Week of November 27th: Meijer deals

Smart Ones frozen meals- On sale 5 for $10.00 (or $2.00 each).

--This is a great deal, because if you buy 10 products, you will instantly save $4.00 at the register. I combined this with a 'Save $3.00 off of 10 meals' coupon from last month's newspaper and ended up getting 10 meals for only $1.30 each!! This sale includes all of the more expensive 'Artisan meals' and breakfast meals too!





Jello refrigerated snacks- Temptations, Mousse or regular gelatin: 2 for $5.00
--Also, they are buy 2 get one free this week.
--Final price at 3 for $5.00 is........$1.66 each!

Huggies Holiday baby wipes-- Large 'travel pack' on sale for $1.89 each.
--Coupon to save 40 cents off (which doubles to 80 cents), brings price down to $1.09 per pack. These are really cute and match the Huggies santa diapers that Meijer has on sale this week for $9.00 a pack!

Tai pei frozen meals-  These are $2.69 each regularly are BOGO free!
--Save 75 cents off of each meal, with coupons that you hopefully saved from last month!

Arm and Hammer laundry detergent is on sale for $2.99 each!
--I happened to have some coupons that are just about to expire for added savings. You can go to Arm and Hammers website and sign up for coupons.

Free Glade scented products this week at CVS

This week at CVS, Glade air freshener and scented oil warmers  are on sale for 99 cents each!

You can print a coupons to save '$2.00 off of any two Glade products' HERE! 

You are allowed to print the coupon twice, so four FREE Glade products will be yours!

Black Friday at CVS

This year I decided to go to CVS's "Black Friday Sale", which is going on today through Saturday. It was exactly my kind of event.....a quiet store with almost no other shoppers there!  You can check out the ad Here!

This sale is interesting, because it is not your typical 'money saving' event where you search for one item at a rock bottom price. Instead, it is more of a 'rewards' sale, where you are reimbursed dollar for dollar in Extra Care Bucks for what you purchase. So for example, Carmex lip balm was on sale for $1.00, and if purchased you receive $1.00 in ECB's.

I doubled my haul, by using my own CVS card AND my husbands CVS card:

This is some of what I bought.....and I now have over $60 in ECB's to use!!

To make this an amazing sale, look for coupons for the products you will be buying online or in your coupon binders!!

Thanksgiving week........Meijer deal$

I am not too impressed with this weeks sales, because the only good deals seem to be on 'party food' and desserts. I still need to eat real food this week, regardless of the fact that Thanksgiving is this week.

However, this weeks sales do give you a chance to stock up on food for any parties you are attending/hosting in the coming weeks.


Alouette spreadable cheddar cheese 6oz: BUY ONE GET ONE FREE!
---There are a few different coupons in this weeks paper for Alouette products, including 'Save $1' on any spreadable Alouette cheese. You can use TWO seperate coupons, because you are buying TWO products!

 

Celebration Foods Ice Cream Cakes- BUY ONE GET ONE FREE!

--This week's paper has a coupon to save $1 off of one cake. Once again, use TWO coupons if you buy two cakes!

Chinet plates, two for $5

--This week's paper has a coupon to save 55 cents off of one package

Party time!

Cherry chocolate cupcakes

<-----Check this little gadget out. It is a cupcake corer.  It hollows out your cupcakes, so you can fill them with deliciousness.

I baked a dozen chocolate cupcakes, and used my corer to make some holes in them.

These 'cupcake holes' are the perfect snack to eat as you finish decorating your cupcakes.Yes.....cupcake holes. I think I should copyright that soon, I may be on to something here :-)

I filled all my cupcakes with cherry pie filling from a can. I already told you all about the pie filling here, remember??

After a quick dusting with powdered sugar, or even a some  lattice work made of frosting.........Voila! Magical cherry pie cupcakes!

A merry coupon Christmas to me......

My paper had an extra insert of coupons in it this morning! Score. Two Smart Sources in one paper, and one Smart Source in the other. What's up Red Plum? Where you at? I hope to see you back in full force for the (always predictable) mega '1st of the month coupon deals' in the coming weeks.


Check out Smart Source's  online coupon database, where you cant print coupons from home!

Ha!

Are you guilty of overbuying stuff just because you have a coupon for it?

.......Then now is a great time to clean out your cupboards and donate your unwanted food to your local food pantry!

Here is the stuff we are donating to a food drive tomorrow.........

It all only cost me about $5....most of this stuff was free or dirt cheap! It's not much, but its a start. I'm hoping to accumulate a lot more food in the coming weeks to donate as well. 'Tis the season to pass on your savings to the less fortunate!

My week of convenience foods......

These little guys were on sale at Meijer a few weeks ago, and since they are a new product I was able to get them for a great deal (remember....new product+high value coupon+debut sale=HUGE $AVINGS!!).

I shall dub this product "The lazy man's muffin mix". You pour a half cup of water in the container, shake, and pour into muffin pan. No mixer needed. No bowls or spoons to clean. The only 'issue' I had with this muffin mix is that the batter is too thick to really pour. I used a butter knife to scrape the batter into my mini muffin pan. One container of mix made 12 mini muffins. They were great!

I previously mentioned that I scored an awesome deal on some frozen Dole fruit smoothie shakers.. This is also a newer product, so I was able to buy them for about a dollar each at Meijer. This is actually very similar to the muffin mix I just talked about. You unscrew the lid, add orange juice, and shake! The only snafu I had with it, is that I had to stab the frozen mix with a butter knife a bunch of time to break up the pieces and allow the OJ to blend in and create a smoothie. It was well worth the effort though, because they taste great!

So overall I am pleased with my venture into the world of 'shakeable' foods! Just don't forget to pack your butter knife!

What's for dinner?

I'm going to be making a delicious recipe from my favorite Weight Watcher's cookbook.....

Spaghetti Vongole

4 tsp. olive oil
4- minced garlic cloves
2 small onions, finely chopped
1 can of stewed tomatoes
2 tbsp. tomato paste
1/2 tsp. each of dried basil, oregano and parsley
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
6 ounces of whole wheat spaghetti noodles
12 oz. of canned clams-minced or chopped

1. Heat olive oil in large skillet. Saute garlic and onions until soft.
2. Add tomatoes, tomato paste, and all seasoning. Cook for 5 minutes.
3. Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered for 30 minutes until thick.
4. Add clams and continue to cook for 5 more minutes.
5. The sauce is done!! Cook noodles, and pour the sauce over the noodles. Eat!

Week of Nov. 13th....Meijer Deals!

Marzetti dressing and Marzetti 'Simply Dressed' dressing: on sale two for $5!
--This week's paper has coupon to save 50 cents (doubles to $1.00), final price is two dressings for $3.00

 

Campbell's condensed "Cream of..." soups on sale for 59 cents!

--Coupon to 'Save 25 cents off of 4 cans' (which doubles to 50 cents) available online and from last months paper coupons

Bob Evan's sausage- Links, patties or roll, on sale for $2.79

--Coupon to save 35 cents (doubles to 70 cents of savings) off of a sausage roll, AND a coupon to save 55 cents off of ANY Bob Evans product both in this weeks paper

Pillsbury Crescent Rolls and Sweet Rolls on sale four for $6

--Between last week's and this week's Sunday paper there were A LOT of Pillsbury coupons. I am going to buy four rolls and use four '50 cents off' coupons, that will all double to $1 of savings. The final price per roll will be only 50 cents each! Hello holiday breakfast time!

Sara Lee cheesecakes and coffee cakes, and Edwards Pie Singles--All HALF OFF!

Baby formula can be expensive. I do not use it, partially for that reason (and many other reasons).....that is for a whole other blog entry though :-)

Here is a way to save money on Similac formula....

Go to the Similac website and sign up for the "Strong Mom's Club". They will mail you a welcome package with powdered formula. Usually it is a full size container of the powdered stuff, which retails for over $20.  Then, they will mail you four $5 checks that are good towards any Similac purchase. I apply the checks towards the smaller containers and usually get them totally FREE! You can sign up to their club over and over again, if you use different email addresses too!!

***Just be warned, the checks they send you are real checks, and have your name printed on them. So dont type in a funny but inappropriate name, when signing up online or your cashier may give you a weird look. I may or my not have learned that the hard way.

<---------This little can is concentrated liquid formula. You must dilute it with water before serving. Once you mix it, it becomes 26 ounces of formula. Don't ask me how many days that will last you! I have no idea. I have only found this product sold at Kroger and Hiller's so far.

They are usually EXACTLY $5.00, so they end up being free when you use the $5 check that Similac sends you.

<------ This product is pre-mixed liquid formula, that is ready to feed. It is typically available everywhere that I shop at. They are usually priced at $5.50 to $9.50, but sometimes are on sale for just $5. Once again, I do not know how many days/feedings the container lasts for.



Similac also puts out manufactures coupons in the Sunday paper every couple of months (for $2 or $5), and I have been able to apply one check and one coupon together to purchase one single item!

Over all, these liquid formulas are pricey, when compared to the powdered kind. However, you can get them for totally FREE if you use the coupons from Similac. I donate this stuff to my local women's shelter, where I am sure it is put to good use!

Free item when you buy a different item?

I usually never use the coupons that are for a free item when you buy some amount of a different item. Example: "Buy 2 loaves of bread and get one milk for free". Typically, I dont want both of the items that the coupon makes you buy to cash in on the deal.

In this week's paper (or maybe last weeks?) there was a coupon where you could get a free Duncan Hines cake mix, if you bought 2 cans of the Duncan Heinz Comstock pie filling. Sweet! I anticipate baking many a delicious treat in the coming months so I have been scouring the coupon world for deals. Here is what I bought:

The cans of pie filling were on sale for $2.99 (still kinda pricey if you ask me!), but had a peel off coupon attached to them to save $1.00. So, for $4 I bought two cans of cherry filling and got a free box of the Duncan Heinz cake mix. Sweet success!

Cheese Please

Shredded cheese is overpriced, but convenient. I don't have the time or desire to just shred my cheese from blocks of cheese, so when the pre-shredded stuff goes on sale I scoop it up.

This week at my local Buschs, Sargento's shredded cheese is on sale 2 for $4! That is a savings of $1.89 per bag!

This week's paper had a coupon to save 55 cents off of one bag of cheese, so each bag ended up costing only $1.45!

This stuff doesn't expire for a few months either, so the four bags I bought have no risk of spoiling.

Kroger deals this week!

Delicious homemade chicken broth is great, but it is very time consuming to make. I use A LOT of broth when cooking in the winter time, so I was happy to see that cans of Swanson's chicken and beef broth are on sale at Kroger this week.

Each can is on sale for 99 cents each. This item is included in the "Mega Sale Event", so if you buy 10 items you save 5 dollars. So basically, if you buy 10 cans of broth you pay $5 total.

FIFTY CENTS A CAN!!

The savings doesn't stop there....In this week's paper there was a coupon to save $1 off of 5 cans of Swanson broth. I used two coupons. So my grand total for twenty cans of broth was only 8 dollars, or 40 cents per can!

Also, "Annie's Brand" of organic macaroni and cheese in a box was included in the Mega Sale Event for SIXTY NINE CENTS A BOX, if you buy 10 boxes. I could not find any coupons to go with this sale, but overall it is still a good deal.

Kroger isn't the usual store that I shop at, but I do check out their Mega sales, and get some great deals!

Check out the sweet pyramid I built too....

Couponing video from CNN.com

Check it out!

Vegetable Lasagna Recipe

• Vegetable Lasagna 
• 8 ounces dried lasagna noodles (9 or 10 noodles)
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 2cups cream-style cottage cheese
• 1 15 ounce carton ricotta cheese
• 2 teaspoons dried Italian seasoning, crushed
• 2 cups sliced fresh mushrooms
• 1 cup chopped onion (1 large)
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tablespoons olive oil or cooking oil
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1/2 - 1 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 1/4 cups milk
• 1 10 ounce package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and thoroughly drained
• 1 10 ounce package frozen chopped broccoli, thawed and thoroughly drained
• 1 cup shredded carrot
• 3/4cup shredded Parmesan cheese (3 ounces)
• 1 8 ounce package shredded mozzarella cheese (2 cups)

Directions

1. Cook lasagna noodles according to package directions. Drain; set aside.

2. In a medium bowl combine eggs, cottage cheese, ricotta cheese, and Italian seasoning. Set aside.

3. In a large skillet cook mushrooms, onion, and garlic in hot oil until tender. Stir in the flour and pepper; add milk all at once. Cook and stir until slightly thickened and bubbly. Remove from heat. Stir in the spinach, broccoli, carrot, and 1/2 cup of the Parmesan cheese. 

4. To assemble, in a greased 3-quart rectangular baking dish, layer one-third of the noodles, folding or cutting to fit, if necessary. Spread with one-third of the cottage cheese mixture, then one-third of the vegetable mixture. Sprinkle with one-third of the mozzarella. Repeat the layers twice. Sprinkle with the remaining 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese.

5. Bake, uncovered, in a 350 degree F oven for 35 minutes or until heated through. Let stand for 10 minutes before serving.

6. Makes 12 servings

**I like to also add one single layer of tomato slices in the center of the layers!

BHG.com 

Preview of this week's sale ads for Meijer (UPDATED)

Available Here!

Fiber one cereal- $2.75 a box
--M-Perks coupon available to save $2 off of two boxes= $1.75 each

Purex laundry detergent- Buy one get one free!

Johnsonville Italian Sausage links on sale for $3.99
--Coupon in sunday paper to save 50 cents (which doubles to $1.00) per package= $2.99 each

 Welch's 64oz. juice on sale for $3

--Coupon in Sunday paper available to save $1.00

Campbells canned gravy on sale two for $1.00
--Coupon in sunday paper to save 25 cents off of three cans (doubles to 50cents)= 3 cans for $1.00

Glade Holiday candles, aerosol, or scented oil on sale 2 for for $5
--Lots of Glad coupons in this week's sunday paper

Dixie and Vanity Fair brand paper plates and napkins on sale two for $4
--M-Perks available to save $1 off of two itmes

A lot of different brands of vitamins are on sale "Buy one get one free"-per usual.
--Older M-Perks coupon available for vitamins, as well as this week's newspaper coupons




Check back here soon for some coupon strategies!!

A week in Mexico with a 15 month old.......

....was a fun challenge to say the least. The wee one survived on a lot of these:

......Which were very easy to pack, and allowed in our carry on bags!