Deals - May 16

Life has been so crazy lately, I've hardly had time to shop, let alone coupon!  It felt very good to go out tonight alone (thanks to my wonderful husband for watching our son) and save some money.  :)  Here are few of the best deals I found:

Pampers Jumbo Pack ($8.83)
-$1.50/1 manufacturer's coupon
-$1/1 CVS coupon
-$2 ECB
=$4.33
+$1 ECB (green tag)

Heinz ketchup ($1.89)
-$2/1 coupon
=FREE

Kraft salad dressing (2/$4)
-$1.50/2 coupon
=$2.50/2 (or $1.25 each)

Rold Gold pretzels (2/$5)
-$2/2 coupon
=2/$3 (or $1.50 each)

Poptarts (3/$5)
-$1/3 coupon
=3/$4 (or $1.33 each)

Duncan Hines brownies ($1.69)
-$0.50/1 coupon (doubled)
=$0.69

Giant also had some great store coupons, including a free half gallon of Turkey Hill ice cream!  :)  My total savings was 47% - a "personal best"!

Recent Deals

March was a pretty bad month for the budget - for some reason we were way over in most every category.  But I'm determined to do better this month and so far, I've been finding pretty good deals.  Here are a few from my past few shopping trips:

From the week of March 28

Wisk ($8.39) B1G1 free
- 2 $2/1 coupons
-$2 ECB
=$2.56 for 2 (or $1.28 each)

Oral B toothbrushes ($2.99)
-2 $1/1 coupons
-$1.50 ECB
=$2.48 for 2 (or $1.24 each)

From the week of April 4

Kandoo Toddler Wipes ($1.42)
-$1/1 coupon
=$0.42

Raid Ant Traps ($2.49)
-$2/1 coupon
=$0.49

From the week of April 4

Pepperidge Farm cookies ($3.49) B1G1 free
-$1/2 coupon
-$1 Giant doubler coupon
=$1.49 for 2 (or $0.75 each)

DeerPark water, 24-pack ($3.99)
on sale for $2.99 with Bonuscard
-$1/1 coupon
-$1 Giant doubler coupon
=$0.99

MinuteMaid orange juice ($2.50)
-$1/1 coupon
-$1/1 Giant doubler coupon
=$0.50

I love when Giant gives the extra $1 doublers!  It really does make a difference.  And thanks to a dear friend who gave me her coupons too, I saved an extra $8 this week between two trips.

Deals - January 24

I had another good week of grocery shopping - saving over $18 at Giant (about 43%).  I only saved $7.50 at Walmart (about 27%), because I got "caught" and ran out of a few things that we had to have.  Yes, well.  My goal is to not shop again this month, which would bring me $5.22 under my goal for January.  I'm off to a good start!

Scotch Brite sponges (4)
$.84/each
-(2) $1/2
=$1.36/4 (or $.34 each)

Old Spice 
$4/2-pack deodorant
$3.50/1 body wash
-B1G1 free
=$4 for all 3

Purina Cat Chow (3)
 $3.89 each
-$2/2
-$3 off instantly
=$6.67/3 (or $2.23 each)

Pillsbury brownie mix (2)
$1 each
-$1/1
=$1/2 (or $.50 each)

I also used the coupon for a free gallon of milk that I got last week.  The milk cost $3.38, but the coupon rang up as the maximum value of $4.50!  What a blessing!

Deals - January 17

I did pretty well this week on both toiletries and groceries.  I saved almost $16 at CVS (about 60%) and over $35 at Giant (about 36%).  Here are some of the deals I found:


 






Dawn dish soap (3)
$.97/each
-$1/2
-$.20/1
=$1.71/3 (or $.57 each)

Bounty paper towels
$9.99/8-pack
-$1/1
-$3/1 (CVS coupon)
-$3 ECB
=$2.99 (about .37/roll)

General Mills cereal (4)
 $2.59 each
-$1/3
-$.55/1 (doubled)
-$6 off total purchase instantly
=$2.36/4 (or $.59 each)
plus I got a catalina for a free gallon of milk with my next purchase!

Quaker oatmeal (2)
2 for $5
-$1/1 (2)
=$3/2 (or $1.50 each)

McCormick pepper grinder
$2
-$.75/1 (doubled)
=$.50

Progresso soup (4)
$1 each
-$1/4
=$3/4 (or .75 each)

Prego sauce (2)
3 for $5
-$.35/2 (doubled)
=$2.63 (or $1.32 each)

Old Navy Clearance Deals

Jeremy and I had a "date" tonight at Old Navy and came away with some great deals.  They're currently running a sale of 40% off clearance items and I had a coupon for an additional $10 off a $50 purchase.  Here's what we came away with:

Noah
3-n-1 winter jacket
thermal shirt
polo shirt

Jeremy
moleskin blazer
socks

Karen
cardigan wrap sweater
(4) tops

. . . and a lunchbox

The best deal by far was Noah's winter coat (for next year).  It's original retail price was $39.50.  It was on clearance for $14.99.  The 40% discount brought it down to $8.99.  And then because it had a small tear on the sleeve (easily repairable), it was marked down an additional 50%.  So we paid only $4.49!  Now that's an ordinary miracle!

Our combined total was $44.51.  The original retail price for everything came to $265 (without tax).  That's a savings of over 83%!  Even at clearance price, we saved more than we spent ($49.50 or 53%).

Great Resource!

I just found a great couponing resource that I have to share!  It's called A Full Cup and its a huge coupon database that lets you search for and print coupons online.  So in addition to "clipping" coupons from the paper and sites like coupons.com or smartsource.com, I've been searching this database to see if there are any coupons I've "missed" that correspond to the weekly sales.

Maybe everyone already knows about this but me, but I'm very excited to finally know!

Deals - January 12

Another one of my New Year's resolutions is to get back to couponing and better track my savings.  I found a very helpful tool from The Coupon Project.  I've set monthly "budgets" for groceries and household items (including toiletries) and am back on track for 2011.  So far, I've saved an average of 24% on groceries and over 30% on household items.  Here are a few of my most recent deals:

Jergens lotion (2)
$3.29 each
-$3/2
=$3.58/2

Dove soap
$4.79/4-pack
-$1.50/1
=$3.29 (about .82/bar)

Reach floss
.97 each
-$1/1
=FREE

Suave shampoo
.84 each
-$1/1
=FREE

Healthy Choice Fresh Mixers (2)
$2/5
-$1/1 (2)
=$3/2 or $1.50 each

Scotties tissues (5)
.79 each
-$1/5
=$2.95/5 or .59 each

(this one's from last week, but it's such a good deal, I had to share!)

Starbucks coffee
$6.99 each
-$1/1
-$3 ECB
=$2.99

Christmas Sales & Resolutions

For many reasons, Christmas was very busy and yet not very purposeful this year.  The season seemed to fly by without me being able to enjoy or appreciate much of anything.

Reflecting on that at the start of this new year made me "resolve" to not repeat the Christmas of 2010.  I have purposed to have a purposeful Christmas this year.  For me that means, among other things:

- Finalizing the church's Christmas program by the end of the summer
- Doing all my holiday baking Thanksgiving weekend
- Creating and using an advent calendar (complete with a Scripture passage and a family activity for each day)

- Sending out Christmas cards (complete with family picture) at least two weeks before Christmas; and
- NOT hosting a three-year-old's birthday party two weeks before Christmas!

I've gotten a jump start by shopping all the after-Christmas sales this year.  I already have our cards and the supplies I'll need to make my advent calendar as well as a bunch of new ornaments for our tree.  Here's what I was able to get, all for less than $55 (I only paid $35, thanks to a gift card from a friend):

By God's grace, this Christmas will be different - less stress and more purpose.

Deals - October 18

I made a late-night grocery run last night and came home with some great deals.  The overall savings wasn't as good as I would've liked (spices are expensive!), but here are the numbers:

Shelf Cost:  $87.49
Store Discounts:  $19.16
Coupons:  $11.55
Total Spent:  $56.96
Savings:  35%

Here are some of the better deals I got:

Pepperidge Farm Soft-Baked Cookies (2)
$3.39, BOGO Free
-$1/1 coupon
=$1.19 each

Quaker Instant Oatmeal (3)
2/$5 or $2.50 each
-$1/1 coupon
-$1/1 coupon
-$2/1 coupon
=$1.15 each

Perdue Short Cut Chicken Strips (2)
$5.49, BOGO Free
-$0.75/1 coupon (doubled)
-$0.75/1 coupon (doubled)
=$1.24 each

CoffeeMate Creamer (1)
$1.99
-$1.50/1 coupon
=$0.49

Shelf Cost:  $31.16
Coupons:  $6.00
Total Spent:  $25.16
Savings:  20%

Hot Chocolate in a Hurry

Our church held "A Purposeful Day at the Park" on Saturday where we rented a pavilion and had free food, music, games and literature for anyone that stopped by.  A few hours before the event was to start, my husband and I realized/decided that we should probably have something hot to drink, since the weather was only supposed to be in the 50s and rather blustery.

So at 9am, I set to work whipping up a batch of hot chocolate.  I didn't have the time or the budget to run to the store, so I had to use only what was already in my pantry and refrigerator.  By 10:30am, I was at the park with more than 5 gallons of very yummy hot chocolate.  Here's what I included:

-semi-sweet chocolate chips
-unsweetened baker's chocolate
-cocoa powder
-sugar
-vanilla
-evaporated milk
-chocolate-flavored coffee creamer
-milk (a combination of 2% and whole)
-hot water

This is by no means a "recipe" for hot chocolate, but rather a testimony of resourcefulness.  Because I've been couponing more, I had many of these items in "bulk," waiting to be used for just such an occasion.  This proves that even people as un-creative as me can "rise to the occasion" when the need arises, you do what you can with what you have - making lemonade out of lemons - or hot chocolate out of various forms of milk and chocolate. . .   :)

Coupon Blogs

I must admit that I'm new to the world of coupons and I'm still learning with each transaction.  In my efforts to learn as much as I can, I've found several other sites and blogs helpful in keeping up with deals.  Here are a few of my favorites:

Centsable Momma
Coupon Cravings
For the Mommas
The Krazy Coupon Lady

Mama Cheaps
Moms Need to Know
Money Saving Mom

Spend Freely
Stretching a Buck

Surviving the Stores

I also subscribe to Free Coupon Alerts.  I'm sure there are many more out there.  I'd be interested in hearing your favorites.

Deals - October 5

Noah and I ran our errands today, despite the rain, and were able to get a few good deals.  Here's a recap:

Shelf Cost:          $22.87

Store Discounts:   $ 1.90

Coupons:             $ 5.00

ECB:                   $10.49

Total Spent:         $ 5.48

Savings:                  76%  (and I still have $2 ECB for next time!)

Shelf Cost:         $62.36

Store Discounts:  $23.36

Coupons:            $11.83 (I love $1 coupon doublers!)

Total Spent:        $27.62

Savings:                 56%  
 

Thanks to a dear friend who gave me her store coupons since she was going to be out of town when they expire!