Saved about $135 shopping yesterday between Giant Eagle and Walgereen’s. I was stopped 3 times in the Giant Eagle with questions about coupons and couponing. That TV show is really making people take notice of how to save when shopping. A couple of things to remember when starting out – those people on the TV are “EXTREME” just like the show’s name says. Also, more often than not they live in areas or will go out of their way for stores that really maximize discounts.
There are stores that will triple coupons like on the show, but I don’t know of any of those in Ohio. There are stores that will double coupons over the value of them item (i.e. the “cash back” couponing) but not in Ohio. There are stores that will double coupons over $1.00 but the only time I’ve seen that around here is when it is a special event and advertised as such (K-Mart has this event about 2 times a year and even then will only honor 5 coupons per shopping trip – so you could be going through the check outs a couple of times to get all of your deal). So be sure to know your stores coupon rules before you head out expecting to achieve the results on TV.
Remembering to stack coupons when possible is key at the drug stores and department stores like Target and K-Mart. Remember, if they have a store coupon in the paper (these will usually state "store name" Coupon) and a manufacture coupon for the same item you can likely use 2 coupons on one item. Charmin on sale with the Walgreen’s coupon & coupon from the Sunday paper means more savings!
Showing posts with label savings. Show all posts
Showing posts with label savings. Show all posts
Monday, May 23, 2011
Friday, May 20, 2011
Moving Forward
Looking to expand
Well the evolution of this blog continues and I’m now looking to add more variety and content to this site. Some of the things coming involve taking the format from a personal blog site to a more informational site with the occasional personal blog posting as a part of the overall site.
Keep watching for changes including:
Articles on local family friendly places and events.
Activities Lists and a “Things to Do Section” including a calendar
News and Reviews
Travel – Near and Far
and of course - Coupons
Keep watching for the exciting new changes. In the mean time keep stopping by, visiting the links and see what the advertisers have to say.
GO TRIBE !
Well the evolution of this blog continues and I’m now looking to add more variety and content to this site. Some of the things coming involve taking the format from a personal blog site to a more informational site with the occasional personal blog posting as a part of the overall site.
Keep watching for changes including:
Articles on local family friendly places and events.
Activities Lists and a “Things to Do Section” including a calendar
News and Reviews
Travel – Near and Far
and of course - Coupons
Keep watching for the exciting new changes. In the mean time keep stopping by, visiting the links and see what the advertisers have to say.
GO TRIBE !
Monday, May 16, 2011
Summer Plans?
Summer in Cleveland
It is the middle of May and as anyone with kids in school can tell you, summer is rapidly approaching. What do your kids do during the summer?
If your kids attend summer day camps, which ones do they go to and how much do you pay for camp?
I'm looking for cost saving opportunties for my kids and myself for the summer. All suggestions, reviews and ideas are greatly appreciated.
In the past, my oldest has attended our local community summer day camp while the younger girls were in day care, but the price for summer camp for 3 kids is making me cry, $100 for the 5 day per week program, but if I want before care and after care (prior to 9:00 a.m. and after 4:00 p.m.) there is an additional charge of $10 per day, per child taking cost up to $150.00 per child, per week. Then there is the cost of field trips (one each week) and cost of lunches and snacks etc.
Add in gas to get me to my glorious temp job and back each day and I figure my weekly take home "profit" will be about $15.00. And that is only if I work the full 40 hours and don't miss any time for things like sick kids, orthodontist appointments, swim meets etc.
So I’m asking – how do you do it? How can I do it?
It is the middle of May and as anyone with kids in school can tell you, summer is rapidly approaching. What do your kids do during the summer?
If your kids attend summer day camps, which ones do they go to and how much do you pay for camp?
I'm looking for cost saving opportunties for my kids and myself for the summer. All suggestions, reviews and ideas are greatly appreciated.
In the past, my oldest has attended our local community summer day camp while the younger girls were in day care, but the price for summer camp for 3 kids is making me cry, $100 for the 5 day per week program, but if I want before care and after care (prior to 9:00 a.m. and after 4:00 p.m.) there is an additional charge of $10 per day, per child taking cost up to $150.00 per child, per week. Then there is the cost of field trips (one each week) and cost of lunches and snacks etc.
Add in gas to get me to my glorious temp job and back each day and I figure my weekly take home "profit" will be about $15.00. And that is only if I work the full 40 hours and don't miss any time for things like sick kids, orthodontist appointments, swim meets etc.
So I’m asking – how do you do it? How can I do it?
Thursday, July 29, 2010
Usborne Books - register to win $50 in FREE books!
Just a reminder that I'm your resource for Usborne children's books.
Stop by my website and browse - don't forget to register to win $50 in free books. Drawing happens monthly.
www.momsbooksite.com
Stop by my website and browse - don't forget to register to win $50 in free books. Drawing happens monthly.
www.momsbooksite.com
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
New Giant Eagle Receipts
All the better to track your savings with...
Stopped at Giant Eagle on the way home today and noticed a new feature on the receipt. They are now tracking, and breaking down, your shopping savings. They've been listing the fuel perks savings for some time now but now they are really itemizing how your savings break down.
Now I've only been doing the "couponing thing" for about 6-1/2 months to date. Before that I "looked for sales" and did a bit of coupon shopping but really my majority of targeted coupon/sale shopping has only been in calendar year 2010.
Today my Giant Eagle receipt informed me that in the past 12 months my savings in their stores and at their gas stations has totaled $1,124.71 - not too shabby!
Here is the breakdown:
Fuelperks savings: $121.50
Weekly Specials: $632.45
Coupons: $370.76
again - not too shabby!
I can't wait to see what the total will be in January 2011 when I've been doing this style of shopping for a full year.
And remember - that is only at one store. I've also been saving BIG at Walgreen's, CVS, and a few others.
Now tell me again - is this a waste of time?
Stopped at Giant Eagle on the way home today and noticed a new feature on the receipt. They are now tracking, and breaking down, your shopping savings. They've been listing the fuel perks savings for some time now but now they are really itemizing how your savings break down.
Now I've only been doing the "couponing thing" for about 6-1/2 months to date. Before that I "looked for sales" and did a bit of coupon shopping but really my majority of targeted coupon/sale shopping has only been in calendar year 2010.
Today my Giant Eagle receipt informed me that in the past 12 months my savings in their stores and at their gas stations has totaled $1,124.71 - not too shabby!
Here is the breakdown:
Fuelperks savings: $121.50
Weekly Specials: $632.45
Coupons: $370.76
again - not too shabby!
I can't wait to see what the total will be in January 2011 when I've been doing this style of shopping for a full year.
And remember - that is only at one store. I've also been saving BIG at Walgreen's, CVS, and a few others.
Now tell me again - is this a waste of time?
Friday, January 22, 2010
Check the local ads / don’t rely on the coupon match-up sites!
Check the local ads / don’t rely on the coupon match-up sites!
Remember to read the comments left by other folks – they are providing great info too!
Sorry I’ve been remiss in my regular updates. Its that full time job, wife, and mother of three that keeps getting in the way of my shopping deals. And since I did a little bit of stocking up recently I didn’t need to run to the store nearly every day (as I’ve been used to doing) – sure we’ve had to go for milk (which was NOT on sale this week) and a few things for recipes here and there but not too much over all which has been great.
But things I’ve learned since the last time.
Check the local ads / don’t rely on the coupon match-up sites. This is especially true of places like Wal Mart & Target. Sales are “national” but what is actually ON SALE boils down to “local”.
Lesson: I prepared for a relatively small shopping trip to Target based on what I had gathered from couponmom.com - I did not spend much time with my own Sunday paper so I did not verify what I had check marked at the website. I printed my list, printed my coupons, clipped my coupons (prepared to stack them Target and manufacturers – I was going to get Juicy Juice for nearly FREE – and the kids soooo like that apple juice from juicy juice, carnation instant breakfasts too!) and grabbed my Mom and my 10 year old and we were off to the store (we were also prepared for CVS and Giant Eagle as Mom needed to do some shopping and I prepped a coupon envelope and list for her as well).
We get to the store and I learn that even though my Mom has a list she is a serious impulse shopper – but more about that later.
I try to steer Mom and Becca to the part of the store where the items on our list are kept – coupons in hand, but when I get there, I find the instant breakfasts - but they are not on sale, I find the juicy juice (no apple flavor sadly) and it also is not on sale. The special K bars were on sale, the lean cuisines were on sale, the hand lotion was on sale but close to a third of the items on my list – printed from the sale/coupon match up site, were not on sale.
Sadness – I should have checked the local ad in the paper that morning. I guess I’m not as clever as I think I am. Later I realized that there may very well have been things on sale that I needed but didn’t know about because – alas – I didn’t read the local ad… Lesson Learned!
I also learned that when I am shopping with my Mom I need to keep her on the task of sticking to her list by store / she was ready to buy everything on her list at one place but I had planned our trip to pass CVS on the way home so she could get her tooth past for .74 cents and I could get my hair color for $3.99 – coupons and ads – and other things at Giant Eagle by keeping track of the sales.
She also impulse shops – which I am guilty of too, but I’m trying to work on getting away from that. I had left my coupon file / of about 500 or so coupons / behind. As I watched her put item after item in the cart I kept thinking “I have a coupon for that” – so if I’m going to go with an impulse shopper or impulse shop myself I should try to have my full binder of coupons along with me “just in case”. I know it will look crazy when I’m shopping but if I have to buy something not on sale and not on my list – I may as well get a little bit off if I have the coupon.
I also learned that my Mom is a sucker for Becca and gives in and buys her stuff I probably wouldn’t – but that IS a grandma’s job after all.
Remember to read the comments left by other folks – they are providing great info too!
Sorry I’ve been remiss in my regular updates. Its that full time job, wife, and mother of three that keeps getting in the way of my shopping deals. And since I did a little bit of stocking up recently I didn’t need to run to the store nearly every day (as I’ve been used to doing) – sure we’ve had to go for milk (which was NOT on sale this week) and a few things for recipes here and there but not too much over all which has been great.
But things I’ve learned since the last time.
Check the local ads / don’t rely on the coupon match-up sites. This is especially true of places like Wal Mart & Target. Sales are “national” but what is actually ON SALE boils down to “local”.
Lesson: I prepared for a relatively small shopping trip to Target based on what I had gathered from couponmom.com - I did not spend much time with my own Sunday paper so I did not verify what I had check marked at the website. I printed my list, printed my coupons, clipped my coupons (prepared to stack them Target and manufacturers – I was going to get Juicy Juice for nearly FREE – and the kids soooo like that apple juice from juicy juice, carnation instant breakfasts too!) and grabbed my Mom and my 10 year old and we were off to the store (we were also prepared for CVS and Giant Eagle as Mom needed to do some shopping and I prepped a coupon envelope and list for her as well).
We get to the store and I learn that even though my Mom has a list she is a serious impulse shopper – but more about that later.
I try to steer Mom and Becca to the part of the store where the items on our list are kept – coupons in hand, but when I get there, I find the instant breakfasts - but they are not on sale, I find the juicy juice (no apple flavor sadly) and it also is not on sale. The special K bars were on sale, the lean cuisines were on sale, the hand lotion was on sale but close to a third of the items on my list – printed from the sale/coupon match up site, were not on sale.
Sadness – I should have checked the local ad in the paper that morning. I guess I’m not as clever as I think I am. Later I realized that there may very well have been things on sale that I needed but didn’t know about because – alas – I didn’t read the local ad… Lesson Learned!
I also learned that when I am shopping with my Mom I need to keep her on the task of sticking to her list by store / she was ready to buy everything on her list at one place but I had planned our trip to pass CVS on the way home so she could get her tooth past for .74 cents and I could get my hair color for $3.99 – coupons and ads – and other things at Giant Eagle by keeping track of the sales.
She also impulse shops – which I am guilty of too, but I’m trying to work on getting away from that. I had left my coupon file / of about 500 or so coupons / behind. As I watched her put item after item in the cart I kept thinking “I have a coupon for that” – so if I’m going to go with an impulse shopper or impulse shop myself I should try to have my full binder of coupons along with me “just in case”. I know it will look crazy when I’m shopping but if I have to buy something not on sale and not on my list – I may as well get a little bit off if I have the coupon.
I also learned that my Mom is a sucker for Becca and gives in and buys her stuff I probably wouldn’t – but that IS a grandma’s job after all.
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
Coupons and Policies - Important Stuff
When we lived in Hawaii I thought I was completely cut off from “deals”. Sure the Safeway had some good sales and I sought them out and the Wal Mart and Longs (which is now CVS – which is awesome for coupons and deals) had sales too, but I was still paying $10 for 2 gallons of milk and over a buck for a small container of yogurt – and those were sale prices so I never really felt like I was saving anything.
I am learning (and hopefully sharing) things that “if I had known when I lived in Hawaii…” I would have been a much better shopper – and I hope my friends still living in Hawaii (and paying the “paradise tax”) and elsewhere can learn and save too.
The Plain Dealer is usually flush with coupons and ads – there were three in this past Sunday’s paper. The direct mail Red Plum ads during the week here have multiple deals in them. The Sunday Advertiser rarely had coupons at all and our weekly mailings had very limited coupons – sometimes only for a couple of items. I used to have my Mom send me inserts from the papers in Cleveland because, generally speaking, a manufacturer coupon is good nationwide – unless it specifically excludes your state.
I wish I had been a lot more savvy in the Internet Coupon world back then…but knowing when, where, and how to use internet coupons seems to be very important.
Knowing the stores coupon policy is becoming key in my efforts to save money. I am currently amassing the written coupon policies of the stores where I currently shop and intend to coupon. Many seem to be available online and I’m finding a lot of stores have their policy posted at their customer service desk.
Some of what I am learning: NO ONE seems to take internet coupons that say FREE – most out there are apparently not legit so they are not taking them. Some stores will only take coupons up to a certain value of the item such as K-Mart who will not take coupons that exceed 75% of the item cost, or Giant Eagle who will not take internet coupons over $3 in value. On the positive side some stores have paperless electronic coupons that you just "load" the value of onto your store rewards coupon and the register will automatically take the coupon value off your purchase (gotta love that). These are all good things to know ahead of time.
Here’s some help:
CVS does not have their coupons policy printed on their website but they will provide one to you on request. Longs is now CVS – this is good new s on the coupon front! Lots of good store coupons at their site though - and you can stack store coupons and manufacturer coupons at CVS!
Walgreens does not have a particular coupon policy that I can find other than to accept manufacturers coupons as stated on the coupon / and they will take “stacked” coupons.
Rite Aid’s policy is not on their website either but again you can get a copy at the store or write to their corporate offices for one.
K Mart seems to not have a well defined coupon policy and what I’ve learned from thekrazycouponlady.com on the subject tells me I’m better off at Wal Mart of Target unless I really need to go to K-Mart (which of course is the only store in walking distance of my house).
Kroger does not have their coupon policy at their website but they do offer ‘digital coupons’ there that you can ‘load’ onto your Kroger card that will be automatically deducted when you buy that item at the store. Nifty! http://www.softcoin.com/Sites/Kroger_ECoupons/Page/HomePage/Retailer/Kroger
Giant Eagle: http://www.gianteagle.com/saving/coupon-redemption-policy
Target: http://www.target.com/b/ref=br_bx_4/180-0311849-4571964?ie=UTF8&node=2223357011
WalMart: http://walmartstores.com/7655.aspx
Marc’s: http://www.marcs.com/coupon.cfm
Safeway: http://www.safeway.com/IFL/Grocery/Coupons-Policy
Acme Fresh Market: http://www.acmestores.com/internet-coupon-policy.html
More on “stacking” coupons to come – I’m going to do that today or tomorrow on a shopping trip!
If the snow lets up…
I am learning (and hopefully sharing) things that “if I had known when I lived in Hawaii…” I would have been a much better shopper – and I hope my friends still living in Hawaii (and paying the “paradise tax”) and elsewhere can learn and save too.
The Plain Dealer is usually flush with coupons and ads – there were three in this past Sunday’s paper. The direct mail Red Plum ads during the week here have multiple deals in them. The Sunday Advertiser rarely had coupons at all and our weekly mailings had very limited coupons – sometimes only for a couple of items. I used to have my Mom send me inserts from the papers in Cleveland because, generally speaking, a manufacturer coupon is good nationwide – unless it specifically excludes your state.
I wish I had been a lot more savvy in the Internet Coupon world back then…but knowing when, where, and how to use internet coupons seems to be very important.
Knowing the stores coupon policy is becoming key in my efforts to save money. I am currently amassing the written coupon policies of the stores where I currently shop and intend to coupon. Many seem to be available online and I’m finding a lot of stores have their policy posted at their customer service desk.
Some of what I am learning: NO ONE seems to take internet coupons that say FREE – most out there are apparently not legit so they are not taking them. Some stores will only take coupons up to a certain value of the item such as K-Mart who will not take coupons that exceed 75% of the item cost, or Giant Eagle who will not take internet coupons over $3 in value. On the positive side some stores have paperless electronic coupons that you just "load" the value of onto your store rewards coupon and the register will automatically take the coupon value off your purchase (gotta love that). These are all good things to know ahead of time.
Here’s some help:
CVS does not have their coupons policy printed on their website but they will provide one to you on request. Longs is now CVS – this is good new s on the coupon front! Lots of good store coupons at their site though - and you can stack store coupons and manufacturer coupons at CVS!
Walgreens does not have a particular coupon policy that I can find other than to accept manufacturers coupons as stated on the coupon / and they will take “stacked” coupons.
Rite Aid’s policy is not on their website either but again you can get a copy at the store or write to their corporate offices for one.
K Mart seems to not have a well defined coupon policy and what I’ve learned from thekrazycouponlady.com on the subject tells me I’m better off at Wal Mart of Target unless I really need to go to K-Mart (which of course is the only store in walking distance of my house).
Kroger does not have their coupon policy at their website but they do offer ‘digital coupons’ there that you can ‘load’ onto your Kroger card that will be automatically deducted when you buy that item at the store. Nifty! http://www.softcoin.com/Sites/Kroger_ECoupons/Page/HomePage/Retailer/Kroger
Giant Eagle: http://www.gianteagle.com/saving/coupon-redemption-policy
Target: http://www.target.com/b/ref=br_bx_4/180-0311849-4571964?ie=UTF8&node=2223357011
WalMart: http://walmartstores.com/7655.aspx
Marc’s: http://www.marcs.com/coupon.cfm
Safeway: http://www.safeway.com/IFL/Grocery/Coupons-Policy
Acme Fresh Market: http://www.acmestores.com/internet-coupon-policy.html
More on “stacking” coupons to come – I’m going to do that today or tomorrow on a shopping trip!
If the snow lets up…
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