dancinmama
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Post by dancinmama on Jan 25, 2013 10:00:31 GMT -5
Well, I used to keep my Grocery Challenge window open at all times. I was hardly ever logged off, but since they started using this new software, my computer keeps freezing up. I have had to reboot everyday since they made the change. So I will be logging in and logging off right away to avoid further problems. It seems we're down to almost no posts per day anyway. Kind of sad considering that we used to regularly do over 100. Times sure have changed.
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emhalf
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Post by emhalf on Jan 25, 2013 10:37:10 GMT -5
I'm annoyed with CVS. This week's ad does not match the ad posted on I<3CVS and it's only 8 pages long. But of course I didn't check the ad before buying a couple of aveeno shampoo that turned out to not be on sale and not count for the cash card deal. And now they won't let me return them because I used EBs on the purchase. Not even an exchange or gift card, which I'm pretty sure is not policy, but the stores around here don't know shit about coupons. So, my fault for not checking, I'll just suck it up and move on.
If they're going to start doing a short ad in my area, I want out of CVS more than ever. There are a few deals for next week that I probably wouldn't regularly do, but in the interest of burning EBs I might do them if they're in my ad. I can use some more body wash and advil.
Potential deal (assuming Dove men+care is included)
2 x dove men+care bar soap 6pk: 13.00 caress BW: 2.99 15.99 -2 x $4/1 dove m+c -.75/1 caress =7.24, get back $5 EB
The advil products are also an ok deal, and I think there's a rebate in the 1/27 RP as well as coupons.
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murphath
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Post by murphath on Jan 25, 2013 12:09:48 GMT -5
Dancinmama and Marvholly: Re J4U q's vs insert q's: If the amount of the insert q is the same as the J4U q, then you cannot use the insert q. It will beep every time. Sometimes, depending on the cashier, they will manually push it through--especially if you have a shopping cart full of stuff you are buying. For instance, this week there is a J4U q for .75 off Multigrain Cheerios. That matches the .75 IP q that was available awhile ago. I shouldn't be able to use both--but I'm gonna try anyway. Ya never know. It's easier to see with some q's than others--they always have the P&G insert q's on there but I never click on them because I never buy that stuff at Safeway--too expensive. Also, sometimes S/W gives you two J4U q's for the same product. This week it's the $1.99 for I Can't Believe It's Not Butter. There's also a .50 J4U q making it $1.49. If I had a .75 or 1.00 insert/IP q, I'd even try using that. That scenario usually works but my cashiers at S/W are super nice, very busy, and don't have time to be checking every little thing on the receipt. From prior posts, I don't think that's the case for Marvholly.
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dancinmama
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Post by dancinmama on Jan 25, 2013 13:01:33 GMT -5
I'm annoyed with CVS. This week's ad does not match the ad posted on I<3CVS and it's only 8 pages long. But of course I didn't check the ad before buying a couple of aveeno shampoo that turned out to not be on sale and not count for the cash card deal. And now they won't let me return them because I used EBs on the purchase. Not even an exchange or gift card, which I'm pretty sure is not policy, but the stores around here don't know shit about coupons. So, my fault for not checking, I'll just suck it up and move on. If they're going to start doing a short ad in my area, I want out of CVS more than ever. There are a few deals for next week that I probably wouldn't regularly do, but in the interest of burning EBs I might do them if they're in my ad. I can use some more body wash and advil. Potential deal (assuming Dove men+care is included) 2 x dove men+care bar soap 6pk: 13.00 caress BW: 2.99 15.99 -2 x $4/1 dove m+c -.75/1 caress =7.24, get back $5 EB The advil products are also an ok deal, and I think there's a rebate in the 1/27 RP as well as coupons. Policy dictates that they do the return and issue you a CVS money card (not to be confused with a cash card). I rarely do returns, but after having had problems with returns with receipts where I paid with EBs and coupons and because my CVS is a royal PITA, I just wait until I can go to an out-of-town CVS and do my return without a receipt. I can't imagine why that should be less hassle than a return with a receipt, but I have come to realize that that is the case. I think in the three plus years that I've been shopping at CVS, I've done only a handful of returns. I have heard that various areas are randomly getting a short ad. I hadn't heard anything about it for this week, but I have heard the same complaint in prior weeks from different people in different areas of the country. I had different ads during the week of Black Friday. Basically the products were the same, but our initial 4-day ad ran all week and then we got the 3-day ad on top of it, so it turned out to be better than worse, but I was freaking out for about the 10 or 15 minutes there until I realized that we would be getting the 3-day add too. If you go to cvs.com, you can look at YOUR current ad (this week's) and your upcoming ad (next week's) by putting in your zip. I think more and more CVSes just aren't providing the same level of customer service that we thought was a CVS standard and had us spoiled. I know murphath's store is still excellent, but I am seeing more and more people reporting pull back from their stores. Stores that used to take expireds (EBs and CRTs) are no longer taking them. Stores who used to be liberal in giving and redeeming rain checks, no longer are. Stores who used to force print ANY TIME that there was a problem are more reluctant to do so. Stores who liberally allowed the auto-deduct on recent P&G BOGO coupons, no longer do. And here's one for ya, I saw a blogger who listed the CVS deals for 1/27. They were listed in the order of the least amount of EBs lost for doing the deals....as opposed to the biggest MMs. Now, if you need the products it is still going to be invaluable information; but, wow, have times changed!!
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saveinla
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Post by saveinla on Jan 25, 2013 13:13:08 GMT -5
I have been here, but unfortunately don't have anything special to add. I have been slowly cashing out of CVS. Have 5 of the cash cards and I will be using my remaining ecbs in the next 2 weeks to get the food deals - NV granola bars, bertolli pasta sauce and the week after that the olive oil and be out for a little while. I am also cashing out of RA soon- had a great run this year so far with the anniversary promo and actually got a ton of stuff that we will use - photo frames, photo albums, DVDs, sharpies, pencils, vitamins etc. etc. I am taking a class for 3 months starting end of Feb and I have a graduating high school senior and college stuff, so I think that will keep me busy until June. Then we are going on vacation for almost a month. So busy few months ahead. I am well stocked up on a lot of things that we use - razors, lotion, batteries, chips, cashews and mixed nuts etc so it will be great to take a break. I will still be checking in almost every day just to see you guys though.
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skubikky
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Post by skubikky on Jan 25, 2013 13:28:22 GMT -5
Policy dictates that they do the return and issue you a CVS money card (not to be confused with a cash card). What's the effective difference between using a CVS money card and the cash card. Does the cash card typically have a set value unlike the money card that can have any value applied to it?
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emhalf
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Joined: Mar 30, 2011 7:15:17 GMT -5
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Post by emhalf on Jan 25, 2013 13:44:07 GMT -5
I'm annoyed with CVS. This week's ad does not match the ad posted on I<3CVS and it's only 8 pages long. But of course I didn't check the ad before buying a couple of aveeno shampoo that turned out to not be on sale and not count for the cash card deal. And now they won't let me return them because I used EBs on the purchase. Not even an exchange or gift card, which I'm pretty sure is not policy, but the stores around here don't know shit about coupons. So, my fault for not checking, I'll just suck it up and move on. If they're going to start doing a short ad in my area, I want out of CVS more than ever. There are a few deals for next week that I probably wouldn't regularly do, but in the interest of burning EBs I might do them if they're in my ad. I can use some more body wash and advil. Potential deal (assuming Dove men+care is included) 2 x dove men+care bar soap 6pk: 13.00 caress BW: 2.99 15.99 -2 x $4/1 dove m+c -.75/1 caress =7.24, get back $5 EB The advil products are also an ok deal, and I think there's a rebate in the 1/27 RP as well as coupons. Policy dictates that they do the return and issue you a CVS money card (not to be confused with a cash card). I rarely do returns, but after having had problems with returns with receipts where I paid with EBs and coupons and because my CVS is a royal PITA, I just wait until I can go to an out-of-town CVS and do my return without a receipt. I can't imagine why that should be less hassle than a return with a receipt, but I have come to realize that that is the case. I think in the three plus years that I've been shopping at CVS, I've done only a handful of returns. I haven't done a return at CVS in years, but this is how I thought I remembered things working. Last time I had zero problem getting a giftcard for a return purchased with EBs, but these stores have lousy CS. I tried stopping by another store to do a return without a receipt, and they wouldn't even take it. I could probably get a better response by pushing more, but it's like 10 degrees out and it's been snowing for 4 straight hours, so I don't feel like dealing with it this week
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jdnstl
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Post by jdnstl on Jan 25, 2013 14:36:05 GMT -5
murpath - did you see my PM with the lean cuisine codes? i have a couple more to send you soon & want to make sure you get the PMs. dancin - i too have been lurking bc of no big sales for me. i stockpiled so well while married that when DH moved out over 1.5 years ago i have only been stocking up when something is absolutely the lowest price & if my stockpile is low. in fact i still have so much laundry detergent that i sold DH 4 bottles for $5 (i paid $1 each for that brand) a couple of weeks ago & still have over 20 bottles in stock. i do want to say THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU to the GC hounds! i would not be in the position i am (able to meet a tight budget) without the help & learning that happened here.
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dancinmama
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Post by dancinmama on Jan 25, 2013 14:42:43 GMT -5
Policy dictates that they do the return and issue you a CVS money card (not to be confused with a cash card). What's the effective difference between using a CVS money card and the cash card. Does the cash card typically have a set value unlike the money card that can have any value applied to it? Yes, that is one difference, but I think the gift cards can be used on almost anything (stamps, alcohol, etc.) where I ASSume that the money cards are more restrictive regarding what can be purchased with them. Just using common sense here as to why they would issue returns on a "money card" vs a gift card.
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dancinmama
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Post by dancinmama on Jan 25, 2013 14:45:49 GMT -5
I have been here, but unfortunately don't have anything special to add. I have been slowly cashing out of CVS. Have 5 of the cash cards and I will be using my remaining ecbs in the next 2 weeks to get the food deals - NV granola bars, bertolli pasta sauce and the week after that the olive oil and be out for a little while. I am also cashing out of RA soon- had a great run this year so far with the anniversary promo and actually got a ton of stuff that we will use - photo frames, photo albums, DVDs, sharpies, pencils, vitamins etc. etc. I am taking a class for 3 months starting end of Feb and I have a graduating high school senior and college stuff, so I think that will keep me busy until June. Then we are going on vacation for almost a month. So busy few months ahead. I am well stocked up on a lot of things that we use - razors, lotion, batteries, chips, cashews and mixed nuts etc so it will be great to take a break. I will still be checking in almost every day just to see you guys though. Well, just give us a "Howdy Hi, just lurking" post every now and then. Enjoy your break. I think there are many of us on here who deserve one!!
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dancinmama
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Post by dancinmama on Jan 25, 2013 14:51:06 GMT -5
murpath - did you see my PM with the lean cuisine codes? i have a couple more to send you soon & want to make sure you get the PMs. dancin - i too have been lurking bc of no big sales for me. i stockpiled so well while married that when DH moved out over 1.5 years ago i have only been stocking up when something is absolutely the lowest price & if my stockpile is low. in fact i still have so much laundry detergent that i sold DH 4 bottles for $5 (i paid $1 each for that brand) a couple of weeks ago & still have over 20 bottles in stock. i do want to say THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU to the GC hounds! i would not be in the position i am (able to meet a tight budget) without the help & learning that happened here. And THANK YOU, jdnstl!! The GC community pulling together to find and share all the great deals and coupons has been invaluable to everyone!!
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jeep108
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Post by jeep108 on Jan 25, 2013 17:35:28 GMT -5
I've been out of the CVS game and Wags game for three or four months now. Mostly shop Frys (Krogers).
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marvholly
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Post by marvholly on Jan 26, 2013 5:13:38 GMT -5
Dancin<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" /><o:p></o:p> I have not had a problem w/needing to log in/out multi timesBUT I am only here VERY early in the am.<o:p></o:p> <o:p> </o:p> I suspect the lack of posts has MUCH more to do w/the totallack of decent deals. Just look at how many are posting here &and elsewhere) about getting out of CVS or WAG or Rite Aid. I am stuck w/CVS because I do not have Rite Aid and the BR program at WAG .......leaves a great deal to be desired (IMHO).
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dogmom
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Post by dogmom on Jan 26, 2013 11:19:31 GMT -5
I've learned quite a bit from this thread, and saved money. The deals the stores have been providing has been lacking.
I have a love/hate with CVS. They used to pay me to take things off the shelf, which I loved. The hate, lack of stock. The closest store for me is in a direction I don't travel often, and the always lack stock. So, they are good for rainchecks, but, honestly, when I shop, I would like to bring home what I had set out to buy. If I wanted to "get while the getting was good", I have to go one town over to do so, sometimes not making the deal so much of a deal. IMHO, CVS's deals have been rinse and repeat for a while. For the items I can get cheap or free, I have more than enough in my stockpile. So, at this time, all I have are a few cash cards for something that I may need. The store closest to me has never accepted an expired EB or expired coupon.
I have a Wags on the corner of my street. Coupon unfriendly, and I'm not so keen on their rewards program. I do stop in from time to time, but our rewards come mostly from DH doing the Walking with Walgreens. Their offers often mirror CVS's, so, not much in the stockpile arena either.
Thankfully, by the past decent deals to be found, we have a do not buy list, that continues to save us money because for probably six months to a year, we don't need to buy: Shampoo, body wash, lotion, vitamins, toothpaste, paper towel, tooth brushes, Listerene, Laundry soap, razors, shaving cream, face soap, deodorant, many cleaning supplies, Glade.... All of these pretty much are rinse and repeat items. After you have enough of these, you kind of stop looking at the ads, and at least for me, stop going to that store.
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dancinmama
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Post by dancinmama on Jan 26, 2013 13:15:17 GMT -5
Dancin<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" /><o:p></o:p> I have not had a problem w/needing to log in/out multi timesBUT I am only here VERY early in the am.<o:p></o:p> <o:p> </o:p> I suspect the lack of posts has MUCH more to do w/the totallack of decent deals. Just look at how many are posting here &and elsewhere) about getting out of CVS or WAG or Rite Aid. I am stuck w/CVS because I do not have Rite Aid and the BR program at WAG .......leaves a great deal to be desired (IMHO). I think you're absolutely right. Back in the day, the deals were flying and there always seemed to be some "glitch" of the week to post about, ask about, etc.
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FreeSalsa
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Post by FreeSalsa on Jan 26, 2013 14:04:07 GMT -5
HAPPY ANNIVERSARY GROCERY CHALLENGERS I'm posting this now because I might forget tomorrow. The Grocery Challenge was born on 1/24/07. Tomorrow we celebrate (6) years of posts, chit chat, exchanging coupons, and generally helping each other save money in any way that we can whether it be groceries, office supplies, HBA, household products, clothing, etc. Personally, I would just like to say thank you to anyone who has ever participated - shared a deal and/or shared coupons. It would be amazing to know how much money we've helped each other save. I'm sure it is in the tens of thousands of dollars!! Here's to you, Grocery Challengers!! **********I guess I don't know how to do the quote function on this new thing************** I second that. I've saved so much money with this thread. I think I've been around for 5 of the 6 years. You ladies rock! Thank you all so much.
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dancinmama
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Post by dancinmama on Jan 26, 2013 14:10:08 GMT -5
I've learned quite a bit from this thread, and saved money. The deals the stores have been providing has been lacking. I have a love/hate with CVS. They used to pay me to take things off the shelf, which I loved. The hate, lack of stock. The closest store for me is in a direction I don't travel often, and the always lack stock. So, they are good for rainchecks, but, honestly, when I shop, I would like to bring home what I had set out to buy. If I wanted to "get while the getting was good", I have to go one town over to do so, sometimes not making the deal so much of a deal. IMHO, CVS's deals have been rinse and repeat for a while. For the items I can get cheap or free, I have more than enough in my stockpile. So, at this time, all I have are a few cash cards for something that I may need. The store closest to me has never accepted an expired EB or expired coupon. I have a Wags on the corner of my street. Coupon unfriendly, and I'm not so keen on their rewards program. I do stop in from time to time, but our rewards come mostly from DH doing the Walking with Walgreens. Their offers often mirror CVS's, so, not much in the stockpile arena either. Thankfully, by the past decent deals to be found, we have a do not buy list, that continues to save us money because for probably six months to a year, we don't need to buy: Shampoo, body wash, lotion, vitamins, toothpaste, paper towel, tooth brushes, Listerene, Laundry soap, razors, shaving cream, face soap, deodorant, many cleaning supplies, Glade.... All of these pretty much are rinse and repeat items. After you have enough of these, you kind of stop looking at the ads, and at least for me, stop going to that store. Thankfully, my CVS is VERY close; but still, lack of stock is lack of stock and in the last year, getting the product that I wanted/needed when I wanted/needed it (the week of the sale to roll EBs and/or use $/$$ that were going to expire) had forced me to stay up on many a Saturday night, past midnight to shop. My MO was to go to CVS on Friday/Saturday to check stock, work out my scenarios, and shop shortly after midnight on Sunday morning especially if there was a chance that waiting, might put my "plans" in jeopardy, which happened quite regularly. I was willing to do it when they were showering me with $10/$50s, but I began to hate every minute of it. I decided that when the $10/$50s were gone, I would be too. And yes, the deals at CVS have been like a revolving door. I used that to my advantage in 2012 to continue to build stockpiles of various products as they continued to "come around": Scott Extra Soft (several deals in 2012), Dawn (can never have too much of that), laundry detergent (Tide, Wisk, and Purex), etc. Now, dogmom, like you, as I scan the ads for the drug chains I turn the pages and say to myself, "I don't need that. I don't need that either. Nope, don't need it." I guess my 2012 goal was to stockpile myself right out of business and, as you all have probably figured out by now, I am an overachiever. Lately, I have been stockpiling CVS gift cards. I don't really intend to "get back in" to roll EBs from one week to the next. I want to focus on pantry staples when they are on ad at rock bottom prices and I can combine with good coupons......BUT never say "never".
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973beachbum
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Post by 973beachbum on Jan 26, 2013 14:56:03 GMT -5
Hi all! I haven't been posting here much simply because I havn't bee doing much hounding. I haven't been to staples in a couple of week and probably won't again until at least next month. Next weeks ad is up for Staples and unless you have rewards that are expiring on Jan 31st my best advice is to catch up on some laundry or clean out a closet if you have extra time to kill. I have been to Acme three times this week though. that is a big surprise for me! Yesterday I went and got a bunch of meat that was on sale and they had coupons for so much off each. I ended up buying $60 worth of meat and using $30 worth of coupons. Today I went back and got a bunch of vaggies that were part of their dollar days sale. They had bagged salad, baby carrots, celery, 3 lb bag of onions, packs of mushroom, p5 packs of garlic and scallions, plus a whole lot more for a dollar each. I ended up using $11 in coupons today and came home with lots of fresh veggies and premium meat. It is such a shame you can't use coupons for real food that is healthy. I seriously wished that a YM type had been looking at my cart this morning! It was literally the healthiest looking cart of groceries I have ever seen.
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murphath
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Post by murphath on Jan 26, 2013 15:26:53 GMT -5
jdnstl:
Thanks for posting! I tried to reply to your email but it kept taking me to the "thank you" I sent back in June for the last code. I thought I was going off the deep end there but believe it to be a "new program" problem.
In any event, thank you for the codes. I sent it to my daughter who is the one using them. She emailed me today to let me know that she is now cooking and now longer buying the Lean Cuisine nor participating in their code program. So there you go...
I do appreciate you sending them. Thanks so much.
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murphath
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Post by murphath on Jan 26, 2013 15:34:28 GMT -5
Deals? What deals? There really haven't been too many lately. The best I've been able to do at the grocery store and/or Target is match q's with sale prices.
I did manage to stock up on many items in 2012 but, believe it or not, I only have 4 tubes of toothpaste! That's what happens when 5 people raid the stockpile--those rascals
I will probably buy 3 of the Gevalia coffee tomorrow at CVS: 5.99 X 3 = $17.97 Minus 3/$1.50 q's Get back $5 ECB
I have $1.75 in EB's and $2+change on a gift card that I'll use, too. I'm down to one Starbucks. What can I say? I like good coffee and the canned stuff just doesn't cut it. It's my one vice--well, besides champagne every now and again!
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constanz22
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Post by constanz22 on Jan 26, 2013 15:58:43 GMT -5
murpath- I've become more choosy with coffee too. I LOVE the Gevalia. I just got Eight O'Clock fresh ground coffee at Price Chopper for like 2.49 each after half price sale and $2/2 MC. This is a good deal for good coffee. I've gotten much better deals on Gevalia, Eight O'Clock, etc than Folgers and Maxwell House actually for the past couple years.
I haven't bought anything at CVS in like 2 weeks, other than using up some small expiring EB's for milk. I think I'll be getting out too. I have $6 EB on one card and $10 on another that expire next week or the week after. I'm low on Vitamin D and dog food, so will probably just spend them and get out. There is not one HBA item that I need to buy for a year or more.
I was very, very thankful for the stockpile this month. I spent less than $100 on groceries this month cuz I had a bunch of unexpected expenses, and I had plenty of food. I was also sick almost all week this week, a migraine for 2 days and then the stomach flu. So thankful to have stuff on hand and not HAVE to go to the store.
Most of my deals have been grocery, and just little things here and there since I only get 1-2 inserts and whatever IP's I can print. I found some pretty good clearance deals at Price Chopper this week. Sauté Express (they are little seasoned butter like meal starter things) had 3 .75 freshness peelies on them since they were close to expiration AND there were .75/1 tear pads by them. I think they were 3.59 so after Q's I paid .59 each for them. I thought the .75/1 tear pad would double, making them free, but it didn't. No biggie. I also found Pillsbury pie crusts with 1.75 in freshness peelies on them and they were a little over $2, maybe 2.29. I'm sure I have MC's but since I don't carry many with me, I missed out, but still felt it was a great price for these and they freeze great. I also found tear pads on Seltzer water for FREE! I had to read it like 10 times...lol!
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dancinmama
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Post by dancinmama on Jan 26, 2013 16:12:02 GMT -5
Hi all! I haven't been posting here much simply because I havn't bee doing much hounding. I haven't been to staples in a couple of week and probably won't again until at least next month. Next weeks ad is up for Staples and unless you have rewards that are expiring on Jan 31st my best advice is to catch up on some laundry or clean out a closet if you have extra time to kill. I have been to Acme three times this week though. that is a big surprise for me! Yesterday I went and got a bunch of meat that was on sale and they had coupons for so much off each. I ended up buying $60 worth of meat and using $30 worth of coupons. Today I went back and got a bunch of vaggies that were part of their dollar days sale. They had bagged salad, baby carrots, celery, 3 lb bag of onions, packs of mushroom, p5 packs of garlic and scallions, plus a whole lot more for a dollar each. I ended up using $11 in coupons today and came home with lots of fresh veggies and premium meat. It is such a shame you can't use coupons for real food that is healthy. I seriously wished that a YM type had been looking at my cart this morning! It was literally the healthiest looking cart of groceries I have ever seen. I hope that beachbum or leanna or anyone who is a Staples can answer my questions. I bought (2) of the $13.99 totes on 12/30 for the Staples Reward. They told me that the rewards voucher would be mailed on 1/19 and I received it yesterday. So far so good. I THOUGHT that I would receive one great big rewards voucher for $27.98 ($13.99 x 2); instead I received two vouchers on the same piece of paper separated by a perforation. They each show the same rewards number, but each has a different bar code number. One is for $15 and one is for $15.30, so now I'm a little confused. First, there are two vouchers instead of one and, second, they are for different amounts when I purchased two of the exact same thing to get them. VERY WEIRD!! I'm not "complaining" by any stretch of the imagination because I assume that I have two chances to use each one up, but I did not think that they would arrive this way (as two separate vouchers)and just want to try to get the straight scoop before I use them. Or maybe I just misunderstood. I just noticed another oddity. At the bottom of the rewards voucher it says, "Rewards earned from 10/1/12 to 12/31/12 as if indicating that the rewards are sent out quarterly when I thought that they were sent out monthly. However, when I purchased the same totes last week, I was told that the rewards voucher would be mailed 2/19. I guess, overall, I'm just confused. Can anyone straighten me out?
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dancinmama
Senior Associate
LIVIN' THE DREAM!!
Joined: Dec 18, 2010 20:49:45 GMT -5
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Post by dancinmama on Jan 26, 2013 16:28:30 GMT -5
murpath- I've become more choosy with coffee too. I LOVE the Gevalia. I just got Eight O'Clock fresh ground coffee at Price Chopper for like 2.49 each after half price sale and $2/2 MC. This is a good deal for good coffee. I've gotten much better deals on Gevalia, Eight O'Clock, etc than Folgers and Maxwell House actually for the past couple years. I haven't bought anything at CVS in like 2 weeks, other than using up some small expiring EB's for milk. I think I'll be getting out too. I have $6 EB on one card and $10 on another that expire next week or the week after. I'm low on Vitamin D and dog food, so will probably just spend them and get out. There is not one HBA item that I need to buy for a year or more. I was very, very thankful for the stockpile this month. I spent less than $100 on groceries this month cuz I had a bunch of unexpected expenses, and I had plenty of food. I was also sick almost all week this week, a migraine for 2 days and then the stomach flu. So thankful to have stuff on hand and not HAVE to go to the store. Most of my deals have been grocery, and just little things here and there since I only get 1-2 inserts and whatever IP's I can print. I found some pretty good clearance deals at Price Chopper this week. Sauté Express (they are little seasoned butter like meal starter things) had 3 .75 freshness peelies on them since they were close to expiration AND there were .75/1 tear pads by them. I think they were 3.59 so after Q's I paid .59 each for them. I thought the .75/1 tear pad would double, making them free, but it didn't. No biggie. I also found Pillsbury pie crusts with 1.75 in freshness peelies on them and they were a little over $2, maybe 2.29. I'm sure I have MC's but since I don't carry many with me, I missed out, but still felt it was a great price for these and they freeze great. I also found tear pads on Seltzer water for FREE! I had to read it like 10 times...lol! I'm doing something similar when shopping at my Grocery Outlet. They don't take coupons, but who needs them when I can get 28 oz of Oscar Mayer deli style ham for $1.99, a 2# bag of Sargento shredded cheese for $3.50, a 64 oz. bottle of Oceanspray Ruby Tangerinefor $.99, and Princella yams (the big can) for $.50. Not too long ago, Ruby Grapefruit had a J4U price of $.99, but the limit was one. There are no limits at the Grocery Outlet so I got a case (8). Don't get me wrong, I'll still be cherry picking using coupons at Safeway and Nob Hill, but I will definitely be checking out the Grocery Outlet a couple of times a month.
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constanz22
Senior Member
Joined: Dec 18, 2010 14:32:17 GMT -5
Posts: 4,219
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Post by constanz22 on Jan 26, 2013 18:14:34 GMT -5
Well, I give the Italian Herb Sauté Express a thumbs up! It was really good and about the easiest dinner ever! I'll be going back to see if they have more for that price! It took about 10 minutes from start to finish. Melt the little seasoned butter block in a pan, added a couple b/s chix tenders til they were cooked through, cooked up a little angel hair pasta and threw the chicken on it.
Just pulled a couple boxes of Swiss Miss cocoa out of the stockpile and noticed, once again, the great shrinking package. I grabbed 2 and was like, why is one heavier than the other? Looked at them, same style box, same variety...I looked closer and the older one had TEN packets and the newer one only SIX! And I don't remember where I bought them or what I paid but that is a big difference!
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dancinmama
Senior Associate
LIVIN' THE DREAM!!
Joined: Dec 18, 2010 20:49:45 GMT -5
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Post by dancinmama on Jan 26, 2013 21:04:08 GMT -5
WAGs DOUBLE DIP OPPORTUNITY - TONIGHT ONLY!!
Okay, I learned something new on WUC. When WAGs has a sale on a product that's ending on Sat. and a sale on the same product that's starting on Sun., stores that ARE NOT 24 HR. STORES, activate the new deals early and they will overlap allowing you to double dip.
Ending today is Doritos BOGO. Starting tomorrow is Doritos $1.99/ea. So the double dip is that they ring up $1.99 AND BOGO, making them $.99/bag. On top of that I had $2/1 Doritos peelies so I got them 2/$.99.
Can't beat that with a stick. Personally, I won't eat many as I'm not a huge fan, but DS will love them in his lunches.
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hopetoberich
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Joined: Dec 18, 2010 15:31:10 GMT -5
Posts: 403
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Post by hopetoberich on Jan 26, 2013 22:12:01 GMT -5
Just lurking. I don't like this new set up or the flashing advert at the bottom of the screen' I see a headache coming on already. I used to get a bunch of free mq's cos the paper boy dumped a ton of the free papers in our apt building in PA. That all stopped. Maybe I should sign up for the 99c deal for the Sunday paper again and they may start delivering the free one too. It gave me enough to trade and plenty for myself. I went over to slick deals for the first time in about a year today, and I saw nearly no posts for today? Can that be right, that is a real shock. There was always someone on there being nasty to others.....lol and they had some good deal gossip too.WUC is very quiet too compared to a year ago. Times are a changing.
DH used my/our 25% on the CVS card today without telling me he was going to. I was gonna get some Almay eyebrow pencils but he messed up my plan. He thought he was being clever when the woman asked him if he wanted to use the 25%! That'll teach me for using his cell # as my main card. And then telling him about it.
I just bought about 15 rice coupons from a girl on WUC. I need to stock up on food again and brown rice is expensive. I may go to Wegmans to use them as they double 4 at a time. So I am mainly buying clearance deals at the moment and getting some good meat deals. Mid morning seems to be the time to get the best meat packs, but no good if you are working all day.
I am in Las Vegas this week and have a side by side fridge to fill so Kroger better have a decent sale. Winco is further up the street and we went there for the first time last week and they are really much cheaper than Smiths (Kroger). But its another 10 minute hike to get there for this middle aged body! Remember I was saying last summer about how I wanted to go to CVS for a deal but it was'112 degrees out and we have no car in Vegas, well its only about 60 now so I can't use that one this time of year.
If I find anything cheap I will let you all know.
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constanz22
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Joined: Dec 18, 2010 14:32:17 GMT -5
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Post by constanz22 on Jan 27, 2013 7:16:00 GMT -5
hopetobe- Nice to see you post here! I see you once in awhile on WUC but I'm not on there much lately. Your post reminded me that I need to call and cancel my newspaper subscription. I noticed that my promo offer expired and I'm now being charged full price ($3.00) for Sunday only. This price is outrageous for our small town paper with crappy Q's! I will see if they can give me another promo or I will just cancel and go back to buying a paper from the other city, that's 1.75 and has better Q's. I just really like the convenience of not having to get out, especially in the winter, like this week when we've had single digit temps all week.
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dogmom
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Joined: Dec 20, 2010 7:00:49 GMT -5
Posts: 1,094
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Post by dogmom on Jan 27, 2013 8:38:45 GMT -5
I have a question. Is there a coffee rule? (like the TP rule for stockup)? I was thinking about Murpath's post and Constanz's endorsement on the Gevalia coffee. We have been Folgers snobs for years. Work uses Maxwell House, which to me is bitter. DH refuses Starbucks on principle... The best pricing, and I stocked up on Folgers was Meijer a couple of months back at $5.99 (limit 2 per day) for the 34.5 oz. But, I'm down to my last 3 containers. But, good coffee may be a nice splurge. Anyway, I'm thinking about it.
My best hounding has been all over the place. Dollar Tree w/Libby's canned veggies has our pantry stocked for when we run out of fresh or frozen veggies. I pick up an extra paper there for Sunday's inserts IF there is somethng that makes it worthwhile, and make note of what they carry... I think I may go back for some Hormel pepperoni. Insert coupon $1.00 off two means .50 pepperoni for our Friday night pizza night (Add Aldi or an independent market produce, good stuff.) They also had an endcap of Ragu... .40 cent insert coupon on two beats CVS's 3/$5....I really loved Meijer's pork loin sale a couple weeks back, $1.79/pound. Have 6 pork tenderloin dinners for about $2.69 each. Unfortunately, our food sealer bit the dust sealing them, so, I'm looking for a replacement. It's probably 8 years old and really has served it's purpose. I do buy bulk meats and split them for meals.
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constanz22
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Joined: Dec 18, 2010 14:32:17 GMT -5
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Post by constanz22 on Jan 27, 2013 8:54:56 GMT -5
dogmom- I don't really have a coffee "rule". If I can get good coffee at a good to me price, I go for it. My "buy" price for good coffee (Gevalia, Eight O'clock) is around $3/bag. Under $2.50 is a stock up price for me. I can't even get Folgers for much under $3 anymore so I go for the good stuff...lol. Coffee is one of my personal indulgences and one of the few things I truly enjoy. So, others may feel differently. I would do the Gevalia deal but I didn't get the 1.50 Q's.
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dogmom
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Joined: Dec 20, 2010 7:00:49 GMT -5
Posts: 1,094
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Post by dogmom on Jan 27, 2013 9:15:15 GMT -5
dogmom- I don't really have a coffee "rule". If I can get good coffee at a good to me price, I go for it. My "buy" price for good coffee (Gevalia, Eight O'clock) is around $3/bag. Under $2.50 is a stock up price for me. I can't even get Folgers for much under $3 anymore so I go for the good stuff...lol. Coffee is one of my personal indulgences and one of the few things I truly enjoy. So, others may feel differently. I would do the Gevalia deal but I didn't get the 1.50 Q's. Thanks. Coffee is something both DH and I enjoy. He blames me for getting him started a year or so ago when CVS was providing free iced coffees. Otherwise I was the only one drinking coffee. I drink mine black, he adds all of the "stuff" to it, so, Coffeemate or Baileys coffee creamers have been added to the stock up list.... But, I'm good with that. . It probably is worth the splurge. I'm getting a haircut next week that will land me between my usual CVS with no stock, and the one town over that usually does.
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