Enjoying a simple life as a wife, daughter, nurse, and frugal shopper
If you are a bargain / deal shopper like me you probably have accumulated a large stockpile of items. This year I put together some care packages for residents of a group home. There are 6 men and 2 women. Here’s what they will be getting: 
Men’s
Women’s
I had some backpacks left from my Ford Fusion / American Idol House Party to put everything in.
Today, a quick stop at Victoria’s Secret with a $10 off $10 purchase certificate = FREE Love Spell. I love VS FREEBIES – they don’t make you pay tax – truly FREE! 
At CVS all of this was FREE and I even had a $1.00 profit due to a razor coupon, but that went out with the tax. I really needed the tissue paper too. The paper, bows, and tags are FREE thru tomorrow (Tuesday) so go get yours if you haven’t already! 
My lucky streak continues! Here are three of my latest wins – two on Twitter and one from A Frugal Friend. From Lands End a Dory Down Jacket, from Womentorz a $25 Macy’s giftcard, and from A Frugal Friend the Frosty Friends DVD. 
Did you score some of the FREE items that Walgreens is offering this week? I managed a few, but was disappointed I missed out on the Conair brushes and the Scunci Hair Accessories. I started with $10.50 in Register Rewards and ended with $11.00 in Register Rewards. I paid a total of $3.13 out of pocket for everything pictured. I’ll be submitting two rebates for $6.99 each on the Just For Men haircolor, which will be going in the trash – just got it since it was a moneymaker. Total profit after rebates (and the stamps to mail them in) will be $10.47. 
Today was a day off for me – no work, no school. Usually it’s my clinical day at the hospital, but today was reserved for those who had to do a make-up. After sleeping in until 8:00, I headed out for some weekly deal shopping. First stop was Dollar General. In their toy catalog, the mini Mr. Potato Head is on sale for $2.50. I purchased two and used two $2.00 off coupons making them just 50 cents each. Total after tax was $1.25. These will be donated to a Toys-4-Tots program. 
CVS was a moneymaker, but I only took advantage of a few of the weekly freebies. Bayer glucose monitor $14.99, Lumene Vit. C Cream $2.99 each, Zantac-24 count $8.99. Used Bayer coupon $14.99, $5 off Lumene CRT, and $1.00 off Zantac. Used $7.99 Extrabuck. Paid $1.21 out of pocket and earned $5.00 and $8.99 Extrabucks for a profit of $4.79. 
I had two $5.00 off $5.00 or more purchase coupons for any Hallmark store. I did two transactions and got two different gourmet soup mixes for $1.30 each including tax. Total $2.60. These will be ideal this winter when we need a quick meal! Baked Potato and Roasted Corn Chowder.
At Walgreens, I had an expiring $25 “check” that we received for a prescription transfer. This year’s Entertainment book was exactly that amount. I love the Entertainment book. My friend Amy got me hooked several years ago. The books are wonderful and full of great coupon savings for the next year. I also picked up 3 cans of evaporated milk, 2 bags of Chex Mix, 2 packs of Royal gelatin, a can of salmon, and 2 packs of Chinet plates. After coupons, I paid $2.64 for everything! 
At Target I took advantage of another giftcard deal. When you bought 5 Keebler products, you got a $5.oo Target giftcard back. I did this and then spent in on a second transaction. My out of pocket is a little high, but we needed dog food and treats and I forgot to bring coupons for these items. I did get more Mr. Potato Heads, and these are the full size ones. They were on sale for $6.99 each and I had two $5 off coupons making them just $1.99 each. Don’t forget to get your FREE Swiss Miss cocoa mix that is on sale for .97 for a 10-pack. There is a $1.00 off coupon on the Target website which makes it FREE. Total out of pocket after coupons and giftcards was $14.26. 
My final stop was Save-a-lot for some groceries. I bought enough to use the current $5 off $20 coupon. You can print it from their website.
Look at my cute little Potato Head family… 
I recently won another giveaway from Laurie at Bargain Hunter and Angela at Angela’s Glass Studio. It’s a beautiful penguin suncatcher! In the spirit of the season, I had to name him Topper, after the penguin on Santa Claus Is Coming To Town. Angela does beautiful work and I recommend you check out her website. She has some beautiful jewelry pieces as well as other glass work. You can also become a fan of Angela’s Glass Studio on Facebook. 
I headed back to Target and Rite-Aid for another round today. I’m slowly getting my pantry restocked! Here’s today’s Target trip…
(3) Steaz tea $1.09 each – had (3) FREE product coupons
(6) Heinz jar gravy on sale for .79 each used (2) $1.00 off 3 coupons = .46 each
(8) Campbell’s Cream of Mushroom soup on sale for .49 each used (2) $1.00 off 4 coupons = .24 each
(12) Delmonte canned vegetables on sale for .45 each used (2) $1.00 off 6 coupons = .29 each
(13) Purina cat treats for Emmett $1.89 each used (13) FREE product coupons
Total including tax was $9.68.
At Rite-Aid I did the same deal twice. (1) Benevia $7.99, (1) Dulcolax Balance $6.99, and (1) Cotton Rounds $2.15. Used $3 off $15 Rite-Aid coupon, $5 off Benevia, $4 off Dulcolax in-ad Rite-Aid coupon, $3 off Dulcolax coupon on bottle neck, and $2 off any Rite-Aid beauty purchase. Total was 33 cents for each transaction. There is a Single Check Rebate for $7.99 on the Benevia and a $5.00 mail-in rebate on the Dulcolax, for a PROFIT of $12.66 for each transaction. I’ve already submitted from yesterday’s trip for myself. I’ll submit one set of today’s for my Mom and the other for a friend. Love moneymaking shopping trips!
Here’s a nice deal at Rite-Aid! Buy one 4-pack Benevia Nutritional Beverage for $7.99 and one Dulcolax Balance 4-ounce for $6.99. Use the following coupons: $3 off $15 Rite-Aid purchase, $5.oo off Benevia printable, $4.oo off Dulcolax Balance from the Rite-Aid ad, and $3.00 off Dulcolax Balance on the bottle. Pay nothing AND earn $7.99 Single Check Rebate on the Benevia and $5.00 mail in rebate for the Dulcolax Balance. Total profit is $12.99! I did that deal this evening and also had a $2.00 off $2.00 or more Rite-Aid beauty purchase coupon. I found Revlon eyeshadow at 75% OFF so my total including tax came to 30 cents. Rite-Aid also just started a new round of Gift of Savings so my pre-coupon total applies to that as well.
At Dollar General, seven bags of treats for Emmett. Retail price is $1.75 each. Used seven FREE product coupons for a total of .61 for tax. 
At Walgreens, the Almay Perfect Blend Foundation is also a moneymaker. It’s ringing up for $8.49 and printing a $10 Register Reward. Coffeemate creamer is on sale Buy 1 Get 1 Free at $2.49. There are $1.00 off coupons on the Coffeemate website, which brings the price down to .25 per bottle. I needed a filler so I grabbed some mushrooms that are on sale 2 for $1.00. I used two $5.00 Register Rewards and earned back a $10.00 Register Reward so my total including tax for everything pictured was 88 cents. 
I won a few more giveaways recently. Some from other blogs and some on Twitter. From Haut Totes, a zippered pouch and from Barley & Birch, a children’s gazelle tank top. From Frugal Racing Mom the newest Harry Connick Jr. CD, which I’m really enjoying. And from one of my favorite bloggers, Jamie, at I Am A Money Magnet, I won two different giveaways. Joshua Bell’s latest CD and the book, Cult Insanity. (I hope to read the book over my Christmas break.) Thanks everyone! 
