Wednesday Morning Goodies...

$2 off Post Cereal coupon here. (Thanks Hip2Save!) Make sure you print 2 of these and the Post Trail Mix Crunch is BOGO at CVS this week for 4.59. Use both coupons and get 2 for only .59!
*FYI: I can't seem to find this coupon anywhere on the site. Maybe it's me though.*

Free Sample of Cascadian Farm Chocolate Chip Granola bar here

$2 coupon off Ivory Snow Laundry Detergent here. You can choose to have this e-mailed or snail mailed. It only takes about 10 days to snail mail.

Hip2Save has the scoop on how to get free Starbucks chocolate at Walgreens here.

$1 off Velveeta coupon here (Thanks Hip2Save!)

That's Just Nifty Thrifty has the scoop to get a free personalized photo album here. Hurry, this ends tomorrow!

Hip2Save has the scoop on getting some free Revlon samples here.

Tuesday Morning Goodies...

Free sample of Orville Redenbacher's Natural Popcorn here (Thanks Hip2Save!)

Free sample of Total Cranberry Crunch cereal here (Thanks Hip2Save!)

$1 off any drink at Caribou Coffee here (Thanks Hip2Save!)

Free sample of Glad Force Flex bags here (Thanks CouponGeek!)

Free Sample of Paradise Island Gourmet Popcorn here (Thanks CouponGeek!)

Hip2Save has a great look at how to get Garnier Fructis Shampoo, Conditioner, or Styler for only .49 here.

Money Saving Mom has the scoop to get a free copy of What to Expect When Your Expecting here.

CouponGeek has the scoop to get a free copy of Retirement for Dummies here.

$1 off Alka-Selzer coupon here

$1 off 2 bags of Lindor Truffles coupon here. These are so good! I will be on the lookout for a sale on these. There's a possibility that WAGS will have some discounted from Christmas.

$2 off South Beach Cereal Bars coupon here

$1 off any Command product coupon here. This is a pdf, so you can print as many times as needed.

Monday Morning Goodies....

Free Mineral Makeup Sample here (Thanks Hip2Save!)

BOGO coupon for Red Gold Tomatoes here (Thanks Hip2Save!) Be sure to print this one twice!

Lots of coupons from ConAgra here ($6 in savings on various products)

$1 off any Morningstar Breakfast product here

$5 off Clorox Toilet Wand here

Glade Plug Ins BOGO Q here

Lots of AirWick coupons here (at the bottom, in the middle, there is a Print Now link)

A Few Michelina's coupons here

$27 coupon booklet mailed to you from Home Made Simple here

$1 off Quaker Oatmeal coupon here (Rumor has it that you can print this up to 10 times if you keep hitting back on your browser. Also, it looks like WAGS will have Quaker Oatmeal on sale next week for 1.99. With this, that's only .99 a box!)

A Few Great After Christmas Deals...

I don't have any real plans for shopping, but I know a few stores that have some amazing deals going on right now. JCPenney has awesome sales this weekend. I went to the one near my mom's house this morning and got a lot of great stuff for an amazing discount. Close to 90% off! They have coupons right near the front door for $10 off $50 or more or $15 off $75 or more. The best part is: these coupons do not take off a strict dollar amount off the entire order, but instead they end up taking off a percentage of each item so that the discount ends up equaling 10 or 15. Since they ring this way, they are able to scan both coupons. We ended up getting $25 dollars off both purchases we made today! I'm not positive how long these coupons are good for, but I think it is just through tomorrow. Check out JCPenney.com and you can print the coupons right from the website.

Another huge sale is at Bath and Body Works. This starts tomorrow and will last for at least a week. This is their Semi-Annual sale which happens in July and December. I went last year and got a few things, but I went in July and stocked up on a lot of big discounts. Their regular size lotions, body washes, and baody sprays were around $2 or $3 in July and I am assuming they will be the same this week. It was not all of their scents, only select ones, but I think in July it was around 30 different scants that were this cheap. It your in need for some Bath and Body Works, go check out your local store. They also have the online sale, but I prefer to smell everything first. It makes buying it more fun. LOL. You can stock up on some too, for birthdays thoughout the year and other gifts for various events.

I will try to post all my deals on here next week or so, maybe after the new year. I have some good trips to share and I need to get back on top of outlining CVS and Walgreens deals every week. I hope everyone had a Happy Holiday (whichever you celebrate) and wish everyone a Happy New Year!!

Christmas Break

I probably won't post much of anything this week and next due to Christmas. Today, I have too much to get done before we leave tomorrow and I don't know what the weekend will be like with family. So thanks everyone and be sure to come back to Chicago Savings after the holidays!
Have a great holiday season!

Today's Morning Goodies...

Get a free 8x10 photo from Walgreens. Head over to Walgreens Photo Center and upload a photo. At checkout, enter FREEGIFT and it will credit your 8x10. Shipping will cost, but if you pick up at your local Walgreens, it's free!

Get a free sample of Kleenex with lotion here.

Join the Sally Beauty Club for free. Normally $5 and you'll get lots of emails with coupons and offers. Hip2Save has the deal here.

Free Energizer Battery Charger at Walgreens. The Thrifty Mama has the deal here.

Some Morning Goodies...

1.00 Juicy Juice coupon here
Free popcorn at IMAX coupon here
25% off any item from Victoria's Secret coupon here
Bertolli coupons here
$15 off $35 purchase of yankee candles here

Pantene Sample here
Dove haircare sample here

Just a Few goodies...

Three free coupons from the Entertainment '09 book here. Just enter your zip code. (Thanks Thrifty Mama)

Free Natural Pet Treat here

Get a free razor from Old Spice here

Sign up to print Jolly Time popcorn coupons here

Print a $2 off Kashi TLC here

Around My Blogs...

So I really need to be better about this. I really need to keep my blog open while I check other peoples blogs so I can post up all the great finds on here. So maybe I'll start this on Tuesdays. (We'll see how it goes)

Around the Blogs Today:
Coupons:
Glade Scented Oil Candles BOGO Q here (Thanks Money Saving Mom)


Samples:
Always Pantiliners Sample here (Thanks Mummy Deals)
Mary Kay Miracle Set here (Thanks Coupon Geek)

Freebies:
Free 2009 Pocket planner here (Thanks Hip2Save) add it to your cart and go to checkout. No charge!
Free coupon book from Betty Crocker here (Thanks Mummy Deals)
Free Bittywink Plush toy when you register here (Thanks Frugal Fulfillment)
Free sippy cup when you register with Juicy Juice here (Thanks Frugal Fulfillment)
5 free issues of Cosmo here

Free McCafe Coffee

This is great! Go here and print you coupon for a free coffee.

*You need to enter your zip code and it will tell you if there is one close to you.*
I have been having a lot of problems with this. I know there is one right down the street, and it's telling me there isn't. So, I hope you have better luck with this one. Please let me know if you can get this to work.

I think I spend too much time in front of the computer.....

So when I see someone with a list of giveaways on their blog, I tend to head over and enter any giveaways that I think I would enjoy or that someone I know would enjoy. The good news, I happen to win every so often. The bad news, I think I spend too much time here and not enough time taking care of other things.

One of my recent wins was:

Okay, so it's kind of a bad picture. But I won a $20.00 coupon (yes, that's right, I said $20.00!) off of Jennie O turkey! I am really excited about this! Actually, I was supposed to go grocery shopping today and I would have used this, but now it's snowing and I think that whole walking to the store thing can wait til tomorrow. Anyways.., Lori over at Moms By Heart gave me this wonderful giveaway and she threw in some extra coupons from her stash! How awesome! head on over and check out Moms By Heart. It's a great blog.
I also need to credit Lori for helping me find VistaPrint. You can get 250 business cards for FREE! All you pay is shipping. Might want to check this out if you have any need for business cards.

Some Walgreens Deals This Week

There are some good deals this week at Walgreens. I am going to head over later this week because I'm pretty sure they will have another 4 day sale and I just might spend more than $25 to earn some more RR.

This week:
Progresso soup
.99 with in ad coupon - 1.10 man Q here

Coffee Mate liquid
BOGO @ 2.49 with in ad coupon - (2) 1.00 man Q here

*I have really been displeased with my Walgreens lately, so I don't know what else I will get, but you can check out some other deals here thanks to the thrifty mama!*

CVS Goodies This Week

We did a quick run to CVS on Sunday mostly because we had coupons that were expiring. Brian had a $5 off $15 and a $3 off $15 plus I had a $4 off $20. All three expired on Sunday so we figured we would just grab a few things and I'm planning on heading over one more time this week.

On Brian's Card:
10 Dove Chocolate Bars
28.90 - 8.90 sale - (10) 1.00 man Q = 10.00
3 ProMax Bars
5.97 - .97 sale = 5.00
1 Complete Contact Solution
9.99 - 1.00 sale - 2.00 man Q = 6.99
2 Lays Chips
7.98 - 3.99 BOGO sale

Total before discounts: 52.84
Total after savings: 25.98 (used 5.00 off 15.00 and 3.00 off 15.00 and 16.98 in ECB, so 1.00 OOP, 1.29 with tax)
Saved: 51.55......98%
Got Back: 5.00 ECB from Dove, 5.00 ECB from promax, 8.99 ECB on Complete


On My CVS card:
10 Dove Bars
28.90 - 8.90 sale - (10) 1.00 man Q = 10.00
1 RightGuard Spray Deodorant
9.99 - 2.00 man Q = 7.99
1 Tombstone Pizza
4.99

Total before discounts: 43.88
Total after savings: 22.98 (used 4.00 off 20.00 and 17.98 in ECB, so 1.00 OOP, 1.56 with tax)
Saved: 42.42......97%
Got Back: 5.00 ECB from Dove, 6.00 ECB from Right Guard


I plan on going back and getting a few more things. i want to get more of the ProMax bars since they are free, but this is a monthly deal. I think a coupon came one week in the paper, but somehow I can't find mine. There is also a TON of clearanced makeup, so with coupons some of those should be free. There aren't a lot of great deals this week, but next week will have a ton of free items! You can check out some more deals for this week at the Thrifty Mama.

$25 Gift Cerficicate for only $2!

Right now, you can get a $25 gift certificate for only $2! At Restaurant.com, pick your restaurant and at checkout enter the code SANTA. You can also get a $10 gift certificate for only .80! These will print right from your computer, you won't have to wait for any shipment. Each restaurant has specifics for how the certificate can be used so make sure you read these. Great gift idea if you still need some ideas.

Still need gift tags?

Here's some cute gift tags that you can print:

Dr. Seuss tags

Land O Lakes tags (I promise these do not have pics of butter. LOL)

I like both of them a lot. We have plenty of gift tags so we won't be using any, but they are really cute.

Some freebies ;)

Here are a few good freebies online:

Free printable calendar (1 year on 1 page) here

Free Chicago neighborhoods poster here


*I'll keep updating this as I find more*

WOW!! My CVS Trip Today!

4 Blade Energy Drinks
7.96 - 1.96 sale - (4) 2.00 man. Q = 2.00 profit
1 Maybelline Liquid Foundation
5.99 - 3.00 clearance - 3.00 man. Q = .01 profit
1 Danish Cookie Tin
3.49 - .50 sale - 1.00 CVS Q = 1.99
1 Powerade
1.69 - .10 sale = 1.59
2 Complete Contact Solution
19.98 - 2.00 sale - (2) 2.00 man Q = 13.98 (6.99 each)
2 Maybelline LipShine
15.98 - 7.99 BOGO sale - (2) 4.00 man. Q = .01 profit

Total before savings: 55.09
Total after savings: 15.57 (17.02 with tax) (used $5/$15, 6.00ECB and 4.47 ECB, so 1.55 OOP)
Saved: 53.54......97%
Got back: 19.59 in ECB

I also picked up my photo cards which were already paid for.

I won a giveaway!

I really should have posted this last month, but I wasn't really able to do much blogging then. I entered quite a few giveaways during the big October bloggy giveaway carnival and I won one! Here's what I got:

Not a great picture, but I don't want to open it. It includes a box of chex mix turtle bars, chocolate candles, caramel lotion, a loofah, hand massager, nail brush, and spa towel. I am so excited to give this to my aunt for Christmas. I know she will just love it! This is all thanks to The Life of a Home Mom. Thanks so much!

A Big Thank You!

I got this in the mail yesterday! 2 cards for 10 free prints each! I won this from Heather at Mommy Likes It or Not. This is a great blog with product reviews and giveaways! Right now, there is a Build a Bear Giveaway going on until Saturday night. Check it out!

Walgreens 4 day sale!

Walgreens is doing it again! They have a four day sale going on. When you spend $25 on anything in the store, you get 5$ in RR back! The best part is: it counts the $25 before coupons! Here's a great example of how to use this deal: Arm and Hammer laundry detergent is typically 6.99. If you buy 4 of these your total is over $25. Then use the Walgreens in ad coupon for Arm and Hammer at 1.99. This brings your total down to $7.96. Then use 4 1.00 man Q found here and your total comes down to $3.96! Plus you get $5 in RR! There are some other great deals going on. Thrifty Mama has a good over view of these here.

Free Nail Polish at Walgreens

Walgreens has a bunch on makeup on clearance. You can still use coupons for all of these clearance items! If you were able to get the reinventing beauty book full of coupons from CVS there are Sally Hansen nail polish coupons. 3.00 off 2 Sally Hansen nail polishes and Walgreens has then on clearance for only 1.39! This makes them free! I have tried this one already and the only problem I have run into is that Walgreens will not let me have an overage. So in order to max out this deal, I have been buying 11 nail polishes and using 5 of these coupons, making all 11 only 29 cents!!!

Win a Giveaway to Giveaway!

Marli at Womanly Excellence is giving away a two year subscription to All You Magazine for the winner to give away on their blog! This is a great idea! A giveaway can bring a lot more viewers to your blog! Check it out and enter here!

Update on the photo cards!

There is a new code that you can combine with the others. It will knock your cards down to 3-4 dollars! Too bad I already ordered mine.

Before you enter 20freecards, enter the code: INSTYLE08 (this is another 25% off and expires on 12/31)

Awesome Kodak Holiday Photo card deal!!

Really great Kodak photo card deal!! If you order 3 sets of 10 5x7 cards, you can get all 30 for only $5.45!!!!!
Cards must be the flat cards, no open cards and this price is if you pick them up instead of having them delivered. Delivery would be slightly more.
Log in to KodakGallery.com and create your card. Make sure you order three sets of 10 and when you get to the checkout page, enter these codes: (in this order)
HOLIDAYGREEN (this has been working for some people, but not always. I couldn't get it to work. It is 20% off $30 or more. Expires 12/24)
Then enter:
4UCJ08 (this is a 20% off $20 or more. May work with other code, not sure. Expires 12/31)
Lastly, enter:
20freecards (takes off 2 sets of 10!! Expires 12/24)

When I did mine, I could only use the last 2 codes and after choosing to pick up in store, it came to 5.45 for all 30 cards!

If you are doing more than 30 cards, here is a site with other codes: Kodak coupon codes
Also, here is the blog I found this deal at, just in case I didn't explain it well: Money Saving Methods

Some Awesome Giveaways!!!

There are some great giveaways going on right now! I will be adding to this throughout the day (maybe the week...?). Good luck to everyone who enters. I am keeping my fingers crossed. There are some great opportunities to get some Christmas presents for the people still on my list.

Avon Basket Giveaway This has some wonderful products! Great gift for someone else or keep for yourself!

A Different Avon Giveaway Another great one! I love Avon giveaways!

Soda Machine Giveaway This looks so cool!

Avon Giveaway I love these!!!

Gift Card Giveaway The winner has a choice of 4 different gift cards!

$15 Subway Gift Card Yum!!!

$100 Wal-Mart Gift Card Yes, that says $100! Can you believe it??

Febreze candle giveaway These smell so good!

Personalized Baby Blanket Giveaway These are so beautiful!

100th post Giveaway Congrats! This one includes coffee mug, tea, and other fun prizes.

Lotion Giveaway Who doesn't need some lotion? Especially in the winter.

Thrifty Mama 100 Followers Giveaway This has a $5 giftcard to CVS, Walgreens, and Rite Aid!!

Photo Note Pads I love these! What a wonderful idea!

$25 Meijer Gift Card $25 could go a really long way with all your coupons!

Monogrammed Tea Towel This is so cute! Take a look at the tea towels and other items from Plantation Designs here.

Christmas ornaments These are filled with lavender buds! Check out the Southern Belle Etsy shop too.

WowWee Alive Cub These are so cute! And would make a wonderful gift! Check out the WowWee website for more cool toys!

Christmas DVD Giveaway Great gift package for kids!

Cleaning package giveaway Includes the wonder mop!

Dirt Tamer Giveaway Awesome giveaway!

Fill In The Blankie Giveaway These are beautiful! Checkout Fill In The Blankie website too!

Eco-Friendly Planner The company that makes these is wonderful! All recycled materials!

Avon Makeup Giveaway Another Avon Giveaway! Love it!

Avon Skin Care Maybe someone will end up with all avon? LOL

Nokia Phone Giveaway This is amazing! a $500 Nokia phone

NEW JK ROWLING BOOK!!! OMG! I am so excited for this one!

Another Avon Skincare giveaway Really, can you tell I'd like to win some Avon?

Progresso Gift Basket This one is great!

Flip Camera Giveaway This is so cool. What a gift. Or a great way to get lots of pictures this Christmas!

Cute Apron Giveaway These aprons are so cute!

Well.....

Well, I decided that there is pretty much no chance of me getting on top of everything this month. So I will not be posting deals to go along with the weekly ads. ,Instead I would recommend checking out some of the sites I have posted as favorites. The Thrifty Mama is a great site to help out with the weekly ad deals. I will be posting some great deals that I am able to find if I do much shopping at all. Sorry about this, it's just a little time consuming and I have a lot of stuff to do before the holidays.

I'm Back...

Well, I missed posting two weeks of deals including Black Friday, but I'm going to jump back in this week. Just a warning that I may fall behind at points this month. I have finals next week and then with the holidays I'm not sure yet when we will be home and away. So sorry for the delay and the possible breaks, but I'm gonna try to stick on track now. :)

CVS Trip 11/13

Awesome trip tonight! I got a $4 off $20 in my email and decided this would be fun! With these type of coupons from CVS, it can used before other coupons and ECB. So your total must be $20 or more, use this, then however many ECB you need to use, then all your other coupons. Here's what we got tonight:

2 boxes Kellogg's Corn Pops
8.78 - 4.78 sale - (2) 1.00 man Q here = 2.00 (1.00 each)
8 Blade Energy drinks
15.92 - (8) 2.00 CVS Q from beauty book (she let 2 ring up at 2.00, then adjusted the rest to 1.99) = .02 profit!
2 small bags of chips (couldn't find anything else to add, and really wanted some chips)
1.98
2 can of refried beans (somehow did not make it into the picture)
1.98

Total before savings: 28.68
Total after savings: 3.67 (5.29 with tax) (used 1.00 ECB and 4.00 off of 20.00 , so .29 OOP) OOP with tax this time. It was FREE without tax, our coupons just ate into the tax amount!
Saved: 28.39......99%

YAY!

All You Mag Giveaway

Here's a great Giveaway! a 2 year subscription to All You Magazine. If you don't know, All You is full of great coupons. Even if you already get this, you can get a double subscription. Go here to enter. Thanks for the tip Thrifty Mama!

Some Great Trips This Week

Okay, I gotta put up a few of our trips this week. As usual, we have been making really small trips pretty much everyday this week. Okay, I have gone to Walgreens once and we have gone to CVS 3 times and are planning on going again tonight. I think at this point we are excited about all the deals. We also justify it by getting exercise walking and getting out of the house for a bit. I think pretty soon we will be going once a week and getting everything we plan on and that's it. At that point, we will need to spend more OOP, but we will really get a jump on our ECB.

CVS Trips:
Monday Night:

On My CVS Card:
1 Palmolive Dish Soap
1.59 - .10 sale = 1.49
1 Garnier Fructis Styler
4.49 - 1.50 sale - 1.00 man Q (from 11/9 insert) = 1.99
4 Peanuts Halloween Notepads
5.96 - 5.36 clearance = .60 (.15 each)

Total before discounts: 12.04
Total after savings: 4.08 OOP, this is without tax (I never put the tax in because I know how ridiculous our rate is and its very different in other places)
Saved: 7.69......66%
Got Back: 2.00 ECB on the Garnier and 1.00 ECB on the Palmolive

Brian's CVS Card:
1 Palmolive Dish Soap
1.59 - .10 sale = 1.49
1 Garnier Fructis Styler
4.49 - 1.50 sale - 1.00 man Q (from the 11/9 insert) = 1.99
1 Peanuts Halloween Notepad
1.49 - 1.34 clearance = .15

Total before savings: 7.57
Total after savings: 3.63 (used 3.49 ECB, so .14 OOP) this is without tax
Saved: 7.43......98%
Got Back: 2.00 ECB on the Garnier and 1.00 ECB on the Palmolive


Tuesday Night:

On My CVS Card:
3 Palmolive Dish Soap
4.77 - .30 sale = 4.47

Total before discounts: 4.77
Total after savings: 4.47 (used 3.00 ECB, so 1.47 oop) this is without tax
Saved: 3.30......69%
Got Back: 3.00 ECB on the Palmolive


On Brian's CVS card:
2 Palmolive Dish Soap
3.18 - .20 sale = 2.98
1 Bic Comfort 3 Advanced Razors (we had a rain check from 2 weeks ago)
5.89 - .90 sale - 4.00 ECB price adjust from rain check - .96 man Q (from inside the last box we bought, and she adjusted this Q from 1.00 to .96, not sure why, I didn't notice til now) = .03
1 Blade energy drink
1.99 - 2.00 CVS Q (found in the beauty book coupon insert that is found in store) = .01 profit!

Total before discounts: 11.06
Total after savings: 3.00 ( used 3.00 ECB, so FREE oop) this is without tax, we only paid tax on this one! 26 cents!!
Saved: 11.06......100%
Got Back: 2.00 ECB on the Palmolive


Wednesday Night Trip:

My CVS card:
2 boxes Corn Pops
8.78 - 4.78 sale - (2) 1.00 man Q here = 2.00 (1.00 each)
1 Palmolive dish soap (surprise!)
1.59 - .10 sale = 1.49
1 Package RainBlo Halloween Bubble Gum
.99 - .90 clearance = .09

Total before discounts: 11.36
Total after discounts: 3.58 (used 3.00 ECB, so .58 oop) this is without tax
Saved: 10.78......95%
Got Back: 1.00 ECB on the Palmolive


Brian's CVS Card:
4 Blade energy drinks
7.96 - (4) 2.00 CVS Q = .04 profit!
3 Halloween nerd ropes
2.97 - 2.70 clearance = .27
1 box Swedish Fish
1.00 - .91 clearance = .09

Total before discounts: 11.93
Total after discounts: .32 oop, this is without tax (our tax was only .01!)
Saved: 11.61......97%


I forgot about the Walgreens trip:
2 Glade Air Freshners
3.98 - 2.00 WAGS Q - BOGO man Q (from 11/2 insert) = .99 for 2
2 Coffee Mate
4.98 - WAGS BOGO Q - (2) 1.00 man Q here = .49 for 2

Total before discounts: 8.96

Total after savings: 1.48 oop this is without tax

Saved: 7.21.....80%

No picture of this one sorry.

$5 off $20 at Walgreens this Friday and Saturday

This Friday and Saturday only there is a $5 off of $20 or more coupon. Only at coupons.com, I tried for a direct link and this should work out. Let me know if you have any problems. Your total must be 2$0 after all other coupons and before taxes so plan carefully. I am not planning on using this, but some good options are to use it on the free after rebate items from this months easy saver.

*Update: the direct link doesn't work it brings you to the same place. You can click on either link and then click on Walgreens on the left. This will put the Walgreens coupon at the top of the list. "Clip" it and print or browse through the rest and clip any you need.*

CVS deals 11/9-11/15

Okay, now onto CVS....
If you don't have a CVS card, get one! free sign up and the only way you will be able to take advantage of everything at CVS.

Glaceau Smart Water 1.59 LIMIT 1
- 1.59 ECB
= FREE (1.59 OOP)

Garnier Fructis Shampoo, Conditioner, or Styler 2.99 LIMIT 1
- 1.00 man Q (11/9 insert)
- 2.00 ECB
= .01 profit! (1.99 OOP)

Palmolive Dish Soap 1.49 LIMIT 5
- .25/1 (10/26 insert)
- 1.00 ECB
= .24 (1.24 OOP)

3 12 packs Pepsi, Mountain Dew, or Dr. Pepper 3/$10
- 2.00 ECB
= 3/$8 (10.00 OOP)

Altoids BOGO @ 1.99
- (2) 1.00/1 peelies found right on the Altoids
= .01 profit!

Glade Air Freshener Spray .99
- BOGO man Q (10/12 insert)
= .99 for 2

Spend $15 on select Garnier Fructis products and receive $5.00 ECB
- 1.00 man Q (11/9 insert) use as many Qs as produsts to get the best deal

Neutrogena MoistureSine Soothing Lipshears 5.99 LIMIT 1
- 1.00 man Q here
- 3.00 ECB
= 1.99, OOP: 4.99

Any Rimmel Mascara 6.99 LIMIT 1
- 1.00 man Q (9/14 insert)
- 4.00 ECB
= 1.99, OOP: 5.99

Listerine Agent Cool Blue Tinting Rinse 3.99 LIMIT 5
- 1.00 man Q here
- 1.00 CVS Q from the CVS Diabetes book found in store (at mine, it was by the front registers)
- 3.00 ECB
= 1.01 profit!!! OOP: 1.99

Kelloggs cereal (Rice Krispies, Apple Jacks, Fruit Loops, Corn Flakes, Corn Pops, and Raisin Bran) 2/$4
- 1.00 man Q (11/9 insert) Becareful: check the specific sizes and items on Q OR
- 1.00 man Q here
use 1 Q for each item
= 2/$2

These are the ones I think are good deals. Parts of this list are helped from The Thrifty Mama and I heart CVS. Thanks so much!

Some Great Deals This Week

So my attempt to figure out the best deals of the week didn't really happen the way I wanted it to. Okay, it didn't happen at all. School has been especially time consuming this week. Again, I will try to do some matchups when we get the paper this weekend, but I won't be home for some of the time and I'm not sure I will get it all done. I'm hoping just maybe I can have it done by Monday, but let's plan on Tuesday. I did want to share some of the best deals this week before the week is past us, and share what I got this week. (I did this with some help from The Thrifty Mama! Thanks!)

Walgreens 11/9-11/15

2 bags Hersheys miniatures (special dark chocolate) 2/$4
- 1.00 ESQ
- (2) 1.00 man Q (11/9 insert)
= 1.00 for 2 bags
*I have not been able to find the dark chocolate, going to try another store, hope you have better luck*

5 lb. bag Domino Sugar 1.99 with WAGS Q
- .50 man Q (10/12 insert)
= 1.49 each

Libby's 100% Pure Pumpkin .99 with WAGS Q
- 1.00/2 man Q here
= .98 for 2

Coffee Mate Liquid 2.49
- BOGO WAGS Q
- (2) 1.00/1 man Q here
= .49 for 2

Betty Crocker Frosting .99 with WAGS Q
- .55 man Q here
= .44 each

Glade Air Freshner Spray .99 with WAGS Q
- BOGO man Q (11/2 insert)
= .99 for 2
(there are plenty of glade coupons out there, I just used this one)

Reach Toothbrush .99 with WAGS Q
- BOGO (10/12 insert)
= .99 for 2

Progresso Soup 4/$5 with WAGS Q
- 1.10/1 man Q here
= .15 each!
(you will need to print 4 of these, 2 from 2 different computers)

I think those are the best deals this week, there are some Register Rewards deals going on, but I haven't quite gotten the hang of these compared with the CVS ECB. Just a warning, some stores will not print the register rewards if you use a man. Q with the items. I have not run into this at mine, but be ready. Personally, I will just ask if I can return them if this happens, but it's your call. Here's some register reward deals this week:

2 Kotex Products (Tampons, Maxi Pads, or Pantiliners) 2/$6
- (2) 1.00 /1 man Q here
- 1.00 RR
= 2/$3, OOP: 2/$4

Buy Three or more, get $5 RR: (if you are doing up to 6, do two separate transactions to get $10, and remember: the RR from your first transaction can not be used on the second. RR cannot be used on products from the same company)

Lactaid Fast Act 9.99
-1.00 man Q (10/5 insert)
= 8.99

Pepcid AC Maximum Strength 9.99
-1.00 man Q here
= 8.99

Imodium Multi Symptom Relief 9.99
-2.oo man Q (9/7 insert)
= 7.99

Tylenol Allergy, Cold & Sinus 4.99
-1.00 man Q (9/28 insert)
= 3.99

Sudafed PE 3.99
-1.00/1 man Q here
= 2.99

Sudacare or Shower Soothers 3.99
-1.50 man Q (10/5 insert)
= 2.49

Zyrtec Allergy Relief 18.99
-4.00/1 man Q (10/12 insert) OR
-2.00/1 man Q here
= 14.99 OR 16.99

Benadryl 6.99
-1.00/1 man Q here
= 5.99

Tylenol PM 7.49
-1.00/1 man Q (10/5 insert)
= 6.49

Tylenol Extra Strength Rapid Release Gels 7.49
-2.00/1 man Q )9/14 insert)
= 5.49


Kelloggs RR:
4 boxes of select Kelloggs cereal (includes Raisin Bran, Special K, Smart Start, and Frosted Mini Wheats) 4/$10
- (4) 1.00 man Q here
- 2.00 RR
= 4/$4, OOP: 4/$6

This is all I have come up with. There are also the free after rebate items from the ESC:
These are good for the whole month (until 11/22), not just this week.

L'oreal age perfect pro-calcium radiance perfector up to $19.99
-2.00 WAGS Q (from 10/5 insert, NOT the WAGS ad)
-1.00 man Q here
= FREE plus overage!!
(remember if you choose to get your rebate on a WAGS Gift Card, you will get an additional 10% back)

Almay one coat mascara 6.99
- 1.00/1 man Q (10/12 insert)
= FREE plus overage!!

Our Jewel Trip Last Night

So we sort of stuck to our plan.....We went to Jewel and got the $30 deal so we could get the $15 back. We also were on the lookout for other great deals that we could use with one of the $5 coupons. Unfortunately, they were out of the Butterball turkey I was hoping to get so we just made a couple of other buys. We rang up in 4 separate transactions and everything went flawlessly. What I learned: at that Jewel they do not need to put in all of your coupons in the self check out! The coupon will scan and then you put it in the slot. This was so great because I know that I have real coupons and no internet fakes and I hate feeling like I am holding up a line or driving the cashier crazy when I hand over my stack of coupons. So here's a breakdown of what we got:
Transaction 1:
2 Wishbone Bountifuls Salad Dressing (I had an internet coupon, but when I tried to link it, the offer is gone. Sorry)
7.18 - 3.84 sale - (2) 1.00 man Q = 1.34 (.67 each)
4 Better Crocker Bagged Cookie Mixes (coupon)
10.76 - 4.10 sale - (4) .75 man Q = 3.66 (.91-.92 each)
3 Betty Crocker Frosting Tubs (print with the cookies)
6.27 - 1.26 sale -(3) .55 man Q = 3.36 (1.12 each)
1 Knorr Sides Plus Veggies (coupon)
2.75 - 1.08 sale - .60 man Q = 1.07
7 Betty Crocker Potatoes (print with other Betty Crocker)
19.03 - 9.03 sale - (7) .40 man Q = 4.20 (.60 each)
6 Green Giant Boxed veggies (print with Betty Crocker)
14.40 - 8.40 sale - (3) 1.00/2 man Q = 3.00 (.50 each)
1 Vaseline Lotion (had a coupon from the paper last week)
3.49 - .99 sale - 1.25 man Q = 1.25

Total before discounts: 60.88
Total after discounts: 17.88oop this is without tax
Saved: 43.00......71%
Got Back: 3 5.00 Jewel coupons (these have no limitations except they cannot be used together)

Transaction 2:
1 Bag Tyson Chicken Strips (had a newspaper Q...not sure from when, sometime in Oct. Sorry)
9.99 - 2.00 sale - 1.00 man Q = 6.99

Total before discounts: 9.99
Total after discounts: 6.99 (used 5.00 Jewel Q, so 1.99 oop) this is without tax
Saved: 8.00......80%

Transaction 3:
1 Box Presidents Choice Chicken Wings
8.99 - 3.00 sale = 5.99

Total before discounts: 8.99
Total after discounts: 5.99 (used 5.00 Jewel Q, so .99 oop) this is without tax
Saved: 8.00......89%

Transaction 4:
3 Progresso Soups (printed with Bettey Crocker)
8.55 - 5.58 sale - 1.00/3 man Q = 1.97 (.65-.66 each)
2 Pure Protein Bars (had a newspaper Q)
3.58 - 1.58 sale - 1.50/2 man Q = .50 (.25 each)
2 Bags of Doritos
7.98 - 3.99 BOGO sale = 3.99 (1.99 -2.00 each)

We only got the Doritos because we weren't up to 5.00 to use our Jewel Q and it was 10:30 so we just grabbed. I'm sure there were way better deals, but oh well.

Total before discounts: 20.11
Total after discounts: 6.46 (used 5.00 Jewel Q, so 1.46 oop) this is without tax
Saved: 18.65......93%

Our totals for the whole trip:
Total before discounts: 99.97
Total after discounts: 37.32 (used (3) 5.00 Jewel Q, so 22.32 oop) this is without tax (with tax: 23.76)
Saved: 77.65......78%
WOW! I can't believe it!

Jewel Deal...Good Today and Tomorrw

There is a special at Jewel that is only good until tomorrow. Buy $30 of the listed items and get $15 back. You can mix and match as many of the items as you'd like and as long as you spend $30 or more, you will get back 3 $5 coupons that can be used next time at Jewel. The catch is, you cannot use all three of the $5 coupons at once, only one at a time. So..my plan is this: I will be going to Jewel tonight and buying $30 of these items. Then, using my coupons, I will knock that $30 down to under 20 (I'm gonna try for 15, but we'll see.) And once I finish, I will turn around and do three more transactions for meat and maybe something else not included if I can find some good deals tonight. A good $5 option is the Butter ball ground turkey. It's on sale for 2/$7 and there are 1.00 coupons here. I know it says .55, but it's printing 1.00. Make sure to click the back button and print two. (Mine actually let me print six, usually its only two....so yay!) You may have to hit back like five times. Anyways, if you use two of these then it's 2 for 5.00 minus your 5.00 Jewel coupon and all you pay is tax!
Here's a list of the items offered for the $30 deal:
Some of the printable sites require you to sign up. If you do, I would recommend using a new email address in case of spam. I have gmail and I don't get a lot, or else it filters for me, but you can always create a new yahoo or whatever. Also, some Jewel stores are particular about Internet coupons. One by me won't take them at all. The other will, but certain ones get rejected. Also, it depends on the cashier. I called ahead to ask and then decided to try it. I still run into some minor problems though. Just a warning....be patient and friendly.

10/$10 Items
~Knorr Pasta or Rice Sides
~Betty Crocker Potatoes (Can print coupons here and here)
~Lipton Recipe Secrets Mixes
~Green Giant Frozen Boxed Vegetables (here and here)
~Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream Cups (Some Qs in the paper a few weeks ago)
~Slim-Fast Meal Bars or High Protein Meal Bars
~Betty Crocker Cake Mix (print with the potatoes and green giant veggies)

6/$10 Items
~Ragu Pasta Sauce
~Wish Bone Salad Dressing, Salad Spritzers or Bountifuls Dressing
~Knorr Sides Plus Veggies
~Traditional Progresso Soup
~Progresso Broth
~Betty Crocker Brownie Mix
~Betty Crocker Cookie Mix
~Hamburger, Tuna or Chicken Helper
~Betty Crocker Frosting
~Bisquick Shake 'n Pour Pancake Mix
~Suave Professionals Shampoo or Conditioner
~Suave for Kids 2-in-1 Shampoo
~Suave Professionals Styling Products
~Suave Invisible Solid Anti-Perspirant Deodorant
~Suave Body Wash

4/$10 Items
~Pillsbury Toaster Strudel
~Gold Medal Flour
~Pop Secret Popcorn
~Cheerios, Chex, Chex Select, Gardetto's or Bugles Snack Mix
~Pillsbury Cookie Dough Ready to Bake!
~Lipton Iced Tea to Go
~Country Crock Spread
~Spreadable Butter Bowl
~Yoplait GoGurt, Trix or Kids Yogurt
~Skippy Peanut Butter
~Lipton or Pyramid Tea Bags
~Lipton Green Tea or Herbal Tea
~Q-tips Cotton Swabs
~Suave Lotion
~Vaseline Intenxive Car Lotion
~Dove or Degree Invisible Solid Anti-Perspirant/Deodorant
~Dove 2-pack Bar Soap
~General Mills Chex, Cheerios, Golden Grahams, Trix or Total Cereal

3/$10 Items
~Hellmann's Mayonnaise
~Romano's Macaroni Grill Entrees
~Klondike Bars
~All Laundry Detergent
~Breyers Ice Cream
~Totino's Pizza Rolls
~Country Crock Side Dishes
~Dove Shampoo or Conditioner
~Slim Fast Snack Bars

I have a few Qs that came in the paper and some I'm not sure what site I got them from, but I will keep searching and try to get them all up tonight....then you can run tomorrow if you'd like to use up this deal.

Free 8x10 Photo at Walgreens Through Saturday

If you go to the Walgreens Photo Website, and upload your photo, you can get one free 8x10 pic with the promo code FREEPIC. If you have it shipped to you, it will cost .12, but if you choose to pick it up, it is totally free. Pick up a frame from Target or Walmart (make sure you check out the clearance aisles) and this is an easy Christmas gift!

Razor Giveaway at WAGS!!!

Here's a great deal! In the clearance bin at my Walgreens, there were Bic Soleil Shimmer Razors and Refills for only 3.49. There is also a 3.00 coupon in the WAGS easysaver catalog, which will take 3.00 off each! Even with out any coupons from Sunday's paper, this is great! But if you still have coupons from Sunday (I had one 3.00 off a razor and one 1.00 off a cartridge found inside the razor I bought at Target), these will be money makers. We went tonight, dug through the clearance bin, and took all that we could find. I got 4 razors and 2 refills, and still had a 1.06 overage! We then cleared them out of 2 packs of Barbasol shaving cream that was marked for .99. I couldn't find a coupon for this but for 4 razors, 2 refills, and 5 2-packs of shaving cream we payed only 3.89 (without tax) and 6.54 (with our ridiculous 10.25% tax). We could have only done the razors and refills, but we needed some shaving cream and I was okay with this price.

Here's a breakdown of our trip:

4 Razors
27.96 - 14.00 clearance - 12.00 ESQ - 3.00 man Q = 1.04 profit
2 refills (4 packs)
13.98 - 7.00 clearance - 6.00 ESQ - 1.00 man Q = .02 profit
5 2-packs Shaving Cream
19.90 - 14.95 clearance = 4.95

Total before discounts: 61.84

Total after savings: 3.98 oop this is without tax

Saved: 57.95.....94%

Another Christmas Idea!

This is thanks to Money Saving Mom. You can see the post here.

This is great! On the Whole Foods website, they have recipes for Christmas gifts! Mixes and such that you can make at home and bag or jar for a wonderful homemade Christmas gift! They even have recipe cards you can print to go with them.
Whole Foods Recipe link here.

KB Toys coupon

I just heard about this one! Its a 20% off entire purchase plus $10 bonus bucks when you spend $30 or more! The 20% is only good on Nov. 9th from 5-6 p.m. Great coupon for Christmas toys!

KB Toys

Week Delay....

Sorry for the week off. It's just been a busy week. I have a few deals to share....

After clipping everything from Sunday's paper, Brian and I took a trip to Target. I have heard about this deal with Starbucks chocolate. Many Target stores have bars of Starbucks chocolate on clearance for very cheap (I have heard as low as 64 cents!!) There are tear pads of 1.00 off any Starbucks coupons at many grocery stores. I found mine at Jewel. I took a nice little stack of these coupons and wanted to check this out for possible stocking stuffers and other Christmas ideas. However, when I went to my Target, these were on clearance for 2.64 and I wasn't interested. But, while looking around I was able to get the Bic Soleil Razors and refills for only 1.50 each. (silly me, not really a good deal, but I was a little excited.) Both the razors and refills are on sale this week for 4.49 and there were 3.00 off coupons in Sundays paper. I also had a 3.00 Target coupon from corporate for a problem I had at a different store a few weeks ago. So, they ended up being free. But the good news: I saved one 3.00 coupon for the razor and inside the one razor I bought, there was a 1.00 off coupon for other refills.

I also made a CVS boo-boo this past week. I went with a list and ECB and everything and when they didn't have something, I got something else with coupons and got a great deal.....but I didn't get anything that gave me ECB back!!! So I had to basically start all over. I am planning on keeping track a lot better on here and trying to put up more deals than the ones I am getting, but as I am still learning, I would recommend checking out some other blogs also. I have a list of blogs that I love on the right. There are deals that I may miss or unadvertised deals that no one knew of. I will do my best to link to many online coupons and also keep track of what date newspaper coupons come from. Please be patient while I attempt this. I am also in the process of posting a beginners how-to post. I am hoping to have this done next week.

Goldstar Events

We love to go see plays and go to other events nearby, but this can really bust your budget. I want to share this wonderful site with you. We use Goldstar to get tickets for really cheap. When you sign up for Goldstar, you put in what city or cities you would like to search and you'll get e-mails when new events are close to you. Usually, everything is half price and sometimes, there are free events. There is a small service fee per ticket, but we have gone to a few already and with free tickets, have only paid around 5.00 for 2 tickets. Try it out! There are tickets for concerts, plays, sporting events, and this week there were even haunted houses.

$10 off of $10 at JCPenney

JCPenney Deal (This is from Southern Savers)

This is a great deal! It can only be used online and expires on Saturday. It looks like some people are having problems with this working with toys, but so far everything else is good. There are a lot of good deals in the JCPenney outlet section. There's specifically a $9.99 and less section too. If you want to start using ebates, you can earn money back from your online purchases. For JCPenney, it is 4%,

More Fun Giveaways

So I have been looking at a lot of giveaways, and thought some were really worth sharing. Check some of these out:

Personalized Kids Pack from Olive Kids

Sock Grams Giveaway

Classic Toy Giveaway

$20 Gift Card

Fabric Baby Block Giveaway

Land's End Diaper Bag Giveaway

Target or Walmart Gift Card

Lazy Spoon Giveaway

Danskin Trainer Tank

Fall Decorations Giveaway

Journaling Guide

Fabkins Giveaway

Bib Giveaway

This is all I've got for you right now. I can't believe how many there are. Enjoy!

Found a Few More

Check out the Bloggy Giveaways. There's more than 1000 on here. Some others that are great are:

Tupperware Giveaway

$15 Starbucks Gift Card

Soda Machine

$50 Amazon Gift Card

Fabkins Giveaway

Sweet Valley Candle Giveaway

$25 Target Gift Card

Dyson Vacuum Giveaway

Amazon Gift Card

Laptop Case

$10 CVS Gift Card

Baby Shoes Giveaway

Cookbook Stand

Herb Garden Giveaway

Photo Tote Bag

Fabric and Patterns Giveaway

Build a Bear Gift Card

Found Giveaways

Here are some great giveaways on other blogs:

Starbucks Gift Card

Barnes and Noble Gift Card

Build a Bear Gift Card

Another Build a Bear Gift Card

Amazon Gift Card

Hometown Cookbook Giveaway

Cuddle Up With a Good Book Giveaway

Free Wallet


Check it out!

Some of My Fav Sites

I just wanted to put out a few of my favorite sites. I love to check these for other deals and see if I missed anything while going over the ads.

The Thrifty Mama (Great explanations for all deals! Other tips and tricks)

CouponMom (Great ebooks, forums, ect.)

Hillbilly Housewife (I love the recipes on here)

I Heart CVS (for everything CVS)

I Heart WAGS (for everything Walgreens)

Money Saving Mom (More deals and other tips)

CVS 10/27

Here's our two seperate transactions tonight.

Brian:
1 Crest Spin pro Series Toothbrush
7.99 - 3.00 sale - 2.00 man. Q = 2.99
1 Butane lighter (we need these to hand light our oven)
1.00

Total before discounts: 8.99
Total after savings: 3.99 ( used 2.99 ECB, so 1.00 oop) this is without tax
Saved: 7.99......89%
Got Back: 2.00 ECB on the toothbrush


My transaction:
5 SoyJoy Bars
6.45 - 1.45 sale - 3.00 man. Q = 2.00
1 Crest Spin Pro Series Toothbrush
7.99 - 3.00 sale - 2.00 man. Q = 2.99
1 Advil PM LiquidGels 8 ct.
.99 - 1.00 man Q = .01 profit
2 Palmolive Dish Soap
3.38 - 1.69 BOGO sale - (2) .25 man Q = 1.19

Total before discounts: 18.81
Total after discounts: 6.17 (used 2.99 ECB and 2.00 ECB, so 1.18 oop) this is without tax
Saved: 17.63......94%
Got Back: 4.00 ECB on the SoyJoy bars and 2.00 ECB on the toothbrush


Brian was going to have the Bic razors from the ad on his transaction, but they were out so we had to get a rain check.
To get the toothbrush coupon, go here.
There were SoyJoy coupons from the inserts 10/26, and you can get this 3.00 off 5 bars here.
Advil coupons can be found here.
The palmolive coupons were in the inserts 10/26, I haven't been able to find any others online.
Be sure to print the coupons twice. If this is possible, the site will let you hit the back button and print again. When I use Firefox, I only have to hit back once. With Internet Explorer, its more like 3 or 4 times. These are just the deals I decided were worth it, there are quite a few more.

10/24 Haul WAGS and Jewel

I think we got some great deals last night! We took advantage of the double dippin' days at Walgreens and our 5 off of 20 coupon. Here's what we got:

WAGS trip:
1 Black Ink Cartridge Refill
10.00 - 2.50 WAGS Q = 7.50
1 Color Ink Cartridge
15.00 - 3.75 WAGS Q = 11.25
4 pack Schick Quatro Women's Razors
8.49 - 8.49 man. BOBO Q = FREE
1 Airwick Freshmatic Starter Kit
13.49 - 7.50 sale - 4.00 man Q = 1.99 oop - 3.30 ESR = 1.31 profit!
10 pack Schick Xtreme3 Men's Razors
12.99 - 2.00 oct. ESQ - 3.00 nov. ESQ = 7.99
1 small bag of Doritos
.99
1 Small Pocket Calculator (Perfect for my binder)
2.00 - 1.00 clearance = 1.00
6 Colgate MaxFresh (Like I need more toothpaste...lol)
17.94 - 12.30 clearance - (6) 1.00 man Q. = .36 profit!
Also Used the 5.00 off 20.00

Total before discounts: 80.90

Total after savings: 25.36 oop this is without tax

Got back 3.30 ESR.

Saved: 55.54.....69%

Here's our Jewel trip:
1 Jewel Mustard
1.59 -.59 sale = 1.00
2 Barber Chicken Kiev
11.98 - 5.99 sale - (2) 1.00 man. Q = 3.99
1 Cheese Ravioli
6.29 - 1.57 sale - 1.00 man Q. = 3.72
9 Yoplait
7.20 - 4.20 sale - 1.00 man Q = 2.00
10 Progresso Soups
23.00 - 13.00 sale -(2) 2.00 man Q - 1.00 man Q. = 5.00
2 Simply Potatoes
6.34 - 3.17 sale = 3.17
5 Michelina's frozen "entrees"
10.50 - 5.50 sale - 1.00 man Q = 4.00
2 Imperial Spread Margarine
3.00 - 1.00 sale = 2.00
3 Total Raisin Bran
13.95 - 7.95 sale - 1.00 man Q - (2) .75 man Q. = 3.50
1 Ragu
2.98 - 1.99 sale = .99
1 Onion
.78
1 loaf of Jewel Bread
1.89 - .64 sale = 1.25
2 McCormick Spices
2.66 - 1.33 sale = 1.33

Total before discounts: 92.16

Total after savings: 32.73oop this is without tax

Saved: 59.43.....64%

Target Goodies

We made a quick run to Target tonight and came home pleased with what we bought, but I am a little frustrated. I have a hard time coming up with a "plan" for Target and we spent way too much time in there tonight. So far, we just walk basically the entire store and look for deals that we have coupons to go along with or clearance items that are great prices and/or we have coupons. The downside to this is lugging all of the coupons with us, well that and buying items because we think they're good deals and we have no idea what we really want to buy anyways. Well, here's what we got tonight:

1 Bag of Doritos

3.29 - 1.29sale = 2.00

1 Box of Kashi Cookies

2.69 - .19 sale - 2.00 man. Q = .50

2 Coke Zero 2 liters

3.38 - 1.38 sale = 2.00

1 bag Simply Potatoes

1.67 - .17 sale = 1.50

4 Yoplait Light

2.36 - .16 sale - 1.00 man. Q = 1.20

1 box Cookie Dough bites (Brian wanted something to eat in the store...lol)

1.52 - .76 clearance = .76

1 Shoe Size Storage Container (this came with no lid, but I was looking for something I can throw all my receipts in)

2.29 - 1.72 clearance = .57

1 Lunch Container

2.99 - .91 clearance = 2.08

1 small water bottle

2.29 - .69 clearance = 1.60

1 box of Corn Butter Boats (2)

3.29 - 2.47 clearance = .82

Total before discounts: 25.77

Total after savings: 13.03 oop - this is without tax

Saved: 12.74.....49%

I'm really liking some of this....just not so happy with some poor clearance choices and the chips. Oh well, I guess. Target is bound to become easier.

WAGS Trip 10/22

I didn't get a chance to post this one yesterday, but I think this is my highest savings amount so far.

1 Lysol Neutra Air Starter Kit

13.49 - 7.50 sale - 4.00 man. Q = 1.99

1 AirWick Freshmatic Starter Kit

13.49 - 7.50 sale - 4.00 man. Q = 1.99

2 Lysol Toilet Bowl Cleaners

5.98 - 3.19 sale - (2) .50 man. Q = 1.79

2 Pert Plus

7.98 - 1.00 sale - 5.00 esc Q - (2) 1.00 man. Q = .02 profit

1 Snickers bar (I needed one more item so I could use my RR and this isn't in the pic since it got eaten right away lol)

.89

Total before discounts: 41.83
Total after savings: 6.64 (used 5RR, so 1.64 oop) this is without tax
Saved: 40.19.....96%

CVS Trip Tonight

So we went to CVS tonight and I was so happy to see the Welch's Light Grape Juice on the shelf. I had heard about this deal last week and have looked at the shelf everytime we go in there and all of a sudden today, there were two! Just my luck too because you need to buy two to get the ebc. We made a very small trip, but I think it was worth it. And we'll be back in there on Saturday to get a few more things. Anyways, we made two transactions, mine and Brian's and here's the breakdown.

Transacation #1:

1 Powerade (32 oz.)

1.69

1 Colgate MaxFresh

3.29 - .30 sale - 1.00 man Q

2 Hershey's bars

1.78 - .78 sale

Total before discounts: 6.76

Total after savings: 4.68 (used 2 ECB, so 2.68 oop) this is without tax

Got back 1.69 ecb on the Powerade and 2.00 ecb on the toothpaste.

Saved: 4.08.....60%

Transaction #2:

1 Powerade (32 oz.)

1.69

2 Welch's Light Grape Juice

9.38 - 7.04 clearance

Total before discounts: 11.07
Total after savings: 4.03 (used 2.58 ECB, so 1.45 oop) this is without tax
Got back 1.69 ecb on the Powerade and 3.00 ecb on the grape juice.
Saved: 9.62.....87%

Grape Juice is a great profit, but only the light grape juice is on sale!!

Can't wait to use all my ecbs on pop this weekend!

Walgreens Trip Last Night

Our walgreens trip last night was great! This is one of the first trips where I have felt like we really knew the system. (Usually we make more than one trip per week. That way we don't have to carry as much home with us and its more exercise for us.)
I like to keep track of the original price of the item, that way I know how much I am saving from the retail price, not just the sale price.

2 bags of ChexMix (8.75 oz)
6.58 -3.58 sale discount - .60 man. Q = 2.40 (1.20 each not bad)
1 Lysol NeutraAir Starter Kit
13.49 -7.50 sale discount - 5.00 man. Q =.99
1 box of Alka-Seltzer (20 ct.)
5.99 - 1.00 sale discount = 4.99
3 Pert Plus
11.97 - 1.50 sale discount - 7.50 ESC Q - 1.00 man Q - 2.00 Man Q = .03 profit
1 WAGS Kleenex pocket pack (I ran out in my purse)
.29

Total before discounts: 38.32
Total after savings: 8.64 (used 3 RR, so 5.64 oop) this is without tax
Got back 5RR on the Alka-Seltzer.
Saved: 32.68.....85%

Just a little background info....

I am a college student here in Chicago, living with my fiancee and trying to survive on a very tight budget. As I attempt to finish school, I've had a hard time finding a part time job, so we are managing on only one income. With our expenses, we try to cut corners as much as possible. Neither of us have a car, we rely on public transportation and good old fashioned walking. We survive without cable (yes, it is possible) and we watch movies at home and find free or discounted entertainment events. I am just learning the fine art of couponing and I hope that many of these tricks will help others.

First Post

I've never done a blog before, but I thought this was worth sharing with anyone interested. I am just learning a new system for shopping and it is saving me tons of money. I was keeping a journal with all of my savings, but I thought it would be more fun to share this with others. Plus I won't need to buy a new notebook every month. So bear with me please, I'm still learning.