After Christmas Shopping: Spent $3.31 Saved $167.20!!!!

This will probably be my last entry for this year as I don't plan on doing any more shopping this week. My totals are updated and it looks like I came in well under my budget of $2500! Here's what I did:

JC Penney-

Chris Madden Luxplush Blanket- KING SIZE $89.99
On sale for $29.99
- $10 coupon
-$19.93 (refund for returning an item I bought last month)
PAID: $1.36

WalMart-

4- Gerber Graduate Smart Sips
3- Hefty trash bags (20 ct)
1- Gallon milk
Total: $20.56
- $12 (for Gerber, but since the q's were for $3/1 and the sips were only $2, I got $1 of overage on each!)
- $6 ($2/1 Hefty)
PAID: 2.72

Target-

Charmin 18 ct double rolls normally $11 but on sale for $9.49
- $1/1 Coupon
- $5 Target GC (from trading coupons at HCW)
PAID: 3.96

CVS-
1 Pantene hampoo
1 Pantene conditioner
2 Always pads
1 Tide 40 load Powder
1 Olay Bodywash
1 Olay Lotion
1 Tone Bodywash
1 Colgate Toothpaste
Total: $58.96
-$3.50 (BOGO Pantene)
-(2) $1/1 Always pads
-$1/1 Tide
-$7 (BOGO Olay)
-$1/1 Tone
-$1/1 Colgate (CVS q)
-$23 ECB
PAID: $5.27 but got $10 ECB

Total Spent: $13.31 (really $3.31 counting the ECB!!!)
Total Saved: $167.20!!!

Almost FREE Yobaby Yogurt!

So, today is the last day to use your $1 Giant doublers and here is this excellent deal I stumbled upon!

I bought:

10- 16oz V8 Fusions
4- 4pk YoBaby Yogurt

Total: $31.12
- (4) $1/1 Yobaby MQ's
- (4) $1/1 Giant Doublers
- (10) $0.75/1 V8 (doubled to $1.50

Total after coupons: $8.12 which I put on a Giant gift card I got as a gift. Then, a $2 coupon good on my next purchase printed out compliments of Stonyfield farms (who makes Yobaby! So it was like I got 16 yogurts for $0.36!

CVS and WAGs Trip

CVS:

1 Nivea Men's Body Wash
2 Nivea Women's Body Wash
1 Nivea Lip Care
2 Maybelline Duel Eyeshadows
1 Clearasil cleanser
1 Clearasil acne cream

Total after coupons: $19.83 Saved: $22.00 Got $18 ECB

WAGs:

3 John Frieda Root Awakening Shampoos
2 Schick Intuition Razors (BOGO!)
2 Schick Quattro Razors (BOGO!)

Total after coupons: $13.73 Saved: $48.35 Got $5 RR

Not bad, huh? :)

Updated Totals

After my CVS and Giant shopping trips during lunch time, I updated my totals. The retail value of my spending crossed $5000 today, yet I've spent just under $1500! I'm so proud!

Look at these lovely receipts!



Yes, that's the deal I just posted about at Giant- 4 Fruit Loops for $3.15!



Yes, you're reading that right! I spent $3.21 and saved over $37!

GDA on Kellogg's Corn Pops or Fruit Loops at Giant!

Giant currently has select cereals on sale 4 for $6 (must buy 4).

Coupons.com currently has a printable for $1.50/2 Kellogg's Fruit Loops, Apple Jacks, or Corn Pops.

Combine with the 4 for $6 sale at Giant:

4 Fruit Loops or Corn Pops (Apple Jacks NOT included in sale)- $6 - 2($1.50) =

4 boxes for $3! That's $0.75/box of cereal!

Spent $6.70, Saved $39.06... CVS, how I love thee!

I had some ECBs to burn at CVS this week, and unfortunately, the coupons I ordered for some of this week's HOT deals aren't in yet, so I was a bit stuck. Fortunately, I worked it out. Here's the breakdown:

$05.00- 2 Honey Nut Cheerios
$15.38- 2 Garnier Nutrisse Skin Renew Cleaners
$10.98- 2 Mitchum Lady Extra Strength deoderant
$07.92- 2 Rimmel Nailpolish

Total: $39.28
- $1 off 2 CVS coupon for Cheerios
- 2 $0.75/1 Honey Nut Cherrios MQ's
- $5.49 BOGO CVS coupon for Mitchum
- 2 $1/1 Michum MQ's
- $3.99 BOGO Rimmel Nailpolish MQ
- 2 $2/1 Garnier Nutrisse Cleaners peelies (right on the shelf next to the cleaners!)
- $17 ECB

Total: $6.70 BUT I received $5 ECB!

Back in the Game- Toilet Paper Deal

After what feels like an eternity, I'm finally getting back into the coupon game. It's good to be back.

Giant is currently having a sale (through Thursday) on Angel Soft Toilet Paper 2 for $11. Combine this with 2 $0.50/1 Angel Soft Bath Tissue, 6 Double Roll +, Any - 05-23-10 RP (which double) and you only pay $4.50 per pack.

Let's see how this breaks down:

The Angel Soft sale is on 12 double roll packs or 24 single roll packs, so either way, you are getting 24 rolls of toilet paper. My stockpile price for toilet paper is no more than $0.25 per (single) roll of toilet paper. Did I beat my stockpile price?

$4.50/24= $0.19/roll!

Total before coupons/sales: $31.46
Total after coupons/sales: $19.00 for at least a month's worth of toilet paper if not more.

More updates

I've updated my totals again, and also included $21.50 in rebates I received so far this month. That brings my rebate earnings up to $266.50, and I'm hopeful I can make it $300 by the end of the year. I need to be more diligent in this area so next year I can make even more!

I have $1,108.62 (plus my rebate money) to last me until the end of the year. As I'm not planning on doing any more spending until August, that leaves about $221.72 per month for the rest of the year. Very manageable, as I usually spend around $200, unless there is a really good sale to stock up on.

Wow!

Wow, it's been a month and a half since I updated! Why? Well, I really haven't done that much couponing or shopping since the beginning of June. We've had some expected changes and so I won't be really getting back into the coupon/rebating game until a bit later, but I should be able to still stick with my budget so I'm happy with that. I'm updating my totals now!

Updated Totals

Just updated my totals for May. I only spent $150.65 on groceries in May, which I'm quite proud of. I'm still on track for making my $2500 budget for 2010!

VOTE for your FAVE Picture!

Okay, I've narrowed down the choices for pictures. Please vote from these top 4!

1.


2.


3.


4.

CoverGirl Blast- Not a hit with me

I posted a couple days ago on Facebook that I received my free sample of CoverGirl Blast from Bzz Agent (a site where you volunteer to participate in campaigns to try new products). I wore it all day yesterday and applied it again today and I have to say I wouldn't buy this product.

The Good: I loved the colors. I got the Purple Plume eyeshadow and the Ignite lip gloss, both of which were bright without being over-the-top. I also liked how the eyeshadow was set up like a lipstick that you just roll on as opposed to traditional eye shadow powders where you have to use the little applicator that I am always dropping and end up losing.

The Not-So-Good: The application method for the eyeshadow, while good, worried me because it felt pretty hard on my eyeball and somewhat uncomfortable. Also, the lip gloss stick was difficult to get in and out of the gloss.

The Bad: The minute I tried to applied the second shade on my eye, the eye shadow stick BROKE off! I wasn't pressing hard, I didn't turn the stick so the shadow was all the way out, but for some reason it smeared unevenly on my eye and when I looked at it, it had broken off and was laying on the side of the tube. It's still usable if you are careful, but who even wants to deal with something that breaks so easily?

Also, the eye shadow clumps in the creases of my eye very quickly. And by very quickly, I mean I applied this morning at 7:30am and by 8:30 when I checked in the rest room, there was pretty visible clumpage in my eye crease.

Lastly, the lip gloss seriously dried out my lips, not to mention it didn't smell very good to me. It's not any different from most other lip gloss. I think I'll stick to Nivea, which is my preferred brand for lip care.

Overall: I'm on the fence about it. It wasn't completely horrible, but I definitely will NOT use the CoverGirl coupons they sent on the Blast line.

CVS- They owed me!

Went to CVS today on my lunch break (as usual) and here is the breakdown:

$1.00- 1 Carefree liners
$4.98- 2 Right Guard deodorants
$4.99- 1 Kotex U pads
$7.38- 2 Stayfree pads
$8.99- 1 Schick Hydro razor

-$13.50 in ECB I had
-$1 for Carefree (making it free)
-(2)$2 for Stayfree (it was a money-maker after coupon and ECB!)
-$1 for Kotex (it was a money-maker after coupon and ECB!)
-$3 for Right Guard (it was a money-maker after coupon and ECB!)
-$5 for Schick (free after coupon and ECB!)

My total came to -$1.79. CVS does not give cash back, so the cashier voided one of my ECBs and I put $1.21 on a gift card.

From this transaction I received $17 ECB!

I need YOUR help!

My favorite radio station is doing a Battle of the Babies contest. The grand prize is $1,000! I have two weeks to submit the cutest possible picture of Caroline I can, and then people vote for the cutest baby. I have decided that my plan of attack will be in three phases:

Phase 1) Take cute pictures of Caroline and/or gather all pics of Caroline that anyone else may have taken with their phones, cameras, etc.

Phase 2) Have my readers and friends VOTE for the best picture to submit to the contest.

Phase 3) Ask my readers and friends to go to the website daily and vote for Caroline!

Now for a bit of incentive for you guys, even though I KNOW you all would help me from the kindness of your hearts, right??

Anyone who votes during Phase 2 for the picture I should submit, gets entered into a random drawing to win a FREE NIVEA LIP CARE.



I will choose a random winners and I WILL MAIL the brand new lip care right to your house, so I'm not limited to people who live in the DC/MD/VA area! The voting will be right here on my blog, and I will post the pictures I'm considering on Monday, May 10th.

Anyone who votes during Phase 3 on the station website (that I will post), also will get entered into ANOTHER FREE NIVEA LIP CARE drawing, and I will choose ANOTHER 3 WINNERS (you may win twice!)

Now, for the REALLY good part. I'm going to give away prizes based on how far Caroline gets in the competition. One random winner will be drawn for each of the prizes:

If Caroline makes:

The Top 50- A set of two Glade fragrance collection candles!



The Top 20- $5 gift card (to a store of the winner's choosing)



The Top 10- $10 gift card (to a store of the winner's choosing)



The Top 2- A Gift Bag (or box mailed to your house) filled with the winner's choice of household items that I frequently stockpile- body wash, lotion, soap, shampoo, conditioner, razors, shave gel, scented candles, etc. Those are just examples! Basically a FREE box of NICE stuff to pamper yourself or someone in your life! (Est. retail value of $30 or more!)

And, if Caroline is the winner (and thus wins the $1,000 prize) I will draw ONE random winner (from everyone who helped during this process) who will win a $50 gift card of their choosing!!



This could be Target, Walmart, CVS, a restaurant gift card, A Visa gift card, etc. Those are just examples.

How you enter: I'll be posting here on my blog for each phase, so you have to make sure you post in the comments section HERE that you voted. I will keep track of all the names, and since you can vote on the station website once per DAY, you can enter to win my prizes once per day as well! I will keep track of all the entries, announce cut-off dates for voting in the various rounds, etc. So be sure to check here for updates and to VOTE, VOTE, VOTE!

*All prizes are given at my own expense and all prizes will be given for the various rounds of the contest REGARDLESS if we will the top prize or not!*

So, who's down to help us win?

I got my groceries free at Giant today!

I went to Giant on my lunch break. I wanted to use my $1 Giant doublers (available exclusively in the mailed Giant ads from last week) that my friend Ayrielle sent me. With the Giant doublers, you have to have a minimum (before coupon) total of $15.

2 cans of Enfamil Ready to Feed formula
8 jars of Kraft BBQ sauce (on sale 10 for $10)

Total before sales: $22.90
Total before coupons: $14.32

I used 4 $1/2 KRaft bbq sauce coupons, 4 $1 Giant doublers, and two $4 formula checks.

I was SUPPOSED to walk out only paying $0.89, but a manager error (they entered my formula checks as the total amount instead of the amount the formula checks were marked for) left me walking away without paying a single penny!!

Triples, CVS, and FREE water

I just updated my totals to include my shopping trips this last week. Having a vehicle again is a really nice thing. I ended up with 60 bottles of FREE Propel flavored water (well, I paid $1.50 in tax) which doesn't include the 50 or so bottles I gave my sister last weekend, a bunch of free Reese's and Coca-Cola products (thanks to ECBs at CVS), and $56 worth of groceries for $12, thanks to triples at Harris Teeter.

I'm almost at the halfway point with my budget, however, we're NOT almost at the halfway point of the year. I was initially concerned that I wouldn't be able to meet my budget, but then I remembered two things. 1) I've already made $200 in rebates this year, which would have been more if I'd been more on top of it and 2)I could comfortably stop buying any shampoo, soap, razors, toothpaste, toothbrushes, conditioner, body wash, and laundry detergent and have enough to last the rest of this year and JUST buy food, which I also have a good stockpile of. I probably have enough mustard, peanut butter, jelly, Pasta Roni, pasta noodles, and spaghetti sauce to last the rest of the year as well.

I will continue to get what items I can for free and I will also continue to support a few local charities. I've also been known to give my friends stockpile stuff, too. I just wanted to throw that out there so no one thinks I'm a greedy hoarder, LOL.

So, to sum up, I'm happy with how this year and my budget is going so far. For May, I'm getting back into shopping at Walgreens, which will be a HUGE test since they are usually the most ANTI-COUPON (other than Walmart... must be the "Wal..." stores, hehe) of all the stores. I will, of course, continue to write about my exploits! :)

Enter the "It's Great to be a Mom at Hotcouponworld" Mother's Day Wishlist Contest Now through May 2nd - Hot Coupon World

Enter the "It's Great to be a Mom at Hotcouponworld" Mother's Day Wishlist Contest Now through May 2nd - Hot Coupon World

HT Triples Again??

According to my fave coupon site, HCW, Harris Teeter might be doing triples again the week of 4/28 - 5/4! Click here for details and here for a list of possible great deals!

Is it me, or are they doing these big events (triples and Super Doubles) a lot lately? I'm not complaining, though!

What am I most excited about? Hmm, that would probably be McCormick Grill Mate Spices. There is a $0.50/1 coupon out so I'm hoping to snag some FREE or really cheap spices!

Updated Totals

It's been awhile since I posted. Crazy life stuff happens, and I've been without a vehicle for the last two weeks, so there's been no way to chase crazy deals. I look at it as a good thing, though, b/c I saved some money!

CVS- FREE Formula

I am sure many moms would agree that formula is the most expensive part of raising a baby. So, whenever I get a chance to get my hands on some free formula, I never pass it up! This week CVS is having a sale on Enfamil (and Similac) ready-feed formula- Each can is only $4.99 (normally $6.79!) and when you spend $25, you receive $10 ECB

Here's how it worked out:

6 cans Enfamil ready-feed formula- $42.78 w/tax retail, 31.48 w/tax sale price
-$5/$25 coupon (sign up for those CVS emails!)
-$5 Enfamil formula check
-$5 Enfamil formula check
-$5 Enfamil formula check
-$5 Enfamil formula check
-$3 Enfamil formula check
-$2 Enfamil formula check
Total: $1.48 (on giftcard)

I also received 10 ECB for this transaction and also received $7.50 for my winter spending (CVS gives back a portion of your spending each quarter, so make sure you scan your ECB card every time, even if you are not a regular coupon user!)

Harris Teeter Triples... and I'm swimming in beverages!

Harris Teeter is tripling coupons again, and of course I couldn't resist making a trip. Here's the breakdown!

4 Bertolli Pasta Sauce (one of which I promptly BROKE as soon as I got home *sad face*)
3 French's Classic Yellow Mustard
3 3lb bags of Mahatma Rice
3 Propel Water (for my sister)
3 Tubs of I Can't Believe It's Not Butter
3 Breakstone Sour Cream

Total before coupons/sales: $50.65

Total after coupons/sales: $10.69

Also, another Giant trip yesterday for more cheap stuff to drink. Think I have enough??? (Keep in mind this is in addition to the stuff in the pictures I posted a couple days ago!)

Two More Giant Trips

Did another Giant trip yesterday after my friend Ayrielle clued me in to the fact that you can double-dip on catalina deals with Pillsbury crescent rolls (get $10 for purchasing $20 AND get $4 back when you buy 6 Pillsbury products), so here is what I did:

8 Pillsbury Reduced Fat Crescent Rolls
1 Loaf Whole Wheat Bread
1 Marie Callendar Dinner
2 Kraft Cheese
1 large tub of ice cream
20 Fuze drinks
1 Bottle Propel water (for my sister)
2 V8 Fusion

Total before coupons/sales: $86.48

Total after coupons/sales: $44.43 and I received $7 back for the Fuze, and $14 back for the Pillsbury for a total $21 back!

I also did a mini trip this morning and bought 10 more Fuze and 8 Propel waters (for my sister).

Total before coupons/sales: $26.25

Total after coupons/sales: $5.35

Up to my eyeballs in Fuze and V8 Fusion

Made another trip to Giant today. Since V8 Fusion is on sale at $3 each (which, while not the best price I've ever gotten, is not that worst either) I decided to use my $.75/1 coupons that doubled to snag 11 bottles at $1.50 each.

I also picked up another 20 bottles of Fuze- using my BOGO FREE coupons meant I spent $10 for them AND got back a $7 OYNO catalina for buying $20 in Coke products.

Spent: $30.15
Saved: $54.99

I have at least another 15 BOGO FREE Fuze Q's as well as several $0.75/1 V8 Fusion Q's coming in the mail, so I anticipate doing this deal at least one more time!

Awesome Shopping Weekend!

Since Shoppers Food Warehouse had triples AND super doubles going on this weekend, and Giant has some GREAT catalina deals this week- I made out like a bandit! See pics:








Total: $107.01 with $19 OYNO catalinas, so it's like I paid $88.19!

Saved $138.92

AWESOME Giant Deals Starting Friday!

For my local people with a Giant food store- check out the sales this week starting tomorrow. There are THREE different catalina deals for money back after purchase!

Check it out here!

Kelloggs is paying me $35.20 to eat their cereal??

Safeway is having an awesome sale on Kelloggs Apple Jacks, Corn Pops, and Fruit Loops this week (good through tomorrow). If you buy 5, you pay just $1.50 each. There is even a coupon next to the cereal for $.70/1 cereal.

Thanks to HotCouponWorld.com, I was able to get the same coupons with one very important difference- the coupons I got will DOUBLE (the ones in the stores will not), making them worth $1.40. See where I'm going with this? That means (with tax) I pay $0.12 per box of cereal.

How are they paying me? Kellogg's also has a rebate out where if you buy 10 Kellogg's products, they will give you $10 back. The best part? You can submit up to 8 rebates per household (I have 4 rebates left)!

So, 40 boxes of cereal at $0.12 each = $4.80 - $40 in rebates = $35.20 money maker!

The good news for YOU is that this is still a good deal with the coupons you find in the store's cereal aisle, even if you don't have the rebate forms. You end up paying $4 for 5 boxes of cereal which is still an awesome price, so go out and take advantage of this deal!

Giant Trip

Because of the CVS trip I did this morning (which I outlined in my previous post), I now have enough HBA (shampoo, body wash, deodorant etc) products to last at least a year, maybe more. I also have no less than 100 candles and other air freshening products. At this point, I don't plan on stockpiling anymore of these items, unless that are free or close to it (like the deal I did about a month ago where I got 8 bottles of Garnier Fructis for $.50).

Now I'm going to focus completely on stockpiling food. I was very pleased with my Giant trip today. Here's what I got:

1 Gallon Milk
1 Welch's Juice Cocktail
6 Healthy Choice meals
1 Lean Cuisine meal
3 boxes Cap'n Crunch peanut butter cereal (my DH's favorite)
14 32oz bottles of G2 Gatorade
2 bottles of V8 Fusion (love, love, LOVE this stuff!)
3 packs of boneless chicken breasts

Total before coupons and sales: $87.89
Total after coupons and sales: $32.46 (saved $17.38 w/ my Giant card and $39.34 in coupons)

Among the coupons I used: $10/$40 Harris Teeter coupon (Giant honors competitor coupons!), the $5 oyno Giant catalina from last week's frozen food deal, and 14 $0.50/1 G2 Gatorade coupons (that made them all FREE!)

Can't WAIT until Sunday at CVS!

Usually I post my deals only AFTER I do them, but I'm so excited, I'm going to give you a sneak peak at what I'm doing at CVS on Sunday!

Dove is on sale $15 get $5 ECB, and there is a great $2 Dove deodorant IP out. There is also a Glade deal $10 get $4 ECB(limit 2!!) and I plan on doing both plus using the $5/$30 coupon I got in my email to make a SWEET deal!

Buy 3 Glade Sense & Sprays ($6 ea) and 2 scented oil candle refills (2/$5)- 6 x 3 + 5 = $23
-(3) $4/1 Glade Sense & Spray starter kit coupons
- (2) $1.50/1 Scented oil candle holder or refill pack coupons

Buy 4 Dove Deodorant (2/$5) and one Dove Men body wash ($5)- 4 X $2.50 plus $5= $15
-(4) $2/1 any Dove deodorant IP
-(1) $1 any Dove Men product (there are also $1.75 IPs, but I already printed the max )

Now for the math!

$23 + $15 = $38
-$5 ($5/$30 Q)
-$12 (sense & spray q's)
-$3 (scented oil q's)
-$8 (Dove deoderant IPs)
-$1 (Dove men Q)
TOTAL: $9 with $13 ECB and submit for $5 SC Johnson rebate, so a BIG moneymaker after the rebate!

Besides the deals I previously posted this week- I am buying 10 of the Cheez-it crackers that are on sale 5/$5 and submitting them for the $10 Kelloggs rebate (buy 10 Kelloggs/Keebler/Sunshine products and get a free $10 prepaid VISA) to make FREE CHEEZ-ITS!!!

More Laundry Detergent!

As if I need anymore laundry detergent (see previous post), but there is an AWESOME deal on Tide at CVS today. It's on sale for $5.97 (my stock-up price- Tide is usually $9-$10), get back $1 ECB. I used a $1/1 coupon from last Sunday's paper and got it for $4.97. I also purchased another Nivea Lipcare.

If I had gone to CVS to purchase the Nivea lipcare on Sunday, I could have used the BOGO Nivea lipcare coupon, but I forgot about it and the coupon expired on Sunday, so I lost a chance for another free Nivea. One free is still a good deal, even though two free would have been sweeter.

Total before coupons/sales: $14.43

Total after coupons/sales: $8.41 which I put on my giftcard and received $4 ECB for the Tide and Nivea.

I still have one $25 giftcard and $16 ECB to spend at CVS!

Totals and Two Trips!

Updated my totals for the year as they were a little behind.

Went to CVS yesterday:

2 Oral B Toothbrushes
7 Glade candles
2 Almay Eye make-up removers
1 Gillette Fusion razor



Total before coupons and sales: $62.36

Total after coupons and sales: $17.36, which I put on a giftcard I got free with prescription, AND I received 12 ECB!

Also hit Giant:

Spent $48 and got 12 two-liter sodas, some fresh Salmon and several pounds of chicken. Just submitted for three rebates ($5 on Lemon Lime soda for the Sprite, $5 on Meat, and $6 on fresh seafood). The detergent in the picture was from previous trips.

Great Kellogg's Deal at Giant!

Right now at Giant, Kellogg's cereal is on sale 3 for $5. While at Giant yesterday, I found a blinkie in the cereal aisle for $0.70/1 Kellogg's Apple Jacks, Corn Pops, or Fruit Loops, making each box of cereal $0.96! The only downside is that these blinkies will not double (as Giant usually doubles all coupons up to $0.99). However, on Hot Coupon World, I am in the process of trading for blinkies that WILL double, and if I am successful, I'll be able to get Kellogg's cereals for JUST $0.26 per box!

Target Trip 2/27

I've been trying to trim my spending a bit as we've had some unexpected moving expenses and so far I'm a bit over budget for the year, but I couldn't resist a trip to Target!

Target:

(20.16) 14 - 40pk Up & Up (Target brand) baby wipes
(19.71) 9 - Johnson & Johnson Baby Bath items (powder, wash, lotion)
( 2.65) 1 - Johnson & Johnson Baby Oil
Total (including tax): $44.65
Used 10 - $2/1 ANY J&J Product
Used 14 - $0.75/1 any Up & Up wipes (peelies found on other Up & Up products!)

Total after coupons: $16.65!

CVS Trip 2/15

Here is a quick blurb about my CVS trip on Monday. One of the benefits of my time in the ER a couple weeks ago is that my doctor wrote me a prescription for some meds! CVS puts out these WONDERFUL coupons where if you get your prescription filled there, you get a FREE $25 Gift Card. So I, never missing an opportunity, got a free gift card and used it this past Monday at CVS along with my coupons and here is what I got:

-2 Covergirl Powder Foundation
-1 Colgate toothpaste
-4 Apple Cinnamon Glade candles
-1 Aussie Shampoo
Total before coupons: $31.48

Used:

$7 ECB
1-$1/1 Aussie Q
1- BOGO Covergirl Q
2- BOGO Glade candle Q's

Total: $11.48- Used CVS GC for $0 oop expense!

I'm Back!

First of all, I want to thank everyone who has helped me or wished me well during the past two weeks as I've struggled with some health issues. You all rock!

Second of all, I want to express my disappointment that when I updated my totals, I'm down to a savings of only 68% (it was my own secret goal to maintain a 75% average or better), but I've had to change my diet significantly and drastically in the last two weeks, so we'll see how it goes. I'm also lucky to have received about $100 in rebates I submitted in late December/early January, so that will help me bridge the budget gap as I'm learning to adjust my eating/shopping habits.

Thirdly, I'm SOOOO happy to announce that Harris Teeter is doing ANOTHER SUPER DOUBLES!!! Yes, you read right, SUPER DOUBLES is happening again, for the SECOND time in the last two months! If you are a newbie, this means that any coupon value up to $1.98 will DOUBLE in value (HT will double 3 like coupons per transaction and 20 per day). $1 coupons are worth $2, $1.50 coupons are worth $3, etc! I will make sure to post about the trips I make this week!

February Mini-Budget Challenge

I did so well with stockpiling in January, I decided to join HCW's February "Living Off Your Stockpile" challenge. The goal is to spend as little oop and use up things in your stockpile, and since we are moving at the end of this month, I decided to try it. My goal for the entire month of February is $100 oop.

Yesterday- RECEIVED $40 in REBATES!!!! Yay!!!!

Spent $0.50 at RiteAid and got 8 Garnier Fructis shampoos and conditioners (see previous entry)

Spent $28.51 at Target and got 2 24oz cans of Enfamil Premium formula and one tub of baby wipes, but I also got a $5 giftcard for buying the formula, but will submit for a $15 MIR on the formula.

Spent $0 at Walgreens and got 2 small cans of Enfamil Premium formula, some clearanced stuff, a chapstick and and 2 packages of Keebler Fudgestripe cookies. I used $10 RR and a leftover giftcard for the $0.81 tax, and I got $4 RR back!

Spent $32.06 at Giant, got beef (enough to submit for a $15 MIR rebate) and Betty Crocker brownies.

$32.06
+$28.51
+$00.50
-$40.00
$21.07 with $5 Target GC, $4 RR and will submit for a total of $30 in MIR!

FREE Garnier Fructis Shampoo/Conditioner!

I told myself I was not going to go get 8 free bottles of Garnier Fructis shampoo/conditioner at Rite Aid on Sunday... It's bad to lie to yourself, isn't it? I'm sorry, but I can't resist FREE. FREE beckons me, calls to me, BEGS me to go take it! So I will. Here's the deal.

Garnier Fructis 2.50 each (starting Sunday at Rite Aid)
Grab 8 of them = $20

- $5 off $20 Video Values coupon (make sure the cashier scans this coupon first!)
- $8 x $1/1 off Garnier Fructis Rite Aid Video Values coupon
- $7 x $1/1(RP 1-10) Garnier Fructis MQ (you can use 8, but this will result in overage which might not go over well with the cashier, so use your judgment here)
= FREE! (or $1 MM)

About Video Values Rite Aid coupons. Go here to see what it's all about, but basically, you watch a quick commercial, and then win a coupon to print at the end. Earn 20 video credits, and you get that sweet $5/20 coupon (takes 15-20 min to earn). The best part, you can print MULTIPLE copies of each coupon INCLUDING the $5/20 to use on all your upcoming RA trips!

*A Quick Note- I really like this deal, because even for those of you who don't clip coupons from the paper yet, you can still get a good deal on this, since you can sign up TODAY for the Video Values coupons. The shampoo won't be free for you, but it will be $7 for 8 bottles, which is not bad for getting your feet wet and starting to see if you want to pursue "this couponing thing"!

No shopping lately

I miss blogging about my deals every day! Unfortunately, I just haven't been shopping. Money is a bit low since we are saving for a big move (in 30 days- yikes!!) so we've just been living off of what I've already bought. I DID go snag some free Gatorade at Giant yesterday (on sale for $1 and I had $0.50/1 coupons), but nothing other than that.

I'm really bummed about the lack of funds this week b/c there are some really good diaper/wipe sales going on! I posted about the Pampers deal at Target, but also at Walgreens, if you buy $25 of Huggies, you get $5 RR, and I saw my friend do this deal for baby wipes!

Oh well, the one thing you have to remember in this business is that THERE WILL ALWAYS BE ANOTHER DEAL!

Great Diaper Deal at Target!

There is a great deal on Pampers at Target this week. Buy 3 packs at $8.99, get a $5 Target gift card. If you use the $2 Target Pamper coupons and $2 manufacturer coupons on Pampers (both from the 12/06/09 inserts), you get them for $4.99 ea, so only $9.98 for 3 packs of diapers after the giftcard!

Target Trip

I went to Target tonight to buy some formula and baby food. Here is what I got:

1 tub Pampers baby wipes
2 12.5oz cans formula
1 24oz can of formula
10 cans ready-feed formula (32 oz each, one can feeds DD for one day)
1 Pedialyte
4 Gerber infant cereal
10 Earth's Bes Organic baby food jars
3 2-Pk Gerber baby food

Total before coupons/formula checks: $122.03

Total paid (after coupons/formula checks): $43.17

With this purchase, I am happy to announce that I have enough baby food and formula to last DD now until at least the end of February/early March, if not a bit longer. Also, I will not be purchasing anything that is not a deal I can't pass up as we now have a sufficient stockpile of everything (except perishables) to last us at least the next 6 weeks, so m shopping will slow down a bit.

Rite Aid $35 Visa Card Rebate (#1)

Right now Rite Aid is offering a $35 Visa card rebate when you buy $100 worth of select P&G products. You all know me, so you know I'm not actually going to spend $100 of my own money, LOL. Luckily, you can use coupons AND do it in multiple transactions, so here was my first transaction I did yesterday:

$6.99 - 1 Always 44ct pad
$3.99 - 1 Always 18ct pad
$3.99 - 1 Dayquil 12 ct

-$3.99 BOGO Always coupon
-$2.00 Vicks Dayquil coupon

Total: $9.53

BUT, I will get back $3.99 for the Dayquil from my Health FSA, $3 in Single Check Rebates (thru Rite-Aid), so, I spent $2.54, with $14.97 counting towards my $100 rebate!

Giant- Spent $42.64 Saved $78.74

Thanks to the P&G deal I posted about on Friday, I did pretty well at Giant today:

3 packs of 24 double roll Charmin (24 double rolls each = 144 rolls OR enough toilet paper to see me through May)
2 Tide 2x Laundry detergent
21 Ronzoni SmartTaste Pasta (basically, enough spaghetti pasta for at least a month, maybe a bit longer)
1 Ensure 6 pack

Total before coupons: $118.93

Total after coupons: $42.64

PLUS, with the P&G deal, I got a coupon for $10 off my next order. The sweetest thing about it: the person in front of me left a coupon for "FREE Eggs with $10 purchase". He said he didn't want it (I made sure to ask), so I gladly took it!

I'll be going again this evening!

GREAT Catalina at Giant this week!

This week at Giant, they are offering a GREAT deal!

Buy $30 P&G Products and receive a coupon for $10 off your next shopping trip! Click here to find their weekly circular!

A Small Sample

A few people have asked for a pic or two of my stockpiles. I have decided to oblige with these two pics.



This is what I've bought for baby food/formula in the last two weeks. Spent about $30 oop for all this- including the formula you see.



My current HBA (health & beauty) stockpile. This is what was left after Christmas and what I've bought over this last week. Look closely, as you can't see everything at first glance. Also, keep in mind I've got another (small) box of stuff in storage, and I gave away about 12 small giftbags of various shampoo, shave gel, toothpaste, etc for Christmas.

Rite Aid Trip 1/11

First off, happy birthday to my wonderful husband of almost 4 years! LOVE YOU!

Went to Rite Aid yesterday to attempt this scenario from Deal Seeking Mom. Turns out, they didn't have the smaller sizes needed, so I had to use the rest of my gift card and spend some more money oop, but didn't do too bad.

1 Lubriderm Lotion
1 Aveeno Lotion
1 Aveeno Conditioner
1 Clean & Clear Foam Cleanser
1 Clean & Clear Astringent

Total before coupons: $33.03
Total after coupons: $12.27 (Used $6.31 left on gift card) spent $5.96.

So, $5.96, BUT with the Johnson & Johnson $10 rebate, I'll have made $4.04!

Also did two more trips to Harris Teeter to finish up Super Doubles. I have so much stuff, I don't even know what to do. Totals updated!

Lastly, my lovely friend Jeannette was so kind as to send me $15 in rebate checks she received from SC Johnson! I will add that to my savings.

Updated totals!

Did some shopping this weekend- Too many trips to post them all as I've hit Harris Teeter every day along with CVS, Rite Aid, and Walgreens. Will post about my Rite Aid trip that I will make tonight, tomorrow! I did update my totals ---> (see "About my Budget").

Rite Aid Update

Yesterday in the mail, I received a nice letter from Rite Aid, thanking me for being a customer and taking the time to report a not-so-good experience in addition to a good experience at a different store later in the day. Included in the letter was a $10 Rite Aid gift card!

So, I'll still be shopping at Rite Aid. I should add that both times I called, they asked for specific details about my experience including the names of employees there so they could pass the feedback along, so make sure you are honest in your feedback to them!

Day 2 of HT SD- Spent $28.55, Saved $106.22

Day Two of Harris Teeter Super Doubles- Here is the breakdown:

3- Cans of formula- $50 at retail, but w/formula checks and coupons I paid $17
(one 26oz can and two 13oz cans)
2- Packages of beef
1- Package of hamburger
4- Package of Gerber baby food
1- Gallon of Milk
2- Herbal Essences Shampoo/Conditioner
2- V8 Fusion 46oz
1- Arm & Hammer Toothpaste
1- Olay Soap Bar 2-Pack
9- Jello Gelatin
3- Marie Callendar HomeStyle Creations
3- Pasta Roni
2- Cans of chicken meat
1- Prego pasta sauce
1- 3pack of Ivory bar soap

Total before coupons and sales: $134.77
Total after coupons and sales: $28.55

So, basically, I paid for formula, milk, and meat. The rest was free or under $0.50. I'm especially proud of the formula b/c for $17, I got enough formula to last DD for at least 2 weeks, which is awesome!

Spent $9.10, Saved $70.72

Can I just say that I LOVE HT Super Doubles?!? I went last night and rocked it. Here is the breakdown:

2- Packs of Ziploc EZ Zip Expandable Bags
6- Pasta Roni
2- Arm & Hammer laundry detergent
1- Olay Soap Bar 2-Pack
9- Jello Gelatin
3- Marie Callendar HomeStyle Creations
3- V8 Fusion 46oz
1- Campbell's Select Harvest soup
2- Crest Whitening Expressions toothpaste
2- Herbal Essences Shampoo/Conditioner

Total before coupons and sales: $79.82
Total after coupons and sales: $9.10

When I walked up to the register with my cart and coupons, the cashier said "Think you're going to save a lot of money today?" And I said "Yes, I probably won't pay more than $10 bucks." She looked at me like I was crazy, so after I paid I said "You didn't believe me, did you?" Hehehee

My friend, Jess, went with me, spent $11 and saved $67. We're going back today for day two!

Just had to post this:

Picture of my little cutey. I can't believe she'll be 6 months old in a little over two weeks.

Where are my V8 Fusion fans?

I LOVE V8 Fusion juice. I really do. And I'm SOOOOO excited to tell you that you can get it at Harris Teeter this week for $0.50/bottle!

Go here to print your two coupons. Take it to Harris Teeter where they are having it on sale 2 for $5, give them the coupons (which will double thanks to Super Doubles) to pay $1 for two bottles!

FREE Glade Candles!

Who doesn't LOVE free stuff?

I did this transaction at WAGs yesterday:

$10- ($2.50 ea) 4 Glade glass candle holders
$10- ($2.50 ea) 4 Glade candle refill packs
-$1.50 Any Glade scented oil candle item coupon
-$1.50 Any Glade scented oil candle item coupon
-$1.50 Any Glade scented oil candle item coupon
-$1.50 Any Glade scented oil candle item coupon
-$2.50 FREE Glade refill wyb (when you buy) candle holder coupon
-$2.50 FREE Glade refill wyb candle holder coupon
-$2.50 FREE Glade refill wyb candle holder coupon
-$2.50 FREE Glade refill wyb candle holder coupon
+ $1 Tax

Total: $5! (Total without coupons: $34.78 at regular prices, $21 at sales prices)

I'm going to use this receipt to submit for the $5 SC Johnson Rebate (click here for details).

$5 - $5 = FREE!

The candle holders are actually really nice, and since my MIL (mother-in-law) LOVES candles, I've got gifts for her birthday, Mother's day, and a couple other gift-giving occasions throughout the year!

Also made a run to Giant- Bought 8 boxes of Cheerios, 2 Green Giant steamable veggies, and splurged on a magazine. Spent $15.55.

Free Stuff Giveaway?!

While going through my coupons today, I noticed another BOGO Nivea Lip Care Coupon! That means I can get two more- FREE!

So, I was thinking, maybe one of my readers could benefit from my good fortune as well. Maybe if I get some comments on some of my blog posts, I would be willing to give away a free Nivea Lip Care! Hmmm, the possibilities... :)

SUPER DOUBLES at Harris Teeter!

Starting tomorrow, Harris Teeter will be doing Super Doubles through 1/12! (They will double coupons up to $1.98!) See here for more discussion on this, as well as a preview for what is on sale (and what you may be able to get for free!)

Other normal doubling restrictions apply as outlined in their coupon policy.

Rite Aid Has Redeemed Themselves

Thanks to the Gainesville store.

I went to the Gainesville Rite Aid tonight on my way home. COMPLETELY different experience than earlier! The girl said "hi" to me when I came in, she told me two different places to look for Nivea, they were out of Stayfree but she took my name and number and said they get a shipment on Saturday and she would call, and she gave me a raincheck. She even complimented my choice of Nivea (little did she know I took all but one, and the only reason I didn't take the last one was b/c it wouldn't have been free without another one, LOL). It was fabulous. So, I called customer service back and had them put a report in her file about how nice she was.

So, I will continue to shop at the Rite Aid in Gainesville, and will avoid the McLean store like the plague.

Used the last of my giftcard to buy a Listerine mouthwash for $2.50, but I will get a SCR of $3, so I really MADE $0.50 off that transaction.

Did a second transaction to buy 10 Nivea lip care- paid $1.84 after coupons, saved $32.91!!!

CVS Challenge 2010 Begins!

Last week I posted here about showing everyone how to do CVS deals like me. I challenged myself to start with $20 and not pay anymore (unless tax) for things for the rest of the year. It's going to be difficult, but I'm going to try. Here is what I did today!

CVS is currently having an ECB sale where if you spend $10 on Nivea Products, you get $5 back. It just so happens that in yesterday's paper, there were several Nivea coupons:

-Nivea Lip Care, buy any one .17oz and get one Nivea Lip Care .17 oz. free valid up to $3.99
-$5/2 Nivea Body Lotion (13.5 fl oz, 250 ml), any
-$2/1 Nivea Body Lotion (13.5 fl oz, 250 ml), any
-$2/1 Nivea Body Wash for Women (16.9 fl oz, 500 ml), any

Here was my transaction:

2 Nivea Body Wash ($5.99)
1 Revlon (cleananced cosmetic!) ($2)
1 Revlon (cleananced cosmetic!) ($2)
-$2 Revlon Color Cosmetic product (from 12/13 paper)
-$2 Revlon Color Cosmetic product (from 12/13 paper)
-$2/1 Nivea Body Wash for Women
-$2/1 Nivea Body Wash for Women
Total: $8.73 (BUT, I received $5 ECB for the Nivea deal).

Also, CVS gives you ECB at the end of each quarter based on how much you spent during that quarter. I got a nice coupon for $4 ECB on my receipt for my Fall spending!

So- spent $8.73, have $9 ECB to roll into next week!

I also made a small trip to Giant today during lunch, picked up 6 boxes of Pillsbury brownies and 2 things of floss for $3.25.

Rude at the Rite-Aid in McLean!

So, I went back and showed them the policy. The manager maintained that she'd done it right and told me that I was wrong. Then, I just asked for a return and she said fine. She gives me my money back, and then BEFORE I EVEN LEAVE THE COUNTER, she starts talking to the cashier about me! About how I don't know what I'm talking about (nevermind that I showed her Rite-Aid's own coupon policy that proves she is wrong). I will not be shopping at THAT Rite Aid again.

I just got off the phone with customer service rep Steven (who was very nice) and he assures me that this is not a habit in Rite-Aid stores.

Going Back to Rite-Aid... For a Refund

One of the lovely ladies over at Hot Coupon World (see links) directed me to Rite-Aid's coupon policy. (Let me take a moment to saw I LOVE HCW and highly, Highly, HIGHLY recommend you join up there if you haven't already).

This is the OFFICIAL Rite- Aid Coupon Policy (as applies to my situation):

"If a customer presents a Buy One Get One Free coupon for the purchase of two items that are on a Buy One Get One Free promotion; we accept the coupon, essentially making both items free." Not half off, not half off a half minus the half plus half or whatever crazy "half" interpretation you come up with. FREE. (With tax)

So, looks like I'm going back to Rite-Aid to get some money back.

Rite-Aid Trip... Disappointing

Using coupons does not always work out the way you want it to, and with success sometimes comes failure.

Rite-Aid this morning went horribly, horribly wrong.

Rite-Aid has a sale where all Stayfree products are BOGO free, and all Nivea Lip Care are BOGO free. Yesterday's paper came out with BOGO coupons, so, in a perfect world, I would have paid only tax for 6 Stayfree and 6 Nivea. This was my plan.

Went in at 7:15. Got 6 Stayfree, 6 Nivea Lip care, and 1 Listerine. Went to register. Cashier said computers were down so they had to do everything manually and could only take cash. I say that's fine, as I have cash. Well, the cashier (who was very nice, btw) kind of freaked a bit at my coupons (BOGO for Stayfree and Nivea), so she called the manager. What SHOULD have happened, was I SHOULD have paid ONLY $5.37 (BOGO sale plus BOGO coupons SHOULD equal paying only tax plus price of Listerine).

The manager decided that the ad meant that the Stayfree and Nivea Lipcare should be entered as half off, and that my coupon applies to one of the halves. So, two of my Stayfree were $6.99- she entered them in as $3.49 each and took off one, so I paid $3.49 for two. And on this went. I finally got out of the store at 8:00am. What was supposed to be a quick transaction ended up being 45 minutes. Good thing I didn't use all my BOGO coupons.

My total was $20.41 and I'll submit the receipt for the $3 SCR (Single Check Rebate that Rite-Aid does monthly). I'm not that upset about it, b/c full price would have been $60.25, so I saved 66%, but it's disappointing.

It's important to remember two things when transactions don't work out:

1) You never win by losing your temper.
2) Courtesy gets you further than rudeness.

So even though I was overcharged, I kept my head, remained polite, and I've learned my lesson for next time.

SFW 1/2/10

Went to SFW today for their $1/lb chicken sale. It's a good thing I went early b/c the sale started today and there was hardly anything left. I saw 8 packages, and I took 4, which amounted to 18lbs of chicken. DH assures me he can make it stretch for at least two weeks. Here is a breakdown of what I spent:

$17.84 lbs of chicken
$7.79 hair color (No, I did not use a coupon, but I really wanted to treat myself to a new hair color since I haven't really changed anything since getting pregnant with DD, but in my defense, I got the cheapest brand that had the color I wanted)
$0.84 tax.

Total: $26.47, but again, I used the giftcard I got for Christmas (thanks Aimee!) so I spent nothing oop.

Total left on giftcard: $12.76

First Trip of the New Year

Hit Giant tonight. Here is what I got:

1- All Laundry Detergent
2- Pillsbury Brownie Mix
2- Pillsbury Frosting
3- Pasta Roni
4- Progresso Veg Classics soups
2- Green Giant Veggie Steamers
1- Ronzoni Smart Taste thin sphagetti pasta

Total before coupons/sales: $32.04
Bonus Card Savings: $11.71
Coupon savings: $10.10
Tax: $0.54

TOTAL PAID: $10.77
However, I used the $50 gift card I got for Christmas (thanks Aimee!), so I paid nothing oop.

Happy New Year! Time for a New Start!

Happy New Year to all my family, friends, and readers! I'm so excited that 2010 is here at last!

As many of you know, it was my goal to do a $2500 spending challenge for 2010. I am sticking to that, and I am also adding another new goal for 2010. I want to put an extra $2500 in savings by the end of the year.

Here are the guidelines for my challenge:

-Money from mail-in-rebates (MIRs) can either be put in savings or re-invested back into my grocery budget.
-I am starting 2010 off with a $50 Visa giftcard I got for Christmas, $50 in MIR money I am expecting at any time, and a decent stockpile of laundry detergent and HBA items (such as shampoo, razors, and toothpaste).
-Each time I go shopping, I will make a list of what I spent, what I saved, and what I got.
-I will keep totals throughout the year of what I spend and save.

Here's to a great 2010!