Walgreens trip 8/31

I bought:

4 - Velveeta shells & cheese cups

1 - Theraflu bottle

1 - Rembrandt whitening toothpaste

1 - Colgate 360

2 - candy

Total should have been $19.03

I used $2/1 Theraflu here: IE or Firefox, paired with the $2/1 Theraflu Q from the Health Savings booklet (found in the store at the registers, this is a store coupon so it can be stacked with the manufacturer coupon for the same item), 2 BOGO Velveeta (SS 8/9) , plus the in-ad Q for the Velveeta cups, and used the 15% off purchase coupon that I mentioned earlier that was good TODAY only (I could not find the $1/1 Rembrandt coupon). I then paid with two $5 RR from last week, bringing the total I actually paid out of pocket to $.64 (plus tax)! BUT, then I also received back a $5 RR for the Rembrant, a $3 RR for the Theraflu, a $1 RR for the Velveeta cups, and a $3 RR for the toothbrush (so $12 total)! I can now use these towards my next purchase on anything in the store that I want.

To maxamize your Walgreens savings, you definitely want to try to "roll" your RR's by buying new items with RR's attached each week and paying with the RR's you earned from the week before (like I did, so that I only had to pay $.64 plus tax) That way you're paying very little to nothing out of pocket...

If you want to learn more about shopping at Walgreen's, click HERE. If you want to see this week's Walgreen's deals, click HERE.

Share this one with the husband!

How would you like a dozen roses for $4.99!? Well, Albies just happens to have them on sale starting Wednesday! The preview shopping list doesn't specify whether this is only a particular color or what, but who cares!? That's such a great deal! Tell the hubby what you want this week and where to get it. :)

HERE is the preview list for 9/02-9/08. Keep in mind that this is Utah's list and Idaho's may vary. I will post the Idaho list as soon as it is available. Thanks to PYP for this wonderful tool!

Not sure what to do with this list? Go HERE to read all about GrocerySmarts. New to couponing all together? Click HERE to learn how to save 60-90% on your grocery bill!

Just a reminder...

If you did any shopping at RiteAid during the August rebate period, be sure to get all your receipts in and request your check! You have until Sept 26th, but might as well do it NOW and get your check sooner!

New to RiteAid shopping? Click HERE to learn more!

Walgreens 8/30-9/05

Today only there is a coupon for 15% off your purchase (20% off Walgreen's brand items)!! Go HERE to print yours and use it to make good deals even better!

:Monthly Deals:

Each month there are register rewards deals that run all month long, but since a new month starts tomorrow, I am not sure of what the deals are yet. The ones I posted last week (go HERE to see them) are still good TODAY!

:Weekly Register Reward Deals:

Rembrandt Toothpaste $5, get $5RR

Use the $1/1 coupon from SS 8/2

Final cost FREE + a $1 moneymaker!

Reach Total Care toothbrush or floss Dental Care $2.99, get $2RR

Use the $1 coupon from SS 3/15, 6/14 or 8/02

Final cost FREE

Or

Buy 2 and use the buy one get one free coupon from RP 4/26

Plus, use one of the $1/1 coupons from above(for the one you're not getting free)

Final cost 2 for FREE!

Colgate 360 ActiFlex Toothbrush $2.99, get $2.99RR

Use the $0.40/1 coupon from SS 8/30

Final cost FREE + a $0.40 moneymaker!

Men’s Zone 6 Blade Razor System $3.99, get $3.99RR

Final cost FREE!

Carefree Ultra Protection Panti-liners $1.99, get $1.99RR

Use the $1 coupon from here

Final cost FREE + a $1 moneymaker!

Theraflu Cold, Cough or Sinus Relief $4.99, get $3RR

Use the $2 coupon from here: IE or Firefox

Plus, use the $2/1 coupon from the Health Savings Booklet (found in the store)

Final cost FREE + $2 moneymaker!

Breathe Right Nasal Strips 10 ct $4.99, get $4RR

Final cost $0.99

Tide 20-40 loads $6.49, get $1RR

Use $1/1 from the PG 8/30

Final cost $4.49!

:Other Weekly Deals:

Coffee-Mate Creamer Liquid (16 oz) $1.50

Use the $1 coupon from here

Or $0.55/1 coupon from here

Or $1/2 coupon from RP 8/9

Final cost $0.50-$1.00!

Get a FREE Coca Cola Zero (20 oz) with the purchase of two Hershey's candy (1.4-2 oz)

Buy two Reese's Peanut Butter cup $0.89 each

Use the BOGO coupon from SS 8/23

Plus, use the $0.55/1 coupon from SS 8/23 (for the one you're paying for)

Final cost just $0.34 for 1 Coke Zero and 2 Reese's!

Jell-O 2/$1 with in ad coupon

Use the $0.50/2 coupon from here: IE or Firefox

Final cost $0.25 each!

Campbell’s Tomato or Chicken Noodle Soup $0.69 with in ad coupon

Use the $1/2 coupon from here

Final cost $0.19 per can!

Kraft Easy Mac or Velveeta Shells Cup $0.89 each with in ad coupon

Use the BOGO coupon from SS 8/9
or the August issue of All you mag

or the 6/21 Parade

Final cost $0.45 each!

This deal is also still printing the $1 RR (wyb 4) through 9/6! So you could buy 4, use two BOGO coupons, pay $1.78, but get back a $1 RR, making final cost, $.78 for 4 or $.20 each!

Jimmy Dean Breakfast Bowls 2/$4

Use the $1/2 coupon from RP 8/30

Final cost $1.50 each!

Lays Chips (10.5-11 oz) $1.99

Use the $1/2 coupon from the July issue of All You mag

Final cost $1.49 each!

Bayer Aspirin (24-36 ct) or 4 ct Quick Release Crystals buy one at $2.99 get one FREE

Use 2 $1 coupons from RP 7/26 or the $1 coupon from here

Final cost $0.50 each!

Dial Bar Soap 3 pk or Foaming Hand Soap $1.50/1 with in ad coupon

Use the $0.55/1 coupon from here: IE or Firefox

Final cost $0.95!

Secret Deodorant $1.99 with in ad coupon

Use the $2/1 coupon from the Kmart coupon booklet (this is a booklet found at Kmart with a bunch of manufacturer coupons, which can be used at any store)

Final cost FREE!

(remember to hand over the manufacturer coupon before the in ad coupon to avoid beeps)

Speed Stick or Lady Speed Stick $1.99 with in ad coupon

Use the $1.50/1 coupon from here (Use zip code 33907 if you don't see it)

Final cost $0.49!

Huggies Jumbo pack Diapers $8.99 with in ad coupon

Use the $1.50 coupon from here or from SS 8/16

Plus, use the $1 Walgreens coloring book coupon (I have yet to see one of these)

Final cost $6.49!

Scotch Packaging Tape buy one at $3.49 get one FREE

Use 2 $0.50/1 coupons from here (coupon link in lower left hand corner)

Or from RP 7/26

Final cost $2.49 for 2!

BIC Round Stic Grip Pens (8 ct) $0.99

Use the $1/2 coupon from SS 8/9

Final cost $0.49!

Thanks to hip2save for these great match-ups!

New to Walgreens shopping? Click HERE to learn more!

A couple of coupons worth mentioning...

Just wanted to throw this out there for any of you using the file system who might not have just filed your inserts away without taking a look at them or for anyone who just might have overlooked these. There were a couple of good coupons in this weeks inserts...


There is a $.75/1 Q for Palmolive Pure + Clear or Pure + Caring dish liquid, and underneath is a mail-in rebate to try either one and get the FULL purchase price back (up to $2.99) So you can go buy one for $2.99, use the $.75/1 coupon, but get the full $2.99 back by mail, making $.75! The MIR is good until 9/30, but the coupon expires on 9/20. Also, this MIR is limited to one per household.


There is also a great CoverGirl coupon which is for a FREE face product when you buy one CoverGirl foundation. This should make for some GREAT deals! Especially if there comes a 50% off a particular CoverGirl foundation sale. It says that it's a free face product, but I am not really sure what that might include....the picture shows a lot of different items, but none are specified by the coupon. I guess that means it should work for anything, including BOGO on a foundation?

You can even snag some free paper products! There is a coupon for a free single roll of Marcal Small Steps 1000ct. bath tissue, regular single roll paper towel, or facial tissues (up to $1.00 value)! SWEET! I am not familiar with this brand, but hopefully it can be found at most stores? Anyone know? This coupon expires on 10/15.

Lastly, just wanted to mention this coupon for Buid-A-Beat Workshop...get a free messenger bag with a purchase of $15 or more (while quantities last) This expires 10/4.

I do get the Idaho Statesman, so I can't guarantee they are in the Press-Tribune or any other areas' papers.

LOTS of clearance items at Albies...

I went in this morning and saw that Albies has carts full of clearance items. There were a lot of great 10/$10 items like Campbell's soup (pair with the IP HERE and a doubler to get two cans for FREE!) and soup bowls (coupons in yesterday's paper), Kashi cereal, various other soups, and lots more. They also have carts with 50% 0ff items, with cool stuff such as a Char-Broil table top grill (15in) marked down from $25 to $12.50! There were also flip-flops, organization canisters, Rubbermaid containers, summer toy/water/sand stuff, even some cute flower pillows, and LOTS more. I didn't have time to look through it all very closely, as my toddler had decided he was DONE shopping, but I am going back later today and plan on looking more thoroughly.

If you plan on being there, be sure to look for all the carts! (The 10/$10 items were by the self-checkout area and the 50% off carts were in one of the freezer aisles.)

Old Navy coupon giveaway!

Over at thriftynwmom.com she is giving away 9 Old Navy coupons, including one $65 off of a $100 purchase! If you want to enter the giveaway, you better hury over and enter (click HERE) because this contest ends at 9pm MST TODAY (Aug 31st) and the coupon expires Thursday, Sept. 3rd. Good luck!

In today's paper...

Yup...this is what a stack of TWELVE Sunday papers looks like.

I went out for a bachelorette party last night and, well, let's just say I didn't get home until early this morning and low and behold, my papers were ALREADY delivered. So...I brought them all into the garage and figured I'd bring them in in the morning, as my oldest likes to help. Well, this morning I asked him to come help me get my papers and he immediately went out the front door. I tried calling him to the garage with me, but he didn't hear me, so he continued out toward the driveway. I brought in the papers from the garage and...he starts coming in with papers! I was like...."uh...."

I have no idea why, but for some reason they delivered two sets of 6 papers to my house! I'm totally confused. That's 12 papers you see up there in the stack.

Any way, in today's paper there are three inserts, SmartSource, RedPlum, and Proctor & Gamble.

Plus, yet again, there are THREE more doublers (Twice-the-Value coupons)! Not sure what to do with doublers? Click HERE to find out.

Holy cow am I going to have a LOT of work ahead of me with three inserts (12 sets each) to separate, staple, and cut! Oh well...I managed to score 36 doublers! I don't even know if I can use that many! I will probably have to do a little today, tomorrow, and Tuesday just to use them all up.

If you are new to the site or new to couponing and are not sure what I'm talking about or what to do with these coupon inserts, click HERE!

Expiring coupons...

Just wanted to remind everyone that there are a TON of coupons expiring 8/30 and 8/31! So now would be a good time to go through your binder and make a list of any you want to be sure to use before they expire. Remember, do not use the coupons just because they are expiring! If they expire, it's ok, there will be another coupon just like it soon! Lol. However, if there is something that you need to get anyway and have a coupon for it that is expiring, then definitely use one!

On the 31st, it will be a good idea to go through your binder and pull out all of the expiring coupons that you will not be using. You can either toss them or there's even a really great program where you can donate expired coupons to military families overseas! They are allowed to use coupons up to 6 months past the expiration date! For more information on donating your coupons, click HERE. Of course, they will also take any coupons that aren't expired that you know you won't use.

I am going to get working on a list of coupons by expiration date. I know PYP keeps a GREAT running list of coupons by insert date for Idaho (HERE), but it would be nice to have one by expiration date so that we would always know which coupons we have that are expiring and so could choose to use them, rather then just forgetting about them until it's too late.

My binder is definitely going to slim down a lot after pulling all of the coupons this month! Lol.

Tuesday Menu Planning

TOTALLY spaced this yesterday! It just dawned on me a few minutes ago, so I figured I should probably get my meal planning done! I have to say that we did pretty well at sticking with the menu plan....so I'm pretty excited about that. It's definitely harder on the weekends when my husband is home (he travels during the week on business) because we tend to eat out more (more spontaneously at least) and because he doesn't like to eat lunch AND dinner, but rather usually one or the other...so I try to work around what he wants, too.

My 1st grader has now decided that he much prefers having free breakfast at school and informed me that he "never wants to have breakfast at home until school is over." Lol. I had to remind him about weekends and "no school" days. He said "well, ok, on those days then I guess I will." Too funny. Any way, so now that it is just my toddler and I most days for breakfast and lunch, you will probably see a lot more toddler friendly foods on the menu. I told my 1st grader that he could pick about 10 times a month to have lunch at school, so that's about twice a week. We have the days circled on the menu from school on the fridge, and on the other days we will pack him a lunch. I can't wait to see how cost effective packing school lunch is when you start using groceries you got for FREE or pretty close to it! Any way...so here's this week's meal plan. I don't know how well we will stick to it, as this week is taking some adjustment getting used to a new schedule and all, but at least I have something on paper in front of me to hopefully make things easier.

Now, considering I didn't really do much shopping for food last week, as there was not much in the Albies sale that I was too excited about, I am once again going to be using things I have already bought in the last several weeks that needs used up as well as things from this week's sale.

:Breakfast:

Cereal w/ milk, toast, orange juice

Rhodes Warm-n-Serve cinnamon rolls (SOOOO good), milk

Eggo Bakeshop blueberry muffins, banana, apple juice

Biscuits and sausage gravy, scrambled eggs, orange juice

French toast sticks, yogurt, milk
Oatmeal, toast, orange juice
Pop-tarts, milk (my toddler would live off of these if I let him)

:Lunch:

Mac-n-cheese w/ hotdogs, jello, chocolate milk

Nachos w/ taco meat, refried beans, soda
Lunchables, grapes, cookie, CapriSun
BBQ Chicken wraps (from left-overs), cantelope, juice
Meat and Cheese sandwich, chips, grapes, milk
DiGiorno Flatbread Melts, salad, strawberry milk
Chef Boyardee, green beans, grape juice

:Dinner:

FAIR FOOD! :) YUM
BBQ Chicken, corn on the cob, salad
Tuna Helper, peas, garlic toast
Chicken fajitas, spanish rice, beans
Grilled Cheese, tomato slices, chips
Bow-tie pasta salad w/ veggies, corn, bread-n-butter
Quesadillas w/ taco meat, refried beans

:Snacks:
Fruit snack
Cheesestick w/ grapes
Cantelope
Carrots w/ ranch
Cheerios Snack Mix
Nut Clusters
Popsicle

:Desserts:
Brownies
Fruit Salad
Popcorn/Crunch-n-Munch
Decorate-your-own-cookie bar (sugar cookies)
Reese's Peanut Butter Cups w/ milk
Strawberry-banana-orange smoothis (YUM)
Fruit parfait w/ yogurt

When you plan your menu around sale items, instead of planning your grocery shopping around you menu, it will make a drastic cut to your grocery bill! You will be using items you already have in your stockpile (so that you can plan to use them before they expire) that you got for a great price and items that are on sale that current week (especially produce/meat/perishables). It's such a great feeling knowing I don't have to make any last minute runs to the store...I already have everything I need and half of the stuff I use was FREE or close to it...totally awesome. :)

Albertson's 8/26-9/01

HERE is this week's printable shopping list! I think I'm witing until Sunday again...holding out hope for even more doublers. :) Looks like there are some GREAT things that are part of the ConAgra promo. Hope you guys score some great deals as this is a great time to add to your stockpile by stocking up on some of the great 5-star items!

Definitely excited to see a good deal on the Pepsi 12pks again (yes, my husband has already depleted the "stockpile" of soda I've gotten him--which is a ton if you'll remember by the previous weeks' trips!).

FREE PC tune-up at Staples through 9/16!!

Staples is offering a free PC tune-up, in-store, through 9/16! Details state that this includes "Thorough PC cleaning (deleting internet cookies and temporary internet files), clean up dust and dirt buildup, disk defragmentation and disk clean up."

This is regularly $29.99, so definitely worth taking advantage of if you need it! Check it out HERE. That was easy! :)

Thanks WhoSaidNothingInLifeIsFree!

FREE Chef Michael's Canine Creations!

Just in case you have a pet and you missed it, there was a coupon for a FREE 5oz. pouch of Purina Chef Michael's canine creations dry dinners, any variety! I have 10 of these for anyone who wants them and leaves a comment! If you don't have a pet, you could consider purchasing them and donating them to the shelter...or even just give the coupons to the shelter, I suppose! Any way, let me know if you want them...they expire 9/21.

Do you or someone you know own a Camaro?

If so, you might be able to get a FREE pizza at Papa John's! Apparently, back in 1983, Papa John Schnattner had to sell his 1971 Camaro Z28 because he needed the $2,800 he got for it to keep the family business afloat and also to open his first pizza joint in Indianna. After many years of searching, doing promotional advertizing on his pizza boxes, offering a $250,000 reward, and going on a cross-country road tip in order to find his beloved Camaro...he has been reunited! In honor of this reunion he is reportedly going to give a free pizza to anyone who drives down in their Camaro. Not sure of all of the details on how the offer will work, but if you own one you should definitely call your Papa John's and ask!

Thanks MoreThanCents!

Careful when cutting coupons....

Whenever there are doublers , I always buy extra papers. I am subscribed to the Idaho Statesman and get 6 papers delivered to my door every Sunday (click HERE to find out how to get your athriftymom paper deal), but when there are doublers on a Sunday, I will pick up a few extra copies of the Press-Tribune at the newsstand. I get the Press-Tribune because they are only $.85/ea (at the gas station I buy them at any way) vs. the $2.00 price tag of the Statesman.

Before getting my newspaper subscription, I always used to buy the Press-Tribune, since it is cheaper. I now get the Statesman, and have realized how much the coupons DIFFER between the two papers! Sometimes they get coupons that are different dollar amounts, sometimes the Tribune doesn't get coupons that the Statesman gets, and sometimes they get a coupon that's the same, but the two inserts have different layouts and so the coupon from the Statesman isn't on the same page as the Press-Tribune!

Talk about making things complicated! What does this matter, you ask? Well, I just wanted to make sure that you keep this in mind when looking for a particular coupon (for file system users) or when stapling and cutting your coupons (for binder users).

First of all, especially if you are a "file-system" user, blog sites will post match ups and call for a particular coupon from a particular week's insert. Ok, so you go to your file holder, grab one of the inserts from that week, flip through it, and are disappointed to find that you don't have that coupon. However, that week (say two months ago) you actually purchased two Statesmans and two Press-Tribunes, just for variety or just in case they had different coupons. You forget this and so assume that you don't have that coupon. Little do you know, even though you didn't have that coupon in the insert you happened to grab, two of the other inserts from that week DID have that coupon because the Statesman DID get it that week, even though the Tribune didn't. Now, those two coupons go unused because you didn't think you had them. Make sense? So, what I would suggest you do, if you are someone who buys both papers each week, I would take the time to go through the inserts and see if there are any differing coupons between the two. If there is, for file system users, I would not only write the date on the corner of the insert, but would also write which paper it came from. So write "8/9 Statesman" or "8/9 Tribune." If you want to take it one step further, you could make a little note of which coupons are differing for that week under the date also (I would do this on each insert, so that no matter which one you wind up grabbing when it comes time to clip a coupon, you see the note and are reminded and don't grab one that you didn't write the note on and assume you don't have that coupon).

For those of us who use a binder, be sure to check for differences also and keep them in mind when stapling and clipping. You don't want to accidentally lay them all out and assume they are the same and just staple and clip away...you might accidentally assume you have 6 of a coupon that you really only had 4 of (because the two inserts on the bottom of the stack were from the Tribune and didn't get that coupon) or do the opposite and miss a coupon that was on the backside of two of the 6 inserts because the other 4 didn't have them, and you didn't notice. You might wind up throwing valuable coupons away!

Hopefully this makes sense. It's late and I might just be confusing everyone. I just wanted to make sure you guys kept this in mind, because today, in particular, there were a LOT of differences between the two papers' inserts and so I had to take some extra time and care to get all of my coupons aligned right and stapled right before I clipped them. Also don't want you guys to miss out on coupons you don't even realize you have. If this totally doesn't make sense and you have other questions, feel free to ask!

If you have NO idea what I'm talking about and are new to couponning, click HERE to go to the beginning and learn everything you need to know to save 60-90% on your grocery bill! :)

Albertson's Preview 8/26-9/01

HERE is the Albertson's preview shopping list for the week. Keep in mind, this is Utah's list, so ours may vary. I will post the Idaho list when it's available.

New to this site or new to couponing and not sure what to do with this list? Click HERE to find out and get started saving 60-90% on your grocery bill!

Albies 8/23

Had to go start taking advantage of my doublers this morning! I would have actually completed my Albies shopping, but you know how it goes when they have one lane open and it's about 6 people long! Took quite a while to check out...so....I'll have to do some more Albies shopping later on to use up my doublers (but before they expire on Tues of course).

Here is what I got...I did this in 5 transactions in order to take advantage of the Box Tops Promo (Spend $20, get $5 OYNSO + 50 Box Top Points) and my doublers. There are a few things on here that weren't on sale, but that we needed, so I just went ahead and grabbed them, otherwise my total would have been even less...

Total for all of these items was $157.98. I paid $44.33. That's a savings of 72%! (and keep in mind that I got items that weren't even on sale!) Details of how I did this below:

Transaction #1

2 - Chinet Cut Crystal tumblers (I often get these when I have doublers, because it makes them only $.29)

8 - Ziploc Containers (various sizes and counts)

1 - Twix candy bar

1 - Raid Wasp & Hornet spray

Total for promo = $20.00

Total for other items =$10.56

Used FREE candy coupon (from Free Chocolate Friday), 2-$1/1 Chinet Tumblers (SS 6/28), 2-$1.50/2 Ziploc containers (SS 7/26 & SS 8/9), 1-$1/1 Raid, and 3 doublers, making my OOP 17.87, but then I received the $5 OYNSO and 50 BT points.

Transaction #2

1 - Juicy Juice 8pk

4 - Kleenex Antiviral w/ aloe

2 - Hefty kitchen trash bags

Total for promo = $20.30

Used 2-$1/1 Hefty kitchen bags (Group C), 2-$.50/2 Kleenex, 1-$1/1 Juicy Juice (RP 8/9), three doublers, and my previous $5 OYNSO, making my OOP 8.32, plus received another $5 OYNSO and 50 BT points.

Transaction #3

2 - Hefty cups

2 - Hefty foam plates

4 - Ziploc freezer bags (20ct)

1 - Totinos Pizza Rolls

Total for promo = $20.01

Used 2-$1/2 Hefty (Group A) 2-$1.50/2 Ziploc HERE, 1-$.35/1 Totino's (SS 8/9), three doublers, and my previous $5 OYNSO, making my OOP $7.31, plus received another $5 OYNSO and 50 BT points.

Transaction #4

3 - Juicy Juice 8pk

6 - Kleenex Antiviral w/ aloe

1 - Totino's Pizza Rolls

Total for promo = $20.33

Used 3-$1/1 Juicy Juice, 3-$.50/2 Kleenex, 1-$1/1 Totino's, three doublers, and my previous $5 OYNSO, making my OOP $7.99, plus received yet another $5 OYNSO and 50 BT points.

Transaction #5

1 - Act 3ct popcorn

2 - Arrowhead water 6pk (one not pictured)

2 - Bertolli Ovenbaked meals

Total = $13.84

Used 1-$1/2 Arrowhead HERE, 2-$1/1 Bertolli HERE, three doublers, and my previous $5 OYNSO, making my OOP $2.84

There ya go! I'll be back to post the rest of the deals I find to use my doublers on! What are you going to use yours for??

In your paper today...(MORE DOUBLERS!)

There are two inserts in the paper today, one SS and one RP.



And, always be sure to look through your whole paper, as you never know what you may find...

Three Albies doublers on page A9 of the Statesman and Main 14 of the Press-Tribune! (Not sure what to do with these doublers? Check out my post HERE to learn all about these wonderful little coupons)

Also, in the Parade magazine on page 15, there is a $1/3 Libby canned veggies.

Walgreen's 101

If you are new to Walgreens (a.k.a. Wags) shopping, there are a few things you probably have questions about, so I will do my best to answer them here. If I don't answer your question, feel free to leave a comment (which might help others who have the same questions as you) or click the "email me" link on the right side-bar.

At Walgreen's it is possible to often get FREE or close-to-free items using their "Register Rewards" (RR) program. It is free and you don't need to sign up for anything. This is simply a "rebate" type program. You pay, out-of-pocket for a particular item, (or sometimes a certain number of a particular item, or certain dollar amount of a particular brand/item/etc), then receive a catalina coupon for a certain $ amount that you can use on a future visit for anything in the store, same as CASH.

 

(Register Rewards)

Some register reward deals run all month, others for a week. You can find out what the register reward deals are by looking at the Walgreen's weekly circular (that comes in the Sunday paper or they have these at the front of the store) or by finding the red tags stuck to the shelf under qualifying items. Most of these deals are advertised, but sometimes they are not and can only be found at the store. Click HERE to view current Walgreens deals where I list these deals for you and tell you which coupons you'll need.

There are a few catches when it comes to RR's. First, there are a few items that you cannot use them on, such as milk, stamps, gift cards, etc. Secondly, you cannot use a RR from one deal on more of the same deal to get another RR. For example, if you buy a Snickers for $1 and get a $1 RR, you cannot turn around and buy another Snickers and get another RR. You can use it to pay for the Snickers, but another RR will not print. You CAN, however, use the RR from the Snickers to buy another item that qualifies for a RR and it will still print. So, for example, you can use the $1RR from the Snickers to pay for a box of Ritz for $2 that gives you a $2RR and the $2RR for the Ritz will still print. By rolling register rewards on other register reward items each week, you will spend the least out of pocket and get the most bang for your buck! One of the keys to my saving so much at Walgreens is that I have built up a large "stash" of Walgreens RR's. When I first started shopping at Walgreens I paid a bit more out of pocket because I didn't roll my RR's as much. I just kind of collected them. Now, at any given time I usually have about $50 worth of RR's in my purse to use on my week's purchases. By doing this, I generally never spend more than $5 MAX (actual cash out-of-pocket) at Walgreens each week (except for in tax of course) because I always have RR's to use. You DO have to make sure that your total dollar amount for your purchase (after coupons) is equal to or greater than the value of your register reward. So, if you were buying the Snickers for $1 to get the $1 RR, and you wanted to pay with the $2RR for the Ritz, you would have to find another item or some inexpensive filler items to get your total up to the $2 mark so that you can use the $2 RR.

Another thing to note about using coupons at Walgreen's is that they often put out store coupons (that are in the weekly circular) that you can "stack" with a manufacturer coupon which can give you GREAT savings! For example, say Starbuck's Frappucinos are regularly $2.99/ea at Walgrens, but in the ad there is a coupon that makes Starbuck's Frappucino 2/$3 (or $1.50/ea) but now you also have a coupon for $1/1 from a previous coupon insert, you can use both the store coupon and the manufacturer coupon to now make them $.50/ea! Pretty nifty, huh? But make sure that the store coupon gets scanned, or you will not get it for the advertised coupon price!

One thing to note about stacking the coupons is that it is always best to give the cashier the manufacturer coupons before handing them the store coupons. A lot of times the register will complain and beep on you for some reason or another if you do it the other way around, so save yourself the headache and just get in the habit of handing the manufacturer coupons over first!

Also, if there is ever a time when a coupon or combo of a store and manufacturer coupon amount is over the cost of the item (for example, you have a $1.50/1 coupon for an item that is priced at $1.25) the register will beep and won't allow you to do it. The cashier must manually adjust the price of the item to be equal to that of the coupon so that the register will allow it. Don't let the cashier tell you that the coupon cannot be used. Their policy states that they are to adjust the coupon value down. If need be, ask to speak to a manager and they should be aware of their own coupon policy that states that this is allowed, but this is not always the case! Sometimes cashiers and managers are actually a bit misinformed about their own coupon policy, so it is a good idea to print out their coupon policy and carry it with you to the store in case there are any disputes. You can find a copy of the policy by doing a google search. (I do not have one posted on my site because I have not personally written to or spoken with anyone from Walgreens and do not want to put false information on my blog by accident.)

Lastly, when using coupons at Walgreen's there is a little catch that can be a major pain sometimes...you have to have as many items in your transaction as you have manufacturer coupons for, including RR's! If you have 5 items and 5 manufacturer coupons, you will not be able to pay with a register reward (as these are manufacturer coupons). So...if I had 5 items and a coupon for each item, in order to use two register rewards to pay for the items, I would have to find two "filler" items to put in my order for the register to allow me to use them. In that case I would find two super inexpensive items (i.e. clearance item, small candy, pencil, etc--nothing over $.40) so that I would be able to use my register rewards to pay. However, if I had 5 items and 4 coupons, but one of the coupons was $x.xx off of two items, you may want to have a filler item ready, just in case. I have had varying experiences with this one. Sometimes the coupon attaches to both items and so it considers it as if I have a coupon for each item already and won't allow me to use the RR. Sometimes it just comes off as one total coupon and I CAN use an RR to pay. Just keep this in mind when getting ready to hand over your stack of coupons. Make sure you will be able to use them all and allow extra items for any RR's you want to use.

A few notes:

Not all Walgreens are the same. Each manager gets to use their own discretion on some things, such as some weeks when there is a HOT item that is flying off the shelves, sometimes they will choose to limit how many you can buy. However, you may walk into another Walgreens and there is NO limit. Some stores will let you do more than one transaction at a time, others won't. YMMV.

If you are doing more than one transaction, be courteous...do one and then if there's someone behind you let them go in between before you do your next transaction.

It really comes down to PRACTICE! I shopped Walgreens for a lot of weeks before I truly felt like I'd perfected it (though I wouldn't call it that because I still mess up occasionally). You will pay more than you should have a few times and you'll probably wind up making returns a few times, too, because you messed up. You'll accidentally pay for an item with a register reward from the same item that you bought earlier in the week so another RR won't print. (In that case, you can ask them to cancel the order and redo it and this time just don't pay with your RR. My store has never had a problem letting me) You'll get done ringing up and one of your RR's won't scan because you accidentally forgot to get a filler item (and you'll be forced to grab some small item near the register that you don't really want) or you miscounted and didn't have enough filler items. Believe me...the possibilities are endless. Lol. I've done them ALL! But, I learned from it each time and now I'm practically a pro. :) You can be too! Just don't give up and always learn from your mistakes and eventually you'll walk in with confidence and walk out having only spent a few cents. :) Here is an example of one of my Walgreens shopping trips:

 

For the above items, I only spent $.52 plus tax! PLUS, when all was said and done I still have $26 in RR's to add to my "stash." I simply used register rewards that I earned on the previous week's sale to pay for items that, in turn, gave me MORE register rewards this week (what we call "rolling" your register rewards). I continue to do this each week and continue to score great deals!

Hopefully this answers any of your questions...if not, let me know!

Walgreens 8/23-8/29

I thought I post the Walgreen's match-ups this week, courtesy of Hip2Save!

There are quite a few things that I'm excited about...such as the Children's Benadryl (my toddler has bad allergies and even the Equate brand is expensive!) and the kids' mouthwash (my oldest loves that stuff). Also the paper plates and you can still use up those Huggies coupons you have to get super cheap wipes!

:Monthly Deals:

These deals are running through the end of the month, but the prices of the items that are part of the sale are bound to flucuate.

Buy $10 in select products below and get a $5RR

Cheez it 7.5 or 9 oz $2
Keebler Cookies 11.5 or 15 oz $2
Rice Krispies Treats 8 pk $2
Pop Tarts $2
Cheez its 4.5 or Keebler Cookies 5.25 - 6oz $1
Club Crackers/Sandies Pecan Shortbread 16 oz 2/$5
Fiber Plus Bars 5 pk 2/$5
Nutri-Grain Bars 8 pk 2/$5
Special K Protein, 6 pk Bars or 4 pk Shakes $5

Deal Scenario:
Buy 5 boxes of Pop-Tarts=$10
Use 2 $1/2 coupons from the 8/2RP
Plus, use 1 .55 coupon from here
Pay $7.45Get back a $5RRFinal cost just .49 per box!
************************************

Buy 6 Zone Bars for $6 total
Use one .50 Walgreens Back-2-School coupon (will deduct $3)
Then use 2 .75/3 coupons from the 6/14SS
Final cost ONLY .25 per bar!

Nabisco Chips Ahoy (select varieties) on sale 2/$5
Use the .75/2 coupon from the 7/26SS
Plus, use the $1 Back-2-School coupon(will deduct $2)
Final cost $1.13 per package!

Velveeta Shells & Cheese Cups $1 each (Buy 4, get $1 RR)
Buy 4 and use 2 buy one get one free coupons from the 8/9SS
Plus, use the $1/4 Walgreens back to school coupon
Final cost 4 cups for FREE!

Garnier Fructis Triple Nutrient 3 Minute Treatment 8.5 oz $3.99=$2RR(On a Mega-Saver for $3.99 all month)
Use the $1 coupon from the 7/12RP
Final cost .99!

Buy 1 Maybelline Great Lash Mascara=coupon for a FREE Great Lash Mascara
Final cost 50% off each one!

Huggies Wipes 64 ct $2.57- $3.99
Use the .50 coupon from the 7/19SS
Plus, use the $2 Back-2-School coupon
Final cost as low as .07 per package!

A note on the wipes...my Walgreen's was out of these the last time I went, so I thought I would go to Walmart and have the pricematch (they will accept competitor coupons) but when I got to the register, the cashier noticed that on the back-2-school coupons the front says "$2 off," but the back says "$1 off!" So..they would not accept it. :( Bummer. Just wanted to throw that out there in case anyone else thought of trying this. Never know...YMMV

:Weekly Register Reward Deals:

Buy 2 select Kellogg’s Cereal at $2.50 each, get $2RR
Use the $1.50/2 Kellogg’s Mini-Wheats or Raisin Bran coupon from here
Or use the $1/2 coupons from the 8/2RP
Final cost as low as $0.75 per box!

Buy 2 Folgers Classic Roast Coffee (11.3 oz) $2.50, get $1RR (on 2)
Use 2 $0.75/1 coupons from the 8/2RP(Please note some regions only got $0.25/1 coupons)Final cost as low as $1.25 each!

Buy 2 select Listerine products $4 each, get $3RR
Deal Scenario:Buy 2 Listerine Smart Rinse or Agent Cool Blue (16.9 oz)=$8
Use the buy one get one free coupon from the 8/2SS
Plus, use the $1 coupon from the 3/15 or 6/14SS
Or use the $1 coupon from here: IE or Firefox(for the one you're not getting free)
Plus, use the $1 Walgreens Agent Cool Blue/ Smart Rinse coupon from the coloring book(will deduct $2)
Pay $1
Get back a $3RR
Final cost 2 products for FREE + a $2 profit!

Buy 4 select Crest Dental Care products $2.50 each, get $5RR
Deal Scenario:Buy 4 Oral B Indicator Manual Toothbrushes (if included--I can't tell)
Total=$10
Use 2 buy one get one free coupons from the 8/23RP
Pay $5
Get a $5RR
Final cost 4 toothbrushes for FREE!

Buy two Children’s Benadryl $4.99 each, get $5RR
Use 2 $1 coupons from the 8/2SS
Plus, use 1 $1 Walgreens Coloring book coupon(will deduct $2)
Pay $5.98
Get back a $5RR
Final cost $0.49 each!

Buy 2 Colgate Total Toothpaste (4.2 oz) $2.50 each, get $1RR
Use 2 $1.50 coupons from the March issue of All You mag.
Final cost $0.50 each!

Buy 1 Goody Ouchless Accessories $2.99, get $2RR
Final cost $0.99!

Buy 2 Sudafed PE products $4.99 each, get $5RR
Use 2 $2 coupons from the 8/2SS
Final cost $0.49 each!

Dryel 4pk starter kit or 6pk refills $8.99, get $2RR
Use the $2 coupon from here
Final cost $4.99!

:Other Great Deals:

Starbucks Ice Cream $3
Use the $2 coupon from the 6/21SS
Final cost $1!

Russell Stover Boxed Chocolates $4.99 with in ad coupon
Use the $1 coupons from the 5/3RPFinal cost $3.99!

Barilla Pasta 3/$3
Use the $0.50 or $1/2 coupon from the 8/23SS
Final cost $0.50 each!

Reach Prevent Toothbrush or Reach Floss $0.99 with in ad coupon
Use the $1 coupon 6/14, 3/15 or 8/2SS
Final cost FREE!

Carmex Moisture Plus Lip Balm buy one at $2.99 get one free
Use 2 $1 coupons from here
Final cost $0.49 each! (I got the regular Carmex lip balm tube for $.08 at Walmart with this coupon)

Rimmel Cosmetics 40% off
Buy Rimmel Stay Matte Clarifying Matte Foundation $4.19
Use the $3 coupon from July All You mag
Final cost $1.19!

Lysol Neutra air Freshmatic Air Treatment Starter Kit $6.99
Use the $4 coupon from here
Final cost $2.99!

Air Wick FreshMatic Ultra Automatic Spray $7.49
Use the $4 or $6 coupons from the 8/9SS
Or the $4 coupon from here
Final cost as low as $1.49!

Glade Fabric and Odor Eliminator $2.50
Use the buy one get one free coupon from the 8/2SS or from All You
Final cost $1.25 each!

Dawn Dish Soap $0.99 with in ad coupon
Use the $0.25 coupon from the 8/2PG
Final cost $0.74!

Cottonelle Fresh Wipes 2/$5
Use the buy one get one free coupon from the 8/23SS (up to $2.25)
Plus, use the $0.50 coupon from All You mag.
Final cost $1.13 each!

Tylenol products (20-24 ct) buy one at $4.49 get one FREE
Use 2 $2 coupons from the 7/26SS
Final cost $0.25 each!

One-a-Day Multivitamins $6.99
Use the $2 coupon from the 6/14SS or 7/26RP
Plus, use the $2 Walgreens Back-2-School coupon
Final cost $2.99!

Accu-Chek Aviva $9.99
Use the $10 coupon from the 8/23SS
Final cost FREE!

Chinet Paper Plates (10-15 ct) buy one at $2.99 get one FREE with in ad coupon
Use 2 $1 coupons from the 6/28SS
Final cost just $0.49 each!

Scotch Smart Mailer or Clasp Envelopes (7-10 pack) $0.79 each with in ad coupon
Use the $0.50 coupon from the 7/26RP
Final cost $0.29!

Scotch Transparent Tape 2/$1 with in ad coupon
Use the $1/3 coupon from the 7/12RP(you can just buy 3 and the in ad coupon will still deduct for the 3rd one)
Final cost $0.17 each!

FREE 8×10 Collage Photo with in ad coupon
Valid on Wednesday, 8/26 ONLY!

$10 off $50 Old Navy purchase!

I am unsure of the exact promotion dates (the website says to check with your salon to verify participation and promotion dates) but right now Great Clips is teaming up with Old Navy to bring us a great back-to-school deal! They will give everyone who comes in for a haircut a coupon good for $10 off your purchase of $50 or more at Old Navy! If you spend exactly $50 that equals out to a 20% savings! The website states that you will get a $10 coupon with EVERY haircut. I would assume you could use one of their $8.99 haircut coupons that come in the home mailers and still get the coupon, but I am not certain on this. You will have to check with your salon. Even if you can't, though, it's still a great deal. Just thought I'd pass on this great info that my wonderful hubby alerted me to. :)

FREE photos at Walgreens

Through tomorrow you can get 20 free 4x6 prints at Walgreens.com by using the coupon code 20free4me at checkout! You can also elect to have it shipped to your closest store to get FREE shipping! :) Click HERE to go to Walgreens Photo and order yours now!

Thanks SheSaved!

Great deal on Easy Ups at Walgreens

Today through Saturday Walgreens is doing a great promo where if you spend $25 on anything in the store, you get a $5 RR! There is also a great "Back-to-School" coupon booklet in the store (these can be found at the front with the store ads) that has a few good coupons (these are store coupons and so can be stacked with manufacturer coupons).

So here is the deal scenario I used (thanks Hip2save!)

:Deal Scenario:

Buy 2 Pampers Easy Ups Training Pants (2/$20.00)

Buy 2 Huggies Wipes 64ct ($2.79/ea)

Total = $25.58

Use 2 $1.50/1 Easy Ups (PG 8/2) to take off $3.00

Use 2 $.50/1 Huggies Wipes (SS 7/19) to take off $1.00

Use the $2 off Huggies Wipes from the "Back-to-School" coupon booklet (this will automatically take off $2 for for each package of wipes) for $4.00 off

Total OOP = $17.58, BUT get back a $5.00 RR for spending $25, AND a $2 RR for the Easy Ups!

I did this two times, but with the first transaction I also got all of the above summer clearance items that were 50-75% off, so all together I got $78.58 worth of items for $37.85, plus still have $14 in RR's to spend like cash on a future trip! Not too bad for the following items:

4 - Easy Ups

4 - Huggies Wipes

1 - 4ct large plastic cups ($1.25)

1 - Transformers toy w/ candy ($1.99)

1 - Super Bubbles 8oz ($.39)

2 - Skittles Spray candy ($.50)

1 - Crayola 3D chalk set ($1.99)

1 - BBQ tool ($.67)

I did also use a $6.00 RR I receieved last week from the Listerine deal....

Those of you that don't live in Idaho...

Ok, so my wonderful husband has been sending people to my blog and I know that some of you do not live in Idaho. I just thought that I would note a couple of things for those of you that live elsewhere.

First off, my blog is definitely centered around Idaho as far as my local grocery shopping (at Albertsons) but there are a LOT of blogs out there for other areas and grocery stores. My blog still has a lot of useful information for you as far as tips/tricks/ideas/things to do and NOT to do, etc. You just won't find matchups pertaining to your local grocery store. (I do, however, do posts about Target/Walmart/Walgreens/RiteAid/etc)

I know that athriftymom has readers from EVERYwhere and she posts a lot of matchups for out-of-state readers. If you go to her site and look on the right side-column (you may have to scroll down a bit to find it) she has a bunch of different store logos and you can click on the store you shop at to see the current matchups. Hip2save also does some matchups for stores in other areas. Again, just scroll down a little bit and on the right side-column you will see a list of stores. Click on yours to see the current coupon match-ups.

There are a LOT of sites out there. Try just doing some google searching and see what comes up. Hopefully you can find a blog by someone based in your area or at least near you that will have the weekly match-ups for the store you shop at.

You can also try the PYP state forums (HERE). Just find your state and see if there is anyone in your area participating. I will warn you, some states have very little to no activity, while others have a ton.


No luck? Well, don't forget that you can do this on your own! First, you will still have to learn all about coupons and start growing your coupon stash, so click HERE if you are new to this site. (click HERE to go to my Coupon Vocab page and HERE to go to my Coupons 101 page). You will also need a way to organize your coupons (click HERE for my Organization 101 page). From there, you will need to find out when your local stores weekly circular ads come out and their new weekly sales start. For example, Walgreens ads/sales run from Sunday-Saturday with a new sale each Sunday. Albertson's ads/sales run from Wednesday-Tuesday with a new sale each Wednesday, or sometimes they have 3-day sales that run Fri-Sun or Sun-Tues. You just need to get familiar with your stores schedule.



You will also want to find out your store's coupon policy. I have a list of coupon policies for some stores (including Target, Walmart, Shopko, etc) HERE, but you will want to find out what it is for your store. Some stores will not accept coupons printed from the internet, some stores will price match or accept competitor coupons while others will not, some will double or triple coupon amounts, etc. You can obtain this information by either requesting it at customer service, or calling the customer service phone number posted on the internet and asking for that information. Get it in WRITING! Most of the time the cashiers or managers IN the store don't even completely know their store's policy. You will want to have this policy printed out and brought with you in the store so that if there is ever a dispute, you have your policy in hand to settle any matters.



Once you are familiar with your store, you can start getting their weekly ad (usually comes in the paper, though some stores mail theirs) and you just have to go through the ad, page-by-page, and match up your coupons with the items in the ad to find out what their price after coupons will be. You can just write this down as you go. When you are done, you will want to check out PYP's price book for reference (click HERE to go to PYP and learn all about this feature. This is something you can download and keep on your computer for future reference or you can even print out the items you want and keep your own binder pricebook that you can add to as you find prices, but it could make for a LOT of printing! They also have a wealth of useful info on their Coupons101 page HERE. Just click around and see what you can learn) This price book will tell you how good of a price the item you're searching for is. For example, if your store has name brand spaghetti sauce on sale for $x.xx, factor in your coupon, which will make it $x.xx, then you can look at the price book page for "spaghetti sauce" (these are listed alphabetically). It will tell you what a 3-star price would be (this is an average price and not a super great deal, but not bad), a 4-star price would be (this is a good price and definitely worth buying if you want/need it), and a 5-star price would be (this is what we call a "stock-up" price because you will want to get as many as you have coupons for if it's something your family will use)

As you get more and more familiar with everything, you will start to know what a great price is just off the top of your head and things will get easier and less time-consuming. It will take time, patience, and practice, but you CAN do it and it WILL get easier.

There ya go...you have what you need to get started. Hopefully you will have luck finding a blog with store match-ups for you so that you won't have to do the grunt work, but if not, you can still save a ton of money by just learning the system. Again, I have a lot of great information on my blog for you, just start HERE and work your way to each newer post. Some of the info will be irrelevant to you, but a lot of it will help. :) If you have any questions, please feel free to leave a comment or to email me by clicking the "Email Me" link at the top of the right side-column. I'll get back to you as soon as I can.

Tuesday Menu Planning

This is the first week I am trying my own menu plan. I will let you know next week how well I stuck to it! Lol. :) I am using a lot of the wonderful tips that Tori gives HERE at sheshopssmart.

First of all, menu planning is so vitally important to saving your family even more money above and beyond what you are saving with coupons. Not only does it let you plan meals around a given week's sale items, it also ensures that you will use all food before expiration. I hate throwing things out that I forgot about and they expired before being used.

Alright, so here is my menu plan for the week. I have decided to do my menu plans on Tuesday so that I can take advantage of the new weeks' sales at Albies (I just look at the preview list). This coming week, there really aren't any truly great deals going on that I'm interested in, so I will be using up some of the items I have bought in previous weeks. I do not plan which meal I will have on which day. Just seven of each meal (breakfast, lunch, snack, dinner, and dessert) and I can pick and choose them during the week as it fits in our schedule. Also, even though you see multiple meals with some of the same items, I would not do those meals in the same day.

As Tori mentions in her meal planning tips, don't forget to plan around your families schedule! If you know you have a football game to go to on Thursday night, don't plan a big fancy meal for that night. Make that the quick and easy meal night.

Also, leave room for adjustment. Things come up, people run late, you know the drill. Being flexible allows you to not get overwhelmed. Just having these meals planned out ahead of time, though, will usually help take that stress away any way, as you're not frantically searching the kitchen trying to figure out what to throw together because everyone's "


:Breakfasts:
Cereal w/ milk, Del Monte Fruit Naturals fruit cup
Bagels w/ cream cheese and jelly, orange juice

Grapes, watermelon, and strawberries w/ cottage cheese, milk

Toaster Strudel, watermelon chunks, milk

Yogurt w/ strawberries, toast, juice

Breakfast burritos (using up some bacon and tortillas before they go bad)

French toast, eggs, sausage, orange juice (a big, hot meal for Weston on his first day of first grade!)

:Lunches:
Totinos pizza rolls, salad, carrot sticks w/ ranch, milk
Chicken fingers & french fries, juice
PB&J sandwiches, chips, grapes, milk
Progresso soup, salad, & Rhodes Warm-n-Serve rolls, chocolate milk
Kids Cuisine (for kids), Healthy Choice (for me) frozen meals, juice
Lunchables, grapes, tea
Hot Pockets, milk

:Snacks:

Fruit snacks

Grapes and cheesesticks

Crackers and cheese

Watermelon chunks

Orange slices

Pretzels and peanut butter

Jello

:Dinners:

Macaroni Grill dinner kit, asparagus, Rhodes rolls

Pork Ribs Country-style (bbq'd on the grill), pasta salad, baked beans, watermelon

Bertolli Ovenbaked meal, green beans, bread-n-butter

Steak (on the grill), steamed broccoli, baked potato

Chicken, rice, steamed veggies

Pasta w/ Ragu alfredo sauce, cooked carrots, cheese toast

Sloppy Joes, onion rings, mustard potato salad

:Desserts:

Marie Calender's peach cobbler

Klondike bars

Sno-Cones (my vice in the summer, and have to take advantage before summer's GONE!)

Banana Splits

Strawberries-n-cream (with vanilla coffee-mate creamer....SOOOO yummy!)

Fruit salad (watermelon, grapes, strawberries, bananas, oranges, the works!)

Pilsbury cookies (from the refrigerated dough)

FINALLY!!!

Alright, so my Organization 101 page is FINALLY complete. This page will help you learn how to organize your coupons. It gives lots of different methods and suggestions, so hopefully you will find something you like. :) Check it out HERE or by clicking on the "Organization 101" link in the navigation bar above. Let me know what you think!

Albertson's Preview 8/19-8/25

HERE is this week's Albertson's ad.

HERE is the printable shopping list.

Nothing on the list that I, personally, am getting super-excited about, except all the great paper products that are part of the Box Tops promos. Hefty cups/plates/bowls, Ziploc containers and bags, Kleenex....might be a good time for me to stock up on that kind of stuff. Any way, check it out and see what you think!

If you are new to this site and don't know what to do with this printable list, click HERE to get started saving 60-90% on your grocery bill!

Albies Shopping 8/16

Today I woke up and was happy to find three doublers in each of my 6 papers...woohoo! I was hoping that would be the case, and had put off my weekly Albies shopping just in case. So, I went early this morning while my wonderful hubby stayed home with our sick toddler and our 6 year old. I was pretty much the only one in the store and they were well-stocked in everything I went for (except for the DiGiorno Melts) and that is ALWAYS a plus! Here is what I got...(If you are new to this site or to couponing and have no idea what I'm talking about...click HERE to get started understanding all of this coupon lingo and the terms used in this post and click HERE to learn how YOU can save 60-90% on your grocery bill)

I did this in five transactions so as to take advantage of my doublers. I also did my Kraft promo transaction (spend $25, get a $5 OYNSO & $20 MIR). I got $226.98 worth of groceries for $61.41, but will be sending in my rebate form to get $20 back (in 6-8 weeks)

Transaction #1

15 - Powerade (Buy 10, get 5 free making them $.50/ea)

4 - Post Select cereals (Buy 4, save $4)

2 - Darigold Milk singles

Used 2-$1/2 Post cereal (SS 7/26), $1/2 Darigold (SS 6/14 or IP HERE), and three doublers making my OOP $9.50. BUT, there is a catalina promo going on right now for the Post Select and for buying 4 I got a $3 OYNSO!

Transaction #2 (My Kraft promo transaction)

5 - Capri Sun 10pk

2 - Philidelphia cream cheese

4 - Kraft singles

2 - DiGiorno Flatbread melts

1 - Teddy Grahams

I used 1-$1/2 Philidelphia (RP 8/9), 2-$1/2 Kraft Singles (RP 8/9), 2-$.75/1 DiGiorno (SS 5/17), and three doublers, making my OOP $23.34. I received my $5 OYNSO catalina and a catalina with my rebate form printed on it. Now...if you've been following all of the other blogs, you know of all of the problems this promo has had. Items were mismarked, wrong addresses were given for sending in the rebate, no one knew if you had to reach $25 before or after coupons, etc. I chose to go with the safe route and made my total be over $25 AFTER coupons, except for the Albies doublers, as those have nothing to do with the manufacturer. So my total was $26. 34, but with the Albies doubles it came to $23.34. As for the correct address to send the rebate to, according to athrifymom, the following address is the CORRECT address.

Kraft Foods-SuperValu Back-to-School MIR Offer #511-5
P.O. Box 753854
El Paso, TX 88575-3854

There is also some other great information regarding this promo/rebate to be found on that same athriftymom post.

Transaction #3

4 - Honey Bunches of Oats

2 - Darigold Milk singles

2 - Sargento Cheesesticks (these had a "manager's special" sticker on them for an additional $3 off, as they were nearing their expiration date)

I used 2-$1/2 Honey Bunches (SS 7/26), 1-$1/2 Darigold (SS 6/14 or HERE), plus used 3 doublers, making my OOP $5.98.

Transaction #4

4 - Honey Bunches of Oats

1 - Chinet cut crystal tumblers

7lbs Petite Sirloin Steak

4lbs Green seedless grapes

I used 2-$1/2 Honey bunches (SS 7/26), 1-$1/1 Chinet (SS 6/28), plus 3 doublers and my $5 OYNSO from the Kraft promo transaction and my $3 OYNSO from the Post Selects promo, making my OOP $20.52.

Trans. #5

3 - Rhodes Warm-n-serve rolls (we just finally tried these the other night even though I had bought them a while ago...they are AWESOME! Well, at least the Garlic Butter ones are. Haven't tried the other ones yet. Needless to say I will be getting more of these whenever I have doublers. They are regularly $2.69, but with the $1 off Q (SS 6/14 or SS 7/19) and a doubler it makes them $.69/ea. Worth it to me!)

OOP=$2.07

I know where we're eating lunch!

Today's Arby's Wednesday freebie is a Roast Chicken Club sandwich (with the purchase of a drink). Doesn't that look yummy? Go get yours today! :)

Meal Planning...

This is something I have SOOO much desire to do, but have not yet done. My stockpile of food is growing so fast and it's so easy to forget what we even have in there! I love the idea of making meal plans according to what is on sale that week, and also with what you already have. I've posted it before, but if you haven't read it yet, you need to check out sheshopssmart and her tips, reasons, and ideas for meal planning (click HERE to read her post). I think for starters I might try to follow her weekly meal plans as a basic guideline. Just make adjustments and minor changes where needed...try to ease into things. Lol. I just think it would be great to have my meal plan all written down and posted on the fridge for the week and just KNOW ahead of time what I will be preparing and eliminate all of the "Mom, what's for dinner?'s" and even more importantly, the "um...I don't know yet" answers. I LOVE cooking, and it has kind of taken a backseat while I have spent time focusing on building my stockpile and on taking advantage of every deal I can. It's finally getting to the point, though, that my stockpile is pretty decent and there is no reason why I can't start to cut down a little bit, and start truly reaping all of the benefits!

So, I plan to start posting weekly meal plans soon...I will probably pick a day of the week, like Tuesday since that is the day before my shopping day, and will post my meal plan for the following week. I can't wait to try this new system. My goal will be to do my first meal plan post next Tuesday! :) (*crosses fingers*)

I just have to say...

I LOVE being able to walk to my pantry/freezer and have endless options for meals. Just this evening I made a meal for my family for about $1, and we still have enough leftovers to have for lunch tomorrow. The only thing I have left to really stock up on is meat. I have stocked up on a couple of things (chicken thighs and pork country-style ribs) but other than that there hasn't been any truly great "stocking up" prices on a lot of the other meats and cuts. I can't wait to finally stock up on those and truly just have to buy my produce and parishables each week. To know that unless I WANT to...I don't even have to really go shopping one week. It's just so cool...

Have you started coupon shopping yet? If not, you are throwing away money! Click HERE to start learning how you, too, can slash 60-80% off of your grocery bill!

Last of my Albies shopping for the week...

I wound up going to Albies ONE more time...I just couldn't let some of the stuff pass me by...especially with all the corresponding coupons we got in the paper on Sunday! I went and did 4 more transactions...

Transaction #1
2 - Cheerios snack mix
6 - Betty Crocker fruit snacks
6 - Nut Clusters
Total for promo: $30.00
Used 6-$1/1 Nut Clusters, 2-$.50/1 Cheerios Mix, 6-$.40/1 fruit snacks, making my OOP $19.94, but earned $15 in OYNSO.

#2
3 - Hamburger Helper
3 - Cheerios Snack mix
2 - Fruit Snacks
10 - Suave Kids Shampoo (no, I didn't clear the shelf! There were TONS and I made sure to take a few of each kind. They STILL didn't have any of the detangler, so I never did get to get any. Booo...)
Total for promo: $30.17
Used 5-$.50/2 Suave, 1-$.75/3 Hamburger Helper, 3-$.50/1 Cheerios, 1-$.50/2 Fruit Snacks, plus used my $15 in cats from previous transacti0n, making my OOP $9.42 and I received $15 more in OYNSO.

#3
6 - Macaroni Grill Dinner Kits
3 - Betty Crocker Warm Delights
2 - Betty Crocker fruit snacks
Total for promo: $30.00
Used 6-$1/1 Macaroni Grill, 3-$.50/1 Warm Delights, 1-$.50/2 fruit snacks, and my $15 in OYNSO, making my OOP $7.01 and I received another $15 OYNSO.

#4
Just over 3lbs of boneless pork chops (BOGO)
6 - Tyson frozen chicken strips (they were out of beef)
4 - Oscar Meyer lunchables
Used 6-$1/1 Tyson and my $15 in cats, making my OOP $1.83.

All in all, I spent $38.20 for $194.64 worth of groceries. So...for this AWESOME sale Albies had this week, I got $1000.15 worth of groceries! I only paid $121.98. That's a savings of $878.17 or 88%!!! So exciting! Thankfully this week at Albies will be a bit less hectic. I'll go get my $25 worth of free groceries and a few other odds and end things, but other than that, I think I'll spend my time doing some Walgreens and RiteAid shopping. Fred Meyer actually has some great prices on produce this week, also! Who knows...maybe I'll just take a break. (yeah, right...like I know how to do that! Lol) Anyway, hope you all had a successful week shopping (and saving)!

Rite Aid Shopping

I decided to try shopping at Rite Aid for the first time last week...to see if it was worth it for me. I figured I would check it out for a month and see what I think. So far...there's a lot to like! If you have never shopped at Rite Aid before, the first thing you need to know about is their AWESOME Single Check Rebate(SCR) program. It is a wonderful program where you get rebate checks for the items you buy in the store...a lot of times, these items are FREE even BEFORE coupons. Add on a coupon, and you can even MAKE MONEY! (You get the full rebate amount, regardless of whether or not you use a coupon)

The program is SOOO easy to use. You just sign up online (HERE) or they have brochures at the store that you can fill out and mail in. When you buy an item that is eligible for rebate, you take the receipt that has the item(s) on it and simply enter the information from the receipt and submit. No need to send in receipts or proofs of purchase. Just submit the receipt information and at the end of the month request your rebate check. You will then receive your check by mail within 2-3 weeks. Super easy.

The thing to note with this is that, initially, you will be paying for the items out-of-pocket, but as long as you continue to roll those rebate checks you get back on more rebate qualifying items each month, you will soon be using no cash out of your own pocket. You will just roll these rebates and get tons of FREE (or close to free) items.

Another great thing about this program is that most items have a limit of one rebate per account/household/address, so you can rest assured that, most likely, the items you want will be in stock! People don't clear the shelves since they can only get one rebate. I can't tell you how many times I've gone to Walgreens, Target, or Albies and they are completely OUT of the items I want. So, that was a big appeal for me.

Here is an example of my first shopping trip, to give you an idea of how this works:


I purchased these items in two separate transactions for the price given in parenthesis, minus the coupons listed.

Transaction #1

5 - Duracel battery (2pk D) ($3.00/ea)

2 - Tag Body Spray ($2.99/ea)

1 - Zantac 150 (8ct) ($4.99)

My total came to $25.97. I used a $5 off $25 purchase internet printable coupon found on coupons.com bringing my total to $20.97. I then used 5-$.50/1 Duracell coupons and 2-$2/1 Tag coupons. My total paid out of pocket was 11.47.

Transaction #2

1 - Venus Embrace Razor ($7.00)

1 - Duck Easy Start tape ($1.49)

1 - Tag Body Spray ($2.99)

1 - Crest Pro Health Toothpaste ($2.79)

1 - Renu contact solution twin-pack ($9.99)

1 - Grandma's Chocolate chip cookie pack ($.79-I did this because I needed $.74 to reach the $25 so that I could use the $5 off of $25 purchase)

My total came to $25.05. I used another $5 off of $25 purchase, bringing my total to $20.05. I then used 1- $2/1 Venus coupon, 1-$2/1 Tag coupon, 1-$2/1 Renu coupon, and 1-$.75/1 Crest coupon, bringing my out of pocket to $13.30.

Upon returning home, I logged onto my RiteAid SCR account and entered my receipt information. It automatically searches my receipts and applies all rebates I qualify for to my total monthly check amount. These are the rebates I qualified for...

Duracell $5.00 (for buying $15 worth of Duracell products)

Zantac $4.99,

Duck Brand $1.49

Renu $9.99

Gillette $5.00

Crest $2.79

That's a total of $29.26 that I have so far in rebates for the month...if you take away the total of $24.77 that I've paid out of pocket, that leaves me MAKING $4.49 after rebates! Now...as if that isn't good enough...Zantac has a separate rebate to try Zantac for free, so I have also mailed in for a $5 rebate from the manufacturer that I should receive within 8 weeks. Total for all of these items? I MADE $9.49! How awesome is that??

Now I can continue doing any Rite-Aid shopping this month that I want to do, continuing to enter my receipt info after every purchase (I would do this immediately upon returning home or you run the risk of forgetting!) You do NOT submit for your rebate check until you are positive you will not be doing any more shopping for that rebate month. You can only submit ONCE per month! If you submit and do more shopping and buy qualifying rebate products afterward, but before the start of the next rebate month, you will lose out on rebates! Also, note that the rebate "months" do not run from the first day of the month to the last day of the month! They generally straddle two months. For example, the month of August rebates must be purchased between July 26th and August 29th. You must request your check by September 28th. So, for myself, I will submit for my check on August 30th.

This check is in the form of a real check...you can deposit this into your bank account or cash it at your bank. It is not like a register reward or catalina that can only be used at the store from which it was received. I definitely like THAT!

Just a few other random things worth mentioning:

*There are frequently coupons on coupons.com for 10% off your purchase or $5 off of a $25 purchase, so definitely use these to get more bang for you buck!

*A lot of the coupon blogs have weekly match-ups for you, so you don't even have to do the work! Go HERE to see athriftymom.com's RiteAid match-ups for the week...hip2save has great matchups too, but there is no direct link, you just have to click HERE to go to the main page and along the right side column you will see a list of stores and you can click on "RiteAid" to get the weekly deals.

*It's always a good idea to go over the ad yourself, as you never know what you may have a coupon for that you got from other sources that someone else might not have, or you never know when they'll miss a really great match-up!

*If you want to see the current rebates for any given month, you can do so online HERE or you can pick up a book at the store that lists them.

*Remember that some items have month-long rebate periods, while others only qualify if you purchase them within specified dates (usually on a particular week that will coincide with a sale). Always be sure to double-check the dates so that you don't buy an item outside of it's qualifying time frame and not get the rebate.

*RiteAid sales run Sunday-Saturday.

Alright, so...I guess that is all for now...I am learning this as I go, so if I come across anything else, I will be sure to share. I definitely think that I am going to enjoy shopping RiteAid! It's just so simple and the possibility to actually MAKE money shopping...well, what's cooler than that?