Walgreens Coupon and Double-dipping

Woo Hoo, Woo Hoo!! This is the weekend --- it is double dipping weekend (that magical 2 day period when it is still September and at the same time, already October in Walgreen-land) AND there is a $off$$ coupon --- this time it is a $5 off $20 (much easier to use than the usual $10 off $40) In other words, this is the weekend that I really truly love Walgreens.

Go here if you haven't already gotten a copy of the Walgreens coupon --- you'll need it. And remember -- your total has to be $20 AFTER all of the coupons and deals come together (but not the Register Rewards or rebates)

First off, if you haven't gotten the free after rebate items, check that list first. You automatically make money with this weekend (and this is without the double-dipping scenarios!). You buy $20 worth of free-after-rebate products. You use the $5 OFF $20, which reduces your total to $15. Then you file for your rebate - and take the rebate as a Walgreens gift card (with a 10% bonus) and your rebate becomes $22.00. You're ahead of the game by $7.00 and you have all that stuff (there is some pretty good free-after-rebate stuff this month)

I picked up most of the free-after-rebate items during the last $ off $$ sale a few weeks ago. So for this one I used the two remaining items to fill in and get my total up to $20 (the store was out of them when I did the sale the last time) Go here to see how I did the free-after-rebate items already.

So for today, I used the double-dipping items for most of my $20. These are items that are in one monthly Easy Saver booklet as a coupon discount and in the other monthly Easy Saver booklet as a rebate. For these two days, you can use both the coupon discount AND file for the rebate. When you can combine that with a manufacturer's coupon it can become a really good deal --- and then layer the $5 off $20 on top of that.

For instance:
Garnier shampoo and conditioner $6.99 each (the big bottles for this one).
Buy 3 = $20.97 (can't use the $5 off $20 yet, because we're throwing all kinds of coupons at it)
- $9.00 -- from the $3.00 October EasySaver coupon (x3 for the 3 bottles)
- $3.00 --- manufacturer's coupons on Garnier from a tear off pad a while back
$8.97 oop
But -- there is a $10 rebate when you buy $20 worth of Garnier from the September EasySaver booklet --- so I'm ahead by just over $1.00 on this one

Pert Shampoo (I hate this stuff -- but this deal is so good, I'll do it and put the bottle in the donation bag for the food pantry)
its on sale right now for $4.29 (the big bottle again)
-$2.50 October EasySaver coupon
-$2.00 coupon from 9/7 SS
= FREE
But -- there is a $4.29 rebate in the September EasySaver booklet -- so I'm ahead of the game by $4.50 on this one. (which is why I'm buying shampoo I don't like!)

You can string together some excellent deals this way. Here was my first stab ---
3 Garnier
1 Pert
2 Glade Oil refills (I am addicted to that stuff now)
used the $1.00 coupon from the September EasySaver and the BOGO coupon from the 8/24 SS
2 Reach toothbrushes (used the $1.00 coupon fromt he 6/8 RP)
1 Adidas antiperspirant $1.99 with the in-ad coupon and I used the $1.00 from the 9/7 RP

I barely made it over the $20.00 mark after all the coupons --- so I paid out about $16.00 and I'll get $16.00 back in rebates (plus 10% for putting it on my Walgreens gift card!!) And I got $5.00 Register Rewards right away for the Reach toothbrushes.

You can really make some money with this whole deal. See what I mean:
$5 two Reach toothbrushes
$4.49 Crest Rinse Mouth Wash
$16.49 Loreal Revitalift Antiwrinkle Serum
$3.79 Pert Plus Shampoo=$29.77

-2 two Reach coupons from 6/8
-3 one Loreal Revitalift coupon from 7/20
-2 Pert Manufacturer coupon (I don't have the date of the coupon, but it was within the last month)
-2.50 Pert October Easy Saver coupon (coupon deal for October -- see!)

=20.27
-5 $5 off $20 purchase Walgreens coupon
=15.27 out of pocket

But wait ----- you get back
$5 RR for Reach products,
$4.49 RR for the Mouthwash
and $20.28 in Rebates for the Loreal Serum and Pert
so you're ahead of the game by $14.50. Can't beat that.

RedBox Movie Rentals

Well, I did it. I actually went and tried the RedBox for a movie rental --- it was painless, easy really. Now, those of you who know me, know I'm not likely to be doing it again really soon. Not because of the RedBox experience, just because sitting and watching a movie just isn't something we do around here. It just takes up too much time.
But the whole RedBox thing --- that was a snap.
For those of you who are scratching your heads right now --- RedBox is the chain of DVD rental kiosks in grocery stores. Around here they're in Stop and Shop (I haven't seen them other places, but then again, I haven't been looking either)
They charge about $1/day, which seemed rather reasonable to me --- our local video store gets more than that --- Which brings us to the caveat: you MUST return the RedBox video before 9 PM. I guess that's how they keep the price so cheap??
But it gets even better. You can rent movies for free — (and I just learned this part --- obviously, this isn't personal experience yet!) over and over and over again. Yep, you read that right.... apparently, Redbox offer promo codes for free one-night rentals, and you can keep on using the same promo code over and over again.
Here's how to get started:
1. Find your local Redbox. Check out the local Stop and Shop or click on over to their website for the kiosk finder (look here)
2. Go to the Redbox location, and select "Rent with a Promo Code"
3. Enter the code "Breakroom" and choose your movie
4. Swipe your credit/debit card (they're not stupid. They want to know how to find you and how to charge you if you don't return the DVD when you're supposed to. Remember return by 9 PM the next day or they WILL charge you!!) and get the movie

I also just learned that you can get the free Monday RedBox codes sent right to your cell phone --- I always just check a few of the blogs that regularly post the codes (something I probably should start doing here)
And -- the bonus ---it seems that every state with RedBoxes has some promo codes that can be used whenever you want (not just Mondays) This site will give you the codes for your state and will help you keep track of which ones you've already used (most of them won't work more than once with the same credit card (although if you ahve multiple cards, you can repeat codes fairly easily) Go to http://www.insideredbox.com/ for the codes for your state.
Have fun

Rite Aid: Week of Sept 21

At first, I wasn't to excited about Rite Aid for this week. But then I looked again --- and for the really new newbies who only have about 2-3 weeks of coupons collected -- its looking pretty good. Here's how to save at Rite Aid this week:

Suave Lotion or Body Wash--$1.99
Use $0.75/1 lotion from 09/21 RedPlum
Get $1 Single Check Rebate (#14, limit 1)
it comes out to about $0.24 after coupon and rebate

Suave Antiperspirant/Deodorant--$1.99
Use $0.75/1 from 09/21 RedPlum insert
Get $1 Single Check Rebate (#35, limit 2)
this one comes out to about $0.24 after coupon and rebate

Dawn Dish Soap--$.99 (I usually hold out for free Dawn, but this isn't a bad price, especially if you're new at this -- and you need dish soap!)
Use $0.50/1 from 08/31 P&G insert
$0.49 after coupon (no rebate on this one!!)

Garnier Shampoo, Conditioner or Stylers--2/$6.00
Buy 3 and use 3 $1/1 coupons from 09/14 RedPlum insert
Get $5 Single Check Rebate for buying 3
$0.33 each after coupons and rebate

CVS Week of 9/21

I'm a little irked with CVS right now --- I had my plan all set for how to maximize the $11.99 ECB on the L'Oreal Revitalift 2 day sale. Let's just say that 8 different CVS stores in 3 different states over the course of the two days had exactly ZERO of the product. And the best that anyone could do was offer me a raincheck for free Revitalift ---- How do I politely say "I really don't want the product --- its the ECB deal that I'm really after" ---
Anyway - here's what else I'm thinking for this week:
Transaction 1

L'oreal bare naturale I'm getting the eyeliner, cuz I actually really like this stuff - $7.99
Nivea for Men - $4.99
Adidas - $5.29
3 Johnson and Johnson buddies soaps $.99 each
Total: $21.24

Coupons Used:
$4/$20 CVS
$1 L'oreal coupon from 7/20
$1 Nivea coupon (don't know where I got this one)
$1 Adidas coupon
$3 Johnson Soaps coupon

$11.24 to be paid with ECB of course

Earn: 3 ECB, 4.99 ECB, and 4 ECB for a total of $11.99 ECB --- a tiny bit of profit -- not bad.

Transaction 2

Soyjoy bars 10/ $5.00 (my family loves these -- don't ask)
Schick Quattro refills BOGO
$3.00 off Soyjoy coupon 9/7
$4.00 Quatto coupon

You Can't Febreeze the Dog!!

Well, you CAN, but it doesn't work.

We had a crazy weekend around here. Several rooms in our house had an odd, funky kind of an odor. We went crazy cleaning --- stripping beds, mopping floors, pouring vinegar down drains -- the whole jazz. I went out to Walgreens and bought a boatload of cleaning products (mostly with Register Rewards and rebates on them). It didn't seem to matter what I did, the smell still lingered. I still caught a whiff of it every once in a while.

Finally, we were getting ready to leave to visit my mom --- and my husband put the dog in the cab of the pickup truck and seat-belted her in... He quickly returned with a question that only a bargain hunting husband will ever ask "With all the free cleaning stuff that Walgreen's gave us, is there anything that will clean the dog?" Needless to say, he had found the source of the funky odor!!

We scanned the pile of cleaning products and decided to try the Febreeze --- we sprayed the poor pooch down with a coating of Febreeze (she wasn't thrilled) and piled into the truck and hoped for the best.

It was a stinky ride to moms! And of course, the dog wanted to snuggle --- yech! At mom's we borrowed some Dawn dishsoap and washed the dog in the driveway so we could stand her for the ride home. --- Dawn works far better than Febreeze -- believe me.

Walgreens Coupon for 9/13 and 9/14

Walgreens is offering a coupon again --- another one of the $10 off of a $40 purchase. As usual with Walgreens, the $40 refers to the total after all coupons etc have been deducted ---

But --- that means its a terrific time to stock up on all of the free after rebate products (you automatically make 25% this way) and fill in with any clearance items.

So here's my plan for Walgreens today (I'm planning on hitting two different Walgreens because I'm hoping against hope for my number 1 item)

1. Magic Bullet -- this baby is normally around $50 (even at Walgreens) but there are reports all over the web that many Walgreens have them on clearance now for around $15 (much more to my budget's liking!!) I went to one Walgreens last week but they had none (not even in the regular price "as seen on TV" aisle). But let me tell you, if I find one of these at that kind of a price, I WILL be buying it ON THE SPOT (even without the $10 off $40 coupon in my hot little hand)

Now for my free after rebate items:
2. Vacuum bags -- these are on the free after rebate list at Walgreens. I didn't think I wanted them, but I've been convinced. All those summer clothes I'm getting ready to pack away will take up much less space in these babies --- and since in an old, old house, I'm pretty much limited to some attic storage and under the bed storage -- every inch counts. I'm planning on getting two of these (different sizes) because they both qualify for the rebate. Woo hoo.
3. Pert Plus -- I think I've still got one coupon from the 8/3 insert (which will make this even more of a moneymaker). We're not fond of Pert at our house, but it makes a terrific donation for our food pantry or for the battered women's shelter.
4. Excedrin Express Gels -- we go through Excedrin like candy -- (hmmm what does that say about my household, anyway??). I have some coupons from an earlier online printout that will make this an even better deal.
5. Nivea body wash for men -- I still have the coupon from 7/13 and hubby loves this stuff. free after rebate and the value of the coupon as a bonus..... good deal for me.
6. Crest Pro Health toothpaste --- there were coupons in the PG from Labor Day weekend -- plus free after rebate.
7. Revlon nail polish -- I don't really need this -- it will go to the battered women's shelter most likely -- but I still have the coupons from both 7/20 and 8/24, so good deal.

All of that will easily add up to $40 to let me use that $10 off $40.

I'll probably do a transaction buying Register Rewards products this week too --- (if I do that first, I can use the RR to pay for all of this stuff.... good plan!) Here are the ones I'm considering (I'm passing on the cough syrup deal for one)

Crest 500ml Pro-Health Rinse $4.49 get $4.49 rebate item plus RR on top of that!!
Buy 2, get $2, Buy4 get $5, buy 7 get $10

-$2.49 Shout Spray or Wipes
use the coupon from 8/10
Fantastic $2.49Windex Spray or Wipes $2.49
coupons from SS 7/20
Scrubbing Bubbles Wipes $2.49 or 16oz Foaming Spray-$2.49 on 2, bogo Scrubbing Bubbles Wipes
coupon 7/20-
Pledge Spray or Wipes $3.29
coupon from 7/20
Scrubbing Bubbles Shower Foamer $3.79
coupon 8/24
Scrubbing Bubbles Fresh Brush MAX Starter Kit $3.79free Scrubbing Bubbles Fresh Brush refill w/ purchase of Starter Kit and coupon from 7/20
Scrubbing Bubbles Action Scrubber $3.79-$2.75 off action scrubber
Drano Gel $3.49
Scrubbing Bubbles Automatic Shower Cleaner $19.99 get $10 RR-$5 Scrubbing Bubbles Automatic Shower Cleaner Starter Kit -$5
Scrubbing Bubbles Automatic Shower Cleaner Starter Kit coupon 7/20
Buy 2 or more Listerine Products $11/2 get $6 RR
coupon from 7/27
Oral B or Crest $8/3 get $3 RR
coupon P&G 8/31
Buy 2 or more Delsym or Mucinex Products get $5 RR
Tylenol Allergy, Cold or Sinus Relief $4.99
Benedryl $3.99
coupon 7/27
Buy 2 get $5, buy 3 get $10 RR
Advil PM $6.99
coupon 8/17/08

CVS Part II 9/1/08

I know you're waiting with bated breath to use those Pantene coupons, but hold on a minute --- we're going to do a different deal first ---- a little slick, but you'll be agog.

Go to CVS --- and find the Accu-Check Diabetes Monitoring Kit. It will be in the back of the store by the pharmacy counter (which is where all of the diabetic supplies are located) It is on sale for $9.99.
Take it to the counter, along with something incredibly cheap (like a package of M&Ms) to get your total over the $10 mark.
Give the clerk your CVS card, and let the ring up go --- your total will be about $10.50 or so....
Give the clerk the $2/10 coupon that we clipped from the magazine the other day. Now, your total will be about $8.50. Use your ECB from the Covergirl transaction to pay. Your receipt will print out $9.99 ecbs. You're ahead of the game another $1.50.
Take the glucose monitor home and check it carefully --- they very often have a rebate for the full purchase price. If your box has a rebate form --- you want to use it and get the $9.99 back from the company.
Finally --- if a blood glucose monitor is not something you normally use, donate it to the Humane Society (they use them with diabetic cats), a Senior center, a local social services agency etc. There are many, many people who DO use a blood glucose monitor, for whom getting one is a major problem. You'll be a hero!!!

Beginners' CVS 9/1/08

Okay, newbies (we have a raft of really NEW newbies this week --- they'll only have the 8/31 PG coupons for sure!)

First Trip to CVS:
Remember to swipe your CVS card at the magic red coupon machine!!

Buy:

• Covergirl Outlast All Day Lipcolor B1G1Free - Use the B1G1Free coupon from the Sunday insert (8/31 PG). This makes BOTH of them FREE!! Woo Hoo
• Covergirl Wetslicks $5.99 Use the B1G1Free coupon from the Sunday insert (8/31 PG) You'll still be paying out of pocket for the first one. (older newbies, use your ExtraBucks from last week!!) Now, also use the $1/1 coupon from this Sunday's insert (8/31 PG) to make a $1 profit! At the bottom of your receipt - $5.99 ECBs. In effect you just got this makeup for free too!!
• 2 tubes of Colgate Toothpaste $2.99 - $2 ecbs = 99¢ (limit 2) Go here to print $1.50/1 IP coupon. This will make this end up as a moneymaker!!

Ready? Here we go!

Hand the clerk your CVS card. Let the clerk ring up all of your purchases and come up what what s/he thinks is your total. S/he will say something like: $24.00. Try not to giggle. Then, let the fun begin!!

Give the clerk your $4/20 coupon (remember we saved them from your receipts last week? -- New newbies, cross your fingers and try the magic red coupon machine)

Give the clerk your manufacturer's coupons ---- Your total should come down to about $8.00. Use your ECB from last week (or pay with cash, new newbies). And then wait patiently for your receipt --- it will take a minute or two to print out this week. You'll get $4.00 ECB for the toothpaste, and $5.99 ECB for the Covergirl Wetslicks. You're ahead of the game by about $1.00 already --- and the week is young!!

After you've successfully done this deal, come back and we'll put the Pantene coupons from this week's insert to very, very good use.

Why God Made Moms

This came in a forwarded email today (you know the kind) but I thought it was adorable and appropriate for a holiday weekend.... if you know who originated this, I'd be delighted to give credit.

Subject: WHY GOD MADE MOMS

Answers given by 2nd grade school children

Why did God make mothers?

1. She's the only one who knows where the scotch tape is.

2. Mostly to clean the house.

3. To help us out of there when we were getting born.

How did God make mothers?

1. He used dirt, just like for the rest of us.

2. Magic plus super powers and a lot of stirring.

3. God made my Mom just the same like he made me. He just used bigger parts.

What ingredients are mothers made of ?

1. God makes mothers out of clouds and angel hair and everything nice in the world and one dab of mean.

2. They had to get their start from men's bones. Then they mostly use string, I think.

Why did God give you your mother and not some other mom?

1. We're related.

2. God knew she likes me a lot more than other people's moms like me.

What kind of little girl was your mom?

1. My Mom has always been my mom and none of that other stuff.

2. I don't know because I wasn't there, but my guess would be pretty bossy.

3. They say she used to be nice.

What did Mom need to know about dad before she married him?

1. His last name.

2. She had to know his background. Like is he a crook? Does he get drunk on beer?

3. Does he make at least $800 a year? Did he say NO to drugs and YES to chores?

Why did your mom marry your dad?

1. My dad makes the best spaghetti in the world. And my Mom eats a lot.

2. She got too old to do anything else with him.

3. My grandma says that Mom didn't have her thinking cap on.

Who's the boss at your house?

1. Mom doesn't want to be boss, but she has to because dad's such a goof ball.

2. Mom. You can tell by room inspection. She sees the stuff under the bed.

3. I guess Mom is, but only because she has a lot more to do than dad.

What's the difference between moms & dads?

1. Moms work at work and work at home and dads just go to work at work.

2. Moms know how to talk to teachers without scaring them.

3. Dads are taller & stronger, but moms have all the real power because that's who you got to ask if you want to sleep over at your friend's.

4. Moms have magic, they make you feel better without medicine.

What does your mom do in her spare time?

1. Mothers don't do spare time.

2. To hear her tell it, she pays bills all day long.

What would it take to make your mom perfect?

1. On the inside she's already perfect. Outside, I think some kind of plastic surgery.

2. Diet. You know, her hair. I'd diet, maybe blue.

If you could change one thing about your mom, what would it be?

1. She has this weird thing about me keeping my room clean. I'd get rid of that.

2. I'd make my mom smarter. Then she would know it was my sister who did it and not me.

3. I would like for her to get rid of those invisible eyes on the back of her head.

CVS 8/24

CVS is looking quite good to me this week. Here's my run-down and my plan.

Transaction #1

• 2 Revlon Nail Polish BOGO @ $4.59
• 1 Kotex 16 count box @ $1.49
• 1 Playtex Gentle Glide tampons 18 count box $4.99

Total $11.07

• Use $2 off $10 printable
• $1 off any Kotex product (7-20 SS or there is also one in the last issue of All You)
• $1 off Playtex (6-22 RP This is an older coupon for some of you -- if you don't have it, just increase your oop by $1 -- it will still be a good deal)
• 2 $2 off Revlon (7-20 SS)

Total OOP $3.07
You will earn

• $1.49 ECB from Kotex
• $3.00 ECB from Playtex

Transaction 2

• 2 CVS tampons with free liners @ $4.99 each
• 2 Zipfizz drink @$5.99 ea

Total 21.96

Use a $4/20 printout

Use your 4.49 from the last transaction

Total oop =13.96

BUT you'll get ECB for $15.98 (Your grand total so far is $1.05 and you have all of this stuff. But WAIT, THERE'S MORE!!!)

Transaction 3

• 2 packages of Stayfree pads $9.00
• 2 tubes of Colgate $3.99 BOGO

Total $12.99

• $2/10 coupon
• 2 of the $1.00 off of Colgate from this past week's insert
• 1 BOGO coupon for the Stayfree from 6/29 RP

Total oop 4.49 (Pay with the ECB from above, so not really oop at all!)

Earn ECB of $5.00

FaceBook Flop: What a Mess!!

For those of you who haven't been following the FaceBook coupon saga ---- three words sum it all up nicely: What a mess!!

Click through to here to find an article that lays out the facts rather nicely

Then go here to find some perspective from someone who got caught in the mess (Note: I really respect IHeartCVS and commend the incredibly ethical behavior demonstrated through all of this --- if you scroll down to older posts on the blog, you'll see examples of what I mean. Classy individual who totally has a right to way more ranting than is being done)

Personally, I found out about the coupons while they were still very lucrative -- but being a FaceBook chicken, I delayed considerably. By the time I got there, the coupons were down to about $.50 off or so --- wasn't sure they really were even worth the toner and paper, but I did print out a few of them. Thankfully, I didn't get around to using them --- thus potentially destroying my reputation with several stores (at one of the stores I frequently patronize, the manager has been known to tell a particular balky cashier "This lady knows what she's doing. If she gave you the coupons, just put them through.") You don't come by that kind of reputation easily --- and I would be raging, blazing mad to have it ruined with a mess like this (which I think is a big part of IHeartCVS's point).

Check out Dana's post about ethical behavior --- its a tad preachy for my taste, but that's the audience at that blog, so....... But regardless --- she's got a point. We have to be ethically and morally responsible people..... period... end.

YMMV: Your Mileage May Vary

I think that one of the internet abbreviations that tickles me most has got to be YMMV. I don't know why, it just makes me smirk when I see it. Well, today was certainly a YMMV kind of a day.

I did a fair amount of shopping: Stop and Shop, Big Y, Price Chopper, CVS, and Walgreens. (Whew!) Some stores, I did better than I had planned --- some stores were disappointing and deals didn't work out the way I had planned at all. It's just the way of things when you're stacking up sales, coupons and rebates/ECBs all over the place.

So here is how it all played out:

Stop and Shop: I did some fresh food shopping (fish and a few veggies that aren't likely to be at the farmer's market on Saturday). My sales hunting was limited to Windex (2/$5 and then coupons on top of that) and cat food (free coupons -- for the Humane Society). But when I got there, I discovered they actually had a better deal on the Cheerios than Walgreens --- where I had planned to do the Cheerios deal. So -- I shuffled my coupons around and worked the Cheerios deal in Stop and Shop (4/$6 less the Cheerios Challenge coupons -- ended up as 4/$2 Woo Hoo!!)

Big Y: I had rainchecks left from their 08/08/08 sale last week when they ran out of EVERYTHING. So I got two more boxes of Cheerios ($.88 each less a coupon for $.75 off two), and two cans of coffee ($.88 each). They also had L'Oreal Pro Vive shampoo on sale Buy One Get Two free -- and I had three coupons good for $1 each. It ended up at $1.99 for three bottles of shampooo. I really didn't save any money from the CVS L'Oreal deal, but I ended up with three bottles of shampoo instead of two.

Price Chopper: The only thing that really piqued my interest this week was the Scott toilet paper at 12 rolls for $5.99. That's not a bad price, but I had $.75 coupons and the flyer from Price Chopper had coupons for doubling any paper product coupon. Final price 12 rolls for $4.49. So, I bought 24 rolls. I have additional coupons, but I'm not sure I want to stockpile that much toilet paper. The food pantry can't take it because the rolls are not individually wrapped (one of the rules at the local food pantry). I'll have to decide before Saturday when the sale ends. We'll see.

CVS: This was hugely a YMMV kind of a trip. I planned to work the Johnson and Johnson deal with some smallish packages of Bandaids -- and I had a pile of coupons at the ready (realistically, I could have bandaided the entire US forces in Iraq with the bandaids from the coupons (hmmmm, that might have potential for the Charity Challenge....) But YMMV -- so only the funky super bandaids were working and the Neosporin. So I ended up with two tubes of Neosporin for just under $5.00 (paid in ECBs) and 5 ECBs back -- free Neosporin -- that's good. Then I hunted like mad (at two different CVS stores) for the toothpaste that is part of the glucose monitor deal. Not only couldn't I find it, but no one in either store had the first clue about it (I guess none of the other deal hunters in my area have tried this one yet eh???) I ended up with some Colgate that didn't work -- and a gift card for $5.00 because the shift supervisor at my favorite CVS was so terrific (Go Hollie!!) I couldn't find my Crest coupon in the mess I had made of my coupons by that point (I hate revising plans on the go). The Puffs tissues weren't the right ones (so the Grocery Game isn't foolproof then??)

Walgreens: the peanut butter deal worked flawlessly and I am the new owner of no fewer than 12 jars of peanut butter. The Kraft deal wasn't working at all (and they were out of Jello -- just bare shelves). But I did get the Hefty bags and some Jiffy Cornbread mix along with it). I also ended up with two AirWick oil warmers and two oil refills for free (didn't plan on them but I had the coupons handy and they aligned with the sale perfectly)

So, the next time I read YMMV, I'll smirk -- and then sigh --- such is life.

Body Shop: What a Deal!!

The Body Shop at the mall has a couple of deals going on right now --- and (as usual) combining them creates a super terrific deal.

Here's how it works:

Go here to get a coupon good for a free bottle of lotion (its the small, travel size, but its FREE!) You'll sign up to receive their email notifications of sales etc, and they'll email you a coupon good for the free lotion. Easy

Then go here to get a coupon good for a free pair of the "sweetest, softest socks on earth" (their words, not mine). This is a coupon that you can print out immediately. They're free with a $15.00 purchase.

Then go here and get a coupon good for $10 off of any in-store purchase of $10 or more.

Now, go to the mall and make a stop at the Body Shop. Pick out about $15 worth of yummy smelling slathery stuff for your body (or for a terrific gift basket for someone you love). Add the trial size lotion and the free socks. Give the clerk all of your coupons and a $5 bill --- WOW. All that stuff for a measly $5.

I'm liking the Body Shop better and better these days.

Thanks to Coupon Cravings for this hot tip.

Walgreens Week of 8/17

This looks like a pretty great week at Walgreens for me. Here's what I'm planning to buy:

Transaction 1

• 6 jars of Skippy peanut butter -- at 3/$5 that will total to 10.00. Minus 3 coupons for $1.00 off two jars comes to $7.00 oop ---- I'll get $4.00 in Register Rewards at the end.

Transaction 2

• 4 boxes of Cheerios at $1.99 each = $7.96 minus $4.00 worth of coupons from the Cheerios Challenge = $3.96
• since I have a full $4.00 in Register rewards to spend and I know that the Walgreens by me applies that to before tax purchases only, I'll ad in 2 boxes of Hefty zipperlock storage bags which are BOGO at $2.79. That makes my new total = $6.75 minus a $1.00 off two coupon for the Hefties = $5.75
• I'll pay that with the $4.00 Register Rewards from the first transaction and then I'll only owe them $1.75 plus tax. Woo Hoo!!

Transaction 3

• I'm repeating the Skippy transaction, but because I get differing versions of the paper, I don't have all of the same coupons --- so my $10.00 will only be less $2.50 in coupons (boo hoo) = $7.50 and I'll still get $4.00 in Register Rewards (before someone asks, I'm not paying for Skippy with the Register Rewards, because then the rewards wouldn't print out again.)

Transaction 4 (can't believe I'm doing this many transactions at Walgreens. I usually only do this at CVS!)

• Walgreens is doing a deal where if you buy $10.00 worth of Kraft products, you get $4.00 in Register Rewards. Since you know I collected a couple of copies of All You Magazine, you know I have plenty of the buy some Kraft product and get a ton of other ones free. I already know that Walgreens carries the Wheat Thin Crackers and the jello and that they count for this deal --- so that's my default plan 4 free boxes of Wheat Thins and a whole lot of jello to hit the $10.00 total. But I'm taking my whole strip of Kraft coupons from All You with me --- we'll see if I can put together something better on the spot ---- in any event, I'll walk out with $4.00 in Register Rewards --- With the Jello plan, I'll lay out about $4.00 oop.

Fifth and Final transaction!!

• 10 boxes of the Hefty bags = $13.95 less $5.00 in coupons = $8.95 Pay with the $4.00 Register Rewards from the last Skippy Deal and $4.00 Register Rewards from the Kraft deal and owe Walgreens a whopping $.95 (The cashier will likely have a canary!)

So -- all in all, I'll lay out about $13.00 and walk out with a boatload of stuff. I'm happy.

A Husband's Tale: Married to a Couponer

Ryan in Virginia has written one of the funniest, down to earth posts about life with a couponing wife. You have got to read it!!

Go here -- but first --- go to the bathroom, and then get some kleenex - I promise you, the laughter will cause tears to run down your cheeks. (For God's sake if you're reading this in Starbucks or some other free public internet site, don't click through now -- you will get some enormously strange looks when the howls of laughing recognition emanate from your body.)

Ryan is married to Dana Adams, who is a fairly new couponer --- you'll recognize all of the symptoms (and probably share a few of them -- and the symptoms you don't share -- they'll come, they'll come). While this is hysterically funny, it is also very high praise for his wife (read through the comments too -- there are some other wonderfully awed guys who cheer for their wives as they do the seemingly impossible.) I couldn't wait to forward it to my husband and a few other guys who support this crazy habit.

Rite Aid Week of August 17th

Rite Aid has some pretty good deals this week -- especially if you can scrounge up some of the coupons. I know I try to use coupons that are no more than 1 month old, so as not to frustrate my newbies -- but I'm going to mention one or two that are a tiny bit older today (newbies, just ignore anything that pre-dates your coupon collecting start date)

FREE STUFF

• Crest Toothpaste $3.19 1/1 coupon (8/3 P&G) Plus there is a SCR of $3.19= Overage aftercoupon & SCR. You make money on this purchase!
• L'Oreal Vive Pro Shampoo or Conditioner B1G1FUse B1G1F Use theL’Oreal Vive Pro Hydra Gloss (7/13 SS)= Free after coupon
• St. Ives B1G1FUse B1G1F coupon (8/10 RP)= Free after coupon

Rite Aid has a ton of BOGO and Buy this, get that deals this week. Remember a BOGO isn't a good deal on its own. It's simply a sales device for the store. You want to match it with a coupon or a rebate to make it a good deal. Remember on all of these, you can use two coupons -- one for each item. That's the beauty of the BOGO sale paired with coupons. So here goes:

• Almay TLC foundation, and get Almay TLC lip color -- $1/1 (8/3 SS)
• Arm & Hammer Age Defying or Advance White Toothpaste (go the website and you can print two coupons for $1 off)
• Bayer Asprin $4.99 Use $2 coupon (7/27 RP)Combine w/ $2 SCR= $.99 after SCR & coupon
• Citre Shine Hair Care $1/1 (8/17 SS)
• Coppertone Sun Products - there have been tear pads of $1/1 coupons all over the Rite Aid and CVS around here. Look for them, they can make this a really good deal.
• L'Oreal Color Spa Moisture Actif Hair Color $2/1 (7/20 SS)
• L'Oreal Hip cosmetics $2/1 (8/03 RP)
• L'Oreal Lip color $2/1 (8/17 RP)
• L'Oreal Moisturizer, and get a L'Oreal cleanser $1/1 (8/10 RP)
• Maybelline volume seduction lip gloos, and get Maybelline Salon nail enamel*
• Nivea skin care, and get 1 oz tin of Nivea cream $1/1 (7/27 RP)
• Olay Body Wash, get Olay quench lotion (PG 8/03)
• Post Cereals $1 (7/27 SS)
• Revlon, cosmetics and grooming Implements $2.00 (7/20 SS)

Frugal Millionaires

I went to check my email this morning and an MSN story just popped out at me. They actually did a piece on frugal millionaires -- young people with a ton of money (okay, that's not me!) who choose to live simple, frugal lifestyles. Now -- frugal for me and frugal for them --- clearly different animals. One of them keeps a private jet.
But -- the article and the millionaires interviewed in it made some excellent points. Like: "What's the point of spending money when you can think of so many better ways to use it?" and "it's much better to earn interest for themselves than to pay interest to someone else"
The article included a link to another terrific article about creative donations to charity (also well worth the three minutes it takes to read) which led them up to my favorite quote of all: "Your own financial security depends far more than you may think on the financial, physical and spiritual health of others in your community, our nation, our world. When you share your good fortune by donating your money, time and talent to charity, you help create a stronger economy and a healthier, safer world."
You can read the entire article here. Think about it.

In the Garden

I made a sidetrip to White Flower Farm yesterday. How gorgeous -- did you know you can wander through the grounds and enjoy the gardens for FREE?? All they ask, is no picnicking and no pets. Wow!
The gardens were beautiful this time of year, so much is in bloom and looking wonderful. And the helpful staff was amazing. There was so much FREE gardening help and advice walking around that place!! And they went out of their way to be helpful -- they asked questions, chatted about all things gardening and not -- and offered suggestions of plants, methods, solutions etc. And they never tried to sell me anything. Really!! I walked away after about 2 hours having purchased NOTHING.
Having said that: they really have a couple of deals that simply cannot be beat and I wanted to show them to you here.
1. Naturalizing Daffodils click here to see the link for these. They are beautiful. You get 100 daffodil bulbs (don't be put off because it says narcissus -- daffodils ARE narcissus -- and they spread like mad. By the end of about 2 years, you'll have double what you planted. This is a fabulous spring garden for very little money. I know, I know, you can sometimes buy daffodil bulbs at Walmart or some other place for less money than this --- Did you ever notice?? They rarely spread or naturalize? And you're lucky if they keep coming back more than about 4 years. White Flower Farm isn't selling you those cheap expendable bulbs... these beauties will last and last --- and come up every spring. Can't beat that.... They also offer a "professionals mix" which is bulbs that are a little smaller than the ones above, but still bloom beautifully and naturalize wonderfully quickly... I happen to think they're a better bargain -- but then again, I'm cheap.
2. The Shade Garden -- oh my is this beautiful -- especially if your yard is like mine and you have tons and tons of shade. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy the shady yard in terms of the cooling effect on the house and the pleasant places to sit in the hot summer afternoon. But the shade isn't much for the gardening side of me. In fact, most of the gardening quizzing that I did with the staff at WFF was around the deep shade portion of my yard. The lady at WFF explained that this plan is a 3 season shade garden that starts with the daffodils I showed you up above. (the catalog doesn't show that) Then the perennials emerge and hide the dying daffodil leaves -- and give you a gorgeous shady garden for the summer. How beautiful. Check out the plan here Its kind of expensive, but I'm looking at the plants involved and thinking that everyone I know is dividing and giving away hostas this fall (I picked up 5 or 6 on the side of the road earlier this summer that someone had dug up and was discarding) and the bleeding heart is easy to find someone who will give you a piece when they divide -- so that will take care of about half of the plants I'll need. I'm happy to give WFF my business for the rest.

Did I mention that WFF has a moneyback guarantee?? They really and truly honor it -- even if it was beginner gardener stupidity that caused the plant to die (that was the voice of experience, right there) And if you sign up for their catalog and refer friends, they start you out with a free $5 toward your first purchase (and for your friends too!) Gift certificates get you a 10% discount -- and there isn't a reason in the world that you can't do a gift certificate for your husband or wife and get the savings.... How much better can it get???

Finally, let me say that one of the reasons that I so like using White Flower Farm is that the plants were "born and raised" somewhat locally. The farm is about an hour away from us -- so the climate, soil etc are fairly similar. Plants that come to New England from southern climates often go into shock at the barren soil of our region, the frosty winters, and the wild temperature fluctuations of the late summer and early fall. I've lost so many lovely plants because of that. Plants that are born and raised here just don't know any better. They tough it out like good Yankees.

Been A'Viking!!

I met my sister at her work today to trade a few coupons and some items we had each picked up for each other (she a about a million Q-tips, which the Humane Society here loves, loves, loves). While we were accomplishing this, one of her colleagues referred to our shopping as "going a'Viking" and likened it to pillaging a village. The thought caught my fancy -- its a pretty funny image, wandering around CVS in a Viking hat putting together the coupons and deals --
Anyway -- here's my haul for today

Transaction 1
1 Roc Cleanser 7.99
1 Playschool Wipe 1.99
1 CVS travel size Qtips .50
Total 10.48 before tax
Minus
2.00 coupon from Richmond Parents
1.00 coupon for Playskool Wipes
2.00 coupon off any CVS skincare
5.00 coupon from Roc
end total oop .50

Transaction 2
Exactly the same as above

Transaction 3
Exactly the same as transaction 1 and 2

Transaction 4
Exactly the same as transactions 1,2,and 3 BUT --
now having spent 2.00 oop the register prints out 10.00 ECB for buying the Roc SWEET.

Transaction 5 (yup, I kept going)
2 bags of Dove dark almond candy at 2/6.00
1 bag of Hershey Bliss dark chocolate 4.29
total 10.29
minus
2.00 from Richmond Parents
3.00 from buy one get one Dove coupon
2.00 Hershey Bliss coupon
new total 3.29
paid with 3.00 ECB from last week
oop .29
and got 5.00 ECB from the chocolate

Transaction 6
4 bottles of CVS sunscreen 2.19 each but part of the sale for 2.00 each one, so really .19 each
1 bag of Werthers candy 1.50
total 2.26
minus 2.00 CVS skincare coupon
oop .26

Transaction 7
Alavert 5.99
2 tubes of Colgate BOGO at 2.79
1 bag of Hershey's miniatures at 2.50
1 travel size Qtip at .50
total 11.78
minus
2.00 Richmond Parents coupon
3.00 2x 1.50 Colgate coupons
2.00 CVS skincare coupon
4.00 Alavert Coupon from the company website
oop .78 AND got ECB for 3.00 for the Alavert

Which means that all in all I spent 4.11 oop and came home with ALL THAT STUFF!!! Plus I came home with 15.00 ECB that I didn't have when I started. WOO HOO. and I'm building toward another 5.00 ECB for the chocolate (the Werthers and the Hersheys count toward it again ---)

So --- how did you do???

I'm way over the transaction limit (technically -- but I'm happy, so who cares, really) but I added this to the $5 CVS challenge over at Keeping the Kingdom First

the 1930's Wife Test

okay, this is hysterical ---- and you've GOT to try it. Its basically a 100 statement list. You check those statements which are true about yourself --- and VOILA!! it tells you how you stack up as a 1930's wife --- funny, charming, dated ---- a lot of fun.... Try it out here:

106 As a 1930s wife, I am Very Superior Take the test!