2. Kraft Salad Dressing (B1G1) - $1.49 - Use $1.50 coupon (from Sunday Paper) = FREE
3. Pedigree Dentastix (BIG1) - $1.90 - Use $2.50 coupon (print below) = Make $.60!!!
**Print coupon here: http://bricks.coupons.com/Start.asp?tqnm=qejmben23179706&bt=vi&o=56364&c=DS&p=v9h5sFj0&zjxj=01500004W2260966W979W0
4. Dixie Paper Plates (B1G1) - $1.50 - Use $.50 coupon (From Sunday Paper) (Publix doubles this) = Total $.50Here are the deals for Kroger this week (until May 23). This is the week to stock up on boneless skinless chicken breasts! They are $1.99 per lb., so go get as many packs as you can hold in your freezer! :) Chicken prices will be going up in the near future (thanks to the recession) so you need to stock up now. To see how we store all our cheap chicken, check out my earlier post - http://sabrinavaccaro.blogspot.com/2009/05/saving-money.html
**Print the coupon here: http://bricks.coupons.com/Start.asp?tqnm=qetrfan23207511&bt=vi&o=54287&ci=1&c=GM&p=8dH6Da9X
Vitamin Water (I bought 2, but you can buy as many as you have coupons for) - $1 each - Use $.50 coupon = FREE
**Print the coupon here: http://www.1043myfm.com/pages/vitamin/VW10_09_50cOff_ralphs_Coupon16086.pdf
Quaker Quakes - $1 each - Use $.50 coupon (from Sunday paper) = FREE
Grand total: $.08 (even though everything is FREE, you still have to pay tax. :)
2. Travel Size Coopertone Sunscreen - $.99 - Use $1 coupon = FREE
3. Travel Size Dove Deodorant - $.97 - Use $1.25 coupon from paper = FREE
**Grand Total: $.08
This should have cost us $60, but we spent $26!! I have attached our grocery list below, along with links to some of the coupons we used! The rest of the coupons were found in the Sunday Paper and Coupon Displays found in Publix.
2 boxes Back to Nature Organic Cookies - B1G1 Free & $1 off coupon - $2 total
1 loaf Whole Wheat Earth Grains Bread - 2/$5 - $2.50 total
1 bag Snyder's Pretzels - $2.99 (Unfortunately I didn't have a coupon for these)
1 loaf Crusty White Bread - $1.19 (No coupon)
Horizon Organic Milk - $3.59 & $1 off coupon - $2.59 total
1/2 pound Boar's Head Sandwich Meat - $4.07 (No coupon)
2 boxes of Frozen Green Giant Veggies - 10/$10 & 2 $1 off coupons - FREE!! -http://bricks.coupons.com/Start.asp?tqnm=qejlamg20367737&bt=vi&o=54287&ci=1&c=GM&p=8dH6Da9X
1 Navel Orange - $.65 (No coupon)
1 bag Baby Carrots - B1G1 Free - $.85 total
1 bag Frozen Cheese Tortellini - $2.99 (No coupon)
2 ears of Corn - 8/$2 - $.50 total
3 boxes of Scotties Tissues - $.99 each & $1 off 3 boxes coupon - $2 total
1 box Cascadian Farms Cereal Bars - B1G1 Free & $1 off coupon - $1 total http://www.eatbetteramerica.com/coupons/
1 packet Taco Seasoning Mix - $.75 (No coupon)
1 pack Hebrew National Hot Dogs - B1G1 Free & $1 off coupon - $1.50 total http://www.simpleanddelicious.com/special-offers/coupon-central.jsp
1 bag Publix Chips - $.01 Coupon - $.01 total
2 boxes Post Trail Mix Crunch Cereal - B1G1 Free & 2 $2 off coupons - FREE!! http://www.postcereals.com/trailmixcrunch/
1 bottle Glass Plus Cleaner - B1G1 Free & $1 off coupon - $.25 total http://offers.e-centives.com/siflo/reg/survey.cfm?s=Yz0xJmY9MSZjdT0xJmJxPTEmdmlkPTY0MSZvPTE4MTY0NDImcD01MDYmcHQ9NiZjbz01MiZmd2ViPTEmc2M9NTImY2lkPTEwMDc0NDU5NzMmclVSTD0lMkZzaWZsbyUyRnBvc3RyZWdpc3RlciUyRWNmbSUzRnZpZCUzRDY0MSUyNnQlM0Q2JTI2cyUzRDEwMzgyNTUyNzYlMjZtYiUzRDU2MDclMjZmd2ViJTNEMSUyNmNvJTNENTIlMjZzYyUzRDUyJTI2aWQlM0Q2M2RmZDlkZSUyRGQxNzQlMkQ0NzRlJTJEOGU0ZiUyRGQwZTlkYzA0YTllMSZzPTEwMzgyNTUyNzYmbWI9NTYwNyZpZD02M2RmZDlkZS1kMTc0LTQ3NGUtOGU0Zi1kMGU5ZGMwNGE5ZTE%3D
So, now you can go to Publix and get some of the same deals! If nothing else, go and get the Green Giant Frozen Veggies and Post Cereal for FREE!!! And if you don't eat that kind of cereal, you can donate it to a local food bank!
Happy shopping!
In all, I spent $9.80 out of pocket.....BUT, I still have $5 in CVS bucks to spend next time I shop there. So, really I only spent $4.80!!!!!! AMAZING! If you want to do the same thing, here's what I did:
1. Buy 5 12 packs of Coke (any variety), hand the lady a $4 off $20 purchase coupon (http://delicious.com/er1ca/iheartcvscoupons) You can print one from there, or if your register your extra care card (the CVS card) online, they will e-mail you some!, then give the lady 5 $1 coke coupons (which I printed offline, but now I'm afraid they stopped allowing people to print them), then I already had $3.50 in CVS bucks, so I used that too. So my total was $7.75. But when you buy $20 in coke products, your receipt will print $10 in CVS bucks to use next time.
2. I then had my next purchase ready...buy 1 pack of charmin ultrasoft, 2 colgate max toothpastes, and 1 listerine total care mouthwash. I had a $.25 coupon for the toilet paper (from the Sunday paper), a $.75 coupon and a $1 coupon for the toothpastes (from the Sunday paper), and a $2 coupon for the mouthwash (from the Sunday paper). Then I handed the lady my $10 CVS bucks from my last purchase (the cokes), and payed a total of $2.05. But, when you buy the Charmin you get $1 back in CVS bucks and when you buy the toothpaste (2 of them) you get $4 back in CVS bucks. So, now I have $5 left to spend on my next trip!
Man, this was fun!!! I definitely plan on continuing my CVSing! I'll try to post after each trip and then if you want to follow what I'm buying, I will lay it all out for you. But you will definitely need to start clipping coupons or printing them from the internet! That is key to making this system work for you!!!!!!
So, how much? Well, if I hadn't used any coupons or shopped the sales, I would have spent $77.47 BUT....I only spent $43.67! Here's how I did it.....
1. Always shop the sales! This may go against what you would think, but even if you don't need it, if it's something you always use and doesn't go bad....BUY IT! For example, we drink orange juice everyday. With only 2 people drinking it, do we really need 2 cartons this week? Of course not! But, it was on sale AND I had a coupon!! Since it doesn't expire until the end of the month, I bought 2! Do we need 3 large boxes of cereal, of course not. But they were on sale (buy 2, get one free) and I had a 3 coupons (one for $1 off 3 boxes, one for a free reusable grocery bag when you buy 2 boxes, and one for a free gallon of milk when you buy 3 boxes). So in buying the 3 boxes I got a free gallon of milk, a reusable grocery bag, and a free box of cereal!
2. Always use coupons! This goes along with #1. If something is on sale AND you have a coupon for it...BUY IT! Don't let your coupons dictate what you buy....let the sales! Some people fall into the coupon trap of buying whatever they have a coupon for, thinking they are getting a good deal. But, that's not always the case. Sometimes the item you have a coupon for is the most expensive. Make sure you do the math to see if it is cheaper to use your coupon or to buy a different brand. (That's why I bring Brian!) If something you regularly use is on sale, check to see if you have any coupons for it...if so, stock up!
One last money saving tip for you....NEVER pay full price for boneless/skinless chicken breasts. These can be very pricey! BUT....I never pay more than $1.99 per pound. When it goes on sale, I buy a BUNCH of packs. Then when I get home, Brian and I spend a few minutes preparing them for the freezer. First, we trim off any fat, then we pound them (this makes the cooking process faster when the chicken is thinner), then we wrap them individually in plastic wrap, and place the wrapped pieces into large ziploc bags and freeze them. Then, whenever we want chicken for dinner, I take out the number of pieces I need and defrost them in the fridge overnight. Yes, it would be easier just to freeze the whole pack as is, but when you only need 2 pieces or if you need 4 or 5, it won't work. The packs usually have 3 pieces in them. If we only need 2, we would be wasting the 3rd. Plus, we are doing all the prep work up front, which makes cooking much easier!
So, where do I get my coupons? Several places: The Sunday Paper, websites (coupons.com and grocerygame.com), company websites (I search for the different products that I buy regularly), store flyers (Don't pass up the flyer stand at the front of the store. Publix always has a bunch of coupons up there!), and coupon dispensers on the aisles. I have a very detailed and organized way of storing and sorting my coupons, but I won't go into that on here. But find a way that works for you. It definitely takes time to get used to using coupons and will take some trial and error in finding out the best way that works for you. But don't give up! You will love seeing how much you save each week! It's like a game for us now. We can't wait to see how much we can save! :) It definitely makes grocery shopping more fun!
