Mother’s Day Deals
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The stockpiling secret
While it sounds a bit counterintuitive, stockpiling is the best way to save money on your grocery bill. You don’t need to hoard like it’s Y2K all over again, but by keeping a constant supply of the items you use regularly (toothpaste, shampoo, deodorant, juice, pasta, marinara, etc) you can dramatically cut your grocery bill. The key is to wait for the super, mega, awesome deals and then buy a few extra.
I never pay for toiletries if I can help it. With all the “free with rebate” items available at RiteAid and Walgreens and all the ECB deals at CVS, there’s no reason to ever pay full price for shampoo, deodorant or toothpaste. Even if you’re not out of a product, pick it up and stick it in a basket in your linen closet.
By purchasing the items on sale with coupons when you don’t need them, you aren’t forced to purchase them at regular price in a moment of need. At first as you begin to stockpile, you’ll see an increase in your grocery bill. Don’t panic! This is okay! You can’t get *everything* for free but you can still see great savings.
Start thinking about the staple items of your household. Make a list and, if you have the time and energy, jot down regular store prices for each item. Keep this list as a reference as you go through the weekly sale papers and look for opportunities to buy one or two extra to set aside.
One of the biggest concerns I hear is “I don’t have room to stockpile!”. I live in a house built in the 1920’s with incredibly limited storage space. Here’s a quick list of the items I have found room for and stockpiled: Aquafresh toothpaste, Pantene and Head & Shoulders shampoo, Secret deodorant, Old Spice deodorant, mouthwash, Soft Soap hand soap, tampons, J&J Bath Buddies, toothbrushes, Oil of Olay body wash and lotions.
That’s a big list. Look at how I fit it all into my very unorganized linen closet!
That’s really not a lot of space to dedicate to stockpiling. If I really wanted, I could consolidate that even further to take up half the space. But when you look at these photos, you’ll be surprised to see that I have a full year supply of all the items listed above. I didn’t pay more than 50% of retail for any of those items. All of the Bath Buddies were free as was the toothpaste and toothbrushes. The tampons were 70% off. Most of the mouthwash was free or under $1/bottle.
Now that I don’t have to worry about running out, I can take my time and choose when I purchase replacement stock. Right now, I can get children’s mouthwash for free at RiteAid. Even though it’s for children, my husband will use it so I’ll pick it up and try it out. I can get a free toothbrush at Walgreens. I am not out of these items - yet - but I can find the space to stash one or two especially since they are free.
Once you start stockpiling, I promise you’ll be glad of it and wonder how you lived before stockpiling. You’ll want to kick yourself for spending money unnecessarily by paying full price for items you can get for free or pennies on the dollar!
Stockpiling toiletries is easy and cheap. Next week, I’ll share my food stockpiling secrets.
Must Buy Monday
RiteAid is really impressing me this week! Here is my shopping list for the week.
RiteAid
Listerine Smart Rinse - $2.99 - $2.99 SRC - $1q Money Maker
Miralax -$9.99 - $2 SRC - $2q = $5.99 This is a *great* deal. SRP is $12.99.
Electrosol - $3.99 - $2 SRC - $.75q = $1.24
SoftSoap Spa - BOGO - $1q per item (2 $1 qs; one for each) but I need to check the price first
Garnier Fructis hair products - 2/$6 - 2/$1qs = $2 each
L’oreal Kid’s shampoo - BOGO - $.75q but I need to check the price first
I’ll also be buying products in the Gear Up for Safety promo but I’ll post about that later.
Walgreens
Oral-B Cross Action toothbrush - $4.49 - $4.49 rebate - $1q Money Maker
Van Camp’s pork and beans (limit 3) - $.39 ea
Meal planning based on the sales
One of the best ways to save money is to do your meal planning based on sale items. I was challenged by a fellow RichmondMommies member, Anita, to create a weekly menu based on this week’s Kroger sales flyer. Here it is Anita… now go shopping and save some money! This should get you through your weeknights. There will probably be enough leftovers for you to eat on Saturday!
Adjust quantities for the number of people in your family. Not a lot of produce on sale this week so it was a little tough!
*This is based on the Kroger sales 4/27 - 5/3 in Richmond, VA
Shopping List:
2 Shadybrook Farms Turkey Breasts - $.99/lb
3 bags Kraft Sharp Cheddar - 2/$4
2 bottles KC Masterpiece BBQ Sauce - 2/$3
1 loaf Kroger white bread - 10/$10
Corn on the cob (1 per person + 1 extra) - 8/$2
2 bags Fresh Express salad mix - 10/$10
1 bottle Kroger salad dressing - $1.17ea
2 pork tenderloin - $5.99 ea
2 jars Old El Paso taco sauce - $.99
1 bag Tostito chips - $2.99
1 can Van Camp baked beans - 10/$10
1 package Tyson drumsticks - $.99/lb
1 bag red seedless grapes - 2lb/$3
1 bag Fritos - $1.18
1 package Kroger ground round - 2/$6
Monday
Roast both turkey breasts in the oven at the same time. Use the first one for dinner Monday night and serve w/ Fresh Express Salad & Kroger salad dressing. After dinner, cut the meat off the 2nd breast. Chop the meat and mix with cheddar cheese and bbq sauce. Refrigerate.
Tuesday
Put 1 pork tenderloin in the crockpot w/ 1 jar Old El Paso taco sauce. Cook till done, shred. Serve as nachos over Tostitos with shredded cheddar and corn cut from one cob.
Wednesday
Heat turkey/cheese/bbq sauce mix (from Monday) over med low heat. Heap onto Kroger sandwich bread for turkey sloppy joes. Serve w/ corn on the cob.
Thursday
Baked beans with grilled Tyson drumsticks & bbq sauce. Serve w/ grapes.
Friday
Taco salads - ground beef, taco sauce, cheddar cheese, Fresh Express salad mix, Fritos
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Must Buy Monday
Here are a few of the deals I’m working this week.
Kroger
Tyson whole chickens - $.49/lb (some stores in the Richmond, VA area have different prices. As low as $.29/lb!)
RiteAid
Jane Be Pure mineral makeup - $5.99 - $5.99 rebate - $2.00 coupon Money Maker!!
OralB toothbrushes - $3.19 - $3.19 rebate FREE
GUM toothbrushes - $2 - $1 rebate - $1 q FREE
CVS
I need to do some research on the CVS deals for this week but these two struck me right off the bat.
Raisin Bran - 2 for $3.99 - $1.50 q - $1.50 q Money Maker!! *The coupon on SmartSource.com sometimes prints as $1 and sometimes as $1.50. If you are able to print two of them at $1.50 or one of each, you make money.
Herbal Essence - BOGO
Purchase 10 (5 free). At $4.29 ea, your total is $21.45. Use a “$4 off of $20” coupon. Use five $3 off of 2 Herbal Essences coupons for an additional $15 off your total. You will pay $2.45 for 10 bottles of shampoo, or $.24/bottle.
Sources: $4/$20 @ I *heart* CVS, deal from HotCouponWorld.com
Earth Day Freebies from Macy’s
Tues, April 22 - The first 100 customers will receive a free sapling
Sat/Sun, April 26 & 27 - First 150 customers will receive a free reusable tote bag. Free Kid Power Activity Books all day.
http://www1.macys.com/campaign/earthday/index.jsp
Sample Sunday
Here’s this week’s list of free samples:
- Krylon Industrial 4-in-1 Screwdriver Kit and Flashlight
- KMart $5 online coupon - Get a free $5 online coupon code when you sign up for email offers
- Nature Made vitamins - Free 14 day supply of the vitamins of your choice.
- Playtex Nurser Baby Bottle
- Starbucks sample from Start Sampling
- Huggies sample
- $10 coupon book from Gerber
- “We’re happy to offer you healthy savings for your baby in three easy steps. To receive a $10 Gerber Coupon Booklet by mail, simply:
-
- Download and complete the order form
- Collect ten (10) proofs of purchase (UPC symbols) from any Gerber® brand products (excluding skincare and apparel)
- Mail in your completed order form and proofs of purchase
- Genesis Organics Juice
- Glow Pen
- Free Perpster Tshirt
- Ohshot Tshirt
- Zellies Xylitol Mint and Gum Samples for Kids
Free tote from Food Lion & Green Works
Purchase 2 Green Works products (on sale 2/$5) at Food Lion and receive a free reusable shopping tote.
Bonus: The tote contains $6.50 in Clorox/Green Works coupons. I used a $1 and $.50 coupon on my two Green Works items bringing the cost down to $1.75 each.
RiteAid Tutorial
I love RiteAid! If you watch for their loss leaders, you can walk away with free or close-to-free toiletries and household cleaners weekly.
Each month, RiteAid releases a list of all the rebated items. You can find this list on the RiteAid Rebates Plus site and in a special sales flier at the front of the store. I always keep a copy of the paper flier in my coupon tote for easy reference. These rebates are called Single Rebate Checks (SRCs).
I always scan the rebate list each week before I go through the weekly sales flier. This helps refresh my memory and helps key sale products to jump out at me. Most of the time, RiteAid weekly sales fliers will tell you which items have Single Rebate Checks available but sometimes they don’t.
As I make out my weekly shopping list, I compare sales prices amongst the various stores, keeping in mind the SRCs at RiteAid, ECBs at CVS and mail-in rebates at Walgreen’s. The key is to find the best price keeping in mind all these extras, plus coupons, plus sale prices.
Once you’re done shopping, claiming your rebates is so easy! Go to the RiteAid Rebates Plus site, log-in, and enter your receipt info. The site shows you how to do this step-by-step. Once your info is entered, their system will verify the items you purchased and check for any applicable rebates. It takes a few days for this transaction to happen so don’t freak out that it doesn’t give any info right away. If you didn’t purchase enough items to qualify for a rebate, the site will note this for you.
Keep entering your receipts throughout the month. Once the month is over and all your receipts have been processed, simply click and your rebate check will be processed and mailed to you. I told you it was easy!