Stephani's Saturday Spotlight

Hello my favorite people =] If there is one thing I want more of on this blog, that is feedback from you all. Fortunately, my best friend Kelli is not shy at all when it comes to letting me know what needs improvement. So following her advice, I decided to start what we're going to call Stephani's Saturday Spotlight =] HAHAHA I love the name. [Thanks Kelli] 

Basically, what this will be is a blog, every Saturday, that provides you all with previews to the upcoming deals at Target, Walgreens, and CVS as well as the current Ad for Publix. [Deals at Publix run through Thursday-Wednesday of the next week, whereas Target, CVS, and Walgreens run from Sunday-Saturday.]  In addition to the actual ad, I'll link you guys to the AD match ups, which is a detailed list of the sales plus where to find the coupons for those deals. Finally, the Spotlight will include shopping scenarios for beginners like you, usually starting at $5-$10 Out of pocket, so that you guys can mimick and start saving with them. Now, all of these sources are not mine, instead I'll be linking you guys directly to other blogs where this content exists. Why? Because those bloggers have been doing this MUCH longer than me, and I learned all my stuff from them. So they get the credit. I hope this helps you guys take that extra step forward.

Let me know if you have any questions.

So here we go:

Publix 

Weekly Ad Match Ups 3/24-3/30

You can always view the actual Ad HERE

CVS

Weekly Ad 3/27-4/2
Ad Match Ups

Beginning Shopping Scenario

Walgreens

Weekly Ad 3/27-4/2

Target

Weekly Ad 3/27-4/2

Match ups

Best. Husband. Ever

What an awesome day! You know I truly believe the idea that behind every great woman is a great man. And in my case, that is my husband. In a short time of marriage, he already knows me so well. He knows how to make me happy in the simplest of ways. And I like to think that I don't make things too difficult =] For example, I'm definitely not the kind of woman who likes expensive things. Don't give me jewelry or expensive clothes, because I don't care about that kind of stuff. What matters is the thought behind the gift, and the selfless act of giving. I love gifts from the heart. So when my husband surprised me with a present today, I actually broke out in tears. No it wasn't a fancy gift or anything, it was my favorite subway sandwich and a $10 gift card to Walgreens  =]

This man is amazing, I must say. What meant the most is how well he knows me and knows how to make me happy. That was the best sandwich ever.

Anyways, I made a trip to Publix that I thought you guys would appreciate! Here it goes:

10 Muellers Pasta @ $1.49 B1G1 Free

- (10) $1/1 Muellers Pasta IP [sign up on website]

= - $2.55 of overage

2 Vigo rice [They ran out so I got a raincheck for more] @ $1.29 B1G1 Free

- (2) $.50/1 3/13 RP

= $.29 total

2 Country Crock Spread @ $2.37 B1G1 Free

- (2) $.40/1 IP

= $.79 each

1 Gallon Milk @ $3.59

= $2.90

So I paid less than the price of the gallon of milk for everything, including the milk!

Total spent: $2.90

Total Saved: $22.91

Donations:

All of the pasta! Worth about $15.

Back in the game =]

Yaaay! I finally caught up with getting Register Rewards! This trip was a big donation trip again, but honestly I just wanted to get rewards so I don't have to pay much in the future. Plus it was successful! I can't wait for you guys to see the Almay makeup deal!

I did 4 Transactions at one store, but it didn't take long at all because I was so organized and the cashier was so friendly. He kept saying he's coming shopping with me next time LOL. I love when the cashiers are so helpful and understanding.

Here was my trip. By the way I think I offically found my favorite Filler Item. If you don't know what a filler item is, here is an explanation. A register reward at Walgreens is a manufacturer coupon. So if I want to buy 1 item and it has a coupon for it already from the sunday paper or something, I can't pay with a register reward unless I have another item. This is the filler. Its a cheap cheap item you get so you can use your rewards to pay for items. And my stores are starting to get produce!! So my new filler is the .99 carrots! I love them. Our guinea pig loves carrots, so this helps us so much. He eats like one huge bag a week, and they cost the same at Publix, so we're saving money.

Transaction 1:

I just realized, they didn't scan my fourth Reach toothbrush coupon =[ But it is okay because I got $4 Register rewards even though I got the toothbrushes for free.

1 Plackers Floss picks $2 get $2 RR

1 Always Maxi Pads $2.99 get $2 RR

- (1) $1/1 Coupon from 2/27 P&G

1 Tena Ultra thin pads $9.99 get $10 RR

- (1) $2.50/1 IP

4 Reach Toothbrush $.99 with in ad coupon Get $4 RR

- (4) $1/1 IP [Give manufacturer coupons first].

2- 1 LB carrot $.99

Used $10, $3 RR from yesterday.

Got $10, $4, $2, $2

Spent: 

$2.75 including tax. [Should have been $1.75, and it was $1.33 of tax, so total cost before tax was only $.52!)

Saved:

$30.29 [Again, they forgot one of my coupons so it should have been $31.29]

Transaction 2:

1 Method handsoap $2.99 get $2 RR

1 Celadrin Joint softgels $10 get $10 RR [My father in law likes stuff like this]

Used $10, $2 RR from transaction 1 [Still have $2, 4]

Spent:

$1.21 including tax

Saved:

$25.49

Transaction 3:

1 Tena Ultra thin pads $9.99 get $10 RR

- (1) $2.50/1 IP

1 Plackers flossers $2 get $2 RR

1 Always Maxi pads $2.99 get $2 RR

- (1) $1/1 2/27 P&G

1 Carrots .99

Used $10, $2 RR

Spent:

$1.52 including tax. [1.05 was tax! Nuts right?]

Saved:

$22.29

Transaction 4:

Awesome deal. Almay cosmetics are 30% off this week. PLUS they are producing a $5 RR when you buy any one. PLUS there are 2 coupons out there, a $2/1 manufacturer from 3/6 SS and a $2/1 Walgreens coupon from the spring booklet. The booklet looks like this. I found it in cosmetics:

So I did this: 

1 Almay Eyeliner $6.15

- (1) $2/1 3/6 SS

- (1) $2/1 Walgreens booklet

1 M&M candy .49 [filler]

Used $2 RR

And got back a $5 RR!

Spent:

$1.11 including tax.

Saved:

$9.14

So I paid $1, got $5 RR AND an eyeliner. What an awesome deal. I'll be going back this week to buy the makeup remover and more eyeliner. Don't you love coupons??

Total Spent:

$6.59

Total Saved:

$87.21

This was an amazing trip. I have a ton to donate, plus I ended up with $23 in Register rewards! So I'm back in the game. And I can keep rolling them for huge savings.

Donations this week:

Worth over $40

Finally getting some Register Rewards!!

Hello! What a great week its been for me. Spring break! And I sure did take a break. No schoolwork, no worries. But I did need to keep up with my shopping trips so Fernando accompanied me on my trip Saturday. We went to three Walgreens and Walmart. 

At the first Walgreens, I had a TERRIBLE expereince. The Renuzit Adjustables were on sale for .79 and I had a Buy 3 Get 3 Free coupon. When I went down the aisle, I found a bunch of these Renuzits that were a "snowy" winter edition sent. They were marked at the same price as the "regular" scents so I thought hey! Nice find! So I got 6 and took them to the register. The cashier rang them up, no problem, but when it came to doing the math for the B3G3 coupon, she freaked out. She stared around her looking for help when all she had to do was mulitpy .79 times three. I mean for goodness sakes. So she got a manager to help her. Then the manager saw my "special" renuzits and angrily raised her voice at me insisting that THOSE were not included in the sale. So I asked, politely, what do you mean? They were in the same place as the others and they are covered by the B3G3 Coupon. And she snapped at me again insisting they weren't included. Now I'm all for being patient, but she had no right to raise her voice at me, the customer, when in the Walgreens ad is says Renuzit adjustables .79 7.5 OZ and does NOT specify a specific scent. What ever happened to the customor is always right? Well anyways I told fernando to go get 6 of the regular ones because I like those too. What I really wanted to do was say HEY LADY you have been unbelievably rude to me, so I'm not buying anything, but fernando came back with the 6 and I didn't want to make him feel bad for making the trip for me and I not even purchase them. So I bought them. I had to bag my own groceries, so I did so with an angry look on my face and letting out the occasional "Sigh" hoping for an apology. But I never got one. So I'm not going back there. It was already my least favorite walgreens but jeez. All the lady had to do was so "Oh I'm sorry ma'am but our store has chosen not to include the holiday scents in the sale" and I would have gone OKAY =] . But no, she yelled at me.

Well oh well I got what I needed and left.

 

6 Renuzit @ $.79

-(1) B3G3 Free Coupon [Takes off $2.37] 3/13 RP

Spent

= $2.71 including tax

Saved 

= $6.63

Then we moved onto Walgreens Number 2! By the way we have like 5 Walgreens in a 5 mile radius of our house lol. So I get to pick and choose.

This is what I got there:

4 Right Guard Body Wash @ $4.49 B1G1 Free

- (2) B1G1 Free coupon 3/13 RP

Spent 

= .63 all tax

Saved 

= $17.96

Then finally we moved onto Walmart. Now I honestly haven't shopped at WalMart since Christmas. I hate their coupon policy, but now they changed it for the better. It specifically specifies that the coupon amount CAN EXCEED the price of the item and that CHANGE can be given, or the overage can go towards paying for your other groceries! So I decided to take a donation trip, and get some things to donate. They only had 1 Yakisoba noodle left and they didn't have the Gain I was looking for for big overage. But either way it was a successful trip!

1 Yakisoba Noodles $.58

- (1) $.50/1 3/13 SS

6 Purex 3 in 1 travel size 2 count $.97 [Travel section had a ton of these]

- $1/1 ANY Purex 3 in 1 3/13 RP

This gave $.18 overage.

The subtotal was $-.10, and the 10 cents went towards paying tax. So the tax total was $.31 instead of $.41. 

Spent 

= $.31

Saved 

= $6.40

Then we headed to Walgreens 3. First I messed up and didn't reach the $20 required to get a $10 Register Reward when you buy Excedrin. So I had to buy an additional and they forced the reward.

6 Excedrin PM $5.99 B1G1 50%  plus buy $20 get $10 RR

- (3) $3.50/1 Coupon from internet awhile ago

- (3) $2.50/1 

Spent 

= $8.45

Saved

= $27.50

And I got back $13 RR. The machine had a $3 RR already in it when mine printed, so they let me keep it! And this will really help me get back into saving on future transactions.

So totals for today:

Spent including tax

=

$12.10

Saved 

=

$58.49

And I have $13 RR for Sunday's trip. This is awesome considering I had NO register rewards to start with like I usually do! Plus I have some stuff to donate =]

Donations this week:
Worth $6.50

My husband sabotaged my savings.

Hello again,

Since its spring break for me, I'll hopefully be out more and updating the blog more often. Here is a nice short trip to share with you guys. It was really easy to plan, and with amazing results! However, there was one thing that made my trip less successful. Fernando. Lol. If there's one bit of advice fellow couponers have given me that is true, that is that if you bring your spouse and/or kids along on your shopping trip, expect to spend more. Haha and today is a perfect example. 

 I had my trip all nice and planned out perfectly with an out of pocket expense of about $1 including tax. But when we hit the check out line, we decided to buy a bottle of water since it was so hot outside. Alright, I thought, thats not terrible. But then when the cashier was scanning my coupons, there was a problem. Bascally, at publix, if you have more coupons than items (And this is possible because you can use one manufacturer coupon and one store coupon on EACH item. So if you buy 4 things, you can technically use 8 coupons), then the register freaks out and requires a manager override. Since I was only one coupon over,  I figured I'd just add a candy bar so she could just put the coupon through and we could get out of there. The line was long and the cashier wasn't super friendly. So I, assuming that my husband would understand the situation, told him to pick a candy bar. Now, you guys have to understand that as a couponer, a last minute filler item in my eyes is the cheapest possible thing within reach. I was thinking he'd choose a .50 candy bar or something. But no, he chose the $1.39 King size snicker bar. Hahaha! We had a good laugh about it later but I thought it was funny that his candy bar alone cost more than my groceries. So here is my shopping trip minus the water and candy so you guys can copy it and get your own great deals!

Now let me explain myself. We don't have a dog. So whats with the Dentastix? Well, this week they were priced at Buy 1 Get 1 Free, for $3. A coupon from the 1/30 RP was for $2/1 Dentastix product. So by buying two and using two coupons, I got $1 of overage that went towards paying for my other groceries! And we have plenty of people in our family who have puppies and would appreciate the free treats. 

Bought 4 Pedigree Dentastix $3 B1G1 Free

- (4) $2/1 1/30 RP

=$2 Overage

2 Sundown Folic Acid Vitamins @ $3.79

- (2) $1/1 Sundown Vitamin 2/20 RP

- (1) $6/2 Publix Coupon in Green Flyer

= $.42 Overage

2 Sundown B6 Vitamins @ $3.59

- (2) $1/1 Sundown 2/20 RP

- (1) $6/2 

=$ .82 Overage

6 Viva Paper Towels Big Roll @ 2/$3

- (6) $.85/1 Viva Roll 3/13 SS

= $3.90

This is a great price for paper towels alone, let alone the amazing Viva ones. These are my favorite paper towels by the way. So I pretty much planned the trip so that I got the paper towels close to free.

Total Cost before Tax:

$.66!

Total Saved: 

$38.40!

Thats a total of  .11 Cents per roll! 

We will donate the Vitamins and give the dog treats to family =]

Just spreading the joy..

Hey guys! I felt a sudden urge to post a blog post. Its not entirely related to couponing, but who cares. This blog should be about more than showing my trips and giving you guys a bunch of numbers and transactions. Instead, I want to make it more friendly-- more welcoming. So its also a blog about my life! Hopefully it doesn't bore you to death. And don't be shy. Leave comments.

Now, there is an amazing website that I LOVE to use for special personalized items such as return address labels, notepads, notebooks, etc. What happens is every couple of weeks, the offer various items for free! So you personalize them, and pay just for shipping. If you choose the slowest shipping option, then its pretty cheap. Especially for the cute stuff you get. Like Fernando made me this super cute shopping bag with a peace sign on it for Christmas. 

Last week they had another promotion so I personalized all the free items and got them shipped. And this came today!

How cute is that?? I plan on using it as my bag for when I do my field work at elementary schools. Since I'm going into my Junior year at FIU, I've already starting student teaching/interning at schools. And this bag is perfect! It looks professional, plus it carries all my little supplies for note taking and everything. I actually have the cutest notebook coming in from vistaprint later this week!

So if you want to make personalized gifts I seriously recommend Vistaprint.com. I've made calendars, mugs, bags, and all kinds of amazing things. We have the coolest return address labels now.  

Noooow onto the next subject! Haha. I shared my interesting paper towel shopping experience with you guys yesterday. So then I got to cleaning out the hall closet to fit those plus the other multitudes of paper towels and toilet paper I've been stocking up on all this month and last. And here is the result.

It definitely puts a smile on my face. When I think about it, I don't think I paid more than $15 bucks for everything you see in this picture. And I probably saved over $50. Now you may be asking why on earth does anyone need that much toilet paper and paper towels? Well its simple. They're going to get used. With a house of 4, they'll probably be gone in a good 3 months. And considering I got everything at an awesome price, it was worth the work. Now we have the convenience of just walking to our closet and choosing whatever we need. Its a beautiful thing =]

So I hope this encourages you guys to keep trying and saving money. Things really do pay off.

I used all my rewards! =/

Hey everyone! I'm so happy to be back into blogging. This week in school was hectic, and I've been sick all weekend! But thankfully I have the best husband ever who took wonderful care of me. We went to see Beastly last night. The first chick flick I've seen in awhile! And it was pretty good. It was nice to get out of the house.. But lets move onto the deals. Basically, today I found myself down to $18 rewards that were going to expire today at Walgreens. Although there were a couple items I could have bought, paid nothing for, and got back $20 rewards for next week, I didn't need them! This week, all that is free after rewards is some Arthritis Cream and a Diabetes testing meter. So I had two choices... Roll my rewards so I can use them next week, or just use them up buying stuff we actually need! SO I went with choice two.

Now, you shouldn't see me using all my rewards as a bad thing necesarily. A lot of couponers earn the rewards and then use them to buy things they need such as diapers, toilet paper, etc. Well, this week I felt like stocking up on paper towels and Renuzit fresheners. 

Let me explain the difference between blowing all your rewards and using them to their fullest extent. If I were to blow all my rewards, I'd buy some crap like candy, soda, or junk for a movie. But what I did was make my $18 in rewards go a long way towards getting the things we needed. So this is what I bought!

And TONS of paper towels.

Now, let me explain myself. If you read the "How to Begin" section, then you realize the strategy of stocking up. What this means is when I find the best possible price on something I always need, then I'll stock up on it at THAT price so that I don't have to buy it at a higher price later. 

The picture above is a perfect example. We really use a lot of paper towels. On average, the normal price for paper towels on sale, plus with a simple coupon is probably $1 per roll. Sometimes you can get it for closer to $.80 a roll. Well, these paper towels, Tuf, were on sale 2/$1. While they may not be a big name brand, they get the job done. And for a great price. So in 2 stores, and 4 separate transactions, we picked up 16 Rolls. The limit was 4 per person. So at each store, hubby and I did a transaction.

Now the renuzits, although do not last long (I don't recommend them if thats why you want them), they are perfect for neutralizing the smell from our guinea pig cage. That fatty is in our bedroom. And he SMELLS so quickly. Lol. So what we do is put a renuzit on top of his cage and this helps so much! But we probably go through 2 a week to keep the smell away. They work like a charm, and nothing else does the job. Sure candles could help, but these things are perfect. So this week they were at Walgreens for .79. First of all, this is already a low price for them. But in today's Smartsource was a coupon for Buy 3 and get 3 Free. So in essence, you'll buy 6, and each one equals about $.40. That is a stock up price!! So we got those in 3 transactions at 2 stores. They'll only last a couple months but they fit perfectly in the little box we have especially for him in the closet. So we're really happy!

Here were my transactions...

Transaction 1:

4 Right Guard Body Wash $5.49 B1G1 Free

-(2) B1G1 Free Coupons 

= Free

1 Herbal essence Shampoo $2.99 get $1 RR

1 Aussie Styler $2.99

- (1) B1G1 Free styler

- (1) $1/1 Herbal essence

= $1.99 for both

3 Dial Handsoap $.99

- (3) $.35/1 

=$.64 each

2 Renuzit Crystal Elements $3.99 Each

- (2) $3/1 coupon

=$.99 each

4 Tuf Paper Towels 2/$1

3 Scotch Mailers 3/$1 [Needed this]

6 Renuzit Singles .79 each

- (1) B3G3 Free

= $.40 each

1 Dial Nutriskin Lotion $4.99 get $3 RR

- (1) $1/1 Coupon

Used $18 in RR's

Paid $2.12 OP including Tax.

Total Saved $69.66

Got $4 RR back.

Again, now I had barely any rewards, but we got what we needed and I definitely made the $18 rewards go a long way!

Transaction 2 (Fernando)

4 Tuf Paper Towels 2/$1

6 Renuzit Singles $.79 each

- (1) B3G3 Free

=.40 each

= $4.85

Saved $2.37

Then we moved on to the next store where I did the same transaction above, except I paid with my 4 rewards. So I paid $.85 OP. Then in the second transaction we bought just paper towels for $2.14.

So todays totals were:

Spent: 

$9.96

Saved:

$78.40

And thats it for today! We have 16 rolls of paper towels, 16 Renuzit fresheners, 4 Right guard body washes (all free), more shampoo, lotion, and handsoap all for the price of 9 paper towels rolls on regular price! 

So really as a couponer you have to make decisions. I could have walked out today with arthritis cream, a blood glucose meter, and $20 Register rewards. But what good would that do me, being non-diabetic and non-arthritic? 

So I made $18 register rewards go a long way. It will probably take me a couple of weeks to get back on track but in no time I'll have a stock of rewards built up again!

No regrets. I love my paper towel stock =]