The (Not So) Frugal Housewife

I should probably hang my head in shame as I post this photo of all the stuff I bought at the outlet mall this weekend:

It's probably hard to see what all I bought, so I'll give you a little breakdown:

5 Maidenform bras $35 (that's $7 each for $20-$30 bras!! )

6 panties (Buy 5 Get 1 Free, Aerie)

a pair of jeans

a pair of jean capris

a pair of jean bermuda shorts

a pair of black work khakis

travel mug

6 stacking reusable lunch containers (Buy 4 get 2 Free, now I can stop throwing away 3 Ziploc bags every day for my Husbands lunch)

Real Simple: 799 new uses for old things (book)

car trash bag & organizer

2 pop-up mesh food tents

4 mini spatulas 

a drying towel for dishes 

2 tools to remove corn from the cob (my mom and I freeze corn in the summer so we have fresh tasting corn all year round)

Total Savings: $621.54!!!!

I made a list before the trip of everything I have been saying for months now that we/I need and I actually found everything that was that list this weekend. This was my most successful outlet shopping trip ever!

I did actually stick within my shopping budget. Except for the little brown Coach cross body bag I bought from a friend for $10! It's the perfect bag for long shopping trips and come on, I'll pay $10 for used Coach all day long!

Wait, what? No... no, that isn't a brand new silver Coach bag sticking out of the corner of the photo! That would have put me WAAAAY over budget. How could I possibly say I was working towards a frugal lifestyle after buying that bag!

<hanging head in shame>

<hanging head in shame but gripping on tightly to my new perfect handbag>

I did, I splurged. I've tried to justify it by saying that it was 66% off, which it was. I also convinced myself that I really haven't bought many new handbags over the last 3-4 years and that I can totally get a good couple years out of this bag, which I haven't and can. But, at the end of the day, it was still a splurge and I had to pull money from savings. 

To my credit, I have been at a Coach outlet at least 10 times with friends who were buying up a storm and yet I managed to walk away empty handed. While I've found great deals on bags before, there was always something about each bag I didn't like. This time was a different story- this bag was perfect! If I were a handbag, I would be this bag. 

Sometimes we ladies just have to treat ourselves! 

Last but not least, before I show you some bag candy, I'll leave you with these parting words: Clearance price + 50% off + 30% off!

I Went Shopping: CVS 7/4

Here is what I got for super cheap at CVS this week:

Transaction #1

2 Oral-B Advantage or Cross Action @ $3 each = $6
2 Oral-B Pulsar (Battery Operated) @ $5.99 each = $11.98
-$4 ($2/1 x 2 mc) Oral-B (7/3 insert)
-$6 ($3/1 x 2 mc) Oral-B (7/3 insert)
=$7.98 - $7.79 ECB (from last week)= $.19 OOP
Get: $2 Oral-B, $6 Oral-B = $8 ECB

Transaction #2

1 Always Pad $3.99

-$2 manufacturers coupon (came with a free sample)

-$1.50 Quarterly Rewards ECB

=$.49 OOP

Received $2 ECB

I also received a coupon from the Magic Coupon Machine for a free Hershey Air Chocolate Bar which, by the way, is pretty darn good!

I paid 68 cents out of pocket and have $10 in ECB for next week!!!

I Went Shopping: CVS 6/19

Here are some deals I picked up this week at CVS (good through 6/25):


Transaction #1


2 Colgate toothpastes @ $2.79 each
LA Looks hair gel @ 2.99
2 packages of Expo dry erase markers (clearance) @ $1.24 each


Total: $11.05


-2 x $1/1 Colgate manufacturer coupons
-$1/1 LA Looks manufacturer coupon
-2 x $2/2 (decreased to $1.24) Expo marker coupons (online printable, no longer available)
-$5.99 ECB (from last week)


FINAL: -$.24 (I added a 2 liter of Coke for $.79 on to eat up the total and paid around $.40 out of pocket)


Received: $4 ECB (Colgate) & $2 ECB (LA Looks)




Transaction #2


PowerBar Protein Bites $2.49
Hershey's Bliss bag of chocolate $5.99


Total: $8.48


- $1/1 Hershey's Bliss manufacturer coupon
- $4 ECB (from Transaction #1)
- $2 ECB (from Transaction #1)


FINAL:  $1.48 OOP


Received: $5.99 ECB (Hershey) and $2.49 ECB (PowerBar)


Transaction #3


5 12-packs of Coke Zero $13 (sale price- I was running desperately low on my Coke Zero!)


- $1/3 manufacturer coupon
- $5 Beauty Rewards EBC (Earned for spending $50 on qualifying beauty products. Printed out at coupon printer- I had no idea this was coming! What a wonderful surprise!)


Paid: $7 + tax OOP


I could have totally used the ECB from Transaction #2 on my Coke Zero, but I wanted to save those for next week. Besides, the soda comes out of our grocery budget and it was an awesome deal at $1.40 per 12 pack!


Did you get any good deals at CVS this week?

I Went Shopping: Feline Stockpile

I went shopping this week at my local Discount Grocery Outlet, otherwise known as The Dented Can Store. I used to always be able to find my cat's expensive diet food there but have been disappointed that they didn't have any my last few times. Well, I hit the jackpot this trip!

I bought 40 pounds of cat liter and 24.5 pounds of Purina One for just $36.44! I priced out what this would have cost me at my grocery store and it was over $61! That's a 60% savings. I'm hoping this lasts our big boy a couple months!

I think it's time for the big man's online debut:

That's my Techie cat. He doesn't like the camera flash. I know he looks smallish but I assure you he isn't. He weights 20 pounds... 19.5 on a good day. Hence the diet food.

I Went Shopping: CVS 6/5

 

I love getting free stuff we can actually use!

Transaction #1
4 Ivory 3-pack bar soap @ $.99 each = $3.96
2 Excedrin Migraine 8-ct @ $.99 each = $1.98
= $5.94
-$3.96 (4 coupons for $1 off 1 Ivory product, adjusted for cost)
-$2 ECB (from last week)
=$0 out of pocket; received $1.98 ECB for Excedrin

Transaction #2
Crest Pro Health $4.50
-$2 manufacturers coupon
-$1.98 ECB from Transaction #1
=$.52 out of pocket; received $2.50 ECB for Crest

Transaction #3
Crest Pro Health $4.50
-$2 manufacturers coupon
-$2.50 ECB from Transaction #2
=$0 out of pocket; received $2.50 ECB for Crest

Total Spend: $.52
Total Saved: $16.96

Free 4 Me: I Went Shopping!

I did a little shopping today! <evil grin>

And by a little shopping, I mean I bought 10 boxes of cereal. My name is Tracy, and I'm a Kashi-Go-Lean-Crunch-aholic!

First stop: CVS

Transaction #1

Preparation H Wipes (10 ct) - $3.99
2 Mars Chocolate Singles- 2 for $1
-$2/1 Preparation H coupon
-$3 ECB (leftover from last week)
Pay: $.02
Get: $3.99, $1 ECB = $4.99 

The Prep H will be donated. This is a perfect example of a product we don't need/use but I buy anyway because it's actually a money maker with the coupon! There were a number of choices for the Mars candy bars. The hubs wanted to try Snickers Peanut Butter so we got two of those. I downed one when my sugar got low while out shopping and the second melted in the insane heat! It's in the freezer chillin' out (I crack myself up!) which is why it's not pictured. (In my opinion, there was no need to mess with Snickers perfection!)

Transaction #2

Buy 4 Hershey’s Pieces or Drops 8-10.5 oz. 2 for $5
Subtotal = $10 

- two $2/2 coupons from the 5/1 SS
Pay $6 - $4.99 ECB (from Transaction #1) = $1.01
Get back $3 ECB

I was just about to type "I'm not sure what I'll do with all this chocolate"... then I realized how stupid that sounds. I'll eat it, that's what I'll do... and maybe an entire bag in one sitting. Don't judge! 

I actually only paid $.01 for this transaction. You can see, hiding in the middle of all that Kashi, a Green Bag Tag (it looks like a leaf). If you are a new CVS shopper be sure to get a Green Bag Tag! They only cost $.99 and sometimes the red CVS coupon machine gives out $.99 coupons for them, making it free. You put the tag on any reusable grocery bag and they will scan it every time you use it for your purchases. After 4 scans your receipt will print out a $1 ECB. Well, I got one of these ECB on transaction #1 so I was able to use it on this purchase and pay just a penny. A penny! For all that chocolate! I feel like a winner!

(FYI, You can only scan your tag once a day. For example, I scanned it on my first purchase and got 1 credit towards my 4 but didn't get credit for using it on my second transaction.)

Transaction #3

 7 boxes of Kashi Go Lean Crunch @ $3= $21

Paid: $21

What?!? No coupons?!? I know! So unlike me. Here's the deal, CVS has a promotion this week which gives you a $10 gas station gift card for purchasing $30 worth of specific products. Kashi is one of these products and we all know how much I love my morning bowl of Go Lean Crunch. 

The regular retail price for a box of my cereal is $4.99. The sale brought it down to $3, but if you factor in the $10 gift card, the final price for each box is only $2. Lord knows I'll use that gas gift card, so it's not like I'm buying something to get a reward I don't need. The problem is that my store only had 7 boxes and I needed 10 to complete the deal. Fortunately my CVS card keeps track of my weekly purchases for me and it's not necessary to buy all items in one transaction in order to qualify for a reward. 

This led me to Stop #2 and Stop #6. Two more CVS stores in search for more Kashi. I found two boxes at Stop #2 and my final & 10th box at Stop #6. My last transaction printed out a coupon at the bottom of my receipt for a $10 gas station gift card, but there were only 3 choices: BP, Shell and Exxon. Since we don't really have any of these stations in my area, the manager at my store gave me a $10 gift card to CVS instead. Score! Fingers crossed for good ECB sales next week!

Stop #3: Kohls

I received an email this week from Kohl's with a Memorial Day Weekend offer: $5 off a $5 or more purchase plus 15% off the entire purchase. I can't believe I'm about to say this, but there wasn't really anything I needed from Kohl's. I mean, I always want stuff from Kohl's but I didn't need anything so I didn't want to end up paying money out of pocket just to get $5 off. I ended up buying a couple cards that I need for an upcoming graduation and a friend's wedding next weekend. Free stuff that we needed: Awesome!

Stop #4: Target

I bought quite a few things at Target, but only got one great deal on Banana Boat products. I purchased these items first in a separate transactions so I could use the gift card on the rest of the items I bought.

Banana Boat Aloe AfterSun Lotion $4.99 

Banana Boat Sport Lip Balm $1.97
Buy 2 Sun Care Products, Receive $5.00 Target Gift Card
- $1.00/1 Banana Boat Sun Care Item (excludes Lip Balm) from SS 5/22
Pay $5.96, Receive $5.00 Target Gift Card

Total: $.96 for both items

My husband asked me if I had a sunburn and I said, "Not yet, but I intend to at some point this summer." It's inevitable so this time I'm going to be prepared!

I also got a free tub of Cottonelle Fresh Wipes, courtesy of Get Fresh with a Friend.

Stop #5: Weis grocery store

I didn't get a ton of great deals this week at the grocery store, but I did use a free coupon for Breve Creme coffee creamer courtesy of Vocalpoint. (Stayed tuned for a post on Vocalpoint soon!)

That's what I bought today! Some free stuff, some awesome deals... just another day in the life of The 2010s Housewife! 

Did you get anything free this week?

A Trip to the Dented Can Store

Here in Central Pennsylvania, we have a number of Grocery Outlets or as I like to call them "Dented Can Stores." I'm not quite sure where grocery outlet's get their food, but it appears to be products that have fallen off the back of trucks, rejected from other stores or pulled from shelves due to expiration dates.

Sounds suspect, eh? I assure you, they are BUT if you know how to shop them properly you can find some good deals. Here are the rules:

• Check the expiration date! If an item doesn't have an expiration date, do not buy it! Sometimes these stores are tempted to place the price sticker over the expiration date so be on the look out for cleverly hidden dates. Only buy the item if you know you will use it before it expires. 
• Buy nothing dented. Inspect every can and if it has a dent put it back on the shelf and step away! 
• Buy dented boxes. Dented boxes are okay. I often find perfectly good food items that are in boxes where it looks like the palette might have been smooshed or sometimes even with just problems in the printing on the package. The company may be able to write off a run of product where the labels just didn't adhere correctly to the can/jar/bottle with little financial impact which means I can buy it for less financial impact than the pristine package. What do I care what the box/label/wrapper looks like?
• Pay attention to prices and know what you pay for the same item in your primary grocery store. Sometimes I wonder what the grocery outlets are thinking! I can get a bag of cookie mix at the grocery store with a coupon for $.50-$1 so why would I pay you $.99 for a bag that expires in 3 months? You are taking some risk by buying anything at a grocery outlet so make sure the price is worth taking that risk.
• Exercise caution when shopping in the freezer or refrigerated cases. I once had a Graduate Assistant miss a couple days of work due to a bad box of seafood paella. After that, I don't even bother looking in those cases. I would say the rule of thumb should be to assume all items were at one point above freezing or thawed and then refrozen. If it wouldn't be safe to eat under those conditions, do not buy!
• Put anything you buy at the grocery outlet to the front of your stockpile. You should always place items with the nearest expiration date at the front of your pantry or stockpile so you will grab that box/jar/can to use first. 

I didn't have the best trip this weekend, but here's what I found:

2 boxes Kashi Go Lean Crunch (1 lb. 9 oz.)- $2.49. This isn't the lowest price I've paid for cereal but I love me some Go Lean Crunch (eat it every day for breakfast) and my stash was running low.
Price at grocery store: $4.99. Savings: $2.50 each

2 bottles of Ken's Light Options Caesar dressing- 2/$1.00. As you've seen after my fridge clean out last week I was in dire need of salad dressing and this is mine and my husband's favorite.
Price at grocery store: $2.55. Savings: $2.05 each

1 can of Del Monte Diced tomatoes (with zesty mild green chilies)- $.69.
Price at grocery store: $1.75. Savings: $1.06


I often scout out my dented can store for cat food. My cat is on kitty weight watcher's and his diet food is expensive- about $7 for a small bag. For some reason, my grocery outlet almost always has his cat food and it's usually priced about half off ($3.69). I never buy an item if it's opened but the cat food bags tend to be ripped, however there is an inner and outer bag. I only buy it if the inner bag is still intact, even if the outer is torn.

I find the best prices at outlets on seasonings, food coloring/extracts/other baking items, olive oil and trash bags. (Often times the trash bag boxes were opened and then taped shut but they are usually priced well enough that it doesn't matter if a few bags are missing.)

Here's another tip if you feel adventurous enough to shop in a grocery outlet: Leave the price tag on the item. My store puts bright orange price stickers on every item. I like to leave the stickers on as a signal to me that the item came from an outlet so I can be sure to check the expiration date before using it.

Is anyone else a fan of grocery outlet shopping?

I Went Shopping: Couponing Gone Wrong

I thought that today would be an awesome CVS shopping day for me. There were a few good transactions listed on all the couponing sites and I was going to get a few things we are running low on. Alas, it wasn't mean to be. I made a few mistakes on my shopping game plan and the store didn't have a few items I wanted. I love coupon shopping but I am not the best at thinking on my feet when the store doesn't have exactly what I want. Here is how my transactions were suppose to go:

Transaction #1

2 Colgate MaxClean Smartfoam, MaxWhite, or Maxfresh toothpastes 6 oz $2.77 = $5.54
1 Mr. Clean Magic Erasers twin-pack = $3
2 Cascade Powder, Gel, or ActionPacs $4 each = $8
Subtotal $16.54
- 2 x $1/1 Colgate coupons
- $1.50 Magic Eraser coupon
- 2 x $.50/1 Cascade coupons   

Total: $12.04 -$10 Extra Care Bucks (from last week)
Out of Pocket: $2.04 + tax

GET: $5.54 Colgate, $3 Mr. Clean = $8.54 ECB

Transaction #2
2 Skinny Cow = $8
30 Friskies = $12
Subtotal: $20
- 2 x $1/1 Skinny Cow coupons
Total: $18 - $8.54 ECB (from transaction #1) 
OOP: $9.46 + tax
GET: $5 Nestle ECB

Transaction #3
Secret Clinical Strength deodorant = $8.19
2 Degree deodorants = $7
Subtotal: $15.19
- $3 Secret coupon
- $1 Degree coupon
Total: $11.19 - $5 ECB (from transaction #2)
OOP: $6.19 + tax
GET: $2 Degree ECB

And here is how it actually worked out:

Today's Loot

Transaction #1

2 Baby Ruth candy bars = $1
1 Cascade = $4
1 Magic Eraser = $3
2 Colgate = $5.54
-$1 Colgate
-$1.50 Magic Eraser
-$1 Cascade
-$10 ECB
= $.04 + $.03 tax = $.07 (Saved $19.20)

I accidentally picked up a Cascade Complete and had the cashier remove it when my final total seemed high. I grabbed a second Cascade (regular) but the cashier forgot to scan it, therefore I didn’t get $3 ECB at the bottom of my receipt and needed to add 2 candy bars to use up all of my $10 ECB coupon. I should have known something was wrong. Oh well, live and learn!

Transaction #2
3 Lean Cuisines = $9
9 Friskies @ $.40 a can = $3.60
1 Friskies @ $.57 = $.57
1 Cascade = $4
2 Skinny Cow = $8
-$1 Skinny Cow
-$1 Skinny Cow
-$1 Lean Cuisine
-$5.54 ECB
= $16.63 + $.39 tax = $17.02 (Saved $20.21)

I don't know what I was thinking, expecting my little CVS store to have 30 cans of Friskies cat food... and the Special Diet Pate at that (which is the only kind my cat will eat and can eat, you see, he's on Weight Watchers. I'll explain later.) So, they didn’t have enough Friskies and I had to add the Lean Cuisines on to complete the Extra Care Bucks deal. No biggie, it never hurts to have a few grab & go lunches in the freezer. I had to pay for the Cascade I didn't pay for in the last transactions and therefore didn't have the $3 ECB to apply to this transaction. The cashier was going to give me $3 cash but I opted to just keep the $3 ECB that printed on the bottom of that receipt for next week.

Transaction #3

 The problem with Transaction #3 was that there was no Transaction #3. The Hubs and I are both running low on deodorant so I was going to try to add to the stockpile but the prices weren't that great. As it turned out the Degree deodorant my husband prefers wasn't what was on sale so I decided to abandon the transaction. You win some, you lose some. 

In summary, I made a few rookie mistakes. I carefully planned out 3 transactions and wasn't prepared to adjust. When I had to think on the fly I made a few more mistakes. I paid more than I planned but at the end of the day I didn't pay full price for anything and bought a few items we needed. 

The new show on TLC, Extreme Couponing, has been getting a lot of attention on the blogs lately. I love shopping with coupons but I am by no means an extreme couponer- today was case in point. I made mistakes and that's alright. I have a feeling the shoppers who have appeared on Extreme Couponing would have flipped a lid over my shopping performance today. With that said, I love Extreme Couponing and find it very entertaining. Perhaps if I had more time and energy I could do what they do. Perhaps.

To see all the deals for CVS this week, check out Hip 2 Save.