Cheap Things Roundup

First, a disclaimer.  I have dogs, not children.  I'll occasionally highlight child-related deals, but I'm a sucker for fun dog things.

Kristy over at My Pet Savings has a recipe for dog treats (and there are more in comments).  While a great idea now, I'll be honest:  I'll probably just look for a good sale on treats unless I get really ambitious. :)

Walgreens is going to have their Rimmel lip and eye cosmetics 50% off next week starting Sunday.  Combine this sale with the $1 off any Rimmel product coupon from the paper a few weeks back for super-cheap makeup!  They'll also have Kleenex on sale for .99 cents a box.

Did you know that CVS will take expired store coupons?  This includes your Extra Care Bucks which I have thrown away for being expired.  Note this is only CVS coupons, not manufacturer's coupons, but Money Saving Madness has all the details.  I did try this with an expired e-mail (a choose your free item: chocolate or a body wash) last week and they let me use it no problem.  Of course I'd already written EXPIRED in a pink highlighter on it to remind me to throw it away after showing it to a co-worker when I found out I could use the expired coupon.  Did it embarrass me?  Nope.  That's when you know you truly have a problem! :)

Have a birthday coming up?  Even if not, get in on this now.  STL Mommy has a huge list of places to sign up for their emails.  When your birthday rolls around you can get some great freebies.  Some places will send out a coupon for something free on your birthday only, but a lot are for the whole week or month.  I know I had a blast getting a bunch of fun things on my last birthday!  Make sure you sign up at least a few weeks prior to the big day in order to allow time to get in their system.  Note that you may want to either direct these to an email you infrequently use or set up a free account so that you don't get bombarded in your everyday e-mail.