This is why I coupon...

Couponing as always been a way for Chris and I to stretch our dollars and to help enjoy our life. And yesterday was a prefect testament to why I started couponing and why I continue to coupon.

Yesterday, we went to New York City for just 12 hours. Usually around Christmas time we take a bus and do the same thing to Chicago, but we decided to switch it up and go to NYC! We did some shopping, ate some New York Style Pizza, had a hot dog from a street vendor, took pictures at the Christmas Tree in Rockafeller Plaza and just enjoyed our day together. But we may not have had the means to do such a trip if I hadn't started couponing and saving money!

This trip was a great reminder to myself of why I coupon and why I love saving money!

This Morning's Segment from KDSK!

In case you missed it this morning on St Louis' KSDK Channel 5, they did a printable coupon segment  this morning with me!!

Go here to watch it!



Watch for Me this Morning on KDSK!

If you are watching the news this morning, keep on eye out for me on Channel 5, KDSK St Louis! I will be talking about printable coupons and some of my favorite sites like coupons.com!

Mailbox Surprises

So I have been REALLY behind with some of my posts this month. I just don't know where this month has gone! But I am finally getting back on track!
The past few weeks I have still be getting my mail! And some of it has been great!!




I finally got my Alpo sample! And I am also a member of Victoria Secret's PINK Nation! They just randomly send you coupons, like the one about, for money off or FREE underwear!





A few weeks ago I also got my FREE entree from Stouffer's in the mail!



AND then I got my FREE Jif "sample" coupon in the mail!

I also save and get giftcards by redeeming my credit card points! Here I redeemed some of them for a $25 giftcard at Target! AND I always see if there are any reduced points giftcard deals so I am still getting more for my money!!

What kind of stuff have you gotten in the mail?




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Mailbox Surprises

Holy Moly did I come home to a TON of awesome mail today!

Remember that text offer for a FREE Gillette Fusion Proglide Razor that was in Spanish that I mentioned here? If so, I finally got my razor in the mail! Those text offers really do work!

Then I got bunch of feminine product samples including a travel sized Secret deodorant from beinggirl.com. I had signed up previously but can't recall signing up for anything at all this year from them! This one was truly a surprise! And it came with coupons!!

And last but not least I received my catalog from Penzey's Spices. I love this spice shop AND this catalog because on the front is a coupon for a FREE Northwoods Seasonings. Each catalog has a different FREE spice! And I have liked them all, Especially the pasta sprinkle! If you have a Penzey's Spices near you, sign up for a free catalog here!

Have you gotten anything exciting in the mail?

My Monthly Budget: May 2011

If you are new to my site, my monthly budget really helps keep my spending in check. For myself, my boyfriend and our 2 dogs I have a monthly budget of $50! And nope I'm not missing a zero!

We are able to accomplish this by using items from our stockpile and making the most of sales and coupons!

This month I made 11 trips and only spent $31.97!!! I think that might be a monthly record for me!

See exactly how I did below:

Walgreens 5/1/11- $0! Check it out here!

Shop N Save 5/12/11- $10.30! Check out my post here!!

Walgreens 5/14/11- $0!! Check it out here!

CVS 5/14/11- $0! Check it out here!

Petsmart 5/14/11- $0! Check out my post here!

Target 5/14/11- $.01! Check out the deal here!

Shop N Save 5/26/11- $5.80! See how I did here!

Shop N Save 5/26/11- $5.04! Check it out here!

CVS 5/30/11- $7.67! See the deals here!

Walgreens 5/30/11- $0! Check it out here!

Schnucks 5/30/11- $3.10! Check out what I got here!

I hope that June brings more GREAT deals like this month! Now I just need to decide what to do with my leftover $18.03!!!

To see what how I did in April, check out my post here!!

My Memorial Day Deals

I finally got a chance to get to the drugstores yesterday! I felt like I hadn't been in forever!

But I started out at CVS where I picked up 6 3-pk Ivory soaps that I had a raincheck for, 5 Fuze drinks, 4 Oral B toothbrushes, 2 Crest toothpastes, 1 Bic Soliel Shimmer Razor, 1 Sure Deodorant, 2 Nature Made vitamins I found on clearance, 1 Preparation Wipes and 2 M&M singles for $7.67! And I still have a $2 ECB left!






Then I went to Walgreens, I picked up 6 ICYHOT creams all for FREE!






Then my last stop was Schnucks! I picked up 5 Weber spices and 2 Blue Bunny Ice Creams for $3.10!!






I also wanted to show you all my GREAT clothing finds from this weekend. Banana Republic Outlet had 40-60% off everything in the store. That made my clearance finds (the 2 on the left) that were $3.97, only $2.38 each! And the one in the middle was on clearance for $9.99 and I picked it up for $5.98!

Old Navy was also having a sale where the ENTIRE outlet store was 40% off! I picked up both shirts on the right for $5.50!!

Did you score any great deals this weekend?

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How I Get Fresh Produce

One question I get asked all the time is how do I get my fresh produce?

Well, I am super lucky and have a farmer's market less than a mile away. I know not everyone has a farmer's market, but if you do, I highly suggest checking it out and taking advantage of it!

For all of the items pictured above (a cantaloupe, pineapple, a HUGE container of spinach, 3 heads of romaine, 3 Green peppers, 2 packages of mushrooms and a bunch of asparagus), I paid $7.

For some that may be a lot, but for two weeks of produce for two people, I'm happy! Occasionally grocery stores have some great deals on produce, but not always. That's why I take advantage of my farmer's market, plus I'm supporting local businesses.

There are a few ways to really take advantage of your local farmer's market and get the most for your money.

The first way I would suggest is by going later in the morning. When you go to a farmer's market early in the morning you are more likely to get the best selection. However, when you go later in the morning, vendors usually lower their prices to try to unload their inventory and still make a profit.

If you have a larger farmer's market, keep an eye out for patterns in the pricing. At my local farmer's market, the vendors near the end of the aisles have higher prices. I always check the vendors in the middle where I can usually find the best prices.

And don't be afraid to haggle. Especially when they are already lowering prices already! You never know what kind of deals you can find!

Now that you know how I get my fresh produce, how do you get yours?

My Shop N Save Trip- 5/26

This week’s Shop N Save deals and the $10 off $50 were too good to pass up. So good that I did two transactions (I made sure Chris was with me!)!!

I had to do another midnight trip because I didn’t know when I would have time otherwise. My family is coming in tomorrow and I have a lot to do to get ready and I didn’t want to lose time with the lines on a Shop N Save $10 off $50 Thursday!!

For my first transaction I paid $5.80 OOP!! Before coupons it totaled to $52.56 but ORIGINAL retail for all of it was $81.35! I started out with a $10 Catalina and made sure to get my 10 Kraft Products so I could get my $5 Catalina back.

The Second Transactions I paid $5.04 OOP!!! Before coupons, this transaction totaled $53.32 and ORIGINAL retail of all of the products was $70.57!! I used the $5 Catalina from the first transaction and then got a $5 Catalina back for my next Shop N Save trip!!

I have detailed both Transactions below so you can see exactly how I made this work!

In the first Transaction I bought:

3 Ritz Crackerfuls- $2
$1 - 4/17 SS

6 Crystal Light Packages - $2
B2G1 - 4/03 SS
and used 2 $1 off coupons from Here
And 1 $1 off Crystal Light Pure from the Kraft Food and family Magazine

1 Kraft Shredded Cheese with a Touch of Philly - $1.98
$1 coupon from Kraft First Taste that I received in the mail

2 Reynolds Slow Cooker Liners- $2.28
$1- 1/30 SS

3 Ken's Salad Dressing - $1
$1 - 5/08 SS

1 KC Masterpiece Barbecue Sauce- $1.50
$1 - 5/15 SS

2 Pringles- $1.48
Free Product Coupons I received in the mail from P&G

2 Wet Wipes-1.98
$1 off 2 - 5/22 SS

2 Johnsonville Bratwurst- $3.98
$.55 - 5/01 SS

8 Ears Yellow Sweet Corn - $.22 each

2 Hamburger or Hot Dog Buns - $1

2 Reser's Potato Salad- $1

1 Dole PineOrangeBanana Juice- $2.98

With this first transaction $10 was deducted for the Thursday Store Special and I used the $5 off $50 coupon in the St Louis Entertainment book and a $10 Catalina I received 2 weeks ago. After this transaction I received a $5 off my next purchase Catalina for buying 10 participating Kraft Products (Crystal Light, Kraft Cheese and Ritz Crackerfuls).


In the second Transaction I bought:

10 Kraft Shredded Cheese - $1.98

3 Coke 8 pks- $3.42
FREE Product Coupon from My Coke Rewards

2 Coke 20 oz- $1.58
FREE Product Coupon from My Coke Rewards

1 International Breve Creamer- $1.78
FREE Product Coupon from Vocalpoint

2 Ken's Salad Dressing - $1
$1 - 5/08 SS

5 Sweet Baby Ray's Marinades- $1
$1 - 5/22 SS

2 Fresh Express salad Mixes-$1.78 (2)
$1 coupon (reduced down to $.89 because it was over 50% regular retail value)- Here

1 KC Masterpiece Barbecue Sauce- $1.50
$1 - 5/15 SS

1 Slab of Ribs- $6.26
$2 off Ribs wyb any KC Masterpiece- Here

With this transaction $10 was deducted for the Thursday Store Special and I used the $5 off $50 coupon in the St Louis Entertainment book and the $5 Catalina I received from the previous transaction. After this transaction I received a $5 off my next purchase Catalina for buying 10 participating Kraft Products (Kraft Cheese).


For the rest of the Shop N Save Deals this week, check out my post Here!


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Great Day Sneak Peak: Shop N Save trip

UPDATE: If you watched Great Day St Louis morning you saw that I picked up all of these Groceries for $10.30 Out of Pocket and got back a $10 coupon for my next trip! $.30 for all that!!!

To see what other kind of deal I have picked up by couponing, check out my posts here!

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I have been holding out on this photo until it got a little closer to the Great Day Segment airing!

But this is what I bought during my shopping trip with Virginia Kerr! And the picture is actually missing 3 items! A bag of kettle cooked chips and another box of popcorn, I didn’t realize items had fallen out of the bag on my way home! AND a Mr Pibb 20 oz… shopping can really make you thirsty!!

Anyone want to take a guess to how much I paid? I will post the answer here after the show airs!

And just to give you a few hints… it’s not as good as my past few trips at all (Bummer), but I got a $10 Catalina back!

Check out Great Day St Louis to see how I did or check back here around 11am to see how much I spent!!

To checkout this week's Shop N Save deals, go here!

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My FREE Saturday!

This week was one of the busiest weeks ever! I didn't get much couponing done until today so I was super excited!





My First Stop was actually Walgreens to see if they had any Clean and Clear Body Wash in stock, but NO luck... bummer. But that's ok, there will be more sales! I did have a raincheck though! The rain check was from the sale where Air Wick Freshmatic was on sale 50% off. The sale made them $3.99 so I picked up 3 Air wick Compact I-motions for FREE using the $4 off coupon from the 4/17 SS!





Then I went to CVS because I have a raincheck for the Ivory Bar Soap but they were still out. They did have Similac in stock! I picked up 5 bottles that will all be able to be donated to mothers in need!





Then I went to Petsmart. I had heard that Petsmart had Purina Pro Plan Roasted Slices (3.5 oz) on sale for $2.50, and sure enough, they did!! I used 5 off the $2.50 off coupons from the 2/27 SS and scored 5 FREE dog treats! My boys are going to love these!!

After all my stops I paid absolutely nothing for 3 Air Wick Freshmatic Compacts, 5 Similacs, and 5 Pro Plan Roasted Slices!!!

I LOVE Free Stuff!!

Last night proved to be an awesome night at Volleyball!

Not only did we win one of our games, but the Bacardi Girls were there!

We got to try FREE samples of Bacardi Limon, which weren't bad until the sample paired with Schafly Pale Ale. Not only did we get the free samples, we also got FREE flip flops, a FREE shirt and FREE earbuds!

Now if only we lived by the beach we would be set!

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Mailbox Surprises!

I finally got my Entertainment books in the mail last night! (I posted about it Here!

Earlier in the year I had bought my Entertainment Book with my Register Rewards from Walgreens so I wasn't aware of what came with the books bought online.

When I opened the package there were 6 coupons on the front of the book! They were all for $5 off, no minimum purchase!!!

There was one for TGI Fridays, Culpeppers, AMF bowling, Chevys Fresh Mex, Casa Gallardo and Cecil Whitakers!

These are perfect for a quick "appetizer" lunch on the weekends when we are running errands! Or we could use it to split an entree! Either way these will make for some cheap eats!






I also got a coupon in the mail from Kraft First Taste for a free package of Kraft Shredded Cheese with a hint of Philly!

Kraft First Taste is a great resource for couponers as they send you free products coupons for new items in exchange for your opinion!

Go Here to sign up!

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Walgreens 4/30 & 5/1

I ran to Walgreens yesterday because they had an in-ad coupon for Walgreens Brand 20 ft foil making it $.69. I was on my last roll of foil so I figured I would pick some up! But when I got there, the store only had 25 ft size! I took it up to find out if they had any of the 20 ft size and turns out they never got any. But because they only received the 25 ft size, they were offering the 25 ft at the same $.69 price! I picked up 10 packages for $7.33!

While this wasn't as cheap as I usually get stuff, it was something I needed since I was on my last roll! Plus I had some wiggle room in my budget for it!!







This morning I went to Walgreens for one thing... the FREE Right Guard Body wash. I ended up buying 12 because for once Walgreens was stocked up!! I was hoping that they would be so that I can donate more to those who were hit by the recent outbreaks of tornados. But I guess I started the day off right today with 12 Body washes I paid a whooping total of NOTHING! And if you want to score some free Right Guard Body Wash too check out my post here!

How did you do at Walgreens today?

Mailbox Surprises

Did you get a P&G coupon booklet in the mail today?

If so, there are some nice, high value coupons! One coupon to note is the $.50 off any Gain dish liquid. The small bottles are $.97 at Walmart so just $.47 after coupon!



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CVS: 4/17 to 4/23

CVS also has some pretty awesome deals this week!

I started the week off with $12 in ECBs and then when I scanned my card at the Magic Coupon Machine I got ANOTHER $2 ECB! It also spit out a coupon for $1 off any 2 basic items which is CVS' brand.

I picked up 5 24-pks of bottled water (using 2 CVS cards), 6 Nivea Body Washes and 5 Reach Flosses for $1.52!!!

One item on sale this week I am super excited to share with you is the Green bag tag. This week it is on sale for $.99 and you get a $.99 ECB back. The cool thing about the green bag tags is that when you bring in a reusable tote bag and purchase at least 1 item they will scan your card. After 4 scans you will get a $1 ECB back! So the more you use it, the more ECBs you get!!!

CVS is having a 3 day sale with a few great items this week!

24-pk basic brand water bottles on sale for $2.22 (limit 3)

Easter Grass on Sale for $.99 and get a $.99 ECB buck back!

Paas Easter Decorating Kit on sale for $1.99 and get a $1.99 ECB back!

They other weekly sales are pretty awesome too!!

Nivea Body Wash is on sale for $3.88 (On sale at Walgreens for $3.79)
Use the $3 off coupon in the 4/17 RP
Pay just $.88!

Reach Floss on sale for $1
Use the $1 off coupon in the 4/17 SS
After coupon its FREE!!!

Stove Top Stuffing on sale for $.88
Use the $.50 coupon from the 4/3 SS
Pay just $.38!

Lay's Potato Chips on sale for $2 for $6
Use 2 $.55 off coupons from the 3/13 SS
Pay OOP $4.90
And get $2 ECB back when you buy 2!

Let us know what kind of deals you score!

Happy Shopping!

Mailbox Surprises

Most people hate checking the mail because there are always bills and things of that nature in it. As a couponer, I have to say, I LOVE getting the mail. There are always lots of fun surprises.

Today I got a few magazines (another great spot to find coupons) and a Penzey's Spices catalog!

Why am I so excited about a catalog? Well this catalog comes with a coupon for a free product!!!






Most months the coupon is for a specific spice. This month it is my pick!! This way I can check what I need and get it for free! WOOO!

If you have a Penzey's Spice near you, I would suggest signing up for their mailing list! Then you can start getting your free spices too!!


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CVS 4/10/11

I have already been couponing this morning and was able to score some great deals at CVS!

I had a $10 ECB to start out and then when I went and scanned my extra care card at the Magic Coupon Machine, I got a $3 ECB for my Winter "spending!!!"

I paid 92 cents for 3 Bags of Easter Peanut M&Ms on Sale for $1.97 each (And they are Chris' favorite!). 2 Gain Dish Liquids and 4 Airwick Freshmatic Ultras! And after the Airwick deal and using my Green bag tag I received $11 in ECB back!!

This week CVS has an ECB deal on Airwick products. If you buy $20 worth of Airwick items you get a $10 ECB back.

You can find a $4 off any Airwick Freshmatic Ultra on Coupons.com. You will need access to 2 computers to print 4 coupons.

Buy 4 Airwick Freshmatic Ultras -$24
Use 4 $4 off coupons- $16
Pay $8
Get $10 ECB back!

Easter M&M's on sale for $1.97

Gain Dish Liquid on sale for $.97
Check any P&G booklets for $1 off any Gain Dish
(CVS will have to adjust down the coupon)

Happy Shopping!

And don't forget to comeback and tell everyone how you did!