Grocery, CVS Earning Trip and our wipes stash

This is why I love CVS and I'm loving it more than Walgreens:

Even though counting the $5/25 purchases and all the ECBs are always nerve-wrecking, I have better customer service and LOTS of ease when it comes to coupons (they just scan them and not scrutinize them) and I always come out happier than when I go to Walgreens. I'm sad, cos Wags is closer and it started me on this frugal journey. Anyhows.

Here's today's trip. I went at first only to find the Irish Spring Free-after-ECB item. THEN I waited and waited for someone to come by. (I waited for QUITE A WHILE!) A VERY nice man (I have the intention to give a positive feed back on him) came by, went to search for the items I need (even though the mixer that I really want is out of stock). I got 3 packs of sensitive wipes because he took the trouble. He even said he'll bring them to the front for me!!! WOH!

So...
I got...
Irish Spring Wash
Progresso Soup (2 cans)
2 Johnson's buddies' soap
3 pack of wipes
2 packs of Wrigleys (I have a CVS coupon BOGO and used 2 free coupons from this week's SS)
and I EARNED $0.61!!

Now, after all the tripping at Stop and Shop and today, we have a stash of 13 packs of wipes (that will last both of our kids for 6 months). And we spent: $10.72 on all of them!!! Wipes for 6 months? Gosh!!!

And for Grocery this week, we spent: $42.50 on the pic above (that includes 6 more yogurt not in the pic), $10.33 at Target, another $4.36 on eggs, tofu and salt and $4.38 today at CVS. But we have $4.99 ECB back.

So total we spent on grocery and household: $56.58 (My budget is $60, so that's great!)

Groceries Mar 6th

How's that for $48.24? I can't tell, but we had A LOT of good deals!

3 Mystic pizzas for $9
Yoplus yogurt for $0.50 each
Free Jell-O pudding
Free Riceworks
Free Over the Moon milk (Try it free rebate)
$0.50 Ziploc containers
$0.99 wipes

Grocery Dec 26

We spent over what we usually do today. But that's because first, I decided to relax this week (it's Christmas!) and also because I got quite a lot of stuff (we can overflow to next week!)

I was super excited to see the "reduced price produce" trolley at Stop and Shop! Yeh! We have mark-downs too!!! So I happily grabbed the 2 packs of bananas for about a buck each. and the apples(6 of them) for $1.50 (with that I cut down 2 for lunch and made the rest into 26 oz worth of babyfood). and the pack of red potatoes (they look old, but hey! I'm not eating them in salad, but cooked...who cares). I was very happy.

And look! Mystic pizzas for $2.17 each! woh! Nice...Nathan hotdogs for $2.64? Steal.

At the Chinese Supermarkets, I got MORE mark-down food! yeh! The big bag of tomatoes, cauliflower & lettuce, veg and carrots for a buck each bag. The tomatoes I cooked into diced tomatoes sauce (they are too ripe for sale at normal price) and they'll make great cheap spagetti. I splurge on sukiyaki beef (rib sirloin slices) and a couple of other stuff...

all the above for $64.17

Grocery/Drugstore Plan

I'm not doing any drugstore this week. I had a great buy at CVS last week and also at walmart, and this week, I'll take a break.

Here's Stop and Shop's deals though!

Many things going at half price, I probably check out...

Goldfish

Nathan Beef Franks

Chi-chi's salsa (I have 2 $1 off 2 coupons)

Other possible buys

Cantaloupe, $1.50

Mystic (this is a GREAT buy) pizza, $3.67, $0.75 MQ here (if you can still find it, I printed 2 and can't see it anymore) and here (for minis), Final Price: $2.17

Grocery Dec 20th Saved $48.35!

Today is a crazy day. We had a packed schedule. We're on to vacation tomorrow. Little gal didn't sleep well yesterday night. Little guy has some sneezing going on. And it does not help with all the snow yesterday.

Still I had to ask hubby to do a grocery run. (this week we didn't need to do much, cos we're on vacation). You'll understand why.

ALL OF THE ABOVE for $6.79. I can't beat that. AND...it's not snacks!! It's meal-making stuff!! Look at all the veggies we got!!! 8 packs of steamers, 4 packs of boxed veg. This will bring us through many great meals!!

Thanks to MSM, I also used the free Riceworks coupon for a free pack of brown rice chips.

Look at my plan and all pricing here.

First time hubby used up all the coupons I gave him.

p.s. the total in the receipt is $9.79 cos we spent $3 on cold cut for tomorrow dinner "out", hey, instead of an expensive sodium-packed rest-stop dinner? this is good price.

My $0.48 Print cards are here!

An amazing deal for a $0.48 set of 30 cards.

The photo quality can be improved but I won't complain.

I'm so sorry that most of my friends couldn't get the codes to work anymore. =(

Cheap Keebler Cookies at Target

Bought 5 Keebler Fudge Shoppe (that's the only variety we have here) at $2.33 each.

Bought Air Wick Luminar at $4.99

Used 5 $1 MQ here for Keebler.

Used 1 $5 MQ (for AW) from past week Smart Source.

Paid $7.06 by giftcard, get back $5 giftcard. I spent $2.06 for the above. SWEET.

thank you! Commonsensewithmoney!

Homemade Baby Yogurt

I am making yogurt again! cos I just cannot make myself buy another 4oz yogurt for $0.70.
Here's how I make it.
now, I used 1 pack as starter (subsequently I can use last bit of the yogurt as starter), so that's $0.70. Milk is...$0.56 for my 20 oz.
So I made 20 oz of yogurt for $1.26, instead of buying 20 oz of yogurt for $3.50. That's more than double savings. The next batch will only cost me $0.56. Yoo Hoo!
I got the recipe from here.

Grocery Nov 28

Finally got another grocery pic. It sometimes is quite fun to have pics like that. We spent $49.03 today. Not too bad, considering we had Baby Yogurt (which I'm trying to use to make more yogurt myself), 2 big packs of chicken thighs, a roast and chips.

The best buys:
Sizzle And Serve Breakfast sausage, $1, $0.35 MQ (doubled), Final Price: $0.30 each!
Wonder Bread Burger Buns, FREE (with coupon you can write to request from Wonderbread)
$0.50 Betty Crocker cookie mixes
Free Marcal Tissue

CVS Black Friday Deals

*UPDATED*
Thanksgiving Day will be the biggest CVS run I've made since we started. They have Black Friday deals too, but starting on THURSDAY. This will be cool.

This is my plan. (can you believe it??!!) Mostly FREE after ECBs.

Transaction 1

Hershey Chocolate, $1, get $1 ECB
Playtex sport/gentle glide tampon, $3.99, ECB $3.99, MQ $1
Lip gloss Loreal, $6.99, Buy 2, ECB $6.99 MQ $1 here (register, go to MyLoreal, fill out survey to get 2 $1 coupon on any Loreal product)
Maybelline Foundation, $8.99, ECB $8.99 each, MQ $3 each
$4/20 coupon, use ECBs $19.48

Transaction 2

Colgate Total toothpaste, $2.99, ECB $2.99, MQ $1.50, CRT $1
Gatorade, $1.49, ECB $1.49 (I can get more if I want)
Bic Soleil razors/refills, $5.99, ECB $5.99, MQ $1
Aussie shampoo, $2.99, ECB $2.99, MQ $1
Johnson's soft lotion $5.69, ECB $5.69, MQ $1 here
Garnier towelettes $5.99, ECB $5.99, MQ $1
$5/25 coupon, use my today's ECBs $13.98

Total OOP: $2.59, Total earnings: $17.13. I'll be left with tons of ECBs for the next weeks to come!

For real??!! I can't tell, well, whatever I can get that day then, cos it may be easily out of stock!

Now if you want a Crock pot and are able to head to a CVS on Thurs, it's $19.99, with a $10 ECB, costing you $9.99 only. AMAZING deal. If I see it, I might even get it for a gift!!

I got my info from Keeping the Kingdom First. and ad scans here. (hopefully they'll be the same as NYC's scans!) Go check it out.

Grocery/Drugstore plan Nov 21-23

This week is Walgreens end of Nov/start of Dec month with the possibility of double-dipping. But no. it's a SAD SAD month for Wags.

I can only think of ONE double-dipping scenario (available only 21/22 Nov), which I might take.

Hershey kisses

Hershey's Dark Chocolate Kisses 2/$5 (buy 4)

-2 $1/1 Dark Chocolate Kisses (Cos I only have 2, if you have 4, that's better!)

-$1/2 November Easy Saver Q pg. 5 (will take off $2 wyb 4)

-$5 December Rebate wyb $10 # 33

=$1.80 after tax for 4 packs. Still a good deal.

As for the monthly rebate...forget it.

And my dear circulars did not arrive yesterday!! What a pity!

So, I can only do Stop and Shop planning for now. To look at the web scans will only bring tears, cos our deals here are like a quarter of what we see online (for others)

But, some good deals at Stop and Shop (beginning 21st)!!

Green Giant Frozen vegetables (box) $1, $0.50 MQ here, Final Price: FREE! (if you get to double)

Sorrento Ricotta Cheese, $1.99 (very good deal!)

Land O Lakes Butter, $1.99, $0.55 MQ here, Final Price: $0.89 per butter (limit 3)...this is perfect for my baking!

Cookie mix is still at $2, $0.75 MQ here, Final Price: $0.50

Drugstore/Grocery Nov 15-16

Grocery is not seen but we spent $39 this week. Not too bad. A pity we didn't get the Chex deal...

Last week we were in PA, and it always funny to see the difference in attitude towards couponing. We shopped at Walmart and people there admired our savings because of coupons. "That's the way to go in these times!" the customer service guy said. I could have given him a big hug. That encouraged me in frugal living! But in NYC, people give you a bad face when you use coupons, or they scrutinize the coupons and say "you can't use this" even if it's perfectly legitimate.

Anyhows, at Wags today, we bought milk and goody brush. But guess what? The guy said we can't use coupon on dairy. Hmm, I've always used it...so now I'll have to go check their policy. TP is out, of course and that's about the only thing I wanted to buy. So I spent $5.44 on the giftcard on brush and milk after goody coupon (online) and Nov easysaver IVC. And I didn't use do the $5/20 deal cos...long story short, no stock, change of rules. So, I spent $0.30 on my gift card on 2 Progresso soups. Not bad.

At CVS, however, I got everything I wanted. Very rare.

Loreal ProCalcium, $15.99, ECB $15.99, MQ $1
Nature Made Vitamins, Buy $5.99, get 1 free, 2 MQ $1 each, Final Price: $3.99 for 2 100 caps 500mg Vit C. Very good deal.
Crest Pro-Health Toothpaste, $3.49, ECB $3.49, MQ $1
Ajax Dishwashing liquid, $1.79, get 1 free, MQ $0.40
Cranberry sauce, $1.69, get 1 free.

Use $5/25 coupon, I spent $0.81 on all that. Pretty cool.

Bakeware for $1

Just did this deal here. Could be good!

Free pan/bakeware (this cost like $13.95). And you can opt for $1 shipping, if you're willing to automatically register for 7-day trial with AtHomeRewards. I cancelled the registration before the 7 day limit and it was an automatic cancellation (no saleperson to cajole you) so I don't have to pay for the monthly fees.

I'm waiting for the pan to come, let's hope it does!

Free 8X10 photo at Walgreens

Get your free photo.

Go online, register, upload a photo, choose 8X10,

put in code: FREEPIC

and collect it at your nearest Walgreens.

ALL FOR FREE.

Stop and Shop Chips!

Before Sale: $23.31
Total coupons: $9.60
OOP: $7.74 for the above.

I like baking and oatmeal cookies are a breeze to do, but who can argue with $0.50 mix?

Cheap Amazon Toys

We're shopping for our kids' birthday and Christmas gifts. and found a great deal. Hope to use it soon...now just looking through the BIG pool of toys at .AmazonToys

Basically, you buy $25 worth of toys, you can get a free subscription to Cookie magazine worth of $15. But you can also write in with a form, saying you'd rather have a refund of that $15. So you spend only $10. Great deal?

Go here to start shopping: AmazonToys

And the details for the refund is here.

*UPDATE* I don't see the ad for the Cookie Magazine anymore. So, I think as of today when I looked (Nov 3) the deal should have expired.

*More UPDATES* I wrote to Amazon and they said the deal is still on and the end date is not fixed. So, go grab them!

Omaha Steak at a really good price!

I'm so sad for my friends...this deal has changed...9:35am WED MORNING!!! Gosh, I'm glad I did it yesterday...but now you'll have to spend $100 to use the $25 gift card. (at first $50) My goodness!!! I'm not sure if they can actually change LIKE that...but I'm glad my stuff has been shipped out.

This deal is really worth doing!!

Step 1: Go to Geicoprivileges. Cut and paste "geicoprivileges.com/steaks" on your browser. Sign up. (Make sure you see the "Omaha Steak" promotion icon)

Step 2: Wait for email. They come HOURS after you sign up.

Step 3: Copy the code of the e-certificate sent to you. (it's worth $25) (Now, if you receive the email to say you have the $25 e-cert but when you click on it, no code comes up, try logging into geicoprivileges and THEN go back to email and click on the code. Odd I know, but it happened to us)

Step 4: Go to Omaha Steak Coupon here. You may choose any you like. I took the "60% off The Ultimate Assortment and The Sizzling Sampler + FREE Omaha Steaks Burgers + FREE 6-Piece Cutlery Set + FREE Cutting Board " one.

Step 5: Choose what you'll like to buy (but above $12 I think). You DO NOT have to buy the Sampler!! I chose 12 4 oz burgers (for $14.99)

Step 6: In your cart, you'll find you have 6 more burgers, cutlery set and cutting board for FREE! (Now, if you'd rather have 12 free burgers instead of the above, let me know, I can send you the invite to have that!)

Step 7: Use the e-cert code (that'll take off $25)

Step 8: Pay balance by credit card or paypal. (I paid $3.98 for 18 burgers, cutlery set and cutting board)

My stuff comes on Sat. I can't wait. My hubby neither. He ADORES burgers.

If you have problems, check out the comments on this blog or this blog.

Free/almost Chocolates and cleaner Walgreens

What a horrible pic. I missed out a can of soup and a can of olives. Anyhows, they are fillers.

So, I bought...

2 Windex Vinegar Cleaners, $2.50, -$2 MQ each, will send in for rebate $1 each, Final Price: Overage $0.58 (including tax)
2 Lindt Chocolate, $2.59 each, -$0.75 MQ, BOGO MQ, Oct IVC $1 each, Final Price: $0.27 including tax
2 chicken noodle, $0.69 (Wag coupon)
1 Lindsay Olives, $0.99 (Wag coupon)

Total: $2.06 (including $3RR I used and minus rebate I will get) mostly for tax

Everyday a Holiday: 2-way Telephone Day

I learnt that everyday can be a holiday. Isn't that cool? There are some days that are absolutely marvelous. I shall resolve to feature some of these days on my blog and actually celebrate them!

Celebrations should come whether we're saving money or not. Such frugal celebrations are the greatest!

The first two-way long-distance conversation took place on October 9th between Boston and Cambridge. Read more here.

To celebrate, I shall make a phone call today. Is there anyone you'd like to call (not email/sms/chat) today?

Grocery Oct 4

We spent quite a bit over this week...I wonder why. I just could not get around knowing it...anyhows, part of the cost was for meals for others (not that much though)...and then we spent a big bomb (1/6 of the money) just towards italian sausage...well we need meat and the sausage deal wasn't there for some reason, so we got the best deal (I hope). We spent $60+ this week. *ouch*

But look at this. This is my proudest. ALL THESE shown cost us $6.40!! All those yogurt (we printed 4 coupons, 2 from each computer) only for $1.20!! I'm not a big fan of Whips, but who can argue against $0.10 yogurt? Ian likes yogurt, so it'll be a great snack.

Alrightee, hope I'll get a great CVS deal tomorrow! Soleil and Centrum!