Addicted to crack

I couldn't resist.

CVS

Seriously, this blog will NOT be turning into a "bargain mom" blog - there are a TON of them out there. I have lots more things to write about than CVS and money saving deals. However, that being said, I got another amazing deal this week. Feel free to inquire further, as I won't be breaking it down specifically here...

For $7 this week I got all of this:




And in one transaction alone, I got all of this for $.16!!


I ended up with $9 in Extra Care Bucks (again, like a gift card to CVS) to use next time, so essentially, they paid ME $2 for all of the stuff in the first picture. HA!!

Now, you may be thinking, Jennifer, why on EARTH did you buy FOUR toothbrushes and two of the mascaras and shampoo? And will you really use this stuff? The lady I'm learning from who does tutorials on this stuff shows you how to buy things to make deals work right that a) you may not need or really use, but can give away to charity or as gifts (because they're free anyway), or b) you can stock up on stuff when there's a SUPER good deal and store them up to have a few months supply, so that you can ALWAYS only buy things when there's an awesome deal and never have to pay a lot out of pocket. Plus, when you consider the fact that one tube of mascara alone cost $5-$7 all by itself, it's absolutely amazing that that's what I spent on ALL of this, even if there are a few items I'll pass on to others. I'm actually pretty excited about being more structured and intentional about giving to others in need through all of this, and STILL spending LESS money! Sweet.

The deal I was actually most excited about was the $.16 one, not only because it was the cheapest, but also because the Fructis shampoo is one I actually use, and the tiny little batteries were actually a purchase we HAD to make because my garage door opener burned out. The batteries alone were priced at almost $5, but I got the whole deal for almost nothing (plus they gave me $7 ECB on this particular deal).

Don't hate me for my CVS-iliciousness. :)

Friday Favorite

I have caught the couponing fever, my friends. I'm a regular reader of Kristen C.'s blog (see link on the side) and she has been avidly couponing and CVS-ing since January. I was totally blown away (and initially confused and overwhelmed) by how much money she saves each week - especially at CVS. I am no good at explaining things, and I'm certainly not one to provide a tutorial for others. But you can buy your groceries (especially cleaning and paper products) for close to free at CVS when you get everything set up, do a little planning, and follow through. I'm totally a believer now.

So my favorite thing for this Friday is SAVING MONEY (and who doesn't like doing that??). I didn't take a picture of all the stuff I got this week (Kristen usually does this and it's so cool to see what all she got for so little OOT - Out Of Pocket), but I am going to make a list, which isn't as great, but I'll try to remember to take pictures next time.

This week at CVS for right at $9 I got:

*2 boxes of cereal
*2 containers of Cascade dishwasher soap
*2 bottles of Febreeze fabric spray
*3 cans of Pringles
*2 tins of Icebreakers mints
*2 bottles of nail glue
*1 container of Dawn dish/hand soap
*10 picture prints from Bennett's 1 year birthday party (I'm WAY behind on scrapbooking)
Plus I have $5 Extra Care Bucks (kind of like a gift card) to use on my next purchase (so essentially it's like I spent $4 on the above items, since I also got $5 back, and to put things in perspective at how good of a deal this truly is, that's how much you'd spend for just 1 bottle of Febreeze alone).

Like I said, I'm not good at explaining things, but if you go to my link that says "Coupons" on the side, it'll take you to a blog called Money Saving Mom, and on her blog is a link that says "CVS 101" and it can explain why CVS is so amazing and how to use it.

All in all, I will be spending right under $50 for ALL of my groceries this week, INCLUDING a 92 pack of diapers for Bennett (at Target) and the CVS purchases mentioned above. The remaining groceries will come from Wal-mart, where I'll use a few coupons I clipped from the newspaper on Sunday. Not too shabby if you ask me. And this is only my 2nd week to do it all, so I fully expect I'll get better and better and save even more money as time goes by.

If you are interested in this stuff at all, let me know and we can chat about it in person. As I said before, I am no good at explaining this kind of stuff via blog.


Still to come:

1. The requested picture of my modeling debut on our new couch...(no, I haven't forgotten, and aren't you glad?)

2. Pictures of Benito's chair that my mom and I have been re-covering to match his room (bought it for $10 at a consignment shop - sweet deal.)

I've been tagged

by Kristen C., so here goes:

What Was I Doing Ten Years Ago:

I was a sophomore in high school at F-Dub, completely oblivious to the realities of life *sigh.* I was also bumming rides off my friends (thanks LB) because I was one of the youngest in our grade and one of the only ones who still couldn't drive.

5 Things On My To-Do List Today:

1. Do the awesomely cheap diaper/wipes deal at Target.
2. 1 load of laundry.
3. Type out more family favorite recipes (I'm putting them all in a handy folder).
4. Watch American Idol :)...thank goodness Brooke White is finally gone.
5. REST.

5 Places I Have Traveled:

1. Scotland on a singing tour
2. Honduras and Mexico on mission trips
3. European tour with mom and grandma
4. Caribbean Cruise for our honeymoon
5. China on 6 week mission trip (climbed the great wall with Benito in my tummy :) )

5 Snacks Or Treats I Enjoy:

1. Kettle corn popcorn
2. Diet cherry coke
3. crab salad with crackers
4. ice cream in any flavor but chocolate
5. Reeses of any kind

What Would I Do If I Were A Billionaire:

Give away a ton of money, fund orphanages in China, buy a big house and adopt a bunch of kids, buy amazing sound equipment and musical instruments and record the songs I've written, travel and go on stinkin' awesome family vacations

Places I've Lived:

Rowlett, TX.
Garland, TX.
Houston, TX.
Austin, TX.
Albany, GA.
Noblesville, IN.
Bedford, TX.
NRH, TX.
Searcy, AR.
Watauga, TX.


Jobs I've Had:

Babysitter
Floor worker, The Gap
Cashier, Bearly Used Retail
Kindergarten teacher, Daycare
Chapel coordinater, Daycare
Office worker, Harding University
Sandwich artist, Subway (sandwich makers unite, Kristen)
First Grade Teacher
Kindergarten Teacher
Pre-school Teacher


5 People I'm Tagging:

Amanda
Lori
Haley
Kristi P.
Kristen D.

Friday Favorites

Michael has spoiled me a lot lately, so I'm going the "romantic/thoughtful" route with Friday Favorites this week.

1. FRESH FLOWERS -- it really doesn't matter to me if they're the $2 Walmart flowers, or the $60 dozen roses (actually, I prefer the cheaper ones since flowers die in a week or two anyway). My very favorite flowers are white roses, or at least have been for a long time. I think I'm in a transition phase of sorts right now, because I'm very attracted to spring flowers, like lilies and daffodils right now. And my favorite favorite flower that's just for planting, not really for romancing, is a violet. I wanted my bridesmaids to carry violets in my wedding before I realized they don't come individually, just as a plant you stick in the ground. When I told the florist what I wanted, she looked at me like I'd sprouted two heads :) And I TOTALLY agree with Kristen C. Buying some inexpensive flowers from the grocery store and putting them in a pretty vase can completely transform the way you feel about a room.

2. SWEETS -- I'm not a big sweets eater, and I'm not one of those women who passes out over a good bar of chocolate, but I love me some Little Debbie snacks (especially the donut sticks or the white cupcake thingys), although technically I probably shouldn't even be talking about them since I'm trying to be good and lose 5 lbs. before the wedding I'm in this August (yes, I know it's 4 months away - I'm using the first couple of months to get mentally prepared :) ). I also ADORE Reeses - both the cups and the pieces. The Easter bunny (aka. my mom - yes my mom STILL gives me an Easter basket - LOVE it!) spoiled me with Reester Bunnies this Easter - HA! They were delicious, and had such a corny name, I got a good laugh, too.

3. BEST DATE EVER -- When we were dating in college our sophomore year, Michael was beginning to get a grasp on how much I love music and how I wanted to perform someday (my dream was to tour or be in a show or to have a record deal). So he told me we were going out, and proceeded to drive me several hours to Branson, MS. and took me around to all of the different stages and auditoriums that people perform in there. We picked up brochures, looked through them, and talked about dreams. Then we stopped inside a place to get some fresh hot fudge and took it to the car, where to my surprise, Michael had two wine glasses and sparkling white grape juice (which began a tradition to be included at romantic or special events - we toasted with sparkling white grape juice at our wedding). We drove back, and I thought the night was over, but NO. He came to my window and SERENADED me with his guitar. It was slightly cheesy, but totally Michael, and it was the sweetest thing ever. All the girls from other windows around mine (in the dorm) were ooh-ing and ahh-ing. It was great. And when I turned around after I thought he was finished, he'd had my roommate bring in roses for me...none of this was for a special occassion - just him being super sweet and thoughtful, and trying hard to make me happy...which he did :)
(Side note: No, this is not a picture of my husband. HA!)

And that's that for this week :)