This Week on the Dining Table

 The "I Know How to Party" Edition...

Sorry this post is so late in the day but I've been sleeping as I started off the week Sunday evening by having a Sleep Study at the hospital. Nobody can sleep any length of time doing one of these for I've been catching up.

Go me!

My oxygen concentrator, which I owned outright, puffed out it's last O2 and went to the great concentrator graveyard in the sky back in October.  Since it had been over 8 years since my full blown study, insurance wouldn't let me do a home sleep study to see if I still need a concentratr.  As I haven't used oxygen with my BiPAP machine for almost 4 full months with no ill effect, I suspect I really don't need the oxygen support any longer(having lost 120 lbs. since 2013 probably has a lot to do with it).

But I bet insurance decides I still need a concentrator and wants to rent me one at an exorbitant rate per month anyway.  It's a good thing we've met our deductibles or this would have been a very expensive exercise in futility of not sleeping.

Glad it's over and bet your bottom dollar that I refuse to pay to rent a new concentrator!

Onward to the meal planning!

Here's what was planned......

1. Sunday--Roast Chicken, Stuffing, Roast Carrots, Potatoes

2. Monday--Pizza, Salad

3. Tuesday--Butternut Squash Ravioli w/Béchamel, Salad

4. Wednesday--Chicken Salad
5. Thursday--Leftovers? or No Clue

6.  Friday--Chicken and Dumplings w/Carrots

7. Saturday--Leftovers?

And here's what actually happened........

1. Sunday--Roast Chicken, Stuffing, Roast Carrots, Potatoes

2. Monday--Pizza, Salad

3. Tuesday--Turkey, Mashed Taters, Mixed Veggies, Brussels Sprouts

4. Wednesday--Leftover Beef Stir-Fry w/Noodles
5. Thursday--Leftovers

6.  Friday--Leftover Roast Chicken, Stuffing, Roast Veggies

7. Saturday--Mac and Cheese w/Broccoli

Nothing very exciting here.  Used up a few of those hella inexpensive frozen meals I found at Walmart last week so moving meals not fixed because of that to this week.

What got put into the freezer last week....

*  8 tv dinners

*  1 bag of fake sausage patties

*  2 boxes of fish filets 

What got taken out of the freezer and used...

*  2 turkey tv dinners

*  a pizza

* 1 mac and cheese/broccoli tv dinner.ll

I spent $55.89 on food/toiletries/HBA the last week. This brings our food/toiletries/paper goods Total to $321.18 for January.  

There are 0 shopping days left in January.  

I've earned $316.48 on Ibotta in January.

I've earned $5.39 on Checkout51 in January.

I've earned $28.50 on Coupons dotcom/Paypal in January.

I've earned 15,974 points($15.97) from shopping on Fetch in January.

I earned 2,255 Kicks($9.02)from food shopping on Shop Kick in January. 

I've earned 2,019 SB($20.19) from food shopping on Swag Bucks in January.

I've earned $0 from food shopping on Tada in January.

That's $350.37 in rebates(not counting the Shop Kick/Swag Bucks/Tada/Fetch)on $321.18 in grocery spending so in reality it's -$29.19 spent after the 3 rebate apps I count.  

rah...

My savings percentage for the last week was 80.55%(without "regular" Rite-Aid trips)and the monthly savings total for January comes in at 67.39% so far(w/out R-A). 

Leftovers going into this week.....Beef Noodle Stir-Fry, Roast Chicken, Brussel Sprouts

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

1. Sunday--I didn't eat(see above), don't know what Hubs had

2. Monday--Chicken and Dumplings w/Carrots

3. Tuesday--Beef and Mushroom Stroganoff, leftover, Brussels Sprouts, Rice

4. Wednesday--Fish, Cole Slaw
5. Thursday--Butternut Squash Ravioli w/Béchamel, Salad

6.  Friday--Homemade flatbread Pizza, Veggie TBD

7. Saturday--Leftovers

What do I need to buy to fix everything on this menu?  Nothing really except dog food for the puppies.  The freezers and fridge are packed to the gills now.  February will be a pantry challenge....at least will start off as one. ;-)

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?  Other than that Walmart frozen meals surprise I've gotten no good meat/seafood deals since last Fall.

Sluggy

  

Ibotta Haul on Thursday & More Rebate on Saturday

 I had two bonuses to knock out so I used a Walmart gift card and did most of the rebates to get me there......

While I could have finished the Bonus with less OOP I decided since I had a free gift card to use, I'd get stuff we needed/could use-shaving cream(I had given my whole stockpile of this away somehow leaving Hubs with none), an almond milk for Hubs, 2 cottage cheese to make a lasagna, some healthier pasta made with cauliflower, my raisin bread I usually have for breakfast so I can take my a.m. meds with something in my stomach, a yogurt, Knorr rice sides(for Mexican dinners), 2 protein bars for when I'm out running errands so I am not tempted to stop and get fast food.  The Pita chips and onion soup mox were splurges and weren't anywhere near free after rebates.  The vitamins are useful.  The body wash was bought at Rite-Aid(which didn't cost me anything OOP and I had a Q for it too).

The best thing was finding 3 different Revlon make-up items on clearance which were free or moneymakers after rebates.  With rebates after my gift card everything cost me $15.20 w/sales tax.  Then I submitted the Revlon and the One A Day vitamin items to Coupons dotcom and earned back $13.00 in rebates making my OOP for everything $2.20.  I also got $2.92 worth of Fetch Pts. so counting that everything was free(but I don't count Fetch until I cash out for a gift card). 8-))

I got two Sally Hansen nail gloss at R-A on a free gift card so earned the last $5 Bonus + 2 x $1 for the SH so I am $7 more in rebates making all the above and the Sally Hansen cost -$4.80!!

Oh and I saw someone used my Ibotta referral code as I now have 4 more of the Freebies on my account.  So THANK YOU to RACHEL at One Day At A Time for using the code.  I hope you get all 5 of the freebies too!!

Sluggy 

Frugal Friday...the January 28th Edition

 So here are a few of the frugal-ish things that happened here this past week.......

*   No food waste so far. ;-)  

*  I had a $5 free scrip for Kohl's for my birthday and used it on Wednesday.  I also spent another $3+ from a merchandise credit I had and bought 3 items and didn't spend any cash monies.  Sorry but I can't show a photo of the items as the recipients may well read this. ;-)

*  I did a small amount of Walmart this week too.

$6.50 for all these frozen food items! Insane........ plus a little bit of Ibotta I did at Walmart to hit a bonus.(6 items I think.)
This week Ibotta has 5-6 free items if you sign up or have someone sign up under your referral code.  Mine is MKAAXA.  I haven't gotten any referrals so I only got the free pizza offer so far. 8-(

*  I did a couple of Rite-Aid transactions this week.......

In between theses two trips Rite-Aid pissed me off something fierce! ;-)

*  While I was at that second R-A on Wednesday I got gas at a place that 88% ethanol gas for $3.24.  $3..24 is unheard of around here!  $3.44 with that 5 cent discount we get at Sunoco is the lowest in our town.

*   I found money!

Found this penny under the Catalina machine at my R-A on Tuesday when I supposedly got all my gift cards "fixed". hahaha

I found this 2 cents at the drive-thru on Wednesday when I was out long time and needed an iced tea.  There was a third penny by I couldn't reach it without falling out of the car. lolz

This penny was found under a rack on a rare stop at Target looking for clearance for Xmas presents on Wednesday as well(I don't think I've ever been in this Target come to think about it!).  I had to dislodge this penny as it was stuck to the floor, then scooped it up for my money finds.

Total Found in last Week...... .04¢
Total Found This Year......$1.87

Cracking the $2 mark isn't looking doable for January unless I hit Aldi in the next few days and score a quarter. 8-(

That's about all I've got for this week.

Any frugal wins in your neck of the woods?  Let's hear all about them!

And have a good weekend and stay warm!  It's been snowing all day here.... 8-(

Sluggy 

Rite-Aid Haul This Week & Rite-Aid Woes(Rant)

 First the haul, done on two cards and using the $10 off wyb $50 coupon.........

Everything from the Airwick warmer to the right was one transaction.

I spent $33.55 between Bonus Cash and gift cards and earned back $34 in new BC(the Nexxus is double dipping for a monthly deal and a weekly deal).  I also submitted the Revlon eye palette to Ibotta and got $3 in rebates back on that.

So the other 3 Nexxus, the 2 hair colors(on clearance)and the 4 Baby Ruth bars were my other card's transaction.  I spent $35.81 in BC and gift cards on that transaction and earned back $38 in new BC.

I also earned $2.00 in Swag Bucks for buying the Baby Ruths.

Rah.

Now the difficulties..............

I had a $5/2 Clairol IPQ which refused to come off saying no matching item but clearly there were TWO matching items.  The shift manager said to put in the higher of the two clearance prices for those hair colors for the price and the register took the Q....and cheated me out of .61¢ on that transaction.  My total "should" have been .61¢ lower than $35.81 or $35.20.

But that .61¢ gip is the least of my Rite-Aid problems right now.

I had amassed 12 R-A gift cards in 2021 from various promotions, most of them $50 in value and a couple worth $60.

Lately in 2022, I've been attempting to spend them and 9 times out of 10 when I slide them/scan them they don't work saying, "Bad Card Read, Try Again."  And no matter how many times I try swiping them I still get that message.  Some times a gift card will work once or perhaps twice if I don't spend the whole thing the first time and then that gift card will no longer scan.  And usually if it's not a manager working the register the cashier just looks at me like a deer in the headlights and says, "Your card doesn't work.  You have to pay another way."

Well....DUH!  You work here, you figure out what to do!!  It's ultimately MY problem, but come on Rite-Aid, FIX YOUR  DAMN GIFT CARDS!!!

Last week was the final straw when I went to a R-A in my regular rotation and pulled out a not been used before R-A gift card and I got the "bad card read, try again" message.  So I pulled out my phone and called R-A to get the balance on the card, which was $50 as expected.  We then transferred to Customer Service and the cashier transferred my $50 balance onto a new gift card and I attempted to swipe it with the CS person still on the line and it gave the "bad card read" message wouldn't work.  So the cashier took a new R-A off the rack and transferred and again, transfer the $50 onto this different gift card.  I tried to swipe that one, it beeped like it was going through, the cashier hit her button and she got the message, "This card is expired."

WTF?!?!

If you know Rite-Aid you know that THEIR GIFT CARDS NEVER EXPIRE!!!

WTF WTF WTF??

At this point the CS person had hung up on us(I think she was feeling overwhelmed by the situation and couldn't handle it anymore).  So I called back and had to go through everything so far with a new victim

CS person. So the shift manager came up and she grabbed another new gift card off the rack and AGAIN transferred that $50 onto yet another gift card.  While this was going on the first CS person called back on the other R-A phone line.  I tried the THIRD new gift card, it beeped but said the card was expired again when the cashier hit the register button.  The first CS person got in touch with the accounting dept. and they said the gift cards this store was sent were bad and to pull them all off the shelf.  I got on the line and said, "So what do I do now?  I have $50 held hostage on an "expired" gift card and I can't use it!!  CS person said I can put that $50 on your Wellness card as Bonus Cash to which I said no way!  BC expires in 30 days and I may not want to use it all within 30 days, I want my money!   She said she can't send me my money back and I'd have to go  to another R-A with working gift cards and have that $50 transferred onto a fourth gift card! (And hope that one worked correctly I might add.)

So on Tuesday I went to my R-A with a handful of non working gift cards(plus my "expired" gift card)and had the Asst. Manager transfer all of them onto new cards.  Corporate wouldn't let her transfer the funds off the "expired" gift card.  Instead they wanted my name and mailing address and phone number and they are going to send me a new gift card in the mail for that one.  And I am not holding my breathe on that!!

So on Wednesday when I went to another R-A in my rotation and bought the Nexxus, the hair coloring and candy bars I used Bonus Cash on that card, $4.30 on a working card I had used before that was STILL working, then I tried one of the new transferred "supposedly working" gift cards and it beeped and but showed it was expired! 

WTF!?@#%$%$&@$@#%^

So I tried a different card and the last $6.51 went through.

Now I have 4 gift cards that "supposedly" work, 1 that is expired and another one that was expired that Corporate is replacing via the mail.

I must say that dealing with this situation has been a clsterf%ck for me and stresssful not knowing if my gift card will work at the register for months now.  And being someone with a chronic condition where I need to avoid stress in order not to have it flare up this is not a good situation.

We are looking to move in the next year or two and one of my criteria was to move to an area of the country that has Rite-Aid drugstores.

After this stressful  adventure that criteria is no longer on the table!  Once these gift cards are spent(IF I CAN SPEND THEM!)I will think long and hard before I shop at Rite-Aid drugstores again and you can bet I will NEVER buy another RITE-AID GIFT CARDS AS LONG AS I LIVE!!!

You earn your credibility with your customers by fixing your mistakes, not by making situations worse for your customers.  The way this situation has played out has driven away one of your loyal customers.

Do something Rite-Aid.  Don't keep giving me gift cards that don't work.

FIX IT!!!

Fed Up

Sluggy

I Hit It Lucky!

 I went to Walmart Tuesday to finish 2 Ibotta Bonuses(Field Goal and Mid Week)on 8 rebates.  When I went to leave and check-out I passed by the freezer area and spied a bunch of clearance on a freezer end unit.  .50¢ for each item.  Check it out......

I got....

4 x Healthy Choice meals

2 x GV Turkey w/Mashed Potatoes

2 x Tai Pei Beef and Broccoli

2 x Scott & Jon's Mac and Cheese w/Broccoli

2 x GV Beer Battered Fish boxes

1 x Gardein Sausage Breakfast Patties

$6.50 for all this....rah me!  Well I put this on a free Swag Bucks gift card to really it was all free in that way. 8-)))

Maybe not the healthiest food but for .50¢ a great option for those times we need a quick meal.  Hubs won't eat the fake sausage but I'll use it. ;-)

Sluggy

January Giveaway Winner

 So here's what was in the January Giveaway box............

And I just had to laugh when Random dotOrg picked comment #2 to win.............

KIM!

Out My windowJanuary 15, 2022 at 4:21 PM

Okay, need those peppermint patties please.

Congratulations Kim.  Please email me your full mailing address within 48 hours of this post going live on the blog.

Thanks to everyone who played along and I'll have another Giveaway coming up in February. 8-)))

Sluggy

This Week on the Dining Table

***Due to Technical Difficulties(danged weather and internet!)I didn't pick a Giveaway Winner yesterday.  I'll be back later today and do that so stay tuned........***

 The "The Birthday Week is Over" Edition...

It was a lowkey affair this year.  Hubs bought a cake and we still have half of it left so come on over it ya want a piece! lol  We went out to the only open Chinese Buffet restaurant left here(thanks Covid!)for lunch and then Hubs drove me to a new-to-me Walmart and a Rite-Aid on my regular rotation of RAs so I could finish my Ibotta Bonus.  We are just party animals, no?

My birthday coincides with the Feast Day of St. Agnes(who died a martyr's death because she would not marry).  First by being burned at the stake, and when that didn't work, then being beheaded.  Just like me and my Birthday buddy, Rasputin, we are/were all hard to kill. *snort*  St. Agnes Day is also said to be the coldest day of the year and boy, was it ever here!!  We had 3 snow days last week.

Onward to the meal planning!

Here's what was planned......

1. Sunday--Leftover Beef Pie

2. Monday--Fend for Yourself as I am not feeling well

3. Tuesday--Butternut Squash Ravioli w/Béchamel, Salad

4. Wednesday--Homemade flatbread Pizza, Salad
5. Thursday--? Hubs' night to cook

6.  Friday--Beef & Veggie Stir-fry, Rice

7. Saturday--More Leftovers?

And here's what actually happened........

1. Sunday--Leftover Beef Pie

2. Monday--Fend for Yourself as I am not feeling well

3. Tuesday--Don't remember so it must have been forgettable

4. Wednesday--Don't remember so it must have been forgettable
5. Thursday--I made Hubs Spaghetti and Meatballs, I didn't eat due to the big lunch out

6.  Friday--Lunch out at Chinese Buffet(no dinner), Cake

7. Saturday--Beef & Veggie Stir-Fry w/Noodles

Nothing very exciting here.  When it's so cold here I don't feel like cooking.  Used a free gift card to get Applebee's on shot night and paid for Chinese take-out this week too and I don't care because it was my birthday week and I didn't want to cook so there...pphhhhtttt!

What got put into the freezer last week....

*  a Pizza

*  a small London Broil

*  a whole Chicken

What got taken out of the freezer and used...

*  a handful of Meatballs

* 1/2 bag of stir-fry veggies

*  a small London Broil

I spent $147.15 on food/toiletries/HBA the last week. This brings our food/toiletries/paper goods Total to $265.29 for January so far.  It would have been about $35 lower except at that new-to-me Walmart, the price scanner gun at my register was broken so I couldn't use some digital gift cards. 8-((

There are 7 shopping days left in January.  

I've earned $245.12 on Ibotta in January.

I've earned $5.39 on Checkout51 in January.

I've earned $15.50 on Coupons dotcom/Paypal in January.

I've earned 17,221 points from shopping on Fetch in January.

I earned 2,105 Kicks from food shopping on Shop Kick in January. 

I've earned 1,946 SB from food shopping on Swag Bucks in January.

I've earned $0 from food shopping on Tada in January.

That's $266.01 in rebates(not counting the Shop Kick/Swag Bucks/Tada/Fetch)on $265.29 in grocery spending so in reality it's -.72¢ spent after the 3 rebate apps I count.  

rah...

My savings percentage for the last week was 56.28%(without "regular" Rite-Aid trips)and the monthly savings total for January comes in at 61.97% so far(w/out R-A). 

Leftovers going into this week.....Beef Noodle Stir-Fry, Spaghetti and Meatballs

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

1. Sunday--Roast Chicken, Stuffing, Roast Carrots, Potatoes

2. Monday--Pizza, Salad

3. Tuesday--Butternut Squash Ravioli w/Béchamel, Salad

4. Wednesday--Chicken Salad
5. Thursday--Leftovers? or No Clue

6.  Friday--Chicken and Dumplings w/Carrots

7. Saturday--Leftovers?

What do I need to buy to fix everything on this menu?  I may need milk but that's it.

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

  

Frugal Friday....the Birthday(Jan. 21st)Edition on January 22nd

First off, thanks to everyone who wished me a Happy Birthday or sent messages to cheer me out of the winter doldrums.  I swear with this cold weather I am feeling every one of my XXX years old. lolz  And here's to you, all you other January babies out there!

So here are a few of the frugal-ish things that happened here this past week.......

*   No food waste so far. ;-)  Not much cooking either and eating leftovers happened as always.

*  I used my free Birthday Burger coupon at Red Robin on Thursday.  I pulled what my daughter use to when we'd go out as a family; I got the most expensive one on the menu. lol  It sort of backfired on me though as it wasn't as good as the burger I usually get there. It was still yummy and FREE! ;-)

*  I did a couple of Rite-Aid transactions this week.......

Nothing OOP, earned $6 in Bonus Cash back and $7 in Ibotta(Oral B, Glide, Twist, 2 x Jergens).

*  I did a fair amount of Walmart this week too.

2 trips(2 different Walmarts)and some offers reset.  Missing from photo are a tin of Nivea men's cream,
a whole Perdue chicken, 3 Hallmark cards, Penetrex muscle reliever, 4 bags of Green Giant Riced/Spiraled veggies, a bottle of Fairlife milk and a Freschetta frozen pizza.

This week Ibotta has 5-6 free items if you sign up or have someone sign up under your referral code.  Mine is MKAAXA.  I haven't gotten any referrals so I only got the free pizza offer. 8-(

Anyway, I also bought a bag of shredded cheese at Weis(PMITA)Markets for $2.50 so my Grand Total Spent for Ibotta items was $79.02 after coupons and gift cards used.(The scanner gun at the last Walmart yesterday was broken so I couldn't use more gift cards from my phone.)
I earned back $63.44 in Ibotta rebates and bonuses for the week, making my OOP $15.58 after Ibotta.  I earned $9.48 on Coupons dotcom and Checkout51 making it $6.10 OOP.  I also earned .31¢ on Fetch, $3.40 on Shop Kick and $6.15 on Swag Bucks(but I don't count those until I cash out for gift cards).

I also found a few clearance deals at Walmart, $1 for Turkey Broth and 100 count boxes of tea bags, 2 bags of Smartfood and 2 Family size boxes of Cheerios(not pictured)for Hubs.

*   I found money!

Found this 12¢ at the entrance outside of my Rite-Aid on Monday.

Found this penny by the second register at my R-A on Wednesday.

Total Found in last Week...... .13¢
Total Found This Year......$1.83

It would be nice to crack the $2 mark for January but probably won't happen. ;-)

That's about all I've got for this week.

Any frugal wins in your neck of the woods?  Let's hear all about them!

And have a good weekend and stay warm!!

Sluggy 

One More Day.....

 And no I'm not referencing the musical "Les Miserables" song.  It's one more day until my Birthday! 8-)

I've been feeling rather punky and maudlin lately.  Don't want to  do anything other than sleep, watch YouTube while I know I have tons I need to do.  After Xmas doldrums?  Winter "I hate the cold" doldrums?  Pandemic fatigue?  Pissed off at insurance new year/new deductible crap? Who knows.  I just want to hibernate and avoid everything.  So tell me something to cheer me up! ;-)

Sorry if I haven't been putting anything worthwhile on the blog lately.  I haven't been accomplishing much in real life either. sigh

So I'll post Frugal Friday tomorrow and then I am taking off at least the weekend from the blog.  I'll be back to post the Giveaway Winner on Sunday of course.  Don't forget to enter the Giveaway by Saturday at 11:59pm ET.  

While 2021 was ok for us I don't feel like I'm living my best life right now.  I have high hopes that 2022 will see us emerge from whatever and give us reasons to thrive and keep going.

Sluggy

This Week on the Dining Table

 The "Living In Suburbia" Edition...

This flyer(wrapped in plastic)arrived on our driveway a couple of months before Christmas.  Someone around here evidently has a full fledged business designing/installing/taking down your Holiday Light Displays.

I was tempted to call for my free estimate just to see how outrageously expensive it would be to have someone throw lights on your house and then come take them down.

I just don't get this whole "industry" of having your house/yard visible from outer space sort of thing.  If you can't put up a few strings of lights yourself and call it a day then don't do it. ;-)  To pay someone else to do this is just unnecessary.

Onward to the meal planning!

Here's what was planned......

1. Sunday--Chicken Parm, Baked Sweet Potato Wedges

2. Monday--Butternut Squash Ravioli w/Béchamel, Salad

3. Tuesday--Leftovers

4. Wednesday--Homemade flatbread Pizza, Salad
5. Thursday--? Hubs' night to cook

6.  Friday--Some sort of soup or stew

7. Saturday--?

And here's what actually happened........

1. Sunday--Chicken Parm, Baked Sweet Potato Wedges

2. Monday--Fend for Yourself

3. Tuesday--Cheese Ravioli, Salad

4. Wednesday--Beef Pie
5. Thursday--Applebee's out

6.  Friday--FFY

7. Saturday--Chinese take-out

Nothing very exciting here.  When it's so cold here I don't feel like cooking.  Used a free gift card to get Applebee's on shot night and paid for Chinese take-out this week too.

What got put into the freezer last week....

*  Not a thing(other than Xmas ham)

What got taken out of the freezer and used...

*  Ravioli

*  Breaded Chicken Patties

*  Ground Beef

I spent $62.64 on food/toiletries/HBA the last week. This brings our food/toiletries/paper goods Total to $118.14 for January with the month slightly more than half over.

There are 14 shopping days left in January.  

I've earned $187.65 on Ibotta in January.

I've earned $.88 on Checkout51 in January.

I've earned $8.00 on Coupons dotcom/Paypal in January.

I've earned 17,221 points from shopping on Fetch in January.

I earned 1,305 Kicks from food shopping on Shop Kick in January. 

I've earned 1,329 SB from food shopping on Swag Bucks in January.

I've earned $0 from food shopping on Tada in January.

That's $196.53 in rebates(not counting the Shop Kick/Swag Bucks/Tada/Fetch)on $118.14 in grocery spending so in reality it's -$78.39 spent after the 3 rebate apps I count.  

rah...

My savings percentage for the last week was 67.76%(without "regular" Rite-Aid trips)and the monthly savings total for January comes in at 67.28% so far(w/out R-A). 

Leftovers going into this week.....

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

1. Sunday--Leftover Beef Pie

2. Monday--Fend for Yourself as I am not feeling well

3. Tuesday--Butternut Squash Ravioli w/Béchamel, Salad

4. Wednesday--Homemade flatbread Pizza, Salad
5. Thursday--? Hubs' night to cook

6.  Friday--Beef & Veggie Stir-fry, Rice

7. Saturday--More Leftovers?

What do I need to buy to fix everything on this menu?  Nothing.  I got it covered(except maybe Hubs' night to cook).  The squash ravioli and homemade flat bread pizza carry over to this week since they didn't happen last week.

Ibotta this week?  Still not decided.

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

  

Walmart & Later Rite-Aid This Week Toward 2 Ibotta Bonuses

 This is what came home with me from a quick trip to Rite-Aid on Thursday and 2 trips during the week to Walmart. I wanted to finish the $10 half the month Bonus and the $5 Weekend Warrior.

I didn't necessarily get the cheapest stuff(and I bought multiples on some items even though that didn't help me reach a Bonus....it was just stuff we wanted and use mostly.

Starting from the right, the Air Wick packs were free with a coupon but not an Ibotta item(the Free warmer Qs work on the warmer/single refill packs.  The Popcorn Indiana w/the fudge drizzle is wonderful(I could have gotten a smaller bag for the same rebate and less OOP but why!?), the Smoldering Eyes Almay eye palette was attaching to Two rebates(eye and face ones)so a slight moneymaker after 2 rebates and I got the limit of 2.  The dark chocolate w/nuts Godiva bars were BOGO after rebate and I love them! The Zantac(25 ct.)was $2.72 after $3 Q and $3 rebate and it's something I use on occasion.  The 2 Lysol wipes were $2.48 each, with my .50¢ Q and .50¢ rebate made them $1.48 each.  I also bought a Lysol toilet cleaner(cheapest Lysol item that qualified)as I was pennies away from a $5 rebate on Fetch even though there was no Ibotta rebate on it. ;-)

The Nivea lotion had a $2.50 rebate and I had a $2Q as well.  The fudge dipped Oreos had a $1 each rebate and I used a .75¢/2 Q.  The Quaker Protein oatmeal packets had a .50¢ rebate, the Thomas' raisin bread had a $1.00 rebate.

The Bic razor had no rebate but gave me overage to cover other items with that $4 Q.  There was a Cheerios .25¢ rebate and it worked on the $1 cups.  The Welch's diet juice was a Shop Kick deal where I earned back $2.84 in pts. and the juice cost me $2.78.  The Good Thins crackers had a $1 rebate, The 2  Kotex packs were free after Qs and $2 rebates on each, and the Hills Bros. cappuccino had a .75¢ rebate.

The packet of tuna had a .25¢ rebate, the Kraft mac and cheese had a .35¢ rebate, the Trident gum was BOGO at $1.20 and the Celestial Seasonings tea box had a .75¢ rebate(plus I had a .55¢ Q.  The Breakstone cottage cheese doubles had a .50¢ rebate, the bottle of Snapple had a .25¢ rebate, the Hungry Jack had a $1 rebate(plus I had a $1 Q), the Sweet Baby Rays had a $1 each rebate(didn't need 2 but the price was good after rebate), and the Stur water flavoring was BOGO plus there were 2 of the same rebate so it qualified for both making them totally free and giving me 2 rebates.

The only Rite-Aid buys were the Got2Be products on $1.92 clearance(paid for with Bonus Cash)that gave me 3 x $1.50 in Ibotta rebates.

Not in the photo are a Yoplait yogurt and a Lactaid sour cream both gotten at Walmart(a .25¢ and $1.25 rebate respectively), another Got2Be item($1.50 rebate)and 3 Twist hair products(3 x $3 rebates and again, bought at R-A with BC).

I earned $82.70 on Ibotta for all this.

I paid OOP $23.39 after coupons and free gift cards. so a $59.31 moneymaker.

Bad weather is heading in later today so I'll be sitting my butt home for few days at least and not doing Ibotta for awhile. ;-)

Sluggy

Giveaway 2022 January....Come & Enter!

Who's ready for the First Sluggy's Boring Blog Box Giveaway for 2022?!?

Let's take a look at what is in the Giveaway Box this month........

1 x Whole Blends shampoo

1 x Simple face cleanser

1 x Secret deodorant
1 x Airwick plug in

1 x 2 pack Airwick Scents

1 x Vicks Pure Zzzs shower tablets

1 x Daylogic make-up remover

1 x Colgate toothpaste

1 x Tide cleaning wipes

1 x Almay mascara

1 x Cover Girl concealer(medium)

1 x L'Oreal lipstick #297 red passion

1 x Rimmel Black Brow brush and pencil

1 x Almay eye cream lunar disco(blue)

1 x Gide dental floss

1 x Alka-Seltzer gum

2 x Butterfinger candy bars

8 x York peppermint patties

Close up shots of these goodies.....

Depending on where you shop, the winnings have a reg. retail value of approximately $70-$80.

Here's how this is going to work.....

* The giveaway is open to ALL readers, previous winners or not.

* There is a limit of ONE ENTRY PER PERSON PER DAY.  Come back each day to enter again.

* Only VALID entries will be posted.  A Valid entry is a limit of one per day and I MUST HAVE VALID CONTACT INFORMATION FOR YOU(either you are on the Giveaway Contact List which I maintain, your comment is connected to a Google/Blogger profile which links to your email address or you email me directly(my email is in the side bar on the Blog)your email address.

IF YOU ENTER THE GIVEAWAY AND DON'T SEE YOUR COMMENT It's because I can't get to my computer until later this month.

From all the VALID entries I receive I'll pick a winner at random and the winner has 48 hours from when the post goes live to contact me with their full mailing address.

In your entries I'd like to hear about how you 

If you are on my Giveaway emails list just leave a comment and your name(with last name initial please)to enter. If you aren't on the Giveaway emails list make sure you leave your email in your comment OR email me your email privately after you leave a comment(my email is in the side bar area under "About Me").
I'll leave this giveaway open until January 22th Saturday at 11:59 pm Eastern Time.  I'll  pick and post the winner on January 23rd, Sunday.

*Please note these rules*
I'll post the name/ID of the winners on this blog on  and those persons have 48 hours from the time stamp on that post to contact me privately via email(my email addy is listed on my "About Me" page, as well as on my side bar).

Disclaimer--This giveaway is open to those with mailing addresses within the US only.  As the cost of postage to foreign countries has gotten too high I am sorry to say I can no longer afford to mail boxes outside the US.  These giveaways are not sponsored by any companies.  I pay for it all(the cost of items given away and the postage to mail it all)out of my own pocket.

***PLEASE NOTE***

Please make sure there is a way for me to contact you in your comment.

If you're not a registered Blogger User with YOUR CONTACT INFORMATION on your User page, please put your email addy in your comment or email me your email addy privately when you leave a comment so I can get a hold of you. If your Blogger associated user profile is a GOOGLE one make sure your email info is linked to your profile.

So let's get this Giveaway started. Good luck to everyone!!!

Sluggy

Frugal Friday....the January 14th Edition

So here are a few of the frugal-ish things that happened here this past week.......

*   No food waste so far. ;-)  Not much cooking either and eating leftovers happened as always.

*  I did a couple Rite-Aid transactions this week.......

Purposely spending down the Bonus Cash and converting what I can through Ibotta back into cash monies. 

*  I had 3 post coupons at Rite-Aid early in the week.........

1 x $2

2 x $1

Total of $4 in my Post Q/Refund envelope for 2022.

*  I made some returns at Rite-Aid too later in the week.......

$1.79(though the cashier gave me $1.80).  She botched the transaction right before and charged me for 3 of an item instead of two so she owed me this back.

$4.99 for a bottle of mouthwash(same cashier gave me $5.00 instead)  I'm thinking she doesn't like dealing with coinage. lol

And I returned a deodorant Thursday night and got a refund of $5.71.  I also returned two candy bars but those gave me BC back on my card.  Sometimes I get BC back and sometimes cash.....I never can figure out which. lol

*  I stayed home 4 of the last 7 days so I didn't spend anything then. Went out to R-A(of course), Walmart and Aldi when I did go out.  R-A to spend BC, Walmart to do Ibotta rebates and use gift cards and Aldi for eggs and bread as they are the lowest price in town on those.

*   I found money!

All 3 of these pennies under the candy racks by the register.

I went to Aldi on Thursday and saw scads of shopping carts un-corralled so I corralled 2 of them and got .50¢.

Then when I was leaving I handed over my cart to a lady and she shoved a coin in my hand.  I didn't bother to look at it and put it in my coat pocket.  Later I took a look at it and it wasn't a quarter but a $1 Coin!  That made my Aldi trip a $1.25 one. lol

Went to my R-A Thursday night to return something and found a nickel right when I walked into the store and a grody penny on the floor near the register.

Total Found in last Week...... $1.34
Total Found This Year......$1.70

January is looking GREAT for found money! 8-)))

That's about all I've got for this week.

Any frugal wins in your neck of the woods?  Let's hear all about them!

Sluggy

A Little Rite-Aid This Week & the Bonus Cash Spend Down

 I didn't bring much home from Rite-Aid this week..........

2 x Twist hair products 75% off=8.97
2 x Cetaphil BOGO50% off=$22.48
1 x Got2Be hair spray 75% off=$1.92
1 x Revlon lip color 75% off=$2.62
Total........$35.99

I used coupons--
1 x $5 off $25 R-A Q
2 x $4/1 Cetaphil IPQ
1 x $3/1 Revlon lip IPQ
Coupon Total.......$16.00

$35.99-$16.00=$19.99 Paid with Bonus Cash.

The Twist items was each a .01¢ moneymaker after Ibotta and the Revlon was a .38¢ moneymaker after Q.

I got back $14.75 from Ibotta($9 Twist, $4.25 Cetaphil, $1.50 Got2Be)so spent down the BC by $5.24.  I am down to $17.46 in BC across 4 cards so I'm almost out of the R-A game for awhile.  I like to take a break during the winter as the weather is unpredictable.

I need to get a Giveaway up and running, maybe on Saturday so check back then. 8-))  It's just been so cold here I haven't felt like doing anything beyond a few chores.  No Umph.  Winter sucks up here.

Sluggy

This Week on the Dining Table

The "My Jar Runneth Over" Edition...

I shared this on FB yesterday.  My swear jar "might" be a tad more filled than above but the history/genealogy jar?  Pretty much right on....lol

Onward to the meal planning!

Here's what was planned......

1. Sunday--Broccoli Cheddar Soup, Hawaiian rolls

2. Monday--Breakfast for Dinner

3. Tuesday--Chicken Parm, Baked Sweet Potato, (Pasta for Hubs only)

4. Wednesday--?
5. Thursday--? Hubs' night to cook

6.  Friday--?

7. Saturday--?

And here's what actually happened........

1. Sunday--Broccoli Cheddar Soup, Hawaiian rolls

2. Monday--Breakfast for Dinner(Bacon, Pancakes)

3. Tuesday--Fend for Yourself

4. Wednesday--Meatloaf, Honey Ginger Carrots
5. Thursday--Chinese Take-Out

6.  Friday--Leftover Chinese

7. Saturday--Leftover Meatloaf, Carrots

Nothing very exciting here, just plain old cooking.  I've still got a LOT of carrots to use up from the 8 lb. bag I bought for Christmas dinner so they will be appearing again and again in some form or another. ;-)

What got put into the freezer last week....

*  Not a thing

What got taken out of the freezer and used...

*  Bacon

*  Cheese

*  Ground Beef

I spent $55.50 on food/toiletries/HBA the last week. This brings our food/toiletries/paper goods Total to $55.50 for January.

There are 21 shopping days left in January.  

I've earned $101.51 on Ibotta in January.

I've earned $0 on Checkout51 in January.

I've earned $8 on Coupons dotcom/Paypal in January.

I've earned 451 points from shopping on Fetch in January.

I earned 1,265 points from food shopping on Shop Kick in January. 

I've earned 10 SB from food shopping on Swag Bucks in January.

I've earned $0 from food shopping on Tada in January.

That's $109.51 in rebates(not counting the Shop Kick/Swag Bucks/Tada/Fetch)on $55.50 in grocery spending so in reality it's -$54.01 spent after the 3 rebate apps I count.  Yay me.....

My savings percentage for the last week was 66.71%(without "regular" Rite-Aid trips)and the monthly savings total for January comes in at 66.71% so far(w/out R-A). 

Leftovers going into this week....1 helping each of Meatloaf, Carrots and Broccoli Cheddar Soup.

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

1. Sunday--Chicken Parm, Baked Sweet Potato Wedges

2. Monday--Butternut Squash Ravioli w/Béchamel, Salad

3. Tuesday--Leftovers

4. Wednesday--Homemade flatbread Pizza, Salad
5. Thursday--? Hubs' night to cook

6.  Friday--Some sort of soup or stew

7. Saturday--?

What do I need to buy to fix everything on this menu?  Nothing.  I got it covered(except maybe Hubs' night to cook).

I do plan to pick up a couple of things anyway to reach my Ibotta $10 Bonus for Jan.

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