Cheap Snacks for the Road :)

I didn't need many groceries for my household this week, but when I saw these deals, I thought immediately of our upcoming, very long (and fun!) road trip.  Everybody knows how ridiculously-priced snacks are at gas stations, so I thought I might as well stock up on items like this while I can get them for a song.  I paid just over $9 for the above items, and saved just under $19, all at Meijer.  Here's how:

The Nature Valley granola bars, Sweet & Salty bars, and Fiber One bars are on sale for $1.99 a box this week.  Go here and print out $.40 and $.50 coupons (you can print 2 for each brand).  Meijer doubles coupons that are $.50 or less, so each box is $.99-$1.19.

Pringles are 3/$4 this week.  I had a manufacturer coupon--$1 off 3.  So, of course, that made them $1 each**

Chex mix is $1.25.  Go here and print off two $.50 coupons, each of which will be doubled, and you pay $.25 each!!!!

**Plus, I had a $3 catalina toward my purchase, which I received with last week's Kraft salad dressing deal, so it was basically like getting the 3 cans of Pringles for free!

Go here to see all of the deals Meijer is having this week, and don't forget to check and see here if Meijer is offering coupons you can stack with the manufacture coupons you have!  Leave comments here if you have any great deals you want to share.  I'm pretty sure you can even comment anonymously if you don't have a Google account. :)

Deals

I really have wanted to get on here and blog about some great savings this week, but I've just been swamped with so many things going on!  If you see this in time, though, you might still have another day to take advantage of these deals.

I'll start with Walgreens and CVS, since most people have those around (I think) in the US.  Meijer and Kroger are having some deals as well, so I will include those at the end.

Walgreens

I paid a total of $37.27 for the above items.  That probably seems like a lot for that number of items, but 2 of them would normally be $40 each.  I saved a total of $77.46.  Not my very best deal ever, but it worked out okay.  Plus I have $8 in Register Rewards to spend next time.

Once again, I did the multiple transaction thing, and it worked out okay.  I started with the Complete contact solution, which is $7.99, with an $8 Register Reward.  Also in that transaction, I purchased an "ourchless" headband, that was $2.99, with a $3.00 Register Reward.  I had a $1 off coupon from the box of Contact solution and my $4.50 Register Rewards from last week.

Second Transaction included the two bottles of Osteo, 1 pkg of Carefree ($.99 with coupon from ad) and a box of first-aid gauzy things I got from the clearance aisle because I thought I was going to need an extra cheap item to balance the number of coupons I was using.  My *aging* hubby (ha ha--I get to tease him now and then 'cuz he's 4 years older than I) likes to take, as part of his vitamin regimen, Osteo Flex or whatever it's called (or other brands of the same thing).  Walgreens had them Buy-One-Get-One Free.  These bottles would have been $40 each, but with the BOGO, and two $5 off coupons I had, AND the $8 Register Reward from my first transaction, I got both bottles for more like $22 (or $11 each).

Transaction #3:  I bought another Complete contact solution and 2 Oscar Meyer deli meats.  The OM meats were on sale for 2/$5.00, plus I had a $1 off 2 coupon, and I used the $3 Register Reward from my first transaction.  I received another $8 RR from the Complete, and I will use that next week.

CVS

This picture isn't especially clear--sorry!  For these items, I paid $20.27, which is less than the regular price of the cooler alone.  I saved $37.63, and received $8 in Extra Care Bucks for next time.

I did this in 2 transactions:

The Garnier Nutritioniste products weren't on sale, but if you bought $20 worth, you got $10 back.  It was right when I was looking for facial products with SPF, so it was perfect timing for me.  Plus, I had $2 off coupon for one of the products.  The toothpaste was $2.99 with a $1 Extra Care Buck, plus I had a $1 off coupon for that.  I also used my $12 ECBucks from last week.

For my second transaction, I took the ECBs from the 1st transaction and used them toward this cooler, which was already on sale for $14.99.  We're taking a long road trip this summer and I was thinking about all the bottles of water we could fit in that thing! :)  The men's body wash was a money-maker.  They were on sale for $4.00 each, with an ECB return of $4.00 (limit: 2 of these deals per household).  I also had a coupon for $4 off 2. So, I bought 2 and ended up making $4.00 (not including the ECBs).  And now I have $8 ECBs for next time.

Meijer

Here are just some of the deals I got at Meijer this week!

The Kraft salad dressings are $2 each, and if you buy 2, you get a $1 catalina coupon toward your next shopping trip.  Buy 3 and you'll get $2, buy 4 and you'll get $3.  Plus go here to print off $.55 off 1 coupons and here to print Meijer coupons, $1.00 off 1, which you can stack with the $.55 ones.  I bought 4 bottles, $2 each, had $4 off in Meijer coupons, and $1.65 in manufacturer coupons.  With the $3 catalina I received back, it's like getting them for free, plus a little overage.

The Hellman's mayo is on sale for $2.50.  I bought 2.  Here, I got a $1.50 off 2 coupon from Meijer, which I stacked with two $.75 off 1 coupons, making each jar $1.  I'm sorry, but the $.75 coupons appear to be gone now!

Country Time and other drink mixes are $1 this week.

The Bertolli  pasta sauce is $1.67 this week.  Here, you can get $1 off 2 coupons.  I also used $1.50 off 2 coupons that appear to be no longer available!  You can do some searching on your own and see if you can track down something I'm missing, if you wish. :)  But, anyway, I paid $.22 for each.

The Raisin Bran I got for $.69 (a giant box!), using the $2 coupon they wouldn't take at Walmart. :)

Not pictured:  Ball Park Franks are $.89 this week.
Skippy Peanut Butter is $1.67.  Coupons here and here make them about $1 each.

Kroger:
Kroger has Nestle bottled water on sale--3 for $10 (24 packs).  If you buy 3, you receive $3 back.  I bought 6 cases (stocking up for summer and our trip!) and used coupons, making the price $2 per case, or about 8 cents per bottle.  Sure beats paying $1 or more at gas stations! :)

This is all I've got time for right now, but I'll bet there are tons more deals out there.  If you know of some, post them in the comments section for others to see! :)

Top Five "DON'Ts" of Saving Money

So far on this little amateur blog of mine, I have mostly talked about some of the ways I know of to save money.  Today I'm going to focus on some of the things to avoid in the process.

1.  Don't buy things you won't use or don't need.  It can be tempting to waver in this area when you see how inexpensively you can pick up, oh, let's say, a case of sardines.  "Oh!  Fifty cents for a whole case of sardines," you might say to yourself.  But does anyone in your household eat, or even like, sardines?  "Just in case" isn't always a good justification.  Fifty cents might not seem like much to waste, but it's still money that could be spent on something more useful, or it could be used to make you more money on a different purchase.  Also, once you start down that "just in case" path, it's easy to spiral out of control until you have no room to store all those items no one is using.  Also, be careful not to buy certain brands that no one in your house likes (on cereal, for instance) just because it's on sale.  You don't necessarily have to sacrifice quality to save money! :)

2.  Don't stoop to cheating or abusing the system in order to gain more for yourself.  Don't purposely try to use expired coupons or the wrong coupon for the wrong item.  One of the worst deceptions I've seen on other blogs is people buying an item that has a money-back guarantee, with the intention of keeping/using the product and getting their money back.  It's one thing to buy a product and really not be satisfied with it after the fact, and then take the company up on their guarantee.  It's a completely different matter to buy a product, knowing the only reason you're paying for it is because you plan to receive a refund.

3.  Don't forget to send in any rebate forms you're counting on for extra savings!  Rebates are different from refunds.  The company, in order to entice you to buy their products, offers to give you some or all of your money back.  I'm guessing they're counting on some people forgetting to send in their rebate forms.  Don't give them the satisfaction! ha ha

4.  Don't be a "vulture!"  Now, this one is probably based more on my personal opinion and past frustrating situations than on any moral obligation.  Remember as kids, when we waited in line at the drinking fountain, and that one kid held everyone up by drinking more water than ten normal people could ever need?  We would say, "Save some for the fish!"  When you're shopping at stores with lower quantities of stock (like Walgreens or CVS), it wouldn't hurt to think of others that might want to benefit from that sale after you.  I'm not saying it's wrong to buy the last Intuition razor because someone else might want it.  I'm just suggesting we be mindful of what, and how many, we really need for our household, or for giving away . . . which brings me to my next "don't."

5.  Don't forget those in need!  It's fine to do some stockpiling for our own households, but let's be careful not to go overboard!  Yesterday at Walgreens, I ended up with 4 men's body washes for free (plus I made $1.50 on the deal!).  When I went to put them away, I realized that, though my hubby does shower every day, :) we really don't need any more stored away for now.   Food banks, missions, shelters, etc. always need hygiene items as well as food.  There's no magic number that works for every family, as far as how much is too much to store for the future.  But don't ignore any impressions the Lord may be laying on your heart to share your surplus with people who truly need it!

Happy $avings!! :)

Quite a Savings at Walgreens Today!! :)

For the above Walgreens items, I paid $12.39, saved $53.92, and earned $5.50 in Register Rewards toward my next purchase.  Here's how it worked:

My sister Amy, who lives in AZ, and I challenged each other today to try saving money at Walgreens by making multiple transactions in one visit, a money-saving tip neither of us had tried.  I haven't heard yet from her how it went down there in her corner of the country, but here in the Midwest it was flawless!  I walked into the store with my list, my coupons and my Register Rewards from last week, all ready to execute my plan! ;)

First of all, they actually had in stock every item on my list!  Love it when that happens!  Going on a Monday was helpful, I'm sure, because the ad just came out yesterday.

I'll start out by telling you the general deals I used to my advantage, and then I'll list how I put them together.  By the way, I'll be mentioning "Register Rewards" (RR) quite often--these are coupon-like things that are used just like cash toward your next purchase.

Gillette or Old Spice Body Wash (men's):  Their price is $4.49, but if you buy one, you get a $4.50 Register Reward.  Also, I had a Buy-One-Get-One-Free coupon for the Gillette and another one for the Old Spice 

OFF Clip-On Mosquito Protection (have been wanting to try these):  Sale price: $8.99, plus a $2 off instant value coupon (from the Walgreens coupon book at the front of the store).  Plus, I had a Buy-One-Get-One-Free coupon and a $2 off coupon.

OFF Clip-on refill:  Sale price: $4.99, plus $1 instant value coupon, plus I had a manufacturer coupon for $1 off.

Kotex:  Sale price: 2/$6;  Register Rewards: $2 (when you buy 2--different varieties available), plus I had a $1.50 off 2 coupon.

Lysol toilet bowl cleaner:  Buy one at $2.99, get one free.  Plus I had two $.50 off coupons

Stride Shift gum:  Sale price--2/$2.  Instant Value Coupon: $1 off 2.

Royal gelatin:  $.19 each.  I mostly used these as "fillers," which I'll explain in a minute.

Oscar Mayer Lunchables, with in-ad coupon:  $1.99.  I had a $1 off coupon.  This is not something I normally buy, as I think they are a total waste of money.  But Little Mister has had them before and thinks it's a special treat (???). :)  This was an okay price for a "special" treat. :)

Now, for the particulars!

Transaction #1

2 Old Spice Body Wash
2 OFF clip-on mosquito repellents
1 OFF refill
3 Royal gelatins*

This would have cost $37.97, but I paid $8.99.  Using the store sales and coupons mentioned above, PLUS using the $4 in RR I had from last week, I saved $28.98 on this transaction.  Also, I received a $4.50 RR (from one of the body washes) to use on my next transaction.  Unexpectedly, the Catalina machine also spit out 2 coupons, both for Gillette body washes, which would help me on my third transaction.

Transaction #2

2 Lysol toilet bowl cleaners
2 Kotex
2 Stride gum
1 OM Lunchable

This transaction would have been $19.93 but, using the sales and coupons mentioned above, PLUS ADDING THE $4.50 RR from Transaction #1, I paid $3.98!  And the Kotex deal gave me a $2 RR to use on Transaction #3.

Transaction #3

2 Gillette body washes
2 Royal gelatins

Without sales or planning ahead, I would have paid $10.36, but I used my BOGO on the body washes, plus the unexpected $1.50 off 1 body wash coupon from Transaction #1, and my $2 RR from Transaction #2, and I paid a total of $1.37.

When I combine all the transactions, I saved 77% by buying the things I needed on sale, using coupons and Register Rewards.  And, after Transaction #3, I have $5.50 in Register Rewards to use next time I shop.

*The gelatins I used as "fillers."  See, at Walgreens you have to have at least as many items that you're buying as you do coupons/RR.  For Transaction #1, without the gelatins, I had 5 items, but was using 8 coupons.  The three gelatins were $.19 cents each and brought my total items up to 8, which matched my number of coupons.  I still saved tons of money!  And the gelatin comes in handy every once in awhile! :)

Another thing to keep in mind is that you can't use a Register Reward that names a company to purchase an item from that same company.  Some RR just say something like "Thank you for shopping with us," while others are sponsored by a certain company.  For instance, I couldn't use the Kotex RR I received today to purchase another Kotex product.

For more general details on Walgreens shopping, see this post. :)

CVS Shopping--An Unexpected Treasure of Savings!

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Yesterday, I got these items for one quarter of one dollar (yes, that's 25 cents!) AND received $12 to spend next time.  You, too, can get great deals like this, if you know the basics of CVS shopping, and do a little planning!

The regular prices at CVS and Walgreens are not so great on most things, so I didn't know until, beginning my money-saving quest, I learned from others all the money there is to be saved/made at these stores.  I certainly can't keep information like this to myself!

Let's start with the "basics" of saving money at CVS.  If you've read my Walgreens post, some of this will sound familiar.

CVS has what they call "Extra Bucks," which work very similarly to Walgreens Register Rewards, except they are valid for a month (the lady at my CVS says they'll take them even after the month is up) and you have to have a CVS Extra Care card to get the Extra Bucks.  Either go to your CVS store to get one, or to this link to find out more and fill out a form.

Once you have your card, it will work the same as Walgreens Register Rewards.  Your Extra Bucks will print up at the bottom of your receipt.  I haven't heard of CVS having the restrictions that Walgreens has, with needing as many items as coupons and not being able to use the Extra Bucks on the same brand.

In the CVS ad, found in the Sunday paper, you will notice some items indicate that you will receive "Extra Bucks" if you purchase them.  On page 5 of this week's ad, for instance, you can see that if you buy one of the Crest 3-D White products, for $3.99, you will receive $2.00 back in Extra Bucks, good toward your next purchase.  So, it's "like" paying $1.99.  If you had a $1.00 manufacturer coupon besides, it would be "like" paying $.99.

I'll give you the details of my purchase this week in a moment, but first I want to emphasize the importance, when figuring out your total savings, of not counting your Extra Bucks twice.  When you get that $2.00 back, either think of it as "Today it was like I bought that mouthwash for $1.99," OR "I paid $3.99 (or $2.99 if you had a $1.00 coupon) for that mouthwash today, and I have $2.00 to subtract from my total next week."  I prefer to focus on what I'm paying out of pocket each week.  I don't figure in any Extra Bucks until I'm actually using them to purchase products the following week. 

So, here's my CVS purchase from this week, minus the snack my son had to have because he was "starving" and we still had to go to the library! ;)  Here's the photo again:

Now, here's how it worked (ignore the highlighted parts until you see them again toward the bottom):

The two Listerines (p.5) were on sale for $3.99 each, and each had $2 in Extra Bucks.
The Colgate (p.5) was $2.99, with $2.00 Extra Bucks
The Venus Embrace razor (p.11) was $9.79, with $6.00 Extra Bucks

So, the total of the four items above  (rounded up) was $21.  BUT I had a $.75 manufacturer coupon for the Colgate (total now: $20.25) and a $2 coupon for the razor (total now: $18.25) and $18 Extra Bucks from last week.  Grand total: $.25 plus tax! :)

After I paid, at the bottom of my receipt, there was a $4 Extra Bucks (for the 2 Listerines), a $6 Extra Bucks (for the razor) and a $2 Extra Bucks (for the Colgate), for a total of $12 Extra Bucks.  I will cut them off my receipt and use them the next time I shop at CVS (probably next week).

Do you see how I made money?  I only paid $.25, but received $12 to use next time.  If you have any questions, please feel free to ask. :)

Walgreens Shopping: You Won't Believe it 'til You Try It! :)

Tons o' coupons in the paper this week!  Of course, since we've ended one month and begun another, I had to clear out all the ones I didn't use that expired April 30, in order to make room for scads of new, hopefully-usable coupons.  One thing I learned right away when I started clipping coupons is that Proctor & Gamble owns almost every company imaginable, it seems.  Crazy! :)

I decided to talk about Walgreens and CVS separately, since they work a little bit differently, and because I'm too short on time to cover both tonight.  There is a lot of money to be saved at Walgreens, if you plan correctly and remember the guidelines they have in place.  Walgreens is a bit more complicated than CVS because Walgreens has a few more rules.  But, if you can  figure out Walgreens (and you CAN!), CVS will be a cinch!!

WALGREENS SAVINGS
 If you look at the Sunday ad, you'll see some products that are on sale, and if you buy a designated amount, they will give you "Resister Rewards" to use on a subsequent purchase.  The Register Rewards are printed on coupon-sized paper (they're called "Catalinas") and usually expire 2 weeks after the issue date.  The way to get the most bang for your buck is to use manufacturer coupons on these deals as well.

For example:
On the back page of the ad for this week, you will see they have Kellogg's* cereals on sale, 2/$5.  At the bottom of that purple box, there is a smaller box labeled "Register Rewards."  This tells you that if you buy 2 boxes for $5, they will give you $2 in Register Rewards, so it's like getting them 2/$3.**  Better yet, if you go here, and print a coupon ($1 off 2 boxes), it will be like getting them 2/$2, or $1 per box of cereal.

Once you start collecting the Register Rewards, you're likely to have some to use each week.

Another option is to do more than one transaction at a time (divide your items, on a single visit, into several groups, to use the RRs from one transaction on the next, and so on).  I've never done this b/c it seems more complicated (to me) than I care to get, though I may try it sometime if it seems worth it to me for a particular item.  You can pay for some items, get the RR back and use them for your next group of items and so on. 

Also, you can use 1 Walgreens coupon AND 1 manufacturer coupon per item.  Sometimes Walgreens will have coupons in their ads and they also have a monthly coupon book that you can get from the front of the store.

A couple things to remember:

• You can't use a Register Reward issued by a certain company on an item from the same company (i.e. If you have a RR that says "Schick" on the front, you can't use it to purchase another "Schick" item).  This is what I've always been told.  Just this past week, though, the lady at Walgreens told me you CAN use it on a product from the same company, but if the product is supposed to issue a Register Rewards coupon, you won't get it.  I guess it's kind of like "six of one, half-dozen of the other."
• You have to have at least as many items in your order as you do coupons and RRs.  So, if I'm using 7 coupons and I only have 5 items that I'm paying for, I'd have to add a couple cheap items (a couple pieces of candy, pencils--things that will be used and not cost too much) to have 7 items.  This is kind of dumb, in my opinion, but it's still going to save a lot of money if the "extra" items are inexpexpensive.  Sometimes they have really cheap clearance items.

So, there you have it--a brief description of Walgreens shopping.  Does it make sense?  Ask any questions you have!  If you're new to this, practice!  Get your Walgreens ad and coupons out and see what deals you can find!  Please be sure to read my footnotes below, too. :)

*I used these cereals as an easy example, but I don't actually recommend or buy most Kellogg's products because they haven't gotten with the program and removed the high fructose corn syrup from many of their products.

**Be careful, as you collect Register Rewards, not to count them twice when you're figuring out what you're saving.  It's easy to think, the day you get the rewards, "Oh, I got these boxes of cereals for the same as $1 each," thinking in your mind about the $2 RR.  Then, next week, as you're figuring out what to buy and you put the $2 toward your purchase, you're likely to count that $2 as part of your savings then as well.  I prefer to just use what I have for the purchase I'm making now to figure out what my savings are.  For instance, I might buy $12 worth of their sale items, have $3 in manufacturer coupons, $7 RR from last week that I'm applying to this order, and only pay $2 out of my pocket.  If I receive $5 RR from this transaction, I don't, in my mind, apply that $5 to this transaction and think to myself that I made a $3 profit.  I keep that $5 RR out of my mind until I'm figuring out my next purchase and apply it toward that.  You CAN make a profit on certain items sometimes, if you plan right.  But avoid the temptation to count your RR twice when you're figuring out your actual savings! :)