It went shopping (twice!!) at Rite-Aid

Since having Small Man appear on the scene, certain times during the month, I experience awful back pain (almost like back labor, good gods, it HURTS!!), so when I saw that Rite-Aid was having a sale this week on ThermaCare I got really excited.

Here is what I did:

• Buy (4) Thermacare Wraps $24.00


• use (3) $3/1 ThermaCare Product printable (I couldn't print a 4th!)


• use $1/1 Advil, Advil PM, Children’s Advil or Thermacare, exp. 3/31/12 (RP 01/29/12 #2)


• Total after coupons $ 14.00


• Get (2) $4.00 Plus Up Rewards for Thermacare


• Get $10.00 for Monthly UPR ( $10 wyb $25 worth of Thermacare,Advil,Colgate)


• Submit for $10.00 Rebate (Pfizer rebate found in RP 01/29/12 #2)


• Total after rebate $4.00 PROFIT!

 

I filled out my rebate paperwork yesterday and popped it into the mail today!  I put it all away before I could snap a photo.

 

I looked in the cabinet this morning and GASP- We were out of Advil. I had one $1/1 Advil, Advil PM, Children’s Advil or Thermacare, exp. 3/31/12 (RP 01/29/12 #2) left, so I headed over to Rite-Aid and picked up a bottle.  It was $5.99, and there was a $1.00 Plus Up Reward.
Here was my scenario:

• Buy (1) 40 count Advil Gel Caps $5.99


• Use $1/1 Advil, Advil PM, Children’s Advil or Thermacare, exp. 3/31/12 (RP 01/29/12 #2)


• Use $4.00 Plus Up Reward (from yesterday)


• Total after coupons $.99 ($1.08 after taxes)


• Receive 2 Plus Up Rewards: $1.00 for Advil, and $10.00 for buying $25.00 in ThermaCare and Advil


• Total after Plus Up Rewards: $10.01 PROFIT!!

And we'll be free of headaches for a while now!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Now that I had $15.00 in Plus Up Rewards left ($4.00 from yesterday and $11.00 from today), it was time to spend these bad boys!  I don't like leaving the store with rewards.  I can forget about them, and once they expire, it's like throwing money away!

 

My Scenario:

• Buy (3) SoftSoap Body Washes $4.99/each


• Buy (2) Say Yes To... Lip Balms $2.99/each


• Buy (1) Paper Towel (not pictured, already in use!) $1.00


• Use (3) $1/1 SoftSoap Coupon (from a recent newspaper insert)


• use (2) $2/1 Say Yes To... Coupons (printable coupon- no longer available)


• Use $15.00 in Plus Up Rewards


• Total after Coupons -.05!

After taxes, I paid $1.65 OOP.



Now my stockpile is a little beefed up and I'll be getting $10.00 in the mail for my troubles!!

How to Budget: An example Budget

I've been working on this post for I swear, a week.  We've just been so busy with holiday stuff, and I'm working on de-cluttering 100 items in 2012. More on that later!

Here's the quick and dirty on budgeting, courtesy of our buddies at About.com. Too lazy to read that?  I hear ya. Here is the super easy way to budget.

1. Figure out how much money you bring home after taxes and other deductions (I.E. IRA, insurance, other investment deductions). Basically, your take home pay.  Don't forget to include any other sources of income, such as alimony or child support.

2.  Make a list of all of your bills.  For larger costs or bills that are infrequent (quarterly insurance payments, or annual property tax bills) save a little each month, so when the expense comes, you'll have money set aside.   You can put the money in your savings account, or some banks allow you to earmark funds in accounts.

3.  Our example below is based on a couple working each working full time jobs, bringing home $65,000 gross.  After taxes, IRA contributions, and health insurance deductions, their net is $49,774.00.  The line items marked with * are costs that do not occur each month, but are saved for each month. Items marked with # are variable, but it's an average of the cost of the last 12 months.

Expense                             Monthly Amount/allotment                        Annual Amount

Rent                                       1175                                                                                       14100
Insurance(Car & Renters)  191                                                                                          2292 
AT&T (phone & Net)#       200                                                                                         2400
Car Payment                        339                                                                                         4068
Gas & Electric#                     45                                                                                            540
Life Insurance*                     85                                                                                          1020
Water#                                   50                                                                                            600
Christmas Money                50                                                                                            600 (This used to be called an Xmas Club)
Groceries#                           100                                                                                         1200
Savings                                 250                                                                                        3000
Eating Out#                          75                                                                                           900
Spending Money               200                                                                                        2400 (That's $100 per person per month)
Clothes*                                30                                                                                          900
Baby#                                 100                                                                                         1200
Car Mtx*                              30                                                                                          900
HBA*                                     20                                                                                          240
Gas#                                    300                                                                                       3600
Disability Ins.*                  200                                                                                       2400

Total for the year                                                                                                            41,040

 

So that leaves us with leftover money, of course.  Leftover money just hangs out in the checking account, and each month, we try to sneak a little more into our savings or money market account or buy a savings bond for our son or niece.

 

Money from rebates, Endorse.com, click to pay sites, and gift cards earned through mypoints are not included in the budget.  They are just great perks.

 

 

Savings: Beyond the coupon

I've discussed this before, on this blog and during presentations. There is more to saving than just couponing.  Couponing is a HUGE part of how to save.  Not just for groceries, but also coupons on dining out, movies, activities, museum visits and so many other things! Here are some other ways to save money that you can use in addition to coupons!

Loyalty cards, sometimes called "Store Cards" are also a great way to save money.  Ralphs, Vons, Albertsons, Fresh and Easy, CVS, Rite Aid all offer a card.  CVS gives you cash back in the form of an ECB at the end of each quarter.  Ralphs and Albertsons mail you coupons at the end of each quarter based on the amount that you have spent the past quarter.  Ralphs, Vons, and Albertsons allow you to load coupons to your reward card from their website!

If you have a kid and shop at Babies r' us or Toys r' us, check out their loyalty program.  You earn points on each purchase, and reward gift certificates are mailed quarterly!

If you eat out frequently, check to see if your favorite restaurants have frequent buyer or loyalty cards.  Panera does!  With each purchase, you can earn free food and more! Other restaurants have punch cards, or e-clubs that offer birthday rewards.  Here is a small list.

Other stores, such as Sears have loyalty card. Sears' and their Shop your Way rewards earns you points for each purchase and you can redeem them on line or in the store on future purchases!

If you have babies who wear disposable diapers, don't just throw out the packaging! Pampers and Huggies both have points programs.  There are codes in each diaper and wipe package.  Enter the points on their websites, and bank points for toys, gift cards, and coupons for free diapers and products.

Daily Deal Sites are also a great way to save money on purchases.  A lot of daily deal sites offer a "sign up bonus" to new members.  Sign up and they will put a credit in your account. Here is a recent post with more info, including links to my favorite daily deal sites!

And my New Favorite: Endorse.com.  It's a Facebook Application interface, so you have to have a Facebook account to save. I posted about it recently- here are all the deets.

 

What other ways do you save money?

I went shopping: Great savings at Sears!

Check out your local Sears store!  Our local Sears is having a great end of summer sale, and clearance is 50-70% off of the original prices. Each clothing department  I stopped in had racks and racks of clearance stuff.

I scored two shirts at $2.99 each!  After taxes, it was $6.24 for two shirts that were originally $19.99 each. (sorry no pics, camera is still packed!)

If your local Sears has as many great deals as my Sears does, you may be able to get all of your holiday shopping done!

And don't forget to earn rewards by signing up for the Shop Your Way Rewards.

Earn 10 Points for every $1 spent on almost everything from circular saws to sun dresses -- in-store or online* (*Members earn Points on Qualifying Purchases, excluding sales taxes and other fees. Subject to full program terms available at shopyourwayrewards.com. Must maintain a valid email address and remain opted-­in to receiving promotional emails from Shop Your Way Rewards to earn Bonus Points.)

 

A lesson in advanced savings...

Using multiple points and awards programs together (when permitted) to earn extra rewards.

Example: Mypoints and Office Depot Work Life rewards.

When you shop at Office Depot through MyPoints.com:
Earn up to 4,000 Points with your Office Depot purchase! (Daily)

Get free shipping on delivery orders when you spend $50 or more.*

Spend $50-$99.99 and earn 500 Points
Spend $100-$199.99 and earn 1,000 Points
Spend $200-$399.99 and earn 2,000 Points
Spend $400 or more and earn 4,000 Points

Points will not be awarded for orders picked up at Office Depot stores. Orders must be purchased online and delivered to your home or office.

Points will not be awarded for purchases from the OD Business Solutions Division

Coupons and gift cards cannot be redeemed for Points.

* Not all items are eligible for free shipping. See site for details.


And when I shop at Office Depot.com, I can enter my Worklife Rewards (WLR) card number.
Get 10% back in Rewards on ink, toner, paper and Copy & Print Depot purchases, plus 1% back on almost everything else. 

Saving with your Worklife Rewards® card is simple. Just present your member number every time you shop with us online, in-store or by phone and we'll take care of the rest!

At the end of every quarter, we'll mail you a Reward Card if you've reached $10 in Rewards. And if you haven't reached $10, don't worry because your Rewards carry over from quarter to quarter for an entire calendar year.

You can also recycle your empty Inkjet cartridges for a $3 credit per cartridge (limit 5 per day).  The $3 credit is added to your Work life rewards.


So for our example, I am going to order $68.00 worth of toner cartridges.  I will receive 500 mypoints.com points.  I also receive $6.80 in my WLR "account" which, if I have over $10.00 in rewards before the end of the quarter, I'll get back in the form of a gift card, which I can then use to buy more inkjet cartridges for my printer.  If I take my empty inkjet cartridges to Office depot and recycle them, I'll be $3.00 each for them as well, and that gets added to my WLR "account".

A quick check of my WLR account today shows I have $12.50 earned between 1st quarter purchases and the 2 inkjet cartridges from our little HP All in One Printer that I have recycled. 

WOO HOO!  So I am earning points from MyPoints.com and getting a gift certificate from Office depot that I can use on my next purchase, which will get me MORE  POINTS on stuff that we use and need.

Mypoints.com and other similar programs are great because you get rewarded for the shopping that you do anyway!

Share your 2010 Savings goals and enter to win a $20 Gift Card.

2010 is going to be the year of savings!

That's right!  To get everyone thinking about saving and sharing ideas how to save, I have a great contest.  The winner will receive a $20 gift card!

To enter- EMAIL me your savings tip or what you will do to save money in 2010.  It can be something that you've read in my journal, seen online, or something that you came up with yourself. I will publish the ideas on my savings blog as I receive them (a link for those of you who read this on facebook).  Each email is 1 entry. 

I will put all the names into a hat and on January 5, 2010 I will draw a winning name.  There is no limit to how many times you enter.



How are you going to save money and live better in 2010?

Savings class- Learn basics and beyond! November 12, 2009

Alright- It's on!  

November 12, 2009 
6:30pm-9:30pm (email me for our address) We are in San Diego, CA

Learn basics and beyond for couponing and saving money at the grocery store, mass merchandisers like Walmart and Target, and drug stores.  

Just 1 hour each week dedicated to saving- clipping coupons, and filling out rebates- can save your hundreds of dollars a month!

All you need to bring is scissors (to clip coupons!), note taking materials, and if you have coupons that you don't want/need, bring those along too to share with others.

There will be instruction "match ups"- making the most of the coupons you have and what is on sale.
Where to find coupons- beyond the newspaper.
Rebates- saving beyond coupons.
There will be lots of time for questions and answers.

I will have examples of what I have bought with coupons, Items I have brought home for free, and there will be a door prize!

I will be serving food- snackie type foods and maybe a pot of soup or chili.  There will be beverages as well.


Please drop me an email at akeen02037@gmail.com if you are interested in attending. 

The joys of being domestic

Yesterday, we had run out of fruit and lunch type things (soup in a can, cheese, yogurt, fruit, fiber 1 bars), so I made a list, organized my coupons and grabbed my price book. I was off to the grocer.

Recently, I updated my price book with more of the items that we buy, so I wanted to get the "Vons" column filled, so that I can complete it a little faster, scan it and get it on line.

Armed with my stack of coupons (about 10 of them were for free items (HEHE), and the price book, I set out. I was in and out in little over an hour, the price book slowed me down considerably- some of the items that we buy, Vons doesn't sell, so my hunt for those items was futile. Tue up side was that someone had coupon fairied a good deal of coupons- so I scored about $40 in coupons. Someone had left their catalinas in the cart I picked and 2 of them were "save .50 off your next purchase." So I scored a $1.00 off right off the bat!

The trip total: $79.87 spent out of pocket, saved $85.65 (that's combining Vons Club and Coupons)., Admittedly, therewere some items on the list that I did not purchase, even though I did have a coupon, because they were above my threshold. Tuna was the biggie.

I came home, unloaded the groceries and set to work on the cooking. My big score of the night was a 4 lb roast for $3.75. I seared it and tossed it in the crock pot over night on low. We're having an early dinner b/c T has a concert tonight.

My second big score was a box of stouffer's manicotti- a "family" sized box for $2.77. I figured I probably couldn't make it any cheaper, so we had that, a green salad and corn for dinner.

Last night I also started on this mornings breakfast. I cooked and chopped a package of maple sausage, and carmelized two small yellow onions and put them in a covered dish. This morning I mixed them with egg beaters and cheese and poured part of it into a greased muffin tin to make little omlette pouffs. The rest I poured into a greased basking dish and baked. We just ate- and they were OMG SOO GOOD!

This weekend I'll be posting more about my price book and how you can make one, and more about "the present box"- both complete with pictures.