HOT new coupon $2/1 Nestle and Wonka candy

here. Combine with the $5 ECB when you buy $20 in Halloween candy at CVS!!!

Target: How I Maximize My Money with Internet and Manufacturer Coupons

Very recently, a brand spanky-new Target opened up in my neck of the woods. It's not quite a SuperTarget, but the grocery section is greatly expanded to include fresh meats, produce, and bread. This makes me happy for a couple of reasons.

First, who doesn't like one stop shopping? If I happen to need a girls' size 8 leotard, a cutting board, and organic spring mix and bratwurst for dinner, I can now get that at one place. Sa-weet.

Second, I don't do Wal-Mart. I grew up in Arkansas, and I remember when Wal-Mart meant customer service. Around the year 1995, that ceased to be the case. So I don't do Wal-Mart. Besides, I once walked into a Hyper-Wal-Mart (no, I'm not kidding, there's one in Kansas City, Missouri) and after about ten seconds, walked back out. No thankee.

Third, did you know there are Target coupons that you can use in addition to manufacturer's coupons? It's true. For example, here's a deal I did today at the new Target:

Kellogg's Whole Grain Brown Sugar Cinnamon Pop-Tarts 8 count 1.85
-1.00/1 Target coupon here
-.55/1 manufacturer's coupon from a newspaper insert
FINAL PRICE: .30 per box

That's called "Stacking" in coupon vernacular, and obviously it will save you a ton of money. Here's another fabulous deal.

Chex Mix 8.5 oz bag 1.35
-1.00/1 coupon here
-.50/1 coupon here
FINAL PRICE: FREE plus overage

Check back at the wonderful Target coupon generator for many more deals. Happy shopping, y'all!!!

This Week's Haul: Pick and Save

See all that? It took

four transactions at
one store in
one hour for a total of
60 dollars, saving
120 dollars and giving me
250 bonus box tops (worth $25.00 for my kids' school) AND
one coupon for a free gallon of milk on my next grocery order.

A quick rundown:
10 boxes Ziploc bags
2 boxes sausage patties
one donut (ahem)
6 boxes Betty Crocker potatoes
10 tubes Grands biscuits
4 boxes Chex Mix bars
2 boxes Cocoa Puffs
2 gallons milk
6 bags Nature Valley granola bites
2 cantaloupes
1 package cookie dough
4 4-paks diced pears and peaches
2 12 oz. bags chem free decaf coffee bseans
2 Betty Crocker frosting
2 Ritz crackerful snack boxes
5 Scotties tissues
1 6 lb. turkey breast
5 lunchables
1 quart half and half
1 4 pack yogurt

I love coupons. :D

Luvs $5/1 Coupon Today and Tomorrow

Go here to sign up for the Luvs Network and get the Luvs welcome kit, which includes a coupon for FIVE DOLLARS off ONE package of Luvs diapers. I have it from a reliable source that tomorrow, September 15, 2009, there will be a link to another Luvs $5.00/1 coupon. Even if you don't have babies, it's a good way to score some diapers for women's shelters.

And Still More Betty Crocker Coupons!

Go HERE for even MORE high value General Mills and Betty Crocker coupons to pair up with this week's Pick and Save Box Tops for Education promotion.

I Learned From The Master

I'm so excited to announce that I am affiliated with RefundCents!! RefundCents, led by the coupon diva Michele Easter, is a fabulous online and print refund/rebate clearinghouse and newsletter. I've been a fan of Michele and her site for a long time, and Refund Cents is one of perhaps three online sites that really has a finger on the pulse of couponing, rebating, and refunding.

I am a big big fan of her online service, which gives her personal updates daily, as well as providing a message board for subscribers. It is worth every single penny, and I highly recommend it. If you'd like a taste of her site and what it can provide to you, please visit her via the button on the top left corner of the blog.

Yesterday's Red Plum = Free Aussie Hair Products at Walgreens starting September 20

Yesterday, you should have gotten a Red Plum insert with your weekly grocery flyers which contains a coupon for two dollars off two Aussie hair products. Clip and save it for September 20, when Walgreens will have Aussie hair products for 2.99 each with a $2.00 register reward for each one. Buy two, give the nice cashier your coupon, spend 3.98, and get back $4.00 in Register Rewards. You can also print more coupons for these products at www.aussie.com. I recommend stocking up -- who can't use free shampoo, conditioner, and hair styling products? And even if you don't prefer this brand, consider "buying" and donating to a women's shelter.

Gold'n Plump Chicken Coupon Is Back!

Remember that 1/1 Gold'n Plump chicken coupon in the blue bar on the right side of the blog?

It's baaaaack, along with 158 other great coupons. Print early and often; keep in mind there will be sales to match those coupons in the next few weeks, and you want to be ready -- there are a limited number of prints.

Also, we are swinging into coupon season, and there will be five, yes five inserts on Wednesday/Sunday. If you're a newbie, I will be walking you through how to organize and use your coupons in the next few weeks.

In the meantime, go print those coupons!!!

Coupons Restocked

It's the first of the month, which means the coupons in the blue bar on the side of the blog have been restocked and updated. Go there, peruse, and print off as many as you have time and paper for; if you've been following for a while, the sales at the grocery store generally follow the coupons that are posted there two to three weeks after posting of the coupons. There are a limited number of those coupons, so print early and often.

Also, check these coupon printable sites:

www.smartsource.com

www.redplum.com

for more printables.

Link Luv: Free Lip Item at Bath and Body Works with Any Purchase

Go here to print a coupon for a free lip item at Bath and Body Works with any purchase (this means you can buy a one dollar or clearance item to get the free lip item). Great for stocking stuffers for little girlies for Christmas; just buy a travel size lotion or other travel size item and get the lip gloss for freeeeeeee.

Great sales running right now there too; lots of clearance items and buy 3 get 2 free on their Signature collection. Happy Shopping

Mythbusting: I Don't Use Coupons Because . . . .

If you know me, you know it's a rare thing that I step foot into a retail establishment without some form of coupon on my person. Coupons are a kind of hobby for me, much like quilting or scrapbooking are for other women, insofar as they all require scissors and elevate cutting things into small pieces into high art.


I started young, at the feet of my dear Granny T. She was a handmaiden of the Depression, raised 3 children and lost one during that terrible time in the middle of the Dust Bowl, and as a result was not one to let a penny get past her without some serious negotiation. When I was knee-high to a grasshopper Granny T showed me how I could save a nickel or dime or sometimes even a quarter just for cutting out squares from the Sunday papers. It stuck with me and I think I was the only teenager in my little Southern town who used coupons to satiate my desire for all manner of Cover Girl, Maybelline, and White Rain.

I recognize I am unusual. Most people don't get it. In fact, most people don't get it in a big way. Most people, when they find out I have this sickness, this obsession with not paying full price for anything, proffer some version of "I Don't Use Coupons Because." People, I've heard them all. And not a one of them is true.

Myth #1: I Don't Use Coupons Because I Don't Eat Processed Foods

While it's fair to say that the majority of coupons out there are for what I call "flourescent foods," or "foods" that would not be recognized as such by my dear sweet Granny T were she still with us today (Yogos, anyone?), there are coupons a-plenty for fresh, wholesome foods, meats, produce, dairy, and other pantry items. A quick flip through my coupon file and I see coupons for bagged salad, cherry tomatoes, cheese, yogurt, milk, baking powder and baking soda, chicken, ham, bacon, Cornish game hens (yes. Cornish game hens). Also, do you eat cereal? That is processed. Do you eat condiments like ketchup and mustard? Processed. Yogurt? You guessed it . . . processed (though you can make your own!). If you live in the twenty-first century, you eat processed food.

All this talk of "food" also completely ignores the vast number of coupons out there for health and beauty aids, cleaners, detergents, and other products people use on a daily basis. So what if you don't eat processed food? You use toothpaste, yes? Laundry detergent? Of course you do. And coupons make those products less expensive. Myth #1 busted.

Myth #2: I Don't Use Coupons Because I Like To Stick To My Brands.

Shoot! If you know what brands you prefer, all the more reason to have the coupons that are available for those brands! Combine those coupons with a sale, and buy enough to get you to the next coupon and sale. You just saved money and time. And don't tell me they don't have coupons for what you use. Use your handy dandy google and enter the name of your brand with "printable coupon" in the search box. Click and print. Take to store and save. Easy.

Myth #3: I Don't Use Coupons Because I Save More Money Buying Generic

Although I have no problem with generics per se and they can be a great "gateway tactic" for saving a ton of money at the grocery store, I can beat the generic price 80 percent of the time when I use coupons and wait for a sale. For example: I could buy weird-brand peanut butter for 1.59 per jar at my local supermarket, but if I wait for a sale, I can get a jar of Skippy Naturals for .62. If I wait for double coupon day, I can get that jar of Skippy for .25. Which would you rather pay?

Myth #4: I Don't Use Coupons Because I Don't Have Time

I wouldn't say I have a lot of time either. But I also don't think using coupons takes that much time. I estimate I spend about an hour a week clipping, matching, and sorting. I save at least $100 per week. Do you make $100 per hour? Is the third re-run of Jon and Kate Plus 8 worth $100 to you? Turn off the tube, or at least clip and sort while you're watching Kate ber8 Jon.

Myth #5: I Don't Use Coupons Because I'm Not Organized Enough

Okay, this is the one myth that hovers on that line between truth and fiction. Some people are organizationally challenged, and I get that. Believe me, I do (said as she looks over her shoulder at Baboo's desk). That said, it is not impossible to save with coupons even if you do not love the idea of clipping, filing, and matching. Look at your grocery list. What shows up regularly, every single time you go shopping? Take five or ten of those items. Clip coupons for those five or ten items. Place with your list and/or your money/debit card (you aren't using a credit card to pay for your groceries, are you?). When you hand your money to the cashier, hand the coupons over as well. Done, and you will have saved a little moolah in the process.

Or, do what I did in the beginning. Focus your efforts on one store. For me, that was CVS. I learned how to match sales with coupons and Extra Care Bucks deals and focused on that until I got the hang of it. I also was able to learn what a "good deal" really was by watching the prices in the ads and at the store fluctuate. Fast forward a couple of years, and I now have a nice little stockpile of toiletries, household items, and other needed stuff that I got for pennies, and I can wait for the "really good" deal.


Myth #6: I Don't Use Coupons Because I Don't Think They Save Me Enough Money.


Please. I regularly save 40% on my grocery bill without even trying very hard, and save 70-90% on toiletries, household goods, and other items we need (think school supplies, dishawasher detergent, light bulbs). Many times, I get items we need for free or I am paid to take an item out of the store. For example, this week I got pens, rulers, notebooks, and school scissors for free. How is "free" not saving you money? Yes, it requires effort. Yes, it requires time. But if you calculate the time spent multiplied by the amount saved, you will find that your hourly rate of return is more than most lawyers make, and it's pre-tax (a dollar you save is a dollar you don't have to earn). How is an hourly rate of $40-100 not saving you money?


The reality: for most people, "I Don't Use Coupons Because" is code for "I Don't Want to Be Bothered." This is fine, if you are within your budget and you have enough money to do all the things you want to do. But if you are consistently frustrated by the high cost of living, if your money ends before your month does, or you are simply trying to squeeze out a little money or raise your standard of living without working harder or longer for The Man, then why not try coupons?