I didn't realize I liked Walgreens as much as I do. I used to be addicted to food buys at Homeland but now I realize more and more of my trips are to "Wags." I hope to find a balance at some point but for now I am enjoying it. I made my trip to Walgreens today and yesterday so how did I do? Well, no pic to post (mostly because I am too lazy this evening) but I did get $46.78 in retail items for $15.71. Not great but not bad. Here's the scoop:
2 Colgate Max Toothpaste 2.99 ea - .75/1 Q = 2.24 (receive $2 RR ea)
3 Thermacare Heat Wrap Neck/Arm 2.49 - $1/1IP = 1.49 (receive $2.50 RR)
3 Tresemme Shampoo/Conditioner 3/$12 (receive $5 RR)
2 Windex Spray Items 2/4.29 (B1G1 Free) - $1/1 Q (x2) = 1.15 ea
1 Tuf Trash Bags 2.99
Note: I did another transaction but used my FSA card to get 2 Triaminic and 1 Thermacare Wrap which is not part of my $100 budget but it got me an additional $7.50RR. : )
Breakdown:
Subtotal before coupons: 46.78
Coupons/RR: (22.50)
Discounts: (11.77)
Taxes paid: 3.20
Total OOP: $15.71
Total Savings $34.27 (73.3%)
Left to Spend (until 01/15/10)
$11.78 in cash
$22.00 in RR
$7.00 in ECBs @ CVS
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
Sunday, January 10, 2010
Saving for an apartment...again
Okay, we all remember moving for college, right? We remember how much that wonderful trip to Walmart, Target, or other large store cost. The fridge, the extra long California twin bedsheets/padding, microwave, food, necessities, etc.
Then there is the first apartment spend...ich! I remember my roommate from college and I filling a basket as two young 20 year olds moved that barely rolling cart (so full items were literally falling out) to the front of the store on that unforgettable day. I don't know if the looks we got were from the over $300 we each spent or the fact that we were 120 lbs a piece and they were wondering how long it would take for us to eat all that we got. Either way I remember there was barely any room for us to fit in the car on the way home.
Next there was moving out after college once I got a regular job which meant another large trip to the (unnamed) store but this time my two baskets cost me over $700 and did I mention I moved into a ONE bedroom apartment?!
Okay, so that sets up the story. If you have read any of my blog you will know that I have gone through some major changes in the past year (living wise, financial, and emotional) and this time I want to be ready for that eventful day. I am watching my pennies and living on a budget so let's just say there is not enough wiggle room in the budget to allow for such expenditures. I have been spending now what I will spend when I move out but since I am living at home I am spending the money on shelf stable items (food, cleaning, household, and toiletry related) to train myself to my budget as I adjust in my new place. I am hoping that the only thing I have to spend when I move out is on food related items that are refrigerated which aren't the greatest to "stockpile."
Where am I in the stockpiling? Well my goal was to have one of everything I needed (razors, deoderant, shampoo, canned goods that I normally use, etc.) but I seem to be buying more of items I don't need as often but the deals are just too good to pass up! I have stopped being "brand loyal" but I have bought one of my normal items (like my Caress Daily Silk Body Wash I have used for YEARS) in case I get a rash/breakout from the stockpile items. You never know. I also emailed Caress to see about coupons because I LOVE my soap but I usually don't catch it on sale.
Well, here I go on my $100/2 weeks budget. So far so good. Let's see how I fare after next payday (01/15/10).
Then there is the first apartment spend...ich! I remember my roommate from college and I filling a basket as two young 20 year olds moved that barely rolling cart (so full items were literally falling out) to the front of the store on that unforgettable day. I don't know if the looks we got were from the over $300 we each spent or the fact that we were 120 lbs a piece and they were wondering how long it would take for us to eat all that we got. Either way I remember there was barely any room for us to fit in the car on the way home.
Next there was moving out after college once I got a regular job which meant another large trip to the (unnamed) store but this time my two baskets cost me over $700 and did I mention I moved into a ONE bedroom apartment?!
Okay, so that sets up the story. If you have read any of my blog you will know that I have gone through some major changes in the past year (living wise, financial, and emotional) and this time I want to be ready for that eventful day. I am watching my pennies and living on a budget so let's just say there is not enough wiggle room in the budget to allow for such expenditures. I have been spending now what I will spend when I move out but since I am living at home I am spending the money on shelf stable items (food, cleaning, household, and toiletry related) to train myself to my budget as I adjust in my new place. I am hoping that the only thing I have to spend when I move out is on food related items that are refrigerated which aren't the greatest to "stockpile."
Where am I in the stockpiling? Well my goal was to have one of everything I needed (razors, deoderant, shampoo, canned goods that I normally use, etc.) but I seem to be buying more of items I don't need as often but the deals are just too good to pass up! I have stopped being "brand loyal" but I have bought one of my normal items (like my Caress Daily Silk Body Wash I have used for YEARS) in case I get a rash/breakout from the stockpile items. You never know. I also emailed Caress to see about coupons because I LOVE my soap but I usually don't catch it on sale.
Well, here I go on my $100/2 weeks budget. So far so good. Let's see how I fare after next payday (01/15/10).
Purex 3-in-1 Printable Coupon...$1/1
I found this wonderful coupon online that I would like to share:
$1/1 Purex Complete 3-in-1 Laundry Sheets (click here) UPDATED (click "get a coupon")
I love these sheets! I tend to find myself doing laundry at the laundry mat when it becomes overwhelming and I cannot emphasize enough how much I dislike hauling laundry detergent, softener, and dryer sheets (mostly because I always end up forgetting one of the three at home and they seem to weigh a ton). I also can't tell you how many times I have done the bottle "shake" to determine if I have enough (or turn the lid upside down to get every last drop...please tell me you understand). With these little sheets I know exactly how many loads I have left before I will need to refill and they are much easier to transport (both weight and space wise). Go ahead...give them a try!
$1/1 Purex Complete 3-in-1 Laundry Sheets (click here) UPDATED (click "get a coupon")
I love these sheets! I tend to find myself doing laundry at the laundry mat when it becomes overwhelming and I cannot emphasize enough how much I dislike hauling laundry detergent, softener, and dryer sheets (mostly because I always end up forgetting one of the three at home and they seem to weigh a ton). I also can't tell you how many times I have done the bottle "shake" to determine if I have enough (or turn the lid upside down to get every last drop...please tell me you understand). With these little sheets I know exactly how many loads I have left before I will need to refill and they are much easier to transport (both weight and space wise). Go ahead...give them a try!
Saturday, January 9, 2010
Ebates...give it a try
I thought I would give Ebates a try since I wanted an "online rebate" for purchases. Well, guess what? In the month of December for the few things I had set on buying online anyway I made $5 just for signing up and then made a little over $8 on the purchases I had already set myself up to do. I coupled this with free shipping deals that were going on online. I am hooked. Would you like to earn $5 and in the process give me $5 just for being a reference? (fyi...I'm using any rebates money to pay off my debt...every penny counts). Just click here!
$308.31 in Groceries...$72.51 OOP...saved $235.80
Since I do my shopping in smaller, more frequent trips (as I get better at this couponing thing I am going to attempt to go less times to the store) I always seem to have a few items missing from my photos. The following items are missing fom the above photo:
1 box Valentine Transformers Cards
1 box Special K cereal
1 gallon milk
3 Christmas pencils (filler items)
2 boxes Nabisco Chips Ahoy cookies
1 bottle Wishbone Italian dressing
3 bottles International Delight creamer
2 I Can't Believe It's Not Butter tubs
Where I shopped:
Homeland
4 Wishbone Italian dressing
15 Del Monte canned tomatoes
3 International Delight creamer
2 I Can't Believe It's Not Butter
1 Velveeta
Walmart
2 Downy Wrinkle Releaser
2 Dove Deoderant
1 Razor
Walgreens
3 Christmas Pencils (.25 ea...filler items)
22 Nabisco Chips Ahoy (Valentine's gifts for my 3 yr old son's daycare class)
1 Oreo Double Stuff (.99 sale...for Hunter)
6 Neosporin Lip Health (2/$8 w/$3RR and used IP...overage)
4 Special K cereal (2/$5 - IP)
6 Honey Nut Cheerios (2/$5 - IP)
4 Cinnamon Toast Crunch (2/$5 - IP)
3 Cottonelle TP (on sale $5 used RR to get for stockpiling)
4 St. Ives Body Wash (1.49 ea (30% extra) used raincheck)
6 Hefty One Zip Bags (2/3.29 and they had .20/1 peelies)
2 Johnson & Johnson Body Wash trial size (free w/IP)
2 John Frieda Weather Works (1.69 ea w/$5 RR when you buy 2)
3 Sally Hershberger Shampoo/Cond/Gel (clearanced for 2.39 and 3.19)
4 Electrasol Tabs (3.49-$2.50/1 w/$1 RR)
Breakdown:
Subtotal before coupons: 308.31
Coupons used: (126.96) includes RRs
Discounts/sales: (124.72)
Taxes paid: 15.88
Total OOP: 72.51
Savings: 235.80 (76.5%)
Left to Spend:
$27.49 in cash
$14.00 in RR from Walgreens
$7.00 in ECBS from CVS (just started with CVS in December)
New Year...New Me
I decided that with the new year I would stick to my budgeting plans for 2010. What are those plans? Well, most of the plan includes me only spending $100 every two weeks for food/household items. This averages $50/week but with coupon shopping we all know that there are some weeks that are good and some bad. That being said as long as I remain within my budget for the two weeks I will be happy. I downloaded a new coupon savings spreadsheet from a fellow blogger and will be using this to track my progress. The one I used last year was a good one but this one is a bit more simplified so with my adjustments (like wanting to track how much I spend on items vs. tax I think I am good to go). So, how have I done so far? Well, that post is coming up next. : )
Saturday, October 17, 2009
Financial Update
Okay, so while living with my parents I have chosen to focus on debt from my marriage (that almost seems like a cliche in today's society...move home with the parents and try to clean up the past in more than one way). So, although I am not ready to say that I am "debt free" yet I can say that of my personal debt I have been very focused, because let's face it, staying with the parents (as loving as they are) is no picnic when you condense yourself into 1/10 of a space you had been living in. So, where am I at with my debt? Well, here's a run down...I paid off one debt immediately after moving in with my parents and one more a month after that (so that pretty much sums up the summer months).
In the month of August my credit card company got in touch with me and we negotiated a much smaller amount of pay off since the account was so large (given the circumstances I jumped at the opportunity). So, I have been focusing on paying near $1k a month on that debt for the past 2 1/2 months and I am pleased to say I will be debt free on this account November 6th! That was my HUGE headache of a credit card so I am very pleased to be near done with it.
For another credit card I have been throwing every additional penny I have at it and am pleased to say that I will be making the final payment on it October 23rd! That's 2 debts down JUST LIKE THAT!!!
My other huge accomplishment was a credit card that I made a phone call to and discussed with them the situation and my ability to focus on debt and through that phone call we were able to lower my monthly payment as well as lower my APR by nearly 1/5 of what it previously was. Yes, it had gotten this bad but I am okay admitting it because I am doing what I can to CORRECT the situation. So, I am able to cut my payment to this card in half and use that money to focus on a credit card with a much higher interest rate (I am skipping Dave Ramsey's theory on paying off the smaller balance first because of the interest rate issue).
So, with these above situations where will that put me? Well, I will have 4 of 7 personal debts that I will have completely paid off as of 11/06/09. I will post the amounts off all of this debt after I am paid off but I will say that so far I have nearly paid off over half of my debts. This will help me stay focused. I should be able to have one more paid off by the end of the year which will be WONDERFUL. I will keep this posted as I update my amounts. It's okay to admit you have lots of debt...most all do.
In the month of August my credit card company got in touch with me and we negotiated a much smaller amount of pay off since the account was so large (given the circumstances I jumped at the opportunity). So, I have been focusing on paying near $1k a month on that debt for the past 2 1/2 months and I am pleased to say I will be debt free on this account November 6th! That was my HUGE headache of a credit card so I am very pleased to be near done with it.
For another credit card I have been throwing every additional penny I have at it and am pleased to say that I will be making the final payment on it October 23rd! That's 2 debts down JUST LIKE THAT!!!
My other huge accomplishment was a credit card that I made a phone call to and discussed with them the situation and my ability to focus on debt and through that phone call we were able to lower my monthly payment as well as lower my APR by nearly 1/5 of what it previously was. Yes, it had gotten this bad but I am okay admitting it because I am doing what I can to CORRECT the situation. So, I am able to cut my payment to this card in half and use that money to focus on a credit card with a much higher interest rate (I am skipping Dave Ramsey's theory on paying off the smaller balance first because of the interest rate issue).
So, with these above situations where will that put me? Well, I will have 4 of 7 personal debts that I will have completely paid off as of 11/06/09. I will post the amounts off all of this debt after I am paid off but I will say that so far I have nearly paid off over half of my debts. This will help me stay focused. I should be able to have one more paid off by the end of the year which will be WONDERFUL. I will keep this posted as I update my amounts. It's okay to admit you have lots of debt...most all do.
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