Yesterday and Today!

I've gotten a lot of shopping done yesterday and today! Yesterday I hit Buy Low and Stokes.
Stokes is a great place for unadvertised sales. I always find surprise goodies when I go there. My mom-in-law had given me the heads up on a Saturday/Monday only sale so I went down there early yesterday. I was thrilled with all the deals I found!

 Whipped topping .77
Milk 1.88
Butter 1.98

Marshmallows .68
Bananas .33/lb
32 oz Western Family Cereal bag 2.50
Pineapple .33/lb

Lindsay Olives .68
Green Beans .48
64 oz Apple Juice 1.28

Then I headed off to Buy Low!

Avocados 2/$1

Green Leaf lettuce 2/$1

Cauliflower .50/lb

Broccoli Crowns .50/lb

Apples .69/lb

Shasta Soda cans .25 (in clearance carts)
Quaker cookies .99 (in clearance carts)
-$1/2 any Quaker items= .49 each!!!!
Sliced cheese product .99
2 lb Cheese 5.99
I know, its a crappy price. We needed cheese and it was the best there was at the time. :(

Today I hit Smith's and Walmart. Here's Smiths:

Barilla Whole Grain pasta 10/$10 (must buy 10)
-$1/2 Barilla pasta= .50 ea!
100 ct Vegetable laxative 1.99 ea (clearance end cap, back by the milk)

Walmart

I didn't have time to gather as many copies of coupons before today as I wanted to but I'm still happy with what I got. I'll do better next time though! I went hunting today and got tons of the coups I wanted and will use them next week!
*= doubled coupon

C&H Brown Sugar 1.98
-.50/1 2 lb C&H sugar*= .98

Carefree liners .94
-.50/1 Carefree liners*= +.03!!!

3 pk Ivory bar soap 1.24
-.50/1 Ivory soap*= .24 ea!

Allergy meds .88

Dial seasonal liquid hand soap .97
-.35/1 Dial soap*= .27 ea!!!

Atkins Shakes 5.78
-$1/1 Atkins shakes= 4.78

Atkins Bars 5.78
-$1/1 Atkins shakes online coupon= 4.78 (This shake coup worked just fine on the bars!)

Atkins peanut butter cups 5.57 (on sale)
-$1/1 Atkins shakes online coupon= 4.57
This is a crazy awesome price!! This product average $8 almost everywhere else!

I also grabbed a great deal on ibuprophen and a few tomatoes at .78/lb. I hate seeing their price going up. Even Buy Low didn't have a better price this week. Oh well. Have to deal with the changing seasons. 
On the other hand, we are coming into baking season! So here's a head's up on a great stock up item:

Fresh Market 
Western Family Chocolate Chips $1.50 each!!! Starts tomorrow (Wednesday!)

Happy Shopping!

Monday

My fabulous Grandma brought me a gift the other day. It was just perfectly perfect!

How freaking cool is this?!?!

I also hit Macey's on Friday to get more of those fabulous free noodles and such!

FREE noodles!
FREE Frozen Burritos! Did you all get that FREE Monterray burrito coupon??
They also had bagels for $1.25!
And the whipped topping was .89 each.
Less than $3 for ALL of this!!!

Okay, just one other note:
I found yet another wonderful MADE IN USA product!

Yay for Reynolds Wrap!

Onto some shopping! So many deals to take advantage of!

In the Bins!

 I've been asked several times what exactly I'm looking for when I hit the recycling bins. I went "hunting" today for my weekly fix and ended up with a nice assortment of goods. It is actually a really good representation of what I search for on a regular basis. So here ya go:

 Coloring Books! most of these haven't even been used! The ones that have, only have a few used pages. Great for my kids!
 Magazines! These are a great seller on ebay!

 Books and coupons!

 Cardstock and other fun paper! Yes, that whole rainbow is from today!!!

Brand new, still in the plastic items to sell!! Craziness!!

I also grabbed some egg cartons. My grandparents have chickens and regularly give me some so I bring them all the empty cartons I find.

Another thing that I am always on the lookout for: PACKING MATERIALS!! Between the recycling bins and the dumpsters behind stores, I never need to pay for envelopes or bubble wrap! I sell lots of goods online and am able to keep my overhead nice and low this way. Plus, I'm recycling! yay for saving the world!

So if you wanna know what to look for, this is the gist of it: If you can use it or sell it, if it is something that you will likely have to buy at some point anyway, then YES! Grab it! Then make sure you put things to use or get them sold as fast as possible. This is a fun business but can quickly become a disastrous mess! I like to sort everything the day that I find it and get it all put in its proper place as fast as possible!

GOOD LUCK! HAPPY HUNTING!!

3 Stores full of savings!

  I hit 3 stores today and got us some great deals. First was Fresh Market. Their sales week starts over again tomorrow.

WF yogurt 3/$1
1 lb Baby carrots .69
16 oz Land o frost deli meat 3.49
-$1/2 land o frost= 2.99 ea
Marsala cooking wine 2.29
Jennie-O Turkey cutlets $2.75 (clearance meat)

Then it was off to the dollar store! I was looking for almonds, pistachios and cooking spray. The thing with the dollar store however, is that you never know for sure if the same items will be in stock. I didn't get those things, but I did end up getting other bags of nuts, flax seed, and Fiber One bars. They haven't carried Fiber One (in full size box) before that I know of. I was pretty excited about that one!!

After that, we hit Macey's. James (my husband) has a friend at work who's wife is a much more intense couponer than myself. I've heard about her from other people; she is pretty notorious. So James just figured out today that it was his friend's wife. So he gave James a heads up on an awesome ramen deal at Macey's. I happened to have several copies of the necessary coupon, so off we all went together to take advantage of it!

Nissin Big Bowl ramen 4/$1
-$1/4 Nissin big bowls= FREE!!!!
The paper bags are full of ramen! I still have more coupons and will head back in when they have restocked!
Meadow Gold Egg Nog $1.59
Fat Boy 6 ct Ice cream sandwiches 2/$7 Buy 2, get one FREE!!!
-$1/2 Fat Boy
-$1/1 Fat Boy= $1.66 each!  I found both of these coupons in LDS Living magazines that I found in the recycling bins.
This was a really gratifying haul! Don't you just love saving money?!?!  :)

Tuesday at Walmart & Shopko

Yesterday I took advantage of my $10/$20 Shopko prescription club coupon. Yes, I get enough meds to keep me in these coupons pretty often. Good times.

So I got underwear for the hubs, Shopko brand cold medicine, and this lovely, huge, clearance mum. I paid just $12 and change!

Then we hit Walmart.
*= doubled coupon

Milk (ad-matched w/Buy Low's coupon) $1.99
Strawberries (ad-matched w/Buy Low's coupon) $1
Frigo string cheese $2.98
-.55/1*= $1.98 ea!
La Victoria whole wheat soft tortillas $1.78
-$1/1 online coupon= .78 ea
Allergy meds .88
Ivory 3 pack soap $1.24
-.50/1*= .24!
Whipped Topping $1.92
Cauliflower (ad-matched w/Buy Low coupon) .33/lb
Progresso Soup Starters $1.48 (rollback)
-.50/1*= $.48 ea!

It was just a couple of quick trips. Nothing super exciting, but all great money savers. Every little bit counts!

Garbage Day!

 In my neighborhood, today is Garbage Day!! One of my favorite days of the week!! On the way to taking my daughter to school, I always check out the dumpsters along the way, looking for anything sticking out. This is a great metal-salvage opportunity!

Quite often, when you see something sticking out of a garbage can, it ends up being good metal scrap. Mop sticks are really common finds. Today I found this metal ironing board. It all adds up!
So, on your garbage day, take the residential route as you run your errands. And don't be shy! I've never had anyone give me trouble about pulling stuff out of their cans. Remember! It's money and we're saving it from the land fills! YOU CAN DO IT!

Halloween Fun for Wallet & Body!

I found a fun little flyer at the gym yesterday and just have to share it with my fellow deal hunters!

Highway to Hale!

Saturday, October 27 @ 10 am

 I'm going to do the "Zombie Walk." Feels appropriate! :) For that or the 5k race, registration is $25. With that fee, you get some great benefits! 

-Technical T-shirt

-Two ticket vouchers to Hale Center Theater

-Entry to the refreshment area

-Entry into prize drawings

 There is also a 10k race. The fee is $35 but you also get two extra theater tickets! So go sweat it up in the morning and then hit a show that night!

 Costumes are ENCOURAGED!! I will be wearing my fabulous Scare Crow costume that I found at Saver's. 

 To Register:

http://webticketing.haletheater.org/

Post Office Instead of Land Fill

Just a little "I'm saving the world!" tid bit!

This pic is of a bag of packages on their way to the post office. All of them salvaged from dumpsters and recycling bins around the valley. They are now headed to all kinds of different places around the country to people who will appreciate them so much more than the ones who through them away. 

It's like they're getting a second life. Does that mean I just gave birth... ? ;)

Anywho, a little money in my pocket and even more good earth karma in my soul-bank!

You can make a difference too. You don't have to go diving like me. Just be aware of what you're throwing away. Could it find a home somewhere else? If we all do our part, our kids just might have a better world to grow up in. There's today's dose of idealism. Enjoy!

Today's Adventures

I hit three stores with two of my kids this morning. We got ourselves moving early and accomplished a lot pretty quickly.
We hit Walmart first to double coupons.
* The asterisk will indicate that the coupon was doubled.*

Sadly, the Jiffy Pop 3 packs that I normally get with a doubled coupon, are no longer available at Walmart. At least, not at the Springville store. :( Now you have to buy 8 or 10 packs. Not as good of a deal, so I skipped it.

The huge bag of rolls was $2.10 on the day old rack. You can usually find it sitting in the dairy section.
Progresso Soup Starters $1.48 ea
-.50/1 coupon*= .48 ea
I took advantage of this because Cheese Soup is incredibly expensive. This is a great alternative, especially while Progresso is on roll back.
Carefree liners .94 ea
-.50/1*= FREE
C&H Brown Cane Sugar $1.98 ea
-.50/1 coupon*= .98 ea
This is even cheaper than last year!! How often does that happen?!?!
Ivory 3 pack soap $1.24
-.50/1 coupon*= .24 ea!!!
I am going to gather up as many of those coupons (October P&G insert) as I can as totally stock up on soap!!
La Victoria Whole Wheat Tortillas $1.78
-.75/1 coupon*= .78 ea!!
How cool is that price?? On whole wheat tortillas, that is a STEAL! These ones were tricky to find. You need to actually look on the aisle right next to the other La Victoria salsas and such. They WON'T be in the tortilla section. 
Frigo Cheese Sticks $2.98 (roll back!)
-.55/1 coupon*= $1.98!!!!
I have never seen them this low before! Anyone know if they freeze well??

We hit Rite Aid next to use my $5 +UP rewards from last week.

So their milk is way expensive! $3.89 per gallon! But with my rewards, after tax, I paid $1.50 per gallon.

Then we hit Buy Low:

 12 oz Corn Flakes $1.25
-$1/2= .75 ea!!!!
Always check the CLEARANCE section!! And bring your coupon binder as you never know what surprise deals you might find!
Chips Ahoy ad-matched w/Smith's $2.00
-.50/1 coupon (All You October mag)= $1.50
Red Grapes .99/lb
Sliced cheese product .99

 24 oz Cottage Cheese ad matched w/Smith's $1.67
Land o' Frost 16 oz deli meat ad-matched w/Macey's $2.99
-$1/2 coupon= $2.49 ea
Red Bell Pepper ..79
Green Bell Pepper 2/$1
Salad .99 ea
Roma Tomatoes 2lb/$1
Bananas 3lb/$1

5 qt ice Cream $5.99
Large Whipped Topping $1.98
Celery ad-matched w/Fresh Market .99
98% fat free Cream of Chicken soup $1.09 ea
I also did a bit of coupon hunting today and will do that and some dumpster diving tomorrow. Excited to find some treasures!
I've worked through a lot of my "inventory" on ebay these last couple of months and am ready for new merchandise!! Who knows what's out there waiting for my gloved hands?!

Happy Surprises!

So.. this new commitment to not buy anything MADE IN CHINA... I admit I am human and suffer from weakness now and then. Luckily, the good Lord has blessed me for my feeble efforts!
I needed new filter bags for my Whisper fish tank filter. I had put off buying them because I was just certain that they had to be made in China. Finally though, my poor fish were crying (yes, crying!) because of the filthiness of their habitat. I couldn't let it go on.
I walked over to the local pet store and grabbed the filter bags without looking at the bottom of the box. I tried to rationalize that if I didn't look then I didn't know and so it would be okay. 
My dedication won out however and I looked. Plus I was waiting in line and am a less than patient person. Guess what?!?! They are MADE IN THE USA!!! I was so elated that when it was my turn to pay, I delighted the cashier with my story. Okay, so he wasn't as passionate as I was about it, but I practically floated back to my house! 
Not only had I saved money and pollution by walking, I had also supported a small, local business... AND... I bought from us!!!!
So that was one. Then, in the shower today, I decided it was time to finally replace the blades on my Venus Razor. I had bought the new blades before my commitment began, sure again that this was a made in China item. As I was getting a new blade out of the box though, I decided I may as well check since the deed was already done.
Lo and behold, they are made in Mexico! I am totally okay with that!!! So, there's another brand I shall be promoting! Now if only they would move some of that work home.... Must be patient! :)
Finally! I was out for an evening walk with my sister and noticed an interesting shadow behind the dumpster of a local credit union. I of course had to inspect the situation. What I found was something I had actually been thinking of buying!! It was one of those thick vinyl floor coverings that are used in office spaces for wheeled chairs to move around on.
I had it on my list because my sweet little boy has been having potty accidents in his bedroom and it is ruining the carpet. While trying to cure him of this problem, I thought it would be helpful to have some kind of carpet protection. And what?!?! I found it! For FREE!! 
It was a major pain carrying it home, what with all the pokies on the one side that hold it to the carpet. But I persevered like my pioneer heroes and it is now in my son's bedroom! 
YOU can save money too!! Keep your eyes OPEN for these opportunities and the good Lord will bless you  too!
Now I must go and save some more money by baking this week's bread! Ta ta for now!

Buy Low & Rite Aid

I hit Rite Aid yesterday and got the most fabulous deal on Charmin toilet paper!

20 double rolls $9.87 ea
Earn $5 +UP rewards wyb $15 select products.
-$10.00 +UP rewards from last week!
Such a great deal!!

Then we hit Buy Low!

 Clover Club chips 2/$3
Carrots 3lb/$1
Mushrooms .98
Red Onion 2lb/$1
Bananas 3lb/$1
Pineapple 3lb/$1
Salad .98
Red Potatoes 5lb/$1
Roma tomatoes 2lb/$1

Milk $2.48
-.75/1 online milk coupon
32 oz Shredded Cheese $4.99
-$1/1 any 2 lb cheese online coupon

These prices are all still good today. Some of the produce prices will go up tomorrow so don't miss out!!

Made in....?

I have committed to buying NOTHING that is MADE IN CHINA between now and the end of the year! Yes, that includes the Halloween through Christmas shopping season!!!
I hit Saver's today, looking for Halloween costumes and such. There were many tempting deals but they were MADE IN CHINA. I thought it would be harder, but it was actually pretty easy finding the things that I needed, NOT made in China. :)

Glow in the dark webs! Made in the USA!!!! $3.99

Fabulous red wig for my daughter's Ariel costume. NOT made in China! $10.00.

A fabulous scarecrow costume for myself! NOT made in China!

Lion costume for my son, and the fabulous wig for my girl. I got the mermaid costume online before my NO CHINA pledge. ;)

I also bought 3 blouses and 2 skirts for myself, and a fabulous pair of designer jeans to sell on ebay!

None of them made in China!
Feeling good and powerful! It only took a horrible picture my  brother received from a friend, an infant, placenta and all, still attached, lying in the gutter of a dirty Chinese street.. The infant was a girl. I cannot in good conscience support a society that would allow something so atrocious. It is easy to say how terrible it is and to feel bad for young Chinese and Indian girls. It is another thing to back it up with your actions. I am trying now to do my small part to let them know how I feel. If we don't speak up, and then back it up, no one will know what we believe. Alright, that's my soap box for today! It is possible to buy things NOT made in China, and STILL GET A GREAT DEAL!