Deals, Deals, Deals

...Sung to the tune of "Girls, Girls, Girls" by Motley Crue ...

(And, you're welcome for getting THAT song stuck in your head all day!)

I know that me bragging about my deals is getting boring for you non-couponers and non-bargain shoppers, but tough. This is my blog and I''m going to write about what *I* want!

:)

I have today off and the Cody-man and I made a trip to two local grocery stores this morning. As I write this, he is chattering away in his crib and it is 11:12am. He's usually napping by 10 or 10:30, so not sure if I should get him up now for lunch and hope for a long afternoon nap. Uncle Al and Aunt Joann are scheduled to come over for supper tonight, so I hope he gets lots of rest so he will be on his best behavior & can show off all his tricks.

First, we went to Coborn's, which is a local grocery store chain in Minnesota and South Dakota. It's the closest grocery store to our house, just a few minutes away, and while it is nice to have a store so close when you run out of something or need just a couple items, it's definitely never the cheapest from a general price perspective. Did you know that they recently took over the "SimonDelivers" grocery delivery service, and that their family of stores also owns some of the Holiday Gas Stations in central Minnesota?

Anyway, lately I've been just going to Coborn's to get their "loss leaders" and things that they advertise in their weekly flyer. They also sent out a mailer with 4 coupons that you can use per week - these have been some pretty good deals, too.

Today, here was my shopping trip to Coborn's:

• 2 bottles of Ragu pasta sauce - $1.19 each
• 2 bottles of Old Orchard 100% apple juice - 98 cents each
• 2 half-gallon containers of ice cream - $1.48 each
• 6 boxes of Eggo Waffles - $2.89 each, buy one get one free, plus I had $5.00 in coupons so I ended up getting 6 boxes for $3.67 or 61 cents each
• 2 packages cream cheese - 98 cents each
• 2 containers sour cream (16 oz) - 88 cents each
• 2 packages chunk cheese - $2.69 each, buy one get one free - $1.40 each
• 3 apples & 1 muskmellon - $3.81 (no great deals here, but some of the Eggo coupons were when you bought fresh produce)

Total Spent = $21.31 Total Saved = $25.76

Cody was still in a great mood (and, by the way, as I've written this, has become awfully silent...nap=success!) so we decided to quickly go to The Marketplace. This is a larger store but still a local chain. Upon doing some research, it looks like the same company owns the Buffalo Cub Foods and a few other stores. Again, typically this store is much more expensive than the larger grocery chains, but it is close and will work in a pinch. They had just a few advertised items this week that I wanted to take advantage of. Cody and I hurried and picked up a small cartful:

• 1 package butter - $1.39
• 2 packages biscuits (for tonight's dinner) - $1.09 each
• 4 boxes of Van de Kamps fish sticks/fillets - 99 cents each (score!) **
• 8 boxes of pizza rolls - after coupons, 65 cents each
• 1 head of lettuce - 79 cents

Total Spent = $13.54 Total Saved = $16.26 (this number does not include advertised savings, so it's actually even more than that)

** I was lucky enough to have found $3.00 printable coupons for the frozen fish earlier this month and was able to print out four. The cashier was VERY methodical about checking all the coupons I had against what I purchased, and had to leave the checkout and go ask the manager at the service counter about the $3.00 coupons. I could see the manager shaking her head no and saying "I don't think so" but then I saw her on the phone, presumably calling the coupon company. Lo and behold, they were determined to be valid and the cashier put them all through. I was a bit annoyed to have to wait while they did this (I have never had anyone verify coupons before) but at the same time, I can appreciate it. Too many people abuse the whole coupon thing, so I'm glad they try to stop the illegitimate coupons when they can.

Yesterday, I also stopped at Rainbow and did the deal I talked about previously. With tax, it came out to be $1.50 per 12-pack. I like it, I like it! Will try and go back later to do it again.

Well, with that, I need to take advantage of this precious nap-time to get something else accomplished. Thanks for reading and putting up with my gloating :)