Some Expensive Items for Cheap at CVS This Week

There are a few Free things at CVS this week.   Also I have $7 in ECB's that are expiring this week so I need to roll them.  If this is your first time shopping at CVS you will want to make sure you sign up for their Extra Care program.  You can sign up instantly for free in store. Read all about here. My friends at MFA have done a great job writing up CVS 101 to help out! 

Once you get your Key tag you will want to make sure you scan it at the Coupon Scanner It's usually found in the front of the store near checkout.  This machine sometimes spits out some great coupons that you can stack with mq's.  Keep scanning it until it reads "no more coupons available today".   Also you can sign up for email here.  You will get a great $4/$20 purchase coupon just for signing up.  These type's of $/$$ coupons are used on your total purchase before coupons which really helps to get your total oop amount down!  

Gain Dishwashing Liquid  11oz $.99
$1 P&G 10/10
= FREE

FreeStyle Freedom Lite Blood Glucose Monitoring System $14.99 
$10 SS 9/12
Get $5 ECB's Limit 1
= FREE after ECB's

Noxema Products  $4.49
Get $3 ECBs Limit 1
 = $1.49

 Xtra 2x Laundry Detergent 28 loads $1.49 Limit 5
$1/2 SS 10/17
= $.99

Excedrin (20-24ct) – $2
-Use $1/1 Excedrin coupon (or SS 10/17)
Final Price = $1

Finish Powerball tabs or Jet Dry Rinse which are priced at $3 each. You get $5 ECB when you spend $15.

deal idea:
Buy 4 Finish Powerball Packs at $3
Buy 1 Jet Dry Rinse at $3
Subtotal: $15
Use (2) $.75/1 Finish coupons
Use (2) $.75/1 Finish Coupons or in 11/7 SS
and use $1/1 Jet Dry coupon
Get $5 ECB
=$11 AND $5 ECB's for a future purchase

There is also a great deal on Glade Candles.  They are priced at $2.50 and you get a $3 ECB when you spend $10.

Here is one idea:
Buy 4 candles at $2.50
Use (2) $1.50/2 scented oil candles printable
Get $3 ECB
=$7 AND get $3 ECB's  for a future purchase



 Here is what I will be doing at CVS this week.  I will do 2 transactions so that I can roll my ECB's

Transaction #1
4 Finish Powerball Packs $12
Jet Dry Rinse at $3
subtotal =$15
-(2) $.75/1 Finish coupons
-(2) $.75/1 Finish Coupons or in 11/7 SS
- $1/1 Jet Dry coupon
-$7 expiring ECB's
Total oop = $4 AND I get back $5 ECB's for spending $15 on Finish Products


Transaction #2
4 Gain Dishwashing Liquid $3.96
4 Xtra 2x Laundry Detergent $5.96
Noxema Product  $4.49 
subtotal = $14.41
-(4) $1 Gain coupon 10/10 P&G
-(2) $1/2 SS 10/17
- 5 ECB's from transaction #1
Total oop =  $3.41 AND I get $3 ECB's to spend on a future purchase.  

All together I will spend $7.41 with $3 ECBs left over. For dishwashing liquid, dishwasher detergent, laundry detergent and facial cleanser.... usually pretty expensive things! 14 items! WOOT!

True Lemon Sample

I love this stuff!  It's crystallized lemon that you can add to drinks and even food!  It really helps me to drink more water throughout the day.  You can get your free sample here.

Let's Shop at Rite Aid and Make Some Money!

Looks like a pretty good week at Rite Aid to help build up the stockpile.  Here are just a few of the great sales that I thought you all might like.  If you are just starting out you will want to make sure you sign up for their Wellness Program and get your key tag.  You can read all about it right here. Also make sure you watch the Video Values to get your Rite Aid store coupons to stack with manufacturer coupons.  When you watch 20 of them (most are only about 30 seconds long) you will get the $4/$20 coupon.   You can read up on the coupon policy here.




Nivea Body Wash $3.99
Get $1 +Up Reward
Use $3/1 Nivea for Men printable
or use $3/1 Nivea for Men Body Wash, exp. 11-30-10 (RP 10/17/10)
Final Price: as low as free!

Kraft Deluxe or Velveeta Shells and Cheese $1.99
Use $1/1 +Up Reward
Final Price: .99

Lady Speed Stick $1.99 Use $1/1 vv coupon 
Use $0.75/1 Lady Speed Stick Deodorant printable
Final Price: $.24
  
Oral B Crossaction Toothbrush $2.99
Get $2.99 +Up Reward
use $0.75 off Select Oral-B Toothbrushes, exp. 11-30-10 (PG 10/31/10)
Final Price: .75 moneymaker!


Crest Pro Health Clinical Gum Health Toothpaste or Rinse $3.49
Get $2.50 +Up Reward
Use $1/1 Crest Toothpaste or Liquid Gel, exp. 11-30-10 (P&G 10/31/10)
Final Price: Free!

Bounty Basic Paper Towels 88¢ 
Use $1/2 manufacturer coupon (from the 10/31/10 P&G insert)
= 76¢/2

Here is my plan for Rite Aid this week:
2 Nivea Men's Body Wash $7.98
2 Toothbrushes $5.98
2 Bounty Towels $1.76
2 Toothpaste $6.98
1 Lady Speedstick $1.99
1 Kraft Macaroni Cheese $1.99
SubTotal = $26.68


- (2) $3 Nivea
- (2) $1 Toothpaste
Stack with
- $1Crest Pro-Heath Toothpaste (flu booklet coupon - you can get these at the pharmacy, they give them when you get a flu shot but it says no purchase necessary so if you ask politely they will usually give you one)
- (2) $.75 Toothbrush
Stack with
- $1 Oral-B Toothbrush (flu booklet coupon)
- $1/2 Bounty
- $1 vv Lady speed Stick
Stack with
- $.75 Lady speed Stick
- $4/$20 Rite Aid vv
- $1/$10 Oral Care Wellness Coupon


Total= $7.43 AND  get $13.98 in +up rewards to use on a future purchase! That's a $6.55 moneymaker!  YEAH!

Lowe's Black Friday Sneak Peek

This is so much fun!  Lowes Facebook page is where you are going to want to be come 2pm today! You can enter your email address to try to win a 90% off coupon for a specific item.  Check out the details here. I'd love to hear if any of you win!

Expires Today! 3 Tops Coupon Doublers

Here are  $1 Printable Coupon Doublers to take with you if you need to run to Tops today!  And here are a few items you can grab for free. 

Hatfield Boneless Ham Steak, $2.00 (these are great for ham and eggs)
Use the $1.00/1 coupon from the 10/24 Redplum insert
Use the $1 Tops Coupon Doubler
FREE after coupons

Bestlife Buttery Spread, $2.00
Use the $1.00/1 printable coupon
Use the $1 Tops Coupon Doubler
FREE after coupon

I Won!

I follow a blog called My Frugal Adventures .  It's a great national blog based out of California.  I often find a lot of the great deals I post about on that website.  One post that caught my eye was for a sweepstakes from Dr. Oz.  I rarely do sweepstakes or contests because the odds are usually pretty bad and I never win anything.  But this particular one had fun looking stuff that I thought I could try for. They were giving away 800 pairs of Skechers Shape-Ups.  I figured I had no chance but gave it a try anyway... and I won! The contest was on Tuesday and I was going through some emails today to see if I got any good coupons or if I spotted any good sales and I noticed one from Skechers.  I thought maybe it was just their newsletter and when I opened it, it said that I was one of the first 800 entrants to win!  How cool is that?!  I have been wanting these sneakers since they came out, but at $100 a pair, they didnt really fit into the budget. 

I suppose if you find a contest for something you really want you should give it a shot...even if it seems impossible... you just never know!

Cheap LED Holiday lights at Home Depot!

I'm pretty sure we tossed the Christmas lights out with the tree last year! (GASP)  How un-frugal of me! They were hideous! I thought they were the pretty soft twinkling lights.  NOPE!  I had the Techno-Dance-Club-Eye burning sort of Christmas lights.  Well, now I sort of wish I would have saved them because Home Depot is having their Holiday Light Trade- In program starting Today!  If you have any Christmas lights that are:
A.) tangled and not worth untangling
B.) have missing or broken bulbs
C.) are old and ugly
or
D.) remind you of a bad Techno rave dance party

you can take them in to Home Depot and trade them for a $3 coupon towards any LED light purchase.  They will have some priced starting at $5.97, so just $2.97 after coupon.  Trade in a total of 5 strings for a max of  $15 off!  Don't you just love driving around looking at all the decorated houses?!?

Who Doesn't Love FREE Stuff?

Here is a Free sample of Purina One Pet Food from Walmart.  Even if you don't have a pet, grab it and donate it to your local animal shelter or SPCA! 

Kodak has Free 5x7 Photo books for Free  with code: TARGBOOK.  Of course shipping might be about $2 but if you are a new member to Kodak you can also score 50 Free Prints!

AND

you can also get 2 free audiobook downloads from Amazons company Audible.com.  They are offering a 30 Day Free Trial and you can cancel as soon as you get your free downloads if you wanted. 


I love Free stuff and great sales!  But please keep in mind that I don't send away for all of the things I post about. These are mostly things I think my readers might like! Trying to get EVERY SINGLE deal can be  down right exhausting and will make you an ex-coupon shopper really fast.  Sales will always come around again! 

I Went Over Budget!

$57.88

I'm very excited that I have family from out of town staying with me this weekend! My sister in law, brother in law and their 2 beautiful boys!  I wanted to run out to make sure I had plenty of yummy things in the house for everyone!  Needless to say, I went over budget!  But this is why I coupon shop and stay on budget when I can, so I can have the extra money to blow on the more important things in life, like having family over!
I didn't go over TOO much... just about $27.78 over so my grand total for this week between Tops, Wegmans, Rite Aid, and 2 Walmart trips = $87.78 and that includes a whole turkey,6 lbs of Ground beef, fruits, veggies, 2 gallons of milk, eggs, organic oatmeal, and cheese! ( I will also be reducing my budget next week to balance out my overage from this week)

Here is my break down

Tops

Trident Layers $.99
-Trident Layers $.75/1 Printable Like them on Facebook!
 =Free

Cheerios  $2.00
-$.75/1 Printable (not available anymore)
= $.50

2 Nestle Morsels $1.68 ea = $3.62
-$1/2 Printable
=$1.18 ea

Ketchup $.99


2 Dole Fruit Crisps $2 ea = $4
-$1/1 from
=$1 ea

4 Ronzoni Quick Cook $1 ea =$4
-2 $1/2 from
= $2

Libbys Canned Pineapple Chunks $1
-$1/2 coupon
= $.50 ea

2 Brown & Serve Sausages = $1 ea
= $2

4 Hatfield %99 fat free Ham Steak 2/$4 = $8
-4 Hatfield $1/1 from
= $4

Tops Turkey $.38
= $4.02

2 Banquet Fruit Pies $1 ea = $2
-(2) $.35 Banuqet coupon from
= $.30 ea

Lenders Bagels = $1

2 Land o' Lakes Spread = $1 ea = $2
-(2) Land o' Lakes $.55 Printable
= Free

6 Dannon Light and Fit $.50 = $3
- $.50 Dannon Printable
= $2

4 Athenos Feta $2 ea = $8
I used 2 BOGO coupons which most casheirs dont except and my cashier only gave me the price off of 1 :\
= $1.50 ea

Tops Sliced American Cheese = $1.99

2 Tops Med Eggs $.79 = $1.58

2 Heluva Good Dip= 1.89 =
I used a tops catalina I got a while back: Buy One French Onion Dip Get One Free
I also used the $.50 Heluva Good Dip Printable for the first one I bought.
= $.44 ea



Total = $32.01
Saved $22.70 with coupons!

Wegmans
Milk whole = $1.79
Milk Fat free = $1.79

3 Ronzoni garden pasta = $5.07
-$3 $1/1 Ronzoni Garden pasta from
= $.69 ea

2 Best Oats Organic Oatmeal = $1.19 ea = $2.38
- (2) $.75 Best Oats Printable
=2 for Free

2 Starkist Tuna Pouches$1.19
- (2) $.75 printable
= 2 for free

bananas $.49 lb
=$1.59

2 Baby peeled Carrots =$.99 ea
=$1.98

Apples = $.89
= $4.96

90% Lean Ground Beef Family Pack = $1.99lb
=$12.00

Total = $25.87

Grand Total = $57.88

The Mail Came!

Vista Print always has great freebies! And some are still available if you want to snatch up these awesome deals! I made a Personalized canvas bag for my daughter to use for her Halloween candy and to use for trick or treating next year, and the year after and after and...- but there are lots of little pictures and designs to choose from.  Make one for yourself to hold all of your coupons, or give one away as a gift. I also grabbed this great calendar! We personalized it and added all of our special dates to remind us of birthdays and anniversaries!  Each month has a family picture on it!  These are great gifts for the grandparents! There are tons of little freebies on this site and they are very easy to make and order.  I ordered 3 items and with tax and shipping I paid less than $6!

Still have your $20 Rue La La credit? Hurry this is going fast!

I just wanted to post this quick because I just used my $20 credit on  Tarte cosmetics!  My sister in law to be sells this stuff and she was telling me how awesome it is! All natural stuff! They have an eyeshadow quad, 2 eyeliners and a dual sided eyeliner brush for 14.90!  With shipping, tax and my credit I got all that for less than $7!  Can't beat it with a stick!  The only dilemma I see is, do I keep it for myself or give it as a gift?  hmmmm.


***this is under the Boutiques drop down menu.  Click on Final Sale Act 1 and you can see all the goodies there.  Tarte will be one of them if you are interested in this deal!  There is a lot more great stuff for super cheap. Michael Kors is selling out fast but with your credit - you might be able to to get a cute top for free!

Free Stuff *Updated

I told you before how Walmart offers free samples - Here is a great one.  Tom's of Maine Wicked Fresh Toothpaste.  Now, I can't tell you how big this sample will be.  It might just be a little packet, but it could be great for just a quick overnight trip somewhere.  I've been wanting to try it out anyway, and I'm hoping they will send a coupon with.

Also, you can get a free Juno Baby DVD here from Heard It From Mom.  Do be sure to use a valid email address because they will send you a code that you need to enter.  Kids love these DVD's! Perfect to pop in when you need to get dinner started or flip the laundry. 

Thanks Coupon Geek

Reader dolfman emailed me about a few great freebies from Proctor and Gamble.  I've gotten these samples in the mail before and the Head and Shoulders is a great little packet.  The Pantene comes in 2oz bottles and you can request the shampoo and conditioner in their drop down menu! Perfect for the carry on!  There are a lot of high value coupons you can request to be sent with your package as well!


Thanks dolfman!



Once you all start getting your samples and freebies in the mail I would love to hear back from you about what you think... then I'll know which samples to post and which ones are stinkers :) 

A Great Book - A Great Gift $10.99 Shipped!

I don't own this book, but I've been wanting it!  If you have kids, or know someone who does - this could be a great gift for cheap.  It's one of Target's Daily Deals  which means it's on sale for almost 50% off and I'm pretty sure you get free shipping.... Grab it and cross someone off  your list!

Men's Nivea Printable Coupon $3/1

Here is a great coupon from Nivea for men's body wash.  This stuff is awesome.  It's a 3 in 1 - Shampoo, Shower (body wash), and Shave (shaving cream)!  Seriously, I wish they made this stuff for women. It could seriously cut down my time in the tub! This is a great high value coupon and you will be able to get it super cheap or even free. Target has these priced at around $3 all the time. And starting next week, Rite Aid will have these priced at $3.99 with a $1 +up reward... so FREE with coupon and reward! 

Thanks, MFA  

**remember to hit your browser's back button and you can print 2 from each computer!

More Great deals at Rue La La

Still have your $20 credit?  Timberland has great waffle shirts for $25 and with your credit you can get them for around $14.95 shipped! (you may have to pay tax)~

And this great  Freeze 24/7 skin care is $20 - just pay shipping and tax!  (around $10)

I also spotted some cute pencil skirts from BCBG - but hurry they are going FAST! 

***UPDATE - the $20 credit for new members was a just a limited time offer.  Sorry if you missed the boat! Unfortunately, these great deals don't last very long!  The posts that I put up from the Rue La La site will be for the readers that got the promotion and are looking for things to spend their credit on.  If another credit comes around I'll be sure to post it!

The Roots: Things Fall Apart mp3 Download $.99 on Amazon

Who doesn't love The Roots?  Even Yo Gabba Gabba and my 3 year old love The Roots.  I have heard that this album is amazing and I bet your iPod will love The Roots!  You can download it at Amazon for $3.99 today only here.  And I just tested it out and you can still get the $3 credit with code student3 that I told you about here.  
If you are interested in this I would grab it quick - it's not going to last long!

That's a flawless mp3 album download for $.99! Can't beat it! 

Wanna look like Justin Timberlake?

Rue La La has these great William Rast (JT's brand) T-shirts for $29.00.  If you happened to get your $20 credit for signing up that I told you about here- you can score these T's for around $18.95 shipped! A great Christmas present or a present to yourself for being so thrifty!

Stockpiling and An Awesome Sale on Toilet paper!!!

Ok People!  A BIG part of coupon shopping is Stockpiling! When you find an amazing sale you are going to want to stock up! My stockpile shelf is full of toothpaste, shampoo, deodorant, body wash, razors, sunscreen, etc.  that I have gotten for pennies! I combined a sale and coupons and was able to get things we needed for close to FREE!  I can concentrate on spending my money on the more important (and expensive)  things and still keep a low budget! At first it will seem weird to buy 6 deodorants when you only need one - but when you are getting them for $.23 instead of $4 - think of all the money you will be saving!  Instead of running out to the store and paying full price when you run out, you can pull from your stockpile and save that money!  One rule to couponing is not to be brand loyal.  If you refuse to only use the most expensive shampoos, couponing may not be for you.  Now don't get me wrong, we rarely use anything generic in this house simply because there aren't a whole lot of coupons for generic items out there, but we do use whatever is on sale and whatever we have coupons for.  My stockpile of shampoo consists of  Pantene, John Frieda, Dove and Ulta brands! And there is about 3-4 of each...because that's how many coupons I had during that particular sale!   And if you do prefer the expensive shampoos, but don't really care about what kind of toilet paper you use, then you can get TP on the cheap and save the money for your pricey hair products!

Here is a great deal on TP - and TP is never on sale!  In fact, I bought some TP today and it was an ok deal, but now I'm kicking myself!

Amazon.com has 40 rolls of Charmin Basic double rolls on sale for $16.40!  AND if you sign up for the subscribe and save it drops to $13.94.  There is no obligation and you can cancel the subscribe and save anytime - just make sure you cancel it after you receive the TP otherwise they might cancel your order... but if you sign up for Amazon Prime for Moms and caregivers you can get it in 2 days with free shipping!

That's $.35 a roll.... your tushy will be thanking me and so will your wallet! 

Now the next time you run out of toilet paper  you can just "shop" your stockpile instead and then you can take the money you saved and buy yourself a treat for being so smart!


***if you happen to acquire too much stockpile - there are a lot of nursing homes, shelters and soldiers out there who would love to get a donated package! 

Croc's Deal of the Week: Finn crocs!!!

I had to post this when I got the email!  Kids FINN crocs are on sale this week for half off and better yet, you can get another 10% off and FREE shipping!  So just $13.49 +tax!

use code: FABULOUS10

and

use code: secondchance

Also, they have introduced a new line of toning crocs - they are pretty pricey right now but I'll be sure to post any sales I see on these babies!   You can check 'em out here.  

I Went Shopping!

I'm not sure if I said this before, but I try to keep our weekly budget to $60.  That has to include all personal hygiene items, groceries, diapers and formula - for a family of 4! well, my 2 little ones don't eat too much, but hey, they count! I had to go to Walmart to pick up contacts so I figured I would shop a little while I was out.  I hit 2 Walmart's - the furthest Walmart from me is the only one with the eye center - and I had to pass another Walmart to get there! I wanted 7 bottles of formula and didn't want to empty the place out in case any of my readers were going to use the awesome $3 coupon!  (which is still available here and Walmart still has it on price cut -woot!) so I tried to split my purchases up a little to leave a few on the shelves.  I also hit Target and Rite Aid.  Here is the break down:

Walmart:

Angel Soft Toilet Paper- $5.97

Bounty Paper towel $1.00

Similac Advanced $3.84

Similac Advanced $3.84

= $14.65

Used:

-$1.00 Angel Soft printable

-$1 Bounty Towel mq from the Right@Home coupon booklet from P&G.  You can sign up here to recieve this in the mail

-$3 Similac printable

-$3 Similac printable

tax$ .61

Total $7.26

Walmart #2

(5) Similac Sensitive $3.84 ea = $19.20

Halloween Makeup $1 (%50 off)=$  .50

= $19.70

Used

-(5) $3 Similac printables here and that I told you about here (thanks dad) = $15

tax $ .04

Total $4.74

Target

Kandoo Flushable Wipes $1.65

2 Pepperidge Farms pretzel thins (love these things) 2.50 ea=$5

Kraft Homestyle Mac n Cheese $2.69

Market pantry wheat bread $1.39

= $10.73

Used 

- $1 Kandoo wipes from 10/1 P&G 

- (2) $1 Pepperidge Farms printable

- $1 Homestyle Mac n Cheese printable (sorry not available anymore)

- $.75 Homestyle Mac n Cheese Target printable
- .50  Market Pantry bread Target printable

tax $ .14

Total $5.62

Rite Aid Transaction #1

I did 2 separate transactions at Rite Aid so I could use (2) Bio true in ad coupons and (2) vv $4/$20 coupons

Dawn Hand Renewal $.99

Pantene Shampoo and Conditioner 2/$7

get $2 +up on 2

Bio true Contact Solution $8.99

get $2 +up

Chex Mix 2/$3

get $1 +up on 2

(2)Trident Gum BOGO $1.29

 = $21.27

Used

$4/$20 for watching vv 
-(2)$ .75 Trident printable

-$2 Pantene mq I got from a free sample that came in the mail from Walmart.  Walmart has great free samples on shampoo (and other things) that are travel size and airplane friendly! Most samples come with high value coupons! You can use $1/2 from 10/10 or 10/31 P&G

 -$1 Dawn Dish Soap from the Right@Home booklet you can request it here
-$2 Biotrue Printable (not available anymore)  there is a $1 Bio true coupon you can use here

-$1 Biotrue in ad coupon

-$8 +up rewards from a few transactions i did a few weeks ago.

And I was so mad because I forgot to use my (2) $.50 Chex Mix printables

tax $ .77

Total $3.93 plus I got $5 +up rewards to use on a future purchase

Rite Aid Transaction #2

Bio true Contact Solution $8.99

get $2 +up

Chex Mix 2/$3

get $1 +up on 2 

Renu Contact Solution $6.99

get $1 +up

and get $1 SCR

Combos 2/$3

get $1 +up on 2

(6) Trident Gum @1.29 ea BOGO

=$25.85

Used

$4/$20 for watching vv

 $1 Rite Aid non prescription vv

-$2 Biotrue Printable (not available anymore)  there is a $1 biotrue coupon you can use here

-$1 Biotrue in ad coupon

-$1 Renu from 10/24 SS

-$1/3 Trident Gum 9/12/2010 SS Insert (exp 11/6/2010)

-$1/3 Trident Gum 9/12/2010 SS Insert (exp 11/6/2010)

-$1/2 Combos Snack Bags 9/12/2010 RP Insert (exp 11/12/2010)

-(3) $.50 Chex from my friends at the MFA website! ( I told the cashier I forgot to use it for transaction 1 and she allowed me to use 1 of them (better than nothing)

-$5 +up from transaction #1

tax $ .19

Total $7.54 plus I got $5 in +up for a future purchase and $1 SCR!

So... I spent a total of $29.09 with $5 +up and $1 SCR.  I have $30.91 left to spend for the week.  I'll spend that on groceries from Wegmans and Tops and I' ll be sure to post those trips too! I'll be getting a lot of fresh fruits, veggies and meats to show that it is possible to eat healthy while using coupons!

*** totally confused?  please check out my coupon lingo post here to help with all of the abbreviations.  I promise - it gets easier!