Wednesday, October 31, 2012

Marsh Ad Match-Ups 11/1-11/7

Now that I am getting more familiar with how to get the blog  running I think its time to start doing some match ups so you guys can know in advance how to get your own deals. I thought November 1st would be a good starting point for this. I am only going to highlight what I see as a good deal and I will put what I plan to be getting in red. Now onto the first match-up!

*Butterball or Prime of the Farm Turkey Breast $.98/lb
*Whole Boneless Pork Loin $1.67lb (They will slice it free, we have them cut it 1/2" thick for chops)
*Get a Rotisserie Chicken for $3.99 wyb 2- 2 liters Coke products
*Oncor Traditionals Dinner 4/$10...$1/2  (10/14 Red Plum)
*Food Club Butter Quarters 2/$5
*Downy $3.99...$.40/1 (10/28 P&G)
*Food Club Canned Veggies $.68
*Food Club Shredded or Chunk Cheese $1.98
*Marsh Gallon White or Chocolate Milk 2/$5
*Grands Biscuits 5/$10...$.30/2 (10/7 General Mills) or $.40/3 printable
*12.8-14oz Chex Cereal 4/$10...$1/3 (10/7 General Mills) or $1/2 printable
*4# Florida Oranges or 3# Tangerines $2.98
*10# Harvest Club Russet Potatoes $1.99
*Oncor Classics Family Entrees 2/$7...$1/2 (10/14 Red Plum) I don't know what the difference
       between Traditionals and Classics is????
*Quaker Real Medleys 2/$3...$.50/1 (10/14 Red Plum)
*Iceberg Lettuce $.99
*3# Harvest Club Yellow Onions 3/$5
*1# Mini Peeled Onions 3/$5
*8oz Mushrooms 3/$5
*10oz Grape Tomatoes 3/$5
*California Celery 3/$5
*Dole Salad Mix or Full Circle Organic Salad 20% off
*Cucumbers/ Green Peppers $.88



There is a $5/$25 Meat Purchase Printable here on the last page.

Tuesday, October 30, 2012

October Budget

So here's the rundown of what I spent over the last month:

10/3 Walmart: $36
10/3 Aldi: $9
10/4 Meijer: $126
10/4 Walgreens: $22
10/11 Marsh: $28
10/12 Meijer: $36
10/15 CVS: $25
10/20 Tristen Birthday: $45
10/21 Aldis $32
10/21 Meijer $32
10/21 CVS $15
10/26 Cindy Birthday $20
10/26 Meijer $27
10/26 Walmart $17 **$470**
10/27 Target $20
10/27 Hobby Lobby $23
10/27 K-mart $47
10/28 Rural King $18
10/28 Walgreens $15
10/30 Marsh $22

Total for the month $615 so yet again over budget but only by $15. I count that as pretty good with a wedding and 2 birthdays this month.  I fully expect to be over budget in November & December with the holidays but I will get as many deals as possible and then buckle down come January :)

Shopping 10/27-10/30

I have had several small shopping trips in the last four days that I haven't posted since I have been really busy. Several items were wedding gifts for our niece's wedding last weekend.



First was Target 10/27:
2- Bath Towels $5
2 ct Hand Towels $4
4ct Wash Cloths $3
Glade 4oz candle $2.99
Glade Oil Diffuser $5.99

Coupons used:
Free Glade Oil Diffuser wyb Candle mq
$1 Glade Candle sq

Total spent: $20

Next Hobby Lobby 10/27:
Horse Hook Wall Hanging $6.49 (50% off regularly $12.99)
Photo Frame $6.00 (Clearance price regularly $12.99)
Marine Sign $9.99 (50% off regularly $19.99)
*I know these may seem a bit random but both our niece and her husband are Marines and our niece is a huge horse lover*
Total spent:$23.00




Next K-mart 10/27:
3- Pairs pants for Grandma $1.99 (all clearance apparel was $1.99!)
Football $3.99
Black flats $14.99 (I needed a new pair and was thankful to have these at the wedding!)
2- Purex Crystals $5.99
2- Lectric Shave $5.99
3- Glade Candles $3
3- Glade Oil Diffusers $5.99

Coupons used:
$4 off any sporting good syw reward
3- Free Glade Oil Diffuser wyb Glade Candle mq
2- $1 Purex Crystals mq (doubled)
2- $1 Lectric Shave mq (doubled)

Total: $47


Next stop was Rural King 10/28:
Leg Warmers $2.99 (Grandma has been wanting some of these for under her skirts in winter and
      these were the first neutral ones I have found)
Dog Bones: $10.99 (yes they are open Mavie would not quit barking until he got one)
Pickle Chips: $2.99 hubby request
*I was actually looking for a few things for a cowboy themed baby shower we are throwing for our
       niece (yes the same one who just got married!) hmm I don't see anything for the shower maybe
       I shouldn't take the hubby next time*
Total: $18

Walgreens 10/28:
10- Blue Diamond Almonds $3.79 Buy 1 Get 1 Free

Used:
5- $.75/2 mq

Total: $15



Last but, not least Marsh 10/30:
*Not everything is pictured most of it was safely hidden in the garage fridges*
5- Gallon White Milk $1.97 each
2- Gallon Chocolate Milk $1.97 each
Ocean Spray Cranberries $2.49
4- Strawberries $1.67 (I really had to hide these or they would have been gone in 5 min)

I used only 1 coupon:
$1 Ocean Spray Cranberries

Total: $22

Whew! And that finishes out my October Shopping! I will post a round up of the October Budget next so we can see if I was able to stay in budget??




Friday, October 26, 2012

Walmart 10/26



The final stop for today was Walmart for a few random items:

2- Little Debbie Danish: $2.94 (coupons were expiring and I wanted to try them)
4- El Monterey Burrito: $1
Jet Puffed Peppermint Marshmallows $1.25 (I'm going to try making Mint Krispy Treats!)
2- Renuzit Temptations: $1.18
8- V05 Shampoo: $.78 (donation to charity)
Cascade Pacs: $3.97 (we were out ugh!)
4- Waggin Train Treats $2.12, $2.98. $2.68, & $2.84 (4 separate varieties)
1- Duck Packing Tape w/ Dispenser $1.88

I used the following coupons:
2- $1 Little Debbie Danish (facebook coupons)
2- $1/4 V05 Shampoo mq
4- Free El Monterey Burrito mq
2- $.75 Renuzit Temptations printable
$.50 Cascade mq
4- $2 Waggin Train mq
$1 Duck packing tape printable

Total Spent: $17 :)

Meijer 10/26



I ran into Meijers for a few items today:

1- Cheez It Crackers: $2.50
3-Angel Soft 6 double roll: $2.19
3-Glory Canned Greens: $1.67
6- El Monterey Burritos: $1.39
8- Orange Tic Tac: $1.14
6- Ortega Black Beans: $.83
6-Campbells Chunky Soup: 3/$4
Herbal Essence Shampoo: $2
Herbal Essence Conditioner: $2
Earthbound Farms Salad Mix: $2.50

Used the following coupons (in 2 transactions):
$1mq Cheez It Crackers
3- $.25 Angel Soft printable (doubled)
3- $.35mq Glory Canned Goods (doubled)
6- Free El Monterey Burrito mq's
4- $.50/2 mq Tic Tacs (doubled)... I will use these in a Christmas gift for Grandma
3- $.50/2 Ortega Product
2- $1/3 Campbells Chunky Soup
Buy Herbal Essences Shampoo Get Herbal Essences Conditioner free mq
$1 mperk on any Earthbound Salad


I also picked this up for Kayleigh. It was only $5 and its just perfect ;)

Total Spent: $27




Cindy's Birthday Shopping

Yep you read that right not only did we have Little Dudes birthdaylast week,  this week was his youngest sister's 2nd birthday.  Cindy is our resident wild child and mean as a rattlesnake.


She's definately a cutie though!

She has grown so fast she really needed clothes for her birthday so that's what we got.

This was a cute little outfit we got at Meijer's for Grandma to give her and it was only $5 each piece.


I found this adorable jean dress at K-mart for $9. She already has some cute boots her sister handed down to her and a long sleeve shirt for underneath it. I will get her some fun leggings but I just couldn't find any that weren't hot pink in her size today.


Sunday, October 21, 2012

Shopping 10/21



First stop of the day was Meijer I did 3 transactions to maximize:
7- Eckrich Bologna: $.79 when you buy 7...we will freeze this and use it to make sandwich spread 
      over the holidays when we are busy running around.
7- Eckrich Franks (already at grandmas): $.79 when you buy 7
16- Hormel Chili: $1.25
4- Ortega Black Beans: $.81
2- Ortega Taco Seasoning: $.54
2- Ortega Taco Shells: $1.04
McCormick Pumpkin Pie Spice: $3.29
McCormick Paprika: $1.99
McCormick Chili Powder: $1.99
McCormick Cumin: $3.43


Used:
8- Hormel Chili $1/2mq
4- Ortega product $.50/2mq  (double to $1)
2- McCormick $1.75/2mq
Total: $32


Stop #2 CVS:



Deans TruMoo 1/2 gallon Chocolate Milk: $2.19
DiGel antacid: $5
Zantac 24ct: $8.99
Mucinex Cold, Flu, & Sore Throat: $15 (Brian needed this)

Used:
$3.50 in EB from previous orders
$5 Zantac mq
$2 Zantac sq
$2 DiGel mq
$.55 TruMoo mq
$3.75 (25% off) Mucinex sq

Total: $15


Stop #3 Aldis....finally some healthy food!



6- Chili Sauce $1.29 each (we will use this for meatballs over the holidays and thats a great price)
String Cheese $2.49...the kids were starting to have withdrawls
3- Crushed Pineapple $.89 each... I need this to make cranberry sauce Yummy!
4- Meatballs $1.99 each... I am planning to make and freeze some meatball soup one day this week
3pk Green Peppers $.99
Green Onion $.99
Roma Tomatoes $.99
Grape Tomatoes $1.29
Mini Cucumbers $1.49
Cottage Cheese $1.99
2 Bunches Bananas $2.58 total

Total: $32

Stop #4 was Walgreens (no picture)
I picked up my free 8x10 from the online offer last Thursday. I have a plan to use it in my grandmothers Christmas present.






Little Dude Birthday Shopping

So even though I have been sick all week I did manage to have a birthday party for little dude Saturday. We ate food we already had such as the cheap grapes I froze last week, the pizzas from CVS, and various veggies and chips we had. I personally would much rather have a budget friendly party at home any day especially since he's only 5. We had a party over the summer at Chuck E Cheese and lets just say it did not go well :( Way too much money and way too chaotic.

So what's the most important part of a kids birthday? Why the decorations of course (ok not really):



Why in the world are party supplies so expensive? If I find stuff on clearance I always stock up but, since he wanted Angry Birds I didn't have anything.
Dangling Decorations: $4
Small Plates: $2 (I just bought enough plates for the kids the adults can use plain)
Large Plates: $3
Bucket: $2 (he can reuse this for halloween)
Cup: $1 (I used this to put silverware in and then he can use it later)
Plastic Forks & Spoons: $1 each


Ok so now how about the real favorite part....Gifts!





#1- Custom Pillowcase $10: I found a deal at Ink Garden last week were you could get a pillowcase for $5 + $4.99 shipping. Little Dude is very much a coaster fanatic like his Uncle Brian so in his words this is AWESOME.
#2- Dino sweatshirt $9: It so stinking cute it has horns up the back and zips up over his mouth, it really fits his personality.
#3 Monster socks $3 (in picture with sweatshirt): they look like different monster feet when you put them on, he picked them out
#4 Zombie Shirt $5: Seriously whats the deal with all the Zombie stuff now days?? He picked this out too.

Side note: Yes I only bought him clothes but, don't worry he also got a Nintendo DS from other people, and yes he is spoiled :)

Total for Birthday: $45

Monday, October 15, 2012

Kings Island Halloween Haunt

I bet you guys were wondering if I was even going to do anything with the thrills part of this blog huh? Well wait no longer I am proud to present Kings Islands Halloween Haunt:


First of all lets meet my crazy crew:
 
That's my hubby, Brian. He works in information systems at the hospital so when we saw this we cracked up and had to take the picture. He is the ring leader of the coaster madness and will be glad to tell you if there is no coaster riding its not a vacation.



Next we have Shaggy. No that's not his real name but we were stopped once before he discovered the miracle of a razor and haircut because he looked so much like Scooby Doos Shaggy and people wanted to take pictures. When Shaggy was still in high school we took him on his first coaster voyage and now he rivals Brian in sheer coaster enthusiasm.



Next we have Matt. I didn't get any close up pictures of Matt this trip so we will use one from earlier in the year. Matt is a friend of Shaggy's and we introduced him to the wonderful world of coaster fanatics last year at Halloween. We have created a monster, and now the only thing he has left to tackle is Cedar Point and we will offically bestow him with a coaster fanatic card.




Of course our day started with this little 200+ foot beauty, Diamondback. To be exact we rode it 8 times in a row or for pretty much an hour straight. See I told you guys I am insane!

After our Diamondback marathon we proceeded to just go counter clockwise around the park riding everything once and sometimes twice.


The really cute guy in orange is my hubby and right behind him is my two other coaster riding buddies. I would have been on there but, my bladder was making it very clear I had to make a pit stop. Being the park commandos they are wasting time waiting on me was no go so they just rode the nearest tall steel monster, Vortex.



Next we headed over to Action Zone and the boys rode Drop Tower. I chose to set this ride out because the restraints are not conducive to larger chested ladies. I do ride it from time to time just not this time.


I need to mention that the weather was perfect. The best part of 70 degrees in October:



I don't feel weird eating a blueberry/ vanilla swirl cone. Oh that stuff is good!! The bad part of perfect weather...by noon everybody within 100 miles seemed to be in the park.

After a few more rides we needed to go get our jackets and prepare for:


That herst is so creepy at night when the windows glow and the whole park is covered with fog machines.


I do have to say I felt as though someone as watching me as I walked through here:


Hahaha cheesy I know. The rest of the night was spent on the haunted houses. I really was let down this year they were really dull. Matter of fact the best scare I got all night was at the kiddie haunted house. I was walking behind the guys into it and evidently a monster from another haunt was walking out we smacked into each other face to face. Lets just say I'm really glad I went to the potty right before that :)


Well that was the end of our 2012 Coaster Season. As sad as I am to see it go I know we have 3 huge coaster fanatic events and 21 days in Disney during 2013 so it will get here quickly!!!

 


Tazo Iced Passion Tea


Hello my name is Melissa and I'm addicted to Starbucks. Ok so maybe not addicted but I do enjoy several of their beverages but, hey I run a coupon log and let's face it Starbucks does not equal frugal. So I am now making it my mission to find yummy recipes for all my favorite drinks that don't break the bank. One of my favorites was actually the easiest... Passion Iced Tea. I found the Tazo brand (same thing Starbucks uses) at Meijer for $3.75 a box. This box makes 12 quarts. In order to make sure my cheap tongue didn't deceive me I made a pitcher and then drove to the Starbucks to get one of theirs. After pouring a little in each I made my dear sweet guinea pig hubby taste them both and he agrees they are most definitely the same.

Now lets get down to the savings:
16 oz Starbucks Iced Passion Tea= $2.21 after tax
Make your own 12 qt= $3.75... which makes it about $.16 for 16oz

Now that makes my cheap little heart happy :)

Meijer 10/12


These were done across several orders so we could maximize the doubling of the coupons.
12- Betty Crocker Potatoes $1 (going to food pantry)
9- Totinos Pizza Rolls $1
2- Quaker Popped snacks $1
2- Meijer Pretzels $1
2- Bush Baked Beans $1
6- Helper mixes $1
3- Dole Salad Mix $1
8- Pepsi Next 2 liter $1
1- Tazo tea $4 (I will be showing this on the next post!)
2- Claussen pickles $2.50
1- Marshmallow Hot Chocolate Poptarts $2 (they just sounded good!)

I used the following coupons:
6- $.50/2 Betty Crocker Potatoes mq (doubled)
3- $.75/3 Totinos Pizza Rolls mq
$1/2 Quaker product printable
$1/2 Bush Beans printable
4- $1/2 Pepsi Next mq
2- $.55 Claussen Pickle mq
I automatically saved $4 with the Buy 10 Get 11th item free promotion

Total spent: $36



Marsh Trip 10/11




Last week I went to Marsh to take advantage of the great produce sales. I somehow lost the actual receipt so I'll just go based on the prices I have wrote down and how much the total was :)

Grapes: $.79lb I got a little over 7lbs (Grapes freeze well)
Bananas: $.39lb I'm pretty sure I got right at 4 lb
6-Assorted Pears: $1.35lb there were about 3 lbs
Cucumber: $.79 I hate paying this when I have been getting them 4/$1 at the Farm Stand
Sweet Potatoes: $.90lb there were 4 total and they were right at 4lbs
2-Head Lettuce: $.78 each
Boneless Chicken Breast: 40% off I can't remember price per lb.
2- Bar S Deli Shaved Ham: $2.50 each
2 Aunt Millies Bread & 1 Buns: $3.59 Buy 1 Get 2 Free



According to my check register I paid $28 here.

Pizzas came in!



Remember the crazy pizza order I told you I placed at CVS? Well guess what it came in today! It actually ended up being just a couple more dollars than in my original plan since the pizzas were $7.79 a piece instead of $5.99. In the end I paid $24.64 for all 18 which makes each pizza $1.38 WOOHOO! I bet no one can guess what we are having to eat at Little Man's 5th birthday party this weekend ;)  And I also want to remind you that I did NOT clear the shelves I called and placed an order last week with my favorite ordering manager Jill. That girl rocks right along with everyone who works in that location.

Tuesday, October 9, 2012

Cheap Christmas Mug

I Heart Grandpa Design Mug
Check out our modern shower invitations by Shutterfly.
View the entire collection of cards.
This cute mug is going to be one of Daddy Dears Christmas presents. And the best part of it? All I had to pay was $5.99 Shipping! Through 10/13 head on over to Shutterfly and design your own Custom 11oz White Mug ($13.99 value) and use promo code HALLOWEENMUG at checkout to get it for only shipping.

Monday, October 8, 2012

Hot Pizza Deal @ CVS starting 10/14


So starting next Sunday (10/14) there will be a awesome deal on DiGiorno pizzas at CVS:

DiGiorno Pizza:  Buy 1 Get 1 Free...use B2G1 manufacturers (use zip code 63122)

Before I tell you my plan let me first state I will be on the phone first thing in the morning to special order these. I will not be buying this large amount off the shelf as I already know it would  leave none in the store. Also I can use a large amount since Tristen's birthday party is coming up and I now know what we are having to eat!

With all that said here is  my plan:

18 DiGiorno pizzas (assuming the $6.50 max)= $117
9 Free with the store deal= $58.50
use 6 manufacturers coupons= $39
Total= $19.50 for 8....or $1.09 each

Thursday, October 4, 2012

My Now I See How She Does It Shopping Trips

I know a lot of people ask how we manage to feed a lot of people on such random things and now that the fall deals are starting to roll in I think my shopping trips are going to start shedding some light on this. I buy lots of what we will need at once and then we don't need anymore for awhile. Also we buy half cows once a year with our tax check so that doesn't come out of our budget and makes it possible for me to  only buy beef when I find a great price. I have price points that I am willing to spend on each item and when I find them at or below said price I buy lots. With that said lets see the craziness I did today.

First we stopped at Walgreens:

There are ten (10!) seperate transactions here. I always go to the beauty counter so I am not holding up everyone who just wants to run in and run out for a few items.
The first 9 transactions were each:
1- 4ct Cepacol Lozenge $1....get $1RR back (so basically FREE!)
All of those together cost me $9.63 and that gave $9RR to use on the rest

Transaction #2 was:
12- Halloween Coloring Books 3/$1 w/ in ad coupon (filler items so I can use my RR)
4- Cottonelle 12 ct $5@.. I used a $1sq (took off $4) & 4- $ .55 printables
3- Scott paper towel 6ct $5...used $1sq (took off $3) & 3- $1mq

I had $5RR from last week and the $9RR from the first order, so that order came to right at $13.

Then we went to Meijer! This was actually all done in four transactions (Brian did 2, I did 2)




We got:
12- Quaker Instant Oatmeal 4/$10...used 6- $1/2mq
2- Quaker Real Medleys cups 2/$3...used $1/2mq
2- Quaker Granola Bars $2
16- Cesar Dog Food $ .67...used 4- Buy 3 Get 1 Free mq
4- Cesar Meaty Selects $1.25... used 2- Buy 1 Get 1 Free mq
12- Pedigree Dog Food $ .67...used 2- $1/6mq
2- Nylabones Buy 1 @ $6.39 Get 1 @ $2...used 2- $2mq
20-Campbells Soups (food pantry donation) $ .60...used 4- $ .40/3 printables & 2- $ .40/4 mq

Not pictured because I didn't feel like carrying them all in:
12- 24pk Pepsi $6...used 6- $2/2mq (We have a lot of birthdays coming up!)
2- 20 ct Frito Lay Singles $6.99...used 2- $1mq

I saved $2 instantly on every 4 Quaker products I bought.

Total for Meijers: $126


Wednesday, October 3, 2012

Homemade Sliders

In my opinion part of being thrifty is figuring out how to make what you can. My little guys and my big guys love White Castles but lets be honest it takes a lot of them to feed my crowd and they aren't cheap. So after checking that glorious DIY site Pinterest, I found a recipe that sounded good and tried it out. It was super easy and a hit! Here's the basic directions:

*pour a layer of dried minced onion into the bottom of a shallow baking pan
*press a thin layer of ground beef on top of the onions
*bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes (I may have forgot to time them, I just kept checking them)
*cut the ground beef into squares (kind of like your cutting brownies)
*cut rolls in half (I toasted mine)
*place a pickle on each roll and using a spatula place a "burger" on each roll


 I ended up making 60 sliders and I had about 48 left after dinner to freeze. Now I have plenty in the freezer for when the guys get a craving and I won't even have to drive the 30 minutes each way!


So lets do the math:
60 Originals @ $ .69= $41.40


For my version:
3 lbs ground beef @ $2lb= $6
5 packages rolls @ $2.48= $12.40
Minced onion= $2
I always have pickles in this house so lets not count those :)
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Total=  $20.40

That means my version is $ .34 each thats less than half!



I am going to try to post more of my homemade versions now that fall is here and my kitchen will be full of dirty dishes constantly and grandma is calling me Betty Crocker.



 

Shopping October 3rd



I originally went to Aldis this morning to get the $1.69 chicken breast but, I found out the local Aldis puts the Wednesday meat deals out on Tuesdays so they were sold out before Wednesday came around. (Yeah I had that same look on my face and asked them what the point of a Wednesday sale was if it started Tuesday!) I did however pick up a few things while I was there.
2- Cornbread crackers (these are great in chili) $1.29@
2- Two gallon freezer bags on clearance for $ .79
2- Bunches bananas $2.27 total for both
Apple Butter $2.29

Total $8.83



I also stopped by Walmart to get the rolls for tonights slider craziness I will be posting in a minute and I found these ribeyes Brian likes.

5- Kings Hawiian Rolls $2.48@
Burger seasoning $2.98
2- 5ct Ribeyes $9.98@


Total $35.34


Tuesday, October 2, 2012

K-mart 10/2


I recieved a email from Shop Your Way Rewards yesterday saying that I had $5 in bonus rewards to be used on children'r apparel through Friday. The Dora shirt was regularly $8.99 but was on sale this week for $6.29 (30% off) so after the bonus rewards and they regular rewards I already had the shirt was....FREE! I also checked out the 50% off Clearance toys. I only had a few minutes so I didnt get to look very long but, I did find this cute doll set. The Beast costume just slides over the Prince. It was regularly $28.99 clearanced priced at $22 so I paid $11 after the additional 50% off. Since I plan to put this back for Lexi at Christmas it won't come out of the budget! :)

I also picked up a gallon of milk today at Marsh for $2.79 (I just didn't feel like running to CVS and  Marsh was right there)

So total budget spent today: $2.79