La La La ... I Love Target!

As I mentioned in yesterday's update, I don't like posting about couponing so many days in a row, but i just feel that it needs to be done in case anyone is stopping by CVS or Target today before the deals are up. This is my latest Target purchase for only $4.79 out of pocket! 

The Kotex pantyliners is a deal I've done before. This is actually the third time so it's nothing too complicated. The Target coupon is just $1.50 off 2 Kotex products, so getting the 16 pack of pantyliners at $1.09 each means that it only costs $0.34 per pack.

The Suave shampoo was free with overage. Each bottle was just $2.74, and there happened to be a $1.50 manufacturer's coupon and a $1.50 Target printable coupon. We don't need shampoo, but it was free! Plus, we change out shampoos once we finish a bottle. I didn't check out the scents in the store, but at home, I took a whiff. I like the Awapuhi Ginger and Honeysuckle one over the Macadamia Oil and White Orchid. 

I had to grab some super inexpensive cereal too! The boxes of Special K were cheap because there was a 50% Cartwheel offer that could be used on only 2 boxes. Each box was originally $2.99, and I had a $0.50 coupon on the Red Berries variety. That meant it was only $1 for each.

The Up & Up toilet brush was normally $1.19, and I used a $0.75 off Target printable. It'll soon become a $0.44 germ holder that will have to be eventually thrown away.

Lastly, my favorite part of the haul was the shorts! I've read over and over again that having cute workout clothes makes you more willing to go workout. I found these C9 shorts in the clearance section for just $5.08 each. I snagged them because they were originally $16.99 and now 70% off. I love that there's a layer underneath that's more like bike shorts but still has the swishy material on top. I hate having to worry about wearing loose shorts when using the weight machines, but I also don't want to wear tighter shorts because of the underwear line, haha. This gives me the benefit of both! They only had one medium left for both, so it was a great deal for me. I also used the $3 off 2 women's apparel coupon.

The subtotal after coupons and Cartwheel was $9.74, but I was able to snag another $5 Target gift card through Shopkick before I even showed up at the store, so that covered half of it! Thus, all this stuff for just $4.79 including tax. Score! Now here's to putting the shorts to good use and getting back on track with exercise ... um, starting Monday?

Back To Where It All Began, CVS!

As a personal "rule," I don't usually like posting couponing updates in a row on my blog, but considering the deals were from this past week, I figured I'd do it now just in case any readers want to run to CVS or Target tomorrow. So yes, that means this will be on my blog once I'm done writing it AND I will write and schedule the post of my more recent Target haul tomorrow the moment it becomes Saturday!

I headed back to CVS after not going to the stores for so long, but they drew me in because they emailed a survey to me that gave me $5 ExtraBucks. My initial thought was I'd go use it to pay for the majority of another bottle of Tums Ultra Strength 1000 in Peppermint because those things are quite amazing for my reflux. I take it after having something like tomato sauce so that I can prevent feeling sick afterwards. Plus, who wouldn't want some more calcium? 

Well, that week I was going to use it, I started seeing this preview deal for Culturelle. This 30-ct box of probiotics is normally $23.99, but it was on sale for $10 with $10 ECB. With a $3 manufacturer's coupon I printed online with the $5 ECB from the survey, I only paid $2 out of pocket to get $10 ECB back! That's a pretty great deal because I knew I'd be able to use the ExtraBucks on things I needed and only have to pay a minimal amount out of pocket. I've been told to take probiotics or eat more yogurt after being sick, so now I have them for those moments. 

The perfect opportunity to roll those $10 ECB came this week! Even though I said I wouldn't take the time to deal with CVS like I used to, I couldn't just spend it knowing there was a way to get items for free and still have the money to spend on Tums afterwards.

The Nature Made gummies vitamins are originally $15.79 but were on sale for $5.99 with $4 ECB. I had a $2 CVS redbox coupon for vitamins and was able to print a $1 Nature Made manufacturer's coupon from the website. That made it a $1 moneymaker. 

The Almay Intense I-Color eyeliner was also a great way to roll ECBs. I can't stand the thought of having to buy eyeliner anywhere near full price, so when I can snag them like this, I don't pass at the chance. The original price of just one is $9.29, which is ridiculous when in reality, women don't NEED to wear makeup at all! The deal was that they were on sale for $5.99 with $6 ECB back when you buy 2. There was a $5 off 2 Almay product coupon on coupons.com that I was able to print out when it was reset because I missed it the first time not thinking I'd need it for anything. That means that it would be paying $6.98 out of pocket to get $6 back making each eyeliner only $0.49! Score!

Since I had the $10 ECB, I needed to spend all of it at once or it'd beep, so I added on two new nail polishes even though I clearly do not need them. The Wet n Wild brand was on sale buy 1 get 1 for 50%, and I had $1 manufacturer coupons. I got the Megalast in Club Havana for $1.99 and the Wild Shine in Caribbean Frost for half off at $0.50, so both polishes only cost $0.50 after the coupons, which is exactly what I needed to use my ECB.

In short, I used my $10 ECB to pay for my haul after coupons and only had to pay $0.52 out of pocket to get another $10 ECB back. The one thing I wanted to get was the vitamins, so I see it as paying $2.52 out of pocket for it if I include the cost of the Culturelle. Definitely worth it for us. 

I ended up stopping by the CVS near my mom's house too to check for clearance. The items at my store weren't marked down enough. The redbox was also out of order, so I couldn't scan to check the prices! I had to ask an employee if I could scan at self-checkout to check and then she had to void the order. I was most interested in the cereal because Howard and I go through phases where we eat a lot of cereal. I guess that's what happens when you have a small fridge/freezer and can't stock up on other breakfast items. Cereal will keep for quite some time! Plus, it's cheaper to be paying less than $2 for a box of cereal that will be many meals or snacks for the two of us. But alas, my CVS was still only 50% off. Can you believe that in NY, the cereal at CVS is close to $6 a box?! WHO WOULD BUY THAT?!

At my mom's CVS, I was successful in finding two boxes of Kashi Heart to Heart cereal for just $1.37. The Corn Chex was $2.64, so I wasn't going to get that. But then I thought about it. If I bought just the Kashi, I'd be paying $2.74 out of pocket. There was definitely a better way to do this especially since I also had the vitamins coupons to use on Howard's card.

I basically did the same vitamins deal as I did above, paying $2.99 out of pocket. Then I just ripped the $4 ECB from my receipt to use on cereal. I needed to use it all at once, so I did pick up the last box of Chex and a $0.60 manufacturer's coupon. That meant I only had to pay $0.78 for the second transaction. A total of $3.77 for a bottle of vitamins AND 3 boxes of cereal? Um, yes! That's just $1.03 more for the vitamins and Chex compared to just buying the Kashi out of pocket. 

And yes, as always, I paid for ALL three transactions with change. I know it's kind of ridiculous standing there feeding tons of pennies into the self-checkout machine, but I'm STILL using the change I had saved from years of years of tossing spare coins in my Keroppi bank and my Pochacco bank. It makes it feel as if I'm not really spending money at all because that money has been sitting in those banks for so long. If there's no one waiting on line for me to finish paying, I don't worry much even though I know the employees watch me, haha. 

I'm doing a pretty decent job with my more "casual" couponing for food and necessities these days, don't you think?

Hauling Food for Less Than $6

If you've been reading my blog since my first couponing adventures at CVS, you'll notice that the items I get nowadays have changed drastically. Since we're well-stocked on shampoos and soaps, it gives me plenty of time to focus on couponing for food! Now that we have the Target right by the supermarkets, it's especially easy to stop there for good deals instead of just being limited to Stop & Shop and Pathmark. 

This past Saturday, Howard and I stopped by Target before heading to my parents' house for my dad's birthday dinner. This is what we were able to pick up for just $5.69 out of pocket! Isn't that awesome? The 5lb box of Cuties clementines is $7.99 regular price and was on sale for $5.99, so the fact that we paid less out of pocket for the entire haul makes me an extremely happy camper because frugal is the name of the game.

I'm so glad I did all the "homework" ahead of time because we had to limit ourselves when we were in the store because we also had to stop by Mother Mousse before heading over. Here's the breakdown of what we got.

As stated above, the Cuties clementines was the 5 lb box. The $7.99 item was on sale for $5.99, but it was an even sweeter deal because I used a $1.00 off fresh fruit Target mobile coupon. I was excited to get these because when we have fruit at home, Howard and I usually have to split it because it's too much acid for me at once. Now I can just eat one or two when I'm craving fruit or just want a snack. Huh, I just noticed the box says California Mandarins, haha. Is there a difference? Anyway, they're a bit tart but not too bad. I just know they're not sweet enough for my mom yet. I wonder if they'll improve as this is just the start of the season.

The Nutella was on sale for $2.99 when the original price was $4.19 each. I had printed out a "buy one, get one free" coupon maybe about a month ago and was waiting for a good deal. The even better thing was that on a quick shopping trip to a grocery store, someone had left a Nutella hangtag coupon in the basket for $1.00 off for the 13 oz jars too, so that meant extra savings for me! The coupon could have autodeducted, but the cashier plugged in $1.00. I had caught it and said that $2.99 should be taken off instead, and he just went back and deleted one of the jars, which I'm pretty sure was not a good thing since I was taking a jar out of the store. But in terms of price, that meant I paid only $1.00 for each jar. That works for me because now that I typically stay away from peanut butter, I use more hazelnut things instead.

The 4 packages in the front are a strange buy, I know. They're the Oscar Mayer P3 Protein Power Packs. I got the turkey, chicken, and ham, which is basically one of each. It's basically just cheese, nuts, and the meat in a little plastic package, but I figured it would be a good thing for Howard to take to work since once in a while, he doesn't have the chance to grab lunch. Each packet is normally $1.79, which I personally think is ridiculous. I wouldn't even pay $0.25 for a pack considering I pay for CVS hauls with my precious quarters. But these were on sale for $1.50 each with a 50% off Cartwheel offer and a $0.75 manufacturer's coupon. So that means I had to pick them up because you know my policy of "If it's free, I can't leave it in the store!"

The little magnetic paper clips were on clearance for $1.58, but I used a 20% off Cartwheel offer and a $1.00 school supplies coupon to pick them for just $0.46. They were originally $3.19 and not something I would really pick up, but I clip my coupons together when I prepare my shopping trips, and I liked the idea of having the magnets since sometimes the regular paper clips annoy me. There are 8 in the pack, so I'm happy with the purchase.

The final deal includes the 3 boxes of cereal and 2 boxes of waffles. Target was having a deal where you get a $5 gift card when you buy 5 breakfast items. The cereal was $2.75 per box and the Eggo was $2.25. These are not purchase prices for me, but with coupons and the gift card deal, it was worth getting. The better deal would have been to get 4 boxes of waffles and just 1 box of cereal, but we just don't have that kind of room in our freezer! Thankfully, I didn't go to the store earlier because the day I was supposed to go, Kellogg's Family Rewards emailed a $1.00 off 2 boxes coupon. Yay! That meant each box was $1.75. Then I had $0.50 coupons for the cereal, so each box was $2.25. The total amount of the 5 items was $10.25. But the fantastic thing was that I knew I was going to use a $5.00 Shopkick gift card on it and get the $5.00 back, so the only money that I actually had to pay was $5.25 for all the items! That's a GREAT deal on these breakfast items especially since we were running low on cereal.

I did actually use my other gift card from the Shopkick app too, so thanks so much, Shopkick* for paying for 2/3 of my Target haul! The sales associate said to me, "You came prepared!" and I said that it took a good amount of time doing my homework ahead of time, but it was just SO worth it. Hooray! I don't mind paying for fruit and vegetables because you can't really coupon for those things, but I appreciate the mobile coupons from Target to save $1 here and there on fresh food. That's why I like seeing this haul as paying for the fruit and getting everything else for FREE! Free, my favorite word.

And Once Again, Roasting!

After having a delicious experience roasting zucchini and then asparagus, I really was serious when I said I was ready to roast EVERYTHING! At first, the desire to roast was more about the ease of just tossing the veggies with some olive oil, salt, and pepper and leaving it in the oven. Minimal preparation time and minimal cook time is a great plus when you have a rather small kitchen and a lack of space on the stove. But Howard and I are clearly just addicted to it because it tastes so good! The roasting brings out all these intense flavors that you can't really draw out just by using the stove.

One of the more recent vegetables that we tried was carrots. I had baby carrots on hand because when they're on sale, I like to grab a bag so I can have a snack during the day. I don't really have a sweet tooth, but I definitely have a bad habit of wanting salty potato chips or tortilla chips and salsa. For me, carrots are actually a pretty good replacement for any bad-for-me snacks because I get the crunchiness that I really enjoy. Considering we had them in the fridge, it was only natural that I'd want to roast those too!

The directions are pretty much the same for the majority of the vegetables, but I still like having a recipe to follow because I know the oven temperature can vary. They came out really good! The sweetness of the carrot was really noticeable. We had used some in salad a few days earlier, so I could tell there was a difference between the raw and roasted. Because we had so many of the green veggies lately, I was really looking forward to a different taste, and this definitely satisfied my craving for something a little different. I'm curious to know how these veggies would taste with some Cajun seasoning! Maybe next time!

Celebrating Daddy's Birthday

Yesterday was my dad's birthday, so this past Saturday, the family gathered together to eat dinner in celebration. Since Howard and I were going to my parents' house to carpool with them, we left a little earlier to run a few errands since everything is in that area. That included stopping by the mall and getting some kicks for Shopkick. So far I've gotten and used $10 in Target gift cards, and Howard has used $5. After one more day out, I should have enough for another $5 gift card. Pretty awesome deal considering it's mainly from walk-ins. Well, when it comes to aerie and Macy's, it's more like, walk-near, haha. I took a picture of the bench outside of aerie because that's as close as you need to get for the phone to pick up the signal.

Oh, and I figured I'd throw this photo in too. When on vacation, I have a tendency to take random photos because I usually keep my digital camera in my hand and absentmindedly click. I guess I sometimes do it with my phone too because I got this shot of Howard and the mall floor!

We made a very quick run to Target to grab some awesome deals since it was the last day of the sale week. I'll probably post a rundown of those things in another update later this week. Before we headed to my parents' house, we stopped by Mother Mousse so I could pick up a birthday cake. I knew that I'd get the Triple Decker mousse cake like we usually do, so I didn't take the time to look at everything in the case. Besides, it was actually rather busy, and I also knew there was no need for temptation!

For dinner, my dad chose to eat at Don Pepe in NJ. I fell asleep in the car on the way there because this weekend was just full of fatigue for me. Thankfully, I'm starting to regain my energy. I was feeling okay on Saturday though, so I was able to enjoy dinner with my parents, my older brother Jonathan, my sister-in-law Theresa, my younger brother Matt, and my hubs, of course. It's strange because as a kid, I couldn't stand the restaurant because I wasn't a fan of Spanish food. I'm still not a fan, but good company makes the food taste better to me! 

Though we were given bread to start, we didn't really dig into it because we wanted to save it to dip in the green sauce of our appetizer.

The first appetizer we had was clams in green sauce. I don't like clams, but I don't mind when they order this because I put some sauce on my plate and soak it up with the bread that's crusty on the outside but soft on the inside.

The second appetizer was fried calamari, which I actually ate! Back when I started my first (and only) year of seminary, I ended up in the hospital because of a severe gallbladder attack. We didn't know what it was at the time, but I had a high fever and intense pain making it difficult to move or even breathe. My parents took me to the ER after calling my GI doctor who said that it was possible I had fluid in my lungs. I was sent home the next morning with no answers despite a chest x-ray and a CT scan. However, after getting a HIDA scan days later, it was discovered that my gallbladder was barely functioning. That meant that the pizza and fried calamari I had eaten from Denino's that night triggered the attack because it was high in fat! After that point, I refused to eat Denino's pizza again and fried calamari from anywhere because the thought of it just made me feel sick. I couldn't even smell it without feeling sick. About 6 years later, I finally got over my disgust for calamari, haha. I don't how or why, but one day I just wanted it again! That means on special occasions such as this one, I can enjoy a little bit of fried goodness.

For the entrees, my parents and sis-in-law ordered the Chilean sea bass special. I took a picture of my mom's plate, which was the least attractive one. It looks like the piece fell apart when someone transferred it to the plate to serve. The other two were larger and more presentable.

Howard ordered the roast suckling pig (boy, was that delicious!) special, my older brother had the same veal that he used to get when he was a kid, and my younger brother had shrimp in green sauce. I ordered the rigatoni special which had shrimp and lobster in tomato cream sauce. When this is offered, I always get it or some variation of it. I've had it with shrimp and scallops before too, but this time it was tastier because of the lobster! I had seen someone's blog just two days earlier where the two friends went to eat lobster rolls, so I had lobster on the mind! I was happy to see really big chunks of it in the pasta instead of small bits. Plus, there were a ton of shrimp included as well although it was a tad bit overcooked. Since having shrimp from Sanaa at Animal Kingdom Lodge in Disney World, I've gotten spoiled with perfectly cooked shrimp!

They brought some sides to the table to share. One plate was a vegetable mix that included green beans, zucchini, and carrots. As I write this right now, I've had the opportunity of roasting all of these, and I have to say, roasting really is the way to go! It brings out so much more of the natural flavors like the sweetness of the carrots and the green bean-ness of the green beans.

There was also a plate of yellow rice too, but everyone dug into that before I was able to snap a picture. My favorite was the potato slices/chips. I think they are so much better than how they used to be served. In the past, they were thicker, and some were a bit more potato-y, but they were also greasy. This time they were less greasy, and the majority of them were crisp. Yum!

Dinner was really good, and it's always nice to get the 7 of us together to have a meal since we don't see each other that often. After we finished, we went back to my parents' house for some cake! I sang a quick "happy birthday" to my dad since no one else was really interested in singing it, haha. We're not really a family who makes big deals about birthdays other than going out to eat.

We also snapped some pictures, but I forgot to ask Howard for them since they're on his phone. I really enjoyed being able to sit around the kitchen table (even though the kids with their spouses had to share seats) and think about how our family has grown over the past two years. In the future, it might grow even more, but right now, I think 7 is a great number.