Saturday Savings

This is a short version of my Saturday Savings, as I was really busy today!

I went to Target Thursday and picked up some basics, along with some freebies. This included:

Pears for 1.58/lb
2 packages of Turkey Hot Dogs for 1.17 each

freebies:
3 20 oz Coke Zeros- I do Coke points and had 3 coupons
2 Johnson's Buddy Bars- they are 97 cents and I had 2 coupons for $1 any Johnson & Johnson product

The Buddy Bars are GREAT for the girls baths. Some areas of the country got this coupon; Omaha did not. I bought 20 coupons for $2.90 off EBay, so for about $3, I'll get 20 Buddy Bars!

The BEST deals this week were at HyVee today. They had a 6 hour sale and holy moly, it was like Target the day after Christmas. Checkout lines 10 deep, parking lot full, etc. But I got everything I was looking for and all of the employees were very friendly. The deals included:

2 liters of Coke products for 69 cents
1 gallon of milk for 99 cents
Sara Lee Honey Wheat Bread for 99 cents
Bags of shredded cheese for 99 cents
4 oz pork chops for 75 cents
Tony's Pizza for 77 cents
Donut holes for 99 cents
Bananas for 29 cents/lb.

I spent just under $60 this week- about $9 over my $50 budget. But stocking up at HyVee and getting great deals was worth it, next week I'll just have about $41 to spend to make up for it.

Meal Planning

Sometimes it is just me and the girls for dinner and given that Addison will not eat ANYTHING, it doesn't really motivate me to cook. But I have made a meal plan for the rest of the week and am going to hold myself to it. Everything is taken from my pantry/freezer as well, so what I did was look through, see what I had and then base my meals around that. Much cheaper than making a menu and having to shop for every single ingredient!

Tuesday- Pasta toss (ground beef, cheese, pasta sauce and pasta baked), corn, garlic bread
Wednesday- Cheeseburger pockets: brown ground beef, mix with cheese, a little mustard/ketchup. Take crescent dough and seal up into a pocket, bake until crescents are brown. And apples!
Thursday- Breakfast casserole, cinnamon apples, pancakes
Friday- Pasta carbonara, peas, bananas
Saturday- roast and veggies in the crockpot

I am going to make up a recipe for the breakfast casserole (I'm thinking more of a frittata finished in the oven), so if it works, I'll post it!

My Walgreens Lists

Here are my scenarios for Walgreens this week. It is by no means all the deals to be had, just what I am personally going to shop, based on my family's needs, and my time. I will probably end up doing 2 trips with 2 transactions each, I do not have the time to do 4 Walgreens trips with 2 little ones in tow.

Filler= a small item you buy to get the number of coupons=the number of items bought, including Register Rewards. Walgreens requires this.

Trip #1:
Halls Drops $1
-There is a 75 cent coupon that was supposed to be in some papers this weekend, but we didn't get it in Omaha
Herbal Essences $2.99
-Use $1 MQ
Dentek Floss $2

Use $1 RR and $2.50 RR from last week.
Pay in cash .74 cents +filler item + tax
Recieve: $5 RR ($1 Halls, $2 Herbal Essences, $2 Dentek)

Trip #2:
Vaseline Sheer Infusion $6.99
-use 1.25 MQ (this expires TODAY!)
Use $5 RR
pay .74 cents + 3 fillers (they have stickers 3/$1 this week, I think I'll be getting those)+ tax
Recieve: $6.99 RR (should round up to $7)

Trip #3:
Dawn 99 cents with in ad coupon
-use 25 cent MQ
Fusion Razor $8.99
-use $4 MQ
Chapstick $2.99
use $7 RR
total: $1.72 + 1 filler + tax
Recieve: $9 RR ($3 Chapstick, $6 Fusion)

Trip #4:
Oral B Toothbrush $3
-use 75 cent MQ
Hershey Kisses 2/$5
-use 2 $1 MQ
Herbal Essences $2.99
-use $1 MQ
use $9 RR (I will get 2 fillers to equal $9 prior to tax)
total: should be close to $0 OOP!

Saturday Savings

I went to 2 stores this week: Aldi and HyVee. I had previously said I was going to try to keep my grocery budget to $35 or so a week, but I was finding we just weren't getting a variety. We can afford to increase the budget to $50 a week, if not more, so I am doing $50 a week now.

Aldi:

Skittles 59 cents
Chocolate 55 cents

Ice Cream Bars 1.99

Turkey 2.49

Pizza 3.69
Block Cheddar 1.49

2 tubes of biscuits 38 cents each

Gallon Milk 1.69

Bananas 1.27

Graham crackers 1.29

Fruit Snacks 1.69

Mandarin Oranges 45 cents

Olive Oil 3.49

Peas 49 cents

Corn 49 cents

Pretzels (in tube) 1.99

Whole Wheat Bread 1.69

Total: $26.10

I really recommend Aldi if you haven't been there. If you don't want to coupon or don't have a big coupon stash yet, the prices there cannot be beat, unless there is a REALLY good sale.

Hy Vee:

To tie in with my post yesterday, the grapes were a mistake. However, they WILL get eaten so- live and learn.

Grapes: 2.54 lbs @ 2.38/lb= $6.05 (faint!!)

Mint tea (Aldi didn't have any): 2.78

Flour: 99 cents (used a coupon and saved 89 cents!)

Chocolate Chips: sale for 1.77, plus 50 cent coupon= 1.27 (better price than Aldi for generic!)

Propel: 77 cents on sale, and there was a 55 cent hanging coupon= 22 cents!!

Coke Zero (2 ltr)= 1.56 each

Coke Zero (20 oz)= FREE with coupon (I do Coke Rewards)

Strawberries= normally $4.50, my coupon got them for 1.88

Raisins= 2.69

Total: $19.00

sadly, without the grapes it would have been just $12.95

Money Saving Tip of the Week

My tip this week is something that happened to me at the store today. So, WEIGH YOUR PRODUCE before you buy!

Grapes were $2.38 a pound. Steep, but Addison loves them and they looked horrible at Aldi. A healthy snack, so I figured what the heck. I picked a small bunch, thinking it was MAYBE a pound and a half at the most.

We are checking out and she rings up the grapes. $6 and change!!! I just about fell over! My total, pre grapes, would have been just $12 and change.

Now, I had the cash for them, that wasn't the issue, but geez...my only saving grace is that I didn't buy $6 worth of junky food, it was spent on something healthy for us.

Next time I am weighing if anything is over $1.50 a pound though!

Some Stuff I Just Can't Go Green On

I am really trying to be more green. Not because it is the latest fad, but because it is truly better for the environment and most of the time, it saves money. Microfiber cloths vs paper towels, cloth diapers, shutting out lights and using sunlight when possible, gardening....all easy stuff for me to do.

However, there are some things I am just unwilling to give up. Here is my list of "ungreen" offenses...that will probably never change:
-I use regular toilet paper. I get I could use "family cloth"- basically cloth wipes- and wash it with the diapers, but it just freaks me out. Sorry!
-When it is hot (we lucked out this summer!), I run the a/c. Comfort simply wins out sometime, even though it burns electricity and ups my power bill.
-I don't buy all organic. I would love to, but it is honestly cost prohibitive. Plus, Organic Lucky Charms is just wrong.
-I try to use natural cleaners, but for some items, I want a good old fashioned bleach cleaner. Such as the toilet, or cleaning up after chicken on the counter. Using the bleach cleaner just FEELS cleaner and more sanitary to me, and I don't think anything will change my mind.

Is there anything you would be unwilling to give up? Comment and let me know!

My Walgreens Deals

Here is my trip to Walgreens this week. Of course, it isn't ALL the deals, but just ones I am planning to take advantage of. Remember that for each coupon you use- ad, manufacturer, or Register Reward- you must have an item. If you are using 2 coupons on one item, just pick up a cheap filler.

Trip #1:
Angel Soft 12 Rolls, In Ad Coupon for $5.49
-use 50 cent manufacturer coupon= $4.99
Soleil Razors, 4 Ct $4.99
-use $3 manufacturer coupon from this week's paper=$1.99
-Receive $1 RR
Reeces Peanut Butter Cups (2) at 80 cents each
-I am out of 55 cent and BOGO Reeces coupons, but if you have them, this would be a great time to use them
Coke Zero FREE with Reece's purchase

Total: $8.58 plus tax, use $5 RR from last week, total OOP $3.58, get $1 RR

Trip #2: (I will probably just do a second transaction vs going back twice)
Cheez It, $1.99, BOGO
-Use $1/2 Manufacturer Coupon
add in a small filler (to get total over $1)

Use $1 RR from first transaction.

My HyVee has coupons right now near a display of Cheez Its, Crackers, etc, in conjunction with football kickoff. The $1/2 Cheez It coupon is also in there.


UPDATE: Went to Walgreens and the Reeces packages were marked 2/1.00. I wasn't sure how they would ring up because the shelf was still marked 80 cents, but they rang up for 50 cent each! So, for a buck I got a Coke Zero and two Reeces. I would look for these at your Walgreens for sure!