A Day of Deals!

I scored some awesome deals yesterday and figured I would share. I went to three different stores and only had five different transactions.  The total value of everything I bought (these are sale prices, not all of my receipts show retail value) was $84.04 + tax and I only spent $26.09 + tax! Here we go...

Walgreens:

Transaction #1:

2 Colgate Toothpastes (on sale 2/$5)

     I used a $1.00 off manufact. coupon and I had a $1 Register Reward from my last trip

Total: $3.00 + tax and I received $2 in RR

Transaction #2:

2 Right Guard Deodorant ($4.49 on sale Buy One Get One Free)

     I used a Buy One Get One Free Coupon so both were FREE!

2 Got2Be Products ($5.99 and on sale BOGO)

     I used a $2.00 off Manufact. coupon so I got both for $3.99!

2 Jumbo Packs Diapers (on sale 2/$10)

     I used 2 Walgreens $2.00 off coupons so both packs were $6!

2 Off Clip ons (on sale for $7.99 each)

     I used a $2.00 off Manufact coupon, a $1.00 off Walgreens coupon and a BOGO coupon  

     so I got both for $4.99!

    I also used my $2.00 RR from the first transaction 

Total: $12.97 + tax

     

Target:

Transaction #1:

Banana Boat Lotion (on sale for $4.99)

Banana Boat Chapstick (on sale for $1.79)

Total: $6.78 + tax and I got a $5.00 gift card back

Transaction #2:

Not Pictured: 2 small bags Trolli Gummi Worms :) ($1.28)

Pantene Shampoo and Conditioner (on sale $3.79 each)

     I used a $3.00 off 2 manufact. coupon and Target was also running the deal where you 

     got a styling product free 

Pantene Hairspray FREE

I used my $5.00 gift card

Total: $.86 + tax

Giant Eagle:

Not pictured: A bag of Lays chips (on sale $1.99) and a 2-liter of A&W Root Beer (on sale $1)

2 Oral B Toothbrushes (on sale 2/$3)

     I used a $1.50/2 manufact. coupon so both were only $1.50

Caress Body Wash (Retail price, not on sale, $4.49)

     I used an eCoupon for $1.00 off 

     I used a (doubled $.75) $1.50 manufact. coupon so it only ended up being $1.99

I had a $4 RR from my last trip 

Total: $2.48 + tax

I'm really stoked about doing the couponing life group in the fall so I think I'm going to start using this section of my blog to begin planning how that's going to work. We have to start somewhere right?

A Weekend Wedding

Despite the hardships of the last few weeks, we were able to enjoy a night out (thanks to my mama who kept the kiddos :) and got to witness two great people share their vows. It was a great time.

Matt and I don't dress up very often, but I have to say...I think we clean up nice :)

I love this picture. My son can be such a ham. 

I was originally going to wear those super cute red high heels, but I could barely walk in them, however after taking this picture, Klaeyton informed me that he could run in them. And he did so. And yes I felt a little weird that my two-year old son could walk better and even run in a pair of high heels I could barely stand in :) 

Oh the joy of being an ordinary mom. 

Bible In A Year

I started the Bible in a Year again in January and I have been sticking with it. I have missed some days, but I just double up if need be. I have to say...this is one of the biggest comforts in my life right now. Yeah there are some parts that aren't action packed, but there are so many other parts that offer clarification and peace. The last couple weeks have been kind of hard and this has truly helped me deal with some things. 

You can view a great Bible in a Year plan here.

You can also view it on our church facebook page here.

Almost A Month's Worth

A lot can take place when I'm a slacker. Here's a jist:

We had a really nice day and took the kids to the lake for the first time. We didn't attempt the water, although I did try to get Klaeyton to put his feet in. But of course the playground was his favorite part. 

He did like playing in the sand with Daddy though. Check out that face. 

Yes my daughter is quite the chubby wubby. Check out those legs :)

You know a Harden picture isn't complete without ridiculous faces. 

Sadly, this is the only picture of the four of us so far. We have some work to do. 

Jules does this every time we give her a bottle. It's like she's saying "Praise God for food!"

At Great Lakes Church...we start em early :)

This has become one of my favorite pictures. I thought having one child was amazing. Watching the two of them makes my heart melt in ways I didn't know was possible. 


Oh the joy of being an ordinary mom. 

Back Porches and Bibles

We've had a lot of rain lately and yesterday we were given another one of those rare nice days. So I sat outside on the back porch with the kids for awhile. As you can see Klaeyton was having a blast getting dirty...I really think his face is a dirt magnet. I know I posted a very similar picture to this previously, but I promise this one was just taken yesterday :)

Yesterday was also the National Day of Prayer and the weather was perfect for the prayer walk in Amherst. This morning I read Psalm 96 and I recommend it to everyone. It's a good address to the world :)

Oh the joy of being a mom. 

I Spent Under Ten Bucks...

This is the trip I was talking about in my last post, but when I so excitedly entered the store yesterday I realized that it was Wednesday and the new sale didn't start until today so I made the trip today. 

What you see above retails at $46.21 without being on sale. Now with the sales it all retails at $24.99. However, with all the coupons I used, I paid $4.49 plus tax (My total for the above items was $6.61) 

This is how the trip went, there were four transactions total and the first two of them were just food items. GE was having a sale on certain items where if you purchased $20 worth, you got a $4 coupon back. I did this twice I stocked up on Dijorno's, liquid creamer that Matt likes, Lean Cuisines and a few containers of Haagen Daz Ice cream. I did two $20 purchases to get 2 $4 off coupons. My grocery total was around $55 but I am well stoked and everything I bought was on sale.  So essentially I started with 2 $4 off coupons for the next two transactions. 

Transaction #3

3 boxes of Tampax Pearl- Retail Price $4.79 each

Sale Price $4.00 each

eCoupon $2.00

$4.00 off coupon (from previous food purchases)

Manufac. Paper Coupon $2.00

Manufac. Paper Coupon $2.00

Manufac. Paper Coupon $1.50 (it was for $.75 and GE doubles it :)

Total Cost: $.50 + tax ($.70)

Total $1.20

And I received a $3.00 off coupon

Transaction 4:

Febreeze Air Effects- Retail $2.99

Sale $2.50

eCoupon $.50

Manufac. Coupon $1.50 ($.75 doubled)

Total for this item $.50

Febreeze Set and Refresh- Retail $2.99

Sale $2.50

eCoupon $.50

Manufac. Coupon $1.00 ($.50 doubled)

Total for this item $1.00

Crest Pro-Health- Retail $4.19

Sale $3.00

eCoupon $1.50

Manufac Coupon $1.50

Total for toothpaste FREE

2 Mr. Clean's Spray- Retail $3.39 each

Sale $2.50 each

eCoupon $.50

Manufac Coupon $1.00 ($.50 doubled)

Manufac Coupon $1.00 ($.50 doubled)

Total $2.50 for both or $1.25 each

Pedigree Dog Food- Retail $14.89

Sale $11.99

eCoupon $2.00

Manufac Coupon $3.00

Total for dog food $6.99

1st Total for All Items: $10.99

I then used by other $4.00 off coupon from my second food purchase and I also used my $3.00 off coupon from the Tampax purchase bringing my total to $3.99 + tax ($1.42)

or $5.41

So for both transaction 3 and transaction 4 I paid $6.61. Granted I spent money on groceries too, I think this was a pretty good steal. I love getting coupons back for buying things I need anyway. :)

Oh the joy of being a couponing mom. 

My Newest Coupon Adventure

I'm getting better at this whole couponing thing. And I won't lie...it's totally addicting! This is what I managed to pull off today:

It was the last day of these sales for Giant Eagle, (but no worries, I have a trip planned tomorrow that is going to blow this one out of the water!). Here's the breakdown of how this went from $48.94 retail to the $11.49 + tax that I paid for it :) I had three separate transactions and I started with a $4 off coupon from my last trip to Giant Eagle. 


Transaction #1
Diapers- Each package is originally $9.99
Sale Price $8.99 each
2 eCoupons for $1.50 ($3.00 off)
2 Paper coupons for $1.50 ($3.00 off)
Each package was then $6.00 and I used my $4 coupon making my total $8.00 + tax
I then received another $4.00 off coupon


Transaction #2
Tampax and Always- Each Retails at $5.99 each
Sale Price- Tampax $5.00 Always $5.50
2 ecoupons for $1.00 ($2.00 off)
2 Paper coupons- one for $1 and the other for $.75(which at GE is doubled) so total of $2.50 off
Each package was then $3 and $3.50
I used my $4.00 off coupon and my total was $2.50 + tax
Plus I received another $2.00 coupon


Transaction #3
Nice N Easy retails at $7.99 and the Natural Instincts retails at $8.99
They both were sale priced at $5.99
2 eCoupons for $2.00 each
2 Paper coupons for $3.00 and $2.00 for a combined total of $5.00 off
Each box was then $1.50 ($3.00 for both)
I used my $2.00 off coupon from the previous transaction to bring my grand total to $1.00 + tax!


Total spent $11.50 + tax!


I'm super stoked about tomorrow's trip and I'll make sure to post it as well :)

The Light of Christ-Update!

I won't lie. I'm awfully tired of reading facebook statuses regarding Osama and Obama. But I did happen to come across one that I think perfectly summed up my feelings on the matter:

"I mourn the loss of thousands of precious lives, but I will not rejoice in the death of one, not even an enemy. Returning hate for hate multiplies hate, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars. Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate:… only love can do that." -- Unknown

My light...is the love of Jesus Christ. 

Everyone has an opinion. I'm not trying to push mine on anyone.  And personally, I believe that one of the greatest things about America is that we have the freedom to express those opinions. And our troops deserve more credit than they receive because without them those freedoms would be a lot harder to come by.  

I just wanted to share. 

Oh the joy of being an American mom :)


It has come to my attention that the above quote is not in fact from Martin Luther King Jr. I'm not sure who it is from, but I read that it was fabricated specifically for this situation. Since I don't really care who said it...I still want to keep it posted because I find it holds truth.