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Archive for the ‘Fred Meyer’ Category
Friday, August 21st, 2009
I have a special shopping trip to report today – because my whole trip was paid for by Johnson & Johnson. You see, I was selected to be a J&J Cause Party hostess, which means that on Saturday I will be hosting a charity fundraiser in my home to benefit one of my favorite causes. Johnson & Johnson are providing all the party supplies – they’ve sent me party favors for all the guests and a $300 stipend. $100 of this will be donated to charity, and the other $200 is to be used to purchase food for the party.
The charity that I have chosen is LifeStraw, a personal water purification device that makes filthy water drinkable. Each guest is being asked to bring $6.50, which is the cost to deliver one LifeStraw into the hands of an African child. The point of the cause party is to show that a little bit can make a big difference – so this program is right up my alley!
Yesterday night I headed over to Fred Meyer to pick up a few things for the party. I normally prefer to make most of my own food for gatherings, but since I’m short on time this week and will have a lot of people attending, I decided to keep it simple and stick to pre-packaged and easy to prepare foods. This is just a small portion of what we’ll be having – I’ll be doing the rest of the shopping today, so that the perishable items will be fresh for the party.
Total: $61.70 – all paid for by Johnson & Johnson, and I still have $138.30 left to buy the rest of the party food with.
Total before store coupons & bag credit: $72.33
The hard drive just went out on my main computer, so I can’t currently use my scanner – I will upload the receipt as soon as my system is back up and running!
Got:
1 package of paper plates (115 total) – price: $4.99
2 packages of hot dog buns – your first two are .39 cents each, and each additional after that is .89, so I figured I’d split it up between trips and buy a few more next time. Total cost: .78 cents
2 packages of hamburger buns – same price as above. Total cost: .78 cents
2 value packs of chips (44 bags altogether) – $5.99 each. Notice how I picked the package that contains $50 worth of coupons! Total cost: $11.98
1 package of foam cups (51 total) – price: $1.49
1 package of napkins (250 total) – price: $2.39
6 boxes of soda (72 cans total) – originally priced at $2.50 each, used a “6 for $10” coupon from the Fred Meyer sales flier to bring the price down to roughly $1.67 each, plus .60 cents for the bottle deposit. Total cost: $13.60
4.03 lbs of chicken drumsticks – price: $3.99
4.14 lbs of chicken drumsticks – price: $4.10
3.61 lbs of chicken drumsticks – price: $3.57
4.85 lbs of chicken thighs – price: $2.57. Unfortunately, the package smelled a little funny when I got it home (and I haven’t opened it) – I don’t know for sure if it’s “off”, but there’s no way I’m cooking anything even slightly dodgy. I have no idea if I’ll be able to return it, but if not, I’ll just have to call it a loss.
4 lbs of butter – originally priced at $2.39 each, used a coupon from the Fred Meyer sales flier to bring the price down to $1.25. Total cost: $5.00
2 half-gallons of milk – originally priced at $1.59 each, used a coupon from the Fred Meyer sales flier to bring the price down to .88 cents. Total cost: $1.76
5 packages of hot dogs (40 hot dogs total) – .99 cents each, total cost: $4.95
Posted in Cause Party, Fred Meyer | No Comments »
Monday, June 1st, 2009
Yesterday was the first big shopping trip I’ve done since getting back from England, and it was a lot of fun. I got $38.28 worth of groceries for $12.18:
First stop, Fred Meyer:
Total spent: $5.00
Total before coupons: $11.10
View receipt
I got a flier in the mail from Fred Meyer that contained some awesome coupons. There was a coupon good for $3 off any seafood purchase, and another for $3 off any meat department purchase. So I put them to good use!
Got:
4.23 pounds of chicken – on sale for $3.34, used my $3 off meat coupon. Final cost: .34 cents.
1.16 pounds of shrimp – on sale for $3.47, used my $3 off seafood coupon. Final cost: .47 cents.
One Sunday newspaper – more coupons! Final cost: $2.50.
A ten-pound bag of potatoes – on my menu this week. Final cost: $1.79.
I also received .10 cents in credit for bringing my own bags.
My next stop was Walgreens. There’s a great Register Reward deal on Ecotrin this week, and because of the way that Register Rewards work, I ended up going through the line 10 times. It was well worth my time, and the cashier just thought it was funny. She was required to ask each customer if they wanted to add M&Ms to their purchase, so each time I came through, she said “Would you like some M&Ms this time? How about now?”. It was entertaining!
Transaction #1:
Total spent: Zero. And I got back $2 in Register Rewards!
Total before coupons: $2.00
View receipt
Got:
One 45-count box of Ecotrin aspirin – on sale for $2.00, used one $2.00/1 printable. Final price: Free, and I received a $2 Register Reward for the purchase!
Transaction #2:
Total spent: $4.29
Total before coupons: $6.29
View receipt
Got:
One 30-count box of makeup removers – on sale for $6.29, used the $2 Register Reward that I had just earned. Final cost: $4.29.
No super deals here, just something I needed. I pay more for this brand because it’s the only makeup remover that doesn’t give me a giant rash!
Transaction #3:
Total spent: Zero. And I got back $2 in Register Rewards!
Total before coupons: $2.00
View receipt
Got:
One 45-count box of Ecotrin aspirin – on sale for $2.00, used one $2.00/1 printable. Final price: Free, and I received a $2 Register Reward for the purchase!
Transaction #4:
Total spent: .89 cents
Total before coupons: $2.89
View receipt
Got:
One quart of Coffee-Mate – we were almost out! On sale for $2.89, used the $2 Register Reward that I had just earned. Final cost: .89 cents.
Transaction #5:
Total spent: Zero. And I got back $2 in Register Rewards!
Total before coupons: $2.00
View receipt
Got:
One 45-count box of Ecotrin aspirin – on sale for $2.00, used one $2.00/1 printable. Final price: Free, and I received a $2 Register Reward for the purchase! I’m able to print coupons from my laptop, my desktop computer, and Jai’s computer, which is how I am able to get multiple copies.
Transaction #6:
Total spent: Zero!
Total before coupons: $2.00
View receipt
Got:
8 packets of Ramen noodles – it’s going to be an especially hectic week, so I wanted to have some quick lunches on hand. On sale for .25 cents each, used the $2 Register Reward that I had just earned. Final cost: Free!
Transaction #7:
Total spent: Zero. And I got back $2 in Register Rewards!
Total before coupons: $2.00
View receipt
Got:
One 45-count box of Ecotrin aspirin – on sale for $2.00, used one $2.00/1 printable. Final price: Free, and I received a $2 Register Reward for the purchase!
Transaction #8:
Total spent: $1.00
Total before coupons: $3.00
View receipt
Got:
2 cans of Cream of Mushroom soup – I want to make tuna noodle casserole this week, and the soup is the only thing I was missing. One sale 2 for $3.00, used the $2 Register Reward that I had just earned. Final price: $1.00.
Transaction #9:
Total spent: Zero. And I got back $2 in Register Rewards!
Total before coupons: $2.00
View receipt
Got:
One 45-count box of Ecotrin aspirin – on sale for $2.00, used one $2.00/1 printable. Final price: Free, and I received a $2 Register Reward for the purchase!
Transaction #10:
Total spent: $1.00
Total before coupons: $3.00
View receipt
Got:
1 pound of bacon – bacon sandwiches also make for a quick lunch! On sale for $3.00, used the $2 Register Reward that I had just earned. Final price: $1.00.
So I got everything on my shopping list, and I’ve also got enough aspirin to last me forever! And there was still lots of Ecotrin on the shelf after I was done, so there will be plenty left for other customers as well.
Posted in Fred Meyer, Meat Deals, Walgreens | No Comments »
Monday, April 6th, 2009
We drove down to Portland this weekend, and were able to snag some great deals on our way home!
First, we stopped at a Fred Meyer in Portland to grab some Starbucks coffees. While our drinks were being made, I noticed a newspaper that someone had left behind on a table, which happened to be full of inserts. Free coupons! Hooray!
Then we stopped in Beaverton so that I could visit a K-Mart store. You see, I entered the Score Great Prizes sweepstakes at the beginning of the year, and ended up winning a $50 K-Mart gift card. I was excited to use my prize, and I knew exactly what I wanted to get – a new vacuum. Mine has been on the fritz for months, and I’ve been shopping around for a new one. I kept thinking, “There’s got to be a better deal than what I’m finding,” so I patiently used a broom while I looked for a bargain. And I’m so glad that I did!
Total spent: $4.99 in cash, put $50 on my K-Mart gift card
Total before coupons: $59.99
View receipt
I picked out this awesome Eureka vacuum, which was priced at $59.99. I had a coupon good for $5 off a $50 purchase that I received by signing up for their email list, which brought the total down to $54.99. I then used my $50 gift card prize, which left me with a grand total of only $4.99!
Right next to K-Mart was a Grocery Outlet “Bargain Market” store. I’ve always loved these outlets, so I thought I’d pop in and have a look after I got my vacuum. I needed to pick up a few pantry staples anyway, and even though I didn’t use coupons, the shelf prices were pretty low.
Total spent: $11.26
View receipt
Got:
1 lb. of bacon – price: $1.69
8 oz brick of cheese – price: $1.99
1.5 lbs of coffee – price: $5.99
Half a gallon of milk – price: $1.59
Posted in Fred Meyer, Grocery Outlet, K-Mart | 1 Comment »
Friday, March 20th, 2009
Decent shopping trip yesterday – picked up some things I needed for $5.08:
  My first stop was Fred Meyer:
Total spent: $5.08
Total before coupons: $10.88
View receipt
Got:
4.46 pounds of chicken drumsticks – Originally $6.60, this chicken had been marked down to $4.59. I also had a coupon for $1 off any Foster Farms chicken, which I got in the mail from the company. Final price: $3.59.
I have a few of these Foster Farms coupons, and they expire at the end of this month, so I want to make sure that I use them. We’ve eaten our way through most (though not all) of the meat in the freezer, so this is good timing. I had such a stockpile of meat built up that I don’t think I’ve bought any since this trip in September.
5 four-packs of Cottonelle TP – on sale for $1.19. First, I used a coupon for .75 cents off, which I believe came from the Madre y Mujer coupon book; this made the first 4-pack .44 cents. Then I used four $1/1 printables that we received for signing up on the Cottonelle website – making the rest of the 4-packs .19 cents each.
The Madre y Mujer booklet is free to sign up for and has all kinds of good coupons in it – the form is in Spanish, but it’s easy to figure out even if you don’t speak the language.
1 head of garlic – price: .34 cents.
Next stop, Walgreens:
Total spent: Nothing out of pocket, put $3.32 on my rebate gift card
Total before coupons: $8.15
View receipt
Got:
1 gallon of milk – price: $2.19
1 package of coffee filters – price: $1.19
6 Reeses Whipps candy bars – used a coupon from the Walgreens sales flier to bring the price down to .49 cents each; then I was able to stack it with three $1/2 coupons from the 1/4 Smart Source newspaper inserts. Final price: Free plus .01 cent of overage each!
My final stop was Safeway, to pick up some half and half:
Total spent: Nothing out of pocket, put .76 cents on my free Safeway gift card
Total before coupons: $2.29
View receipt
Got:
1 quart of half and half – on sale for $2.29, used a catalina for $1.50 off my next grocery purchase that I received when I purchased coffee on Wednesday. Final price after catalina and bag credit: .76 cents.
Posted in Fred Meyer, Safeway, Walgreens | No Comments »
Saturday, January 24th, 2009
Fred Meyer:
Total spent: .98 cents
Total before coupons: $1.98
View receipt
Got:
2 four-packs of Cottonelle TP – used two .50/1 printables. Final price: .49 cents each.
When I posted recently about the lack of good toilet paper deals in this area, loyal reader Margery suggested I check Fred Meyer’s price on Cottonelle. It was a great tip – and since there seem to be a lot of Cottonelle coupons out there right now, I’ll be sure to go back for more.
Walgreens:
Total spent: $9.99 – but I will receive $10.98 back in rebates!
Total before coupons: $73.95
View receipt
Got:
2 bags of chocolate-covered Macadamia nuts – on sale for $2 each, used a $3/2 coupon from the Easysaver rebate book. Final price: .50 cents each.
1 Revlon eyeliner – Free after rebate, and I also used a $1/1 coupon from the 10/12 Smart Source newspaper inserts, resulting in a $1 profit. I also get an additional 10% back on each rebate for choosing a gift card instead of a check, resulting in a net profit of $1.99.
4 One Touch blood glucose monitors – on sale for $14.99, used four coupons good for up to $20 off, found in the 1/4 Red Plum newspaper inserts. Final price: Free! These will be great items to donate.
Posted in Fred Meyer, Walgreens | 1 Comment »
Monday, December 29th, 2008
Last Monday, I hobbled through the snow and ice to do my Christmas shopping. This year, I decided to put together gift bags full of homemade goodies for everyone on my list. These are the items I bought to make presents with – keep in mind, while this was expensive for a grocery run, these supplies provided Christmas gifts for all our friends and family in addition to filling the pantry.
First stop, Walgreens:
Total spent: Put $27.96 on two gift cards, spent $4.94 out of pocket. And I’m getting $2.20 back in rebates!
Total before coupons: $36.70
View receipt
Got:
1 package of red & green tissue paper
1 jar of instant coffee – used a coupon from the sales flier to bring the price down from $7.79 to $3.99
1 bottle of vegetable oil
1 8 oz bag of cheese
2 lbs. of margarine
2 boxes of ziploc bags – 50 altogether
2 packages of tape – 6 rolls altogether, 2 for $5. And I will get $2.20 back in Easysaver rebates for purchasing two packages.
2 bags of tortilla chips
1 big roll of cling film
1 roll of foil
I was able to use my $25 prescription gift card and my 10% bonus gift card to pay for almost all of this, which was nice. When I handed the cashier my one coupon, he said, “Is that it? You usually have a lot more than that!” I told him that I had gift cards, and that I use those to pay for things that I don’t have coupons for. He said, “That makes sense. I though you were getting lazy!” My reputation precedes me!
Next stop, Fred Meyer:
Total spent: $37.46
Total before coupons: $41.59
View receipt
Got:
1 2 pound bag of confectioner’s sugar – used an in-store coupon to save .24 cents
1 25 pound bag of sugar
4 bags of flour – 20 pounds altogether
1 bottle of Odwalla Juice – used a free coupon that I received in the mail
1 Odwalla bar – used a “Buy one Odwalla juice, get one Odwalla bar free” coupon that I got in a trade ages ago
2 cans of refried beans
1 can of black olives
1 8 oz bottle of powdered coffee mate
1 jar of salsa
1 Avocado
2 dozen cage-free eggs
1 Pledge duster – The only reason I bought this was because my feather duster wore out, and I could not find a regular feather duster anywhere! When did this become such a hard to find item? I limped up and down the store looking for one, and all I could find was this for $2.79. Well, I take that back; I did finally locate a regular feather duster by Mr. Clean that they wanted $8.00 for! I was bummed, because I knew I had Pledge coupons at home that would have made this cheaper, but I wasn’t about to drive half and hour to go home and get them. But I’m glad that I bought it, because it actually works much better than my old duster.
While $37 is unusually high for me, I bought these supplies specifically to make Christmas presents with. And since this left me with very full cupboards as well as taking care of all my gifts, I think I did OK. I definitely overbought, but the store was such a nightmare to navigate with the holiday rush and I didn’t want to go back!
Next stop, Costco:
Total spent: $15.99 – no coupons
View receipt
Got:
1 box of makeup removers – 120 altogether
We got a Costco membership as a gift last year, and while the prices are very competitive, I don’t shop there that often because they don’t accept manufacturer’s coupons. However, there were no good sales on this makeup remover anywhere else, so it was cheaper for me to get it here – usually, a box of 30 runs about $5.99 at other stores. I’m not a “brand loyal” person, but I always get this kind because it is the only makeup remover I’ve tried that can effectively remove my makeup without giving my sensitive skin a huge rash.
And finally, I needed gift bags to put all my presents in, so I stopped by the Paper Factory party store:
Total spent: $10.96 – no coupons
View receipt
Got:
2 bags of bows – 50 altogether. These were only .39 cents each, so I had to buy some!
1 Christmas card
2 packages of party favor bags – 40 altogether
1 package of 10 gift bags
9 individual gift bags
I usually stock up on gift wrap during after-holiday clearance (I still have rolls and rolls of wrapping paper that was .77 cents last year), but I was almost out of gift bags. And these worked out so well that I went back the next day and bought another 20-pack of favor bags and a spool of holiday ribbon for $2.98.
So are you wondering what kind of things I made to stuff these gift bags with? Check back tomorrow for a special holiday edition of the Coupon Funded Menu Corner!
Posted in Costco, Fred Meyer, Holidays, Walgreens | No Comments »
Sunday, November 23rd, 2008
Total spent: $4.99 – but I will get that back in a rebate, making it free. Plus, I got a $7 Register Reward for purchasing it!
Total before coupons: $6.99
View receipt
Got:
1 box of Just For Men haircolor
I used a $2/1 printable to bring the price down, and I will also mail in this “Try Me Free” rebate form . The form just says “Get an $8 refund”, but I don’t know if they’ll send me $8 or the $4.99 that I paid for it. Either way, it’s free, with possible profit. I definitely don’t need any Just For Men, but I can always use a $7 Register Reward, and I figured that was a pretty good deal for the .42 cent stamp it will cost me to mail the rebate in.
If anyone has any suggestions as to where I can donate this product, I’m all ears!
Then I went through the line again to spend my Register Reward:
Total spent: .48 cents
Total before coupons: $8.86
View receipt
Got:
1 pound of butter
1 gallon of milk – I checked the expiration date very carefully!
1 can of mushrooms
1 can of mandarin oranges – the canned items were two for $1 with a coupon from the Walgreens sales flier.
Then I made a quick stop at Fred Meyer:
Total spent: $6.18. This was the full price, as I didn’t have any coupons for these items.
View receipt
Got:
1 package of first aid gauze
1 roll of first aid tape
I had just gotten through with an appointment at the podiatrist, because of a toe problem. She advised that I bandage it up in a certain way after she treated it, and I didn’t have any first aid coupons, so I had to pay full price. I had gotten my fill of hobbling through the stores at this point, and I just wanted to get the items and get out of there.
Posted in Fred Meyer, Walgreens | No Comments »
Tuesday, November 18th, 2008
Total spent: $6.80 out of pocket, and put $9.61 on a gift card. And I will get back $7.68 in rebates!
Total before coupons: $33.51
View receipt
Got:
4 bottles of Coffee-Mate – Used one .50/1 coupon from the 11/2 Red Plum newspaper inserts, one $1.00/2 Coffee-Mate catalina that I got at Walgreens recently, and the “Buy One, Get One Free” coupon that was in last week’s Walgreens sales flier.
1 Almay Mascara – Free after rebate. I used a $1/1 Almay coupon from the 8/3 Smart Source newspaper inserts to gain me a dollar profit.
1 box of Olay makeup removers
2 cans of Carnation Evaporated Milk – used a coupon from the Walgreens sales flier to make them .99 cents each, and then used a $1/2 printable to make them .49 cents each.
2 cans of Libby’s Pumpkin – used another coupon from the Walgreens sales flier to make them .99 cents each, and used another $1/2 printable to make the final price .49 cents each.
1 box of trash bags
1 8×10 photo print – Got it developed for free using the (now expired) deal I mentioned a little while back.
I also used the $5 off a $20 purchase coupon that was valid last Friday and Saturday.
Sadly, my store didn’t have any baking powder in stock, so no cheap baking powder for me.
There were no coupons for the trash bags or makeup removers, but they were things I needed. I’m brand loyal to the Olay because it’s the only makeup remover I’ve found that doesn’t give me a horrible rash.
After Walgreens, I stopped by Ross:
This cute little black dress was on clearance for $2.99!
Then it was on to Fred Meyer:
Total spent: $9.94
Total before coupons: $12.09
View receipt
Got:
1 gallon of milk
2 strips of Fleischmann’s yeast – on sale for $1.50 each, used one .65/1 coupon from the 11/2 Smart Source newspaper inserts, and one “Buy One, Get One Free” coupon from the 10/5 Smart Source newspaper inserts. And I got two .50 catalinas back for purchasing them!
.86 pounds of broccoli
.86 pounds of fair trade coffee
I splurged on the coffee! For the last few months, I’ve been using catalinas or overage at Safeway to pay for it. This month is pretty blah at Safeway, so I figured I’d just pick it up at Fred Meyer, since it’s only $6.99 per pound, as opposed to $9.99 at Safeway.
Last month’s $20 budget challenge was a lot of fun, but I think for November I’ll be spending closer to $25 or $30, since the sales aren’t as fantastic this month. It’s still amazing to me that I consider $30 for all our monthly food & supplies to be “expensive”.
Then I went through the line to roll my $1 in catalinas:
Total spent: Zero
Total before coupons: $3.15
View receipt
Got:
2 strips of yeast – used the .65/1 and “Buy One, Get One Free” coupons mentioned above
1 package of Ramen
After coupons, my total cost for the yeast was .85 cents. In order to use my $1 in catalinas, I knew I would need a small filler item. Lucky for me, the ramen was only .15 cents, which brought my total to exactly one dollar! I used my catalinas to make the purchase free, and got another $1 in catalinas back!
I always need yeast for my breadmaker, so this is a great catalina deal for me! I read about this originally on Hot Coupon World. I believe other stores may be running this deal as well. I had heard that it was supposed to be going on at Safeway, but apparently my Safeway has stopped carrying Fleischmann’s. I’m not sure how long this deal is going on for, but when I get more yeast coupons, I’ll try it again.
Then I went through one last time to use up my catalinas:
Total spent: .10 cents
Total before coupons: $1.10
View receipt
Got:
.83 pounds of carrots
.89 pounds of onion
Posted in Fred Meyer, Ross, Walgreens | No Comments »
Tuesday, November 4th, 2008
Every year, I throw a huge Halloween bash, and spend a lot of time cooking loads of food for it. Here’s the grocery run that I made the day before the party:
Total spent: $7.65 cash out of pocket, put 64.66 on 2 different gift cards
Total before coupons: $96.45
View receipt #1
View receipt #2
View receipt #3
View receipt #4 – one of my items rang up twice, so they had to return $1 to my gift card
View receipt #5
View receipt #6
View receipt #7
View receipt #8
I didn’t use as many coupons as I might have normally, because I was in such a rush to get everything done for the party in time. But that’s okay, because I had a backup plan – my gift cards. I had one gift card that I earned for free for filling a prescription at Rite Aid, and a gift card for Walgreens that had my rebates loaded onto it. I’ve been able to slowly grow the amount on my Walgreens gift card and turn a profit by using coupons on rebate items, and by receiving a 10% bonus each time for opting to receive the rebates in gift card form.
There was one minor hitch in my plans at Fred Meyer, when I purchased 2 of the Glade plug-ins and only got one $4 catalina back. According to Common Sense With Money, the offer changed and was only printing one no matter how many you purchased. I had planned to whittle down my expenses by doing this deal a few times, but oh well!
So here’s what I picked up in anticipation of the shindig:
2 lipsticks
2 eyeliner pencils (the makeup was for my costume)
2 packages of fun sized Reeses Peanut Butter Cups
1 bag of fun sized Nestle Crunch – On sale for $1.88, used a $1/1 printable, which I believe is no longer available.
1 bag of fun sized Baby Ruth – Used same coupon as above – .38 cents a bag after coupons and doubles
A 5 pound bag of flour
4 cans of Swanson vegetable broth – used a coupon for .40 cents off four cans from the 9/28 Smart Source newspaper inserts
A 32 ounce bottle of Coffee Mate – used a .75/1 catalina that I received recently
2 Zone bars – on sale for $1, used two $1/1 coupons – free plus .50 cents of overage each after doubles
2 packages of Hot Dogs
1 Avocado
A 12 ounce bag of Starbucks coffee
1 big bag of gummy body parts
An 8 pack of Junior Mints
2 Glade Plug-Ins – used a “Buy One, Get One Free” coupon from the 9/28 Smart Source newspaper inserts
1 pound of Broccoli
1 pound of apples
1.63 pounds of organic bananas
1 jumbo head of garlic
1 can of refried beans
6 bags of plastic utensils – 144 pieces altogether
A huge bag of paper plates (I think there were 240 plates, but I threw away the bag)
A whole bunch of paper cups (There were 60 cups, I believe – I threw away the bag for this also)
3 pounds of butter
6 pounds of sugar
2 Halloween figurines
1 gallon of milk
1 skull goblet
1 box of baking soda
An 8 ounce bag of cheese
2 bags of tortilla chips
36 skull rings
Check back tomorrow for Part II, and I’ll show you the spooky buffet I served, how many guests it fed, and how much we have left over!
Posted in Entertaining, Fred Meyer, Rite Aid, Safeway, Walgreens | No Comments »
Saturday, October 25th, 2008
Friday’s shopping trip – $162.56 worth of merchandise for .28 cents!
I started at Walgreens:
Total spent: .10 cents out of pocket, put $16.78 on my rebate gift card. But I will get back $19.99 in rebates, plus a 10% bonus for loading them onto a gift card – for a total of $21.98 in rebates. And, I got an $8 Register Reward catalina back!
Total before coupons: $73.59
View receipt – My total after the gift card was actually .11 cents, but the cashier picked a penny out of the “take-a-penny” dish and said, “Here! I’ve got a penny, just give me a dime!”. That was nice of her!
Got:
3 boxes of Benefiber mix – on sale for $7.99, used three $2/1 coupons from the 10/19 Smart Source newspaper inserts, stacked with a $5/1 coupon from the EasySaver rebate booklet. This brought the total to $2.97 for three boxes, and I earned the $8 Register Reward for purchasing them!
1 package of 10 disposable gloves
1 bottle of Pert Plus – on sale for $3.49, used a $2/1 coupon from the 10/19 Smart Source newspaper inserts, stacked with a $2.50/1 coupon from the EasySaver booklet. Free plus $1.01 in overage!
1 bottle of L’oreal moisturizer – $19.99, used a $1/1 coupon from the 8/3 Red Plum newspaper inserts. And I will get back a $21.98 rebate for this purchase!
10 bars of Lindt chocolate – On sale for $2.29, and I used five .75/1 coupons and five “Buy One, Get One Free” coupons from the 10/5 inserts. Stacked with a $1 coupon from the EasySaver catalog, this resulted in .46 cents of overage for every 2 bars purchased.
5 Halloween bags
I also used a coupon for $5 off a purchase of $20 or more, which is valid only during the 24th and 25th. Heading to Walgreens today? Print one here!
Then I went through the line once more to spend my Register Reward:
Total spent: .18 cents
Total before coupons: $8.18
View receipt
Got:
1 gallon of milk
1 package of TP – There were several coupons that I could have used on this, but it didn’t occur to me at the time.
1 roll of foil
1 peanut butter cup
Then I headed to Fred Meyer:
Total spent: Nothing out of pocket, put $4.98 on the gift card I got for my birthday. And I got back $8 in catalinas!
Total before coupons: $12.76
View receipt
Got:
2 Glade Scented Oil Plug-Ins – used one “Buy One, Get One Free” coupon from the 9/28 Smart Source inserts
1 Glade Gel Plug-In – I found a catalina on the shelf for a free gel plug-in!
1 trial sized Zantac – on sale for .99 cents, used a $1 off any size Zantac coupon from the 9/7 Smart Source newspaper inserts. Free plus a cent overage!
Fred Meyer is running the Glade catalina deal as well, so I thought it would be a good investment to do the deal there a few times. Fred Meyer is a great place to spend catalinas because their prices are much lower than Safeway. Of course, Fred Meyer is also a 30 minute drive from me and they do not double coupons, so I factor all that in when determining where to get the best deal.
Then I went back through the line to roll my $8 in catalinas:
Total spent: Nothing out of pocket, put .47 on my birthday gift card
Total before coupons: $14.46
View receipt
Got:
2 Glade Warmers – once again, I used one “Buy One, Get One Free” coupon from the 9/28 Smart Source inserts
1 box of band-aids
1 package of Kotex – used one $1/1 coupon from the 10/12 Smart Source newspaper inserts
I then used my $8 in catalinas to bring the total down to .47 cents, and got another $8 in catalinas back!
Then I made one last trip through the line, to use up my catalinas:
Total spent: Nothing out of pocket, put .29 cents on my birthday gift card
Total before coupons: $47.29
View receipt
Got:
1 package of Kotex – used one $1/1 coupon from the 10/12 Smart Source newspaper inserts
A 5 pound bag of flour
A pound of onions
.41 pounds of mushrooms
A pound of tomatoes
An 8 ounce bag of cheese
38 Brut deodorants – on sale for $1, used thirty eight $1/1 coupons that I found in the store!
I then used my $8 in catalinas to bring the total down to .29 cents!
So while I was shopping, I noticed a lot of coupons hanging on the shelf for various products. One was for $1 off any size Brut deodorant or antiperspirant – and it was hanging right next to some Brut deodorant that was on sale for $1! The cashier was amazed, and so were the people in line behind me. I explained where to find the coupons – I made sure to leave product and coupons on the shelf for other customers – and the lady behind me actually got out of line and went to get some deodorant for herself!
Now, you’re probably thinking that this is excessive – why on earth would I buy 38 deodorants? How could I possibly use that much deodorant? The reason I got that many is because most of it is not for us. My aunt is involved with a local food bank, and told me a few days ago that they have a big need right now for personal products, like deodorant and toothpaste. So I put a few deodorants aside for my boyfriend, and will be taking the rest to the food bank. I hate clutter, and there is a place and purpose for everything that I purchase – even if it doesn’t always seem that way!
My final trip was to Rite Aid, to get some potting soil:
Total spent: Nothing out of pocket, put $6.28 on a gift card. I have yet to find coupons for potting soil, so this was the full price!
View receipt
Got: 2 bags of potting soil
I didn’t get a picture of the bags before using them, so here’s a snapshot of my planter. I want to start growing some of my own produce, and this is apparently the week to plant garlic, so that’s what I did. I thought this was a good investment towards next year’s food budget!
And in case you’re wondering how I got the gift card, I received it several months ago for filling a prescription at Rite Aid.
Posted in Fred Meyer, Produce Deals, Rite Aid, Walgreens | 1 Comment »
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