CVS - Just an okay week

I finally went to CVS week to make a deal as I hadn't been in a couple of weeks. It wasn't the best deal, but I was happy.

The Kotex was on sale for $1.39 at our CVS with Extra Bucks in the amount of $1.49 - that's a 10 cent money maker right there. It's gets better though - I had a $1.00 off manufacturer's coupon which means I paid $0.39 and got back $1.49!!

The Eucerin was on the Extra Bucks program as buy $15.00 get $5.00 back. Since we use Eucerin, I went ahead and bought the everyday lotion as I had a $1.00 off coupon and the every day itch relief came with a small tube of calming creme atached to the back. For everything I paid $12.60. Before the coupons and my $5.00 extra bucks I already had, I saved over $8.00! I have $6.49 in Extra bucks for my next trip!

Freebies for Tuesday!

Clean & Clear Morning Burst Oil Absorbing Sheets – click here

Neutrogena Oil Free Acne Wash – click here

SunSilk Hair Care Samples – click here

Free Cascade and Mr. Clean Magic Erasers - click here

Yet Another Kotex Sample pack - click here

Goodnights Sleep Pants – click here

Gain with Baking Soda – click here

Free Yesterdays News Cat Litter Coupon – click here

Enjoy!!

Surprise Freebies at Rite Aid and I made 53 cents!!

Today I made my first Rite Aid trip with my little sister in search of some good deals. I went thinking I would buy the Pert Plus and the Oust which were on sale. I came out with those two items and some free school supplies thanks to Cassandra!!

She spotted a sheet of coupons good at Rite Aid only at the front of the store on school supplies. Well it just so happens that the Bic pens were on sale 2 for $1.00 and one of the coupons on the flyer was for $1.00 off Bic pens. That means FREE. Then she spotted Pentech Pencils for $0.50 and the flyer had a $0.50 off coupon. FREE again. Lastly Elmer's Schol Glue was 3 for $0.99 and yup you guessed it - the flyer had a $1.00 off coupon which meant FREE glue plus a penny!! I would have totally missed these coupons if it weren't for my little sister's keen eyes!!

In addition to those free items, I bought the Pert Plus which was on sale at Rite Aid for $2.99. I had a $2.00 off coupon, so I paid $0.99. The plus is that it comes with a Single Check Rebate of $2.00 from Rite Aid. So now I just go on line, enter my receipt number and in about two weeks, they will send me a check for $2.00. I just made $1.01.

I also bought Oust for $2.99. I had a $1.50 off coupon making my total for this item $1.49. Again this has a Single Rebate for $1.00. This means I got the can for $0.49.

So for all these items you see I actually made $0.53!!

Planning Shopping Trips

I've never been much on planning a shopping trip or even making a shopping list. However, now that we are trying to live more frugally these two items seem pretty important in order to keep our budget with time and money in check. Each Sunday afternoon I take time to comb the ads in the Sunday paper and look for the best sales on items we need or use and then look for possible coupon matches.

Several key things I have learned during my frugal research:

1. If an item is B1G1 and you have a coupon, that is usually the best deal!
2. Don't buy things you normally wouldn't, even with a coupon, unless you can get it cheaper than the item/brand you would normally buy.
3. You can stack certain coupons at certain drugstores. (e.g. if a drug store has a coupon for an item and you have a manufacturer's coupon, most of the time you can use both coupons on the one item for a great deal.)
4. Always get an item, even if you don't use it, if you can get it free. If you can't use it and it was free, donate it to a local food shelter or charity.
5. Rebates are a great way to try new things for free. Just remember you do have to use a stamp and wait 4-6 weeks for a refund.
6. Never abuse coupons, including printables. Some stores will no longer accept printable coupons because of fraudulent use. (e.g. photocopying a coupon several times.)

I'm sure there are more great points out there and if you have one feel free to leave me a comment.

I have to admit, I have been solely focused on CVS as that seemed to be the easiest store for me to put together purchase scenarios and also the most convenient to me. However, this week I see a couple of things at Rite Aid that just may be worth the trip. Rite Aid has a promotion for Single Check Rebates that I plan to research today and maybe start using tomorrow!

Speaking of tomorrow I am taking my little sister for her first introduction to CVSing! I hope I do her proud.

I'm also hoping to post more about saving at the grocery stores soon. Can you tell I'm hoping to really vamp up this site soon with lots of great information! If you have a topic you would like to consider blogging about regarding being frugal, let me know!

Last Week's Mailbox Goodies

Slow week last week. Somehow I did get two Snuggle samples in the mail which each came with a coupon. I also got flower seeds and Greenies Pill Pockets. Maybe next week will be better!

Lots of Freebies

Here is my newest list of freebies! A special thanks to my little sister Cassandra for all her help in compiling this list!

Free Ziploc gift pack for the first 10,000 to sign up - click here

Free Bounce Everyday Sample - click here

Free Snausage Dog Treats - click here

Scott Extra Soft Double Roll Toilet Paper - click here

Purina One 30 Day Challenge - click here

O.B Tampons click on the word HERE in the picture - click here

Vera Wang Princess Perfume click on receive a free sample in the bottom right hand corner click here

Baby Phat Seductive Goddess sample - click here

Post it Super Sticky Recycled Notes - click here

Dove Pro Age - click here

Free 2 year Sub. from Lego's for Kids... its from Legos.com .. Just Click on your country at the right - click here

That should do it for today! Enjoy!

Last Couple of Week's Mailbox Goodies!

Here's what arrived in my milbox over the last two weeks.

Family Fun Magazine
Gas X Thin Strips
Glad Force Flex Trash Bag
Kotex Package
Playtex Package
Tampax Package
Pond's Cleansing Towlette
Tru Lemon samples
Oatmeal Crisp Cereal
Neutrogena Makeup
Gilette for Men shampoo
American Greeting Card
Biore Sample

How's that for beating out the bills!

CVS Last Week ($3.80)

I'm a little late posting this, but here is my CVS vsit from last week for only $3.80! I haven't had a chance to look at this week's deals yet, but hopefully will find the time! I'm also working on a new list of freebies. I had one started and lost the page I had them listed on so hopefully I'll have a new list in a day or two! Now, on to the good stuff!

Here's the breakdown:

Pampers $8.88, used $1.50 manufacturer's coupon

1 Dawn Dish liquid $0.88, used $0.50 manuafacturer's coupon

2 Pert Plus, B1G1 Free $3.69, used $3.00 manufacturer's coupon

1 Folger's Twin Pack $6.99, used $0.25 manufacturer's coupon

1 CVS Aspirin, used FREE coupon from CVS

Also had $2.00 off $10.00 Purchase and $10.00 Extra Bucks

Total - $3.20 for all!!

Freebies

Free sample of Nivea here - click Get a Rockin’ Gift, then choose for male or female

2 free issues of Family Circle here - no cancellation required

Ultra Downy Total Care free coupon through Wal-Mart here - Click on special savings under the bottle

Meow Mix Wholesome Goodness food here

Free GeoTrax Dvd here - enter country in top right corner, go from there

Nature Made Triple Flex Joint Supplement sample here

Free Potty Training Kit from Pampers here

Minute Maid Coupons here - printable

From Full Time to Part Time

Many of you who read this blog know that we just adopted a little boy from Russia in April. We started really looking at our finances upon our return home as we had to adjust our budget to include things like diapers, child care, medical bills, etc. I started really looking into ways to cut back and discovered that there are tons of blogs out there about living frugally, using coupons and saving money. I was inspired to start this blog to share the information with others as well.

My husband and I finally came to the conclusion that I would stop working full time and move into a part time position with the law firm I work for. Thankfully the firm agreed on my request and in the middle of August I will start a three day, shorter hours work week. This allows me more time to spend with our son which is very important to us as a family. I am so excited!!

Of course with this change brings less babysitting and gas costs, but a lower paycheck. I'll be searching even harder for the best deals, learning more about the art of using coupons to my advantage, and living more frugally in general. I look forward to sharing what works and what doesn't in the future with my readers.

I hope you enjoy this blog as I hope to make it more than just a list of freebies here and there, but full of Articles and information that will be valuable to me and hopefully you, the readers out there.

Stay tuned for a list of freebies coming up to hold you over until I can really get this site going!

Last Week's Mailbox Goodies

It's time again for last week's mailbox goodies!! Last week I received everything shown above, which includes:

Free Huggies Pull Up, this also came with Wipes - perfect for travel!

Extra Topping from Dog Lover's Choice (sauce)

Pond's Cleansing Toweletter

Benefiber

Naturally Wild Eukanuba Dog food AND it came iwth a $5.00 off coupon

Sample of Celine Dion Fragrance

Arm & Hammer Toothpaste Sample

Pretty good week. Several more posts coming today hopefully, one chock full of new freebies, and one about why we will need to start living more frugally very soon!