CVS Deals 4/11 - 4/17

Dove Shampoo or Conditioner $4.49
-$4.49 ECBs
-$1.50 MC (3/28 RP)
=MAKE $1.50

Schick Hydro $8.97
-$6 ECBs
-$3 MC (3/21 SS)
=Free

Dial Nutriskin $5.49
-$4.50 ECBs
-$1 printable here
=Free

Colgate Pro Clinical $3.99
-$2 ECBs
-$1 MC (4/11 SS)
=$.99

Walgreens Deals 4/11 - 4/12

Kotex U $3.49 (month long deal)
-$2.50 RRs
- $1/1 printable or $1 April All You or $1 off any Kotex coupon
=FREE

Schick Hydro Shave Gel $2.99
-$2.99 RRs
=Free

Sudafed Products $4.99 (buy 2)
-$5/2 MC (4/11 RP)
- $5RR when you buy 2
=both FREE

Carefree liners $.99 (buy 2) with weekly store coupon
-BOGO MC (3/28 RP)
=$.49 each

Dentyne Gum $1 (buy 2)
-$1/2 MC (2/28 SS)
=$0.50 each

Ban Deodorant $.99 with weekly store coupon
-$0.40 MC (3/7 SS)
=$.59

Snuggle $3.99
-$3 MC (3/28 RP)
=$.99

Schick Quattro disposable razors $5.99
-$1 Register Rewards
-$4 MC (3/21 SS)
=$.99

Colgate Pro Clinical $3.99
-$2 RRs
-$1 printable
=$.99

Velveeta Shells Cups at $1 (buy 4)
-$1.50 RRs
- 2 BOGO printables here
=$0.50 after coupons and Register Rewards

Festival Deals 4/11 - 4/17

These deals are NOT coupon items:

• Pringles $.88 -$1/4 MC (3/7 or 4/4 P&G)
• Old Orchard Juice Blends $.98
• Roma pizza $1.68
• Dutch Farms sour cream $.88
• Go-gurt 2/$4 -$1/2 MC (2/21 SS)
• Flavorite Mustard $.97
• No Yolks Noodles $1.29 -BOGO MC (2/21 SS)= $.65 each
  

Special Coupon Deal:

• Quaker (cereal, granola bars, etc.) $5/9 with in ad $3 MC coupon=$1.20 each

Festival store coupon (newspaper):

• John Morrell franks $.68 (limit 1)
• Sweet Baby RaysBBQ sauce $.88 (limit 1)
• Kemp's ice cream $.98 (limit 1)
• Gold n Plump chicken spend $25 save $10 (works out to be approx. $.86/lb) -$.75 MC x2 from HERE that will get you another $1.50 off (for about $.77/lb) UPDATE: Wendy found another $1 off MC x2 HERE (final price of approx. $.66/lb)
  

Week Two... Special 4 Weeks of Saving Coupons (from newspaper):

• Eggs $.68 (limit 1)
• Flavorite Ketchup $.68 (limit 1)
• Flavorite butter $.98 (limit 1)
• Oscar Mayer wieners 48 oz. box $3.98 (limit 2)
• Homelife paper towels 8 pk $3.98 (limit 1)

Be sure to check the red interactive coupon box at the front of the store. Sometimes there are coupons available that match up with the weekly store coupons. (Even on the Flavorite brand!) Festival's blog said that this is one way to "double" your coupon savings.

And... did you know you no longer have to cut out the Festival newspaper coupons? Just stop by the service desk and pick up one of the fliers that have the store coupons (not the green sheet, that's separate) on them or hand them the whole newspaper ad. The cashier just has to enter one code for all the coupons and you don't have to cut them out. It's a win-win time saver for you and the cashier!

CVS and Walgreens Trip 4/9

I feel bad posting my trips when the deals are over but I usually go deal shopping on Friday nights. If you are just learning it might be helpful to see examples. I made at least one mistake that you can learn from! Here's what I got:
CVS
1 Colgate Total $2.99 -$1 Colgate MC (All You)- $2 ECB= FREE
1 Skintimate Shaving Cream $3.99 -$3=$.99
3 Pantene Nature Fusion $2.99 -$2 x 3 Pantene MC from a Vocalpoint mailer -$3ECB=FREE
3 Stride gum $.99 -$.99 from Buy 2 Get 1 free Stride coupon -$.99 ECB=$.99 for 3

-$.50 ECB--first quarter ECB... I love it when they are so low!
-$9.99 in ECBs
FINAL TOTAL=$1.45 including tax PLUS I got $8.99 in ECBs back

WALGREENS
1 Cottonelle 12 pk toilet paper $5 -$1 Wags Apr Coupon -$1 MC= $3
1 Kotex U tampons $3.49 -$1 MC (should have been free -$2.50RR--see below)
4 Velveeta cups $1 each -BOGO x2 and $1.50RR= $.50 for 4
6 Garnier Fructis shampoo, conditioner, hairspray $20 - $1 MC x4 and $10RR=$1 each
3 Kraft Mac and Cheese $.69 each (with weekly store coupon)
1 Dawn $.99 (with weekly store coupon) -$.50 MC=$.49
3 Pilot gel pens/highlighters $1.19 each -$1 Wags Apr Coupon x3=$.19 each
plus will get a $4.50 rebate from back of package
4 Lindsay olives $.99 each (with weekly store coupon) -$1/2 MC x2= $.49 each
4 Mars candy bars $.39 (with weekly store coupon) - Buy 2 Get 1 Free=$.22 each (see below*)
FINAL TOTAL= $12.53 and I got back $11.5o in RRs plus the $4.50 rebate


*I just wanted to point something out. At Walgreens (and some other stores) the order in which you give the cashier your coupons makes a difference. At Walgreens give them in the following order:
1st Manufacturer coupons
2nd Walgreens weekly then monthly
3rd Register Rewards

For the candy bar B2G1 coupon this worked in my favor. By giving the B2G1 coupon first it took the regular price off for the "fill in the blank" amount ($.69 off in this case) even though with the Walgreens weekly coupon the price was actually only 39 cents.

I paid a "stupid tax" on this transaction by breaking a critical Walgreens rule. I used a RR from the Kotex U deal I did last week to pay again when I bought a second package this week. When you do this the "new" RR doesn't print out. So I lost a $2.50 RR. Ugh. Learn from my mistake and don't roll RRs on the same deal!

I could have lowered my OOP (out of pocket) costs by doing more than one transaction but 1) I'm lazy, 2) trying to do all that math hurts my brain, and 3) I already feel like I'm pushing my luck most times at Walgreens. :)

My Points Daily Spin and Win

If you have a MyPoints account be sure to head over to the site everyday and play the daily "Spin and Win" game. It's an easy way to win a few extra points. I've won 50 points twice now and 5 points many times.

Look for the Daily Spin 'N' Win tab:

If you aren't familiar with MyPoints, it is a rewards program that gives you points for reading e-mails, shopping, taking surveys, and various other activities. Once you earn enough points, you can redeem them for a gift card of your choice (CVS, Walgreens, Starbucks, Wal-mart, Target, and many more!).

If you are interested in joining send Shelly, Theresa, or Erica an email and we'll refer you!

Subscribe via Email

Don't miss another deal! If you don't want to miss a money saving post take a minute and subscribe to GB Savers via email by putting your email address in the box to the left.

Don't worry, you won't be flooded with emails. You will only receive one email on the days that there are new posts. No new posts means no emails! If you already subscribe... THANKS... tell a friend!

Saving 101: Budgeting and Knowing Prices

It's all in the numbers! How will you know you are saving if you don't know what you normally spend? How will you know you found a good deal if you don't know what you normally pay?

Keep Track
The first step is keeping track. Figure out what you are spending on groceries right now. You can keep receipts or make a spreadsheet. Simple or complex... it's up to you, but keep track of what you are spending.

Budget
Oh, no! Not the "b" word! Once you've keep track of your spending for long enough you should set a goal of what you want to be spending. No one can tell you what to budget. Every family is different. You may have a large family or children with food allergies. You may only eat organic while others must have gourmet ingredients for special dishes.

The bottom line: Know what you are spending and then set a new goal. Have you been spending $200 a week? Set a goal to try and spend only $150 and see if you can do it. Keep lowering your budgeted amount as you learn new saving strategies.

Know Your Prices
Some savvy shoppers like to keep a price book. If you are forgetful or just getting started I recommend you give this a try. If you are more experienced or have a great memory you might be able to get by just remembering.

If the goal is to always buy items at the lowest price you need some measure of what "low" really is. I have listed some of my personal best prices in the "stock up" tab above.

I organize my coupons in envelopes. So instead of a price book, I occasionally write down prices on my coupon envelopes. That way I can confirm a good price if I see a deal somewhere. When I know it's a great deal then I stock up.

Even if you start out with a price book you may eventually not need it anymore. As you shop deals more often you will start to get a feel for good deals and know when to take advantage of them.

Here are some links about price books:
The Dollar Stretcher
Blogging Away Debt
Get Rich Slowly
No Credit Needed

Free Snuggle at Family Dollar

A couple weeks ago in the Sunday newspaper, there was a $3 off 1 Snuggle coupon. Family Dollar sells them for regular price of $3, so you can get it for free.

Sara Lee Outlet Store

I don't know how many of you buy Sara Lee bread, but if you do and even if you don't. You can get a loaf of bread of 99 cents, sometimes even cheaper. Sara Lee Outlet is located on Military Street in between Bond Street and Velp Street. What's even better is that often times they will have managers specials which are usually buy 1 get 1 free. They also have hot dog and hamburger buns for 50 cents as well. Today, I bought 4 loafs of bread for $1.98.

Conagra Rebate in Combo w/ PW Sale

There is a new Conagra "rebate" available:

This is not for cash back. Instead you get $25 in coupons for Conagra brands when you buy $10 in Conagra products. This rebate form is from the All You website.

Conagra items included in the PW sale are:
Banquet dinners
Rotel
Hunts
Gulden's
Snack Pack Pudding

A full list of Conagra products can be found on their website here or on the rebate form. Since these items are listed as part of the $1 sale, it should be fairly easy to spend $10.

Copps Double Daze 4/7

Hi, all! It's late, so here's a link to my quickly typed up list for tomorrow. Happy shopping!

Piggly Wiggly Deals 4/7 thru 4/13

Big sale at PW this week! Buy ten $1 items get the 11th free. That means each item will be about $.91 and with coupons even less!

All the items below are $1:
Potatoes (5 lb. bag)
OM Lunchables $1/1 in 3/21 SS
Starkist Tuna (pouch or bag) $1/2 pouches in 2/14 RP
Henri's Salad Dressing
Del Monte Fruit Naturals $1/3 printable here
Butterball Turkey bacon
BC Hamburger Helper $.75/3 in 3/7 SS or printable here
Hunt's Pasta sauce
Creamette Pasta (select varieties)
PF Goldfish crackers
Banquet frozen dinners $1/4 any Conagra from 3/14 SS
FC snack/sandwich recloseable bags
Gulden's Spicy Brown mustard
Rotel $1/3 from Conagra home mailer
Red Gold canned tomatoes $1/3 in 2/28 and 2/7 SS
Ibuprofen 200ct.
Arm and Hammer Dryer sheets (40 ct) $1/2 printable here (might not work)
Lightbulbs
Cotton Swabs

Also on sale:
Pork roast $1.49 per lb.
Ground beef $1.89 per lb.
Grapes $1.49/lb
Blue Bonnet margarine quarters $.79
Orv's frozen pizza 5/$10
Suave shampoo and condition $.89 $1/2 in 3/14 SS

With a $10 purchase and coupon you can get a gallon of MILK for $.99

To see the full ad click here.