I Couln't Resist the Unilever Deal at Price Chopper Last Week...Saved 77+%

Yes, I admit it....
Even though the Unilever Promotional Deal at Price Chopper "Spend $30/Get $10 OYNO Cat" wasn't all that great I still couldn't stay away!  Since I didn't get a chance to do the Weis Unilever Deal but twice, I felt compelled to try the PC one.  After all....what else was I going to do with all those Unilever Qs?lol
I learned on the AFullCup PC forum board that there were also 2 double dips within this Unilever Deal.  Buying 2 I Can't Believe It's Not Butter triggered a $2 OYNO Cat and buying a pint of Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream & a Bertolli frozen meal for 2 Bag also triggered a $3 OYNO Cat.

Let me just say that before I bought anything, I asked the CS Desk Manager what products were valid for the Catalina Offer....the ones only listed in the sale flyer or what?  He said it was ALL Unilever products.  Some how I doubted that but I now had his word on it IF anything went wrong.

3 x Lipton Gallons of Tea on sale $2.49=$7.47/Reg. Shelf $2.99=$8.97
4 x I Can't Believe It's Not Butter on sale $1.50(2 stick packs/2 tubs)=$6.00/Reg. Shelf $2.39=$9.56
1 x Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream on sale $2.50/Reg. Shelf=$4.19
1 x Bertolli Frozen Meal on sale $5.99/Reg. Shelf=$7.99
SubTotal=$21.96/Reg. Shelf=$30.71 **Should qualify for the $10 Catalina Deal**

Also bought...
2 x PC Butter on sale $1.49=$2.98
2 x PC Cream Cheese on sale $1.00=$2.00
2 x Tropicana OJ $2.99=$5.98

SubTotal ALL...$32.92

Coupons Used
2 x ICBINButter $1/1 Stick Packs=$2.00
1 x ICBINButter $1/2 Tubs=$1.00
1 x PC IPQ $1/2 PC Cream Cheese=$1.00
2 x PC Store $1/1 MarkDown Q on OJ=$2.00
Coupons Total...$6.00

$32.92-$6.00=$26.92

I should have received $15 in OYNO Cats for this purchase but only the $2 ICBINButter one and the $3 Ben&Jerry's/Bertolli Frozen Meal Cats printed.
So it was back to my CS Desk Manager with receipt in hand.  I told him per our conversation, my $10 Cat did NOT print.  I then really confused him and showed him that a $3 Cat HAD printed(it was also from Unilever so he thought it printed INSTEAD of the $10 Unilever Cat).  As he had no clue that there WAS a $3 B&J/Bertolli/Unilever Cat Promo, this really stumped him!lol  So he tried reringing the order(by just using the Lipton Gallon Teas over & over until it showed I had bought over $30 worth)and still nothing printed.  That is why I now know it was the Lipton Gallon Teas that screwed it up as they obviously weren't part of the qualifying products for the Unilever Cat Deal.
So he just gave me $10 cash.....well no, actually he handed me $12 in cash!  I said it was too much and he just said keep it.
Ok....I can live with that!lol
So I spent $26.92 and got back $17 in a combination of Catalina Qs & cash in lieu of Cats.

I went back to Price Chopper on Saturday evening to roll the Cats/cash in the Unilever Deal and busted the heck out of my Food Budget for the week! ugh

I was super organized though, with all my scenarios written down and all my Qs ready to go.  I did 5 transactions in 1 hour...and that was counting all the lines I had to wait in as I didn't go super late to avoid the hoards of shoppers.

Just to refresh, the deal is Buy $30 in Unilever Products, Receive a $10 OYNO Catalina Q.  The $30 mark is based on the Regular Shelf Price of the Items, Not the Sale Prices you pay.
Saturday's Loot....

Transaction #1
8 x Dove Soap 2 packs on sale BOGO($3.19)=$12.76
3 x Knorr Sides on sale $1=$3
Subtotal=$15.76 (reg. shelf price $30.59)

Coupons Used
1 x $1/3 Knorr's=$1.00
1 x $3 OYNO Cat from Thursday=$3.00
1 x $2 OYNO Cat from Thursday=$2.00
Coupon Total=$6.00

$15.76-$6=$9.76+$.77tax=$10.53 OOP
I used part of the $12 Cash in lieu of Cats that didn't print from Thursday to pay, so $0 OOP really.
And I received a $10 OYNO Cat.

Transaction #2
6 x Dove Soap 2 packs on sale BOGO($3.19)=$9.57
2 x Skippy PButter on sale $2=$4.00
2 x Q-Tips on sale $2=$4.00
1 x Dial Hand Soap on sale=$2.00
Subtotal=$19.57/$17.57 for the Cat Deal(reg. shelf price for Cat Deal Items $30.30)


Coupons Used
1 x $1/2 Skippy ManuQ=$1.00
1 x$.55/1 Dial IPQ doubled to $1=$1.00
$10 OYNO Cat=$10.00
Coupon Total=$12.00

$19.57-$12=$7.57=$.69tax=$8.26 OOP/$6.57 for Cat Items
And I received a $10 OYNO Cat.

Transaction #3
6 x Dove Soap 2 packs on sale BOGO($3.19)=$9.57
2 x Hellman's Mayo on sale $2.99=$5.98
2 x Lipton Soup Mix on sale $1.59=$3.18
1 x Knorr Sides on sale $1=$1.00
3 x Progresso Soups on sale $1.25=$3.75
2 x Dole Pineapple on sale $1=$2.00
Subtotal=$25.48/$21.73 for the Cat Deal(reg. shelf price for Cat Deal Items $31.39)

Coupons Used
$10 OYNO Catalina=$10.00
1 x $1/2 Hellman's Mayo ManuQ=$1.00 1 x $1/2 Lipton Soup Mix ManuQ=$1.00
1 x $1.10/3 Progresso Soups IPQ=$1.10
2 x $.50/1 Dole Pineapple IPQ doubled to $1ea. =$2.00
Coupon Total=$15.10

$25.48-$15.10=$10.38=$.57tax=$10.95 OOP/$9.73 for Cat Items.
And I received a $10 OYNO Cat.

Transaction #4
4 x Dove Soap 2 packs on sale BOGO($3.19)=$6.38
4 x Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream on sale $2.50=$10.00 *NOT PICTURED*
1 x Knorr Sides on sale $1=$1.00
Subtotal=$17.38(reg. shelf price for Cat Deal Items $31.21)

Coupons Used
$10 OYNO Catalina=$10.00
Coupon Total=$10.00

$17.38-$10.00=$7.38+$.38tax=$7.76 OOP

And I received a $10 OYNO Cat.

Transaction #5
6 x Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream on sale $2.50=$15.00 *Only 1 Pictured-the rest buried in the freezer*
1 x Bertolli Frozen meal on sale $5.99
4 x Kashi Go Lean Cereal on sale $3.00=$12.00
2 x Nabisco Crackers on sale $1.99=$3.98
1 x Dial Hand Soap on sale $2.00
1 x Turkey=$14.20 *NOT PICTURED*
Subtotal=$53.17/$20.99 for the Cat Deal(reg. shelf price for Cat Deal Items $33.13)

Coupons Used
$10 OYNO Catalina=$10.00
1 x $1/1 Bertolli Frozen meal ManuQ=$1.00
1 x PCQ $4 off WYB 4 Kashi Cereal=$4.00
3 x $1.50/1 Kashi Go Lean Cereal Home Mailer=$4.50
2 x $1/1 Nabisco Crackers ManuQ=$2.00
1 x $.55/1 Dial Hand Soap IPQ doubled to $1=$1.00
1 x Turkey Spend $25/Get Turkey for $.29lb=$10.04
Coupon Total=$32.54

$53.17-$32.54=$20.63+$.12tax=$20.75 OOP/$9.99 for Cat Items.

And I received a $10 OYNO Cat & a $3 OYNO Cat(Bertolli/Ben&Jerry)=$13 Cats.

Grand Total....
OOP $58.25 but $46.25 OOP after applying the $12 in Cash(from Thursday's transaction).
OOP for Cat Deals only was $35.78.
Have $13 in Cats to roll in the coming weeks(if PC has any Cat Deals), otherwise will spend it on fresh produce/dairy/meat.
Value of Products $208.29
Savings of 77.80%

Sluggy

Some Thoughts on Thanksgiving & Cooking

This is where I ramble on about Thanksgiving and Cooking....

After having hosted and cooked as many Thanksgiving dinners as I have(yes, I am older than dirt!), there isn't much novelty or thrill left in the task for me.  It's just become another big chore in the big list of chores I need to complete each year.
What I wouldn't give to be a kid again and have an older, more experienced cook in the family handling the Big Holiday Cookfest instead of me.

It use to be sort of fun years ago, planning and cooking for Thanksgiving, back when we were first setting up our household and traditions and when the children were younger.

As my enthusiasm waned a few years back, Hubby talked me into having the Holiday meal at a restaurant.  As I use to be a professional waitress at one time in my life, I really hated the thought of eating out on Thanksgiving.  I know that most of those servers would much rather be home with their families than working in the insanely stressful environment that Thanksgiving Day dining is for them.  Not only that but the amount a restaurant charges for a "special holiday meal" is alot more than you pay for a meal during a non-holiday day.  They use the holiday to pick your pocket a little more.  Plus the food is generally not up to par as their usual dining fare, the ambience of the place is sub par as well, and the owners try to cram more diners into the space and are anxious to get you out as soon as possible so they don't lose a single customer. This also holds true for the other big special eating-out holdiays like Easter, Mother's Day and Christmas(if the place is open for that one).  Holiday meals are the cash cow of restaurant owners.  But I digress.....

The Thanksgiving out was a nice change for 1 year(not having to cook or deal with leftovers) but not something I want to do again.

When #2 son was a bit younger, he had a burning passion for cooking and wanted to be a chef.  Those couple of years that flame burned, I had a ready helpmate in the kitchen for the Thanksgiving meal prep.  A little cooking, a little instruction(not much though, after all, this was crunch time!) and a little bonding.
Ok...a little stressing out too and raised voices when things didn't go well.lol
What did #2 son take away from those holidays in the kitchen?
He can cook enough to feed himself if he ever has to, unlike #1 son, who at 18 yr. of age, STILL needs refresher instruction to make a grilled cheese sandwich.
And #2 son can whip up some awesome real mashed potatoes!

Last year at Thanksgiving, I truly hit the cooking wall.  I don't even recall what I served and I am sure it was thrown on the table without a thought on my part.
The guests shoveled the food in without a word.
Two of my teens(or preteens)ate small portions and quickly left the table to retire into their bedrooms again.
#1 son was in training for wrestling season so I don't even think he ate a full plate.  In years past, #1 son would have been mistaken for a professional Competitive Eater in training at the Thanksgiving table.  I was left with tons of leftover food to deal with in a house full of people who don't necessarily like leftovers.  Even sending the guests home with full plates of leftovers didn't make much room in my fridge.

So this year I am trying to make peace with the Holiday and my approach to it by making some changes to our celebration of the day.
We still will NOT be going out for dinner.  I won't do that.
We are having guests again, like every year, but daughter will be working at her restaurant job and won't be eating with us.  #1 son isn't coming home for the holiday either, so it will just be 5 of us including the company.  I refuse to make a ton of food this year!  The 3 dogs are sad to hear this....

I have been waffling about even making Turkey this year.  I am NOT a big fan and it's hard to do the turkey thing and not have leftovers, even if you do just a breast.  I had bought a small boneless leg of lamb last month and was going to make that instead of poultry.
But I got a great deal on turkey at Price Chopper on Saturday, so it's a fowl meal again this year.  Albeit, a small turkey at barely 14 lbs.  I purposely chose the smallest one they had.

I considered cooking the bird ahead and just reheating/serving it already cut up.  This would take some of the pressure off of Thanksgiving morning but I really don't care for the smell of reheated turkey.  Maybe it's me but turkey has this odor that I can hardly bare.  As it ages, it smells gamier to me.
So freshly cooked bird thursday morning it will be.

While Thanksgiving is all about tradition and traditional foods, I've decided that you don't have to make ALL of them.  Growing up, Turkey day always included my Aunt Ollie's homemade Potato Rolls, Rutabagas(Turnips to you Northerners), Sweet Potato Casserole, Pumpkin and Pecan Pies. The rolls were a 2 day production alone and were started the day before when the pies & stuffing were made. 
I will be paring down the amount of food I cook this year so the rolls will have to wait until Christmas(IF I do them then), the Rutabaga will not be happening(hubby is the only one who eats this & you can't make just a little rutabaga) & 1 kind of pie has to go....the pumpkin wins, hands down.
I have store bought rolls is someone feels they really need them.

Wednesday will be stuffing and pumpkin pie making day.  We are divided in this family on the proper way to prepare Sweet Potatoes.
Growing up it was the nauseatingly sweet Casserole with the marshmallows(more calories than the pie!). I started making a more grown-up version of the casserole when we started our own family traditions.  It involves sliced sweet potatoes(not mashed), butter, brown sugar & maple syrup, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and chopped pecans.  Not a marshmallow in sight!lol  It's still sweet but not requiring an insulin shot to eat it. 
My yankee hubby grew up eating sweet potatoes for Thanksgiving prepares as you would a baked potato....just roasted in the oven, served with salt, pepper and butter.  The kids have taken to eating them this way but without the salt and pepper and the addition of a touch of brown sugar and cinnamon.
So I've had to fix 2 versions of sweet potato every Thanksgiving dinner.

Our usual Thanskgiving meal use to include....
Turkey
Stuffing with sausage(sometimes with nuts)
Mashed Potatoes
Sweet Potatoes-2 verions
Rutabaga
Potato Rolls
Green Beans
Carrots
Cranberry Sauce
Gravy
Beets(in the last few years)
Pumpkin Pie
Pecan Pie
Apple Pie(sometimes)

This Year's Menu....
Turkey
Stuffing
Sweet Potato 2 Versions
Vegetable Melange(Carrots/Broccoli/Cauliflower)
Cranberry Sauce
Gravy-might do an Au Jus instead to lighten it up on the calories
Pumpkin Pie
Store bought Rolls if needed

I'll put more of an effort into the Table Setting instead of into churning out too much food.

And hopefully, I'll keep more of my sanity this year....

So what are your traditions at Thanksgiving?
Do you have any Must Have Dishes?

Sluggy

 

Finishing up Last Week's Deals at Rite-Aid

I decided to not let the 4 jars of BOGO Planters I bought on the wrong receipt to submit for the Keep the Jingle in your Holidays Nabisco/Kraft Rebate go to waste toward a SCR and get 4 more jars while they were still on BOGO Sale so I can send for the $5 SCR Planters Deal(#80- Buy $15 Value/Get $5)under BIL's account.
**Can you guess that all my friend/family will be receiving Planters in their Holiday baskets this year?** ;-)

So here is what I bought on Saturday...

2 x Welch's Grape Juice on sale $3=$6.00
4 x Planters Nuts on sale BOGO($4.49)=$8.98
4 x Tic Tac Chill Gum on sale $1.00=$4.00
1 x Robitussin To Go Syrup on sale $6.99
SubTotal=$25.97

Coupons Used
1 x $5 off $25 purchase Rite-Aid Q=$5.00
2 x $1/1 Welch's IPQ=$2.00
2 x $1/2 Planter's Nuts Booklet from grocery storeQ=$2.00
4 x $1/1 Tic Tac Chill Gum ManuQ sunday inserts=$4.00
1 x $2/1 Robitussin IPQ=$2.00
1 x $2/1 off any OTC Cold & Cough Product Rite-Aid Wellness IPQ=$2.00
Coupon Total=$17.00

$25.97-$17.00=$8.97 OOP

Qualify for SCRebates $5(#80) and $4(#8 Robitussin)=$9.00

Moneymaker of $.03!lol

So my total Rite-Aid OOP spending for November to this point is...$65.83. 
And my Single Check Rebates for November amount to $64.36.
This makes my OOP $1.47 for the month.

Sluggy

More Weekly Shopping at Weis

Ok, Here is another transaction from Weis this week.  This one includes the Betty Crocker $2 Discount Deal and a Unilever Catalina Deal.

1 x BC Cake Mix on sale $1=$1.00
4 x BC Frosting  on sale $1.50=$6.00
4 x Carnation Evap. Milk  on sale $1=$4.00
2 x Skippy Peanut Butter  on sale $1.67=$3.34
2 x Hellmann's Mayo  on sale $3.00=$6.00
2 x Lipton Tea Bags  on sale $2.50=$5.00
4 x Diamond Walnuts 1lb.  on sale $3.99=$15.96
2 x Hall's Refresh Drops  on sale $1.50=$3.00
1 x Reynolds Recycled Foil  on sale $2=$2.00
1 x Daisy Sour Cream  on sale $1.67=$1.67
2 x Pork Roast $5.98 & $5.32=$11.30 **Not pictured**
1 x Ground Beef=6.65 **Not pictured**
SubTotal
$65.92

Coupons Used

4 x BC Frosting $.50/1 ManuQ doubled=$4.00

2 x Carnation Evap. Milk .50/2 ManuQ doubled=$2.00

1 x Skippy Peanut Butter $1/2 ManuQ=$1.00

1 x Hellmann's Mayo $1/2 ManuQ=$1.00

1 x Lipton Tea Bags $1/2 ManuQ=$1.00

2 x Diamond Walnuts $3/2 ManuQ=$6.00

1 x Hall's Refresh Drops BOGO TearpadQ=$1.50
1 x Hall's Refresh Drops $.50/1 ManuQ doubled=$1.00

1 x Reynolds Recycled Foil $.75/1 ManuQ doubled to $1=$1.00

1 x Daisy Sour Cream $.50/1 ManuQ doubled=$1.00

2 x Pork Roast $3.00 Off Meat storeQ=$6.00

1 x Ground Beef $3.00 Off Meat storeQ=$3.00
1 x $7 OYNO Catalina Q from last week's Cat Deals=$7.00
1 x P&G/Weis $10 Check from Go Green Rebate in July=$10.00
Coupon Total
$45.50

$65.92-$45.50=$20.42+$.11tax=$20.53 OOP

That is what the total was suppose to be.
The total I paid from my receipt was actually $13.19.
After studying my receipt a couple of days later I have figured out that the cashier didn't charge me for the Ground Beef, but still took off the $3 Discount Store Q from the package.lol
Then she took off the full price on the Hall's($2.19)instead of taking off the sale price of $1.50 on the BOGO package.

So $13.19 OOP and  I received a $7 OYNO Catalina Q hopefully to roll into another Cat Deal before it expires. ;-)
Product value of $93.74 & a savings of just under 86%.

Sluggy

Grocery Shopping This Week

Here's a transaction I did at Weis this week over and over again.

Weis had Carnation Evaporated Milk on sale for $1 a can.  I had a stack of $.50/2 ManuQs, which my store doubled to $1/2(only 4 of the same coupon in a single transaction are doubled).  Not only is Evaporated Milk necessary for making pumpkin or sweet potato pie, but it's a great shelf-stable milk product for cooking, baking and cream soup making so a good thing in a stockpile.

Weis also had a 'deal' where if you bought 5 Betty Crocker products you received an automatic $2 off your transaction.  I had BC Frosting Manu Qs for .50/1 that doubled(up to 4 in a single transaction), so I did this transaction(either alone or with other items) 4 times over the course of the week....

4 x Carnation Evap. Milk on sale $1=$4.00
4 x BC Frosting on sale $1.50=$6.00
1 x BC Cake Mix on sale $1.00=$1.00
SubTotal=$11.00

Coupons Used
2 x Carnation $.50/2 doubled=$2.00
4 x BC Frosting .50/1 doubled=$4.00
Automatic $2.00 off for purchasing 5 BC items=$2.00
$2.50 OYNO Catalina Q(from buying BC Fruit Snacks 2 weeks ago)=$2.50
Coupon Total=$10.50

$11.00-$10.50=$.50 OOP for each of 4 transactions=$2.00 OOP for....
4 Cake Mix
16 Evaporated Milk
16 Frosting

And just what does a person do with 16 tubs of Frosting??

Why, make CAKEBALLS of course!

Sluggy