I AM the Coupon Queen.

6 May 2011 4,310 views 15 Comments

I like to think I know a thing or two about grocery shopping. I used to HATE grocery shopping with an extreme passion, but these days I don’t dread it so much. It is a bit insane when I have to take both boys with me, though. Why is it that I can take the 4 year old with absolutely NO problems, but if I add the 7 year old to the mix the trip turns into a nightmare? Mommy fail. That kid is giving me a run for my money. (Another time, another post, right?)

Anywho! That dreaded $10 off a $50 purchase coupon came out this week, as it does the first week of every month. THIS month, though, I was prepared!! I’ve been participating in Thoughtful Thursdays over at Coupon Connections and writing to various companies that she links up for us. I’ve been enjoying seeing how many great coupons and FREE coupons those companies are sending me. As I receive a free coupon, I add it to my stack of freebie coupons, so when it came time to plan this trip, I probably spent about 20 minutes scanning the coupon blogs and printing additional coupons and cutting coupons from my inserts. By the way, I don’t clip coupons until I’m ready to use them. (Another post, another time!)

So, after 20 minutes of planning, and then waiting for the Benadryl to wear off so I could drive to the store (I have a hive/poison oak/freak of nature thing going on all over my face. It’s great.) I grabbed my list and my coupons and was off!

See that tahini paste there in the middle? That cost me $6.99. (I’m making hummus today.)

That means that the rest of this stuff cost me $7.99.

The KEY to using the $10/$50 coupon is to get your total up to $50 before manufacturer’s coupons, but after club card savings, then hand them the $10/$50 coupon, then give ‘em all the rest. Use your FREE coupons in this transaction to get your total way, way down. Because, let’s face it. It is VERY hard for strategic/extreme couponers to get their total all the way up to $50. It seriously is. We are used to doing little $5-$10 transactions that we end up paying 25¢ for. The show isn’t reality, people.

Want the price breakdown? (click the links to see the deal)

Hershey’s bars: I bought 20 for free. I have more coupons, so I’ll be going back for more! After a little over a year of couponing, I have come to realize that I will always be able to get my Hershey’s bars for free. Think camping season, people. I’m stocked UP.

The 4 jugs of Welches Essentials were FREE. Perfect for our upcoming summer birthdays or any time someone asks you to bring drinks to a get together!

There are peelie/hangtag coupons at Safeway for 1 free bottle of grape jam when you buy 2 jugs of juice, so that grape jam was free. (I don’t know if my kids have ever had store bought jam, so I might end up donating this if they don’t like it.)

The toilet bowl cleaner was 24¢.

International Delights creamer was FREE (Vocalpoint coupon).

The Suave shampoo was free (I can’t remember where I got the coupon. Facebook, I think.).

The Uncle Ben’s was free (and I can’t remember where that one came from either. Perhaps Walmart.com??).

The Bar S sausages were actually $6.99, but I had a “gift certificate” $5 off coupon that they sent me as a result of Thoughtful Thursdays, so I actually paid $1.99. Mitch and I used to buy these when we went camping in our pre-kid days, so they are bringing back memories. They are already in the freezer awaiting our first camping trip.

And,

Milk - $2.49
Bread - $1.49 each
Cheese - $5.99
Apples - 78¢/lb (my Azure apples didn’t come in this month. Boo Hoo!)
Oranges - $2.99 with in-ad coupon (and I used the $1/$5 produce coupon that I received by liking Safeway on Facebook)

Don’t forget that expensive tahini paste!!

I used the $10/$50 coupon, plus the doubler, which took off an additional $2.

I actually didn’t have this trip so planned out that I knew how much my total was going to be before heading the checkstand, and I didn’t know how much I would end up paying out of pocket, but I was prepared to grab a couple of packs of gum at the register if I didn’t meet the $50 minimum. Actually, my total came to $90.71 before he hit the button and my club card prices started showing up. Pre-coupons (but after club card savings) it was up around $70, and I knocked it down to less than $15!

So, yeah. I’m feeling pretty okay about this trip! Since I have a good stockpile of food in my freezer and pantry, I really only needed the essentials this week (fruit, milk, cheese), so I’m well within my $50/wk budget!

In other news: I’m taking a cheese making class tomorrow as my mother’s day gift to me!!! I’m so excited! I’ll be learning how to make Feta cheese! Eeek!! Just had to mention that!

How did your Safeway trip go? Any great deals?

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15 Comments »

Anke said:

Very cool…thanks for the breakdown! I didn’t know about the jam…I’ll have to check into that. I was hoping to go in time to get the Rosarita refried beans but that didn’t happen…I have 2 $10/$50 Q’s so I might have to go twice if I can make it worth it!

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# 6 May 2011 at 8:49 am

Krista said:

My oldest son was about 7 when he tried store bought jam for the first time. He was at my mom’s house and she had made him a pb&j and he took one bite, cocked his head to the side and said, “What IS THIS stuff?” My mom was totally confused and after a moment he peeled the bread apart and pointed to the jam. She told him it was jam and he said, “Well that doesn’t taste like what MOM MAKES!” LOL That’s one of my mom’s favorite funny grandkid stories. Good luck with the jam!

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Heather Reply:
May 11th, 2011 at 9:05 am

Ummmmm?

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# 6 May 2011 at 9:46 am

Krista S. said:

Thank you so much for this post! I have missed your inspirational grocery store trips! Thank you also for the link to Coupon Connections for Thoughtful Thursday. I contacted the four companies posted yesterday and look forward to trying this out to add to my coupon stash. I also learned from you to hold onto those freebie coupons for the $10/$50 at Safeway. I used mine to get some meat and veggies this week (Safeway was still have their B1G1 sale on Tuesday when the coupon first came out and I was planning on using it for meat). I used the FREE Uncle Ben’s rice and the Philadelphia Cooking Cream this month. I have a FREE Suave coupon for next month and will hopefully get a few more by doing the Thoughtful Thursday’s.

And you ARE the Coupon Queen! Great job!

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# 6 May 2011 at 12:00 pm

Kellie said:

I haven’t used a $10/50 coupon for a while, but when I do I usually make sure to buy dog and/or cat food (we’re fairly brand specific) which gets me up over $50 easier. Oh, and cat litter. With two cats we can never have enough of that stored up in the garage!

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# 6 May 2011 at 4:26 pm

amy d said:

I am looking all through the Oregonian ads and can not find the BOGO for the Hersey’s HELP please!!

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Kelleigh Reply:
May 7th, 2011 at 11:48 am

Unfortunately, the Oregonian didn’t get it, but the Statesman Journal (out of Salem) did. We rarely get the awesome coupons that the Oregonian doesn’t get, though!

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# 7 May 2011 at 10:43 am

MAria said:

Hello iam new to your site..i have a question…how do you get the 10 off of 50 coupon?..i live in puyallup wa. I am enjoying reading your blog.

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Kelleigh Reply:
May 7th, 2011 at 10:33 pm

Hi Maria! I get the $10/$50 coupon from either the Tuesday Statesman Journal, or the Wednesday local mini-paper. I know that Oregonian readers get it in the Tuesday Food Day edition. I don’t know which paper yours would come in, but you could ask over at Frugal Living NW and see what the ladies say!

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# 7 May 2011 at 10:21 pm

Caryn said:

Kelleigh,

By any chance did you purchase buckets of mangoes when they were such a steal last week? The rash you experienced on your face could possibly be from touching the skin. It’s a surprisingly common allergy. It took me a long time to figure out I’m allergic, and even knowing that, I managed to get a bit of rash this time. Just a thought.

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Kelleigh Reply:
May 10th, 2011 at 4:15 pm

Yes, I DID! And, I thought about that. I had no idea that you could get a rash from the skin until someone mentioned it on a coupon blog. I WAS cutting up mangoes last week. I wonder if that is what the rash came from, but I’m not anxious to test that theory!

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Caryn Reply:
May 10th, 2011 at 4:55 pm

I wouldn’t be eager to test it, either! For me, the rash only happens on my face (cutting mangoes has no effect on my hands), and it takes only a very small amount of exposure to make it happen. I once ate a mango like an apple (I was STARVED, in a hurry, and in the car). I was red-faced and blotchy for weeks afterward. Your description of your rash made me think of that experience. Hmmm…something to ponder (but not to test!).

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# 10 May 2011 at 4:06 pm

kari said:

Hi Kelleigh
For the BOGO Hersheys. They are buy 2 get 2 right now so do i still give them a B1G1 coupon for every one I buy?
kari

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Kelleigh Reply:
May 19th, 2011 at 7:38 pm

You would buy 2, Get 2 Free, and use 2 coupons to get the two that you bought for free! SO, 4 candy bars = 2 coupons.

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# 19 May 2011 at 4:01 pm

Extreme Couponing: Extreme Savings on Meat | Kelleigh Ratzlaff Designs said:

[...] I ended up using some FREE product coupons on this trip (taking my own advice to hold them for the week of the $10/$50 to get your total up!). The Cottonelle wipes were free [...]

# 2 June 2011 at 2:48 pm