No, there is no store in the DC/Metro area called AHHHH! - that just shows how stressed out I've been lately**. We move into our new house tomorrow so our life has been a bit hectic to say the least.
I did go to CVS on Tuesday to buy some milk (had some Extrabucks that were expiring). I spent under $1 - but I'll just leave it as $1 for budgeting purposes. I bought milk, a pack of starbursts for DH, gatorade (for move) and some band aids. They had boxes of CVS bandaids marked down to 15 cents! I bought 2 because this would be things we would need to move so I couldn't really stock up per say.
I few weeks ago, one of the websites that I frequent for deals had a special in which you could order $10 worth of food from Schwann's for free. I jumped at the opportunity to get some easy pre-prepped food for tonight's and tomorrow's meal (no fancy plates or cooking-related gear required). I wound up getting some turkey pot pies. DH is very very excited about the pot pies and even wanted to eat them earlier in the week but I reminded him that it was for the nights that we didn't have pots or pans available. I'm hoping they are tasty (they sure are big!).
Since we'll shortly own our own home (in fact, DH is at closing right now!), Stubber Budgeting will include more budget-friendly home improvement posts. I'm hoping my background in Architecture and my love for painting and power tools will come to good use and my skills aren't too rusty. I did survive unfurnished apartments in college by making things for a few years. I can't wait to make our house ours.
**(I am also dealing with a super awful head cold)
Friday, September 11, 2009
Saturday, September 5, 2009
Yard Sale Day!
The yard sale went surprisingly well. We were able to unload most of the free after coupon items (or made money after coupons) that I had accumulated from different drugstore, namely CVS and Rite Aid. The things that went the fastest, the $1 a tube toothpaste! I have made it a point recently after acquiring quite the stockpile to only stock up if I could make money off the item. So, most of the items were things that I had bought where the store paid me to take it home and then some random yard-sale goer bought it to take it away from me!
Anyway, the clothing that didn't sell is on it's way to Goodwill. My husband and I were so exhausted and hungry that we stopped at a local restaurant on the way back (since the servings are huge it will serve as dinner as well).
We set up shop at approximately 8:30am though we advertised the yard sale starting at 9am we got a few early birds around 9:45am. We would up closing up shop about an hour early since we had mostly run out of things and we were exhausted.
We started the day with $30 in singles, $20 in quarters and $10 in five dollar bills...
We didn't even crack open the second roll of quarters:
$10
We ended the day with the following amounts:
$140 in 20s
$35 in 5s
$19 in 1s
$12.75 in quarters
= $216.75 - $60 = $156.75
My husband and I have decided to use this money towards our movers since they usually require cash anyway. He'll go cash in the small bills towards larger ones.
Anyway, the clothing that didn't sell is on it's way to Goodwill. My husband and I were so exhausted and hungry that we stopped at a local restaurant on the way back (since the servings are huge it will serve as dinner as well).
We set up shop at approximately 8:30am though we advertised the yard sale starting at 9am we got a few early birds around 9:45am. We would up closing up shop about an hour early since we had mostly run out of things and we were exhausted.
We started the day with $30 in singles, $20 in quarters and $10 in five dollar bills...
We didn't even crack open the second roll of quarters:
$10
We ended the day with the following amounts:
$140 in 20s
$35 in 5s
$19 in 1s
$12.75 in quarters
= $216.75 - $60 = $156.75
My husband and I have decided to use this money towards our movers since they usually require cash anyway. He'll go cash in the small bills towards larger ones.
Friday, September 4, 2009
Milk & Yardsale Prep
My husbad and I drove a mere 6 miles away where my parents have agreed to host our yard sale to hang up signs and post fliers in the local Giant. We don't have a yard... yet. =)
While we were there, we decided to stop for milk since we were running low. Holy !#$%^! Milk at my parent's Giant was $3.49 a gallon! That's 50 cents more than we pay, as I mentioned, 6 miles west of them!
I also posted on Craiglist yesterday evening, which I plan to do again today and tomorrow morning.
I hope we get a good turn out!
While we were there, we decided to stop for milk since we were running low. Holy !#$%^! Milk at my parent's Giant was $3.49 a gallon! That's 50 cents more than we pay, as I mentioned, 6 miles west of them!
I also posted on Craiglist yesterday evening, which I plan to do again today and tomorrow morning.
I hope we get a good turn out!
Sunday, August 30, 2009
Random Budget Tracking Stuff & Safeway Trip
I haven't blogged about some shopping trips since I've been a bit MIA.
Giant August 23rd, 2009: $6.39
Rite Aid August 23rd, 2009: $3.50
Rite Aid August 25th, 2009: $10.00
Giant August 29th, 2009: $2.99
The Rite Aid trips were for Frosted Mini Wheats. They ran a promotion if you spent $15 in select Kelloggs products, you get a $5 coupon towards those products in the mail and since we eat lots of Frosted Mini Wheats around here, it was worth it even at the $2.50 a box price.
Anyway, today I went to Safeway and did the currently running, buy 5 save $5 promotion. There are a ton more products included than in the ads. The ads only show maybe 6 different cereals. It's more like 30. So don't be put off if your family doesn't like the few cereals that look like they are on sale, there are others.
I bought 15 cereals. I know you are asking yourself why would I do such a crazy thing knowing we are moving in 2 weeks? My husband said the same thing when I came in the apartment after unloading the car. He was not happy to say the least.
Well, I needed to buy cereals in quantities of 5. If I was going to buy 5, I might as well buy 10 and do the Kelloggs rebate that was in the Sunday paper a couple weeks ago. And then of course, when I was in the aisle, I realized that to buy the cereal I wanted, it would be 12 and I might as well make it to 15. So there you go. Yes, it was a bit excessive and yes, my husband and I will be moving cereal into our new home after closing, but for the price I saved, it was worth it. Plus, I had a $5 off $50 coupon (which I didn't even get to - thankfully my cashier was super nice and passed it through even though my total before coupons was only $48.55).
So, I bought:
15 boxes of cereal (various brands, mostly Kelloggs though)
2 packs of Hunt pudding fat free (a staple in my lunch bag!)
1 box Special K bliss bars
1 box aluminum foil
3 bottles of Gatorade
1 loaf of wheat bread
5 lb sack of white potatoes
3.32 lbs of braeburn apples
2.52 lbs of nectarines
1 tube Burts Bees lip balm (free after coupon expires 8/31)
Spent: $27.50 OOP
Total Savings: $66.29 or 71%!
Giant August 23rd, 2009: $6.39
Rite Aid August 23rd, 2009: $3.50
Rite Aid August 25th, 2009: $10.00
Giant August 29th, 2009: $2.99
The Rite Aid trips were for Frosted Mini Wheats. They ran a promotion if you spent $15 in select Kelloggs products, you get a $5 coupon towards those products in the mail and since we eat lots of Frosted Mini Wheats around here, it was worth it even at the $2.50 a box price.
Anyway, today I went to Safeway and did the currently running, buy 5 save $5 promotion. There are a ton more products included than in the ads. The ads only show maybe 6 different cereals. It's more like 30. So don't be put off if your family doesn't like the few cereals that look like they are on sale, there are others.
I bought 15 cereals. I know you are asking yourself why would I do such a crazy thing knowing we are moving in 2 weeks? My husband said the same thing when I came in the apartment after unloading the car. He was not happy to say the least.
Well, I needed to buy cereals in quantities of 5. If I was going to buy 5, I might as well buy 10 and do the Kelloggs rebate that was in the Sunday paper a couple weeks ago. And then of course, when I was in the aisle, I realized that to buy the cereal I wanted, it would be 12 and I might as well make it to 15. So there you go. Yes, it was a bit excessive and yes, my husband and I will be moving cereal into our new home after closing, but for the price I saved, it was worth it. Plus, I had a $5 off $50 coupon (which I didn't even get to - thankfully my cashier was super nice and passed it through even though my total before coupons was only $48.55).
So, I bought:
15 boxes of cereal (various brands, mostly Kelloggs though)
2 packs of Hunt pudding fat free (a staple in my lunch bag!)
1 box Special K bliss bars
1 box aluminum foil
3 bottles of Gatorade
1 loaf of wheat bread
5 lb sack of white potatoes
3.32 lbs of braeburn apples
2.52 lbs of nectarines
1 tube Burts Bees lip balm (free after coupon expires 8/31)
Spent: $27.50 OOP
Total Savings: $66.29 or 71%!
Milk
On my way home I was struck by the distinct change in milk prices over the last year or so and especially how different stores have been changing their price of milk significantly recently. For instance, when we first moved to the area, I almost solely bought my milk at CVS which generally ranged from $2.99 - $3.39 mostly because I had more Extrabucks than I knew what to do with and it was a convenient stop.
Along the way, I realized that milk was cheaper at places like Giant and significantly so, and they ran a milk promotion (no longer btw). Milk at Giant a week or so ago was $2.39 (worth the extra trip considering both stores were less than a mile away). Now I see that milk at Safeway and Giant are both the same price ($2.99) and Giant is no longer running the promotion so no longer worth the extra trip!
Now there are other reasons to buy CVS or Giant milk. Giant and CVS milk both come with a twist off cap and a sturdier bottle while the Safeway milk has a suction like top which seems more prone to leaking and what seems like a thinner bottle (to me anyway). But is this worth the extra trip? Maybe. Maybe not.
I think in the future I'll be keeping tabs on this. Of course, I am in the DC/Metro area so milk may be more or less (I'm guessing less) where you are - few people that actually read this blog. =)
Next up, my Safeway trip and how my husband seriously accosted me when I came home with 15 more boxes of cereal when we are moving in 2 weeks, stay tuned!
Along the way, I realized that milk was cheaper at places like Giant and significantly so, and they ran a milk promotion (no longer btw). Milk at Giant a week or so ago was $2.39 (worth the extra trip considering both stores were less than a mile away). Now I see that milk at Safeway and Giant are both the same price ($2.99) and Giant is no longer running the promotion so no longer worth the extra trip!
Now there are other reasons to buy CVS or Giant milk. Giant and CVS milk both come with a twist off cap and a sturdier bottle while the Safeway milk has a suction like top which seems more prone to leaking and what seems like a thinner bottle (to me anyway). But is this worth the extra trip? Maybe. Maybe not.
I think in the future I'll be keeping tabs on this. Of course, I am in the DC/Metro area so milk may be more or less (I'm guessing less) where you are - few people that actually read this blog. =)
Next up, my Safeway trip and how my husband seriously accosted me when I came home with 15 more boxes of cereal when we are moving in 2 weeks, stay tuned!
Sunday, August 23, 2009
Um... Hello!
I have been really bad with updating this thing. I started a new job recently that has taken most of the energy out of me and if that weren't enough, my back has started bothering me again (and here I thought my herniated disc had repaired itself). So, just my day to day activities have left me pretty exhausted. I'm not going to do a full account of each shopping trip, but I'm just going to note the trips and the money I spent.
August 16, 2009 Giant: $2.39
August 17, 2009 Safeway: $34.21 (saved 48%)
August 23, 2009 Safeway: $33.92 (saved 63%)
So far have been under budget each week. We're trying to eat from the pantry as much as we can given our up-coming move.
We are also having a yard sale September 5th. I will posting tips and if you have any suggestions, please advise! We are trying to get rid of some stuff and make some extra cash before our big move to our new house! So excited about that but a little stressed over moving.
August 16, 2009 Giant: $2.39
August 17, 2009 Safeway: $34.21 (saved 48%)
August 23, 2009 Safeway: $33.92 (saved 63%)
So far have been under budget each week. We're trying to eat from the pantry as much as we can given our up-coming move.
We are also having a yard sale September 5th. I will posting tips and if you have any suggestions, please advise! We are trying to get rid of some stuff and make some extra cash before our big move to our new house! So excited about that but a little stressed over moving.
Sunday, August 9, 2009
Giant & CVS
We needed bread, milk and turkey breast (DH takes this for lunch nearly everyday) and CVS has a 3-day sale again which includes a Revlon mousse foundation FREE after Extrabucks (I actually made $1 from it because of the $1 off Revlon coupon in the 7/19 Smart Source). Milk these days seems to always be cheaper at Giant (especially including the special buy 4 get 1 gallon free promotion). My Giant has gallons for $2.39.
Anyway, CVS:
$9.99 Revlon mousse foundation
$.50 pack of skittles (for DH)
$.50 pack of skittles (for DH)
I wasn't able to complete the candy promotion from a week or so ago, but they've rolled over my balance from the last time to this weeks promotion. I bought the skittles as a test but DH can think it was just me being my sweet self. =)
- $1/1 Revlon
- $1.00 Extrabucks
- $1.98 Extrabucks
- $2.00 Extrabucks
= $5.68 OOP
Received $9.99 Extra Bucks back and a free coupon for CVS brand 4pack AA batteries.
And Giant:
$2.39 gallon skim milk
$3.59 Stroehmann wheat bread
$0.00 Stroehmann wheat bread (BOGO free)
$2.50 Healthy Ones turkey breast
$2.50 Healthy Ones turkey breast
= $10.98 OOP
I probably have coupons for the turkey breast somewhere but I didn't really plan this trip and only remembered that we were nearly out of turkey breast when I got to the store. Either way, I wanted to grab it while I was out since we have evening plans (and knowing DH, he'll probably tell me we're out of turkey breast after he finishes the very last pack -- ahh men).
Anyway, CVS:
$9.99 Revlon mousse foundation
$.50 pack of skittles (for DH)
$.50 pack of skittles (for DH)
I wasn't able to complete the candy promotion from a week or so ago, but they've rolled over my balance from the last time to this weeks promotion. I bought the skittles as a test but DH can think it was just me being my sweet self. =)
- $1/1 Revlon
- $1.00 Extrabucks
- $1.98 Extrabucks
- $2.00 Extrabucks
= $5.68 OOP
Received $9.99 Extra Bucks back and a free coupon for CVS brand 4pack AA batteries.
And Giant:
$2.39 gallon skim milk
$3.59 Stroehmann wheat bread
$0.00 Stroehmann wheat bread (BOGO free)
$2.50 Healthy Ones turkey breast
$2.50 Healthy Ones turkey breast
= $10.98 OOP
I probably have coupons for the turkey breast somewhere but I didn't really plan this trip and only remembered that we were nearly out of turkey breast when I got to the store. Either way, I wanted to grab it while I was out since we have evening plans (and knowing DH, he'll probably tell me we're out of turkey breast after he finishes the very last pack -- ahh men).
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