July 14, 2008 (and 15th)

yeah, yeah, I know - today is the 15th. But I didn't have time to update yesterday.

So...
my friend and I went shopping again - looks like Mondays will be our carpooling shopping trips. This will allow us to take advantage of the Publix $0.01 deal, too.

Our trip:

Kroger:
Unfortunately the only Kroger near us is remodeling and half the store is done, so they were moving all the products around - took a long time for us to find what we were looking for. But, we did okay. When we walked in, I went straight to CS and asked about competitor's coupons, the girl at the desk said yes, but the store mgr said not usually - however, he allowed the Publix $5/$35 coupon.

10 Cottonelle
3 brown sugar
4 powdered sugar
2 nesquick syrup
2 nesquick drinks
2 ocello 4packs
4 Turkey Hill Teas
4 BC brownie bowls
1 Perdue perfect portion chicken - mgr special

before coupons - $41.06 + tax
less coupons - $30
total with tax - $12.65
however, then I realized they didn't use my sugar coupons and went to CS and they refunded them to me . . . less $4.55 coupons
actual oop = $8.10

total savings = $$32.96


Next Target:

I needed dogfood and Target has the 44lb for $18 less a $2C. While there, I got a 2pack of Cheerio Crunch for $4.99 less $1 coupon on my free gift card from buying diapers last week - and it had store coupons for Cheerios which were 4/$7 and I had mfg coupons - so the Cheerios
were 4/$3 after coupons - with the dogfood - I paid $19.93 total (basically I paid for the dogfood and got the 6 boxes of Cheerios for free!)

Publix:

I love Publix - did I say I LOVE Publix.? The district managers and store managers were there when we walked in - so I asked about the competitors' coupons to be sure. No Problem there.

three transactions:
first
before coupons - $40.23
less coupons - $39.85
after coupons - $0.38
total savings including sales = $44.61
total oop - $0.98

second
before coupons - $39.70
less coupons - $39.41
after coupons - $0.29
total savings including sales = $39.41
total oop - $0.81

third
before coupons - $47.56
less coupons - $37.23
total savings including sales = $50.98
after coupons - $10.33

total oop - $10.66

total oop for Publix - $11.45 (not all food though)

Total oop for the day - $39.48, which includes the dogfood

Total food oop for the day - will get back to you later after canning is done :)

The pictures are of everything except the dogfood:

July 12, 2008

I am trying to update my blog on my latest trips. Believe it or not - no visits to CVS this week ! (faint) ok, get up off the keys and keep reading... lol

I went to a Scrapbook event yesterday and, of course, stopped by a few stores on my way.

Publix - they were awful about the coupons, I almost walked out without purchasing, but they took the coupons finally and I left with 8 bottles of Downy, 6 Koolaid and 2 boxes of Wheat Thins. $??

Kroger - I asked the store manager and he said they take competitors' coupons, including Publix - so I had a Publix $5/$35 to use - best store yet! everyone was so nice there - I wish they weren't so far away. $1.55

Publix - a different one - I got 7 half gallons of Organic Valley milk, 2 bottles of vitamins, 4 revlon tool, 8 Perrier water, and something else for $5 and change.

I will update with totals, numbers, and pictures soon.

New Friends!

I have new friends - Jes, Rosie, and Elizabeth

I met up with them at a Staples to load up on Purell, but it was sold out. We chatted for quite a while, then Jes took me to Publix to show me the ropes. They are all wonderful people, and Jes is sooo sweet - she even shared her coupons with me.

This is what I bought with her guidance:

My oop was a Whopping $0.69 (tax only)!

The cashier rang a few things up wrong - the cookies were bogo and he didn't do that - so to adjust it, he put the adjustment in as store coupons. When I mentioned it would throw my coupon count off, he said it would be okay. Well, he did have to push a few through and grumbled over that some, but I reminded him about the adjustments he put in, so he put them through. My incorrect total was $45.69 +tax less $49.18 coupons = $0.69 of tax. I don't fully understand how it happened, nor exactly what happened - but I do know if he had rung it up right - it would have been clearer.

So the interesting question : should I add the ENTIRE $0.69 to my food total? Some of what I bought was not food, but it is impossible to determine the correct amount on food :)

What do you think? I have added it to my Challenge Budget, but tell me what you think.

THE NUMBERS:
amount spent today: $0.69
amount spent in July : $22.82
original amount available to spend: $100.00
amount available to spend for July : $77.18

Mega Food Trip!!

My friend and I just got back from an amazing shopping trip today. I will provide details after I sleep some
****
This was a 13 HOUR trip - because we went so many places and just took time to enjoy ourselves.

First Stop: STAPLES for the .01 back to school sale

The plan was to buy the maximums with each person in our group (we took our children)2-3 times each so we could get a sufficient amount of supplies. Turned out that Teachers have a different limit - 25 of each item!!!

Soooo - lol

I gave my children each $1.75 to get whatever they wanted as a learning experience.
So their totals and mine together:

pencils - 68
folders - 91
purell - 65
binders - 34
highlighters - 2

total oop for all that = $23.35
and some belongs to my mom - including one of the highlighters so less $4.99 and $1.21 = $6.20
and I will apply for the rebate on the highlighters so less $4.99
total will be = $12.16


Second Stop: TARGET

I did get diapers - but they are for my neice, so they don't count - :) At the Target dollar spot, they had black dot items 75% off !

I'm not listing any of it due to the fact that I got lots of Stocking Stuffers - but no food, so onward!

Third Stop: CVS

first:
$27.96 - (4) Soleil refils
-16.00 - (4) $4 C
=
$11.96
-11.96 - paid with ecb
=
$0
$ 1.12 - tax

$1.12 - oop
earned: $10.00 (lost $1.96)


next:
$16.14 - (6) Sure deo @$2.69
- 6.00 - (6) $1 C
=
$10.14
- 10.00 - paid with ecb
=
$ 0.14
$ 0.43 - tax
=
$0.57 oop
earned $9 (lost $1)


Next: Walgreens
only bought two Sunday papers = $4

Then: Walmart

The Walmart we went to is definitely not the greatest. I didn't buy most of what I wanted to get because their prices were high or they didn't carry it. Not a location I plan to frequent,


However, I did get a few things

It doesn't show it - but I had more Powerade which I used my coupons on and got someoverage for other things - but we drank some of the Powerade - it was very hot out.

my receipt is in never-never land at the moment but oop was around $6.56

Then the coup de'tat: Publix

first transaction:
$53.92 - subtotal
$52.00 - coupons (I didn't even get to use all of them!)
$ 1.92 - subtotal
$ 1.72 - tax
=
$3.64 oop

second transaction:
$74.83 - subtotal
$68.00 - coupons(I should have put an item from the first order in this order)
$ 6.83 - subtotal(if I had, it would have been $4.75 less - oh well)
$ 2.08 - tax
=
$8.91 oop

GRAND TOTAL: $12.55 for $128.75 saving $116.20 or a 90.5%savings!!
(although with their sales the receipts state I saved $59.90 + $79.50 = $139.40)

THE NUMBERS:

amount spent today: $19.11

amount spent in July : $22.13

original amount available to spend: $100.00

amount available to spend for July : $77.80

July 5, 2008

I will update much later - but suffice it to say I didn't buy food - I only went to CVS and cleaned up!

July 4, 2008

Today (yesterday) was fun. We really had nothing planned other than hanging out, but a friend called up and invited us over to grill out. So we did. We had a lot of fun there and set off some fireworks after dark.

A relaxing and peaceful day altogether.


We ran to Walmart for buns and I got carried away and didn't think and bought something. A good deal though, corn has been expensive lately.
corn = 4/$1 x3 = $3 + tax= $3.09
This will provide part of 2-3 meals

ETA * Thanks Jen - I was half asleep when I entered my totals, so yes I forgot the tax :)


THE NUMBERS:
amount spent today: $3.09
amount available to spend for July : $21.91
amount spent in July : $3.00
amount saved in July : $0.00

Free Planter's Nuts

Follow the links - remember, you can print 2 coupons from each link(most of them, some are only 1) - that make 10 coupons!

And BTW - if you don't want them, print them out and send them to me, please!


http://bricks.coupons.com/Start.asp?tqnm=rgbkdcp51873126&bt=wi&p=3L6NrDxJ&o=53034&c=KT

http://bricks.coupons.com/Start.asp?tqnm=rfqjagt5091847&bt=wi&o=52991&c=KT&p=sB3gL4QS

http://bricks.coupons.com/Start.asp?tqnm=rfxrbvg93628257&bt=wi&o=52990&c=KT&p=6I7jTfsH

http://bricks.coupons.com/Start.asp?tqnm=rgagfdr7418652&bt=vi&o=53175&c=KT&p=dMRQXmKO

http://bricks.coupons.com/Start.asp?tqnm=rgaefen95289792&bt=vi&o=53032&c=KT&p=7NiaXGQH

http://bricks.coupons.com/Start.asp?tqnm=rgalcop64055725&bt=wi&o=53032&c=KT&p=7NiaXGQH

http://bricks.coupons.com/Start.asp?tqnm=rf4gbto4747736&bt=wi&o=53032&c=KT&p=7NiaXGQH

http://print.coupons.com/couponweb/Offers.aspx?pid=13903&zid=xh20&nid=10