Grocery Shop in your Pajamas

Photo Credit

I had thought that most people knew about this but the more people I tell the more I find out they don't know.  You may know that I shop to stock my pantry.  I think some people call this the Pantry Principle.   I have a master grocery shopping list.  I even laminated it and use my dry erase marker on it.  I don't often shop at regular grocery stores much anymore.  I do most of my shopping at Sam's Club, Aldi or Trader Joe's.  I had to find creative ways to shop with kids.

Introducing grocery shopping in your pajamas - I found out about Sam's Club Click N Pull about two years ago.  You have to have a Sam's Club membership to use it.  Once you are a member, you just go on their website and create your account.  You can then make your own lists and save them like I made a "Master Grocery list" and saved it so I can just open that up and put it into the "cart" for next time.

There is no fee for the Click N Pull service and you don't have to pay until you pick it up and if you decide you don't need some of the items by then you can just not buy them.  Everytime I have been in there they will ask you if your produce is okay (since they pick it out) and you can tell them whether or not you prefer something else.

You just have to shop the day before and they will send you an e-mail the next morning when your order is ready and you just go to the service desk and pay for it.  It is that easy!

Now you know that I do try to buy more natural food and sometimes organic so why do I shop at Sam's?  Well, for starters we get their 1-lb. Organic Spinach for $3.98,  We use it for salads and in our smoothies too.  They have 3 lbs. of organic carrots for about the same price as the spinach.  It sounds like a lot, but carrots stay good for a while - keep a paper towel in with them to soak up the excess water.  I also freeze some to make chicken stock with or throw in soups.

I buy my staples in bulk there although they don't have whole wheat flour.  I do buy their 10 lbs. of  pinto beans and other products and I use the "dirty dozen produce list" and only buy the most clean produce there.

Although I absolutely read labels and I do not buy certain things - like some spices made in china or some yogurt made with high fructose corn syrup or most of the meat they sell.  I am pretty careful.  I do know that some things are higher at a bulk food store but I am careful to look at prices and I do pay a slightly higher price on certain things for sake of convenience and time because time is so much more precious to me:)

I hope you find this service to be useful to you.   What about you?  Do you have any good easy grocery shopping tips?

Super Savings Saturday, the $60 edition

This week I needed to get some meat so I went to Trader Joes.  Trader Joes is about 45 minutes from me and I don't go there very often because of this but I had to drive into my office (which I only do twice a month) so I stopped by after work.  I am a little picky on my meat as I had mentioned before.  I have a hard time buying ground beef from the grocery store especially when you buy it and the meat is from 5 different countries.  Anyway, I spend $50.48 at Trader Joes.  I bought some organic things there too like ketchup (because we really like it and it has no high fructose corn syrup).  So the budget went over this week.

I stocked up on mostly meat and produce.

I also went to CVS at the beginning of the week but did not take a picture of that.  I spent $5.32 and bought Pull ups, breath right strips and milk.  I had $10 in ECBs and other coupons.

I went to Walgreens and Target.  I spent $5 something at Walgreens and $1.13 at Target.

And I can't seem to kick the Coffeemate habit.

 

That is what happened this week.  How was your week?

Super Savings Saturday

Week three of the $40 a week grocery budget (right isn't it - I lose track).  Anyway, still did pretty well this week.  I didn't stock up on meat.  I stocked up on some household and health and beauty items.  I promise I will stock up on meat next week.

Trip #1 - Kroger

This Kroger run was actually fun.  One reason is that I was able to take only one child.  It was also in the morning and there was lots of mark downs going on.  I was able to get a good deal on several organic items including eggs and milk!  When I went to check out the total was $33 something before my coupons.  I handed her my coupons and it brought the total to $20.18.  The cashier said, "You did your homework."  I used Money Saving Mom and Bargain Briana to find the deal match ups (like I usually do).

Trip #2 CVS (on my way home from Kroger)

I paid $0.94 tax for the above items.  CVS sent me coupons to get these items free.  I couldn't believe it.

Trip #3 Walgreens

I spent $14.89 on this trip because we needed diapers and my husband always seems to need shaving cream plus there was free razors included in the shaving cream.

So I spent $36.01.

I guess now I am trying to decide what to do about household items.  For instance we used to  buy diapers, toilet paper and paper towels at Sam's but if I did that now my budget would be more so I am wondering if I should have a separate household budget or plan to up my budget to $50 or so to account for household stuff.  What does everyone else do?

Super Savings Saturday, Week 2 of the $40 budget

Here it is, week 2 of my $40 a week grocery budget and I actually made it another week.  Well, I overspent by $1.00 but for me that is still success!  I went to Target and Aldi.  I didn't get a picture of my Aldi groceries, well I thought I did but the memory stick wasn't in the camera.  Yes, I know, I am brilliant.

I spent $20.16 at Target.  I bought 2 lunchables, 3 packages  of  Chips Ahoy Cookies (I know, but I did take them to a couple people's houses), gallon of milk, 2 loaves of bread, 2 Kikkoman teriyaki sauces, 12 mini loaf foil pans (to be used for Christmas gifts), 2 boxes of Triscuits, 2 pkgs. of Oscar Meyer lunch meat and GE light bulbs and 4 packages of Bic pens.  I found a new website called Totally Target where I found a lot of the deals with coupon match ups.

At Aldi I spent $20.58 because I got suckered into getting my son a $0.59 KitKat.  Oh, I can't believe I did that but he was so cute.  Anyway, at Aldi I just stocked up on some staples - 2 bags of flour, brown sugar, powdered sugar, regular sugar (I was making cinnamon rolls), 2 packages of butter, 2 gallons of  milk, vegetable oil and I think that was about it.

Again I will say that obviously what I bought doesn't make meals, but I have a lot of vegetables and fruit canned and frozen.  I still have some meat in the freezer as well, but I will need to stock up on that this coming week.  I am hoping to make it to Trader Joes sometime soon so I can see how  much I can get there for $40.00.  We shall see.

Super Savings Saturday

You know I go back and forth on coupons.  I love them and I hate them (you've heard that before).  Hey I don't claim to be perfect (if you know me personally you are well aware of this).  I do change my mind.  Last night after looking at our utility bills my husband and I decided we would try out the Money Saving Mom's way of grocery shopping for a little while to see if it would work for us.  Now I do try to get natural products and organics when I can and I won't compromise on my beef but I will be okay buying a few things here and there that might not meet all of my criteria.  On Friday night after the kids went to bed I put together my list of deals that I wanted to do and then on Saturday I took all three kids by myself and went to two different stores.  One of the ladies in the aisles looked at me and said, "You're brave."

The kids were actually really well behaved.  I gave them a talk before going into each store.  I said that mommy was trying to save as much money as I could because daddy works really hard for the money we get and we need to be good stewards of it (then I explained what stewards meant).  So I told them that meant not asking for candy or other things.  I had a very specific list and that was all I was getting.

I used Money Saving Mom and Bargain Briana and copy and pasted my deals to a Word document.  I then printed off coupons and paper clipped them to the specific store list.  I then went through any coupons I already had and added them as well.

I picked items we needed and then a few extras that we would eat that were really cheap.  I went to Target earlier in the week so those items aren't pictured but I got 3 tubs of Huggies baby wipes, a bag of Hershey's special dark kisses, Target bread and 2 dozen eggs and Reach floss.  I spent $7.23 there.

Today I went to Meijer and spent $9.00.  I only had a few items there and so I went through the self check out lane but the cashier became really annoyed at me because she kept having to come over and log in because the Meijer Mealbox coupons kept messing up (which they always do).  I explained to her that I was not trying to cheat the system and she just didn't like coupons, but I knew exactly how much I was going to spend and I was not going over.   I bought Yoplait Greek yogurt (I had a free coupon), 2 KC Masterpiece BBQ sauces, 2 Hidden valley dressings, 2 Fiber one bars, Cascade, Always pads. 

Lastly, I went to Marsh where I spent the most money.  I spent $23.16.  I bought 2 10 lb. bags of potatoes, 2 bags of apples, 1 package of turkey bacon, 4 pizza roll boxes, 2 packages of Oscar Meyer lunch meat, 2 bottles of V8 Fusion as pictured above.

I did forget to buy milk so I will be buying a couple gallons tomorrow but otherwise this will last us the week.  Remember though I have a lot of home canned stuff and I do have some meat and chicken in the freezer from previous weeks.  This is the first week I am trying this so we will see how I incorporate the higher cost of meat into the budget.  I am hoping to stay between $40-$60 per week (grocery budget only).  I will probably be making some freezer fries this week with all of the potatoes.

So I spent $39.39.  And my husband is laughing at me right now for blogging about this.  Oh well, at least he will have food for the week.

My Real Food Budget, Part 2 . . . Make Room

Part I

Many of you out there think that your budgets are so tight that you could not possibly buy organic products.  They are much too expensive and that can be true.  I find that we have money for things that we want.  Even tight budgets include some unnecessary extras.  If you looked closely at your budget you could maybe find $20-$60 a month extra without much effort (cut some cable channels, forgo Starbucks, stop the weekly McDonalds run).

You may say that you actually have money to buy organic but you think it is just "trendy" and not really worthwhile.

First off, I would ask you to just try watching Food, Inc..  Once you watch this you will probably at least be a little more convinced to only eat organic (or grassfed) beef.  This is one of the first changes I made when I started this and it is one that I will not go back on.  Let me show you why.  First off, in Food Inc. they talk about how your hamburger that you are eating could be made up of literally hundreds (if not thousands) of different cows from any number of different countries  - tasty right?  Let me show you a box of hamburgers you can purchase at Sam's Club.

Notice the type at the top - Product of US, Canada, Mexico, Australia, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Costa Rica.  Really!  Seriously, I am so glad that they now make them list the country of origin on everything.  I absolutely check it and you should too.  Before you get too excited, know that organic products must list their product of origin as well.  I recently joined Costco because I heard they had a lot of organic products.  I started to buy their organic broccoli (frozen) and then turned it over and guess what?  "Product of China" - can they not get broccoli from the US and freeze it?  Yet another reason I try to garden and go to the farmers market.

Anyway, I told you all this to say that the above reasons should make you WANT to find room in your budget to purchase products locally and/or organically.  As I said before, I am not a purist.  I don't buy all products organically.  I work towards that but I haven't made that plunge.

Lets talk numbers.  I do have a certain amount that I don't go over, but since I am currently trying a few new and different ideas I don't have an exact budget amount.

Meat
Beef (Grassfed but not certified Organic) - $3/lb. - We get 1/4 at a time which is roughly 180 lbs.  Total - $540  - This lasts us 6 months or more.
Pork - I don't buy a lot of pork but I have bought it from Trader Joe's at about $4.58/lb.
Hot dogs - I am not a fan of hot dogs but I now only buy Trader Joe's - All Beef, Nitrate Free - and they are $3.99 per package.  I only buy one a month and my husband says they are the best hot dogs.  I don't eat them so I don't know.
Lunch meat - Nitrate free ham or turkey - $3.69 to $4.99 per package.  I buy this twice a month as well.
Pepperoni - Nitrate free $2.96/pkg.  I find that one pkg will be good for 2-3 pizzas.  I freeze the leftover ones.  I buy one package about twice a month.

Dairy and Eggs
Milk - This is a hot topic and I just can't yet bring myself to drink raw milk.  (I don't drink milk myself but my kids do).  I get organic when I can or whatever is on sale, but as of last month and because my dermatologist said it will help my skin I am only buying organic because it does not have the hormones.  If I do buy raw I use it to make yogurt or buttermilk.  Raw Milk is $5.99 at my local dairy.  Organic is $5.99 at Kroger or most grocery stores around me.  Trader Joe's milk is $2.99 but it is not organic.
Yogurt - I haven't made my own lately but I do buy it and it is around $3.99 for a large tub (organic that is).
Cheese - I buy sliced colby jack from Trader Joe's at $3.49/pkg.  I sometimes buy string cheese at $3.49/pkg.  I recently have started buying actual, real Parmesan and it is yummy.  This price varies.  I do buy shredded sometimes or block cheese (from Aldi or Meijer) and shred it myself.  If I am in desperate need of it, I will buy pre-shredded cheese (Trader Joe's has it for $3.29/pkg).  I have tried raw colby jack cheese from a farm and we did not like the taste.  I may have to experiment more and see if there are some we do like.  For now I buy it at Trader Joe's and it works.
Cream - I do buy raw cream (or I do when I need it) and make ice cream with it.  It is the same price as regular cream at the stores.  I buy this from that local organic dairy as well.
Eggs - I buy my eggs from the local organic dairy and they are $2.75 per dozen.  I know I can find them cheaper but this is super convenient and the farmers are so nice.

Poultry
Chicken - I need to work on this because it is hard for me to buy whole organic chicken at $12-$14 per chicken.  I recently bought Trader Joe's (not organic) for $4-$6 per chicken.  I used to buy a lot of chicken breasts (we love them) but since they are $4-$5 per pound organic I changed up my menus to not include as much recipes requiring chicken breasts.  I bought a bag of frozen ones from Trader Joe's last time and they were $6.99 per bag.  I do mostly whole chickens now and I make broth and then freeze the meat.
Turkey - I just buy Butterball but I will work on that before this Thanksgiving.

Condiments
I buy organic from Trader Joe's because the prices are so reasonable.  I do sometimes make my own.  Again, even your salad dressing and BBQ sauce have high fructose corn syrup in it so this is a great place to make a small change and start getting them organically or making them yourself.

Produce
My favorite thing!  As I said last time, I try to buy mostly organic produce.  I buy it at Trader Joe's or Meijer.  In the summer I garden and I freeze and can a lot of my own stuff.  If I don't grow it, I buy it from a few local farmers.  They do not always grow organically but at least it is local.

Staples
I am picky on my whole wheat flour and only buy King Arthur's because I want my family to eat the whole wheat baked goods I make.  I have tried other whole wheat flour and you just can't beat King Arthurs.  I don't buy the organic but I buy the white whole wheat for $3.49/5 lbs.  I just tried Trader Joe's white whole wheat last month because it is only $2.99/5 lbs., but it is not as good (sorry Trader Joe's).
I buy Coconut Oil wherever it is on sale.  I buy Olive Oil from Sam's Club but I will be changing that soon.
I am still searching for places and prices to buy some of my staples.  I don't do organic for a lot of my staples.
Honey - I do buy this raw from my local organic dairy.

This post is getting long so I will stop here for now.  I will say that I have been spending roughly $115-$175 at Trader Joe's per month.  I count this as my major monthly shopping trip and any other shopping trips I do will not be as much.

If we ever move back to Springfield, Missouri I am not sure how I will buy organic on a budget.  I know there are no Trader Joe's there and it is hard to find good prices at your local health food store.

Please, please, please share with me how and what you buy in the comments.  I would love to know.

For more frugal ideas, please visit Frugal Friday at Life as a Mom.

My Real Food Story . . . Part I

I feel like I am the last person that should be talking about this.  I want to talk about it, but I wanted to wait until I feel like I perfected it.  I have tried so MANY ways of grocery shopping and menu planning over the years.  It was actually about 2 years ago that I changed a lot of things.  I started reading blogs.  It opened up my world, sometimes for the good and sometimes for the not-so-good.

I began by reading Crystal's blog, Money Saving Mom.  I am thankful for her blog.  She has saved me some money and brought great deals to light.  I do have to respectfully disagree with her regarding coupons.  I do a few coupons, but for the food I buy, there just aren't many coupons.  I tried buying and making a coupon folder/binder thing.  I spent hours organizing my coupons and my grocery store deals.  I just don't do that anymore.

About this time I started reading other blogs, like Passionate Homemaking and Heavenly Homemakers.  I read a post from Lindsay regarding their Real Foods Budget and this is how I started doing my shopping.  I even wrote to Laura at Heavenly Homemakers and asked her a question, and guess what, she answered it on her blog.  You can read that here.  I would highly recommend reading her "Getting Real with Food" series as well.

Well, I did what I usually do, I changed everything at once.  I also joined a wholesale buying club.  All of this while I was about 7 months pregnant with my second child.  In retrospect, I shouldn't have joined that buying club because I did not know enough and it was such a process.  I have learned a lot since then including backing off a little.

I do not buy everything organic. 

Here is what I do:

1.  I use real butter.  It is rarely organic but it is real, actual, unsalted butter.  Organic butter runs $4.99/lb. and I can't quite wrap my head around that right now (probably because I use too much butter).
2.  I stopped using white sugar and white flour several months ago.  I still use it but only occasionally and usually if I am making food for other people.
3.  I read labels on everything.  I look to see if it has high fructose corn syrup.  I check the country of origin.  I check to see what additives and preservatives a food has.
4.  I buy grassfed beef from a local farmer.  It is about $3/lb. and I order a quarter of a beef at the same time. 
5.  I do make a lot of stuff from scratch.
6.  I do buy in bulk from Sam's or Costco (we are trying Costco this year).
7.  I have recently started buying my main groceries at Trader Joe's.  Trader Joe's is a 45 minute drive for me, but I have to go to my job 2 days a month so I always have my list ready and I go to Trader Joe's then because I am there anyway.  It works for me. 
8.  I use whole wheat flour and I sometimes soak my baked goods.  There is a lot of discussion about soaking your grains and you can go here for more information than you ever wanted to know.
9.  I buy organic fruits and veggies as often as possible and try to always buy organic from the dirty dozen list.
10.  I buy several items from a local organic dairy including eggs, honey, buttermilk and sometimes milk.


Now, how do I do it and not spend a lot of money?  Come back next time and we will talk numbers!

For more frugal ideas, please visit Frugal Friday at Life as a Mom.

Making a Change . . . The Grocery Store

I have said many times before on this blog that I am trying to make a change in the way my family eats. My goals seem pretty simple. While I am for organic food, I don’t feel pressured to have to buy everything organic. I do usually buy organic produce, but since this is kind of harvesting season, I am buying from the farmer’s market almost every week (and sometimes twice a week). Really, I think all that I am doing is what people used to do. I am trying to buy staples such as flour, sugar, oils, dairy products. Then I am making things from scratch. I analyze my kitchen items to see what things we use and how I could make them from scratch.

Anyway, I have a weird, intense desire to do this. I cannot explain it. So I wanted to put my grocery list down here for you. It included:

Potatoes
Lard or shortening
Milk
Aluminum foil
Lunch meat
Bread
Olive oil
Canned salmon (We are going to try to venture out into eating more fish)
Salt
Yogurt (I need a starter yogurt to make my own with)
Heavy Cream (for the cheeses and I may make some more butter)

I didn’t look for sales. I didn’t pour over the sale flyers from the grocery store. I didn’t look up every sale online or clip a lot of coupons. I simply made my list and I went to get it. Do you know where I went?

Aldi – I don’t mind getting my staples at Aldi. There are several things I like about this store. The cashiers are quick. You must put a quarter in the slot to get your cart. There are no sales or coupons. It is not a mega store where you have to walk to one side of the store to get your pharmacy items and then walk back to the grocery side of the store past the toy aisle with two screaming, hungry children.

I am hoping to soon join a buying club to get my staples. I have not done this before so I will see how it goes.

So, this is a process. After Aldi, I did go to Walgreens. I did have a $5 off of $20 coupon and my husband insists that my cloth diaper training pants that we use on my son at night, aren’t working. I had to get pull ups. And then when I got there, they had price slashed a package of Huggies diapers (it was the mega pack). And then they had also marked the huge box of wipes down 50% so I felt compelled to get those – you see my problem! Also, they had one of those things where you can grab a coupon right there for the Huggies diapers so I did that too.

Obviously, there is nothing wrong with sales and coupons. It is excellent for a lot of people. I would never say that people who coupon or watch sales are unhealthy especially since I still do it myself. I just like being able to whip something up when I run out rather then have to go to the grocery to get it. It is a personal preference.

On a completely different note, I am now nervous because my Aunt Jody told me she reads my blog every night. I feel like I really need to watch what I say. Aunt Jody – don’t think I am crazy.

My First Foray into Canning

I have been wanting to can forever. Finally, my husband and I bought a 5 gallon bucket full of green beans for $12.00 (I am not sure that that is a good price but it seemed like it was okay) from a local farmer. Anyway, we also invested in a pressure canner. I say invested because this is a tool we hope to use a lot in the future. Yes, it is cheaper to buy a can of green beans at Aldi's, but these are home grown green beans that we can ourselves. My instructions came from the Ball Blue Canning Book. It has step by step instructions. Making our first batch was not bad, but our second batch went much smoother. Anyway, here is the before and after picture:

Before
After

Thrilling isn't it! Well, it is for us, but we are crazy like that.

Caring for your home starting with . . . The Kitchen

I am starting this series because my sisters are getting married within a week of each other in less than 2 months. I wanted to put a book together to help them in their new homemaking adventures.

The kitchen is the place that I spend most of my time. There is the cooking, the baking, the cleaning, and of course, the feeding. I am going to start with cleaning the kitchen, because, let's face it - who wants to cook in a dirty kitchen? You will need a to make a list of what needs to be cleaned when. Start with the daily, then the weekly, and then move onto the monthly.

I. Cleaning

Daily
Pick up clutter
Empty/Load dishwasher
Wipe counter tops
Sweep floor/Wet Swiffer floor as well

Weekly
Wipe down cabinets/Clean Appliances
Clean stove/burners (this might actually be more monthly)
Mop floor
Wipe out/clean out fridge

The Fly Lady is also a good place to start to organize your cleaning schedule.

How to Speed Clean your Kitchen by Real Simple online is another great resource.

Odds and Ends about Cleaning your Kitchen:

Cleaning the microwave made easy - Take a glass container, fill it with 2-3 cups of water or vinegar and microwave for 5 minutes. Take the water/vinegar out and wipe down the microwave. The steam helps to loosen any particles that have hardened and it is very easy to clean after that. I put the glass plate in my dishwasher to wash.

II. Menu Planning

I do not profess to be an expert here. I will just share what I do and I will also share a few links from others that do it differently, for you to choose from. You can see all of my past menus here.

First of all, menu planning is a must if you want to save money and not pull your hair out everyday. What I do is to keep a list of staples and pantry items that I use all the time. I try to not run out of these items. I asked my husband to name some meals that he likes that he could eat almost every week. I then made themes - 5 of them. Basically it is a master list of meals.

Monday Stir Fry/Main Dish Salad/Freezer Meal*

Tuesday Meat/Poultry**, mashed potatoes, corn and salad

Wednesday Fish/Lentils/Meatless (Chickpea/black bean burgers)

Thursday Italian Night*** (usually a meatless night)

Friday Homemade Pizza/Calzones (Alfredo or regular)

*I always have 6 freezer meals on hand to choose from, from our OAMC Cooking Club.
**This will be a choice of meat from the freezer or chicken that I got on sale or meatloaf made ahead and frozen.
***This can be Lasagna, Fettuccine Alfredo, Manicotti or Garlic Butter Pasta

I do try to make things ahead and freeze them as much as possible.

III. Grocery Shopping

If you are using coupons or want to, go here on Today's Daily Dose to see a wonderful post my friend just did regarding coupon questions and answers.

If you do not want to or cannot use coupons, Money Saving Mom has some good tips for grocery shopping without using coupons. Basically, what I have been trying to do is make as many things from scratch as possible. When I am about to run out of something (such as Hershey's chocolate syrup), I do some research and see if I could make it from scratch with the things that I have on hand. If we like it then I won't buy it from the store again. Basically, I am trying to find a way to rarely enter a grocery store (wish me luck).

On that note, if you do shop at Aldi please go to Mom Advice and see her Aldi Menu Planner.

I also really enjoyed Heavenly Homemaker's "Getting Real with Food" series. You can read her answer to a question that I e-mailed her.

There are many ways to menu plan. I have tried a lot of them. I find that the way I am doing it now works well for me. Some people plan their menus around what sales are going at the grocery stores. Some people plan their menus a month in advance. Some people do the Once A Month Cooking plan (which I do some of). There really isn't a wrong way to do menu planning (unless you just don't do it). You need to find out what works best for you and your family.

And a great menu planning resource is to check out OrgJunkie.com's Menu Plan Monday. You will get all sorts of ideas and great recipes.

I find that I enjoy the time I spend in my kitchen. I really enjoy it when it is clean and I have a plan. Now, it isn't always clean and there are times when the best plans don't work. The point is that you will be spending most of your time in the kitchen so make the best of that time!

For more kitchen tips and all sorts of wonderful recipes, visit Tammy's recipes. She has wonderful kitchen tips.

Meijer Deals, July 10 - 17

Here are some Meijer Deals for this week. Our grocery stores run their sales from Thursday to Wednesday every week. Don't forget to go to Meijer mealbox to print off several great coupons you can use with this week's sales.

3 for $5
Save $4 on 3
Blueberries
Pint container.

10 for $10
Get the 11th item FREE! Mix or Match
Meijer Blended Vegetables
16 oz. bag. Assorted varieties.
Mealbox coupon $0.50 off - Makes them $0.50 each

10 for $10
Get the 11th item FREE! Mix or Match
Meijer Facial Tissue
65-160 ct.

4 for $10
Save at least 1.88 on 4
Meijer Ice Cream 1/2 gallon, Meijer Ice Cream Sand-wiches, Ice Cream Bars, Cones, Orange Cream Bars, Toffee Bars 3-18 ct. or Meijer Gold Ice Cream
56 oz. Assorted varieties excludes Meijer Organics Ice Cream 48 oz.
Mealbox Coupon $1.00 off

10 for $10
Get the 11th item FREE! Mix or Match
Meijer Microwave Popcorn
3 ct. box. Assorted varieties.

2 for $5
Meijer Gallon Milk
All varieties, excluding chocolate and Meijer Organics

10 for $10
Get the 11th item FREE! Mix or Match
Meijer Old Fashioned Cookies
10-11 oz. Assorted varieties.

10 for $10
Get the 11th item FREE! Mix or Match
Meijer Pretzels
10-15 oz. bag. Select varieties.

1.88
Great Meijer Price
Meijer Granulated Sugar 5 lbs. or Meijer Cane Sugar, Brown Sugar or Confectioners Sugar
4 lbs.

10 for $10
Get the 11th item FREE! Mix or Match
Meijer Waffles 10 ct., Breakfast Entrees or Bagels
12 oz. All varieties.

2 for $5
Save 2.98 on 2
The Markets of Meijer Pre-Sliced Deli Meats
8 oz. pkg. Turkey or ham. All varieties

2 for $3
Save $1 on 2
Homegrown Celery Hearts

3 for $1
Save at least 50¢ on 3
Homegrown Cucumbers or Bunch Green Onions

2 for $3
Save 98¢ on 2
Dole Premium Classic Romaine Salad 10 oz., Just Lettuce 11 oz., Greener Selection 12 oz. or Iceberg Butter Crunch
10 oz.

77¢ LB.
Save 92¢ LB.
Homegrown Green Beans

1.29 LB.
Save 40¢ LB.
Organic Peaches or Nectarines

99¢ LB.
Save 70¢ LB.
Plums Sunrise Red, Midnight Moon, Starless Ruby or Golden Meadow

97¢ LB.
Save 1.52 LB.
Red Seedless Grapes

4.99 LB.
Save at least 1.30 LB.
The Markets of Meijer Turkey Breast Honey Roasted, Oven Roasted, or Hickory Smoked or Chicken Breast
Mealbox coupon $0.50 off per pound

5 for $5
Save at least 60¢ on 5
Bar S Jumbo Meat Franks, Chicken Franks or Bologna
16 oz. pkg.

2 for $11
24 Pack Cans Coca-Cola Classic, Diet Coke or Sprite
12 oz. cans. All varieties. Plus deposit where applicable. Limit 2. Additional quantities at regular retail.

2 for $5
Save 1.98 on 2
Johnsonville Smoked Brats
13.5-16 oz. pkg. All varieties.

4.49
Save 1.50
Meijer Cod Fillets
16 oz. pkg. Frozen.

2 for $5
Save at least 1.38 on 2
Meijer Thin Sliced Lunchmeats 8-10 oz. pkg. In resealable tubs or Sliced Ham or Turkey
16 oz. pkg.

2 for $4
Save at least 1.98 on 2
Meijer Sliced Bacon 16 oz. pkg., Center Cut 12 oz. pkg. or Canadian Bacon
5 oz. pkg.

5.99
Tyson Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast
Frozen 40 oz. bag.

25% off
Meijer Dry Beans
1-4 lb. bag. All varieties.

3 for $4
Great Meijer Price
Meijer Applesauce 6/4 oz. cups or 50 oz. jar, Peaches, Pears or Fruit Cocktail 29-30 oz. can. Select varieties or Maraschino Cherries
10 oz. jar.

2 for $3
Save 98¢ on 2
Meijer Lowfat Wheat or Light White Hot Dog or Hamburger Buns
8 ct. pkg.

3 for $6
Save at least 1.47 on 3
Meijer Instant Oatmeal 10-15.1 oz. box. All varieties or Quick or Old Fashioned Oats
42 oz. canister.

Meijer Ketchup 20 or 24 oz. bottle Hamburger Dill Slices
32 oz jar.

25% off
Meijer Oil 48 oz. or Cooking Spray
5-6 oz. Select varieties.

2 for $5
Great Meijer Price
Meijer Organics Tortilla Chips 10 oz. bag. Yellow or blue corn or Meijer Dip
15.5 oz.

2 for $5
Save 1.58 on 2
Meijer Organic Bread 100% Whole Wheat, Multigrain or Flaxseed
28 oz. loaf.

3 for $5
Save at least 58¢ on 3
Meijer Peanut Butter
18 oz. jar. Creamy or crunchy.

2 for $1
Save 1.32 on 2
Meijer Spaghetti, Thin Spaghetti or Elbows
16 oz. box.
Mealbox coupon $0.50 off making them FREE

44¢
Great Meijer Price
Meijer Vegetables 14-15.25 oz. can. Select varieties or Tomatoes
14.5 oz. can. All varieties.

1.79
Save 40¢
Meijer Bread 100% Whole Wheat, Seven Grain or Deli Rye
20-24 oz. loaf.

1.29
Save 30¢
Meijer Multigrain or Whole Grain White Bread
20 oz. loaf.

2 for $3
Save at least 88¢ on 2
Meijer Flushable Wipes
42 ct. tub.

Free stuff (or almost free) for this week

This is a long post, but scroll down to see all of the deals from Wal-mart, Meijer and Kroger.

Staples:

Wal-Mart:

1-Subject Notebooks. $.05 each

2-packs of glue sticks. $.22 each

24ct crayons. $.22 each

Thanks Thrifty in Cincy!

Walmart deals From Money Saving Mom:

Wal-Mart has jars of Planters peanuts on sale for $2. Buy 3 packets of Kool-aid for $0.16 each and the peanuts on sale for $2. Use one of these $3/1 Planters coupons and get all four items free plus $0.52 overage! Thanks, Lisa!

Also, Pert Plus with Botanicals shampoos and conditioners are reportedly priced at less than $3 each. Use the recent coupons

Here are ongoing Wal-mart deals thanks to Money Saving Mom. You can see my Wal-mart trip here last week.

Zantac 8ct - $3.98
Use $5/1 on Zantac here
Free plus possible overage after coupon!

Dove Energy Glow Beauty Lotion (trial size) - $1.97
Use $2/1 coupon from August All You magazine
Free after coupon (Thanks, Melissa!)

10-pack Schick disposable razors - $1.99
Use $2/1 Schick razor coupon from a recent RedPlum insert
Free after coupon!

Powerade is $0.75
Use the $0.75/1 coupon from insert two weeks ago
Free after coupon!

Gold Bond Lotion (trial size) - $0.99
Use $1/1 coupon here
Free after coupon (Thanks, Wendy!)

LiveActive cereal is $2.98
Use this $3/1 coupon (you can print two)
Free after coupon!

Kashi cereal is $2/box
Use this $2/1 coupon (you can print two)
Free after coupon!

John Freida Frizz-Ease Mouse (trial size) - $0.97
Use $1/1 from the May All You magazine
Free after coupon (Thanks, Denise!)

Johnson's Buddies - $0.94-$0.97 each
Buy 2 and use this $2/2 coupon here or buy 1 and use this $1/1 coupon here
Free after coupon!

o.b. Tampon (trial size) - $0.97
Use $1/1 coupons (04/13 SmartSource and elsewhere)
Free after coupon! (Thanks, Angel!)

Schick value packs of 10 razors - $1.97
Use $2/1 coupon for any Schick disposable razor in the 5/11 insert
Free after coupon! (Thanks, Denise!)

Travel-sized (16-ct.) Kotex - $1
Use the $1/1 coupon here or from the May issue of All You
Free after coupon! (Thanks, More Than Enough!)

K-Y Jelly (2 oz.) - $2.59
Use the $3/1 coupon from a recent insert
Free plus possible overage after coupon (Thanks, Anna!)

Purina Cat Food - $3.97
Use $4/1 coupon here
Free after coupon! (Thanks, Denise!)

to get them free after the coupon!

Meijer and Kroger deals also from Money Saving Mom

This week Meijer has select dry pasta (Meijer brand spaghetti, thin spaghetti, and elbow macaroni) on sale 2/$1. Pair this deal with the $0.50/1 coupons on MealBox and get the pasta for FREE! Print as many as you'd like and stock up! (Thanks, Mandy!)

Meijer pretzels, cheesy puffs are part of the 10 for $10 - there is a MealBox coupon for $1 for any meijer salty snack - making them free

Kroger Deals - From Jessica:

King's Hawaiian sweet bread (small 4-pk) is $1.25 ant Kroger and there's a printable here for $0.65/1. Some Kroger stores will double that to $1 or more making it almost free!

*There is a new Johnson's Buddies coupon here for $2/2. Purchase the Johnson Buddies soaps at Wal-Mart, Target, CVS, and elsewhere for less than $1 and use this coupon to get two free! (Thanks, Mary Ellen!)

Savings Saturday

So, I do have pictures, but my sister is suppose to load them and send them to me since we took them with my step mom's camera. So, they may be up later, and they may not. She's planning a wedding and she cannot think straight these days. Also, I was so excited because I went to the CVS by my dad's house (not my usual one) and they had the Coppertone Water Baby sunscreen sticks for $4.49 and they worked for the $10.00 deal. It was so exciting. (I know, I need help).

You can also see my Wal-mart deal that I did this week here.

CVS Transaction #1:

1 Hershey’s Special Dark Bar at $0.50
1 Mounds Bar at $0.50
1 Trident Peppermint gum at $1.49 - $1.00 in ECB back
2 CVS Panty liners at $.99 each - $0.99 in ECB back each = $1.98
2 CBS Tampons 5 ct at $1.49 each - $1.49 in ECB back each = $2.98
1 CVS Facial Wipes at $2.99 - $1.00 in ECB back
2 Coppertone Water Baby Sunscreen Sticks at $4.49 each = $10.00 in ECB back

Used $2.00 off coupon from CVS brand Beauty
Used $16.00 ECB’s from spring spending

Total OOP: $1.52
Total ECB’s back: $16.96

CVS Transaction #2:
2 Dawn Ultra Dishwashing liquid (see all the uses for the original blue Dawn here) at 2/$2 - $1.00 in ECB back
1 Swiffer Starter Kit at $7.99 - $5.00 ECB back when you buy $10 of Swiffer
1 Swiffer Refill at $5.99
2 Sure deoderants at $2.99 each - $3.00 ECB back when you buy 2 deoderants

Used 2 $1.00 off Sure coupons (plus sending in for the rebate B1G1)
Used $1.00 off Swiffer
Used $15.96 in ECB

Total OOP: $3.42
Total ECB’s back: $9.00

I went with my step mom “T” today. We had fun. Yes, at CVS. She did 3 transactions. I won’t list all of them here, but we totaled up what her purchases were worth and they were $53.10. She only spent $5.75 out of pocket, and she got $1.00 in extra bucks to spend for next time. She had to make a $19.00 purchase that gave no extra bucks so I say that she did an excellent job!

Also, I did go to Meijer this past week. I spent $55.50 and I saved $38.00. The list is just too long to type up.

CVS, Walgreens and Meijer this week!

CVS

Okay, so I did 4 transactions today. I had 5 ECB’s to start with.

Transaction #1

1 Brut deodorant - $3.19
-Used $0.55 coupon
1 Huggies Baby Body wash - $3.49
-Used $1.00 coupon
-Used 5 ECB’s

Total OOP: $0.25
Total ECB’s back: $5.00

Transaction #2
8 Soy Joy Bars – 4/$4
-Used (2) Buy 2 Get 1 Free coupons
-Used 5 ECB’s

Total OOP: $0.42
Total ECBs back: $8.00

Transaction #3
3 Duracell AA batteries - $5.29 each
1 Bounty Paper towel 8-pack - $5.49
-Used (3) $0.75 coupon for Duracell
-Used $0.25 off Bounty
-Used $8 ECB’s

Total OOP: $11.80
Total ECB’s back: $10.00

Transaction #4
4 Lysol wipes – 2/$5
-Used (4) $1.00 off coupons
1 Sensodyne toothpaste - $3.99
-Used 1 CVS $1.50 coupon and (1) $.75 coupon
1 Huggies Body Wash
-Used $1.00 coupon
1 ALS Donation - $1.00
-Used $10 ECB’s

Total OOP: $2.65
Total ECB’s back: $2.00

Meijer

Pepsi $0.88 – bought 4
Oscar Mayer Deli Shaved Meat B1G1 at $3.69
-used (2) $0.55 cent off coupons
Tennessee Pride Sausage B1G1 at $3.49
-used (2) $0.50 coupon, doubled to $1.00
Bacon, John Morrell 2/$5
Meijer Fresh Chicken Breast $1.99/lb. - $8.86 (bought 4 lbs.)
Milk 2/$5 – bought 2
Capri Sun - $1.89
Barilla Pasta $0.88 – bought 10 packages
-Used (3) $0.50 off of 2 – doubles to $1.00
-Used (2) whole wheat $0.50 off of 2 – doubles to $1.00
Aunt Millie’s buns – B1G1 at $3.19
-Used (2) $0.35 – doubles to $0.70
Old Orchard Apple juice 4/$5 – bought 2
Country Crock 4/$5
-Used (2) $0.25 doubled to $.50
Meijer vegetables $1.00 each – bought 3
-Used Meijer mealbox coupon at $0.50
Kraft shredded cheese 3/$6 – bought 3
-Used Meijer mealbox $1.00 off 2

This is pretty much everything that I got. I spent $48.14. I saved $12.58 with my coupons and $28.46 with store sales.

Walgreens

I did the Kraft and Planters peanut deal.

6 Kraft mac and cheese – 3/$4
2 Planters Honey roasted peanuts – 2/$5
-Used (2) $3.00 off Planters when you buy 3 Kraft
Walgreens Raisins $1.00 each – bought 4
Butter that was on sale at B1G1 for $3.99 – bought 4
-Used $5 off of $20
-Used another $3 off coupon

Total spent was $10.98
Totals saved was $18.96

Popcorn!

I know that I have been marketed to way too much! I just recently started making popcorn on the stove instead of in the microwave. Where have I been all of these years? I thought it would take forever or burn if I made it myself. Well, guess what - it comes out perfect every time and it literally takes about 2 minutes.

In case you don't know here is what I do (I just use the instructions on the back of the popcorn bag).

I have a pot with a lid. I heat up the pot while I prepare my 1/4 cup of oil. I pour the oil into the pot with ONE popcorn kernel. When that kernel pops I pour enough popcorn to cover the bottom of the pot (a little less if you don't want a whole pot of popcorn).

I stand there doing something in the kitchen while it pops. Usually, I am holding up my 3 year old son to show him the kernels popping. He thinks this is amazing!

I usually melt some butter while the popcorn is popping. When the popping slows, I pour the popcorn into a big bowl, pour the butter next and add a little salt - and there you go!

Just as easy as microwave popcorn, I know, except you have to dirty up a pot, but come on - it is not that bad! And you saved some money by making it yourself.

If you want to add some interest to your popcorn, head on over to Frugal Granola and check out this post!

You can see more Works For Me Wednesday ideas at Rocks in My Dryer.

Make it Yourself . . . Laundry Detergent

When I first got married I really wanted to make my own laundry detergent. I had read the Tightwad Gazette. I was so excited, but I never got around to making my own detergent. Well, that was eight years ago and I finally found all of the ingredients to make this detergent. I got my instructions from The Simple Dollar. Washing soda is really hard to find. But apparently I hadn't looked very well at my local Kroger store. You can also order it online if you can't find it locally.


These are the ingredients you start with. I looked all over for them and finally found all 3 at my local Kroger store.

This is what your "soup" looks like once you have added the shaved (or grated) soap to the water. My husband suggested I use the vegetable peeler and peel the soap into the water.

This is a picture of my son helping me stir.

Here is the finished product. Several other websites mentioned that it will actually look like an egg noodle soup. It does.

I have washed several loads of clothes with it today and they have come out clean so I am happy with this process.

And, it does not take that long to do. It takes about 20-25 minutes for the soap to disolve and then a few minutes to mix in the washing soda and borax and then just let it sit until the next day.

The cost: The Fels Naptha soap costs $1.29, the Washing Soda was $3.09 and the Borax was about $2.49. Considering you only use 1 cup of washing soda and 1/2 cup of Borax this was SUPER cheap!

I use one cup per load. According to Simple Dollar this amount will last about 48 loads.

Check out more Make It Yourself Ideas here.

Deals of the Week, June 22-28

As usual, the deals of the week are from various sources, including Money Saving Mom, which you will see when you click on the particular store.

CVS
Meijer and Meijer Organic Deals
Walgreens
Wal-mart

Check out The Grocery Gathering at BeCentsAble.com for more deals!

Organic sales June 19-25

Muir Glen diced tomatoes are $1.22 at Wal-mart (could be $1.32 at some stores. Use this coupon and get them for $0.22 (or $0.32 each).

This is for Organic products sold at Meijer.

4 for $5 Save at least 1.68 on 4 Organic Green Onions 2 ct. pkg. or Baby Cut Carrots1 lb. bag.

1.29 LB. Save 40¢ LB. Organic Peaches or Nectarines

4 for $5 Save $3 on 4 Meijer Organics Whole or Mini Bella Mushrooms 8 oz. pkg.

2 for $11 Save 4.98 on 2 Meijer Organics Coffee 10 oz. Select Varieties

2 for $3 Save 1.38 on 2 Meijer Organics Salad Dressing 12 oz. French, Italian or 1000 Island.

2 for $5 Save 1.58 on 2 Meijer Organics Bread 28 oz. loaf. 100% Whole Wheat, Multigrain or Flaxseed

10 for $6 Save 1.90 on 10 Meijer Organics Yogurt Single serve 6 oz. cups. All varieties.

2 for $5 Save 1.58 on 2 Meijer Organics Milk 1/2 gallon carton. All varieties.

2 for $4 Save at least 58¢ on 2 Meijer Organics Fruit or Organics Vegetables 10-16 oz. Assorted varieties. Excludes Meijer Organic Blueberries.

25% off Meijer Organics Pan SprayCanola or olive oil 5 oz. or Extra Virgin Olive Oil 17 oz.

Sam's Club organics

Amazon Organics

Deals for the week of June 15-21

These deals are from various sources such as Money Saving Mom and The Grocery Gathering at BeCentsAble, It's More Than Enough and Centsable Sawyer.

CVS and CVS here too
Walgreens
K-mart
Target
Wal-mart

Savings Saturday - Saving without using Coupons, Part 2

Last week I gave some ideas about saving money without using coupons.

*I should also probably point out that I am not against coupons. I currently use them. I am for whatever works for people to save money that is legal, ethical and moral obviously! I am constantly evaluating whether I want to keep using them just because of the time and organization.

Some ways that I save on my grocery budget:

I try to make things from scratch when possible. Making things yourself can save you money.

I was just at Aldi yesterday and even there, broccoli and cauliflower was $1.99 for a head or bunch. Sugar was $1.99.

I had actually bought some staples - sugar, flour, baking soda at GFS (Gordon Food Service). They are like Sam's and Costco as far as food goes, but they are not as big and you don't have to pay a fee to join. They don't have organic food right now, but they do have the basics.

Gardening

I am doing a garden this year. I am actually doing a container garden. I am also planning to freeze and can any leftovers. I hope to also freeze and can as much produce as I can this year to get through most of the winter hopefully. You don't have to have a huge space to garden. When we lived in a townhouse we just did a few tomato plants in containers on our back patio (since we had no yard). This worked out fine.

If you are not able to garden, definitely try to go to the U-pick local farms or visit local farm markets.

To save money you must get creative. Analyze what you usually buy and see if you can go without it (such as some paper products) or see if you can make it yourself. Let me know what other things you all do to save money!


Part 1