Still Learning

I think I am a naturally suspicious person. Today, I went to Albertson's to do their ConAgra deal (Buy 25$ and get 10$ OYNO). Even after being told that the 25$ was based upon the sale prices, I tried it based upon the shelf prices because that was what I was used to getting at good 'ole Shaw's in Boston. Well, wouldn't you know the Albertson's people knew what they were talking about! So, the deal was good, but not fantastic. At my particular store they were handing out 2$ off one Morningstar product. We love veggie burgers at my house so we got a bunch of those and a ton of cereal (yay for Vocalpoint Qs). It worked out to be around $70 of groceries for about 80% off.

On another note, I sent off a rebate today from a deal a couple of weeks ago. I bought 25$ worth of groceries and earned 5$ off OYNO and send in for a 20$ rebate. When all is said and done I will get 25$ of free groceries. It is still amazing to me that manufacturers do these kinds of deals. Do they bank on the fact that most people will forget to mail off the rebate?

I still feel like I am relearning how to do the grocery store thing. Each store really is so different and it takes trying out different deals to really get a handle on their policies. (I still get butterflies! Haha.) I have an Albertson's and a Smith's by my house. Right now I am focusing on Albertson's. In a few months I hope to be proficient and then I'll try out Smith's. Does anyone have any tips or ideas of how to maximize my savings at those two establishments? Any help would be much appreciated. My standby website for coupon help (A Full Cup) doesn't really have very good forums for those two stores, so I feel a bit at a loss. TIA! TTFN!

Anytime, Anywhere

Those of you that follow me here may know that at the inception of this blog I was living in the Boston area and enjoyed doubled coupons and amazing deals. I spent several months when I first started finding some great resources that really helped me to capitalize on my savings. There are myriads of blogs out there for all different regions of the country where people share the deals they find. I spent quite a lot of time compiling my own little file of blogs for my region. This work paid off and seriously diminished the amount of time and work that I had to expend in order to yield high savings. I don't know how many times I have heard that the savings I had been enjoying there (in Boston) were just non-existent in other parts of the country. Since then, I have moved to Utah and have realized that deals can be had here too. I have been absent from this blog for a bit because I have been trying to track down some resources that could help me to be more successful here in Utah-land. It is like a treasure hunt in some ways and I have been excited about my finds.

I have realized that I can still take advantage of Walgreens and Rite Aid for my non-grocery items. It has been disappointing to see that Walgreens has completely gotten rid of their rebate program and only offers their register reward program these days, however with a little planning the deals are there and can be capitalized upon.

I have also been thrilled to find that Staples has a rebate program similar to Rite Aid. Simply purchase a rebate item and enter your receipt on their website. You receive a rebate check and can frequently get items for free that way. What rock have I been living under? Their deals leading up to the beginning of school have been amazing and they have been offering free after rebate items almost every week for the last month. In my humble opinion, every parent that has children in the overtaxed school systems should take advantage of these free items and donate the items to schools if they don't need them. Our poor teachers often spend their own meager dollars to support their classrooms. Even if you don't have children, get the free items for your own home office. I hate having to pay full price for paper, pens, erasers etc. They even have a label maker this week for free that gets me almost giddy inside. If I didn't have one of these already, I could almost succumb. I LOVE labeling things. Ha--neurotic, I know.

The grocery stores here as a general rule are a lot cheaper than the ones in Boston. For example, I pay $2 for milk here instead of the regular $2.50. The prices here across the board are cheaper. In addition, my local Albertsons and Smiths have frequently had Catalina deals. I am still trying to figure out whether the catalina deal requirements are based on pre-sale or sale prices. My re-education is a work in progress. Most stores do not offer, as far as I can tell, standard doubling of coupons. That was a bit disappointing, but I believe the savings will still be big if I take advantage of the sales and catalina deals. Anywho. I recently discovered a website called Utah Deal Diva. She offers a ton of information for the Utah couponer.

I would love to know what sites you have found that are helpful to you! Feel free to share. Happy Shopping. TTFN!