Apple pickin' time

Here is the kids picking apples today...

We only got about a bushel off all 3 trees this year. Next year we plan to take care of them...you know trim, spray, and pick off blossoms. But for this year we will make applesauce with what we have. I may look into getting a few more from the lady that we got our peaches from. We shall see.

And I will leave you with this picture of Micah....He is so consistent!!

CVS Advisor

I just read on iheartcvs.com that you can sign up here to become an advisor. A few times a year they will email you a survey and then credit your account for 2-15 ECB!!! I'm always up for free ECB!!

There was a couple comments made that just said that some get them with in a month or so and some still haven't got any surveys. So I guess it just depends but I think it's worth a shot!!

Favorite Recipe-- Zucchini Bread

Well Sarah at 8-muddy boots asked about a favorite fall recipe...well I don't know it this counts as "fall" but I love it so I thought I would share it.

Zucchini Bread

2 cups raw zucchini -shredded
3 eggs
1 3/4 cup sugar
1 cup veg. oil
2 cup flour
2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. baking powder
2 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. salt
2 tsp. vanilla

Put zucchini is strainer and press or squeeze to get excess water out.
Beat eggs, sugar, oil together. Add flour, baking powder, soda, cinnamon, salt, and vanilla.
Mix together by hand. Add drained zucchini. Mix well.
Pour into 2 greased loaf pans. Bake 45-50 min. at 350 degrees.....you can check with toothpick.

Enjoy...you can also freeze the 2nd loaf if you can't eat it all at once!!

Have a great day!

Kroger Sept. 18-24

Kroger this week looks pretty good...kinda like last week!

The buy 15 participating items get $3. off instantly is still going.
This Hot coupon World post has a list of the items that are part of the deal ...check for tags to make sure....I thought it was helpful. Half the items on my list were part of it and I didn't even know it.

Okay here's my list of good deals I see ( * star indicates part of the 15 items)

Cottonelle 4 pack .99-.50MQ= free.....coupons exp. on the 20th
*Toaster Strudel 2/$4. -.35MQ tripled = .95cents each box
Bunny Bread 1.25 - .25cent MQ tripled = .50cents
*Select Harvest Soup 1.25 - .50cents/2 = .50cents/ can
*General Mills cereal $2. -$1. cheerios Q or use $1./2 = $1.-$1.50 each
*Fruit Roll ups $2. - .50MQ/2 = 1.25/ box
Chocolate milk 2.50/gallon
*Chex mix 1.38 - .50MQ tripled = Free ---(Brooke(sister) got overage)
*Cheerios Snack Mix 1.38 -.50MQ tripled= Free
Pop tarts 12 ct. 1.98 - $1./2 = 1.50
*Chex Mix Bars 2. - .50MQ = .50/ box
*Fiber One Bars 2. -.50 MQ = .50/ box

Okay let me know what I'm missin'!!

I'm still tweeking my list for tomorrow. Wish me luck... my list is really long between Walgreens, Kroger, and Meijer. It seems like they are all pretty good this week! I think we'll have granola bars coming out of our ears!!! I'm not complainin'

Edit to add---I forgot to mention a couple of cat. deals going on...
Fruit by the Foot...buy 3 get $1.50, buy 4 get $2.50, buy 5 get $3.50
Nature Valley Granola Bars...buy 3 get $1.50, buy 4 get $2.50, buy 5 get $3.50

These should print from a machine after you transaction is done. I think there is a number that you can call if it doesn't print. Most the time the actual store knows nothing about it! Just looked it up...The number is 1-888-8coupon....when you call know what deal you were supposed to get and have receipt and items available. Since your transaction is tied to your card they have record and can verify that you bought the items! They will send you the cat. Got info from here on Hot Coupon World.

Great Deal--Kroger

Hey you guys are going to love this transaction. Once again I just leave the store shaking my head in disbelief. Well I got my coupon high for the day!!



Here it is all this for.... .77 cents oh wait then I got a $3.50 catalina....guess they paid me $2.xx to take all this stuff!!



















Here's the deal--I did have a little help from my cashier...he just scanned all my coupons which means that all of them tripled!! Still would have been a good deal even if only 2 had tripled...

2 toilet paper .99
10 soups @.60 each
5 boxes nature valley 2.00
-----------
total like $18.xx
$3.00 off instantly for buying 15 participating items (the bars and the soup)
had 4---.40/2 campbells soup coupons --tripled is 1.20 x 4 = 4.80
5 ---.50/1 nature valley coupons--tripled is 1.50 x 5 = 7.50
2 ---.50 cottonelle coupons---tripled is -.99 x2 = 1.98 (they only cost .99 so they don't triple)

---------------------
.77 cents was my total.
Then there is also a deal going on that if you buy 5 boxes of Nature Valley granola bars get a $3.50 cat. good for your next shopping trip.


So I paid .77 cents and got $3.50 back...Did I mention I LOVE THIS GAME!!

Meijer week Sept. 14th

Here is what I see this week at Meijer. Not a very good week at first glance but if you look a little closer it's not too bad.

--Powerade Zero is on sale for .69 cents-- if you buy 6 you get a $4. oyno(on your next order) cat. So-- .20 cents after cat. for 6 bottles. If your unsure a cat. is a catalina and should print right after you scan that item or in this case 6 from a machine by the register. If the cat. doesn't spit out then the machine is probably jammed. I always like to scan the cat. items first and make sure it's working...if it isn't have them fix it or switch lanes. It's worth it. Just make sure you get the "zero" kind for this deal.

--Quaker Oatmeal 18oz canister is 1.29 - .50MQ doubled = .29cents per canister

--Quaker instant oatmeal is $2.00 - .50 MQ doubled or this printable = $1. per box

--Aunt Jemima pancake mix is 1.66 - $1.MQ/2 so $1.15 per box

--Nesquik is 20% off --not sure of the regular prices --but there is a .50cent MQ doubled should be a good deal.

--Cheez-its are $2. - $1. mealbox snack crackers --$1.00 per box

--Encore pop is $2.25 - $1. mealbox --$1.25 for 12 pack

--Buddies bars are reported to be giving a $3./3 buddies cat. so use the $3./3 MQ from Sundays paper to get 3 free and get a Cat. for $3. off 3 more. You should be able to keep rolling this for a lot of free buddies bars.

--Here is the best one of the week...Glade Gel Warmers are $1.79--use the b1g1 MQ to get one free and then receive a Cat. for $2. for each one you buy. So you make $2.21 for every 2 you buy with MQ. I have not tried this yet but I will on Friday. I think I have 4 MQ for a profit of $8.xx!! Will it work is the question...

--Kellogs cereal or Nutrigrain bars 5/$10. buy 5 get $3. off milk With the MQ I have I will get 2 boxes of cereal, 4 boxes of nutrigrain bars and a gallon of milk for $9.---I'm using 3 $1./2 MQ.
I figure thats $1.50 per box and a free gallon of milk which I always need!

Let me know what I missed!!

Weekly Meals

I thought it would be fun to post my weekly menus here so you can get an idea what we eat on a grocery budget of $50.-$55. per week! I will admit it's nothing special but I love to look at other peoples menus just to get more ideas. A lot of times I find myself in a rut and just making the same things over and over. I am also looking forward to cooler weather to make more soups and using my oven. We try to grill and keep things very simple in the summer time.

This menu is actually for next week. I find I need to make the menu when making my shopping lists for Friday (my shopping day).

Mon. -- Scrambled eggs with cheese and mushrooms along with sausage
Tues. -- Grilled chicken marinated in "Lawry's Caribbean Jerk" with potatoes and veggies
Wed. -- BLT'S with fruit
Thurs. -- Spaghetti with cheesy bread
Fri.-- not sure yet --may have another birthday party!
Sat.-- Homemade pizza
Sun.-- Birthday party... In the evenings we make it easy with chips, cheese, and salsa.
Or leftovers and popcorn.

These menus are never set in stone and seem to have at least one change every week.

I think for this weeks menu I already have everything I need to make the meals. That way I can use almost all of my budget to just get the sale with coupon items. This is how you can make the most of your grocery budget!

How to CVS

Here is my first "how to" post. I thought I would start with CVS. Alot of you know how to do this but just in case I thought I would get it in writing.

First CVS requires that you have a card to get the good deals. You can either get this online or in the store.

Each week there are deals advertised that you receive Extra Care Bucks (ECB) back on. You use the ECB like cash on your next transaction. (Can't be used on stamps and gift cards). The goal is to use some ECB from the previous transaction and get the same amount or more back. ECBs print on the bottom of your receipt when you check out.

The best way to do this is to stack Manufacturers coupons (MQ) and/or CVS coupons along with an ECB deal. for example Right Guard deodorant was on sale for 2.99 and produced 2ecb. There was also $1. MQ out for this so it was free...2.99-1.00MQ=1.99 get back 2 ecb. This had a limit of 3 so you could get 3 free deodorants.

A lot of times there are even deals where you "make money" know as "money makers". For example there was a deal for Revlon nail care for 3.99 and produced 3ecb. I had a CVS coupon for $2. off Revlon. So it was a $1. money maker (MM). If there would have been a MQ out for that item I could have used it also to make even more. I always use my overage on other items like milk. It greatly reduces my grocery bill.

There is also a monthly book that CVS puts out each month that has tons of deals in it. You can find these booklets on the checkout or you can ask. These deals go on all month and are usually a limit of 1-5 per deal. Lately the monthly deals have not been that good. I'm hoping it's just a summer thing...we shall see.

Each time you go to CVS be sure to scan you card at the Card Scanners for additional CVS coupons. These machines were new around here this summer. If you can't find it you can just ask. You can usually scan your card once per day and receive coupons.

The other AWESOME coupon from CVS is the money off money coupon know as the $$/$$ coupon. They can come in all amounts like 2/10, 3/15, 4/20 and so on. You simply get your total to $10. and this coupon takes off $2. This can make major overage. Unfortunately these are becoming rare so if you get one don't let it go to waste. Sometimes these print on the scanner or at the bottom of your receipt and sometimes they are printable online.

Here are the sources for coupons from CVS.
CRT --is a coupon that prints at the bottom of your receipt. Can be used along with a MQ
Scanner coupon also referred to as CRT-- from the scanner machines
MQ -- (manufactures coupon) from Sunday papers and in grocery stores
Online--sometimes there are printable CVS coupons online to print.
$$/$$-- printable online, on your receipt, or on scanners

Well I took a stab at it. It's a lot harder to explain in writing than one would think. If I have confused you please go here to Money Saving Mom she explains it VERY well.

Happy CVSing

CVS Deals

Well after a good week last week this week is a little blah...Here is a few things I see.

Purex 2.99 get 1 ecb--use $1./2 MQ from todays paper= $1.50 each
Aleve 3.99 get 3 ecb--use this printable to get it free
Excedrin 3.99 get 3.99 ecb --free can't find a MQ to make it a MM...email me if you find one
Clean and Clear trial size is .99cents--use $1. MQ to get it free

Wow I can't believe thats all I see at first glance. Leave a comment and let me know what I've missed.