Where Have I Been?

I have been sick!!  Oh no.  I've had to catch up on my couponing.  It's terrible!!

I was able to go to Kroger and pick up about 16 packs of weenies for $8.  I was pretty happy about that.  My husband eats them "raw" right out of the fridge.  Gross.  And I had $3 coupons for Tide which was on sale at Kroger for $5.99.  While I was perusing the aisle, I found some large bags of the Tide packs marked down to $5.59.  Woo-hoo.  I got those suckers for $2.59 each!! 

I was also able to stock up on some Gillette body wash for Hubby too.  I guess I haven't done too bad.

And I promise I'm back.

Let's Go Krogering - Again

My sister in law, "Red", bought twenty .50 off Huggies wipes coupons online for $4.  That means she can get 20 packs of wipes for free!!  Ok, 20 packs of wipes for $4.  Not too bad.  At 64 per packs, that's 1280 wipes for $4.  That's .20 per pack. 

She said she would give me a few coupons.  That means free wipes for me too. 

I might pick up some more toothbrushes for .25 too. 

Yay!!

Let's Go Krogering

I saw the advertised $5 off when you buy 5 of a list of products.  Huggies baby wipes was listed for a final price of $1.49.  My sister in law told me that there are actually some 64 ct packs that are .99 each when you buy 5. 

I only had 3 - .50 off coupons (doubled to $1 each), but I also had a .75 off coupon.  Of course, the .50 off coupon is worth more savings because the .75 off won't be doubled.

I asked the manager because they appeared to be out of stock.  He actually changed the price of some other Huggies 64 ct baby wipes so they would ring up .99.  This means I didn't have to buy 5 to get the deal. 

I bought 4 packs of baby wipes and 1 Colgate toothbrush. 

I used 3 - .50 off coupons for a total of $3 off, a .75 off coupon and a .75 off the tooth brush. 

My total came to .64.  When I didn't have that much change, the woman behind me actually offered to pay for it for me.  ha ha  Embarassed, I swiped my card for the .64. 

Sweet deal!!!

I see where they have Snuggle and All for for $2.99 and I have some $1 off coupons.  I also have $25 from a transferred prescription.  I might stock up on some laundry detergent.  Yay!!

Coupon Ninja

I went to Wal Mart but I didn't bring in my binder because I brought in the coupons for what I intended to buy.  But as it goes, I saw several other things I thought were pretty good deals.  My son ran out to the car to grab the binder.

I went through the line with my binder riding in the kiddie seat of the cart.  The cashier looked at me and said, "You are one of those coupon ninjas".  Coupon ninjas?  Really?  I can't say that I've ever heard that before, but I like it. 

I saved about $20, so I didn't do too bad.  The cashier was impressed.  (She's probably never seen the show on TV) 

I may not have my black belt yet, but I'm working on it.

Wednesday - Thought of the Day

If you don't have a coupon, don't buy it.

This doesn't mean you have to get it for free, although that is nice.  It simply means that you should always be looking for an opportunity to save money.

There are some things I HAVE to buy.  But I will look for the best deal, and I happy if I find a coupon for even .25 off.

What Was I Thinking?

Just one small piece of advice.  Do not send someone to the store for you with a list and a stack of coupons if they do not love and respect coupons themselves.  The results will be tragic. 

I sent my husband with a very detailed list and a paperclipped stack of coupons along with my Kroger card.  He came back with things I did not ask for and the wrong brand of things.  I didn't ask him to make decisions.  I asked to to buy what was on the list. 

I had 2 coupons for Gerber baby food that had to be used at Kroger.  I believe each of them you had to buy 6.  I told him to get 6 meat combos and 6 fruits. 

Well, he decided that there wasn't a big enough selection in the fruits so he bought some Beech Nut .  I DIDN'T HAVE A COUPON FOR BEECH NUT.  What was he thinking?  I know he didn't buy enough of the Gerber to use both coupons.  The Gerber from Kroger was merely a portion of what I planned to buy.  I just so happened to have Gerber coupons specific to Kroger. 

I couldn't even bear to look further into what happened with the rest of my coupons.  At least he used by $5 off $25 purchase. 

I feel better to have vented.

Saving Star

Have you seen this?  SavingStar is a great new option for the avid couponer.  I just signed up today, so I haven't actually used it in the store yet.  From what I can tell, it sounds pretty good.

You go to the SavingStar website and input your zip code to get a list of the store cards you can use.  then you input your store savings card numbers.  I input all of mine.  Then you select the "coupons" you want to use.  These digital coupons are linked to each of your store cards.  When you check out at the store and your card is swiped, your total doesn't change.  The "coupon" is actually registered to your SavingStar account. 

For example, let's say you have a $1 off SavingStar coupon for diapers.  You just happen to run by Kroger on your way home because you are out of diapers.  All you have to do is swipe your card and the $1 is added to your SavingStar account!!  Remember, your total won't change. 

Once you have accumulated $5 in savings, you can choose the method of payout. 

What's nice is this is on all your store cards, so you don't have to make a special trip to a certain store to use it.  Not to mention you can use this in addition to your manufacturer and store coupons.  This will really boost your savings.  And while you may not see the SavingStar savings immediately, wouldn't it be nice to get a little payout for your purchases? 

Remember, the coupon can be used only once.  Not once per transaction or per store.  Once.  So your savings are limited by the number of coupons available.  When I signed up there was a possible $60 in savings.  Not bad, huh?

I am excited to try this.  If anyone has already done this, let me know if it is as good as it sounds.