Phew!

Phew! Today was quite the busy day. But I can't believe what I learned AND accomplished today!

I've been to the store 3 times today, a rummage sale, made Oreo cakeballs, removed the stinky mildew smell from my clean towels AND made a batch of homemade taco seasoning. Phew, and I've been babysitting since 8am and will be until 9am tomorrow morning. *Insert falling on my bed exhausted*

I started my day with a 3am shopping trip to Pick N Save for double double coupon day! Was very successful and saved 77% off my bill!! Then once the kids woke we were going to head to the Farmer's Market but the truck drove us to a rummage sale instead *snickers* I was able to fill a bag of clothes for Rea & Sapphire for $2 and Otis found a 16" bike for $5! He outgrew his 12" bike over the winter but he's been forced to ride it since a new $50 bike is NOT in the budget right now. But I can do $5 and it's a Spiderman bike BONUS!! David returned from work around Noon and the girls and I decided to make our 2nd trip to Pick N Save. I needed lunch meat from the deli and unfortunately the deli's not open at 3am! A bit later we ran across town to Walmart in search of training wheels for Otis' new bike. I'd really rather he'd try to just learn how to ride but he's freaking out. So, training wheels it is..for now. I have a goal to have him riding a bike in the next month! Oh and while we were at Walmart I picked up a few ingredients to make Oreo cakeballs - Yummy!! By the time we returned home it was time to make dinner and work on those cakeballs. While those were cooking/chilling I decided to google getting the mildew stink out of my CLEAN towels. The kids AND David don't understand that you HAVE to hang a towel up to DRY before it can be placed into a laundry pile. I feared I'd have to replace ALL of our towels because they were HORRIBLE!! I found a simple and cheap method online that PROMISED to remove the mildew smell from my clean towels.

Step 1: Make sure it's not your washer that smells like mildew and that it's JUST your towels.
Step 2: Wash your towels in HOT water with 1 1/2 cups white vinegar (NO detergent)
Step 3: When 1st wash is complete wash again in HOT water and this time use your standard detergent. DO NOT use liquid softener (I don't know why but it said that liquid softener can actually contribute to the mildew smell??)
Step 4: When wash is complete IMMEDIATELY transfer to your dryer and dry on HIGH heat.
Step 5: Fold your clean..smell so good towels!

I can't believe it, they don't smell at all!! Not even our bathroom rug that smelled like pee even after washing (can you tell I have boys!) The white vinegar cost me $0.87 and Walmart - WAYYYYYY cheaper than buying new towels!

And then if I haven't done enough already today I decided to make a batch of homemade taco seasoning. This is our first time trying a homemade recipe - it smells WONDERFUL! I'll get back to you with the recipe after we test it out this week when we make tacos!

And now that I've got the 6 kids in bed I think I'll kick back and enjoy an Oreo Cakeball or two and prepare myself for tomorrow's adventure. My parents, sisters and nephews are coming to visit and we're going to Bay Beach to celebrate Rea & Elliot's birthdays!

Nite!

New Blog Name & Pick N Save trip 6/25

I've been going back and forth lately as to if I like my blog title/name. I decided I really didn't but wasn't sure what to change it to. When I posted my last blog and linked it to Facebook a friend of mine, Denise, referred to me as 'Mrs. Saves-A-Lot'. Brilliant!! I loved the name and have been saying it over and over in my head since she posted that comment. So today I've decided to take the plunge and changed my blog title to...Mrs. Saves-A-Lot! Thanks Denise!!

Now for what you REALLY wanted to hear about - my 3am (YES, 3am) shopping trip to Pick N Save. David had to work this morning at 4:15am and taking 5 kids to PNS on double coupon days is NOT a wise choice. Waiting till he gets home wasn't an option because the shelves are always cleared of the GOOD stuff by Noon.
You can see my detailed shopping trip with the break down of coupons here - the only change I had to make was they were already out of the Magnum Ice Cream Bars :( Luck me I had one extra coupon on me for $0.75 off Sargento Cheese Slices found here. These retail for $2.99 and were on sale for $2.79 and then the $0.75 coupon doubled making them $1.29! Oh and I almost forgot when I posted my original trip I was 2 coupons shy on my 2nd transaction and I found (2) $1/1 Shout printable coupons I had lying around. Shout retails for $2.67/each used $1 coupons that doubled making them $0.67/each!

Here's what I walked away....



Retail Price: $78.43
Sale Price: $52.47

After coupons I paid $17.97 out of pocket for a total savings of 77% !!!

Pick n Save Shopping List for 6/25

Sat 6/25 Pick n Save will have a Double Double Coupon Day allowing you to double up to 10 manufacture coupons (with an original face value of $1 or less) on a $25 transaction. Yay!! Pick n Save's coupon policy says that the coupons don't double until AFTER the sale prices reach $25 - however their computers are currently programmed incorrectly and coupons double after the retail price reaches $25 - bonus for us!! That is until one day my carefully planned transaction goes out the window because they've updated their systems. Also an important note is that the FIRST 10 coupons you hand them will be doubled so make sure to stack your coupons appropriately so that the coupons with the highest value up to $1 are on top.

For Saturday I've got 2 separate transactions planned and I'll be able to double 20 coupons (with an original face value of $1 or less)

Transaction #1

10 - Palmero's Classic Frozen Pizzas
Retail Price: $2.99
Sale Price: $2.00 (5/$10)
Will use (5) $1/2 printable coupons found here that will double for a savings of $10
Price after coupon: 10 pizzas for $10.00 or $1.00/each

2 - Ivory Hand Soaps
Retail Price: $1.39
Sale Price: $1.00 (10/$10)
Will use (2) $0.50/1 coupons from a Procter & Gamble mailer that will double for a total savings of $2.00
Price after coupons: both for FREE

2 - Herbal Essence or Aussie Shampoos
Retail Price: $3.59
Sale Price: $2.50 (2/$5)
Will use (2) $1.00/1 coupons from 6/12 Red Plum coupon insert that will double for a total savings of $4.00
Price after coupons: 2 bottles for $1.00 or $0.50/each

1 - 48oz Breyer's Ice Cream
Retail Price: $5.15
Sale Price: $3.50 (2/$7) -OR- use the in ad coupon for $2.88 - limit 1
(you can stack a manufacture coupon with a store coupon)
Will use $1/1 from coupons.com (no longer available) that will double for a total savings of $2.00
Price after coupons: $0.88

If everything is available I should pay $11.88 out of pocket before tax!!

Transaction #2

1 - 3pk Magnum Ice Cream Bars
Retail Price: $3.99
Sale Price: $2.50 (2/$5)
Will use $1/1 coupon from 5/2 Red Plum coupon insert that will double for a total savings of $2.00
Price after coupon: $0.50

1 - 48oz Breyer's Ice Cream
Retail Price: $5.15
Sale Price: $3.50 (2/$7) -OR- use the in ad coupon for $2.88 - limit 1
(you can stack a manufacture coupon with a store coupon)
Will use $1/1 from coupons.com (no longer available) that will double for a total savings of $2.00
Price after coupons: $0.88

2 - Tic Tacs
Retail Price: $1.29
Will use (2) $0.75/1 coupons from 6/12 Red Plum coupon insert that will double for a total savings of $3.00
Price after coupons: MONEY MAKER of $0.42!!!

2 - Johnsonville Italian Sausages
Retail Price: $4.69
Sale Price: $3.00 (2/$6)
Will use (2) $1/1 coupon found here that will double for a total savings of $4.00
Price after coupons: 2 pkgs for $2.00 or $1.00/each

2 - pkgs Strawberries
**Pick n Save carries a different brand of berries each week so I'll only be able to use this scenario if their berries are Driscoll's this week**
Retail Price: $3.99
Sale Price: $1.50 (2/$3)
Will us (2) $0.50/1 coupon found here (after signing up for Driscoll's newsletter) that will double for a total savings of $2.00
Price after coupons: 2 pkgs for $1.00 or $0.50/each

I'm still on the hunt for 2 more GOOD coupons to double up on in this transaction - I'm sure something will surface by Saturday :)

If everything is available I should pay $3.96 out of pocket before tax!!

Total Savings from both transactions:

Retail Price: $74.09
Sale Price: $46.84
Price After Coupons: $15.84

TOTAL PERCENTAGE OF SAVINGS: 79%

After looking at our fridge and the ad one more time I think I'll have a 3rd transaction but this one won't have 'coupon' items on it.
I'm also looking to stock up on these great sale prices!

more Strawberries 2/$3
Red Seedless Grapes $0.99/lb
Vine Ripe Tomatoes $0.99/lb
Romain Lettuce $0.99/lb
Roundy's Frozen Steamable Veggies 10/$10
Pepsi Products 4/$10

61% Savings @ CVS Pharmacy

*BLOWING NOISE* as I blow the dust off this blog. Eeeks, I haven't blogged since November. It's not that I haven't wanted to blog but honestly I haven't struck any outstanding deals in MONTHS!! I don't understand why ALL the great deals I find seem to be be from June to December. I've already seen all the buy one get one deodorant and body wash coupons starting to surface - can't wait to pair those with the buy one get one sales that CVS and Walgreen's should start running. We still have a decent stockpile left from last summer (10 bottles of body washes, 7 tubes of toothpaste, 8 boxes of band-aids, etc) but you can't pass up FREE items especially toiletries.

This week I noticed CVS Pharmacy had some GREAT deals to pair with several coupons I had.

Here's a break down of my shopping trip:

Transaction #1

26oz Gerber Baby Formula $24.99 on sale for $22.00
(I plan on nursing baby girl but I always seem to have to supplement at some point so I couldn't pass this deal up)
216ct Huggies Wipes Refill $8.29 on sale for $6.00
ECB (Extra Care Buck) Deal - spend $25 on the items above receive $10 ECB towards your next purchase.
Total before coupons $28.00
I used a $10.25 check coupon from Gerber and a $0.75 Huggies Wipe coupon

Final total paid $17.00 out of pocket before tax and received a $10 ECB for my next purchase

Transaction #2

4 Jumbo Packages of Huggies Diapers $10.99 on sale for $8.99
1 Jumbo Package of Huggies Pure & Natural $11.99 on sale for $8.99
ECB Deal - Receive $1 ECB per Jumbo package of Huggies Diapers - limit 5
Total before coupons $44.95
I used (5) $2.00 off Huggies Diaper coupons and my $10 ECB from Transaction #1

Final total paid $24.95 out of pocket before tax and received a $5 ECB for my next purchase

Transaction #3

2 Lipton Natural Ice Teas $1.79/each on sale for $1.25/each
2 Gatorades $1.79/each on sale for $1.25/each
ECB Deal - Buy 4 of the above items and receive a $1 ECB
2 Colgate Totals $3.49/each on sale for $2.79/each
ECB Deal - Receive $2 ECB per Colgate Total - limit 2
Total before coupons $10.58
I used (2)FREE Lipton Natural Ice Tea coupons and (2) $1.00 off Colgate Total coupons (after ECB's this toothpaste was a money maker of $0.21/each) and my $5 ECB from transaction #2

Final total paid $1.08 out of pocket before tax and received a $5 in ECB's for my next purchase

Transaction #4

216ct Huggies Wipes Refill $8.29 on sale for $6.00
Total before coupons $6.00
I used a $0.50 off Huggies Wipes coupon and my $5 ECB from transaction #3

Final total paid $0.50 out of pocket before tax

Complete break down of all 4 transactions:

$111.66 Retail price before tax
$89.53 Sale price before tax
$43.53 Paid Out Of Pocket after coupons & ECB's before tax

For an overall total of 61% savings!!!

FREE $20 Credit to Gilt.com

Hurry and sign up HERE and get a $20 credit to Gilt. They have tons of items you can walk away with for FREE or for extremely cheap. Looks like they have a standard shipping rate of $7.95 and your $20 credit CAN be used towards shipping. They've got something for everyone on their site. I just found this adorable Organic 9" Fairytale Victoria Bunny priced at $11.00 plus $7.95 shipping. Total cost $18.95 applied my $20.00 credit = FREE!! One more Christmas present check off the list and it was FREE and being delivered to my front door. You can't go wrong!!

**Note: You'll need to sign out and sign back in to see your credit. When you sign back in click on 'account' at the top of the page and then select 'account credits' to see your credit**

Uncrustables, Pringles, Wheat Thins...Winner :)

And the winner according to www.random.org is comment #5!! Congrats 'shmom' and enjoy your coupons :)

Uncrustables, Pringles, Triscuits and Wheat Thins, Oh My Giveaway!!

I've been extremely busy lately and have not had a chance to keep up with everything. I apologize!! Good news or you, I've got 4 FREE item coupons up for grabs.

FREE 4 pack of Smucker's Uncrustables Exp 1/31/11
FREE can Pringles Extreme Exp 11/30/10
FREE box Triscuit Thin Crisps Exp 12/31/10
FREE box Wheat Thins Crunch Stix Exp 12/31/10
Plus $1.25/off box Triscuits & $1.25/off box Wheat Thins Crunch Stix Exp 12/31/10

Here's how you can have a chance at WINNING these GREAT coupons...

1 - Inspired by Smucker's Uncrustables - what is your favorite jelly/jam flavor?
2 - With the Holiday's just around the corner - leave a tip on how you save money during the holidays.
3 - Post about this Giveaway on your Facebook page for your friends to enter.

Leave a separate comment for each entry and make sure to leave an email address so I can contact you if you win :)

Giveaway will end 12:00pm Central Time on Thursday 11/4/10. Winner will be chosen shortly after that using www.random.org. Winner will be notified via email and have 24hrs to reply back with mailing information.

Good Luck and keep an eye out, I've got a Wildtree review I'm working on for a friend that will have a giveaway attached to the review :)