Breakfast On The Cheap

I've discovered a use for all the FREE bread I acquire. Last week HEB had FREE bread when you bought a gallon of milk. With 2 small children we go through a lot of milk. May as well get the FREE bread. Luca is obsessed with anything you serve with syrup. Waffles, pancakes, french toast are all "tan takes" in his book. He starts screaming "tan takes" the minute he wakes up every morning (not a joke.. he boy loves syrup). I've discovered I can make a massive supply of French Toast using the FREE bread, milk, eggs, and some cinnamon. I keep a few slices in the fridge and freeze the rest. I pop them in the toaster over in the morning and they are quick, hot, low mess, low effort breakfast for the kids. I estimate 24 slices of French Toast costs under $2!!!

Okay, I know these are super basic directions... However, I'll post for French Toast novices like I was.

1 cup milk
8 eggs
sliced bread
tsp cinnamon

In shallow bowl mix all ingredients except bread. Dunk bread into mixture and flip to coat both sides. Place on hot greased griddle or skillet and cook until brown and firm on both sides. Serve immediately. Freezes great! (I just make as many slices as I can using the available mixture. When it runs out I put the bread in the fridge for next time)

Kroger Deal of the Week

Took a quick trip to Kroger tonight. I hadn't been in 2 weeks because there were no great deals and I was stocked up from the previous Mega sale. I purchased everything above for $8.37. Not bad considering that the milk is normally $2.49.

Mega Deal
Paraticipating Kellog's Cereal, breakfast bars, Keebler Crackers, Special K Bars sale 4/$10 purchase 4 and get 2 gallons of milk for FREE

There are various Kellog's Cereal printables at www.coupons.com (I used a $1.50/2)
I also found a $1/2 Special K bars blinkie in the store (we don't eat these, but our babysitter loves them)

Kroger had mailed me FREE carrots coupon

Soft Soap $.89 used $.35/1 (2/14 paper) making it FREE plus overage

We needed lemons. They were 3/$1

Again, not a super coupon week at Kroger, but if you drink a lot of milk and like cereal it's worth going for the deal.. I may go back next Tuesday and buy the crackers with 2 $1/2 coupons from last weeks paper.

Don't forget to get a paper.

3 coupon inserts this week!!!

Smart Source
P&G Brandsaver
Red Plum

Once again, Kroger stinks!!

Same this as last week. Nothing that you need to run out and stock up on.

Navel Oranges are 10 for $1.

If you have a ton of Pillsbury Grand's coupons you could get them for free, but you have to buy 10. D would KILL me if I bought 10!

Kroger Cottage Cheese, Sour Cream or Dip $1

Cherrios are on sale, but still not great. I refuse to pay over $1 for a box of cereal.

Hopefully, things will pick up next week. If you're like me, you're still stocked to the rafters from the $5/10 deal 2 weeks ago.

Great Printable Baking Coupons

Use cake mix or brownie mix? Click below to print Betty Crocker coupons. Hold on to these. They should make them free or almost free at Kroger sometime soon :)

Bake Sweet Memories

New Cellfire E-Coupons are Up

Be sure to go to www.cellfire.com and download new coupons to your Kroger card. It's okay to save a coupon than you already have. It just means that you can use it twice :). I predict free yogurt, dog treats, cheap granola bars, and brownie mix !

New Shortcuts Coupons are Up

Be sure to go to www.shortcuts.com and load the new coupons to your Kroger card. Cellfire should be up later today.

CVS Deals for the week

Just got back from CVS. There are some really good deals this week. They were out of the Cover Girl make-up. I might try another store later in the week.

Crest Pro-Health Enamel Shield Tooth Paste or Rinse $3.50
Receive $3.50 ECB Limit 2
I had 2 $1/1 coupons from another box of tooth paste. So I made $2 for buying it. There was a $.75/1 Crest paste coupon in last weeks paper and $2/1 rinse. However, they were out of the rinse :(

Aussie Hair Products $2.99
Receive $2 ECB
use $1 coupon from this weeks paper and it's FREE

Gillette Razors $5.79
Receive $2 ECB
use $2/1 or $3/1 coupons from 2/7 paper and they are $.79-$1.79

Colgate Total $2.99
Receive $2 ECB
use $1/1 from 2/7 makes it FREE

CoverGirl buy 2 participating items get $5 ECB
buy Clean foundation or powder $6/ea
use B1G1 from 2/7 and $1/1 from 2/14 and they are FREE

15% Walgreens - Today Only!!!

Go to www.walgreens.com and print a coupon for 15% off your entire purchase. Good today only. Pair this up with the diaper deal and you're got SUPER cheap diapers!!!

Dinner on the Cheap

Last week Kroger had a great deal on whole pork loin. I also got a free bottle of BBQ sauce when I purchased mac and cheese.

Crock Pot Pulled Pork

1 onion diced
2 lbs pork loin
3/4 bottle BBQ sauce (any kind you like
1/2 cup Apple Cider Vinegar
Salt and Pepper
Olive Oil
1/2 cup water

Get large skillet very hot and add olive oil. Salt and pepper pork loin and seer it off on the pan. Add to crock pot. Add a tiny bit more olive oil to pan and add onions. When onions are soft add apple cider vinegar and use it to deglaze the pan. Add BBQ sauce and water and stir. Pour mixture over loin and cook 6-8 hours on low. Shred with 2 forks about 15 minutes before serving and let it sit in the juices. Serve with additional BBQ sauce.

I served them on these. They are so much better than store bought and super cheap to make.

Bread Maker Whole Wheat Hamburger Buns

1/2 cup warm water
2 Tbsp butter cut into small pieces
1 egg
1 tsp salt
1/4 cup sugar
1 cup whole wheat flour
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp yeast

Put ingredients in bread maker in the order above. Set to dough course. When done, remove and divide into 8 equal sized balls on greased cookie sheet and cover with kitchen towel. When doubled in size, bake at 375 degrees for 12-15 minutes.

This entire dinner cost less than $5 and feeds our family with leftovers (the pork loin was about $3.50) I usually serve with baked sweet potato wedges (another cheap side).

Old Navy - Item of the week

This week Old Navy has super cute lace trimmed camis for $2. Yes 2 bucks!! I bough a couple and may check out another store for more in my size. In store deal only.

New Kroger Ad

I'm not very excited about Kroger this week. There is nothing that's a screaming deal. It's a lot of the same items as last week at a higher price. There may be a Pisbury deal to be had. I'll let you know what I find out. However, I don't think I well even venture to Kroger this week. However, HEB has some great prices on meat and produce this week. I'll let you know what the deals are.

Don't forget!! Last day for $5/10 Mega Deal at Kroger

This opportunity only come around so often.. Today is your last chance to take advantage of the deals. I've seen some sneak peaks for next week and they aren't nearly as great. Get shopping!!

CVS Deals for the week

I found a great blog with CVS deals for this week.

Thanks Thrifty Mama

Link

I bought the Nivea products and really like them. I did a different senario. I started with $5 ECB (Extra Care Bucks) from diapers last week.

2 Lip Care @ $2.99
1 Body Wash with free lotion sample at $5.99
Total = $11.97

used $2 off body wash 2/7
B1G1 Lip Care -$2.99
$1 off any product
Total Cpns = $5.99
Less 5ECB = $.99 + tax ($1.07 out of pocket)

Got $5 ECB back :)

Walgreens Deals...

Dove Men's Body Wash $5.99 get $5.99 RR
use $1.25 off coupon from 1/31 RP and you make $1.25

Kotex Feminine Care 2/$6 get $3 RR
14-24 pack Maxi Pads
48 -64 count Panty Liner
18 Pack Tampons
use $2 off store coupon in Walgreens Feb Coupon Book (Super Plus Tampons, 36 pack Over Night, or Ultra Thin Long Maxi)
also use $2/2 pads or $1.50/2 tampons (I'll try to figure out where these came from I just found them in my coupon binder)
Makes them FREE plus overage

Shick Disposable Razors $5.99
use $3 SS 2/7 and $1/1 Feb cpn book = $1.99

Crest 2 for $5
use $1.50/1 Feb cpn book and $1/1 (came in my last box of Crest) = FREE

Joy or Dawn Dish Liquid $.99 with in ad coupon
$.30 off Joy 2/7 = $.69
$.50 Dawn 2/7 = $.49

I'm thinking about doing the Nivea deal on my next diaper run... Spend $15 get $5 RR. CVS has spend $10 get $5 and I did that deal. I have a picture to post later.
If you have multiple of the the B1G1 lip coupon you can really clean up. I have a $5/2 lotion. They are about $6.40 each combinded with the lip coupon could make 2 lotions and 2 lip products almost free.

Dave Cover Your Eyes! Saving WITH credit cards.

Those of you that know my know that I drink the Dave Ramsey cool aid... Well, some of it. We live debt free and have a 15 year mortgage, but we do use Credit Cards. We pay them off every month, but we use them. I have 3 and each of them (when used correctly) save us money.

* Continental Chase Visa* This card has a fee. We pay $45 a year. However, we fly a lot. Our families live out of state. We take at least 4 trips as a family and Don flys at least 3-4 additional times. The benefit of this card is NOT the airline miles. I got so sick of getting all these miles and we can never use them when we need to. I was super angry and thought about cancelling until the dreaded baggage fee came up. Well, buy your ticket with this card and EACH ticket gets 1 FREE bag each way. We buy 3 tickets so we are able to check $120 worth of bags for FREE each flight. This card more than pays for itself.

*American Express Blue* This card has no fees. However, you get points for every dollar you spend. We use this card for all major purchases in order to rack up points. Recently, we cashed in our points for Home Depot, Old Navy, and Dining gift cards. Gift cards run about 2,500 points for a $25 gift card. We use the dining gift card to make our date nights cheaper. We love this card.

*Banana Republic Luxe* This is another no fee card. My pre-mom self used to shop at Banana Republic a lot and I got this card before they offered free alternations (something my short legs need). You also get a $10 gift card for every $200 you spend. However, the feature I use most is FREE shipping on ANY purchase from Banana, Old Navy and Gap. I can order 1 pair of socks and get them shipped to me for FREE. I send gifts with this card to my nieces and nephew. I pay $3 for gift wrap and it ships for FREE. There is no way I could buy a gift, wrap it, and ship for $3. I also get all kinds of coupons emailed to me. This card get a work out.

Okay, Dave would be mad. However, I love the perks of these cards. They do save us money.

Super Cheap Huggies Diapers - Walgreens

Walgreens has a great deal on Huggies this week. Jumbos are on sale for $8.99. Buy a pack and get $3 RR (Register Reward) that you can use on your next purchase. The catch... limit 1 RR per TRANSACTION. Fine with me, I just find a friendly cashier and do multiple transactions. I also live very hear a Walgreens so I will go several times this week and stock up. 2 kids in diapers means we use A LOT.

There are many printable Huggies coupons out there. The best is $2/1 here

$8.99 - 2 = $6.99 - $3 back = $3.99/pack

if you are new to Walgreen's deal keep in mind that you can roll RR. If you get one from diapers you can't use it on diapers again, but you can use it on anther product. Then you can use the reward from that product to buy more diapers :) It's totally worth the added effort for me.

Old Navy $5 off $25

There is a coupon in today's paper for $5 off of a $25 purchase. However, you can use it online too. Enter 5OFF25NEW at checkout. The online code is still good Don't forget to use www.ebates.com to get an additional 4% back. Code is good through 2/18/10

Don't forget to get a paper.

There are 4 coupon inserts this week. Be sure to get a paper. It will be well worth the investment.

Southern Savers
P&G Brandsaver
Red Plum
G Everyday Saver

I noticed a great Nivea coupon that could be a money maker at CVS this week. I'll update you on that after I do a little research.

Kroger Coupon Policy

To avoid any confusion I though I would summarize how Kroger handles coupons. Every once in a while you will get a cashier that will tell you that you can't do something or that they don't take printable coupons or something else dumb. Ask for a manager. They have printable coupons on THEIR web site. They do accept them!!

All coupons under $.40 are tripled. If you have a $.35 coupon it's really worth $1.05
All coupons $.40 - $.50 are doubled. A $.50 coupon is worth $1.00
All coupons over $.50 are given face value

You can use 1 paper/printable coupon per item. This can be combined with an e-coupon. E-coupons DO NOT double or triple. They are only worth face value.

E-coupons don't always work. If something does not come off save your receipt and contact customer service at the website where you loaded the coupon. They are very good about crediting your account so that the money comes off on your next shopping trip.

Kroger does not take expired coupons.

Kroger does not take coupons from other stores.

There is no limit to the number of coupons you can use in a transaction.

*NOTE* Kroger does have store coupons for their own brand of items. They bar code at the bottom started with a 1. These coupons do not double or triple. Bummer!!!

Check your receipt before you leave the store. If you notice a mistake (mistakes do happen), go to customer service. They are very good about fixing and refunding you for pricing mistakes.

This is for you Kat and V!!! Whole Foods Coupons.

Who says you can't save money while eating organic?

Whole Foods has printable coupons.


Link

It's Mega Week at Kroger!!!

Okay, I'm new to this blogging thing so it make take a while to get it right. I will try my best to link coupons or at least point you the right direction. Please feel free to help me out if you know of another coupon or more valuable one. This is the second week of the Kroger sale so I bought most items last week. I have a few more to pick up that I missed. This list will not be all inclusive, because I have a life :) However, I'll let you know what I'm buying/bought and how I saved $$ doing it. Eventually I will put the dates of the paper coupons from the paper, but I wanted to get this out ASAP...

Coke - 4/$12 - I have 4 $1 off any Coke coupons from http://www.recyclebank.com/ making it 4/$8, or $2 per 12 pack (you must join recycle bank to get the coupons)
Cantaloupe 2/$3 - you don't have to buy 2. I'll buy 1 for $1.50
Grapes $1.99/lb
Soft Soap Liquid Hand Soap $.88/ea This past Sunday paper had a $.35 off coupon this makes it Free plus overage (aka money in your pocket!)

Below are Mega event items you must buy any combination of items to get this price. I will show $5 off at checkout. You can do this in multiples. I bought 30 items and got $15 off last week. Make sure to COUNT and buy EXACTLY 10, 20, 30, etc items or they aren't really a deal. Got it???

Nabisco Snack Crackers (Ritz, Wheat Thins, Triscuits) $1.89
Printable $2/2 Makes them $.89/ea

Dixie Tableware/Solo Cups $1.49
I had to paper coupons for Solo cups one for $.75 and another for $1.oo for some reason my items rang up at $1.10/ea before the coupon so they were $.10 and $.35 cents.

Kraft or Sargento cheese block or shreds $1.49/ea
there are tons of coupons for these. $1 off 2 at http://www.coupons.com/ and one from last Sunday's paper. Most are $1/2 or $.50 of 1. This makes them $.49 - $.99/ea (Good deal!!)

Pepperidge Farm Goldfish $.88
http://www.pepperidgefarm.com/ has a $.75 printable. This makes them $.13/ea

Hunts tomatoes $.45/ea
shortcuts had a $.45/3 loadable (gone)
and the paper had a $.45/3
if you have all those coupons you could get 3 for FREE
I have heard some stores have a $.50 blinkie. This would make them 2 free plus overage for 2 cans

Nature Valley Granola Bars $2.19
cellfire and shortcuts have $.40 loadable
http://www.coupons.com/ has a $.40 printable
this makes them $.99/box
if you buy Nature Valley Nutclusters they are $.19
loadable for $1 and printable for $1

Kraft Shells and Cheese (yummy yummy) $1.29
the boxes at my store have a $1 off 2 peal off coupon on the box
this makes them $.79/ea

Capri Sun 10 ct $1.49
printable $1/2
makes them $.99/ea

Quaker Quakes Rice Snacks $.50
I had 2 paper $.75 off coupons for I made money taking these home :)

Mott's Apple Juice or Apple Sauce $1.29
no coupons, but this is a great price. I stocked up

French's Mustard $1.19
I had a $.50 off paper coupon making it $.19

Tyson Chicken Frozen $3.99
I had a paper coupon for $1 off
makes it $2.99 for a big bag

Kleenex $.99
I had a $.25 off 3
makes them $.74/ea

Kraft Mac and Cheese (boxes or easy mac) $.50/ea
I had a paper buy 3 get 1 free. They take the 1 off at the before sale price $1 so 4/$1 or $.25/each. Yes, I feed my kids mac and cheese.... and they love it!!


I will add more later... got to run...

Krustez Muffin or Crumb cake mix $.149
my store had a blinkie for $.50 off making them $.49/ea

Cattlemen's BBQ sauce $1.19
$.60/1 paper from 1/31 insert $.59

Tropicana Juice $2.14
I had a coupon that printed at the register for $1/1 making it $1.14

A New Way of Shopping

Before I started "saving money", I would make a grocery list and go shopping. We would decide what we wanted to eat for the week and if we ate the last box of mac and cheese or cracker in the box I would put it on the list, and buy it on our next outing. That was expensive. I never left the store for under $60. I would come home, unpack the bags and think.... We don't have anything to eat. How could that be? I just spent $60 on 4 little bags of groceries? Then I found coupons (insert angels singing here).

My new plan. Grocery adds come out on Wed. I'm always super excited to see the grocery ads. I take a few minutes and look them over. At this point. I decide what deals we can't pass up. We never have 1 box of crackers or 1 box of mac and cheese (I will post a picture of my pantry in a later post). I know what we eat and I stock up on those items when they are on sale/free/cheap. I won't lie. I bough 8 boxes of mac and cheese last week. We were not out, but I couldn't pass up $.33 a box. Usually it's $1.26. I also use these ads to decide what fruits and veggies we will eat, meat we will buy, and plan our eating for the week. We eat by the sales. Some weeks it's a blueberry week and others it's peaches. I can't tell you how much we save by just looking and thinking before we buy.

I take the time to sit down and plan my list. I use a old envelope to write my shopping list. I pull out and tuck the coupons for the items I'm going to buy inside of it, so they are ready at the checkout. This keeps me focused on the deals and from "impulse buying" things that are over priced that we don't really need. I try to stick to the list, and stick to the deals.

Another thing I do is shop twice a week. Usually on Friday and Monday. This allows me to take advantage of the new coupons for the week (Sunday paper) and that weeks other deals one last time (they change on Wednesday and I have both kiddos home on Tuesday and there is no way in heck I'd go shopping with both of them... no way!!!). This is especially good if there is a produce deal. I can buy grapes on Friday for the family and replenish on Monday for the rest of the week. It's like 2 weeks of sales. Before I started doing this, I would kick myself when the new ad came out and we were out of grapes and they went from $.99/lb to $3.99/lb over night.

Don't get me wrong. We do eat things that we want to eat. I just may not buy it when we are going to eat it. Hence the warehouse like storage rack in my garage and overflow fridge and freezer. We do eat the fruit that's cheap. Honestly, I think it keeps variety in our house and encourages us to feed the kids new things.

Think about how you shop. A little change could save you a lot.

Where to get coupons?

The most common question I get when people find out I coupon is "where do you get them"? I use 3 different types of coupons - paper, printable, and e-coupons


Paper - These are coupons that come from the Sunday insert in the Chronicle. There are coupons every week. The number of coupon inserts depend on the week. There are NEVER coupons on a Holiday weekend. There are also coupons tons of other places. You just have to keep an eye out for them. They are in little dispensers in the grocery store "blinkies". They print out and come waded up with the receipt the cashier hands you at the grocery store. Sometimes, they are stuck to products you buy. Coupons may show up in your mail box with sample products or tucked or printed in the pages of your favorite magazine. You can often subscribe to coupons that will delivered via mail at manufacturer websites. You'll be surprised how many coupons you see when you start looking for them.


Printable - These coupons can be printed off the internet. There are websites dedicated to printable coupons and a lot of manufacturer web sites have coupons you can print. My favorites are:

www.coupons.com
www.redplum.com
www.smartsource.com

Just check the coupons you want and hit print. You will have to download some software, but it just takes a second. Keep in mind you can print 2 of each coupon from each computer. If you have multiple computers or access to multiples computers the more great deals you can get.

Right now there is a great coupon for Goldfish at www.pepperidgefarm.com making them $.13 at Kroger when you buy 10 participating products. It's a great coupon if you have kids or just like Goldfish.



E-Coupons - These are coupons you don't even have to touch. They won't get lost in your purse or diaper bag. You'll never forget them when you head out to shop. You just load them to your store loyalty card and away you go. The most wonderful thing about e-coupons is that you can combine them with paper coupons. This is the best way to get stuff for FREE. Yes F-R-E-E!!!! Right now you are only able to use e-coupons at Kroger and Randall's, but I have a feeling that they are going to spread like crazy. U-Promise has coupons that can be used at CVS, but you don't get money off, the money goes to an account for your child's college. I just stated doing this. I'll let you know how it goes. Right now I have $1.36 and 2 kiddos.. I don't think that will go very far :) The 3 e-coupon sites are:

www.cellfire.com
www.shortcuts.com
www.kroger.com

The Kroger site only has a couple, but worth a look. Both Cellfire and Shortcuts add new coupons every other Tuesday. You have to load the coupons to your card in order for them to work. You can download 50 coupons from each site. There are never that many coupons so I just load everything I think I might use. It can't hurt.

Happy coupon searching.

Testing 1 - 2 - 3

Well I guess I'm really going to do this. Stay tunded for coupon randomness, cheap eats, and the ramblings of a crazy mom...