Another quandry...

First off, thank you for the ideas so far of where to look for shoes and clothes. I appreciate the comments!

Sheesh, I'm just having all kinds of trouble figuring out clothes and shoes for our trip! I looked online and found some comfortable looking dresses at Old Navy. They actually have petite dresses online. I often have a problem with dresses being too long. Sometimes I can make them work if I'm wearing heels or wedges, but I'm not going to be walking around Europe in tall shoes!

I'm probably going to order several to try later this week. I would need to bring a little shrug or something with me because churches usually won't let you in in a sleeveless shirt/dress. (Also, I will probably have to wear a cami under them because of the dresses being somewhat low-cut.)

My problem now is what shoes to wear. I cannot walk around in thongs/flip flops. They're not supportive enough, nor can I handle the part between my toes. A lot of sandals are completely flat, which really won't provide support for lots of walking. I would like something comfortable, but not ugly. :-)

So, any suggestions to go with dresses like the ones below?

Any other stores you know of that have petite dresses at a decent price? Old Navy is reasonably priced, so I don't mind buying things from there. I noticed they had a skirt or two that might work as well.

Next problem will be finding some little biker short type things to wear underneath. Stupid big thighs...

Recommendations - capris, bermudas, etc.

I'm searching for some pants/shorts to wear on our trip to Europe in June. Capris would be good, or maybe long shorts.

I have several problems that make it VERY hard for me to find pants/shorts that fit:

• I'm short, but petites sometimes don't fit quite right.
• My waist is about 2 sizes (sometimes more depending on the fit of different brands) smaller than my hips. "Curvy" fits are better, but often the waist is still too big.
  
• I'm short waisted, so I should technically wear fairly low rise pants. They tend to seem too low, though, and I don't like my underwear or extreme lower back showing when I bend over!
• Bermuda shorts tend to be a little too long on me, but regular shorts often seem too short to me. (I have "thick" thighs and don't like them!)
  

Anyone out there have suggestions? I don't want to pay a lot, which is another party of the problem. Luckily, I think I do have a 20% coupon to Ann Taylor Loft until the end of this month. I also have a gift card to Macy's that I could use, as well as gift cards to Dillard's. I'm not sure what brand to even look for, though...

Money

Money is on my mind a lot lately! We're doing fine and have a decent amount of savings, but I'm thinking ahead to the near future. Kids cost a LOT of money. Plus, DH will have to get a new car, because his 2-door isn't going to be too useful.

Oh, how I wish I could win the lottery. That would involve buying a lottery ticket, though. :-) I don't buy them because I know the chances of winning are so slim. So basically, I think of them as a waste of money.

Saving money is one reason I've really gotten into couponing. I read quite a few blogs about coupons/saving money, as well as blogs listing freebies. I've received quite a few freebies recently, including a sample of Tide, Aveeno night moisturizer, a Fiber One granola bar, Quaker mini rice cakes, and several others. I figure if people are giving stuff away for free, I'll take it! :-) I've also really gotten into seeing how much we can put into our ING savings account each month. The amount of interest paid has decreased lately, but it still pays way more than a checking account.

Wouldn't it be great to have a tree like this (with large amounts on the bills) in your backyard?

Walgreens Trip #2

This was definitely my best Wags trip ever. The cashier was really funny. Instead of being annoyed at all the coupons (like sometimes the cashiers are), he was excited. He thought it was impressive when a lady came in with a total of $113 and got it down to $13 by using coupons. Mine was even better! :-)

10 bottles of various Garnier products (mousse, shampoo, hairspray)
Original price - not sure. On sale for $2.99
*Use Wags $2 off Garnier coupon
*Use 10 $1 off Mfr. Garner coupons

Final price = FREE!


4 Glade Lasting Impression Kits
Original price - not sure. On sale for $7.99
*Use Wags $4 off
*Use 2 B1G1 coupons
*Use 2 $4 off coupons

Final price = FREE!

(There could have been some overage, but the manager said it wasn't possible. Technically, I could have received $7.99 off for the free ones. However, since the Wags coupon took $4 off of each of them already, he said he couldn't give me back money. Fine with me...it was still insanely cheap!)


2 Glade Sense n' Spray
Original price - not sure. On sale for $7.99
*Use Wags $4 off
*Use 2 $4 off coupons

Final price = FREE!

Total price OOP = 6 cents!!

According to the receipt, I saved $31 in Wags advertised savings and $77.78 in Manufacturer coupon savings. This is a total savings of $108.78!

Walgreens Trip #1

I made 2 trips to Walgreens the other day to take advantage of some amazing deals. The breakdown is below the picture.

Axe styling paste - regular price $6.99
* Submit March rebate for free Axe product
* Ask for rebate to be put on a Wags giftcard (receive 10% extra)

Final price = Better than FREE!


2 bottles (100 ct.) Vitamin D tablets - regular price $6.99
* On sale, B1G1

Final price = 2 bottles for $6.99


2 Colgate Total Whitening - regular price $3.49
* Use 2 Wags coupons for $2.50 off Colgate
* Use 2 coupons for $1.50

Final price = FREE plus overage!


1 bottle of VO5 shampoo - on sale for $0.49 (not sure of the regular price)


1 pack of Big Red - regular price $1.29
* Use 1 coupon for 1 free pack

Final price = FREE!


2 Right Guard deodorants - regular price - not sure. On sale for $2.99
* Use a coupon for $1 off 2

Final price = $4.98 for 2


1 Degree deodorant - regular price - not sure. On sale for $2.19
* Use 1 coupon for $0.75 off

Final price = $1.44


Garnier Fructis shampoo - regular price - not sure. On sale for $2.99
*Use Wags coupon for $2 off Garnier
*Use 2 $1 off Garnier

Final price = FREE!


2 Glade Sense n' Sprays - regular price - not sure. On sale for $7.99
*Use Wags coupons for $4 off
* Use 2 $4 off coupons

Final price = FREE!

I ended up paying $21.10 for all this. The total will actually be $14.11 once I get my rebate on the Axe product.

According to my receipt, I saved $50.65

Good walking shoes? Recommendations?

My DH and I are going to Europe in June for our delayed honeymoon. I need to buy some good walking shoes to wear because we will be doing a LOT of walking. I was wondering if anyone had any recommendations?

Unfortunately, my poor toes cannot handle "thong" sandals. So, that kind of knocks out a fair amount of shoes. I was hoping to find something not quite as bulky as regular tennis shoes. Since I'm so short, even if I wear short socks that don't shoe, I look short and frumpy if I wear capris and regular tennis shoes. (And yes, I probably shouldn't care about that, but we're going to take pictures!)

I'm thinking I'm probably going to have to get good shoes that are not the cutest. Oh well...any help is appreciated. :-)