So I have had to reformat my methods of shopping a bit for a few different reasons.

1) we moved and the Meijer that is closest to us (HAMBURG for all you lexingtonians….) is INFESTED with these little flying bug like creatures that hatch from dried goods and get in your whole house.  Its been a problem with that Meijer for as long as I can remember and I refuse to buy ANY dried goods there … that means NO pasta, cereal, hamburger helpers, snack foods.  I will still go for frozen goods and cans but I am not even happy about bringing a Coke pack in the house as these little creatures seem to inhabit anything cardboard!  SOOOOO… I find myself driving to the other side of town.  UGH.  But I invest too much time, money and energy into this stockpile to have it eaten down by WEEVILS!!!!

2) Now that we have full time help with the kids its easier to run out each night to a single store rather than me shopping alone for 4 hours on Saturday or Sunday!  I love that!  I am trying to get into a routine!

3)  Let us just rejoice in the fact that they are building a BRAND NEW CVS at the end of my street!  All the same sweet people are going to work there as the one I go to now but its going to be a HUGE freestanding building with TONS more stock!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  I am doing a happy dance!  NEW CVS HERE I COME!

4) We have eaten a great deal of our stockpile and are at critical low on many items.  (meaning less than 5 of each!  That will last less than 2 weeks in our house.)  We shoot for a 6 mo stock of many things because I know the sale cycles don’t come around often… so having that few of an item makes me a little nervous.  I just cannot bring myself to go out and pay $5 for Miracle Whip when I know it will be free or next to free within the next two months!!!!!  See my quandary?

So… today I ventured out across town.  I had to hit Meijer and Boston Road Kroger (the only place in Lex that I have found that has the GOOD paper – Courier Journal in addition to the Herald- so that I can get my good coupons!  At Meijer I scored big on Tuna and the Betty Crocker Deal and at Kroger I hit up the nearly free Country Crock butter, cheap eggs etc.  I still have to do a little more research on a potential Betty Crocker potatoes and Pillsbury canned biscuit deal for this evening because the Catalina promo is over today…

I got the following at Meijer:

9 cans of BC frosting @ $1.29 each = $11.61
9 boxes of cake mix @ $0.99 each= $8.91

TOTAL: $20.52
- (1) Catalina $8 back (when buying $20 or more)
-(2) $0.50 WYB 1 frosting and 1 cake mix (doubled) = -$2 (IP- coupons.com)
-(7) $0.75 WYB 1 and 1 = -$5.25 (3/14 SS2 … I think… or 3/18)
= $4.75 TOTAL or $0.26 each!!!

**granted I have gotten frosting FREE before but my stock was low and $0.26 each is pretty darn good!**

28 cans of Starkist tuna @ 2/$1 ($0.50 each) = $14
- (7) $1/4 Coupon = $7 / 28 cans tuna or $0.25 each!!!!

Ballpark Hot Dogs (Bun Length included) 3/$5= $1.67 each
2 @ $1.67 each = $3.34
-(1) $0.75/2 Ballpark Hotdogs Q = $2.59/2 or $1.30 each

Kraft Parmesan Cheese $2.99 ( needed this to use up my $8 catalina from the BC….)

TOTAL OOP: $16.04

Then I was off to Kroger to retrieve my Courier Journal Coupons and picked up:

(4) Country Crock Butter Spread tubs @ $1 each =$4

-(4) $0.40 /1 IP (doubled to $0.80 each) = -$3.20= $0.80 TOTAL or $0.20 each

(2) Dozen Eggs @ $0.79 each= $1.58 + Coupon for FREE Big Red 2 liter WYB 2 eggs- $1.29 value FREE

TOTAL OOP: $1.78 + papers

Shopping Day total: $17.82.  Not bad for under $20 huh???Recent Comments:

• Dianne says Thanks for sharing your family with us, your kids are so cute! [more]
• Amber says Nicole… I emailed you! Sorry it took me so long! [more]
• Amber says Nope.. I am not gone… just busy! Had a crazy, amazing, awesome and BLESSED summer and fall [more]
• Melissa Gooch says I hope you and your family are well. I was just wondering if you have you given up this [more]
• Nicole Walters says Hello
  I was recently diagnosed with chiari, and now my children are also showing symptoms. I came across your blog online, [more]

• October 31, 2009 -- Carving and Couponing…
• April 11, 2010 -- Coupons… gotta make it back!
• January 13, 2010 -- Hot new printable coupons!
• January 3, 2010 -- January 3, 2010- RUN NOW and buy your coupons!
• December 29, 2009 -- Over the hills we go, stockpiling all the way!

A few runs that I have achieved in the past months while I have been on hiatus…

Huggies Diaper Deal- last month at Walgreens

$8.99 / pack

- (1) RR $2 = $6.99 pack

- ($1) WAGS Coupon (from activity book)= $5.99

- ($2) Huggies IP = $3.99 or ($3) MFR Q from Huggies Mailer = $2.99 / pack.

$108.50 total- I ended up with 25 packs.  I will also submit this for Caregiver’s Marketplace Rebate and get an extra $18.75 back so  $89.75 TOTAL for that entire wall of diapers!!!!  Not bad eh?  The total without discounts or coupons would have been $312.25 so I saved $222.50!!!!!!

I also hit a major money maker at Meijer in the past few weeks.  Jello!!! Who knew?

Buy 6 Jello at $0.55 each= $3.30

- (2) $1.25 /3 Jello = $0.80 OOP

Receive back $2 CATALINA ONYO = $1.20 money maker… so I turned this around to my soups!

Each set of 4 Campbells Soups came out to $1.20 EXACTLY after my $0.40/4 Q!!!!

So each transaction looked like this:

6 Jello + 4 Campbells Soups

- (2) $1.25/3 Jello MFR Q

- (1) $0.40 / 4 Campbells (doubles to $0.80/4)

- (1) $2 Catalina from previous transaction = FREE – yes the transactions physically came out to ZERO!!!  because the items were NON-taxable grocery!!!  I walked out with everything you see in the photo for $0.80….!!!!!!

THEN I had another first!!!  I actually came up with OVERAGE at Kroger!!!

35 McCormick Gravy packets – 2/$1- had $0.50/2 (doubled to $1 so free!)

30 McCormick Spice Grinders- 10/$10 (had $1/1 ANY McCormick spice so FREE)

Now somehow it came up with $1.49 in overage… meaning my Total was NEGATIVE $1.49 after coupons… I think I had a cellfire Q that I did not account for.  So I literally had to get 2 candy bars or take the CASH back.  They PAID me $1.49 to take this photo worth of stuff home!  (also missing is 16 additional grinders and 10 other packets from a previous trip!) Sweet huh?Recent Comments:

• Dianne says Thanks for sharing your family with us, your kids are so cute! [more]
• Amber says Nicole… I emailed you! Sorry it took me so long! [more]
• Amber says Nope.. I am not gone… just busy! Had a crazy, amazing, awesome and BLESSED summer and fall [more]
• Melissa Gooch says I hope you and your family are well. I was just wondering if you have you given up this [more]
• Nicole Walters says Hello
  I was recently diagnosed with chiari, and now my children are also showing symptoms. I came across your blog online, [more]

• April 18, 2010 -- Back atcha! Meijer shopping trip 4/18/10
• October 31, 2009 -- Carving and Couponing…
• January 9, 2010 -- Top 10 Deal Finding / Coupon Sites
• January 5, 2010 -- New Year’s Resolution: ADD Magazines to your list of things NOT to pay for in the new year!
• December 30, 2009 -- Fabulous deal on Carter’s sleepers at Kohl’s

So its Halloween already!  Where on earth did the time go?  Oh that’s right… the past THREE weeks have been eaten by rancid illness that has overtaken our house!  First Owen, then Kyleigh, then Ross, then me… now Troy.  Geez……..

Maybe we will see the light of day soon!  LOL  I am still really weak and “swimmy” in the head.  I managed to loose a few pounds over the past week (maybe like 3-4!!) so I cannot complain but man the nausea from all this drainage sucks!  (TMI.. I know.)

So on to the better stuff! Last night was the annual pumpkin carving.  Troy made my perfected polka dotted pumpkin by drilling holes… easy schmeasy.  Owen carved his OWN creation… and did a DARN good job.  Ross pouted a lot and tried to get into everyone else’s business and Kyleigh was more interested in “cookin up some dem seeds”…  Yes she played in the pumpkin guts and was perfectly happy.  Glad it doesn’t take much to please my kids!

Yes…  every now and then we acquire additional children from over the fence!  LOL

So much whining… (please tell me that the whining stops at 5???)

And THEN… because I am STILL sick, STILL wiped out, on day 3 of my Zithromax and STILL not feeling much better… Troy decided to keep up with the coupon shopping for the week.  It was a big week because of the Mega Sale at Krogers.  Lots of FREES and super cheaps on stuff that we needed to stock up on.  I traded and ordered Q’s online so some of them did not arrive until yesterday.  Tonight we still have one more run to do but we are almost there!

This is Troy and Owen’s booty from Kroger last night:

Shown in the picture:

10 steamfresh veggies (either 25 or 50 cents),

10 Land O Lakes Butters (17 cents each), $0.99 (Mega Sale) -

15 Glade Scented oil candle refill packs (50 cents each… yes I could get them free elsewhere but I would rather pay 50 cents for the refills than to get the entire candle holder and such free because it just seems like such a waste to me…),

20 Bumblee Tuna envelopes (FREE + $0.06 overage), $0.49 each (Mega Sale) – $0.55/1 Coupon = $0.06 overage

20 Krusteaz Pancake mixes (yes we REALLY like this stuff!) $0.17 each,$1.17 (Mega Sale) – $0.50/1 (doubled) = $0.17 each

10 Quaker Chewy Bars $0.99 each,

12 boxes of Cheez-its $0.25 each,

8 boxes of Betty Crocker Potatoes ( a few cents each… I totally honestly couldn’t tell you how much now but they were CHEAP… rest assured!  LOL)

Troy SAVED $192 and spent $44 ($10 of which was mucinex and more sudafed… blas it all this stupid sickness!)  ……….. nice right?Recent Comments:

• Dianne says Thanks for sharing your family with us, your kids are so cute! [more]
• Amber says Nicole… I emailed you! Sorry it took me so long! [more]
• Amber says Nope.. I am not gone… just busy! Had a crazy, amazing, awesome and BLESSED summer and fall [more]
• Melissa Gooch says I hope you and your family are well. I was just wondering if you have you given up this [more]
• Nicole Walters says Hello
  I was recently diagnosed with chiari, and now my children are also showing symptoms. I came across your blog online, [more]

• January 12, 2010 -- Coming Home!
• August 28, 2009 -- Another few faves from Gulf Shores…
• January 3, 2012 -- Blessed.
• April 18, 2010 -- Back atcha! Meijer shopping trip 4/18/10
• January 6, 2010 -- First SNOW!

is on the books!  Yes… last week was the great General Mills Cereal Caper.  We stocked up on Kelloggs back a month or two ago with the $1 off coupons and ended up with it being a money maker AFTER our 6 sets of free movie tickets.  This past week 8/23 week was General Mills.  Not quite the great, amazing and wonderful deal of Kelloggs but we like General Mills a WHOLE lot better than Kelloggs!

So here is how the numbers broke down at Kroger:

• MEGA SALE:
• $1.99 per box of cereal (Buy 10 get $5 off making them $0.49 per box)
• (-) $1/2 Internet Printable Coupon (coupons.com and smartsource)
• (-) $0.55 / 1 Trix from Cellfire & Shortcuts
• (-) $0.75 /1 Trix from Shortcuts.com
• My boxes of cereal ranged from $0.24 / box to $0.99 per box.

Pretty darn good deal!  My break even number on ANY cereal is $0.99 / box.  I try not to purchase it an pay more than that so this is right up my alley.  Needless to say I came home with 50 boxes and literally FILLED the back of my van… see?  Ross was proud of me!  I think one of my very favorite parts of couponing is hearing the responses from my kids when I come home with a new load of “goods” for the stockpile room!  The only thing I can say about this run is… Thank GOD for a cargo net!  And no I did not even bother with bags!  LOL

Recent Comments:

• Dianne says Thanks for sharing your family with us, your kids are so cute! [more]
• Amber says Nicole… I emailed you! Sorry it took me so long! [more]
• Amber says Nope.. I am not gone… just busy! Had a crazy, amazing, awesome and BLESSED summer and fall [more]
• Melissa Gooch says I hope you and your family are well. I was just wondering if you have you given up this [more]
• Nicole Walters says Hello
  I was recently diagnosed with chiari, and now my children are also showing symptoms. I came across your blog online, [more]

• April 18, 2010 -- Back atcha! Meijer shopping trip 4/18/10
• October 31, 2009 -- Carving and Couponing…
• April 11, 2010 -- Coupons… gotta make it back!
• January 13, 2010 -- Hot new printable coupons!
• January 3, 2010 -- January 3, 2010- RUN NOW and buy your coupons!

While I have been absent from blogging I have NOT been absent from couponing!  I have been trying to stockpile enough snacks for Owen to pack for lunch for the school year and let me tell you.  THAT is NO small task!

I have, however, hit some GREAT sales to help me along the way.

Last week at CVS was the Always Deal:

Always Infinity pads- normally $10.99 each.  Sale price: $4.99 – $4/1 Q from the P&G Saver = $0.99 each.  I think I stocked up on enough of these for my mother, me and my sister for a year!  LOL

Also… I hauled my butt out after last weekend’s wedding for nearly FREE TP!  It was a one day only thing so I made sure I got there while the getting was good!  The 6 double roll pack of Quilted Northern was $2.50 per pack (down from $5.89.  I used a $1/1 MFR Q (expiring that day) and a $1/1 Meijer Mealbox Q which made the TP packs $0.50 each!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  I nearly cried!

Next, this will be known as the “Great Gusher’s Caper of 2009″.  Even after a long wedding on Saturday night I went to Kroger armed with my Q’s for fruit snacks and BBQ.  (yes…. god knows I do not need BBQ but it was making me money to make my fruit snacks cheaper so I came home with it!  Sometimes couponing is about buying stuff you DON’T want to get what you DO want free or cheap!)

I did this transaction 11 times (the last two transactions had popcorn substituted for the last filler items in the Buy 10 get $3 off because I ran out of BBQ Q’s!) :

6 boxes of Betty C Fruit Snacks – $1.79 each ($1.49 each with sale) = $10.74
4 Kraft BBQ - $0.99 each ($0.69 each with sale) = $3.96
$14.70 Total
- $3.50 Cat from previous BC deal (Buy 5 BC Fruit Snacks and get $3.50 Cat)
- $3 (from the Daytona deal Buy 10/ get $3)
$8.20 Total
- (3) $0.50/2 fruit snacks Q’s (double at my store to $1 each)
$5.20 Total
- (4) $0.50 / 1 Kraft BBQ (double at my store to $0.99 (sale price)

FINAL TOTAL: $1.20 + tax = $1.24

for 6 boxes of Fruit snacks and 6 bottles of BBQ. Really the BBQ was a money maker and filler for the fruit snacks.  The total amount for ALL of the items in the image above was $16 and change!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This offer is STILL VALID this week!  Please go out to Kroger and take advantage!
Recent Comments:

• Dianne says Thanks for sharing your family with us, your kids are so cute! [more]
• Amber says Nicole… I emailed you! Sorry it took me so long! [more]
• Amber says Nope.. I am not gone… just busy! Had a crazy, amazing, awesome and BLESSED summer and fall [more]
• Melissa Gooch says I hope you and your family are well. I was just wondering if you have you given up this [more]
• Nicole Walters says Hello
  I was recently diagnosed with chiari, and now my children are also showing symptoms. I came across your blog online, [more]

• April 18, 2010 -- Back atcha! Meijer shopping trip 4/18/10
• December 29, 2009 -- Over the hills we go, stockpiling all the way!
• October 31, 2009 -- Carving and Couponing…
• August 30, 2009 -- The great General Mills Cereal Caper of 2009…