And who said drugstores were too expensive?

Okay, so I used to say that. I hated HATED hated going to the drugstore to buy anything because I always felt they were wayyy overpriced. But, I guess if you are shopping with coupons and you can use their currency, its not so bad! I ended up at CVS this morning again because I wanted the deal on the toothbrushes but one of the coupons was in today's paper. So, first I got my paper and cut them out before hitting the store. Then, my mom wanted to do Rite Aid and while I wasn't trying to do Rite Aid, we usually go together, so I went with her and got a few things. Then, we hit Walgreens. Long morning, I don't usually do this much, but WOW!  

I spent 2.65 TOTAL before tax (7.60 with tax). Considering that just ONE of the toothbrushes cost 10 bucks, I'm pretty happy! Total before savings and coupons would have been over 105! So, I saved over a 100 dollars today! Whoo hoo! Plus, I have 12.58 in ECB left for CVS, 5.00 in +UP Rewards at Rite Aid, and 9.00 in Register Rewards for Walgreens.

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RUN, RUN, as fast as you can; Can't catch me, I'm the Couponing Mommy!

Okay, so while talking to my hubby today about my coupons...I was telling him about my most recent Publix trip. I believe the total was around 140 and my actual cost was 23 after coupons and savings. I felt like I should run or something...Surely they weren't going to let me walk out with a huge buggy full of groceries and only pay 23 bucks! That story about the gingerbread man came to mind...Okay so now that you know how my crazy mind works, I'm going to brag about my CVS trip tonight!

CVS is by far my most favorite place to shop right now other than Publix...Their weekly ads come out on Sundays but my store starts the new sale about 6pm on Saturday nights. The time I decide to go really depends on what the sales are for the week. I do NOT like going to these stores and not find what I came for. It just really makes me all agitated, so I try to be like the first one in to shop the good sales! In other words, if I think I might run into problems getting what I need, I go Sat evening and if I think it won't be an issue, then I go Sunday mornings at 8am. Tonight was one of those nights that I wasn't sure, so I went. Here's the list and how I did it:

ECB left from last week: 12.75

1st Transaction:
3 Dove Men Care Body Wash=  9.00 (3.00 each)
2 Dove Men Care Deodorant=    7.00 (3.50 each)
Total=                                         16.00
2.00 off 1 Dove Deodorant x2=   -4.00
1.00 off 1 Dove Body Wash x3= -3.00                 
Total after coupons=                      9.00
ECB used total (3, 4, 2)               -9.00                 
TOTAL DUE (without tax)            0.00
ECB Received from Transaction= 5.00

2nd Transaction:
2 Kashi TLC Granola Bars     =    6.00 (3.00 each)
2 Crest ProHealth Toothpaste=    6.58 (3.29 each)

Total=                                         12.58
2.00 off 1 Kashi Product     x2=   -4.00
0.75 off 1 Crest Toothpaste x2=  -1.50                 
Total after coupons=                     7.08
ECB used total (5, 0.75)              -5.75                 
TOTAL DUE (without tax)            1.33
ECB Received from Transaction= 8.58 

NEW ECB Total=11.58

Only spent 1.33 (pre-tax) on EVERYTHING! The key to shopping at CVS and any other drugstore is to get their "currency" (ExtraCareBucks, RegisterRewards, or UPs+) and NEVER EVER EVER run out. Always buy things on that will rollover your "currency" so you don't pay cash for anything but tax. I hardly ever use my ECB on things that don't pay me back.

 

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New to this....

I've been wanting to keep a "diary" of sorts of how I'm couponing and the mistakes I make learning along the way! First off, I guess I should tell you WHY I coupon. I know most people will say things like, well, my husband was laid off, we took a pay cut, etc. While all of those things are most definitely excellent reasons, mine is a little different. My husband was diagnosed very unexpectedly with ESRD, End-Stage Renal Disease. We were both under 30 when this happened in June 2009 and our three kids were all under 10. Needless to say, it has been and still is a roller coaster of constant ups, downs, twists, and turns! We are looking into a transplant, but we he will not be able to go back to doing the line of work he used to do before all of this. So, we had to make some serious decisions about how this was going to affect our lives, especially since I've been more or less a stay at home mom for the last 11 years. After lots of prayer and decision making, I am going back to school for my ADN to get my RN...And I'm planning to continue after getting it to at least get my bachelor's and possibly my masters. I don't like doing anything half way! LOL But, I should stop my rambling and get back to the point.

To begin with, I always have "clipped". I used to get excited when I would see that total savings from coupons get above 10 dollars. Now, I call that disappointing! I had some friends and acquaintances that were constantly talking about how they were doing their coupons and savings HUNDREDS of dollars. I couldn't figure it out. I just thought, well, I don't have the time for that!  Boy, I was wrong! My mom told me about this class from this lady Jenny that does Southern Savers, a couponing website. She was doing a class that would cost 10 dollars in the beginning of January 2011. I really wasn't that into it, to be honest. But, I thought, a night out with my mom would be kinda fun, so I agreed to go. I knew my classes at school were fixin to start so, I wouldn't get another chance to do anything with her for a while like that. So, we went. And my eyes were opened. Jenny is wonderful! She really taught me and inspired me to do this. She showed me ways to make this less time consuming. And most of all, it works! I've been doing this now since second week in January, and I'm so excited! It makes me sick to think of all the years I could've been doing this and all the money that could've been saved! I doubt I will ever go back to shopping the "old way"! Welcome to my blog, The Couponing Mommy!

Websites to Check Out:

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