Easy "moneymaker" at Rite Aid until 9/27/11

Hey everyone!  I know I haven't posted here since April, but I'm trying to get back into the coupon game.  I stumbled upon an amazing "moneymaker" at Rite Aid this morning.  It's particularly lovely if you have teeth, especially if you clench or grind them when you sleep.  I know I'm stressed if my jaw starts aching.  I'm a clench-er, especially in my sleep.  It's not something I'm proud of.  Anyway.

Starting today, Crest ProHealth Clean Mint Toothpaste 4.2 oz. is $2.69, get $2.69 in +UP Rewards.  So that's a freebie, made better if you have a coupon.  Then The Doctors' Nightguard is on sale for $24.99, get $20 in +UP Rewards.  There is a simple $5 off coupon for these night guards here.  ALSO, until 9/27/11 Rite Aid is giving you a $5 +UP when you spend $25 on oral care items.  Seems a little overwhelming when it's all in one paragraph so looky here...

$2.69  Crest Toothpaste
$24.99  Doctors' Nightguard
-----------------
$27.68    price without coupons
- $5  nightguard coupon
-----------------
$22.68  amount you pay for these two items

earn:
$2.59 +UP from toothpaste
$20  +UP from night guard
$5  +UP from buying $25 worth of oral care products
--------------------------
$27.59  in +UP Rewards earned
total profit: $4.91 (earn up to $1 more if you have a Crest coupon to use)

The top deals at my top 5 chains- week of April 1, 2011

Target
Free $5 Target Gift Card when you buy 2 John Freda Precision Foam haircolor ($11.99 each)
- use 2 $5 off  John Freda Precision Foam haircolor coupons from 5/1/11 Smart Source and
- use 2 $5 off  John Freda Precision Foam haircolor Target printable coupons found here
= total price: $3.98 plus tax, get $5 gift card back

see all the Target match-ups for the week at Totally Target

Rite Aid
Revlon Beauty Tools 40% off, Get $4 +UP when you buy 2 (limit 4)
- look for cheap items (nail files, nail clippers, etc) as anything under $3.33 will be free after +UP and 40% discount

see all the Rite Aid match-ups for the week at Maven of Savin'

CVS
Colgate MaxClean foam, MaxWhite, MaxFresh Toothpaste $2.77, get $2.77 ECB back (limit 2)
- use .75/1 Colgate toothpaste from Smart Source 5/1/11 insert
= free plus .75 overage after ECB

see all the CVS match-ups for the week at Maven of Savin'

Walgreens

G-U-M Eez-thru Flossers, $2, get $2 RR back

= free after RR

see all the Walgreens match-ups for the week at Maven of Savin'

Stop & Shop

Tabasco Sauce $1

- .50/1 printable coupon found here

= free after coupon doubles

see all the Stop & Shop match-ups for the week at Maven of Savin'

I'm thinking of doing this every week- letting you know my favorite deal at each store, along with a direct to my favorite link for doing match-ups for that store, that week.  Would this be helpful to you?

But I don't WANT to meal plan today.

We had a lovely weekend, and I am very glad that spring break is over and I'm back down to only one kid home during the day.  It just makes things easier- I'm not a fan of bringing two kids to grocery shop, or run to the post office, or any of a bunch of other things I try to do during the day.  So with just one kid in tow, we drove out to the consignment store and dropped off a rubbermaid bin full of clothes to see what they'd buy from us.  They told me it'd be an hour wait so I headed home-- to a voice mail saying they were all done and I could come back in to pick up what they didn't want to take.  I should have just stayed there!  I'll let you know how much money I get from them for the clothes in the bin.  I've never tried selling the girls' old clothes like this before, but they offer 20% more if you opt for store credit, so I'm hoping it pays off for me.

I also put the girls' crib/toddler bed up on Craigslist, since Mia graduated to a big girl bed last week.  Gosh, I'm getting rid of all of their baby stuff!  And I really don't mind that.  I love having babies and I love babies in general but I ALSO love not having to carry a diaper bag or a burp cloth or schedule my life around mealtimes anymore.  And I admit, I love selling their old stuff instead of just giving it away ;)

So now it's the Monday after Easter.  We opted to have family over and eat Chinese food yesterday instead of cooking a whole big meal, so there are no leftovers to speak of besides a container of Miso soup and a few chicken fingers.  I've been poking through the grocery store sales flyers for the week and it's occurring to me that it's maddening to try to plan a normal grocery trip on the says after a big holiday.  What's in place of the loss leaders on the front & back of the grocery flyers?  Lots of ham.  Lamb legs.  Shrimp.  Flowers.  Cupcakes.  I need some REAL food options here, people!

Do you have any good plans for dinners this week?  I'd love some ideas... because I'm seriously 100% out of them!

It's almost Easter?

What are you talking about?  It's like I've missed oh, I don't know... 16 days somehow.  Still feels like it's April 7th to me!

Yes, I know, I've been MIA for a while.  I'm really sorry.  Trips, school vacation, some health stuff... it's all over now, promise!


I haven't been posting because I haven't been saving.  Though to be fair, I haven't been spending either.  But this morning I headed out to Rite Aid to pick up some Easter goodies.  Thanks to a few coupons I had clipped I ended up leaving with plastic eggs and a few different Easter fillers, plus a bottle of vitamins, for $5. Not bad.

The family dyed some easter eggs today.  I couldn't find any of the PAAS kits at the stores so I just mixed up some food coloring with water and vinegar and we went old school.  The colors aren't so great, but hey, we had fun doing them anyway!  Pictures to come shortly.  End cost... $1.99 for the dozen eggs.  The end.

No coupon inserts this weekend... good thing, it'll give me some time to get my insert binder up to date.  I'm a week or two behind in hole punching my inserts.

I hope everyone has a lovely Sunday, April 24th, whether or not you're celebrating Easter!  I'm off to finish knitting the girls' Easter sweaters.  Hey, I never said I wasn't a procrastinator!

one of the best things about saving is giving.

I love donating items to food banks and charities.  Every month I send my older daughter to school on Food Bank Friday with bags full of groceries to donate.  I give food and health & beauty supplies to Rosie's Place, a shelter for women and children in Boston.  If a table for donations is set up at the grocery store, I love to leave boxes of cereal with them as I leave.

Today I learned about Couponing for Community, which is a group of people who are hoping to donate 10,000 items to charity from May 8-14, 2011.  I'm really excited about being able to join in this challenge.  I was already planning on putting together a large donation for Showers for Shelters, which is a campaign conducted between April 23 and May 8 to collect house wares and personal necessities for victims of domestic violence who are preparing to transition from a shelter into living quarters of their own.

I love that these two programs will overlap, and I'll be able to donate to one, while helping to add to the total of the other!

I invite you to help me in donating to charity from May 8-14.  It's as simple as leaving a bag full of nonperishable food items at your mailbox on May 14th for the Stamp Out Hunger national food drive (check with your local post office to make sure they're participating first).

Do you donate goods often?  I'd love to hear about it!