Amazon: $5.00 Magazine Sale

Now through December 1, Amazon will have magazine subscriptions for just $5.00. Some of my favorites;

Southern Living
Cosmopolitan
Sports Illustrated - Kids
Food & Wine

Go Here for the whole list.

Thrifty Alternatives to Black Friday

If you are not into standing outside a store at 3 am with hundreds of other people in hopes of getting a doorbuster item that the store only has 4 in stock, you may want to check out some alternatives to black Friday shopping.

Tennessee Fairground Flea Market
Open: Friday (free parking), Saturday & Sunday
Parking is $4.00 on Sat. & Sunday

ThriftSmart
The whole store will be 50% off, and grab bags will be given out to the first 150 customers

Goodwill Stores
They are opened special hours, 8a - 8p for Black Friday and special deals are promised.

Music City Thrift
There's always a good deal to be had.

Southern Thrift Store
I usually can find some good, clean stuff here, and they have coupons on their website.

And, my personal favorite....
Stay home and decorate for Christmas.


HAPPY THANKSGIVING EVERYONE!

Coinstar: Get an extra $10 Gift Card with $40 change

Right now, you can exchange $40 worth of coins at a coinstar machine for a gift card to places such as Amazon.com, Lowes, itunes, & JC Penny. When you exchange at least $40, you are eligible for an additional $10 giftcard from that same place.

I did it today, and got a code for Amazon. At the bottom of the receipt, there is a form to fill out and mail in for the additional $10. So, you don't get it instantly, and it states it takes 4 to 6 weeks to receive the $10 gift card. I look at it as a way to have a little extra spending money in January when usually I'm broke from Christmas!

Also, when you exchange your coins for a giftcard instead of cash, Coinstar does not charge a handling fee.

Go here for all details and a list of the stores that gift cards are available.

20% Off Fisher Price Store

Fisher Price Store currently has all their items 20% off. The promotion runs through November 30th.

Pair this with items they already have on sale, and it could be a good deal!

Thanks Leslie for the heads up.

Free Soda at Target Snackbar

If you're going to be at Target on Friday or Saturday trying to catch some of those Black Friday deals, go here and enter their sweepstakes for several prizes including a $10,000 Target Gift Card (I could buy alot of groceries with that!).

But just in case you're not the big winner, after you register, you can print a coupon for a free medium soda at the snackbar. The coupon is only good Friday or Saturday. Good luck!

Free Sample of Seventh Generation Dryer Sheets

I was really excited to see this freebie promotion. I really like Seventh Generation products, but I don't get to use them often, because they don't fit into my tight household supply budget. I've been making my own dryer sheets for a year now because I hate all the chemicals that are in the commercial brand dryer sheets.

Go here to request your free sample (and let's hope some good coupons come with it). You do have to be a member to receive the sample, but if you're not, it's no problem, you can sign up on the site, it's free!

Redbox Code

There is a new code for one free movie at Redbox right now. We're not sure how long it will last. I tested it, and it worked in the Nashville TN area. Use code DLLNS26

To begin your transaction, be sure to select “purchase w/ coupon code” in the bottom of the screen so you will get it free!

Although the purchase will be free, you will still be required to swipe a credit/debit card. Because if you are late returning it, you will be charged $1.00 for every day it's late. Redbox rentals are due back the next day by 9pm CST.

Thanks to Faithful Provisions

Target Price Matching Policy Changes Again

I know alot of folks have been grabbing some great deals with Target's price matching policy and coupons.

As of today, Target has adjusted the policy to state that they will deduct a Target coupon first and then if the price is higher than the competitor's they will match it. If it's a manufacturer's coupon, they will match the price and then deduct the coupon. Go here for the full policy.

50% Off One Item at Ace Hardware

Go here for a coupon good for 50% off one item $30 or less (regular price). The coupon is good only on Saturday November 28th.

Strange, I think I'm actually happier about this coupon than my husband.

Thanks to Southern Savers for this coupon link.

American Greetings Free Photobook

The first 25,000 people to go here and use coupon code BONNIE at checkout to get a complete free American Greetings Photo Book ($39.95 value) with free shipping.

Looks like Bonnie Hunt is pulling an Oprah! But I love her

Thanks to Money Saving Mom for this deal.

Amazon give $3 in FREE MP3's

Go here and enter code MP34FREE to get $3.00 worth of MP3 music for free from Amazon. This is part of their Black Friday promotions, but it's good now. There are tons of songs that can be purchased for .99 cents, so you could get 3 free songs, or apply it towards a whole album that starts at around $5.00.


Go here for other Amazon Black Friday deals starting now. New deals start every hour.

Thanks Frugal Dr. Mom for this heads up.

Grocery Recap

My grocery shopping was so spread out over the week and amongst so many stores, that I just haven't taken the time to recap. Of course, my normal preferred budget of $40 is blown because of Thanksgiving. Just can't fit all the extras in that $40 bucks.

Something different this week for me, was I bought meat! Quite a bit of meat. I've had some comments and questions about the lack of meat in my menus and grocery recaps. So, I thought I'd address it a short and simply as possible. My family tries to live a mostly vegetarian lifestyle. I'm not opposed to meat, actually I love hamburgers! But,I really hate the meat industry and the inhumane way most farm animals are treated in the huge corporate farms and slaughterhouses. Since I'm not the type to picket the meat processing plants or protest at a cattlemen's convention (eh um.. PETA). I choose to do my protesting a little quieter, but with the most impact: I DON'T BUY THEIR PRODUCTS. I was given a gift card to Whole Foods so I used it to buy some chicken and beef from a store that has certain standards of it's meat suppliers. They have a 5 step labeling system that tells you how the animal was grown. 1 being the animal was not crated, caged or crowded. 5+ being the most ideal that the animal lived on the same farm it's whole life and no alterations were done. Of course, this meat is a lot more expensive than the meat you find on sale at any supermarket. That's why I don't buy it very often. It simply won't fit into my tight budget right now. Okay-- I'll get off my soapbox and proceed with the grocery wrap up.

Kroger

nothing real exciting, I don't think I used a single coupon.

Total: $13.36

Whole Foods:

1 lb ground beef
1 lb meatballs
6 lbs chicken
1 Whole Planet Calendar $2.00 (has coupons in it!)

Total: $38.73
- $25.97 giftcard
= $12.97 OOP

Target:

16 Del Monte Canned Veggies
Sale Price: .45 ea
- $1/8 q in 11/15 SS
- $1/6 Target q Printable
= .20 ea

8 Del Monte Canned Fruit
Sale Price: .95 ea
- $1/8 q in 11/15 SS
- (2) 1/4 Target Printable
= .57 ea

4 Cans Swanson Broth
Sale Price: .49 ea
- .35/4 from SS 11/8
= .40 ea

Total OOP: $9.48

Publix:

Publix Brand Cheese Singles
Penny Item: .01

Vanity Fair Napkins
Sale Price: $1.10 ea
- $1/1 from RP 11/8
= .10 ea

Knorr Rice Sides
Sale Price: .64 ea
- .50/2 (doubled) from RP 11/15
= .14 ea

Bird's Eye Frozen Baby Corn
Sale Price: $1.19
- .50/1 from SS 11/15
= .19 ea

Cool Whip
Sale Price: .75 ea
- .55/1 Printable
= .20 ea

Glass Plus
Sale Price: $1.25
- $1/1 Printable
= .25 ea

Uncle Ben's Long Grain & Wild Rice
Sale Price: $1.00
- $1/2 RP 11/8
= .50 ea

Swiss Miss Hot Chocolate
Sale Price: $1.00
- $1/2 SS 11/15
= .50 ea

Crisco Canola Oil
Sale Price: $1.80
- .55/1 from 11/8 RP
= $1.25

Ziploc Containers
Price: $2.99
- $1.50/2 from 11/15 SS
- $1/2 Publix Baby coupon
= $1.74 ea

Baby Carrots
Sale Price: .84 ea

Yellow Squash
Sale Price: .99/lb
$1.52

Zucchini
Sale Price: .99/lb
$1.52

Green Beans
Sale Price: .99/lb
$.88

Tomatoes
Sale Price: $1.99/lb
$2.17

Total OOP w/ tax: $27.81

Total for week: $63.62

Menu Plan Monday

I aim for $5.00 a meal, sometimes I'm a little over. I calculate the main ingredients prices and round up for smaller ingredients such as spices. I am able to make most dinners for $5.00 or less because of my coupon shopping and stockpiling.

Monday -- Tamale Lentil Casserole $4.00

Tuesday -- Slow Cooker Black Beans & Rice $3.00

Wednesday -- Garden Vegetable Spaghetti $3.00

Thursday -- Thanksgiving! Turkey, of course!

Friday -- Leftovers or Veggie Helper $2.00

Saturday -- Simple Supper: Green Beans, potatoes, biscuits $2.00

Sunday -- Butternut Squash Ravioli with mixed veggies $4.00

For more great menu ideas, visit orgjunkie.com

Whole Foods Calendar with Coupons

I stopped by Whole Foods today and found this great calendar at the checkout. It costs $2.00 with all the proceeds going to Whole Planet Foundation. Whole Planet Foundation's partner's with organizations in developing countries to help the poor (mainly women) to establish businesses that will support them and their families.

The best part of this calendar... over $30 dollars of coupons are inside! They are all Whole Foods Store coupons, so they can be stacked with a manufacturer's coupon and many Publix's will accept Whole Foods coupons. Here is the list:
All coupons expire 12/31/2010

$1.00 off Oikos Greek Yogurt
$2.00 off GoodBelly Plus Probiotice Drink
$5.00 off Country Life Bone Solid Bone Support
$1.00 off Kashi Cereal or TLC Snack
$1.00 off Nature's Path or EnviroKidz Boxed Cereal
$1.00 off 2 Honest Beverages
$1.00 off Any Organic Allegro Fine Tea or Wellness Tea
$1.00 off Any 2 boxes of Celestial Seasonings Tea
$.50 off 2 bottles of Teas' Tea
$3.00 off Any Seventh Generation Chlorine Free Organic Tampons
$1.00 off any Cascal 4 Pack Product
.75 off 1 Earth's Best Sesame Stree product
$3.00 off Any New Chapter Product
$1.00 off 1 Stacy's Product
$1.00 off 1 365 Everyday Value Vegan Cane Sugar
$1.00 off any 1 Ben & Jerry's Pint
$2.00 off any Carlson The Very Finest Fish Oil product
$2.00 off any 1 RiceSelect Item
.75 off an Thai Kitchen Product
$1.00 off any Muir Glen Pasta Sauce
$1.00 off 2 Dagoba Organic Chocolate Bars

Say Thanks to the Troops

Go here to select a card and write a message to a U.S. Military Personnel stationed overseas. You pick a card, write a message and Xerox will print the card and mail it to the troops.

This is a great Thanksgiving activity that's free for you and will be appreciated by the troops.

Nashville Public Library New Puppet Show

The Nashville Public Library has a new puppet show called A Child's Calendar.
It is John Updike’s collection of poems for children that is transformed into a delightful musical puppet show that takes you through the seasons month by month.

Show times are Friday & Saturdays

10:30am & 11:30am

Run time is approximatly 25 minutes long

Runs through December 19, 2009

Children's Theatre at the Downtown Library

Barnes & Noble 25% Off coupon

Go here for a 25% off ONE item at Barnes & Noble. The coupon should also be good for clearance items. It's good through Sunday, November 22.

O Magazine for $13.00

Everyone that knows me, knows that I'm a big Oprah fan. So, I was excited to see that right now, you can get O Magazine 1 year subscription for only $13.00. Amazon currently has it on sale for $18.00 with an instant $5.00 rebate at checkout. Great deal for a magazine that is $4.50 on the newstand.

Other great magazine subscription deals that Amazon has:

All You $16.95 after $3.00 instant rebate (a Must Have for couponers)
Redbook $5.00 after instant $3.00 rebate
Good Housekeeping $4.97 after $3.00 rebate

Cheap Del Monte Veggies & Fruit at Target!

Right now, you can get select Del Monte canned vegetables for .20 cents a can and Del Monte canned fruit for .57 cents a can!

Here's the scenario

For Veggies:

Purchase 8 cans of Del Monte Vegetables
Sale Price: .45 ea
use:
- (1) $1/8 Coupon from 11/15 RP
- (1) $1/6 Target Printable
= .20 a can!

For Fruit

Sale Price: .95 ea
use:
- (1) $1/8 Coupon from 11/15 RP
- (2) $1/4 Del Monte Fruit Target Printable
= .57 each

Holiday Coupons for Local Malls

Some of the local Malls have put out free coupon books for lots of different stores and restaurants. The books are available at the mall or many coupons are available online.

Cool Springs Galleria

Some of my favorites at Cool Springs:

Amy's Hallmark - 20% off total purchase

Aeropostale - $10 off $50 purchase

Dairy Queen - B1G1 Free Smoothie or $1/1 Blizzard

Chic-Fila - Free Chicken sandwich with purchase of large Fries & Drink

Lane Bryant - 15% off entire purchase

The Limited - 20% off purchase

Other Local Malls

Hickory Hollow

Rivergate

Go here for a list of all CBL malls participating in the holiday coupon book.

New E-coupon site

Go here to load coupons from Soft Coin, directly to your shopper's card. Locally, Kroger is the only grocery store that will accept these e-coupons. Kroger affiliates such as Bakers, Carrs, City Market, Dillons, Dominicks, Food 4 Less, Fry's, Gerbes, Genuardi's, Hilander, JayC, King Soopers, Owens, Pavillions, Pay Less Super Markets, Ralphs, Randalls, Safeway, Smiths, Tom Thumb, QFC, and Vons stores are also on the list.

Some of my favorite coupons were:

Triaminic -- $2.00 off
Hefty Bags -- $1.00 off
Pedigree Dog Treats -- $1.00 off
Activia 8-pk --$1.50 off

Time Magazine subscription for only $15.00!

Amazon currently has a one-year subscription to Time Magazine
for $20.00. If you purchase today, they will deduct another $5.00 at checkout. Great deal for a magazine that is usually over $250 for a year's subscription.

Weekly $5.00 Menu

I aim for $5.00 a meal, sometimes I'm a little over. I calculate the main ingredients prices and round up for smaller ingredients such as spices. I am able to make most dinners for $5.00 or less because of my coupon shopping and stockpiling.

Monday -- Italian Vegetable and Asiago Bow-ties $4.50

Tuesday -- Veggie Burgers & Fries $3.00

Wednesday -- Lentil Rice Casserole $2.50

Thursday -- Simple Supper: Green Beans, Corn, mashed potatoes $1.00

Friday -- Dance Class! Eggs & Waffles $2.00

Saturday -- Vegetable Stew with Herbed dumplings $5.00

Sunday -- Black Beans & Rice $3.00

For more great menus, visit orgjunkie.com

More Black Friday Ads are Released

More and more Black Friday Sales are being revealed! Kinda takes the fun out of the Thanksgiving Day newspaper! Go here to see stores like Target, Kohls, Lowes, Old Navy and many more!

Purity Coupons

Purity has put out some pretty good coupons. I really like Purity products but they rarely fit into my tight grocery budget.

This week Publix has Purity Ice Cream on Sale for $2.50 each. Use the $1 off coupon below and get it for $1.50. The normal Publix price for Purity Ice Cream $4.99

Go here for some coupons on:

1 Gallon Milk
16oz Sour Cream
1/2 Gallon Chocolate Milk
1/2 Gallon Buttermilk
1 qt Ice Cream
If you find other good sales to match these coupons to, please let me know!

Publix Trip

I'm supposed to be taking it easy after a minor surgery earlier this week, but I was getting restless and needed a "coupon fix" as my sister calls it. So I made a list and took a short trip to Publix today. Here's what I got:
(NOTE: My Publix will still accept Target coupons at this time, I know many have stopped, even if there is a SuperTarget around, it's each store manager's decison, so just ask Customer Service when you go in)

Rice Krispies
Sale Price: $2.00
- $1/1 from 11/8 RP
- $1/1 Target Q Printable
= FREE

Chinet Dinner Napkins
Sale Price: $ .95 ea
- $1/1 Printable
= FREE

Softsoap Hand Soap
Sale Price: .79
- .40/1 doubled Printable
= FREE

Green Giant Fresh Steamers
Sale Price: $1.19
- .40 (doubled) from 10/4 SS
OR -.50/1 (doubled) Printable & Printable
= .19 each or .39 ea based on coupons

Lysol Spray Cleaner
Sale Price: $1.34
- .40/1 doubled from SS 11/8
= .54 ea

Yellow Squash
Sale Price: .99/lb
= $1.84

Zucchini
Sale Price: .99/lb
= $1.65

Green Beans
Sale Price: .99/lb
= .61

3lbs Apples
Sale Price: $1.99
- $1 Target Printable
= .99

Juicy Juice
Sale Price: $1.83
- $1/2 Printable (must sign up with Juicy Juice)
= $1.33 ea

Purity Ice Cream
Sale Price: $2.50
- $1/1 Printable
= $1.50 each

Gatorade Mix
Price: $8.49 (I thought the shelf tag said $7.99, I'm going to take it back and check, if so I may get it free and I will update my total)

Total OOP: $32.15

Kid's Books for $1.77 at Books A Million

Go here to find some great kids' books for cheap. There are a variety of age specific books for as low as $1.77 each. There are also some great kid Christmas books available.

For free shipping use the code: BKLVFREE

Happy Shopping!

Free download of CMA Nominee Artist's Song

Go here to pick a downloadable song of a CMA nominee artist from Amazon. It's not just their song that was nominated, there are many songs to choos from. There were many of Reba's new and old songs to choose from as well as Taylor Swift, Keith Urban, Brad Paisley, etc.

I'm not a big fan of country music anymore, escpecially the new artists (I can't tell those blond girls apart!). But I was able to find a good download, so you probably will too.

Clean Dishes Again!

For the past month or so, our dishwasher has been on the fritz! Hubs had tried to fix it, but it was beyond his dishwasher repair skills. We tried to get a couple of repairman out to look at it, but they would never show (what's up with that?).

Since a new dishwasher was simply out of the question budget-wise right now, I had resolved myself to doing dishes the old fashion way. By the way, when you do dishes the old fashion way, with kids in the house, your sink is NEVER empty!

I happened to mention my saga to to my wonderful friend, Leslie. Turns out she had a neighbor that was remodeling their kitchen and giving all of their old appliances to Habitat For Humanity. Leslie told her neighbor about our situation and the neighbor most generously offered her dishwasher to us. Leslie and her husband actually brought the dishwasher to our house and installed it! What wonderful friends we have!

My new dishwasher is so nice. It's actually only about 2 years old. And, it's much better than the one I had previously. My favorite fancy feature..... the delay timer! I can schedule my dishes to be washed 2, 4 or 6 hours after I set it.

Thank you to my great friend Leslie and her lovely neighbor Shannon for their generosity!

$5 Dollar Weekly Menu Plan

I aim for $5.00 a meal, sometimes I'm a little over. I calculate the main ingredients prices and round up for smaller ingredients such as spices. I am able to make most dinners for $5.00 or less because of my coupon shopping and stockpiling.

This week is kind of a unusual one, I will be out of commission at the latter part of the week, so you'll notice several very "Simple Suppers" on the menu this week.

Monday -- Pizza in a Bowl & Garlic toast $2.50 (from Fix It and Forget It Cookbook found on left sidebar)

Tuesday -- Teriyaki Chicken, Veggies & Rice Bowl $8.00 (not quite within the $5 dollar budget, but a lot less than if we went to the local stir fry restaurant)

Wednesday -- Simple Supper: Mashed Potatoes, Green beans, Corn $1.00

Thursday -- Soup & Salad $2.00

Friday -- Spaghetti w/ marinara sauce $2.00

Saturday -- TBA

Sunday -- Veggie Helper $2.00

Grocery Finals

This has been a busy grocery shopping week, between Kroger Triples, Mega Event and the good deals at Publix. I went a little crazy. I knew I would go over budget, but at least I got alot of good stuff!





Kroger Highlights
Surf Detergent (not pictured)
$2.99 (Mega Deal Price)
- $3/1 coupon from USA Today Insert 11/1
= FREE


Keebler Fudge Dipped Graham Cracker Cookies
Sale Price: .99 (Mega Deal Price)
- $1/1 coupon from tearpad
= FREE

Hormel Chili
Sale Price: .79 (Mega Deal Price)
- $2/3 Coupon from SS 10/18
= .13 ea

Cheez It crackers
Sale Price: .99 (Mega Deal Price)
- .75/1 Printable
= .24 ea

Del Monte Canned Tomatoes
Sale Price: .49 (Mega Deal Price)
- $1/5 coupon from 9/20 RP
.29 ea

Del Monte Canned Vegetables
Sale Price: .50 ea
- $1/5 coupon from 9/20 RP
= .30 ea

Birds Eye Steamable Veggies
Sale Price: $1.49 (Mega Deal)
- .50/1 from SS 10/18
= .49 ea

Del Monte Fruit Chillers
Sale Price: $1.50 (Mega Deal)
-$1/1 Printable (no longer available)
= .50 ea

Tombstone Pizza
Sale Price: $1.99 (Mega Deal)
- $1/2 coupon from 10/4 SS
= $1.49 ea

Ore Ida French Fries
Sale Price: $1.99 (Mega Deal)
- $1/2 from Publix Fresh, Flavorful & Frozen flyer 9/27
= $1.49 ea

Pears
Sale Price: .88/lb
= $1.70

3 lbs Onions
Sale Price: $1.68

For my triples deal go here

Total OOP for Kroger: $48.59

Publix Highlights (since my budget was busted anyway....)

Betty Crocker Potatoes Boxes
Sale price: .89
-.40 (doubled) from 10/4 SS
= .09 ea

Publix Quick Cook Oats
Sale Price: .01 (Penny Item)

Nestle Tollhouse Morsals
Sale Price: $1.25
-.50/1 (doubled) from 11/1 RP
= .25 ea

Scotch packaging tape
Sale Price: 1.59
- $1/1 Printable
= .59 ea

Kashi Frozen Dinners
Sale Price: $1.89
$1/1 q from tearpad
= .89 ea

Kashi Go Lean Cereal
Sale Price: $2.50
- $1.50/1 from VocalPoint (must sign up)
= $1.00 ea

1 lb of chicken
Price: $4.31
- $1/1 Fresh Meat Publix Coupon
= $3.31

Total OOP: $20.82

TOTAL FOR WEEK: $69.41 (Whew! Way over for the week, so I'll have to be better next week)

Nashville Public Library: Food for Fines is Back!

Food for Fines at the Nashville Public Library is back! And we all have an opportunity to help a hungry person in need while also making good on our library accounts.

Here is the deal:
For every 1 dollar that you owe in fines, you can bring in a can good or other acceptable food item (see list).

This program is running Monday, November 9 through Tuesday, November 24.

The acceptable food items are:
canned goods
boxed goods
bagged goods
Jar goods (NO GLASS JARS WILL BE ACCEPTED)

Food items will be donated to Second Harvest Food Bank in Nashville.

They are particularly in need of:
Peanut Butter
Canned meats (tuna, beef stew)
Canned veggies and fruit
Mac and cheese
Rice and Pasta

Go here for more details.

Old Navy: 50% Off Coats and $1.00 Scarfs (Saturday)

Starting Friday, Old Navy will have all their coats for 50% Off! This sale runs 11/6 - 11/12. They will also have their scarves on sale for $1.00 each Saturday only!

If you want a scarf, get there early. There is always a huge crowd at these dollar promotions.

Go here to search for coupons. There are 10% & 15% off entire purchase coupons still available (as of Friday evening).

My Loot from Kroger Triples

In response to Harris Teeter triples, some of the Kroger stores (the ones located close to Harris Teeter) are also tripling coupons up to .99 cents. I can confirm that the Edmondson Pike Kroger and the Brentwood Kroger on Franklin road are tripling.

Here is what I got today, check the bottom of my post for links to other's lists.

No Yolks Noodles
Price: 2.19
- .75 tripled printable
= FREE + eligible for rebate in the 10/4 SS

Mr. Clean Magic Eraser
Price: $3.15
- .75 (tripled) from P&G Home Made Simple Booklet
- .75 P&G E-coupon
= .15

2 Welch's Juice
Price: $2.37
- .75 (tripled) from 9/13 SS
= .12 ea

Santa Cruz Organic White Grape Juice
Sale Price: 2.50
- .75 (tripled) from Mambo Sprouts Back to School Home mailer
= .25

Dole All Natural Slice Peaches
Price: $2.52
- .75 (tripled) from inside fruit cup packaging
= .27

2 loaves of Healthy Life Whole Wheat Bread
Sale Price: $1.79
- .50 (tripled) from 10/4 SS
= .29 ea

French's Worcestshire Sauce
Price: $1.89
- .50 (tripled) from 10/4 SS
= .39

2 boxes of Minute Rice
Price: $2.00
- .50 (tripled) from 10/4 RP
= .50 ea

Lundberg Risotto
Sale Price: $2.59
- .75 (tripled) from Mambo Sprouts Back to School Mailer
= .34

Mr. Clean Multi Purpose Cleaner 40 oz
Price: 3.75
- .75 (tripled) from P&G Home Made Simple booklet
- .75 P&G e-coupon
= .75


Mega Event Items (buy 10 participating items, get $5 off)

2 Pepperidge Farm Frozen Garlic Toast
Sale Price: $1.49
- .60 (tripled) from 10/4 SS
= FREE + Overage

4 Gortons Fish Sticks 44 pack
Sale Price: $3.79
- .55 (tripled) from Publix Fresh Flavorful, Frozen booklet 9/27
= 2.14 ea

1 Hormel Pepperoni Pack
Sale Price: 2.50
- .35 (tripled) from 11/1 SS
= 1.45

3 Coca Cola 2-liters
Sale Price: .79 ea


TOTAL OOP w/ Tax: $18.30
Savings of $60.82 or 79%

For more coupon matchups check out any of these links:

I prefer Publix (yea, normally she's a Publix girl, but she switches when Kroger triples)

Frugal Dr. Mom (great list for Mega items)

Nashville Cheapster (awesome list!)

Supplementing the $40 Grocery Budget

Due to changes in employment and income, we are on a pretty tight grocery budget. I try very hard to keep our total groceries (including household and personal items) under $40 a week. I've recently found myself struggling to predict how much of some staple items we will use every week.

Used to be that one loaf of bread and a gallon of milk a week was plenty for my family. But now, with hubs being home-based for his job, me being a full-time stay at home mom for a while, and kids at home all the time, I have found that our consumption of some items have increased. My husband eats cereal multiple times a day. And no matter how many boxes I buy when they are a good deal at the grocery, I can't seem to keep up with his consumption. I've thought about hiding them and rationing him to one box a week but, I don't think this would go over very well.

This week, by Monday, I realized that we were already two thirds the way through our last loaf of bread and hubs had gone through all the cereal. Our juice stockpile was running very low too (although I do have an emergency frozen juice concentrate tucked away in the freezer). I really did not want to blow my budget and buy more supplies. Enter CVS with Extra Care Bucks (ECBs)! Over the weekend I had earned 10 ECBs for doing a survey for CVS (go here to learn how to sign up to be a CVS advisor and earn ECBs), and I had earned $1.50 in ECBs based on accumulated shopping I had done in the summer. A total of $11.50 in FREE ECB's for me to spend on whatever.

Normally, I would recommend rolling those ECBs (meaning: buy items that will produce more ECBs for you to spend on a future purchase), but sometimes they're needed for other things. There really wasn't anything at CVS this week producing ECBs that I wanted or needed. And I wanted to bridge the gap between weekly shopping trips and not blow our budget

I still tried to be smart with my ECBs. Here's what I got:

2 Honey Bunches of Oats $4.79 BOGOF
2 Apple Juices 2 for $4 Sale
1 Sara Lee Whole Wheat $1.99
1 Dawn Dishwashing Det. .97 Sale
Total OOP: .89

So, I was able to save the grocery budget this week. But, I'm still thinking about that rationing of cereal. Seriously, how much cereal does one man need? :)