Savy shopping in Cincy

This past weekend I spent some time in Cincinatti, OH coaching my u11 club soccer team. If you've ever been to a soccer tournament before, you know that this involves several hours in between games for players to rest. And best of all for their coach to find some awesome deals. I used my ever trusty Garmin to direct me to the nearest Target and Meijer stores! I've discovered that my planning can even work in a whole different city. Here are some deals I scored at Meijer.

-Ragu Pasta Sauce-$1.29 each

Used 2 Meijer mealbox coupons (see link below) for $1/2 and 2 $1/2 Ragu MFG coupons from 5/23 Redplum insert=$.29 each

-French's Mustard (Reg and Spicy Brown)-$1.50 brown, $1.25 reg

Used $.50/2 Meijer mealbox coupon + $.50/1 coupon that doubled=$1.25 total

-Kraft Salad Dressing-$2.00 each=4 FREE + $3 catalina

I had 4 $1/1 Meijer coupons from http://www.meijermealbox.com/ since you can combine these with MFG coupons, I combined these with 4 $.55/1 coupons from http://bricks.coupons.com/Start.asp?bt=vi&tqnm=zeuofrk74444325&o=63204&c=KR&p=YEphOywU (you will only be able to print 2 from one computer so find a friend with a printer)

The Meijer store in Cincy bumped up all coupons under $1 up to $1 each! Meijer also had a catalina that gave me $3 back to use on my next purchase, so I broke it up into two transactions.

Total from 1st transaction=$2.41+ $3 catalina to use on my next purchase

2nd transaction

-Purina Little Bites 18 lb Dog Food-$9.99

Used $1.50/1 coupon (sorry it expired 5/29) and $3 catalina

Total from 2nd transaction=$6.49

In my other shopping adventures, I also happened to find some really cool throw pillow covers on clearance at Target for $2.98 each. I did go a little overboard and bought 8 of them. (2 red/orange stripe, 2 blue/green stripe, 2 solid red, 2 solid navy) These will be a great investment since I had put all the throw pillows up when I got Sophie. She likes to lick them and it leaves stains, but these can be thrown in the wash when they get pet hair or other unsightlies on them.

I also ventured to the IKEA store where I spent ENTIRELY too much money, but got some much needed things from around the house. I will be doing an entire blog entry sometime this week on IKEA. Don't miss it!

I hope all the teachers out there are enjoying the start to their summer breaks! Catch my next blog entry about how to use freebies in the classroom. Sure sounds good to me!

Fun Friday

Today I found myself at Meijer after a long day of teaching. I was tired, went without a list, and was just looking for something that sounded good for a nice night in. Little did I know I was going to snag some awesome deals in the process. When I lived in Louisville, Meijer was a staple in my life because it was less than a mile from our apartment. They always have such a great selection of quick sale meats that are actually priced to sell quickly. Unfortunately, there isn't a Meijer close to my house. Today I took a different way home from work due to construction which took me past Meijer. Enjoy some of the deals I found! Tomorrow is a HUGE sale at the Marsh right by my house so I'm sure to post more awesome deals from the Saturday only sale.

-14 Yoplait yogurts-10/$4-$.50/8 coupon-$.40/6 coupon (both double)=$3.80 total

This breaks down to about $.27 a container. This is by far the cheapest I have EVER gotten them!

-Country Crock churned style butter-$1.29-$.40 coupon (doubles)=$.49

-Coffee Mate Creme Brulee creamer-$2 on sale-$.50/1 coupon (doubles)=$1.00

-OB Travel tampon case w/3 reg tampons-$.76 on clearance because packaging was damaged-$1/1 OB product coupon=FREE + .24 overage

-Alfalfa Sprouts-$.89 on clearance

I bought some Parrot Bay Key Lime rum for less than $9.50 on clearance and some Puppy Chow for $9.00 after my coupon came off. All around great deals!

Tips for money saving:

-Have some sort of organizational system for your coupons. I will share how I organize mine in another post.

-Do not get rid of your coupons (from the newspaper or mail). Find a place (I use a box in the garage) to keep them until they expire. I clean out the box once or twice a month. This way if something goes on sale and you forgot to clip the coupon, you aren't S.O.L.

-Look to pair sales with coupons (especially at stores that double them) to get things at rock bottom prices. I'm pretty sure the yogurt I got today is about as low as it can get.

-Most of your best deals are going to be on the front page of the weekly ads. Often stores have those items at break even or loss prices, just to get you into their store.

-Don't be afraid to look stupid. I've seen some people reluctantly use coupons because they are afraid of making the cashier or people behind them upset. As long as you are nice to them, odds are they are going to be more envious of the deals you land than upset.

Sounding off with my sounds good...my vegetables and herbs are growing well. I cannot wait to eat fresh tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, and eggplant from the garden all summer long. Most posts to come on how much $ you can save by growing a garden.