Shopping Trip {Bent & Dent store} $6.50

This morning, I stopped into the Bent & Dent store (in Mauston) and scored several fantastic deals.

(2) Horizon Organic 2% milk (half gal. each), $2.50 for both
(4) Yoplait Light cups, $0.35 each
(1) Betty Crocker frosting, $0.99
(1) Apple pie filling (21 oz.), $1.59
I spent $6.50 for all of those items!

I was most excited about the milk...I debated whether or not to get it because we don't drink a lot of milk, but the sell-by date is Feb. 9, so we have plenty of time. It will be great for baking and I am even considering trying to make homemade yogurt with it!

The Yoplait cups are also a great deal - at least $0.15 cheaper than I can get regularly with a coupon - and my husband eats a yogurt everyday.

Shopping today $16.50

I made a quick stop at Walgreens (and Dollar General) in Mauston earlier today.

Tuf paper towels, $0.69
2 Hershey Simple Pleasures, $0.50 each (stacked coupons for this deal)
Eggs, $0.99
Spent $3.05.

*I tried the vanilla creme-filled Hershey candy and it is delicious!

I also picked up sunscreen at Dollar General. We've been outside so much this summer that we're going through more sunscreen than previous summers!
Spent $6.28.

And earlier this week:

Dollar General
2 tissues, $1.65 each
Ant baits (4 ct.), $2.50 (Our home has been invaded! Ugh...)
Spent $3.88.

Aldi (while we were out of town)
Tortilla chips, $1.19
Acetaminophen (100 ct.), $1.99
Spent $3.29.

Shopping this week

I grabbed a few items on Wednesday at Festival:

4 Powerade, $0.69
Kashi cereal, $1 (used a $2 off printable)
Morning Glory 1/2 gallon milk, $1.29
2 Boneless/skinless chicken breasts, $8.14 total (1.99/lb.)
Kretschmar hard salami, $4.99/lb. (used $1 off coupon from Summer Grillin' magazine)
Old Orchard juice, $1.87
Spent $20.15.

I also had to pick up D batteries while we were out of town for our air mattress, so I spent $5.73 on those.

And I've made two trips to Dollar General recently:

2 Melatonin, $3.50 for both (used B1G1 free printable)
Sandwich bags, $1
Spent $4.75.

Tortilla chips, $2
2 Vitamin B6, $3.50 for both (used B1G1 free printable)
Spent $5.89.

Shopping in Mauston $9.50

I ran a few errands in Mauston this morning. As usual, Walgreens provided me with some interesting shopping!

Festival
Wheat bread, $1.59 (markdown)
2 Flavorite shredded cheese (8 oz. ea.), $1.66 each
Spent $4.91.

Walgreens
Suave shampoo
Suave conditioner
4 Kraft mac 'n cheese
Listerine (1 liter)
*After two transactions + one return, I paid $2.62 for everything.

Notes about this trip to Walgreens:

• I first tried to get the Suave body wash for $0.25 after RR, but the RR did not print. So I returned those and got the shampoo & conditioner instead.
• The Kraft mac 'n cheese BOGO coupon worked perfectly - scanned through without any beeps! It has a max value of $1.60, so I paid $0.19 per two boxes.

And at Kwik Trip on Sunday, I spent $1.89 on milk and bananas.

Shopping at Aldi & Metro Market $13

I also stopped at Aldi and Metro Market (a Copps affiliate) while we were out of town. There is quite a story to my shopping at Metro Market!

As I was walking into the store, I spotted a catalina coupon on the ground and picked it up, thinking I'd throw it into the garbage so it wasn't littering the ground. Well, God sent that catalina directly to me because it was a coupon for $10 off a $10 minimum purchase! I stared at it and couldn't believe it. I even stopped at the Service Counter to make sure it was legit. The lady assured me it was indeed legit and that it must be my lucky day. With $10 in free groceries to spend, I decided to do the General Mills cereal deal:

6 boxes of Chex cereal
1 liter bottle of Listerine (used $1 off coupon)
Spent $6.16 for everything!

*Here's the details of the cereal deal: Buy (6) boxes of GM cereal and get $9 off at checkout. I also got a coupon for a free gallon of milk and a coupon for a free dozen eggs, which I gave to a friend. If I had coupons, the deal would have been even better, but since I was out of town, I didn't have anything.

Shopping at Aldi
Sandwich bags (100 ct.), $1.99
Vegetable oil, $2.49
2 Tortilla chips, $1.19 each
Spent $6.97.

*So far, I'm doing really well with my cash-only budget for groceries, household items and health & beauty products. :)

--I also spent $7.38 at Kwik Trip last weekend (for ice cream and hamburger buns).

Shopping trip to Target!

While we were out of town the last two days, I picked up a few deals at two different Target stores.

First store
2 Comet Stainless Steel powder, $0.07 each (stacked $0.75 manufacturer coupon with $1 off Target printable)
Kleenex (184 sheets), $1.25
6 Kotex Natural Balance liners (16 ct. each), all free (used three $2 off 2 printables)
2 M&M's, $1.91 each (used $1.50 off 2 Target printable)
Spent $5.86.

Second store
4 Kotex Natural Balance liners, all free (used two $2 off 2 printables)
Gillette shave cream (travel size), $0.97 (I needed a filler, so I chose something useful!)
Spent $1.13.

After my trip to Target last week, I found a coupon for $0.75 off an Up & Up digestive product on their website, so I printed that and got an adjustment on an item I purchased last week.
Credit: $0.75.

Total spent at Target: $6.24.

*I was really hoping to find the great deal on Suave body wash, but neither store had that.

*Note that they have added product/size exclusions to the Kotex Natural Balance coupons now, so they cannot be used on the liners. I printed them before they added the exclusions.

Super Savings Saturday 6/9: Taking the cash-only plunge!

As I mentioned a few days ago, I am taking the "cash-only plunge" for the month of June for groceries, household and health & beauty items. After only a week, I haven't formed too much of an opinion yet. However, I will say that I do think using only cash forces me to take a second look at my purchases! At the end of June, I will post my thoughts on my cash-only challenge.

Last weekend, we grabbed a few items at Target. And on Tuesday, I ran a few quick errands in Mauston. Read the details in this post.
Spent $32.86.

On Thursday, I stopped at Walmart and Aldi in Baraboo after an interview:

Walmart
Dr. Thunder 24 pack, $4.98
Old Orchard juice, free with coupon (received in the mail)
Purex Ultra Packs (36 ct.), $0.77 (used free product coupon with a max value of $5)
8 Yoplait cups, $0.59 each (used $0.60 off 8 printable)
Spent $12 exactly (That works nicely on the cash-only budget!)

Aldi - See the weekly deals in this post.
Chicken breasts (3 lbs.), $5.49
3 shredded cheese (16 oz. each), $2.99 each
Pepperoni, $1.99
Ranch dressing, $1.29
Corn tortillas (30 ct.), $1.29
2 Super Eraser sponge (2 pk. each), $0.99 each (Need these for my Summer Cleaning!)
Ground cinnamon, $0.99
Brown sugar (2 lbs.), $1.49
Sour cream, $1.29
100% juice, $2.49
2 Tortilla chips, $1.19 (I bought two bags, but she evidently only scanned one...)
Red grapes (2 lbs.), $2.38
Strawberries, $0.99 (These are huge - and delicious!)
Spent $31.84.

June shopping so far - $33

During June, I am trying the "cash-only" budget for grocery/household/health & beauty items (these are all one budget category in our house). I've been resisting cash-only for awhile, but after overspending in May, I decided I need to at least try cash-only.

Shopping on Tuesday was my first experience with only cash! Here's what I got:

Walgreens
Ball Park beef franks, $2.99
Spent $2.99.

Festival
Flavorite shredded cheese (8 oz.), $2
Crystal Farms block cheese (8 oz.), $2
Minute Maid lemonade concentrate, $1.33
Flavorite frozen corn, $1.50
2 Philadelphia cream cheese, $0.99
Applesauce cup, $0.25 (markdown bin)
Flavorite unsalted butter, $2.26
Spent $12.21.

And last Friday, we snagged a few items at Target:
Hot dog buns, $1.99
Coppertone Waterbabies sunscreen (travel size), FREE (used $1 off printable)
Up & Up ibuprofen (24 ct.), FREE (used $1 off printable, no longer available)
Up & Up diphenhydramine (100 ct.), $4.04
Up & Up toilet paper, $6.29
Up & Up bismuth liquid, $2.94
Spent $15.18.

I also picked up milk and eggs at Kwik Trip = $2.48.

Shopping at Target: freebies!

Well, here are the details about my shopping trip to Target on Monday. I was certainly not a big spender that day!

Coffeemate French vanilla, FREE (used my free product coupon)
2 Banana Boat sunscreen (1 oz. each, trial size), both FREE (used two $1 off printables)
4 Degree Men (trial size), all FREE (used two $2 off 2 printables)
Gillette trial size shave gel, $0.97
Spent $0.78.

*I was hoping to get free Coppertone travel size, too, but our store didn't have any.

*When the coupons for sunscreen were originally available, they did not have any size exclusions. They have since changed the coupon and given it size exclusions, so it's not valid on travel/trial size. The same thing applies to the Degree Men's deodorant coupon.

Shopping at Aldi on Wednesday $36

I ran a few errands on Wednesday night and one of my stops was Aldi.

3 tortilla chips, $1.19 each
Russet potatoes (10 lbs.), $2.99
Lighter fluid, $2.49
Sugar (4 lbs.), $2.34
Artisan lettuce, $1.99
Strawberries, $1.19
Chicken breasts (about 4 pounds total), $8.16 ($1.99/lb.)
Ground beef (about 5 pounds total), $13.15 ($2.89/lb.)
Spent $36.02.

Shopping: Dollar General, Walmart and Burnstad's

Last night, I did a few errands...I rocked the clearance deals! Here's what I found:

Dollar General
3 pairs of cleaning gloves, $0.75 each
Nail polish, $0.50
Coppertone Kids spray sunscreen, $3 (used $1 off printable)
Spent $6.12.

*All of those items were on clearance PLUS an additional 50% off the clearance sticker price! I stocked up on the cleaning gloves - that's actually what I stopped to look for. The sunscreen was also a fabulous deal...don't tell anyone, but I plan on us adults using it! :)

Walmart
Pair of shorts, $1!!
Spent $1.06.

*Those shorts were mixed in with the swimsuits (which is what I was looking for) and I just knew they were meant for me! Who can beat $1 for a pair of shorts? It's especially perfect because I only had one pair of shorts for the summer!

Burnstad's
Bacon (0.93 lb.), $2.78 ($2.99/lb.)
Spent $2.78.

Shopping at the Bent & Dent + Walgreens and Festival

On Tuesday, I stopped by the "Bent and Dent" store and Walgreens.

At the Bent and Dent store, I found several fantastic deals:

Gluten Free Pantry french bread/pizza mix, $1.59
Pillsbury unbleached flour (5 lbs.), $1.99
3 Nestle milk chocolate/peanut butter chips, $1.80
8 Capri Sun/Minute Maid pouches, $0.15 each
Evaporated milk, $0.50
Food color, $1.29
Spent $12.

At Walgreens, I did two transactions.

Transaction 1
Crest toothpaste with Scope, $2.24 (used $0.75 off coupon from Vocalpoint)
Spent $2.40 and got $1 RR.

Transaction 2
2 Schick Hydro shave gel, $1.24 each (used rain check + two $0.75 off coupons)
Used my $1 RR.
Spent $1.70.

I also stopped at Festival on Monday (no picture of that trip):

Cauliflower, $3.31 ($0.99/lb.)
3 Crystal Farms shredded cheese (8 oz. each), $1.66
2 Crystal Farms block cheese (8 oz. each), $1.66
2 Flavorite mushrooms, $0.66
2 Hormel Natural Choice lunchmeat, $3 each
4 Applesauce cups, $0.25 each
Spent $19.88.

Shopping this week {and a peek at my Vocalpoint freebie!}

On Tuesday, I made a quick stop at Walgreens in the Dells.

Aquafresh kids' toothpaste, free after $1 off coupon from May All You
4 Domino powdered sugar (1 lb. each), $0.49 each (clearance!)
Skintimate shave gel, $1.44 (used $0.55 off coupon from this sample)
Wal-finate (50 ct.), $4.99
Spent $8.90.

*I also got a rain check for the Schick Hydro shave gel (on sale for $1.99; she also wrote BOGO free on there, but I didn't tell her that!) and the Dry Idea antiperspirant (on BOGO free sale, with a price of $2.49). I'll combine those rain checks with coupons when they have the items back in stock!

Don't forget that you can get Dial foaming handsoap for $0.90 each this week and Dial bar soap for $0.31 per bar!

Earlier in the week, I also picked up bananas at Kwik Trip.
Spent $0.99.

And also pictured is my International Delight freebie package from Vocalpoint! I got one coupon for $2 off International Delight Iced Coffee, along with four $0.75 off coupons. The package also came with a fun reuseable straw! I plan on sending the coupons to my sister since we don't drink coffee.

Shopping on Friday $33

On Friday, we went to Mauston and grabbed a few items:

Walgreens
Transaction #1

(2) Pop Tarts - I used the 15% Friends & Family discount, plus a $1 off (2) coupon.
Spent $3.25 and got a $2 RR back.

Transaction #2

(1) Capri Sun - used 15% off discount ($1.70 after sale and discount)
(6) Nestle Semi-sweet morsels - on clearance for $1.69, plus I used the 15% off discount, so $1.44 each after coupon!
Used $2 RR from Transaction #1.
Spent $8.43.

Total at Walgreens: $11.68.

Festival
Bakery bucket, $0.75 (I need it to store my 25 lbs. of Better Batter flour! I will sanitize it in the church dishwasher first...)
Kraft whole grain mac 'n cheese, $1 (markdown bin; for donation)
Mandarin oranges, $0.63 (markdown bin)
Spent $2.46.

Kmart
Lettuce seeds, $1.25
Parsley starter plant, $2.50
2 Pop Tarts, $1.50 each (used another $1 off 2 coupon)
2 Gatorade, $1 each
2 Theater box candy, $1 each
Spent $10.92.

Other garden items
Potting soil, $4.84.
Tomato starter plants, $1.39
Green pepper starter plants, $1.39
Spent $7.77.

Total spending on Friday: $32.83.

Stock-up shopping on Saturday

On Saturday, we head to Tomah to fill up the refrigerator, freezer and pantry again. It was looking quite bare last week after our trip!

At Walmart, we bought:

Old Orchard concentrate, $1.47
Minute Maid OJ concentrate, $2.24
Old Orchard 100% juice, FREE with coupon
Nestle cocoa, $2.48
Oscar Mayer beef franks, $2.98
Bacon, $3.98
Choc. chip cookies, $1.20 (markdown rack)
Garlic bread, $2.13 (markdown rack)
Gluten free Rice Krispies, $2.68
Popcorn (24 ct.), $5
8 Yoplait Light cups, $0.59 each (used $0.60 off 8 printable)
Spent $28.84.

And at Aldi, we bought:

Sweet corn (4 ct.), $1.29
Boneless/skinless chicken breasts (3 lbs.), $5.49
Fajita kit, $4.99 (Meat Special Buy)
2 Strawberries, $0.99 each (!)
2 Blackberries, $0.79 each (!)
3 shredded cheese (16 oz. each), $2.99 each
Block cheese (8 oz.), $1.79
Chocolate chips, $1.79
Pepperoni, $1.99
Rice (3 lbs.), $1.69
Frozen peas, $0.99
Mustard, $0.69
Artisan lettuce, $1.99
Instant rice, $1.35
Frozen corn, $0.99
3 Tortilla chips, $1.19 each
Russet potatoes (10 lbs.), $3.29
Lemonade concentrate, $0.79
Apple juice concentrate, $0.92
Hot fudge topping, $1.99
Spent $48.23.

This should set us fairly well for the month when added to what we already had at home!

Shopping on Tuesday: $24

After our trip last weekend, we needed a few groceries. I really didn't want to drive to Tomah for a big shopping excursion, so I picked up some essentials at Festival in Mauston. I think I'll do a bigger stock-up trip this weekend instead.

Pork spare ribs, $3.48 ($1.89/lb., markdown)
Ground chuck, $7.77 ($2.69/lb., markdown)
Kraft Fresh Take, free with Kraft First Taste coupon
Crystal Farms shredded cheese (8 oz.), $2
Flavorite eggs (dozen large), $0.99 with ad coupon
Oven roasted chicken breast (lunch meat), $3.05 ($5.99/lb.)
3 Yoplait Light yogurt cups, $0.73 each (eek!)
Chocolate chips, $2.47
Wheat bread, $1.69 (markdown)
Spent $23.58.

*The breadcrumbs in the Kraft Fresh Take kit are obviously not gluten free! However, the cheese and breadcrumbs are packaged individually in the kit, so I'm still going to use the cheese - since the kit was free.

Shopping at Walgreens $10

On Wednesday, I made a stop at Walgreens while I was in the Dells. Here's what I got:

2 Zantac (24 ct. each), $0.99 (stacked $2 store coupons + $5 manufacturer printables)
Pepsi Next 12 pk., $0.99! (stacked $1 store coupon + $1 manufacturer printable!)
Daily pill reminder, $4.49 (yikes!)
Tuf paper towels, $0.69 (with ad coupon)
Spent $9.72.

That wraps up my shopping for April!

Our shopping trip to Target on Friday

Last Friday, we did some shopping at Target - and got some awesome deals!

3 Mossimo camisole tank tops, $3 each (used three $3 off printables)
2 Glade aerosols, both free (with two printable coupons, no longer available)
2 Method dish soap (18 oz.), $0.69 each (stacked coupons)
Pyrex storage (6 pc.), $9.29
Up & Up bath tissue (12 double rolls), $5.79 (used $0.50 off printable)
2 Up & Up facial tissue (184 ct. each), $0.89 each (used two $0.50 off printables)
2 Tums Freshers (25 ct. each), $0.11 each (price cut for $2.36, stacked coupons)
2 Bandaid Quiltvent (80 ct. each), $0.36 each (used two $2 off printables)
2 Foodsaver quart bags (20 ct. each), $6.99 for both (used B1G1 free Target printable, plus two $2 off manufacturer printables = $0.18 per bag, an excellent deal!)

I also got three tubes of Aquafresh Kids toothpaste for free at Walgreens. Those will be added to my Operation Christmas Child box!

Total: $36.02. (My husband was with me and I think he was actually impressed this time. I had over $30 in coupons!)

A few notes:

- The weirdest thing happened with the Mossimo tank tops. The cashier told me that I could only use one coupon per transaction (I have never been told this before...). I said, "OK, that's fine. Just remove two of them." Then my husband and I stopped back by Target later and each bought one more tank top...take that, Target!

But what was most funny was that she let me use two Glade coupons, two Method coupons, two Up & Up tissue coupons, and two Tums Freshers coupons, all in the same transaction! I have no idea why she took issue with the Mossimo coupons, but I'm not one to argue, so we laughed about it - and then returned to purchase the other two. You cannot beat $3 for a tank top!

- I have never purchased Method dish soap, but I couldn't pass it up at this price! We all know that I am partial to Dawn for its degreasing power, but this deal on Method soap is unbeatable! I'm looking forward to trying it.

- I did find Bandaids that would have been free (20 ct., I think?), but I opted to pay $0.36 for 80 Bandaids instead, as that is an awesome price! These will live in our stockpile for now, but they would also make a really great donation item.

Shopping on Wednesday $17

On Wednesday, I subbed a half day in Mauston and then ran what felt like a million errands, including an oil change & tire rotation for my car. Here's what I picked up:

Festival
24 pack of Pepsi, $5.99
3 Crystal Farms cheese, $3.99 for all three with ad coupon
Sweet Baby Ray's (18 oz.), $1.25
Spent $11.56.

Kmart
2 Jergens Natural Glow lotion, $1.99 each
Spent $4.20.

Dollar General
RepHresh tampons, free after $1 coupon (using this "rolling" deal)
Spent $0.06 (tax).

Better Buys (discount store)
Wedding wrap paper, $0.99
Spent $1.36.

Shopping on Monday: Aldi and Copps $48

On Monday, we headed north for a funeral visitation and decided to run a few errands while we were near Aldi and Copps.

Aldi
Broccoli (1 lb.), $0.89
2 Tortilla chips, $1.19
Pineapple, $1.19
Artisan lettuce, $1.99
2 Unsalted butter, $1.99
Sour cream (16 oz.), $0.99
Napkins (250 ct.), $1.49
Shredded cheddar cheese (16 oz.), $2.99
Apple juice, $1.69
Vegetable oil, $2.49
Carrots (1 lb.), $0.99
Cream cheese (8 oz.), $0.99
Brown sugar (2 lbs.), $1.49
Spent $23.63.

Copps
Langer's juice, $2.13
4 Old Orchard concentrate, $1.34 each (used $1 off 4 printable)
Roundy's roast beef lunch meat, $2.99
2 packages of Roundy's boneless/skinless chicken breasts (about 6 lbs. total), $9.02 total ($1.78/lb.; in store special)
8 Yoplait Light yogurt cups, $0.53 each (used $0.60 off 8 printable)
Spent $23.70.