Rite-Aid Trip on 6/9/10......Survey Says....

Made a quick trip to Rite-Aid Wednesday looking for a ProGlide Razor with a survey inside.....

2 x Old Spice Red Zone Deodorant on sale $3.50=$7.00
1 x Old Spice Red Zone Spray on sale=$3.50
1 x Lubriderm Lotion $4.29 w/Wellness 20% discount=$3.43
1 x ProGlide Razor on sale=$9.99
SubTotal...$23.92

Coupons Used
1 x $5/$20 Purchase AdPerks/VV IPQ=$5.00
1 x B2 Red Zone Deo./G1 Red Zone Body Spray ManuQ=$3.50
1 x $1/2 Red Zone Old Spice Items ManuQ=$1.00
1 x $2/1 Lubriderm IPQ=$2.00
1 x $3/1 Lubriderm In-Ad Store Q=$3.00
1 x $4/1 ProGlide Razor ManuQ=$4.00
Coupon Total.....$18.50

$23.92-$18.50=$5.42+$.33 tax=$5.75 OOP put on free Rite-Aid Gift Card--ZERO OOP
Value of Items....$31.65
Qualified for SCR#102=$5(Gillette Razor)
Received $4.00 +Up Reward

Since I bought a razor I obviously found one with the Survey inside.  It's a folded up piece of white paper behind the razor.  You can see it from the side of the package.

And here it is unfolded.  The survey takes about 5 minutes and the $5 Gift Card is suppose to arrive in 3-4 weeks.


My Rite-Aid Totals so far this month......
Number of Transactions.....4
Total Spent....$17.35--all put on free Gift Cards so ZERO  OOP
Total Value of Items Purchased....$127.66
SCR qualified for....$22.99 (working on #555 & #101 also for gift cards, not cash)
+Up Rewards Earned....$8.00(it spends like a CVS ECB)
Additional Rewards....$5.00 Gift Card from Gillette
 
Even without the gift cards to put my OOP on, I'd have $5.64 in cash overage, plus $13.00 in merchandise rewards to spend.

I have $18.50 toward the $25 needed for SCR#101 Gift Card and still at $19.51 toward the $50 needed for SCR#555 Gift Card.

Sluggy

Garden June 6th Update.....10 Days

Because of our location, we are not able to have a longer growing season or even garden year round like other parts of the country.  Man, if I lived someplace that was warm year round I'd be a growing fool...instead of just a plain fool!lol

The best way to live frugally foodwise, if you have the climate and a little land is to keep a garden.  I don't care if you think you have a black thumb, anyone can grow something!  I truly believe that.
You may not be P. Allen Smith or the world's most knowledgeable horticulturist but everyone can find something they can grow and eat.

Some seeds are pretty forgiving and fool-proof....just throw em down and even if you ignore them(and the skies provide rain when you forget to water them) and the bugs don't chew their way through everything, you'll end up with something to eat.  Imagine if you make any kind of effort to fend off the bugs, water and nurture these little seeds, what you could accomplish! ;-)

I am a lackluster gardener.  I like to garden but my old decrepit body does not, so I like my gardening simple and I don't put a big effort into it.
We don't have acreage here, we have about 1/3 of an acre lot.  We've got a deck over part of the land, drainage ditches & underground buried power lines in other parts of the land and an above ground pool taking up more valuable real estate.  Take away the areas with large shade trees and there isn't much ground for gardening but we use what we have.

Seriously, if you don't garden but you have a little plot of land or even a pot of soil, get a packet of seeds and try growing something this summer. ;-)


Here are some piccies I snapped last weekend(June 6th) of the garden.  10 days out so it's still early here and not much to see....lol
The butternut, peppers and marigolds in the front....still no sign from the sunflower seeds.

Here's the side bed on June 6th....

Peppers doing ok.  The tomato plants have blooms already!   Here's what the tomoatoes looked like on May 26th....

You can tell by comparison the pepper plants have done squat.....lol

More tomatoes and marigolds.  This end of the bed has worse soil and less sun.  I've manured and I'll give them 'fish tea' so we'll see how they do...
DH sewed zuke, squash and bush bean seeds in the middle 3rd of this bed Sunday so nothing to see there yet.

Now to the back bed.....

Tomatoes grew some....

And the Cauliflower on the right has started growing.  DH planted the eggplant on the right in the photo and they are holding their own.  Here's what the cauliflower looked like on May 26th...

Marked improvement with the cauliflower.

And I'm glad to see that the salad greens #1 son and I sewed are starting to pop up!  It was only a matter of 4 days or so for them to germinate and break the surface.....we'll have salad in a few weeks...yay!!

Here's what our salad greens part of the bed looked like last summer at it's peak in mid-July....the greens sort of took over due to the wet and cool summer we had last year and just wouldn't die!lol

Last but not least, here is a planter with some leftovers that didn't fit into the beds(peppers, a butternut and a yellow squash?).  Not much growth yet but they aren't dead so I am happy with that.lol

Looks like it's time to get the fencing up though.  Our resident rabbit(who lives under the shed)has been eye-ing the plants..... 8-(

Sluggy

Sunday & Tuesday at Rite-Aid.....Building my Rebate Totals

Well I screwed this trip up!lol

I went Sunday because I knew the Pampers wipes would be GONE very quickly due to the $2/1 Q in the inserts that day plus I wanted to pick up a couple of extra papers so why not buy enough to use a $5/$20 Q on my order and that papers would help me get to $20.  I was hopefully that I'd get there early enough to find some Blink Drops still on the shelf(to get the full price SCRebate).
I also wanted to use a BOGO Old Spice Q from the last P&G insert, since the Old Spice and Gillette Qs in that one don't expire until 6/30 and Old Spice products are on sale this week at Rite-Aid.
What I wanted to do was get some Old Spice Body Wash that was on sale along with the Deodorants for 2 for $7.00.  These qualify for the $4 UP+ reward(it prints on your receipt and is like a CVS Extra Care Buck) and I "thought" both the Wash and Deodorant would qualify for SCR #101(Spend $25 on P&G/Get $5 Gift Card).
Let's see the trip first and then I'll finish the story, shall we?

3x Pampers Wipes on sale $2.49=$7.47
2 x Newspapers $1.50 w/Wellness 20% discount $1.20=$2.40     *Not Pictured*
2 x Old Spice Body Wash on sale $3.50=$7.00
1 x Aveeno Lotion $3.69--w/Wellness 20% discount=$2.95
SubTotal....$19.82***

Coupons Used
1 x $5/$20 Rite-Aid AdPerks/VV IPQ=$5.00
3 x $2/1 Pampers Wipes ManuQ=$6.00
1 x BOGO Old Spice Red Zone Body Wash or Deo ManuQ=$3.50
1 x $3/1 Aveeno Lotion RA In-Ad Q=$3.00
Coupon Total.....$17.50

$19.82-$17.50=$2.32 OOP put on Free Rite-Aid Gift Card so ZERO Out of Pocket in the end
And I received a $4 +Up Reward(for the Old Spice)
The $2.95 Aveeno purchase counts toward my $50 needed for SCR#555(total so far is $19.51/$50.00).

First off they were out of Blink, so I DID need those newspapers to get to a $20 purchase.  YET....I didn't think I'd get the 20% discount off the papers, nor did I plan for that.....thus I was short at the register.  Neither the cashier or myself noticed the shortfall and he took the $5/$20 Q anyway.  You KNOW I would have grabbed something small to get over the $20 mark if I had been aware that was happening at that time. ;-)
My other goof-up I didn't notice until Tuesday when I was working up my next trip and going through the coupons here.  That's also when I noticed that the Body Wash doesn't qualify for the SCR#101(P&G products), just the Old Spice Deodorants do!
Ugh!!
The Old Spice BOGO Q I had used on Sunday was NOT BOGO Red Zone Body Wash or Deodorant.  Nope....if you actually READ IT, it says Buy any TWO Body Wash or RED ZONE Deodorant Get ONE BODY SPRAY FREE.
So....you have to buy THREE items and you get the 3rd Free.  I only bought TWO and neither of them were a Body Spray.
Ugh!!
The thing is.....the coupon went through(otherwise the cashier and I would have noticed the problem then)....it didn't come up "item not found" or whatever the register displays when you try to use a coupon and don't buy the right item.  They were the right type/brand of product(Red Zone)and the register took the coupon when I bought 2 items & not 3.
Oh well.....

So after realizing what I actually have to buy to use the Old Spice Qs, I went back to Rite-Aid on Tuesday....

2 x Old Spice FRESH COLLECTION Deodorant on sale $4=$8.00
1 x Blink Tears on sale=$7.99  Yay!...they restocked!!
1 x Reach 2 pack of Toothbrushes on sale=$3.99
1 x Rembrandt Toothpaste $8.29! w/Wellness 20% discount=$6.63
SubTotal....$26.61

Coupons Used
1 x $5/$20 Rite-Aid AdPerks/VV IPQ=$5.00
1 x BOGO Old Spice Fresh Coll. Deodorant ManuQ=$4.00  Yes, I READ this one!lol
1 x $1/2 any Old Spice Product ManuQ=$1.00
1 x $2/1 Blink Tears IPQ=$2.00
1 x $1/1 2pack Reach Toothbrush ManuQ=$1.00
1 x $3/1 Rembrandt Product ManuQ=$3.00
1 x $3/1 Rembrandt Product AdPerk/VV IPQ=$3.00
1 x $1/$10 Oral Care Purchase Wellness IPQ=$1.00
Coupon Total....$20.00

$26.61-$20.00=$6.61 OOP put on free Rite-Aid Gift Card so ZERO Out of Pocket
Qualified for SCR #81(2 Old Spice Fresh Collection Deos)$2 & #89(1 Reach 2pack Toothbrushes)$3 & #1(Blink Tears )$7.99=$12.99

While the Old Spice Fresh Collection Deodorants qualify for SCR #81 AND they should qualify for #101(spend $25 on P&G includes Old Spice Deos.), they do NOT give you the $4 +Up Reward....just the Red Zone in the Deos. give you that.(The Red Zones DO qualify for SCR#101, but do NOT qualify for SCR#81.)
Are you confused yet?lol

I want to finish off my SCR#555(Skin Care-Buy $50/Get $25 Gift Card) by buying a pricey Neutrogena Clinical item.  It's $39.99(IF I can find a store that has it!lol)and with the 20% Wellness Disc. my price will be $31.99, which is enough to get me over $50 in purchases.  I have $16 in Qs to use toward that $31.99($5 in-Ad Q, $5 off on $20 purchase AdPerks/VV Q, $5/1 Neutrogena Clinical IPQ & $1/$10 Skin Care Wellness IPQ=$16). 
So my $31.99 purchase will be $15.99.  To bring it down further I have the $4 +Up Reward to use as well, making the total spent $11.99.
And there is a Mail-In Rebate on the Neutrogena Clinical for $15.00 making this purchase FREE(with $3.01 in overage) after rebate plus I get the $25 Gift Card from Rite-Aid.
Nice!

The Rembrandt is a good deal as well all this month IF you qualify for a Wellness discount.  There is a AdPerks/VV Q for $3/1 Rembrandt you can pair with either the old ManuQ still valid out there(use by 6/30/10) for $3/1 OR the $3/1 Rembrandt IPQ from the Rembrandt website.  With no Wellness discount, on the toothpaste you'll pay $2.29(at my store's price anyway), with a 10% discount you'll pay $1.46 but with the 20% discount you'll only pay $.63!  If you buy 2 in the same transaction be sure to use the $1/$10 Oral Care Wellness IPQ for another dollar off.  Buy 2 with the 5 Qs you can use(2 x AdPerks/2 x Manu or IPQ/1 x Wellness IPQ=$13 off)and with the 20% discount level you'll pay .26¢ for TWO TUBES! (2 x $6.63=$13.26-$13 in Qs=$.26)


My Rite-Aid Totals so far this month......
Number of Transactions.....3
Total Spent....$11.60--all put on free Gift Cards so ZERO  OOP
Total Value of Items Purchased....$96.01
SCR qualified for....$17.99 (working on #555 & #101 also for gift cards, not cash)

Even without my gift cards to pay, I have $6.39 in overage so far this month.


Sluggy

JUNE Food Stamp Challenge....Day Six & Seven

This post is part of the June Food Stamp Challenge over HERE.

I had wanted to show a photo of our yummy meals the last two days but with the general craziness here I haven't gotten a photo taken before we ate so you get to look at the yummy leftovers.

Day Six on Sunday I took 3 bags of Noodles in Alfredo/Broccoli Sauce from the stockpile and used that as the base for dinner.  I added leftover from last week 2 pan sauteed in EVOO chicken breasts, cut up, as well as that package of precooked chicken I bought at Weis on Saturday....together it was about 1lb. of chicken.  Then I added a whole 1lb. bag of mixed veggies from the freezer.  We served this casserole-y dish with leftover salad from Friday.  We have 1 helping left from this meal.  We even had an extra mouth to feed that meal(a teen friend of one of our teens-who ate 2 helpings!) so this 1lb. of chicken sure stretched a long way.
**The cost of the items from the stockpile--3 bags of noodle side dish & frozen vegetables--was $1.75.

Then on Day Seven(Monday)I made Beef Stew in the crockpot.  I had a veggie stock in the freezer which was free from a pan of roasted veggies last fall & the leftover London Broil pieces.  I put in onions & carrots(had those), 4 potatoes(had to buy Monday morning)and added a can of green beans at the end.  Served this with whack crescent rolls, also already here in the fridge.  There are 2 large helpings of Stew left(no rolls however).

My grocery purchase for this meal was $1.99 for the bag of potatoes.
**The cost of the items I had already--carrots, onions, green beans, rolls--was $2.65.

"Spending" for the last 2 Days....$1.75+$1.99+$2.65=$6.39.

Spent to Date....$94.30
June Food Budget Left....$316.42

Sluggy

Rite-Aid Trip on 6/5/10.....Nothing Spent, $5 Rebate Gained

Did a quick trip to Rite-Aid on Saturday......

2 x Nivea for Men Body Wash $5.99 w/Wellness 20% Discount $4.79=$9.58
2 x Nivea for Men Face Wash $6.49 on sale $3.49=$6.98
2 x Sure Deodorant BOGO sale=$3.29
1 x Butterfinger Candy Bar $.88 w/Wellness 20% Discount=$.70
SubTotal....$20.55

Coupons Used
1 x $5/$20 Purchase AdPerks VV IPQ=$5.00
2 x $3/1 Nivea for Men Body Wash ManuQ=$6.00
2 x $2/1 Nivea for Men Face Product ManuQ=$4.00
2 x $1/1 Sure Deodorant ManuQ(home mailer)=$2.00
1 x FREE Item Butterfinger(up to .89¢) home mailer from Facebook=$.88**
Coupon Total....$17.88

$20.55-$17.88=$2.67 +.18¢ tax=$2.85 Out of Pocket--put on Free Gift Card so ZERO OOP
SCR qualified for this purchase....$5 for $15 Nivea purchase(#100)

**The cashier rang up the Free Item Candy bar for the regular price of .88, even though I paid .70 with my wellness discount so I got an extra .18 off my order.

The Nivea purchase also qualifies for SCR #555(Skin & Sun Rebate-Spend $25/Get $10 Gift Card or Spend $50/Get $25 Gift Card).  I just need another $8.44 for the $25 GC or $33.44 for the $50 GC.

Sluggy