3 Trips To Shaw's - 2 Rounds of the Catalina!

Total Before Savings: $81.95

Total Preferred Savings: $23.46

Total Coupons Used: $21.58

Cash OOP: $36.91

OYNP Coupons Earned: $30.00

Net: $6.91

2 Gallons of milk - $3.69 (2 Free Milk Coupons) FREE!

2 Wacky Mac - $1.25 (2 .75/1 MFCs from SS) FREE!

1 Goldfish - $1.88

1st Catalina Scenario

2 Lipton Soup Packs - Reg. Price $1.89, Sale $1.00, .60/2 MFC (DOUBLES) = .40 cents ea!

10 BC Fruit Snacks - Reg. Price $2.99, Sale $2.00, 5 .50/2 MFCs (DOUBLE) = $1.50 ea

OOP: $15.80

OYNP Earned: $15.00

Net: .80 cents!

2nd Catalina Scenario

2 Skippy PB - Reg. Price $2.50, Sale $2.00, $1/2 MFC = $1.50 ea

1 Chex Bars - Reg. Price $3.79, Sale $3.00, .75/1 MFC = $1.50

2 Breyers - Reg. $5.49, Sale BOGO, $1/2 MFC = $2.25 ea

2 Klondike Bars - Reg. $3.99, Sale $2.99, $1/2 MFC = $2.49 ea

1 Fiber One Yogurt - Reg. $2.99, Sale $2.50, $1/1 MFC = $1.50

2 Hamburger Helpers (Filler) - Reg. $2.39, Sale $1.88

OOP: $19.24

OYNP Earned: $15.00

Net: $4.24

Some Online Coupons That Match Up To Shaw's Catalina!

Remember to check out Deal Finding Mom or Wicked Cool Deals (on my side bar...too lazy to link them up right now) to get the low down on the Shaw's Catalina. If you look at that page insert of this week's flyer, you'll see that if you buy $30 of General Mills products, you get $15 Off Your Next Purchase. In the past, these have always counted towards PRE-SALE PRICES!

Smart Source Coupons
Fiber One Yogurt - Reg. Price $3.99, Sale $2.50, $1/1 at SS - $1.50 OOP
Betty Crocker Fruit Snacks - Reg. Price $2.99, Sale $2, .50/2 at SS (DOUBLES) - $1.50 OOP
Romano's Macaroni Grill - Reg. $4.49 (?), Sale $3.50, $1.10/1 at SS - $2.40 OOP
Betty Crocker Brownies - Reg. $2.99 (?), Sale $2.50, .75/2 at SS (DOUBLES) $1.75 OOP
Chex Mix Bars - Reg. $3.39, Sale $3, .60/1 at SS (DOUBLES), $1.80 OOP

Red Plum Insert (came with grocery flyers)
Suave Body Wash - Sale $2, $1/2 from insert, $1.50 OOP
Vaseline Lotion - Sale $2.50, $1/1 from insert, $1.50 OOP
Suave Shampoo or Conditioner - Sale $1.67, $1/2 from insert, $1.17 OOP
Suave Deodorant - Sale $1.67, $1/2 from insert, $1.17 OOP
Wishbone Salad Dressing - Reg. ?, Sale $2, $1.25/2 from insert, $1.38 OOP
Hellman's - Reg. $3.99, Sale $2.50, $1/2 from insert, $2 OOP
Knorr Mix - Reg. $1.39, Sale $1.00, $1/3 from insert, .67 OOP
Q-Tips - Reg. ?, Sale $2.50, $1/2 from insert, $2 OOP
All Detergent- Reg. ?, Sale $3.50, $1/2 from insert, $3 OOP
Lipton Tea Bags - Reg. ?, Sale $2.50, $1/2 from insert, $2 OOP
Skippy Peanut Butter - Reg. $3.39, Sale $2, $1/2 from insert, $1.50 OOP

Betty Crocker Coupons (have to sign-in)
Betty Crocker Brownies - Reg. $2.99 (?), Sale $2.50, .75/2 at BC (DOUBLES) $1.75 OOP
Chex Mix Bars - Reg. $3.39, Sale $3, .50/1 at BC (DOUBLES), $2.00 OOP
Nature Valley Bars - Reg. $3.39, Sale $3, .50/1 at BC (DOUBLES), $2 OOP
Betty Crocker Fruit Snacks - Reg. Price $2.99, Sale $2, .50/2 at BC (DOUBLES) - $1.50 OOP
Yo-Plus Yogurt - Reg. $2.79, Sale $2.50, $1/1 at BC - $1.50 OOP
Fiber One Yogurt - Reg. $2.99, Sale $2.50, $1/1 at BC - $1.50 OOP
Betty Crocker Cookie Mix - Reg. ?, Sale $1.67, .40/1 at BC (DOUBLES), .87
Warm Delights - Reg. $2 or $2.50, Sale $1.67, .50/1 at BC (DOUBLES), .67

Roche Bros. Printable Coupons!

Thanks to a Twitter Tweet, I discovered that Roche Bros. has some online coupons! They aren't as crazy as the Shaw's ones - but in Roche's defense, they are a pretty small chain - with a very "mom & pop" feel to them. Click HERE to print.

They are pretty good:

- FREE 10 oz. Food Club Relish
-.50 off 8 ct pack of hot dog or hamburger buns
-.50 off Food Club Lemonade Mix
-$1.00 off Roche Bros. Homemade Agean Pasta Salad (at the deli)

Free Fun Fridays - Boston Children's Museum!

Today's Free Fun is the Boston Children's Museum. I'm kind of scared for this crowd! Just remember - parking around here is $12. There is an $11 lot - at 390 Congress St. You pay the $11 up front, and if you get your ticket validated at the BCM, you'll be reimbursed $2.

Click HERE to see the entire summer schedule of FREE FUN!

Mall Excursion!

I went to the mall today. (Hint Hint: I was at South Shore Plaza). I've been losing my mind lately. I don't even know what the psychological term for it is - "crazy" is the only thing that comes to mind. Well anyways...

My husband called me today to let me know he got his paycheck (I'm the accountant in the family so I like to know the numbers). Well, he had 44 hours of overtime on it. If you do the math - 40 hours of regular time plus 44 hours of overtime = 84 hours at work. So then it dawned on me - I'm going crazy because my husband has been gone 80+ hours a week for the past 2 weeks. To the mall I went to spend his hard earned overtime! I deserved it!

Of course, when I go on a "mall excursion" - I'm still not spending money like I'm a Rockefeller. I don't think I even hit $100 today. I'm frugal as a fly always because I'm insane. Here are some good deals I found through purchasing or just perusing with my lads:

- Gap. I went with my 30% off Gap coupon. Me + Gap = Not Good. I just don't jive with The Gap. I don't really like their stuff but I want to like it. Plus, I think I gots myself a little too much junk in my trunk to look good in anything from that store. I gave my coupon to some lady. She seemed happy. This is my charitable deed for the month.

- Payless Shoe Source. I'm going to a wedding this weekend. With the dress I picked out for it (which I think is a little "not classy enough" but oh well. Look at me!), I could possibly use Lime Green shoes with it (which I'll never wear again). So I went there. I found a pair of Lime Green Shoes for $7 (orig. $17.99). Score #1! Swung by the Toddler section. Found a pair of velcro sneakers on sale for $5 (orig. $17.99). Score #2!

-SEARS!!! Go to Sears NOW! I went to Sears. They're doing their additional 50% off or whatever clearance stuff. I got like 20 things for $60.

Best Deal:
Toddler Carter's Gym-type Shorts (still a lot there). Reg. Price: $12. Clearance Price: $6.99. Ringing Up Price: $1.79.

Other good deals:
I actually bought some ORGANIC t-shirts! They have all Earth friendly logos on them too. (www.underthecanopy.com brand). Original Price: $14.00 Ringing up Price: $2.39

2 piece outfits were ringing up at $4.19 - Original price was $20.

These 2 shirt combo things (a t-shirt and a polo shirt) were ringing up at $2.99. Original price was $18.00

I bought some shirts for myself - Original price was $20 - ringing up at $4.99.

I went to see the softer side of Sears and I was pleasantly happy with it. All Land's End Clearance is an additional 30% off already reduced prices. They had lots of nice bathing suits and stuff like that. I'm not preppy enough to wear Land's End. Maybe when I'm older and mature a bit.

- Lord & Taylor. If you need a formal dress for anything soon - check out Lord & Taylor's clearance racks. There are 2 HUGE ones and the dresses are so nice. All dresses are an additional 40% off the sale price. I found one I liked which I tried on but didn't fit me right (small boobs and big hips makes dress shopping blah). Now granted it was still expensive - Ticket price: $180. Clearance Price: $125. Ringing up price: $75. But come on. Every now and then you might need a really nice dress for something or other.

- Disney Store. The Disney Store had all kids bathing suits slashed to what appeared to be $5.99-$7.99. They had cute girl ones with Tinkerbell on them. Of course Lightning McQueen as seen on almost all the boy ones. They had a lot left. So if your kid is a Disney fanatic or you want to get some for next year, check them out.

- Macy's. I thought they were blah. I'm not a fan of this Macy's. I miss the Burlington Mall Macy's.

- Zales. Okay. So we scoped out a ring for my husband on the internetz. It was $179. Since I was at the mall, I figured I'd just buy the ring. Interesting tidbit: The same exact ring that we saw online was $139 in the store. $40 cheaper at the store, Why? I don't know. It was the same one we saw online (14 K, 4mm basic yellow gold band with nothing fancy on it). I looked at the website again when I got home, and the 10K, 4mm online is $139 - but the ring I got was 14K, 4mm - which is $179 online. Whatever. I don't know. $40 savings in my book. Plus, I get to make the husband an honest man again.

So that was my experience at the South Shore Plaza in a nutshell.

Shaw's $30/$15 Catalina!

Great Catalina at Shaw's! It actually already started.

Check out Deal Finding Mom here. for lots of useful info on it. She's the awesomest Shaw's Catalina blogger out there. Sometimes on things like this, it's smarter to just link to her site than to re-write it myself. Sorry. I'm just lazy today. But Ronell's great at this!

I'm kind of busy cleaning the house and packing since the husband and I are going to be going away this weekend. I'll try to come up with a few scenarios to this deal. If you have any you'd like to share, go for it! These dollar amount catalinas have always used Pre-Sale Prices - so in some combos - you don't even need any coupons and you're pretty much breaking even with the OYNP coupon.

A New New-England Blog!

Teresa in Maine (who has emailed me with a lot of great savings tips!) has launched a new blog out of Maine!

Money Saving Maine-iac!

I am pretty sure she does most of her shopping at Hannaford's so it will probably be a great go-to blog for all your Hannaford deals! She is posting other deals all over the place as well!

Way to go Teresa!!

Free Crib Mattress at BRU!

If you are a new or expecting mom, you can score yourself a great deal at Babies R Us! Buy any Crib priced at $299.88 or higher, and get a FREE Crib mattress (value $119!). The exact wording on Page 5 of the flyer states:

"FREE Simmons Kids mattress when you buy ANY crib priced $299.88 or more*"
* = Free crib mattress is a Simmons Kids Slumber Time Renewed Glow Mattress. Limited quantities; no rainchecks.

I cannot find this deal online anywhere. Sale starts Friday, July 31st and lasts until 8/13. I'm not sure though - it was just in the baby flyer I got in the mail today. The flyer states on the back "Postmaster, please deliver by July 28-30."

**It doesn't say any coupon is needed - but there is a coupon for the free mattress if you want to go to the Rewards R Us Night on Thursday. Click HERE to get all those coupons.**

Brown Bagging It (Well, Cooler Bagging It)

My husband is pretty good about bringing his lunch to work everyday. I say he brings it 90% of the time. I try to help out - I prep the morning coffee the night before and I try to make his lunch during this time too (but I'm only about 70% efficient at this task) . What does his lunch consist of? My husband has to leave for work at about 6 am everyday. So his "lunch" also includes his breakfast.

2 sandwiches. Usually Peanut Butter and Fluff, but every now and then he'll want lunch meat or tuna)
Cereal
Milk
1 Yogurt
1 Fruit Cup
1 can of soda
2 bottles of water
3-5 "snacks" - snacks include poptarts, fruit snacks, chips, granola bars, cookies, etc.

I knew for the past week or two, our supplies have been dwindling. Why do I know this? Well for starters, the husband complains that there isn't anything for his lunch. Secondly, I see stuff on our Debit Card statement like this:

Scali Deli - $8.39
McDonald's - $11.93
Alex's Pizza - $14.99 (he said he bought a sandwich for a friend and himself)
Dunkin Donuts - $4.87

Here I'll break down how much it costs for him to bring his own lunch & breakfast to work:

- Last night I spent $50 ($49.45 to be exact) on "snacks" alone for his lunch (should last 2 months). Assuming 26 days of work a month (he usually works Saturdays), that's .96 cents a day.
- A yogurt - Avg. .40 a cup
- Dole fruit cup - round up to .50 a cup
- Cereal - A box lasts a week. Avg. $1 a box, that's .14 cents a day
- 1 cup of milk - .13 cents ($2.12 per gallon, 16 cups per gallon)
- A can of soda - .17 cents.
- 2 waters - .09 cents each = .18 cents
- 4 slices of bread for the sandwiches - (1/5 of a loaf of bread) is .34 cents (Assuming $3.39 for a 2 pack of Wonder Kids at BJ's)
- Peanut Butter & Fluff - maybe 10 cents. If he has meat or tuna, assume an extra .75 cents.

Total for him bringing his junk (assuming PB & Fluff sandwiches): $2.82
Total for him bringing his junk (assuming tuna or meat): $3.47

Around $3 for breakfast and lunch isn't that bad - Much better than almost $5 for breakfast at Dunkin Donuts and $10 for lunch downtown Boston. So even though I dropped over $70 last night on his lunch supplies - if I didn't, he'd spend that and then some out to eat just this week alone. Was it worth going over my "budget"? I say "yes!"

On the flip side - it is good for him to splurge on a lunch out every now and then. It keeps him happy. Just not every day. I have to say my husband is a really good sport about this. He actually prefers to bring all this stuff.

No. Really. I Didn't Buy a Vending Machine.

Shaw's

Total Before Savings: $98.07

Total Preferred Savings: $37.87

Total Coupons Used: $18.04

Cash OOP: $42.16

Total OYNP Earned: $9.00

3.06 lbs of Chicken Breast - $6.09 ($1/3lbs at Shaws.com)

2.38 lbs of Shoulder Steak - $4.74

2 Itty Bitz Ice Cream - $1.34 ea (BOGO Free MFC)

2 Ziploc Sandwich Baggies - $2.50 ea ($1/2 MFC from paper - made sure to grab the "20% More" boxes containing 120 bags vs. 100 bags)

2 Ragus - $2.29 ea ($1/2 MFC from paper) $1.79 ea

1 Big Ragu - $2.99 (.60/1 MFC Doubles from paper) $1.79

5 PopTarts - $1 ea WYB 5 ($1/5 from Shaws.com, $1/2 MFC) .60 cents ea!

2 Totals & 2 Multi-Grain Cheerios - 4/$10 (2 .75/1 Total & 2 .75/1 Multi-Grain Cheerios all double (from Coupons.com) $1 ea - plus - I earned 2 Free Milk Coupons (up to $4.50 ea!)

21 Yoplait Yogurts - .50 ea (3 "Free" Coupons WYB 6 yogurts) .42 cents ea

2 Wacky Mac - $1.25 (.50/1 from Paper DOUBLES!) .25 ea!

1 Tomato - .62 cents

1 Iceburg Lettuce - .99

2.25 lbs of Grapes - $2.23

1 Green Cabbage - $2.03

Notes (lots of them):

- Okay. There was a .50/1 MFC for Wacky Mac in the paper. I know they are online for .75/1. I still used the paper ones because a quarter for a bag of pasta is still a good deal. I couldn't let those coupons go to waste!

- Shaw's. Seriously. Whoever redesigned your receipt system should get the can. Why mess with perfection? The Shaw's receipts used to be the best by far. They would group your groceries by category (produce, meat, dairy, etc.). Then, not only would it list the regular price, it would list the preferred savings AND the sales price. This new system DOES NOT show the final price per item. Just the Regular price and what the savings are. There are all these 8 digit codes that are matched up with each item on sale. This means nothing to me. I don't want to see it on the receipt. Anyways. I'm just complaining because I hate when people mess with perfectly good stuff. Plus, this new receipt design makes it harder for me to blog my grocery trips!

- The Ziploc baggies. Got to make a note. I went down the "baggie" isle to grab 2 boxes. I did. 100 count each. But right there on the end cap, there were a bunch of "promo" boxes that were part of the $2.50 sale - but they had 20% more baggies in them. So 120 baggies instead of 100. I swapped them out. Make sure you look at the quantity of the item you are buying! You may think you are getting a good deal, but you may get even a better deal if you keep your eyes peeled.

- Impulse purchase of this trip was the steak. It looked good. It was cheap. It will make my husband happy.

- For reasons unknown to me, The register spit out 2 "Free Milk" Coupons when I bought my 4 boxes of GM cereal. Not sure why. Makes this deal extra good since I spent $4 OOP but got $9 worth of coupons from it.

- I got my #1 Superstar Cashier Heather last night. If I was the manager of my Shaw's, I would promote this girl to Assistant Manager. She's nice, but not annoyingly nice. She's smart, fast, can enter coupons better than anyone. She's the curly headed redhead I have talked about in the past.

BJ's

Total Before Savings: $109.58

Total Coupons Used: $20.49

Cash OOP: $89.09

1 box of Much Needed Baby Wipes - $15.99

2 pk BJ's Apple Juice - $4.69

2 boxes Power Bar Protein Plus - $14.99 (BOGO Free from BJ's mailer)

30 ct box of Right Bites Cookies - $10.79 ($2.50/1 from BJ's mailer) $8.29 (.27.3 cents per snack)

50 ct box of Brach's Fruit Snacks - $5.99 (this equals $1.20 per 10 ct box) (.12 cents per snack)

1 24 pk of BJ's Coke (will the husband realize the difference?) $4.99 ($1 off from BJ's mailer) $3.99 plus $1.20 in deposit

30 count Frito Snacks - $8.69 ($2 off from BJ's mailer) $6.69 (.22.3 cents per snack)

50 count Frito Snacks - $10.49 (.21 cents per snack)

1 lbs of Land O'Lakes American Cheese - $3.32

1 lbs of Wunderland Bologna - $2.77

1/2 lbs of Genoa Salami - $2.89 (Bologna & Salami were husband's request)

Dole Mixed Fruit Cups - $6.99 (4 packs - these are usually $2 or $2.50 on sale at the grocery stores - $1.75 at BJ's)

Notes:

-I had to stock up on lunch stuff for the husband.

- I bought the generic coke to see if he'll notice. He hasn't said anything yet. I'm sure a phone call this afternoon will come ;). I'll just play all stupid housewife and say I got confused because both BJ's Coke and Regular Coke have red cans.

- I'm going to do a follow up post about the cost of taking one's own lunch. My husband takes his lunch everyday. We had a good stock pile of stuff going on - but it has just dwindled down to nothing.

- While searching for places to store my packs of junk, I found a box and a half of devil dogs and a box of Nutty Bars. Score some more junk food for my husband's lunch!

So yeah, I spent $131 last night when I only had like $20 left in my hopeful spending. This is why I don't budget. I'm bad at sticking to goals. Stay tuned for my "The Husband is Really Good At Bringing His Lunch" story.

Warning! I'm Going To Go Over My Monthly Goal.

The husband has absolutely nothing for lunch. He brings his lunch to work every day. Which is a great cost savings thing. But seriously, there is absolutely nothing in this house for him to bring. So I'm going to be going to BJ's today to stock up on snacks. He made a list of what he wants and I'm already thinking "man! This is going to be a crazy expensive trip!"

Oh well. What can you? I just have to plan better in the future.

Fruits of My Labor!

I picked my first tomato from my garden the other day. It was delicious. I have what appears to be more coming! My grape tomato plants are getting crazy big! My zucchini plants are crazy too but the slugs have waged war on me again. Slugs are gross. Surprisingly, my tomato plants all seem to be bug free. Cucumbers? Oh who knows. They are like the Energizer Bunny - they just keep going and going.

The Husband Goes to Shaw's!

Total: $8.07

1 3 pk of bread - $3.39

1 coffee creamer (for his work) - $2.89

1 dozen eggs - $1.79

A Tedeschi Stop for Milk!

We needed milk. I didn't feel like going to BJ's. I went to Tedeschi's!

2 gallons of 1% Garelick Farms Milk - $2.49 ea

Total: $4.98

Shaw's Trip!

Total Before Savings: $65.83

Total Preferred Savings: $24.09

Coupons Used: $0!!!

Cash OOP: $41.74

I went to Shaw's to get some produce - I had a few impulse purchases as well!

.67 lbs of Zucchini - $1.00

1 green cabbage - $1.73

3 lbs of carrots - $2.79

A bunch of reduced produce - $5.73

1 2 lbs bag of green peppers - $1.99

3.89 lbs of grapes - $3.85

1 box of Flav-O-Ice - $3.99

1 Goldfish - $1.88

1 12 pack of Super Chill - $2.50 (plus .60 in deposit)

10 cans of Bumble Bee Tuna - .59 ea

4 cans of Tomatoes - $1 ea

1 Stone Ridge Creamery Ice Cream - $2.79

1 Turkey Hill Ice Cream - $2.99

- I just wanted to buy some produce. I grabbed a few things as well. I can't believe I went shopping without any coupons! It felt odd.

Thanks Shaw's! I just scored some great discounted produce!

I just went to a Shaw's that is not my "normal" Shaw's. I'm not really impressed with this Shaw's that much (okay...I'll give in - it's the Star Market in Quincy Center). Why don't I like it? I don't know. For starters, it's set up "backwards" from my normal Shaw's. Secondly, the parking lot is scary. Every time I go there, either I almost get hit by someone or I almost hit someone with my car. Thirdly - it freaks me out that the frozen stuff is in the middle of the store. It's a nice store - but it just doesn't jive with me.

But I had a great experience there today! First, we walked by the seafood counter and some kind customer shoved a live lobster in my 3 year-old's face. He loved that. Secondly, I didn't almost get hit by a car and I didn't almost hit anyone. Lastly - Mr. Produce Man put out this cart of marked down produce - and there was some flipping good stuff on it! Most noteably were packages of Diced Butternut Squash. These puppies go for $3.99 regularly - but they were all in the $1.25-$1.40 range! I grabbed 3 and shoved them in my freezer. They weren't even all gross or anything! So remember - make sure to check out the discount produce cart in your local supermarket! You'll never know what you will find!

Bravo Star Market! You made me happy today!

Crazy 8 Lovers - Be On The Lookout!

I just got a 20% off your total order at Crazy 8 or Crazy8.com! This is great! It's valid until August 30th - hopefully I can combine it will some great summer clearance here soon!

Great Post From The Simple Dollar!

I just wanted to pass along a link to The Simple Dollar. I enjoy reading Trent's blog - he's on my blog roll. Sometimes the comments are more amusing than the article (some people can be really crazy!).

Well anyways...today, Trent wrote a great post about saving money by not trying to impress people. I thought it was nice and uplifting.

Stop & Shop Deals 7/24-7/30

The following are good deals at Stop & Shop for the week of 7/24 - 7/30. Not all deals are mentioned, but these are the ones that I find to be pretty good. Check your circular for all deals this coming week. Check out their circular HERE to see all deals.

**Buy 2 Aquafina 24-pack waters for $3.99 ea, get 2 6-packs of Aquafina FlavorSplash for free!**

**Buy $15 worth of Alberto products (St. Ives, Nexxus, VO5), get $5 OYNP**

Produce
Cherries - $1.49/lbs
3 pk Romaine Hearts - $2.50

Meat
London Broil - $1.79/lbs
80% Lean Ground Beef - $1.99/lbs
Countryfine Sausage - $1.99/lbs
White Gem Drumsticks or Thighs - .79/lbs
White Gem Whole Chicken - .79/lbs
Ball Park Franks - $3 ($1/2 from paper)
Hillshire Farms Kielbasa - $2.50 ($1/2 from paper)
Pork Ribs - $1.99/lbs

Frozen
Edy's Ice Cream - $1.99 (Buy 4, Get $3 OYNP Coupon) ($1/1 Dynamic Duos Coupon from paper)

Grocery
Kraft BBQ Sauce - $1 ($1/2 from paper)
Wrigley's 3 pack Gum - BOGO free
Orbitz Gum 3 pack - BOGO Free
Polar Seltzer 2 liter - $1
Suddenly Salads - $1.50 ($1/2 from paper, there was a .40/1 from SmartSource and Coupons.com - but I'm not sure if that expired yet).
Freihofer's Italian Bread - BOGO Free
V-8 Splash Juice - $2

Other
Nature Made Vitamins & Supplements - 50% off
Select Summer Furniture - 50% off
Grills & Coolers - 33% off

Check out The Grocery Gathering to find other great blogs to supermarkets all over the country!

Free Fun Fridays - Franklin Park Zoo!

Tomorrow's "free fun" is Franklin Park Zoo! Be sure to take advantage of FREE admission tomorrow! While there, consider purchasing a membership or donating. Most people know that the zoo is facing financial problems do to possible state budget cuts. I'm torn on this - I mean, they are filming a major motion picture at FPZ staring Kevin James (Zookeeper). Shouldn't they be getting a pretty penny for this? If not, I think they need to tell the film makers that they need some more dough! On the flip side, why does the state have to mess with the zoo? Come on Deval and Massachusetts! Keep the zoo happy! Heavens, it's the only thing that gets people to go to Roxbury these days.

Well anyways. Go to the zoo tomorrow. It's fun. We bought a family membership in April for $59. We've gone to the zoo about 6 or 7 times already. 2 times to Stone Zoo in Stoneham, once to Roger Williams in RI (you get into a bunch of zoos for free with your Zoo New England membership!) and a handful of times to Franklin Park. Well worth the money - and a good cause!

Click HERE to see the entire summer schedule of FREE FUN!

Cheesecake Factory - Half Slice Day July 30th!

The Cheesecake Factory is offering half-off cheesecake for dine in guests on July 30th! Sure, you're only saving about $3, but I have to admit, this marketing has got me wanting some cheesecake right about now!

Giving Thanks To a Random Stranger Who Helped Me Out!

You might have noticed that I figured out how to put two small columns on my blog instead of one big one. I've been wanting to do this for a while but Me + CSS code = Say What?? But I was blessed with both of my kids going down for a nap at the same time yesterday and I googled "Blogger layout design" or something like that and came across a great blog post by Lawny Designs. Click HERE to see it. This was EXACTLY what I was looking for.

Now granted, I would love to make my blog more "with it" - but I'm cheap. Obviously. I'm not going to drop money on this beautiful creation since I don't generate any money from it. It's just a hobby. Many thanks to Lawny for putting out this very useful information in a simple format for dodos like me to understand! Check out his page if you are looking to add something to your blog! He's a great blogger teacher!

Shaw's Deals 7/24-7/30

Here are the pretty good deals at Shaw's for the week of 7/24-7/30. Not all deals are mentioned. Just the ones that I think are pretty good. See the entire circular and print Shaw's coupons at Shaws.com.

**Buy 4 Participating General Mills Cereal, get a Coupon for a Free Gallon of Milk! 4/$10 - But Wait! Go to Coupons.com. Print off 2 of the .75/1 Multi-Grain Cheerios coupons and 2 of the .75/1 Total Coupons. All coupons Double. 4 Boxes of Cereal for $4 AND a coupon for a free gallon of milk (up to $4.50).**

**Buy 4 General Mills Bars ($3 ea), Get a 24 pack of Poland Spring Water Free. Get Coupons at Coupons.com and SmartSource.com - they are .50/1s and .40/1s. Not outstanding, but okay.**

**Buy 4 Edy's /Nestle Ice cream Products and save $4 off a future order - Edy's is BOGO Free**

**Kellogg's Pop-Tarts are 5 for $5 - MUST BUY 5 - Print Coupon to Save more at Shaws.com**

**Save $5 on your meat purchase with coupon when you buy $20 in Pepsico Products** (See Flyer - this is probably the most crazy coupon. I guess if you buy a bunch of Pepsi 2 liters and Quaker Rice Cakes, you can save $5 off meat. Just so random if you ask me. It's an instant coupon.)

**Kellogg's Cereal - $2.66 ea ($5 off instantly WYB 5 with Coupon on circular) $1.66 ea (MFCs to match up? Not sure if the $1/1s expired already. I used mine up!)

**Family Pack Hamburgers ($3.49/lbs) - Get Shaw's Hamburger Rolls, Shaw's Potato Chips and a 2 Liter of Super Chill Soda FREE with coupon on circular**

**Shaw's Italian Sausage ($2.99/lbs) - Get Shaw's Torpedo Rolls, 2 lbs Yellow Onions, 2 lbs Green Peppers FREE with coupon on circular**

**Save $1.00 on Farm Stand Lettuce (I think this is $1.59 or $1.79) when you buy 1 pack of Oscar Mayer Deli Fresh Meats**

Meat
Boneless Chicken Breast - $1.99/lbs
London Broil - $1.99/lbs
Cooked Shrimp Ring - BOGO Free!
Redi-Serve Chicken Entrees - BOGO Free!

Produce
Red Grapes - .99/lbs
Fresh Express Kits - BOGO Free

Dairy
Yoplait Yogurt - .50 (MFCs from paper)
Florida's Natural OJ - $2.47 (Coupon at Shaws.com)

Frozen
Edy's Ice Cream - BOGO FREE

Grocery
Red Pack or Pastne Tomatoes - $1
Green Giant Canned Veggies - .60 ea
Bumble Bee 4 pack Albacore Tuna - $3.88
Lay's Potato Chips - BOGO Free
Shaw's Light Bread - BOGO Free
Freihofer's 100% Whole Wheat Bread - BOGO Free
Betty Crocker Supreme Brownie Mix - $2.50 (.75/2 MFC from Coupons.com) $1.75 ea
Crisco Cooking Oil (48 oz) - $2.79
Pop-Secret Popcorn - BOGO Free ($1/2 MFC from paper)
Wise Cheez Doodles or Popcorn - BOGO Free
Polar 1 liter Soda - .75 ea ($1/3 MFC from paper)
Shaw's Taco Seasoning - .50
Bumble Bee Chunk Light Tuna - .59 ea!

General
Scott 4 Roll Bath Tissue - $3.33 ($1/8 rolls at SmartSource.com - use on 2 packs)
Cottonelle 6 pack - $3.33
Ziplock Sandwich bags or containers - $2.50 ($1.50/2 from RightAtHome) $1.75 ea




Check out The Grocery Gathering to find other great blogs to supermarkets all over the country!

I Got My "Free" Backpack At Staples!

I went to Staples last night to pick up my desktop computer (it was getting a system restore). I dropped it off when they were doing their 50% off all tech services. In the morning, I was all mad because I called to see if it was ready yet (I dropped it off June 21st or something like that). The man said "ahhhh, we'll do it this morning and you can pick it up and pay this afternoon." I informed the man (okay, yelled at the man) that I already paid. He told me there was no record of it. This made me mad since I'm irresponsible and couldn't find the receipt. So I get off the phone. At 7:30 pm, I didn't hear from them so I called again. Stoner Joey was working and was all like "oh yeah, it's ready. Come pick it up." So I told him that I already paid but the other guy in the morning was saying I didn't. Stoner Joey was all like "Oh yeah, I believe you. Just come in and sign it out." So I raced over there while I knew the laid back guy was there. I forgot my $3 in Staples Rewards coupon, but I saw the backpacks. At first I said "Oh no, I'll come back with my $3 and go to my "normal" Staples."

Then reality set in and I knew if I wanted to get back to Staples, I wouldn't. So I grabbed a blue backpack for son #1 who is going to pre-school in September. I paid $15.74 for it, but I should get at least $14.99 back in Staples Rewards for it (I doubt they give you back the tax in Staples rewards). So if you, your child or someone you might know needs a cheap backpack, send them to Staples! I love the Staples Rewards coupons because I can always find something at Staples - like printer ink. You can never have too much printer ink (especially if you frequent Coupons.com often!). This "free" backpack offer ends Saturday. I thought the selection was already kind of picked over - and as in all things retail, there was a much better selection for girls than boys.

Shaw's Sale Widget!

Shaw's has launched a Widget promoting their sale items! It's easily added to your Facebook account, blogger account, Twitter, or Google. Click HERE to get it. I also see that ShopRite has one on the same website. I didn't know anything about this - I was just browsing through the Shaw's website (DORK ALERT!) and happen to see it! I added it to my blog. Enjoy.

Roche Bros Deals 7/24-7/30

The following are good deals at Roche Bros. for the week of 7/24- 7/30. Not all deals are mentioned, but these are the ones that I find to be pretty good. Check your circular for all deals this coming week. See your local Roche Bros. circular HERE.

Produce
Plums - .99/lbs
Grapes - .88/lbs
Grape Tomato Pints - $2

Meat
Boneless Pork Ribs - $1.69/lbs
Boneless Pork Rib Eye Roast - $1.99/lbs
Chuck Tip Strips - $2.99/lbs
Split Chicken Breast - BOGO Free ($3.29/lbs)
Salmon Steak - $5.99/lbs
Plumrose Bacon - $2.50
Steak-Umm Steaks - BOGO Free
Banquet Sausage - $1

Dairy
Yoplait Yogurt - .50 (MFCs from Paper)
Roche Gallon Milk - $2.50
Cedar's Hommus - $1 ea
Crystal Farms Cheese - $2

Frozen
Lindy's Italian Ice - $2 ($1/2 from Paper)
Minute Maid Soft Frozen Lemonade - $2.50 (.50/1 from Today's Red Plum) $1.50
Klondike Bars - $1.99 (limit 3) ($1/2 at Coupons.com)
Haagen Dazs Ice Cream - BOGO Free ($4.29 ea)
Breyer's Ice Cream - $2.50 ($1/2 at Coupons.com)

Grocery
Food Club Ketchup - $1
B&M Baked Beans (28 oz) - BOGO Free
Schweppes 2 liters - $1

General
Arm & Hammer Fabric Softner Sheets - BOGO Free

Check out The Grocery Gathering to find other great blogs to supermarkets all over the country!

Coupon Highlights with the Red Plum Today!

I got the grocery circulars and Red Plum insert today. Notable things in the Red Plum are:

-.50/1 Scotch Packaging Supply Product (I'd assume there has to be SOMETHING around the $1 mark, no? Check your grocery store where this coupon will double).

-$1/2 Twix, Snickers, MilkyWay, 3 Musketeers (savings on chocolate is DELICIOUS! If you hit a .50 sale coming up, these 2 candy bars will be FREE!)

Thank Goodness for the Easter Ham!

With still over a week to go this month, I'm dangerously close to my "goal" of $416 to spend on groceries this month. I'm hoping we can live mostly on what we have in the house so I don't have to buy that much. Last night, I found some leftover ham from Easter in the freezer. I defrosted it and heated it up some - it was delcious! I also prepared a box of Scallopped Potatoes and Cheesey Broccolli - What a great dinner I made!

Have you ever found great finds in your freezer? I've been freezing a lot lately. I have a gazzillion hamburger and hot dog rolls in my freezer (since I buy them at BJ's - we rarely eat them all before they go bad, so I just pop them in my freezer). I also have a bunch of asparagus in there. I love my freezer.

The Children's Place Monster Sale!

So - I made a crazy online purchase. Kids clothes. I'm a sucker for great deals. The Children's Place is that for me. First, I went through Cashbaq.com. Make sure you actually go to the home page and log into your account (the last time I bought online at The Children's Place, I linked through another blog and that person got my Cashbaq credit :( Well...so says the people at Cashbaq...So sad!. Cashbaq will give you 3% of your purchase back at The Children's Place.

Next. Buy whatever you want. Lots of good cheap stuff. Enter code FA79 at checkout will score you an extra 15% off the already reduced prices. All orders (no matter how big or small) ship ground for $5.

What did I get? $76 got me (well...$71 and $5 Shipping)...
8 pairs of shorts (4 casual formal, 4 sport like)
3 t-shirts
2 pairs of PJ's
3 Polo shirts
3 bathing suits (trunks for boys)
1 baseball hat
1 button-down shirt

- I bought all 4T clothing. I have a 3 and almost 2 year old so 4T will be good for next summer for the older one. Poor child #2 gets the hand-me-downs.

- That is 21 pieces of clothing - so I averaged $3.61 per piece (and that is including the shipping charge!).

- I'm actually most excited about the swim trunks! They are on clearance for $4.79, but with the 15% off, they are $4.07. I just bought a cheapo pair at Target (I was in need) for $7.99!

- If you are venturing into 4T clothing, check the "Big Boys" section too. The "Baby Boys" is 6 months - 4T, but the "Big Boys" is 4-14. Now I don't know much about boys clothes, but I'm pretty sure 4T is about the same as a boy's 4. I could be wrong. Maybe someone with actual older kids could confirm this or whip me up side the head and tell me I'm wrong.

- I "earned" $2.28 for going through Cashbaq.com. Not a lot, but every little bit helps. Since joining, I've had more than $55 deposited into my Paypal account from them. And believe me - I'm not a big online shopper. I'm starting to be though - only due to the fact that shopping with the kids is equivalent to Chinese water torture these days.

A Gold Party - A Great Way to Make a Few Bucks!

I just had to write a blog post about this! I was invited to a few gold parties this past spring. I've heard about gold parties and selling your scrap or unwanted gold to make some money. I just figured it was a scam and blah, blah, blah. But I went through my jewelry box and found 5 unmatched earrings. I found a chain necklace that had a gazzillion little knots in it (I was not going to try to get them all out). And I found a braclet that I wasn't going to wear. So I brought them to a gold party - not even knowing the gold count of them or anything. Do you know how much I got for them? $173!!! Besides the bracelet, this was pretty much just trash to me. I was so impressed and knew that I had a few other friends who might want to get in on this. So I'm hosting one here the beginning of August. The people were so professional and I was very happy with the amount of money they offered me for my junk. If you ever get invited to one, you should consider going through your jewelry box - you might have hidden money in there!

On the flip side, my husband lost his wedding ring a few weeks ago. So we've been looking at new ones. He likes basic stuff. We found the same exact one he had - for a whopping $179! Now I know that we didn't spend that much on just a basic gold band. So we did some snooping and I was right - we spent only $79 on his in 2001. So I wondered "how in the world did basic gold bands go up so much in just 8 years?" So I went off to Google - and yep. Gold was about $350 per ounce in 2001. Now? Over $900. No wonder the basic gold band is more than twice as much!

So moral of the story? If you bought/received any gold jewelry that is now broken or you don't wear, consider turning it in at a Gold Party or Jewelers to make some spare cash. Even if you don't get the "market value" for it (obviously the people buying it have to make some profit!) - you are definitely making more than what you probably paid for it back in the day!

Almost Free Entertainment Book from Cashbaq.com!

So. You can buy an Entertainment Book through Cashbaq.com for $7.99. You get $8 back from Cashbaq.com. Shipping is $1.99. So $1.98 out of pocket and the savings are yours.

Click HERE for details. Just a note - Most coupons expire in November. There are 4 $5/$50 coupons for Hannaford's in the Boston one. I have gotten my money's worth from my book. They are great to keep in the car and we have tried a few pizza shops that we would not have otherwise if not for the Entertainment Book. They also have great printables too! I used the one from Babycakes in Quincy. I think I used some others too but I'm unsure of which ones right now. It's been a long day! Go. Buy. Save!

Peapod IGoogle Gadget!

Peapod has launched a Gadget to make Peapoding easier! Click HERE to get Peapod on your webpage or IGoogle account. Although I wouldn't do Peapod on a weekly basis, I do think it would be a good choice if you are in a jam, are disabled, are elderly, just had a baby or even near the holidays.

Peapod is a delivery service that is offered through Stop & Shop. If you make a purchase, you will get a code that offers FREE delivery for the next 60 days after your initial purchase (well, a $6.95 credit - which is the delivery charge for any order over $100). Remember too, Peapod does accept MFCs! There are some great offers offered through the website that are not offered at Stop & Shop. Most of the meat advertised on sale at Stop & Shop is on sale for the same price on Peapod. Go ahead - give it a shot!

My Garden Today!

I braved the rain this morning and took a few pictures of the garden! It's coming along nicely!

Here is the big picture. As you can see, I have a lot of shredded newspaper down. It has been decomposing fast. I built up the areas around the plants just two months ago and they are already low and blah. I just keep adding more newspaper every week. I seriously don't have that many weeds at all. A few here and there - but they come out so easily. I also have a lot of bare spots in the garden due to death and whatnot. Hopefully I'll more plants next year (that won't die on me).

I have my first red tomato coming!

Zucchinis are a spouting! This is Gretchen! Gretchen and her cousins were planted from seed so I love them a little more than my tomato plants. Sorry tomatoes.

My Grape Tomato plants are growing so big! I grew these from seed as well - and I honestly didn't think they would take. It's amazing!

Here are my kids' pumpkin plants! These too came from seed.

The cucumbers seem to be doing okay. I bought these at a local nursery (Penniman Hill Farm in Hingham, MA). They were pretty much dead for a long time, but somehow came back to life.

I'm Getting Sloppy - Random Purchases the Past Few Days!

I did a few shopping trips the past few days. No pictures. No details. I'm just busy but in the process of getting "unbusy."

BJ's Trip on Thursday:
Total Spent: $33.03
Total Saved: $8.99

Notable Coupons Used:
-Buy Burgers and Buns, Get $5 off (Burgers were $14.99 for 18, Buns were $1.99)
-Buy 3 Nestle 30 pack Waters, Get one Free (At $3.99, I ended up getting 120 bottles of water for $11.97. We shouldn't have to buy bottled water for a LONG time).

Stop & Shop Trip on Thursday:
Total Spent: $28.87

I don't remember using any coupons. Bought mostly produce.

CVS Trip on Saturday:
Total Spent: $15.74

We went to Cape Cod and I forgot to pack swimmie diapers! No good for the pool/beach! I also had to buy some candy ($6 worth of candy!).

Stop & Shop Trip on Sunday:
Total Spent: $4.79

1 pack of Juice Boxes
1 bottle of Stop & Shop Apple Juice


Lack of proper planning costs money! If I didn't forget the swimmie diapers and brought extra juice boxes, I would not have spent $20+. I doubt we would have gone to CVS just for candy. It's always an impulse purchase.

Apologies to my Roche and Hannaford Friends!

I must take off for our one day vacation! I did not get a chance to do the Roche and Hannaford flyers! Roche looks really good - some good front page deals.

If you go to Hannaford's on Sunday, you can score yourself 2 Edy's Ice creams at $2.50 ea and they'll give you Free cones to boot. If you buy 2 more, I think you get the $2.50 price, but not the free cones. Then, print out THIS REBATE FORM. You can get $4 back via mail. I think all 4 Edy's products have to be on one receipt but I'm not quite sure. The form keeps referencing "receipt" and not "receipts" - although I do not see any fine print saying that all 4 HAVE to be on the same receipt. Thanks Teresa in Maine for pointing this out! This offer expires 7/19 - so it will only work if you are going shopping on Sunday at Hannaford's!

Stop & Shop Deals 7/17-7/23!

The following are good deals at Stop & Shop for the week of 7/17 - 7/23. Not all deals are mentioned, but these are the ones that I find to be pretty good. Check your circular for all deals this coming week. Check out their circular HERE to see all deals.

**Remember to use the 5% Off Your Total Order Coupon that came in the mail (place above all other coupons)**


Meat
Boneless Chicken Breast - $1.79/lbs
Rib Steak - $5.9/lbs
Ball Park Franks - BOGO Free ($1/2 MFC from paper)
Butterball Thin & Crispy Turkey Bacon - $1
Hillshire Farm Kielbasa - BOGO Free ($1/2 from paper)
Plurose Bacon - BOGO Free
Stek-umm Beef Burgers - BOGO Free
Louis Kemp Crab or Lobster (imitation meat) - BOGO Free

Produce
2 lbs Strawberries - $2.99 (check quality - the ones at BJ's were HORRIBLE!)
Mangoes - $1

Frozen
Edy's Ice Cream - $2.50 ea (Buy 4, Get $4 back in Mail-in-Rebate! Thanks Money Saving Mom & Teresa in Maine! Hurry this offer expires 7/19 (Sunday!))
Edward's Singles - $2.50 (.75/1 MFC from paper, or $1/2 MFC from paper)

Dairy
Breyers Disney 6-pack Yogurt - $2.50 ($1/2 from Coupons.com)

Grocery
General Mills Cereal - $2 (.55/1 Cheerios at SmartSource & Coupons.com) .90 ea!
Ocean Spray Crankberry Juice Drinks - $1.67 (MFC from paper?)
Big Daisy White Bread - $1

Other
Select Summer Furniture - 50% off
Charcoal or Gas Grills - 33% off
Swim & Pool Toys - 25% off
Smart Living Batteries - BOGO Free
Purex Detergent - $2.50 ($1/2 MFC from paper)
Smart Living Charcoal - BOGO Free

Check out The Grocery Gathering to find other great blogs to supermarkets all over the country!

Shaw's Deals 7/17-7/23!

Here are the pretty good deals at Shaw's for the week of 7/17-7/23. Not all deals are mentioned. Just the ones that I think are pretty good. See the entire circular and print Shaw's coupons at Shaws.com.

**4 packages of Meat for $19.99 with coupon on front page of circular! See circular for specifics! Could possibly use Perdue, Lloyds, Johnsonville Brats, and Hormel Pork Tenderloin coupons**

**Teresa in Maine reported that she used the $1/1 Fresh Basil coupon on a basil plant in the produce department! They are on sale for $1.99 - so with the coupon, it makes it .99 cents!**

**Spend $20, Get $10 OYNP
Kellogg's fruit snacks, Rice Krispie Treats or Cookies - $2.50
Keebler Crackers, Dr. Pepper 12 pack, Cheez-It Crackers - $3**

**General Mills Cereal is 4/$10 - but if you buy 4, you get $4 off with the coupon on the front page of the circular (so 4 for $6). Go to Coupons.com and you can print off 2 .55/1 coupons. Then go to SmartSource.com and print off 2 more .55/1 Cheerios coupons. All .55 cent coupons double so you get 4 boxes of Cheerios for $1.60! **

**Nature Valley Granola Bars - $2.50 (B2G1 Free with coupon in circular). (.40/1 from Coupons.com and .40/1 from SmartSource). If you print out three Coupons, your total for 3 boxes is $2.60 or .87 cents a box!**

Meat
Bar-S Bacon - BOGO Free

Produce
Cherries - $1.99
Green Peppers - .99/lbs
Brocolli Crowns - .99/lbs

Dairy
1 lbs Shaw's Butter - $1.88
Swiss Premium Iced Tea - .99 ($1/2 from paper)
Shaw's quart Half & Half - $1.79 (Same price as BJ's!)
Tribe Hummus - $2.50 (.55/1 at SmartSource) $1.40 ea!

Frozen
Hood Ice Cream - $2.50 ($1/1 Ice cream & Yogurt coupons from paper)
Edwards Single Serve - $2.50 (.75/1 MFC from paper - I think this was from the FFLD county version, we got $1/2 MFCs up here).
Starbucks Ice Cream - $3 (Use $2/1 from paper if you haven't done so yet!)

Grocery
Shaw's Italian Bread - BOGO Free
Shaw's White Bread - B2GO Free
Hostess Bag Donuts - BOGO Free
Thomas' 6 pk English Muffins - BOGO Free
Quaker Oatmeal Packs - BOGO Free ($1 off with in-store coupon)
Bertolli Olive Oil - BOGO Free

Other
Nature Made Vitamins - BOGO Free
Air Wick Air Freshening Products - 50% off (Must be coupons from paper - there are always coupons for Air Wick!)
Purex Complete - $4.99 ($2/1 MFC from paper) $2.99

Save $3 INSTANTLY with In-ad coupon when you purchase $10 on any of the following:

$1 each
Fuze Fruit Drink
Zatarain's Rice
Nursery Water
Scotties Facial Tissues
Powerade 32 oz
Gold Peak Tea

$2 each
Glad Cling Wrap ($1/2 Glad product MFC?)
Hershey's
Ken's Salad Dressing ($1/1 from paper still good?)
Lawry's Marinade ($1/2 MFC from paper)
Mott's Apple Sauce
Welch's Grape Jelly or Jam
Wet Ones Wipes
Sargento Shredded Cheese ($1/2 from paper)
Hartz Crunch n Clean Cat Treats

$2.50 each
Domino Granulated Sugar 5 lbs
Glad Storage bags or Press and Seal Wrap
McCormick Black Pepper
McCormick Grill Mates
Mrs. Butterworth's Syrup
Vlasic Spear Pickles
Eggo Waffles
Hungry Man Meals
International Delight Coffee
Kozy Shack Pudding
Smart Balance Spreads
Hartz Crunch n Clean Dog Biscuits
Breyers YoCrunch Yogurt ($1/2 at Coupons.com)
Breyers Yogurt 6 pack ($1/2 at Coupons.com)
Hawaiian Punch
Motts' Apple Juice 64 oz
IBC Root Beer 6 pack

$5 each
Opti-Free Replenish Contact Solution (4 oz)
Bayer Aspirin
Bic 3, Twin Select, Schick Extreme Comfort, Quatro or Slim Twin Disposable Razors (I think there were BOGO Free MFCs in the paper for one of these - that would make 2 packs for only $2 after MFC and store coupon!)
Gold Bond Lotion
Goron's Breaded Seafood
Nivea for Women (MFCs from paper)
Nivea Hand or Body Lotion (MFCs from paper)
12 pack Nestea
Powerade 8 pack 20 oz or 10 pack 12 oz
Angel Soft 12 pack Double Roll or 9 pack Mega Roll
Sparkle 8 Roll Paper Towels

Check out The Grocery Gathering to find other great blogs to supermarkets all over the country!

Gap Code for 25% off All Sale Items!

Missed the Free Shipping Code for Gap.com? Or just didn't have any kids stuff to buy? You can score yourself an additional 25% off sale items at Gap.com by entering code SALE25 from now until 7/19! Go through Cashbaq.com and earn yourself 3% or 10% back on your purchase! There is also free shipping on all orders over $100...

Many thanks to Sue from the South Shore (Yeah! South Shore representing!) for leaving this info in a comment!

A Calling For All Gardeners!

I would post pictures of my garden now, but being the slacker I am, I haven't made it to Staples to buy a memory card reader (even though I said I would do that about 4 days ago).


Once I get my pictures uploaded, I'll do another post! I'd love to see how other gardens are doing though! (Plus, I'm trying to experiment with Mr. Linky). If you have recent pictures of your garden up on your blog, leave the link! Thanks!

Hoping to Pump Out the Grocery Circulars Later On!

I was all set to do a few of the grocery circular/coupon match ups yesterday, but then spilled a glass of water all over my pile of circulars! So they seem to have dried out. I've got my Splenda party today and we're headed off tomorrow for our "staycation" in Cape Cod. Hopefully I can pump out these in between. In the mean time, check out Wicked Cool Deals or Old Fashion New England Savings. They post most major New England stores' ads.

Free Fun Fridays in Boston!

Tomorrow's Free Fun in Boston is Free Transport to the Boston Islands! Click HERE for the Boston Harbor Island Alliance website - to include ferry schedules. All ferries leave from Long Wharf by the Christopher Columbus Park (great park for the little ones!). Please note, this offer DOES NOT include the typical commuter ferries that service the north and south shores. Those are not part of the deal! There is also a carousel very close to the terminal. It's by the entrance to Fanieul Hall. It's $3 to ride, so if you are going to be in the area and your kid likes carousels, make sure you plan!


Click HERE to see the entire summer schedule of FREE FUN!

A Stop At Shaw's For Chocolate Chips!

I made my husband stop at Shaw's on the way home to grab chocolate and butterscotch chips:

1 bag Nestle Butterscotch Chips - $2.59
1 bag Shaw's Chocolate Chips - $2.19

Total: $4.78


Baking with Splenda today! Wish me luck!

Shaw's 4 Meats for $19.99 Sale!

Starting tomorrow, Shaw's is running a "4 packs of Meat for 4 $19.99" sale! Click HERE for all the details. Remember, you can combine MFCs with this sale - so if you have them for the Johnsonville Brats or Perdue chicken bags, you can get quite a deal!

Last Day for Free Shipping at Gap & Old Navy!

Today is the 16th - the last day to take advantage of free shipping if you are buying kids stuff at Old Navy or Gap! Here's my original post with the details:

Use code BTSCHOOL when you purchase stuff at Gap, Old Navy or Piperlime until 7/16 and score FREE SHIPPING! The one catch is that you have to have at least one kid's item in your cart to qualify. NO MINIMUM PURCHASE IS REQUIRED! Well I couldn't find any minimum needed reading the details.

Stop & Shop!

I went to Stop & Shop pretty much just to stock up on hot dogs. We love hot dogs.

Total Before Savings: $67.84

Total Stop & Shop Savings: $27.75

Total Coupons Used: $9.89

Cash OOP: $30.20

8 packs of Hebrew National Hot Dogs - BOGO @ $5.29 (4 $1/2 MFCs) $2.15 ea!

Uncle Ben's Ready Rice - $2.39 (FREE MFC) Free!

Yo-Plus Yogurt - $2 ($1/1 MFC) $1!

10 Dannon Yogurt - .50 ea!

32 oz Stop & Shop Plain Yogurt - $2.29

Finish Dishwasher Soap - $3.99 ($2.50/1 MFC) $1.49!

2 Nature's Promise 9 Grain Bread - BOGO @ $3.99 - $1.99 ea!

- I did buy a big bag of cherries - but they are not on the receipt.

- I couldn't find my 5% off my total order coupon. This made me mad and sad.

- I wasn't sure if I could use the $5/$15 meat coupon on hot dogs. I think it was put out there to use on just actual meat products. I still have not taken advantage of this coupon and it expires today.

Tis The Season For Candied Sweet Potatoes!

In my oven right now (yes, I actually turned my oven on today), is candied sweet potatoes. I didn't follow a recipe (insert husband saying "Why don't you just open a cook book and follow a recipe for once?"). All I did was boil some sweet potatoes, peel them, slice them, placed them in a greased glass dish with some Smart Balance butter and brown sugar. Now they are baking.

Some Center for Blah Blah Blah ranked the Sweet Potato as the #1 best vegetable out there. I did read the article but didn't retain any other information other than "#1" part. (It's been a long day). Here...Read it HERE.

So why am I tell you this? Well I just bought a 3 lbs bag of Sweet Potatoes at BJ's for only $1.49!! Why are they so cheap? I mean - that's 50 cents a pound. Do they even get that cheap around Thanksgiving time? I always thought anything under 99 cents was good. So Sweet Potatoes are good for you. BJ's is selling them dirt cheap. Go. Eat. Save. Be Healthy.

Free Breyer's Yogurt?!

Thanks to Teresa in Maine, she pointed out to me a .50/2 ANY Breyer's product coupon at Coupons.com! If you grab their yogurt when it's on sale for .50 cents each at any major grocery store, the coupon will double and you can score yourself free yogurt! You can print this twice so do it and save it for a sale! (Or you can use it on other Breyers products for some savings!). Thanks Teresa!

Gearing Up For a Splenda Party!

I'm gearing up here to host a Splenda House Party. Learn all about it by clicking HERE. There are thousands of people hosting one this Saturday (well...I'm doing mine Friday but I just like being different).

So I originally thought HouseParty.com was a hoax or something because I signed up for about 5 different house parties (had to fill out surveys) - but never got selected. But I did get selected for the Splenda one! So it's not a hoax! I'm so excited! They sent me a huge box of Splenda junk. I have a few people coming over with their kids this Friday. I have some recipes I'm planning on making - so I'll have to go grocery shopping tomorrow for it. Here's what I'm planning on making:

Berry Simple Smoothie

Citrus Salsa

Cucumber and Onion Salad

After School Butterscotch Brownies (uses Splenda Brown Sugar)

Chunky Peanut Butter Triangles

If you want a free sample of Splenda, click HERE to request yours!

If you want coupons for Splenda products, click HERE!

CVS!

Total Before Savings: $32.05

Coupons Used: $2

ECBs Used: $1.50

Cash OOP: $13.09

2 Purex Complete - BOGO @ $8.99 ea ($2/1 MFC) (Get a Coupon for $1/1 HERE)

2 CVS Children's vitamins - BOGO @ $5.49 ea

1 King Size M&Ms - $1.11

1 Box Red Dollars - $1

- I just wanted to try these sheet things. They look cool. Not exactly thrifty, but I like weird stuff like this.

- My kids really need to be taking vitamins. I read an article recently that said "Ususlly, kids who actually take vitamins are the kids who actually don't need to be taking vitamins". I think this was assuming that parents who are conscious enough to give their kids vitamins are those who feed their kids healthy to begin with. I want to prove this statistic wrong!

BJ's Splurgapalooza 2009!

(My Camera is driving me crazy. Off to buy a Memory Card Reader today since there is something wrong with the USB connection.)

Total Before Savings: $131.06

Total Coupons Used: $7.00

Cash OOP: $123.81

4 lbs of Strawberries - $4.99

3 lbs of Sweet Potatoes - $1.49

3 lbs of Grapes - $6.99

3 lbs of Banana - $1.39

1 Gallon of Milk - $2.12

2 quarts of Half & Half - $1.99 ea ($2/2 BJ's coupon) .99 ea!

2 pack BJ's Apple Juice - $4.69

4 lbs bag of Shredded Colby Jack Cheese - $5.99

1 lbs LOL American Cheese - $3.42

1 pack CapriSun Waters - $7.49

8 pk Bush's Baked Beans - $9.69 ($2/1 BJ's coupon) $7.69

1 Uno's Pizza - $9.99 ($3/1 Peelie) $6.99

1 case Luvs Diapers - $29.99

20 pack Mach 3 Razor refills - $36.99

Things from this Trip:

-My husband is a razor snob. If it's not Mach 3, it's nothing. They seem the cheapest at BJ's - I usually get him some for Christmas and then he'll need a refill through the year.

- We went late at night. I did not want to go home and cook dinner. We were going to order pizza, but noticed the Uno Pizzas there. The supreme ones all had $3 off peelies on them.

- I missed the $5 off Luvs coupon by one day! Boo. Bad planning (or lack of planning) on my part.

- The Strawberries were pretty blah. That's probably why they were so cheap. No worries - I froze them and we'll use them for smoothies.

- Shredded Cheese is VERY inexpensive at BJ's! I never thought of looking at their Wellesley Farms brand!

Hannaford's Deals 7/12-7/18!

The following are good deals at Hannaford's for the week of 7/12-7/18. Not all deals are mentioned, but these are the ones that I find to be pretty good. Check your circular for all deals this coming week. See the Hannaford's Circular HERE. Make, Save, & Share your Hannaford grocery list HERE.

Meat
Top Round Steak - $1.89/lbs
Boneless Pork Sirloin Steak - $1.29/lbs
Hannaford American Cheese - $3.99/lbs
Boneless Chicken Breast Thinly Sliced - $2.79/lbs
Salmon Fillets - $5.99/lbs
Chicken Leg Quarters - .79/lbs
Top Round - $1.79/lbs

Produce
Red Seedless Grapes - $1.29/lbs
Russet Potatoes - .89/lbs
Granny Smith or Gala Apples - .99/lbs
Grape Tomatoes - $1.99 a pint
3 pack Romaine Hearts - $2.49

Dairy
Turkey Hill Tea or Lemonade - .99 ($1/2 from paper)
Hannaford Yogurt - .45
Hannaford OJ - $2.50

Grocery
Hannaford Hamburger or Hot Dog Buns - .99
Santa Cruz Lemonade - $1.25 (Money Maker Click HERE)
Hannaford Elbow Macaroni - .87

Other
Hannaford Laundry Detergent (32 loads) - $2.99
Joy Dish Soap (12 oz) - .99

Check out The Grocery Gathering to find other great blogs to supermarkets all over the country!

Homemade Organic (Cheap for Me!) Pesticides!

I needed to share these few tips that readers have left in my comments for a cry out for garden help.

I've been having some bugs or slugs or something eat through my precious Gretchen (my #1 squash plant) and her cousins. This bothers me - obviously. So in my style, I was set to run to Lowe's to buy some pesticide. But I had no idea what to buy. I blogged about my problem. Bev at Home School Gardner gave me a recipe for homemade bug deterrent. Surprisingly, I had all the ingredients in my house so I left my pajamas on and just made it. Here is the recipe:

Homemade Orange Taco Pesticide (Name made up by me)

4 TBSPs Hot Sauce (I used Franks - I bought about 3 bottles recently due to those "FREE" coupons in the paper)
2 TBSP Crushed Garlic (I used the minced kind in the jar from my refrigerator)
1 TSP Hot Pepper Flakes
2 TBSP Vegetable Oil (I used corn, but whatever)
1 TSP Dishsoap
4 Cups Water


Mix hot sauce, garlic, pepper flakes, and oil. Let sit over night. Strain out chunks. Add soap and water. Put in spray bottle. Spray on plants sparsely. Reapply after rain and at least once a week.


I only did this a few days ago and I'm already seeing results! New flowers DO NOT have holes eaten through them! I actually have 4 or 5 small zucchinis! The flowers just fell off (probably from slug death!) before I used this special formula!

I did find some little slugs out there - even though Bev said to use it lightly, I have been spraying a lot on mine. And it's working. I'm going to be making yet another batch. I've been spraying on my other plants as a precaution. Most of it went to my squashies though.


Another tip I got was from Marilyn at Marilyn's Money. She told me to sprinkle Flour on the plants. I did not try this. But I have faith in Marilyn. She's from Ohio and Ohio is awesome.


Lastly, I got another recipe from Paula at SavingMoney101. This one is Orange Peel Spray. I didn't try this as I did not have any oranges or special soap in the house:

Pour 2 cups boiling water over the peelings from one orange then steep for 24 hours. Strain, then mix in a few drops of Castille soap. It is a pesticide that will kill aphids and also repel ants.If you dont have any castile soap you could probably use a few drops of ivory or dawn soap. couldnt hurt and wont harm your plants.

Do you have any special recipes to help deter bugs from your garden? I'd love to hear them! I'm green because I'm cheap.

A Re-Visit with A.C. Moore!

A.C. Moore is great. Toys, crafts (even though I'm not crafty, I like looking at craft crap), and misc. junk. They're having a great Dollar Days sale this week. This would be good if you're trying to think outside the box with goodie bags or looking for something to do with your kids this summer. Click HERE to see what's up!

On Wednesday, July 15th, they are holding a hands on craft project for kids (I think it's foam picture frames) from 3 pm to 5 pm. If you're trying to beat the afternoon blues, go to A.C. Moore!

Thomas trains are 40% off this week! 40% off is great! These make great gifts for the little guys. Especially if you want to get a 2 or 3 year old started with trains, a basic track set is about $39.99, but at 40% off, you're looking at under $25.

Character boxes and trunks are 60% off. If you're little one is in need of a new lunch box, you can score one for $7.99 or under - equiped with their favorite licensed character!

Also, they have just introduced their own A.C. Moore rewards card (as if my keychain didn't have enough cards on it already!). Sign up and get more info in store!

Lowe's 10% Off Coupon

Click HERE to register and get 10% off a single purchase at Lowe's. I think you are suppose to be moving - but none of the fine print at the bottom of the page actually says you have to be moving to sign up. This is great if you are doing something major - like buying appliances or cabinets. Coupons for Lowe's are GRRRRReat!

FREE! Santa Cruz Lemonade at Hannaford's!

Hannaford's has 32 oz Santa Cruz Lemonade on sale this week for $1.25. HERE is a .75/1 MFC (thanks Teresa in Maine!). If your Hannaford's doubles MFCs under $1, this would make this item free (or possibly a .25 Money Maker!). Thanks Teresa and Hannaford's! Mark this as proof that I do support organic stuff! ;)

Old Navy & Gap Free Shipping!

Use code BTSCHOOL when you purchase stuff at Gap, Old Navy or Piperlime until 7/16 and score FREE SHIPPING! The one catch is that you have to have at least one kid's item in your cart to qualify. NO MINIMUM PURCHASE IS REQUIRED! Well I couldn't find any minimum needed reading the details.

Roche Bros Deals 7/10-7/16

The following are good deals at Roche Bros. for the week of 7/10- 7/16. Not all deals are mentioned, but these are the ones that I find to be pretty good. Check your circular for all deals this coming week. See your local Roche Bros. circular HERE.


Meat
Petite Sirloin Steak - $3.99/lbs
Boneless Chicken Tenders - BOGO Free ($4.99/lbs)
Boneless Pork Cutlets - $1.99/lbs
Salmon Fillets - $7.99/lbs
Food Club Bacon - $2.50
SteakUm Beef Burgers - BOGO Free

Produce
Blueberries (pint) - .99
White Seedless Grapes - $1.49/lbs

Dairy
Butter (1 lbs) - $1.77
Florida's Natural OJ - $2.50
Dannon Light & Fit Yogurt - .50 ($1/10 from paper)
Garelick Farms Over the Moon Milk - $2.50 ($1/1 HERE)

Frozen
Hood Novelties - $2.50

Grocery
Food Club Pasta - $1
Near East Rice - $1
Starkist Solid White Tuna - $1
Betty Crocker Brownie Mix - $1
Kellogg's Rice Krispies, Froot Loops, Frosted Flakes, Frosted Mini Wheats - $2 ($1/1 from paper)
Roche Bros. Whole Wheat Bread - $1.50
Maxwell House Coffee (11 oz) - $2.50

Other
Scotties Tissues - $1
Food Club Plastic Wrap (100 sq ft) - $1
Top Care Allergy Caplets - BOGO Free
Top Care Aspirin Free PM - BOGO Free

Check out The Grocery Gathering to find other great blogs to supermarkets all over the country!

2 Great Coupons in the BJ's Coupon Book!

The July 2009 BJ's coupon book came a while ago. Two of the coupons are really great:

Buy the Frozen Sirloin or Beef Burgers & BJ's Hamburger Rolls, Save $5 (The Sirloin burgers are $14.99, the rolls are $1.99 = $11.98 for both!)

Buy 2 Land O'Lakes Dairy Products, Save $2 (The Half & Half was $1.99 the last time I was there. Buy 2 and it's only $1.98 for 2! That's less than a $1 for a quart!)

Oh Dear...Another Guest Post (at BeCentsable!)

So I made yet another attempt at a guest post. Click that long link there to read it. This one is more my "how I became into coupons" story. I'll admit - it's a little fruity. I'm just not a writer. It's very hard for me to be serious. I say it's harder to be serious than to give birth (but I'm a strong believer in epidurals).

I love BeCentsible! I actually follow them mostly through Facebook. Not only does Katherine post great deals and freebies, I think her Grocery Gathering is by far one of the best tools on the internet. For those that don't know what the Grocery Gathering is, I'll briefly explain. Katherine set up this simple page that just lists alphabetically tons of grocery stores (including commissaries) across the country. She depends on bloggers like myself who list weekly deals that they think are good. So then if you email her with the stores you are doing, she'll add you to the list. She depends on you to actually do it every week though (and so do the many other people out there in internet land looking for weekly deals).

This is such a great resource for those who want to get into saving money - just go to the Grocery Gathering on BeCentsible and scroll down to the store you want to go to. Most posts are just summaries of the best deals to be had at each store with coupon match ups from internet sources and if there is a known paper coupon. You'll see bloggers from your area who actually write up posts every week! I do Hannaford's, Roche Bros, Shaw's, and Stop & Shop.

Many thanks to Katherine at BeCentsible for her hard work on such a great website!

Shaw's!

I went to Shaw's. If my USB cable/camera didn't get messed up there would be a picture here.

Total Before Savings: $64.67

Total Preferred Savings: $27.77

Total Coupons Used: $11.55

Cash OOP: $25.35

**I had a $4 off your next purchase coupon**

**My receipt had a survey option on it. Since I completed it, I'll get $2 off my next purchase**

2.03 lbs of Cherries - $$3.02

2 Sabra Hummus - BOGO @$3.99 ea ($1/1 MFC) $1.50 ea!

1 Yakisoba - $1.25 (.35/1 MFC DOUBLES) .55!

1 Fluff - $1.89

2 Devil Dogs - BOGO @ $3.19 ea (My impulse)

2 Shaw's Wheat Bread - BOGO @ $2.19

1 Shaw's White Bread - $1.19

2 Santa Fe Salsas - $1 ea

2 Easy Velveeta Cups - $1 ea ($1/2 MFC from machine there) .50 ea!

1 Luigi's Italian Ice - $2.50 (.50/1 MFC DOUBLES) $1.50

2 Breyer's Ice Creams - BOGO @ $5.79 ea ($1/2 MFC) $2.40 ea!

1 Starbucks Ice Cream - $3 ($2/1 MFC) $1!

6 Shaw's Yogurts - .50 ea

2 Clearance Napkins - .50 ea

1 M&Ms - .89 (Free Coupon up to .85) .04!

-I pretty much just ran in for bread, Fluff and yogurt. But I got carried away. We eat a lot of ice cream.

Free Fun Fridays - JFK Museum!

Today's Free Fun Friday event is the JFK Museum in Boston. Click HERE to see all about the JFK Museum! See the entire schedule for Free Fun Fridays by clicking HERE.

Mill Stores!

Who doesn't like solid wood furniture? I love it. Wood is good. If you are on the look out for anything wood for your home (including outdoor sheds!) - you should check out Mill Stores! They have locations in MA, ME, RI, CT, & NH. Honestly, I haven't ever bought anything from Mill Stores (yet!). We've been eyeing a bench for the back corner of our kitchen for about a year now.

I've been to the store in Canton, MA and it is just one of those really cool stores. Tons of stuff. It made me want to go in there and redo my entire home in all wood furniture. All furniture is unfinished, but you can pay extra to have them stain or paint a piece for you. They have a wonderful selection of colors.

Click HERE to get your 20% off any one regular priced item coupon and to see this week's flyer! Also, if you show your AAA card - you get 10% off all regularly priced items (great if you are buying a table with chairs).