Walmart Deals Today!!!

Well, I didn't go to Walgreens today : ( 

but here are my Walmart deals!!!

3 Musketeers are 50 cents at Walmart.

I had 3 - $1 off 2 - 3 Musketeers!!!

Making 6 candy bars FREE!!!!

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(thekrazycouponlady.com)

This picture is not mine, but shows the Old Spice deal I did.

I used this coupon:

(lorihas3kids.com)

The coupon reads: 

Buy ONE Old Spice Fresh Collection or Red Zone Product, 

Get ONE Old Spice Body Spray FREE

So I bought one travel size Old Spice Fresh Collection Body Wash for 97 cents and I got an Old Spice Body Spray ($3.62) for FREE!!!

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(www.spacesavers.com)

I bought 3 pint-sized Rubbermaid containers - $1.66 each.

I used 3 of these coupons. 

(www.couponskenneyc.com)

So I bought each container for 66 cents.

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(www.iheartthemart.com)

I bought 2 Nexcare boxes of bandages - $1.

I used the following coupon-

which is no longer available to print : (

(www.passionatepennypincher.com)

Which means FREE bandages!!!

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I also bought 3 Colgate Toothpastes - 97 cents.

(www.savingsschool.blogspot.com)

I used a 75 cents off ANY Colgate coupon and picked

up 3 for 22 cents each!!!

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I also bought 2 Herbal Essence products with the current Herbal Essence coupon - $3 off an Herbal Essence styler product with the purchase of any Herbal Essence product.

I bought a HE conditioner - $2.84

and HE hairspray - $2.88 

Total - $5.72

- $3 coupon

= $2.72 or $1.36 each!!!!

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I also picked up my 28 cent Mentos Gum 

I blogged about earlier!!!

Deals I am Going Try Tomorrow!!!

Here are some deals I am going to try tomorrow!

I cannot guarantee that any of them will work, but I will post my trip and let you know!

WALGREENS

$1 RR WYB participating Crest or Oral-B products at $2.99 including:

Oral-B Advantage Toothbrush
-$2 off Oral-B Pulsar, CrossAction, Advantage, toothbrush, PG 7/03
(use $2 off, makes it FREE)

 $5 RR WYB Gillette Fusion ProGlide $9.99
-$4 off Gillette Fusion ProGlide razor, PG 6/05
(use $4 off, makes it 99¢)

Buy 2 3Musketeers Chocolate Bars 2 for $1.79
Use the $0.50/2 coupon found in the 6/26 RP
Plus, stack with the in-ad coupon (will deduct $0.79)
Final cost $0.25 each!

BUY (2) Johnson & Johnson First Aid To Go $.99
$1.50/2 Johnson & Johnson Red Cross Brand Product, Any (found on tearpad at the store!)
= $.24 EACH

BUY (2) Johnson & Johnson First Aid Tape $1.49
$1.50/2 Johnson & Johnson Red Cross Brand Product, Any (found on tearpad at the store!)

  

= $.74 EACH

WALMART

Colgate Toothpaste - $1.00

Use $0.75/1 Colgate Toothpaste 6/26/2011 SS Insert (exp 7/16/2011)
Total: $.25

Mentos UP2U Gum - $1.28

Use $1/1 Mentos UP2U Gum, exp. 7/20/11 (SS 06/05/11)
Total: $.28

Gillette Proglide Razor $3.00 (from the travel size isle - this is the same as a regular one that cost $8 plus but it doesn't come with the spare blade)
used $4/1 coupon from 6/5 P&G newspaper insert
Final Cost: MONEY MAKER of $1.00

Rubbermaid Containers – $1.66 – used $1/1 Rubbermaid Beverage, Pitcher, Bottle or Caraf 6/26/2011 RP Insert (exp 9/30/2011) – $.66 each

Adam's flea collars-$1.48 each

Use four $5.00 off Qs

Final Price-FREE + 3.52 profit each!!!  (I have 3 coupons so I hope this one works!!!)

Advil Pocket Pack, 10ct $1.84
$4.00/2 Advil, Advil PM, or Thermacare, Excludes Trial Size from SS 5/22
Final Price: $0.32 MONEYMAKER

Weight Watchers Yogurt Cups Sale $0.50
- $1/5 Weight Watchers Yogurt Cups 6/26/2011 SS Insert (exp 8/15/2011) 
Final: $0.30

Brillo Estracell Sponges Sale $0.97
- $1/2 Brillo Estracell Sponge Products 5/22/2011 RP Insert (exp 7/24/2011) 
Final: $0.47

Bath and Body Works

They have my favorite coupon AGAIN - free travel size signature collections item with ANY purchase - think low priced items: antibacterial gel or the holder!!! Remember: It is good until July 13th and it is a PDF coupon which means you can PRINT as many as you would like!!!

Bath and Body Works Coupon!

There are also some printable coupon deals I want to try, but I haven't printed my coupons yet!!!

New Printable Coupon Policy at Kroger!!!

I have had several wonderful friends (thanks - Angela, Hannah, & Melinda) share their stories of some new coupon policies. So I called the stores myself!!!

MIDDLESBORO KROGER

Kroger's states that they will now only accept 3 printable coupons (of any kind) per transaction. I specifically asked if that meant 3 printable coupons per item (say...3 printable toothbrush coupons and 3 printable spaghetti coupons) - she said "no." You can only use 3 printable coupons in the WHOLE shopping trip!!!

Apparently there has been fraudulent use of printable coupons and therefore the current restrictions. I could be VERY upset with these changes - but I am choosing NOT to be. I actually don't rely on a lot of printable coupons for my shopping. My strategy of how I organize my coupons may actually help you in this situation. 

In the last post I described how I organize my coupons (usually on Sunday) into snack-sized baggies for each store. This strategy might help with the printable coupon restrictions because if you had to make an unexpected trip to town you could always stop in at Kroger's and pick up a few things (making sure to not use more that 3 printable coupons)! Your coupons will already be organized and ready to go!

On a positive note, I have heard that the printable coupon powers-to-be are working on adding a separate barcode to printable coupons that would electronically number each coupon so that people CANNOT photocopy printable coupons and get away with it!!! Maybe things will get better when this new system is fully developed!!!

MIDDLESBORO WALMART

I also wanted to double check with Walmart to see if their policy has changed. When I call they said that they currently do not have ANY restrictions on the number of printable coupons you can use. Now, with this said, I was questioned the last few times I have used printable coupons there. After talking with the cashier, I have developed some tips for using printable coupons at Walmart:

1. Do not try to use more that 2 printable coupons that are the same.

Most people know that when you find a printable coupon that you like that you can print it once and then hit the back button and print it again. There are ways to legally print more of the same coupon - like using a different computer to print 2 more coupons. But cashiers are trained to be suspicious if there is more than 2 of the same printable coupon.

2. Print coupons in color!

I usually print mine in black and white, but the cashier told me that when it is printed in color then they are almost sure it was printed and NOT photocopied. That seems like something easy I can do differently in order to save some hassle at the checkout line.

3. Limit coupons used at each shopping trip!

It seems that this one is a little contradictory to how couponers usually do things, but just hear me out. I usually get questioned on the shopping trips that I plan to use a coupon for every item I buy. The more coupons (regular and printable) that I have the more scrutiny I receive. So by having my coupons organized early in the week in my baggies - I can simply pick up items that have coupons with them as I end up at Walmart  (which is more times a week than I would like there to be!) - then just doing "coupon" shopping trips where I like to get most things for free!

I hope this information helps! Thanks for everyone who let me know of the changes! Please feel free to email or message me with any situation you want me to know about or discuss!!!

Reorganizing my Coupons!

The system of how I am doing my coupons is exactly the same. I have just changed out my binder. I will explain how I organize in this post for anyone who may have not come to my workshop.

This is my new binder. I had been using a 1-inch binder, but that was becoming too small. This binder is a zip-around 1 1/2-inch binder. I found it on clearance at the Crossville Walmart. Now is a good time to buy a new binder because the school supplies are coming! This binder is apparently not the one they will be selling for the 2011-2012 school year - so it was reduced to $5!!!

Here is an inside look at my binder. I use baseball card holders as organizers for my coupons. I also have a pencil pouch to hold pens, calculator, and whatever else I need.  I like this binder because on the left side it has a few accordion slots. This is where I am storing my restaurant coupons and my portfolio (I describe my portfolio under the next photo). 

I also use a portfolio. I picked this one up at Walmart for around $5. This portfolio has 8 sections that each contain a clear pocket. I love this kind because each clear pocket also has a smaller clear pocket. I assign each store I shop at with a section. In that section I put the current sales ad, that store's coupon policy, and any other store-related thing I might need. In the small clear pocket I put my snack-sized baggy full of the coupons I plan to use that week at that store. 

I TRY to organize my coupons every Sunday. When I get my coupon inserts, I cut and organize my coupons. Then within the first few days of the week I will research the deals I am going to try to do that week. Then I organize my snack-sized baggies. This works well because I have all my coupons organized and ready even if I need to make an unexpected trip to the store!

  

Newspapers and Coupons

I have learned lately that not all newspapers are created equally!!!

I have learned some tricks about newspapers that I want to share:

1. Buy you newspaper inside the store!!!

I always go inside and buy my newspaper inside - this is so I can look through my paper before I buy it! There is nothing more frustrating that buying a newspaper that does not have coupons in it!!! ALWAYS look BEFORE you buy! This also helps because coupons are usually not inserted during holiday weekends - but last weekend (4th of July) there were coupons! Go figure?!?!?!?

2. Buy different newspapers!!!

I have to admit that I have not been too impressed with Knoxville's Sunday paper! So we have been getting the Morristown Citizen Tribune ($1.75) at the gas station next to Gondelier's restaurant. We have also been picking up the Lexington Herald ($2) at the Shell gas station in Middlesboro! I had been pleased with the amount of coupons in both of these papers! Also - remember to pick up extra copies of the Claiborne Progress (50 cents) when it has the Proctor and Gamble in it!

3. Consider Subscriptions!!!

Go online and see if your favorite newspaper is cheaper when you have it delivered to your house! Most newspapers have a special deals on "Sunday Only" subscriptions. 

4. Recycle!!!

I really hate to admit this, but I do not read the newspaper that I buy. Sometimes the newspaper gets read during football season, but that is usually it. So make sure to pass the newspapers on to family, friends, coworkers, etc.! Also - make sure to take it to the recycling bin - and look for extra coupon inserts while you are there!!! ; )

Bread of Life Mission Trip

Travis and I took the youth from Haynes Flat Baptist Church to Crossville, TN to serve at the Bread of Life Rescue Mission. We had an awesome time!!! Here are some pics!

Pantry (left side) - BEFORE

Pantry (left side) - AFTER

Pantry (right side) - BEFORE

Pantry (right side) - AFTER

Here we are shopping at Save-a-Lot!!!

Here is my car packed with food for the pantry!!!

Inside view of my car!!!

We bought and served dinner too!!!

Here we are organizing the diapers BOL had in stock! 

We also brought 700 diapers from our church's diaper ministry!!!

We also bought dishpans to reorganize their stock of hygiene products!

There were 5 kids there at BOL. 

We bought them backpacks full of school supplies, flip flops, toys, etc.!!!

So what does coupons have to do with this trip?

I actually didn't use coupons on this trip, but here is what i learned in the process:

1. PANTRY - The pantry was empty because their donations have dropped. So make sure you are donating to your local food pantry!!! 

Also, in the first pantry picture you can see a lot of donated ready-to-feed baby formula. These were donated because of coupons! Recently (but not in our area) a $5 coupon came out that could be used on ANY Similac formula. What you could do was buy the ready-to-feed formula for about $3.80 and the OVERAGE from the coupon could be used on the rest of your grocery bill!!! It was an amazing deal and I could tell that a lot of couponers had donated their formula to the pantry! The staff at BOL needed to find families that could use this particular type of formula. I put a post on facebook and quickly found families in need. I now have a bunch of formula getting ready to be shipped to Alabama to families affected by tornados there!!! God is good!!!

2. Save-a-Lot - First of all, Save-a-Lot DOES NOT accept coupons! This is where the BOL pantry buys their stock so this is where we went. I have to say that I really liked it there! Everything was bright and really organized. The prices were really good too!

3. PIZZA - We did not use coupons for the pizza, but Travis did call around to a lot of pizza places until he found the best deal!

4. Diapers - Our youth group has been doing a Diaper Ministry at our church since April. So far our count of diapers given out is around 2,500!!! When we first started we did A LOT of research of diaper deals. For the most part we buy the Walmart brand diapers. No matter what coupon we used at Walmart - these diapers are always the cheapest! We do find some good diaper deals at Krogers and Walgreens on name brand diapers too! I also learned in the process that in order to really save on diapers you need to calculate the price PER diaper in each package. I am amazed at how many time we see that the box size diapers is actually MORE expensive (per diaper) that buying the smaller packs!!! Doing your homework really pays off in the end!!!

Guatemala Mission Trip Report

I am sorry that it has been so long since I have posted on my blog! Since the last post I have been on two mission trips and slowly started adjusting back to life at home. After my Guatemala trip, I had a set back and it has taken a little bit longer to recover. Now everything is almost back to normal and I have just reorganized all my coupons - so let's go shopping...LOL!!!

First - an update on my Guatemala Mission Trip! We had a wonderful time!!! We had 86 saved during our trip!!! We fit hundreds of people with glasses, gave away a lot of flip flops to children in need and soooo much more! Here are some pics!!!

(Here I am fitting a lady with reading glasses. 

I had to reinvent a Guatemalan newspaper as my eye chart!)

(On this day we had the privilege to serve spaghetti at the "dump." We served the spaghetti with spoons!!! It was a wonderfully humbling experience!!!)

(On this day we went to the chicken coop and gave out flip flops, handmade dolls, 

hair bands and chapstick!!!)

(Here I am at the Nutritional Center with baby Isabella!!!)

So how did coupons play a part in this trip?

I used coupons on most of the products I packed: Secret Clinical Deodorant, Razors, Shampoo, etc. It was nice to not have to BUY these items at full price because I had them in my (now empty) stockpile!