Money Saving Challenge - week 18

These is the list of things I did this week to try to save money:

• I combined sales and coupons at Tops, Wegmans, and Target in order to save money (I didn't write a separate blog post, but I received a Target mailer with a coupon for a free dozen eggs and combined a couple Target clothing coupons with a cheap shirt and a clearance pair of shorts)
• I combined errands on outings in order to save on gas.
• I stayed home 2 days in order to also save on gas.
• I received a free reusable grocery bag in the mail from Believe in Heroes/Wounded Warrior project.
• I also received free Nivea samples and coupons via snail mail from CVS.
• I made another batch of homemade hair detangler.  Watch for the upcoming tutorial -- it is so cheap and easy!
• I read my MyPoints emails in order to keep increasing my point balance so I can cash in for several gift cards later in the year.
• I utilized our Strong Museum membership and took the kids out for a fun day on the cheap.
• I took advantage of the school's PTA-sponsored family bowling event for a another fun and cheap outing.
• When a drive-thru was calling my name yesterday, I resisted the temptation and came home and made myself lunch. ;-)
• I only ran the dishwasher when it was full and used half of a dishwashing tablet each time.

Are you doing anything to pinch your pennies and stretch your budget? I'd love to hear about it!

Free deodorant @ Wegmans

Who likes to pay for deodorant when you can get it for FREE?  Watch a short video then print out a $0.75 Speed Stick deodorant coupon here.  It is currently on sale for $1.49 at Wegmans, so it will be free after the coupon doubles!

I saw a blurb on the screen that the coupon is only redeemable at CVS, but when the coupon prints it is clearly labelled as a manufacturer coupon and does not stipulate that it must be redeemed there.

Money Saving Challenge - week 10 in review

Boy, this week flew by quickly.  I can't believe it's already Saturday!  Here is a look back on the things I did this week to help save money:

• I matched sales and coupons at Tops to reduce my grocery costs, and tried to make sure I used as many coupons as possible in order to maximize my gas points.
• I combined errands on my outings so I could conserve gas.
• I stayed home 2 days in order to conserve gas.
• I used no heat at all one day this week when it was unseasonably warm.
• I received a box of Proctor & Gamble free samples and coupons.
• I needed to buy a birthday card, so I went to the nearby CVS and used a $1 ExtraCare Buck that was expiring that day in order to lower my out-of-pocket expense and not waste the "free money."  Now if only I had remembered that I had a $10 CVS cash card in my wallet, I could have spent no money on it.  Grr!  :-(
• My older daughter's birthday is tomorrow.  She wanted an American Girl doll for years and finally received one for Christmas, but has no clothes for it other than what the doll came with.  I went to Joann's and used their coupons, along with coupons from Michaels and A.C. Moore, to stock up on several 18" doll outfits.  Using the coupons, I was able to buy them each for 40% off their already-much-cheaper-than-official-American Girl prices. Shh!  Don't tell her until tomorrow! ;-)
• I made my own liquid hand soap from a free bar of soap.  Results and tutorial to come soon!
• I made a batch of homemade laundry detergent.  I know I've posted about this in the past, but I'll post another how-to soon.
• When I drove my husbands car to the grocery store one day this week, I returned a couple empty soda bottles I found in it and used the money towards my groceries.

Have you done anything this week to help save or avoid spending money?  I'd love to read about it in the comments!

Money Saving Challenge - week 7 in review

Here is a look back at the things I did this week to save money...

• I matched sales and coupons at Tops to lower my grocery spending, earning a gas discount of $1.00 per gallon in the process.  I also matched sales and coupons at CVS to buy my husband his toothpaste of choice.
• I combined errands on outings to help save on gas usage.
• I received a "Big Fat Check" from Ebates from my online shopping.
• I returned my cans and bottles when I went grocery shopping, which helped lower the out-of-pocket cost of my groceries.
• I took my son out for lunch for the first time in ages, which cost me more money than if we'd stayed home, but I did use a coupon to take $3 off our bill. :-/
• I made sure my dishwasher was full before running it, and I cut my dishwashing tablets in half.

Overall, I don't feel like this was one of my strongest weeks in the saving money department.  Hopefully I'll feel better about next week. :-)

New CVS coupons



Are you a CVS Beauty Club member?  If you are, be sure to check your email.  If not, you can sign up here.  In addition to earning ExtraCare Bucks when you buy beauty products, CVS will periodically email you store coupons. 

I was excited to see that the coupons emailed to me today included a freebie: a free tin of Nivea creme.  Winter wreaks havoc on my skin, so I'm always on the lookout for cream and lotion deals.  Cheap is good, but free is always better!

I also received a $3 off any Revlon cosmetics purchase.  If my memory is correct, I believe I saw Revlon products on sale in this week's ad (and since this is a store coupon, it can be stacked with a manufacturer coupon for an even better deal).

More candy coupons!



If you weren't able to get a good deal on candy at CVS, or if you did but you still need to stock up on more for Halloween, there's a great candy coupon over at coupons.com right now.  Save $1.50 on a 9.4 ounce or larger bag of Mars candy, which paired with a sale will make for some cheap treats!

CVS: cheap Halloween candy!

I don't know about you, but I hate paying a lot of money for Halloween candy.  I just scored 4 bags of Hershey candy for $2.80 (including tax) and earned another $3 in ExtraCare Bucks at CVS today.  Here is how I did it:

Hershey snack-size bags of candy are on sale 4/$10, plus you'll earn $3 in ECBs when you buy 4.
I had $4 in ECBs from a previous trip, plus I used 4 $1 coupons printed from here, plus I now have $3 in ECBs to use on another shopping trip.

Note: The coupon specifies Halloween candy, but the CVS sale included mostly bags of regular candy.  I found orange Halloween Kit-Kats on sale and purchased those to be on the safe side. 

Sign up with SavingStar and get money back

If you're not familiar with SavingStar, it may be worth it for you to check it out and sign up.  With SavingStar, you register your store loyalty cards (I have my cards from Wegmans, Tops, Rite Aid, and CVS registered).  Once you're registered, you can select any available e-coupon offers to be loaded onto all of your cards (they change every month or so and I usually select all of them so I don't have to worry about missing an offer).  If you purchase anything you've registered for during the designated time period (make sure you use your loyalty card!), money will be deposited into your SavingStar account.  Once you reach $5, you can cash out via PayPal, bank deposit, or gift cards.  Keep in mind that these coupons will not lower your grocery bill -- the amounts accumulate in your account and you will get the money back after your reach the $5 minimum.

To be honest, you probably won't make a ton of money from doing this.  Then again, everyone's buying habits are different and maybe you buy more of the products they feature than I do.  I've been using SavingStar since May and I only have $0.40 in my account, so I figure if I ever make it to the $5 mark it will just be a little extra free money I hadn't counted on!

For more information or to sign up, check out the SavingStar website.

SoftSoap and Carmex lip balm deals at CVS

I had a small but successful day at CVS today.  Here is what I bought, what I spent, and what I earned:

2 bottles of SoftSoap hand soap - on sale 2/$6
1 Carmex Moisture Plus lip balm - $3.29

I used my $2 ExtraCare Bucks from taking the pledge here, 2 $0.70 coupons on the SoftSoap I printed here, and a $0.50 Carmex coupon from their Facebook page.  After tax, I paid $5.77 (silly me, I accidentally left an additional $2 in ExtraCare Bucks at my house so my out-of-pocket really should've been less but oh well, I'll use them next time).

I received back $4 in ExtraCare Bucks (the promo is get $4 ECB when you buy 2 SoftSoap body washes, hand soaps, or bar soaps), and I will get an additional $2.99 from the CVS/Carmex mail-in-rebate found here.  Between the ECBs and rebate, I made $1.22!

Get $2 in Free CVS ExtraCare Bucks!

Be one of the first 500,000 people to take the Money Trasher pledge on the CVS website by November 1st and you'll get $2 in ExtraCare Bucks for free!  Just enter your ExtraCare card number and email address, and your coupon will arrive via email.

Free candy or beverage at CVS!

Through 9/22, get a free candy or beverage when you "like" CVS on Facebook!  After liking their Facebook page, click on the Special Offers tab then enter your CVS ExtraCare card number and email address.  Within 24 hours, you'll have a coupon good for a free candy or beverage emailed to you.

Herbal Essences money maker at CVS

I haven't shopped the drug stores much lately, since I was able to get a lot of awesome stock-up deals on health and beauty products during the spring.  In all honesty, I didn't even need another bottle of shampoo or conditioner but I bought one because it was better than free!  Here's how I did it:

CVS has Aussie and Herbal Essences shampoos and conditioners on sale for $2.99, plus you get back a $1 ExtraCare Buck to use on a future order.  A couple of months back, there was an Aussie/Herbal Essences Facebook promotion where they mailed out coupons for a free bottle of shampoo or conditioner.  I've had my coupon for a while, but I've been holding onto it and waiting to see if I could find a deal to make my free shampoo even better. Today was the day!  My shampoo was free (well, $0.24 because I still had to pay the tax) and I received my $1 ECB to use on something else in the future.  Even with the tax, I still made $0.76! :-)

Need a shave? There's a money maker at CVS!

I am so stoked from my shopping trip at CVS today!  I bought 2 packages of disposable razors and a can of shaving cream for only $1.40 (tax) and received $10 in ExtraBucks.  Here's what I bought and how it worked:

2 packages of Schick Extreme 3 razors (4 ct.) - $8.89 each
Used 1 B1G1 Free manufacturer coupon from the 6/26 SmartSource coupon insert (The limit on the coupon is "up to $13.99" so I had planned on the $8.89 being deducted.  Imagine my surprise when my cashier informed me that the system automatically took off $13.99 instead of beeping and instructing her to manually enter the amount.  How cool is that?!?)

Used 1 $3 off manufacturer coupon from Facebook (CVS will allow the B1G1 coupon on 1 pack and the $3 coupon on the second pack)

Used 1 $2 off CVS coupon from here (it says Energizer on the screen but prints out correctly as Schick -- I asked if I could use 2 of these coupons since they allow stacking of 1 manufacturer coupon with 1 store coupon, but the cashier said not in this scenario because I was already getting 1 pack free)

1 can of Skintimate cream shave - on sale for $2.49
Used 1 $1.50 off coupon from here

The subtotal before coupons was $20.27.  They are running a promo -- spend $20 in any Schick or Playtex products, receive $10 in ExtraBucks -- so my total qualified.  After my coupons were taken off, my subtotal became -$0.22, the tax amount was $1.62, and my final total was $1.40 out-of-pocket.  Plus, I now have $10 in ExtraBucks to use toward upcoming purchases (plus another $3 in ExtraBucks I already had and planned on using today until I realized I was getting a better than expected deal with that B1G1 coupon!). 

I know I already said it, but I just have to say it again...How cool is that?!?  Of course now I have no excuse for hairy legs! ;-)

Honest Tea $1 coupon

In the past I have seen Honest Tea on sale for $1 per bottle at some of the drugstores as well as Tops.  Until Friday, July 22 (or until supplies last), you can "like" Honest Tea's Facebook page and get a $1 printable coupon (remember to hit the back button a couple of times after the first print so you can print a second one!).  I'm guessing this will score some free (or at least pretty cheap) tea if there's an upcoming sale.  Since I've never tried this brand before, does anyone else have any opinions on it?

Bayer Advanced aspirin deal!

Since it seems like I always have a headache, I was happy to see at least 2 local drug stores offering great deals this week on Bayer Advanced aspirin.  Here are a couple of scenarios you can take advantage of:

CVS
Buy 1 Bayer Advanced aspirin at $3, use the $2 off coupon from the 6/22 SmartSource coupon insert.  Pay $1 out of pocket and receive $1 in ExtraCare Bucks to use on a future order.  Use the rebate form from the 6/22 SmartSource coupon insert (adjacent to the coupon) to get a $1 rebate. 

Rite Aid
Buy 1 Bayer Advanced aspirin at $3.99, use the $2 off coupon from the 6/22 SmartSource coupon insert.  Pay $1.99 out of pocket and receive $1.99 in +UP rewards to use on a future order.  Use the rebate form from the 6/22 SmartSource coupon insert to get a $1.99 rebate. 

I picked a bottle up at Rite Aid today and will be mailing in my rebate form before I forget!

Who doesn't like FREE candy?

If you haven't been to CVS before, they have this machine where you scan your ExtraCare card and CVS coupons are printed out for you.  Supposedly there are some really awesome coupons available, but I have been getting candy coupons every time I scan my card.  Since my husband and I are dieting, this is the last thing I need hanging around my house!  As luck would have it, my son's art class is collecting candy to use for making candy sculptures.  I had planned on just picking up some candy from the bulk department at Wegmans, but today I was able to walk away with only paying the tax on these:

Normally $4.49 each, they were on sale 2 for $6.  I had 2 CVS coupons for $2 off 1 of these bags, and there was a $2 off 2 bags manufacturer coupon in one of the newspaper inserts a couple of weeks ago.  I paid $0.48 in tax, which beats what I would've paid in the bulk department!

Week of 5/15 - CVS

I had 3 transaction wrung up at CVS this week. I have to say, the cashier who works at the CVS I shop at is awesome.  Not only does she not mind me having separate orders to try to maximize my savings, she encourages it!  Here is order #1:

If it ever stops raining here and we get some sun, I know we'll need more sunscreen.  I bought 2 Neutrogena sunscreen products at $8.49 and $9.99.  I used 2 $2 off Neutrogena sunscreen manufacturer coupons I found online last week.  I paid $14.48 out of pocket, and earned $10 in Extra Care Bucks to be used as cash on my next order.  Here is order #2:

I bought 2 bottles of V8 (husband loves this, I think it's gross) on sale at $2.50 each (regular price is $3.59 each), plus I had a $1 off 2 manufacturer coupon (and earned a $1 Extra Care Buck for purchasing them).  I bought 1 bottle of Pert shampoo on sale for $2.50 (regular price $3.99) and used a $1.00 off manufacturer coupon.  I also bought 1 tube of Sensodyne at $4.49 (regular price $5.99 - ouch!), used a $0.75 off coupon, plus earned another $1 Extra Care Buck for this.  I rounded out this order with 2 Kraft salad dressings at $1.99 each (regular price $3.99 each).  After using my manufacturers coupons and the $10 ECB from my Neutragena purchase, my out of pocket cost was $2.28. Here is order #3:

Finesse shampoo was on sale for $2.50 (regular price $3.99).  I used my $2 ECB from transaction #2 from above, so my order came to $0.70 after tax.  The best part?  There is a $2.00 rebate here so I will make $1.30 for buying it!  Thanks to Happy Deal Happy Day for posting this rebate offer.