Instant Replay:This Weeks Savings

I focused on CVS this week since the deals, especially on Thursday, were so good. Here is what I got first

I paid $2.93 and ended up with $3.00 more in ECB's then I started the week with.
I was really excited about the FREE contact solution. My sister even picked up a few more for us since my CVS only had one(thanks Mandy!). Since I had some ECB overage from the makeup, I got a few things we needed-coffee filters and crackers. I love it when "playing the CVS game" allows me to get other things we need for almost free.
I was so excited about the Black Friday specials which actually started on Thursday. So on Thursday Morning(I was in the parking lot 5 minutes before they opened and I was sick-am I crazy....)I made out with all this for $4.00 in cash and now have $20 more ECB's then I had walking into the store.


Can you believe that everything in that picture would have cost me $100 if I paid regular price?

Check out Money Saving Mom's CVS 101 article. It is what really got me started!

Giving Back

One of the reasons I love saving big with coupons is giving back! Everything in the picture is going to church(work) with me tomorrow. Part of it is going in a Christmas box for a missionary family and everything else is going to local food panty.

Couponing Fundamentals:Coupon Organization

If you really want to save big with coupons you should have some kind of organization system. Everyone has a different method they prefer and there are some great coupon organization systems out there-you should google it. After some trial and error I came up a system that works well for me.

As I shared with you here the best place to find coupons is the Sunday paper. I start by clipping almost every coupon out. *If you are just starting I would start slowly-clip only the coupons you think you may use but date and save your insert*. After clipping I file them in my box.


I LOVE my coupon box-it fits perfectly in the front of a grocery cart and it just nestles right into the passenger seat of my car! I have about 40 different categories but I started out pretty simple. If you are just starting your coupon organization here's my suggestion on what categories to begin with. Haircare/Bodywash/Deodorant
Makeup/Lotion
Toothpaste/Toothbrush
Razors/Feminine Products
Medicine
Cleaning Supplies
Produce
Dairy
Frozen Foods
Canned Foods
Bread/Rice/Pasta/Sauce
Cereal/Granola Bars
Baking Mixes/Sugar/Flour
Coffee/Other Drinks
Candy
Once you see you are getting a lot of coupons in one category divide it further. This process may seem overwhelming at first but once you get a system down it will really save you time and $$!

Instant Replay:This week in review!

I got several good deals this week! Here is what I got at Meijer for $5.01.



Highlights:6 bags of FREE veggie steamers, FREE wishbone dressing, 4 boxes of cereal, several cans of fruit and veggies some markdown meat and pineapple. I had $5 in catalinas (coupons that print at the store) a coupon for a FREE box of Cheerios and got $6 off instantly for buying 4 boxes of cereal that made my total so low.

I did a few small transactions at Kroger. Total for everything was $7.42





The Olay Ribbons was free because of stacking 2 $2 coupons with my P&G esaver coupon! I also got the Carrot Cake mix for free and used some ecoupons for the cheese and ice cream!


CVS was pretty good this week also! I paid with $5.00 in ECB’s(Extra Care Bucks) ,spent .53 cash and got back $5 ECB’s!


Stay tuned this week for: How to Use Coupons. Make sure to read this first!

Post Game Snacks!

I have made a couple of great and frugal treats this past week. The first one I made was for our small groups dinner.
Apple Streusel Cheesecake Bars

I figured I spend around $3 for all the ingredients I used, many of which were purchased at great prices from matching coupons with sales.

I would give this dessert 5 stars! It was awesome!
Next I made Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Cookies! My mom made these for a family dinner recently and I loved them.
Recipe:
1c Butter
1c Sugar (i used 3/4)
1c Brown Sugar (i used 3/4)
1 Egg
1 tsp vanilla
2 c flour (i used 1/2 white 1/2 wheat)
1c oats
1 tsp Baking Soda
1 tsp Cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup canned pumpkin
1 c chocolate chips(I added a few extra!)

Blend butter, sugars, egg and van. In seperate bowl combine dry ingredients. Alternate mixing dry ingredients and pumpkin into wet ingredients. Stir in Choc chips. Bake on 350 for 12-13 mins.

These turn out so soft and moist! A great fall snack. I figured I spent about $2.25 and it made just over 4 dozen cookies!

Where to Find Coupons

There are several places that I find my coupons.
1. Sunday Paper-This is where I get most of the coupons I use. There are 3 types of coupons that come in the paper. SmartSource(SS), RedPlum(RP) and P&G(these come once a month). They are all basically the same but you will see other bloggers mention them as "SS" or "RP". I get the paper here in Columbus for .99 cents delivered. Well worth it!
2. Internet- There are several websites that offer printable coupons. Typically you can print 2 of each coupon. Most sites update their coupons once a month. Here are a few of my favorite coupons sites.
www.coupons.com
www.bettycrocker.com
www.pillsbury.com
www.smartsource.com
3. Store Coupons- I do most of my grocery shopping at Kroger and Meijer. Kroger mails me coupons(10-15) once a quarter and they typically send coupons for items I purchased. Actually, the past two times they have sent me coupons for FREE items. If you have a store loyalty card make sure your information is up to date-this is often how they send you extra savings! Meijer has coupons on their website here. You have to click on the "special" tab in the box on the right hand side of the page and the current printable coupons will show up. CVS and Walgreens also offer store coupons. Walgreens issues an Easysaver book every month and it is packed with moneysaving coupons. They are located at the front of the store. CVS has been issuing coupons in a special quarterly magazine called Reinventing Beauty and costs .99cents. They also send coupons out through email.
4. In Store/On Display- You will often see coupons in stores either stuck to the product or on a display nearby.

There are some other places to find coupons but these are the basics! If you are totally new to coupons I would start with the Sunday Paper.

Soon I will share how to organize your coupons! This is really important. A good organization system will help you save even more. Stay Tuned.

She Signs Up....She Scores (FREEBIES)

I was plesantly surprised with the free sample that was in my mailbox today! Not only did I get two great products to try but I also got some great coupons with it. You can sign up for some great freebies at Freebies 4 Mom and Money Saving Mom.

Scouting Report:CVS Thanksgiving FREEBIES w/Matchups!

OK...I am way excited about all the FREE stuff at CVS during Thanksgiving weekend! Checkout scans of the ad here. There are LOTS of FREE items to be had. I'll post more detail later...just thought I would give you a peek of what's to come!

Here they are thanks to HCW

5 Hr. energy drink 2 pk. = $3.99 Get $3.99 ECB (Limit 1)

Aussie shampoo, conditioner, or styler = $2.99 Get $2.99 ECB (Limit 2)
10/12 PG Aussie product $1 off

Bic Soliel single razor w/2 cartidges & shower holder = $5.99 Get $5.99 ECB (Limit 2)
11/2 SS Bic Razor $3 off

Colgate total toothpaste = $2.99 Get $2.99 ECB (Limit 2)
11/02 SS $1/1 Colgate Total Advanced, Any 4 Oz.+ = $1.00 MM

CoverGirl Smoothers liquid makeup = $7.99 Get $7.99 ECB (Limit 1 )
10/12 PG $1 off any covergirl
11/2 PG $1 off any covergirl

CoverGirl Smoothers pressed powder = $5.99 Get $5.99 ECB (Limit 1 )
10/12 PG $1 off any covergirl
11/2 PG $1 off any covergirl

Garnier Nutritioniste cleansing towelette 25ct = $5.99 Get $5.99 ECB (Limit 1 )
11/9 RP Garnier Nutritioniste Cleanser $1 off

Gatorade G2 20oz = $1.49 Get $1.49 ECB (Limit 3 )

Hershey King size bars = $1 Get $1 ECB (Limit 1 )

Johnsons Soft Lotion = = $5.69 Get $5.69 ECB (Limit 1 )
11/2 RP Johnsons Baby Product $1 off

L’Oreal Colour Juice sheer lipgloss = $6.99 Get $6.99 ECB (Limit 2 )

Magnovox Universal Remote or Philips headphones = $6.99 Get $6.99 ECB (Limit 2 )

Maybelline Mineral Powder or Liquid Foundation $8.99 Get $8.99 ECB (Limit 1 )
9/21 RP Maybelline Foundation $2 off
10/26 RP Maybelline Foundation $3 off

Sally Hansen maximum growth plus nourishing nail color = $3.79 Get $3.79 ECB ( Limit 1 )
mq$1 off sally hansen nail treatment, color or lip (beauty book exp 12/31/08)

Tonights Match-Ups.! Ecoupons

I noticed 3 good deals you can get at Kroger this week when using Shortcuts ecoupons.

Kroger Cheese would be around 1.20 after your shortcuts coupon-cannot get cheese cheaper then that!
Kroger Ice Cream would be 2.25
Cottenelle would be FREE with ecoupons and .25 from this weeks insert

This weeks Rundown....

I went to all my stores this week. Meijer, Kroger, CVS and Walgreens.

Meijer-Not many great deals this week but I couldn't pass up the free Chex Mix. I also got a free box of Just Bunches-one of my favorites!

Total $6.23(after returning 2 packs of hair things-I got the wrong kind!)

Kroger-I made two small trips to take advantage of the Mega buy 10 get $5


Total together was around $10.
I didn't take a pic of my Walgreens trip. The most exciting thing was 2 Coffeemate Creamers for .49cents!

I will be putting together a big bag(s) for our local food pantry. My stockpile be overflowin!! And that is one of my favorite things about working the deals...giving to those in need!!!

Load um Up

I just noticed some new loadable coupons on Shortcuts!
Save $0.50 Old El Paso Taco Dinner Kit
Save $0.75 Kroger Flavor Seal Ground Beef
Save $0.45 Kroger Shredded Cheese
Save $0.50 Kroger Salsa
Save $0.50 Pillsbury Ready to Bake Cookies

If you would be able to match with a sale you could get a pretty good deal on a Taco Dinner!! And don't forget you can stack a manufactures coupons with the ecoupons!

Now I am hungry!

CVS Trip

Here is what I got at CVS today. I paid with 14.69 in ECB's and got $15 ECB's back!


I got a few things out of the 90% off cart to bring my total to $30 dollars so I could use my $5/30.
ECB=Extra Care Bucks

Today's Tip-Before you go up to the register make sure you have your coupons(in the correct order) and Extra Care Card ready to go!

Sign up for Savings

I heard some people have received coupons from Kroger in their email. You can sign up here. Hey-It's worth a try :) I just signed up this week and will let you know if I get anything.

Also you can now sign up for coupons using cellfire. It was really easy to sign up and the coupons load to your Kroger Card! I tried it today and got FREE oatmeal and Toilet Paper!

This weeks Mega Savings

I have really saved some serious $$ this week and gotten lots of Freebies!!! After early mornings(voting), late nights(watching results) and 2 days without plumbing I needed something encouraging this week!
Here is my FREE Gum-10 packs from CVS and 16 from Walgreens! Saved over $30!
My first Kroger Trip was $13.65(saved 100.30)


Free Stuff: Betty Crocker Cookie Mix, Ice Mountain Water, Colgate, Cottonelle, Carnation Milk, Tonys Pizza(thanks for the coupon Kroger!), BC boxed potatoes, Tylenol, Trix
My 2nd Kroger Trip was 17.09(saved $77.37)


Free Stuff: Cookie Mix, Cottonelle, Fruit Snacks, Herbal Essence shampoo/conditioner, 4 pouches of potatoes, sponges, Oatmeal
The Cascadian Farms frozen potatoes where 25% off and you get a $2 Catalina when you buy 2
2 @ 2.54-(2)$1 coupons=3.08-$2 Catalina=1.08 for 2 bags of potatoes!
Also at my store they had tons of Manager Specials! I got 3 bags of Hershey Kisses for $1 each and when you buy 3 you can send in for a FREE movie ticket! And a few cute packs of fall napkins for .25 each.
Meijer Trip was $10(saved 42.00)


I just had to take advantage of the Jello deal one more time! I got a Try me FREE lunch meat and for buying 4 Maxwell coffees I got a $1 Catalina!!