The Money Jar

Deals of the week 9/7/08-913/08

>> Thursday, September 11, 2008

TARGET:

We love Kashi products so I had to take advantage of Target's Kashi promo this week.
4 Kashi products for $11
-1 Go Lean Crunch cereal
-3 Kashi Cereal Bars
Qs Used: $2 off Kashi Go Lean Crunch
Total OOP: $9
Earned $5 Target Gift Card

CVS

There were a few deals that drew me in this week.

1 Lawn Chair $1.99(90% off summer clearance)
4 Chex Mix $4($1 each)
1 Loreal Skin Genesis Cleansing Towelettes $5.99
Qs Used
$1/2 Chex Mix
$1/2 Chex Mix
$1 off Loreal Product
$7.99 ECBs
Total OOP: $1.11
Earned $5.99 ECBs

For more great deals be able to check out Money Saving Mom and The Centsible Sawyer's CVS Superstars.

Fast & Frugal Meal

>> Tuesday, September 9, 2008

I thought I would share my favorite frugal meal. It is everything I love in a meal: simple to cook, ready in a hurry, inexpensive and most importantly, very tasty. This originally started as a soup and one day I decided the ingredients would be great wrapped up in a tortilla. I always have these ingredients on hand so it's a great "go to" meal when you're pressed for time.

Black Bean Burritos
1 can black beans(rinsed and drained)
1 can corn niblets(drained)
1 can diced tomatoes with jalepenos
1 package whole wheat tortillas
Cumin to taste
Optional: shredded cheese, sour cream/plain yogurt, salsa

Just dump the first 3 ingredients into a skillet. Sprinkle with cumin and heat through. Serve wrapped in warmed tortillas. You can add the optional ingredients if you have them on hand but I find this meal perfectly satisfying without them. This makes plenty of food for a family of 2 adults and 2 children. We always have enough leftovers for a couple of lunches.

Alternate recipe:
Add 2 cans of chicken stock to the beans, corn & tomatoes and heat through in a large pot and you have yourself a filling and delicious soup.

Enjoy!

For more Frugal Tips be sure to check out Frugal Friday at Biblical Womanhood.

Menu Plan Monday

>> Monday, September 8, 2008

Here's what's going to be served up this week.

Monday-Turkey Tacos & Mexican Rice

Tuesday-Baked Salmon, Brown Rice, Salad

Wednesday-Linguine with Red Clam Sauce, Salad

Thursday-Homemade Pizza

Friday-Breakfast for Dinner-Scrambled Eggs, Sausage, Biscuits, Cantaloupe

Saturday-Grilled Burgers & Hot Dogs, Baked Fries, Fresh Fruit, Brownies

Sunday-Leftovers

Be sure to check out more menu ideas at I'm an Organizing Junkie's Menu Plan Monday.

CVS Deals of the Week 8/31-9/6

>> Thursday, September 4, 2008

I skipped going to CVS last week. There just weren't any deals to draw me in. This week, however, I saw some items I could use so off I went. I only had $5 ECBs and my OOP was higher this week than it normally is, however I earned quite a few ECBs for future use.

Here's the breakdown:

1 Sudacare Shower Tabs $1.25(clearance 75% off)

4 Suave Body Wash $8

2 Dawn Ultra $1.98

2 Colgate Total $5.98

1 BC Headache Powder $1.29

1 Covergirl Wetslicks $5.99

2 Johnson's Buddies Soaps $2.38

Qs Used

50 cents off Dawn

$1 off Johnson's Buddies

$1 off Colgate Total

B1G1 Suave Body Wash

$5 ECBs

Total OOP $14.18

Total ECBs $13.28

I really messed this one up too. I went in planning to use the B1G1 Cover Girl lip product for the wetslicks. They would not accept it and I didn't have my $1 off CG product Q with me since it never occured to me they wouldn't accept the B1G1 Q. I know I could have had a lower OOP by doing multiple transactions but that's not something I'm comfortable doing at this point. Oh, well, this is a learning process for me.

Menu Planning Monday

>> Monday, September 1, 2008

One of the best ways to save money is to plan out your menu for the week so you won't be tempted to run through a drive thru or order take out. Both are big budget busters. I plan my menu based on items I already have on hand and things I know are on sale that week. Here's my menu for this week:

Monday: Grilled Turkey Burgers & Tater Tots

Tuesday: Teriyaki Stir Fry Pork & Veggies w/ brown rice

Wednesday: Creamy Chicken & Rice w/ raw veggies on the side

Thursday: Pasta Marinara & salad

Friday: Italian Roast Beef Sandwiches, Turkey Joes, Veggie Pasta Salad & chips(We have family coming in for a weekend visit.)

Saturday: Eat out or grill out(still need to discuss plans with the visiting family)

Sunday: Leftovers

Frugal Fabulous $5 Find

>> Wednesday, August 27, 2008

I'm a bargain shopper from way back. I remember the first Christmas my sister and I were given money by our parents for Christmas. While more eager to go out and spend it rather than save it, I was thrifty enough to want to get the very most out of that money. I've always shopped the clearance racks. My husband has learned over the years to not even bother looking at something that isn't on sale. But over the years I've come to realize some of the most fabulous finds aren't on the clearance racks. No, often the really fabulous finds are to be found at thrift stores and yard sales. Now that both of my kidlets are in school I have the time to go and take my time looking for a good deal. So with that new freedom, I recently went to our local Goodwill to look around. For some time now I've been wanting to add a trench coat to my wardrobe. I had no luck with the clearance sales at the end of winter. The few I found were either too big, too small or just not clearanced enough for my budget. Imagine my glee when I found the exact trench coat I've been searching for in my size. It fit perfectly. And it was only $5. I couldn't get it in my cart fast enough. I brought it home, washed it up and it looks perfectly brand new. This one goes into my Thrift Store Find Hall of Fame I believe.

Special thanks to the 8 year old for contributing her photography skills and to the 5 year old for styling my hair for the photo shoot.

CVS Deals of the Week 8/17/08-8/23/08

>> Saturday, August 23, 2008

Trip #1

3 Puffs Tissues $2.64(88 cents each)

1 Sally Hansen Nail Polish $2.49

1 Sally Hansen Nail Polish $1.24(they were B1G1 50% off)

2 Hello Kitty Band Aids $5.98 (2.99 each)

1 Band Aid Ultra $4.49

2 Johnsons Buddies $1.98(99 cents each)

Qs Used:

$2/10 CVS purchase

25 cents off Puffs

$3/2 Sally Hansen products

50 cents off Band Aids

$1 off Band Aid Ultra

$2/2 Johnson's Buddies

10 ECBs

Total OOP: 23 cents

Earned 5 ECBs

Trip #2

2 Arizona Diet Green Tea $5

3 Puffs Tissues $2.64(88 cents each)

1 Revlon Lash Fantasy Mascara $7.99

2 Johnson's Buddies soap $2.38($1.19 each)

1 Gold Emblem candy 88 cents

Qs used

$3/15 CVS purchase

$2/2 off Johnson's Buddies

$1/3 Puffs Tissues

$2 off Revlon Color product

$8 ECBS

Total OOP: $3.36

Earned 5 ECBs

To see more great savings check out The "Cent"sible Sawyers CVS Superstars and Money Saving Mom.

CVS Deals of the Week 8/10/08-8/16/08

>> Saturday, August 16, 2008

Only 1 CVS shop this week.....

2 PlaySkool wipes 2/$5

4 Andrea Foot Lotion Packets $1(found these on 75% off clearance 25 cents each)

4 Andrea Foot Soak Packets $1 (ditto the 75%)

1 Alavert Allergy medicine $5.99

2 Lamisilk Hydrate Lotion $16.58

1M&M Mini Mega $1.49(not shown)

1 Twix Bar 79 cents (not shown either, kids were with me you see)

Q's used

$2 off Playskool wipes

$3 off Lamisilk

$4 off Alavert

$5/30 or more purchase

$10.79 ECBs

Total OOP=$4.86

Earned 13 ECBs

And for the record, my feet are in really great shape now. :D

If you'd like to see more great CVS savings be sure to check out The "Cent"sible Sawyer's CVS Superstars.

Deals of the Week 8/3/08-8/9/08

>> Friday, August 8, 2008

CVS

Trip #1

Transaction #1

2 Chex Mix
2 Cadbury Chocolate Bars
1 Colgate Total Toothpaste
2 PertPlus Shampoo B1G1
1 pack Hubba Bubba bubble gum

Q's used:
2 $1 off Chex Mix
1 $1.50 off Colgate Total
2 $2 off Pert shampoo
$5 ECBs

Total OOP=41 cents
Earned 2 ECBs plus August Freebie

Transaction #2

CVS mouthwash

Free with CRT

Trip #2

2 Chex Mix
1 Cadbury Chocolate bar
1 Crest toothpaste
1 Oral B Advantage Toothbrush
1 Colgate Total Toothpaste
1 Advil Childrens
4 Kleenex tissues B1G1
2 Johnson's Buddies soaps

Qs used:
1 50 cents off Kleenex
2 60 cents off Chex Mix
1 75 cents off Crest Toothpaste
1 $1 off Oral B Advantage
1 $1 off Colgate Total
1 $1 off Advil
1 $2 off Johnson's Buddies
$13.99 ECBs

Total OOP= $1.18
Earned 10.79 ECBs

For more great CVS deals be sure to check out the "Cents"ible Sawyer's CVS Superstars and Money Saving Mom.