Feeling all Effervescent About Coke

I wait every year for the month of December.
Why?
So I can cash in my Coke Rewards Points.

If you have a soda monkey on your back(or on the backs of those you love and feed), you can drink Coke products, save the codes up until December and then start cashing them out.  We don't go through Coke products nearly as much as we use to when all 3 kids were at home and younger.  #2 Son prefers his poison in the form of Mt. Dew and the other 2 don't drink soda much anymore.  I will have a Coke now and again but my heart beats for Dr. Pepper if I have to have soda.

Even if you don't drink it much, you can still scavenge codes from friends, co-workers, social gatherings where they serve said products or even from trash cans everywhere you go.

If you see an empty coke bottle with a cap being thrown away, grab that cap.  The code inside it is worth 3 points.  See someone throwing out a 12 pack carton?  Grab the flap where the carton is perforated for the code on back of that, which is worth 10 points.

You have to keep your points "active" throughout the year once you enter them on the Coke website.  This means you have to add codes for points at least once every 3 months, or Coke will expire all your points accumulated on their website.

Throughout the year, Coke "may" offer deals and specials.....like one time offers on gifts or a lower "price" on a reward(meaning you have to spend less points to get something).  Be sure and sign up to receive their emails or check their Facebook page often to take advantage of these type of specials.

And then once a year in December, MyCokeRewards runs lots of specials.  Usually they put the Free 12 packs of Coke products on sale in December sometimes for 30 points(instead of 300 points!).
Many people wait for this all year to get scads of Free Coke coupons. (If you get your codes by not drinking the stuff, they DO have rewards for things other than soda too.)

This past December Coke changed it up and held a "12 Days of Christmas" Deal.  Every day they offered a different Reward(Limit 1)and on the 12th day the Deal was Free 12 packs of Coke Qs for 30 points with a Limit of 4 packs/rewards.
Only, Coke decided to change it to Limit of 1 at the last minute, after advertising for 2 weeks that the Limit was 4.
And people pulled a Peter Finch in "Network", got mad as hell and let Coke and everyone in the civilized world know of their displeasure over this marketing gaff.

So Coke decided to let everyone get unlimited number of free Coke Qs for their points a day or two later but didn't advertise it.
But many people missed it and they got even hotter over this.

Let's just say that this whole thing was a big ball of f**ked-upness and a marketing dept. nightmare for Coke.

Along with the screwy Promotion this year, Coke also had a sweepstakes/game Deal.  For 3 points, you could play a game and have the chance of winning prizes, with a limit of 5 tries per day.

After I had used up most of my points on those Free Coke Qs, I went ahead and threw about 30 points away on the sweepstakes.
I find that it helps when I try to win something, that it makes me not take it so seriously and get "worked up" when I don't win, if I consider any money/points/etc. I use to be just throwing it away.
It also helps make it more awesome if I actually happen to win something! lolol

So here is my Coke haul for 2012 with the few points I manage to scrape together in 2012.

I chose to get a $10 Gift Card for Domino's Pizza.
I snagged 5 FREE Coke 12 packs during the Free Q fiasco days.
I also won twice in the sweepstakes--1 x 20 oz. bottle of Coke(wow! what a prize!!!) and 1 x Prize Pack of 2 AMC Movie tickets and 2 Large Sodas(I bet if I were to price them out, the sodas cost more than the movie tickets).

I will add here that Coke products(12 packs and 2 liters)are part of the Rite-Aid January Promotion(count toward your $100 in purchases)AND give a $2+Up Reward wyb3 12 packs this week(this may be regional).  This is a way to stretch out the benefit of these Free item Qs if you shop Rite-Aid this month.......and I am sure Wags and CVS also have deals coming up that give you a reward back when you redeem your Free Coke coupons.  Just keep your eyes peeled for them!

Just another way to be thrifty if you have to indulge your carbonated self.

Sluggy

Another Fine Mess......

I went to Rite-Aid last night.
And as Oliver Hardy use to say, "Well, that's another nice mess you've gotten us into!"

I just looked it up and though this short film they did was entitled "Another Fine Mess", the actual catchphrase that Hardy used was "another nice mess...".
And thus ends our lesson in the history of comedy for today. lol

At any rate, my trip to Rite-Aid turned out Laurel and Hardy style.
Here is what I ended up bringing home.....

And here are the "normal" deals I got.

*The Dryel was $8.29, but $6.63 after Gold discount and I had a $5 IPQ, making it $1.63 AND it's a monthly +Up Deal this month, so I got a $2 +Up Reward back.

*The Sharpies are BOGO this week(these particular packs reg. price $4.29), and there is another monthly +Up Deal of $2+Up Reward back for each one you buy.  So I spent $4.29 and received back $4 in +Ups.

Now on to the "problem children"....lol

*I was chatting with one of the friendly managers on duty.  She was restocking and blocking the aisle with her cart I wanted to get the Neosporin from, so I asked her to grab one for me.  She hands it over and says be sure and use the coupon in the sales flyer on it.
Huh?, I said.
She said the shelftag has written on it that there is a $1 sales flyer Rite-Aid coupon to use on this product.
OK.....so I scan the sales ad and there is no In-Ad Q for this item and I show her.
She says to me she'll have the cashier modify the price down $1.
So this is why I paid $11.99 for the Neosporin Essentials Pack and not $12.99.
And there is a full rebate on this item, so in the end, I'll have paid nothing for it. 8-)

*I grabbed a bottle of the 1 Liter sized Listerine.  It's on sale for $3.99 and counts toward the J&J Spend $30/Get $10 Promotion AND the Jan. Spend $100/Get $20 etc. Promotion.
My Load2Card has 2 electronic Qs on it for this size product--a $2/1 Q which is older and a $1/1 Q which is new in the past couple of weeks.  I also have an IPQ for $2/1.

Before I handed over any Qs I had the cashier print out the receipt to see if either of the L2C Qs came off.  Neither had.  The manager from before was up at the register so I pitched a hissy fit.
Ok.....maybe not a hissy fit, but I said something derogaroty about this whole L2C set-up.  It seems like I am calling them every week or two and the reason why something doesn't work right is always changing!  It's really getting quite tiresome.....

The manager scanned my Wellness card and she could look at my Wellness account on the register and see every L2C coupon I had!  As a matter of fact, she could see every L2C coupon I had EVER clipped to my card since the program started!  I had 15 pages of Qs(most expired though)!LOLOL  She found both the $2 and the $1 Listerine Qs sitting in my account.  So she price modified the Listerine to $1.99(which is what I'd have to pay if the $2 Q came off).  At that point, I couldn't hand over my $2/1 IPQ too since the price of the item was less than the Q.
So instead of using a L2C and a IPQ on the item and getting it for free, I was going to pay $1.99.
I was ok with that, especially after they had taken the time and effort to make me happy.
Who could NOT be ok with that? 8-)

So I handed over my Dryel Q and then I started doling out the +Up Rewards until I was left with .90¢ to pay(on the gift card, of course), and my receipt with $6 in +Ups printed out.
And before I left the store I saw something on the receipt--seems the $1 Listerine L2C Q had attached to my bill after the cashier had hit total or something!  It wasn't there when we printed out the receipt before.
So I ended up paying .99¢ for the Listerine.  Not quite free but that's ok. ;-)

Now for my tracking for the Promotions....
I have $13.98 for the J&J Deal(need $30).
I have $20.99 for the Jan. Promo(need $100).  I had $19 going into this transaction so that means only the Listerine at $1.99 was added.  The Sharpies are part of the deal but they didn't attach.  I should have $25.28  Grrrrr

I "spent" $18 in +Ups, got $6 +Ups back and I am due a cash refund of $11.99.


This trip to Rite-Aid--
OOP....$0.00
Value of items.....$37.15
+Ups coming into this trip....$28.50
+Ups used....$18.00
+Ups earned......$6.00
+Ups at the end.....$16.50

 
**GRAND TOTALS FOR JANUARY-so far**

Out Of Pocket....$0.00  cash
Value of items bought.....$62.00
Savings Rate of  100%
Rebates due......$0.00
Savings Rate after Rebates.....100 %

+Ups at beginning of month...$32.50+
+Ups used....$25.00+
+Ups received...$9.00+
+Ups currently...$16.50+  


Sluggy

Food Spending January Week 1/Meal Planning January Week 2

This poster was put out in 1917 as part of a government program to conserve food and eliminate waste during World War I.  Besides feeding the US population, food resources were also needed overseas to feed the troops being sent over to fight.
Herbert Hoover was given the ok by President Wilson to develop this voluntary system that he called Food Conservation.  Hoover wanted to avoid rationing so a campaign to remind people to not overeat, use all food up and not waste anything was started.  The idea of "Meatless Mondays" and "Wheatless Wednesdays" started with this plan.
Hoover was able to reduce food consumption and waste in America by 15% all on a voluntary basis with no rationing!
Not only did the US supply the troops but they helped feed their Allies troops as well.  US farm exports to Europe tripled during and immediately after the war.  The surplus helped alleviate European citizens experiencing a massive post war famine.

I love this line in the poster....."Demonstrate Thrift In Your Home.  Make Saving, Rather Than Spending, Your Social Standard."

Time to get back to the qualities of 1917.

Here is what actually got served last week....

Sunday--Kielbasa on Rolls, Caramelized Onions, Potato Salad

Monday--Chinese take-out for Lunch, then leftovers and appetizers for New Years at home

Tuesday--Lunch out w/Hubs, Leftovers for Dinner

Wednesday--Tacos, Corn

Thursday--Pizza, Caesar Salad, I had soup(not feeling well)

Friday--Subway sandwiches(used a gift card)

Saturday--Leftovers-Chicken and Dumplings/Roast & Roasted Veggies, Ham Rolls

The food spending last week?
There was NO food spending.
Nada.
Didn't darken a grocery store's door last week.
$400 food budget goes into this week intact.

As for leftovers rolling into this week--we have 1 helping of Chicken and Dumplings left, Rolls from Christmas and some Taco Filling.

***********************

Here is what is getting served this week.....

Sunday--Baked Salmon, leftover P. Salad, Green Beans(from the garden), leftover rolls

Monday--Chinese take-out(again!), teen had Taco Bell

Tuesday--Corned Beef, Cabbage, Potatoes

Wednesday--Rigatoni w/Meat Sauce, Brussel Sprouts, Rolls(made into Garlic bread)

Thursday--Cheesesteaks, Creamed Spinach

Friday--Roast Chicken, Stuffing, leftover Rolls, Corn, Cranberry Glop

Saturday--Leftovers or Fend for Yourself or Breakfast for Dinner

I'll use up the rolls at various dinners, the taco filling goes into the Meat Sauce for the Rigatoni, the Chicken and Dumplings will be my lunch one day.  We have some Salmon and Green Beans leftover from Sunday which I'll eat for lunch as well.  Saturday we'll have leftover from this week--Corned Beef meal, Rigatoni meal and Roast Chicken meal to choose from for dinners that evening.

Needed at the store to serve this lot?

I'll need a head of cabbage, a roasting chicken, both of which are on sale this week.  I'll pick up some fruit too.  The leftover roasting chicken will either form the basis of a homemade pot pie next week or chicken salad for sammies(if I find a deal on apples or grapes).

There are some great or good deals this week I will pick up too.....Ground Beef at $2.28 lb, Bacon for $2.98, another Roasting Chicken or two at $.78 lb. and maybe some Catfish at $5.99 lb.

Target spending for the cabbage and chicken?  $9.00

Fruit for $7.00.

The stock-ups could go as high as $50 I think.

What's on your menu for the week?  Any good deals in the grocers this week?

Sluggy

The Resolution We Can't Keep in This Country

When we start a new calendar year, we tend to want to start fresh in all areas of our lives.
One of the prominent thoughts at the new year is to get organized or get MORE organized.
Being organized is ALWAYS a worthwhile goal, isn't it?

This is when we see stores haul out big displays and sales on Storage Containers and Organizational Systems of all kinds: from filing systems for the paper in our lives, to the clothes in our closets, to the foodstuffs in our cabinets, to ?.  Every area of our homes is ripe for storage improvement.
And the retailers stand at the ready with shiny new stuff for us to buy to make our lives more contained and organized.

It's true that in order to live a life that's streamlined and functioning well, we need to stay on top of everything in our lives, especially our "stuff".  But do we need to pull out the credit card or bank card or money envelope every January to buy something to achieve a functioning home?
The retailers will tell you YES you DO!
I say not necessarily.

Personally I feel that we don't have an organizing problem in this country, we have a "stuff" problem.

Now think about this......
How many people start out the new year buying containers, spending more money, and either abandon the plan to organize or find that just buying pretty containers and dumping your things in them is not a real organizational plan.

How many do this and by the time next January rolls around, the plan is forgotten and they are again, seduced by all those pretty containers enough to part with more of their money and start the cycle of buying containers all over again?

Do you realize that a fair percentage of people who are clinically referred to as hoarders follow this pattern of wanting to organize their things, purchasing containers/systems, and never do the emotional/physical work to change their habits and organize?  The containers just add to the clutter of their stash and every time they return to this phase of the cycle, more containers are added to the chaos.

Most new year attempts at getting our "stuff" organized are much like those new year resolutions we all make and promptly break or forget by February.  They seem like a good idea at the time, but the follow-through is just not there.

And if after all this organizing and storing away we still can't fit all  the "stuff" into our abodes, there are always garages and storage sheds we can buy, build and utilize.

And if that isn't enough extra space, there is a whole industry that is growing at an alarming fast clip that would love to rent you space for all that stuff you have that you don't need access to as often.  Yes, I am talking about the Storage Facility business.....a Billion Dollar industry that has grown up around our inability to throw things away.

Our homes in the US now are on average double the size of the homes our grand and great grandparents lived their lives in.
We have double the space for the stuff in our lives that they did, yet we still can't organized it all in such a way to fit into the space we have allotted for it.

We have more clothing & shoes, we have more furniture, we have more kitchen gadgets, we have more dishware, we have more food, we have more cars and related equipment.  And let's not forget all the electronic toys they never had, and all the hobby stuffs and sports stuffs.

And then there are the collections of every type, shape and size.  Most Americans collect something and a large percentage of those who collect have MORE THAN ONE COLLECTION of stuff.  And if you are stuck in a perpetual cycle of buying containers every year to corral your stuff, those containers ARE a collection!

If you can no longer use a room in your house or apartment for it's intended purpose because your "stuff" has taken over that room, you may have a problem.

Sure, if your collecting brings you joy and you have the extra space for it, that is great!

But if your things are taking over the space in your home AND taking the place of people in your life, perhaps it's time to take a good hard look at your life and the choices you are making.

If you bought less "stuff", would you have more room in your home?
If you bought less "stuff", would you have more time because you would have to organize and clean less?
If you bought less "stuff", would have have more money in your pocket to spend on needs and not be stressing out at the end of each month that your income would last?
If you bought less "stuff", could you spend that money on the people in your life instead?(And I don't mean buying THEM stuff instead.)

Make 2013 the year you break the cycle of spending on things that are NOT needs, cluttering and decluttering.
Make every purchase you make an INTENTIONAL, well thought-out one that fills a need!

What do you think readers?

Sluggy

My Week of Not Spending & Very Boring Stuff

I didn't set out to do a Week of No Spending but that is how it's turning out.
Perhaps I should not speak of it at this point, so as to not jinx myself.
Oops, too late. 8-)

Our last trip to the grocery store was 12/30, so Day 5 in the new year and no grocery spending in January yet.
Go me!
Our last trip to Rite-Aid was on January 2nd and no cash was spent.
We used a gift card and had Subway sammies Friday evening for dinner.  The gift card was bought last month(and I got free grocery credit toward groceries for buying it), so that spending is on the books for 2012, not 2013.

The only other place I've been so far this year is the Bank to deposit dividend checks from 2012 and to cash a Christmas check for #2 Son.

It's been so bone chilling cold here the less I leave the house the better.

I've been moving stuff around in the house.  Especially all the excess toiletries, HBA and gift items I've hauled home in December for free from Rite-Aid.  It's gotten a little out of control with piles of stuff everywhere up in my bedroom that didn't get put into stockings or wrapped for under the Christmas tree.  The excess that wasn't given out has now been moved into the storage bins and containers with like items so it all can get found when needed as we use things up.  No point in having all this shampoo, deodorant and razors here if nobody can find the fresh supply when they run out of their current one.

Other items have been carted in from the garage into the house to restock from the excess that is stored out there.
I had hoped to spend part of this week freshening up the organization of the shelves in the garage and making sure everything was rotated.  Plus I wanted to do a fresh count on how much of which on the items out there......but it's just too blasted cold out there to stand it for more than 10 minutes at a time. Brrrrr!
Even so, I have discovered that I do NOT need to hit CVS this January to load up on almost free dishwasher detergent for the whole year, as I do every January.  CVS is known for having a killer sale after Qs and ECBS in January on Finish brand detergent.  I generally "buy" 20 boxes each January at the CVS sale to last me all year and it costs me pennies on the dollar.

With the assistance of #2 Son this week, I discovered that I have currently 43(FORTY THREE!)boxes of unopened dishwasher detergent in the garage stockpile.  And that is not counting the 10 automatic dispenser thingies of detergent I picked up at Rite-Aid over the last 2 years. 8-P

I figure I go through 20 boxes a year, which means I am still working on using up dishwasher detergent I bought back in 2010!  LOLOL
Yes, I'll just stay out of CVS this year to avoid anyone from nominating me for that Crazy Coupon Show....

I've also been closing out the balance sheets on 2012 financials.
And slowly putting away the wrapping paper and other Christmas accoutrements, though I haven't tackled denuding the tree and taking that down yet.
One of the more welcomed chores has been the removing of all the Holiday foods, one bite at a time.  lol

I may break my accidental Fiscal Fast Saturday as there are some items I want from the grocery store and the sale week ends that day.  Besides the Subway dining Friday evening, we've been creating meals and eating from what is on hand(see Holiday food status comment above).

In conclusion, it's been a very boring week around the Sluggy place.
Unless you've been inside my brain.  In there, it's been quite lively this week.  Working the money numbers get me all giddy and keep me up late into the night.  And then there are my thoughts about 2013......what to do, what to do!

What do I want to blog about?
What challenges do I want to follow in 2013?
What goals, if any, to concentrate on?
What does life have in store for me this coming year?

The possibilities are endless.
As one Gwendolen Fairfax once said, "The suspense is killing me.  I hope it will last!"



Sluggy

Today We Start Saving Money At the Grocery Store! How To PRICE BOOK

Ok, if you are an old frugal hand when it comes to the Grocery Store, this isn't for you.
But......if you regularly feel you spend too much on groceries, it's time to take control of your money!

Want to know my secret to saving money on groceries?
No, it's not coupons, though they DO help.

I keep a PRICE BOOK.
And you should too!
It's an awesome TOOL to help you keep more of your $ in YOUR pocket and out of the grocer's till.
It's not very hard to make one and it just takes a couple of minutes a week to update it.

And here is my Step-by-Step Guide to making one if you've never tried before.

Let's start 2013, a brand new year off on the right foot!


Here is what you need to begin--

A small notebook, notepad or even just a piece of loose leaf paper.  Something with lines is better than plain bonded paper.  If you only have bonded paper, get a ruler and a pen and make some lines on it.

Here is what I am going to use.  It's something I had here in the house, just taking up space.  I didn't go out and buy anything.

I've got a little notepad with a cover.
You need 6-8 different colored markers or pens.  Use what you can find around the house.  If you can't find 6-8 different colors, use the pen colors and marker colors you have....a blue pen, a black pen, a red pen, a black marker, a brown marker, a pencil, etc.  As long as you can tell a difference when you write with them, which instrument was used.
You also need a small calculator to take into the store with you.  If you have a smartphone just use the calculator function on your phone.

1.  The first thing you do is get out a piece of scratch paper or open a word document if you want to do this on your computer.
You are going to list 20-30 items you buy on a regular basis in the grocery store.  It can be anything.  Food products, pet products, health and beauty and/or paper products.

Here is my list of 30 items.

MEATS
ground beef
chuck roast
hot dogs-premium
pork
bacon
chicken breast
chicken whole
salmon

DAIRY
butter
eggs
cheese

VEGETABLES
carrots
potatoes
celery
onion
salad greens

CANNED/BOXED
pasta
spaghetti sauce
coffee
soup-tomato
soup-cream

BAKING
flour
sugar
sugar-brown
honey

DELI
ham
cheese provolone

FROZEN
pizza
ice cream-premium
broccoli

JUNK
soda 12 pack
chips-premium


And here is my explanation why I chose these items.....


MEATS
ground beef-this is the most used beef for us. I look for 80% or higher.
chuck roast-a cheaper cut that can be slow cooked and taste as good as other cuts
hot dogs-premium types like Nathan's/Sabrett's/Hebrew National
pork-boneless one, either cut up chop style or whole
bacon-any brand
chicken breast-on bone, not boneless, always cheaper than boneless
chicken whole-for roasting, soup/stews, cut up yourself, versatile
salmon-our preference and expensive, need a deal

DAIRY
butter-needed for so many things
eggs-ditto
cheese-block or shredded in bags, 8 oz. size--cheddar and mozzarella-both usually on sale for same price during sales

VEGETABLES
While many veggies go on special seasonally, these ones are needed year round in many dishes.
Mirepoix (your carrots/celery/onions)form the basis of so much in cooking. Potatoes are versatile and good as a filler too.  Fresh salad greens are a must for my family.
 
carrots
potatoes
celery
onion
salad greens

CANNED/BOXED
pasta-a staple in our house, no brand loyalty, something is always going on sale
spaghetti sauce-ditto
coffee-so expensive, worth finding a deal on
soup-tomato
soup-cream --I use these 2 soups in dishes frequently.  They are building blocks or can be eaten as soup.


BAKING
flour-a staple no one should be without, unless you are wheat allergic-then buy rice of coconut flour
sugar-another staple sweetener
sugar-brown--ditto
honey-we use a lot during the winter both in cooking and tea

DELI
ham-we don't use this much but it freezes well.
cheese provolone-an augmentation to the cheddar/mozzarella mix, can't find in blocks here

FROZEN
pizza-no brand loyalty, any name brand or premium house brand
ice cream-ditto
broccoli-a "go to" veggie for my family, like to have it stocked

JUNK
soda 12 pack-something is always on sale but we tend to be brand loyal
chips-premium, any brand


Now here are some other items I didn't include but you might want to....
Milk(our state has regulated prices so it's useless for me to price book this)
Rice
Condiments like ketchup, mustard, relish, mayo
Spices
Bread
Pet Food
Shampoo
Toilet Paper

You don't have to put everything you buy on this list and you can expand or change up stuff on your list after we get 6 weeks or so in.
This first list is just to get you started.

Now that you have your list of 20-30 items, go list them down in your notebook/notepad/sheet of paper.
It will help you if you visualize your grocery stores floor plan and list your items in the order in which you visit that section of the store from first to last.
If your fresh produce section is first, start with fresh veggie items, if the meat section is first, begin with the meats when you write your list.....

2. Pick one of your writing instruments to be your WEEK ONE color.  I'm going with the black marker I wrote my list of items with.

3.  Take your notebook and pen/marker for Week #1 with you the next time you go grocery shopping.

4.  As you go through the store, note the price(or if there are more than one of that product you would consider buying, note the lowest price for similar items/sizes).
* Since sometimes you may be comparing 2 different sized items here, if there is no shelf tag giving the per oz. information, use your calculator(or phone app)to figure which product is less money.

The first time you take your Price Book to the store and have to write down the prices it might take you a little extra time to do your shopping.  It won't take much extra time, 10-15 minutes maybe.  If you are pressed for time, maybe go to the store the first time and NOT buy anything, just do your price book so you can concentrate on getting it right.

5.  Now you put your Price Book away until the next week's sales ad begins.  Just put it on the shelf and next week when you head out the door to grocery shop(hopefully you have a LIST at least!lol), grab the Price Book and another color of marker/pen and repeat Step 3 and 4.

We will do this for the next 6 Weeks.  Then we will sit down and analyze our data and see what the sales cycles look like in our stores.

*** If you want to compare prices between 2 stores as well, it's easy to work that into our Price Book.

WEEK ONE--When we go to the store and write in the prices, just put a letter or symbol next to Store A's price and a different something next to Store B's price.

For example--I shop regularly at Weis and a local market named Carone's.  Week One I will go to Weis and note that ground beef is $2.99 lb. and I'll put a little W next to that price.  Then I'll go to Carone's that same week, and note that ground beef is $3.29 lb. and I'll use the SAME COLOR PEN to write $3.29 but put a little C next to that price.  I now can look back in 6 weeks to see that the best price was $2.99 and Weis had it during Week One.

The Grocery Sales start here on Sunday, so the next sales week is 1/6-1/12.
So I will wait until Sunday to give everyone a chase to get their supplies together and get their items listed in their PRICE BOOK before I go start filling in WEEK ONE's price data and post it.

So why don't you come along and try this?!
What have you got to lose?
Not much I'd say......but you potentially have pennies and dollars to gain when you are giving less money to the grocery stores.  8-)

Sluggy

It's Day 3 of 2013, Time for Rite-Aid!

Well you just KNOW it wouldn't be long before I broke out the Rite-Aid posts for 2013.  ;-)

Especially since I have +Up Rewards expiring here and there in the coming weeks.

First I returned and re-bought some L'Oreal shampoo & Suave Lotion from last week since my Load2Card $2/1 and $1/1 Qs didn't come off last week when I bought it.  It worked for the $2 Q....yay!  So I ended up with $2.74 on a Merchandise Return Card.
As a Bonus, the R-A catalina machine spit out a Free Item Breathe Right strips Q!
I might just return the Suave lotion since the Load2Card Q still didn't come off and put that $3.03 on a MRCard too.

Doing the drugstore deals is all about getting things you NEED and getting them when the drugstore will give you something back(either rebate or some kind of "reward" you can spend like money)for buying these products you need.
Notice how what I bought were things I need, things I had Qs for, things that I got a reward back for buying(except that 1 free item).

Here is how I used some expiring +Ups last evening....

2 x Ziploc bags on sale $2=$4.00
2 x Pantene shampoo on sale $3.50=$7.00
1 x Breathe Right strips w/Gold discount=$5.35
SubTotal....$16.35

Coupons Used
1 x $1/2 Ziploc bags ManuQ(12/2SS)=$1.00
1 x $3/2 Pantene items ManuQ(12/30PG)=$3.00
1 x FREE item CatalinaQ just received=$5.35
Coupon Total.....$9.35

$16.35-$9.35=$7.00 + .06¢tax=$7.06
I used $7 +Ups expiring 1/2/13 and put the .06¢ on my Rite-Aid gift card.

I received back $3 in +Up Rewards($1 wyb2 Ziploc, $2 wyb2 Pantene).

And my tracking for the January Promotion is at $19(Ziploc and Pantene are qualifying items=$11).
Only $81 more to spend to get the first $20 +Up Reward.
Rite-Aid evidently turned on the tracking before Sunday, the first day of this Promotion since I went into Sunday with $4 tracking, for something I bought the end of last week that is a qualifying product.
Not that I'm complaining about that or anything...... ;-)

Now I could have bought Herbal Essence shampoo this week on sale for $2.49.  There is a $1/1 Q in the P&G insert from Sunday, so it would be $1.49 after Q.
But....there is no "reward" from Rite-Aid for buying this item, THIS WEEK.
Whereas I got TWO "rewards" for buying the Pantene and Ziploc--the +Ups back AND they qualify for the bonus $20 +Ups of the Jan. Promotion.  These products were worth buying this week.

Though Herbal Essence IS a Jan. Promotion qualifying item, I get no +Ups.   It is a good price this week for the Herbal Essence, but I don't buy it and hold my Q for a sale that gives me +Ups back too.

****************************
If you want to do the Jan. Promotions and have 2 copies of the Pantene and the Ziploc Q, you can do these deals 2 times per Wellness card and get +Ups back.

Spend $22.00 on 4 shampoo & 4 bags, use $8 in Qs, pay $14(or use +Up Rewards), and get $6 in +Up Rewards back.
You are now $22 closer to "spending" $100 and have actually spent $14 plus any tax(or less if you are using +Ups from previous weeks to pay)and have $6 in +Ups to use in the next 2 weeks to buy more items you need and that are qualifying products for the Jan. Promotion too.
The Promotion runs through Jan. 26th, so you have 3+ more weeks to get to $100 of "spending".

Go check out iheartriteaid dotcom and/or slickdeals dotnet(the drugstore forum/rite-aid post for 1/6-1/12 to see the ad for next week's sale.  You can find what will be on sale and locate where coupons you can use on the items are(which insert or where online), cut and/or print those Qs and plan out what to buy/how to spend those $6 +Ups.
****************************

This trip to Rite-Aid--
OOP....$0.00
Value of items.....$24.85
+Ups coming into this trip....$32.50
+Ups used....$7.00
+Ups earned......$3.00
+Ups at the end.....$28.50

 
**GRAND TOTALS FOR JANUARY-so far**

Out Of Pocket....$0.00  cash
Value of items bought.....$24.85
Savings Rate of  100%
Rebates due......$0.00
Savings Rate after Rebates.....100 %

+Ups at beginning of month...$32.50+
+Ups used....$7.00+
+Ups received...$3.00+
+Ups currently...$28.50+  


Sluggy

Where the Deals Will Be in January

At the beginning of each month this year, I am going to post where you can expect to see deals that month.  Some things traditionally go on special every year like clockwork.
That way you can be on the look out for sales on certain products that go on special every year at that time.
So let's get started with January's bargains!

*January is all about diet & health products.  All that celebrating makes us want to get back to eating less/healthier and exercising.  Brands associated with low-cal foodstuffs go on sale.

*There are also deals on OTC medicines, vitamins and such as we go into flu season.

*The end of the Holidays also signals deep cuts on the prices of Christmas merchandise.  Don't forget everyday items with Holiday decorations/themes also being discounted(ie-napkins, plastic bags, boxes of cookies, baking mixes with red/green or holiday images).

*January is also a big organizing month, so look for deals on organizing supplies and containers.

*End of the month is Super Bowl so look for junk food deals toward the end of January.  Better yet, buy some of the diet foods or look for healthier ways to do the junk food thing.

 

January

Is National Oatmeal Month: Quaker and other brands of hot cereals go on sale.

Diet Foods: Brands such as Healthy Choice, South Beach, Lean Cuisine, Special K, Kashi, Smart Start, 100 Calorie Packs.  Also Slim-Fast and other diet aids.  Non-processed foods like Yogurt too.

Super Bowl Sunday: Soda, Chips, Dips, Cheese, Sandwich Items, Crackers, Snacks, Wings  There is usually a Pepsico brands deal and/or Coke deal.  Frito-Lay brands, Cracker Barrel cheese and Nabisco crackers.

Seasonal Produce: Oranges, Pears, Grapefruit, Tangerines, Broccoli, Carrots, Cauliflower, Celery, Chard, Collards, Kale, Kiwi, Avocado, Cabbage, Spinach
Best prices on fresh product this month on these items as well as some of the root veggies like Potatoes, Sweet Potatoes, Turnips, Rutabagas, Beets.

Clearance: Christmas Decorations, Toys, Wrapping Papers, anything everyday items with a Holiday packaging too.  Some Winter clothing begins to be discounted this month as well.
Alex M. adds to look for good high-end(gift quality?)soaps to go on sale....Fall/Holiday scents.

Winter Health: Cold Medicines and Vitamins  Look for cough drops, OTC flu and cough meds, facial tissue sales.

Bedding/White Sales: Judy remembered that Jan. is also White Sales Month--Linens/Bedding.  Look for really good deals on Flannel and Polar Fleece bed sheets!
 
If you know of an item or category of products that go on sale in January, feel free to leave a comment and I'll add it to the list.

Sluggy

$20K Savings Challenge.....DECEMBER Update & YEAR END TOTAL

Here is my DECEMBER Savings Challenge Update post for 2012.

This post is NOT about bragging or showing off.  It's just what we are able to save given our income and being able to hang tough against "unconscious" spending.

Just to update, My Savings Goal for the Year in 2012 was $20,000. 
Our background info--We are a family of 5(kids are 21-16)with one living away from home.  We have 2 dogs. We own 4 cars at present and live in/own free & clear a 4 bedroom house in a small town.

On to the December report.....

I have posted my DECEMBER End of Month $20K $AVING$ CHALLENGE Totals.
Check out the side bar to your right for the specific numbers.

I have 2 goals each month.....
The 1st is to actually finish each month in the black and not the red.
The 2nd is to hit the targeted savings amount of $1,666.67.

I have to report that we finished up December in the black!
The extra cash amount we ended the month of December with?.......$2,555.70

Income
We had $2,378.54 left over from our income after our monthly expenses were deducted. 

Add in 2 year-end dividend checks from investments and a small refund on our car insurance.  When combined, these totaled $177.16.   This brought our gain to $2,555.70 for December.

Outgo

As for the expenses this December, most of them were on the bad side, rather than the good side....

HERE are the GOOD THINGS

* The cash withdrawals were $200 lower.

HERE are the BAD THINGS

*  The water bill went up $3+.

*  The medical/dr. bills were $47 higher than last month. 

*  The credit card bill went up $778.

*  The electric bill went up by $83.

*  The car needed new tires to the tune of $439.29.

*  There was extra money spent in Dec. due to Christmas.

The Food Budget costs for DECEMBER are in another post, which is located HERE.

We managed to almost stay within our $400 food budget in December.

The 2012 GRAND TOTAL.....
With 12 months behind us, our Savings Grand Total for 2012 ended with  $28,907.08 in the fund!

We were able to hit our $20,000 goal plus almost another $9,000.

I am happy with how much we saved in 2012.
Some months it was easy and some months we had a hard time scraping together $1000 to put aside and not spend.
Heck, we were even NEGATIVE money in September!

So how was your December financially?
Did you spend less than you made?
Did you stay within your budget or not?

If you posted your financial progress on your own blog, leave a link in the comments so we can go check you out your progress too and celebrate with you!

Sluggy

DECEMBER 2012 Budget Results....Food & Toiletries Spending

Here are my FOOD BUDGET spending totals for DECEMBER 2012.

I have posted December's totals on the right side bar under Total Grocery Savings for 2012 and updated the Yearly Totals.
I am listing subtotals for each store I purchased from in December.  If you aren't interested in that much detail, just skip to the bottom for the Totals Summary.

My spending includes Food, Toiletries/HBA, Pet Supplies, Cleaning Products, Paper Goods & tax where applicable.We are a family of 5(4-5 at home this month)& 2 dogs. No kids under 16.
******************

BREAD OUTLET
OOP   $21.89

Value   $77.70

Savings  71.83%

CARVEL STORE

OOP   $17.95

Sale/Ads/Qs  $2.00

Value   $19.95

Savings   10.03%

KMART

OOP   $.10

Sale/Ads/Qs   $9.00

Value   $9.10

Savings   98.90%

OLLIE'S

OOP   $54.90

Value   $101.93

Savings   46.14%

RITE-AID

OOP  $0.00

Qs/Ads/+Ups/Gift Card  $785.79

Value  $785.79

Savings   100%

SHURSAVE STORES(small local independent affiliated stores)
OOP  $98.64

Qs/Ads  $85.94

Value  $184.58

Savings  46.56%

WEIS MARKETS

OOP  $245.63

Qs/Ads  $165.34

Value  $410.97

Savings  40.23%

I don't track Rite-Aid's +Ups here, nor CVS's ECBs & Walgreen's RRs. They will be included when used on purchases under "Coupons".   I'll keep track of what rebates are received monthly.  Rebate money/gift cards will be considered 'income' & will go into the Food/Toiletries budget, offsetting the Out of Pocket. Cash will go immediately into the Budget kitty, while Gift Cards will be calculated in when spent.

REBATE CHECKS RECEIVED IN December....Nothing

GIFT CARDS and CERTIFICATES....Nothing
TOTAL Value of Cash/Store Checks/Gift Card Rebates Received...$0.00

COUPONS and FREEBIES

1 Giveaway win--Free Laundry Detergent Q

*********************
My best 3 Store Savings Totals were the Rite-Aid at 100%,  KMart at 98.90%, and the Bread Outlet at 71.83%.  l shopped at 7 different stores this past month.

TOTAL Out of Pocket........$439.11

TOTAL Coupons & Store Sales Savings...$1,150.81

TOTAL Value of Items Purchased............$1,589.92

TOTAL Savings of...................................72.38%

TOTAL Out of Pocket after Rebates earned(but not received yet) this Month......$420.11

TOTAL Coupons & Store Savings....$1169.81

TOTAL Value of Items Purchased.....$1589.92
TOTAL Savings Rate after Rebates of..........................73.57%

This closes out the December spending.

THOUGHTS & COMMENTS for this month.....

I went into December with $400 budgeted for food/toiletries for the month.  I went over budget by $39.11.  Once I receive my $19.00 in rebates I earned in Dec., my overage gets cut to $20.11.

My grocery/toiletries savings were at 73.57% for December after rebates.  If you take the Rite-Aid purchases out of the equation, my savings percentage falls to 45.40%.  Almost 50% savings for just food is quite good.  I'm usually around 33% savings for just the food stores.

I continued to shop the loss leaders and sales and stocked up when things were at rock bottom price in the sales cycles. 

Speaking about ONLY the food stores, I redeemed 22 manufacturer's Coupons on 187 items bought in December.  I went through my receipts and counted exactly how many Qs were used in December to prove that just shopping the loss leaders and rock bottom price in the sales cycles at the food stores CAN give you a good savings rate WITHOUT using coupons!  Yes, I used a few Qs but you don't have to be like those crazy people on that TLC show to save money on what you feed your family!

 I also earned 4 Catalina Qs worth a combined amount of $21 that were redeemed in December for food items at my 2 main grocery stores and in the food aisle at KMart.

 

And here is the run down of my Food & Toiletries Spending for 2012--

2012 Total Saved $8,279.46

2012 Yearly Total Value of Items $12,475.82

2012 Yearly Total Spent $4,196.36

2012 Yearly Savings Total of 66.36%

********************


JANUARY

Out of Pocket $198.68
Value of Items $819.07
Amount Saved $615.72
Savings Percentage of 75.74% 

FEBRUARY

Out of Pocket $194.03
Value of Items $823.28
Amount Saved $629.25
Savings Percentage of 76.43%

MARCH

Out of Pocket $494.28
Value of Items $1127.03
Amount Saved $632.75
Savings Percentage of 54.64%

APRIL

Out of Pocket $225.03
Value of Items $451.13
Amount Saved $226.10
Savings Percentage of 50.12%

MAY

Out of Pocket $336.48
Value of Items $585.35
Amount Saved $228.10
Savings Percentage of 42.52%

JUNE

Out of Pocket $358.85
Value of Items $1,121.05
Amount Saved $762.20
Savings Percentage of 68%

JULY

Out of Pocket $236.43
Value of Items $823.59
Amount Saved $540.90
Savings Percentage of 71.30%

AUGUST

Out of Pocket $485.94
Value of Items $1503.43
Amount Saved $1017.49
Savings Percentage of 67.67%

SEPTEMBER

Out of Pocket $418.60
Value of Items $1233.55
Amount Saved $814.95
Savings Percentage of 65.58%

OCTOBER

Out of Pocket $459.36
Value of Items $1130.59
Amount Saved $658.23
Savings Percentage of 59.37%

NOVEMBER

Out of Pocket $368.57
Value of Items $1267.83
Amount Saved $899.26
Savings Percentage of 70.92%

DECEMBER

Out of Pocket  $420.11
Value of Items  $1589.92
Amount Saved  $1169.81
Savings Percentage of 73.57%

Sluggy

Sluggy Gets Reflective on Debt Freedom as 2012 Leaves the Building

First off, I want to express my gratitude to everyone who comes to this little blog and reads my humble(usually ranting)remarks and the ever-so-dry financial calculations and scratchings I make.

And an extra dose of gratefulness to those who read and comment!

Though I may be quite lax in replying at times(most times!), I do read every single word of comments left on the posts and they are most welcomed.
They leave me with a sense of "I'm not just shouting into a big black void" and the comments either validate me/what I do OR they let me know when I am in serious need of getting my head out of my own ass and returning to something resembling reality.
Hopefully, it's the previous and not the latter situation that prompts your comments left. ;-)


I see my blog, firstly as a LIFE BLOG.  I talk about almost anything I have a mind to, from finances, to my family, to genealogy and my other interests in life.
A big part of my blog is frugality.....it's not the only thing that goes on here, but it's a big one.

Most frugal blogs also encompass debt and debt repayment.
If you haven't realized it yet, you won't find that component here at DON'T READ THIS; IT'S BORING.
Hubs and I escaped the whole Debt thing for good in March of 2007, when we paid off the mortgage.
We only put as much in purchases on the credit card that we can pay off each month and we don't finance cars.  We are onto cash flowing college for the kids and building up our retirement savings.  We just don't do debt anymore.

You won't be able to come here to cheer us on when we kill a debt.  I know.....I just take all the fun out of life sometimes, don't I?
I do, however, love to leave comments for others who are still struggling with debt, when they vanquish a foe.  It makes me smile when all of you I visit take another big step toward living the dream of Debt Freedom.

What you WILL be able to come here to see is how much better life can be once you get to be debt-free.
You can see that once you aren't dissipating your income to this debt or that one AND giving the bulk of your income to a mortgage company, how quickly that money you use to give to debts can pile up and stay in YOUR bank account instead and then fund other goals, like college for the kids, house remodels, vacations, house repairs and retirement.

You'll also see how we struggle to avoid lifestyle inflation, what I feel is the greatest threat to living below your means.
It's so easy when you get a raise in income or a windfall of some unexpected money to use it to upgrade your life.  Instead of keeping what was before, a perfectly reasonable lifestyle, suddenly that extra cash needs to buy you more things or higher quality/quantity of food/drink/car/home, or more nights out being entertained.  So the extra cash gets spent on frivolity(wants) instead of being held for emergencies both big and small that will come around.
Shit happens.  You may not want to face that fact, but it does.  So don't spend all your money.  Keep some.  Invest some.  You never know when you'll need some extra for.....Needs!

People often ask me how we did it....how we got to this place.
It's complicated and what worked for us might not work for anyone else.

We saw 2 paths to debt freedom.
There is the "intense/short" path or the "little pain felt/long" path.

We could get very serious about being in debt.  Debt could become the focus of our lives and every penny spent, every decision made would be ruled by the debt.  We could make debt so vile in our minds that the most important thing in our lives would be to extract from it's talons, even if some decisions made our lives uncomfortable for the short term.

OR

We could be more casual about rooting out the debt.  Debt would be paid off slowly, without it disrupting our lifestyle much.  We wouldn't feel the pain of making do without this or that, and the debt would be hanging around longer.

Since we didn't have piles of debt(credit cards, medical, car, etc.)other than a mortgage, it was easy to pick the short, intense path to freedom.  We could knuckle down for a couple of years and delay gratification in so many other things to get the debt gone.

I know some may feel that getting intense for 2 years is extreme.  Heck I know people who can't delay wants for 2 MONTHS.
We thought 2 years of full frontal deprivation was pushing it, but the benefits of getting the debt over with outweighed the sacrifices we had to make.

But you know......where you are with your finances now is because of a long long line of choices you have made with your money through the years.
No single decision brought you to where your money stands today.
There have been literally thousands of decisions you have made over the course of your life and each one put you either on a better path or a worse path, and every subsequent decision you made, either made that path better again or even worse.
All those choices, either good or bad, you have made through your life is why you are where you are today.

But with that being said, it is NEVER too late to take control of your finances and your life.
If you've just been drifting along for 10 months or 10 years, don't worry about what's past.
Make today the day you take the reins of your money and live intentionally!
You can't change the past, but you can certainly change your future.

It is your life and your money.
No one has THE correct way to get out of debt and no one has THE correct way to save and spend your money.
This is something you have to figure out for yourself.

Yes, you can follow the path someone else took to freedom and it might or might not work for you as well.
But more importantly,  you need to take the lessons from how they approached their finances.
Learn why they did X, Y or Z.
Learn a new attitude about and toward your money.

Money is a great tool.  IT is not the end all and be all and the point of your life is NOT to end it with the biggest pile of cash.  It's a means to an end...... being able to live your life without stress from money worries, surrounded by the people you value and who value you.

Take the time and effort to learn how best to use the tool to craft the life you want to live.

Sluggy

Food Spending December Week 4/Meal Planning January Week 1

And this is what happens to you if you fall asleep while the family is opening presents on Christmas morning.  You become the most festive beagle on the block! lol
We reuse the bows from one year to the next, so we need a place to put them aside so they don't end up in the trash bag........

As for meals?
Here is what actually got served last week....

Sunday--Chicken Enchiladas

Monday--Christmas Eve dinner at Chinese Restaurant

Tuesday--Ravioli w/Marinara Sauce, Standing Rib Roast, Roasted Vegetables, Green Beans, Rolls, Pies

Wednesday--Leftovers

Thursday--Pork Chops, homemade Mac and Cheese, Broccoli

Friday--Pizza, a green veggie from the freezer

Saturday--Leftovers

The food spending last week(the 24th to the 30th)came in at $110.70 for 7 days.  This includes the rib roast that cost, as one astute reader noted, "as much as a coat".

As I have finished food shopping for December(no food buying today, the 31st)I spent $439.11 in total for the month.  Pretty good considering the stocking up and the Holiday food excess.

Going into this week, I have these leftovers--ravioli, rolls(not to mention fudge and pie).

***********************

Here is what is getting served this week.....

Sunday--Kielbasa on Rolls, Caramelized Onions,Potato Salad

Monday--Date Lunch Out w/Hubs, then leftovers and appetizers for New Years at home

Tuesday--Tacos, Corn

Wednesday--Baked Salmon, leftover P. Salad, Caesar Salad, leftover rolls

Thursday--Cheesesteaks, Green Beans

Friday--Fried Shrimp, French Fries, Beets, any leftover veggies

Saturday--Leftovers or Fend for Yourself or Breakfast for Dinner

I have everything here already to make these meals.....ground beef for tacos, salmon, roast beef for cheesesteaks, shrimp are all in the freezer.  I might treat Hubs to country ham rolls tomorrow morning since we still have a plethora of rolls.  I used that last $5 voucher to buy romaine lettuce and some ground beef on Sunday, so we have all foodstuffs to make this menu now.

There will only be 3 at home this coming week to cook for.


Sluggy

My Last Rite-Aid Update for 2012

Can you believe I had another $5 in +Up Rewards expiring Sunday?
Yep.


So up to Rite-Aid I went this afternoon.....

1 x Breathe Right strips w/Gold discount=$5.35
1 x Blistex on sale=$1.50
2 x Ziploc bags on sale $2=$4.00
SubTotal.......$10.85

Coupons Used
1 x $2/1 Breathe Right(coupons dotcom)=$2.00
1 x $2/1 Breathe Right VV/AdPerks IPQ=$2.00
1 x $1/2 Ziploc bags ManuQ(12/2 SS insert)=$1.00
Coupon Total.....$5.00

$10.85-$5.00=$5.85+.06¢ tax=$5.91

I used my $5 +Up Reward and put the .91¢ on my gift card(which is below $2 now).
I received back $2.50 in +Up Rewards($1 wyb2 Ziplocs, $1.50 Blistex).
I also can submit the Breathe Right purchase for SCRebate #10, which will net me $2 in cash.
So in the end, I "spent down" .50¢ of my +Ups after Qs, +Ups gained and the cash rebate.

And since this is my last purchase of 2012 at Rite-Aid, here is my update on Totals and the End of December Rite-Aid Total.....


This trip to Rite-Aid--
OOP....$0.00
Value of items.....$17.26
+Ups coming into this trip....$35.00
+Ups used....$5.00
+Ups earned......$2.50
+Ups at the end.....$32.50

 
**GRAND TOTALS FOR DECEMBER**

Out Of Pocket....$0.00  cash
Value of items bought.....$785.79
Savings Rate of  100%
Single Check Rebate due....$16.00
Other Rebates due......$3.00
After SCR applied, Out of Pocket.... $0.00
Savings Rate.....102.42 %

+Ups at beginning of month...$47.00+
+Ups used....$271.00+
+Ups received...$256.50+
+Ups currently...$32.50+   

 In the end, for December, I got $785.79 in goodies for FREE and I will get back $19.00 in cash for various rebates for buying all this stuff.


Sluggy

$10 +Ups + Snow = Mission Accomplished

Well I thought I could get up, dressed and out to Rite-Aid to use those expiring today +Ups before the snow started.
And I was wrong. 8-P

So I sat here watching the live Weather Channel online map to see when the precipitation would let up a bit and rushed out when the dry spot hit my town.
Mission accomplished and I am home and we are in for the day.
It's nasty out there!

2 x Nivea Body Wash on sale=$8.00
1 x Nivea Renewal Body Scrub on sale-$4.00
SubTotal.....$12.00

I used 1 x $2/1 Nivea Renewal IPQ, making my Total after Qs $10.00
I paid with my expiring $10 +Up Reward.
I received a $10 +Up Reward for "Spending $20 on Nivea items" Deal.

Rolling that $10 +Ups out for another 2 weeks, waiting for a good deal on something I need.

These Body Washes are BLUEBERRY.
I guess I'll smell like a fruit salad or a pie after using these. lol



This trip to Rite-Aid--
OOP....$0.00
Value of items.....$21.87
+Ups coming into this trip....$35.00
+Ups used....$10.00
+Ups earned......$10.00
+Ups at the end.....$35.00

*And here are my MONTHLY TOTALS*
 
GRAND TOTALS FOR DECEMBER so far.......

Out Of Pocket....$0.00  cash
Value of items bought.....$768.53
Savings Rate of  100%
Single Check Rebate due....$14.00
Other Rebates due......$3.00
After SCR applied, Out of Pocket.... $0.00
Savings Rate.....102.79 %

+Ups at beginning of month...$47.00+
+Ups used....$266.00+
+Ups received...$254.00+
+Ups currently...$35.00+   




The daughter came home early from work and has been sick with a cold and some chest gunk.  I took that chicken stock I made last Sunday when I cooked the chicken for the Enchiladas and put some chicken, onions, celery, carrots and garlic and made a pot of Chicken Soup.  I'm waiting on her to see which she wants--noodles, potatoes or rice in it.
Or she might want to turn this into Chicken and Dumplings.


Stay warm and dry where you are today! 8-)


Sluggy  
 

How the 2012 Goals Turned Out....

Readers might remember that I set up a List of personal Hopes/Goals for 2012 back in January.
This post is my End of the Year Check-In for my list and to see how I did(or didn't do) on the Goals I set out to accomplish 12 months ago.

Sluggy's Personal List of Goals for 2012

1.  Get all the tax and college Paperwork completed and filed by the end of February.
PASS....one of the few things I can totally cross off the list until next year...which starts in less than a WEEK.  LOLOL

2.  Convert all my vinyl LPs to CDs and purge the LPs from my life.
FAIL on the record digitizing.
Six months into the year, I changed that Goal to Digitizing all my photographs, since I purchased a handheld scanner with a gift card I received for Christmas in 2011.  I have stacks of scrapbooks from my mother plus a stack of scrapbooks from when my kids were small to digitize.  In the last 6 months I scanned 2 whole books worth of photos.  I am VERY far behind but I "AM" working on this project.  I didn't realize it was such a large project and I misjudged the amount of time involved.  
This "new" Goal goes onto the list of Projects for 2013.

3.  Continue to Declutter everywhere.  Finish the garage and move what's in the living room into the garage so that the house is 100% done by April.  Be out of the storage unit by December.
FAIL--well, the house is NOT 100% done yet so that's a fail.   
I have continued to declutter in 2012 but it hasn't been nearly what I did in 2011 and it's not done yet.  I didn't reopen the eBay store until November, so I didn't sell off all the sellable items yet.  I still have things in the storage unit.  
I need to throw this Goal onto 2013 as well.

4.  Complete 4 house projects in 2012.  2 inside/2 outside
FAIL.  Projects identified and the cash is there, but we haven't pulled the trigger yet on any of them.  I need to sit down with Hubs and set up a step-by-step process for getting these projects done in 2013.

5.  Read 20 books this year.
FAIL.  I read 6 books.  Most years I read much more.  I just wasn't feeling it in 2012.

6.  Rework the stockpile.  Make it healthier and more compact.
PASS.  I reorganized and thinned it twice in 2012.  I loaded up Oldest son Thursday evening with stockpile items to take back to school and I'll make a pass through the stockpile on Sunday again and glean some more items to give to the B-I-L.  

7.  Finish up the eBay sales by May.
FAIL  
I shut down eBay before Christmas 2011 and didn't do any eBay sales this year until November.  I will sell for 3 more months(Jan-Mar. 2013) and then shut it down for good.

8.  Get the sewing going again.  Go through projects in-progress and alterations pile and get rid of stuff.  Sew clothes for myself for a change!
FAIL
I did nothing except hems some pants for Hubs and daughter, and finish some pj pants for daughter. 

9.  Get the Etsy Store up and running. 
FAIL
Just didn't get to that one at all.


10.  Spend more time with family, especially Hubs.
PASS  Have taken a couple of vacations with Hubs alone in 2012.  Have tried to spend time with the kids with mixed results.  Oldest has been home a total of 9 days in 2012.  Daughter moved home in May so we've been working on our relationship and I think it is better.  Youngest tries to spend as little time as possible with us, since he's almost 17. lol

I need to face the fact that our "kids" are now past the ages of doing things together as a family.  Oldest moved out basically when he left for college in 2009 and has only come home for brief visits since.  Summers he spent living/working at summer camp so he wasn't home when school ended for the year.  Daughter is living at home this school year but is wanting to move out into an apartment as soon as it's feasible.  At least she'll be nearby.  #2 Son is busy with school, band, driving, trying to get a 'real' job and his girlfriend so he's about to fly from the nest too.

11.  Lose 40 lbs...there, I said it!  Now I have to do it!!
FAIL.  I lost 7 lbs.  At least I didn't gain.....ugh.  I need to get more serious with this one in 2013.


12.  Continue the Savings Challenge with a goal of $20K for 2012.
PASS.  We hit the goal and then some!  We have $26,000.00+ saved right now and I haven't added in December's money yet.

13.  Continue to be Frugal whenever possible and live well below our means!
PASS.  We spend way below our means each month generally.  In a bad/expensive month, we still spend less than we make, though sometimes with not a lot of room to spare.
I know we could have been more frugal sometimes, but I'm happy with our general level of frugality.

14.  Take at least 1 REAL vacation and ENJOY IT!
PASS.  Hubs and I took 2 short vacations.  They were short, but not jam packed and we just did what we felt like doing at the moment.  They were low stress trips.

So, in the end, 2012 was a real mixed bag of result for me.
I Failed more than I Passed this year.......an 8 to 6 ratio.

 I was just not as ambitious as I thought I'd be and bit off more than I could finish.  
As I look ahead to my Goals for 2013 this weekend, I'll mull over how realistic my expectations were in 2012.

 How did you do on your Goals for the 2012?
Sluggy

Expiring Rewards Again

Just a boring old report on what I got at Rite-Aid Friday with my expiring +Up Rewards.
While I couldn't find any deals that truly rolled my +Ups for another 2 weeks, I did find a few deals that gave me back some +Ups and were items I could use.  I had $20 expiring Friday so here is what I found to "buy".  It's all about the hair, the skin, the toilets and the chocolate.....

2 x L'Oreal EverPure Shampoo BOGO50%=$11.08
2 x Simple Pleasures chocolate on sale $3=$6.00
2 x Nivea Renewal Scrub on sale $4=$8.00
2 x Scrubbing Bubble Toilet Gel on sale(Wellness discount lower $3.83=$7.66
SubTotal.....$32.74

Coupons Used
1 x $3/2 L'Oreal items IPQ=$3.00
2 x $1.50/1 Simple Pleasures IPQ=$3.00
2 x Nivea Renewal Scrub IPQ=$4.00
1 x $2/2 Scrubbing Bubbles Toilet Gel Load2Card=$2.00
Coupon Total.....$12.00

$32.74-$12.00=$20.74+.02¢tax=$20.76

I used $20 in +Up Rewards and put the .76¢ on my gift card.
I received $8 in +Ups($3 wyb $10 L'Oreal, $2 wyb 2 Simple Pleasures, $3 wyb 2 Scrubbing Bubbles).
I also have tracking $8 of products toward a "Spend $20, Get $10 Nivea" Deal.
(I'll buy 3 more $4 on sale Nivea items tomorrow for $12, use another $2/1 Q for a total OOP of $10, use a $10 +Ups to pay and get another $10 +Ups back.)

I need to call CS since I had a $2/1 L'Oreal item Load2Card that did NOT come off!  I had to take off a $2 item after all my Qs were applied to keep my total at $20.  Hopefully I'll be getting a $2 +Ups for that Q in the mail in a week or so.

Starting on Sunday with the new weekly ad for 12/30-1/5, Rite-Aid is having a new Promotion.  Buy items in the store identified by a red price tag icon and they count toward a $20 +Up Reward once you have bought $100 worth of items.  And then for every increment of $50 spent of these select products, you will earn another $5 +Up Reward to a total of $250 in products and $50 in +Up Rewards.
It's all explained on page 4 of the Sales ad for next week that starts on Sunday.



This trip to Rite-Aid--
OOP....$0.00
Value of items.....$47.92
+Ups coming into this trip....$47.00
+Ups used....$20.00
+Ups earned......$8.00
+Ups at the end.....$35.00

*And here are my MONTHLY TOTALS*
 
GRAND TOTALS FOR DECEMBER so far.......

Out Of Pocket....$0.00  cash
Value of items bought.....$746.66
Savings Rate of  100%
Single Check Rebate due....$14.00
Other Rebates due......$3.00
After SCR applied, Out of Pocket.... $0.00
Savings Rate.....102.73 %

+Ups at beginning of month...$47.00+
+Ups used....$256.00+
+Ups received...$244.00+
+Ups currently...$35.00+   

Sluggy