Frugal Friday....The November 30th Edition

Taking a look around Chez Sluggy, this is what I'd call our frugal wins this past week.......

* I am considering changing my nickname from Sluggy to Money Magnet after all the change I found this week!

On Tuesday while out in a town South of us Hubs and I stopped at Walmart there to look for Xmas lights.  On the way out I found .6¢ on the floor.

Then on Wednesday while crossing the parking lot at Weis I spied this dime on the crosswalk.

Later that day leaving Rite-Aid I saw .23¢ strewn on the little landscaped area by the walkway near the door.
That .39¢ is now safely tucked into my change envelope.  8-)))

*  I hit Weis(PMITA)Markets the day after Thanksgiving for a few Deal items and hit the Pumpkin Clearance foods jackpot........

Lots of pumpkin stuff for $1(though the Pumpkin Jello was .50¢ a box).

*  In the photo above is the Friday Freebie from last Friday-a cup of yogurt.  WOW...what a great freebie. hahaha

*  Hubs wanted a burger on Wednesday so while I was out I used the Burger King app on my phone to get him a Whopper for $1.  BK sent me a digital Q for that.  $1.06 for a Whopper with that Q vs. $4.23 for a Whopper w/out that Q.  Sluggy for the Win! lolz

*  I got an offer a while back from a vendor on Amazon for a free bottle of Turmeric Curcumin(as I had bought a bottle previously from them and they sent me a survey, which I filled out and for giving them feedback they sent me a code for a free bottle).  I redeem that code and received that free bottle this past week.

*  Other than the clearance deals my best buys at the grocery store were these........
Got paid $1 to buy two Febreeze sprays at Weis.
Got 2 Krusteaz mixes(pumpkin clearance)for .50¢ total(after sale, coupon and SavingStar rebate).
Got 2 meat discount sticker marinated pork loins(over 3 lb. total), $18.74 reg. price for $6.48 after sale price and discount sticker.
A better than free package of Cottonelle TP because the cashier didn't' ring one up but pushed the Q through. ;-)

*  Better than free toothbruhses and toothpaste at Rite-Aid....

*  And better than free Rimmel make-up at a different Rite-Aid..........

That's about it from here............

What frugal wins did y'all have this past wek?



Sluggy

Rite-Aid Plunder This Week So Far

This week is the last one to earn the $10 Rite-Aid gift card(the Spend $50 on "Beauty" products/get $10 GC).
There is also a Crest/Oral-B monthly Deal I just saw(ends this week)and some of the $3 on sale Crest toothpaste double dip with this deal and the weekly Crest Deal($3 toothpaste, use $2/1 Q, Get $1 BC making it free-limit 2).
Unfortunately to do a moneymaker overlapping the weekly Crest and the monthly Crest/Oral-B deal you'd need 7 $2/1 Crest toothpaste Qs.....
7 x $3 Crest=$21-$14 Qs=$7 and earn $10 BC back.  But I didn't have 7 of those Qs. 8-(

But if you can find a certain Oral-B toothbrush you can get 4 toothpastes and 2 toothbrushes free after BC earned.
We stopped at a R-A south of here while out shopping on Tuesday and I found the qualifying toothbrushes.

So I did this, part on Tuesday/part on Wednesday.........

2 x Oral-B pro-flex toothbrushes on sale BOGO50%=$9.88
4 x Crest 3D White  toothpaste(Radiant-mild mint)on sale $3=$12.00
SubTotal...$21.88

I used--
2 x $1/1 Oral-B toothbrush ManuQs=$2.00
3 x $2/1 Crest toothpaste ManuQs=$6.00
1 x $2/1 Crest toothpaste L2CQ=$2.00
Coupon Total.....$10.00

$21.88-$10.00=$11.88 paid for with Bonus Cash.
I earned $12 in new BC(2 x $1 wyb $3 Crest toothpastes, $10 wyspend $20 on select Crest/Oral-B)so a .12¢ moneymaker as there is no sales tax here on toothpaste/brushes.

I also found a R-A store on Tuesday with Rimmel makeup on clearance.  There is a Deal(buy 2 Rimmel/Get $5 BC)and the clearance stuff qualifies...woohoo!

I bought 4 items on each of our 3 cards/account.  Clearance prices ranged from .94¢ to $3.49, most were 75% off.
I paid a total of $20.85 for all with sales tax using Bonus Cash.
I earned a total of $30 in new Bonus Cash back so $9.15 moneymaker over 3 cards.

I also bought this stuff on my son's card during the 4-Day sale this week(Wed. to Sat).........

1 x Max Freeze on sale=$7.00
1 x Hydralyte tablets on sale=$6.99
2 x Herbal Essences renew shampoo on sale but 20% Wellness disc. better=$11.66
SubTotal......$25.65

Coupons Used
1 x $2/1 Max Freeze ManuQ=$2.00
1 x $2/1 Hydralyte IPQ(from their website)=$2.00
1 x $5/2 Herbal Essence ManuQ=$5.00
Total....$9.00

$25.65-$9.00=$16.65+.40¢tax=$17.05 paid for with BC
I earned back $11 in new BC($6 Zim's, $5 Hydralyte)and the coupon for the Free $10 Rite-Aid gift card offer printed so I redeemed that for the GC so spent $17.05, earned back $21($11 BC, $10 GC).

The Max-Freeze ended up being a $1 moneymaker, the Hydralyte a .01¢ moneymaker and the Herbal Essence earned me the $10 Beauty GC.
I also applied for a $1 Ibotta cash rebate for the Herbal Essence.

On Friday the 30% off Friends and Family Sale starts at Rite-Aid.  I'll buy more Herbal Essence and Head and Shoulders since it will be even cheaper than the sale price and I should be able to earn another $10 Beauty Deal GC on that card.

Sluggy

Unexpected Buys at Weis Last Friday

Here's some good deals I got at Weis this past Friday........

I went in for.....
* Prego sauce x 4, on sale for $1.69=$6.76.  I had .75¢/2 IPQ that doubled so $3 off=$3.76 for all 4.
* Brown sugar x 2, 50% off on Friday=$1.59.
* Hormel chili x 8, part of the .88¢ ea. when you buy 8 Deal=$7.04
* The Friday Freebie, a cup of Weis yogurt(wow!lol)=Free.

What I found when I went in was lots of pumpkin and/or maple related products cheap so how could I resist?! ;-)
So I also came out with this as well.....
* 2 x big Hunt's natural pudding(not pumpkin but 50% off)=$2.50 both
* 2 x Eagle Brand condensed milk, maple flavor(will be great to make maple fudge!)$1 a can=$2
* 5 x assorted Krusteaz mixes(all pumpkin flavors)$1 a box and I had a $1/2 digitalQ come off=$4 for all 5(these retail for $2.99 to $3.59)
* 2 x Jello pudding(pumpkin).50¢ a box and I used a .50¢ Q=.50¢ for both
* 2 x Febreeze air sprays(harvest pumpkin scent)$1 and a $3/2 digital Q came off= -$1(moneymaker)
* 2 x Life cereal(pumpkin spice)$1.88 each(I used a $1/2 ManQ too)=$2.76 for both
* 1 x Mini-Wheats cereal(pumpkin flavor)$1.88(I used a .50¢/1 Q that doubled)=.88¢

I also bought a container of Nutella, it was $1.99 on Friday and I used a $1/1Q so .99¢ out the door.
The Krusteaz earned me an additional .50¢ rebate on SavingStar as well.

Also bought 4 packs of Cottonelle and Viva towels as they were on a weekend sale for $4.50 each when you bought in groups of two.  I had 4 Qs that each doubled to $1 to use on those 4 items so they should have been $3.50 each out the door. And the register should have printed out a $2 OYNO Catalina(for the 2 Cottonelle packs)but didn't.  Hmmm

After studying my receipt at home, I couldn't make heads or tales of my receipt and the total, until I finally figured out that the cashier didn't ring up one of the Cottonelle packs......but he put through both Cottonelle IPQs AND a digital Q attached to my card which meant I paid $13.50 for 3 paper packs and got $5 in Qs worth of discounts so paid $8.50 for the 4 packs I left the store with(and that exxplained the lack of a Catalina printing).LOLOLZ

A trip like this makes up for all the Qs the cashiers miss on the "bad" trips. ;-)

If you see great deals(that you will use)that are unexpected how likely are you to pick them up?


Sluggy

3 Days of Rite-Aid Pillaging from Black Friday Sales Ad

Last Thursday, Friday and Saturday was the Black Friday Deals at Rite-Aid.  Other than the grocery store, Rite-Aid is the only place I go Black Friday shopping. 8-)

For the purposes of full disclosure, I bought various gift cards on Thursday(along with all the Freebie and near freebie deals after Bonus Cash earned).  The gift cards are ones I would have bought anyway and it's better for me to buy them at Rite-Aid and earned Bonus Cash than buying them at the grocery stores for piddly discounts on gas fill-ups.
  I don't count the price of the gift card spending in my Rite-Aid purchases budget.  The Bonus Cash earned from buying the gift cards is used to "pay" for my Rite-Aid plunder.

No actual cash was used in any of the following transaction, just Bonus Cash.

No point in laying out all the transactions at this point so I'll just do a synopsis of what I got and show photos of all the loot.


On Thursday I bought this on the Daughter's card.....

These 4 Kleenex were .37¢ per box after sale/Q/Bonus Cash earned.
These 2 Colgate toothpaste were -$1.39 for both after sale/Q/Bonus Cash earned.
These 2 Light bulbs were $0 each after sale/Bonus Cash earned/Ibotta rebate.
This 1 Colgate toothbrushes was -.33¢ after sale/In-ad Q/Bonus Cash earned.
These 2 Butterfingers were $0 each after sale/Bonus Cash earned.
These 2 Hair ties were $0 each after sale/Bonus Cash earned.
These 2 pair of ear buds were $0 after sale/Bonus Cash earned.
These 3 boxes of cereal were $1.48 each after sale/Q.
This 1 bag of Coffee was $1.99 after sale/Q/Saving* rebate.

On Thursday I bought this on my card........

These 4 Kleenex were .37¢ per box after sale/Q/Bonus Cash.
These 2 Colgate toothpaste were -$1.75 for both after sale/In-ad Q/stacked ManQ/Bonus Cash earned.
These 2 Light bulbs were -.61¢ each after sale/Bonus Cash earned/Ibotta rebate.
These 2 Colgate toothbrushes were .50¢ each after sale/In-ad Q/stacked ManQ/Bonus Cash earned.
These 4 Butterfingers were .25¢ for all 4 after sale/Q/Bonus Cash earned.
These 2 Hairbrushes were $0 each after sale/Bonus Cash earned.
This pair of ear buds was $0 after sale/Bonus Cash earned.
These 2 packs of Duracell batteries were $2.00 per pack after sale/Qs/Bonus Cash earned.

But I forgot to bring $725 in Qs to use, so I burned $7.25 in Bonus Cash on those 2 transactions and got $7.25 in cash the next day with a "post coupon" transaction.

On Friday I bought this on my daughter's card........

These 2 Blue Diamond nuts were $1.50 each after sale/Q.
These 2 Pepsis were .50¢ each after sale/Q.
These 2 DiGiorno pizzas were $3.00 each after sale/Q.
I also bought 4 packages of Sparkle paper towels(not pictured)for $13.23 total after sale/Qs/Bonus Cash earned. 
These burned more BC than I wanted as my good L2CQ didn't come off and I had to use a .75¢/1 peelie stuck to one of the packages.

On Friday I bought this on my son's card........

These 4 Kleenex were .25¢ per box after sale/Q/Bonus Cash earned.
These 2 packs of Planters were $2.99 per set after sale/Bonus Cash earned.
These 2 Colgate toothpaste were -$1.75 for both after sale/In-ad Q/stacked ManuQ/Bonus Cash earned.
These 2 Light bulbs were -.61¢ each after sale/Bonus Cash earned/Ibotta rebate.
These 2 boxes of K-Cups were $3.74 each after sale/Q.
These 2 bags of coffee were $3.99 after sale/Q.
These 2 bags of Luden's cough drops were .25¢ each after sale/Q/Saving* rebate
These 2 Hair ties were $0 each after sale/Bonus Cash earned.
These 2 pair of ear buds were $0 after sale/Bonus Cash earned.
These 2 Butterfingers were $0 each after sale/Bonus Cash earned.
These 2 packs of Duracell batteries were $2.00 per pack after sale/Qs/Bonus Cash earned.
I also bought a bottle of Pepto-Bismol(not pictured)per Hubs request, which after 20% Wellness discount/In-ad Q/stacked ManuQ cost me $4.43 in BC.

The Kleenex purchase also triggered a $20 Bonus Cash earned on my Allergy Rewards for this card. 8-)))



On Friday I bought this on my card......

These 2 Vera Wang fragrance sets were $8.99 after sale/Bonus Cash earned/Ibotta rebate/Checkout51 rebate(1 set).
These 2 Planters gift packs were $2.99 each after sale/Bonus Cash.
This L'Oreal shampoo was $4.39 after 20% Wellness disc./peelie Q.*counts toward $10 Beauty GC
This Udderly Soft hand cream was $1.00 after sale.*counts toward $10 Beauty GC
These 2 Pantene conditioners were $2.29 each after 20% Wellness disc./Q.*counts toward $10 Beauty GC


On Saturday I bought this on my son's card........

These 3 cereals were $1.18 each after sale/Q.
This 1 men's fragrance gift set was $7.99 after sale/Bonus Cash earned/Ibotta rebate/Checkout51 rebate.
These 2 packs of Duracell batteries were $2.00 per pack after sale/Qs/Bonus Cash earned.
This 1 Neutrogena moisturizer was $1.36 after 20% Wellness Discount/Q/Ibotta rebate. *counts toward $10 Beauty GC
This 1 Neutrogena foam cleanser was $1.61 after 20% Wellness Discount/Q/Ibotta rebate. *counts toward $10 Beauty GC
This 1 Neutrogena face make-up was $2.99 after 20% Wellness Discount/Q/Ibotta rebate. *counts toward $10 Beauty GC
I also bought 2 24 packs of Big Win water on sale at $1.75 each.(not pictured).

In addition to the rebates above I have now earned a $5 Saving* rebate for buying over $25 worth of fragrance sets and an additional $1 Ibotta Bonus rebate for buying 3 qualifying Neutrogena items in this transation.

Lastly, on Saturday I also bought this on my son's card........

These 3 cereals were $2.99 for all 3 boxes after sale/Q//Ibotta rebate.
These 2 bags of Luden's cough drops were $1.25 for both after sale/Q.
This 1 Colgate toothpaste was -.25¢ after sale/In-adQ/stacked ManuQ.

In Total......
* $321.36 in Bonus Cash was used.

* $174.00 in Bonus Cash was earned.
* $6.75 in Saving* rebates was earned.
* $21.30 in Ibotta rebates was earned.
* $4.00 in Checkout51 rebates was earned.
* $7.25 in "Post Coupon" cash was earned.

Bottom line.....I "spent down" $108.06 in Bonus Cash with $13.00 of that being state sales tax($95.06 before tax).
Not bad for $639.15 reg. retail worth of stuff, huh?  ;-)

What did ya'll buy at Rite-Aid during the Black Friday sale?



Sluggy

This Week on the Dining Table

The "Romaine" Edition.........

I LOL over these two memes over the weekend.  I just had to share! 8-)))

Moving On....

Onward to the meal planning!

This is what was planned--

1. Sunday--Apricot glazed Pork Chops, Hawaiian rolls, 2 kinds of tossed Salads, homemade mac and cheese

2. Monday--Leftovers

3. Tuesday--Chicken Enchiladas, Rice, Beans

4. Wednesday--Leftovers

5. Thursday--Turkey, Stuffing, Green Bean Casserole, Lula rolls, Sweet Potatoes, Mashed Potatoes, Glazed Carrots, Cranberry "glop", Pie

6. Friday--Leftovers or Fend for Yourself
7. Saturday--Leftovers or Fend for Yourself

And this is what actually happened--

1. Sunday--Apricot glazed Pork Chops, Hawaiian rolls, 2 kinds of tossed Salads, homemade mac and cheese

2. Monday--Leftovers

3. Tuesday--Chicken Enchiladas, Beans

4. Wednesday--Leftovers

5. Thursday--Turkey, Stuffing, Green Bean Casserole, Lula rolls, Sweet Potatoes, Mashed Potatoes, Glazed Carrots, Cranberry "glop", Pie

6. Friday--Frozen Pizza
7. Saturday--Leftovers or Fend for Yourself

Last week saw 4 nights of home cooked dinners, 3 nights of leftovers/fend for yourself, 0 nights of Eating Out.  3 nights of home cooked really since Friday was frozen pizzas.
A boring "everything cooked as planned" type of week mostly.  Boring can be a good thing.  ;-)

 A flurry of grocery shopping at Giant(mostly for freebies, spent $22.56)and THREE shops at Weis($47.18, 43.60 and $48.77)brought the weekly food spending to $162.11 and brought the November monthly total to $482.94 so far.
The budget has been busted.....wah wah........

I have 4 days left in my shopping month for November.

My savings percentage last week was 59.55%(without Rite-Aid trips)and November's monthly savings total comes to 59.10%(w/out R-A)so far.  Last week's great deals gave my savings rate a hefty boost for the month. 8-)

Leftovers going into this week.....a little turkey, a lot of stuffing, rolls, a bit of carrots, mac and cheese, hawaiian rolls, a couple of halves of sweet potatoes.
Not much left so it's time to start up the cooking again. sigh

Here is this week's "food plan".....

1. Sunday--Leftovers or Fend for Yourself

2. Monday--Hoagies

3. Tuesday--Seafood Buffet

4. Wednesday--Spaghetti and Meatballs

5. Thursday--Chicken Tenders, Taters, Veggie TBD

6. Friday--Leftovers
7. Saturday--Breakfast for Dinner(tentatively)

This week will see 4 new meals cooked, 2 nights of leftovers/FFY, 1 night of Take-Out/Eating Out.  A local sub shop has a deal on hoagies today so we'll go with that and ease back into cooking mode slowly this week.  I cooked up some meatballs on Sunday so Hubs can handle dinner that night as well.

What needs buying for this menu?  I'd like to have some salad greens if I can find any w/the romaine scare.

What is getting fixed and served at your house this week?

Was last week's plan successful, did you go off plan or did you not even plan what was going to be eaten last week?

Any great deals on food at your stores this week? 

Sluggy  

Still Waiting on the Giveaway Winners......

Still waiting for Janet and Angie to claim their prizes.
Come on gals.....what are ya waiting for?!? lolz

Sluggy

And the Winners Are.....

There were 23 valid entries for Giveaway #1.

The winning entry picked is.......

Janet

JanetNovember 23, 2018 at 8:01 PM

I'm thankful for my sister, my only sibling..She and I are fixin to go out on the 3rd annual Miller Girls Mexican vacation. She is smart as a whip and generous to a fault. I LOVE her

Congratulations Janet!!

Please email me with your full name and mailing address and I'll get your box of goodies out to you asap.

There were 24 valid entries for Giveaway #2.

The winning entry picked is.......

Angie

AngieNovember 14, 2018 at 4:47 PM

So very thankful for family. This year we added a grandson to that mix!

Congratulations Angie!!

Please email me with your full name and mailing address and I'll get your box of goodies out to you asap.

Both winners have 48 hours from when this post goes live to contact me or I'll have to draw another winner.

Thanks to all you dear readers who played this month.  I love spreading the Rite-Aid joy around to y'all. lolz

I'll be opening up the December Giveaway the first week of that month so look for it to pop up in the next 10 days or so. 8-)))

Have a good weekend everybody!

Sluggy

Frugal Friday.....the November 23rd Edition

**Today is the last day to enter the 2 Giveaways!  Don't forget to enter. **


Here's this week's look around Chez Sluggy to see what frugal wins we had this week.........


* I turned a fail into a win...

Dollar General had certain gift cards last week on special, including Taco Bell.
$5 off when you bought $25 worth and $10 off when you bought $50 worth.
I bought $100 worth but they didn't ring up $20 off.
With a little patience waiting for the manager to make this right(which he did by  handing me $20 cash)I got my deal.

I promptly took this $20 to the bank to put into our checking account, so I can apply it toward the credit card bill when it comes in next month.  Keeping it and spending it on something else would negate the "deal" I got.
I hope the 20% off select gift cards for BF at Dollar General actually work now.

* I found money!

I found a penny(no photo)this week but for the live of me I can't recall where I found it. ;-)
I also found a dime while waiting at the Burger King drive-thru.  I spied a dime next to the building so while we waited I unbuckled, got out of the car and picked it up. I may have done a small happy dance and waved that dime to the cars behind me before getting back into my car......8-))

Then on Thursday when I ran up to Rite-Aid after getting the turkey into the oven and the rolls were rising I went in to get some freebies and such.  I saw this change sitting in the parking lot behind my car.......

.21¢ came home with me too.  Even though this change was encrusted in rock sale it will still spend just as good as clean change. 8-))

.32¢ in one week.  8-)))

*  I turned another fail into a win........
Keebler crackers were $1.87 a box this past week at Weis.  I cashed in Kellogg's points to get 3 x $1/1 Keebler cracker Qs.(I paid .87¢ a box and then got 3 x .75¢ cash rebates on them at Ibotta so they were .12¢ a box in the end.)  The last link they sent me for the Qs didn't print so I contacted their chat CS.
They refunded 1 Qs worth of points so I could rebuy that Q and also sent me an email with recipes, tips and a link to a $1.25/1 Keebler/Kellogg's/Etc. item that I could print twice.

* I got lots of good food deals this past week..........

 Free items like butter, eggs, potatoes, pumkin and stuffing at Giant

Cheap foods, plus 2 lasagnas(1 free, 1 for .99¢), a cheap Butterball turkey, turkey breast and smoked ham shank.

* I got the Weis Friday Freebie last week.....

A photo of nothing because we ate it before I got around to taking a picture. lolz
It was a loaf of frozen garlic bread.

* I received a rebate in the mail this past week..............

The Alka Seltzer full price rebate on the new Power Max capsules or something like that.
This was even better because the rebate was on the price you paid(after using a coupon)but my cashier had forgotten to put my Q through before she hit the total button on my transaction, so I paid $7.99(instead of $4.99 with the Q)and then she did a "post coupon" and gave me $3 in cash for the Q she forgot.  This meant my receipt showed I paid $7.99 instead of $4.99 so my actual rebate received was better than FREE! woohoo

* My eldest son and his GF came here for a visit for a couple of days last weekend........

We took them to a craft brewery in town nearby but we didn't eat there(other than a few pretzels).  I cooked a nice meal afterwards at home.  We hit up Giant in that town since we were there and found 2 of the freebies too.

So what frugal wins did you have this week?

Sluggy

Giving Thanks on Thanksgiving

***Today is the last day to enter both November Giveaways.  Use the links on the sidebar, thanks!***

I went back through my photo files this morning to find some turkey shots.............

This was from a visit to Fry Brothers Turkey Ranch where we stopped for lunch after picking up Ex-College Boy from school a couple of years back.

And I found this shot...........

From Thanksgiving 2014....we got 8 inches for Turkey Day that year.  Even so the almost foot we got a week BEFORE Thanksgiving last week is still lingering this morning.

I've got the turkey in the oven, the roll dough is rising and I am about to head out the door to(where else?)Rite-Aid to get my freebies.....well maybe not the ear buds because I still have a few pairs of those from previous years.

I hope everyone has a peaceful day.  If you have to be around aggravating just have a drink like me and chill.  ;-)

I'll close with this bit I posted back in 2016........

"Before you dig into your "unzip the pants meal" today, take a moment to acknowledge everything in your world that you have been blessed with, whatever that may be.

Myself I'll be thankful for---
* my level of health given my medical issues and for the resources and medical folks who keep me going.
* my awesome kids though one is far from home today.
* my spouse who puts up with me and loves me.
* that we live below our means which means we can be a financial blessing to ourselves, our family, our friends and our country.
* this blogging platform and all you dear readers out there that has enriched my life.

Now make sure you hug everybody you see today(that's where that drink comes in handy lolz(......
Ok, maybe not that creepy guy in line at the grocery store if you have to run out for emergency supplies this morning. ;-)"

Sluggy

Thanksgiving of Days Gone By

I was reminiscing recently about the Thanksgivings of my childhood.
Since my father only ate a small range of foods, the bounty on our Thanksgiving table was very predictable.

There was always a whole turkey. 'Nuf said.

There was stuffing, not dressing or filling.  The stuffing was always shoved into the bird and a small auxillary pan contained whatever didn't fit into the bird.
A few times my mother put oysters into her stuffing as she dearly loved oysters.  I don't believe she told my father when she put those into the stuffing. ;-)
She didn't do a cornbread stuffing(even though she was a Southern gal through and through)because again, that is something my father wouldn't eat.

There were always mashed potatoes and gravy.  REAL mashed potatoes with lumps. 8-)

And potato rolls made using Great Aunt Ollie's recipe.(My mother actually got her to write down the recipe before she passed as Ollie didn't have any recipes, except in her head.)

Side dishes-There was always rutabaga(known up North here as "orange turnips" by many). My father turned his nose up at rutabaga but with plenty of other foods to partake of, mom got to indulge one of the foods of her youth anyway.
Sometimes there were green beans(I don't recall a green bean casserole affair however), sometimes corn and sometimes sweet potato casserole(no marshmallows!).

There was always jellied cranberry out of a can.  We didn't go in for fancy pants whole berry relish or anything like that.

The preferred drink was unsweetened iced tea, usually still warm from being made, with ice cubes in your glass.  I miss that mix of warm and cold swallows of tea from the glass.  The thought of it takes me back to Thanskgiving.

The dessert was pumpkin pie with a dollop of real whipped cream or Reddi-Whip on top.  Sometimes there was also pecan pie(but generally that only appeared at Christmas).

Everything was made from scratch by my mother(except the jellied cranberry "glop").  The only concessions to convenience foods was the "glop"and sometimes the aerosol whipped cream and the veg may have been out of a can(back before frozen veggies were good).  No canned sweet potatoes, no gravy in a jar and no pre-cubed bread(I still remember having the job of toasting all that bread and tearing it up for the stuffing. lolz)

I guess you could say we always had what's known as a very traditional American Thanksgiving meal with very little variation.

Given Hubs will eat almost anything and we both have a wider palate than my father(most anybody but a 5 year old child has a wider palate), my Thanksgiving menus, though fairly Traditional at it's core, has expended a bit to include different side dishes, more pie types and even smoking the turkey one year(nobody cared for that treatment much here so it didn't ever happen again).  We also trade-off each year between Great Aunt Ollie's potato rolls and Great Aunt Lula's dinner rolls(a recipe mom got from her Aunt Lula after I was grown and passed down to me).

So it's over to you dear readers.......what are your food memories of Thanksgiving?
Let's share our recollections.

On that note, I hope everyone is with the folks they cherish tomorrow(or at least in your thoughts and prayers if circumstances keep you apart)and y'all can celebrate Thanksgiving in the way that gives your life meaning.  8-)))

Sluggy

A Shopping Extravaganza Lately!

I bought 2 boxes of Cheerios on Saturday at Rite-Aid........

They were $1.97 per box and I used a $1/2 GM cereals Q so $2.94 paid in Bonus Cash on son's card(I had some BC expiring on that card soon).
I got $1 cash back on SavingStar for this purchase so these "cost" me .97¢ a box.

Friday was Fantastic Sale Day at Weis(PMITA)Markets.
Here is what I bought..............

3 x Utz Chips were B1G2Free=$4.29
3 x Club crackers minis on sale=$5.58
1 x Tabasco=$3.39
2 x Planters nut crunchers on sale=$5.98
2 x Green Giant veggies on sale=$3.00
2 x Birdseye veggies on sale=$3.98
2 x 1 lb. mushrooms on sale=$3.98 *not pictured*
1 x Johnsonville breakfast sausage on sale=$2.67 *not pictured*
1 x Kaukauna cheese ball on sale=$5.00 *not pictured*
2 x Lay's chips BOGOF=$4.28 *not pictured*
1 x Weis Garlic Bread=Freebie *not pictured*
1 x Stouffer's party lasagna=.99¢ *not pictured*
1 x 18+ lb. Butterball turkey=$9.04 *not pictured*
1 x Pecan Ring Danish 50% Bakery=$3.00 *not pictured*
SubTotal......$55.18

I got $3 off on the 6 Mix 'n Match items(veggies, nuts), $1Q on the Lasagna, $1Q on the Tabasco and 3 x $1.00 Qs for the Club crackers so $8.00 off so I paid $47.18 OOP.

I redeemed 100 points to get the Butterball turkey for .49¢ lb. and 100 points to get a party Stauffer's lasagna for -.01¢.  It was .99¢ after points and the cashier let me use a $1/1 Stouffer's party lasagna Q on it so I got paid 1¢ to take it home. 8-)))

I earned back $9.85 on Ibotta(.50¢ Tabasco, .75¢ Kaukauna cheese, 3 x .75¢ Club crackers, 2 x $1 Planters crunchers, $3 wyb Butterball turkey and 1 Lay's chips, $1.25 Johnsonville bfast sausage, .10¢ any item)and $9 in Bonuses(Turkey Trot, Gravy Train, Nov. Level 2)so totaling $18.85 in cash rebates and another $1 on Checkout51 for buy 2 Club crackers.

Hubs and I also went to Giant today to get the freebies there........

1 x Giant Butter=Free
1 x Doz. Giant Eggs=Free
1 x Box of Giant Stuffing Mix=Free
1 x Can of Giant Pumpkin=Free
1 x 35 ct. Bottled Water=Free *not pictured*
1 x 5 lb. bag of Russet Potatoes=Free
4 x Arizona Tea on sale=$10.00 *not pictured*
2 x Reddi Wip on sale=$4.00 *not pictured*
1 x Goya Jasmine rice=$3.19
3 x bags of Chiles=$5.37
SubTotal.......$22.56

I picked up the tea which was on sale, the Reddi Wip that we need for pumpkin pies and this Giant carries dried chiles and I was totally out so I bought 3 bags to restock my pantry.  I will get back .75¢ on Saving Star for the Goya rice and it tracks toward a $5 Goya cash rebate as well when you spend $25 on Goya.

We also hit Weis in the town Giant is in, since it was nearby and I still had Weis points to spend............

I had enough Weis points to get 3 more Holiday items-another large Lasagna for .99¢, a frozen turkey breast for .49¢ lb. and a smoked ham for .25¢ lb.
I also got a Well Yes! sipping soup which after my doubled coupon cost .17¢, a 4 pack of Bakery muffins which after my $1 coupon and 50% off cost $1.12, 3 x single OJs were $1.49 after my $1/3 Q, 9 x Pure Tea singles were $7.47, 2 x Goya dried pintos were $2.58, 2 x Goya tomato paste were $1.58.
I also did the Mix 'n Match Buy 6/Get $3 off...I got 1 x Dunkin Donuts Creamer, 2 x International Delight Creamers, 3 x Green Giant Veggies.  Those 6 cost me $9.47 after $3 Instant Off and the $1/2 International Delights ManuQ I used.
I also picked up 4 12-packs of Coke at 4 for $12.00.

I'll earn back another $1 on Ibotta and $3 on SavingStar for having now bought $12 worth of Pure Leaf tea singles bottles.
I am about $1.50 away from getting the $5 Goya rebate so I'll pick up another bag of dried beans or some Adobo.

I am now over $400 by about $35 for the month(sigh)but........

* I will have to buy very little food in December(milk, fresh produce).
* I have grown my cash rebates on Ibotta and SavingStar to $329.81 to cash out in Dec. to apply to groceries bought this year.(I am not even counting the Checkout51 since I am nowhere near the $20 cash out threshold.)
* These cash rebates doesn't even count all the refunds and "post coupon" cash I have accumulated in 2018 to also put toward the food bills. ;-)

Sluggy

This Week on the Dining Table

The "What Passes for a High School Education Around Here" Edition.........

Hubs and I went up to Bob's for lunch last Tuesday while we were out shopping at Target.  I snapped this pic of their sign.  Sigh......
I am trying to believe this was put up this way because the store only had one "N" in their signage letter box. lolz

Moving On....

Onward to the meal planning!

This is what was planned--

1. Sunday--Chili w/Beans, Cornbread

2. Monday--Leftovers

3. Tuesday--Sausage, Pierogi, Cabbage

4. Wednesday--Spaghetti, Meatballs, Salad

5. Thursday--Chicken Enchiladas, Rice, Beans

6. Friday--Leftovers of Fend for Yourself
7. Saturday--Homemade Pizza, Salad

And this is what actually happened--

1. Sunday--Chili w/Beans, Cornbread

2. Monday--Leftovers

3. Tuesday--Sausage, Pierogi, Cabbage

4. Wednesday--Leftovers

5. Thursday--I don't remember but it was prolly Leftovers lolz

6. Friday--Leftovers
7. Saturday--Stouffer's Lasagna, Garlic Bread, Salad

Last week saw  nights of home cooked dinners,  nights of leftovers/fend for yourself, 0 nights of Eating Out.  Lots of cooking went on last week. 8-)  The enchiladas spaghetti w/balls didn't happen and they move to this week.

 A flurry of grocery shopping at Target($0), a small Bread Outlet shop($3) and two shops at Weis($52.04 and $54.84) brought the weekly food spending to $109.88 and brought the November monthly total to $320.83 so far.

I have 11 days left in my shopping month for November.

My savings percentage last week was 68.89%(without Rite-Aid trips)and November's monthly savings total comes to 58.87%(w/out R-A)so far.  Last week's great deals gave my savings rate a hefty boost for the month. 8-)

Leftovers going into this week..... goulash, noodles, roast chicken, chili and lasagna.

Here is this week's "food plan".....

1. Sunday--Apricot glazed Pork Chops, Hawaiian rolls, 2 kinds of tossed Salads, homemade mac and cheese

2. Monday--Leftovers

3. Tuesday--Chicken Enchiladas, Rice, Beans

4. Wednesday--Leftovers

5. Thursday--Turkey, Stuffing, Green Bean Casserole, Lula rolls, Sweet Potatoes, Mashed Potatoes, Glazed Carrots, Cranberry "glop", Pie

6. Friday--Leftovers or Fend for Yourself
7. Saturday--Leftovers or Fend for Yourself

This week will see 3 new meals cooked, 4 nights of leftovers/FFY, 0 nights of Take-Out/Eating Out.
The leftover chicken will make an appearance in a small pan of enchiladas(which will also use up my leftover enchilada sauce).  We also have leftovers from Sunday's big meal and after Thanksgiving we'll have enough more leftovers so only 3 days of cooking for me this week....woohoo!

What needs buying for this menu? Nothing really as I have everything I could need here already.  Got the turkey on Friday plus a huge Stouffer's lasagna(the lasagna was free after coupon and points used, and the Butterball turkey was $6.04 after rebate and points used).  I still have enough points to get three more items for free or greatly reduced price with Weis points but the problem is I don't have room in the fridge or freezers for them! Oh dear......whatever will I do?! ;-)

What is getting fixed and served at your house this week?

Was last week's plan successful, did you go off plan or did you not even plan what was going to be eaten last week?

Any great deals on food at your stores this week? 

Sluggy  

Rite-Aid This Week

Bought a few things at Rite-Aid this week, including some gift cards.  I took care of Daughter's birthday and main Christmas gift.  I also bought some Domino's gift cards to use throughout the year and earned Bonus Cash on all that.

As for non-gift card items, this is what I brought on my card(still have expiring BC on it to use up)........

2 x Ensure packs 20% Wellness disc. better than sale price=$17.58
I used 2 x $3/1 Ensure packs Catalina Qs=$6.00 off.
Total was $11.58 paid with Bonus Cash.
I earned $2 in new BC for buying 2 Ensure packs.
rah!
Now I have no BC expiring soon.

Then I bought this on Daughter's card........

2 x Nice 'n Easy hair dye 20% Wellness disc. better than sale price=$13.58
A $3/1 Nice 'n Easy and a $5/2 Nice 'n Easy L2CQ came off so $8 off.
Total was $5.58 +.34¢ tax=$5.92 paid for with Bonus Cash.
I earned back $5 in new BC for buying 2 Nice 'n Easy in 1 transaction and I now have $30.31 toward the $50 needed to earn the $10 R-A gift card.

So I also bought this on Daughter's card........

2 x Bic razors on sale BOGO50%=$7.48
1 x Olay whips on sale=$28.99
SubTotal......$36.47

Coupons Used
1 x $3/1 Bic L2CQ=$3.00
1 x $3/1 Olay L2CQ=$3.00
1 x $2/1 Bic IPQ=$2.00
Coupon Total......$8.00

(I had a second $3/1 Bic L2CQ but it didn't come off so I had to use a $2/1 Q I printed off the internet instead.)

$36.47-$8.00=$28.47 + $1.71 tax=$30.18 paid for with Bonus Cash.
I earned $2 BC back(wyb 2 Bic)and I earned the certificate to get another $10 R-A Beauty gift card on Daughter's card(limit 2 per card/account).
I also have enough spending to send for the $15 off $50 P&G beauty prepaid Visa card now.
rah!
Spent $30.18 in BC earned back $27 in BC/gift cards......works for me.  ;-)

Now I need to go study up for the Black Friday ad which starts this Thursday.  I don't see much in the way of freebies yet......same old, same old like candy bars, ear buds, hair brushes/hair ties, light bulbs and 1 free Colgate toothbrush(if you have the $1/1 L2CQ in your account).  Oh, and there will be free Colgate toothpaste starting on Sunday. all week, with the In-Ad Q and if you also get a Colgate Q in the Sunday inserts.
But not even as many freebies as in previous years I'm afraid. 
The Luden's cough drops will be free if the $1 Ibotta offer is still alive next week(pay $1 at R-A, get $1 cash back at Ibotta.

What are you looking forward to getting at Rite-Aid on the Black Friday ad?


Sluggy

Frugal Friday......the November 16th Edition

Let's see what frugal things happened here at Chez Sluggy this past week........

*  I got the Friday Freebie at Weis last Friday.

It was better than free after I got a .25¢ cash rebate on Ibotta for taking this home! lolz

* I had a snack while out shopping on Wednesday........

I had a winning Monopoly game piece from McDonald's so I used it.  A little Reese's McFlurry for free?  Yes, please!!

* I brought a load of groceries home from Target for free........

This is just some of it.  Used free gift cards to pay(earned with credit card points).  I also earned a $10 Target gift card for "spending" over $50 on food/beverages, and $8.25 in cash rebates on Ibotta/SavingStar.
Win, win, WIN!

*  I found money, three times last week!

 A penny at Weis last Friday.

Two pennies in the Rite-Aid parking lot on Wednesday.

A dime in the Tuesday Morning store on Tuesday.
Hey, it wasn't as epic as the week before's Aldi change find but I'll take it! 8-)))

That's about it for me.

How was your frugal week?  Any wins to report?


Sluggy