Publix: Spent $1.13 and Saved $103.78!

I'm getting a little better at saving more with coupons. Best week ever at Publix! Saved $103.78 and used overage to pay tax. I had expected a low bill, but was surprised at the total since I bought several items without coupons. They had to get CS approval to continue with the coupons, since my total was going into the negative before the tax was added.

I warned the lady behind in line that I had lots of coupons. She said no problem as she used coupons back at home all the time. She was glad to see how much I was saving. The cashier as usually was very nice and patient with coupons. She said she was trying to wrap her head around how coupon shoppers were able to get such good deals.

I had combined two MF Band-Aid coupons with store coupons and added a $5 off $25 for the overage. I also had (10 ) $3.00 coupons for the Sunkist frozen fish, a few other small MF coupons and a couple FLIPs also.

Harris Teeter Super Doubles!

A couple quick shops to Harris Teeter resulted in a few good deals.

6 Danimals (Free with MF coupons)
3 Crest Prohealth Toothpaste (Free w/MF coupon picked up at dentist office last week.)
3 Ziplock Quart/Freezer bags (Free w/MF coupons)
3 Ziplock snack and sandwich size bags (.49 cents w/MF coupon)
1 Ocelo Sponge pack (.69 cents w/MF coupon)
1 Fiber One Yogurt 4-pack (.59 w/MF coupon)
1 Aqua Fresh Extreme BOGO (No coupon, paid $1.49)

Spent $6.22 and saved $45.55!

I often find using coupons at Harris Teeter a bit frustrating because of their limitations. The cashiers are often unfamiliar with the coupon policy and have to check with customer service. This time there was some coupon drama because the coupons said redeem at Publix, but were manufacturer coupons. It worked out, but sometimes you want to make quick stop.

The first time I did HT triples I did all my grocery shopping for the week there. However, now because of coupon drama I only make quick stop if any.

I shop at the HT in Brentwood, Tennessee and here are a few more rules that my help you. These do seem to vary from store to store.

They will not double or triple a coupon that says do not double or triple.

You only allow up to three coupons to buy three of the same item. Only two internet printable coupons. (Thanks Frugal Dr. Mom for that tip!)

The registers are automatically programmed not to give overage.

They have accepted two coupons for 2 BOGO items, but that may have been a fluke.

Items seem to run out quickly during double and triples, which makes me appreciate Publix even more. I've been the most successful if I use coupons from an alternative source other than newspapers. I've used blinkies. This past week most of my coupons came from the Publix coupon book Sweet Summertime Savings. The Crest coupons I picked up at my dentist office last week, and I never thought I would be able to use them since because of the expiration date of 7/31. They were for $1.50 off a 4 ounce tube, so I couldn't resist.

I made two trips this week. I'll add a picture late of my second shop.

Menu Monday

Monday: Pizza, salad and fruit.

Tuesday: Veggies Plate: Stuffed squash, boiled potatoes, corn, muffins.

Wednesday: Fish and salad.

Thursday: Manwich or Sloppy Joes. Veggies and dip.

Friday: Tostadas with refried beans, and veggies and dip.

Saturday: Another veggie plate. (Will pick up our CSA Saturday and see what's in our box.)

Sunday: Crock Pot Roast, using Lipton Beefy Onion soup mix, and veggies.


Lunch: Tuna sandwiches, hot dogs, tomato cheese sandwiches.


Breakfast: Oatmeal, cereal, waffles with freezer jam, eggs, bagels with cream cheese.

Publix: How To Fix My Stupid Mistake

Last week Target had a good deal on Electosol gel tabs with finishing rinse. I've noticed a difference using this product compared to the inexpensive brand I bought at Aldi or The Dollar Tree. With the $2.50 coupon from the Sunday inserts, it was $1 per box. Not as good as the sale at Publix a few months ago, but not bad when it's your favorite product.

I only had two coupons from the inserts, so I ordered 10 more. I was out of town this weekend, but no problem I thought. I'll just pick it up when I shop on Monday. I was on my way to Target when it hit me. Target's ad changes on Sunday. I guess I'm so obsessed with Publix and their Wednesday ads that I totally forgot.

The coupons expire 8/09. We may get a good sale before expiration date. Decided not to chance it.

I spent $4.82 and saved $29.20 for everything pictured. I used $5/25 coupon, 5 MF coupons and two Band-aids coupons for overage. No coupons for the animal crackers, but a must have for my son.

I still have 5 coupons left if we get a great sale on these.

Sunday Coupon Inserts

You should have two inserts in your paper tomorrow -- Smart Source and Red Plum.

Great Deal On Tuna At Harris Teeter!

I stopped in this morning to buy cat litter, but then I saw in their ad they had Chicken of the Sea tuna 3/$1. I didn't have any coupons with me, but it was such a great deal I didn't care. The limit is 12 cans, and the sale lasts through today. It has been a long time since I've seen tuna that cheap.

Publix: Spent $10.35 and Saved $76.40

I had groceries to buy on/off sale, including expensive swim diapers, but few with coupons. Thanks to I Love Publix, I was able to come up with a plan to gain overage. I combined store and MF coupons on the Band-aids, Aspirin, Texas Toast croutons, and Reach dental floss for coverage and added a Walgreens RR ($5) and a 5/50 competitor. I also used the Food Lion $2 off $5 produce coupon.

The customer behind me in line was so great about waiting for the coupons to be processed and was excited to see how much I saved. He said I should have my own television show. One of the cashiers said to him, "One lady saved over $120 this week." I had to chuckle as we have so many great coupon shoppers in this area.

What To Do With Zucchini?

Make Zucchini Spice Cupcakes! I found this recipe at Erin's Food Files. She has some great ideas for summer produce, some yummy recipes and stunning pictures. My notes are below the recipe.

Zucchini Spice Cupcakes
from Martha Stewart Cupcakes
Yields: 24 cupcakes (I got 18 regular cupcakes and 24 mini cupcakes, with some batter left over)

3 cups all purpose flour (I subbed 3/4 of this with whole wheat pastry flour)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1 cup vegetable oil
2 large eggs, room temperature
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
3/4 teaspoon grated lemon zest
2 cups packed light brown sugar
3 cups packed grated zucchini
1 cup walnuts (about 3 ounces), toasted and coarsely chopped

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line standard muffin tins with paper liners. Whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves. In another bowl, whisk together oil, eggs, vanilla, and zest until well blended; whisk in brown sugar until smooth. Stir in zucchini, then add flour mixture and stir until just combined. Stir in walnuts.

Divide batter evenly among lined cups, filling each three quarters full. Bake, rotating tins halfway through, until a cake tester inserted in centers comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Transfer tins to wire racks to cool completely before removing cupcakes. Cupcakes can be stored overnight at room temperature or frozen up to 2 months, in airtight containers.

For my attempt at this, I made a half batch and divided the recipe as I had only one wilted zucchini. I also used half wheat flour/half white, not whole wheat pastry flour. As a result my cupcakes were a little denser. We also decided we liked them without the frosting. They tasted more like carrot cake muffins, and the lemon zest was great. I will add more next time.

Menu Monday

Monday: Crock Pot BBQ Ribs, potatoes and salad. I've seen this recipe posted several places and thought I would try it.

Tuesday: Pizza, veggies and dip, fruit.

Wednesday: Potatoes, stuffed cheesy squash or squash casserole, cole slaw salad, corn.

Thursday: Pick a quick meal.

Friday: Tuna patties (like salmon patties), marinated mushrooms, broccoli and cheese.

Saturday: Grilled marinated chicken, grilled squash and corn.

Sunday: TBA

For more great menu ideas check out I'm an Organizing Junkie.

Sunday Coupon Inserts

Only one coupon insert in tomorrow's paper -- Smart Source. For a list of the coupons, please check out Southern Savers.

(Almost) Wordless Wednesday

Inexpensive fun at Bicentennial Mall State Park, Nashville, Tennessee, Summer 2009.
For more info about this park click here.

Spent $6.95 and Saved $92.14 at Publix!

Expect to see pizza listed for many weeks on my Menu Monday post.

The best deals were:

10 Free Kashi pizzas with sale and MF coupon.
1 Free pizza melt with MF coupon.
1 Free box of Crystal Light IP MF coupon.
1 Free candy bar with MF coupon.
Almost free honey mustard salad dressing. Publix penny item. I think this will make a great marinade.

There are a couple ways I could have saved more money, but I am happy that I'm able to save as much as I do at Publix. One way to save more money would have been to break this up into two transactions as I had two different $5/off competitor grocery coupons. My local Publix has one of the most generous coupon policy, and I hope they keep it.

Menu Monday

The menu is a little scarce this week. Honesty, I'm a little tired of cooking and more so of cleaning up. Besides my regular cooking. I have also made strawberry, blueberry and blackberry freezer jam and several desserts all from scratch in the last couple of weeks, so I'm giving myself a break this week. My plan is to make it back to the gym a few times this week.

Monday: Beef tips, rice, sauteed kale, veggies and dip.

Tuesday: Veggie Plate. Baked potatoes, salad, coleslaw salad, corn.

Wednesday: Marinated pork steak with cabbage, kale, potatoes.

Thursday: Tuna and salad.

Friday: Pick a quick meal -- salad, hot dogs, tostada. Veggies and dip.

Saturday: Dinner with friends.

Sunday: TBA, probably another quick meal.

For more ideas, check out Menu Monday at I'm an Organizing Junkie

Sunday Coupon Inserts

You should receive two coupon inserts in your Sunday newspaper -- (1) Red Plum insert and (1) SmartSource. For a list of the coupons, check out Southern Savers.

For readers in Middle Tennessee, you can purchase The Tennessean at Walgreens for .99.

Saved 100% at Publix!

Diapers, waffles, and the gasoline gift cards were on the list today. Had some great Kashi waffle coupons thanks to I Prefer Publix. The waffles are 50% or $1.39 at my store. The Kashi coupons were for $1.50, making them free plus coverage. You can also stack a .25 coupon from Target, although the Target coupons states one per transaction. My groceries should have cost me $14.29. Saving $20.40. But...

After several unsuccessful attempts to buy the gasoline gift cards at both the register and the customer service desk, I had to call it a day. The gasoline cards would not process, so I would have to come back to buy those. The customer service rep really made my day when she handed me the grocery receipt for $14.29 and said, "It's on us today."

Almost skipped out of the store. Thanks Publix for free diapers!

Spent $21.25 at Publix and Saved $84.18!

The best deals were:

6 Free Apple & Eve juices (combining a store coupon from the Publix coupon booklet Smart Summertime Savings and a manufacturer coupon from the Greenwise magazine)

8 free Dan-o-nino yogurts. (Used the $1 MF coupon from the Summertime Savings booklet.)

Free pork ribs (Used the coupons for "the pork deal" mentioned last week.)

Free paper towels. (Home mailer coupon)

Free pancake mix. (Advantage ad)

2 Free GreenWorks dish washing liquid (Coupons.com coupon and Greenwise coupon.)

Publix penny item, which was tortilla chips

2 bags of Purina cat food .50 each


Here is the part of my blog where I usually brag about Publix. Well, when I go every week odds are that I'll have a not so positive experience one time. To make it short I will say that I will always check the receipt, which I did before leaving the store. Customer service was great about refunding a missed $5 coupon. I believe one more was missed, but it was a very long check out process, and I was not going to do a coupon audit for $1. I will also make sure all my items are bagged and put into my cart. I'm sure the lady behind me in line was happy upon her arrival home.

Not pictured: 1 large bag of Kingsford charcoal, 1 gallon of Publix milk and one $6 package of ribs.

Fourth Delvin Farms CSA!

Received the following:
Squash

Heirloom Tomatoes
Athena Cantaloupe
Basil
Pint of tomatoes
Lettuce
Cabbage
New Potatoes
Kale (apparently the Kudzu of the farm world)

We are really enjoying this week's box. Our favorite so far.

Bargains At The Dollar Tree

You never know what you may find in this store. Stopped in at the Dollar Tree to purchase Stauffer's animal crackers (Just $1), and they had a shopping cart of items for .50. Purchased several boxes of chips (6 packs per box) for just .50, snack cakes, and as a treat, some ice tea drink boxes for the little ones.

These were the "off brand" snacks. All made in the USA. We love our organic produce, but we also like junk food.

Free Popsicles At Walmart!

Super Summer deal! Walmart has boxes of Popsicles for just $1. Use the $1 manufacturer coupon from the Publix coupon booklet Family Is It's Own Reward and get free Popsicles. Just pay tax.

They also had baby pools marked down from $7 to $3.

Menu Monday

Dinner
Monday: Pesto Pasta and salad.

Tuesday: Cheesy Stuffed Summer Squash and veggies.

Wednesday: Pick your own quick meal -- tostada, quesadilla, hot dog or ravioli. Veggies and dip, fruit.

Thursday: Potatoes and cabbage.

Friday: Salmon and salad.

Saturday: Grilled chicken and grilled veggies.

Sunday: TBA

Lunch
PB and J, salads, hot dogs and tomato cheese sandwiches.

Breakfast
Whole wheat pancakes and freezer blueberry jam, oatmeal with brown sugar and pecans, egg sandwiches, cereal.

Note: I originally saw the squash recipe on Frugal In Franklin. She has some great recipes ideas for all that summer produce.

Sunday Coupon Inserts

Only one insert tomorrow, P&G. For a full list of coupons check out Southern Savers. If you live in the Middle Tennessee area, you can get the Sunday Tennessean for .99 at Walgreens.

Good Trip To Kroger!

I'm getting better at Kroger. Between several blogs I read, and actually coming up with a few ideas myself, I'm seeing my savings improving. Spent $21.14. Saved $21.05 with sales and coupons.

My favorite deal was the get free sugar WYB 10 packs of Kool-Aid coupon from the Sunday coupon inserts. I purchased 20 packs of Kool-Aid and 8 lbs of sugar for about $1.25. We now have enough for the Summer if not the year.

Also if you buy the Chef Boyardee Cheese Ravioli, it is only .70 a can. Use this as part of the buy 10 save $3 deal, and it is only .40 a can.

Saved 93% at Publix!

For some time, I've been reading on several blogs about "the pork deal." Since Publix was having a sale this week on both pork and the Kingsford Charcoal, I decided to try it. I purchased everything in the picture plus the charcoal (not pictured) for $2.63. Saved $43.80.

Here's the link to the $6 off pork coupon WYB 13.5 Kingsford Charcoal and one other participating product. I used a free KC Masterpiece BBQ sauce coupon from the Sunday inserts. Publix often has sales on Glad, Ball Park, etc. that will work with this deal. This week Ball Park franks are on sale.