DF - Almost the Deal of the Week

As I sauntered into Target this afternoon, my oldest kid in tow, a sly smile spread across my face as I thought about how I was about to pull a fast one on Target. I clutched my coupons in my hand: 4 Target store coupons for $1.00 off Kellogg's cereal and a variety of manufacturer's coupons also for Kellogg's cereal. (I discovered links to these online coupons at Coupon Cravings.)

Target's deal was Buy 3 Kellogg's Cereals, Get 1 Free. I carefully selected 4 boxes of Kellogg's cereal:

Mini-Wheats for $3.24
Honey Smacks for $3.19
Rice Krispies for $2.54
Corn Flakes for $2.99

Total: $11.96. Certainly not what I would ever pay for 4 boxes of cereal, especially considering my children can go through a box or two in a sitting.

So deduct the cheapest box of cereal since the 4th is free, bringing the total to $9.42.

Then I started deducting my coupons, calculating in my head. Which isn't always the brightest idea. So minus the $4.00 of Target coupons brings the total down to $5.42. Then deduct the manufacturer's coupons: I had 1 $1.00 coupon and 3 $.75 coupons. Which would bring my total down to $2.17. OK, so I didn't arrive at this total in my head, but I knew my total was down pretty low. And that is good. Because if you're really math-savvy, you can divide that $2.17 by 4 boxes of cereal and arrive at a per box total of $.54. (Don't you like how I plan my math lessons while knocking out some discussions on frugality at the same time? Hey, I'm nothing if I'm not a super multi-tasker.)

I was about to get the deal of the week. That is until I got up to the register and the stupid Target coupons wouldn't work. They tried scanning them and keying them in, but finally told me that their policy is that if the printed coupons don't work, they don't take them. I suppose I could have made a big fuss about incompetence and what-not, but I did have my kid with me, and I'm always trying to be a good example, and there were a million other customers waiting behind me. So I just smiled and said, "Oh, just use the manufacturer's coupons. Don't worry about it." But inside I was seething because I didn't get to pull a fast one on Target.

I soothed myself by getting an Iced Grande Green Shaken Tea at the in-store Starbucks. And maybe some Petite Vanilla Scones. (Purchases which totally ate up any savings I procured. I am so good at this frugality stuff!)

But, hey, $1.54 ain't bad for a per box price either. Not as good as $.54, mind you, but not bad.

I guess the lesson to be learned is to use the real coupons from the paper. Of course, I forgot to get a paper this past Sunday. I have an excuse for my forgetfulness: I was visiting a new church.

But that is another story...

Discussions on Frugality

I've made a decision. I will change my "Frugal Fridays" to "Discussions on Frugality". Here are my reasons:

1. That sounds really sophisticated. And I'm a really sophisticated gal.

2. I don't want to trap myself into Fridays only. Because what if I get a really good deal or something on Thursday, and I can't wait until the next day to share it with you?

3. I accidentally stumbled upon the real Frugal Friday. And she has more than, uh, three readers. So who am I to steal her thunder? Ha. Ha.

I thought about calling it "Frank Frugality Discussions" just to get in the alliteration since that seems to be a title must in Blogdom. But the name Frank means nothing to me, so it would bother me everytime I posted it.

So. I did not sit down to waste a portion of my afternoon just to write an entire post about the name of my previous post. That would just be plain silly. Rather, I first wanted to thank Crossview for her Frugal Suggestions (no alliteration, and that doesn't even bother me), and to offer some coupon starting advice for Brownie.

In a nutshell, Crossview's tip is to Stockpile. I totally agree. If you see a good deal, snatch a bunch of 'em, whatever "'em" might be. However, unless you have need of 20 heads of lettuce--all at the same time--you probably want to focus your stockpiling energies to non-perishables (of course, meat works well to stockpile since it freezes).

Stockpiling is an especially brilliant idea if you have coupons for the item that is being offered at such a good deal. Obviously, you can get coupons in the Sunday paper, and that is my main source. There are many websites that have printable coupons as well; my only hesitation with those sites is that, one, many only allow you to print one copy (I'll get to why you should have at least two coupons for an item in a minute), and two, the ink cartridge on my printer is not cheap.

Like I said, I prefer to get mine from the Sunday paper, and I always grab the 2 papers for $2.50 bundle at Wal-Mart or Publix. This way I have only spent an extra $.50, but I get double the coupons. You need at least two coupons for each item for two reasons. First, it helps you if you are going to stockpile because you can use a coupon for each repeat item. Secondly, coupons are great for B1G1F items (that's Buy One, Get One Free).

Let's say, for example, Devil's Food cake mixes are regularly $2.25 (and I have no idea what they are regularly; I'm terrible at remembering regular prices. Note to self: Start a Price Book.) Anyway, let's say the cake mixes are priced at $2.25, and Publix is running a B1G1F promotion on them. That would be 2 for $2.25 for those of you who are slow. Then let's say you have two coupons, each offering $.50 off a Devil's Food cake mix. That would be $1.00 off of that $2.25, bringing your total to 2 cake mixes for $1.25. But wait! Let's say that your local Publix doubles coupons up to $.50. Why, that means each of those $.50 coupons are worth $1.00, making those two coupons equal a savings of $2.00! Which means that your 2 cake mixes will cost you a grand total of $.25. That's a pretty good deal, isn't it?

Now one point that Brownie made is that she generally finds that store brands are cheaper than name brands, even with a coupon. And she's right...if you are trying to buy the brand name item at its regular price. This is the most important rule about couponing: You have to combine coupons with sales. And that is where the research I mentioned in my last post comes in. You have to scour the ads and match coupons up with sale items you need or can stockpile for future use.

So, anyway, for what it's worth, that, my friends, is a bit of what I have gleaned from a couple of years of blog reading and trying to figure it out on my own. One of these days, I will try to post some of the links that have helped me learn about couponing. It really is kinda fun if you approach it like a game, a Let's-See-What-Awesome-Deal-I-Can-Get-This-Week Game.

Frugal Friday - Introduction

As a family, we've been later than others in feeling the effect of the poor economy. And certainly we have so much to be thankful for: Mark is gainfully employed by a company who treats him well, in a job he really enjoys. Still, we have lately been forced to tighten the belt a little, be more strict following our budget, and look for creative ways to make the dollar go just a little farther.

One way we did this was our Not Disney Disney Vacation. Since our hotel was paid for by our Club membership and our resort condo had a kitchen, we were able to stay for free and cook most of our meals at our temporary home. Of course, speeding tickets don't bode well for the budget, but such is life!

Another way in which we are being creative with the finances is by couponing. Unfortunately, the Not Disney Disney Vacation threw me off the couponing game a bit. This weekend I decided it was time to get back in the game. I sorted, tossed, clipped, and sorted some more. I'm armed with my coupon file box and ready to head out wherever the sales flyers lead me.


This couponing game does take considerable time to do right. There is, of course, the clipping. But then there is also the researching. And to really make it worthwhile, a significant amount of research is required. It's also difficult finding the balance of eating healthy while using coupons. A majority of coupons from the weekly paper are for junk items like Oreos, Lucky Charms, and other similar products I only want as a treat (notice I didn't limit that to my children; I'm a big fan of Oreos and Lucky Charms too). However, I have found that if I stockpile toiletries especially, we can save a bundle. What's great about stockpiling is I never find myself out of toothpaste right before I head out the door to a homeschool event where my morning breath would not be appreciated. There is always plenty of toothpaste in stock. It will take me awhile to build up my stock of coupons again, but I have a good start with today's paper and some I printed from http://www.coupons.com/.

Besides couponing, I try to find time to read blogs and other types of articles on frugality. There are so many good tips out there. Part of what will keep me accountable and keep me in this game of frugality is posting great finds or creative ways we have saved money. That is what I want to do on Frugal Friday. And I would love to hear any tips you have to share. If I had more than 3 regular readers, I would certainly test my technological prowess and offer a Mr. Linky, but for now, if you have a tip to share, leave a comment. And please forgive the title. Certainly I am not the first to use "Frugal Friday" as a meme title; all of the creative titles with alliteration have been taken, my friends. I hope I am not infringing on anyone's copyrights.