I've Moved!

Today I am laying to rest this blog and have moved to my new .com home. Please see all the excitement at http://www.theobsessiveshopper.com/

Be sure to change your book marks and feeds to the new address. If you are subscribed to the newsletter everything has already been taken care of for you.

If you have any question please email me.

Sweet Savings

After last weeks Budget Buster I took a break and stayed below my weekly budget stocking up on one thing and getting just the things I needed*. Here are the details:

Smiths

8-5 lbs C&H white sugar @ $1.65 each, 2-1 lbs Land-O-Lake butter @ $1.65 each, 2-1 lbs Kroger Cheese @ $3 each, 1 dozen eggs @ $1.25, 1-2.67 lbs Rump Roast $5.33, Quick Barley $1.69, Agave Nectar $3.59, 2.41 lbs Naval Oranges $1.66, 2 lbs Cameo Apples $2.58, 1.78 lbs Banana's $1.23, 2 Grandma Sycamore bread @ $1.67 each

Total Spent: $44.67
Total Saved: $38.18

*If you're new here you might wonder how I could possibly feed my family of five on only those items. You see, I have been building my pantry with all the things my family typically uses. I now have enough in storage that when I need something for a recipe I can just go and shop from my pantry. These items are just the things that I either needed this week, like the fruit, barley, and eggs, or the items I choose to buy to re-stock my pantry or freezer; sugar, bread, roast, cheese. If I can do it so can you!

Budget Buster

Updated! (I couldn't help myself! My husband gave me permission to go over budget by $100 on Tuesday night, so I've got to keep my word right? I am not stopping until I at least spend $100, which is under budget $50. Don't you love how I have justified it!)

I found the laptop amongst the moving mess just to post what an awesome trip I had today. I don't have pictures yet because I can't find the camera, cord and half of my food is in a borrowed freezer until mine is up and running!

I have to admit that when my alarm went off at 4:45 AM. I realized then that I truly am an obsessive shopper! My shopping buddy, mom, and I pulled into the Albertson's parking lot at 5:30 AM realizing that we were not alone! When I saw the already full carts of lotions, shampoo's, deodorant's, and detergent, my heart started pounding and I harnessed all that is obsessive and started shopping. So here are my total's.


11 Knorr/Lipton pasta or rice Sides @ .13 each
2 Lipton Soup Mix@ .50 each
5 Progresso Broth 32 oz. FREE
4 All Liquid Detergent@ .67 each
10 Green Giant boxed veggies @ .28 each
3 Knorr Side Plus Veggies @ .24 each
2 Progresso Broth 32 oz. @ .34 each
2 Betty Crocker Cookie Pouches @ .09 each
10 Suave Kids shampoo @ .47 each
4 Dial Hand soaps @ .69 each
8 Tic Tac's @ .23 each
Fresh mushrooms sliced $1.69
Broccoli Slaw $2
Salad Mix $1.47
Fresh Spinach .97
15 Betty Crocker Cake Mixes @ .50 each
4 Gold Medal 5 lb flour @ $1.25
6 Skippy Peanut Butter @ .88 each
2 Betty Crocker Muffin Mixes @.80 each
1 Best Foods Mayo @ .65
4 Toaster Strudels @ .90 each
4 Degree Deodorants @ .75 each
6 All Liquid Detergent@ $1.17 each
2 El Monterrey Family pack burritos @ $3 each (I lost that coupon somewhere in the store or I would have saved another dollar.)
4 Green Giant boxed veggies FREE
5 Vaseline Lotions FREE
2 Q-Tips 500 ct @ $1.25 each (I didn't use the coupon-should have though!)
5 Suave Lotions @.50 each
5 Suave Deodorants @ .09 each
Cotton balls ( needed them, not on sale) $1.19
1 Purina Dog food 40 lbs. @ $2.99 (used the $15 coupons for this one!)
Kung-Fu Panda DVD $19.95
2 Pop-Tarts FREE
1 Lipton Pasta side FREE
1 bottle of Ginger $3.85 (lost mine in the move, then found out husband lent it to neighbor when it was returned with a plate of cookies yesterday! I will add it to my food storage I guess.)

Total Spent: $108.52
Total Saved: $351.43

Budget Busters come along about 3-4 times a year. I am feeling pretty good since my budget is $50 and this week we bumped it up to $150. I am under budget $41.48 this week! Now it is time to take a breather, at least until the new ads come out!

If you where an obsessive shopper like me this week I would love to hear about it! (that actually might make me feel less crazy:) Post in the comments your spent vs saved or email it with a photo at theobsessiveshopper@live.com and I'll dedicate a special post to you lovely shoppers!

My Western Family

While at a class in Ogden, Saturday, the hostess was telling me about the FREE stuff she was getting from Western Family. I looked into it a bit more and found this site, My Western Family. After you watch a little video you get to print a coupon good for a FREE item (this changes weekly). This week it is Western Family Apple Sauce. To find a store participating in this great deal click here (this looks like it may be available to most of the western US).

Thanks Katrina for letting me about this!

~If any of you out there know about any other great deals and would be willing to share either post a comment or email me and I will post it.

Oh, and by the way Applesauce is an awesome substitute for oil in your baking. I just add the same amout of applesauce that the recipe called for oil. It doesn't flavor it it just makes it moist AND lower in fat! LOVE IT!

On My Own

This week I did something I have never done before. I went shopping on my own budget! For those of you who haven't read the About Me on the side bar I may need to explain. My family and I have been living in my parents basement since December '07. Officially we move into our own place on November 1st. Today I went out and bought food for our single family and not combined with my parents. I felt tears well up in my eyes as I not only met my budget (okay, I was $2.13 over but hey I used the change in my purse to cover it and besides in the past I never dreamed I could get this much for that amount!!) but saw the results. How grateful I am for GrocerySmarts. I never thought I could purchase groceries and household items for $50 a week while still building and maintaining a food storage!

For this week I did actually go to three different stores. Here are the breakdowns:

Smith's

2 Purex Laundry Detergent @ $1.49 each, Cache Valley Cheese String Cheese $5.84, 1 Doz. Large eggs $1.29(not shown), 4.78 lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts $8.08, 2.91 lbs Organic bananas $2.01

Albertsons

4 Campbell's Beef Gravy @ .50 each, 2 Barilla pasta sauces @ $2 each, Barilla pasta FREE, Hot dog buns $1.19(totally meant to buy hamburger buns-sloppy joes on hot dog buns can work:), 2 Progresso soups @ .15 each, 4 Hunts tomatoes @ .50 each, 20 cans of Libby's vegetables @ .49 each

Lee's

2 Farm Bread @.99 each, hot dogs .99, bacon $1.37, sour cream .99, 2 Nerds boxes @ .25 each (consumed by children before photo was taken), 4 Herbal Essences shampoo and conditioner @ .99 each, White Rain Body wash .91, candy pumpkins .72 (got to decorate some cookies!)

Grand Total Spent: $ 52.13

Grand Total Saved: $63.50

How to Use GrocerySmarts.com

Thanks to the help of the awesome gals at Food Made Easy I have this simple video to help teach you how to use GrocerySmarts.com

Trick of the Trade #2

As promised I am letting you all in on the 2nd Trick of the Trade when it comes to coupon use.

Maximize Your Coupons

Did you know there is a right way and a wrong way to use coupons? In my previous coupon use I would happily clip the coupon for the product I wanted, go to the store with great thoughts of savings and find what I wanted on the shelf only to be disappointed that even with my coupon savings the generic of the product I wanted was cheaper! Has that ever happened to you?

Let me illustrate this with my favorite example. We use Campbell's Cream soups as a staple in many recipes.

Wrong:

I would have gotten my coupon which was a savings of 10 cents on a can. Went to the store and saw the can I wanted was $1. With my coupon my end price would be 90 cents. The generic next to it was 69 cents so of course I would choose generic in order to save.

Right:

I organize my coupons like I explained in this post. I look on the Grocerysmarts website at the stores I want to shop at that week and what do I see? A screaming stock up deal on Campbell's cream soups at 50 cents a can but if I spend $10 I save another $3 instantly at the register. With all these saving I get *20 cans for $7 or 35 cents each. Now I use my 10 cent off coupons, (remember I know where they are because I used the Grocerysmarts website and filing system) and I get the same soup for 25 a can!

This example is true to life and actually happened to me a month ago. By Maximizing your coupons, and using them the right way you are enabling your self to Buy in Bulk and save more money!

*Trick of the Trade #3 will explain how I got so much at such a low price

Calling all Shoppers!

Next week is UEA in Utah and I would love to come down south anywhere between Ogden and Provo to teach a couple classes. On Wednesday or Friday after 11 AM with my evening classes starting either at 6 or 7 PM. If any of you out there are interested I have some wonderful gifts to offer.

For my hostesses I am offering a hanging file box to get you started organizing your coupons and a $10 gift card for every 5 moms new to Grocerysmarts (or who have never attended a class before). These classes are FREE, the website is FREE! I teach Enrichment nights, moms groups, family, and friends. (This is what I offer all my hostesses by the way!)

If you can get excited about saving hundreds of dollars on your household items and groceries then I can teach you how!

You can contact me at theobsessiveshoper@live.com or call me at 435-881-7387.

Four Score

This week's paper had four packets of coupons. Be sure you pull all four out before recycling or you'll be sad when sale day comes and you don't have the coupons listed!

Trick of the Trade #1

One of the things I teach at my classes is tricks of the trade with coupon usage. The first trick of the trade is:

BUY IN BULK

You will typically save 10-15% when you buy in bulk at big warehouse stores. When you use coupons and combine them with sale prices at your grocery store you can expect to save 50-70% and even up to 100% at times!

I am not the only one who recommends buying things in bulk when they are on sale. I was excited to see in the Procter & Gamble booklet this past Sunday(found in the Sunday paper, once a month). They had tips from John & Kate Gosselin from TLC's John & Kate plus Eight (I love this show by the way) on how to save money. One of the tips was buy in bulk.

"If your family has must-haves, make sure you keep them in the house and buy them in bulk on sale to save."

I am not saying that Kate uses coupons to save, I have no idea. However I have found that when you can combine sale prices with coupons you save ton's more.

This is where the FREE Grocerysmarts website comes in. The website takes all the store ads and lists the sale items from each store while also listing a coupon if one is available so you get the best price possible (look for the 4-5 star items). Then you can make the decision on what your family uses and buy as much as you can while it is on sale. In one of my previous posts (you can view it here) I explained how I organize my coupons so I can find them using the code from Grocerysmarts. That information is helpful too when using Grocerysmarts.

Watch for 2 more tricks in upcoming posts.

What Happens in Vegas....

......Save in Vegas using Grocerysmarts!

If you live in the Las Vegas area you are in luck! If you would like to learn how to use the Grocerysmarts website or host a class please contact Colette Bomsta at (702)948-7200.

Visit Colette's blog

Sugar, Sugar

At a class last week a discussion was started about pantry staples on sale and if Grocerysmarts can help those who cook from scratch. One of the products mentioned was sugar. It was discussed if or even how using coupons or the website would help get a good a deal on such staples. Well, I was very pleased to see this great deal on sugar at Albertson's this week.

C&H granulated sugar 5 lb. on sale for $2.50 use this special to get the best price of $1.75, Save $3 instantly when you for every $10 you spend on participating items. Mix or Match.
then use this coupon: C&H Sugar product, 2 lbs. or larger .35/1 (10-31-08) RP-8/17
Your bottom line would then be $1.40 for 5 lbs.

If you had 5 coupons you then could buy 25 lbs. for $7!

I thought that was an awesome deal and worth mentioning. See you can use Grocerysmarts and coupons for more than just prepared foods!

Did you know that sugar is a necessary item for your long term food storage?

It is recommended that you store 39 lbs of granulated sugar per person in your household. Sugar will keep two or more years at room temperature. It's often used as a preservative, so it's no wonder that it lasts a long time. Store it in an airtight container to prevent it from hardening and clumping.

If you don't know what your family's long term needs are, I suggest you visit this awesome post from FoodStorageMadeEasy.net be sure to watch the video it is very helpful!

Freebies 9/24-9/30

It has forever since I have done this post. Sorry! Here is a list of possible free items for the week.

Albertsons

*****
"Powerade ZERO" 32 oz. Limit: 6 on sale for .69
Use coupon: Powerade or Powerade Zero, 20 or 32 oz. bottle .75/1 (10-31-08) SS-6/8 and SS-7/13
FREE

*****
Muir Glen tomatoes on sale for 1.00
Use coupon: $1/1 printable coupons at this link
FREE

*****
Nabisco snack crackers 7-10 oz.
With in-ad coupon and $25 purchase.
FREE

*****
Duncan Hines "Carrot" cake mix 18.25-18.5 oz. (**Careful, we're not sure if "Carrot cake" is included in the sale!) on sale for $1 or when you spend $10 on specified items you get a $3 discount making the price .70
Use coupon: $1/1 printable at this link.
FREE

*****
Ken's Lite Accents 7 oz. on sale for 2.00 or save $3 instantly when you for every $10 you spend on participating items making price $1.40
Use coupon: Ken’s Lite Accents Salad Dressing Spray, any 7 oz. $2/1 (9-30-08) SS-8/3
FREE

Maceys

*****

Zone Perfect Power bars on sale for $1.00
Use coupon: ZonePerfect, any single bar or multi-count box $1/1 (10-31-08) SS2-9/7
FREE

Reams

*****

Powerade Drinks 32 oz. Limit: 6 on sale for .69

Use coupon: Powerade or Powerade Zero, 20 or 32 oz. bottle .75/1 (10-31-08) SS-6/8 and SS-7/13

FREE

What Do You Think?

I've been reading my coupons and there is one little tinsy sentence that has me thinking deeply as I try to use and encourage you all to use coupons ethically and lawfully. Tell me what you think about this sentence commonly found on most coupons.

"Void if altered, copied, sold, purchased, transferred, exchanged........"

The Best Week Ever!

I wanted to post our Best Week Ever!! I probably need to add so far, as it has only been since March that I have been shopping using Grocery Smarts.

2 Home Erasers @ $1.19 each, 5 Clorox Wipes FREE, 6 409 cleaners @ $2 each, 3 Clorox bleach FREE, 7 Quaker Simple Harvest oatmeal's @ $.50 each, 20 Quaker Instant oatmeal's @ $.50 each, 3 Quaker Oatmeal To Go Bars @ $.95 each, 4 Purina Wholesome Medley dog food 7.5 lbs @ $3.99 each, 2 Clorox hard surface cleaners @ $1.25 each, 1 Cantaloupe $1.30, Green Beans $1.46

Total Spent $50.33

Total Saved $188.58

As you can see I am NOT the one who bought ALL the Electrasol before 6 am on Wednesday morning!

And NO we will not be eating oatmeal for every meal for the next year. That is what I love about this awesome way to shop. I stock up on things that our family WILL eat when they are at the most awesome price, that way we will have them around until they go on sale again. By using multiple coupons (see my side bar for multiple coupon offers) I am able to stock up on tons of food which allows enough for consumption AND food storage.

FYI: Manufacturers generally put products on sale once every three months and they usually put a coupon out about a month before the sale.

Helping Others

Coupon Moms are joining together to help orphans!

Did you know you can help orphans simply by shopping at Albertsons?! A fellow bargain-hunting-coupon-loving mom co-founded One Heart Bulgaria , an organization in aid of 22 Bulgarian orphanages. Bulgaria is a little-known country with one of the highest orphan rates in all of Europe. You can help support this effort and the Bulgarian orphans simply by registering your Albertsons Preferred Savings Card under One Heart Bulgaria. Once you do this, Albertsons will donate 4% of your eligible savings to One Heart Bulgaria in addition to giving you your own usual discounts and savings. It only takes a few minutes, here's what you do:

1.) Go to: https://shop.albertsons.com/eCommerceWeb/CommunityAction.do?action=beginCommunity (or copy and paste into your browser)

2.) click on the "Albertsons community partners" logo on the right hand side

3.) select the "shoppers" option

3.) login by using your preferred card number and the phone number your card is registered under

4.) click on "my account" on the right side of the page

5.) enter the ID # 49001013666 and select "add a partner"

Now, in this small way, whenever you buy food for yourself you will also be putting food in the belly of an orphan and love in their hearts.

Win Win

Box Top Sale at Albertsons this week is a win win situation. You save money on products you and your family will use and your schools earn cash! Here is how it works:

-Save $5 instantly when you buy ANY 10 participating General Mills Products PLUS earn 20 Bonus Box Tops for Education that print out on a store certificate.

-Get $5 off your next shopping trip when you buy $20 worth of participating Kimberly-Clark Products, coupon and Box Top Certificate will print at check out.

When looking at the items on sale always remember that it is not a good idea to stock up on 3 star or less items.

Here is what we got today:

10 Sun Maid Raisin 6 pack @$.50 each (RC), 5 Totino Pizza rolls @ $.50 each (RC), 4 Hormel Compleats @ $1.50 each, 6 Old El Paso Enchilada sauce @ $.50 each, 6 Pillsbury Sweet Rolls-Variety- @$.50 each, 6 Pillsbury Crescent Rolls @ $.50 each, 3 Betty Crocker Muffin Mix @ $1.05 each. 4 Nature Valley Granola Bars @ $.90 each, 6 General Mills cereal @ $1 Each, 1 Scott Bath Tissue FREE, 1 Real Living Magazine (a girls got to read!) $4.95, 7 Dove Extra Hold Hairspray FREE, 1 Portfolio folder $.10, 1 Lbs sliced Pepper Jack cheese $3.45, 1 Lbs sliced Marble Jack cheese $3.35

Total Spent: $51.82

Total Saved $129.86

Making my day happy PRICELESS!

To learn more about Box Tops and how they help your childs schools go to this website.

Last Minute Shopping

Today I went out for some last minute shopping before the sales change tomorrow. (The stores where getting ready for the new sale tomorrow and I can't wait to see what the red star items will be Click Here for a sneak peek!)

4 Hormel Compleats @ $1.50 each, 8 Scott Bath Tissue FREE, 3 Smart Rinse Listerine @ $2.50 each

Total Spent: $12.95

Total Saved: $32.03

Do you have......

I am looking for the coupons for Hormel Compleats meals, SS 8/17. I would be willing to trade another coupon for as many of these ones as I can get. I will be glad to pick them up from you! Email me at theobsessiveshoper@live.com. And yes, shopper is spelt wrong, so much for being obsessive!

You Are What You Eat

I had a question asked of me this week that has really been on my mind. At a class on Monday one gal asked me what we eat. I told her we try to eat semi-vegetarian. What I mean by that is that when I cook I try to only have meat every other day. We eat a lot of veggies and fruit. Cheese and milk for cereal are the basis of our dairy but not consumed in huge amounts. Truthfully some weeks we eat better than others. It depends on the work load at home, the places we need to be each night and/or my mood!

I love trying new foods and recipes-I hate repeating meals and especially having left overs. When I cook I like to try to please everyone without cooking seven separate meals, however this is almost impossible so to make it justifiable in my mind I try to customize my cooking for my family making someones favorite one day and another's the next. I want our family to cut down on processed foods and meats so instead of start World War 3 I just settle with vegetarian every other night or at least twice a week. (I sometimes just pick the meat out of my food or I don't have that piece of steak that everyone else is enjoying.)

I guess the reason I am sharing this is to tell all of you out there that you know your families best and you must be able to choose for yourselves what to feed your families. I am lucky I don't have very picky eaters and my husband is extremely supportive and rarely complains over our food choices. He told me once he really doesn't feel like he can complain since he doesn't do the cooking as long as he is fed he is happy! (I know his least favorites and I do try to keep those choices to a minimum just to be nice.)

I will share with you a few things that have really helped me in meal preparation but please feel free to do what works best for you:

• Keep a list of favorite meals in a note book, recipe book, white board etc... when your in a pinch you can always start there to decide what to make. I broke mine down into categories like: Meatless, Beef, Chicken, Pork.
• Stock up on the things that you need to make these meals. I love, love, love this Excel worksheet from the website foodstoragemadeeasy.net it helps with breaking the meals down, giving you an idea on what you need to store for 3 months.
• Instead of planning meals then looking for what is on sale I look at what is on sale or in my pantry and ask, "What can I make with that?" I use websites like Kraft, Food Network (my favs are Ellie Kreiger and Robin Miller), Family Fun and Betty Crocker as well as Google.
• I never plan what we will have on a certain day, something always comes up or maybe we (I) don't feel like Italian that night. Instead I just make a list, usually on the back of my shopping list, of meal ideas for the week. I make sure I have all the ingredients to make the meals then plug them in when I can. I only plan about 5-6 meals to make room for left over night(sometimes you just can't avoid the dreaded lefter night!) or eating out.

I hope this helps someone out there. If you have some tips that help your family please share!

I guess if it is true you are what you eat then I would say our family has multiple personality disorder!

Smelling Twice as Nice

Thanks to another Obsessive Shopper, Megan, telling me about this deal we can all have sweet smelling homes and fatter wallets!

At Wal-Mart Regular Price $4.13, with the coupon found in SS 8/3, $4 off one regular Plug-In, Expires 9/13/08

With the savings and the product your home will be smelling twice as nice!

Thanks Megan.

If any of you ever see a great deal like this let us know. You can email me or you can post it as a comment.

Focus on Food Storage

This week I noticed a lot of items on sale that would be wonderful for food storage. I did not want to overwhelm you all but I also don't want to make the decision on what was useful for your families. I decided to just highlight the food storage products on sale this week at Macey's. These items are most likely useful for your long term storage. If you are faint hearted and get overwhelmed easy, take a deep breath and just keep in mind your personal budget and the items your family uses.

Please go to the store list and look for other items that would be great with food storage. I am only showing you the items that are 4 or more stars, which means they are a great buy for Maceys.

I asked my friends at Food Storage Made Easy to help give suggestions regarding this sale.
This was their suggestion:

We would probably suggest for "beginners" to look at the following items:
-Morning Moo's Wheat 45 lb. Pail hard Red or White (3 star, but very necessary - red has a stronger taste, most people prefer white in breads)
-Morning Moo's Rolled Oats Quick or Regular 50 lb. Bag (4 star and versatile)
-Morning Moo's Vital Wheat Gluten 27 oz (4 star and great for helping make bread fluffier)
-Morning Moo's Corn Meal 72 oz. (4 star and can be used in a lot of recipes)
-Saf-Instant Yeast 16 oz. (4 star - for the bread)
-WF Sugar 25 lb. (4 star - for the bread)

We have found the first place people tend to start is figuring out how to make bread at least. You could sustain yourself for not much money with ingredients for bread. For people who are more experienced and have more of the basic needs covered, there are a lot of other food storage items such as: freeze dried fruits and veggies, potato gems, sour cream powder, honey power, egg whites, dry milk.

If you don't know what your families long term needs are I suggest you visit this awesome post be sure to watch the video it is very helpful! Thanks Julie for your help!

Freebies 8-20 thru 8-26

Albertsons

*****
Ken’s Lite Accents Salad Dressing Spray, 7 oz.
2.00
Ken’s Lite Accents Salad Dressing Spray, any 7 oz. $2/1 (9-30-08) SS-8/3
FREE

*****
Beech-Nut Stage 1 Cereal, 8 oz
.40
Beech-Nut Cereal Product, any $1/1 (9-30-08) SS-6/15
FREE

*****
Powerade 32 oz.
.69
Powerade or Powerade Zero, 20 or 32 oz. bottle .75/1 (10-31-08) SS-6/8 and SS-7/13
FREE

Harmons

*****
Powerade, 32 oz
.79
Powerade or Powerade Zero, 20 or 32 oz. bottle .75/1 (10-31-08) SS-6/8 and SS-7/13
FREE

*****
Pert Plus "With Botanical Extracts" 2 in 1 shampoo, 13.5 oz (**Careful, We're not sure if "With Botanical extracts" is included in the sale)
2.50
Pert Plus with Botanical Extracts Shampoo Plus Conditioner, any excluding trial size $3/1 (8-31-08) SS-6/29
FREE

Maceys

*****
Powerade 32 oz.
.69
Powerade or Powerade Zero, 20 or 32 oz. bottle .75/1 (10-31-08) SS-6/8 Powerade or Powerade Zero, 20 oz. or 32 oz. bottle $1/1 (11-30-08) SS-7/13
FREE

Reams

*****
Powerade 32 oz. assorted drinks
.60
Powerade or Powerade Zero, 20 or 32 oz. bottle .75/1 (10-31-08) SS-6/8 and SS-7/13
FREE

Oh Happy Shopping Day

Here are the details from today's shopping.

Albertsons

5 Jolly Time Better Butter Popcorn $.20 each (the store did not allow us to use all of our coupons and have an overage on this one :(, 5 Kraft BBQ Sauce $.50 each, 2 Lipton Dry soups $1 each, 2 Wisk Laundry Detergent $1.75 each, 2 Bertolli Frozen Entrees $3 each, 4 Cottenelle Toilet Tissue $5.24 each, Bounty Paper Towels $3.99, 16 Yoplait yogurts $.35 each, 1.87 lbs Grapes $1.83

Total Spent: $51.54

Total Saved $62.10

Extra, Extra II

This was a bonus week in the Sunday paper. We had two Smart Source books a Red Plum and a General Mills book. You will see the code for the General Mills book like this GM 8/10.

Treats for your 72 Hour kits

This week you can pick up bags of Life Savers Candy for $.75 a bag after coupon at Albertson's. I like to put these in each of my 72 hour kits. Let me explain why, it gives me a good reason to rotate my kits. You may ask why, this is what I do (at least try to do). At conference time we pull out our 72 kits and update them, check expiration dates, etc. To get the family involved I let them eat the candy that I packed the last time and replace it with the new stuff. This way everyone wants to help and we can see what we have, need and update.

Check this website, Foodstoragemadeeasy.com out for more ideas on how to make a 72 hour kit and to rotate and store them.

Shopping Day

Albertsons

4 Jolly Time Popcorn's FREE, 2 Curves Cereal @ $1.25 each, *Tide Detergent $7.49, 4 Kraft BBQ Sauce @ $.50 each, 6 *Pringles @ $.75 each, 3 *Puffs Tissues @ $.50 each, 4 Softsoap handsoap @ &.65 each, 8 Lifesavers @ $.75 each, 2 pkgs Grip pens (not shown) $1, 2 pkgs Wheat Pita Bread @ $1.50 each (not shown), 90 ct corn totillas (going to seperate and freeze) $ 2.49

Total Spent $36.26

Total Saved $61.38

*Bottom Line prince includes a $5 coupon toward our next shopping trip

Smith's

8 Malt-O-Meal Cereals FREE, 2.13 lbs of red grapes $2.13, 2 Pampers Jumbo Diapers @ $7.99 each, 4 Pampers Easy Ups @ $7.99 each, 6 loaves Grandma Sycamore Wheat bread @ $1.50 each,

Total Spent $61.61

Total Saved $61.33

Come see me at the Cache County Fair!

This weekend I will be at the Cache County Fair with a booth just for teaching people how to save money on their groceries and household items.

Come visit and enter a drawing for $100 in free groceries. Sign up to be a hostess and enter twice!

I can't wait to see you all there.

Freebies August 6-12

Here is the list of free items this week:

Albertson's


*****
Powerade 32 oz.
.69
Powerade or Powerade Zero, 20 or 32 oz. bottle .75/1 (10-31-08) SS-6/8 and SS-7/13
FREE


*****
Bic Round or Classic stick pens, 10 ct
.50
1.00 off 2 Printable at Group A print it twice
Free


****
Rubbermaid Produce Saver 5 cup
3.00
In-ad manufacturer's coupon: Buy 1, get a FREE Rubbermaid TakeAlongs 3-4 pack
3.00 + free item


*****
Jolly Time Popcorn, 3 pack (to make the most of this freebie follow the instructions on the list regarding the Mega Sale. This coupon used in conjunction with the Mega Sale creates an overage of 50 cents you can use on the other items*)1.00/.50
1.00 off 1 Printable at this link
Free


Smith's


*****
Promo: Buy 4 bags of these cereals, get $4 off instantly Limit: 8 Bags Malt O Meal Cereal: "21 oz Marshmallow Mateys", "22.5 oz Tootie Fruties", "25.5 oz Golden Puffs", 27 oz Frosted Mini Spooners"
2.00/1.00
1.00 off 1 printables at this link and this link **Don't Photocopy printable coupons, it's fraud and you can be prosecuted!
Free

Harmon's


*****
Powerade, 32 oz
.59
Powerade or Powerade Zero, 20 or 32 oz. bottle .75/1 (10-31-08) SS-6/8 and SS-7/13
Free


*****
-All month long- Pert Plus "With Botanical Extracts" 2 in 1 shampoo, 13.5 oz (**Careful, We're not sure if "With Botanical extracts" is included in the sale)
2.50
Pert Plus with Botanical Extracts Shampoo Plus Conditioner, any excluding trial size $3/1 (8-31-08) SS-6/29
Free

Macey's


*****
Powerade 32 oz.
.79
Powerade or Powerade Zero, 20 or 32 oz. bottle .75/1 (10-31-08) SS-6/8 and SS-7/13
Free

Ream's


*****
Powerade Energy Drinks 32 oz.
.69
Powerade or Powerade Zero, 20 or 32 oz. bottle .75/1 (10-31-08) SS-6/8 and SS-7/13
FREE


*Subject to store policies

Extra, Extra

In this Sunday's paper there was an extra book of coupons from Kellogg's. This is what it looked like:

If you haven't already pulled it out be sure to do so before you send your papers out for recycling. I am going to file this on in my fourth hanging file folder with Sunday's date on it. It will show on the lists as KLG. If you don't have a clue what I am talking about go to this post for an explaination or email me to schedule a sit down where I can explain it all to you!

The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly

Okay, so I am going to be very real with you all today. We are having serious storage problems. The problem lies with the fact that most of my family's earthly belongings are combined with my parents' in the storage room actually meant for food. Now that we are stocking up on food and household items our shelves are literally spilling over. My goal is in the next few weeks to get these shelves organized with a tracking system of sorts for our food storage. I am sharing this with you all today hoping some of you may have some suggestions, sympathy or a good laugh at my expense.

The GOOD

It's like going to the store I love it!

The BAD

There is no rhyme or reason, but at least everything is on the shelf, well, except the two boxes on the the floor!

The UGLY

Seriously do I have to say more?

If your storage situation is worse or nearly perfect then mine email your picture I may have a reward for you!

I can't wait to hear your comments.

Happy Shopping

This week I decided not to go shopping for a couple reasons, I'm going out of town and most of the great deals are repeats from last week. This is one of the great things about having my pantry so full -I don't have to shop every week.

I would love for you all to comment on a great deal you found this week and if you want you can email me the pictures with the total spent and saved I would be happy to upload them on the blog.

Happy Shopping!

Free Classes in St. George Area UPDATED

It's not too late if you would like to meet with me Friday afternoon or Saturday afternoon in St. George or Hurricane please call me. (visit this site for my phone number)

I had so many responses from the the St. George Area that I decided I would come myself and teach as many of you as I can this Friday and Saturday. I will be giving each hostess a hanging file box ready to store your coupons and for every 5 mom's at the class the hostess will also receive a $15 gift card. If you are interested in hosting or coming to a class please call me (click the link for my number) or email me ASAP!

If you can not come to a class with me this weekend please let me know and we will get you set up with the other teacher that is coming August 15th and 16th.

This is a wonderful opportunity for yourself, Enrichment Groups, Mom's Groups, family and friends.

Comments

See what people are saying about saving money and using the method I teach for FREE!

Feel free to post your success story here too!
*By posting your comment you are giving me permission to use your story in my classes or in emails

Rice Recipes

So for the fun of it I am posting a few of my favorite recipes using rice with a request that you will post your favorites in the comment section. Feel free to post as many as you want.



From previous posts click here.

And I found these too.


Rice and Black Bean Bake

1 15 oz can black beans rinsed
1 10 oz can diced tomatoes and green chiles
1 8 oz can tomato sauce
1 8 oz jar picante sauce
2 cups cooked rice
1 8 oz sour cream
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

In a bowl combine first four, stir in rice, sour cream, 1 cup cheese. Transfer to a greased 13x9 baking dish sprinkle with remaining cheese and bake uncovered @ 350 for 20 minutes.

Rice and Meds

This week's Food Storage spotlight is rice and Medication. This is a good week to pick up these two items if you have the coupons that go along with them.

We paid $2.15 for each of the rice shown here and $.50 for each bottle of Advil shown.

Rice Recommendations: Rice falls in the long term storage for grains. It is recommended that you store 55 lbs of rice per person for 12 months. I like to vary the kinds of rice I store. Some of my favorites are Basmati (long and fragrant) , Botan (short and sticky), Minute Rice Brown Rice (easier than traditional brown rice and better for you), and of course the traditional long grain.

Medication Recommendations: This will be personal for each family. I would suggest looking at what you use on a monthly basis and try to get as much as you can to stock up. This may be difficult for prescriptions using insurance. If that is your case then try to keep a list with the amount and the family members who use them handy, with a copy stored in your 72 hour kits also.

Another non traditional method for medications is becoming educated about herbal remedies and aromatherapy. For more information about essential oils visit this website. You can Also view this quick instructional document I put together for you all here.

Saving Money Is So Fun!

We got all of this for $89.21!

Smith's

4 Betty Crocker Cookie Pouches $.50 each, 4 boxes Kelloggs Rice Crispies with Strawberries FREE, 2 Lysol Kitchen Cleaner $1 each, 2 Lysol Bathroom Cleaner $1 each, 4 Soft Scrub $1.50 each, 3 Pledge Furniture Cleaner $1.50 each, 1 Kraft Velveeta Cheese $2.79, 1 Kraft Parmesan $4.29, 7 Advil 20-24 count gel caps $.50 each, 4 Skintimate shave cream $.95 each, 2 Meadow Gold Whipping Cream $.99 each, Rolls $1.99, Deli Shaved Honey Ham $3,

Total Spent $40.80

Total Saved $84.45

Coupons from register for next shopping trip $2.00 (courtesy of Pledge)

Albertsons

5 Purina Healthful Life Cat Food FREE, 6 Lucky Charms $1.00 each, 2 Nilla Wafers $3.49 each, 1 LBS Bananas FREE, 6 *Windex Cleaner $.49 each, 5 Wonder Rice $2.15 each, 2 Toaster Strudels $.50 each, 4 Toaster Strudels $1 each, 5 Reeses Puff Cereal $1.00 each, 2 Kix Cereal $.75 each, 2 Lemons $1.78, 4 bags mini carrots $3.98, Watermelon $3.25, 2 Cantaloupes $2.31

Total Spent $48.41

Total Saved $114.37

Coupons from register for next shopping trip $2.00 (courtesy of Post)

*Bottom line price includes 3 $1.50 off coupons for our next purchase)

How I Organize My Coupons

I've gotten this question a lot lately. So for those of you who are wondering if I take hours cutting and filing coupons you would be sorely mistaken. When the Sunday paper comes I take the coupon books out write Sunday's date on the front and put them in a hanging file folder. That is it! You're now asking where will I know to find the coupons I want to use? That is where the Grocery Smarts website comes in. On the website when I choose the store I want to shop at a list will come up matching the store ad with the manufacturers coupons.

You will see something like this:

**** Tide 40 load $5.99 Tide 40 load or larger $1/1 $4.99
RP 4/15 (Expires 7/15)

The stars mean that it is an awesome price and that if I can stocking up on this item would be ideal. Five to Four stars are awesome, Three to Two are comparable to a good regular price.

The item from the store ad will be noted next.

The sale price is then listed.

Then the coupon description and where to find it listed. I have four hanging file folders labeled for each of the coupon book companies and for misc. coupons from magazines, the Internet, stores, mailings, etc..

RP= Red Plum
SS= Smart Source
PG= Procter and Gamble

The last column is for the end price with coupon and other applicable discounts.

On my shopping day I print out the shopping list from the website. I look at what is on sale and ask myself, "Does our family use this?" I write next to the item on the list the amount I intend on getting then I circle the coupon code if there is one. I can usually do this while the kids are eating or while I'm on the phone. Then I just grab the coupon books by date, from my hanging file folders, look for the coupon I need, cut them out, and put them in a page protector (like for reports or scrapbooking), "shopping sleeve", with my list, shove it in my purse and go shopping when it is convienent for me. You can see a PDF file that explains this by clicking here. I toss the old coupon books out when the date reaches five months. By then everything in them has expired. I am sorry if you are disappointed about the simplicity of the system. That is the point though, to make it easy and not take all my time. Don't we all have better things to do?


Hopefully this helps if you still have questions feel free to email me or comment on the post.

Making the most of this blog

To make it easier to get right to business I moved these instructions from the top of the blog into a post all to itself. Now you wont have to scroll down forever. But just in case you are new this is also a great intro to the blog and its features.

Welcome to my blog! I am so excited to share with you the things that I am doing to; Save Money, Build food storage, and Have fun while grocery shopping using this website. Here are a few things to help you get the most of the blog:

Labels:
Comments-Comments, success stories, connecting with other obsessive shoppers. To post a comment go to the Comment post here.

Exchange-Here you can request or look for coupons to exchange with other shoppers. You will have to contact one another.

Food Storage-Look here for various ideas on how to build your food storage as will as links and recommendations.

Freebies-Need I say more?

Fun Stuff-Because I am obsessive I have to throw some fun in the mix to stay grounded. I am not sure what this will be but I am sure it will be fun!

Great Buy-My favorite great buy of the week. Usually under $1

Info- Find updated information, contact info, etc.

Q and A-Here you will find answers to questions that I have been asked. To ask me a question email me here. I will post your question with an answer as well as email you personally.

Recipes-Every once in a while I would like to post a recipe that can be used with sale items for the week.

Savings-This will be a representation of the products bought and what I saved and spent.

Appointment Book:
At the bottom you will see my appointment book if you would like me to teach you how I am having all this fun with shopping feel free to set up an appointment. Scheduled appointments will be shown in red. The ochre-yellow color are the available or pending times I have. Just click on the date you want, fill in the info and your on the books! You can even invite guests by email right from the appointment page. If you don't see a date that works for you email me or call me and we will come up with a time that works best for the both of us. I promise I will make it worth your time!

Newsletter:
A free newsletter is sent out each Friday to keep you updated on my most recent posts. You will find the sign up in the side bar.

Instructional Quickies:
Video instructions and How too's COMING SOON!!

Movie Ticket Update

I have been getting a lot of questions about the movie tickets. (see these posts http://thecrazyshopper.blogspot.com/2008/07/rockin-savings.html, http://thecrazyshopper.blogspot.com/2008/07/free-movie-tickets.html I just learned something really awesome especially for you who do not have a theater in your area. (Cache Valley etc..) If you have gone to the Fandango Site and entered your zip code and there are no theaters in your area there is an Option 2 that you can use. You click Option 2, fill out a form and Fandango will send you in 7-10 business days a $25 Visa gift card that you can use at your local theater!

Freebies July 9-15

Albertson's

The General Mills sale is purchase 10 participating items get two free movie tickets (to learn more about this deal visit my posts here and here). When you calculate the value of the movie tickets as a savings on these products there are a few that end up making you money! Visit the complete list for more great prices.

*****
Fruity Cheerios, 10.7 - 12.25 oz
1.99
.75 off 1 printable at Group A print it twice
-.16
*****
Cheerios (Select Varieties), 10.7 - 18.25 oz
1.99
Cheerios, Frosted, Fruity, Apple Cinnamon, or Yogurt Burst .75/1 (8-2-08) SS-6/22
-.16

*****
Nature Valley bars, 5.3 - 8.9 oz
1.99
.60 off 1 printable at Group A print it twice
-.01
*****
Curves bars, 5.3 - 8.9 oz
1.99
.75 off 1 printable at Group A print it twice
-.16

*****
Betty Crocker Suddenly Salad, 4.6 - 7.75 oz
1.49
Betty Crocker Suddenly Salad Mixes, any flavor .50/2 (Expires: 7-12-08) SS1-5/18 and SS-6/29
-.16
*****
Pop Secret Popcorn, 3 pack
1.49
Pop Secret Microwave Popcorn, any flavor/variety boxes .50/2 (8-23-08) SS-6/29
-.16
*****
Chex Mix, 8 - 8.75 oz
1.49
Chex Mix, any flavor 4.5 oz. or larger or 100 Calorie Chex Mix .50/1 (8-9-08) SS-6/15
-.41
*****
Chex Mix, 8 - 8.75 oz
1.49
$1/1 printable coupon at this link.
-.91 (that is almost a dollar extra toward your other groceries!)

*****
Betty Crocker Suddenly Salad, 4.6 - 7.75 oz
1.49
.40 off 1 printable at this link
-.31
*****
Hamburger Helper (Or Tuna, or Chicken)
1.49
1.00 off 3 printable at this link
-.23
*****
Hamburger Helper (Or Tuna, or Chicken)
1.49
Hamburger, Tuna, or Chicken Helper Home Cooked Skillet Meals, any flavor .75/3 (8-2-08) SS-6/8
-.16

Below are items that you buy then get something free. Use your discretion when purchasing things this way. It may not be the best deal. It all depends on the price of the item that you are buying.

****
Buy 5 Dannon Frusion Smoothies 10 oz.
5/5.00
Free item: Dannon DanActive drink 4 ct.
5/5.00 + free DanActive

****
Buy 2 Jell-O Fruit Passions refrigerated gelatin, 19-24 oz.
2/6.00
Free item: Cool Whip aerosol topping 7 oz.Manufacturers coupon: Jell-O Fruit Passions, any .75/1 (7-31-08) SS2-5/18
2/4.50 + free Cool Whip

****
Buy 2 Jell-O refrigerated Rice Pudding, 19-24 oz.
2/6.00
Free item: Cool Whip aerosol topping 7 oz.Manufacturers coupon: Jell-O Rice Pudding Snacks, any .75/1 (8-31-08) SS-6/1
2/4.50 + free Cool Whip

****
Buy 2 Jell-O refrigerated Dark Chocolate pudding, 19-24 oz.
2/6.00
Free item: Cool Whip aerosol topping 7 oz.Manufacturers coupon: Jell-O Dark Chocolate Pudding Snacks, any .50/1 (8-31-08) SS-6/1
2/4.50 + free Cool Whip

***
Buy 2 KoolAid Jammers 10 pack
2/4.00
Free item: Nabisco Carry Me Packs 2 oz.
2/4.00 + free Nabisco

***
Buy 2 Albertsons drink mixes or packets (See ad)
2/5.00
Free item: Spring! water 6 pack
2/5.00 + free water

***
Buy 2 Barilla Pasta sauce 26 oz.
2/5.00
Free item: Barilla pasta 16 oz.
2/5.00 + free pasta

***
Buy 2 Bulls-Eye BBQ sauce,18 oz.
2/4.00
Free item: Albertsons Pork & Beans, 31 oz.
2/4.00 + free beans

***
Buy 2 Hershey's candy 10.5-17.25 oz.
2/5.00
Free item: "A coupon at checkout for a FREE box of movie theater candy, up to 1.00"
2/5.00 + free candy

***
Buy 2 Kraft salad dressing 24 oz.
2/6.00
Free item: Albertsons croutons, 6 oz.Manufacturers coupon: Kraft Salad Dressings, any .75/2 (7-16-08) SS-6/15
2/5.25 + free croutons

***
Buy 2 McCormick Grill Mates seasonings
2/5.00
Free item: MCormick Grill Mates marinade pouch Manufacturers coupon: McCormick Grill Mates Blend, Marinade or Spice Rub, any .25/1 (8-31-08) RP-5/4
2/4.50 + free marinade

****
Buy 2 Oroweat Bread: "100% Stoneground", "Health Nut", "Whole Grain & Oat", or "Whole Grain & Flax bread" 24oz.
2/5.00
Free item: Albertsons grape jelly or jam 32 oz.Manufacturers coupon: .40/1 printable at this link.
2/4.20 + free jam

**
Buy 2 Orville Redenbacher microwave popcorn: "6 ct. regular" or "10 ct. mini"
2/7.98
Free item: Crunch 'n Munch - chocolate, regular, or caramel, 4 oz.
2/7.98 + free snack

***
Buy 2 Pam Cooking Spray, 5-6 oz.
2/7.00
Free item: Van Camp's Pork & Beans, 15 oz.
2/7.00 + free beans

***
Buy 2 Sara Lee Classic white or wheat hot dog or hamburger buns, 8 ct.
2/5.00
Free item: Albertsons potato chips, 11 oz. Watch for possible in store manufacturers coupon near the buns
2/5.00 + free chips

***
Buy 1 Maxwell House ground coffee, 33-39 oz.
8.99
Free item: Coffee-Mate creamer, 15 oz.Manufacturers coupon .75/1 printable at this link.
8.24 + free creamer

***
Buy 2 DiGiorno Ultimate pizza
2/12.00
Free item: Albertsons ice cream, 1.75 qt.
2/12.00 + free ice cream

***
Buy 3 Eggo Pancakes or Muffin Tops
3/6.00
Free item: Welch's grape juice, 11.5 oz.
3/6.00 + free juice

***
Buy 4 El Monterey Quesadillas, 12 oz.
4/10.00
Free item: Tio Pepe's Churros, 6 oz.
4/10.00 + free Churros

***
Buy 2 Healthy Choice Panini 6 oz.
2/5.00
Free item: Healthy Choice soup, 15 oz. Manufacturers coupon: $1/2 printable at this link.
2/5.00 + free soup

***
Buy 2 Old Orchard Premium Pomegranate Blends, 12 oz.
2/5.00
Free item: Albertsons frozen waffles ,12.3 oz.
2/5.00 + free waffles

***
Buy 3 Rosetto Ravioli or Tortellini or Steam 'n Eat Ravioli, 18-25 oz.
3/10.00
Free item: Pepperidge Farm Texas Toast, 11.25 oz.Manufacturers coupon: $1/1 printable at this link.
3/8.00 + free toast
*****
Buy 1 Easy Off BAM 24 oz.
2.99
Free item: Easy Off Oven Cleaner, 16 oz.Manufacturers coupon: Easy-Off BAM Product, any $1/1 (7-13-08) SS2-5/18
1.99 + free Oven cl.
****
Buy 1 Easy Off BAM 24 oz.
2.99
Free item: Easy Off Oven Cleaner, 16 oz.Manufacturers coupon: Easy-Off Bam Product, any .75/1 (8-24-08) SS-6/29
2.24 + free Oven cl.
****
Buy 1 Easy Off BAM 24 oz.
2.99
Free item: Easy Off Oven Cleaner, 16 oz.Manufacturers coupon: .50/1 printable at this link.
2.49 + free Oven cl.
****
Buy 2 Windex Glass cleaner, 26 oz.
2/4.00
Free item: Homelife Awesome paper towels, 60 ct. roll
2/4.00 + free towels

Smith's

*****
Powerade, 32 oz
.69
Powerade or Powerade Zero, 20 or 32 oz. bottle .75/1 (10-31-08) SS-6/8
Free

*****
Oral-B Advantage Toothbrush
1.00
Oral-B Pulsar, CrossAction, Advantage Toothbrush, any $1/1 (7-31-08) P&G-7/6
Free

Maceys

*****
Powerade 32 oz.
.69
Powerade or Powerade Zero, 20 or 32 oz. bottle .75/1 (10-31-08) SS-6/8
Free

Reams

*****
Powerade 32 oz. assorted
.60
Powerade or Powerade Zero, 20 or 32 oz. bottle .75/1 (10-31-08) SS-6/8
FREE

Food storage that is not food?

My food storage spotlight this week is not food. I really don't know what to call it but really I want to be clean if disaster strikes or if financial stress creeps up don't you?

The Proctor and Gamble sale at Smith's the week is really great! Here is an example of what we got:

2-Oral-B Advantage Sensitive toothbrushes FREE, 4-Oral-B Advantage toothbrushes FREE, 6-Oral-B Stages toothbrushes, $.50 each, Crest Pro Health Night Time toothpaste $.94, 5 Crest Pro Health clean mint toothpaste $.94 each, 12 Old Spice High Endurance AP &D $.79 each (Christmas present for Grandpa!), 6 Secret AP & D $.79 each, 6 Herbal Essence shampoo and conditioner $.50 each.

Total Spent: $26.91

Total Saved: $87.02

Rockin' Savings!

I am finally coming down from my excitement this morning! I don't usually go early but this morning was the only time me and my shopping partner, my mom, could go together so at 7:30 AM we ventured out. Our first stop today was Albertson's. I posted a preview of the sale yesterday explaining the details, go here if you haven't read it. Let me just say that if you do not plan on going to a movie before August 31st be wise as you decide what to buy, the bottom line prices on the list reflect the savings from the movie tickets! Also please check BEFORE you go shopping for a theater near you or in an area that you plan on visiting soon. You can check for locations here. Oh, and one more thing, the tickets are for ANY new release movie, not just Batman.

I am just going to post the total's and not take a picture because it would take me hours to stage a photo with the amount of stuff we bought today!


8 Toaster strudels
4 Betty Crocker Muffin mix
1 Albertson's sour cream
7 Betty Crocker Brownie Supreme mix
10 Bisquick Shake and Pour
16 Fruit Snack Variety
10 Nature Valley Granola Bars
3 Go-Gurts (I freeze these it makes a great on the go breakfast and is less messy frozen!)
2 Trix yogurt
4 Pop-Secret microwave popcorn
5 Minute Rice ready to serve
2 Chex mix
5 Betty Crocker Warm Delights (these are good for the bad days when you need something chocolate and know you will eat a whole pan of brownies yourself if your not careful!)
3 red peppers

Total Spent: $124.56
*Total Saved: $209.21
*includes $98 worth of movie tickets which is 7 vouchers with a conservative value of $14 a piece (7 vouchers with a maximum value of $25.50 would actually be a savings just in tickets of $178.50 which works out be $12.75 a ticket)

We got a voucher for 2 free movie tickets for every 10 items that we bought that where included in the sale. We did not have to go through the line in separate transactions.


-A tip on the tickets: You can purchase the tickets in advance not just for the day of. Once you choose a theater you can then select the day on the drop down menu.

Free Movie Tickets

I am so excited about this deal! So here is the scoop: Between July 9th through July 15th, Buy 10 participating General Mills items, get a code on your receipt for 2 Free movie tickets on Fandango for any NEWLY RELEASED movies of your choice! If are already planning on going to a movie this is an awesome deal!

Click here for the Albertson's shopping list with participating items.

I've had questions about how this list appears. If you were to take in account that the movie tickets cost you either $7 for an adult or $5 for a child (this is general assumption it could be more or less but to make things easy I will stick with these amounts), you are getting 2 free which is either a $14 value or a $10 value. The list shows the deals calculated as if you where getting a ticket for $7 or $5 a piece. Like this:


***** Bisquick Baking Mix, 20 oz 1.49 N/A 1.49
$7/ticket, cost is .09 ea
$5/ticket, cost is .49 ea

***** Betty Crocker Suddenly Salad, 1.49 Betty Crocker Suddenly Salad Mixes,

1.24 4.6 - 7.75 oz any flavor .50/2 (Expires7/12/08) SS1-5/18 and SS-6/29

$7/ticket, cost is -.16 ea

$5/ticket, cost is .24 ea

Now lets break down the first item (remember you can mix and match you just have to buy 10 total participating items) which is Bisquick Baking Mix, 20 oz on sale for $1.49. I buy 10 (just to make it easy to explain here) and pay $14.90, at the register I get a code for 2 movie tickets, I am going on a date with my man, I would typically pay $14 for the two of us right? Well, if I take the $14 movie ticket value and subtract it from the $14.90 (plus tax I guess we better mention that) then I would have gotten the Bisquick for .90 or .09 cents a box.

Now lets say you have a coupon for one of the items on the sale. Lets look at the Betty Crocker Suddenly Salad, 4.6 - 7.75 oz on sale for $1.49, with coupon costs $1.24, I buy 10 for a total of $12.40, subtract my ticket value at $14, I got the salad for -$1.60! I made .16 cents a box. Cool huh?

Here are some important things to consider:

1. Movie tickets are good only through August 31st.
2. Only participating theaters. Check here, Fandango, with your zip code and or city to see if you have a theater in your area.
3. You will have to sign up for a free Fandango account, if you already have one you can use it.
4. If there is not a theater in your area will it be worth your gas and time to travel to the next closest town for a night out? (If I am already going to be in a town that has a theater that is participating I think it would be worth it for me)
5. I am not sure if you can get more than two tickets. (so before you buy 20 boxes of stuff ask at the customer service desk if you can get more than two)

Find Six Differences

Free For All!

Okay another cool feature I just discovered is the Free Items list. You can check it often for updates. What it is is a list of coupons for free items. These coupons simply say that the item is free. Since there is no need to use the coupon when the item is on sale, these coupons will work at any store. To limit redemption liability, manufacturers state a "Maximum price" on thier coupon ("Up to 4.49" -for example).To get the item free, make sure that your store's price really is under that amount.

Great tip for using the online lists

I am so excited that I figured this feature out. Okay so say I want to see only the "good stuff" or the 4-5 star items, this is what you do.

1. Choose your store
2. Click the Start button in the top right of the page
3. Click the Star right about the Stock up scale
4. Click Shrink in the top right of the page

Now you can print or view only the 4-5 star items!

You can practice this by using this All In One list which shows all of the ads on the site.

Food Storage Items this week

There are 2 things I would put in my food storage na sale this week. The first is Hershey's Chocolate Syrup Buy 2 Get 1 free which works out to be $4/3. Have you ever tried drinking reconstituded dry milk? This chocolate syrup will come in handy!

Second thing, this is more serious. It is water. At Albertson's you will be able to get Spring water 24 pack for $2.99, Smith's had Arrowhead 24 pack for $2.99 with a limit of 6. Here is what I know about water storage.



Want to know what the American Red Cross recomends? Click here

Freebies July 2-8

Thanks to a great new feature on the website called ALL In One I can be a little more inclusive without working too hard! So here are this weeks freebies across the state:

Harmon's, Macey's, Associated Foods

*****
Powerade, 32 oz. bottle
.69
Powerade or Powerade Zero, 20 or 32 oz. bottle .75/1 (10-31-08) SS-6/8
Free

Harmon's

*****
Ken’s Salad Dressing, 16 oz
2.00
Ken’s Dressing, any 16 oz. or larger $2/1 (6-30-08) SS-5/4
Free

New Helpful Food Storage Site

Have you ever felt overwhelmed with food storage? Are you afraid to start or don't know where to start? Have you felt that food storage is only for the "Big One" and that is a long way away?

I have felt these things at times too and let me just say that having a food storage brings so much peace and comfort. I know because I have had to use my food storage to feed my family three times in the last 4 years. I know the peace that comes when my children are hungry and all I have to so is go to the basement and pick something out to feed them with. I have seen other's struggle and suffer because a lack of food storage. Please start today even if you only budge $10 a month you will certainly be blessed as you set your intention and move forward!

Few......I will step down from the box now and let you know of a great website that just launched today. It was developed by two young moms trying to build their food storage using baby steps. To check it out go to http://foodstoragemadeeasy.net/ Check out the side bar for more helpful food storage websites.

Freebies June 25-July 2

I will always get the free items even if our family doesn't use them. If that is the case we either donate it to the food pantry or give it to someone who we know will use it.

Albertson's
*****
Buy 2 Orville Redenbacher microwave popcorn 3 pack
3.00
Store Promo: Buy 2 Orville Reddenbacher popcorn, get 2 Albertsons 2 liters soda FREE. Also use 2 Manufacturers coupons: Orville Redenbacher’s Gourmet Popping Corn, any 2-pack or larger, any variety .40/1 (6-30-08) SS1-5/18
2.20 + for 4 items


*****
Jet Puffed marshmallows 10-10.5 oz.
1.00/.75
**Buy 3, get a checkout voucher for 3.00 off your next shopping order. -Will only work once, so only buy 3. (Makes them free)
.75

*****
Chocolate clusters Honey Bunches of Oats 13-18 oz.
2.50/1.87
$2/1 printable coupon for Chocolate Honey Bunches of Oats at this link or this link.
Free

Lee's Market Place, Macey's, Associated Foods:
*****
Powerade 32 oz.
.50
Powerade or Powerade Zero, 20 or 32 oz. bottle .75/1 (10-31-08) SS-6/8
Free