Frugal Friday....the December 21st Edition

Christmas is right around the corner...but did we have any frugal wins this week here at Chez Sluggy?
Let's take a look.......

*  Hubs and I hit a discount store earlier this month(I forgot to tell y'all about it).  This is a store I haven't been to in about a year.  It use to have crash and burn type stuff(tore up packaging, out of date or almost stuff, etc.).  Now it's totally different.  The store has transformed itself into a strange mix of novelty items and high end grocery goods(overruns/package redesigns/overstock)and specialty foods(lots of gluten-free items, etc.).  While the prices on most are good(for a high end item)most of it is still too pricey for me to buy.  The exception are the dairy/meat items which of dubious quality(see  "gray" meat)and well past their expiration dates....but they are cheap! lolz

I did find one item to buy......

This high end coffee.  It goes for $10.99 a bag in Target here.  I got it for $3.99 to put into Hubs Xmas box.

*  I found more change this week!

A dime in a soda machine coin return on Saturday by the Dollar Tree.

2 pennies, one on the walkway into Boyer's and the other on the way out by the cash registers.
I also hit the jackpot of finding things in Boyer's.  Someone' debit card was laying on the floor in the store.  And no, I didn't try to buy a shit ton of groceries with it(didn't have the pin written on it goshdarnit!)but turned it into the Customer Service Desk.

That same trip I went to Aldi's.  There must be something about me to people who shop there.....they must think I am homeless or something because every time I tell someone I'll take their cart and try to hand them my quarter(because I'll get their quarter in the cart when I return it)they tell me to keep my quarter.  When they insist I don't argue with them......so I got a free quarter at Aldi's.  That's .37¢ for the week in found money!$$$


*  Last Saturday we went to the Surplus Grocery Outlet.  I'll show y'all what I got there but here's my best deal from that trip..........

They had boxes of Knorr's side dish packets.  Each box has 8 packets in them.  Price for a box?....$1.
These things run as much as $1.69 at Price Chopper and go on sale for as low as $1 per packet around here.  Now and again I'll find some varieties at Ollie's(Good Stuff Cheap!)for .89¢ per packet.  These are new, if not unsuccessfully new varieties--one is a meal starter thing(Lemon Chicken w/Barley)and the other is a rice side(Asiago Cracked Black Pepper ).  They other flavors both of the meal starters and the rice sides but these two looked the most like something we'd eat.  I'll report in after we've tried them.  If you don't care for them it's only $2 spent and I can always sent them off to the local food bank.

*  I bought some Cover Girl, Head and Shoulders, Suave and Axe this week at Rite-Aid......

 $17.18 including tax in Bonus Cash spent for all this.....

....And $21 in new Bonus Cash earned back so a $3.82 moneymaker overall.

*  I cashed out my Ibotta acount to apply it to our credit card bill for 2018.  The total came to $382.11.
Nice.

*  I used a digital coupon at Burger King and used the mobile app to order a whopper for $1 while out last week.

Getting a Whopper for a buck is a good deal anyway but after I got home and started eating it I discovered they gave me a double Whopper!  Double the meat?  Yes please.  And I shared the extra with the doggies here.  ;-)

*  In other surprising news.....I got up Wednesday to discover that I sold something on eBay!  I've had 2 listings sitting on there for just over a year that never sold and one sold late Tuesday evening.  I got it mailed out on Wednesday and it's only going to NY so it should be arriving today or tomorrow, well in time for Xmas.  That's $29 and change(before eBay fees but after shipping fees)in my pocket
on a toy bought years ago for $3 and never used.  8-)))


*  There was NO Friday Freebie at Weis(PMITA)Markets last week.  Boo-Hiss

So what frugal wins did y'all have this week?


Sluggy

Frugal Friday....April 20th Edition

Let's see what frugal wins we had this past week.........

* I did a $40 shop at Weis this week.  Here are the best deals I got.........

 VO5 products were .77¢.  I used 2 x .50¢/2 Qs that doubled to $1 and bought 4 bottles.  OOP cost was .22¢ per bottle.  I don't use this brand on my hair(I get moreexpensive shampoos for free at Rite-Aid)so I'll use these watered down to refill hand soap container.  I should be able to get 2 refills from each bottle so 8 refills total.  8 bottles of hand soap even at the Dollar Tree cost $8.  I'll take $1.76 spent OOP over $8 any day.

 These ready-to-use pasta bags were on sale $1.50 each. I used 2 x $1/1 Qs plus a digital e-coupon came off my loyalty card so I paid $0.00 for both.

4 x Hormel quick wraps have been a monthly deal at Weis when you buy 4 they are $1.25 each so $5 for 4.
I used 4 x .50¢/1 IPQs that doubled to $1 each so $5-$4Qs=$1.00 for all 4 packages so .25¢ each.
College Boy has been eating these as they are a quick to grab meal when he is rushing off to the music studio.

* Last Week's Freebie at Weis(PMITA)Markets.....

A box of popcorn.  Again, Customer Service had no CLUE this was Friday Freebie freebie.  Good thing I sent Hubs because he's got a knack of getting them to give him the freebie without a hassle(maybe because he's a man?lol).
This will get used and saved me from spending money on it so it's a win!

*  I tried a new side dish last week-Zucchini with Anchovies and Capers.  Recipe HERE.
I don't usually keep anchovies in our pantry so had to buy them to make this dish.  Luckily the anchovies were on sale at least.  ;-)

Afterwards I was left with 1/2 a tin of salty fish to use up.
So I decided to put homemade pizza on the menu this past week to use them up.

I got out about 6 bags of partially used shredded cheese(why don't these people here use up a bag before opening a new bag?!?), 2 cans of pizza sauce I picked up at the grocery outlet last Summer, a small bag of pepperoni from the freezer, a can of olives and an onion in the pantry and that half tin of anchovies.  I made enough dough for 3 pies(one XL)--a pepperoni and onion, an anchovy and olive and onion, and a pepperoni and olive pie.  I forgot to take a photo of the anchovy pizza and this is all that is left after the meal(and College Boy hitting the leftovers for two late night meals. 8-)

*  I found a penny in the Weis parking lot.

Hey!  It's a small win but picking  random change that gets abandoned in a parking lot adds up.
I also found someone's key in a different parking lot with nobody around to ask if they lost it, and turned it in to the store.

*  I sold this on eBay last Friday..........

"Would you believe?" It's a complete dvd set of the 1960's series Get Smart(see what I did there?lol).
Hubs dearly loved this tv show as a kid so when they came out with this boxed set of the series I got it for him for Xmas about 10 years ago.  I think he watched 3 episodes and put it away. He said the show didn't "age" well and wasn't so fun to watch now.  I bit my tongue about saying how some PEOPLE don't age well either. hehehe

I took a lower offer on it just to get it out of the house and I am trying not to think about the sunk costs and instead about how this dvd set will make someone else happy.  Considering what I paid for it I lost money here but it's gone and I've got $44.30 after fees back in my pocket.

* And there was a small trip to Rite-Aid this week......

I should have been able to use $2 in BC or PPs on this(as my total should have been $2 after Qs)but 2 of the toothpastes were less than $3.50 with the 20% Wellness discount($3.43)so my total was at $1.86 instead of $2(A rookie mistake but even I am not at the top of my game some days.)
So I put the $1.86 on my R-A gift card.

*  Cheap Mouse for the Win!
My computer mouse went KAPUT! about 10 days ago so I went and got a new wireless mouse.....

It was a choice between this or a purple one with geometric shapes on it.  This one was a bit less expensive of the two on Amazon(an unpopular design they were clearancing out?).  It was free shipping with Prime, cost me $11.61 w/tax which was less than any brick and mortar wanted to just a plain boring black or blue name brand wireless mouse.

*  The federal tax refund hit our bank account.  After $381.03 in fees(for tax software and monies we had to pay the states of PA and LA and mailing costs for 1 state return we banked $5362.97.  Likely the fed. refund was so high due to Hubs working 50% of the year and having such high withholding in his checks so that when we dropped down to the retirement income level we had a large credit of withholding.  That doesn't sound quite right but I can't figure out how to say it right now. lolz
Anyway, we didn't go blow that check on a down payment on a car(people do that with tax refunds, use it to get a car but it only covers a down payment and then they are saddled with a new recurring car paymentbill), or spend it on something else that was a want.  If we had debt we'd have thrown it onto that bill but we don't thankfully at this point in our lives.
So we will transfer it to our online account(which will earn a tad more than at a brick and mortar bank)and just let it sit for now until we make a plan for that money.

*  While Hubs was out running an errand I had him hit the Bread Outlet since he was going right by there.........

I gave him a list with options.  He picked up 3 3/$3 items and 3 3/$4 items. (A package hamburger rolls is missing because we used them that evening before I thought to take a photo.)  He spent $7 on bread products that would cost $24.14 at the grocery store(not on sale, but even on sale it would have been at least $12+).
That blue labeled bread is Organic and goes for $5.99 a loaf!!
With that 5 lb. log of Cooper Cheese I bought College Boy is eating a LOT more grilled cheese sandwiches(he will eat 3-4 at a sitting!)so the bread was very low so I am glad we got restocked.

So tell us what Frugal wins you had this past week?

Sluggy

Frugal Friday......February 16th Edition

Let's see what the Frugal Fairy brought us this past week..........

*  I had Hubs pick up this freebie since he had to go by Weis(PMITA)Markets last Friday anyway.

I clipped a digital Weis Q in my account for a free jar of sauce.  Of course, the Q didn't come off when he used my card so he had to pay $1.50 for it and then go to the Customer Service desk to get his $1.50 back.  Management doesn't let CS know there is a freebie on Fridays so they hadn't a clue what he was talking about.
Get your shit together Weis Markets!!

*  I sold a lot on eBay for $40 on Sunday.  Two tubes of fancy pants shampoo that is no longer made-$20 a tube.  I got it at Rite-Aid awhile back for free after sales/Qs/PPs or +Up Rewards or whatever thing was given out at that time so pure profit after eBay/Paypal fees.

*  I  turned on F/B notifications for the Hershey Olympics promotion so every time Team USA wins a gold medal you can access a link to print off two copies of a Q for a free Hershey's Gold candy bar!
I also emailed the link to myself, ran upstairs, accessed my email up there and printed the Q 4 more times, twice from two different computers upstairs.  8-)))

The Q is for $1.50 off a bar not a FREE Q so if you find it for less then $1.50 make sure you have something else in your transaction to absorb the overage......which also means something else for free or cheaper.  ;-)
The problem now is to find any of these candy bars on the shelves around here before the Qs expire. lolz

*  Lots of freebies or better than free after sale/qs/bonus cash earned at Rite-Aid on Wednesday--bags of sugar-free chocolate, Orei candy bars and light bulbs.

*  Here are the best deals I got at Weis(PMITA)Markets this past week.....

L to R--
-Gorton's seafood was half price and you got an instant $2 off wyb3. Shrimp was $3.99, 2 x fish bags were $3.49 each so $10.97 subtotal.  After the $1/1 Gorton's Shrimp Q and $2 off instantly I paid $7.97 for all 3 items.

-4 x Huggies wipes, frozen Weis french fries(wanted a bag of veggies instead but they were out)and Polly-O string cheese sticks(so Daughter can make a stuffed crust pizza w/them)were $7.44 for all 6 items after instant $3 off wyb6 items, plus $2.50 in coupons I used-one .50¢ Q doubled/3 did not(and a digital .50¢ Q that doubled and also came off).

-The Yes! soup was on sale 3/$5 and I used 3 x .75¢Qs that doubled to $1.50 each so $5.00-$4.50=.50¢ for all 3 cans.

-The cashier didn't ring up my mushrooms(which I didn't know until I checked my receipt when I got home)which were on sale for $2 a carton.  This explains why the register wouldn't take the .50¢ Q I had for them and she had to put it through manually.  So I got paid .50¢ to buy those free mushrooms. lolz

-I had a Weis Q that was expiring that day for .75¢ a bag of Weis brand shredded cheese.  It wasn't on sale so would have cost me $1.19 after Q.  When I went to get a bag there was a sign that if you bought 2 cans of Hormel chili and the cheese you got $1.50 off the bag of cheese instantly.  I went round to the chili aisle and the Hormel chili was on sale for 2/$3....AND I had a .55¢/2 Hormel chilis Q(which doubles to $1.10 off).

So cheese $2.69+2 cans chili at $3=$5.69-instant $1.50 off cheese and .75¢ Weis cheese Q and $1.10 off chili=$2.34 for all 3 items total BUT I also had a digital Q for the chili evidently because another $1.10 came off(a .55¢ digital Q that doubled)so my 3 items cost $1.24 OOP in the end. ;-)

-I also had a Weis Q expiring that day for .50¢ a loaf of bakery French bread.  I snagged a 50% loaf on the day old rack for .95¢-.50¢Q=.45¢ for the loaf.

Plus these items I couldn't fit in the photo above---

-2 x 8 O'Clock coffee was BOGOFree so $2.74 a bag.  I used 2 x $1/1Qs so $1.74 a bag OOP.
Plus I received a $1 cash rebate on Ibotta for buying the Infusion type of that coffee so I am OOP $2.48 for both bags total.
They were out of the Caramel Macchiato College Boy likes so I got a rain check for more and held onto some other Qs I had for the coffee for later use when his flavor is back in stock.

-I had a $2.50/1 Nutella 13 oz or larger Catalina I had gotten at Xmas time expiring that day so I picked that up too.  It was on sale for $2.99 so it cost me .49¢ total after the Q.

My coupons were all messed up and I was credited with $24.30 in Qs even though it should have been only $21.70 in Qs.  I had 2 digital Qs come off(and double)plus  another wipes Q doubled(even though they say on them do not double)plus I got .50¢ off for mushrooms I "didn't buy". lolz
I guess it all evens out in the end as sometimes I get shorted on my Qs because of cashier inattentiveness and I just don't feel like going to CS that day and dealing with getting it made right.  Some days it's a big enough hassle just DOING the shopping and not having to also FIX the shopping. sigh

I also got another .25¢ cash back on Ibotta for buying anything in the store so $48.54 spent on $117.33 worth of groceries make a 58% savings rate plus $1.25 cash back so I am OOP $47.34 for everything I bought on Wednesday.  Pretty good considering I didn't get any Instant Discount meats this trip either.  8-)))

What's frugal wins have you had lately?

Sluggy

Weis Transaction Disaster UPDATE! + Other $ Stuff

This is an update on the really bad transaction I had at Weis(PMITA)Markets earlier in the week that I talked about in this post HERE.

To recap--I paid $76.09 and got $12.98 back for the 50% off items she didn't ring up correctly but discovered more mistakes after I got home and had to call the CS at the store.

Well I took my receipt and the hunk of riblets the cashier didn't even take the $3 discount sticker off of that package back to the store Friday.

I got back the $9 in meat discounts I should have received on Wednesday.
Then the CS manager gave me a $10 Weis gift card because of the problems I had to endure with this cashier and beyond......

Then I showed on the hunk of riblets how the price had rung up incorrectly($3.07 too much)on the receipt so I also got back the whole $9.15 I was charged for that!  So they basically paid me $3 to take that piece of meat. lolz

So I am down to spending $46.80 on that $100.29 worth of groceries(plus I got a $10 gift card too boot).
Maybe I need to let cashiers make MORE mistakes with my orders......ok, maybe not.  ;-)

I also stopped in Rite-Aid today after my PT appointment(which was a pointless waste of time)as I needed to refill an RX.  While I was there I got this too from the clearance section.........

$10.29 ClearQuil marked down to $2.57.
I had a $2/1 ManuQ from the P&G insert so it cost me .57¢ OOP.

I also earned 100 Plenti Pts($1)for buying this item, making this a .43¢ moneymaker.

Then I dragged my foot home, elevated it and put some ice on it.

This PT stuff is not going to help my foot problem.  They are giving me ankle exercises, which I can do fully without pain of any kind.  It's not the ankle or the muscles, it's the swelling in the body of the foot and putting weight on it that is the problem!  The only thing they did that helped was elevating it and putting heat on it.....gee, I can do that at home and don't have to pay them $100 an hour for it. 8-(

I'll go back 2 times next week but unless they actually address what is wrong with my foot next week, I am done with this.

Earlier last week this arrived in the mail......

My Staples refund for buying 4 reams of paper in August.
This one came fast!  And it's not a prepaid gift card like they said it would be, but a real live check I can cash.....woohoo!

As for how the budget is going for September......we are over halfway through and most all the monies for the month have come in(pay, dividends, rebates)and I have paid all the bills that have come in(still waiting on the electric and long distance bills but I know approximately how much those will be)and we still have money leftover.
Rah!
It's not as much leftover as I hoped since we paid school taxes this month($2K+ ouch!)but we will stay in the black financially this month.

And even better, October is a 3 paycheck month!! 8-)))

October will be lots of co-pays though due to all this medical testing which has revealed nothing wrong so there is that too. 8-(



Sluggy