Saving is Contagious & Publix Preview

My older sister (aka Super Crafty Sister) called me last night, all excited about her savings at Publix. She saved almost as much as she spent! I'm proud of her for jumping on the couponing bandwagon with me!

My latest observation about couponing? Treat it like a game. It is way too easy to get frustrated if you take it too seriously. Here's an example. My husband really wanted some frozen fish sticks (he loves making fish and grits for breakfast in the morning). :) I had a coupon for $1/2 and I used it last week. Today I find out that those same fish sticks will be BOGO this week at Publix! If I had just waited one week, I could have saved a bunch! But really, I probably only would have saved a couple bucks. And what is that in the grand scheme? Not enough to get frustrated over. :)

Speaking of Publix, here are all the Buy One Get One deals at Publix this week! (Remember, some stores start their weekly ads on Wednesdays, but some wait until Thursdays - check your local store!)

Atkins Advantage Shakes
Banquet Brown 'n Serve Sausage Links
Betty Crocker Premium Muffin Mix
Bumble Bee Chunk Tuna
Cascadian Farm Granola
Cool Whip Whipped Topping
Diner's Choice Mashed Potatoes
Egg Beaters
Emerald Deluxe Mixed Nuts
Entenmann's Little Bites
Gatorade Thirst Quencher
Gordon's Fish Sticks
Hebrew National Kosher All Beef Franks
Hershey's Bliss Dark Chocolate
Hunt's Tomato Ketchup
Juicy Juice 100% Premium Juice
Keebler 100 Calorie Right Bites Cookie
Kellogg's Special K Bars
Kellogg's Special K Cereal
Ken's Steak House Dressing
Lay's Potato Chips
Lender's Bagels
Lysol Neutra-Air Sanitizing Spray
Matlaw's Stuffed Clams
Nabisco Teddy Grahams Snacks
Nissin Chow Mein Noodles
Peter Pan Peanut Butter
Propel Fitness Water
Publix Deluxe American Cheese
Quaker Cereal
Ronzoni Healthy Harvest Pasta
Valley Fresh White Chicken

I'll try to post some coupons to match up with these soon.

Do you shop at Publix?

My Shopping List

I thought I would share my shopping list with you this week to see some of the sale combinations I have found. Hopefully this helps you find a few deals too!

By the way "ECB" means "Extra Care Bucks" at CVS. They are coupons that operate as cash - they spit out at the bottom of your receipt. They are a great way to save money!

CVS
GE Energy Smart Bulbs – $2.99
Get $2 ECB (limit 1)
Use $1/1 printable here(IE) or here(FF)
Cost Out of Pocket (OOP) = $1.99

All Detergent - $3.99
Use $2/1 in 01/03/10 paper
Cost OOP = $1.99

Playtex Gentle Glide or Sports tampons 36 ct - $7.99
Get $3Ecb (limit 1)
Use the $1/1 coupon from here: IE or Firefox
Cost OOP = $3.99!

Total Cost OOP = $11.00

I have $3 in ECBs

Final Cost OOP = $8.00

Get $5 back in ECBs!

Publix
Kraft Mayo (BOGO) - $4.99
Final Cost: $2.50/each

Ziploc Bags - 2/$4
Use $1/2 - Coupon from Sunday, 12/6
Final Cost: $1.50/each


Smart Balance Spread (BOGO) – 13 to 15 oz. or Spray – 8 oz $3.09
Use $1/2 printable
Final Cost: $1.05/each

Fiber One Yogurt (BOGO) – 4 pk $2.50
$1/1 printable (Print twice)
Final Cost: $0.25/each!!

I'll report back and let you know how my shopping trips go this week! (We obviously don't need much this week, so it should be a nice week to save some cash!)

I Am No Expert

Let me just say, I am no expert at this couponing thing. I am learning as I go, and making my fair share of mistakes along the way.

For instance, last Thursday I went to Target, armed with a TON of coupons. I was going to get trash bags, toilet paper and some other items for a killer deal by combining their sales with both a Target coupon and a manufacturer's coupon. I was so proud of myself! Until I got to the cashier. She rang up all my items, and then I handed her my stack of coupons. She obviously got a bit overwhelmed because she rang up about two of them, and then put the eight or so rest of the coupons in her drawer without ringing them up! I tried to get her to go back through and ring them up, but she was so flustered that it was useless. When I got my receipt, I realized I had paid at least $4 more than I should have because she hadn't used my coupons!

I was so frustrated. I actually made myself sick to my stomach. (Over $4???) Super Crafty Sister was with me and gave me the idea of taking back two of the boxes of trash bags since I ended up paying way too much for them, and I only bought them because I was planning to get such a great deal. So everything ended okay, but it was frustrating in the meantime!

My lesson learned here? Don't buy things just because you have a coupon. Buy things you would normally be willing to buy full price. And then the coupons are just a bonus! Yes, still plan your trip around the coupons and sales, but don't make yourself sick if it doesn't work out the way you planned. :)

After Target, we went to Walgreens where I had a much more successful trip. They had a deal last week (in small print in the ad!) where you could get Honey Nut Cheerios at 2 for $4. When you bought the cereal AND a gallon of milk (already the cheapest price around that week at $2.79), you got $2 in Register Rewards. I had two printable Honey Nut Cheerios coupons (found here), each for $1/1 box. So I got 2 boxes for $2, and got $2 back in Register Rewards. Not bad!

I'll try to post my shopping lists this week - we'll see how that goes!

In the meantime, do you have any couponing mistakes/lessons learned to share with the rest of us?

Did You Know...

...you can use Save-A-Lot coupons at Publix? I didn't know that before today - but I'm going to try it tonight!

If you go here, you can print out a coupon for $5 off any $20 purchase. Sweet!

(Thanks Frugal Fun & Fortune!)

Guess What I Got for $2.09 at Target?

Yes, I spent just $2.09 tonight at Target. What did I get for that?

4 cans of Del Monte Green Beans

2 cans of Campbell's Tomato Soup

1 package of Betty Crocker Garlic Mashed Potatoes

How did I do it?

Del Monte Green Beans are on sale at Target this week for $0.50. (The sign on the aisle said $0.66 but I knew it was in the mailer as $0.50 and it rang up that way.) I printed out a coupon for $1/4 bringing the price to just $0.25 per can! Print the coupon here! (Look toward the bottom right hand corner).

Campbell's Tomato Soup is on sale at Target this week for $0.60. I had a coupon for $0.50/2 bringing the price to just $0.35/each! The coupon is here.

Betty Crocker Garlic Mashed Potatoes are on sale at Target this week for $0.79/each. I had a coupon for $0.40/1 bringing the price to just $0.39! Print the coupon here.

I'm loving this couponing thing! :)

Have you found any great deals this week?

The Art of Couponing

I am always amazed by people who are faithful coupon-cutters. You know the type - the ones who "save" more at the grocery store than they spend?

I'm trying to learn this art. And tonight I bought $39.35 worth of groceries for only $17.21!

Very exciting.

I'm still very new to this. I have always been the occasional coupon cutter, grabbing the Sunday paper when I think about it. But the probability of those coupons actually making to to the checkout belt have been slim to none.

But recently, I discovered the joy of printable coupons online. Mailers like Red Plum and SmartSource also have websites with coupons to be printed. Convenient.

Then I've been taking a look at the Publix Weekly Ad. I love Publix. They always have great "Buy One Get One" deals. And the best part? You can use two coupons on top of those items that are already "Buy One Get One".

For instance:

These Betty Crocker Sugar Cookie mix packets are usually $2.19/each. They are "Buy One Get One" right now at Publix. So that brings them down to $1.10/each. I had two $0.40/1 coupons. So the final price? Just $0.70/each!!

Beat that! :)

Do you have any good couponing tips to share?