Publix for 8/21 - 8/27

This week wasn't a big shopping week. Because of Tropical Storm Fay hanging around, we hung out at the house most of the week except for doctor appointments. The rain finally let up for awhile yesterday so I snuck out to Publix. With this being the last day of the Kraft - JCPenny promotion, I needed to finish up my purchasing. I needed 5 products and $16 to reach the 3 card limit. So that was my main goal. Plus, with baby working on making an appearance soon, I needed some items for my boyfriend to cook when I was recuperating.

I didn't really do a lot of coupon research. I might go back after I put more coupons together later in the sale. I used 2 copies of the free Kraft products from the All You Magazine.

Here are some of the highlights of the shopping trip:

Free Products from All You:
2 Kraft Dressings (for JCP Promo)
2 Kraft Singles (for JCP Promo)
2 Oscar Mayer Hot Dogs (for JCP Promo)
2 Nabisco Wheat Thins
2 Crystal Light

Oscar Mayer Hot Dogs - BOGO -$3.99
- 2 All You Freebies
= 4 free packages (2 count towards the three products for the All You Promotion)

Juicy Juice 64 oz - BOGO -$3.49 (This is in Central Florida.)
- 2 $1 printable coupons
= 2 bottles for $1.49 or .75 each

Ritz Crackers BOGO - $3.69 (Counts towards the three products for the All You Promotion)
= 2 Crackers for $3.69 or $1.85 each

Seapack Seafood - 6 various types - BOGO - $7.29
- 3 $1 printable coupons + 3 $1 peelies found on boxes
= 6 boxes for $15.87 or about $5.29 a box

I used the Ritz Crackers, extra hot dogs, and Kool-Aid packets to qualify for the All You coupons.

I also bought $15 worth of produce for $9.00 using 3 $2 off $5 (and here) of produce from Food Lion.

I tried to use the $5 off $20 from Walgreens but the cashier wouldn't allow it. My other store would have, but I was already at this store, so I let it go. This coupon expires 8/23 so use it quick. There is also a $2 off $10 from CVS. It's good till 9/28. It's on page 30.

The Publix Brand Challenge is about this week. The dogs out there will be very happy. When you purchase the brand, you will receive Publix brand for free.

The products are:
Purina Bacon Flavor Beggin Strips
Milk Bone Medium Dog Biscuits
Pedigree Choice Cuts 22oz can

I also found several new Publix coupon booklets that I had never seen before:
Heinz Toss For Cash (Has $12 in store coupons)
Mypyramid.gov (Has $20 in store coupons)
Be Prepared (Has $11 in manufacturers coupons)
Smart Summertime Savings (Has $75 in store and manufacturers coupons)

So hopefully this will help you find some deals at Publix. I ended up saving $93.45 and used 21 coupons. I was able to fulfill the JCP requirements. Remember, it needs to be received by 9/5 so get it in the mail soon.

Deals in My Favorite Stores

I love to go to the mall and go shopping. I grew up as a mall brat and my daughter is definitely a mall brat now. Our favorite thing to do is go to the mall and cash in on the deals and free stuff. We usually find all types of great finds to excite us.

Fiddledeedee's Blog gave me the idea to write this. Sarah has a post every Tuesday that discusses a favorite thing. Well, I got thinking about it and I couldn't come up with one store that was my favorite. So, I put together this list of a few of my favorite stores with ways to save money this week. Let me know what you think.

Bath and Body Works has a great coupon circulating for a free pair of the "sweetest, softest, socks on Earth" when you make a $15 purchase. The coupon expires September 2, 2008. I have been wanting a pair of these for my upcoming hospital visit, when our newest princess makes her debut. There is also a printable coupon for a free 2oz Signature Body Lotion with any purchase. I usually pair this up with another small purchase like a gift bag or travel size item. This coupon expires August 27, 2008. They also have a new scent, Black Amethyst. Has anyone tried it, yet?


Wet Seal has a coupon in the September issue of Seventeen on page 18. They are giving away a free ribbed tank top to the first 10,000 people. When we did this with the coupon from the August issue, we did not have any problems getting a tank top.


Victoria Secret is giving away the new scent, Secret Garden Berry Kiss with any $15 beauty purchase. This coupon expires August 24, 2008. Cosmo Girl has a coupon inside for a free Pink Makeup Bag with any Pink purchase. This coupon expires August 31, 2008. Each store is also giving away free limited edition Pink totes with any Pink purchase.


Yankee Candle is giving away a free room spray when you purchase a 22oz Housewarmer Jar Candles. This coupon expires August 24, 2008. It can also be used online. They have a haunting Halloween collection available.

Build a Bear is getting into the back to school spirit. This weekend, August 16th and 17th, they are giving away a free messenger bag with any $15 purchase. They are also giving away free stuff till September 1. No purchase is necessary. Rumor has it, the items are things like bear hair ribbons and bows and cardboard wardrobes for animal clothes.

These specials are a great way to get a start with holiday shopping. Many of these items could make great stocking stuffers or gift bag items. Check out this Sunday's Feature, Planning for the Holidays, when we will talk working towards a stress free holiday.

Does your blog have any mall deals? What have you found while back to school shopping? Leave a link or a comment and let us all know about it.

Free Flower Bouquets

Do you know someone who would like a free bouquet of flowers? How about decorating your table or night stand with something pretty? This is a perfect way to Pay It Forward.

FTD Florists are giving away free bouquets of flowers on September 3, 2008 to celebrate Good Neighbor Day. All you have to do is walk into a participating florist and ask for the bouquet.

"FTD florists have celebrated FTD® Good Neighbor Day® since 1994, encouraging all neighbors to help create a friendlier, more caring and compassionate world through the gift of flowers. That's why customers are encouraged to keep one flower for themselves and give the others away — brightening the day of many other people."

Check out the list of participating florists. There is a limited amount of places that are participating. I am going to call our local florist the day of the event to check to see if they are participating even though they aren't on the list. Who knows, maybe they will still give me a bouquets.

This Week At Publix 8-10

As I mentioned in the previous Wal-Mart blog, my goal was to find out how much I could get with as many coupons as possible and as little cash as possible.

I have been working on getting the receipts for the Publix-JCPenney Gift Card promotion so my next stop after Wal-Mart was to head over to Publix. I had my latest copy of All You in hand. This is the issue that has the coupons for the 5 free Kraft products with the purchase of any 3 Kraft, Nabisco, or Oscar Mayer items.

This is what I did:
Total Bill: $45.55
Total Coupon Savings: $33.41
Total Advertised Specials: $7.78
Total Cash out of Pocket:$4.36
Total # of Coupons: 11
Total Savings %:.90

My goal was to pick up the 12 products I need to earn 3 JCPenney gift cards, but I didn't want to spend any cash. So this is what I came up with:

4 Boxes of Honey Bunches of Oats Just Bunches - BOGO $3.89
- 2 free box coupons from the latest coupon mail in = Free
(Qualifies as a Post Cereal for the Promo)

I bought the following products using the coupons from the All You Magazine. I needed to buy 3 products for each coupon.

2 Oscar Mayer Beef Hot Dogs - $3.99 x 2 (Qualifies for Promo)
2 Kraft Dressings - $3.19 x 2 (Qualifies for Promo)
1 Kraft American Singles - $3.19 (Qualifies for Promo)
1 Nabisco Wheat Thins - $3.29
1 Crystal Light - $3.99

I bought 24 packets of Kool-Aid and used 2 tearpad coupons to get 4 free.

I now have 9 products towards my 12 product goal. The only drawback to not spending the cash, is I still need to spend the $150 towards my grocery goal for the promotion. By not having to spend cash on the Kraft products, I can take that money and put it towards other items we need like produce, meat, and dairy.

Have you heard about our Monday Coupon Challenge? You win 100 grocery coupons for telling us about your best shopping scenario using the most coupons you can this week. Feel free to use these deals if you want. Do you want to find more Publix deals, check out my friends over at Fiddledeedee! She has a great list over there. The deadline for this challenge is Saturday, August 16 so don't wait. Link up today.

Wal-Mart This Week 8-10-2008

Yesterday, I took a trip to Wal-Mart. This is something I usually avoid on a Sunday, but I had some time to kill so I decided to challenge myself. I wanted to see how many coupons I could use and spend as little cash as possible. My coupons were starting to stack up so I need to use some up.

My Totals:
Total Bill: $45.15
Total Savings: $38.95
Total Cash out of Pocket: $6.20
# of coupons: 27
Total Savings %: .86

Here's what I did:
3 Huggies Baby Wipes (Travel Size) .98 = $2.94
- 3 $1 coupons from inserts = +.06 overage

1 Playtex Cleansing Cloths (Travel Size) $1.97
- $1 coupon from inserts = .97

10 Huggies Clean Team Wipes $1.64 = $16.40
- 5 $3 off 2 coupons from inserts = $1.40

1 Pond's Clean Wipes (Travel Size) .97
- 1 $1.50 off coupon from inserts = +.53 overage

2 Kotex Pantyliners $1.00 =$2.00
- 2 $1.00 off coupons from All You = Free

1 Adidas Deodorant $2.96
- 1 free coupon from All You (Issue 5) or insert = Free

5 Meow Mix wet cans .48 = $2.40
- 5 free coupons from inserts = Free

2 Bic Pens .88 = $1.76
- 1 $1.00 off 2 coupon from Coupons.com
Use link on side of blog = .76

1 Cascade Rinse = $2.47
- 1 free coupon from P&G Home Mailer = Free

7 Powerade 32 oz bottles .60 = $4.20
- 3 $1 off 2 coupons plus 1 $1 off 1 = +.20 overage
Coupons are from inserts.

1 Uncle Ben's Rice $1.62
- 1 free coupon received in mail = Free

1 Harvest Selections Microwavable Dinner $1.94
- 1 $1 coupon from inserts = .94

I found a couple of other deals that I did not take advantage of:

V8 Fusion $2.98 - $1 insert coupon = $1.98
Cascade 20 ct Action Pacs $3.50 - $1coupon from P&G Home Mailing = $2.50
100 Calorie Snacks $1.66 - .60 coupon from pillsbury.com or various inserts = $1.06
Electrosol Pacs $3.67 - $2.25 insert coupon = $1.42


Check out the Monday's Coupon Challenge to see how you can win 100 coupons for posting your scenarios. What did you find this week? Leave a link and let us know.

Free Food With the Latest Issue of All You

Have you read "All You"? This magazine has become one of my favorite reads each month. I have only seen it on sale at Wal-Mart. It's full of helpful mom tips about everything. The August 29, 2008 issue has 38 coupons that total $35.35 in savings. You can receive two free issues by registering fror it at Wal-Mart.com.

Kraft has done it again. On page 159 of All You, there is 5 coupons for free Kraft products when you buy any 3 Kraft, Nabisco, or Oscar Mayer products. The coupons expire 9/30/2008.

The free products are:

• Nabisco Wheat Thins,
• 16 oz Kraft Dressing,
• Oscar Mayer Hot Dogs,
• Crystal Light,
• 12 oz package or Kraft Singles.

The cheapest product to buy is Kool-Aid packets. Since each packet makes a pitcher of Kool-Aid, it is not a single serve product. They are less then .20 each, so for less then .60 each, you can get each one of these listed products for free. That's a great deal.

If your family doesn't use one of these free products, consider buying it anyway, and donating it to your local food bank. They can use it. Check out the previous post on the latest Pay It Forward Grocery Challenge.

Before you run to Wal-Mart to use your coupons, stay tuned for my next blog to find out how you can use these coupons to get $30 in JCPenney gift cards.

Pay It Forward Grocery Challenge

How did you spend your $5 for the Charity Grocery Challenge? In my previous blog, I explained that one of this week's Pay It Forward Challenges was to try and spend $5 on as many groceries as possible and donate them to a local food bank.

I used some of the Moneysavingmom.com Wal-Mart Deals to make the most of my $5.

Here's what I did:

2 boxes of Live Active Cereal - $2.98 each - 2 $3 coupons = Free
2 boxes of Kashi Cereal - $1.98 each - 2 $2 coupons = Free
7 cans of Muri Glen Diced Tomatoes - $1.22 - 7 $1 coupons = $1.54
2 jars of Bertolli Premium Sauce - $1.78 - 2 $1 coupons = $1.56
3 boxes of GV spaghetti - .65 = 1.95

Total Out of Pocket Cash: $5.05

If you need a place to donate the food, you can always call a local church and ask them where to take it. They usually have a list of where to send church goers that are in need.

So what did you find? Let us know!!!

Pay It Foward for Students

The new Pay It Forward Challenge is for the disadvantaged students. How many school supplies can you get for $1, $2, or $5 and donate to your local elementary school?

Here's what I came up with, while shopping with my daughter:
Staples
20 2 pocket folders - Free with instant rebate
12 1 subject notebook in 6 packs - .30 x 2 = .60

Office Depot
10 Tug Pencil Sharpeners - .1 x 10 =.10
10 Office Depot Slider Pencil Boxes - .1 x 10 = .10
10 12" Wood Rulers - .1 x 10 = .10
10 16 pack Scholastic Crayons - .5 x 10 = .50
2 10 pack Papermate Pens - .25 x 2 =.50

Wal-Mart
Elmer's 2 pack glue sticks - .22 x 5 = 1.10

For $3.00, I will be donating 10 packages of school supplies to the local elementary school. What have you found? Post your deals and scenerios in the comments and inspire other shoppers to do the same.