85% savings and $1 off coupon for Irish Spring

Had to run to the "big city" today, so I made sure I did a quick CVS and Walgreen run.  I mean quick and small. I picked out the few items that were the very best deals and what we needed. 

Paid less than $4 for these items for a 85% savings. 

What really surprised me was there were no rebates on my apps for any of these things! But here's a coupon for the Irish Spring Body Wash.


Tomorrow I'm heading to Dollar General with my $5 off $25 coupon. I'm going to be getting some Rachel Ray Cat food for only $2 a bag!

Thoughtful Thursday--I like making and saving money when I shop

The stereotypical woman loves to shop or at least window-shop. I am not a stereotypical woman. I dislike shopping. Get in, get what I need, and get out...that's my motto. The only reason I walk around a mall is to get exercise. 

And the only reason I spend any length of time in a grocery aisle is to get the best deal.

And to get the best deals, I use couponing, rewards cards, and more. 


One of my main go-to saving sources is CVS. When you match the Extra Care Bucks deals with coupons, you do a great job saving and making money. (If it's actually something you need that is!)

For instance one week, I purchased $67.86 worth of items for $27.90. Doesn't sound that great except that I then received $20.00 in ECB back which means in the end I only paid $7.90 which is an 89% savings.

The following week I purchased $60.28 in stuff. I paid $3.15 out of pocket after coupons and that $20 in ECB from the previous week. Then I received $16 in ECB back which means CVS paid me $12.85 to take $60 of stuff home. Over 100% in savings!

Now I have $16 to spend next time.

Fairly recently, however, I've learned a few more ways to make money on things I purchased. Come back on Monday to find out more details on that!

Answer to Prayer---CVS ECB

Yes, you read that correctly. CVS ExtraCare Bucks were an answer to prayer.

You see, while my husband has found a job, it doesn't offer much to live on after insurance, rent, and utilities. 

So we found ourselves facing the end of the pay period with no money and little food. In fact, the past few days I've literally been praying for food to feed my family. I'm not talking about not having anything we like. I'm talking about not having anything to fix AT ALL.

I faced today with a half pound of ground turkey, a box of couscous, and a few cans of veggies. That could be one meal, but I needed one more meal to make it until my husband gets paid tomorrow.

CVS to the rescue.

Yesterday, I received an email with a $3 ECB from CVS. At first, I dismissed it but then I realized that could be $3 in free food!

Today I scrounged up about $2 in pennies and proceeded to CVS.

Here is what I purchased:

Both items were on sale 2/$5. The total before the sale and ECB would have been $7.28, but I only paid $2.00 which is a savings of 73%.

This will give me 2+ meals. 
1.  I'll mix the Mac & Cheese with the cooked ground turkey with some canned veggies on the side. I "splurged" on the Deluxe because we are out of butter and milk; with the deluxe those items are not needed.
2. Fried sliced ham with couscous and canned veggies.
3. Left over ham with ?

So thankfully, God answered my prayer to be able to feed my family through CVS ExtraCare Bucks!

Another Impromptu CVS Run--Only paid 2/3 of retail

Mija's face is breaking out again! I knew we needed some generic Benadryl for which you generally don't find a coupon. I also knew we needed some generic Prilosec---again not a coupon thing.

But I went to CVS anyway knowing that the selection would be better.

Still saved money.

It just took a little thinking.

First, I scanned my card at the Magic Coupon Machine.  I received $4 from my ExtraCare Card earnings and received a coupon for $2 off Softsoap Body Wash and $1.50 off any CVS brand allergy med.

Also, the CVS brand "stomach" stuff was buy one get one 50% off.

So, I purchased 2 CVS Prilosec, 1 Softsoap (which we had just run out of this morning), and a bottle of CVS Benadryl.

My retail would have be $66.75 but have the CVS coupons from the machine and sales, I only paid $45.70 which seems like a lot, BUT I saved 32% for merely running in, scanning my card, and looking for the sales!

Last minute CVS run---Savings of 76%

Used BeCentsAble.net and Kansas City Mamas to make a run before the sale ended this week.

Gain or Ajax Dish Liquid – $.88 
$.25/1 Gain Dishwashing Liquid from 5/12 PG Insert 
Final Price: $.63 

V05 Shampoo or Conditioner $.82
$1/4 Alberto V05 Shampoo or Conditioner from 6/16 SS
Final Price: $.57 each

Gold Emblem Candy $0.99 (treat for my hubby)
$0.25 coupon from Coupon Machine
Final Price: $0.74

My retail total was $7.02, but I paid $1.65. That's a savings of 76%.

Saving On-the-fly Money at CVS

Been dealing with a questionable scab and spreading rash-type thing.

It started with the small black scab, developed into the redness around it, then started a rash going around the opposite eye and then starting to spread to the  eye on the same side. I ended up taking her to urgent care last night.  

This picture show the rash has lessened greatly after two doses of steroids (I know. I know.) The redness around the little black scab is about as worse as ever.

Anyway...

What this post is about is saving some money at CVS.

We needed to purchase some hydrocortisone cream for face. I hadn't checked out the CVS deals yet, but I noticed that there was a tag advertising $2 in ECB when you purchased certain CVS brand products.

The cream was included in the deal. It was $4.99. We needed new band-aids, so I grabbed a $2.67 box. 
I got the ECB when I check out meaning that I got the box of band-aids for only $0.66! 

Can't beat really cheep band-aids when saving on-the-fly at CVS!

CVS--85% savings

Only grabbed a few things this week at CVS.

Hershey’s or Mars Chocolate Singles – $.99
$.99/1 Hershey’s or Mars Candy coupon from CVS coupon scanning machine in store
FREE after coupon

Oral B Pulsar, Cross Action Power Brush (1 count) or Refill (2 count) – $5.99 
Buy One, Get $3 ECB (Limit 2) 
$3/1 Oral-B Adult Battery Toothbrush or 3D White Action Rechargeable Toothbrush from 3/31 PG Insert 
FREE after coupon and ECB

Then I needed some generic Prilosec for $15 and I had a $10 ECB.

My retail value was $34.47. I paid $7.99 after coupons and ECB which is a savings of 77%. I earned $3 in ECB making my final cost $4.99. My final savings was 85%. 

CVS Coupon Run--I paid 5 cents on the $1

You know you're broke when you too broke to coupon! That's why it's such a blessing to be able to start investing in a Sunday paper again!

Here's my first, real CVS run in over a year! A few of the things I wanted were out of stock.

Clear Shampoo---$4.99
Free Coupon from CVS coupon machine
$1.25 rebate from Ibotta
Betsy's Price: +$1.25

I purchased 2 Almay Mascara for $5.99 each and 1 Wet 'n Wild nail polish for a total of $15.47
Earn $3 ECB
$5/$15 make-up purchase from CVS coupon machine
$5/2 Almay Cosmetic Products
Betsy's Price: $0.82 each!!

So, I purchased $27.06 retail. I paid $5.47. I received $3 back in ECB meaning I paid $2.47 which would be a savings of 91%. But then I top of that I earned a $1.25 rebate from Ibotta which means I ended up paying only $1.22 for $27.06 in products. A savings of 95%.

I've shared before about how I buy next year's  stocking stuffers and Easter basket items after the holiday is over. 

So I purchased some candy and items at 50% off. The retail total would have been $11.34. After the 50% off, one item free because it was "Buy 2 Get 1 Free", and using the $3 ECB I received on the first order, I only paid $1.65. That's a savings of 85%!

A word about holiday candy. Most are now marked with "Best when used by" date. While I've been choosy in the past concerning which candy I would trust for a whole year, the dating on the candy is a handy tool.

Corn Flakes Deal at CVS

If  you click the banner on the left, you can get a coupon for $1/2 Kellogg's Corn Flakes coupon.

CVS has Corn Flakes on sale for 2/$4. 

Using the coupon makes it 2/$3 which is $1.50 each.

There is also a CVS Coupon Machine coupon out there for $1/2. If you get it, you can stack it making the price 2/$2 or $1.00 each.

Lastly, if you do Ibotta (which I'm new to) you can earn $0.50 which would make it $0.75 each box!