ($20 per suitcase per flight) to get our suitcases to our destination and back. That seemed like an awful lot of money to pay and we noticed pretty much everyone else around us checked only one large bag.

This time around, we decided we’d get smart. We’d do what it seemed everyone else did when travelling and we’d only bring one suitcase. This would save us $40 and would be more efficient, right?

We used a gift card to buy the largest suitcase we could find and we packed everything in it.  And I do mean everything. Aside from us each having a small carry-on bag, we had packed every article of clothing, all the diapers, and pretty much every other thing we’d need for five people to be gone for six days. Suffice it to say, it was a lot of stuff, even though we tried our best to only pack essentials.

We could barely lift the stuffed-to-overflowing suitcase to get it in the van when we left, but we’d done it–we’d only used one suitcase!

By the time we got everyone out of the van and into the check-in line at the airport, it was only 40 minutes until our flight was scheduled to leave. (In our podunk Kansas airport, there’s usually no need to get there early since the lines are short and move quickly.)

We were feeling happy with how everything was going until we noticed that the folks in front of us had their big suitcases open and were rearranging things. The couple next to them had clothes and miscellaneous items all strewn around the floor in front of the check-in counter and they were quickly dumping more out and angrily talking amongst themselves. 

It was then that we heard the reason behind all this craziness. The lady at the check-in counter bellowed out: “If your suitcase is over 50 pounds, there’s a $145 charge!”

Jesse and I instinctively looked at each other, looked at our one gigantic suitcase, and looked back at each other. We were in trouble.

We took our suitcase up to the scale and weighed it. It totaled a whopping 71 pounds. Um, yes, what were we thinking?!

A simple phone call or web search would very likely have let us know days ago that our suitcase was going to be too heavy. But we’d foolishly never taken the time to check.

With about 35 minutes to spare until our flight took off, we quickly surveyed our limited options. There was no way we could lighten up the load in the suitcase by 21 pounds–we’d basically only packed essentials but when you’re travelling for six days with three little children, it requires quite a few essentials! And we’d miss our flight and very likely not be able to catch another in the next 24 hours if we waited for someone to bring us another suitcase.

Realizing we didn’t really have any other options, we stepped up to the counter, gulped, and paid $145 for that massive suitcase.

Next time we think we’re making a “smart” decision based upon what we think we see other people doing, we hope we’ll remember our suitcase mistake and stop and do our own research. It just might save us $145–or more!

By the way, we borrowed a carry-on suitcase from FishMama for the way home and we were able to strategically work things so our big suitcase only weighed in at 49.5 pounds!

 

I’ve mentioned this before, but the samples and coupons have been restocked. Go here and login to request free samples and coupons from Proctor & Gamble.

Thanks, Frugal Living and Having Fun!

I like pretty things. They make me smile and they make life more cheerful and exciting. I wasn’t gifted with a knack for creating pretty things, but I sincerely admire others who are skilled in that area.

So when I saw Kelleigh’s Envelope System, my heart fluttered. Yes, it did.

Wouldn’t paying cash just be so much more exciting if one’s envelope system was all prettified like that? (Wait, is “prettified” even a word?)

You know what’s so cool? Kelleigh isn’t selling her envelope system (though I really think she ought to!), instead she generously posted the complete tutorial and template here so you can create your own.

By the way, if you’re new here and wondering how The Envelope System works, you can read more about it here and here. We save thousands of dollars every year by using this system.

 

Become a Facebook Fan of International Delight and then click on the “Holiday Giveaway” tab and enter your information and you’ll receive a coupon for a free pint of International Delight Coffee Creamer by mail.



Thanks, Free Snatcher!

Need a very last-minute gift for a foodie on your list? Today only, you can get a one-year subscription to Taste of Home magazine for only $3.64 plus 10-15% cashback. Here’s how:

::Login to your account with ShopAtHome (or sign up for a free account if you don’t have one already).



::Search for BestDealMagazines.com and click through the link.



::Search for Taste of Home magazine on BestDealMagazines.com (it was advertised right on the homepage for me as a Deal of the Day).



::Add the one-year subscription to your cart and checkout using coupon code SANTASALE17. This will take your total down to $3.64.



::Within 60 days, your ShopAtHome account will be credited with your 15% cashback.

Thanks, She Saved!

Go here to snag a one-year subscription to Southern Living at Home for only $5!

Thanks, Jackie!

I did a quick run into CVS this afternoon:

Revlon Lipstick $6.99
CVS Lotion $1.49
Nivea Body Wash $5.99
Thermacare Neck Wrap $2.49
I used a $5/15 CVS coupon
I used the $2/1 Revlon from 12/13 SS
I used a free CVS lotion coupon I got in email
And I used $8 ECB

I paid $1.39 and got back $12.49 in ECB for next time. This would have been an even better deal had I not forgotten the $2 Nivea coupon at home!

 

Go here to print a coupon for a free travel-size bottle of Downy Wrinkle Releaser. This coupon expires June 1, 2010. I’m guessing this high-value coupon won’t last long on Downy’s site, so I’d recommend printing it right away!

Thanks, Mojo Savings!

 

Go here to print a coupon for a free travel-size bottle of Downy Wrinkle Releaser. This coupon expires June 1, 2010. I’m guessing this high-value coupon won’t last long on Downy’s site, so I’d recommend printing it right away!

Thanks, Mojo Savings!

Fill out the form at THIS LINK, and StoreBrandFormula.com will send you a coupon for a free can of store brand formula.

What are store brand infant formulas?
Store brand, also known as private-label, infant formulas are labeled with the names of retail store brands and typically save up to 50 percent versus name-brand formulas for a potential savings of $600 a year per baby. That?s one reason why hundreds of thousands of parents have switched from name-brand formulas to a store brand. Here?s another reason: nutritional equivalence.
If parents choose to formula feed and need to buy formula, store brand infant formula, which is labeled with the “store brand” names of retailers such as Walmart, Sam’s Club, Target, CVS, Kroger, Walgreens, and Babies “R” Us, are nutritionally comparable to more expensive national brand formulas and are subject to the same exacting standards of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), pursuant to the Infant Formula Act of 1980. This legislation vested FDA with the authority to ensure that all infant formula products sold in the United States provide the necessary levels of identified nutrients required for the growth of healthy babies.