It's a holiday weekend for moms so even though you might want to take a break from bargain shopping today, be sure to carve out some time later in the week to pick up some pretty terrific deals.

It's always worth shopping when the stores are willing to pay YOU to carry merchandise out of their stores. And that's what you can do at Walgreens this week with a little coupon magic involving a new Starbucks product. (Keep reading for the details.)

There are also excellent deals on Kraft barbecue sauce, Pantene and sunscreen at CVS. At Rite Aid, you'll find stellar buys on Pepsi 12-packs, Kellogg's cereals and M&M's and an even better deal on Pantene -- at just 75 cents a bottle. And at Walgreens, besides being paid to buy Starbucks, you'll find a good deal on Purex laundry detergent.

Over at Kroger, there are some excellent produce deals as well as a nice deal on Sargento and Kraft cheeses.

Once you hit the aisles, please post any great deals you spot so we can all save more.

Financial rebates for buying energy-efficient home appliances will expire Monday under North Carolina's latest Energy Star rebate program. State officials are urging those who bought high-efficiency appliances on or after Jan. 1 to claim up to $300 in rebates by 5 p.m. Monday.

The program, launched in February, pays between $50 and $300 for purchases of air conditioners, heat pumps, water heaters and other efficient appliances. The money comes from the federal stimulus package that is now wrapping up as the funds are depleted.

North Carolina has offered several Energy Star rebate programs in past years, distributing more than $11 million for nearly 80,000 appliance purchases. The current program will disburse an additional $1.2 million.

To claim a rebate residents are asked to go to www.ncappliancerebate.com/ or call 1-855-208-6242.

Q&A with the Centsible Saver is an occasional feature on the blog. If you have a question for a future Q&A, leave it at the bottom of this post or email it to adunn@newsobserver.com.

Today I've got questions about mail-in rebates and Catalina deals so here goes:

Thanks to everyone who entered this week's giveaway for an envelope full of coupons and mail-in rebates.

And thanks so very much for all your kind words. It's great to hear everyone is saving big at the grocery and drug stores!

Several of you asked questions, too. I'll handle those in an upcoming Q and A post so watch for that.

Now on to the winner: It's goldensx2.

As soon as I get your contact information, I'll mail out the coupons and rebates.

With Christmas just a week away and Hanukkah even closer, the sales circulars are loaded with ads for toys, fragrances, candy and those as-seen-on-TV gadgets and gizmos.

Look a little closer, however, and you'll find plenty of real deals -- freebies and cheapies to fill stockings and help make your holidays more festive. I've highlighted many of them for you in this week's list of all the best deals at CVS, Rite Aid, Walgreens, Target, Kroger and Kerr Drug.

Registration is now open for my next coupon workshop.

The three-hour Saturday class is scheduled for Jan. 28 and covers basic and advanced coupon techniques plus tips on meal planning and frugal living.

This class, which is fast-paced and fun, is great for anyone interested in learning how to save 50 percent or more at the grocery store or those who need a refresher course.

It's a new month, which means it's time to do a little coupon housekeeping.

Plenty of good deals are waiting for you at the drug stores and Kroger this week. Among the most notable: FREE candy corn at CVS, FREE Crest at Rite Aid and FREE Blistex and children's cough medicine at Walgreens. We're also starting to see deals on bags of Halloween candy!

Keep reading for a store-by-store breakdown of the deals and let me know in the comments section if you found a deal I missed because, as we all know, couponing is a team sport!

Did you know September is National Coupon Month?

That probably explains the multitude of coupon booklets and tear pads I've spotted in stores this month. (Be on the look out because they seem to be everywhere!)

And that's a good thing for coupon clippers because more coupons in circulation translates into more (and better) deals.

So in honor of National Coupon month, let's celebrate with a giveaway.

When you can shop for free - or the stores pay you to shop - you know it's a good week for deals. This week, you can pick up a free Schick razor at CVS and free hand sanitizer and free topical pain relievers at Rite Aid. And Walgreens will pay you to buy Colgate Pro-Relief Sensitive toothpaste. At Kroger, you'll pay just 18 cents for Dial soap. Read on for all the best Sunday deals.