Yesterday was pretty much the perfect summer day. We floated, we ate pizza, and oh yeah, when we stopped at Target to buy whiffle ball stuff, I got all this with some change I had in the bottom of my purse.

I’d had the $1 off any coupons to pick up 10 Cascade items for a while now, but my goal was to purchase these trial-size action packs at Walmart, where they were not only under $1, but they will actually give you cash back if you have an overage. But after three trips and none in stock, I finally said screw it, I’ll pay 9 cents each at Target, where they were $1.09 each.

When he started ringing them up though, they were apparently on sale for $.97 cents each (same price as at Walmart) which means I had a $.30 cent overage to use. I grabbed a couple packs of Mentos gum, which I had a $1/2 coupon for in order to complete the transaction. For some reason though, it kept beeping “too many coupons” and wouldn’t even use the gum coupon. With my total at $.94 (and people now in line behind me) I decided to call it good. I used $.13 I had left on a giftcard and paid $.81 in change, which the high school boy at the register pointed out is not really like paying real money.

There is some concern at that I am just “hoarding” at this point, but you say hoarding, I say stocking up. The truth is, I am buying things for the game of couponing, but I make it a point to ask myself with every purchase: is this something I will actually use. One thing I’ve noticed through my increased consumerism is that there are a lot of products out there that you don’t really need and can easily live without, but they sure are nice to have. My latest Target trip last week included some of them, such as the bathroom wipes, which make it 100x easier to keep the bathroom clean. So there.

I paid $10, used $10 in coupons  and got:

Ortega Taco Shells (On sale $1.50- $1 mfg coupon = Paid $.50)

Old El Paso Taco Seasoning (Reg price $.69- $.50 coupon = Paid $.19)

Scrubbing Bubbles bathroom wipes (On sale $2.50 – $.55 coupon = Paid $1.95)

Bengay (Reg price $4.89 – $5 coupon = MADE $.11)

Presidente Feta (On sale $3.50 – $1.25 coupon = Paid $2.25)

Cascade dishwasher detergent sample pack (Reg price $1.09 – $1 coupon = paid $.09)

2 Temptations cat treats (On sale $1.50 – $1/2 coupon = Paid $1 each)

5 Campbells Soups (On sale $1 – $1/5 coupon = Paid $.80 each)

The internets are telling me those Cascade sample packs are under $1 each at Walmart, and it’s possible I bought some more coupons off ebay and will go let Walmart pay me to buy them soon.

Today a hot $1 off Reach Dental Floss coupon hit the ‘net and I’ve been meaning to start flossing more (ok, ever.) The coupon blogs told me single packs of Reach floss were regularly priced at $.89 at Target and between that and my $5 gift card from kitty litter, it was the excuse I needed to head over to Mall 205 and do some shopping.

Overall the deals at Target this week were not exciting, but I did manage to get in and out without spending any real money, while also picking up a few things we actually needed, and still have a $.13 cent balance on my card.

I got:

1 roll of Reach Floss (Regular price $.89- $1 coupon = $-.11 — and she gave me the overage)

2 packages Ziploc Sandwich bags (On sale $2.50 – $1/2 MFG coupon – $1/2 Target coupon = $1.50 each)

1 Bottle soy sauce (Regular price $1.79 – $1 coupon = $.79 — I price checked, these are well over $2 at Safeway)

12 Large eggs (On sale $1.19)

The register read $4.87 when all was said and done, but since I paid with a gift card, my price was actually free! In your face Timbro!

It took three trips to different Targets, but I finally found the kitty litter deal I was after this week. Of course, they were out of all the other freebees I had coupons for (Bic pens and Bengay) but whatever. My cats will now poop in pleasure as I picked up 80lbs of Arm and Hammer cat litter.

The breakdown:

Regular price $15.29, On sale for $13 – $1.50 coupon = $11.50 each plus a $5 gift card for buying too. I spent $23 OOP, but now have $5 to spend on the next deal. And while I was in the checkout lane I scoped Advil pocket packs on clearance for $1.28. I had a couple two dollars off any Advil coupons, which means I got two for free, just like that.

My second trip of the day was to Safeway and let me just say, the deals at Safeway SUCK this week. I almost skipped it all together but there were a few Catalina offers that seemed worth it. I got:

4 18 packs of Playtex Gentle Glide tampons (Regular price $4.99- coupon $1.50/1, $1/1, $2.50/2 – $1 safeway doubler = Total 13.96 or $3.49 a box, but wait there’s more! I bought four boxes to get a $6 catalina, which means I actually spent $1.99 a box)

6 boxes of Hamburger Helper (Regular price 1.89, on sale 1.69 – instore coupon $.99 each – (2) .75/3 – $ 1 Safeway doubler = $.57 each but there’s more, I also got a $2 off my next humburger, chicken or tuna purchase to it’s like I paid $.24 each)

My out of pocket on this trip was $17.40 or a 44% savings, but the next trip I make is gonna be awesome with $8 in free money in my pocket.

Those factors in place, I was determined to make the best of things. We started at Target, where I wanted to get 80lbs of cat litter for $23 and get a $5 gift card to use towards the rest of my purchases. Not surprisingly though, the shelf was bare. Not totally discouraged, we headed to the food section, where I found Classico sauce on sale for $1.83. It’s possible I got a bunch of $1/2 coupons on eBay for $1.75 (free shipping!) so I grabbed 4 jars. We also checked out the Morning Star farms selection because I had a $1/2 Target coupon, plus plenty of $1 off 1 manufacturers coupons. Even though they were full price, I still picked up two for $2.09 each.

Target unfortunately did not have everything we needed for dinner, so we headed to Fred Meyer next. While Jared combed the aisles for veggie gravy, I decided to casually walk around and look for deals. I found Olive Oil on sale for $4.99, which I happened to have a $1 coupon for, as well as a sale on Weber seasonings (2 for $5) that I had another $1 off of. Jared got an onion and au jus mix that were totally not on sale and we headed for the register. Since Jared paid the last time, I figured I’d be nice and get this one (plus in theory my items were more expensive) so I whipped out the Kellog’s $5 gift card I got for buying cereal. Even though it was alledgedly a “gas card” it worked fine and our out of pocket was under $3.

The veggie gravy mission, however, was a failure, so we had to hit Safeway to pick some up. It wasn’t on sale and it was kind of expensive, but that’s not why I mention this part of the trip. We wanted to get a salad to go with dinner, and I found some Fresh Express kits for $.98 (regular price.) I had a $.75 off coupon, which I used a doubler with, earning me $.27 on our salad. Now this may sound great, but the lady in front of us was buying BOGO chicken breasts and there was some issue with the label and it took forever. I may have gotten good deals but between the headaches and hassles, I’m still saying this was the worst shopping trip ever.

To recap my purchases and make myself feel better though:

4 jars of Classico sauce ($1.33 each)

2 Morning Star Farms veggie meats ($2.09 each)

1 Fillipo Berrio Olive Oil ($3.99)

1 Weber Seasoning jar ($1.50)

(Technically the Fred Meyer trip cost $.49 because I used the $5 gift card)

Fresh Express salad kit ($-.27)

Total out of pocket cost for couponing items: $7.06 (Retail price $25.03, or $17.97 savings- 71%)

This week Target is offering a $5 gift card when you buy two bags of Purina catfood, which happened to have a $2 off coupon on Facebook (explaining my new facebook fandom) and I thought, hey, that seems like a pretty good deal. So I printed off my coupons and headed to Target today to get some. When I got there though, I realized the bags in question were 3lbs (tiny) making $5.59 each seem like not such a good deal. But I drove all the way there… and I figure Willis and Tyra are worth it, so I went for it.

One of the keys to couponing is multiple transactions, so I scoped some other deals, but went and paid for just the cat food. Total cost: $10.98 and I received a $5 gift card.

For transaction number two, I’d scoped out a few items to waste my free money on. First was two-packs of Sharpies, on sale for $1, and I had printed out a $1 off Target coupon (who planned that, Target?) Of course, when I went to the Sharpie aisle, the spot for the $1 pens was empty. Below it were what seemed to be another type for $1.54 so I figured, good price anyway and grabbed them. When I got to the register though, they apparently were on sale, so FREE!

In the food section I found a hang-tag coupon on a jar of Classico for a free red sauce with purchase of two white sauces, which happened to be on sale for $1.92. So I got all three jars for $3.84 ($1.28 each)

I’d also printed out a $1 off Lipton Recipe secrets Onion Soup mix, which were only $1.14, so I got two for $.14 each (and that stuff makes awesome mealoaf and potatoes.)

Since I had $5 to spend, I still needed something else and I realized I actually NEEDED printer paper, so I bought some, totally not on sale ($3.14), bringing my total out of pocket on this transaction to $2.26.

Yes, the catfood was not the amazing deal I hoped for, but at a total of $13 for all that stuff, I’d say I did alright.

I also find myself curious about the off hours social life/dating drama among Target employees far more than at any other store…

Anyway, I like Target for two reasons: it’s cheap, and it’s way less crappy than Walmart (which I would either have to be dead or in the middle of America with no other options to be caught in).  On today’s trip, I picked up a few staples and saved a bit of money in the process.  There are very few things that I’m brand loyal about, but this trip happened to cover most of them. Brooke is a good friend and gave me a $1 off coupon for my preferred brand of feminine hygiene products, OB. I also printed a $1 coupon off the Arm and Hammer website to save on cat litter, and cat food happened to be on sale this week. For 39.58, I got:

40 lbs of Arm and Hammer super scoop fragrance free cat litter ($15.59-$1.00, worst deal of the day!)
48 Cans of Fancy Feast sliced poultry and beef feast cat food ($26.98-$6.98)
1 box of OB pro comfort super tampons ($5.99 – $1.00)

For a total savings of $8.98.

If you don’t have a cat or a period, this probably doesn’t seem like a good deal (though you’re also probably not reading this blog), but it is.

How do you celebrate America? Apparently I go to Target and buy things for very little money. I was inspired to try out couponing at Target by a deal on Ziploc containers, which we actually needed. I also printed out a few other Target coupons for veggie meat and crystal light, just in case! Honestly I wasn’t even sure what the grocery selection was going to be.

As it turned out, they are in the process of turning the Mall 205 store into a full grocery and have a decent selection of packaged stuff already. I quickly realized they also have really good prices normally, not to mention lots of unadvertised sales. I ended up spending $5.34 and walked out with:

2 bottles of Vinegar (77 cents each)

Ortega Taco shells (94 cents)

KC BBQ sauce (Definitely didn’t need more, but it was FREE!)

Guildens mustard (54 cents)

Two packages of Ziploc containers ($1.16 each)

The coupons saved me $6.87 this trip and the potential is amazing. For example, the regular prices on Crystal light were lower than the sale price I got at Safeway (unfortunately I can’t find my coupon stash for those, if anyone sees it, let me know!)