The Addiction of Clearance Hunting

While tidying up the apartment yesterday, I decided that I would put all the clearance baby and kid clothes inside one of our suitcases because the bags of merchandise were starting to pile up. I don't need any of it until months from now for a baby shower and first birthday, so there's no need to keep it out. I have definitely accumulated a bunch of adorable clothing from the Disney Store, Old Navy, and Target!

I've talked to a few moms or soon-to-be moms who said that stocking up on other items like diapers is more worthwhile because everyone gets clothing. I completely understand that, but some things are necessary, I think. I purchased some onesies, sleep 'n plays, burp cloths, and really nice bibs because the babies DO need those things, and I don't feel bad buying them because I got them 50%-70% off. I've found fleece tops for $0.97 and Disney items for $1.99. Other gift givers may still buy clothing items, but as an aunt, I find that it is my duty to bring any of my nieces and nephews into the Disney sphere, haha. That's why you can see some adorably cute Disney gear!

It seems weird spending the money on things now even when items might be too big in size, but I will continue doing it this way so that when the occasions come up, I don't have to go out to shop. I can just "shop" from this suitcase. I have about 4 toys too put away for the proper time. You know how difficult it can be to search for a gift when it's needed. It's the same as having to find a dress before a party or wedding; it's just so difficult and can get expensive! But because of my feelings of buying things on clearance, I haven't had to do any last minute shopping for either of those things, and in the long run, it saves me money.

Of course, there are some things that are just too cute and so incredibly inexpensive that it's worth saving for little Luke or Leia. I bought two of those Pixar shirts and gifted one of them already, but that other one you see is for me! I will save it for as long as I have to! 

Clearance Hunting!

After work, my mom and I stopped by Target to do a little bit of clearance hunting. I love checking out what people are finding when I browse Instagram. Since my mom had to make a quick stop at Pathmark, I took my time in the Dollar Spot checking out the fun things I would totally buy for a niece or nephew. I would even buy some of these things for my own kids, but I'd save them for road trips to Disney World or their Christmas stockings!

I still get a kick out of seeing My Little Pony stuff. These were totally not the ponies from my childhood! This would be cute even for me if I knew who they were, haha. I only know Rainbow Dash. I also have no purpose for it!

I also love dry erase items. If Toby were older, I would've picked this up. I think these little dry erase activity books or boards are cute to bring along to entertain the kiddos at restaurants. I hope that it never gets to the point that we use our phones to keep the kids quiet.

Since it's January, there are a bunch of calendar options as well as notepad things. I'm actually contemplating picking up a 2015 calendar so that I have it when the next school year begins.

Lastly, I was immediately drawn to these blank books! The possibilities are endless, and I'd like to think that my future kiddos would see the potential and the fun in getting something like this. When I was really young, my family went on vacation to California an stayed with my dad's friend's family. The mom put together these journal-type booklets with paper that had lines at the bottom and a huge space for an illustration. It was stapled between construction paper. She had us write down the fun things we were doing like visiting Circus, Circus. I kept that for the longest time, and I knew even then that I'd want to provide the materials for such a simple activity for my own children.

My main reason for going to Target was to search for clearance in the baby section. The last time Howard and I stopped by was to grab a bunch of baby things on clearance for 50% off. Howard chuckled at me when we were there because he would look around and then turn to find me with stacks of onesies and sleep n plays in my arms! I couldn't help it! As I've said before, I'm all for buying things on sale or on clearance and using coupons if possible so that we have gifts to give when we need it. It's even harder to resist when there are little ones in families! I am definitely having a blast looking for items to be the aunt who spoils the kiddies.

This time, however, the whole section was cleared of the clearance and was replaced with new spring-themed items. I only found one clothing item amid all of it that my mom purchased. I checked the aisles for the other baby items and found a much higher priced item for just half off, so I snagged it! I'm thrilled about that purchase and am pleased that I can give it as a gift!

There was a rack of random cute items nearby though, and this was one of the things that always catches my eye. I love these things with detachable capes!

Part of me wanted to buy these sweatpants just because they were hanging there like that, haha. They're so tiny!

And of course, Disney socks are better than regular socks.

I then moved on to the toy section to check out the Little People Nativity set. It's still $14.98, and they do have a bunch of them so my mom and I are hoping it'll reduce to more than just 50% off. I checked the two aisles filled with clearance toys and scanned a bunch of things with hopes that it was less than what they said, but this Target is pretty good about keeping the prices correct.

Our friend's son likes Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, and this was a bargain for 70% off, but I don't know if he will still like it for his next birthday. Plus, we have no room to store something so big. They had a few of them, so I would totally buy one for Toby too, but he's much too young and we'd have to keep this for maybe two years or so before giving it.

I was immediately drawn to the "Let's Play" items! How adorable that they create these sets for children to have realistic items! I loved the Fisher Price doctor kit my older brother and I had. I played with it all the time.

The words on the box are great: "Everything You Need to be a Real Stylist!" Because we all know it wouldn't be fun to be a fake stylist!

I laughed at this one though. A dish-washing play set? Haha, it's not advertised as dishes that come with a drying rack, but it's a dish-washing play set. Hey kid, practice washing these fake dishes. You'll have to get used to it because once you can reach the sink, it's your job.

This wasn't something that intrigued me though. In fact, it kind of creeped me out that there were two  multi-colored unicorn heads just hanging in front of me.

Behind a bunch of boxes hidden away in the back, I found this Star Wars set for 50% off! Of course, Lego sets are expensive and Star Wars ones are even more expensive so half off still means it's $72 or so. I took this quick picture and sent it to Howard to see. I know that if it were a more important set, it would've been worth purchasing at 50% off like if it were the Death Star or the X-Wing! I think I got those names right ...

Other than that one baby gift item, I bought Sabra hummus with a coupon, haha. I definitely had fun searching for clearance though! I know there's retail therapy, but just browsing through clearance can be pretty rewarding too when you hit the gold mine!

Haul: Couponing at Target for Random Items

I went out to do some errands on Friday because we were in need of groceries, and I wanted to snag some good deals. That included Target because I definitely needed some milk and some hamburger buns. My mom has pointed out to me that getting lactose-free milk at Costco would be cheaper than just picking up the Market Pantry half gallon, but since I use gift cards from Swagbucks, free is always going to beat cheap.

Just missing a half gallon of milk!

Everything in the picture above including the milk that was already open and in the fridge cost just $13.54 including tax. I didn't have to pay a cent out of pocket so I was happy about that as always. Who wouldn't be? I'm particularly excited because the Playtex tampons were $6.99 a box, so already that alone would be $13.98 and I paid less than that for more items. Here are the breakdowns of the items:

• Playtex Sports tampons were $6.99 a box. There were $3 manufacturer's coupons on Red Plum online, so I had those printed out and ready to go. I had looked on the Target website to see how much they cost just in case I needed to price match at customer service, but that wasn't a problem at all.
• I knew I wanted to use the $5 off $15 personal care Target coupon, so I needed just a little over $1. I chose the Oral B Pro-Health Stage toothbrush (4-24 months) with a baby Winnie the Pooh on it for $2.54 because I had printed out a $0.50 coupon for it. It'll be included in the bucket of things I've purchased for my sister-in-law's baby. 
• The Up & Up Sport Sunscreen has been a clearance find on Instagram. People were getting it for super cheap when there was the buy 3 get 1 free promo. I had looked for it earlier in the week but couldn't find any. I just randomly spotted this on an endcap by itself. I scanned it for the price, but nothing came up. At the register, I asked the cashier how much it was, and nothing came up there either. I told her that I had seen others get it on clearance, so she just punched in $2 for me. I had a $1 Target coupon and the 5% Cartwheel, so it was $0.95 for all 3. I think that was a pretty good deal even though it's not a high SPF. I don't know if my dad needs it, but if not, it'll get used by us for Disney trips (I don't usually wear any at all except for on my face) and field day at school, haha. It doesn't expire until 2017, so we have time.
• The Up & Up crayons were $0.39 each, but I had printed out a $1.50 off 3 school supplies coupon when it was still available. Once it got out on Instagram that you could get free things with it, everyone printed it until it was gone. I had only printed out two. I kept procrastinating and didn't do it on Howard's computer or the laptop! Stupid me for waiting because I was able to get 6 boxes of crayons completely free! There was no overage, but I didn't mind at all. These will be used for Operation Christmas Child. I know there's a new mobile coupon for $1 off of 2 school items, so I will hopefully get 2 more boxes (or 4 if I get Howard's mobile coupon too).
• The hamburger buns were $1.13 with the 5% off Cartwheel deducted. Even though the milk isn't pictured, it was $3.17 after the 5% off Cartwheel.
• Lastly, I picked up two containers of Wet Ones. They were originally $2.74, but they were on price cut for $1.99. I had Target coupons for $0.50 off along with a manufacturer's coupon of $1 off of 2, so each one ended up being $0.99. These things are perfect for road trips since sometimes you need to actually clean your hands instead of just use hand sanitizer. I purposely picked the sensitive skin one because it said it was safe for babies. I will put one of them in the bucket for my sister-in-law so they can keep it in their car or something too.

Pretty good deals, wouldn't you say? Target hauls are never spectacular or super interesting, but I do like writing them up every once in a while because I have a record of the prices. I'm so glad we have a Target closer to home. Plus, it's right in the same shopping center as Five Below, but I'm getting ahead of myself!

Cheating at Dinner

On the days I sub, I go home really tired and not always wanting to make dinner. It really depends on how the day goes and whether I'm with elementary or middle school. Today was definitely one of those days since my body has been achy and not feeling the greatest due to the abundance of tree pollen! Of course, our apartment is in the midst of a TON of trees, so we breathe in a lot more than we did before we were married. It's so bad that I often have to spray and wipe the windshield before I can drive in the morning because it's so thickly caked on! This is actually the hood of our car!

Unfortunately, I discovered last night that I also had a stye in my right eye. My mom said I used to get them a lot when I was really young, but it was still kind of surprising to find one yesterday. I actually had to look it up to make sure that's what it was. Hot compresses have definitely helped, and it's going away on its own, thankfully. Silly me didn't know why my eye was bothering me for the past two or three days. I thought I had smacked my eye or upper cheek and there was a slight bruise or something, haha, because it has happened before if I hit the clothes rack when going to the bathroom in the middle of the night or something.

Those reason were definitely enough for me to cheat at dinner tonight! Okay, to be honest, I definitely would have gotten this deal regardless of how I was feeling since I could go to the Target closer by school where they have a better variety of some grocery items.

This week there is a buy one get one free deal with California Pizza Kitchen. Each one is $6.39, but I also used a $1.50 manufacturer's coupon (on the CPK website) for each as well as a $1.50 off 2 Target printable coupon. I'll gladly pay $1.89 for both of them!

It was funny because when I was on the line getting ready to pay, the husband of the couple in front of me looked at what I was getting and asked, "Is that pizza any good?" I told him that it was pretty good but only when it's on sale! The wife turned around and said, "Everything tastes better when it's on sale!" I did say that they're small though because they really are. I would never recommend getting it for full price, but I can't pass it up when it's just $0.95 for each one! 

Who Wants to Play?

A little over two weeks ago, I posted how I finally purchased Scattergories, which was and is one of my favorite games. Well, I added to my game collection this past week when I bought Taboo! This too was and is one of my favorite games! I remember when the wife of one of our former pastors at church introduced the game to us in youth group, and thereafter, so many of us were so eager to play any time we had a chance at a fellowship/barbecue/party at someone's house or at summer retreat.

One of the couples at church has the first edition of Taboo with the card holder and the buzzer. We had so much fun playing guys vs. girls when we had a couples potluck at their house last November. The girls won, of course, haha.

The newer version is a little different in that there is no holder (and I read that they don't fit in the old one) and there's a squeaker instead of a buzzer so there's no need for a battery. It does cost a lot less than the original, but the reason I chose this one was there are new words!

Since I printed out a $5 Hasbro game coupon that expired today, I knew I had to pick it up this past week. I kept checking the product page on Amazon so that I could price match it the same way I did with Scattergories, but the cost kept fluctuating between $9.99 and $16! I reread Target's price match policy and saw that they also will honor the prices at Best Buy, Walmart, Babies R Us, and Toys R Us. I checked Walmart and saw that the game was $11.80 but that there was also a rollback option on select Hasbro games including Taboo for $9.97! Score! A quick trip to customer service and a few minutes later, I was the owner of Taboo for just $5.85 including tax. The wonderful thing is that I used a Swagbucks gift card, so I didn't pay a cent out of pocket. How exciting!

I think that my obsession with word games is due to my mom. When I was young, she introduced Boggle to me, and we'd sit on the bed and the two of us would play rounds of Boggle! I remember how she'd write words that I didn't know, and when I asked her what they meant, sometimes we would look them up in the dictionary. I remember on one occasion, she found the word "gin" and we only knew it from "Gin Rummy," so we looked it up and I learned it was alcohol, haha. I guess those rounds of Boggle and the few times our family played Scrabble (which is, strangely, one of the word games I actually don't like anymore) stuck with me. Even when I was on the social committee for the church's summer retreat, I was the one who always made up games that had to do with words or letters whether they had to be drawn/acted and then guessed. 

Now that I have this game, who's ready to play? 

Recent Target Deals

Followers of my blog will clearly see that Target has started to become my one stop shop even though I still do hit the grocery stores for items that I can't find. At first, I preferred the supermarkets because of their policy on doubling coupons, but when the deal is better at Target. Plus, the added benefit is that lately I have no paid ONE CENT when it comes to my hauls. Though I still use coupons, of course, the reason why I haven't had to take out my wallet is because I've had Shopkick gift cards and been claiming $25 gift cards from Swagbucks. So far I've claimed $240 (a mix of Target and iTunes cards), and I'm waiting on another $50 right now (Target again and Amazon). If you're not using Swagbucks yet, you're missing out! If you decide to sign up, use my link here, please! I do benefit if you go through my referral link.

This was an old deal that I purchased on April 16. The Suave shampoo was the same as this post here. I actually did this deal 3 times, so I got a total of 9 bottles for free as I just kept rolling gift cards. The Frosted Mini Wheats was a great deal. I actually had to search for the 18 oz boxes because those were the only ones included in the promotion. I finally found them behind the cereal next to the other boxes! I wonder if someone tried to hide them, haha. I actually found 6, so my mom was able to get in on this deal too. They were on sale for $2.50 each, but there was a 50% Cartwheel offer and a manufacturer's coupon for $3 off 3 boxes of cereal! You can bet I printed a bunch of those when I had the chance! I could have printed more, but I forgot about it. Thankfully, it was actually a coupon offered on Kellogg's Family Rewards, so I still have at least 2 to use. That meant each box was just $0.25! Score! Lastly, the eggs were on sale that week for just $0.99, but I had Target mobile coupons for $0.50 off a dozen. Recently, the Incredible Edible Egg Facebook page had a rare coupon for $0.55 off any 2 dozen eggs, so I was able to use that as well making each box just $0.22. My mom did a transaction with the eggs as well, but she only needed one carton so that's why I have 3 in the picture. 

One of the deals from this past week was one I found in the Target ad. I didn't really see it on Instagram at all, but since we were in need of Band-Aids, it was a great price for me. The deal was buy 2 get 1 free, but I saw that there was a $2 off 3 coupon on HealthyEssentials. Each box was $6.49, so after the promotion and coupon, each box came out to $3.66 (about $0.06 per bandage). My mom mentioned that it might be cheaper at Costco, but we don't necessarily need all the different sizes. Plus, these were the fabric ones that don't come off when you wash your hands, so I was happy. I should probably put some in my bag, right? That way if I get injured at Stop & Shop again, I'll be prepared!

I actually went back to buy more Band-Aids The plastic strips were, of course, much less. Each box cost $2.29, so after the buy 2 get 1 free and the $2 coupon, it came out to just $0.86 each. On one of the clearance endcaps, they had the Up & Up brand of adhesive bandages for over $2! This was definitely a steal. Now we are completely stocked on Band-Aids, and I don't have to think about it for a while!

This last picture is clearly a luxury and not a necessity. I happened to see that there was a Target printable coupon for $1.50 off 2 bags and a manufacturer's coupon for $1.00 off 2 bags. I decided I was going to take a look at the price and see if it was worth purchasing, and let me tell ya, it was! They were on sale for $3! With the 10% Cartwheel offer, each bag cost only $1.52. That's much better than any clearance Easter candy because Dove chocolate is so decadent! After having one of the almond ones, I picked up the hazelnut ones on another Target trip. Normally I share my chocolate and candy with my former colleagues when I make little cards or treat bags once in a while when I sub, but these might be the ones I decide to hoard for myself, hehe.

There are other less exciting items purchased like sandwich fixings, but these were my favorite deals. And like I said earlier, out of pocket cost was absolutely NOTHING!

Easter Clearance at Target

I admit that I don't really get into the "hype" that precedes holidays. Obviously Easter and Christmas have more meaning because I'm a Christian, but even when Valentine's Day and Halloween roll around, there isn't any increase in excitement. Now that I do the shopping for the house though, I actually look excited to the clearance items after the holidays! I used to just check out CVS, but now that there's the Target closer to me, it's definitely a place for me to at least stop and look. I didn't anticipate finding much because I was at the store a few days earlier with my mom. It's usually the best time to buy candy, but I don't like jellybeans or Peeps. The chocolate available was also shaped as eggs and not all were individually wrapped, so I passed on all that.

The one thing I did absolutely fall for were the pails! In the pictures, they look like they're very easy to spot, but in reality, they were kind of behind other products or up high on shelves or down below. Thankfully, I actually made it out of the house earlier than normal because I got out of bed once Howard left for work, so I had the opportunity to peruse and choose what I wanted in relative peace. The only people that were there was a mom and her three kids, but they were primarily looking at candy. Just a half hour later or so, there were a ton of people in the area! There was one mom who left her kid in the stroller at the endcap because she didn't want to bother pushing her through the crowds! It really made me happy that I got "first" pick even though it's highly likely that others got there before I did, haha.

The robot pails were a good size, and I thought they'd be cute to stuff with baby gifts. Actually I debated whether or not I was going to post these pictures on my blog because I didn't want it to spoil the surprise, but I know it'll be okay because it's not the gift itself. It's kind of like, getting a cute pail instead of spending on a gift bag or wrapping paper since I don't have either. Anyway, I thought the robots were cute because they definitely don't look like they're Easter-themed. Originally sold at $5, they were on clearance for $0.50. Though I initially had those top four in my cart, I did put them back when I saw the larger pails.

The ice cream and cupcake pail was SUPER cute! If we had room to store things, I definitely would have bought it along with the few others I saw on a shelf in another spot. I think they would be perfect for a girl's birthday gift. Maybe I would've wanted to keep one for myself too, haha. But with the lack of storage space in our studio apartment, I chose to just get what I knew I would use. The funny thing is that when I went back to the clearance section, I saw someone put it in her cart. As she was texting, I interrupted her to tell her that there were more in a different location because at that time, I think ALL the pails were gone! It ended up being Jenny, someone I know from a local church who married a guy I knew from junior high! I also got to see her son for the first time who was unbelievably cute even though I could tell he was unsure of me. Haha, that's okay; I am technically a stranger!

I told Jenny that there were some fairy pails on the bottom shelf at the endcap. I think these would've been a great buy too for a girl's party, but I just had no use for it. These larger pails were originally $8 and were on clearance for $0.80. I just have to say ... who in the world would pay $8 for this?! I don't intend on doing Easter baskets for our kids because it just doesn't seem like that's something to be thinking about when we're supposed to be focusing on Christ's resurrection. Howard and I didn't get Easter baskets as kids either and didn't miss out on it. In fact, it was only when I started teaching that I realized that some families really took it seriously with the egg hunts and everything! The only tradition I had was that my grandparents would give us money to buy new shoes or a new outfit to wear on Easter Sunday. I just try to wear something new or at least somewhat new when we go to combined service. Am I digressing? Yes, I think I am.

Anyway, though the plan is not to do Easter baskets, I do have to say that I like how some people did them when I saw pictures on Instagram. I've been interested in Thirty-One lately, and I saw that some moms had separate small Thirty-One bags or totes or boxes of some sort that had their kids names on them that they used as the "basket." I think that would be a clever way to give gifts to the kiddies because they'd be easier to store than these ol' buckets!

Though I didn't buy any of the pails above, I did grab the stack of animal pails that I saw on a higher shelf. I really was happy to see that they were super cheap when I scanned them. Because it's an animal design, I know I can use it for a boy or girl baby or kid. 

I know gift bags can cost a lot for just being a bag, so this was a great buy. Of course, I am horrible and putting together gift baskets so that they look all nice with all the items properly placed, but I guess I'll worry about that when the time comes!

Vitamins, Guac, and Vinegar?

These particular items seem so random, but they were exactly what I intended to pick up when I last went to Target with my mom. Since I've been to work these past few days, we've been stopping at stores every once in a while because it helps us clear our heads and gives us more time to talk about what happened during the previous 7 hours when we were off doing our jobs! So even though these aren't major shopping trips, they're still things that I wanted to get since we pass by on the way home. It helps me avoid the long drive from the apartment to the shopping area.

I had been watching the clearance endcaps for the Centrum vitamins ever since I saw it on Instagram. The store never had it until just recently! There were a good amount available, so I decided to wait to see if the price would drop a bit lower. When I saw them at the 50% off price, I was still holding out for 70%. However, when I was at Target on Friday, there was only one more left on the shelf! I grabbed it at $4.98. I was disappointed that there weren't more than that, so my mom suggested I check the aisle where the other vitamins were. I didn't think I'd have any luck, but my mom was right! I spotted another one! I used manufacturer's coupons on each to save $2 so each set was only $2.98. Pretty good deal for vitamins, I think. The expiration date said June 2014, so I opened one today so Howard and I could take these while we pause on our vitamin gummies. I saw that only the smaller bottle has the 6/14 date, so there's no rush for the bigger one!

And yes, I like my vitamins to taste like candy, haha. It's mainly because I have an issue with swallowing pills. If I have to take my regular medication in pill form, I'm going to choose to avoid taking anything else if I can get it in the form of a gummy. The Centrum ones are similar to Skittles though they do have a vitamin aftertaste. We had tried it a few months ago as a free sample, so I knew that they were decent.

The Market Pantry vinegar was $1.07, but with the 5% Cartwheel offer and the $0.50 Target printable, it cost just $0.54 for each bottle. I read that an easy way to clean the microwave is to put some white vinegar in a bowl or cup (I have to check up on the details) and then microwave it for a certain amount of time. Then it'll make the inside easier to clean. Plus, we needed some white vinegar to clean our new humidifier. Pathmark had the same amount of Heinz white vinegar for $0.98, so I'm happy to know I got twice as much for the same price.

Just as an added note - the great thing about Cartwheel is that they have a feature where you can just scan the barcode of the item to check if there is an offer. I completely forgot about the Market Pantry CW offer when I saw it on Instagram, so I'm glad I take the time to scan my basket to save the extra $0.06!

Lastly, the Wholly Guacamole minis were the regular price of $5.19. I'm not someone who typically enjoys pre-made guacamole anymore ever since my parents started buying fresh avocados. The pre-made stuff just doesn't compare. However, I had requested a freebie coupon a while back and got it recently, so I wasn't going to pass up on it! Plus, the coupon was for anything up to $6.50, and the coupon autodeducted so I got $1.31 in overage that applied to the rest of the items in my cart.

I liked how my total was over $17 when the items were scanned, but then after coupons and Cartwheel, I paid under $6 for it especially when the trip included bottles of vitamins. Yay couponing!

Target, the New CVS

With the many trips I've been taking to Target lately, it has basically become my new CVS. I didn't realize that it was possible to coupon so well at this store mainly because I wasn't used to going to Target except on "special occasions." But once we finally got the second store, I started seeing that it'd be silly to pass up on some great deals! 

A few days ago, I decided to go for the Suave shampoo gift card deal. We really don't need shampoo at all, but this was actually a moneymaker. The only reason I was willing to do it was because I just got enough kicks on Shopkick to get a $5 gift card that I could roll. This entire transaction cost just $1.83 out of pocket, which includes tax, of course.

The Suave shampoo was on sale for $2.89, but I used a $1.50 manufacturer's coupon on each. When you buy 3, you get a $5 gift card. So the bundle only cost $4.17 to get the $5 gift card.

The Palmolive was on price cut for $2.73, but I used a $1.25 Target coupon on each (one was mobile, one was a paper copy that my mom had mailed to her house) along with the $0.50 manufacturer's coupon. I don't need dish detergent either, but I got excited about the fact that they have different scents. When you do dishes so often by hand, it's nice to have variety! I know that sounds silly, but an option of fragrance really makes it a little easier to deal with this chore. I grabbed these particular bottles because they had the little sponges attached to them. It's basically like a freebie!

I have to say that this was one of the easier couponing trips because it was clearly not complex. However, the cashier seemed to be distrusting of me and tried handing back the Palmolive coupons back to me after he scanned one of the Target ones. Before I could say that they were manufacturer's coupons, he must have realized it himself and pulled his hand back to scan them. He also checked my bags to see that I did indeed have enough products for each coupon. I completely understand that it's necessary because there are those who have been committing coupon fraud. All cashiers should be doing that, but I think it should just be part of how they check customers out and not make it seem as if I'm trying to steal from the store. Oh well, I guess there are always going to be dishonest people making it difficult for the rest of us.

For me, it's worth spending the $1.83 out of pocket to get the $5 gift card because I've been hitting Target more often for groceries these days. Couponing really needs to be a personal thing though as you have to ask yourself if it's worth the out of pocket cost. If I didn't have the Shopkick gift card, I would not have done this deal.

No More Junior!

Most of the time, I coupon to spend as little out of pocket as possible. But once in a while, a great deal pops up for something that's clearly NOT a necessity. Well, let me clarify that statement. It might not be a necessity for YOU, but in this case, it was definitely a must have for me! 

I had seen on Free Stuff Finder (one of the freebies/coupon/deals sites I check) that there was a deal for Scattergories. The great part of the deal was that there's currently a $5 off coupon! You can find it on coupons.com. I just didn't see a need for the two games listed in the scenario, but then I remembered Target's price matching policy. I checked Amazon and saw that the game was $9.99. With the manufacturer's coupon, I could get it for $4.99!

I was beyond excited because Scattergories is one of my FAVORITE games that I just don't have. My older brother had Scattergories Junior when we were growing up, and I just adored playing it. I really love any type of word game because they're challenging and they make my competitive side come out! When I've been on our church's retreat's social committee, I'm the one who always comes up with words games. I even got many of my past students into one particular definition word game called Blurt that I picked up at Christmas Tree Shops for just a few dollars. I just love how it's so fitting for all ages too. The Junior version only has a few letter options on that alphabet block that you roll. The categories are also rather general. So it was about time I finally got the regular version!

When I went to Target with my mom after work today, I checked the games aisle and saw that there was ONE MORE GAME LEFT! It was sitting there just waiting for me. Hooray!

I brought it to Guest Services so that it could be price matched. The policy online states that the customer needs to be able to show it on his/her phone or have a printout, so I had the Amazon page ready. The employee glanced at it and then looked it up on her tablet to verify and rung me up right there using the $5 coupon too. I was and still am so thrilled! Sure, I do only spend pocket change on shampoo and dish detergent, but this is definitely worth the cost. Even so, I'm so glad I was able to get it so much cheaper!

I'm looking forward to playing this game. I don't know who else is into it as much as I am though other than some of my former students. The funny thing is that YEARS ago on the last day of school of either the 2008 or 2009 year, one of my former students that I nicknamed Apple Andrew (he gave me an apple on my first day of teaching, and I assigned nicknames to my kids so that my mom would remember who was who when I told her stories) brought Scattergories because they were allowed to bring in board games. A bunch of us played round after round of it, and I was enjoying myself so much!

Then a few years later, I was moving books from another classroom into my own room since I had received a big green cabinet for storage. I found the game at the top of a cabinet and knew it had been there for at least the past two years. It didn't even occur to me that it could have been Apple's game. I figured another teacher had left it there. Since no one was using it, I brought it back to my classroom just in case there was ever an opportunity to play it before a long holiday break. 

When Apple's younger sister Christina was in the 8th grade, I pulled it out to play on the last day of school. She exclaimed, "Wait, I think that's Andrew's!" I hadn't opened it earlier, so we checked the box and saw the names of his classmates on the sheets of paper because that's when it was last played! Haha, we laughed about it so hard because it was so funny that years later, Christina would be able to bring it home after we enjoyed playing round after round. 

It's been almost a year since that happened, and I'm definitely ready to play some more because it's been too long. Who's with me?

Baby Onesie Crazy!

A couple of days ago, I posted a picture of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles onesie that I saw at Target fairly recently. Well, when I went back to the store just two days ago, I saw that they had more!

 

 

My favorite one is definitely the Snow White one because the primary colors look so bright! One of my friends told me on Facebook that the onesies don't necessarily make the most sense because if you have to put pants on the baby, it defeats the purpose of having the entire look. These would definitely be super cute in warmer weather though! They're crazy expensive though, so I'll just continue to take pictures of them and maybe when we have our own baby, I'll buy ONE if it's on clearance or something, haha. My crafty friend Melisa mentioned on Facebook as well that I could make things like this with my Silhouette Cameo. Hmm, that would be an interesting project to take on once I finally master the machine (and that would require taking it out of the box first!).

How Much?

I don't watch many YouTubers, but the one channel I absolutely love is itsJudysLife. Judy and Benji do a daily vlog, and it's so fun having been able to watch their daughter Julianna's first year of life and also see the recent addition of their new twin girls, Miya and Keira. Benji is a food fanatic, and he loves trying out new recipes and perfecting them to their liking. Once he makes a new dish, he often asks the person tasting it, "How much would you pay for this?" 

Every time I take a picture of a haul and post it on my blog, I'm so tempted to just start off the update by asking, "How much do you think I paid for this?" Cuz seriously, I get so super happy about not having to pay much for FRESH FOOD!

Well, the total of today's Target run was $4.96, which included tax! I was rather thrilled because that included, as you can see, a pound of ground beef, a bag of Brussels sprouts, and a box of Driscoll's strawberries! Here's the breakdown and the deals that helped me get all of this for a few dollars:

The ground beef is on sale for 15% off this week. The package is supposed to be $3.99, which is actually a LOT for just a pound of meat, but there was also a 5% Cartwheel offer and a mobile coupon for $1 off $1 or more of fresh meat. It made sense to pick it up for $2.22 especially since I probably will be too tired to do the homework and the errands next week when I'm going to work for four of the five days.

This week the Driscoll's strawberries originally $3.47 were on sale for $1.79. There was a 5% Cartwheel offer on fresh berries plus a mobile coupon $1 off $1 or more fresh fruit purchase. That made the whole box just $0.79! That's even cheaper than what we got this past Sunday in Chinatown! The ones from Target are also a lot bigger and redder, so hopefully they're sweet since we did have to add sugar to our strawberry and mango mix.

The bag of Brussels sprouts were $2.79, but I used the mobile coupon for $1 off $1 or more fresh vegetable purchase. Seriously, I am so in love with these mobile coupons that can be used on fresh food items! It's so rare to get coupons for these things, so it's a good play on Target's part because I often look there instead of just at the supermarkets.

We already have plenty of dish detergent even after giving some bottles to my family. I just kept picking up Dawn bottles at CVS when there was a sale and coupon because I usually needed some items to soak up the overage of my manufacturer's coupons, redbox coupons, and ExtraBucks. But you know how I am about leaving free things in the store! The Seventh Generation dish detergent is a HUGE bottle on sale for $3.19. I used a 10% Cartwheel offer, a $1 manufacturer's coupon, and a $1 Target printable coupon to get it down to $0.97. That price would have been good enough for me to try out a new eco-friendly product, but there's also a $1.00 offer via ibotta (click here to sign up through my referral link), so it was kind of free since I already submitted my receipt. I don't consider these things completely free because I still had to pay $0.97 out of pocket right now. The extra apps that I use are more for bonuses.

The Up & Up foam scrubbers are just $1.19 regular price, but I used the $1 off Up & Up household cleaning item mobile coupon to get it for $0.19. It's always nice having sponges like these for cleaning.

Okay, so I saved the best for last. If you've been reading my blog for a while, you might remember that a while ago I picked up Renuzit cones from CVS. I put them on the shelf in the bathroom for a simple, clean scent. They were on sale for $1.02 each, but I had seen on Instagram that the "Buy 2 Get 1 Free" coupon was autodeducting the full amount! That meant that instead of paying $2.02 for all 3 cones, I got them for free with $1.11 in overage since the coupon deducted $4.17! Ahh, autodeducting is the greatest. 

I think that I was pretty successful in stretching that $5.00 today!

Heroes in a Half-Shell ... TURTLE POWER!

I subbed today for another elementary school class, so I'm exhausted from that. It's really so different than middle school because although the material is easy, maintaining the class requires a lot more energy. That energy that I used today is the energy that I would have used to write a lengthier blog post, haha, so this will have to do for today. I already konked out after taking a shower!

In these past few days, I keep seeing news on Facebook that more and more people are having babies! It's so crazy that EVERYONE is pregnant! I've already gotten used to checking out the baby clearance section at Target, haha. I just had to share this one outfit that I saw last week.

Isn't this so cute?! I immediately thought about how it'd be perfect for my older brother or my cousin Jason if their wives were having babies. Growing up, we used to play our uncle's Super Nintendo at my grandparents' house. While my girl cousins and I preferred Mario Kart whenever we had the chance to get our hands on the controllers, the boys also loved playing Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. I remember how we girls used to sit there and watch them play and act silly, so this onesie (with detachable turtle shell cape!) immediately made me think of them!

The Bright Side

There's no way I'll be able to write a full blog post today after having subbed in a lower elementary school class today. Nothing went horribly wrong, but I'm just so out of my element because I feel as if God made me to be a teacher of middle school kids and not little ones! It took a lot out of me physically and mentally, and I have a pretty bad headache. It's the kind of headache that makes my head feel hot even to the hubs, so it's definitely cause for an early night.

There were definitely some highlights of the day though!

(1) I got to see my mom and go to work with her. We definitely got used to seeing each other 5 days a week  (not including church) even after I got married because I'd drive to my parents' house and then we'd carpool to school. It didn't make sense for us to have 2 cars there when it's kind of in the middle of nowhere.

(2) I got to see my former colleagues! I really miss them, and I appreciate just how welcoming they are when I return to sub. There's a reason why it was so important for me to have a table of my closest colleagues at our wedding reception!

(3) I enter a bunch of contests each day as I have the links bookmarked and saved in a folder. You know how I feel about free things! Well, I finally won a sponge from The Libman Company! It probably sounds silly that I can get so excited about that considering I also enter the contests like the Bed Bath & Beyond/Yankee Candle island vacation, but I'm a housewife now and like useful free items.

(4) Mom and I stopped by Target really quickly just so I could check for a few clearance items. Neither of us really had the patience or energy to look after an exhausting day, so I just browsed super quickly in the kitchen appliance area. There was nothing there, but I did check my phone to see if I saved any of the recent Target deals because I usually screenshot anything on Instagram that interests me. I checked for the Special K Moments and bought two boxes using the 50% Cartwheel (can only be used on 2) and the $0.75 off 2 peelie that's on the box. I chose the caramel pretzel ones because I'm not a fan of coconut and ate one in the car on the way home since I was low on energy. Pretty gosh darn tasty! Definitely a fan and would highly recommend it considering two boxes end up being $1.75. It's the perfect thing to just keep in your bag for those hunger pangs.

Oh, let's not forget that despite the long day, I will get paid for it, haha. That's always a plus. And that is all because it's 9:30pm and it's definitely time for bed. Good night all!

Solo-ing and Saving

Before I jump into a recap about my latest solo adventure, I just wanted to let you readers know (you know, like the 5 of you, haha) that I added the "Follow by Email" option on the left side. I thought it was there all along, but I guess it wasn't. If you're addicted to my senseless rambling about coupons and crafting, you can follow me that way. As you can see, I've been good with posting EVERY SINGLE DAY so far in 2014 because I know the world wants a bit of Love & Sushi every day.

Last Wednesday, I was finally recovered enough to head out to do the weekly errands. That's the day I did the CVS and Target hauls that I posted about these previous two days. I got a bunch of kicks by walking in JCPenney, Macy's, aerie, and American Eagle. After 3 visits, Howard and I finally found the spot where the signal can be easily detected in AE. It's a little awkward because I feel bad just walking in, pretending to look, and walking out especially since they have a guard. I texted that to Howard and he said, "Loss prevention never stops." Haha. I was so close when I walked into the mall at first, so it was totally worth the extra steps to get 1250 kicks because that's the gift card I used on the Target haul that I posted yesterday.

No Vinylmation trades at the Disney Store that day. The guy was nice and showed all of them to me, but nothing was of interest. Plus, one of our vampire Goofy and one of our werewolf Pluto Vinylmation were in there. They still had the cute tumblers for $4.99, but I couldn't justify getting it even though I still have merchandise credit with them. Tumblers make me drink a lot more water. I think it's the straw, but I'd totally knock down glasses if they didn't have lids on 'em!

I stopped by Bath & Body Works even though I knew I would NOT be buying anything. I checked out the new Hawaii candles, and I actually didn't like any of them. I sniffed them really quickly, and nothing beats the citrus ones I already have. I just was so curious to see how they were considering there are many fans of the scents. The candles do have pretty colored wax though.

The reason I stopped by in the store was to use my free travel-sized item coupon that I got in the mail. I chose the new Hawaii body wash because I have plenty of lotion. I have another coupon so I'll pick up another item soon.

The next stop was Target, and I briefly strolled through the Dollar Spot just so my phone could pick up the kicks near the entrance. Star Wars notebooks!

I also strolled through the accessories section pretty quickly and saw this super cute necklace for 70% off at $5.08. I actually contemplated getting it and using my free gift card on it, but knowing I could use it on a whole slew of things instead just didn't make sense. Plus, I very rarely wear jewelry anyway.

I found the Simple face care starter kit for just $2.48 and put it in my cart to think about because I have a $2 manufacturer's coupon. I ended up putting it back since I don't need it. I'm sure it'll be snatched up quickly from that endcap as there was only one.

I actually didn't have time to go around scanning items for kicks, but I did look in the pet care section and the laundry/cleaning section for the easy things. Every time I go, I know someone has been there before me to scan for Shopkick because the items that are required are moved so the bar code faces forward or taken down from a different shelf. It's kind of irritating to think that someone can't just put the item back where it belongs! Yes, of course, I put that Gain back on the top shelf after I scanned it myself.

I also had this Giada clearance item in my cart too because I LOVE spatulas. We have one regular one, but sometimes I find that it'd be helpful to have another because they're much better and wiping the side of a pot when cooking or making eggs. But I did the math and discovered that it wouldn't make sense to pay $3.98 (originally $7.99) for this one item when I knew my entire cart of items would cost $4 something. There was only one left, so if it's still there and marked down to 70% off the next time I go, it might come home with me. Maybe I'll cash in some Swagbucks for a Target gift card.

The supermarkets were last because it was a warm day (warm as in, I was doing the shopping without a jacket), and I didn't want to leave anything cold in the car. Pathmark was first. The main thing I had to get was 12 jars of Francesco Rinaldi tomato sauce. Yup, 12. They were having the dozen sale where each thing would be $0.78. Nothing else that was an option made sense, so we decided to do 12 jars of sauce instead. I knew Howard would be home by the time I got home, so I wouldn't have issues transporting it upstairs. In actuality, they're still in the car because it was pouring when I got home that day and figured there'd be no use taking the time to move them. We have NO room in our little pantry, but I will find a way to store them in our spare under the bed storage or something!

When I went to pay, I immediately noticed the gum and realized I was drawn to it because of the fact that it's now lit! Did they really spend money just to light this area? But I guess it makes sense because I never look at it, and that day not only did I look at it, I also took a picture of it, haha.

The second to last stop was Stop & Shop. I went and picked up everything on my list before heading to the freezer section. I saw that Luigi's now has orange ice! I can't wait to get that in the summer. Since neither of us eat ice cream, once in a while we like getting Italian ice to have as a cool treat on the hot days. 

The bulk of my time was actually spent in the freezer section because they were having a deal where you buy $25 worth of participating items and save $15 instantly. In my mind, this means paying $10 for items you NEED and getting $15 worth of items for free. So when I did the homework ahead of time, I just made sure that it was worth my spending $10, and it was! 

My original plan didn't work out because they didn't have everything I had intended to get for my mom and for me, so I decided not to do it. That meant I couldn't use the $3 off $60 S&S coupon I received in the mail either since I wasn't getting a bunch of frozen items. When I got on one of the long lines, I started doing the quick computations from my list and realized I was so close to $60, so I got off the line to do the math carefully. I went back to grab some frozen things and got back in another long line. Then I did the math AGAIN and realized that I had $11 worth of frozen items in my cart. Leaving with that just wouldn't make sense because it was as if I were leaving without my free items! So I got off the line for the second time and picked up more items! Back in line for the third time! Then I realized that ... no, I'm just kidding. Haha, the third time was definitely correct after I used the calculator on my phone for exact numbers and my trusty pen. 

Hehe, I was just explaining it to Howard and showing him how I wrote all over my printed list, and he said, "You must be so cute to watch when you're in the store." I've become a couponer! It's just part of the game, but if my hubs thinks I'm cute, I'm good with that.

Anyway, my cart filled with groceries was $130.82, and even though it's not as high as those on TLC's Extreme Couponing, I also get a little nervous! With all the savings, it came out to $54.76, which means I saved 58% on groceries! That cost also included 3 items for my parents, meat, and a few "luxuries" like hummus and Whole Fruit sorbet with Greek yogurt, but I'm absolutely okay with that. Hooray!    

After I loaded everything into the car, I drove by my parents' house and dropped off a few groceries that I got for them and then made my way home. I was grateful that it wasn't raining by the supermarkets because I would've had to handle it all alone. Howard was waiting for me when I pulled up to the door, so we were able to unload fairly quickly despite the rain. Phew! Another solo adventure for the books!