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!)