Money Saving Sunday

I blogged about my newfound love for Google Reader a couple of days ago, and in that post I included some of my newfound "frugal" blogs. The ladies that write these blogs are on top of things when it comes to getting stuff for free or nearly free, and I decided to join them in their quest to save money. I've always been a penny pincher (thanks, Mom!) but the authors of the blogs I read take frugality to new levels. I was inspired, so I'm going to chronicle my Money Saving Sunday for you. I didn't do too bad, actually!

I took Camryn (10) and Aiden (7) with me, because it's just more fun to find deals when you have company (plus, it's a great opportunity for them to learn how to save a buck, too!) I mapped out my journey, taking the most gas-saving route possible.

We started at CVS, where I got:

(2) Nature's Bounty Vitamins (which were B1G1 free; I had 2 coupons for $2 off each)
(1) 24-pack of Nestle Pure Life Water (on sale for $4.99; I had a coupon for $1 off)
(1) Swiffer sweeper starter kit
(1) Swiffer duster starter kit (had a coupon to get this free with purchase of the sweeper kit)
(4) All Small & Mighty concentrated detergents (they were B1G1 free and I had 4 coupons: 3 for $1 each and 1 for $.50)

I had $6 in Extra Care Bucks (ECBs) from a previous visit. My total before coupons and ECBs was $68.68. I only paid $25.32. Since I bought $10 worth of Swiffer products I got $5 in ECBs, plus $2 in ECBs for buying the vitamins, $1 ECB for buying the water and a $2 off $10 coupon for a future visit. That gave me $10 in ECBs! Those ECBs spend like money, so they're good on any future purchases. Remember that.

Our next stop was Bath & Body Works. B&BW is having a Columbus Day sale, which meant they had certain Wallflower scents on sale for $6 (regular price $12.50). I use those things all the time (because I'm a scent junkie and like the house to smell nice!) Before I left home I printed out 2 coupons to get free Scentports ($12.50 value) when you buy $15 worth of merchandise. I gave Camryn $20, a coupon, 3 of the $6 Wallflower refill boxes and one of the Scentports. She paid for her stuff and got the free Scentport. I bought 3 Wallflower refill boxes and got a free Scentport as well. We spent $36 and got $25 in free product. Not bad.

I had to gas up the van, so I popped into a rather new gas station and was pleasantly surprised to find the price to be $2.89 a gallon for regular unleaded. MUCH better than the almost $4 we were paying (due to shortages and hurricanes) a mere 2 weeks ago. It was the first time in a LONG time I've filled up the tank for under $50.

Walgreen's was the next place we stopped. They're currently offering a $10 Register Rebate (basically a coupon for $10 off your next shopping trip) when you buy 3 bottles of Children's Dimetapp medicine. The Dimetapp is currently on sale for $3.99 a bottle; I had 3 coupons for $2 off each bottle. I paid $10.47 for 3 bottles of cough & cold syrup (much needed at our house... we're completely out!) plus a bag of Airheads candy ($1.64 on clearance) and a package of Hershey's Special Dark candy bars ($2.14, also on clearance). The $10 coupon printed out and I stuck it above the visor in the car for use later. Remember that, too.

After leaving Walgreen's we hit another CVS. I picked up 2 bottles of fabric softener (not on sale, but I desperately needed it!) and a black Halloween wig for Camryn (not on sale either, but it was a decent price at $4.99 and it was necessary to complete her Cleopatra costume.) Total spent: $4.25 after the ECBs, plus I scored another $2 off $10 coupon for my next CVS trip. It's tucked safely away for a future visit.

We moved on to Target, where I spent way too much (I never get out of Target for less than $200! Is that sad?!?) I had tons of coupons for Target. This week they have 6-packs of Lever soap (hubby's new favorite) on sale for $3.79. I had printed 4 coupons for $1 each and had another for $.50 off, so I bought 5 packs (we're set for soap for awhile, huh?) Suave kids' shampoo is $1.69 this week, so I got one bottle and used my $1/1 coupon, making that shampoo a mere $.69. Hostess Snack Cakes (for lunch boxes, doncha know) are $3 each this week, and I had 2 coupons for $.75 off. Not bad. The best deal was the Archer Farms brand stuff... it's all 15% off this week, and Target has printable coupons out there. I scored some tropical juice for $1.08 each (I found these in clearance for $2.08 a bottle, and I had $1 off coupons), 2 cans of Honey Roasted Almonds ($2.89/can sale priced minus $.50 each with coupons), and 4 boxes of Archer Farms cookies ($2.11/box minus $.50 each with coupons). I also picked up 3 bottles of my favorite shampoo (Neutrogena 2 in 1 for dry scalp), which is $5.99/bottle. I had 3 coupons for $2 off each bottle, which is pretty good for a shampoo I use a lot. I also bought 2 games for Aiden's classroom (items from his teacher's wish list). I had coupons for those, too (and one game was even on sale! Score!) My total at Target was $167.54, but before coupons it was $191, so that's not a bad deal for stuff we need.

After Target we stopped for ice cream. My frequent buyer card was full, so we got a free cone. Cha-ching!

Bloom (a local grocery store) was next. They were offering triple coupons this weekend, so the place was a madhouse. I had been in there on Friday (twice, because they only let you triple 20 coupons at a time. I made one trip in, paid, put groceries in the car, went back in, paid, and left to go pick up the kids... I went back today because I had 14 more coupons to use!)

When we got to Bloom my frequent shopper card wouldn't work so we could get the self-scanner thing (a must at Bloom, because it's SO MUCH FUN to use and makes the trip much quicker!) I'm glad it didn't scan, because I noticed something going on while I was standing at customer service. Cashiers were handing out stickers with customers' receipts. I asked the CS rep what that was all about and she explained the Cook Happy program. When you spend $1000, you get free cookware. Now, $1000 sounds like a lot of cash, but over the course of several months that does add up. I know our monthly food budget is $600, so it wouldn't take me long to spend $1000 if I shopped at Bloom all the time. (Plus, they give a percentage of my purchases back to the kids' school.) Since I was in Bloom twice on Friday and didn't get my stickers, the CS rep was nice enough to look at my receipts and give me my Happy Points. Cool!

In three trips to Bloom this weekend I purchased a total of $221.36 worth of groceries and paid only $113.95 after store specials and coupons were deducted. That's a savings of $107.41! And no, I didn't buy stuff we won't ever use. I only bought stuff we use all the time (In fact, tonight we had the Angus ribeyes that I got on Friday, and we are stocked up on Campbell's soup. I see lots of soup -n- sandwich nights in our future! Yum-oh!)

We were tuckered out after Bloom, but as we were leaving I remembered I hadn't bought milk. I ran into (yet another) Walgreen's on the way home and bought 3 gallons of milk. I used my $10 off certificate that I'd earned buying the cough medicine, so I paid a whopping $1.37 for that milk.

When we got home and everything was put away, I put on a DVD that I'd gotten in the mail. The kids were supposed to watch it, then I fill out a survey and return the DVD. When they get the DVD back, they will send me a check for $7. That pays for the gas I spent running around today and then some!

All in all a very satisfying day. I don't know if I could do this running around every Sunday, but I feel like I accomplished a lot today.