Back to reporting on my couponing progress…primarily because I totally do not keep up with it if I don’t write it in the blog, and it’s really fun to go back and see how much I’ve saved.

I did alright this past week with grabbing some stuff we needed, but not going overboard on non-sale items. We’ve been doing pantry challenges quite often recently, and this was an in-between week, which meant that we had to stock back up on a few things.

I am not reporting on the trips to just buy diapers, because diapers are really in a class by themselves as far as our budget goes, and there haven’t been any really good coupons for them lately anyway (Proctor & Gamble, please hear my cry!)

17 items
What I Bought:
(2) Facial Tissue
(2) Laundry Detergent
(2) Dish Soap
(1) Paper Towels
(2) Power Toothbrush
(2) Toilet Paper
(1) Toothpaste
(1) Dental Floss
(2) Fish Oil Caplets
(1) Baby Laundry Detergent
(1) Baby Wipes

TOTAL SPENT: 39.97
TOTAL SAVED: 81.70

Savings Details:
(Manufacturer coupons: 31.49, Sale Pricing: 33.63, ECB redeemed: 16.58
ECB earned: 23.58
ECB Remaining: 7
Percent Saved: 67%

No photos, because Kyla was at home and starting putting stuff away before I even got everything inside.

42 items
What I Bought:
(4) Frozen Garlic/Cheese Bread
(1) Frozen Fish Sticks
(4) Frozen Vegetables
(9) Refrigerated Canned Biscuits
(1) Bread
(4) Boxed Pasta
(2) Boxed Mac and Cheese
(1) Jar Spaghetti Sauce
(4) Canned Tomatoes
(1) Manwich Sauce
(8) Canned Vegetables
(1) Potato Chips
(1) Lotion
(1) Dental Floss

TOTAL SPENT: 33.40
TOTAL SAVED: 48.59

Savings Details:
(Manufacturer coupons: 5.70, Sale Pricing: 30.74, Store Coupon: 12.15
Percent Saved: 59%

Again, no photos, because of my husband jumping the gun.

And, yes, I did go two days in a row…to get both last week and this week’s ad items, duh. Plus, they only do the Penny Item on Wednesday, so that is a must.

17 items
What I Bought:
(1) Bag of Tortilla Chips
(1) Cheese Singles
(1) Instant Oatmeal
(2) Boxed Frozen Fish Fillets
(1) Milk
(1) Package of Tiny Muffins
(4) Packages of Crackers
(1) Bread
(2) Popcorn
(1) Mayonaise
(2) Coke

TOTAL SPENT: 31.08
TOTAL SAVED: 35.44

Savings Details:
(Manufacturer coupons: 3.18, Sale Pricing: 27.26, Store Coupon: 5.00
Percent Saved: 53%

Total Items Purchased: 76
TOTAL SPENT: 104.45
TOTAL SAVED: 165.73
Percent Saved: 61%

Another week, another tight budget.

And I think I rocked it.

4 items
What I Bought:
(1) Coffee (large)
(1) Pack of diapers
(2) Dressing

Coupons:
(1) $1.50 off two dressings manufacturer coupon
(1) $1.50 off diapers manufacturer coupon

I used some Extra Care Bucks that I had been saving, because we really needed diapers and coffee. And I got the dressing for the in-laws.

Now, I should have gotten all of this for free, but the stupid 20% off coupon came off at the end (after the other coupons and ECBs), even though I gave it to the guy first. I think he screwed it up…of else the coupon was a stupid coupon. I guess I can’t complain too much, though.

TOTAL SPENT: 4.50
TOTAL SAVED: 30.11
(Manufacturer coupons: 3, Store coupons & deals: 16.11)
ECB redeemed: 11
ECB earned: 0

87%…EIGHTY-SEVEN PERCENT…I am so awesome.

6 items
What I Bought:
(3) Packs of diapers
(2) Packs of training pants
(1) Kids’ juice

Coupons:
(5) $1.50 off diapers or training pants manufacturer coupon
(1) $1.50 off diapers store coupon

There was some issue about not being able to use more than one store coupon per transaction or something (LAME), or I would have saved another $3 or $4 bucks…oh well. I still got the special two day sale price on the diapers, which was a huge help to our budget for the week.

TOTAL SPENT: 35.66
TOTAL SAVED: 22.89
(Manufacturer coupons: 7.50, Store coupons: 1.50, Store deals: 13.89)

So, I still saved 38%, which is really not bad with getting so many diapers.

5 items
What I Bought:
(1) Pickles
(1) Tea
(1) Yogurt
(1) Hot Dogs
(1) Toilet Paper

Coupons:
Somehow, my coupons that I thought I used and the coupons the receipt shows that I used don’t add up…so just know that used some kind of coupons.

TOTAL SPENT: 11.13
TOTAL SAVED: 8.57
(Manufacturer coupons: 1.05, Double coupons: .50, Store coupons & deals: 7.02)

44% saved.

9 items
What I Bought:
(1) Pack of batteries 24ct.
(2) Shampoo & conditioner
(2) Juice boxes 8pk.
(4) Plastic totes

Coupons:
(1) $1 off 2 juice box multi-packs store coupon
(2) $1 off juice box 8pk. manufacturer coupon
(1) $.75 off pack of batteries manufacturer coupon

I *heart* Target so much. $1 for two 8 packs of juice boxes…you can’t beat that with a stick. And $9.25 for a 24 pack of batteries is a pretty rad deal, too (especially since we really needed the batteries).

TOTAL SPENT: 18.12
TOTAL SAVED: 6.52

26% saved.

Total Items Purchased: 24
TOTAL SPENT: 69.41
TOTAL SAVED: 68.09
Percent Saved: 50%

So we started our new budget this week, and it forced me to be a little more crafty than usual. We needed certain items kind of urgently, and there were some really good deals on several things that we use. So, since we had very little in the way of funds, and quite a bit in the way of needs and wants, I ended up taking miss Sadie with me on Saturday and going to four different stores to try to get the best deals on what we needed. It was kind of a hassle, and I was not able to stay within my $29 budget for the day’s shopping, but I still think I did alright. It’s pretty tough to get a full week’s worth of groceries on $29, so I’m reasonably pleased with spending $42 for $90 worth of stuff.

All of my groceries got mixed up in the trunk, so the pictures don’t correspond to the particular stores…which is why all of the photos are up here…just fyi.

15 items
What I Bought:
(4) Coke 2 ltr.
(2) boxes of Cheerios
(2) boxes of instant potatoes
(2) Frozen vegetables
(2) canned biscuits
(2) multi-packs of kids’ yogurt

Coupons:
$1 off 2 Betty Crocker box Potatoes manufacturer coupon
$1 off 2 General Mills cereals manufacturer coupon
$.30 off 2 canned biscuits manufacturer coupon
$.75 off 2 kids’ yogurt multi-pack manufacturer coupon

I had hoped to spend no more than $9 at Kroger, but it didn’t quite work out like that. I had an extra $1.55 in ecoupons loaded on my Kroger card that did not go through (it was my first time using them, and I wasn’t smart enough to check behind her when the cashier told me that they had gone through). Also, I didn’t know about the .88 cent Cokes until I got there, so I didn’t plan to spend that $5…but it was so worth it! Cokes for less than $1 make me giddy.

TOTAL SPENT: 14.19
TOTAL SAVED: 16.48
(Manufacturer coupons: 4.60, Double coupons: .30, Store coupons & deals: 11.58)

So, I saved 54%, and even with my little screw-ups and impulse buys.

8 items
What I Bought:
(1) Multi-pack of crackers
(2) 20lb. bags of cat litter
(4) Packs of deli style lunch meat
(1) Pack of M&Ms (because I needed chocolate…this happens too much)

Coupons:
(2) $1 off lunch meat manufacturer coupon
(1) $.55 off lunch meat manufacturer coupon
(1) $.35 off lunch meat manufacturer coupon
(1) $.55 off multi-pack crackers manufacturer coupon
(2) $1 off cat litter manufacturer coupon

TOTAL SPENT: 10.21
TOTAL SAVED: 19.59
(Manufacturer coupons: 5.45, Double coupons: 1.45, Store coupons & deals: 12.69)

I saved 66%!

6 items
What I Bought:
(1) pack of Cheese slices
(1) butter
(2) Mac & Cheese box dinners
(1) Frozen chicken nuggets
(1) bread

Coupons:
(1) $1 off bread when you buy pack of cheese store coupon
(1) $.55 off 2 Mac & Cheese box dinners manufacturer coupon
(1) $1 off frozen chicken nuggets manufacturer coupon

So I’m a total idiot because I picked up the cheese that was not on sale, which meant I paid $2 more for 4 more ounces (aka, I got so gypped), and I had to buy butter, because my poor husband could not make it one more day without butter, even though it was not on sale anywhere.

TOTAL SPENT: 11.37
TOTAL SAVED: 6.94
(Manufacturer coupons: 2.55, Store coupons & deals: 4.39)

Only 38% here…lame.

1 items
What I Bought:
(1) 8pk. paper towels

Coupons:
(1) $1 off paper towels manufacturer coupon

I finally got to use the rain check that has been hanging out in my coupon folder for months now. Really, I finally got the guts to use it…it was my first time using a rain check. And it felt so good!

TOTAL SPENT: 6.48
TOTAL SAVED: 4.00
(Manufacturer coupons: 1, Store coupons & deals -rain check sale price: 3)
ECB earned: 1

Only 38% here as well…but somehow this 38% makes me feel better than the Publix 38% did…weird.

Totals

Total Items Purchased: 30
TOTAL SPENT: 42.25
TOTAL SAVED: 47.01
Percent Saved: 53%

ECB earned: 1 (equivalent to $1 towards future purchase)

In the interest of working within our (hopefully temporary) teeny tiny budget (more on this later, I’m sure), I’ve had to really make use of my extreme couponing education the past few weeks. Other than diapers (on which I am very brand-loyal), I’ve just been buying things that were at a super good price, so that we could make the absolute most of what we’ve got. Needless to say, our meals have been a bit creative lately.

8 items

Coupons:
(2) $.50 off frozen vegetables manufacturer coupon
$1 off Eggo manufacturer coupon
$1 off Eggo store coupon
(2) Buy One Get One Free Tornado’s manufacturer coupon
$1 off Tornado’s manufacturer coupon

There were buy one get one free deals on vegetables and the Eggos, and the Tornados were on sale for $2 per box, so the deals plus coupons equaled us getting some pretty awesome deals for under $10!

TOTAL SPENT: 6.33
TOTAL SAVED: 14.16
(Manufacturer coupons: 8, Store coupons: 1, Store deals: 5.16)

So, I saved 69%, and added some much needed variety to our sad little freezer.

3 items
What I Bought:
(1) Pack of potty-training pants for Sadie
(2) Packs of wipers refills
(2) Pack of M&Ms (because I needed chocolate)

Coupons:
$1.50 off training pants manufacturer coupon
$2 off wipes 60ct or larger manufacturer coupon

…and don’t forget our Pig Employee discount (YAY!) and the 1 GreenBax for every coupon you use deal.

TOTAL SPENT: 14.30
TOTAL SAVED: 5.30
GB EARNED: 2.08

I saved 27%…every little bit helps!

Totals

Total Items Purchased: 11
TOTAL SPENT: 20.63
TOTAL SAVED: 19.46
Percent Saved: 49%

(PW) Greenbax earned: 2.08 (equivalent to $3.12 towards future purchase)

So after a long hiatus from couponing, I’ve finally picked it back up. The hiatus was due in part to being out of town and a lack of deals on stuff we needed, but most due to an unfortunate lack of funds.

But after going to the Extreme! Couponing class the other week, I jumped back in with renewed excitement. With an ongoing fund shortage, and an empty fridge, it was quite a challenge, but I was determined to get what we needed with the money we had.

Unfortunately, ol’ Taco Bones started putting all of the groceries before I could snap a photo (I can’t be mad at him, being that it’s been a while since I required photographic evidence of my shopping exploits, and he’s a little out of practice), so I have no pretty pictures for you.

Instead, I thought I would type this shit out, because I’ve got to make sure that you understand how excited I am about everything I was able to get.

I used to think that Publix was super expensive and not worth the trip, but once I found out about double coupons, buy one get one free deals and store coupons, I realized that it would be more than worth a trip. Plus, the two closest grocery stores to my house are Food Lion and Publix, and that Food Lion has terrible service, so I don’t like to go there unless I have to.

Now, granted, when you see this list, you’re going to be like “What kind of meals do they make at that house?!” You need to know that our pantry was still fairly stocked, and we were trying to get some of the pantry items we were out of and some food for quick snacks and small meals. I promise that we eat more than hot dogs and mangos.

24 items

What I Bought:
(1) Packs of hot dogs
(2) Packs of shredded cheese
(2) Packs of lunch meat
(2) Multi-packs of kids’ yogurt
(1) Half gallon of fancy milk
(1) Blueberries
(2) Packs of butter
(1) Dozen eggs
(1) Case of beer (The Beast Light, for those who are interested)
(1) Bag of salad mix
(2) 5lb. bags of sugar
(1) Pack of diapers
(1) Pack of toddler training pants
(1) Pack of baby wipes
(2) Mangos
(1) Bag of chips
(1) Pack of hot dog buns
(1) Loaf of bread

Coupons:
$1 off 2 packs of hot dogs manufacturer coupon
$2 off fancy milk manufacturer coupon
$.75 off 2 multi-packs of kids’ yogurt manufacturer coupon
$1 off 2 packs of lunch meat manufacturer coupon
$1 off 2 packs of lunch meat manufacturer coupon
$.40 off 5lb. bag of sugar
$2 off pack of diapers or training pants
$2 off pack of diapers
$1.50 off baby wipes

Competitor Coupons
$1.50 off pack of diapers Food Lion Store Coupon

Double coupons (only one was under the eligibility limit)
$.40

There were buy one get one free deals on the salad mix, hot dogs, fancy milk and kids’ yogurt. Plus, there was a deal going on where you would get a free package of wipes if you bought a pack of diapers.

No ECB redeemed

TOTAL SPENT: 62.80
TOTAL SAVED: 38.57
(Manufacturer coupons: 9.65, Store coupons: 5.29, Store deals: 23.63)

So, I saved 38%, which I thought was pretty good since I had been terrible about keeping up with my coupons for a month and had to get a lot of things that we needed or were requested by family *cough cough Kyla’s beer cough cough* that weren’t on sale. Not a bad trip, if I do say so myself.

I’m hoping to do a bigger CVs run later in the week, but I just had to go today to make sure I could get this deal. The razors that I like are hardly ever on sale, so I really just couldn’t wait.

2 items

What I Bought:
(2) Packs of fancy razor refills (3 ct.)

Coupons:
$4 off razor refill manufacturer coupon
$1 CVS Extra Care Bucks (ECB) redeemed

TOTAL SPENT: 18.52
TOTAL SAVED: 5
ECB earned: 10

So, while I only technically saved 21%, if you count the ECBs, I got $23.52 worth of razor refills for $8.52, which would be a savings of 64%.

Total Items Purchased: 26
TOTAL SPENT: 81.32
TOTAL SAVED: 43.57
Percent Saved: 35%

(CVS) ECB earned: 10 (equivalent to $10 towards future purchase)

We’ve got a GreenBax days promotion going on at The Pig right now, and there are some other deals this week that I’m hoping to take advantage of, so we’ll see how it goes. Hopefully we’ll get to 50% or more next week.

Busy, busy, busy…but I had to brag about this.

The highlight of this shopping trip was getting a free case of water. I love free things that I have to use two hands to carry…it makes it seem so much more impressive.

Here are the totals:

11 items

Coupons:
$8 in manufacturer coupons
$10 off $50 purchase CVS coupon

No ECB redeemed

TOTAL SPENT: 40.42
TOTAL SAVED: 45.67

ECB earned: 6

43% saved

So how crazy is it that a horse named “Super Saver” won the derby yesterday? I was totally pulling for him

Well, this was a pretty busy shopping week for us. We got some paychecks, and were able to take advantage of some of the awesome deals floating around.

The funny thing is though that ol’ Kyla Brown had to do the shopping for me…which usually means lots of extra items purchased that totally screw up my savings. However, he did pretty good this time (with detailed lists and coupons paper-clipped to the lists, of course).

There weren’t a ton of deals at CVS that I was interested in this week, but anytime Coke and Pampers are on sale, we have to go. And I seem to think that the world may run out of toothbrushes sometime in the near future, so I must hoard as many as possible.

PS – Two vitamin waters should have been in the photo, but my husband had already finished one of them by the time he got home. You ought to have heard the tongue lashing he received for messing up my blog photo

Here are the totals:

11 items

Coupons:
Buy one get one free toothbrush mfr coupon
$1.50 off diapers mfr coupon
$1 off 2 vitamin water mfr coupon

$5 CVS Extra Care Bucks (ECB) redeemed

TOTAL SPENT: 8.57
TOTAL SAVED: 27.41
ECB earned: 3

I saved 68%, y’all! Woo-hoo!

The tuna was the only thing he got that wasn’t on the list…but at least it was on sale.

Here are the totals:

17 items

Coupons:
$.75 off three boxed dinner kit mfr coupon (2)
$.50 off croutons mfr coupon
$1 off 2 deli style lunch meat mfr coupon

Greenbax redeemed:
10 GB to save $15 on total bill

TOTAL SPENT: 24.40
TOTAL SAVED: 12.22
GB earned: 4.14

Saved 33%…not too bad, but kind of a let down after some of the other totals.

Yes, I sent my husband to three different stores in one day. And he did it willingly…because he’s awesome and loves me and knows when to humor me.

So, I sent him to Publix because a) the Food Lion we used to go to has TERRIBLE service, and we didn’t want to give them our money anymore and b) Publix just has such better graphic design, which carries a lot of weight in my book.

Here are the totals:

15 items

Coupons:
I honestly have no clue what coupons I used, because Kyla threw the list away that had all of the coupons on it. And I didn’t get mad at him because he was sweet enough to go to three different stores in one afternoon just for me. I do know that the manufacturer coupons added up to $4.05, the store coupons added up to 2.30, and my sale price savings added up to $15.68 according to the receipt. Now my only question is: does Publix double coupons or something, because my receipt says “multiplied coupon”?

TOTAL SPENT: 29.23
TOTAL SAVED: 22.03

Saved 43%…but I wish I knew how we did it.

Now here is the crappy part…Kyla also went to Target for me, and did some more shopping at The Pig one day when he got off work, and both of these trips were very, very successful on the savings front. At the Piggly Wiggly, they were having their GreenBax Days promotion, where you can turn in 10 GB for $15 off your total grocery order. Plus he got a ton of stuff on sale and at reduced/clearance pricing, and he ended up paying less than $10 for at least $50 worth of stuff. And at Target I had a bunch of coupons (both store and manufacturer) for sale items, which made the cost-to-items-purchased ratio look pretty rad.

But I lost the receipts.

And I wasn’t able to get any photos. So I have no documentation. But I swear that if you could see it, it would be awe-inspiring. He literally made at least 4 trips bringing everything in, and we were only out about $50 bucks total (at both stores). My refrigerator is full of meat (bacon, especially, much to my daughter’s delight), and we have all kinds of other goodies overflowing from our cabinets, like toilet paper, paper towels, diapers, etc. etc.

But I can’t prove it

So, the totals for the shopping that I can prove.

Total Items Purchased: 43
TOTAL SPENT: 62.20
TOTAL SAVED: 61.66
Percent Saved: 50%

(CVS) ECB earned: 3 (equivalent to $3 towards future purchase)
(PW) Greenbax earned: 4.14 (equivalent to $6.21 towards future purchase)

So my husband had to go to Target yesterday to pick up a few things (translation: I gave him a list and made him go). One of the things on the list was a big box of Pampers wipes, which was on sale, and for which I had a few store and manufacturer coupons. I figured it would be a good deal, but I was surprised at how good a deal it really was.

They didn’t have any more of the kind we usually buy, so he got the 420 count box of Pampers Sensitive Thick Care wipes (the refills). He didn’t notice when he bought it, because this was mostly covered with a packing sticker or something, but on the outside of the box, it said “$15 of savings inside.” It was a very small graphic and only printed on one side of the box, so not very noticeable.

So, he gets home, still not noticing the label on the outside, and finds TWO COUPON BOOKS INSIDE.

Y’all, I could have squealed when I saw them.

I think getting two copies was a very happy accident, but the coupon book says it’s worth $20. For those who are interested, here are the coupons that were inside:

* $2 off when you buy both Pampers Diapers Box and any Pampers Wipes 180 ct. or larger
* $1 off any Vicks BabyRub
* $1.50 off any one Vicks Warm Steam Vaporizer
* $5 off one Braun ThermoScan Thermometer
* $1 off any Dreft 32 loads or larger
* $1 off one any size Charmin
* $1 off any one pack of Duracell Copper Top (specific sizes for AA, AAA, etc)
* $1 off any size Tide detergent
* $1 off any size or scent Bounce dryer bar
* $4 off any one Swiffer WetJet starter kit
* $2 off any one Venus razor
* $1 off any one Always Infinity package
* $1 off any one Vicks Vapo product
* $1 off any one Vicks NyQuil product
* $1 off any one Pepto product

So yeah, if anyone is going to Target and needs baby wipes, try to find a box that has the $15 savings inside label…it’s totally worth it.

I have noted before that I like to keep around $20 in CVS Extra Care Bucks put back, as a stash for the weeks when we’re tight on the budget. This was one of those weeks.

We had a lot of bills due, a lot of extra expenses that had to happen immediately, and a large enough gap between my invoices that there was a fairly well-defined deficit in this week’s cash on hand. Bless you, CVS ECB program…bless you.

We needed diapers…and with the way the little one pee pees every five seconds, we needed a hundred. And I am a brand snob when it comes to diapers. And we had $15.

1 item (on sale)

No coupons:
$9 CVS Extra Care Bucks (ECB) redeemed

TOTAL SPENT: 14.46
TOTAL SAVED: 11
ECB earned: 5

I’m not so concerned with our percent saved, but just happy that I had that stash. For the record, though, it was 43%.

Which reminds me…we gotta get on this potty-training thing. Aside from the fact that we should be doing it anyway, I’m tired of buying double diapers.