So it has been awhile since I blogged. And I genuinely do have a good reason. To say our lives have been crazy lately is, unfortunately, an understatement. So many things have changed. But one thing still remains the same, and that is for us to get from financial survival to financial success.
So… where are we at? We’re taking Financial Peace University starting in September. I’ve heard so many amazing things about this course for so many years, and the stars (or God ;-)) came together this year so that we could finally do it when it came around at our church. Jeremy is making his own schedule, so he was able (at his wife’s insistance) to get almost Wednesday night off so that we could take the course together. So, there’s that. And I’m pumped about it!
We’re paying off debt. We’ve already got 2 debts paid off (our smallest, a la the Dave Ramsey plan) and we’re working on the third; it should be paid off no later or than the end of this year.
Side note***Let me take a second to clarify something here; we are not a huge debt family. By no means have we ever used credit cards recklessly or anything like that. We don’t hardly ever eat out; we go on maybe one trip a year (which we pay cash for), and we don’t have much of a social life at all (a lot of this is due to hubby’s work schedule, but it is what it is). I just want to be clear on that. We got into debt while I was in school and was not able to work as much (or at all, depending on the course load I was taking). In the 4 years since we had Abbie, our pay has decreased and our living expenses (as well as gas costs and the cost of living of course) have increased. It is for those reasons that we carry what debt we do. We’re not perfect, but our debt has never been about simply living outside our means. ;-) And we don’t use credit cards anymore at all. ***
So we’ve got 2 our of our 4 “major” debts paid off (these are the four I would like paid off before we buy a home). In all, we have 6 debts. Including 2 vehicles, they total almost $25,000. Some would call this huge; others would call it nothing. For me, it’s $25,000 more than I’d like to have.
So we’re doing Dave Ramsey… we’re paying off the debt….And… we’re pregnant!! :O
Juuust kidding! I just wanted to see if you were still paying attention. ;-) I love sharing how we’re doing things with other people, but me rambling on about all this gets kinda boring I think.
Two other things I’m doing?
1. Envelope system (I’m going to post on this later; I’d love feedback as to how others do theirs)
2. Couponing (I will also do a separate post on this).
With all of these things (and NO baby on the way! ;-)), I hope that we’ll be at a level of financial success by the end of the year.
Sunday, August 28, 2011
Thursday, June 16, 2011
Updates on us
Wow! Nearly a month since I blogged the last time? Yikes! I'm sure all 8 of you have been just biting your nails waiting on another blog from me! HAHA! ;-) No no no... I know many more people read and don't follow and I of course appreciate that. I love anyone who follows or doesn't, but I blog as much for me as anybody else ;-)
So what have we been doing to chase this ever-elusive American Dream of ours?
Well preschool summer camp is in full-swing... which is why you haven't heard from me ;-)
We are also in the midst of the Dave Ramsey plan and I have to say I'm super excited because we're getting ready to pay off our 1st two debts! :D :D :D These are the two that "start it all" so to speak, so I'm super-excited to have them paid off this month so that we can pay off one of our cars and our biggest (and only) credit card. Fun stuff! :) :)
I've also spent less than $30 on groceries the last 2 weeks (thanks to my "stockpiling) so that's fun :)
Other than that, the Garner house is just truckin' away (well if truckin' away means allowing your dishes to pile up, your kitchen floors to house stains of all shapes, sizes, and colors, and your laundry to pile to the ceiling ;-)).
We're getting into the groove of our new schedule (well Abbie and I are; nothing much has changed for Jeremy :)). We're preparing for the one vacation we're going to take this summer (to an awesome lake/tourist area in OK) and of course we're chipping away at our debt :D And I am thoroughly enjoying my newest business venture :D I feel like God has blessed me greatly. And we're chipping away at the American Dream we're chasing! :)
Melissa
So what have we been doing to chase this ever-elusive American Dream of ours?
Well preschool summer camp is in full-swing... which is why you haven't heard from me ;-)
We are also in the midst of the Dave Ramsey plan and I have to say I'm super excited because we're getting ready to pay off our 1st two debts! :D :D :D These are the two that "start it all" so to speak, so I'm super-excited to have them paid off this month so that we can pay off one of our cars and our biggest (and only) credit card. Fun stuff! :) :)
I've also spent less than $30 on groceries the last 2 weeks (thanks to my "stockpiling) so that's fun :)
Other than that, the Garner house is just truckin' away (well if truckin' away means allowing your dishes to pile up, your kitchen floors to house stains of all shapes, sizes, and colors, and your laundry to pile to the ceiling ;-)).
We're getting into the groove of our new schedule (well Abbie and I are; nothing much has changed for Jeremy :)). We're preparing for the one vacation we're going to take this summer (to an awesome lake/tourist area in OK) and of course we're chipping away at our debt :D And I am thoroughly enjoying my newest business venture :D I feel like God has blessed me greatly. And we're chipping away at the American Dream we're chasing! :)
Melissa
Thursday, May 26, 2011
I'm Stockpiling....
Ok, not really. But a little bit. Like I said in one of my last blogs, my goal is to get a good 1-3 months stockpile going so that I'm not making huge (or even BIG) hauls every week. In a house of 4 adults, 1 preschooler, 3 big dogs, and 3 big cats.... that's easy to do unless you plan :)
Originally, my plan wasn't to stockpile for even 1-3 months. But I'm taking couponing in stride and learning what works best for us. :)
So Abbie and I headed out today after naptime. It was just she and I, which is something I rarely do because it's very difficult. But thank God, it was wonderful, as I hoped it would be right after nap time ;-)
Tom Thumb is having a BUNCH of sales right now because of Memorial Day. Usually 90% of my grocery list is found at Kroger and hte other 10% at Tom Thumb. This week, I am pleased to say it was the opposite. :)
I'm going to break down what I got, how much I saved, and also how I use some of these things. I feel that last part is important because I have to admit that I see these women on TV (Extreme Couponing) and I think "Ok, that's great. But who really needs 600 bottles of Sundrop? Or 893 things of cheap noodles? 1200 boxes of sugary cereal?" Everything that comes in my house is probably getting opened within a couple of days, and to me that's important :)
So here's what I got:
* 2 boxes of Special K cereal (mama needs this for breakfast so I stay away from buttery toasts and fattening waffles) ;-)
* 2 boxes of Special K cereal bars (these are low-cal and are great when you're just a little hungry) Plus they're yummy
Ok, so here's what I did: I'd grabbed a Special K coupon booklet while I was wondering around TT last week. Got it home and realized it had over $10 in coupons for things from Splenda to fresh produce to milk. Well, as many of you know, you don't typically get coupons for things like that. So I was all over it! :)
So I used the coupon that said you could get $2 off ANY milk, ANY size if you bought a box of Special K cereal and a box of Special K cereal bars.
Great thing about coupons like this? You can also use coupons on the products you're buying! So it broke down like this:
2 boxes of cereal- 2.99 each (-$1 coupon I had for two) 4.98 for two
2 boxes of cereal bars- 2.79 each (-$2 coupon I had for two) $3.58 for both
I had two of each of these coupons(so 1 cereal and 1 cereal bar box was a pair; I had two pairs). Therefore, I got TWO $2 coupons off milk. So I bought two gallons of milk at 2.38 each... making the milk .38 per gallon! :) :)
They also had Banana Boat Sunscreens on sale for 4.99 each. (origianlly 10.79, but I pray nobody ever pays that for a bottle of sunscreen!) I had 2 coupons for $1 off each... so I got two of them at 3.99 each. And they're SPF 50 and they're the spray kind. :D Usually I only buy Blue Lizard for Abbie, but I know we'll be in and out and in and out this summer with my preschool going and I know I'll have other kids to apply sunscreen to sometimes as well... So I've been wanting some quick and easy spray sunscreen for her. These will be perfect for the 30-45 minutes we're out running around and sometimes playing in the kiddie pool. Plus, I have them on hand and I'm not using up my precious, expensive, uber-small bottle of the other lotions when I have to share with all my preschool kiddos ;-)
We were going to be out of dog food in a few days, so that was on my list as well. They had Kibbles and Bits on sale for 11.99 (originally 14.99), plus I had 1.50 coupon. It was by far the best deal, so I got 4 ;-)
So now we have over 80 lbs of dog food and I don't have to worry about that $15-$30 coming out of my grocery bill each week... at least not for a couple of weeks ;-) That should last us 4-5 weeks.
They also had Ritz crackers on sale; this is a favorite snack of Abbie's. I grabbed 4 big boxes of the whole wheat crackers. They were buy one, get one free and I had $1 coupon. So I got the 4 for 7.58, making them 1.89 a piece. These will easily last us 1-2 months and I'll use them for preschool snacks as well if I need to :)
Next up: Totino's pizzas. Yes, these are the cheapest (and probably the most unhealthy) pizzas you can buy. But boy are they YUMMY! And I'm not gonna lie... I pair them with fresh spinach salad and I don't feel bad about serving the pizzas ;-) They're super easy to make, especially when it's just me and Abbie for dinner. And I'm all about easy! :)
They were $1 each and I had $1/5 coupons. So I got 20 and spent $16.00
I needed dishwashing tablets and they had them on sale for 5.49 each. I had a .50 coupon that doubled, so I got 32 tablets for 4.49 each. I bought 2 and should be good on those for 1-2 months. :)
Some of their other deals included:
Cheez its and Keebler cookies (2 of my favorite indulgences!!) 2/$4
They also had some of their block cheeses on sale for 2/$4- I use these a lot to pair with apples and to shred for salads or to top off dishes that I make :)
Plus LOTS of super coupons! (For those who don't know, Super Coupons can be combined with manufacturer coupons! :):))
I also got some canned fruits for fruit salads and snacks as well as lunch meat, 100% juices for Abbie, some jelly for sandwiches, a few soft drinks, paper towels, canned dog food to go with our dry dog food, lots of dog treats, a large carton of eggs, 2 cartons of orange juice, and 2 packages of fresh salad.
I spent $154.99 and saved $100. Plus, I can knock quite a few things off my list for quite a few weeks. I'm happy :) I'm not tearing down walls for my stockpile quite yet, but I'm happy :)
Melissa
Originally, my plan wasn't to stockpile for even 1-3 months. But I'm taking couponing in stride and learning what works best for us. :)
So Abbie and I headed out today after naptime. It was just she and I, which is something I rarely do because it's very difficult. But thank God, it was wonderful, as I hoped it would be right after nap time ;-)
Tom Thumb is having a BUNCH of sales right now because of Memorial Day. Usually 90% of my grocery list is found at Kroger and hte other 10% at Tom Thumb. This week, I am pleased to say it was the opposite. :)
I'm going to break down what I got, how much I saved, and also how I use some of these things. I feel that last part is important because I have to admit that I see these women on TV (Extreme Couponing) and I think "Ok, that's great. But who really needs 600 bottles of Sundrop? Or 893 things of cheap noodles? 1200 boxes of sugary cereal?" Everything that comes in my house is probably getting opened within a couple of days, and to me that's important :)
So here's what I got:
* 2 boxes of Special K cereal (mama needs this for breakfast so I stay away from buttery toasts and fattening waffles) ;-)
* 2 boxes of Special K cereal bars (these are low-cal and are great when you're just a little hungry) Plus they're yummy
Ok, so here's what I did: I'd grabbed a Special K coupon booklet while I was wondering around TT last week. Got it home and realized it had over $10 in coupons for things from Splenda to fresh produce to milk. Well, as many of you know, you don't typically get coupons for things like that. So I was all over it! :)
So I used the coupon that said you could get $2 off ANY milk, ANY size if you bought a box of Special K cereal and a box of Special K cereal bars.
Great thing about coupons like this? You can also use coupons on the products you're buying! So it broke down like this:
2 boxes of cereal- 2.99 each (-$1 coupon I had for two) 4.98 for two
2 boxes of cereal bars- 2.79 each (-$2 coupon I had for two) $3.58 for both
I had two of each of these coupons(so 1 cereal and 1 cereal bar box was a pair; I had two pairs). Therefore, I got TWO $2 coupons off milk. So I bought two gallons of milk at 2.38 each... making the milk .38 per gallon! :) :)
They also had Banana Boat Sunscreens on sale for 4.99 each. (origianlly 10.79, but I pray nobody ever pays that for a bottle of sunscreen!) I had 2 coupons for $1 off each... so I got two of them at 3.99 each. And they're SPF 50 and they're the spray kind. :D Usually I only buy Blue Lizard for Abbie, but I know we'll be in and out and in and out this summer with my preschool going and I know I'll have other kids to apply sunscreen to sometimes as well... So I've been wanting some quick and easy spray sunscreen for her. These will be perfect for the 30-45 minutes we're out running around and sometimes playing in the kiddie pool. Plus, I have them on hand and I'm not using up my precious, expensive, uber-small bottle of the other lotions when I have to share with all my preschool kiddos ;-)
We were going to be out of dog food in a few days, so that was on my list as well. They had Kibbles and Bits on sale for 11.99 (originally 14.99), plus I had 1.50 coupon. It was by far the best deal, so I got 4 ;-)
So now we have over 80 lbs of dog food and I don't have to worry about that $15-$30 coming out of my grocery bill each week... at least not for a couple of weeks ;-) That should last us 4-5 weeks.
They also had Ritz crackers on sale; this is a favorite snack of Abbie's. I grabbed 4 big boxes of the whole wheat crackers. They were buy one, get one free and I had $1 coupon. So I got the 4 for 7.58, making them 1.89 a piece. These will easily last us 1-2 months and I'll use them for preschool snacks as well if I need to :)
Next up: Totino's pizzas. Yes, these are the cheapest (and probably the most unhealthy) pizzas you can buy. But boy are they YUMMY! And I'm not gonna lie... I pair them with fresh spinach salad and I don't feel bad about serving the pizzas ;-) They're super easy to make, especially when it's just me and Abbie for dinner. And I'm all about easy! :)
They were $1 each and I had $1/5 coupons. So I got 20 and spent $16.00
I needed dishwashing tablets and they had them on sale for 5.49 each. I had a .50 coupon that doubled, so I got 32 tablets for 4.49 each. I bought 2 and should be good on those for 1-2 months. :)
Some of their other deals included:
Cheez its and Keebler cookies (2 of my favorite indulgences!!) 2/$4
They also had some of their block cheeses on sale for 2/$4- I use these a lot to pair with apples and to shred for salads or to top off dishes that I make :)
Plus LOTS of super coupons! (For those who don't know, Super Coupons can be combined with manufacturer coupons! :):))
I also got some canned fruits for fruit salads and snacks as well as lunch meat, 100% juices for Abbie, some jelly for sandwiches, a few soft drinks, paper towels, canned dog food to go with our dry dog food, lots of dog treats, a large carton of eggs, 2 cartons of orange juice, and 2 packages of fresh salad.
I spent $154.99 and saved $100. Plus, I can knock quite a few things off my list for quite a few weeks. I'm happy :) I'm not tearing down walls for my stockpile quite yet, but I'm happy :)
Melissa
Saturday, May 14, 2011
My shopping experiences this week :)
On Thursday, I did my weekly grocery shopping. I needed quite a few things, so I got plenty organized before I went. On my list were things like dog food (our dogs easily go through 20 lbs a week), cat food, orange juice, lunch meat for sandwiches, laundry detergent and softener, trash compactor bags, fresh salad, sodas and more.
A few months ago, this kind of list easily would have run me $100-$150 for the week. And I would have been out of most of it within a week or two. This week, I spent less than $80 on all of it and then some :) I will also say that, although I am not at my $100 monthly grocery bill goal, I will be a lot closer when I have some of these things stocked up. Am I going to stockpile everything because I have 600 coupons? No, and I don't have 600 coupons for anything ;-) But my goal is to get to where I only need to go to the store for fresh things (produce, salad, maybe juice, etc) 2-3 weeks out of the month. And I think when I have built that SMALL stock, that's when my grocery bills will truly dwindle :)
Kroger was my 1st stop. They are having another Mega Event. If you're not familiar with their Mega Events, it's where you buy any 10 participating items (of which there are A LOT throughout the store) and you get $5 off at the register. So .50 off each item. Unfortunately, I didn't have coupons for a lot of their Mega Event items, but that was okay because I needed quite a bit of stuff this week anyway.
From this promo, I got
4 boxes of Eggo waffles (my 4-year-old eats them 24 hours a day!) I want to note here that I had gotten a circular in the mail saying the waffles were .99. When I got to the store, they were 1.79. Turns out, one of my local Kroger's (I have 2 within about 2 miles or less of me) is sending our circulars just for THEIR store. I didn't realize they were doing this and, hence, giving me somewhat misleading info since I haven't been shopping at the one from which I get the circulars. SO... I went up to customer service and the employee was nice enough to tell me they'd match the price in the circular. I was very glad because this way, I wasn't paying an extra .80 per box that I hadn't accounted for. :)
I also got 2 packs of Oscar Mayer lunch meat, of which we go through a lot of. 2.49 each.
I threw in some Capri Suns for Abbie as a treat b/c she enjoys them and I don't hardly ever keep them in the house. 1.66
I also got a bag of fresh salad for 1.99 :)
I got Kraft BBQ sauce because BBQ chicken was on my menu for this week. .50
Then I grabbed the fabric softener. The cashier made somewhat of a mistake, so instead of being 3.49, it was 4.24. But that's okay.
I spent 16.76 and saved 12.43. A 43% savings. I was happy :)
Then I had another transaction. This one was a little hairier so I wanted to seperate it (I also wanted to make sure there was no confusion with my 10 participating promo items).
First on my list was laundry detergent because we were completely OUT! :O I looked at all of their HE detergents and found that Purex was the best deal b/c I had a 3.00 coupon. It was on sale for 7.99 and I got it for 4.99. It will last us probably close to a month b/c it was 150 ounces. :)
I also grabbed some milk they had marked on clearance for 1.09 :) We always need milk. :)
I love Hormel pork tenderloins (because they're SUPER easy and yummy!) They had some of my favorites on sale for 7.99 and I had $1 off coupon. So I got it for 6.99 :)
Then I had a coupon I'd never seen before. It was for $1 ANY fresh beef in the store if I bought one Mrs. Dash spice. Well, I had another .50 coupon off the Ms.Dash spices (which doubled to $1 off). So I used both and got...
The spice for 1.50 (because they were also on sale 2/$5 or 2.50 each)
and the meat for 1.92. :)
I had some good Tostitos coupons, so we headed over that way. I had a coupon for both the salsa and the chips that I bought (making them 2.20 and 1.75 respectively I believe) And then I had ANOTHER coupon that, when I bought those 2 items, I got a free Pepsi Max. So I got that as well.
So...
One big thing of HE laundry detergent, Milk for the week, 2 liter of pepsi, Pork Tenderloin, bag of chips, salsa, Ms. Dash seasoning, and a pound of ground beef.... 21.30
13.51 saved (39%) :)
I made another stop after that, but I won't bore you with that quite yet. :)
Melissa
A few months ago, this kind of list easily would have run me $100-$150 for the week. And I would have been out of most of it within a week or two. This week, I spent less than $80 on all of it and then some :) I will also say that, although I am not at my $100 monthly grocery bill goal, I will be a lot closer when I have some of these things stocked up. Am I going to stockpile everything because I have 600 coupons? No, and I don't have 600 coupons for anything ;-) But my goal is to get to where I only need to go to the store for fresh things (produce, salad, maybe juice, etc) 2-3 weeks out of the month. And I think when I have built that SMALL stock, that's when my grocery bills will truly dwindle :)
Kroger was my 1st stop. They are having another Mega Event. If you're not familiar with their Mega Events, it's where you buy any 10 participating items (of which there are A LOT throughout the store) and you get $5 off at the register. So .50 off each item. Unfortunately, I didn't have coupons for a lot of their Mega Event items, but that was okay because I needed quite a bit of stuff this week anyway.
From this promo, I got
4 boxes of Eggo waffles (my 4-year-old eats them 24 hours a day!) I want to note here that I had gotten a circular in the mail saying the waffles were .99. When I got to the store, they were 1.79. Turns out, one of my local Kroger's (I have 2 within about 2 miles or less of me) is sending our circulars just for THEIR store. I didn't realize they were doing this and, hence, giving me somewhat misleading info since I haven't been shopping at the one from which I get the circulars. SO... I went up to customer service and the employee was nice enough to tell me they'd match the price in the circular. I was very glad because this way, I wasn't paying an extra .80 per box that I hadn't accounted for. :)
I also got 2 packs of Oscar Mayer lunch meat, of which we go through a lot of. 2.49 each.
I threw in some Capri Suns for Abbie as a treat b/c she enjoys them and I don't hardly ever keep them in the house. 1.66
I also got a bag of fresh salad for 1.99 :)
I got Kraft BBQ sauce because BBQ chicken was on my menu for this week. .50
Then I grabbed the fabric softener. The cashier made somewhat of a mistake, so instead of being 3.49, it was 4.24. But that's okay.
I spent 16.76 and saved 12.43. A 43% savings. I was happy :)
Then I had another transaction. This one was a little hairier so I wanted to seperate it (I also wanted to make sure there was no confusion with my 10 participating promo items).
First on my list was laundry detergent because we were completely OUT! :O I looked at all of their HE detergents and found that Purex was the best deal b/c I had a 3.00 coupon. It was on sale for 7.99 and I got it for 4.99. It will last us probably close to a month b/c it was 150 ounces. :)
I also grabbed some milk they had marked on clearance for 1.09 :) We always need milk. :)
I love Hormel pork tenderloins (because they're SUPER easy and yummy!) They had some of my favorites on sale for 7.99 and I had $1 off coupon. So I got it for 6.99 :)
Then I had a coupon I'd never seen before. It was for $1 ANY fresh beef in the store if I bought one Mrs. Dash spice. Well, I had another .50 coupon off the Ms.Dash spices (which doubled to $1 off). So I used both and got...
The spice for 1.50 (because they were also on sale 2/$5 or 2.50 each)
and the meat for 1.92. :)
I had some good Tostitos coupons, so we headed over that way. I had a coupon for both the salsa and the chips that I bought (making them 2.20 and 1.75 respectively I believe) And then I had ANOTHER coupon that, when I bought those 2 items, I got a free Pepsi Max. So I got that as well.
So...
One big thing of HE laundry detergent, Milk for the week, 2 liter of pepsi, Pork Tenderloin, bag of chips, salsa, Ms. Dash seasoning, and a pound of ground beef.... 21.30
13.51 saved (39%) :)
I made another stop after that, but I won't bore you with that quite yet. :)
Melissa
Saturday, April 30, 2011
one more grocery store trip
So I have to admit I took Abbie to the grocery store at 9 o'clock tonight (in her pajamas, nonetheless). But before you accuse me of being an extreme couponer, let me just say... I got 5 salad dressings for under $3 (AND they gave me a $3 off coupon! So you could say I made money ;-))
Tom Thumb was having a sale that I'd forgotten about when I was out earlier and they had Kraft salad dressings on sale for .99. That's a great deal to begin with! But I also had $1 off two. So I got them for .50 each. They also had some of their generic brand ranch dressings for .99 so I grabbed one of those, too.
So for 2.95, I got 5 bottles of dressing. That should stock me up for get-togethers and everything Abbie dips in ranch for at least a month or two. So I'm happy! :)
Tom Thumb was having a sale that I'd forgotten about when I was out earlier and they had Kraft salad dressings on sale for .99. That's a great deal to begin with! But I also had $1 off two. So I got them for .50 each. They also had some of their generic brand ranch dressings for .99 so I grabbed one of those, too.
So for 2.95, I got 5 bottles of dressing. That should stock me up for get-togethers and everything Abbie dips in ranch for at least a month or two. So I'm happy! :)
Now that's what I call a Saturday night!
I did it again today. I watched "Extreme Couponing". I don't think I've watched an episode of this series since it aired and NOT ended up at the grocery store that same day. :-P And although I swore I wasn't going today, I of course was inspired to look over some of this week's deals (again!) while watching. And when I did, I realized I had some coupons that expired today. And being that they were able to be stacked on top of store deals, I couldn't let them go to waste ;-)
So I spent about 20 minutes prepping and off we went. Here's what I got:
Kroger is having a deal where if you bring in or transfer a new prescription, you get a $25 gift card. Well, I just so happened to have a prescription I needed filled this week anyway. So I brought it in, made sure I'd get the GC, and went shopping.
They're ALSO having a 10/$10 deal this week. If I had to bet, I'd say you probably don't have to have 10 of the items to actually get them for $1. But with so many coupons and things, I wasn't going to take chances. So I went ahead and made sure I got ten :) I got:
* 2 Del Monte fruit cups $1 each ($2 total) These were SUPPOSED to be 2 tubes of toothpaste for which I had coupons, but Kroger was out of both :(
* 1 Softsoap. I had a .35 coupon that Kroger tripled, so I actually MADE .05 off this purchase! :D :D :D
* 4 packs of cinnamon rolls ($1 each and I had ecoupon for .40 off two)... total price: 1.60 (NOTE: KROGER DOES NOT DOUBLE E-COUPONS. I'M NOT SURE WHY,BUT THEY DON'T)
* 2 packs of Pillsbury biscuits: $2 minus the .40 cent coupon I had. Total price: 1.10
* Tampax pearl tampons (only b/c I noticed they were on sale and I had a $2 coupon :D) price: 2.36
* Cat food
* Dog food
* Chicken breasts
* Yogurts
* 2 1/2 gallons of Orange Juice
* 20 lbs of cat litter
* and lunch meat
Total amount spent: 8.02
Total savings: 42.20
Now that's what I call a wild Saturday night! LOL
So I spent about 20 minutes prepping and off we went. Here's what I got:
Kroger is having a deal where if you bring in or transfer a new prescription, you get a $25 gift card. Well, I just so happened to have a prescription I needed filled this week anyway. So I brought it in, made sure I'd get the GC, and went shopping.
They're ALSO having a 10/$10 deal this week. If I had to bet, I'd say you probably don't have to have 10 of the items to actually get them for $1. But with so many coupons and things, I wasn't going to take chances. So I went ahead and made sure I got ten :) I got:
* 2 Del Monte fruit cups $1 each ($2 total) These were SUPPOSED to be 2 tubes of toothpaste for which I had coupons, but Kroger was out of both :(
* 1 Softsoap. I had a .35 coupon that Kroger tripled, so I actually MADE .05 off this purchase! :D :D :D
* 4 packs of cinnamon rolls ($1 each and I had ecoupon for .40 off two)... total price: 1.60 (NOTE: KROGER DOES NOT DOUBLE E-COUPONS. I'M NOT SURE WHY,BUT THEY DON'T)
* 2 packs of Pillsbury biscuits: $2 minus the .40 cent coupon I had. Total price: 1.10
* Tampax pearl tampons (only b/c I noticed they were on sale and I had a $2 coupon :D) price: 2.36
* Cat food
* Dog food
* Chicken breasts
* Yogurts
* 2 1/2 gallons of Orange Juice
* 20 lbs of cat litter
* and lunch meat
Total amount spent: 8.02
Total savings: 42.20
Now that's what I call a wild Saturday night! LOL
Thursday, April 21, 2011
My Savings For Today
I went to the grocery store today. I knew I wasn't going to save 99% but I did want to use some of my coupons. We have been getting low on a few things here in the house :) Here's what I got:
2 loaves of Bread ($1 each)- Tom Thumb had these on sale- no coupon- I don't know why I didn't get more. I'll be going back and stocking up and freezing it for the rest of May :)
2 packages of Johnsonville Breakfast Sausage Links- 3.43 for both of them (Regular price- 4.49 each)
TT had a Super Coupon sale where you could get them for $2.49. I had 2 coupons- one for $1 and one for .55... So I saved 1.55 off both and got one for 1.49 and one for 1.94.
2 Whole Pineapples- .99 each (Tom Thumb had them on sale for 2.99, but .99 just for today)
2 packages of salad- baby spinach/spring mix- Buy one, Get One Free. I paid 3.49 for both. 1.75 for one and 1.74 for the other :)
Chinet Plates- 72 pack- Regularly 5.49... I got them for 2.44. I combined a Super Coupon (2.50 off retail price) with a .55 coupon I had... for a total of 3.05 savings and a price of 2.44 :)
Shampoo and Conditioner... 3.58 for both. Again, I combined a sale (TT had some Suave shampoos that work great on Abbie's hair on sale for 2.29 each) with a coupon. My coupon was for .50 so I only paid 1.79 for each :D :D :D
Orange juice... 3.99 (Regularly 5.49... but keep in mind it could very well be 3.99 at Wal Mart. But I wouldn't know b/c I don't shop at WM ;-))
3 Birdseye Vegetables... 1.25 each (With TT's Super Coupons) I had an extra $1 off these, too, but it had expired 3 days ago :( :( Either way, good deal
Total saved: 29.45
Total spent: 22.16
Yes, it's 22% of my grocery budget for May (IF I'm counting this for May! ;-)). But I'm not entirely expecting to make my goal quite yet... seeing as how I have to build my stock of coupons.
And on that note, I will say I also spent $5 for 2 Sunday papers (and 8 coupon inserts :)) I'm about to finish clipping them and organizing them :D
Have a great day!
Melissa
2 loaves of Bread ($1 each)- Tom Thumb had these on sale- no coupon- I don't know why I didn't get more. I'll be going back and stocking up and freezing it for the rest of May :)
2 packages of Johnsonville Breakfast Sausage Links- 3.43 for both of them (Regular price- 4.49 each)
TT had a Super Coupon sale where you could get them for $2.49. I had 2 coupons- one for $1 and one for .55... So I saved 1.55 off both and got one for 1.49 and one for 1.94.
2 Whole Pineapples- .99 each (Tom Thumb had them on sale for 2.99, but .99 just for today)
2 packages of salad- baby spinach/spring mix- Buy one, Get One Free. I paid 3.49 for both. 1.75 for one and 1.74 for the other :)
Chinet Plates- 72 pack- Regularly 5.49... I got them for 2.44. I combined a Super Coupon (2.50 off retail price) with a .55 coupon I had... for a total of 3.05 savings and a price of 2.44 :)
Shampoo and Conditioner... 3.58 for both. Again, I combined a sale (TT had some Suave shampoos that work great on Abbie's hair on sale for 2.29 each) with a coupon. My coupon was for .50 so I only paid 1.79 for each :D :D :D
Orange juice... 3.99 (Regularly 5.49... but keep in mind it could very well be 3.99 at Wal Mart. But I wouldn't know b/c I don't shop at WM ;-))
3 Birdseye Vegetables... 1.25 each (With TT's Super Coupons) I had an extra $1 off these, too, but it had expired 3 days ago :( :( Either way, good deal
Total saved: 29.45
Total spent: 22.16
Yes, it's 22% of my grocery budget for May (IF I'm counting this for May! ;-)). But I'm not entirely expecting to make my goal quite yet... seeing as how I have to build my stock of coupons.
And on that note, I will say I also spent $5 for 2 Sunday papers (and 8 coupon inserts :)) I'm about to finish clipping them and organizing them :D
Have a great day!
Melissa
Wednesday, April 20, 2011
Adventures in Couponing: Part Two
I posted a few days ago that I was finally going to get my couponing booty in gear! My goal is to help us get out of debt by cutting our grocery bill by about 75%-90% a month. Yeah, it's a lofty goal. But I'm all about setting huge goals ;-)
I'm happy to say that those piles of coupons have now been organized into a binder. My very first binder. Let me tell you... I never, ever thought I'd be one of THOSE women. The women who take BINDERS into the grocery store.
But I've realized it's pointless for me to spend the time cutting the coupons or looking for the deals if I can't find the coupons when I get to the store because they're so unorganized. So now I'm THAT woman! And I don't care! I love being organized, so it's perfect for me anyway ;-)
My husband was nice enough to go out yesterday and grab me the baseball card pages I've been needing and so I've been busy organizing my coupons ever since. As a teacher/student, I have plenty of binders laying around. So that was no issue :)
For those of you who have never used the baseball card pages, there are defintely some drawbacks. 90% of the coupons have to be folded over or trimmed. It's no biggie, just a little more time consuming. :)
But for now, it defintely works. I have organized mine by category (just as I already had when they were simply laid out on the table). They're also arranged alphabetically for the most part (but not perfectly ;-))
So it may go something like this:
Body care (deoderants and things)
Cat products
Cleaning products
Cooking products
and so on....
Here are a few pictures :)
I'm happy to say that those piles of coupons have now been organized into a binder. My very first binder. Let me tell you... I never, ever thought I'd be one of THOSE women. The women who take BINDERS into the grocery store.
But I've realized it's pointless for me to spend the time cutting the coupons or looking for the deals if I can't find the coupons when I get to the store because they're so unorganized. So now I'm THAT woman! And I don't care! I love being organized, so it's perfect for me anyway ;-)
My husband was nice enough to go out yesterday and grab me the baseball card pages I've been needing and so I've been busy organizing my coupons ever since. As a teacher/student, I have plenty of binders laying around. So that was no issue :)
For those of you who have never used the baseball card pages, there are defintely some drawbacks. 90% of the coupons have to be folded over or trimmed. It's no biggie, just a little more time consuming. :)
But for now, it defintely works. I have organized mine by category (just as I already had when they were simply laid out on the table). They're also arranged alphabetically for the most part (but not perfectly ;-))
So it may go something like this:
Body care (deoderants and things)
Cat products
Cleaning products
Cooking products
and so on....
Here are a few pictures :)
Saturday, April 16, 2011
Adventures in Couponing
So I've neglected this blog for awhile. Not because I've wanted to, but because things, as usual, have been all-out crazy in my house. I'm combining my loves in life: being my own boss and teaching children. And I'm opening an in-home preschool (to which I have ANOTHER blog dedicated! ;-))
But in the midst of all of this, I have also re-organized our financial goals (If you saw how much it cost to start a preschool, you'd understand why my new business venture and saving money go hand-in-hand :)).
The fact is tha we have about $10,000 in debt to knock out (give or take :-P) And as I've talked about before, I'd like to knock that debt out, as well as have a savings fund, down payment, and emergency fund before we buy a house.
So goal #1... Knock out the debt! I will open my preschool this summer and I also have a Mary Kay business... but if you JUST count my husband's income, we're spending about as much as we're earning right now. Not good.
So one way I'm going to make cuts so that we can roll more into debt payoff is by cutting our grocery bill.
I currently shop for 4 adults, 1 child, and 6 large animals. :-P I easily spend $100 a week in groceries, totaling anywhere from $400-$600 or more a month in groceries.
My goal? To get that down to $100 a month. You heard me right. $100 a month. Are you going to see me on Extreme Couponing? Not likely. But there are so many resources available these days to save money on... and this is one area of our budget where I CAN save money (as opposed to bills or gas or the tolls my husband pays to drive to and from work every day :-P). So I think it's a great place to start.
Here's how I'm starting:
I have a couple weeks worth of coupons saved. So I started cutting. All of them. Not just the ones I thought I'd use. The only exceptions were things I know I will NEVER use (think denture products and things like that) and cosmetics and skincare. Everything else is fair game.
So I cut. And I made piles. Each pile was a category. Like:
Frozen Foods
Body Care
Hair Care
Veggies
Kid Products
Cleaning Products
Medicines
Fruit
Laundry Products
Cooking
Oral Care
Razors
and so on....
Then when I was done cutting, I "labeled" each pile with the category.
When these (and this week's) are all organized, I plan on going out and getting baseball sleeves to organize them in. I feel like it's too much trouble to try and dig through them in a filing system; plus, I often miss some and then the time I put into make sure I had them before I left is wasted :-P
Here is where we're at so far:
But in the midst of all of this, I have also re-organized our financial goals (If you saw how much it cost to start a preschool, you'd understand why my new business venture and saving money go hand-in-hand :)).
The fact is tha we have about $10,000 in debt to knock out (give or take :-P) And as I've talked about before, I'd like to knock that debt out, as well as have a savings fund, down payment, and emergency fund before we buy a house.
So goal #1... Knock out the debt! I will open my preschool this summer and I also have a Mary Kay business... but if you JUST count my husband's income, we're spending about as much as we're earning right now. Not good.
So one way I'm going to make cuts so that we can roll more into debt payoff is by cutting our grocery bill.
I currently shop for 4 adults, 1 child, and 6 large animals. :-P I easily spend $100 a week in groceries, totaling anywhere from $400-$600 or more a month in groceries.
My goal? To get that down to $100 a month. You heard me right. $100 a month. Are you going to see me on Extreme Couponing? Not likely. But there are so many resources available these days to save money on... and this is one area of our budget where I CAN save money (as opposed to bills or gas or the tolls my husband pays to drive to and from work every day :-P). So I think it's a great place to start.
Here's how I'm starting:
I have a couple weeks worth of coupons saved. So I started cutting. All of them. Not just the ones I thought I'd use. The only exceptions were things I know I will NEVER use (think denture products and things like that) and cosmetics and skincare. Everything else is fair game.
So I cut. And I made piles. Each pile was a category. Like:
Frozen Foods
Body Care
Hair Care
Veggies
Kid Products
Cleaning Products
Medicines
Fruit
Laundry Products
Cooking
Oral Care
Razors
and so on....
Then when I was done cutting, I "labeled" each pile with the category.
When these (and this week's) are all organized, I plan on going out and getting baseball sleeves to organize them in. I feel like it's too much trouble to try and dig through them in a filing system; plus, I often miss some and then the time I put into make sure I had them before I left is wasted :-P
Here is where we're at so far:
Saturday, February 19, 2011
Late Night Car Rides
Last night, as I drove my daughter home after an eventful evening spent with friends, I felt as if I was driving down memory lane. It was pitch dark and there were very few other cars on the road. Abbie, who had played her heart out, was exhausted and quiet. I drove through our friends' neighborhood, which has a lot of twists and turns. And as I turned my blinker on and off again and again, I heard a familiar and peaceful sound.
When I was young, we always travelled everywhere by car (mostly because our only vacations ever consisted of trips to all the lakes in Texas). And we often found ourselves travelling home late at night. And I remember waking up countless times to the sound of nothing else but my mom's quiet radio and the blinker. It was like the world was just like those almost empty roads: sparsely populated, safe, and peaceful. During the day, everyone always seems to be in a hurry. And there's traffic and people are cutting each other off and then hurrying onto the next place that they are eternally late for. It's stressful and loud and exhuasting. And waking up in those quiet cars with nothing much more than the sound of the blinker just always felt so.... safe.
So I drove Abbie home and I listened to the sound of that blinker, taking it in with the soft music playing in the background. And I relished in the fact that maybe she was feeling as peaceful and safe as I used to during those late-night car rides.
A few months ago, I had a plan for everything. Go to school. Get a degree. Become the best teacher anyone has ever known. Buy a home. Have more children. Lead a successful life juggling a full-time career, 3-4 kids, church, and a bootload of other activities. Do it all with a smile on my face and fresh-baked cookies in the oven.
But last night, driving home, my only goal was to take more late-night drives. So maybe the next time I'm feeling the need for a little more security and peace in my life, I'll put Abbie in the car for a few minutes, drive around the neighborhood, and listen to the blinker blink.
God Bless!
Melissa
When I was young, we always travelled everywhere by car (mostly because our only vacations ever consisted of trips to all the lakes in Texas). And we often found ourselves travelling home late at night. And I remember waking up countless times to the sound of nothing else but my mom's quiet radio and the blinker. It was like the world was just like those almost empty roads: sparsely populated, safe, and peaceful. During the day, everyone always seems to be in a hurry. And there's traffic and people are cutting each other off and then hurrying onto the next place that they are eternally late for. It's stressful and loud and exhuasting. And waking up in those quiet cars with nothing much more than the sound of the blinker just always felt so.... safe.
So I drove Abbie home and I listened to the sound of that blinker, taking it in with the soft music playing in the background. And I relished in the fact that maybe she was feeling as peaceful and safe as I used to during those late-night car rides.
A few months ago, I had a plan for everything. Go to school. Get a degree. Become the best teacher anyone has ever known. Buy a home. Have more children. Lead a successful life juggling a full-time career, 3-4 kids, church, and a bootload of other activities. Do it all with a smile on my face and fresh-baked cookies in the oven.
But last night, driving home, my only goal was to take more late-night drives. So maybe the next time I'm feeling the need for a little more security and peace in my life, I'll put Abbie in the car for a few minutes, drive around the neighborhood, and listen to the blinker blink.
God Bless!
Melissa
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