I don't know about you but my summer went way too fast. The kids go back to school Monday. Youza!

In the last three weeks my only grocery purchases have been milk, bread, lemon juice and an onion. We have canned 2 bushels of tomatoes and 1 1/2 bushels of peaches. We have frozen squash, zucchini, tomatoes, carrots, blackberries, strawberries, peaches, jams, etc. I finally had to send my hubby today and he did a fab job of staying in our $50/wk budget. We had to divide duties. He did the grocery store and I took CK#1 to the dr. to discover she has a MAJOR case of poison ivy. We think she got it trekking through the fields of a Civil War battle site in Murfreesboro, TN. Lesson learned. No flip flops on historical site explorations.

The last couple of months have been a lot of fun in the blogging world. I have learned a lot and have a gained a tremendous appreciation for the moms who do this full time. My little summaries were 15 minutes snippets here and there that were fit in my schedule between football, volleyball, piano, swimming and dance. Now we are starting all over again. Now What??

Well, my blogging days are going to have to come to a stop for a while. I have to have a little procedure done that will include a fun recovery but no time for anything but the essentials. My food storage is good and my kids love to help with couponing so the deals won't stop for us but it will be limited. I will still be around if you want to call or email with questions. Good luck with school and all of your fun adventures. Tamara

Taking A Little Vacation

If you are new to couponing it might seem like you never want to leave your computer because you might just miss out on something. Just like any other hobby or job you have to fit it in with the rest of your life. My 3 CK's and I will be doing a little trekking over the next week trying to fit in the most fun we can before school starts again on the 17th. We love adventures and we have been to 20 states together and will add another new state (Virginia) to our list this time. The kids want to see all 50 states before I do. I have 8 left so they better hurry.

Keep up with my other favorite couponers with their links found at the right. Don't forget about tax free weekend in TN Aug 7-9.

Scope Outlast Free Sample

I love free samples. They are the perfect way to try new products and they usually come in sizes great to travel with. Walmart has a Scope Outlast sample here. Thanks Hip2save.

Office Max 3 Sharpies for 1 Penny Each

Here is a good one thanks to couponcravings. Sharpies for 1 penny at Office Max. Go here to print the coupon.

CVS & Staples

Today is Tuesday and it's the last day to get the school supplies that are free with ECB's. If your CVS is out of the sale items get the raincheck and you will still get the sale price and the ECB's. It addition to the school supplies this week there is a Soft Soap Body Soap and Blink Eye Drops that are free with ECB's. See couponmommie for links to coupons for these items that make them better than free.

I happened to be by Staples yesterday so I ran in and got the filler paper that is .01. Yes, .01 each for 120 sheets college or wide ruled. Limit 5. They have other things on sale including composition books for .50 ea. This filler paper offer is only good until WEDNESDAY! If you get the Sunday paper there is also a $10 gift card if you spend $50 offer coupon on the front page. This is great is you need to buy a backpack or some computer accessories.

What To Do After Canning 84 lbs Of Peaches?

My inner couponer was a little neglected this week because of all the canning from our garden and the mounds of peaches we picked. I only made it to CVS and had my hubby grab an onion and some hotdogs and the store for me.

So, Teresa and I have finished the peaches and it was time for me to browse my favorite deal sites. It looks to be a busy week. New coupons on coupons.com. Lots of good deals coming at CVS and Walgreens. Take a look any of the site linked at the right for lists.

If you haven't finished shopping for this week you might want to go and see if Target has any of their toys left that are on a killer sale. I saw many different posts about people stocking up on things for Christmas and bdays.

Do you feel like it is just too soon for school to start? We start in two weeks and before that we have friends coming for 4 days, a trip to Nashville for 2 days, a trip to Virginina for 4 days and my oldest CK turns 10.

Right now I just need to sit for a few minutes before I start the clean up process that must follow a sticky peach day:)

What was your favorite find this week?

Picking Peaches

After spending 12 years in the NW we learned that if you wait for it to stop raining you will not ever leave your house. You can do anything in the rain that you do without the rain:) So today, despite possibilities of rain, our little peach picking crew went on an adventure. My 3 CK's and two of their friends hopped in our Trailblazer and headed north of Knoxville to the Fruit and Berry Patch. We picked 1 1/2 bushels -about 84 lbs when I weighed them at home. We had the best time. There are a lot of peaches to be reached when you let an eight year old climb the tree or put a four year old on your shoulders. Can you believe that I forgot to take pictures?

After we picked our hearts out we stopped in the little store there on farm and had fresh fruit slushes. We tried the cherry/apple and the strawberry and it was pretty even favorites. If you want a good staycation or just a fun adventure head up to the kid friendly Fruit and Berry Patch at 4407 McCloud Rd., Knoxville, TN 37938. For farm updates call 865-922-3779 or go here.

My buddy Teresa is coming over tomorrow. Guess what we will be doing:)

Home Made Simple Coupon Booklet

Dealseekingmom has posted another link to a great coupon booklet that comes right in the mail. Go here and sign up. These coupons are for cleaning items like Dawn and Cascade. Everytime they put up a new link I sign up and have received three or four in the mail. There is even a coupon for FREE Cascade Rinse for your dishwasher.

What's Good Today

Are you a Christopher and Banks Shopper? If so, sign up here for their email list and get a $10 off any purchase coupon. Thanks Hip2save.

Moneysavingmom has a great Target Deals list. Not sure if I will make it this week but it is worth a try.

Some of you might remember how irritated it makes me to try and shop at Ingles. Well, I did go last week and after seeing the Ingles coupon matchup list on Southernsavers I might have to go again this week for their B1G1 Free sale.

Great Kraft Printables

**Update** THESE COUPONS ARE ONLY GOOD AT PUBLIX. Sorry everyone. Either that little bit of info got added later or I just didn't see that. I am of the belief that it's not right to try and 'sneak' something in but I have heard that some stores don't look at the coupon good enough to notice the one spot it says 'Redeem at Publix". I won't be trying it but if you live near a Publix print on!

Just saw this on http://www.couponcravings.com/. A link for three great Kraft coupons.

$1.50 off Kraft Dressing
$1 off Oscar Meyer Beef Franks
$1 off Kraft Natural 2% Shredded Cheese

Moneysavingmom has a good heads up on a new Cellfire coupon for $1 off Honey Nut Cheerios. This should go on sale as part of the back-to-school chaos so don't forget to download it.

New P & G Downloadable Coupons & The Bounce Dryer Bar

P&G has added some new downloadable coupons that include Tide, Gain, Pampers, Underjams and a lot more. Download what you need before you head to Kroger this week.

There is coupon that I want to comment about. The Bounce Dryer Bar. The bar slides into a cartridge that attaches directly to the inside of your dryer barrell and is supposed to last about two months. I tested this as part of VocalPoint last month. It smells nice and worked well to soften the clothes BUT, after two weeks the bars was more than half gone and the whole cartridge fell off the side of the dryer. The cartridge would not reattach and now there is a ugly spot in my new dryer. The spot does not affect anything. It hasn't damaged any clothes that I have seen. I do A LOT of laundry--just like you I bet. This bar would not have lasted more than a month for me and the fact that it just failed to stick has left me with the opinion that I would not buy this bar.

If you have used the Bounce Dryer Bar and have a different opinion feel free to comment on it.

Busy Week

We have a super busy week at our house. We have been canning and freezing all the goodies from our garden and plan to do some tomatoes and peaches in the next few days. We have a good friend coming from out of town and I am taking inventory (again) of the kids clothes so I know what more they need for fall/winter. We are also cleaning windows and blinds and curtains --because they need it. CK#3 plays football three nights a week and guess who is the team mom? We also have a trip to NC and Nashville planned so only really good stuff will get my attention this week.

My plans this week include;
CVS school supply freebies. Check the flyer for the list or any of the links to crazy couponers will have lists of good deals.
I will time my Kroger trip to go on Thursday during the 50% off Kellogg's products one-day sale. Check out couponmommie or southernsavers for some good coupon links for Kellogg's products.

So email me if you have any questions or leave a comment if you have any fun ideas of what to do with a bunch of peaches & tomatoes. Right now I am planning peach butter, peach almond freezer conserve and slicing and freezing them for smoothies and cobblers. The tomatoes will be canned pizza sauce and diced tomatoes, frozen tomato puree and diced tomatoes. What I really need are more ideas for my cherry tomatoes. We are picking about 100 of these babies every other day. I have pureed and frozen some and will make a roasted tomato soup recipe this week to see if we like it enough to can some of that.

BIG Sale on Gain Laundry Detergent

**UPDATE** OOPS! Food City had a big misprint in their flyer. The Gain is NOT .99 it is $3.99ea.

A good friend of mine called today with a tip on a great sale on Gain Laundry Detergent. At Food City (Hardin Valley and Lenoir City Market Drive locations) Gain 24-42 load asst. bottles are .99. Yes, you read that right .99. Limit 10. The sale is July 26 - Aug 1. Nicole will be checking to see if this includes the HE variety for all of you with front load washing machines. I will update on that. This will make an even greater deal if you get the $5 off a $25 purchase coupon in the mail.

Another thing to watch for at those same Food City locations is .99/lb mixed pork chops.

Free Total Cereal Sample

I love to get free samples before I try something new. Especially things like cereal which can be a little spendy. Here is a chance to get a free Total Blueberry Pomegranate Cereal. Thanks Hip2save.

Love Fridays

Couponmommie has a great tip on an upcoming sale at Kroger and a ton of coupons to use with it. Thank Jennifer!

Couponcravings has a list of free samples available. I grabbed a sample of Airborne for my hubby who spends quality time in an airplane. She also has a link to some great Arm & Hammer coupons here.

Moneysavingmom has a Buy 1 Get 1 Free Entree coupon from one of my favorites Aubelos. Great for date night.

Dealseekingmom has a great write up about a new coupon application for your iPod Touch or iPhone. It is a free app that I will definitely be looking into for my new iPhone.

Southernsavers has a preview of the CVS deals for next week. More school freebies. Once again the items are free after ECB's and the ECB's are only offered thru Tuesday. If you get there and the items are out don't forget to get your raincheck! You will still get the ECB's if you get a raincheck by Tuesday.

Don't forget that the Ingles Triple Coupon event only happens a couple times of year and it is happening now. It ends on Saturday the 25th. I was able to grab some good deals earlier this week. Do you remember those Wacky Mac coupons from the coupon class? Now is the time to use those to get free pasta.

Deals For Thursday

Southernsavers has a link to the Smartsource coupons. If you haven't already been to Staples this week there is a coupon for Zebra products that are free with rebate this week. There is also a $1 coupon for Yoplait Fiber One Yogurt. Use this at Kroger with a $1 Cellfire or Shortcuts coupon. The Yoplait Fiber One Yogurts are on sale for $1.99. Use the printable and the downloadable coupon to make them free.

Hip2save has the link here for a free sample of True Delights Granola Bars which I can personally say are way yummy:)

www.coupons.com has some new coupons for $2 off Bic Triumph Roller pens, .75 off Cheez-Its and $1 off Kellogg's Cinnabon Bars.

The Gillette Fusion Razors are on sale at Target for $4.99. If you still have your $4 coupon from 6/7 that would make it .99ea. I was at Target earlier this week and did not see these on sale so have them do a price check for you if it isn't marked.

Hip2save has a great heads up on a new coupon on coupons.com. Use zip 85301 and print a $3 off a Colgate Toothpaste & Toothbrush. It says Walgreens on the coupon but it also says good at Food, Drug, Discount and other stores accepting coupons. This will be a good one to have for a future sale.

Also, while you are on coupons.com print the $1/2 Bic Stationary items. This will work great during the school supply wars. Walgreen's has Bic highlighters for .49. Thanks hip2save.

Dealseeking mom has a great link to ConAgra coupons. Go here and register if you haven't already.

I'm off to finish my strawberry freezer jam.

Monday Update

At the Cedar Bluff Staples this morning I got a great SwissGear backpack. It was regularly $80 on clearance for $35.50 and it works for the full price back on my Staples Rewards check. They are out of the free w/rebate highlighters and the pencil sharpener already. Call before you go if you want one because they are supposed to be getting more in.

At the CVS at Smith & Grigsby Chapel they have great stock of the free after ECB school supplies. The only adjustment is that they don't have the 1" binders listed in the add so they are substituting any other 1" binder in the store for the $3 price and 3 ECB's.

Walgreen's had the Pilot pens that were free after RR.

Gotta run kids to the pool. Happy shopping.

Good Deals To Watch For This Week

School Supply Wars are stepping up this week and Ingles even put themselves in the game.

Staples has a great deal going where you can get a FREE backpack if you are a member of Staples Rewards. Buy any backpack and get the purchase price back in your quarterly rewards check. You can do this deal in store, online or by phone. Make the deal even better by grabbing the following free w/rebate;

(These rebates are only available in store)
Zebra Cadoozie Mechanical Pencils $2.99-$2.99 easy rebate (limit 1)
Zebra Sarasa Retractable Gel Pens $4.99-$4.99 easy rebate (limit 1)
Pentel Handy Lines Highlighters $4.99-$4.99 easy rebate (limit 1)
Staples Photo Supreme 8 1/2" x 11" 50/pk $12.98-$11.98 rebate (limit 2)
Staples Slim Line Pencil Sharpener $15.99-$5.99 instant savings - $10 easy rebate (limit 1)

Don't forget to print off this $10 off a $50 purchase from Office Depot. Staples takes competitors coupons.

Ingles doing Triple coupons this week. couponmommie has a list of coupon matchups.

Kroger is doing another week of the Mega Sale. Most items are the same but check out southernsavers for coupon matchups on anything new.

Walgreens & CVS have more good school supply deals this week. http://www.hip2save.com/, http://www.couponmommie.com/ and http://www.southernsavers.com/ all have good lists to look at.

Don't forget that the CVS freebies last Sunday through Tuesday this week. This stuff will go VERY fast. For all my friends who don't shop on Sunday, ask for a raincheck if everything is gone and you can still get the ECB's after Tuesday.

If you are wondering if it is worth your time to go to different stores to get your school supplies, check out my Walmart price list from 7/13. Compare prices and make sure it is worth your while to go to more than one store.

Last Minute Target & Walmart Deals

If the planets align and you see this before you do your shopping on Saturday afternoon here's the deal.

Target strawberries are on sale for $1.50/lb. The Target coupon for $1 off expires today. .50/lb is better than you will find even to pick them yourself. They are no longer available on the Target website. Head on over to hotcouponworld or afullcup. This was a good enough deal that we took two trips and will make another batch of freezer jam!

Also, if you bought any of the Kellogg's cereal at Kroger this week in the specially marked boxes that said they had $5 worth of coupons inside you can use those coupons at Target today to make various Kellogg's cereal .88.

If you saw the post way back about the Alexia Potato Snacks and you have the 2 $1 coupons that came in the mail then take these to Target too. The snacks are on sale 2/$5. Use the 2 $1 Alexia coupons that they sent you and print the .75/2 Target Alexia Snack coupons on hotcouponworld or afullcup. This makes it $2.25 for 2 or $1.12 ea. Bring your receipt home and send in the rebate form that came with your coupons for a free bag. That makes it 3 for $2.25 or .75ea.

Don't forget the Pictureka coupons you printed a few weeks ago (no longer available). The card game is back in stock--I saw it today. Priced at $6.99. Use the $5 coupon to make it $1.99 or go to Walmart where they have the card game for $5.24.

At Walmart CK#1 and I got the Breyers yougurt for free. The $1/2 coupon is still available on coupons.com --use zip 33907. The yougurt is .50ea. The Breyers yougurt with the candy in the cup on top is .56ea.

Don't forget your $1 Bic pen coupons to get those for free too.

Don't forget to check out my post on the Walmart school supplies I did on Monday that lists the price for some of the most commonly needed school supplies.

Finish It Up On Friday

The Bic coupons have reset and they will make the school supply wars a little more bearable. Thanks couponcravings.

Playtex Sport Tampons has a new free sample offer here. Thanks hip2save.

If you haven't already been there this week, Walgreens has a $5 off a $25 purchase coupon. Thanks southernsavers.

Don't forget that Kroger has another Mega Sale this week. If you buy a mix/match of 10 participating products you get $5 off at checkout. Southernsavers has a great coupon match up for all the sale items.

My Favorite Deal In A LONG Time

La Brea Bakery Italian Bread is my favorite bread in Knoxville. It is available at the Kroger on Brooklawn. Tonight, I was searching for Italian bread recipes to try and make it myself because the yummy stuff is about $3.50/loaf. After finding some recipes to try I thought I would look up La Brea Bakery and guess what? They have a $1/2 loaves on their website. They even have some delicous looking recipes. This is DEFINATELY my favorite deal of the week!

Tell Me About Your Deals

Do you get inspired by a friend's story about getting a good deal? I love to hear all about it when someone is excited because they are spending less than they were before we started couponing together.

So pick your favorite deal or shopping success story with us. Leave a comment by clicking on comment at the bottom of this post. You do have to log in with your Google account info but if you don't have one it is not hard to set up. Go here and follow the steps.

I had 2 two people talk to me tonight at a canning class about how they did this week and another 2 friends call. One all the way from Louisville.

Fill us in.

Printables to use at Kroger and Walgreens this week

Hip2save has a couple of printables that work great this week at Walgreens and Kroger.

Go to coupons.com and print $1 Soft Soap Hand Soap coupon for free Soft Soap this week at Kroger. Use zip 45435.

Soft Soap $1.50

Buy 10 mix/match participating products and get $5 off at checkout. Thats .50 of each product.

(For a list of items included in the mix/match see your Sunday flyer or checkout southernsavers Kroger coupon match up.

After you print your Soft Soap coupons go to zip 33907 and print the $1.50 Speed Stick deoderant coupons and get free deoderant at Walgreens.

Speed Stick $2.49

get 1 RR

use $1.50 coupon

Moneysavingmom has a $1 Keebler Fudge Shoppe Cookies here that works great at Kroger.
Keebler Fudge Shoppe Cookies $1.99
.50 off as part of mix/match 10 items promotion
use $1 printable to pay .49

Walmart School Supplies

Here is a price list of a lot of the items that most will need for school supplies. This isn't all of the items available. The items are stocked in the seasonal area at the front of the store and in bins back by the office supplies. Take a look and see if it is worth your time to run to multiple places over the next few weeks to get your school supplies.

Bic pens 10 ct blue, black or red $1

use $1 Bic Pen coupon here for free pens

(these pens are on sale at Target for .50 and $1 at Staples this week)

Bic 10 ct Mechanical Pencils $1.50

use the $1 Bic Mechanical Pencil coupon here

Dixon 10 ct pencils .50

Dixon 24 ct pencils .84

Expo 2pk Dry Erase Markers black$1.50

Expo 4pk Dry Erase Markers variety color $3.50

(these are on sale at Walgreen's for $1.99 this week with their in ad coupon)

Sharpie Highlighters $1.50

College/Wide Rule Filler Paper 150 sht $1.50

1 subject notebooks 70 sheet .15

1 subject notebooks all recycled 90 sheet $1

5 subject notebooks $3.78

1" Binders $2

2 Pocket Folder w/prongs .15

(these are on sale at CVS this week for .05 limit 10)

Elmers 2pk washable school glue stick .25

Elmers Washable School glue .25

Rose Art Washable School glue .20

24 ct Crayola Crayons .25

24 ct CraZart Crayons .20

10 ct. Crayloa Thin/Broad tip markers $1 (not washable)

11 ct CraZart Washable Thin/Broad tip markers .70

12 ct Crayola Colored Pencils $1

12 ct. CraZart Colored Pencils .75

Fiskar Point/Blunt tip scissors $1.50

Do The Math Point/Blunt tip scissors .74

Make the most of your time. If you figure you are only going to save $3 total by running to 5 different places just hit one store and be done. There will be more sales for the next few weeks. Pace yourself and remember. THESE ARE JUST SCHOOL SUPPLIES:)

CVS & Staples 7/13

Okay everyone. The CVS at Smith and Grigsby Chapel is out of all the school supplies from this weeks ad that are free after the ECB's. The truck isn't due until Thursday and the ECB deal ends on Tuesday the 14th. So, ask for a raincheck. This morning they just cut out the deals from the ad and stapled them to the raincheck slip. You will still get the ECB's if you have the raincheck.

I also grabbed the $1 Honey Nut Cheerio Cups and used the $1 coupon from here and got them for free. Thanks moneysavingmom.

Staples had a really good stock of their ad items this week. Don't forget to take the $5 off $20 puchase coupon from the front of the ad. The instore flyers DO NOT have the coupon on the front.

I was able to get;

8 ct yellow #2 pencils for .01 (no coupon needed limit 2 per customer)

500 sheet ream Staples paper $3.69 with rebate for $3.68. .01 after rebate limit 2

Highlighters & pink bar erasers for $1ea

Lap cushion $9.99

use the $5 coupon

total after rebate and coupon $8.52

How About A FREE Dinner?

How about a free dinner? Tyson has a Try Me Free offer on their Skillet Creations. Print off the rebate form and use one of the printable $1 coupons and make $1 for your effort. Dealseekingmom is AWESOME!

Hip2save has a list of the coupons coming in Sunday's paper and an offer that might be good at our Walmart. Go here for a $1 Nestle Purified Water coupon. Some of her readers have reported varieties of the water priced at $1 at their Walmart. We know that Turkey Creek likes to charge 3x the price so if you are going anyway check it out. If it works let us know.

How about $1 off Honey Nut Cheerios. Go here. Thanks moneysavingmom.

Cellfire Downloadable Coupons

Don't forget to download your Cellfire coupons. The current set of coupons have to be downloaded by July 13. That is Monday if you can believe it. They don't expire until July 27 but they will post a new set of coupons on July 14.

If you haven't tried Cellfire yet go here and sign up. The coupons go right onto your Kroger club card. When you check out and the cashier scans your card the coupons will come off as the items are scanned. You will be able to see the coupon listed right under the item on the receipt. Currently, you can 'stack' a downloadable coupon with a paper coupon. For example; Cellfire has a .50 off 6 Yoplait Yogurt coupon. There are also .50 off 6 Yoplait Yogurt coupons available on coupons.com. The paper coupon would double to give you $1 off and with the .50 Cellfire downloadable you would get a total of $1.50 off of 6 Yoplait Yogurts. Use this when they go on sale for .50ea and pay $1.50 or .25ea. The two systems don't talk to each other. I am sure that this will eventually change.

Shopping On Sunday

My personal belief of Sabbath worship includes not shopping on Sunday. Some of my new couponing friends have the same policy and have found that because most the sales start on Sunday there are times that when you get to the store on Monday and the sale items are already gone. That doesn't mean that you can't get the deals. Try some of these ideas.

1. CVS, Target and Kroger are good at giving you rain checks. For CVS this means they will even give you the ECB's if the item isn't restocked until after the sale is over. Walgreens will give you a rain check but only for the price of the item not for the RR's.

2. If you get to the store and the sale items is gone you can ask customer service 1. to check the back room and 2. when they expect to get more in. Most of the stores get shipments throughout the week. If they tell you that something will be in on Thursday, call them first before you go back to the store. With three young kids I do a lot of research online and by phone before I do my shopping to keep frustration levels as low as possible. Especially in the summer time. Youza!

3. If the store has a website that let's you order online try that. I have ordered sale items from Staples online with free shipping and still been able to use the rebates. Make sure the sale is not in store only! If you want to use a coupon you usually have to use it in the store unless the coupon specifically says it can be used online and gives you a code to use at checkout.

3. Ask customer service to see if any other store locations have the item in stock. If you are a techy person then open up your iPhone and find the number to another location close by and call yourself.

4. I truly believe that for anyone following their religious beliefs there are blessings that come with obedience. If you need something pray for a way to find it. It's not hokey. Think of it as being a good steward over the financial resources you have been blessed with. The more you share you rewards with others, the more you will be amazed at the good deeds that are returned to you. Sharing your coupon knowledge will mean more couponers and more competition for the sale items. But more prepared and knowledgeable families means more people confident and self assured because they have been able to help themselves.

Quick Catch Up

Hip2save has some great scenarios to get Keebler Fudge Shoppe Cookies for less than $1/pkg.

More Walmart free samples Huggies Goodnites & Bodycology body lotion. Thanks hip2save

Don't forget Free Chocolate Friday. Only a couple of hours left. here

Going out to dinner this weekend? Here is a free Mimi's Cafe Dessert coupon with a $10 meal purchase. Thanks couponcravings.

Moneysavingmom reports that some CVS locations have the Bic Soleil Razors w/4 bonus refills on sale for $2.99. Use the $3 coupon from 6/28. If it isn't marked on the shelf have them check the price at the register. I haven't tried this in West Knox yet but if someone does let us know if it works.

Dealseekingmom has a heads up on a school supplies sale at Staples this next week. Be prepared because they won't be the only ones. CVS will have some more school supply freebies too. Thanks Southernsavers.

To Blog Or Not To Blog?

Here I am again. Contemplating life on the beach in Hawaii. Ahhh.

So, Tam's Towne is a few weeks old now and I am at a real crossroads. Do we keep the blog going?

Any of you that know me know that there are lists all over my house. One of those lists is a what kinds of things I would add to or change about this blog if I want to step it up.

1. change the format so more info and organization can happen

2. add a Food Storage Friday

3. put some more West Knox fav's in there like the Bradley Chocolates post

4. maybe book review updates for the book club

5. stamping ideas for any stamping nuts maybe?

6. maybe another class held somewhere else?

Of course, many of those lists around my house are 'things to do' lists. So, this blog is important to me if it is helping anyone and being used.

Tell me. Do you needs Tam's Towne anymore or are you comfy enough with the whole process of finding good deals. If you want more, what do you want to see? What would be fun and helpful for you that you are not already getting somewhere else?

I am visiting my buddy Shannan in Louisville for a couple of days so think about it and leave your input and ideas.

Best Chocolates in West Knox

One of my favorite things is chocolate. From different countries, with or without nuts, fruit etc. When you can combine chocolate with seasonal decorations that are original and too cute for words then you have my favorite West Knoxville chocolate and gift shop called Bradley's.

Located at 146 N. Peters Rd.

Summer hours: M-F 10am-6pm & Sat 10-am-5pm

Starting July 6th and going to July 31st they are having a sale with discounts starting at 50% on their seasonal items.

Right now they even have Chocolate Classses. Each sessionis $40

July 13th Chocolate 102 - learning to make truffles, home made caramel

July 27th Chocolate 103 - learn to make classic chocolates such as Peanut Butter Cups, Almond Joybells and other treats

August 3 Chocolate Decorations

Check out their website at shopbradleys.

Let me know what you think.

Free Samples and Smokin Kellogg's Deal

Walmart has another new free sample. Viva Paper Towels here.

Fiber One Cereal and Bar Sample with $5 in coupons. Sign up here. Thanks couponcravings.

Moneysavingmom has a smokin deal if you go here to sign in or sign up for Kellogg's All-K Pass. Then go here to print off a $10 rebate form if you buy 10 Kellogg's products in one transactions. Gather up all those Eggo Bake Shop you have printed and go to Target. Buy 10 Eggo Bake Shop products @$1.50ea. Use 10 of the $1 coupons and pay $5. Fill out the form, send the receipt in and get your $10 rebate plus a $70 Dell coupon.

Free Sample of Nivea For Men

Walmart has a new free sample of Nivea for Men. It's called Active 3 and is supposed to be great for body wash, shampoo and shaving. Get it here.

CVS, Staples & Walmart

There are a few different places to see the CVS matchups this week including Hip2save and Couponmommie.

My list includes;
CVS Tansparent Tape $1.49ea get 1.49 ECB (Limit 3)
CVS Pencils 20 pk .99 get .99 ECB (Limit 3)
CVS Panty Liners .89ea get .89 ECB (Limit 1)
Dawn $1ea get 1 ECB WYB 2 (use .25 Dawn coupons from 7/5)

Staples
Staples Multipurpose Papter 500-sheet reams are on sale for $4.99 with a $2.99 easy rebate
Makes them $2/ream (limit 2)

This is okay if you need paper now. If not, wait because Staples often has paper for $1/ream after rebate.

Walmart
The school supplies wars have begun. This week Walmart has advertised;
.25 70 page spiral notebooks
.30 40z Washable Elmer's School Glue
.30 Crayola 24 ct Crayons

Let me know if you go to Walmart and see any other school supply deals.

A Few Things At Ingles This Week

Laura Lynn Large White Eggs .68/doz
Seedless Watermelon $3.98ea
Green Cabbage .45/lb
Deli Ham $2.99/lb

Kroger 7/5-7/11

Some things that caught my eye this week at Kroger were;

Fresh Wild Caught Salmon $3.99/lb
Whole Fryer Chicken .79/lb (great for our soda chicken recipe on the grill)
Sweet Bing Cherries $1.99/lb
Kroger Ice Cream $1.88ea
Cantaloupe $1.47
Carrots 1lb bag .39ea
Mushroom 8oz pkg $1.67
Bounty Paper Towels Single Roll $1 ea
-.25/1 Bounty Napkins or paper Towels PG 7/05
-.25/1 Bounty PG e coupon
(use together makes it .25¢ ) (Thanks southernsavers)

Southernsavers has a the whole list with coupon matchups and the following tip on using your P&G coupons from this weekend.

If you feel couponing is a game, then I hope you know that Kroger plays the game ruthlessly. Their ad drives me crazy with the amount of deals that are not on sale, or are marked up and placed in the ad to look on sale. This week their plan is to rob you of your brand new P&G e coupons and great new P&G coupons from today’s paper. Many of the items in the sale flyer are regular price. Not on sale at all. Wait! Do not play your e coupons and paper coupons yet. Kroger will really put these on sale before everything expires.

Betty Crocker Printables

Go to BettyCrocker to get some great coupons including;

.50/6 Yoplait Yogurts.

.50 Warm Delights
.50 Nature Valley Cranberry & Pomegranate Bars or Nature Valley Dark Chocolate & Nut Bars

Happy Independence Day!

Happy Fourth of July. Enjoy your friends and family. Remember how blessed we are to live here. Celebrate our freedom and work hard to defend it.

Barnes & Noble Free Shipping on $10 orders

If you are a member of the Farragut Ward Book Club this is a great change to get our book for July. These Is My Words by Nancy Turner is available to B&N members for $10.79 + free shipping until July 5th. If you do not have a membership card to B&N the book is $11.99 + free shipping. Go here to order.

If you are an Amazon.com lover like me the book is $11.69 + free shipping if you spend $25.

Happy reading.

Deals For Friday

Have you signed up for the Blue Bunny iScream Team yet? Go here to sign up for the $1 Blue Bunny Dessert Cone Coupon.

The Home Made Simple Coupon Book is back here . I got this last time and it has some great coupons in it like .50/Dawn and a free dishwasher rinse agent. Thanks hip2save

Eggo Bake Shoppe $1 Coupons have reset on coupons.com. I have used these for the last two weeks at Target. The Bake Shoppe items have been on sale for $1.50. Thanks couponcravings

It is SCARY but back to school stuff will be on sale everywhere soon. Moneysavingmom has a link to some Bic coupons to match with your supply list here.

Now, it's Friday before the 4th of July. The only couponing left to do is if you want to plan a little for next week. Southernsavers has the coupons match ups for Walgreen's and CVS next week. I don't see much at Walgreens but CVS looks good. Don't forget that you can shop the new weeks deals at CVS starting at 6pm on Saturday.

Now go do something besides couponing. Read a book, go hiking. do some stamping, start the grill, call some friends & have a WONDERFUL weekend.

Bright and Early Shoppers

In my dreams I often find myself on a beautiful beach in Hawaii. Lying in a hammock with a good book after finishing a yummy macadamia nut muffin.

BACK TO REALITY!!

Find out how to get a free Goody Ouchless Headband from couponmommie.

Hip2Save has a link to more great coupons including Chiquita Apple Bites.

Great New Coupons & Free Stuff to start July

A whole $55 in savings in the new Nabisco coupon book here. Hurry because they will go fast.

Also a new Red Plum coupon good for Degree at Target. Check out the deal on hip2save.

Also, the beginning of a new month means new coupons on coupons.com, cellfire and other coupon providers so grab them before you go shopping for you 4th of July festivities.

Couponmommie has a link to a beautiful idea book offer from Kraftmaid. I checked out the website and their designs are gorgeous. Go here.

Eco-Friendly Bare Paper Products $1 coupon

For my eco friendly buddies, especially you in the NW, here is an eco friendly paper products coupon. Would have been truly eco friendly if you could download it to your cell or clubcard but here it is to print.

Free Dove Hair Therapy Sample

Just got this email. Sign up for a free sample of Dove Hair Therapy here.

Many Coupons Have Reset

I just checked coupons.com and found that some of the coupons I had printed a few weeks ago have reset and I was able to print them again.
$2 Listerine/Reach, $2 Axe, $2 Dry Idea. All great coupons. I did have to use the 90210 zip again to get the Listerine/Reach coupon.
The $2 Listerine coupon could be used this month at Walgreen's as part of the buy 3 $3 Listerine/Reach products and get 3 RR's. See my Walgreen post from earlier this week to get more details.

Free Total Care Tide Sample here and .50 Dole coupon here that you can double at Kroger and use on a sale for free or almost free fruit. Thanks moneysavingmom.

A Fun Fun Tuesday

For anyone that can't get enough of the deals. It pays to stay up late!

Do you like coupons????? Well sign up for General Mills Pssst Club to get some. here

And don't forget some more great coupons links like Degree Deodorant, Colgate Toothpaste, Nature Valley Granola Clusters all over at moneysavingmom. AWESOME!

Hip2save finds the best stuff. How does she do it? How about a Planet Earth Video for .99 from The Discovery Store. here

Couponmommie has a list of free movies at the Regal Cinemas 6/30 & 7/1. Escape to the nice cool theater.

More Fun Stuff

Veggie Tales Video Free + $2.99 Shipping here. Thanks couponing101. My of my CK's have loved Veggie Tales.

Go to hip2save for a great $5 PetSmart coupon.

Walgreens 6/29

Just a little reminder about how Walgreen's works.

1. Walgreen's will take a Walgreen's coupon and a manufacturers coupon for each item.

2. Walgreen's issues Register Rewards (RR) on specific items. Some RR specials last a week and a few last the whole month.

3. If you want to buy more than one the item that is offering a RR you must buy them in seperate transactions to get the RR from each item. IE: Aquafresh Toothpast $2.99 with a 2RR. If you want three tubes of Aquafresh and you want the RR from each of them then you mush buy them in seperate transactions.

4. If you buy the Aquafresh Toothpast and get a RR you cannot buy another Aquafresh Toothpast and pay for it will the RR from the first transaction and still get the RR from the second transaction. You can pay for the Aquafresh with RR from other items.

5. Walgreen's counts RR's as coupons and will only let you use the same number of coupons as you have items. For example if you buy 20 items and have a coupon for each item then you will have to add a 'filler' to be able to use your RR's. I usually use the .33 caramels at the counter or the .25 tissue packs.

Our trip to Walgreen's quick this morning. Not much on our list.

6 - Jello Gelatin 2/$1 (use ad coupon limit 6)

3 - Listerine 500ml $3ea (This is a month long deal that if you buy 3 $3 Listerine or Reach products you will receive 3 RR's. This deal and the coupon below will also work with the Reach Toothbrush Value Paks.)

2 - Pringles .99ea

1 - Dawn Dishsoap 10oz .99 (use ad coupon)

2 - Caramels .33ea (The manager could not figure out why I had to use a filler because the number of coupons was less than the number of items. Maybe the Jello coupon counted for all of them. Who knows? Yummy way to get to use my RR's though.

used 2 $1/3 Jello printable (no longer available)

used 3 $2 Listerine/Reach printable (You have to use zip 90210 - thanks hip2save)

used $1/2 Pringles from 6/28 RP

used .50 Dawn from 'Home Made Simple' booklet

used 6 RR's

pd .13 + tax OOP & received 3 RR's

Happy Couponing.

Samples and Coupons to Grab

Free Degree Deoderant sample here. Thanks couponcravings

$1 Kellogg's Special K Blueberry Cereal and $1 Kellogg's Special K Crackers from coupons.com. I was only able to print one of each per computer. Let me know if you can print more. Thanks hip2save.

Kroger Mega Sale Trip 6/25

My Kroger trip was a big one for us. The total was $92.83 before tax with a $3.50 OYNP (off your next purchase). The savings was about 52%. I justify this because;

1. June 14-20 we spent less than $6 total at Kroger, Walgreens and CVS.

2. The Kroger Mega Sale items look to be the same for two weeks June 21-July 4. I won't be buying much the week of the 4th just;

2 - Kroger Hot Dog/Burger Buns $1 ea
Pork Baby Back Ribs $2.99/lb (actually cheaper at Target $1.79)
Watermelon $3.99ea
12 - Corn on the Cob 4/$1 (cheaper at Target 10/$1)
Cantaloupe $1.89
Chicken $1.99/lb (get the $1 Tyson Fresh Chicken product from 6/28 SS)
Suave Deod. free after coupon from 5/17

My total will be about $30. Unless something good shows up on the blogs this week I won't be hitting CVS. My Walgreens trip will be about $2. So my total for the 3 weeks June 14-July 4 will be about $150 or right on track for my $50/wk goal.

You won't see me buying a lot of veggies this summer because my garden is cranking them out. We have peppers, jalapenos, peas, beans, tomatoes (almost ready), five kinds of squash, zucchini, pumpkins, lettuce, carrots and spinach.

Following is my Kroger Trip from 6/25.
All prices reflect the discount taken for the Mega Sale. $3 off 10 participating items. I bought 30 participating items and got a total of $9 off at the end of the transaction. I also used a $6 off $60 purchase coupon.

4 - 18oz Cheerios $2.19
used 4 $1 coupons emailed from the Cheerio Challenge here
pd $1.19ea

1 - Dozen Eggs $1.19
I try to buy these on sale for less than $1 a dozen but oh well.

6 - Betty Crocker Supreme Brownies $1.69ea
used 3 .50/2 Betty Crocker Supreme Brownie Coupons here
used .75/2 Cellfire
used .75/2 Shortcuts
used .60/2 Shortcuts
pd .84ea

6 - Betty Crocker Fruit Snacks $1.49ea
used 3 .50/2 Betty Crocker Fruit Snacks printable (no longer available)
used .50/2 Cellfire
used .50/2 Shortcuts
used .75/2 Shortcuts
received $3.50 OYNP (see southernsavers or mypennypile for the details)
pd .11 ea after OYNP

2 - Tropicana Pure Premium OJ $2.99
used 2 $1 Tropicana OJ from the Father's Day e-card
pd $1.99ea

1 - Ragu Sauce $1.39
used .60 Ragu Sauce from 5/17 RP
pd .79

3- Chey Boyardee Ravioli .70ea
used $1/3 CB Ravioli coupon from the $5 coupon pack that came from buying 5 Duncan Hines Cake Mixes a couple of months ago
pd .37ea

1 - Kroger Bagels $2.19
No sale, No coupon - Shame on Me but I had to have something to put the yummy shmear on that I bought last weekend at Einsteins in Atlanta.

2 - Oscar Meyer Hot Dogs $1.49ea
used $1/2 OM Hot Dogs from 6/21 SS
used $1/2 Cellfire
pd .49ea

1 - Kroger Tortillas $1.29 (I really want to experiment with making my own. I have wonderful memories of my grade school boyfriend, Poncho's, mom making them for us after school.)

2 - Kraft BBQ Sauce .69ea
used 2 .75 Kraft BBQ Sauce from 6/14 SS
made .06 on each of them

1- Buitoni Shredded Parmesean Cheese $3.69
No Sale, No Coupon - What can I say hubby was with me.

6 - Frenchs Mustard $1.09
used 6 .50 French's Mustard from 5/10 SS
pd .09ea

2- Boarshead Pepperoni $3.19ea
Cheaper than buying take out pizza & will also use in pasta salad for the 4th.

6 - Capri Sun Sunrise Variety $2.11ea
used 6 $1 Capri Sun from 4/19 SS
pd $1.11ea (I really did not want to pay this much for these but we are out of box drinks and the cups have been left all over the yard this summer.)

1 - DiGiorno Flat Bread Melt $3.19
used FREE Coupon I signed up for back in May that came in the mail.
pd .00

1 - Ritz Cracker $2.09
used Buy 1 Ritz Get 1 Nabisco Artisan Crackers free from 5/17 SS
pd $1.05ea

2 - Breyers Ice Cream $1.99ea
used $1/2 Breyers from 5/17 RP
pd $1.49ea

2 - Jet Puff Marshmellow $1ea
used 2 $1 off Marshmellows when you buy a Betty Crocker Supreme Brownie Mix here
pd .00

1 - Scott Toilet Paper 12 roll $6.69
used $1 Scott TP from 6/14 SS
pd $5.69 (This was less than 1 cent sq/ft which is my buy price)

2- Country Crock Spread $1.69ea
used .45 Country Crock printable no longer available
used .50 Country Crock from 5/17 RP
pd .69 for 1 and .79 for 1

1- Purex Detergent $2.19
used .35 Purex 6/14 SS
pd $1.49

1 - Windex $2.19
used $1 Windex from ???
pd $1.19

Nature's Own Bread $2.50 too hot to bake
Peaches .79/lb
Salami $3.50
Turkey Breakfast Sausage $3.49
5lb IDAHO Potatoes $3.64 (could have gotten cheaper ones but I am an Idaho girl)
Pita Bread $1.50 (I did see a recipe on moneysavingmom that I want to try)
LaBrea Italian Bread $2.50 (My favorite Italian Bread outside of Italy.)
Lemons .53ea
Limes .42ea
Ham from Deli $3 (Private Selection Ham & Turkey are on sale for $5.98/lb the in deli)
Pepper Turkey from Deli $5.87
Milk 2 @$1.99ea
Bananas .49/lb
Tomatoes .99/lb
Dannon Lite & Fit Yogurt $2.79 (Love this stuff with fresh strawberries and nuts for breakfast and in smoothies. Our fav smoothies have berries, vanilla soy milk, vanilla yogurt & ice if the berries aren't frozen.)

This is just my list. Checkout southernsavers for a full coupon match-up.

IMPORTANT KROGER COUPON POLICY CHANGE

***PER KROGER CUSTOMER SERVICE***

Kroger Internet Coupon Policy

Officially Kroger accepts 2 internet coupons for any type of item per transaction and no free internet coupon offers. IE: Only two Kraft BBQ Sauce internet coupons for each transaction.

It is up to the discression of each store manager to limit coupons as they see fit.

The Kroger in Farragut, TN has a new coupon policy that specifically affects internet coupons. I will be contacting Kroger corp. on Friday to see how many areas this policy will affect.

1. Kroger now only accepts 3 internet coupons for the same type of item from the same manufacturer. For example: If you have $1 Kraft BBQ Sauce coupons printed off the internet you can use three coupons per transaction. One coupon per bottle. A total of three bottles.

2. Kroger no longer accepts internet coupons for free items.

My experience today was that at this point some of the cashiers know about the change and others don't. There are no signs to alert you of the change. I did have 4 $1 Cheerio internet coupons and the cashier let me use them because the policy was new and I had the exact number of items to get the $3 off 10 items in the Mega Sale. The coupons still went through but if a cashier is counting they won't take them.

I will post my Kroger trip tomorrow but if you want a some good coupon match-ups to help with your list before then try these;
couponmommie
southernsavers
mypennypile - this is a new find for me

$1 off Blue Bunny Bomb Pops

On Monday I signed up for the Blue Bunny iScream Team here and got a $1 off Blue Bunny Ice Cream. Today they emailed me a $1 Bomb Pop coupon. Hop over there and sign up.

FREE Glidden Paint & Free Joint Juice

FREE GLIDDEN PAINT

Did you see my post last week about free Glidden Paint today? Well now is the time. It took a LONG time for the site to load but it worked for me. I have seen many comments that Gliddens site isn't working great so moneysavingmom has another way to get your paint. Call 1-800-GLIDDEN and they have an option specifically for requesting your free paint.

WEEKLY B1G1 FREE JOINT JUICE COUPONS FOR JOINING A 4 WEEK CHALLENGE

Go here to sign up for the challenge and get your coupons emailed to you. Thanks hip2save.

Target 6/23

After only spending about $6 last week on food/toiletries I will be spending a little more than my usual $50-60 due to the mega sale at Kroger and getting some extra 93% lean ground beef at Target.

Today's Target trip.
1- A-1 Steak Sauce $2.09

2- Velveeta Shell's & Cheese cups .99ea

6- Kraft Easy Mac cups .73ea

2- 1lb strawberries $1.99ea

2- Eggo Bake Shoppe $1.50ea

1- Pictureka Card Game $6.64

5- 1bl pkg 93% lean ground beef $2ea (on sale not mark down)

2- pkg round steak each marked $2.50 off (total $6.98 for 2.5lbs)

used $2 A-1 Steak Sauce coupon from 6/14 SS pd. .09

used Free Velveeta Shells & Cheese coupons from signing up to try them pd .00

used 3 B1g1 Free coupons (1 from Parade Mag. a few weeks ago, 2 printed from coupons.com that are no longer available) pd. $2.19 or .36ea

used 2 $1 Target strawberry coupons (these are new coupons added this week to target.com) pd. .99ea

used 2 $1 Eggo Bake Shoppe coupons from coupons.com pd $1 or .50ea

used 1 $5 Pictureka Card Game coupon also from coupons.com pd $1.64 (thanks hip2save for this deal)

used $5 Target Gift Card

Pd $18.88 OOP

CVS Deal Working in West Knox

The Always Ifinity deal is working at the CVS at Kingston Pike & Smith Rd.

Always Infinity Pads (I bought box of 32) priced on shelf for $10.79 are ringing up $4.99. Use the $4 coupon from 6/7 PG and pay .99.

My CVS trip today.

1 - Always Infinity Pads (32) $4.99
1 - Johnson & Johnson On The Go First Aid Kit .99

8 - Soy Joy Bars $1 (Buy 4 get 4 ECB's)

used $4 Always Infinity from 6/7 PG

used $1 J&J date ??

used 7 ECB's

pd 1.98 OOP & received 8 ECB's

Monday Catch-up

Our phone and internet were down for a couple of days so sorry if you missed anything. We will be making up some today.

Kroger is having their Mega Sale and southernsavers has a great list of coupon match-ups. I've made my list have you made yours?

Here are the other coupons and deals that I grabbed today.

Thanks couponing101 for;

$1 Blue Bunny Ice Cream here.

.50 Betty Crocker Supreme Brownie Mix (on sale at Kroger for $1.69 this week will double to $1 off to make it .69) & $1 off Marshmellows with puchase of Supreme Brownie Mix here.

$.150 Kashi Cereal or TLC Snack here.

I also grabbed;

Some new Target strawberry & Ziplock coupons off of hotcouponworld.

Aquafresh coupons to use at Walgreens this week here.

Carefree and Stayfree samples here.

Eggo, Scott, & Bagel coupons @ here.

Friday 6/19 - Kraft Cheese Deal at Kroger, Free Toothpaste & BEST of all FREE CHOCOLATE!

Print this $1 Kraft Cheese coupon here and then combine it with this deal at Kroger between June 20 and July 12. Thanks moneysavingmom

These are catalinas that print with your receipt.

Buy 3 packs of Kraft cheese 6 oz. or larger, Get a $2 catalina good off your next order

Buy 4 packs of Kraft cheese 6 oz. or larger, Get a $3 catalina good off your next order

Buy 5 packs of Kraft cheese 6 oz. or larger, Get a $4 catalina good off your next order

Don't forget the Free Chocolate Fridays here.

Just a heads up - FREE TOOTHPASTE AT WALGREENS NEXT WEEK.

Aquafresh Advanced Toothpast will be $3 with 3RR. If you use the $1 coupon here you will make $1.
If you are interested in all of next weeks CVS & Walgreens deals check out the list on southernsavers.

CVS Money Maker and Free Samples

I saw this CVS money maker this morning on www.southernsavers.com and stopped to see if it worked at my fav CVS on Kingston Pike. Sure enough. Easiest $8 I ever made. The Style Science Lens Cleaning Wipes 20 ct are .99. If you buy two you get 10 ECB's. This will also work with the other Style Science items like the glass cases. They were a little tricky to find. Hiding across the aisle from the sunglasses facing backward.

Free CareFree sample here.

Scott Brand paper products sample here.

I sent my hubby to get my short list for Kroger this week. He did great. The trip cost $2. He came home with 4 cans of Dole Pineapple, 1 pkg hot dog buns & 1 pkg hamburger buns. He checked out the Star Olive Oil but the Kroger near us didn't have it.

Feeding America Donate $5 and receive $5 in Kellogg's cereal coupons

We all know someone that needs a hand up. Here is one way to do it. Donate as little as $5 to Feeding America and you will receive $5 in Kellogg's Cereal coupons. Go here to donate.

Trident, Kashi, Tropicana & Shaving Gel Coupons & Free Emeril Samples

My Kroger list is very short this week. I will be getting;

Dole Canned Fruit (.45 & free with coupons that I have that are no longer available to print)Kroger Hot Dog & Hamburger Buns $1ea
Arnold Bread B1G1 Free makes them $1.25ea
Star Olive Oil (reportedly on close out) use $1 coupon here. Also grab other grab coupons there like Dentek $1, Aquafresh $1 for future trips.

For the entire list of Kroger sale items and coupon matches go to http://www.southernsavers.com/.

Here are some of the things I have grabbed in the last couple of days from hip2save & dealseekingmom.

Glidden paint give-away starting June 25 here. There is always something to paint at my house and hey, free is free. I will find something to paint:)

Trident $1/2 coupon here.

Emeril Essence spice sample here.

Skintimate $1 coupon here. Don't forget to grap the Edge gel $1 coupon here.

Kashi Cereal Bar $1.50 coupon here.

Tropicana OJ $1 coupon comes in a e-card to dad for Father's Day here.

Prego Pasta Sauce $1/2 here. Thanks organicdeals.

Think of some of your favorite brands or products and sign up for their newsletters and in a few weeks they will start sending you coupons right to your email.

To My New Couponing Friends

Thanks everyone for coming to the class on Tues. night. I had fun. It's always dangerous when my husband has been away for a few days and I finally get to be in the company of adults. Can't shut me up. Thank you for asking lots of good questions. I truly hope that spending all that time listening to me wax poetic about crazy good deals inspires you to take some control over what you spend your resources on. It's your time and your money - make it work for you.

One of the things it seems people want to know most is what is a good deal. Really a good deal. Like WWTD (what would Tamara do)? What price am I willing to pay? I call that my buy price. So I am going to add a spot to my blog and start a list. This list will only be a reference for you. Your family might like different items that you can get for free that my family won't use so we have to pay a little more or visa versa.

The first items on the list will be pasta and OJ.

Pasta - .25/lb or less - Most pkgs at the store are 12-16oz. So if you can get one of those pkg for .25 go for it. Many of you will want to know how this compares to the price you pay at Sam's or the 'Cannery'. At Sam's you pay .96/lb for spaghetti or macaroni in a 6lb pkg. At the 'Cannery' you pay .76/lb in a bulk box of about 20 lbs I think. Now this means you have to either can or mylar bag or somehow store that bulk pasta and that means your price is even higher. I have nothing against the 'Cannery' and do get things there but usually not pasta.

OJ - My family loves real 'not from concentrate' OJ. Usually Tropicana. I like to stock up on it for $3/gallon or $1.50 for 1/2 gallon. Usually you will pay $5-6/gallon. So when it goes on sale I buy enough for a month. Frozen is cheaper and if we needed to cut back we would.

Free Granola Bar Sample

This Great Value Granola Bar sample is sent right to your home. Here

Target 6/15

The coupon class is tomorrow night and I needed to finish up a couple of details like putting together some cute gift bags of free stuff I have accumulated for give aways. We headed to Target to get some little bags out of the $1 section and a few almost free items.

For some reason the Target coupon is really hard for me to read and decipher. Sometimes coupons come off right under the item on the receipt and sometimes they come off at the end. Sometimes items are grouped together if you buy more than one the the same thing and sometimes not. In order to make sure everything worked right I have an idea of what my deal items should cost and then I make sure the receipt subtotal equals that BEFORE I leave the parking lot. If it doesn't add up you can go back in to customer service and have them fix it. I rarely have to do that.

The list.
2 - 1lb strawberries $1.99ea
1 - Kraft Salad Dressing $1.59 (the tag on the shelf said $1.99 but it rang up $1.59)
1 - Kraft Miracle Whip $2.19
2 - 2pk Rayovac Batteries $1ea (to complete $5 rebate used to buy Bedtime Stories)
1 - A-1 Steak Sauce $2.09
various gift bags $4 total
used 2 - $1 Target strawberry coupons available now on www.afullcup.com
used 2 - $1 Kraft Miracle Whip/Dressing coupons also available on www.afullcup.com
used 1 - $1 Kraft Miracle Whip printable that is no longer available
used 1 - $1 Kraft Salad Dressing printable that is no longer available
used 1 - $2 A-1 coupon from 6/14 SS
used $5 gift card from last weeks Softsoap deal
pd $2.85 OOP

Walgreens 6/15

This trip I actually did this morning with all 3 CK. My trips to Wags and CVS usually are about 15 minutes ea. When all 3 CK are with me this is especially important. It helps that CK #3 has a favorite employee, Emily, and she is always smiling and willing to help out. In the summer time we usually go to the Wags on Kingston Pike and Smith Rd. because they have a RedBox Movie Rental Box and there is usually a free code to rent a movie on Monday. Today we got a Benji movie.

Our trip today cost $1.39 OOP and included;
8 - Ragu Pasta Sauce $2ea get 8 RR's wyb 8 (decent when more veggies are added)
1 - St. Ives Body Wash $2.99 get 3 RR's
used 3 - $1/2 Ragu Pasta Sauce printable & 1 - .60/2 Ragu Pasta Sauce from 5/17 RP
used 14 RR's from 2 weeks ago
pd $1.39 OOP and received 11 RR's to use next week

CVS trip 6/15

Two things first.
1. Taking pictures of my shopping trips is not my favorite thing. In my mind to be a blog worthy shopping picture it would need to be me and my best friend, Michelle, shopping in Vernazza, Italy after we spent a day swimming in the Mediterranean. CVS on Kingston Pike just doesn't come close. So, if shopping pictures are helpful for you then leave some happy comments and let me know. I might reconsider adding pictures:)

2. CVS is a little sneaky and they let you shop the next week's deals starting on Saturday at 6pm. So I did my CVS shopping Saturday the 13th after picking up CK #1 from a friends house.

Here is what we added to our stockpile. Total OOP was $1.87.
3 - Schick Titanium Razor/Trimmers
3 - Kellogg's Cereals
1 - Skippy Peanut Butter 16.3oz

These are the three transactions.
1 - Schick Titanium Razor/Trimmer $7.99
2- Kellogg's Cereals $1.88ea
used 1 - $4 razor coupon that exp 6/14 (another came out in the 6/14 SS so you can still do this)
used 2 - $1 Kellogg's cereal coupons from the 6/7 RP
used 5 ECB's from prior week
pd .75 OOP received 3 ECB's

1 - Schick Titanium Razor/Trimmer $7.99
1 - Kellogg's Cereal $1.88ea
1 - Skippy Peanut Butter $1.66ea
used 1 - $4 razor coupon that exp 6/14 (another came out in the 6/14 SS so you can still do this)
used 1 - $1 Kellogg's cereal coupons from the 6/7 RP
used 1 - $1 Skippy coupon that printed out last week & .40 coupon from 3/31 RP
used 2 ECB's from prior week and 3 ECB's from last transaction
pd .13 OOP and received 3 ECB's

1 - Schick Titanium Razor/Trimmer $7.99
used 1 - $4 razor coupon that exp 6/14 (another came out in the 6/14 SS so you can still do this)
used 3 ECB's from last transaction
pd. .99 OOP and received 3 ECB's to use next week

If you are a math lover and you figured out that the net overall would be the same if I just pd for everything in one transaction and took the 9 ECB's from the 3 razors and used them next week, let me tell you why when I have the chance I used multiple transactions.

At CVS the limit for the Razor ECB deal was three. If all three are purchased in the same transaction, the ECB prints out as a single $9 ECB. It can be difficult to come with $9 worth of items some weeks. The ECB's do have an expiration date so I like to use them each week so that they don't expire and to keep the weekly OOP as low as I can. It's the game I play with myself to see how little cash I can spend.

Crazy Saturday Couponers 6/13

If you just can't wait to get a start on you plans for next week, here are some of the coupons that I will be using this week at Walgreen & CVS.

CVS
1. Schick Quattro $4 in tomorrows paper SS(SmartSource) - this can be used for good deals at Wags or CVS this week.
2. Skippy Peanut Butter $1.66ea (I have $1 CVS coupon that printed out last week when I shopped there and a .40 manufacturer coupon from 4/5 that will make it .26) If you don't have a coupon then this is about the same price/oz as Sam's.
3. Asst. Kellogg's Cereal $1.88. Use the $1 coupon from last week ,6/7, to get cereal for .88/box.

Walgreens
1. $1 Oreo Cakesters coupon from this week
2. $1.50 St. Ive's Body Wash from 5/10 SS
3. Dry Idea/Right Guard .99 with in-ad coupon - use the 4/19 SS to get it for free or the $2 Dry Idea printable to make money.
4. Ragu coupons $1/2 5/17 RP or printable

These are just the ones I am interested in right now. If you have questions email about RR and ECB's at Walgreens & CVS email me tamstowne@gmail.com or come to the class on Tues. @ 7pm. For a whole list of CVS/Wags deals go to www.hip2save.com or www.southernsavers.com.

Reach/Listerine Coupon & Free Suncreen Stickers

Just a couple more fun things before the weekend.

These two I found on www.hip2save.com.
Free Sundiwear stickers. Put these on your kids after applying sunscreen and it will tell you when to apply more.

$2 & $1 Listerine/Reach coupon on www.coupons.com. These are both great coupons to use at Walgreen/CVS/Kroger when toothbrushes & floss go on sale.

A few weeks ago I signed up for www.homedepotgardenclub.com. Something must have worked because our garden is OUT OF CONTROL!

Friday 6/12 - Looking Back & Forward

Today is the day to finish up some serious deal planning and take a break for the weekend.

My new coupon for today is the Huggies Goodnite's $2 off here. There are some other good coupons like .75/3 Pillsbury refrig. baked goods and .75/1 Fiber One cereal. Don't forget to grab the free Goodnites sample from here. Thanks hip2save.

Southernsavers has a summary of other good freebies for the week and if you are already crazy about couponing she has some of the deals posted for next week.

If you need cheese Kraft Naturals 8oz shreds, crumbles and chunks are on sale 3/$5. You do NOT have to buy three to get the $1.67ea price. Go to Kraftfoods and print off the $1 off 2 pkg of Kraft Cheese. Buy 2 x $1.67=$3.34. Use the $1 coupon to pay $2.34 for 1lb of cheese. My buy price for cheese is less than $3/lb. You can print two of these coupons on each computer so if you have multiple computers that means even more cheese. The expiration dates are usually 2-3 months out so if you buy enough to last until the next sale (6-8 weeks) you will not have to pay full price for cheese.

If you have the B1G1Free coupon for Sierra Mist 2 liter bottles available a few weeks ago on coupons.com, they are on sale buy 4 for $5 and get 2 free at Kroger. If you have 4 coupons like I did then you buy 4 and get 6 for free. (4 free from the coupons and 2 free from the sale) That makes them 10/$5 for .50ea.

Have a good weekend.

Edge Shaving Gel $1 Coupon

Here is a $1 off coupon for Edge Shaving Gel. Edge often goes on sale at Walgreens or CVS so this will come in handy.

Walmart Deals & Canning Jar Watch

This is our first year living in the South and my first gardening experience in such a warm and humid climate. After 12 years in the NW and trying to coax a garden into growing, I am SHOCKED to see my veggies already overgrowing their raised beds. All of the seed packets had estimated days to harvest and I am 20-30 days short on the lettuce and spinach and already eating it for breakfast, lunch and dinner. If the tomatoes, carrots, peppers, 5 kinds of squash, zucchini, pumpkins, beans, and two kinds of peas produce at the same rate I will be doing a lot of canning. I don't shop at Walmart very much but today I went to get prices on canning jars (I have $3 off 2/box coupons from a few weeks ago) and to see if any of the deals I have seen on different blogs were available at ours in West Knox. Here are the results.

1 Watermelon - $4
Peaches - .98/lb
8 Mac & Cheese .50 ea
White Cloud TP - 4 roll(143 sq/ft) - $2
used 2 - Buy Three Get One Free (B3G1F) made them .37ea
used $1 off White Cloud made it .006 sq/ft (that is half the price of Quilted Northern at Sam's) That means if the Quilted Northern at Sam's was the same price per sq/ft it would be $8.10 instead of $17.48. Never based your buying decision on the number of rolls in a pkg of TP. It may sound crazy but every 4 pk, 6 pk, 9 pk, ect. ect. has a different amount on each roll.

There is a $1 4-pk of Cottonelle at the Maryville location but not at Turkey Creek. I have a $1 off coupon and was hoping to get it for free. It will just have to stay filed until my next trip down.

Canning Jars

Ball Brand (Box of 12)

4oz Jelly $7.70

Quilted 1/2 Pint Reg $8.12

1/2 Pint Reg $7.12

Pint Reg $7.70

Pint Wide $$8.76

Qt. Reg $8.82

Qt. Wide $10

Golden Harvest Brand (Box of 12)

Pint Reg $6.82

Qt. Reg $7.88

If you had to buy based on this then the Golden Harvest are a better deal. If you have the $3/2 boxes coupon then Ball Brand is better. I am hoping for a sale just before canning season comes around.