Weis & Rite-Aid This Week

I hit Rite-Aid on Tuesday while I was out making diaper meet-ups..........

4 x R-A brand mouth rinse on sale $2=$8.00
With .48¢ sales tax this came to $8.48 which was paid for with Bonus Cash.

I earned back $8 in new Bonus Cash so besides the tax this was free.
"Cost" was .48¢ in BC.

Then I hit Weis to use my other Butter rain check on Senior Discount day so I got an additional ¢¢ off my butter.
While at Weis I found some meat deals and a few other things.........

2 x Garlic Herb Pork Loins=$11.93 for 2.99 lbs. total
2 x Boneless Pork Chops BOGOFree=$7.75 for both
1 x 4 NY Strip Steaks on sale $5.98 lb=$17.52
1 x Coleman uncured Hot Dogs 25% off=$2.62
8 x 8 oz. Weis Butter(rain check $1.12 each)=$8.96
2 x Hormel chili on sale=$4.00
2 x Green Peppers on sale=$2.00
Buy 6/Get $3 off Items--
3 x Salad Kits=$10.47 **
1 x Almond Milk on sale=$2.99
2 x Red Rose decaf tea bags on sale=$5.98
7 x Cesar dog food=$5.60
2 x Friendly's ice cream on sale=$3.98 *not pictured*
SubTotal......$83.80 +.34¢ tax=$84.14(what it should have been)

Coupons Used
1 x FREE 7 Cesar dog food snail mailed Q=$5.60
1 x $1.50/1 Coleman item IPQ=$1.50
1 x .55¢/2 Hormel chili doubled to $1.10=$1.10
3 x $2/1 Meat Sticker=$6.00
1 x $3/1 Meat Sticker=$3.00
1 x $1.84 Senior Discount on the Butter=$1.84
1 x $3 WYB6 items Discount=$3.00
Coupon Total......$22.04

$84.14-$22.04=$62.10

Except...........you knew there was an except here, didn't you? lol.....

This cashier was a hot mess.
A teenage boy who you could tell didn't want to be on the register.

First thing is he rang up the $6.70 pork loin twice and also forgot to peel the instant discount stickers off both loins, which I had to remind him to do.
After he took the loins out of the bag to remove the stickers he scanned one of them a second time.  I saw him do it and I saw on my screen that I was charged twice for that loin so I said something.
Mr. Cashier didn't take to being challenged and got his back up about it.  He began to argue with me that NO! he certainly DID NOT ring that up twice.

So not wanting to have to throttle a teenage boy in a crowded cashier line I just said fine(and to myself I said I'd be talking with the CS person shortly to get my $6.70 back).
Then he forgot to take the meat stickers off the pork chops too....sigh.
He had to call someone over because he didn't know how to do a rain check.....at least the front end person knew and nothing went askew with that part of the transaction.

Then he forgot to ring up one of my salads which were part of the Buy 6/Get $3 off Deal.  I quickly calculated in my head that not getting $3 off my order was in my favor if I was getting a $3.49 bag of salad free(the one he didn't scan).
After his snottiness over the double charged pork loin I wasn't about to accuse him of not ringing up a bag of salad and have a worse scene on my hands.  His mistake and attitude made me OK with getting .49¢ worth of salad free. HA!

So my Subtotal was actually $77.44-$19.04(w/out the $3 back wyb6)=$58.40 OOP
Reg. retail was $123.69 or a 52.79% savings rate.

The best deal, besides the "free" salad and the free dog food were the pork chops.  $7.75 with the BOGOFree sale and an additional $4 off w/meat stickers means I paid $3.75 for 2.68 lbs. of chops or $1.40 per lb.  Not bad.
The garlic herb Pork Loins were $6.93 after meat stickers so $2.32 per lb. for those.
The Hormel chili was $1.42 and 1/2¢ per can after the doubled Q.
The Coleman hot dogs were $1.12 after that Q.

Not a bad trip and I am still just barely under my $400 food budget for June still.($25.97 left)

Sluggy

April Trip to Fredericksburg Virginia....Part One

So during my eldest son's school break in April, Hubs and I made a quick trip down to Fredericksburg Virginia to see him.
He'd been home for Christmas so it had been 3.5 months since we spent time with him.

On the way down we hit the Lindt Chocolate Outlet.
Since Easter had just passed all the holiday related items were 50% off.

We picked up 4 bunnies(only 2 made it home since 2 were given to Eldest and his GF)plus a pound of assorted truffle "seconds".  Hubs has since eaten all the truffles, Daughter took one of the bunnies so there is only 1 bunny left.

We got to meet Eldest's new girlfriend while we were there.  She works as a guide at Montpelier and was waiting to hear about a new job she applied for as a guide at Mt. Vernon.(She got it!)

The first night Eldest picked the place to eat dinner.
Fredericksburg's version of an English pub....a mighty upscale version if you ask me, attached to the local shopping mall.

 Hubs had Shepherd's pie with lamb I think.....

 I have fish and chips........

And eldest had Corned Beef, Cabbage, Carrots and Mashed Potatoes.

I spied something I wanted to take home with me but alas!, I doubt it would have fit into my little purple car................

A throne grand enough for the "Queen of the Freaking Universe"!
All I needed was a crown and someone to behead...........

On the way back to Eldest's apartment we hit up the local Total Wine and More to use a gift certificate we had.

I always get a chuckle out of the quirky names of craft beers. lolz

The next day Eldest drove Hubs and I around so we could check out three of the Washington Heritage Museums in fFburg.
First on the itinerary was the Hugh Mercer Apothecary Shop.......

This is Hugh Mercer.......

Mercer was a good friend of George Washington(my 11th cousin 8 x removed)and was an American Revolutionary hero.
Originally from Scotland, Hugh was a surgeon in the Jacobite army of Bonnie Prince Charlie(my 10th cousin 9 x removed)and was present at their defeat at the Battle of Culloden.

Hugh fled and went into hiding before hopping a ship to the New World where he settled in what was then the frontier of Pennsylvania and practiced medicine there for 8 years(now Mercersburg PA).
He served as a soldier in the Seven Years War(known in the New World as the French and Indian War) fighting the French and Indians, commissioned a Captain and promoted to Colonel after the attack at Kittanning.
Mercer served under General John Forbes with fellow Colonel, Geo. Washington.

In 1760 Mercer moved to Fredericksburg, where there was a large Scottish community, after befriending several Virginians and he set up a medical practice and apothecary there.  Mercer was physick to George's mother's, Mary Ball Washington, and Mercer bought George's childhood home(now called Ferry Farm)from George in 1774 after he inherited it from his older brother.
But Hugh Mercer wouldn't live to enjoy his retirement years on the farm because of the American Revolution.  He was with George at the Battle of Trenton, surprising the Hessian forces on Christmas night by crossing the Delaware River.  A few days later as Washington was engaging Major Cornwallis at the second Battle of Trenton, Mercer and his men was ambushed by British forces en route to Princeton NJ(this battle became known as the Battle of Trenton).

Here's the famous John Trumbull painting of the event.

One of Hugh Mercer's son's, William Robert Mercer, an artist who was also deaf, painted this rendition of the event of Mercer's death.
Hugh Mercer and his wife, Isabella Gordon, had 5 children.  Their only daughter was Ann Gordon Mercer(known as "Mary").  Ann married Robert William Patton and one of their 2 x Great Grandsons would be General George Smith Patton(John Mercer Patton, George Smith Patton, George Smith Patton Jr., Gen George S. Patton III).
Ann Mercer's brother, Hugh Tennant Weedon Mercer also has a famous descendant. One of Hugh T.W. Mercer's 2 x Great Grandson's was songwriter/composer Johnny Mercer(Hugh, Hugh TW, Hugh Weedon, George Anderson, George Anderson II, John Herndon "Johnny").

When I saw that George S. Patton was a descendant on that board in the Apothecary I knew I had a relationship to Hugh Mercer, et al., too.
Hugh Tennant Weedon Mercer, besides Hugh Weedon, had another son, John Cyrus Mercer.
John's daughter, Eliza Christina Mercer married Dr. Beverly St. George Tucker. Beverly Tucker is my 6th cousin 4 x removed back through my STITH family line.

Beverly St George Tucker MD (1839 - 1894)
6th cousin 4x removed
Nathaniel Beverly TUCKER (1784 - 1851)
father of Beverly St George Tucker MD
Frances "Fanny" BLAND (1752 - 1788)
mother of Nathaniel Beverly TUCKER
Frances Elizabeth BOLLING 
mother of Frances "Fanny" BLAND
Drury BOLLING (1695 - 1726)
father of Frances Elizabeth BOLLING
Anne Meriwether STITH (1665 - 1709)
mother of Drury BOLLING
John Drury STITH Jr (1658 - 1724)
father of Anne Meriwether STITH
Maj. John Drury STITH I (1631 - 1694)
father of John Drury STITH Jr
Drury STITH (1670 - 1740)
son of Maj. John Drury STITH I
Anne STITH (1700 - )
daughter of Drury STITH
Ephraim Stith PARHAM (1723 - 1793)
son of Anne STITH
Jane PARHAM (1738 - 1804)
daughter of Ephraim Stith PARHAM
Joseph Hunter MASON (1776 - 1854)
son of Jane PARHAM
Sarah "Sallie" MASON (1805 - 1854)
daughter of Joseph Hunter MASON
Mary Agnes DRISKILL (1837 - 1894)
daughter of Sarah "Sallie" MASON
Robert William HARPER (1881 - 1961)
son of Mary Agnes DRISKILL
Wirt Ross HARPER (1909 - 1968)
son of Robert William HARPER
Carole Frances HARPER 
daughter of Wirt Ross HARPER
ME

So Hugh Mercer, Patriot and Martyr of the Revolution is specifically the Great Grandfather of the Wife of my 6th cousin 4 x removed.
Got that?

Also upstairs in the building was this hole in a wall.  If you looked through the hole you could read about the origination of the part of a house called a "Powder Room".......

Gentleman of that era who wore wigs could put their head through the hole in the wall and a servant on the other side in the room would powder their wig to refresh it's look.  Flour and starches scented with floral and fruit essences could also be added to the powder concoction to mask the smell of men who didn't bathe except in July and August and wore wigs when out in public.

We toured the downstairs apothecary shop and the costumed/in character guides took us through all the items that the good doctor used to cure the ills of his patients.

They even had a small still to make spirits.....only for medicinal purposes mind you.  ;-)

Then it was into the doctor's study and surgery room where Dr. Mercer saw his most ill patients.

The doctor was not in at the moment so we chatted with his assistant.
She showed us his latest arrivals from the Continental, Hirudo Medicinalis.

Yep, a big old fat, living LEECH!




We chose not to wait around for the bloodletting, bid the staff good day....

 and ventured onto the next stop on the museum trail.


Part 2 coming soon and I'll leave you with this lovely tune from Hoagy Carmichael and Johnny Mercer.......


Sluggy

This Week on the Dining Table

The "Say Hello To My Little Friends" Edition--

We celebrated Father's Day on Saturday by grilling steaks and corn and inviting these bad boys to the party as well. 

These lobsters came from Quebec as it's not quite lobster harvesting season in US waters.
Don't say I don't support the Canadian economy! lolz

Moving On....

Onward to the meal planning!

This is what was planned--

1. Sunday--Tacos

2. Monday--Leftovers(Stuffed Shells or whatever you find)

3. Tuesday--Pecan Chicken, Squash Casserole

4. Wednesday--Reuben Sandwiches, Cabbage

5. Thursday--Eggplant Parm, Salad

6. Friday--Chicken Tenders, Veg(TBD)

7. Saturday--?  Pizza or something easy from the Freezer

And this is what actually happened--

1. Sunday--Tacos

2. Monday--Leftovers(Stuffed Shells or whatever you find)

3. Tuesday--Pecan Chicken, Squash Casserole

4. Wednesday--Reuben Sandwiches, Cabbage

5. Thursday--Leftovers

6. Friday--Chicken Tenders, Spinach Salad

7. Saturday--Father's Day Cook-Out(steak,lobster,corn)

Everything got served(I had a eggplant parm tv dinner on Thursday but everyone else had something different)and we had Father's Day meal on Sat. instead of Sun. because the weather was nicer that day.  I got 1/2 price bag of spinach so Fri. TBD Veg became a Spinach Salad.
Last week saw lots of cooking.
I also made TWO desserts last week(I don't often make those.).  I had a 1/2 a can of cherry pie filling in the fridge that needed using up so I made a Pear/Cherry Crisp in the crock pot. Recipe HERE. (My addition is to layer a few sheets of paper towel on top, under the lid so that it doesn't dry out too much while cooking in the crock pot.)  This is a double win because it used a box of cake mix that needed to go as well.  Then I made a pan of brownies for Father's Day at Hubs request.

Last week saw 5 nights of home cooked dinners, 2 night of leftovers/fend for yourself, 0 nights of Take-Out or Eating Out.  

A trip to Ollie's, Weis, and the Shursave market brought the weekly food spending to $84.00 and the monthly total to $315.63.

I've got $84.37 left in the food budget for June and 12 days left in my shopping month.  

My savings percentages last week was 48.20%(without Rite-Aid trips)and June's monthly savings total so far is at 53.46%.

Leftovers going into this week......a few helpings of Beef Pie and lots of Stuffed Shells(it made a ton), Cabbage and a small hunk of Corned Beef.

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

1. Sunday--Fend For Yourself

2. Monday--BLTs

3. Tuesday--Fish, Cole Slaw, Veg TBD

4. Wednesday--Breakfast for Dinner

5. Thursday--Chicken Parm, Salad

6. Friday--Brats on Rolls w/Onions, Baked Beans, Veg TBD

7. Saturday--Leftovers

This week will see 5 new meals cooked, 2 night of leftovers/FFY and 0 nights of Take-Out/Eating Out.
Sandwiches tonight due to the heat advisory here and I don't want to run the oven.  Wed. may be a FFY night as well and everyone can make their fav breakfast foods because I am not making 8 different things. lolz

Not much inventive or exciting this week as I've got things to get done.  Everything except Tuesday's dinner can be handled by the other 3 people who live here if I don't feel like orchestrating meals this week.

What needs buying for this menu? Tomatoes, Cabbage for Cole Slaw and Lettuce.
I'll just stay in town and shop for this stuff and hope for good prices.

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

A Little More Rite-Aid Porn

Went back up to Rite-Aid on Friday after the supply truck came in.
I have a TON of BC to use up soon so I pulled out two rain checks and bought all this........the chocolates were bought on a separate card from the rest......

3 x case of R-A water(rain check)$1.99=$5.97 *not pictured*
2 x Dove chocolate bags on sale=$6.00
1 x Aleve pain reliever on sale=$6.49
4 x A&H toothpaste(rain check)=FREE
SubTotal......$18.46

Coupons Used
1 x $2/2 Dove chocolate bags RA receipt Q=$2.00
1 x $5/1 Aleve ManuQ=$5.00
Coupon Total.......$7.00

$18.46-$7.00=$11.46 paid for with Bonus Cash
$2 in new BC earned back(Dove) so I spent down my BC by $9.46.

Sluggy

Frugal Friday.....June 15th Edition

Here are a few things we did that were frugal this past week.............

*  I earned a whopping .25¢ cash rebate on Ibotta.
Go. me. lolz

*  Hubs picked up the Friday Freebie last Friday at Weis.

Free applesauce cups?  Yes, please!

*  Weis was out of the BOGOFree Butter(8 oz. packs)last week's 3 Day Deals so I had Hubs get me a rain check and when he had to go back to Weis on Saturday he thought to get me another rain check for it, giving me two rain checks.........

Gotta love a man who gets rain checks! ;-)

*  I sold 4 packs of diapers this week.

$22 in my pocket selling something that cost me NADA!

*  More things from Rite-Aid for "free" this past week.....

*  Here is what I bought at Weis this week......

The ice cream and OJs were part of the Buy 6/Get $3 Off Deal so $15.94 for those plus I used 4 x $1.25/1 Qs for the Magnum so $10.94 OOP for those 6 items.  (It's too bad I don't like that ice cream....too much chocolate, not even ice cream IMHO.)  The bag of spinach was 1/2 price and I used one of my butter rain checks(see above)so $4.73 for 4 x 8 oz. packs plus another .96¢ off the butter since it was Senior discount Tuesdays( and a Weis branded product)so I paid $3.77 total for all the butter, making it less than $2 a lb.
I'll be sure to use the other rain check on Tuesdays so I get an additional 10% off those butters too.  8-)

*  I got home and discovered that the cashier at Weis had rang up FIVE butters not Four so when we were out Wednesday running errands I stopped in and got my money back.........

I tired to explain that no, they didn't owe me $2.50 but less due to the Senior Discount but the CS guy couldn't wrap his head around that fact so I got the whole $2.50.
$2.50 back into my grocery budget?  Works for me! lolz

*  While doing a much neglected house project, cleaning out the laundry room, I found this.....

.10¢ of found money added to my wallet.

*  Hubs and I hit Ollie's(Good Stuff Cheap!)on Wednesday.

Didn't get much in the way of foodstuffs.......3 Jello(Peach), Garlic(2 ways), Parsley, Ranch dressing, 2 Parmesan shakers, lemon custard for pie and then Pop-Tarts for Ex-College Boy and Mocha Frappe mix for the 2 kids.  $23.11 on food and we picked up a couple books, a new non-stick skillet, a tablecloth and some doggie treats.

*  Hubs and I had lunch out at Bob Evans on Wednesday after hitting Ollie's.  I drank water so didn't pay $2.49-$2.69 for a drink!  And I used a coupon for $4 off our meal which covered the tip amount.

*  Hubs clipped Chester's nails and I cut Chester's hair this week and he'll be getting a bath soon too.
Having a puppy we were able to get him acclimated to having these things done to him while he is/was young so it's pretty easy to perform them(except that he is still a puppy and can't hold still).
Why pay money at a pet groomer when we can do these things ourselves?

Other than lunch out we didn't do anything special this week.

What frugal wins did you have lately?

Sluggy