Publix and the Wonders Found Therein

For several months now I have been meaning to post on the great deals we've been getting at Publix. If you don't already shop there, you should, because our grocery bill has been cut drastically. Now, before I begin telling you of our shopping sprees, I must tell you that because of the current market and our need to pinch every penny we can, we have altered our way of eating. We still try to eat as healthfully as possible, but we cannot afford all of the organic stuff right now.

Every week, when we get the new Publix ad (which runs Thursday to Wednesday), we go to this website: www.southernsavers.com She spells out all of the deals and links to coupons (or tells you of a newspaper coupon) available for each deal. Publix has many items that are buy one get one free (BOGO). They will accept store coupons, manufacturer coupons, and competitor coupons. That means you can BOGO and stack 3 coupons making certain items almost free (and sometimes earning money towards the rest of your bill). Now, here's the deal...once you have been doing this for a while, you will have a nice stockpile of groceries with which to plan meals. In the beginning, you may have to plan your meals based upon what you can get that current week.

Just so you know, we have used coupons for Target and Food Lion as competitor coupons. I have linked to a Target coupon below for the Pepperidge Farm bread. This link will take you to the "Hot Coupon World" website. The page that comes up lists all the coupons available at Target. All you have to do is find the ones that you want, enter the number of coupons (unlimited) in the box, and then click on "Get coupons." Once your page of coupons comes up, you can print them. It's that easy!

Here are some deals that we scored this week. If you want to take advantage of them, you will need to get to a Publix before Thursday.

Arm and Hammer toothpaste is BOGO (normally $2.99 each)
Print (2) coupons here for $1 off each tube (makes them about $0.50 each)

Lipton tea bags (24 ct.) are BOGO (normally $3.99 each)
Get (2) "Family is its own Reward" booklets found in store. Use (2) coupons for $1 off each box (makes them about $1 each).

Post Trail Mix Crunch cereal is BOGO (normally $3.99 each)
Print (2) coupons here for $2 off each box (which EARNS you $0.01 total--FREE plus some!!)

Kraft BBQ sauce is BOGO (normally $1.49 each)
Print (2) coupons here for $1 off each bottle (which EARNS you $0.51 total--FREE plus some!!)

Lawry's 30-minute marinades are BOGO (normally $2.29 each)
Use (2) coupons from the Red Plum 5/17 insert for $0.50 off each bottle (makes them about $0.65 each)

Ragu Pasta sauce is BOGO (normally $2.27 each)
Print (1) coupon (or as many as you want) here (for IE) or here (for FF) for $1 off 2 jars (makes them about $0.64 each)
OR
Use (2) coupons from "Family is its own Reward" booklet found in store for $0.75 off 1 jar (makes them about $0.39 each)

Breyer's ice cream is BOGO (normally $4.25 each)
Use (2) coupons from Red Plum 5/17 insert for $0.75 off each carton (makes them about $1.38 each)
OR
Use (2) coupons from "Family is its own Reward" booklet found in store for $1.50 off each carton (makes them about $0.63 each)

Lysol Bathroom or Kitchen cleaner is BOGO (normally $2.69 each)
Use (2) coupons from Smart Source 6/07 insert for $0.55 off each bottle (makes them about $0.80 each)
OR
Print (2) coupons here for $0.50 off each bottle (makes them about $0.85 each)

Kotex Pantiliners are BOGO (normally $2.95 each)
Print (1) coupon here for $1.50 off two boxes (makes them about $0.73 each)
OR
Use (2) coupons from Smart Source 6/14 insert for $1 off one box (makes them about $0.48 each) ---We did not have this coupon in our insert, but I thought I would mention it for those of you who may have gotten it.

Pepperidge Farm Farmhouse Bread is on sale for $1.99 (normally $3.29)
Print (1) coupon (or more if you like) here for $1 off one loaf (makes them $0.99 each)

If you bought all of this at full price, it would cost you $57.11!!! By taking advantage of the BOGO deals and by using coupons all of this would only cost you $9.80!!! That is a savings of 82.8%!!!! WOW!!!

Our total grocery bill this week (had we paid full price for everything) would have been $225.47. After taking advantage of some BOGO deals and other sale items, using coupons as much as possible ($49.50 is what we used), and even paying full price for some items (like fruits and vegetables) our total bill was only $99.73!! That's a savings of 55.8%!!! Sweet!!!

Now, there are other good deals, but I've just hit some of the highlights of some really great deals. So, check out the current ad and the "Southern Savers" website to see what deals you might like to take advantage of this week.

Happy Shopping!!!

Discounted Homeschool Products

About 10 years ago, we got a collection of Patch the Pirate cassette tapes, and over the years, they have gradually worn out to where we now only have about 3 or 4 that "work." There are sections of the tapes that will lose sound completely or will begin pulling the tape from the cassette. This past week, we finally broke down and started pricing CD's online. I had looked once before and found a site that offered a pretty good price on the individual CD's, but for some reason, we couldn't find it this past week. Jason got online for me and found another site that offers them even cheaper. Yay! They also offer the boxed sets which make the CD's even cheaper! Double Yay!! Individually, the CD's are $11.25, which is a pretty good price, but if you buy the boxed set, they are only $9.38 each! Sweet!

The site is http://www.homeschooldiscountproducts.com/servlet/StoreFront

The Patch the Pirate CD's are listed under "Music" subcategory "Majesty Music" on the left hand side of the page. This site offers a good variety of books--both curriculum and reading (Unfortunately, no A Beka Book stuff, though). If you place an order over $50, you will receive one free book, and they're not worthless books, either. I glanced through them, and they have "My Friend Flicka," "Pollyanna," "Swiss Family Robinson," some Bobbsey Twins books, and other various books on history, science, animals and crafts.

In the 25% off retail section, there were some books that caught my eye. They are entitled, "Draw Write Now." They teach the child how to draw and write using characters and stories from history, science, weather, etc. My girls love to draw and learn new things about history and science, so I thought that this might be a good way to "kill two birds with one stone." Individually, these 8 books are $11.25 each. If you buy the boxed set of all 8, they average only $8.44 each.

They also have sections for their 30% off, 50% off and 75% off merchandise. Many of these items are priced under $5.00, and some are even hardback. I always like to find books that are educational (both academically and spiritually), and one book that caught my eye in the 75% off section was entitled, "God's Smuggler." It is a hardback book that is only $4.99. Here is the description that they include:

by Brother Andrew

As a boy, Brother Andrew dreamed of being an undercover spy working behind enemy lines. As a man he found himself working undercover for God. His was a mission filled with danger, financed by faith, supported by miracles.

Told it was impossible to minister behind the Iron Curtain, Andrew knew that nothing was too hard for God. Crossing "closed" borders, he prayed, "Lord in my luggage I have Scripture I want to take to Your children. When You were on earth, You made blind eyes see. Now, I pray, make seeing eyes blind. Do not let the guards see those things You do not want them to see." And they never did.

For 35 years, Brother Andrew's life story has inspired millions to step out on their own journeys of faith. This young Dutch factory worker's near-incredible adventures testify to God's step-by-step guidance and hour-by-hour provision - available to all who follow His call.

I'm not sure what the recommended reading age is on this particular book, but I figure I can get it, preview it, and then decide whether or not it's appropriate for them.

There is a section under the categories that list Favorite Authors including C.S. Lewis, J.R.R. Tolkien, and Louisa May Alcott. Another section is Favorite Series, which includes Anne of Green Gables, Betsy and Tacy, Boxcar Children, Little House Books, Sugar Creek Gang, and the Trailblazer Books (stories about missionaries).

Orders placed with a total less than $150 have a minimum charge of $4.00 or 5% of the order total. Orders priced at $150 or more have free shipping.

I haven't had a chance to look through the entire site, so if you look through it and find something that you would recommend, please let me know. Thanks!

Coupons and Other Deals of Note

Here's a printable coupon for 50% off at Michaels.

Smithsonian Magazine is offering (for this Saturday, the 27th) free admission to hundreds of participating museums. Click here to get your admission card.

Check out the deal you can get through Shutterfly right now! 50 free prints and free shipping! Read about it on Money Saving Mom's site.

Here's a Johnson's Buddies coupon. My kids love the bar soap! You can also try this link. I have trouble printing with Firefox, so I'll have to try it in Internet Explorer later.

Here's a coupon for $1.00 off of any Windex product.

Here's a $5 off $20 Walgreens coupon that is good Friday and Saturday only (26th and 27th).

Samples and other good deals

I haven't been keeping up with posting about deals, coupons and such recently. I'm going to try harder...honest. =) Here's a quick list of some favorites I've seen going around. Enjoy!

Sears is having an online sale on women's clothing. More than 10 t-shirts are less than $2 and almost 200 items are less than $5.

I love tote bags!!! If someone is going to give me one just for signing up for an email newsletter, I'll take it! Nature's Bounty is giving away a tote bag and $1 off coupon for doing just that.

Yogi Tea is offering their tea samples again. I got this sample earlier this year and really enjoyed it. The Mexican Sweet Chili is really good...it has a little kick to it. You ought to try it!

We buy a 5 lb. package of Perdue boneless chicken breasts at Wal-mart that costs about $15 (that's $3/lb.). Publix has that same chicken on sale this week for $2.49/lb.

Wal-Mart always has the best samples. Check out their current list. Make sure you look at the "More Samples" list on the right-hand side of the page. Also, the Gain "sample" is just a scent card, so unless you want that, don't request that sample.

Would you believe...?

1. I had been completely off of dairy for several months until this past Monday. Jason had the day off, and we were going to fix our usual "special" breakfast. We decided to make blueberry pancakes and turkey sausage patties with some some peaches on the side. We've been getting a mild turkey sausage (for breakfast) from Whole Foods for several weeks now and really enjoy it. While we were eating, I looked down at one of the sausage patties on my plate that I had already cut into and eaten off of, and there was a little white "globule" about the size of a pea. I asked Jason if he knew what it was, and he said he thought maybe it was just fat. I said that I didn't think so and decided to taste it by itself. Sure enough, it tasted very much like a mild bleu cheese...maybe a feta. I was furious! Evidently, Whole Foods had confused the "specialty" sausage with the mild turkey, or they just put the wrong label on it. As a result, I have had the worst trouble with my sinuses this week and have felt pretty miserable. I'm telling you, this is enough to keep me off of dairy for the rest of my life. The stuff is horrible!!

***Did you know that all it takes is 1 tablespoon of dairy to have you congested for 6-8 weeks?!?***

Because of this incident, I will be trying to make my own turkey sausage in the next week. I have found a recipe and can't wait to try it! =)

2. We locked ourselves out of our house! One day this week, we had to run to the store for something. When we got home, we pulled into the garage, unloaded our stuff and headed for the door to the house. (Let me preface the next statement with this: Maybe I shouldn't announce this on the internet, but we don't lock the door inside our garage. I guess we figure the garage door is security enough, and it's a pain to have to fish out keys when your arms are full of stuff.) When I tried the door and found it to be locked, I immediately filled with "fear."

See, when we moved into this house, we were given 4 (yes, FOUR) keys of which we soon discovered only ONE actually worked. Since I'm at home most of the time, Jason figured he didn't need the key that worked, so he gave it to me. Our system worked...we just used our garage door openers as our "keys" to the house. Here's where our system failed...we had children! =) One of the kids either decided to lock or accidentally locked the door on their way out. I knew that Jason wouldn't have a working key, and I had hurriedly changed purses that morning and had not moved my keys over since Jason was going to be driving. Jason immediately started working to get the door open, and after about 10 or 15 minutes, the door was opened! Praise the Lord!

3. While we were out shopping that same day, we found a world map in the discounted area of Target for only $0.50!! How cool is that? Check it out...


This will be very helpful this year, since Alyx is starting Geography! =)

Amazon Deals!

In an effort to save more money, we have been doing our best to find the best deals on the organic food that we want to purchase. Jason has been scouring Amazon over the last week or so and decided to order Agave Nectar from them. When we purchase Agave Nectar from Whole Foods, the cost is $6.59 per bottle. On Amazon, you can order 6 bottles at a time and get a 15% discount by being put on a recurring delivery from every month up to every 6 months. (You can change/cancel the delivery frequency at any time without any consequence.) By ordering it this way, we are only paying $4.58 per bottle!! That's over $2.00 per bottle we are saving! The total cost is $27.46, and there is no shipping cost since the order is over $25.00! Sweet!

We would like to find a co-op in this area, so that we could also get other things even cheaper. If you know of one in this area, let me know. Since we have found some things on Amazon that are mostly available in bulk, we have considered doing a little co-op type thing with our local friends and family. If any of you are interested in ordering some Agave or any other organic foods with us, let me know, and we'll see what we can work out.

Books, Books and MORE Books!!

Check out all of these books we got on our 2nd trip to the bookstore in Orlando earlier this week.



Kids Books:
Lewis and Papa
Pooh's Heffalump Movie (Book)
Beetles and Bugs (Shhh...this one is going to be a gift)
The Scrambled States of America
Joy to the World
Bill Grogan's Goat
Nana's Birthday Party
Ballparks: A Panoramic History (Shhh...this one's a gift also)
Nascar Now! (Shhh...this one is also a gift. Sorry, not for you Richard. =) No book for you! Try back one year!)

Teaching Aids - Flashcards:
Beginning Sight Words
Time & Money
Phonics Made Easy
Five-State Rummy
Numbers 0-25
Animals of All Kinds

Our Books:
2 Christian Fiction Novels
-Chasing Fireflies (Charles Martin)
-Abomination (Colleen Coble)
Job: Interactive Study Guide (Charles R. Swindoll)
Joseph: A Man of Integrity and Forgiveness (Charles R. Swindoll)
4 Ted Dekker Novels (Christian Suspense)
-Blink
-Obsessed
-Showdown
-Saint
Facing the Giants (Still haven't seen the movie! I hear it's good, so I'm going to read the book first.)
The Simple Faith of Mister Rogers (We love the show, so I thought I would enjoy getting to know more about him.)

25 books/flashcards
Actual Retail Value: $323.56
Our Price: $123.49!! That's a savings of a little over $200.00!!

My kids LOVE books, so this was definitely a worthwhile investment! I'm telling you, they love books so much that while we were on vacation this past weekend, we passed a library, and they begged to go inside. =) How sweet is that? I love their simplicity! They don't need all the "bells and whistles." As long as they have a good book, they're happy. ("Aunt Kiwi" knows how they feel, don't you?) =)

Great deal on BOOKS!!!

You may not know this about us yet, but we LOVE books!!! So, when we came across a bookstore here in Orlando that was going out of business, we had to check it out. Everything was at least 50% off, and most things were up to 75% off! Look at what we got...




Kids Books:
Each Peach Pear Plum (This was one I had when I was little...I loved it!)
The Jungle Book
Winnie The Pooh and Tigger Too
Cinderella
Finding Nemo
Bambi
Lady and the Tramp
The New Adventures of Curious George (Treasury of 8 stories)
Webster's New World Children's Dictionary (Hard Back and only $6.28!!)

Our Books:
The New York Times Supersized Book of Sunday Crosswords - 500 puzzles included (We LOVE Crossword puzzles!)
Webster's New Crossword Puzzle Dictionary
The American Heritage Dictionary
House (Christian Suspense Novel by Frank Peretti and Ted Dekker)

Teaching Aids:
Multiplication Flashcards
Division Flashcards

Total Retail Value: $132.81
Total Sale Value: $56.65!!!
We saved: $76.16!! Sweet!!!

We will be stopping back by that store to see if we missed anything. I'm definitely going to get some more flashcards-they were 50% off!! They had some phonics and other word flashcards that would be good for Sydney this year.

Great deal for a family-sized hotel room!!

For a couple of weeks now, we have been "shopping" for the best deal on a 2-night hotel stay in Columbia for our family vacation later this year. We always check out hotels.com and sometimes expedia.com. Once we find a hotel we're interested in, we go to the actual "hotel company" website to see if there are any more pictures or information to help us with our decision.

While on hotels.com we found a Country Inn & Suites that had a 1 bedroom hotel room, which means there is a separate bedroom with a king-sized bed and living area with a sofa bed - Perfect for us! The cost on hotels.com was $115.00 per night. When we checked it out on Country Inn & Suites website, the cost was $135.00 per night. As we moved around some of the pages on their website, we saw a note off to the side that said, "The best online rates...guaranteed," so we checked it out. The deal is...if you find a better rate somewhere else online, they will match that rate AND give you another 25% off!

After you make the reservation on their site, you "make a claim" for them to check out the other deal you found online, and then after they approve it, they will send you a confirmation email letting you know what your new rate is. If the claim is not approved, you can cancel your reservation without penalty.

We just got our confirmation email today, and for the 1 bedroom hotel room, we will only be paying $86.25 per night! How sweet is that?!?

Jason's Sears Rake-In

Check out all this stuff Jason was able to get through the Sears Dockers/Shell gas card offer. Here's what he got:

4 pair of dress pants
6 dress shirts
6 ties
9 pair of socks (3 packs of 3 socks)
2 pair of shorts
2 knit shirts

Jason was able to do 3 transactions. The limit was two per household, so he called both of our dads to see if they needed or wanted anything. Neither one did. My dad told Jason to do another transaction and to have the gas card sent to his house, and he would give it to Jason. In order to get the gas card from Shell, the total transaction had to be $100 before tax. Since Jason receives a discount on clothing he aimed for each transaction to be around $125. Everything he picked out was discounted, and almost everything was 50% off!

Here's the math:

Total Retail value before/after tax: $768.00/$821.76
Total Sale value before/after tax: $397.24/$425.05
Sears Employee Discount (taken out before tax): $79.45
Total after discount and tax: $340.06
Gas card amount: $225.00
Total Out of Pocket: $115.06
That's an average of $5 per item!!
PLUS, He will be able to write off the work clothing on his taxes at the end of the year!