Rite-Aid All Up in Here...And Grand Totals for March SCR Period

Here's what I got at Rite-Aid late last week.....

 This photo is from 2 trips on Thursday evening.  I used 3 more Johnson & Johnson baby 'poo rainchecks with $1/1 Qs for more free 'poo.  I combined BOGO Qs from the NutriNail website with the BOGO sale last week at Rite-Aid for free nail stuff.  I used $2/1 Qs from the tearpad at the dentist's office to get $1 in overage for each of the floss items to use on other items in the transactions.   The Starbusrt was .25¢ after AdPerks/VV IPQ for .25¢ combined with the sale price of .50¢.
I also bought a pack of Bubbalicious gum that didn't make it into the photo. ;-)

 On Saturday I used my free TP raincheck as they FINALLY had the 4 packs of Rite-Aid TP in.  That raincheck was over 2 months old!  Some stores will honor rainchecks even if they are over 30 days old if the store hasn't had that product back in stock since issuing the raincheck, which was the case for me.  Be sure and ask if you have an older than 30 day old raincheck....you might be surprised that you can still use it!




I picked up some more free NutriNail products by combining Q with sale. I used my Colgate raincheck and $1 Qs to get more free toothpaste.  The Glad bags was another raincheck and a Q, though they weren't free after using both.  I did have to use a $1 +Ups and put $1.03 on my gift card.
I'm OOP $1.16(on the gift card)for these transactions and my gift card is down to $51.49.


I have $18 in +Ups expiring this Saturday.
I have no clue what I am going to buy with them.
What all has everyone else bought, or is going to buy this week at Rite-Aid?
I don't see much I want that I can get and roll those +Ups, so I guess I'll be burning these babies instead.

Since Allegra is now OTC, maybe I'll get me some Generic Loratadine(Claritin) since it's BOGO this week.
I sure hate that all the allergy meds are going off prescription.  With our prescription plan(which we pay thru the nose for-no pun intended)I can get RX allergy meds for $10 or less for the generics.  Now that it's OTC I'll have to pay $25 or more for Allegra brand....ain't happening!lol  I hope they come out with the generic formulation(Fexafenadine)OTC soon so I can pay less.


THESE TRIPS
Number of Transactions.....3
Total Spent....$1.16 (put on free Rite-Aid gift card)
Value of Items....$75.70
SCR qualified for...$0.00
Other Rebates earned...$0.00
Gift Cards earned....$00.00
+Up Rewards earned...$0.00
+Up Rewards spent....$1.00
+Up Rewards left to spend.....$109.00

GRAND TOTALS--March Rebate Period

Number of Transactions......15
Total Spent....$5.09 put on free Gift Cards/Certificates so ZERO OOP
Value of Items purchased....$689.55
SCR qualified for....$45.00
Other Cash....$0.00
Additional Rebates....$0.00
Additional Non-Cash Rewards....$0.00

+UPS Totals for March SCR period
+Up Rewards carryover from 3/21.....$110.00
+Up Rewards spent....$235.76
+Up Rewards earned....$95.76
+Up Rewards left....$109.00  includes ALL +Ups not just ones from this SCR period





So I spent $5.09 on my gift card and received $689.55 worth of merchandise.  I will also be getting back $45 in cash rebates.  I have $109 in +Up Rewards to spend/roll/convert.
Not a bad month, huh? ;-)

Sluggy 

Here's Something to Read....

If you want/need something to exercise the muscle between your ears, go to the library and check out
FREAKONOMICS by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Lubner.

Freakonomics is immensely engaging and will make you go "ah" and "hmmm".
And though I am late to the party, I have just discovered that they have a Freakonomics Blog!
It is surprisingly called Freakonomics.

Have you read this book?
What do you think of it?

Sluggy

Tuesday Points to Ponder Post

 Here's something to consider.....

“A democracy cannot exist as a permanent form of government. It can only exist until the majority discovers it can vote itself largess out of the public treasury. After that, the majority always votes for the candidate promising the most benefits with the result the democracy collapses because of the loose fiscal policy ensuing, always to be followed by a dictatorship, then a monarchy.”
-Attributed to Alexander Fraser Tytler   an 18th Century Scottish born, British lawyer and writer


I see a whole bunch of truth in this quote.
I also fear we are past our apex in this country and sliding quickly toward that monarchy.

Sluggy

If You Haven't Heard Yet, Teenagers Just Know Everything!

I hope someday to be as wise as teenagers.  They just know everything, don't they?
At least that is how my Daughter feels....at the ripe old age of 18, she knows it all.

She knew that she didn't need to waste her time applying to those Honors programs at the colleges she applied for, since she was sure she wouldn't need any additional financial awards to attend said colleges.

She knew that she didn't need to waste her time writing any optional essays on her college applications, because again, she wouldn't need any additional merit awards some of those aforementioned essays may have qualified her for.

She knew that she didn't need to waste her time searching out and applying for merit based scholarships that weren't connected to the specific schools she hoped to gain admittance to.  Surely, the schools she applied to would offer her more than ample piles of dough to cover any costs her parents college fund didn't.

She knew her superior brain, her sterling grades, her class rank, her ability to shine on standardized tests(the SAT) would have the powers-that-be at each of the colleges she applied for throwing scholarship money at her feet to get her to choose their school.

Even though her parents, who have the wisdom of having gone through all this themselves back when "dinosaurs roamed the Earth", told her she had better apply for things, write essays, and any other thing asked of her by the colleges' powers-that-be, to take advantage of any advantage she could uncover to find scholarships and/or grant money.

So guess what?  It turns out, she didn't know Jack!
Her dumb as dirt parents saw this day coming like a roaring freight train down the track, but she didn't heed our warnings.

To Be Continued.....

Sluggy

Giveaway Time!......My Boring Blog

Time for another Giveaway.
Remember my Birthday Bash Giveaway earlier this year?
Well, I've taken most of the items that were left, that the Giveaway winner didn't pick during the course of the Giveaway post, and fit them into a flat rate mailing box.
So I am giving all those items away for this Giveaway.

Here is what you will win if your entry is picked....

Sarah Micheals Tea Rose Gift Set bag
Avon Vanilla Shower Gel
Dove Shampoo
Pantene Styler
Box of mailing Envelopes
Old Spice Deodorant
Cinnamon Candle
Glade Scented Candle Tin
Airborne
Gax-X Prevention
Betty Boop Enameled Pen
Winnie the Pooh Gift Wrap
Hershey's Kisses with Almonds
LifeSavers Pep-O-Mint Candies
I also added in 2 Bottles of Sally Hansen Hard As Nails Polish, a pink shade and a coral shade.

Check out the rules.....
The Rules
1. You must be a "Follower" of my blog to enter and still be a Follower if/when you win.  Lookie on the right sidebar and press the big ol' FOLLOW button if you are not already a follower.
2.  Sorry but this Giveaway is open ONLY to those with a mailing address within the USA.  Hate to have to do that but the postal rates outside the country are KILLER.
3.  You must leave your email address on your comment OR have it linked to your account so that I can contact you.  If I can't email you, you can't win.

For your Required Entry.....Leave a Comment on this post with your Favorite Thing about my blog and the 1 thing you wish I did on this blog that I don't or something I do already that you'd like to see more of it.

You can earn EXTRA ENTRIES this way....

1.  Blog about my Giveaway on your blog.  This will earn you THREE extra entries. Please leave 3 separate comments that you did this with the url or link to the specific blog post where you mention this giveaway.


2.  Every person who comments/enters the Giveaway that mentions you sent them here to enter will earn TWO extra entries for themselves AND the person who referred them.  You only need to leave ONE comment only please.  I will add the 2nd entry for you and 2 extra entries for your referral person for you.


3.  If you would like to join a great company that provides cash for your opinion, use my referral HERE.  They provide participants for focus groups, product testers, as well as pay you to complete surveys online.  Use my referral to join up and then leave THREE comments on this post that you did this for 3 additional entries for the giveaway.


4.  If you haven't joined SWAGBUCKS, use my referral link HERE or go through the Swagbucks ad on the right sidebar on the blog here.   Use my referral to join up and then leave THREE comments on this post that you did this for 3 additional entries for the giveaway.

5.  Tweet about this Giveaway on Twitter.  Leave a comment on this post with a link to the tweet.  You may tweet once every other day(and leave a new comment with the tweet link)for additional Twitter entries. 


This Giveaway will be open until 11:59pm ET April 8th, at which time I'll randomly draw a winner.


As always, this is not a company sponsored or company supplied Giveaway.  Any costs associated with this Giveaway are coming out of my pocket because I'm just that kinda gal.  Please patronize our blog ads....I'm just sayin'.... ;-)


Sluggy

In a Bad Place......

I apologize if I haven't been posting much......or been my usual perky cheerful self(that part was sarcasm folks). ;-)
But stuff that's been going down lately with Daughter's college admissions/financial aid stuff has me in a bad place emotionally.  Let me rephrase that.....current difficulties in this area have brought up alot of suppressed emotions and events from my own life to the surface and that's why I am in a bad place.  The current 'stuff' we are dealing with sucks but I know we'll get through it.  It's the specter of my past that's been raised in my own head that's got me wanting to just go throw myself into a hole and die.

My family seemed pretty normal until I hit my teen years(yah, my parents were fairly good at keeping up appearances)and for too many reasons I can't list here, it spiraled into quite the disfunctional disaster zone.  And it continued through my college years and beyond, shaping me in ways that people should not be shaped.  Under my sarcastic exterior lies one broken damage bill of goods.
So yes, I am one of those people you meet in life with a lot of emotional baggage.  Mostly due to lack of parental support in all ways conceivable. If not for my Hubs and his unflagging love and support, I don't know where or what I'd be at this point in my life.
I guess I should go find a therapist and pay them to sit and listen to my tales of woe at $200 an hour.
Hubs sympathizes but he has no patience for listening AGAIN and AGAIN to me rehashing all this stuff when I find myself in this bad place every few years.  And he just doesn't "get it" really since he came from a totally different world where things like what I went through didn't happen.  And I sure don't want to burden my kids(even though 2 of them are adults now)with what haunts me because well, that wouldn't add anything positive to their lives now, would it?
So I just suffer silently and go to this bad place when life events bring it up again and relive these painful times alone.

Gawd, this is getting depressing even for me!lol  I'll stop now before anybody who's still reading this goes and takes a razor to their wrists. 8-P
I've thought about writing a book about my life.....no, I don't think anybody would pay good money to buy it!  I just think it might be cathartic to get it out on paper.  It might help me get past some of this stuff to deal with it in that way.
When I'm feeling a little better maybe I'll carve some time out to scribble down my thoughts.....

Anyway, this was all just my much too long way to let y'all know I may not be posting much in the next week or so.
I am going to put up a Giveaway soon but other than that I'll be off in my dark corner sorting through my baggage.  Hopefully one day I'll be able to declutter some of that as well as the physical baggage hanging around here! ;-)

Sluggy

The Groundhog Must Die!

Which Ground Hog?
Punxsutawney Phil of course.
Why?
Because of this......

Eight inches of snow!  And there's more coming!?

Early Spring this year my ass.....

Sluggy

Boring Shopping Post

I hit the local small market on Monday to do the Cheesy Deal....

The deal was spend $30(after coupons) on Kraft cheese(and/or other select products)and get $10 off instantly.  So it wasn't a Catalina Deal but an Instant Savings Deal, which was better since this store Catalina Deals suck.  Why?  Because they figure your total AFTER Qs to see if you qualify for the Cat,  AND the Cat is also based on sale prices not reg. shelf price.  Those 2 things make a BIG difference!

Some of the mozzarella bags had $1 off wyb a bag of cheese and a block of cheese(included Cracker Barrel and reg. Kraft branded blocks)Qs too but otherwise I had no Qs for the cheese deal.
I ended up getting 13 cheese items for $21.58 after sale prices, $3 in Qs and $10 discount.  This made each item $1.66.  I may go back and do it again before Saturday and just get the shredded cheese, which would make them $1.50 each.
The Healthy Choice dinners were on sale 3 for $5 and there was a $1/3 blinkie machine on the door, making them $1.33 each.  At that price, how could I say no to Lobster Ravioli?lol
The broccoli was for Monday night's dinner and we needed the celery...both were on sale.
The total was $28.39 for all.  Regularly priced at $61.66 which means a savings of 54%.

Then I went back to Rite-Aid.....

Used some more Johnson's rainchecks(got me free stuff after raincheck and Qs), redeemed a free Coke Q, got some more free Toothbrushes and I broke down and bought a Night Guard.  I'll get a raincheck for another one for BIL's account to use after the April $3 SCR kicks in on it.

I'm working on rolling next week's expiring +Ups at this point, so I didn't have to roll any +Ups but I did roll $22 so I am a little more ahead for the upcoming sales week.
The total came to $22.55 after Qs/sales.  I used $22 in +Ups and put the .55 on my gift card.  I received back $27 in +Up Rewards(6 x $2 Toothbrushes, $15 Night Guard) so I am 'up' $5 on this transaction.
I have $52.65 left on my gift card.

THIS TRIP
Number of Transactions.....1
Total Spent....$.55 (put on free Rite-Aid gift card)
Value of Items....$86.78
SCR qualified for...$0.00
Other Rebates earned...$0.00
Gift Cards earned....$00.00
+Up Rewards earned...$27.00
+Up Rewards spent....$22.00
+Up Rewards left to spend.....$110.00

TOTALS--March Rebate Period

Number of Transactions......12
Total Spent....$3.93 put on free Gift Cards/Certificates so ZERO OOP
Value of Items purchased....$613.85
SCR qualified for....$45.00
Other Cash....$0.00
Additional Rebates....$0.00
Additional Non-Cash Rewards....$0.00

+UPS Totals for March SCR period
+Up Rewards carryover from 3/20.....$105.00
+Up Rewards spent....$234.76
+Up Rewards earned....$95.76
+Up Rewards left....$110.00  includes ALL +Ups not just ones from this SCR period

Sluggy

The 3 S's.....Sewing, Stockpile & Snow

As you can see from my To-Do List I finally got around to starting on one of my long neglected chores--my unfinished sewing projects!
It only took me a year and almost 3 months to get to it.....sheeesh!lol

 Under that pile of clothes is the long neglected sewing projects "in progress" tub.

And here it us after being uncovered......

Notice all the dust on the lid....lol
And here is inside the belly of the beast....

Well at least the top layer inside the beast. ;-)
So I pulled out a project.....well 3 projects really since I have 3 pairs of pajama pants cut out for my Daughter.  I'll be working on those this week and hopefully by week's end I'll have something to show for my efforts.

Before I did another else on Sunday, I went up to Rite-Aid to roll some +Ups and get my free after Q and +Ups toothbrushes.....

1 x Resolve on sale=$1.99
5 x Reach Toothbrushes on sale $2.99=$14.95
SubTotal....$16.94

Coupons Used
1 x $1 any Purchase AdPerks/VV IPQ=$1.00
1 x .75/1 Resolve IPQ(from Resolve website)=$.75
5 x $1/1 Reach Toothbrush tearpad Q(from dentist office)=$5.00
1 x $1/1 Listerine/Reach AdPerks/VV IPQ=$1.00
Coupon Total...$7.75

$16.94-$7.75=$9.19
I used $8.88 in +Ups and put the $.31 OOP on my Rite-Aid gift card.
I received $11 back in +Up Rewards(5 x $2 Toothbrushes, $1 Resolve)so I am "up" $2.12 on this transaction.

Then I did the same transaction again but my coupons were a little different....

Coupons Used
1 x $1 any Purchase AdPerks/VV IPQ=$1.00
1 x .75/1 Resolve IPQ(from Resolve website)=$.75
1 x .25¢/1 Resolve Peelie Q on product=$.25
3 x $1/1 Reach Toothbrush tearpad Q(from dentist office)=$3.00
1 x $2/2 Reach Toothbrush IPQ(old IPQ that was expiring soon)=$2.00
Coupon Total...$7.00

$16.94-$7.00=$9.94
I used $9.88 in +Ups and put the $.06 OOP on my Rite-Aid gift card.
I received $11 back in +Up Rewards(5 x $2 Toothbrushes, $1 Resolve)so I am "up" $1.12 on this transaction.

The reason I broke this into two transactions was because I had more than 1 $1 any purchase AdPerks/VV IPQs that were expiring on 3/26.  If I had done it all in one transaction the second $1 off Q might not have gotten used before Saturday.

My planning wasn't too great because I still have $2 in +Up Rewards left to use by Saturday.  I should have bought an 11th toothbrush....ugh.
And my gift card is down to $53.20.

I didn't get the Night Guard mouthpiece and roll $19.99 in +Ups.  I'll get a raincheck and hopefully they have it in stock after March 30th, when the April SCRs start.  There is a $3 SCR for the Night Guard item for April so I'll buy it on raincheck(the raincheck price will be $4.99 after $15 +Ups discount).  I'll use my $5/1 Night Guard Q and pay nothing OOP and then submit my receipt for the $3 SCR.  In the end I'll make $3 for buying it by waiting until the new SCR period. 8-)



After my Rite-Aid trip I went out into the garage to organize the stockpile.
As you can see, things have gotten out of hand in the last few months.....

Mostly it's stuff not getting put away and stock not being rotated back to front as it's used.  It's gotten so bad you can hardly walk around out there.


Plus the field mouse getting in kicked my ass into gear!lol  BTW-We "took care" of mr. mouse the next night....I won't share the details or the photos of his extermination. ;-)

I spent hours out in the garage on Sunday and ended up with a more organized mess.....

 Cereal, Paper Plates, Tea, Coffee, Hot Cocoa, Oatmeal, Taco Shells, Compleats, Granola Bars, Jello and Pudding, Condensed Milk, bagged/boxed Potatoes and "Helper" mixes

 Spices, Rubs, Powders, Sauces, flavored Noodle bags, Steak Sauce, Baking Soda, boxed Bread/Cake/Brownie/Muffin Mixes, Frostings, dried Fruit, Pie Fillings, canned/bagged Nuts, Coconut Milk, flavored Rice bags, dog Treats, canned Dog Food

 canned Soups, canned Veggies, Olives, Green Chilies, canned Tuna, Sardines, Evaporated Milk, Chocolate Syrup, Pancake Syrup, baking Chips, Sugar products(honey, agave, brown sugar, fake sweetners)

 Croutons, Trash Bags, Foil, Parmesan cheese, Ramen and other Noodles, Freezer Bags

 Cereal, Crackers, BBQ Sauce, Marinades, Bread Crumbs, Flour, canned Beans, Spaghetti Sauce, Tomato Soup, canned Tomato products, Pasta, Chili, Hash, Jellies, Peanut Butter

 Salad Dressings, Fruits, Condiments, Oils, Maple Syrup, Juices

 Hand Soap, Dish Soap, Cleaners, Sprays, Wipes, Baby and Wet Wipes, Stain Sprays, Fem. Products

Toilet and Facial Tissue, Paper Towels, Napkins

 It's not perfect but it will do for now.  You can see why I haven't done any grocery shopping for weeks now, can't you?lol
I also culled out 4 boxes of food from the stockpile.....1 for BIL, 1 for the food bank and 2 boxes to offer on the local Angel Help Community Yahoo group for Easter.

By 8pm Sunday night I was a stiff, sore mess....so I went to bed before 9.  Me?....the night owl.
And the most amazing thing was I slept until 9 this morning.  12 hours in one stretch.  It's so unlike me.

 After a semi-productive weekend I woke up to this.......?!?!?......

WTF?!?

I had no clue we were due for more snow!

I'm off now to the stockpile and freezer to figure out the meal plan for this week.  I might hit the grocery store(for more than milk)this week since there is a cheese Catalina deal at the local Shursave affiliate store....spend $30 get a $10 Cat....as we are getting low on cheese.

Check me later for the Meal Plan for the week.

Here are the Rite-Aid numbers for Sunday and the running Totals....
THESE TRIPS
Number of Transactions.....2
Total Spent....$.37 (put on free Rite-Aid gift card)
Value of Items....$56.48
SCR qualified for...$0.00
Other Rebates earned...$0.00
Gift Cards earned....$00.00
+Up Rewards earned...$22.00
+Up Rewards spent....$18.76
+Up Rewards left to spend.....$105.00

TOTALS--March Rebate Period

Number of Transactions......11
Total Spent....$3.38 put on free Gift Cards/Certificates so ZERO OOP
Value of Items purchased....$527.07
SCR qualified for....$45.00
Other Cash....$0.00
Additional Rebates....$0.00
Additional Non-Cash Rewards....$0.00

+UPS Totals for March SCR period
+Up Rewards carryover from 3/19.....$101.76
+Up Rewards spent....$212.76
+Up Rewards earned....$68.76
+Up Rewards left....$105.00  includes ALL +Ups not just ones from this SCR period

Sluggy

Our Date Day.....

Hubs and I had a Date yesterday for lunch.  We had a nice quiet dining experience at our favorite Asian Restaurant without any teens and their texting appendage.
Seriously!....what is with these kids?  They can't turn off the cell phones long enough to eat or have a face to face conversation with you!
Ok, I won't go off on that particular rant today.lol

A nice frugal(lunch prices not dinner prices!lol), tasty meal and we talked over "stuff".  Stuff would be, where we are with the financial aid letters for Daughter, #1 son's current stressors at school, #2 son's Marching Band trip to Florida, Graduation festivities coming up for Daughter, when #1 son is done with this semester, the assorted days that assorted teens need to be hauled to or picked up from summer camp(2 are working there, 1 is attending training sessions), etc. etc. etc.  We want to squeeze in a little vacation time into the summer(probably alone or with just #2 son tagging along)but it looks like it will be tricky to accomplish this year.  I so hate to take kids out of school for vacation but we might just have to this year.
And we still have to work in the garden stuff, marching band camp and home projects while the weather is warm.  At this point, it's a bit overwhelming to think about it all and I just find I want to go back to bed and draw the covers over my head.
Bleh.

Anyway, after talking over things until I felt exhausted, we took a ride down to the other end of our teeny tiny town and hit the Rite-Aid.  Yes, Hubs knows the way to my heart.lol

I got my Dixie plate and Motrin PM rainchecks while I was there.
I had a $20 Winter Reward to spend so I burned through that baby today as well.....

3 x 12-pack Pepsi products $6.99 after +Ups
4 x Johnson's Baby 'Poo raincheck made them .99¢
2 x Desitin Rash Cream raincheck made them .99¢
1 x Gain Dish Soap free after coupon w/.12¢ overage.
2 x Doritos chips $2 each after +Ups
4 x R-A facial tissue raincheck made them free.
1 x Folger's Instant Coffee $5.99 after Wellness discount.
1 x Salonpas Pain Patch $2 overage after coupon
2 x NoNonsense 3 pack Socks $1.24 each after coupons
5 x Revlon Nail Files$1.69 overage after +Ups

My pre-coupon SubTotal was $43.60.

I used $22 in Coupons.
$43.60-$22.00=$21.60

I used my $20 Winter Reward & $1 +Up Reward and put the .60¢ on my Rite-Aid gift card(which now has $53.57 after the camera return and my OOP for Wednesday's transaction).
I received $8 in +Up Rewards back($4 for the Revlon tools, $3 on the Pepsi products, $1 wyb 2 Doritos).  I qualified for SCR #20(Revlon Tools) for $1 as well.


THESE TRIPS
Number of Transactions.....1
Total Spent....$.60 (put on free Rite-Aid gift card)
Value of Items....$96.05
SCR qualified for...$1.00
Other Rebates earned...$0.00
Gift Cards earned....$00.00
+Up Rewards earned...$8.00
+Up Rewards spent....$21.00
+Up Rewards left to spend.....$101.76

TOTALS--March Rebate Period

Number of Transactions......9
Total Spent....$3.01 put on free Gift Cards/Certificates so ZERO OOP
Value of Items purchased....$470.59
SCR qualified for....$45.00
Other Cash....$0.00
Additional Rebates....$0.00
Additional Non-Cash Rewards....$0.00

+UPS Totals for March SCR period
+Up Rewards carryover from 3/16.....$114.76
+Up Rewards spent....$194.00
+Up Rewards earned....$46.76
+Up Rewards left....$101.76  includes ALL +Ups not just ones from this SCR period


I can't believe that this is the last week for March sales at Rite-Aid!  The AdPerk/VV coupons expire March 26th and the last day for March SCRs is March 29th so be sure to buy what you need by the 29th and watch those videos and use those coupons expiring in March by Saturday the 26th!


Sluggy

Rite-Aid on Wednesday....Doing the Skin Care Deal

I popped into Rite-Aid on Wednesday to do the Skin Care +Up Rewards Deal.....

4 x Clean and Clear products 20% off wellness discount $4.63=$18.52
3 x Dixie Plates on sale $1.97=$5.91
1 x Salonpas Patch on sale=$1.00
2 x R-A Whole Cashews $.79 clearance or glitch?=$1.58*this deal is dead, so don't try it.
SubTotal....$27.01

Coupons Used
1 x $1 Purchase AdPerk/VV IPQ=$1.00
4 x $2/1 Clean and Clear product IPA HERE=$8.00
4 x $2/1 Clean and Clear product In-Ad Q=$8.00
1 x $5/3 Dixie Plates AdPerk/VV IPQ=$5.00
1 x $3/1 Salonpas IPQ=$3.00
Coupon Total....$25.00

$27.01-$25.00=$2.01 + .26¢ tax=$2.27 OOP
I used $2 in +Up Rewards and put the .27¢ on my Rite-Aid gift card.
I received $5 in +Up Rewards back(for buying $15 or more in Clean and Clear Products), so I am 'up' $3 on this transaction.
I am still befuddled on how the tax is added and for what items it is added.  If it's based on the $2 in +Ups after Qs I used it should have been .12¢.  If it's based on all the taxable items I bought it should have been .35¢.  ???

I need to stop in on Saturday for a raincheck since I missed the Motrim PM Deal as the shelves were cleared here.
***A reminder--The $10 and $20 Winter Rewards expire a week from this coming Sunday, March 27th.
So you need to start planning on how to spend them with this coming week's ad or a week from Sunday on the following week's ad.  I'm probably going to burn them on toilet tissue or something I need.
What's looking good to y'all?

THESE TRIPS
Number of Transactions.....1
Total Spent....$.27 (put on free Rite-Aid gift card)
Value of Items....$50.10
SCR qualified for...$00.00
Other Rebates earned...$0.00
Gift Cards earned....$00.00
+Up Rewards earned...$5.00
+Up Rewards spent....$2.00
+Up Rewards left to spend.....$114.76

TOTALS--March Rebate Period

Number of Transactions......8
Total Spent....$2.41 put on free Gift Cards/Certificates so ZERO OOP
Value of Items purchased....$374.54
SCR qualified for....$44.00
Other Cash....$0.00
Additional Rebates....$0.00
Additional Non-Cash Rewards....$0.00

+UPS Totals for March SCR period
+Up Rewards carryover from 3/14.....$111.76
+Up Rewards spent....$173.00
+Up Rewards earned....$38.76
+Up Rewards left....$114.76  includes ALL +Ups not just ones from this SCR period

Sluggy

Frugality Quote of the Day....

"He who does not economize will have to agonize."  -Confucius

Modern Day Translation.....
"If you spend it all today, you will have nothing left for tomorrow, causing you great suffering." -Sluggy

Yeah....Confucius says it much better.lol

So what am I going to do today to save money?  Mostly, I am staying home and not going anywhere, so I won't be tempted to spend money and I won't have to put gas in the car.  I might even sew something, which means less money spent on buying clothes since I have everything already to finish this garmet.  And I'll be turning off the heat for a couple of days since we are suppose to get into the 60's here!

Sluggy

Are Your Eyes Smiling Today?.....

Well mine are!

Yes, I am one of like a bazillion people on this Planet who can claim Irish ancestry.  In fact, my paternal grandfather did a pretty intense Family Genealogy over the course of many years back in the 60's. 
He gave me a copy of it when I was 15.  That was a fairly stupid thing to do, because what 15 yr. old really cares about family history....seriously!  And what 15 yr. old has the wear-with-all to hang onto something like that(what with moving around and other upheavals in their life until they are a stable adult of 30)until they are old enough to want/appreciate it.  
Man, I sure wish I had that research now. 
Granddad even made the connection that "we" are descended from the Great Brian Boru!  Of course half of the people with Irish ancestry(and for real, anyone with the surname of O'Brian or O'Brien in their families' past)can claim him as an ancestor.

So get out your green "fill in the item" today and wear it.  Since my eyes are green(goes with the red hair I use to have when I was a kid)I'll be foregoing any other green clothing or jewelry today.

In honor of the day, I am posting one of Denis Leary's recipes from his book entitled, "Why We Suck".  If you have read/heard the man, you are well aware of Mr. Leary's thoughts on Irish Cuisine.....it doesn't exist. 
Growing up Irish American Catholic in Massachusetts along with 3 siblings and 17 cousins nearby, there wasn't much if any 'eating out' when he was a kid back in the 60's....his mom cooked most anything he ever put in his mouth until he left home.  Denis says his mom Nora, was a pretty typical Irish cook(having immigrated from Killarney, Ireland).  In honor of all things Irish, here is traditional Irish recipe he says his mom cooked for them.....

Cabbage Potato Chuck Roast

14 sticks of butter
Pinch of salt
Cabbage
Seven Hundred Potatoes
2 Pounds Chuck Roast Beef

Place Chuck Roast, Potatoes and Cabbage into a very large pot of already boiling water.  Boil for 5 hours.  Turn heat down to a simmer.  Drop in 14 sticks of Butter and pinch of Salt.  Let boil for one more hour.  Then another 15 minutes.  Then a couple more minutes.  Make sure all germs and taste have been boiled out.
Serve.

Éirinn go brách!

o' Sluggy

The "Joys" of Parenthood.....or Not So Much

I just read an article about a study that was done on "Raising Children". 
Basically they have concluded that parents who think that the pros outweigh the cons of having kids and raising them to adulthood are delusional.
Yep, people with kids are delusional.
You can read the article HERE.

Frankly I can see where they are coming from.

I do know that if kids started out as teenagers, the world's population would be much less than it is now and alot more families would only have 1 kid! ;-)

What's your feeling on this issue?

Sluggy

Here's the Plan....Meal Plan, that is....and Food Spending so Far in March

Here is what is on the menu this week at Chez Sluggy....

SUNDAY--Corned Beef, Cabbage, Carrots, Biscuits *Using a corned beef from the freezer so I can fit the 2 new CBs I got for $1.29lb. on Sat. into the freezer.
MONDAY--Chicken Parmesan/Chicken Tenders, Salad *Using old chicken cutlets from the freezer.  Salad fixings I bought on Sat.
TUESDAY--? *The only ones home for dinner this night are #2 son and I so we'll be creative with something here. 
WEDNESDAY--Lasagna, Spinach  *Using the ricotta I got awhile back and the lasagna noodles from the Dollar Store last week...spinach from freezer.
THURSDAY--Beef and Bean Enchiladas, Corn, Rice  *Using tortillas I got in Jan. and ground beef for $1.33lb. I got on Sat.
FRIDAY--Macaroni and Cheese, Broccoli  *I cleaned out the fridge last weekend and found lots of odds and ends of cheese blocks I need to use up.  Mac and cheese is perfect for this!  Broccoli from the freezer.
SATURDAY--Leftovers  *Since Hubs was out of town the beginning of the week and Daughter wasn't home much for dinner, we'll have lots of leftovers.  Sunday may also become a leftover dinner night as well.


I spent $26.39 at Weis last Saturday on 2 rolls of biscuits, 2 marked down tubs of lunchmeat(.99¢), a gallon of milk, 2 marked down 50% bakery items(muffins and scones), a head of lettuce, a tub of marked down organic mixed greens, 3lb. of ground beef for $1.33lb. and 2 corned beef briskets for $1.29lb.  I wouldn't have gotten the bakery items and the biscuits except that you had to spend $25 to get the sale price on the corned beef briskets.  I saved 44% over reg. retail on the order.

Add this trip to the Dollar Store and Bakery Outlet trips earlier in the week and I spent a total of $51.80 on groceries last week.

We are at the halfway mark for March today and my total grocery spending is right at $89.63 for the month.
Not sure if I'll break out and spend a big hunk of grocery money in the next 2 weeks or not.  If I want to stock up on something I have $160 left this month to play with.

What is everyone else's grocery spending looking like so far this month?

Sluggy

The Last of the 3/15 Expiring +Up Rewards...Yay!

I ran up to Rite-Aid last night to use the last $7 in +Up Rewards that expire today.  It's such a relief to only have $21.76 expiring soon instead of $154.....

3 x Dixie Plates on sale $1.97=$5.91
2 x Chloraseptic Drops on sale $3.99=$7.98
1 x Gain Dish Soap on sale=$.88
1 x Renuzit Cone on sale=$.88
SubTotal....$15.65

Coupons Used
1 x $5/3 Dixie Plates AdPerks/VV IPQ=$5.00
2 x $1/1 Chloraseptic product IPQ=$2.00
1 x $1/1 Gain Dish Soap Home Mailer Q(P&G Booklet)=$1.00
Coupon Total.....$8.00

$15.65-$8.00=$7.65
I used the $7 in +Ups and put the .65¢ on my Rite-Aid gift card.(This card has $1.45 left on it.)
I received $6 in +Up Rewards back(2 x $3 Chloraseptic), so I was able to "roll" $6 of the $7 in +Ups.

After the comments I've gotten on the video camera and some reviews I've read, I decided to return it.  Around here, if you return something paid for with +Ups, they give you the amount on a Rite-Aid gift card.  Besides the gift card I am using now, I have $35 left in other Rite-Aid gift cards for putting my OOP on.  That amount will get me through until about June, before I would run out and have to start spending actual money at Rite-Aid again.  But not now!  With the camera return I am up to $90 on my gift cards. ;-)  So basically, I converted via the camera return the +Ups I used to pay into a gift card....I'm ok with the fact that the gift card is only good at Rite-Aid too.  I did lose $20 of my SCRs however.....


THESE TRIPS
Number of Transactions.....1
Total Spent....$.65 (put on free Rite-Aid gift card)
Value of Items....$25.03
SCR qualified for...$00.00
Other Rebates earned...$0.00
Gift Cards earned....$00.00
+Up Rewards earned...$6.00
+Up Rewards spent....$7.00
+Up Rewards left to spend.....$111.76

TOTALS--March Rebate Period

Number of Transactions......7
Total Spent....$2.14 put on free Gift Cards/Certificates so ZERO OOP
Value of Items purchased....$324.44
SCR qualified for....$44.00
Other Cash....$0.00
Additional Rebates....$0.00
Additional Non-Cash Rewards....$0.00

+UPS Totals for March SCR period
+Up Rewards carryover from 3/12.....$112.76
+Up Rewards spent....$171.00
+Up Rewards earned....$33.76
+Up Rewards left....$111.76  includes ALL +Ups not just ones from this SCR period

Sluggy

Randomness on a Monday.....

* I know you are all dying to know how I did on the Focus Group!
Well I snagged 3rd place in the final task Contest which added another $50 to the check I am anticipating the arrival of any week now.
Even though it was a looooong 6 weeks and some days I dreaded the pressure of having to meet a deadline(here at Chez Sluggy, I AM mostly the deadline hander-outer, not the deadline meeter), I miss being part of the Group now.  Whatever shall I do with all this free time on my hands??  Oh, right....clean the house like I was able to avoid for the last 6 weeks.lol

*  I have my own theory about all the stuff happening around the Pacific Rim.  I believe that the cause of it all is Charlie Sheen!
Think about it.....things like this don't happen in a vacuum.  It's like a Cosmic Domino Effect.  One event leads to the next, to the next, to the next, etc.
Charlie Sheen goes off his rocker aka "gravitates out of his orbit" as it were.  The pull of this radiates west and causes one week later, the active eruption of Kilauea on the Big Island of Hawaii.  A week after that a now 9.0 Earthquake and resulting Tsunami wipes out whole cities of buildings in northern Japan.  All because of Charlie Sheen. 
Ok, so this what I wrote a couple of days ago.....before the nuclear reactors started melting down and so many where reported dead and missing.  I'm all for having fun but now?
Seriously, these disasters are horrible and I think only positive thoughts for good outcomes for anyone dealing with these situations.  Take a minute to pray, reach out to the cosmos, send healing white light, or whatever you do and believe in.  The folks impacted need all the positive vibes they can get!

* I feel I am suffering from URF, aka "+Up Rewards Fatigue".   Rite-Aid shoppers in increasing numbers are coming down with this malady.  The main complaint is burn-out from figuring out how to roll/spend down/convert to cash all those +Up Rewards we earn shopping the deals at Rite-Aid.  Making it worse is the fact that Rite-Aid keeps running the same deals over and over again.  Enough with the Oreos, Nivea Lip stuff and Gillette Razors and Holiday candy!  Geesh, I almost go into a diabetic coma just smelling the air as I walk into Rite-Aid and have to pass through the Sugar Gauntlet of Holiday Candies/Chocolates.

*  I am so ready for Spring to come.  But at what cost?  Because of the warming in the weather,  I found that an unwelcomed visitor has taken up residence in the garage the other night.....Mr. Field Mouse.  I guess the lure of warmth(well, warmer than outside)in the garage combined with the spilled dog food(thanks so much kids! who feed the dogs)was just too awesome an invite for him to turn his nose up at.
Bleh.
The mouse traps are set and we await the capture of Mr. FM anytime now.  If you have experience in shoving 27 boxes of pasta noodles, 8 boxes of oatmeal and 3 bags of flour from the shelves in the garage into my already overstuffed pantry, I'd appreciate the help! 

*  Daughter got a letter from her 5th choice college the other day.  In order to lure her to send in her deposit and tell them she is attending there in the Fall, they have awarded her(before the financial aid stuff has been all decided)a Board of Governor's Scholarship which will cover 1/3rd of her tuition.  Considering the school, it isn't a lot of money and doesn't cover much of the total cost of attending for an on-campus student, but hey!  it's nothing to look down your nose at!lol
Daughter poo-poo'ed it.
I looked her in the eye and said you had better keep that letter in your back pocket until the financial aid letters start rolling in from the other 4 schools because depending on what you get elsewhere, you may end up needing that scholarship offer!  She looked at me and turned green.  I guess she figured her dad and I would just cave in eventually if PITT didn't give her enough aid to cover her costs, after we handed over the chunk of cash we told her we would contribute.  Silly, silly daughter......to think that I didn't actually mean what I said!  Oh, I guess even though we'll be shelling out for 2 teens in college next school term, she believed we'd just hand over whatever it costs or that PITT would just let her attend even if she didn't pay the the term in full if she smiled & batted her lashed at them  a la Scarlett O'Hara enough.
Nope. 

*  So who is ready for another Giveaway?  I feel we need to do one.....  At least it would give me something to write about.lol

Off to get my Meal Plan done now....

Sluggy

Yup, I Done Spent Down a Mess O' +Up Rewards

Since I had over $120 in +Ups expiring on March 15th, I spent down a big pile of them, as well as converted $64 of them into cash via SCRs.  I only rolled another $14 of +Ups in these transactions.

Here is what I bought the last few days of last week's sale at Rite-Aid.....

1 x Colgate Toothpaste on sale=$2.99
2 x NYC Make-up on clearance .74¢=$1.48
2 x Sally Hansen Nail Polish on clearance .57¢=$1.14
1 x Vivitar Video camera w/20% wellness discount=$23.99**not pictured**
2 x Cella cherries w/20% wellness discount .26¢=.52¢
SubTotal.....$30.12

Coupons Used
1 x $1/1 Colgate Toothpaste IPQ=$1.00
Coupon Total....$1.00

$30.12-$1=$29.12+.06tax=$29.18
I used $29 +Up Rewards to pay and put the .18¢ on my Rite-Aid gift card.
I received $6 in +Up Rewards($2 Colgate, 2 x $1 NYC, $2 wyb 2 Sally Hansen cosmetics over $1.99).

**I "thought" I had bought the Vivitar video camera that had a $20 SCR...at least the hook it was on had the tag for the rebate on it.
But once I got out to the car I realized I bought the wrong camera because the one with the SCR cost alot more than $23.99.lol
So I returned the one I bought(it, along with an identical one had been put on the wrong peg hook in the store)and bought the correct one.
The correct one was $26 more.
Ugh!
I forked over $26 more in +Ups and put another .06¢ on my Rite-Aid gift card.

So I spent down $49 in +Ups.....well really I only spent down $29 & converted $20 of it into cash, via the $20 SCR I'll get back.

I still had something like $78 in +Ups left to use by Tuesday, so I went back on Saturday and bought.....

1 x Phillips MP3 Player on sale but less with 20% wellness discount=$63.99
2 x Reach Dental Floss on sale $1=$2.00
6 x Sally Hansen Nail Polish on clearance .57¢=$3.42
2 x NYC Make-up on clearance .74¢=$1.48
2 x Nivea Lip Balm on sale $1=$2.00
4 x Mead Notebooks w/20% wellness disc. .79¢=$3.16 **#2 son needed these**
SubTotal....$76.05

Coupons Used
2 x $2/1 Reach Floss Tearpad Q from Dentist=$4.00
1 x $1/1 NYC Cosmetic ManuQ=$1.00
1 x $2/2 Nivea Lip Facebook Q=$2.00
Coupon Total....$7.00

$76.05-$7.00=$69.05+$2.46 tax=$71.51
I used $71 +Up Rewards to pay and put the .51¢ on my Rite-Aid gift card(I have $2.10 left on this gift card).
I received $8 in +Up Rewards back(3 x $2 wyb 2 Sally Hansen, 2 x $1 NYC).
I also qualified for a $20 SCR for the MP3 Player, so I rolled $8 +Ups, spent down $43 +Ups and converted $20 +Ups into cash via SCR.

THESE TRIPS
Number of Transactions.....3
Total Spent....$.75 (put on free Rite-Aid gift card)
Value of Items....$199.33
SCR qualified for...$40.00
Other Rebates earned...$0.00
Gift Cards earned....$00.00
+Up Rewards earned...$14.00
+Up Rewards spent....$126.00 EGADS!!!lol
+Up Rewards left to spend.....$25.75

**Ok, the math says I should have this many +Ups left to spend but I counted them and I actually have $112.76 left.  So, I screwed something up really badly along the way to this point.
Did I ever tell you that I was NOT a math major in school?lol
Ok, so Sluggy is math challenged and forgot to add quite a few +Ups to her totals along the way.  According to my trusty calculator, I should have had $249 in +Ups going into these transactions.  Let's correct the info below(so it at least lines up with the reality of what I have in +Ups at this moment)and move along, shall we? ;-)



TOTALS--March Rebate Period

Number of Transactions......6
Total Spent....$1.49 put on free Gift Cards/Certificates so ZERO OOP
Value of Items purchased....$299.41
SCR qualified for....$64.00
Other Cash....$0.00
Additional Rebates....$0.00
Additional Non-Cash Rewards....$0.00



+UPS Totals for March SCR period
+Up Rewards carryover from 3/6.....$137.75**obviously this number is wrong.lol
+Up Rewards spent....$164.00
+Up Rewards earned....$27.76
+Up Rewards left....$112.76  includes ALL +Ups not just ones from this SCR period

Sluggy

Move Over Bobby Flay.....

Check out this New Cooking Show!
I wonder when the cookbook will come out?
And will it have any recipes for preparing troll?

Sluggy--Winning Blog Goddess

What I Did to Save Money Yesterday

* I ran my errands in a big loop, saving gas.  Have you seen the price of gas lately??!!

* I filled my car's tank while I was out, as prices are expected to keep going up.  We have 2 gas stations within spitting distance of each other.  The one on the northbound side of the road has $3.47 per gal. gas.  The one on the southbound side of the road has $3.55 per gal. gas.  The cheaper gas was on my side of the road heading out to do errands, so I filled up as I passed it.  No point in doubling back on the way home to get the cheaper gas.

* I hit the $ Store.

I got some junk foods to send in #1 son's college care package, but I did find some real food too....Lasagna noodles, Sweet Potato Fries and Scrapple.  I don't buy processed french fries usually as buying a bag of potatoes is much more cost effective.  But for what sweet potatoes would cost me at the grocery store per lb. in a 'raw' state, I couldn't make them into fries cheaper.  Lasagna noodles at the grocery store are never $1 a box here, since they are never included in any dried pasta sales.  The Dollar Store also had a few other good food deals....frozen fruit, as well as ravioli and pierogies.  I was tempted by the Hunt's 'No HFCS' Ketchup but I have quite a supply of Ketchup already so I passed on that one.
The local $ Stores stock these Airwick brand solid air fresheners.  I don't usually buy air fresheners(unless I get them for free from Rite-Aid and then I sell or give them away).  I do buy the pet odor ones in the warm months to use near the dog crates since they can get smelly.  But these LILAC scented ones were irresistible....oh, they smell sooooo good!  Lilac makes me think of Spring and I am so ready to think Spring. ;-)
Anyway, I spent $9.12 w/tax.

*Then I hit the bread outlet.

I haven't been in about 4 weeks and we were down to our last few slices of bread.  I chose a very good day to go since they had alot of items on the discounted racks for $1 or .89¢.  I spent $14.23 for $70.04 worth of bread/bakery products.  I got an assortment of bread, bagels, rolls as well as some danish and doughnuts. This should last us about 3 weeks or so.  I store them in the frigid garage(almost as good as in the freezer)so they will keep 3 weeks or longer.  What doesn't get used by then will go into the freezer.

* I made my own Sloppy Joe Sauce for dinner.  I could have used a can of sauce(I have 1 or 2 left that cost me $1 a can) but wanted something less sugary.  I find the canned stuff is too sweet for me so I've taken to concocting my own so I can control what goes into it.  There are tons of different recipes out there you can use as a guide to making your own.  None of them are difficult...most just are a matter of dumping ingredients in a pan and heating it up.  I use some tomato paste, tomato sauce, a touch of vinegar, a dash of garlic powder and if I want some sweetness I'll squirt a bit of ketchup into it or add a little hunk of brown sugar.  I dice some onions and fry that up with the ground beef as well.  If I have some peppers, I'll add that if I feel like it.  The point is that it takes very little effort and even less money to combine a few things in your pantry to make your own sauce.  Heck, you can even use BBQ sauce as the base if you have an old bottle of it malingering on your shelves.  Why spend for a new can of Sloppy Joe Sauce when you have everything you need to throw together your own custom blended sauce.  I won't be buying Sloppy Joe Sauce again since it's not a multi-tasking product, unless some deal comes along and the store wants to pay me to take a case of it home. lol

* My Netflix DVD arrived.  I watched that, as well as another movie instead of renting 2 movies at $1 a piece or instead of going to the cinema and plunking down $6 per movie for a couple of matinees.  4 hours of entertainment on the cheap.

* Worked on my Meal Plan for the week.  Yes, I am very late getting it finished.  We've had Spaghetti w/Meatballs and Garden Salad, Subway sandwiches on a crazy schedule night and Sloppy Joes w/Corn so far. 
Tonight is Fish, Sweet Potato Fries and Spinach Salad.
Thursday is Corned Beef, Cabbage and Potatoes. 
Friday is homemade Pizza w/Pepperoni, Onions and Peppers.(Plus Olives on my pieces.)
Saturday is Chicken & Broccoli Casserole.

* I washed a full load of laundry in my HE washer, using 1 tablespoon of detergent I got for free at Acme in Aug. 2009 and 8 squirts of Spray n' Wash.  I hung the clothes to dry on racks in the upstairs hallway. 

*As it was a bright sunny day, I opened the drapes on the southern facing side of the house to let in sunshine/warmth and closed them after the sun moved to the other side of the house.  With the nice sunlight I kept all lighting off during the day except for the task light on my computer desk when I was working at my desk. 

What did you do to save money?

Sluggy

Now What?.....How to Use Your Drugstore Knowledge

*This post is the follow-up to THIS POST on the basics of the Rite-Aid system.*

Now that you know all the lingo and have a basic knowledge of how shopping at Rite-Aid works & have signed up for your Wellness card, it's time to figure out what to buy when you go to the store.
What you are going to buy depends on these things...
1. What do you need/want to buy?
2. What are the deals this week?
3. What coupons do you have?

So you need to find some "Deal Blogs" to follow and consult.


"Deal Blogs" are those that post on what the upcoming sales are at a particular store.  They are informational, cut and dried.  Ok, some chat it up also but you are there for the info.  Don't Read This;It's Boring! may mention specific deals now and again but I am NOT a Deal Blogger. 

By following these blogs you can find out what is going on sale in future weeks as well as what is happening in the current week.
Deal bloggers will also do "coupon match-ups" for that store.  This is a list of currently available coupons(both ManuQs and IPQs)that match up with a sale item.  By matching the sales price with a coupon you can increase your savings when you buy that item.
These blogs are also where you can find out about hidden deals at the stores.
Many of these blogs will also give you actual "Deal Scenarios".  These are actual lists of specific items to buy, what coupons/sales to use and what premiums(RRs, ECBs, +Ups, Catalinas, etc.)you will receive and how much out of pocket you will be after that specific transaction.

Deal Blogs
Finding Deal Blogs online is quite easy.  Just google or use whatever search engine you prefer, and search under "deal blogs" or "drugstore blogs","drugstore deals", etc.  For grocery store deals, google that specific term.  Find a group of blogs and read them for awhile until you find the ones that give out the best information for you.  If there is a store, there is bound to be a blog out there that follows it.
For the larger chains, you will find more Deal Blogs devoted to them, because, well, they are so large.lol
Some deal blogs follow more than one store.  You will have to wade through many posts to find the Store Specific posts you need on those blogs.

When you find a few Deal Blogs that give you the information you want/need, go subscribe to them so you automatically get their posts sent to your email or into your Google Reader.  This will assure that you don't forget to check their blogs for deal information you need and miss some gem.

Personally I like to follow Deal Blogs within my regional area whenever possible.
For Rite-Aid I consult I "Heart" Rite-Aid as Erica is very knowledgeable about all things Rite-Aid.
But I also follow Anne at Coupons Deals and More and Shannon at For The Mommas.  Anne is in the Buffalo NY area and Shannon is outside of Philly.  I don't have a Rite-Aid Deal Blogger in my specific area but those 2 are in what I consider my region and they are both cover the Rite-Aid stuff well.

Why follow regional deal bloggers?  Sometimes Qs are regional, so you want someone who is matching up the Qs that YOUR area receives, in the denomination that you get.  There is nothing worse than finding a great deal scenario only to find that your area of the country did not receive a vital Q you need to complete that transaction cheaply.   There's nothing worse than planning out a scenario and then finding that you either didn't get that Q or that the one you got was not $2 but .50¢.  8-(

I also like to consult Building Up Da Benjamins.  She is over in the San Diego CA area.  2 reasons I follow her....1-I like her style.  2-The southern CA area Rite-Aid deals begin on the Thursday before they begin in all other parts of the country on Sunday.  So if something isn't working or there is a hidden deal to find, the bloggers/shoppers in this area will find out about it at the store and report back before the sales week even starts here.

Many folks read the Rite-Aid message board over at Slick Deals or at the 2 major Couponing Sites--A Full Cup and Hot Coupon World.  These are huge sites and can be intimidating to new coupon users.  I'd suggest you explore one of them to begin with and once you have a routine going, branch out and read the others.

There are tons of Deal Bloggers so go find a few that you enjoy reading and start getting up to speed on Rite-Aid deals.

As always if anyone has any questions about Rite-Aid or couponing or deal finding in general, feel free to leave a comment or email me privately if you prefer.   If you have suggestions of things that have helped you find the deals, please feel free to share that with us all as well.


Sluggy

And the Pillsbury Giveaway Winner Is.....

The fine folks, er....automated random number generating program at Random.Org helped me pick the winning entry for the Pillsbury Giveaway.


And the # picked was Comment No. 10....

Mimi said...

A good recipe almost always has sausage in it! mad2267 at gmail dot com

February 28, 2011 8:59 PM

 Congratulations to Mimi and her sausage!! ;-)


I'll be contacting her presently.   If for any reason she can't fulfill her duties as Contest Winner, her runner-up will take over the crown.

 Thanks to everyone who entered.  Stay tuned to this Bat Channel for more Giveaways!

Sluggy

"The Time has Come," the Walrus said, "To Talk of Many Things..."

First things first.....here's a Rite-Aid shop from Saturday evening.....

I burned about $12 in +Ups on those trash bags.  The rest of it was free at sale prices and Qs.  I put .61¢ on my gift card and didn't get any +Ups.


And I finally got up to Rite-Aid Sunday late afternoon.  The plan is to roll some +Ups into cash and get some freebies too.  Here is what I got....

1 x Thermacare on sale=$3.19  *My 20% wellness disc. lower than sale price
1 x Keri Lotion on sale=$6.99
1 x Desenex powder on sale=$6.99
1 x Snickers candy bar=$.70  *20% wellness discount applied
2 x Colgate Toothpaste on sale$2.99=$5.98
2 x Sardines on sale BOGO50%=$1.93
2 x Valentine's candy 90%off=$.20
SubTotal....$25.98

Coupons Used
1 x $3.99/1 Thermacare In-Ad Q=$3.99
1 x $1/1 Keri Lotion IPQ=$1.00
2 x $1/1 Colgate Toothpaste IPQ=$2.00
Coupon Total.....$6.99

$25.98-$6.99=$18.99+$.11 tax=$19.10
I used $19 +Up Rewards and put .10¢ on my Rtte-Aid gift card.
I received back $6.88 back in +Up Rewards(2 x $2 Colgate, 2 x $1 for each can of Sardines and $.88 for the Snickers bar).
I'll submit for 2 SCRs...$6 for each the Keri Lotion and the Desenex, so $12 in cash rebates.

I got $18.88 'back' in +Ups/Cash and spent $19 in +Ups.

So did this transaction again, minus one of the Valentine's candy using BIL's card....

$25.88-$6.99=$18.89+$.14 tax=$19.03
Used $19 +Ups again and put .03¢ on the gift card.

Now, I totally don't understand why my tax was .03¢ more when I bought .10¢ less of products here.lol



Altogether I managed to 'roll' $24 in +Up Rewards into $24 in cash rebates.  I only bought what we'd use or eat too.(Hubs loves sardines....bleck!)

Here are the numbers....
THESE TRIPS
Number of Transactions.....3
Total Spent....$.74 (put on free Rite-Aid gift card)
Value of Items....$100.08
SCR qualified for...$24.00
Other Rebates earned...$0.00
Gift Cards earned....$00.00
+Up Rewards earned...$13.76
+Up Rewards spent...$38.00
+Up Rewards left to spend....$137.75

TOTALS--March Rebate Period

Number of Transactions......3
Total Spent....$.74 put on free Gift Cards/Certificates so ZERO OOP
Value of Items purchased....$100.08
SCR qualified for....$24.00
Other Cash....$0.00
Additional Rebates....$0.00
Additional Non-Cash Rewards....$0.00

+UPS Totals for March SCR period
+Up Rewards carryover from 2/28.....$161.99
+Up Rewards spent....$38.00
+Up Rewards earned....$13.76
+Up Rewards left....$137.75  includes ALL +Ups not just ones from this SCR period


I still have a boatload of +Ups that expire on March 15th.  I'm considering spending them down & rolling them into SCRs by buying a couple of electronic thingys that are giving $20 SCRs this month.  That might be the solution to carrying these things from month to month.  It's getting tiring finding ways to roll so many.  I can spent 1/3 down,  roll 1/3 into rebates and keep 1/3 for rolling into more +Ups PLUS get a couple gifty type items for giving out later. 
What do y'all think?   Good idea or should I just buy a year's supply of toilet paper or something with them all?





 So if you were starting from 0 +Ups, here is what I would buy this week at Rite-Aid....
First buy 4 cans of sardines for $3.86 OOP.  You'll receive $4 in +Ups back.
Then buy 2 tubes of Colgate Toothpaste....the on sale for $2.99 size.  Use 2 $1/1 ManuQs.  Add in a small filler item(90% Vday candy or something that's about .10¢).  Use your $4 in +Ups to pay.  Some stores will adjust down your +Ups, so you "could" possibly not add a filler item to your $3.98 total and they will adjust your $4 in +Ups down so no OOP.  You'll receive $4 back in +Ups for the 2 toothpastes.
Then see if any of the SCR items available this week in the SCR Directory are things you can use.  Most of them will end up costing .99 after the SCR.  You could save your $4 in +Ups for next week's sale or roll them via a SCR item into cash back.  IE-Get the Comtrex at $4.99 this week.  Spend your $4+Ups plus $.99&tax(or $0 OOP if you have a Q for it) and submit your receipt info. for the $4 SCR on the Comtrex.  By doing this, you spent $4.85+tax OOP and you will get back $4 of it via SCR, so you will be OOP .85+tax and you will have 2 cans of sardines, 2 tubes of toothpaste and a box of Comtrex.
5 items for .85¢ OOP.



When I got back out to my car at Rite-Aid Sunday late afternoon, it was coated in ICE!  I had a nice slide back home.....
The ice storm kept going and going for hours.  We lost power a few times before I decided maybe I should shut down the computer for the duration. 
Yes, I am quick witted like that sometimes.
Before I went to bed the Snunder(Snunder=Snow+Thunder) and Lightning began.


I woke up to this......

Bright sunshine and about 5 inches of snow with an inch of ICE under it.
Who ordered this!!??!!




And the dogs were feeling squirrely.

The beagle with the back problems has decided that jumping up and sleeping in "Daddy's chair" is something she needs to be doing.  So little "Miss Jealousy" chihuahua decides she needs to be in the chair too so she can bark at the beagle.  Doesn't it look like the beagle is pleading with me to "get her off of my chair Mom, puhleeeez!" 


I broke down on Saturday and bought a Netflix membership.  Ok, so it's free the first month.  I love movies but I don't buy them, nor do I go to the movies since I consider both of those huge wastes of my money.   And we don't have any rental places close enough that would entice me to get in a car/go rent a movie/watch movie/get back in a car/return movie before the time limit expired or I owed more money for keeping it.  Plus our library's collection of free rental dvds is miniscule and is mostly made up of Disney drek and kiddie films.  I've seen enough kiddie films to last me a lifetime thankyouverymuch!lol

I can deal with paying $9.99 a month to see all the movies/shows I want without leaving my sofa.
At least until it gets to the point where I have seen everything I want to see or I don't utilize it enough to make it cost effective or everything left to see has to be ordered on dvds they mail me and can't be seen instantly.
This 'lifestyle inflation' will be re-evaluated every month.

I still have no Meal Plan done for the week yet and no clue what I am serving for dinner tonight....it's 4:45pm by the way....
I felt it was more important to watch a film about the history and evolution of Skateboarding with my 15 yr. old instead.
Yah see?....Netflix has already become a suckhole......

So what's up in your corner of the world today?

Sluggy