To get so much for so little!

I feel like I damned near robbed Meijer blind - and grabbed some stuff that I (and my sis) needed anyway! How often does that happen? Not often enough, for my liking - so without further adieu - here are the deals I've hit this week:

MEIJER:

Buy 5 boxes of participating Betty Crocker items, get a coupon for $3 OYNO. (Cannot mix and match - must be 5 of same type of product).

Bought 15 boxes of Betty Crocker potatoes at $.60 each = $9.00 - received $9 in coupons!! Yippee - free tater stuff! Used 10 $.40 coupons - so I came out a little ahead on this one! That helepd with the next round of goodies-

Bought 25 boxes of Tuna Helper (my sister put out a big request for this one!) Spent $25.00 and received $15 in coupons OYNO plus $1.50 off $15 in meat (3 of those), $1.00 OYN bread purchase of $3.99 or more, plus 6-7 other OYNO of xx product.

I have $18 in coupons to go shopping with - and might pair that with the meat coupon and load the freezer up - let's hope the mark-down meat is plentiful, to make sure - I'll just go after 7 p.m. tonight (when I notice the girl marking down the meat!)

JEWEL:

Helped myself to 6 more bags of Tyson chicken nuggets at $1.99/bag after rolling the $3 YB coupons that print out...before you've even paid for your purchase.

I plan to roll this another 3-6 times tonight...nothing like a lazy dinner - just pair this with those free Betty Crocker Potatoes and a hearty garden salad and some corn/peas/etc. A meal you can feel better about than drive-through and save your wallet too! Godo thing I'm stocked on BBQ sauce for dunkin' because this is not the best time of year to go shopping for it!!

Amazing how time flies! Now, to get my meal plan ready for the week:

Monday - Turkey and Cheddar brats, garlic parmesan mashed potatoes, corn tortillas, salad - was too cheap/lazy to buy buns

Tuesday - Grilled cheese and tomato soup

Wednesday - Empanadas, tacos con carnitas

Thursday - Oven roasted chicken, chicken rice, spinach salad

Friday - Roasted red pepper, caramelized onion, and cheddar frittata, hashbrowns or potato cakes, English muffins, fruit salad

Saturday - Tacos al pastore, red rice, beans, all the fixin's

Sunday - Currently undecided....

Breakfast of the week: Oatmeal, hardboiled eggs, cereal
Dessert of the week: Free Golden Oreos (they're pretty tasty), banana nut bread
Lunch of the week: Spaghetti and meatballs, chicken and gnocchi soup, ham sammies

I couldn't believe the luck I had yesterday at Dominicks! While I expected everything to be picked over - I was in for a pleasant, albeit mildly pleasant, surprise. They had just enough of everything in stock for me to score big:

8 boxes Kellogg's Fruit Loops $1.88 -$1/1 blinkie coupons (expired) (8)
2 boxes Kellogg's Apple Jacks $1.88 -$1/1 blinkie coupons (expired) (2)
Buy 5 get a $4 coupon OYNO - and I did!!

Pork Steaks at $1.69 lb. marked half price - individually wrapped $.84 & $1.02 (both were well over 1 lb. each!)

$1.99 bag Nestle mini-morsels - $1/1 coupon (printed from Jewel catalina machine - expired) - $.99 (wish I had a few more of those coupons!)

1.45 lbs. Honey crisp apples $3.49 lb. = $5.07 -$1 off produce purchase of $5 or more and $2 any fruit purchase WYB 2 Kellogg's cereals (2). I grabbed 5 Honeycrisp apples for a 7 cents! Got to love a bargain!

Total OOP: $13.61
Total saved: $33.64

Then I stopped over at Jewel to try the new YourBucks program and grabbed some more goodies:
$.79 Jewel brand bread 16 oz. or larger white or wheat only - receive $1 YB per loaf purchase in a single transaction - one YB per item per transaction - $.21 MM
$1.39 large dozen egg -$1.00 YB from previous transaction, - $.40 - recieved another $1 YB
Tyson chicken (normally $7.49 a bag) on sale $4.99 a bag received $3 YB for each one purchased in a single transaction.

Total spent $5.93
Received $1 YB (2), $3 YB (1) - then I went back and did it all over again...and only spent $2.43 on the second identical transaction! All I can think to say is....Hello, chicken - what's kickin'?!?

As part of DH job - he scored a pair of free tickets to the Chicago Auto Show (weekday only, of course) - so I'm taking an afternoon off and we're going to check out all the new cars! Last year, my favorites were the Saturn Vue and the Ford Escape. It isn't often that we get to go into the city for free entertainment, so when it happens - I get pretty excited!

Tomorrow, it'll be back to deal-hunting when I start canvassing all the Jewels in the area for the single serve Tennesee Pride breakfast biscuits - the one I popped in to this morning didn't carry them....go figure. I'll call around to a few of the other Jewels along my usual driving route and see if any of them carry it. I've heard that the ones neawr my home don't usually carry this, and since I have couposn that will make them free - it's worth looking into.

I've already used 16 $.40/1 coupons at Dominicks for the BC cookie mix pouches that were on sale for $.99 WYB 4. I also stacked on a cellfire $.40 coupon and spent $7.32 and saved $21.87 - not too bad!! This is the cheapest I've ever seen these and Dominicks still accepts expired coupons! Yea for me!

Got a crazy week ahead of us - between the start of Lent and free tickets to the Chicago Auto Show - I've created a meal plan with enough flexibility to accommodate the crazy schedule this week!

Monday - Enchiladas con picadillo, frijoles, arroz (ground beef/turkey enchiladas, refried beans, and rice)

Tuesday - Free tickets to the auto show - for eating at home (or if we don't - leftovers for lunches) I'll have havarti and ham paninis ready to grill with tomato basil soup on the side

Wednesday - oven roasted chicken breast, mashed potatoes, spinach salad

Thursday - chicken and gnocchi soup, Cheddar Bay biscuits, salad

Friday - cheese pizza, stuffed mushrooms

Breakfast of the week: oatmeal and cereal
Dessert of the week: Caramel cake
Lunch of the week: Chinese takeout leftovers, rice and beans, and chicken salad

I love to celebrate the holidays, but when money get tight - there are still PLENTY of great ways to celebrate - heck, I've even broken them down by group: kids friendly, couples, and best gal-pal. See if there are any ideas you'd like to use - or even add to this list!


Kid Friendly:

1. Create a valentine box. How? Grab a small to medium sized box, seal it up, cut a card sized slit in the top of the box and ask the kids to decorate it. If the kids work well together, they can collaborate - otherwise, assign each child a side of the box and offer a prize for the best looking decorations! Drop your valentines inside, and you've got an evening worth of fun!

2. Make your own valentines! All you need is some colored construction paper, some magazines/newspapers that you don't mind them cutting up, scissors, glue, and your imagination. Make it into a game - the sweetest, silliest, and prettiest card each get a prize.

3. Who loves chocolate dipped pretzels? Everyone!! Grab a cheawp bag of pretzels and break out that almond and chocolate bark leftover from Christmas and make dipped pretzels. Before they dry, have the kids sprinkle Valentine's sprinkles on them. Or drizzle one kind of bark over the other. These make great gifts for your girlfriends, grandparents, teachers, friends, etc. Turn it into an all-night affair and have a movie to go along with it - don't they sell dipped pretzels at the movie theater anyway? A huge bowl of popcorn and you're all set.


Couples:

1. Go for a picnic! Oh, wait - it's February in the Midwest. So, have a picnic in your living room. Lay down an old blanket, serve tons of (cheap!) fingerfoods. For DH & I - I used grapes, cheese cubes (I cut them up myself), ham, crackers, sausage medallions, and berries. Have a pile of napkins on hand. Want it to really feel like the beach? Light an ocean/water scented candle, grab your oscillating fan (breeze off the bay, anyone?), and put on some island music. If you're really feeling inspired, try to tango. It's fun! Trust me.

2. Build a meal together. Work side-by-side in the kitchen over a meal you can individualize like build-your-own burger/taco/mini-pizza, etc. You each get it your way and you get time together - nothing wrong with that! This is a perfectly suited project for the two of you!

3. Set a budget (half of what you typically spent in years passed) and each of you takes half of that budget to figure out either the dining or the entertainment. I'm surprised how much thought my hubby puts into something when I give him half of the responsibility of the planning. Next thing you know, one of you will have BOGOF coupons to a new restaurant and the other will have found a $3-$5 movie showing someplace in town or even in the next town over.


Gal-Pal Treats:

1. Don't be afraid to get busy in the kitchen! 90 minutes in the kitchen will yield you the following goodies that friends are sure you spent over slaving over:
1. Decadent Double Chocolate Brownies
2. Chocolate Raspberry Thumbprint Cookies
3. Vanilla Snowball Cake With Chocolate Center

2. Host a girls night in, watch chick flicks (encourage friends to bring their favorites), make tons of appetizers to pass through the night, and ask everyone to show up in their pink and red favorites (the sillier the better). Offer a small prize to the best/craziest outfit!

3. Got some old pictures of your pals? Copy them on your printer/copier in black and white and do a crazy collage - mix the old with the new, color in the pictures, or just get pictures of all your best pals together - everyone gets to take theirs home! Nothing like nostalgia on a night like this!

Tell me - what budget-friendly tricks are you using this Valentine?

Well, as my momma always said, "the best laid plans of mice and men...often to go **** in a handbasket!"

The long weekend of the board meeting, it got long - then it got longer, then I ended up going to the immediate care center Saturday afternoon and having a small procedure done. Today is my first day back at work since Saturday and I'm desperately hoping I'm up to par. At my job, if I'm not at 100%, I shouldn't even come in the door - there is no such thing as an easy day, or making small allowances if you're not up to par.

Now that I'm back to work, it's time to get my life back in order. While it was nice to have a few days off of work - next time, I'd prefer not to be recovering when I get some time away. I haven't been out of the house except for work and going to the clinic in 9 days. Wow - that is such a long time!

It's late in the game, but I need to scrounge together a meal-plan, I've been living off my cereal stockpile, with cheese and crackers for my snacks. We have 4 pieces of fruit left, some fresh spinach for salads - yum, and 3 or 4 English muffins. Pickings for tonight's dinner are going to be sparse, but I think I can toss together a spinach salad with dried cranberries, sliced almonds, thin sliced apple, and croutons. Maybe I can make an open faced English muffin sammie with some Swiss and cheddar cheeses melted on top to round out my meal. It's either that or I crack open a can of Tomato Basil soup - I love having ready made soup on hand. I've already used my lazy, new favorite go-to meal: the frittata. That was dinner for Tuesday, and lunch for Wednesday.

For tomorrow, it's dinner with my in-laws, Saturday DH gets to cook, and Sunday...well, I was hoping DH would surprise me with something, but doesn't look like that is going to happen. It'll probably be a favorite restaurant of his, and then back home to watch TV.

I'll be back tomorrow with Valentine's Gifts on a budget!

I stopped into Jewel on my way to work this morning and grabbed one last round of cheap oatmeal and granola bars - check out my amazing savings!

3 boxes Quaker granola bars (regularly $4.19) sale $1.99
4 boxes Quaker Oatmeal-To-Go bars (regularly $3.39) sale $1.99
3 boxes Quaker Instant Otmeal Packets (regularly $4.39) sale $1.99

WYB 5, receive an instant savings of $3 per 5 purchased
-$3/5 Quaker manufacturer coupon - found in Butera's flyer (2)

OOP = $8.19
or $.10 per serving, on average
That's an affordable breakfast or snack for me!

If anyone out there wants some of those amazing coupons, leave me a comment - I've got more than a dozen to share!

In the snowy, damp weather we're experiencing here in Chicagoland, I couldn't imagine a better weather for soup. From Campbell's Select or Chunky to luxurious, rich soups from local and chain eateries - soup is definitely on the brain. With the latest sale, it looks like I'll be trying my hand at one of my favorite soups: Chicken Gnocchi soup from the Olive Garden.

I've got 3 17oz. packages of potato gnocchi from Butera during their current 10 Items for $10, get the 11th item free sale. With a little help from some online recipe sites (3-4 different recipes, meshed into one) - I think I have a good base to create the soup from. Now, I just need enough time away from the office to give this a try.

I'm hoping to make this for dinner next week - I will post about how this turns out.

8 oz. potato gnocchi
1 large chicken breast, cooked and cut into bite sized pieces
2 C. chicken stock
1 chicken bouillion cube
1 C. half and half
1/8 C. parmesan cheese
1 clove garlic, crushed
6-8 white button mushrooms, sliced very thin
1/4 medium onion, finely chopped
1/2 carrot, shredded
1/4 C. fresh spinach, cut into very thin ribbons
1 T. olive oil
1/2 tsp. thyme
salt and pepper

Saute the onion, garlic, carrot, and mushroom in oil over medium heat until onion is translucent and mushrooms are tender.

Add chicken, chicken bouillion, chicken stock, salt and pepper, thyme. Heat to boiling, then add gnocchi. Gently boil for 4 minutes, then turn down to a medium-low add half and half, simmer for 10 minutes.

Add spinach and cook for another 1-2 minutes until spinach is wilted.


If soup is thin:Heat to boiling and add cornstarch dissolved in 1-2 Tbsp water at this point if you want a thicker soup.

This week at work, we have our winter board of director's meeting. This will make for a long and disorganized week if I don't enlist some help. Since the meetings tend to run long (very, very long!) I've asked DH to take over meals for the latter half of the week. What I've got planned for Monday - Thursday, most of the meals are already prepared, so it's just a matter of re-heating. I love it when I'm this on top of things! Now....if that could only last all week long!

Monday - Tacos Carnitas with all the fixin's, refried beans
Tuesday - Navy Bean Soup with rice, salad
Wednesday - Spaghetti and salad
Thursday - Ham and eggs, pancakes, strawberries

Dessert of the week: Brownies
Fruit of the week: Gala apples, strawberries, bananas
Breakfast of the week: Oatmeal and cereal - I'm super stocked up on both!! - in the weekly flyer for Butera, there is a manufacturer's coupon for $3/5 Quaker products - this includes Aunt Jemima syrup and pancake batter, oatmeal-to-go bars, granola bars, captain crunch, canister and single serve boxes of oatmeal - and the price is cheaper at Jewel. I grabbed 5 Quaker items for $.79 each!! What does that mean for me - loads of oatmeal cookies, tons of Captain Crunch for hubby - he loves that stuff!, and super cheap syrup for stacks and stacks of pancakes. I've got more than a dozen of those coupons, so if this stuff goes any cheaper somewhere else - I'm covered.

It looks like our buddies at Butera are trying to imitate Meijer. They're having a 10 for $10, get the 11th item FREE sale. While much on this list doesn't exactly knock my socks off, here are some of the deals and steals I found lurking inside:

8 oz. fresh mushrooms
64 oz. Old Orchard apple juice cocktail
1 lb. baby carrots, peeled
Progresso Soup Classics (select varieties only!)
14-15 oz. cans Del Monte canned fruit, select varieties
1.5 L. Lipton Teas
17 oz. pkg. Racconto Potato Gnocchi - (I'm going to try to make my own version of Olive Garden's Chicken Gnocci soup - I love that stuff!!)
Food Club Graham Cracker Crust (it's half the price that I usually see at Aldi's)
12 oz. can frozen Old Orchard Juice concentrate - select varieties
8 oz. Food Club cream cheese
24 oz. Del Monte ketchup
6 count Food Club English Muffins
11-12 oz. Bagels Forever (probably a 4-6 count pkg.)
200 ct. Valutime Coffee Filters
7-16 oz. Land of Lakes margarine or buttery spread
6 count Food Club toaster pastries
3 ct. Food Club microwave popcorn
5 oz. New York TEXAS TOAST croutons

This is a good price if you need some of the items now, there are a few I'll pick up now, but for some, I'm just going to wait and see if Jewel has a better deals in the coming weeks - a Conagra catalina promo should be right around the corner!

Also on sale at Butera:
3/$1 lb. bananas - limit 1 bunch
$1.69 lb. boneless skinless chicken breast - limit 2 pkgs.
$1.98 lb. unsliced mozzarella (half or whole deli-style block)
$.99 lb. split chicken breasts
$1.98 lb. Bavarian smoked ham, sliced at the deli counter
$2.98 lb. Munster, Quesadilla, or Brick cheese, sliced at the deli counter

I managed to get to 3 stores, make 6 transactions both before and after work - look at all the goodies I got for less than 1/2 my weekly grocery budget:

Jewel transaction #1:
6 cans Campbell's Chunky soup $.99 each
- $.50/2 Campbell's Chunky soup coupons (x3)
OOP: $4.64

Jewel Transaction #2:
6 cans Campbell's Chunky soup $.99 each
$6.04

Dominicks transaction #1:
5 boxes General Mills cereal $1.50 (wyb in multiples of 3)
1 box Captain Crunch $1.00 (wyb in multiples of 3)
1 pint blueberries $.99
1 bag salad shreds $.99
1 box BC instant potatoes $.99
-$.40 BC potatoes
-$1 Honey Cheerios (x2)
-$1.50/3 GM cereals
-$2.50 catalina
OOP: $5.83

Dominicks transaction #2:
Pork Loin - unsliced $.99 lb. (regularly $4.99 lb.) $5.41
Boneless Pork Sirloin Chop $.99 lb. (regularly $3.99 lb.) $4.70
-$5.00 expired catalina from Jewel
OOP: $5.34

Ultra:
4 Tony's Pizzas (small size) $.99 each
2 jars Fisher Peanut Butter $1.29 each
-$1.00 Fisher product over 4 oz. (x2)
-$1/2 Tony's Pizza (x2)
-$.05 bag credit - love reusable bags!!
OOP: $2.64

Coupons spent: $15.90
Total item count: 29
Total OOP: $24.49
This averages out to $.84 per item, but since this includes meat, I'm pretty happy with that total!

Since I've learned to coupon, I've been more than willing to teach anyone that is interested in learning how to coupon. Some days, I like to think I've made a convert here and there, but one person I've taken under my wing with couponing has me rather confused. Let me explain....


Through mutual acquaintances, I met this girl who, like most people that I meet, couldn't believe the kind of deals I was able to get. Naturally, I offered her some online information, the places I look for the deals, where to find the good coupons, a basic outline of how the system works - I even broke it down store by store across our area. I thought that would give her a healthy start.

A few days later she calls, says she doesn't really understand, would I mind showing her. I set up a time to go out shopping with her - just to show a few stores, and some decent deals. By the end of that long, exhausting evening, we've hit every grocery store in the area and when we wrap up the evening, she says, "So, how about the same time next week?" We both have a good laugh.

I have done this more than a few times before, so I wasn't that surprised by the request. It usually takes 2-3 trips before my "student" feels confident to tackle it on their own. What surprises me now, nothing has changed. I don't know if I just wasn't able to teach her, or if she didn't really want to learn...

Now I try to keep her in the loop - like I do with all my fellow couponers, but instead of being able to take the information I give her and do the deals, I'm told she's too busy, no money, has a work commitment, pre-scheduled appointment, plans with family and friends, etc. and as often as not, could I just go and do the deals for her. Once or twice, I wouldn't mind grabbing a few things for a friend, but lately that isn't what it feels like. What she says is I'm too busy or I don't have the money, what I hear: my time is more important to me and I don't need the deals that bad. Which is just fine, but then why ask me to do them for you? My money and my time are important, which is why I do the deals in the first place! Like I don't have enough of my own stuff to do...trust me, I am more than capable to keeping myself busy without someone else's errands. My apologies if a certain amount of my frustration is peeking through.

Has this ever happened to anyone else out there? While I try to understand that couponing isn't for everyone, I find it so hard to fathom why someone who is looking to save money isn't able to learn this system and help themselves or their family. I know it took me some time to learn it, but I didn't have anyone in person that was teaching me - I just had a message board on msn.com, some people giving suggestions that I thought I could use, and I managed to figure it out. I'm not saying that everyone learns or should learn the same way, I am at a loss for how I should handle this situation.

Any suggestions? I could definitely use some help right about now!

DH & I popped in to Barnes & Noble and found oodles of goodies - all for $2 an item. This includes: board games (Worst Case Scenario: Office Edition was one of them), books (paperback and hard cover), some handheld electronic games (Guitar Hero - there were plenty of those floating around), cookbooks, kids books, and the list could easily go on.

I grabbed a Favorite Brand Name cookbook (it's one of my favorite cookbook publishers), a hardcover book, and 2 games - all for $8.68. If you need to grab some gifts for teens, tweens, and even adults/family gifts - this is a great time to stock up! Too bad a sale like this (for Barnes and Noble) only comes along once a year....

After that, we went to Caputo's and grabbed Fisher peanut butter for $.49 a jar. I grabbed 6, but will go back to day to score a few more. I ordered some coupons off of Ebay (20 of the $1 Fisher coupons) using a free $5 Paypal gift card from swagbucks - so the coupons were free, there is no limit on the peanut butter - last time I saw a sale on this, I had 40 coupons and the peanut butter was $.99 a jar. And I used every last coupon, too! Naturally, that's almost gone by now. Looks liek the sale popped up just in time. I love it when that happens.

DH & I have gone through most of the leftovers today, so it's time for our weekly meal-plan!

Monday - leftovers
Tuesday - Dinner at DaMama's - she's baking a ham! Yummy!!
Wednesday - Pulled chicken sammies, baked potatoes, green beans
Thursday - Tomato basil soup, garlic cheese bread
Friday - Pizza, garlic bread, salad
Saturday - dinner in Chicago at Nuevo Leon - best enchiladas con mole I've ever had!
Sunday - Spaghetti with Italian sausage & peppers, salad

Breakfast of the week: cereal, oatmeal, fresh fruit (unless I make the banana bread tonight)

Dessert of the week: Almond-topped brownies, ice cream

Snack of the week: Wheat Thins, apples 'n' peanut butter, trail mix

$.99 lb. for the following items:
Pork loin rib half-sliced
Smoked Shank 1/2 ham
Boneless Sirloin Pork Chops
Honeysuckle or Jennie-O Turkey Breast (bone-in)
Mangos
Baby carrots
Green onions
Navel Oranges
Gala Apples

Also $.99:
Fresh Express salad shreds and mix
pint of blueberries
Filone Artisan Breads (love the Asiago one!!)
5 lb. Russet potatoes

Other Deals:

$.88 6-8 oz. pkgs. Pepperridge Farm goldfish
$.77 2L 7-Up products

Buy 3 Save $3 instantly on selected cereals (remember to use your expired coupons on this!!) Limit 18 boxes per cardholder, per transaction

Meals:

Mango Pork Tenderloin

Ham and Mashed Potatoes

Orange Pepper Turkey Breast

Dijon Pork Chops

Turkey & Spinach Salad

Ham & Potato Casserole

Apple Crisp

Blueberry Blonde Brownies

Blueberry Muffins

It's been a while since I've seen enough good eals to do this - but, by golly - Caputo's has enough deals on stuff to make it a one-stop shopping trip to get you set for the week. I've got a list of items on sale, and a menu (click on each entree to go to the recipe) that combines quick and easy, not just in the store, but in the kitchen!

$.99 lb. pork roast
$.89 lb. roasting bell peppers
$1.49 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breast
$.79 La Bella Romana pasta (12-16 oz. pkgs.)
$1.49 18 oz. Fisher Peanut Butter
2/$1 heads of: Boston, Romaine, Red, or Green Leaf Lettuce
$.59 lb. Anjou Pears
2/$3 Dutch Farms 8 oz. shred cheese
$.99 Pillsbury rolls
$.79 lb. Gala apples
4/$1 bunches of cilantro
4/$5 28 oz. cans La Bella Romana tomatoes

What you'll need to have on hand:
potatoes
rice
carrots, optional
eggs
tortillas, corn preferrably
cooking oil
sandwich bread
margarine
salad dressing
onions
flour
chicken bouillion
brown sugar
soy sauce
spices

Meal Ideas:

Roasted Red Bell Pepper and Mozzarella Frittata

Pepper and Tomato Pasta, side salad, garlic bread

Pork Roast with veggies

Tacos Carnitas

Chicken 'n' Biscuits, Cinnamon Apples

Peanut Chicken

Apple Crisp

Pear Crisp

I was looking through the DOminicks sale ad that ends today, and had my box of carefully filed expired coupons and found some tasty match-ups:

$.99 Quaker Chewy Granola Bars - limit 3
Pair this with $1/2 or $.75/2 = $.50-$.61 a box

$.99 Wishbone salad dressing
Pair this with $1/2 coupons ( I have several) = $.50 a bottle
Stack this with $1 off Chicken, Beef, or Produce WYB2 Wishbone Salad dressings
$.99 lb. Chicken drumsticks, thighs, and leg quarters
$1.69 lb. 80% lean ground beef
$1.99 lb. London Broil
Looks like I'll be taking home some cheap meat!

I didn't see any good deals on produce there this week, but next week:
$.99 pint blueberries!!
Can I just say.....YUM!