Eating Well Never Felt So Good...For My Wallet!!!

I think I speak for us all when I say I was excited for a week with the potential for two great cereal deals, both Kellogg's and General Mills.  Well, I didn't go for either!  The General Mills Promotion for a free gallon of milk WYB 4 boxes of select varieties at $11 is still intriguing, so we will see what the rest of the week brings.  If I get better coupons, I may end up going for it.  As for the Kellogg's sale of $1.99 each WYB 4, I may go for the Special K Crackers in that case, not the cereals since the Krave and Crunchy Nut varieties are not included, and those are the only ones with really great coupons out right now.  


With that out of the way, we can focus on what I did get!


4 Bags of Lay's Potato Chips (you're welcome hun) BOGO at $4.29 each
Used 2 $.55/1 Lay's Potato Chips Coupons (one mfgr coupon per BOGO promotion)
These coupons have the new barcode and are programmed to not double :-(
Final Price $7.48, only $1.87 each


2 Fresh Express Salad Blends at $1 each, regularly priced at $1.89!


Bananas, $.95
I had my four year old with me and he belongs to the Shaw's Kids Club
He used his own special coupon for a free banana
The max value of the coupon is $1, so we got all of the bananas for FREE!!!


Earth Bound Organic Carrots $.99
Used $.75/1 Earth Bound Organic Product, doubled to the regular price of $1.29
Free plus $.30 overage!


2 pounds of Green Grapes at $1.99 a pound, regularly $3.99 a pound


Bunch Celery $1, regularly $1.59


2 pound bag of yellow onions $1.79, not a sale price, but still a great deal for five onions!


4 HyDrive Energy Drinks at $1 each
Used 4 $.55/1 HyDrive Coupons from a gas station tear pad, doubled
FREE plus $.40 overage!!!


2 Pepperidge Farms Baked Natural Cheddar Crisps $2.99 each
Used $1/1 Peelies on each bag
Final Price $3.98,  $1.99 each
These are my new substitute for potato chips!


4 Tribe Hummus at $2.50 each
Used 4 $1/1 Tribe Hummus Coupons
Final Price $6, only $1.50 each


Essential Everyday Ketchup $1.49
Used $1/1 EE Product Coupon from the Shaw's Sizzlin' Summer Coupon Book (in stores)
Final Price $.49


Gerber Rice Cereal $2.19
Used $1/1 Gerber Cereal Catalina Coupon from a previous purchase at Hannaford
Shaw's will accept competitors' manufacturer's coupons which are for a specific amount off a particular product!
Final Price $1.19


Full Retail Price $65.12
Total after store promotions and manufacturer's coupons as $27.21
I had Catalinas for $5 and $1.25 from previous purchases
My total OOP was only $20.96, that's a "healthy" 68% savings!!!

Hannaford Without the Hassle...For Once!

I feel like I'm always a woman on a mission, and tonight was no exception.  Lately, couponing at Hannaford has felt more like Mission Impossible than anything, but I have been determined for the last couple of weeks to find a good use for the $2 off $20 coupon I earned for entering their summer BBQ contest.  


I decided to find healthy foods that I need to have in order to stick to my diet which are rarely on sale at Shaw's.  Paired with manufacturer's coupons, my goal was to save on each item while meeting the $20 minimum purchase requirement AFTER all other coupons.


So, I got these goodies!


2 Kikkoman Teriyaki Sauce and Marinades $1.99 each
Used 2 $2/1 Kikkoman Marinade Coupons (NLA)
Both were Free, plus I earned a $1 Catalina!!!
Of course, this didn't count towards the total for the store coupon, but free is fabulous!


1.72 pounds of bananas at $.57 per pound
Final Price $.98


2 Chi-Chi's Whole Wheat Tortillas $1.97 each
Used $1/2 Chi-Chi's Tortillas Coupon from the 5/20 SS
Final Price $2.94, only $1.47 each


Sara Lee Light Multigrain Bread $2.50
Used $1/1 Sara Lee Bread from the 4/15 SS
Final Price $1.50


Sargento Cheese Slices $2.69
Used $.55/1 Sargento Cheese Slices Coupon
Final Price $2.14 


2 Cabot Light Sour Creams at $1.75 each
Used $1/2 Cabot Creamery Products Coupon
Final Price $2.50, only $1.25 each


2 Pepperidge Farms Baked Naturals Products $2.99 each
Both had peelies on them for $1/1
Final Price $3.98, only $1.99 each


2 Weight Watchers Cheese Wedges at $2.79 each
Used 2 $1/1 Weight Watchers Cheese Product Coupons
Final Price $3.58, only $1.79 each


2 Weight Watchers Whipped Cream Cheeses at $2.59 each
Used 2 $1/1 Weight Watchers Cheese Product Coupons
Final Price $3.18, only $1.59 each


Total Before Manufacturer's Coupons $34.33
Total Before Store Coupon $20.80
I paid $18.80, for a savings of 45%...not bad at all considering there are no store sales involved like there would be at Shaw's!!!

Did You Say FREE Jewelry??? I Sure Did!!!

That's right, I got both of these rings absolutely FREE!  I signed up for sneakpeeq and got a $10 credit just for becoming a member!  I did this knowing that the Summer Cocktail Ring (the yellow one in my picture) had a "peeq" price of only $10, making it FREE!  Shipping normally would have been $.99, but that was waived too.  Much to my surprise, as a thank you for "buying" that ring, I earned another one and got the pearl ring as well!  


The basic idea is that you explore the site and get to "peeq" at 20 items' prices every day.  The deals are great, with most items reduced by 50% or more.  


Happy "Peeqing"!!!


...and in case you're wondering, that's an amazing wine cork trivet I got as a Christmas present.  It's PERFECT for displaying freebies!!!

Small Haul, Huge Savings!!!

Tonight's trip to Shaw's was all about the retail therapy!  I started my evening by hitting up Walmart to stock up on frozen dinners and baby food.  Despite using coupons (DUH!) I spent over $40 which really hurt!  So, I headed over to Shaw's on a mission; capitalize on the GM $5 instant savings WYB 10 items promo one more time, and get as many freebies as possible.  One problem...my GM plan hinged on the Trix Yogurt and of course, they were cleaned out at the Windham store.  I ditched the GM promo and saved a ton!


Essential Everyday Salsa $1.69
Used $1/1 EE Product Coupon from the Sizzlin' Summer Coupon Book (in stores)
Final Price $.69


4 HyDrive Energy Drinks $1 each
Used 4 $.55/1 Coupons I found on a gas station tear pad a few months ago
FREE plus $.40 overage!!!


4 BeechNut Fruities $.99 each
Used 4 $1/1 BeechNut Stage 4 or 5 Product Coupons
FREE plus $.04 overage!!!


BeechNut Rice Cereal $2.29
Used $.75/1 BeechNut Rice Cereal Coupon (NLA???), doubled
Final Price $.79


4 Gerber 2nd Foods 2-packs $1.11 each
Used 2 $.75/2 Gerber 2nd foods 2-packs coupons, doubled
Final Price $1.44, only $.18 per container of food!!!


8 Kraft Macaroni and Cheeses, $1 each
Used 4 BOGO Kraft Macaroni and Cheese Coupons (Facebook offer, NLA)
Each coupon scanned for the max value allowed of $1.60 off
Final Price $1.60 for all 8, only $.20 each!!!  Not too bad since I expected to pay $.50 each, assuming the coupon would be limited to the actual sale price!


Full Retail Value $26.85
I paid $4.08, a savings of 85%!!!!!!

You Make Me So...Very Happy!!!

Tonight was the first time in a while I had a full cart consisting of only great deals...I loved it!  In fact, the one detail I forgot to take into consideration was the possibility that my Shaw's would actually be fully stocked on all of the great deals I wanted, and they WERE!!!  I was convinced I wold never get my entire list so I didn't take the time to print a $5 off $50 Recyclebank coupon.  Luckily, my total wasn't quite that high!  Kudos to the Windham store for not only being stocked on Gillette Razors, Kix and Trix but also being well aware of the discrepancy between the list of cereals included in the GM deal and what the computer was recognizing.  


For those of you who didn't see it earlier, this is the list that Darlene posted:

I know the font is super small, but believe me, it does say Kix and Trix are included!  However, there are no signs on the shelf and they are not ringing up for the sale price.  Of course, since the price isn't working correctly, neither is the $5 instant savings WYB 10 items.  Lucky for me, the Windham store management was WELL aware of the glitch.  Someone was in earlier and had this list on their phone, so the price was manually changed.  The manager made the price of each box $2.49, then had to issue a store coupon for the $5 instant savings. 

Now for the rundown, and it's a big one!

I did the GM deal twice with a total of 20 items:

4 Trix at $2.49 each

Used 4 $.60/1 Trix Coupons (need access to two computers), doubled

I also have a coupon for $.50 back loaded on my SavingStar account

Total for 4 $4.66, only $1.17 each

4 Kix at $2.49 each

Used 4 $.75/1 Kix coupons (need access to two computers), doubled

I also have a coupon for $.75 back loaded on my SavingStar account

Total for 4 $3.21, only $.80 each!!!

4 Fruit Snacks at $1.99 each, different varieties (chosen by my four year old, of course) 

Used 2 $.60/2 Betty Crocker Fruit Snacks Coupons, doubled

I also have a coupon for $.50 back for two loaded on my SavingStar account

Total for 4 $5.06, only $1.26 each

4 Yoplait Light with Granola at $2.49 each

Used 4 $.75/1 Yoplait Light with Granola Coupons, doubled

Total for 4 $3.96, only $.49 per cup

2 Yo-Kids Simple Yogurts at $2.49 each

Used 2 $.85/2 Yoplait Kids Coupons, doubled

I also have a coupon for $.75 back on two loaded on my SavingStar account

Total for 2 $.83, only $.42 each...that's just insane, it's less than one yogurt!!!

2 Green Giant Valley Steamers at $2.49 each

My total at this point is $22.70

Minus the two $5 Instant Savings WYB 10 items

I paid $12.70 for all 20 items!

6 Packs of Gillette Men's Razors BOGO at $8.25 each

Used 3 BOGO coupons from the 6/3 P&G

All 6 were FREE!  That's a retail value of $49.50 for nada, zip, zilch, nothing!

I have to say, the Shaw's Email Only Store Coupons aren't usually of interest to me, but this week, they were!  I can't believe it, I used two!

Shaw's American Cheese Slices, sale price $2 (usually $3.29)

Used Email Coupon for $1 off

Final Price Only $1!!!

Fresh Express Shreds Lettuce $1.49

Used Email Coupon for $1 off any Fresh Express

Final Price only $.49!!!

The main reason why these coupons aren't usually interesting to me is that they are for products which are not on sale that particular week.  Why would they be?  If the store is reducing the shelf price, then offering a store coupon on top of that for which they're not reimbursed, that's just crazy.  Well, this week was the exception!

1.65 lb of Bananas at $.57/lb,  $.94

My son used his Kid's Club card for a free Banana or Apple

The entire cost of the bunch of bananas was removed so they were all FREE!!!

Lay's Potato Chips BOGO at $4.29 each

Used 1 $.55/1 Lay's Potato Chip Coupon, doubled

Final Price $3.19 for two, only $1.60 each

Shaw's Wheat Bread $2.19

I found a tear pad at Hannaford the other night for $1 off ANY bread WYB 2 Lay's Chips

So...the bread was only $1.19!

4 HyDrive Energy Drinks at $1 each (are you tired of seeing these in every haul of mine???)

Used 4 $.55/1 HyDrive Coupons I found on a tear pad at the Windham Irving a while back

Coupons doubled for FREE drinks plus $.40 of OVERAGE!!! 

2 Johnsonville Sausages, BOGO at $4.99 each

Used $1/1 Johnsonville Sausage Coupon from 4/29 SS

Final Price $3.99 for both

Essential Everyday Cream Cheese $1.99

Used $1/1 Essential Everyday Item from the Sizzlin' Summer Coupon Book (in stores)

Final Price $.99

2 Land O Lakes Eggs 2/$5

Used 2 $.75/1 LOL Eggs Coupons, doubled

Final Price $2, only $1 each!

2 L'Oreal Kids Shampoos at $2.19 each

Used 2 $.75/1 L'Oreal Kids Product Coupons, doubled

Final Price $1.38 for both!

Greenhouse Boston Lettuce, in-store special $1.49

Kellogg's Spiderman "Spidey Berry" cereal...I couldn't resist, the kid is just too cute!

$1.99, no coupons, just one very happy little boy!

Milk, total of $6.44...the baby is one now so it's time to try milk!

Total Savings $133.71

I only paid $34.86, a savings of 74% even with the milk, WOO HOO!!!!!!!

A Rather Random Night at Shaw's

I posted earlier about a few Shaw's Store Coupons I have received over my last two trips in.  Here are the results!


4 Suave Body Washes, $2 each
Used 4 $.75/1 Coupons, doubled
Final Price $2.00, only $.50 each!!!


2 Jif To Go Peanut Butters, $2.50 each
Used 2 $.50/1 Jif To Go Coupons, doubled
Final Price $3 for both, $1.50 each


4 HyDrive Energy Drinks, $1 each
Used 4 $.55/2 I found on a tear pad at the Windham Irving a couple of months ago, doubled
Overage of $.10 on each, a total of $.40!!!  


Essential Everyday Cream Cheese $1.79
Used $1 off any Essential Everyday Coupon from the Sizzlin' Summer Coupon Book (in stores)
Final Price $.79


Bananas...there's a story here
My son has a Kid's Club card which means he can get a free banana or apple.  The first couple of times we used it I bought one banana and it was free.  Last time I decided I would get what I needed for bananas and let the cashier figure it out.  Both that trip and this one, the cashier removed one banana from the bunch, and rung them in separately.  The funny part?  The coupon recognizes the higher priced bunch, not the single banana.
One Banana $.25
Three Bananas $.68
The three were free!


I also got a bunch of celery for $1.59  It's not in the picture because, well, I don't like eating fresh produce that's been on the floor :-)


Shopper's Value Chicken Nuggets $3.29 (a must have in our house!)


Now for the items which caused this trip in the first place!


Suave Shampoo $1
Used $1 off any Hair Care Purchase Store Coupon
FREE!!!!


GUM 2-pack of Kid's Toothbrushes $2.79
Used $.75/1 GUM Toothbrush from the March issue of All You Magazine, doubled
I also used a $1 off any Oral Care Purchase Store Coupon
Final Price $.29
Of course, I knew I had a GUM promotion loaded on my SavingStar account, but I just checked and it excludes the Crayola Kids ones...just my luck!


Essential Everyday Crackers $2.49
Used Free EE or Shaw's Crackers with $10 minimum purchase Store Coupon 
FREE!!!


Full Retail Value $36.23
I paid $10.81, a savings of 70%!!!!!!


I also planned to get some $.09 Enchilada Sauce...the shelf was cleaned out!  That's okay, I can wait!!!

It's Raining Store Coupons!!!

Have you received any of these new store coupons at Shaw's this week?  Well, from what I've read they are thanking their "best customers" with exclusive savings!  Friday night I received a coupon for FREE Essential Everyday or Shaw's Crackers (up to $3) with a $10 purchase.  I also have $1 off any oral care purchase, and my husband got one for $1 off any hair care purchase last night, just for buying a pizza!


The cracker coupon states the minimum of $10 must be met after all OTHER coupon redemptions and store promotions, so I will be heading out today to get as many great deals as possible to bring my total up to $10, then I will use my cracker coupon for the lowest total possible!!!


Happy Saving!

This Week's Keys to Healthy Couponing!

I mentioned earlier this week on Facebook that I am couponing with a new goal in mind; dieting!  This means tons of fresh produce and protein.  These are the first foods to go from your weekly list when you start taking couponing seriously, but I am determined to still save at least 50% each time out.  

I plan on doing this by picking and choosing my diet foods based on sales and the few coupons I can find for the things I need.  I will also "pad" each trip with some freebies and other great deals.  Another benefit to spending a little more on groceries is I can use my $5 off $50 Recyclebank coupons each week.  In my mind, this is a coupon for the things I don't have coupons for!

Every week I will fill you in on some great deals on healthy foods.  Here they are for this week!

I can't tell you how excited I am about the pick 4 meat deal this week.  My choice is the Tyson Grilled and Ready Chicken Breasts and Strips.

Regular Price $8.99 each

Pick 4 for $19.99

Use 4 $1.10/1 Tyson Grilled and Ready Coupons (need access to two computers)

or 4 $1/1 Tyson Grilled and Ready Coupons from the 5/13 SS

Final Price as low as $3.90 each...that's a savings of 57%!!!

One of our favorite coupons lately has been the $.75 off any Earthbound Organic produce coupon...so what are you waiting for?  Head on over HERE and sign up for their Organic Step Forward program.  Every day, you will receive an email with a new step towards living a healthier, more organic life.  Every three days or so, the step will be a coupon.  You can also access past days' steps, so the coupons are available at all times.

This week, 2-pound bags of Earthbound Organic Carrots are on sale for $.99, making them free after the coupon doubles.  Some other options which do vary by store and even by day are celery, iceberg lettuce and ready to eat peeled carrots.  Definitely keep one of these with you every time you head to the store!

Depending on what your healthy eating strategy is, you can also make good use of the coupon book currently in stores.  There are several coupons inside, including my favorite $1/1 Everyday Essential product coupon.  I used this to buy a block of cream cheese for only $.79.  Originally, only Shaw's brand dry goods were being replaced by the new EE brand, but it is taking over the whole store bringing so many more ways to use this great store coupon!

There are also some great health-conscious coupons available on SavingStar to load to your store card.  My favorites are Yoplait Yogurt and Lean Cuisine.  

Happy Healthy Saving! 

How To Tell The Difference Between a Store Coupon and a Manufacturer's Store Coupon

As we all know, the first of the month means new printable coupons...YAY!  Today we have found some great new savings, and a few which prompted a few questions.  Hopefully this explanation will help you feel prepared to take care of any resistance you may get when using some coupons which came out today at your local store.  


One trick we all use to access coupons on coupons.com is through the use of different zip codes.  There is nothing wrong with doing this, and there is no way for stores or manufacturers to track whether the coupons were used in the zip code for which they were loaded.  With that said, some coupons accessible to certain zip codes are geared towards shoppers of specific retailers in that particular area of the country.  Today, we will inspect some new Publix coupons found at zip code 30303...one of my favorites!


Here you will see what is clearly a store coupon:

The first thing to tip you off to this fact is the store logo, but you do need to dig deeper.  The top of the coupon clearly states "STORE COUPON".  Also, you can see in this closer image that the coupon truly is for use only at Shaw's and Star Market locations:

In contrast, here is a typical manufacturer's coupon:

This is what we are all used to seeing...it states "MANUFACTURER'S COUPON" at the top, and includes instructions in the fine print for the store.  When a manufacturer makes a coupon available, the stores mail them to the address listed to be reimbursed.  This is the most conclusive way to tell that this is truly a manufacturer's coupon.


Now, for our little Publix troublemakers:

The first thing you probably see is the giant "Redeem at Publix" logo.  The first coupon we looked at did turn out to be a true store coupon valid at only Shaw's and Star Market stores, but that was based on the details, not the presence of the logo.  Plus, the coupon states "MANUFACTURER'S COUPON" at the top.  To be sure, let's dig a little deeper!

In the fine print, we find reimbursement language and a remittance address for the retailer to send the coupon to.  As we saw before, this is the ultimate sign of a true manufacturer's coupon.  


Phew, that was a lot of information, but hopefully it leads to great savings and less headaches at the register!


Happy Saving!!!