Club Pub

I haven't posted any of my savings in a while. I've been doing my Publix shopping (cutting ANY corners we can these days!) and it's been going really well. I find myself less and less at Walmart - praise the Lord! And my weekly trips to Publix have been in the $20-$30 range per trip!! :-)



Total before savings: $98.04

Coupon savings: $28.49

Sale savings: $32.94

Total out of pocket: $36.61


This made the yogurts $0.33/each, bags of frozen biscuits $0.70 each! The veggies were practically pennies a bag, granola bars and cereal $1.00/box.

The only things that I got that weren't on sale or that I didn't have a coupon for were some bread flour (yes, I'm attempting my sourdough bread recipe again and have to get the starter going again!) and some potato flakes (to feed the starter), and the eggs - which I guess were on sale..they were a great price!


Also, has anyone else noticed the lack of really good CVS deals lately? They just haven't lured me in. I hope next week is good, because I have some ECBs I need to use!! :-)

Club Pub

Another great week of savings for me at Publix! And you better bet I handed my $5.oo off coupon to the cashier FIRST! No more forgettin' that baby!


Total before coupons/sales: $102.18

Coupons: $31.05
Sales: $42.39

Total Out of Pocket: $28.74

Total Savings: $73.44

I like to save at least as much as I spend. But if I can double what I spent on savings...EVEN BETTER! (And I wasn't too far from tripling what I spent on savings!) I spent about $0.97 per item. Even better than last week!! :-)

I got the Velveeta for $0.80! (I wish I had more coupons for that). The hummus a $1.00, cereal $0.99 each, voila frozen veggie meals $1.49 each, spicy mustard $0.54 each, tomatoes $0.30 each, chex mix $0.24 each, wheat thins $0.59, triscuits $0.60, seasoning mixes $0.44 each, all the bratwurst (Robert LOVES) were $1.71 per package! I didn't have coupons for the pretzels (just wanted them) or the ketchup (needed it but it was BOGO).

I feel very good about this purchase. Pretty sure nothing is going to be wasted. Now I'm just waiting for some rock bottom prices on meat to restock on. Gettin' a little low on ground beef. :-)

Club Pub

Another great (small) shopping trip to Publix!!!


Out of Pocket: $13.16
Coupons used: $19.95
Sales: $25.28
Total Savings: $45.23


The muffins were a great deal. There was a $5 publix coupon when you bought 10. Then I had another coupon. It made them $0.24/each. Electrosal $1.49/each. Soup $0.50/each. Feminine protection (sorry guys) $0.73/each and $0.98/each, big bags of pasta/veggies $0.75/each (that's practically a meal for us!!), the relish $0.10, and the ragu $0.75/each!!!

All in all, I'm happy with this trip. Definitely got some things that we use a lot!! Too bad I didn't have more coupons for the veggies or detergent! I probably would have gotten more. But I guess it's my fault for not picking up extra Sunday papers.

Thanksgiving '08

What a wonderful long, relaxing weekend!!! Of course, now life is thrown into overdrive for the Christmas season! Gotta love it!! :-)

My Thanksgiving started with a trip to CVS of course!!! Their "black friday" deals started on Thursday. I was dying to take pictures of how much I stole bought, but it was TOO MUCH!! I'll give you the numbers though.

Total out of pocket: $27.47
Total savings: $105.45
Received back: $68.58 Extra Care Bucks!!!! What am I going to do with all of those!

Basically a Profit of: $41.11

So needless to say, I was on a extreme frugal shopping high to start the weekend off! Wonderful!

Then we started to make our rounds of Thanksgiving feasts! I'm not sure there is anything much better than a southern Thanksgiving meal. YUMMO!!



And then burning it off running around in the back yard! :-)

Then off to the lake for two more meals! Too bad the weather was crummy until the day we were leaving!

But that didn't stop us from making a bonfire and cooking s'mores in the rain!!


And throwing a lot of rocks in the water! Endless fun!!!



I hope everyone had a great weekend! Now, let's get this Christmas season going!!! I know it's been all Christmas music in my car today!!! :-)

Club Pub

Ok, so I totally stole that nickname of Publix from Fiddledeedee's blog. But I like it!! :-)


I quickly ran into Publix to get all the kids a free cookie - snack time before ballet - gotta love Publix. I also had to get cheese cubes for Olivia's Thanksgiving feast for school!! Oh, and while I was there, I used up some of my coupons on this week's deals. I may or may not go back, we'll see what Sunday's coupons bring us! :-)



Total before coupons/sales: $71.57

Coupons used: $21.95
Sales: $27.53
Total Savings: $49.48

Total Out of Pocket: $22.09 a savings of 69%!!!!!

Keep in mind, the cheese was NOT on sale... :-( Also, I messed up a little and got Sister Schubert biscuits (not on sale), instead of rolls....making my total higher. Though I did have a coupon for them.

To give you an idea...this sale/coupons made the: pickles ($0.39/each), cream cheese ($0.75/each), chex mix ($0.24), frozen veggies ($0.19/each) etc, etc, etc.

Y'all still like it when I post my deals??? :-)

CVS Trippin' and Clothes Deals

Not too much happenin' for me in the CVS ads this week. But I did manage to turn my $14.00 ECBs into $15.99 ECBs for $1.17. Watch how. :-)


L'oreal moisturizer - $15.99

coupons:
l'oreal - $1.00
$14.00 ECBs

TOTAL out of pocket - $1.14
Received back $15.99

There is a really good batteries deal going on where I could get tons of batteries for a few dollars. I may or may not do that. BUT, with Christmas coming up, it always seems like we're searching for some size of battery for a toy.




I've also scored some more great deals on kids clothes in the past few days. Being frugal for me means always keeping my eyes peeled for deals. Even if that item isn't on my list. I went to K-mart the other day to buy some random things...bday present, toilet paper, etc. As I was just walking around, I spotted a $0.99 rack of kids clothes. And they just happened to be another 30% off that!! I found four pairs of shorts for Landon (next year of course) for $0.69 a piece!!! Even if they fall apart or don't work, I'm out the amount of money I could probably find in my couch right now.

I also snagged another $0.99 Bailey Boys outfit for Lillian from Jimmy Hale. I debated a little because it looked pretty gender neutral and not as girly as I usually dress her. But I was thinking about adding some bows to the shoulders and ankles. I think I may have some from some other Bailey Boys outfits. You can pin them on and take them off to wash it.



Have you had any frugal finds lately?

Publix Deals

I had a great trip at Publix today!! Thought I'd share and branch out from my usual CVS $$ saving posts.

Landon wanted to model our groceries!



Total before savings: $97.86
-coupon savings: $23.05
-store sale savings: $40.59

TOTAL savings: $63.64

Total Out of Pocket: $34.22


I got 12 creamed soups (I think around $0.50 each), coffee creamers were $0.50 each!! Texas toast was $0.45 each, lysol $0.35 each, veggies $0.50, lettuce $1.00, olive oil around $2.30. The only things I didn't have coupons for were the cheez-its or mac and cheese - but the prices (with no coupons) were better than walmarts! Oh, and I used a $5.00 off $50.00 purchase or more!

Got to love those Publix BOGOs!!! :-)

CVS Trippin' and Great Opportunity (bottom of post)

If you didn't realize this already, my CVS superstar friends, this was a GREAT week for CVS and ECBs. :-) There were tons of "moneymakers" and great deals for rolling your ECBs.

I'll start with my first transaction - which I really only did to turn my $10 ECBs into $14.99 ECBs for the next transaction.


L'oreal $11.99
St. Ives $3.99

coupons:

L'oreal $1.00 (which made them pay me $1.00 to buy it)
St Ives $2.00 (which made them pay me $1.01 to buy it)
$10.00 ECBs

Total out of pocket: $3.46
Received back $14.99

So even thought it seems like I spent $ I netted a $1.53 "profit" (including taxes being taken out). And everyone needs soap...the wrinkles stuff, well, it's never to early to be taking care of your skin!!! :-)

I think this is the part that is hard to wrap your head around, but it makes sense after you've been doing it a while! :-)


SOOO...next transaction:

3 Palmolive dish soap $4.47
3 Kids Listerine $11.97 (anything to make teeth brushing more fun around here!)
1 Garnier shampoo $2.99
BOGO Colgate $2.29 (and I bought 2)

COUPONS:

Palmolive $0.25
Palmolive $0.25
Palmolive $0.25
Listerine $1.00
Listerine $0.50
Listerine $0.50
Colgate $1.50
Colgate $0.75 (could use 2 colgate coupons even though I was getting one for free!!)
ECBs $14.99


Total out of pocket: $2.40
Received back: $14.00 ECBs

What I technically paid for was $0.99 for shampoo, $0.24/each Palmolive, and only $0.49 for 2 of the Listerines (one they paid me a $0.01), and about $0.04 for TWO toothpastes!





So, the grand total for both transactions was $5.86 (savings of $48.88) and I upped my ECBs to $14.00!!!!



Oh, and listen to THIS. I mean, if I had only be a little less impatient to go save $$. I get an email this morning (apparently after leaving the house) for a $5.00 from CVS!!!!!

Are you kidding me...I pretty much could have paid $0.86 for all this stuff!!!!! Well, it expires Sunday, so I'll be looking ahead to see if I should hold on to it, or use on some more great deals that I passed up today. :-)

One more thing. I just wanted to address one of the biggest questions about all of these money saving tips and clipping coupons. I get questions/comments about how much time this takes. Yes, learning it and developing your own system takes time. Learning prices and what's a good deal, tracking sales...it takes time. But not as much as people would expect. It becomes quite fun after a while. And you learn to become efficient. It makes me feel so good to know that I'm doing my part in our family budget and cutting as many corners as possible. Every penny counts these days...we're always looking for a good deal. I guess what I'm trying to say, is that the time learning/clipping/tracking is time well spent. And my kids have gotten involved in it as well. Olivia is a GREAT coupon clipper!!! I want my kids to learn about how money works. I want them to be good stewards with their money! Labor=Value. And I want them to learn to value the things that Robert and I work hard for - and eventually what they work hard for. They've learned to start some of their sentences like, "Do we have any coupons for Chick fil A Mom? Can we eat there today??" I love it!



*** For those who are interested in learning from the person that taught me about saving money, she is doing a one day (FREE) Strategic Shopping Seminar Saturday Nov. 15th. If you would like more info, leave me a comment with your email (I WILL NOT POST COMMENTS WITH EMAIL ADDRESSES IN THEM) and I can forward you the email I received with all the info! When I did it 2 summers ago, it was SO much fun. I want to go again! There is never too much you can learn about saving money!! :-)

Don't Knock It 'til You Try It

So during this time of economic hardship....yeah, yeah, yeah, well...we're always trying to be frugal - economy or not. But I've never "stooped" to this level. And will a lot more now!!

First, let me say, I am not "brand loyal" to many things. Maybe pepsi and I have some favorite brands of jeans, but I really could care less what the labels on our things say. Second, we've been blessed with lot of nice children's clothing. My mother-in- law used to work at an adorable children's boutique and would shower her grand kids with lots of cute clothes. Not to mention the hand-me-downs from the older grandchildren!!! It was through her generosity that I learned all these different brands of cute children's clothing lines. I still do not know all of them, but can usually recognize or spot them with ease now.

Now, I certainly do not have a "standard" to which I dress my kids. They wear walmart clothes, target clothes as well as nice "boutique outfits". If they are the pricier outfits, they were either hand-me-downs or bought at a %75 off sale!! But recently, the hand-me-downs are starting to run out. Which means...dun..dun..dun.....we have to actually start buying seasonal clothes for out kids!!! Uh oh. I mean, I just haven't had to shop for seasonal wardrobes before.

Needless to say, we're starting to find some frugal ways to dress our kids. I love the clearance racks anywhere. Whether it be target or a cute store we've picked up clothes for them there.

But the other day, Robert suggested I go to the Jimmie Hale Mission Bargain Center to shpe for the kids. My first gut reaction was, uh....NO! My reasoning being, I'd rather find newer clothes that would last longer. (What was I thinking!)

So last weekend we started redoing the girls room. Really, recycling old matching headboards that were my brothers and turning them into cute white headboards for twin beds in the girls room! We just needed some cheaper bed rails. (They were going to be $40 each at a "clearance center") As I was driving home Saturday morning, I decided to pull into the Jimmie Hale Bargain Center. I mean, I was just going to look and see if they had bed rails. And then get out quick.

But when I walked in, and realized how neat and organized everything was and how kind the workers were, I decided to look around a little. I cruised the kids racks and was blown away with the deals I was seeing. A Bailey Boys outfit (retailing for probably $50) for $1.99!!!!!! What!?!?! That can't be right! Flap Happy shorts (around $25) for $0.99!!! WHAT!?!?! I should buy these even though I have no one to fit into them!!

And then I finally made my way to the bed rails. $14.99 a piece!!! OH MY GOODNESS!! I walked out of there with 6 outfits, and 2 bed rails for less than I would have paid for ONE bed rail at a "clearance center".

Below are 2 of the outfits I got for Lillian. The blue, $1.99 Baily Boys outfit. The pink corduroy was $0.99. I'm thinking of getting them monogrammed for $4 bucks a piece. Still cheaper than I could have made it!!


Can you see the ruffles on her bottom!?! So cute!!


Landon and Olivia also got some pants and shirts. Some cute cords for Landon!! And play jeans for Olivia.

I didn't see and kids clothing over $1.99. Incredible. The kind workers told me they get stuff in everyday and you just have to frequent the store to find the deals. And you bet your sweet bottom they will know me after a while!!

So, I will never "knock" a place before I at least go in. You just can't judge a book (or store) by it's cover (or location or name!)!!


**One more thing. I think the reason it was bearable for me was because it wasn't like a TJMaxx or Ross, where the racks are so jammed pack with stuff that you have to use all your might to move the clothes just to look at them. It was easy to spot the good stuff. And the kids racks weren't so tightly packed. :-)

CVS Trippin'

Long time no trips!!! Until lately! Soooo......thought I post my recent CVS trip. I haven't been CVSin' too much in the past weeks. It just may be because.........wait for it...........Robert threw away $25 of my ECBs!!!!!!!! My heart only stopped beating for a couple of seconds after I found out. It was pretty devastating. I mean, that's like free money...to turn into more free money!

Needless to say, I've had to slowly rebuild my ECBs. Which had only amounted to $10 for this trip. I'm also only trying to buy things that our family uses on a daily basis, or stuff that's free or less. :-)

My trip:


2 Pampers cruisers $20.00
2 Olay lotion $12.00
1 candy 50% off $2.49 (ok, so I didn't have coupons for this...the chocolate and peanut butter was screaming my name from the sale bins)

Sub total: $37.93

coupons:

$1.50 - pampers
$1.50 - pampers
$2.00 - olay
$2.00 - olay
$5/$30 - CVS halloween coupon
$10.00 - ECBs

Total: $13.20 (Would have been less if that candy hadn't been yellin' at me)

Received back $10.00 ECBs from pampers and olay.

So this isn't one of those transactions that you pay pennies for, but I got TWO packs of diapers!! AND some lotion! And the candy that was screaming my name! You would pay $13 bucks at Wallyworld for ONE pack of pampers diapers alone.

I'd say well worth it.

Have you been saving lately??

CVS Trippin'

This might be my best trip to CVS ever...so far at least!! I guess that makes up for last week. :)

I had $5.00 ECBs that I knew I needed to stretch pretty far. I was also in desperate need of diapers for Lillian. So I did "moneymaker" transaction first to stretch my $5 ECBs further.

Transaction #1: (done at pharmacy counter)

1 Alavert $5.99
1 Children's Advil $5.79

coupons:
$2 off $10 CVS
$2 Advil
$4 Alavert
$3.00 ECBs

TOTAL: $1.39 paid on a $5 gift card (they messed up my ECBs one time and gave me that instead)

RECEIVED BACK:

$5.79 ECB (from advil)
$3.00 ECV (from Alavert)

Transaction #2:

1 Huggies $8.99 (working towards $5.00 back after buying $25.00)
1 CVS q-tips $1.50

coupons used:
$1 (huggies)
$2 (CVS skin)
$2 off $10 CVS coupon
$5 ECBs

Total: $0.62 (paid on CVS gift card)

Transaction #3

1 Huggies $8.99
1 CVS q-tips $1.50

coupons used:
$1 huggies
$2 off $10 CVS
$2 CVS skin
$5.79 ECBs

which put me -$0.06 so I had them adjust my skincare coupon to $1.94!!!

GRAND TOTAL: $0.00

Transaction #4 (done at a different store)

1 Huggies $8.99
1 Colgate $2.79
1 Colgate $0.00 (BOGO)

coupons used:
$1 huggies
$2 off $10 CVS
$2 Colgate coupon I got from the register
$1 Colgate coupons I got from the reigister
$2.99 paid on gift card

TOTAL out of pocket: $3.69

Received back $5.00 from the huggies!! The exact amount I came in with!!

GRAND SAVINGS: $41.77 and spend a TOTAL of $3.69 out of pocket!! (and came out with $5.00 ECBs!!!)

I pretty much look at that as 3 free packs of diapers...with some q-tips, medicine and toothpaste thrown in!



I can deal with that any day! Boy, I wish I had learned this when we were really broke. I mean, we are a family of 5 living on Robert's income alone. It just kills me to see how much I could have saved over the years when we were living on an extremely tight budget - and that's an understatement!! But the Lord has always taken care of us!!

Publix

I thought I'd post one of my grocery deals instead of pharmacy trips. So here it goes.

Most of these items were BOGO at Publix this week. I had coupons for everything but the peanut butter...but it was $1.29/jar so it was still a great deal! The brushes were not on my list. But since I left my brush at the lake last weekend, and they were in the clearance bin for $2.39 each, I decided to get them. Robert's been using the dog brush. :-) He cleaned it out though - don't worry! :-)


Grand total $33.89
Grander savings $52.95

fajita kits were $0.97 each
ziploc bags were0.70 each
granola bars were $0.84 each
popcorn was $1.57 each
cereals were around $1.30 or $1.50
hunts was $0.38
yogurt 8-packs were $0.89 each

You get the point. If I had more coupons for any of these things, I probably would have bought more!

Now, if I can just find a place to keep all this stuff!

Hidden Deals and CVS

So it wasn't my best CVS run ever. I learned my lesson and should have broken up the transactions into 2 or 3 "around $10" transactions. Then I probably would have paid pennies! Oh well. I also messed up and grabbed a wrong toothbrush. So that's also why it came out a little higher. Got....to...pay....more....attention...LINDSAY!! Ok.

TOTAL for this transaction: $4.33 (saved $54.24)

The batteries were on clearance for $2.90 and I had $1.00 coupons Had to get those. All the makeup was free because Cover Girl was BOGO this week and I used a BOGO coupon. Which is COMPLETEY OKAY TO DO. I talked to CVS corporate personally - after a rude encounter with a "manager" that said it was "HIS RULE" not to use my BOGO coupons. Oh, he got an earfull from upper management later, I'm sure of it!

I received back ECBs for the toothbrushes and toothpaste. All in all..not too shabby.



But this is where shopping gets fun. I just happened to notice those clearance batteries - good Energizer e2 batteries!! Then as I was pulling them off, there were 4 packs with $2.00 coupons I could use instantly!

So I bought 4 more packs of batteries all for $2.18!!! I'm not sure you can get batteries like this for $0.55 each at WallyWorld!! :-) And we go through AAA batteries like candy here!!


Always have to keep your eyes peeled! There are hidden deals all the time! My brain is still being trained to look out for these!

CVS Trippin'

Back by popular demand (again!), I'm posting my weekly CVS trips!!

First transaction:


1 Stayfree pads $4.50
1 Stayfree pads $4.50
1 Johnson baby wash $3.99
1 Johnson baby wash $3.99
1 Listerine mouthwash $4.00
1 CVS makeup removing cleansing cloths $2.99
4 Trident gum $1.49 each

coupons used:

listerine $0.50
johnsons $1.00
johnsons $1.00
B1G1 Stayfree $4.50
CVS skin $2.00
ECB $15.98
CVS $3.00 off $15.00 purchase
ECB $1.00

TOTAL out of pocket: $1.75

RECEIVED back: $14.00 for johnsons products, gum, and CVS towlettes

Second Transaction:


2 Starbursts bags $5.00 (don't tell my kids!) :-)
2 Gummi Lifesavor bags B1G1 $2.19
6 Reeses Cups $3.00 (those aren't going to last long around me!)
1 Bandaid $2.99
1 Revlon eyeshadow $9.99
NEWSPAPER (not pictured - but bought just for the coupons) $1.50

Coupons:

bandaid $1.00
Gummi lifesavers B1G1 $2.19
CVS $3.00 off $15.00 purchase
ECB $10.00
ECB $5.00
ECB $1.00
ECB $1.00

Total out of pocket: $1.95 (I basically paid for the newspaper - it would have been pennies if I hadn't gotten that!)

Received back:

$16.99 ECB from Revlon, bandaid, and candy!

I saved a total of $64.81!!!!!! And spend only $3.70 out of pocket! Pretty good, eh!?

A couple of things that I want to pass along.

1) ALWAYS CHECK YOUR RECEIPT!!! (I thought this idea was stupid at first)
I would say almost 1 out of 5 "strategic shopping" trips, something goes wrong on the receipt! Whether it's a wrong price, or a coupon that they added instead of subtracted (big one!), you want to make sure it's correct!! I usually do this in the car before I pull out of the parking lot! I had to go back in yesterday because the computer wasn't giving me my rewards for the candy! And they were more than happy to help me!

2) GET TO KNOW YOUR STORE WORKERS!!
Now that I've been frequenting a few CVS stores around town, the cashiers are starting to recognize me. Now, we're not on a first name basis (YET!), but they are getting pretty friendly. For example, one pushes coupons through for me if they've expired. I also a little short of making $30 mark so that I could use a $5 coupon and he pushed it on through anyways! WOW! They will also give me the ads ahead of time and even check in the back for items that are out on the shelves. One even gives me tips on getting the most out of my shopping trips and ECBs!


Well, I hope everyone had a great weekend and gears up for a great week! I officially have the kids home 24/7 until school starts. Pray for me! :-) I know God will give me the patience and energy. I'm just afraid other responsibilities will slip! Surprisingly, ::note the sarcasm:: I'm not perfect...and also seriously disorganized! But hey, I've become pretty domesticated over the past 6 years. Considering I never mopped a floor or ironed a shirt before I got married, the fact that I can halfway run a household with 3 small children and not lose my head too terribly often - well, we'll call that significant change!! I'm living proof it can be done!! :-)

So we'll see how often I get to post in the coming weeks!! :-) Who knows, I may have some pretty incredibly funny stories come along! :-)

My friend Annie posted this quote one time - it's pretty much sums me up!

"Keeping house is like threading beads on a string with no knot at the end."

CVS Trippin'

Since so many of you enjoyed my CVS adventures, I thought every once in a while I'd show you what kind of deals I'm getting. I know it's helpful for me because sometimes I go and buy the same group of items to get the same type of deals!

So here it is (not too much):

2 L'oreal haircare (B1G1)
1 CVS baby wipes
1 CVS baby soap
2 Trident gum (B1G1)

coupons used:

L'oreal B1G1 coupon (made the shampoo and conditioner FREE)
$2 CVS skin care coupon (made wipes FREE)
$2 CVS skin care coupon (made baby soap FREE)
$1.00 in ECBs

Total cost out of pocket: $1.07

Received back $1.00 ECB (from trident)
Basically, I paid $0.07 for all this stuff.



Also, if this makes sense, I'm working towards $5.00 in ECB from buying $15.00 in CVS baby care items. So if I break up the transactions and buy a $2.00 item (wipes/soap) everytime, and use a $2.00 coupon everytime, I'll eventually receive $5.00 in extra care bucks - but bought everything for free. (This is where I had a hard time wrapping my head around things at first!) And that, my friends, how you "make money". :-)

How I Got Started

I've had several questions about how I do the shoppin' thang! SO...I thought I share what worked for me and how I got started!

First, last year I went to a shopping seminar that a woman from our church started a few years ago. She tried to cram a years worth of info into a 6-7 hour time frame - and she didn't get through!! She was overflowing with wonderful money saving information. As well as biblical principles to apply to everything!

So I got a jump start from that memorable Saturday. I immediately figured out a way to best organize my coupons. Which, for me, happens to be a hard plastic index card box - so that it fits in my purse/car! (Though it's almost filled to capacity and I'll need a second one soon - or a new way to organize them!) Then, you start to clip away! I get the Sunday paper delivered to our house. I also get the coupons out of my grandmother's paper. And if the coupons are really good, I'll go pick up a few more for $.99 at Walgreens. And you file those babies away! Also, clip every single coupon. I didn't understand why until I realized that even if I didn't use that particular item, if I could get it for free or "make money" from buying it, it was worth it. And I could bless someone else with it if the opportunity arose.

After getting the coupon clipping/organizing down, you gather the weekly ads. Grocery store ads run from Wednesday to Tuesday. Drugstore ads run from Sunday to Saturday. The biggest thing to know while reading the ads are price points. You need to know great prices on items to see if it's the best deal you can get. That takes some learning. BUT, once you train your brain, you'll unconsciously start filing numbers in the back of you head and memorize the lowest prices! I like to check out Walmart. They have "low" prices. So if a grocery/drug store is running a price for lower, and that store doubles coupons or has rebates, chances are you can get at least a %50 better price at that particular store than at Walmart - if not better.

So, when I first started with CVS, my earliest purchases weren't cheap. But I was buying things that gave me Extra Care Bucks back so that I could start snowballing that "money" into savings. I've messed up a few times too. I've learned to use my biggest ECB's first. And there are limits on how many times you can "do the deals". I tried to do one twice and had to return everything. YIKES!

With the help of many blogs, like the ones in the previous post, I'm finally getting the hang of it. And it's fun....really. And it makes your accountant, penny-counting, budget loving, incredibly hardworking (and good lookin') husband really happy too! :-)

About those blogs, if they're all pretty much all inter-connected. You can just keep clicking and find tons of $ blogs. There are ones for Target, Walgreens, RiteAid, Publix, even Walmart - all teaching you how to get the best deals. They link coupons, run the numbers, and even tell you what Sunday paper (by date) the coupon you should use can be found in!

As for the supermarkets, my favorites are Publix and Piggly Wiggly. I hear Western is REALLY good too, I just don't live right next to one. So, when our favorite meat goes really cheap at the Pig (they have great meat) I go buy a whole bunch! Divide it up and stick it in the fridge. We're lucky to have another fridge in garage, so excess goes down there. Publix has great BOGO (buy one get one) deals every week. And when you use 2 coupons for the BOGO, you get incredible deals. ALSO, this is a big one, they accept competitors coupons. So if Target sends out a bunch of coupons, you can stack those with the Publix sales AND manufacturer's coupons! Even more great savings! They also accept competitor's coupons that are, for example, "$5.00 off a purchase of $30 or more"!! It could be a Bruno's, Target, or WinnDixie coupon - they'll honor it! Crazy! Publix also has incredible customer service and are always friendly. My kids know ever stop in Publix...first it's the free cookie counter. Then the free balloon in the produce section. Rounding out the grocery collection is the free coloring book and crayons! Every....single....time. But hey, if it keeps them happy while I shop...keep 'em coming!


Ok, so I think that was the longest post I've ever written. And for a reason - I ain't no writer!! I do not have a wonderful way with words like so many of you are! English was not my forte. Oh well. :-)

I hope it's given you a little insight into my head. Maybe I'll start posting a little more about my savings.....and I hope I pass the "money savings bug" onto everyone who reads this little blog!

A Few Random Thoughts

Well, first I want to plug my husband's new blog! www.thesouthernfriedaccountant.blogspot.com

If you want more profound and articulate blogging, his is the way to go! I'm excited to see what he writes about!! He's a WONDERFUL writer!

I also excited because it's Wednesday! Why, you ask? Because the "Wednesday Extra" comes in the mail with all the grocery store ads!!!!! YAY!!!

Let's back up! This summer I went to a shopping seminar with a lady from our church that teaches you how to grocery shop efficiently. In a nutshell, she teaches you how to track grocery store sales (which are cyclic) and use your coupons to get really great deals - better than Wal-mart prices! So when items go on sale, you use your coupons at the stores that double coupons and VOILA - you get a lowest target price! Then you stock up! I'm still not great at it but I can definitely see how you can save a lot of money. I mostly track meat sales and stock up when it's low. I also track sales on items I know we use - toilet paper, laundry detergent, condiments, shampoo...you get the idea. Recently I moved my coupons into a smaller container. I used to keep them in this box.




Now I keep them in these little pouches that I found at the Dollar Tree!

Now I can carry them in my purse for unexpected shopping trips!


So, an example for efficient shopping. Let's say Publix does a Buy One Get One Free (BOGO) on Kraft Salad Dressings. And they are regularly marked $2.50 a bottle. And I have $0.50 coupons for Kraft Salad dressings. I buy 2 bottles of dressing for $2.50 and each of my coupons get's doubled to $1.00 (so I save $2.00). I just bought 2 bottles of dressing for $0.25 each!!! Now, hopefully you've been clipping your coupons and you have more than 2 coupons and you can buy a few bottles of Ranch or whatever dressing your family eats on a regular basis and you store them away!

Her key is to stock up when items hit their lowest target price. She doesn't shop based on what meals she is cooking that week or month. She cooks based on what is stocked up in her pantry! Pretty cool. She has 9 people in her family and say she spends about $400 a month on food and cleaning supplies!

I just noticed that Spray and Wash is BOGO at Publix this week and I know I have some coupons. And I think I just used the rest of our last bottle (and A LOT of clorox) on the ::mmm:: rather nasty mess Landon made on our bed this morning while I was in the shower for 5 minutes. I'll spare you the details but let's just say this never crossed my daughters mind - EVER!!

I'm not sure why I never thought about clipping coupons before. I mean EVERY penny counts at our house! One income - 3 kids! I'm hoping that our savings can eventually snowball into greater savings. But I enjoy taking the time to clip coupons and track sales. It makes me feel like I'm doing my part as a stay at home mom - serving my family.

In Proberbs 31 it says (vs. 14) "She is like the merchant ships: bringing her food from afar". And in Luke 12:42 about being a wise manager, "Who then is the faithful and wise manager, whom the master puts in charge of his servants to give them their food allowance at the proper time?" I am doing my God intended job as a mother - taking care of my family. I am taking the money God has given our family and using it wisely - or at least I'm trying.

It blesses my husband too. Proverbs 31:11 "Her husband has full confidence in her and lacks nothing of value"

But the ultimate blessing is to me - to serve others and in the end serving God! Which is what brings us (me) perfect happiness and peace! God has entrusted me with 3 of HIS precious children for only a short period of time! I am CHOOSING (delightfully) to take care of them to the best of all my abilities! And this is only one of the ways!


One last picture:

Can you find Olivia and Landon?????




And then this is what they did!






Just another "normal" day at our house!! (They're jumping off of the desk by the way!)

Jackpot at Walmart!

So, it's Friday night and we were supposed to go out of town. Well, things didn't work out as planned, so we stayed home. Robert still had some commitments out of town and he has now left me at home with 3 kids under 4 1/2 for the first time overnight!!!! ::jaw dropping:: So, I knew had to find something to keep the kids occupied! Well, Walmart here I come! I could walk around there for hours. And even better, my kids could walk around for even longer! What would we mom's do with out a Walmart!

Well, my favorite shopping time of the year is when the seasons change and literally all the stores have clearances. Walmart clearance aisles - here we come!! So my daughter knows that I like good deals. And she now has learned that "good deals" come with a colored price tag. For example, at Brunos's they are purple tags hanging from the clearance items and Parisians, it's yellow tags on top of the racks. Theses tags usually mean more way more than 50% off!

So we're in Walmart killing time. I've put Lillian in the baby sling around me and the other two are in the cart. And Olivia asks me, "What color are we looking for, Mommy?" I responded, "RED baby!!" I'm smiling, hoping that I am slowly training her to be good with money and recognize a SALE!!!

Well, we migrate back to the toy section and there are about 4 isles with RED tags saying CLEARANCE! Can we say, jackpot??? I think the kids thought it was Christmas. Even better, there was a man with a huge white beard, red shirt, and red pants with suspenders walking around the toy section - NO KIDDING. Well, what do you think they said OUT LOUD??

"Hey, that man looks like SANTA CLAUS!!!?" so loud that I can hear people around me chuckle!

He just turned around and smiled.


So this is what we took home! Fun things to keep them occupied while Daddy is away!





And poor Lillian - she was just hanging out on a pillow on the couch! Of course happy as can be!


Thank goodness she is such a good baby!! I think she knew life wasn't going to slow down much for her in my tummy!!!

Well, I'm off to try to get some sleep tonight - yeah, we'll see how that goes!!