$1.40 spent at Safeway today

I did 4 back to back transactions (no small feat at 8:30 in the morning with 3 small kids in the self check out lane!)

I bought:
45 packs of Healthy ones lunch meat
4 boxes Life cereal
6 six pack of Deer Park water
2 packs Quaker chocolate rice cake snacks
3 boxes of tissues
1 Capri Sun
2 boxes Ziploc gallon size freezer bags
1 12 pack Cottonelle
5 bananas
2 apples

I walked into Safeway with $15 in catalinas, spent $1.40 in cash and walked out of Safeway with 66 items worth $186.51 and with $15.25 in catalinas in my wallet.

Totaling my receipts since the Living Well promo began I have received $1340.90 worth of groceries. I have spent $37.42 out of pocket and still have $15.25 in catalinas to spend in the store. I also have received $18 in free gas on a gift card to BP gas stations. If you subtract the catalinas and free gas from my out of pocket expenses, it brings the actual total down to $4.17!

The Living Well promo at Safeway has enabled our family to donate:

150 packets Bertolli sauce $3.49 x150 = 523.50
65 packets Healthy Ones lunch meat $2.69 x 65 = $174.85
20 bottles Dial handsoap $1 x 20 = $20

That's a total of $718.35 worth of groceries we've been able to give to the local food bank. (And that's just the stuff I know we donated multiples of.) This is why I love couponing so much. I'm able to get the food my family needs, but I'm able to multiply my efforts to help others. With 4 small kids at home it's really difficult to find volunteer opportunities I can participate in, but by using coupons I'm able to volunteer my time in a different way, shopping for families in need and providing them with goods they need for their own families.

Cereal Coupon Match-ups

This week at Target there is a gift card promotion. Buy 5 select Special K items and get a $5 gift card.
The cereal is $2.39. There are $1/1 blinkie coupons at some grocery stores, but there are also printable coupons for $1/1 Special K cereal at coupons.com (see sidebar for link) and on the Kelloggs site. Between those two sites you will be able to print four $1 coupons per computer.

5 boxes of cereal x $2.39 = $11.95
-5 $1/1 coupons
_____
$6.95 and earn a $5 gift card. (so really $1.95 cost for 5 boxes of cereal.) If you have multiples of the coupons you can "roll" this gift card into the next order.

Also found on the coupons.com and Kelloggs site are coupons for $1/1 on other cereals. I went ahead and printed all of them twice (for a total of 4 coupons per type of cereal) because it's a safe bet that there will be upcoming deals on these cereals and you want to print them while you can.

You'll be able to use the Raisin Bran coupons you print out at Safeway this week. Select cereals (Raisin Bran is one) are $1.99 this week. With the coupon it makes it just $.99 a box.

Starting Sunday at CVS select Kelloggs cereals (Mini Wheats, Special K, Frosted Flakes) will be $3/$10 and you earn $5 ECBs. After coupons and ECBs each box will cost $.67.

Definitely make sure you set your printer setting to "fast" or "economy"--espeically when printing from the Kelloggs site. Each coupon prints out on it's own page and has additional text and pictures below.

New JC Penny Coupon! $15/$75 or $10/$50 good 5/3 - 5/16

A new JCPenny catalog (little red book May 2009) came in today's mail. In the inside cover is one coupon with two values: $15/$75 or $10/$50. These Qs are good only on a single purchase of $50 or $75 on women's apparel, accessories, lingerie or shoes.

Thrifty Thursday

Couponing is part of a frugal lifestyle. However, if you use coupons to buy items you don't need or can't use, it can impede your desire to curb spending and cut your budget. Coupons are printed to entice you to buy a particular brand name product or to visit a particular store. Coupons are advertisement with a hook. Don't take the bait! Use coupons to your advantage. Use them to buy what you really need. Even better, use them in conjunction with a sale. Here are some tips that I use when I am using store coupons.

First, keep a small notebook in your purse.

Divide it into 3 sections:

1 SIZES Here record the clothing and shoe sizes of your family. This should be in the front with a few blank pages behind it (as their sizes will change).

2 CLOTHING Here make a list of any clothing item needs include preferences (color, style). Sometimes I include photos from store ads or flyers - this helps me find an item right away, or a store clerk can help me locate an item.

3 EVENTS Here record items needed for an upcoming party you are hosting or gift ideas for an upcoming birthday.

Here is a photo of my notebook. It helps to remind me of the things I am really in need of. The event portion serves as a check list. The whole notebook keeps me from impulse buying.

Now, when your store coupon arrives you already know what you "need."

This week a $10/$10 JCPenny coupon arrived in the mail. JCP hopes you will take this coupon (bait) and walk out with a few bags of "great finds." I had a list of "needs" and went to those departments only. I found this pair of shoes for my 18 mo. old. They were $15! I thought this was really high. Maybe I don't comparison shop enough. However, after my $10 Q these summer sandals were just $5!

Food Lion 4/29-5/5

Here are just a few of the highlights at FL this week. For a complete list of the deals check out SouthernSavers!

Hefty Foam Plates or Bowls B1G1 at $2.79--.50/1 off Hefty plates RP 1/18 (makes it .89¢ ea)

Hefty Storage or Freezer Bags B1G1 at $2.70--$1/2 Hefty One Zip Bags RP 3/29 (regional)-.55/1 Hefty One Zip Bags RP 1/25 (makes it .80¢ ea)

Emerald Cashew Halves or Mixed Nuts B1G1 at $4.99--$1.50/2 Emerald Nuts 5oz or larger RP 3/29 (makes it $1.74 ea)

General Mills Cereals: Cheerios or Golden Grahams B1G1 at $3.15--$1 off Cheerios home mailer (makes it .57¢ea)

Thomas English Muffins B1G1 (price not listed)--$1 off Thomas Muffins March All You Mag.-.50/1 Thomas Muffins SS 4/19

Kellogg’s Cereal: Froot Loops, Apple Jacks, Frosted Flakes, Mini Wheats $1.99 ea--$1 off
Kellogg’s Cereal RP 4/05 or in store dispenser (makes it .99¢ ea)

Birds Eye Steamfresh Vegetables $1 ea--$1/2 Steamfresh Vegetables SS 4/19 (makes it .50¢ ea)-.35/1 Steamfresh Vegetables SS 3/29

Harris Teeter TRIPLE COUPON EVENT 4/29-5/5

Triple coupons are back at HT! Here are the Free items that Jenny at Southern Savers put together! Check out her site for all the great deals with triples at HT this week!

FREE Items:
Land O Lakes Half & Half $2.24--.75/1 Land O Lakes printable

Colgate Toothpaste various types $1.95-$2.17--.75/1 off any Colgate Toothpaste SS 4/26

Savannah Hushpuppies Classic .69¢ ea--.50/1 Savannah Classics Hushpuppies SS 3/22

Ortega Refried Beans $1 ea--.75/2 Ortega Products, SS 4/19
$5 rebate on Bedtime Stories DVD wyb (2) Ortega products

Skintimate shaving gel - trial size - $1.50 ea --.75/1 Skintimate SS 4/26

Rhodes Rolls $2.19 ea--.75/1 Rhodes Traditional Rolls, SS 3/22

Speed Stick 24/7 and Lady Speed Stick 24/7 - $2 ea. -- 75/1 Speed stick SS 4/26

Mahatma rice $1.49 ea--.50/1Mahatma Rice RP 3/01

French’s Yellow Mustard 8 oz $1.50 ea--.50/1 French’s Mustard or SS 3/29 printable

Dawn $1 ea--.50/1 Dawn $120 Savings Rebate booklet

Luna bars $1.39 ea--.50/1 Luna Bars in Mambo Sprouts booklet (exp 4/30)

Daisy Sour Cream $1 ea--.50/1 or .60/1 Daisy Sour Cream SS 4/05

New York Texas Toast Croutons $1.59 ea--.55/1 New York Croutons SS 4/05

Uncle Ben’s Long Grain & Wild Rice $2.25 ea--.75/1 Uncle Ben’s Rice RP 4/05

Zone Bars $1 ea--.55/1 Zone bars SS 3/01 (exp 4/30)

French’s Spicy Mustard $2.19 ea--.75/1 French’s Mustard SS 3/29

Grande Tortilla Chips $2 ea--.75/1 Grande Chips SS 4/19

Lava Hand Soap $1.39 ea--.55/1 Lava Soap April All You Mag

Halls Cough Drops $1.50 ea--.75/1 Halls printable or April All You

McCormick Spices various $1.55--$2.19-.75/1 off McCormick Spices RP 4/05

Kraft Easy Mac 4 for $3--.75/3 Easy Mac tearpad

Mueller’s Spaghetti 16 oz .88 ea--.55/2 Mueller’s pasta printable

For a look at this weeks HT ad online go here.

FREE Diapers--call NOW!

Arquest is looking for babies who wear size 4 again for another diaper study! I'm in the midst of one right now so I don't qualify, but if you didn't get in last time, here's your chance to try again!

You get a free bag of diapers to try, and then you receive $10 for your time a few weeks later.

Call NOW if you want to get into this study. They fill up fast!

Babies must be between 22-37 pounds and wear a size 4 diaper.
1-888-342-7372
ext 646 for girls
ext 634 for boys

If you get a recording, leave a message, they are very good about calling you back!

Whittle Down Wednesday - Craft storage

Inspired by all of my sister's recent decluttering and organizing and the Peter Walsh book, "It's All Too Much", yesterday I tackled the bookcase that is in our kitchen. It serves as a place to hold our craft stuff/cookbooks/kids workbooks/address book--and more.

Here's what it looked like yesterday morning.



I spent the afternoon sorting, recycling and trashing stuff. In under 2 hours I had it all cleaned out, sorted and put back in. The final step was a trip to Target this morning to pick up some magazine holders to store the paper. I'm hopeful that by being stored in an upright container and sorted by colors that the kids will find it easier to pick out just one sheet of paper rather than starting a paper avalanche!



I was surprised that it didn't take too long to accomplish, but I think that it has a huge impact on the kitchen and will hopefully make the craft cabinet a more inviting place for the kids to use.

Walgreens

I picked up my free bottle of Nivea body wash today.
I also printed 100 pictures with the coupon 50 prints for $5. Ten cents/picture is pretty good, although last week I picked up 10 prints for 99c at Rite Aid.
I paid nothing here today because I had a Register Reward from last week, and a gift card from the March freebies.

Here's what $5.95 got me at HT tonight

I picked up 2 baguettes (B1G1) $2.99

2 orange sherberts (B1G1) $2.19

7 Daisy Sour Creams -all free after Qs

2 boxes of Piccolini pasta - these were $.25 each after Qs.

CVS $5 Money Maker

This week CVS is running an ECB promotion for Scotch products, spend $15, earn $5 ECBs. The Scotch Metal Command Hooks posted above are $2.50 each. Scotch has put out coupons for these here.

Buy 6 Metal Command Hooks, $2.50 each
Use 6 $2.50 coupons.
$0 oop (tax depending on where you live)
earn $5 in ECBs!

Thanks to Surviving the Stores for the tip!

CVS 4/26 - 5/02

Here are just two great deals at CVS this week

Get $4 ECB WYB Schick Intuition Plus, Schick Intuition or Intuition Plus Razor or Refill -Limit 1
coupon match up - $4 (X 5/3/09) SS 3/22/09, or $4 (X ) SS 4/26/09
After Q OOP = $4.99 get $4 in ECBs -- $.99 total


Get $2 ECB WYB Garnier Fructis Shampoo, Conditioner or Styler $2.99 - Limit 1
Coupon match up - $1 off Garnier Fructis Shampoo, Conditioner or Treatment, any except trial size (5-1-09) RP 1/4/09, or $1 off Garnier Fructis Style Product, any except trial size (5-1-09) RP 1/4/09
After Q OOP = $1.99 get $2 in ECBs --you "earn" $.01

For more CVS deals for this week complete with with coupon match ups check out SouthernSavers.

Time Saving Tuesday

Make Ahead Cookies

When you make cookie dough, double the batch and freeze some. Rather than freezing a large batch of cookie dough (this would take some time to thaw), I prefer to freeze the individual cookie scoops. Yesterday I made a double batch of chocolate chip cookie dough. While some scoops were in the oven baking, some were flash freezing in the freezer. I just placed wax paper on a cookie sheet and scooped the dough onto it and placed it in the freezer for 15 - 20 minutes.

Once the dough is frozen, the cookie dough balls can be tossed together into one freezer bag and into the freezer.

These can be thawed and baked individually or in a batch.

Proper use of coupons

Unfortunately coupon fraud is a reality. Sometimes new couponers make mistakes innocently. Jenny at Southern Savers has a great article, "Keeping it Legal" on the proper use of coupons and IPs. She follows up here with questions from readers. I hope you find this resource helpful.

Chocolate Chips! Twenty bags for $2.73!

Here is a photo of my chocolate chip purchase from last week.
They were on sale 2/$4 two weeks earlier at Safeway. The shelf was empty, so I got a rain check from the manager.
I ordered (20) $.75/1 Qs from KuntryKlippers. Twenty bags rang up at $59.00. I got a 10% discount of $5.90 off the top with my Safeway card. Then $19.00 came off with the rain check. Finally twenty $.75 coupons were scanned. These doubled to $1.50 off. $1.50 x 20 = -$30.00. My total came to $4.73. I used $2 in catalinas and then $2.73 in cash!

Free Movie Monday

Today's free redbox code is 4CW33N. Just enter that code at your local Redbox for a free night's rental! To find locations of Redbox kiosks look here: Redbox

Meal Plan Monday

Here we go again! In an effort to keep our food budget down and cut my time spent in the kitchen, you'll see that I'm using lots of leftovers from the freezer and employing the old "cook once--use lots" method!

Sunday: Tacos with all the fixings

Monday: (daughter's Baptism birthday so something she really likes) Beef Stroganoff--with leftover flank steak from Saturday, broccoli, homemade 5 minute artisan bread, Baptism birthday cake! If you haven't tried the 5 minute bread yet--you must--it's so simple and SO YUMMY!

Tuesday: Ham (from freezer--leftover honey baked ham from last week) and potato casserole, peas, baby spinach salad, 5 minute Artisan bread

Wednesday: Pork fried rice (again using leftover pork from freezer from a few weeks ago), fruit. (Make extra rice for Friday's dinner.)

Thursday: Tball game, so cold tuna pasta salad, chips and fruit salad at the ballpark

Friday: Red beans and rice, cornbread (2 cans red kidney beans--undrained, 1 can cut up stewed tomatoes, 1 tsp dried basil, couple of shakes of Tabasco--heat through--about 15 minutes-- and serve over brown rice.) I often add diced red pepper if I have it.

Saturday: Hopefully a date night, so frozen pizzas for the kids!

As always, if you're looking for more ideas, check out Meal Plan Monday!

Recieve 4 $1 Qs from Cheerios by email

Go to this site and sign up to get your $1 Qs from Cheerios starting in June!

Safeway Living Well Promotion Hints for newbies

Not sure how to make the most of the LW promotion at Safeway?
Go to Saving With Shellie to see a some newbie scenarios using printable coupons (IPs) with links directly from her post!

JC Penny $10 off a $10 purchase

If you are a JCP card holder watch your mail for this coupon. Mine arrived today. The coupon is good for $10 off any purchase of $10 or more between Sunday, April 26 - Sunday May 3.

These coupons come out every 3-4 months. I try to keep my purchase as close to $10 as possible. I usually use mine to get socks or underwear for the kids.

I got $35 in today's mail!

Two rebate checks arrived in my mailbox this morning! Miller gave me $20 and Budweiser gave me $15! No beer purchase was required and it only cost me a few minutes and 82 cents for the stamps. I mailed in receipts from purchasing items my family eats anyway!
I love going to the mailbox! I find free samples, Mail in Rebate checks, and coupons from ebay or trades that I've ordered!

Thank you Miller! Thank you Budweiser!

How I got a free $5 Amazon gift card

A couple of weeks ago I signed up for Swagbucks. It's a search engine (powered by Google) but when you search you earn "swag bucks"--sometimes--not on every search, but sometimes you'll get one buck, sometimes nothing, another time 5 bucks. You can cash those "bucks" in for stuff. 45 bucks gets you a $5 Amazon gift card. So now, rather than opening Google to search for something, I use swagbucks. In the matter of about 2.5 weeks I was able to earn 45 swagbucks, which was enough to get a free $5 Amazon gift card! I didn't do anything special, just my regualr searches I was going to do anyway--and got a free $5 gift card. Pretty cool! (If you want you can save up for bigger prizes like itunes gift cards--but I wanted the Amazon gift card.)

If you haven't checked it out already--please do! I think you'll be surprised how easy it is to earn free giftcards!


Just click here to learn more and register!

Family Fun Friday

With the arrival of Spring and warm weather my family can't wait until May for the beginning of this week's topic for Family Fun Friday--Farmer's Markets! Each Friday evening in the late Spring and all throughout Summer there is a Farmer's Market held in the parking lot of a nearby shopping center. Farmers from all throughout the area come to share their goods. My kids love walking around, seeing what the farmers have to offer, learning about how it grew, and they especially love the free samples!

It's something we look forward to as a family all week. Admittedly, their favorite stop is the tent that sells Colonial kettle corn. They work together all week to do extra chores to earn $3 so they can share a bag. Often there is a guitarist who will play music. A bonus is that I can get some great produce at great prices too!

It's a very cheap evening out that the whole family can enjoy together!

Want more ideas? Check out Mom's By Heart's blog!

Free Shick Quattro Razor

Click here to receive your free Schick Quattro Titanium Razor.

Also, Gillette is offering the chance to win a razor from them each day after 12 noon EST.
"500 Gillette Fusion razors are available each day for 31 days. Beginning at 12:00 Noon (ET) each day starting on 4/16/09 and ending on 5/16/09, go to Gillette.com/walk and follow the on screen instructions to register. If you are one of the first 500 people to register on that day you will be eligible to receive a Gillette Fusion razor."

Thrifty Thursday

Here's a tip I picked up at the Duggar's web site.

STRETCH YOUR FABRIC SOFTNER

I have not yet tried this myself, but I intend to as soon as I finish up my dryer sheets.

1. Find a container with a tight screw top lid.
2. Put in one third fabric softner and two-thirds water.
3. Place 2-3 clean sponges in the mixture.
4. The next time you transfer a wet load to the dryer, squeeze the excess from the sponge and throw it into the dryer.
5. As you retrieve sponges from the dryer load throw them back into the container.

I think I might need to keep rubber gloves with this as well. Fabric softner and detergents are very rough on my hands. If you happen to try this before I do, let us know how it worked out for you!

Safeway Totals correction

I found another receipt for $70.11 so I need to update my totals. I spent $22.44 out of pocket for $770.66 worth of groceries and still have $60 in catalinas to spend in the store, and I've received $10.50 so far on a BP gas card as part of their gas rewards promotion.

Whittle Down Wednesday

I didn't have a lot of free time this week. I tackled a small project, the 3 drawers in my Master Bath. It only took me 15-20 minutes!
Here are my "before" pictures.

Drawer #1
In this shallow top drawer I store make up, deodorant, facial cleansers & Moisturizers, tweezers, nail clippers, free samples, and more.
3







Drawer #2
This is a deeper drawer. In herer I store hair brushes, hairspray, my curling irons, clips, 3yo DD's bows & elastic bands.







Drawer # 3
This is also a deep drawer. In here I keep hair dryer and accessories, hair gels (these are for keeping bed head to a minimum when my boys are in dire need of a hairlcut!), white strips I haven't used in over a year, facial moisturizers and foot care, and JUNK




I took a good look at what products I really use regularly. I took out everything else. I threw out anything expired. For information on the shelf life of make up products go here. Here are my "after" pictures!

Drawer #1
I still store deodorant, make up and facial moisturizers and cleansers here. I simply removed what I wasn't using regularly and threw out anything old, or that I had no intention of using.





Drawer #2
This drawer only holds brushes and hair accessories now. It is so much easier to find everything!








Drawer #3
Now I keep all irons, dryers, and now my hot rollers fit in here too!
(I threw the white strips out!)






I find that my vanity counter stays cleaner now. Because there is room in the drawers for what I use, it is less likely to end up on the counter! My 15 minute investment has made my mornings go more smoothly. Also, because there is plenty of room in the drawers for what I use, I have found that I put them away! Less clutter on the counter means a neater bathroom!

Harris Teeter 4/22 - 4/28 + FREE Electrasol

First, HCW reports that the next Triple Coupon Event at HT is 4/29 - 5/5! Start collecting your high value (but under $1 Qs) to get the items you use at a great price. Check out the HT forum at HCW for updates and details on Free and super cheap items that week.

THIS WEEK - 4/22 - 4-28

At the top of this list is Electrasol tabs. They are BOGO this week.
Each item will ring up at half price. Local store prices vay from $4.99 - $5.99/box. If your store carries them at $4.99 your Electrasol is FREE with the $2.50 Q from this past Sunday's paper!

Another FREE item after Q is the McCormick Grillmates. Sale priced till 5/5 at $1 each. Use the 50c/1 Q from Sundays insert (which doubles) and get these free!

BOGO (these items ring up at half price):
Kraft 16 oz. DressingArm and Hammer 50 oz. detergent
Finish/Electrasol 20-26ct. gelpacs or 75 oz.
Purina Puppy or Dog Chow 17.6-20 lb
Tidy Cats Odor Control litter, 20 lb.
Sparkle paper towels 8 rolls
Ragu, 45 oz.
Fresh Foods Market Soups
Seedless Navel oranges, 4 lb bag
Lay's Chips
London Broil or Top Round Roast
Smithfield Baby Back Ribs
2 lb. Strawberries
Edy's Ice Cream
Colgate toothpaste
Excedrin 50 ct.30-250 ct.
Osteo Bi-Flex or Nature's Bounty
La Brea french or whear baguettes
Arnold Whole Grain breads
12 pack Pepsi cans6 pack Pepsi bottles
Hormel Little Sizzlers
Skippy Peanut butter
Organic Co. coffee
Sweet Baby Ray's
Hormel Compleats
Valley Fresh Chicken
Oh Yeah Protein Drink
Feit CFL light bulbs, 4 pack
Mama Lucia meatballs
Hunter sherbet
Pam strudel
Glass Plus
Ocean Spray 46 oz. cranberry or 64 oz. grapefruit juice

Buy 3, Save $3 automatically (must purchase in a single transaction, with VIC card, through 4/28, no cash back):Kraft cheese, Cracker Barrel Cheese, Polly-O string cheese

Buy 3, Save $3 automatically (must purchase in a single transaction, with VIC card, through 4/28, no cash back):Oscar Mayer bacon, Oscar Mayer deli shaved, carved, and fresh lunch meat, Oscar Mayer hot dogs, Oscar Mayer bologna

Coupon Match ups should be available later today at HCW or Southern Savers.

Food Lion 4/22 - 4/28

Food Lion has some great deals this week!

Perdue Chicken Breasts or Tenders $1.69/lb.
Ground Chuck $1.79/lb.

Food Lion shredded and chunk cheese 3/$5

DiGiorno Pizza 2/$10. Use this FLIP to make one pizza $4.

Scott Paper Towels (6-8 rolls) $4.99 (use the $1 off Q from Sunday's paper to make this $3.99)

BOGO
Edy's Ice Cream
Chips Ahoy
Cantaloupes
Zesta Crackers

Buy More Save More:
Lay's Chips, Doritos, Tostitos, Ruffles
buy: 2 for $7, 3 for $9 or 4 for $10

48 oz Wesson Oil or 5-6 oz. PAM cooking spray 2/$5 (there was a 35c/1 insert Q for PAM)

For a complete list of Food Lion savings this week check out Southern Savers.

Walgreens - Today only! 15% off

Walgreens celebrating Earth Day by offering a 15% - 20% off printable Q (on selected merchandise) and a free reusable shopping bag. Print your Q here.

Check out Jenny's Walgreens deals and coupon match ups this week at Southern Savers.

Free Reynolds wrap foil tomorrow

In honor of Earth Day you can get a free roll of the recycled Reynolds wrap foil (after mail in rebate up to $3.99)

You can sign up today for them to email you a reminder about downloading the form tomorrow. Supply is limited.

Link

Safeway totals

I totaled up my Safeway receipts since the beginning of the Living Well promotion. I spent $22.32 out of pocket for $695.95 worth of groceries and still have $60 in catalinas to spend in the store, and I've received $10.50 so far on a BP gas card as part of their gas rewards promotion. Those groceries included lots of the Bertolli sauce packets (nearly all donated!) but also other necessities like produce, paper goods, trash bags, flour, canned beans and tomatoes, hand soap, frozen goods, crackers, bread, juice, deli meats--and so much more!

The Living Well promotion continues, but the additional Bertolli catalina deal is over.

Shoppers Food Triples

Just got back from doing triple coupons at Shoppers. The Barilla piccolini pastas are $1.20 each (free after tripling the $.50 coupon) and the McCormick Grill Mates are $1.19 (free after the $.50 coupon triples.) I got 16 boxes of pasta (good to go with all that free Bertolli pasta sauce) and 1 McCormick Grill Mate (Zesty Herb is our favorite) all for FREE!

Time Saving Tuesday

Buy meat in bulk and create meal starters for multiple meals

The Whole Boneless Sirloin Tips are on sale at Food Lion for $1.89/lb (this sale ends today 4/21). I had the butcher grind 2 tips (about 22 lbs.) into ground beef. I paid $40.21 for $96.54 worth of beef. I used the ground beef to "pre"pare 12-15 meals (for a family of TEN). That comes to $2.78 - $3.35 per meal (depending on how I stretch it).

Twenty-three pounds filled 5 of these packages today.


I put the meat in the refrigerator and worked with one package at a time.

I browned the first package (1/3 at a time ) with chopped onions (I alreday had these in the freezer) in my 12 inch skillet. When the first 1/3 portion was done, I moved it to a strainer to drain the fat. Then I began to cook the 2nd 1/3 portion. When this was finished I moved the 1st portion to a large clean bowl, strained the 2nd and began to cook the third. When the meat had cooled enough I placed 6-7 cups of browned ground beef & onions into 3 freezer bags.


These will be used for shepherd's pie, stromboli, baked ziti, or pizza casserole.

The second package of meat was browned in the same manner, except this meat was seasoned with taco seasoning. Also, I placed it into 4 baggies.


The third package made six mini meat loaves.
One large loaf takes a long time to defrost and a long time to cook, so I always make the minis - this is a great time saver!


The fourth package became 18 hamburger patties.

The fifth package is in the refrigerator. I'll probably make meatballs and 6 more hamburger patties tomorrow.

Once I have finished preparing & freezing the meat, I will have 12 -15 meal starters ready to thaw for fast meals!

Free items at CVS this week 4/19 - 4/25

FREE NEW Edge Infused Comfort or Hydrate Shave Gel $2.89, get $2.89 ECB LIMIT 1

FREE NEW Bayer Aspirin Quick Release Crystals $2, get $2 ECB LIMIT 1 Bayer Aspirin Product, 24ct+ $1 (6/30/09) SS 3/22/09

Check out more CVS highlights for this week at Denise Sawyers The Centsible Sawyer.

Kroger Deals 4/19 - 4/25

Bone in Strip Steak $3.99/lb
Tyson boneless/skinless chicken breast $1.99/lb
Honeysuckle Turkey Breast 99c/lb.
Boneless Top Sirloin Steak $5.99/lb.

1/2 Gallon Kroger milk 4 for $6

sweet corn 29c/ear
Cantaloupe 2 for $3
Strawberries (16 oz) $1.98

10 for $10
Fresh Express shredded lettuce
Avacados
Texas Sweet onions
English cucumbers
Kangaroo Pita Pockets
Kroger Bagels
Kroger Hamburger & Hot Dog Buns
Gold Fish Crackers (18 oz)
Parkay or Fleischmann's Margarine
Redi-serve chicken
Kroger Cream Cheese
Kroger Biscuits
Turkey Hill Tea
Kroger Deluxe Ice Cream
Kroger Cottage Cheese, Sour, Cream or Dips
Kraft BBQ Sauce

Coke or Diet Coke 12 pack 3 for $11 (Limit 3 w/ card)
WYB 3 Coke 12 pcks. get 2 boxes of Cheez-its and 1 bag of Combos FREE!

SunBurst laundry detergent 35 load powder or 41-50 load liquid) $1.88

Meal Plan Monday

Sunday: Honey baked ham, potato salad, asparagus, baked beans, strawberry spinach salad, fruit salad, homemade rolls (and napoleons for dessert!)

Monday: Tball game scheduled--Ham sandwiches with leftover ham and rolls from yesterday, carrots, chips, apples.

Tuesday: Burgers, french fries, spinach salad.

Wednesday: Chicken with roasted red peppers and mozzarella over pasta, green beans

Thursday: Tball and piano practice--Chicken enchiladas, refried beans, corn

Friday: Salmon cakes, rice, broccoli

Saturday: Flank steak, baked potato, grilled pineapple, green beans, red cabbage.

For more meal plan ideas be sure to check out Meal Plan Monday!

Dove Skinvitalizer $.50 or $.25 at CVS this week

Dove Skinvitalizer $4 on sale this week (reg price $12.99)-$3.50 Dove Skinvitalizer, Any - 03-15-09 RP -$3.75 coupons.com OOP .50 cents or .25 cents. Thanks HCW for the tip.

Harris Teeter & Kroger runs on 4/17

To finish up my day of shopping, I went to Kroger and HT.


Here is the "deal" from my Kroger trip. Birds Eye Steamfresh Veggies & Rice are 10/$10
Earlier in the week I ordered 20 $.35/1 Qs from Ebay for $1.41.
Last night I purchased 20 bags for $20 and used 20 Qs that doubled to $.70 off each bag. I paid just 30c/bag for 20 bags, or $6.


We have veggies for at least 1-2 months!


Here is what I picked up at HT.



Gain is on sale $3.77/1 2x concentrated 50 fl. oz bottle. The most recent P&G insert had a $1/1 Q. I bought 2 bottles for $2.77 each.
The French loaves were $1.47 ea. I used a $2/any bakery purchase to make these 47c each.
The DiGiorno Pizza was $6.99, I used a Q for a free Digiorno pizza.
Before tax the total was $6.48

Walgreens 4/17

Walgreens also has a "free" Colgate toothbrush this week. It is $2.99 (at my store) but is paying $3.49 in Register Rewards (RRs) coupons to be used on your next order. They also have "free" Scrunchi Elastic Hair Bands on promotion $2 each - Earn $2 in RRs. If you use a Colgate RR to buy another Colgate toothbrush, you will not receive another RR for the 2nd purchase. The same is true for the Scrunchi bands.

Here is what I did:

I bought one toothbrush and paid $2.99 + tax

I "earned" a $3.49 RR

I bought 1 Scrunchi bands and 2 rolls of Scott tissue (on clearnace) for 77c x 2

I used my RR and 22c to pay for these. Then,

I earned $2 in RR

I repeated this pattern three more times ending up with a total of 4 toothbrushes and 3 scrunchis bands.

The Bounty Big Rolls are 3/$5 with WAGs in flyer Q. I bought 3. The Schick Quattro Women's razor is $8.99. There is a $4 off Q in the April Easysaver book. I also had a $4/1 Q from the 3/29 insert. I bought one of these.

+$5.00 - 3 Bounty Big Rolls

+$8.99 - 1 Schick Quattro

-$1.25 - Bounty Qs (a $1/2 and a 25c/1)

-$4.00 - WAGs EasySaver Q

-$4.00 - Schick Q

=$4.74 + tax

-$3.49 in RR

= $1.25 (+tax) OOP

Here is my son (#8) enjoying making a PT tower with my cheap Bounty.

CVS 4/17

Did you get your free Softsoap and Colgate toothpaste or toothbrushes? I picked up mine yesterday.

Here is the breakdown of my purchase:

$4.99 1 Softsoap

$7.98 2 Colgate toothbrushes

$8.00 2 Soft Soap Ensembles hand soap bases

$10.00 2 Garnier Nutritioniste cleansing towelettes (I needed $10 more in items to qualify for my $5 ECB wyb $15)

$30.97 total before tax

I used the following Qs

1 - 75c off Softsoap body wash

2 - 75c off any adult Colgate toothbrush

2 - $1 off Garnier Nutritioniste

2 - $2 off Softsoap (found in the CVS Reinvewnting Beauty Q flyer)

+$30.97

-$8.25 (Qs)

=$22.72

I used $18 in ECBs to pay for this and $4 and change from my CVS gift card (from a RX transfer).

I earned $21.97 in ECBs

$7.98 from the toothbrushes

$4.99 from the Softsoap body wash

$4.00 from the soft soap hand pumps

$5.00 from the Garnier deal

My Safeway trip

I took advantage of the Living Well promotion for the first time yesterday. I purchased 16 packages of Bertolli Sauce.

$2.00 x 16 = $32.00

$32.00 - $19.20 in Qs (these were 60c/1 Qs that doubled) =$12.80 +tax

I used $13.00 in Catalina Qs from an earlier promotion to pay for these.

My cash OOP was 36c.

When my transaction was complete I received one $10 OYNO (on your next order Catalina) from the Living Well promotion and eight $2 OYNO from the Bertolli promotion.

I spent $13 in Catalina's and 36c in cash and I earned $26 in OYNO Catalina's.

Next, I purchased 4 bottles of the Pledge Multi Surface spray.

$3.99 x 4 = $15.96 - $8 in IPs = $7.96 + tax.

I used $7 in CATs I already had. I paid $1.76 for 4 bottles.

I earned a $5 Catalina for purchasing 4 qualifying items in one purchase, and 4 $1 Catalina's for buying Pledge Multi Surface spray.

I spent $7 in CATs and $1.76 in cash and I earned $9 in OYNO Catalina's.

Bloom Triple coupons 4/17 - 4/19

Triple Coupons up to 99c this weekend at Bloom with your Breeze loyalty card. There is a limit of 20 Qs/visit, per day.
Free items with Qs include:
Meow Mix
Dentyne gum
Cocoa Puffs or Tix cereal
McCormic spice or herb
Clabber Girl Corn Starch
Dole canned fruit
Uncle Ben's Country Inn Rice
Mahatma Rice Mix
No Yolks Egg Noodles
French's Fried Onions
Daisy Sour Cream

Land O Lakes Butter or spread 85c
Kellogg's Eggo's 14c
Bryer's Ice Cream 75c

For coupon match ups and more great buys this weekend at Bloom checkout Jenny's post at Souther Savers. Happy couponing!

Family Fun Friday

Looking for free/cheap ideas to do with the family? Check out your county's offerings of parks and nature centers. Since today was a beautiful warm and sunny day I took the kids and met up with some friends for a lunch time picnic at a nearby Nature Center. The kids were able to play on the playground, check out all the creatures inside the Nature Center, and take a walk around the wooded pond with their buddies and my friend and I got an opportunity to catch up a bit. We packed lunches and the park was free so it was a no-cost outing and the kids (and I!) had a blast visiting dear friends.

Shoppers Food Warehouse 4/16 - 4/22

Double and Triple Coupon Event!

SFW is doubling Qs from $.51 - $1 and tripling Qs up to $.50 for seven days. Below is a list of participating locations.

Battlefield Shopping Center 1079 Edwards Ferry Rd. NE Leesburg, VA 20176

Bull Run Plaza 10864 Sudley Manor Dr. Manassas, VA 20109

Central Park 1320 Carl D Silver Pkwy. Fredericksburg, VA 22401

Centre Ridge 6335 Multiplex Dr. Centreville, VA 20120

Dulles Shopping Center 2425 Centreville Rd. Herndon, VA 20171

Fair City 9622 Main St. Fairfax, VA 22031

Rolling Valley 9274 Old Keene Mill Rd. Burke, VA 22015

Shoppers International 8328 Shoppers Square Manassas, VA 20111

Signal Hill Shopping Center 9540 Liberia Ave. Manassas, VA 20110

Somerset 7471 Somerset Crossing Dr. Gainesville, VA 20155

Sugarland Crossing 47100 Community Plaza Sterling, VA 20164

Sully 13920 Lee Jackson Memorial Hwy Chantilly, VA 20151

Village Center 18140 Village Center Dr Olney, MD 20832

White Flint 5110 Nicholson Ln. Kensington, MD 20895

Cloppers Mill Village 18066 Mateny Rd. Germantown, MD 20874

Glenmont Shopping Center 2201 Randolph Rd. Wheaton, MD 20902

Thrifty Thursday

Save your grocery receipts and turn them into FREE MONEY!!

Here are two of the three checks that came in my mailbox last weekend. I received two $10 checks and one $5 check from Mail in Rebates (MIRs).

I find MIR offers mostly from beer companies, but sometimes wine and other products as well. The beer offers definitely pay the most ($5 - $25) per offer. Many MIR require no purchase of beer or wine. I find Beer rebates at gas stations and grocery stores. I find wine MIRs hanging on the necks of the wine bottle.

Here are some that I mailed off last week.

You will see one is for $10 back when you send in your receipt after purchasing more than $10 of Hormel Cure 81 Ham. When I found this rebate, I went to the store and purchased a ham for $11.45 and sent them my receipt. My OOP cost for the ham once my rebate is received is $1.45.

Rebates take time. No instant gratification here, but worth waiting for. Often, one of the beer companies, Budweiser, Coors, Miller, etc. offer rebates on frozen pizza, seafood, chips, condiments, meat, salty snacks, ice, water, or any combination of these.

Sometimes I don't need to shop for any items to earn my rebate.

I save all of my receipts from my purchases. After I record them for budget purposes, I wrap them in a rubberband or store them in a ziploc bag with the name of the month written on it.

All rebates have dates between which qualifying purchases must be made. Usually you have one month to make the these purchases. When I bring a rebate form home, I note the beginning purchase date and then go to that stack of receipts and look for the qualifying food items. The last rebate I mailed is pictured below with qualifying receipts.

I had forgotten I had the rebate and came across it after the purchase deadline, but before the mail in deadline. I went through my receipts and found just what I needed to earn my money. It only takes a little time and 42c for the stamp.

FREE Groceries and Money Makers: the In's & Out's

I've gotten a few emails from some of our readers trying couponing for the first time. Some are experiencing the frustration of not "doing the deal" the right way and other's are experiencing the euphoria of walking out with a basket of groceries for $20 or less. There is a learning curve here. You will make mistakes. We did. (We still do!) Don't worry, there is another "deal" around the corner! Ask questions. Research how other's are taking advantage of a sale. Copy their success.

On the flip side, it is easy to get all caught up in the "it was free" feeling. Every new couponer goes through this. Have your husband or a friend help you to stay grounded. Talk with him/her about your purchases.

Be realistic about your storage/freezer space. Know that your family likes an item before you stock up on it. Stick with your family's eating habits. I never let my kids eat the real sugary cereals, but found I couldn't resist the 50c/box of cereal when I first began couponing. I bought it and then I cringed when the children chose to eat it in the morning. Mommy's error. (I've made this mistake more than once - shame on me).

Do stock up on what you will use and have the space for. I just ordered 20 Nestle Toll House Morsel Qs to go with a Rain Check from a store that had these on sale $2/bag. My 75c Q will double to $1.50 off. I will pay 50c/bag for my chocolate chips. Do we "need" 20 bags of chocolate chips? Nope. But, the next time I use them in baking I'll know this recipe cost me $3 less than it could have. Also, the shelf life on a bag of chips is several months. Besides, how often do you think the food bank gets Nestle Toll House chocolate chips?

Now, a money maker is something different all together! A money maker is always a good thing to take advantage of regardless of whether or not you need the item. If you get paid in future grocery $ to carry items out of the store -- DO IT! Donate it if you don't want it, but DO get paid to purchase it!

Most $ makers come as a result of combining (1) a Q with (2) a sale with (3) a promotion and sometimes (4) a second (overlapping) promotion. The Bertolli purchase Frugal Momma posted is a perfect example: They are on sale $2/pouch. They is also a promotion from Bertolli giving you $2 in CATs when you purchase 2. Making them $1 each. Further combine this with the $1 off Q and you get a free item, OR combine it with a $.75 Q that doubles to $1.50 and you get "paid" 50c to take 2 pouches home. FURTHER combine that with a second pomotion, the "Living Well promo" which lists the Bertolli pouches as a qualifying item in the promotion buy $30 in qualifying products get $10 back.
Here is how this becomes a $ maker. On a day when you know both promotions are overlapping:
Buy 16 pouches ($32 - you need $30 to qualify for LW - just 15 pouches, but you need to purchase in groups of 2 to get the $2 Bertolli CATs ).
Use 16 $1/1 Qs. OR, use 16 75c/1 Qs that double to $1.50 off each pouch
Pay $16+ tax. OR, pay $8
Earn (1) $10 LW Cat AND (8) $2 Bertolli CAT's.
You paid $16 (OR $8) OOP and left the store with $26 in free future groceries.
Either coupon makes this a $ maker!

If an item it is not a $ maker but is free after Qs and you don't need it, ONLY buy it if someone else could use it. My girls have put in volunteer hours at our local food pantry. Once, when I dropped them off I donated 10-15 bottles of shampoo. I was told that people on Food Stamps cannot use FS to pay for personal care items. There is a real need for H&B items in food pantries and shelters in your community.

I do not have time to run around finding every deal to benefit the local food pantry, but I am doing my own personal shopping for my family and I can spend a little extra $ on coupons from Ebay (or buy a few extra Sunday papers) and use these Qs to get 5-25 free bottles of shampoo (the name brand stuff) and then donate it. If I donated the $2 I spent on the Qs it sure wouldn't go far. I multiply my charity when I put a little work into it.

Think of all the families who will enjoy the Bertolli Summer Tomato & Basil pasta sauce instead of having the cheapest store brand tomato sauce that fits their limited budget.

Frugal Momma helped her family by slashing her future grocery spending AND she is making a generous donation of a high dollar product to a local food bank.
She reminds me of the Proverbs 31 woman!

Food Lion 4/15-4/21

The only thing I will be picking up at FL this week are
green grapes 99c/lb
Food lion sandwich bread 79c ea
and the items I picked up rain checks for from previous sales.

Good buys in this weeks ad include:
Bryers Ice cream B1G1 free at $5.29 - (2) 75c/1 Qs RP 04/05 makes these $1.89 ea.
Bryers Yogurt sale price 50c ea, use $1/6 Q from SS 04/05 makes these 33c ea.
Sparkle 8 roll paper towels are $4.99 ea 03/01 RP had a 75c/1 or a $1/1 depending on your paper
Select varieties of Kelloggs & General Mills cereals are B1G1 free for Q match ups for these items and for a complete list of sale items with coupon match ups check out Southern Saver.

The new FLIPS are out! get them hereWeb Coupons.
$1.00 off Four (4) Smart Option 6.5oz Pizzas - exp 4/28
$1.00 off Nature's Source Windex - exp 5/12
$1.00 off Ziploc evolve - exp 5/12
Buy (2) American Greeting Cards, Get 1 Free ($3 max value) - exp 5/5

If you're not getting FLIPS mailed to you every Wed. morning go to FoodLion.com to sign up for the Shoppers' Companion Email.

Harris Teeter 4/15-4/21

If you shop at Harris Teeter, you will want to visit their web site, eVIC .HarrisTeeter.com.
When you sign up, HT will send you an email every Wednesday morning with your top 10 weekly specials selected from that week's ad. They track your card, and based on your purchases they "know" what you buy and compare it to the weekly specials to get your top 10. Additionally, you can view the entire ad on their web site and plan your shopping trip by creating a shopping list to print & take with you.

For a list of this weeks sale items with coupon matchups go to HCW HT Forum.

Whittle Down Wednesday

THE LINEN CLOSET

My linen closet is in my laundry room. I store sheets, towels, cleaning supplies, medicines, first aid, extra health & beauty supplies.


Inspired by the book "It's All Too Much" (se side bar for link to book at Amazon), I started the "clean sweep" in my home a couple of months ago and spent a little time in this room. I realized that we had towels in the linen closet, in the dirty hampers, in the washer & dryer, on hooks in the bathrooms, and occasionally on the floor in the kids' rooms. I realized that just because there are ten of us doesn't mean we need 20+ towels! I pulled all of the older thining towels (maybe 4-5) and cut them into small cleaning cloths. I stored another 4-5 towels in a hiding place that I could go to if we really did need the extra towels. I immediately noticed a difference in the laundry. Also, my fear of not having a towel when we needed one still hasn't been realized.


Yesterday, in preparation for this blog entry I tackled the linen closet once again. I decided to pull a few more towels (less is more!) and sort through my medicines again. I also pulled excess heath & beauty items I purchased for almost free at CVS and added them to my yard sale pile. Here are my before and after shots of the medicine/first aid shelf.

BEFORE

AFTER

Next, I pulled sheets that were never used because they were torn or the elastic had worn out. (Why was I keeping these?!) I organized the sheets in stacks according to bed size. We use 1 crib, 5 twin beds, 1 full and 1 queen size beds in our home. I have special linens and comfortors I use in our large bedroom for when we host another family - I keep these in that bedroom. I store the queen sheets and the crib sheets in a chest of drawers in the master bath. So, all I have in the linen closet are twin and full sheet sets. Looks pretty messy here.



I found that I have 12 sets of twin sheets and 4 sets of full, including those sheets on the beds. I removed the "Barney" sheets, but will hold them in reserve for #8 when he moves to a big boy bed. Next, I pulled two twin sets and one full set to donate. I need the remaining 2 fulls and 2 twins for when the house is filled with blow up mattresses and cousins. The extra 2 twin sets are cotton and will replace the flanel sheets currently on two beds. The flanel sheets will be packed away. They will not be stored here. Doesn't this look better?



Now I know that I don't need two sets of sheets for every bed. I don't wash all 5 sets of twin sheets on the same day. And, because we have fewer towels and less clothing I don't have such a back log of laundry. I find that when I do wash sheets, they are ready to go right back onto the bed before bedtime the same day. If I don't, the kids have a slumber party on the floor and they are back on the following night.

Now I have fewer possesions and greater peace! :o)

Safeway Living Well, Feeling Well Promo

The spend $30, get a $10 catalina on your next order promo was advertised as beginning on Wednesday (4/15) but it looks like it started yesterday!

In a previous post you'll remember how we told you to make this a major money maker for your family!

Today I went and did the Bertolli deal at two different stores. At each store I did two transactions. Thankfully both stores had plenty in stock so I could buy 32 at each store and still leave some for other shoppers. (8isgreat said her store only stocks 6 at a time so she has asked her manager to order some and they will be in by the end of the week.)



What I got:
64 packets of Bertolli spaghetti sauce
1 package Mission spinach herb wraps
1 Life Water
3 cans soup (didn't need but I had all 4 kids with me and they were being so good and they asked!)
2 packs Oscar Mayer bacon
2.16 lbs bananas
1.58 lbs apples
1 avocado
1 Fresh Express baby spinach
2 lbs strawberries
1 lb VA Ham from deli

Coupons I had going into store:
$9 in catalinas I had leftover from the Pledge deal
60 $.60/1 Bertolli coupons (all doubles)
4 $1/1 Bertolli coupons
1 $1/1 Fresh express coupon
1 free Life Water coupon (catalina that printed out previously)

Total cost of everything I purchased: $269.67

Total oop expense: $19.54

And I still have $50 in catalinas to spend at Safeway (or Giant since they take Safeway's coupons now.)

So today I "made" $30.46 at Safeway!

I'll keep some of the spaghetti sauce for our family, but the overwhelming majority of it will be going to the local food bank! I spoke to the manager about ordering more sauce and he said he'd look into it. I told him it was on a good sale and part of a promotion so they probably want to stock up. (And I have 57 more coupons I'd like to use!)

*Also, I'll be able to use my receipts to get a MIR from Unilever for $20 off the purchase price of a ham!

Time Saving Tuesday - - Organizing Coupons on the Go

I live 20 min. away (at 60 mph) from all grocery (except 1), pharmacy, and big box stores. I must make good use of my time "in town." I prepare for my trips the night before. I read up on the deals available at stores located in the town where I will be shopping. I print any IPs and clip any insert Qs I will need. In my early days I used envelopes to store my coupons for shopping. Now, I have several coupon folders. I have three main folders that hold Qs for items our family uses regularly:

1) Groceries/food
2) Paper/plastic/cleaning supplies
3) Health/beauty/medicine/feminine/diapers

These folders have multiple pockets with label stickers so I can separate frozen from dairy from canned goods, etc.

I also keep folders for specific stores (some stores share one). Here is a peek into two of my store folders:

1) Food Lion - I keep my customer store card and Qs for current sales up front. I also store FLIPs, FL catalina Qs, rain checks, milk tickets (when they offer 1 free wyb 6 milk), and other promotional Qs (for example, the free ham giveaway).

2) CVS - I keep my CVS card, a copy of my husband's card, my extra care bucks, my receipts (this is sometimes necessary to keep track of the ECB offers I haven't completed for a particular week or month), the CRT Qs (coupons that print at the end of my receipt when I make a purchase at CVS) that go with my card number, DH's extra care bucks, receipts, and his CRT Qs. I also file CVS store Qs, Rx transfer Qs from any pharmacy (most CVS's will honor these), rain checks and mfr Q's for this weeks deals and mfr Qs for upcoming deals in this folder. -- This folder is packed quite tight.

In the back of my folders I have a space to store new coupons I find in the store: blinkies, tearpad Qs, winetags and/or MIRs.

Here is a photo of all my folders.

I keep my folders, sales flyers and print outs on specific store deals in what I call my coupon purse. I keep this in the car when I am out. I usually leave the purse in the car and take the Q folder for a particular store with me. If it is a grocery store, I will usually bring my gorcery folder in, too (or I end up returning to the car to get it). Here are two photos of my coupon purse.





Another tip: I often get store % off Qs in the mail from Kohl's, $ off or % off at JC Penny, Sears, Lowes, Home Depot, etc. When these come in the mail, I remove the Q right away and stick it in my purse in the same sleeve where I store that store's credit card. Sometimes I use it, some times I don't. It only takes a few minutes and sometimes it pays off in big savings!

It is my hope that this peek into "how I do this" helps you. Good luck creating your system!

Kroger - Deals for the week 4/12 - 4/18

Kroger Gallon Milk 2 for $5
Split chicken breasts 99c/lb.
Red seedless grapes 10 lbs for $10
Birds Eye Steam Fresh veggies 10 for $10 (use 35c/1 from 3/29 SS doubles to 70c off --you pay 30c/bag!)
Kraft singles or shredded or bar cheese 3 for $5 (or $1.67 ea)
Kroger bagels or cream cheese 10 for $10
Michelina's Entrees 10 for $10 click here for $1/5 printable
Softsoap Elements hand soap 10 for $10
Huggies 16-40 count wipes 10 for $10
Angel Soft Bath tissue or single big roll Scott Paper Towels 10 for $10
Scott Long Lasting or Mega Roll Paper Towels, Any $2/4 catalina Q (printing at Kroger stores makes these 50c/roll)
or $1/4 rolls 3/29 coupon insert makes these 4 for $3 or 75c ea

***Scott Naturals Get up to $4 back in a SCOTT brand coupon reward via email. B2G$2, B3G$3, B4G$4. *Purchases must be from different SCOTT categories (bath tissue, flushable wipes, paper towels, napkins, and scrub cloths. - valid up to $4.00 ***This is an offer found on a tear pad at a grocery store, store name not reported. I'll let you know where if I find one.

Free Movie Monday

The code for 1 free movie from Redbox, only valid today is: J89LA2

CVS -- rolling ECBs

This week provides a good opportunity to learn about "rolling ECBs", where you use the ECB earned in 1 transaction on a subsequent transaction.

I mentioned in a previous post these deals:

Softsoap scrub body wash (18 oz) is $4.99, get $4.99 ECB
In the 3/29 SS there was a $1/1 coupon
Limit 1.

Colgate Enamel protect 6 oz. is $3.99 and get $3.99 ECB
In the 3/29 SS there were coupons for either $.50/1 or $1/1 for any Colgate toothpaste
Limit 2.

A couple different scenarios:

If you purchased the Skintimate shave cream (free after ECB) last week and still have that:

transaction 1:
Colgate Enamel protect 6 oz $3.99
Use $1/1 coupon
add a $.50 "filler" item--I like the CVS brand pocket tissue pack
total: $3.49, use $3.49 ECB from Skintimate
oop: $0 earn $3.99 ECBs

transaction 2:
Colgate Enamel protect 6 oz $3.99
use $3.99 ECB from previous Colgate
earn $3.99 ECB
oop: $0, earn $3.99 ECBs

trasaction 3:
Softsoap scrub body wash (18 oz)
use $1/1 from 3/29 SS
use $3.99 ECB from second Colgate
earn $4.99 ECB
oop: $0, earn $4.99 ECB

So now you've spent $0 oop, have purchased $14.46 in products and still have $4.99 in ECBs to use for future purchases!

If you've already spent your Skintimate ECB or are starting new, transactions 2 and 3 would be the same, but transaction 1 would be:

Colgate Enamel protect 6 oz $3.99
Use $1/1 coupon
oop: $2.99, earn $3.99 ECBs

You would spend $2.99 oop for $13.96 in products and still have $4.99 ECBs to use for a future purchase.

Of course if you have an extra Colgate coupon you save even more, or if you don't have any coupons your oop expense will be a bit higher.

If looking for more coupon match ups and ideas, check out Melissa's Bargain blog.