Dollar Deals at Culvers have begun!

Culvers is by far my favorite fast food restaurant.  If anything, I feel bad even including it in the fast food category, it's tastes too good for that label!

So, of course I just love it when they run sales there!  Every summer they have "Dollar Deals" where for a week at a time a different item on their menu will be only $1!  I just got an email that right now you can get a single scoop waffle cone for only $1. 

This is a nice treat, but the Dollar Deal that I look forward to is when their famous Butter Burgers go on sale for only $1.  I'll be keeping a lookout for that one!

- Mister Deals

PS Check out the full email below:

Free 7up!

Thanks to Money Saving Mom, I just found out about this sweet coupon for $1 off of 7up.  This can easily lead to free 7up, if it goes on sale for $1 - or if you can double the coupon at your local grocery store.  Print your coupon now, before they are all gone!

http://bricks.coupons.com/Start.asp?bt=vi&tqnm=zc5nbyx78709297&o=62674&c=SU&p=poJm63MV

- Mister Deals

Frugal Tip of the Day: Save Money on Gas - Ride a Bike!

Now that it has warmed up in my cof the woods, I have been so excited to get outside and enjoy the nice weather.  One thing I always do during the spring and summer months is reduce the amount I drive my car for short trips and errands.  Whenever I can, I walk or bike instead of taking the car.

If you are used to driving everywhere, this may seem difficult at first.  But, I bet if you try it, you will be pleasantly surprised.  I know I was! 

For me personally, I can walk to some places downtown, like Walgreens and the Post Office - which are two places I go to at least once per week if not more often.  I'm always getting register reward deals or mailing out items I've sold on ebay or amazon.com, and now by walking to the post office instead of driving there, I'm saving money, helping the environment, and staying healthy!

For grocery shopping, it might be not be practical to walk: the store may be too far away, or in a location that is not pedestrian friendly - not to mention: how am I going to carry all these bags home?  I may be frugal, but I am not about to push a shopping cart all the way home! haha.

So, for most grocery store trips I have still been driving, but I have now challenged myself to use the bus on my next trip to the grocery store.  I have some bus passes that I didn't use up last summer, so it's basically a free ride for me.  Even if it wasn't free, a round trip on the bus would cost less than a gallon of gas right now(just remember to ask for a transfer card - that gets you home for free!).

Enjoy the weather!
-Mister Deals

Swagbucks - Worth It!

There are a lot of "points" programs on the web that promise you prizes and benefits beyond your wildest dreams - and most of them never seem to pay off in reality.  Well, I can now officially say that swagbucks is actually worth the small amount of effort it takes to get setup and use it.

First, Sign Up (click this banner, note that I get bonus points for referring you):



Next, I highly recommend setting swagbucks as your homepage.  If you are a die-hard Google user like me, it might be very difficult for you to make something other than Google (or iGoogle) your home page, but I am telling you it's the best thing.  For one, their homepage has a search box at the top that you can use to do Google-ish searches.  Technically, it combines results from Google and some other search engines.  They present the results a little differently than Google, and in general I don't like the search engine as much as I like pure Google searches - but, it's worth it!  Even if you just do a few searches each time you open your browser, you will start winning a few Swagbucks here and there, and before you know it you will be able to cash them in!

The final thing you "need to do" (in my opinion), is add the swagbucks toolbar.  Now, I can tell you, I hate toolbars.  I generally use the Google Chrome Browser, and I love how simple the UI is.  I have sat down at other people's computers and literally cringed at the site of their Internet Explorer browser with 5+ toolbars that took up almost half of the screen! Aghhhh!  So, here is what I did: I installed the toolbar on Internet Explorer.   It's the only toolbar I have installed, and it's still not my primary browser, but just by having it, whenever I do happen to open IE, I usually get a few free swagbucks.  I'm not kidding, I just launch the program and there is a pop up telling me I got 3 Swagbucks.  And I'm like "Cool, thanks!"  Having the toolbar also gives you access to messages from "TSG" which are generally time-sensitive bonus codes that you input on swagbucks.com and receive more swagbucks.


How does it work?

Mainly, you just use their search engine and you will randomly win Swagbucks, which are points that you can accumulate and then cash in for real prizes.  My favorite thing to do is cash them in for Amazon.com gift cards.  A $5 gift card is 450 Swagbucks.  If you only use swagbucks rarely, like I do, it will take about 4-6 months to get to that level.  $5 in 4 months may not sound like much, but I try to look at it this way: how much time did I actually put in to this, 10 seconds here, 15 seconds there, if it's even 20 minutes total over the 4 months, I'd be shocked.  My point is, for almost no work at all, you are getting $5 free every few months.  And, if you really work at it: get referrals, take surveys, etc (there are a lot of ways to earn free points) then you can earn a lot more!

Watch for Codes!

One of the best ways to get extra swagbucks is to enter bonus codes on the swagbucks.com homepage.  The codes come from various sources: their twitter feed, facebook updates, blog posts, the toolbar, etc.  There are some other coupon bloggers who will also post when there is a new swagcode out and tell you where to find it, so the easiest way to get the codes is the just keep reading your usual blogs, assuming one of them is an active "swagernaut."  (Yes, the folks at swagbucks.com have about a million swag- terms, pretty silly, but it makes it a little fun :)


- Mister Deals

PS my swagbucks referral link: http://www.swagbucks.com/refer/misterdeals

Great Rolling at Walgreens this Week (4/25/2010 - 5/1/2010)

This is a great week to stock up on women's shaving cream and feminine products at Walgreens! There are two "Free after Register Reward" deals going on that create a very easy rolling scenario. In each case, the product is on sale for $2.99 and you receive a $3 register reward. So you basically go back and forth, buying one and then the other and paying with your register reward each time. Note that you also have to buy a cheap filler item (I suggest a Nestle candy bar, on sale for 39 cents this week), to bring the pre-tax total above $3. Your first transaction will cost $3.15, but each one after that you pay only 56 cents OOP per transaction.

Example:

Transaction 1
1 Skintimate Shaving Cream $2.99

Total = $3.15
+receive a $3 Register Reward

Transaction 2
1 Stayfree Maxi Pad $2.99
1 "100 Grand" candy bar $0.39
Use $3 Register Reward

Total = $0.56 OOP
+receive another $3 Register Reward

Transaction 3
1 Skintimate Shaving Cream $2.99
1 Butterfinger candy bar $0.39
Use $3 Register Reward

Total = $0.56 OOP
+receive another $3 Register Reward


Repeat transaction 2 & 3 as many times as you want (or until they run out of the product!). These are both items that are not going to "go bad" so stock up now, and never pay full price for shaving cream again! If you don't want to use candy bars as your filler items - check out the clearance racks, or grab some Ramen noodle which are also 39 cents.

- Mister Deals


PS Yes, my first post in almost a year is about feminine products. Does this triumphant return mean I will be blogging regularly? I don't know, but you know what they say: "A journey of 1000 miles begins with a single step." and, as always "Be the change you want to see in the world." I'm going to be frugal - blogging or not :)

8 lb Fresh Fruit for about $1.50 @ Target

Mrs. Deals pointed out this deal to me at Target (also seen on Money Saving Mom ). For anyone who thinks that couponing only works for cereal and toilet paper, take a look at this (sorry for the poor quality camera phone pic - it's my only option right now!)

You can print off Target Web Coupons for $0.50 off Bananas (1 lb or more) and $1 off Apples (1 lb or more). If you are really lucky, you're local Super Target will have Apples on sale for 0.99 / lb, which would make it possible to get them free.

At my Target, the small Granny Smith apples were priced at $1.29 / lb, so with the coupon, they were only $0.29 for a pound of apples. Lucky for me, 3 of these little guys came out to exactly a pound. Literally, 2 of my receipts say "1.00 LBS" one was 1.02 and one was .99, but my cashier still happily took the coupon.

Bananas worked out pretty good, although it was a lot harder to hit the 1 lb mark dead on. I split up 2 bunches of six into my four transactions, and found that 3 bananas would weigh anywhere from 1.1 to 1.15 lbs, and 2 bananas rang up as only .68 lb. To my surprise, the cashier let that one fly too, so even though the 2 bananas only cost 38 cents, she still took off the whole $0.50 coupon (the overage came off of the 32 cents I should have paid for the apples) and I ended up having a total of only 20 cents for that transaction!

The total of all 4 transactions was:

.43 + .20 + .50 + .40 = $1.53

Total Haul:

• 4.01 lbs of Small Granny Smith Apples (12 apples)
• 4.20 lbs of Bananas (2 bunches = 12 bananas)

I hesitate to say "OOP" though, because I used a target gift card (one of many we received as wedding gifts), so as far as our weekly budget goes this was a completely free shopping trip.

I can't wait to try whatever Mrs. Deals makes with those apples... yum!

- Mister Deals

Shopping for basics at TJ Maxx

Almost out of vanilla & wanting some sesame oil, Mrs. Deals stopped at TJ Maxx today to scope some prices.

Since a 2oz bottle of McCourmick Vanilla costs around $5 at regular price, we decided to look for alternatives, especially with Thanksgiving time far away (Vanilla goes on sale around 50% off at this time of year). For us it is important to buy real vanilla versus imitation, and as a result we know it would take a good chunk out of our regular weekly budget.

This week we are starting with $30 for shopping & only plan on spending a little at Walgreens and Target, to make up for the cost of staples.

Anyway, onto the TJ Maxx shopping trip:

(2) 4oz bottles of Madagascar Vanilla 5.99 each

(1) 16.7oz bottle of Organic Sesame Oil $4.99

Total out of pocket: $16.97

Rainy Day Blog

It's been quite rainy here lately and by the looks of this weather map, we're not out of the woods yet:

I did get a little wet when I went out coupon hunting this morning, and I blame the weather for why I could only find a few extra inserts this week - apparently people don't go to Starbucks to read the Sunday paper when it's pouring outside!

Other than that, this was a pretty good week, and I did some nice rolling at Walgreens:

Transaction 1:

(8) Jiffy Peanut Butter on sale 2/$4 = $16 (+get $10 RR)
Used:

• (4) $0.75/2 coupons = $3 off total

OOP = $13

and received $10 RR for buying 8 Jiffy's

Transaction 2:

(1) 10 pack of #2 Pencils = 19 cents

(1) Gum Toothbrush = $3.49 (+3.50 RR)

(1) Walgreen's Children's Activity Book = 99 cents

(1) Vitamin Shampoo = $3.99 (+4 RR)

(4) Crest Expressions Toothpaste 4/$10 = $10 (+$5 RR)

Tax = 1.03

Used:

• (4) $0.75/1 coupons = $3 off total
• $10 RR from Transaction 1

OOP = 6.69

and received a total of $12.50 RR

Transaction 3 (a repeat of transaction 1 plus some fillers)

(8) Jiffy Peanut Butter on sale 2/$4 = $16 (+get $10 RR)
(4) 10 pack of #2 Pencils 19 cents each = $0.76

Used:

• (4) $0.75/2 coupons = $3 off total
• $12.50 RR

OOP = $1.30

and received $10 RR (again!) for buying 8 Jiffy's

Walgreen's Total OOP for the week = $20.99

Plus, we have a $10 RR to use this week!

The only other shopping I did this week was a very small trip to Copps:

(1) bunch of bananas $0.49/lb = 1.24

(2) Quaker Quick Oats on sale $1.28 ea = 2.56

OOP = $3.80

Total OOP for the Week = 24.79

(plus we have 1 remaining $10 RR)

We were hoping to stay more under budget, like $20 instead of $25, because we know we need to stock up on some kitchen basics, but it didn't happen this week. Last week, we did stay under $20, so that extra $5 savings will be used this coming week to give us a $30 budget. Mrs. Deals is already working on some deals to see just how far she can make that go... until then, stay dry! :)

- Mister Deals

July 25 to August 1st

So for this week Mrs. Deals & I finished up our remaining "Giving Honeymoon" with the purchases of some toiletry items at Target (Johnson & Johnson, Destin) and at Copps some Tuna Helper (27), 5 Mighty Dog Dog Foods, Snack Packs (4 for free), 6 Wet Ones, 10 Poptarts (They were cheap, so we went with it--usually we opt for cereals), and a few other small items (I don't have the full list in front of me, I've been visiting the in-laws this weekend and left my receipts behind).

For our personal shopping trip we remained under our $25 budget, but did spend right around $20.

We got:

2 Milks Free after two store coupons at Copps

15 Cans of Tuna .50 each after coupons at Target

2 Tide Stain Remover Bottles .99 each after coupons at Copps

6 Tide Single-Loads Free after coupons at Target

4 All 2-Load Detergents Free after coupons at Target

Grapes 1.29 at Copps

6 Back to Nature Mac & Cheeses Free after coupons at Whole Foods

2 Flintstone Vitamins $7 after coupons at Copps

2 Smart Waters Free after Coupons at Copps

in addition our earlier purchases of envelopes and candy at Walgreens came out to .72

All in all, our total came out to just under $20.00 (somewhere between $18.50-20.00)

We are hoping to save some extra money from this week and this coming week to stock up on some staples we are running low on (Vanilla, Flour, Sugar, Powdered Sugar). Since we don't want to dip into future grocery funds (and then end up spending $25 later on anyhow), we want to make sure we are staying a little bit below budget (~$5 for a few weeks) so we can have that money to spend already available.

So, despite my find of 16 copies of ads this week (Found an awesome truck stop at the in-laws) and the great deals at Walgreens, we are limiting ourselves to three transactions with around $18 out of pocket expense with a $10 RR to use next week and we are picking up around $3 of items at Copps--2 Oats and 1 bundle of bananas).

This post is rushed I'll admit, hopefully once Mrs. Deals school year begins we will have more of a structure established so fitting in posts won't be as difficult!

Mister Deals

Fiber One Yogurt

zero guilt snacking

• Make snack time a treat for your taste buds and your waistline
• 50 calories + 0 grams of fat + 5 grams of fiber = zero guilt
• Four delicious flavors — Strawberry, Vanilla, Peach, Key Lime Pie

Mrs. Deals is signed up for General Mills pssst Program to try out new products! Fiber One yogurt is our all-time favorite, so I was excited to learn we have a few coupons now for trying out their new yogurt with even fewer calories. Since we have both been trying to eat healthier, this will be a great snack to have around the apartment.

With this particular promotion we will be mailed coupons and also have access to share some online with friends and family--pretty awesome!

To sign up for this program just head over to pssst.generalmills.com and hopefully they match you up with a great deal soon!

-Mister Deals

(I will be updating about our weekly shopping today or tomorrow, so keep an eye out for that)

Walgreens Results: Nice haul for 72 cents

To follow up on the Walgreens deals I was planning yesterday: I couldn't wait to get my free candy bars, so yesterday I ran out and picked up my candy bars: 10 for only 17 cents!! To get the rest of the items I hit the stores again today - my local one on the way to work for 1 transaction, then another on my way home after work for 2 more quick transactions.

Transaction 1

(2) Hunt's Tomato Sauce (39 cents each w/ In-Ad coup - .75/2 coupon = 3 cents total)

(4) Scotch Bubble Mailers (39 cents on sale - 3 x .50/1 coupons = 6 cents total)

(2) Reynolds Wrap Aluminum Foil (99 cents each - 2 x 1/1 coupons = negative 2 cents total)

Tax = .19

Total OOP = $0.26

Transaction 2 (basically the same as #1, but without the Tomato sauce)

(4) Scotch Bubble Mailers (39 cents on sale - 3 x .50/1 coupons = 6 cents total)

(2) Reynolds Wrap Aluminum Foil (99 cents each - 2 x 1/1 coupons = negative 2 cents total)

Tax = .19

Total OOP = $0.23

Transaction 3 (exactly the same as #2)

(4) Scotch Bubble Mailers (39 cents on sale - 3 x .50/1 coupons = 6 cents total)

(2) Reynolds Wrap Aluminum Foil (99 cents each - 2 x 1/1 coupons = negative 2 cents total)

Tax = .19

Total OOP = $0.23

Total of all 3 transaction = 72 cents !

Now I have a plenty of bubble envelopes to ship out ebay items in, and some tomato sauce and aluminum foil to donate.

Funny side story, when I was a teenager I started an aluminum foil ball - it eventually was bigger than a basketball, though much more oblong... imagine a giant potato wrapped in foil, that's basically what it looked like. Buying the aluminum foil today got me thinking, "How big could I have made that if I knew I could get aluminum foil for free at Walgreens!" haha, I'm sure Mrs. Deals is glad that I don't have any current ambitions to find out :)

- Mister Deals

Walgreens Deals I'm excited about

So, after looking through the ads for today (I found 12 Redplums, 12 Smartsources) I can see a few great deals that we will stop and do while shopping this week.

This week MARS candy bars are .49 with in ad coupon, paired with the $1/2 in today's Redplum this makes for FREE candy. For Wisconsin readers: this coupon is found in the Milwaukee paper, but not in the Wisconsin State Journal.

The trick to taking advantage of this coupon is presenting the manufacturer coupon first, then the in-ad coupon. For me this will equal 10 free candy bars.

The other great deal I noticed is Scotch brand shipping products--envelopes on sale for .39 cents. Paired with today's Redplum coupon for .50 off any Scotch packaging supply this equals a free product. Since I have 12 coupons and I want to avoid the register beeping, I plan on buying 4 envelopes and using 3 coupons for each 4 purchased. This would break down to .06 for all 4 envelopes, but make my transaction run a little smoother and in total I will walk away with 16 envelopes for .24, which will come in handy for shipping items I am selling on ebay.

Happy Couponing!

Mister Deals

Return of Mister Deals: Giving Honeymoon

It is hard to believe about 3 weeks has passed by without a new entry--life really gets busy at times. Since I haven't filled everyone in for my last three weeks of deal huntings, I can summarize it very briefly:

Last weekend I had the pleasure of marrying my lovely bride, Mrs. Deals. So, for the two weeks previous to the wedding we purchased almost no groceries. I say almost none because for the grill out before the wedding we purchased buns.

Since this left most of my average $25/week budget free and to celebrate our wedding, Mrs. Deals & I enjoyed a few evenings out to dinner...so we didn't really end up saving any money.

This past week I took a few days off from work and we had a local honeymoon themed with the spirit of giving. This included my first ever trip to Aldi, some Target deals, a local Health food store, Walgreens, and of course Copps.

Since we were so frugal in our wedding planning and were blessed with so many lovely wedding gifts, we didn't feel quite right about keeping such good fortune to ourselves. We set a budget of $250 to spend this week, with the idea of giving everything away. For people who don't spend more than $25 a week usually, this was hard. We are actually still just under $200 spent, but we are waiting until this Wednesday to pair it with a sale on Tuna Helper at Copps.

A short summary of things we purchased:

At Aldi:

48 cans of Tuna .59 each

36 cans of Vegetables .49 each

12 Spaghetti Sauce 1.09 each

48 Ramen Noodles .15 each

At local health food store:

48 Organic Baby Foods $36.00 (kind of high, I know...we don't really have a history of buying baby food... yet ;)

Walgreens:

School Supplies (10 free bic highlighter packs , several folders, a lot of #2 pencils, 4 packs of papermate pens, 2 free Gel pen packs)

Target:

School Supplies: Glue, 56 note books (.15 ea), and 50+ boxes of crayons

4 Similac Formulas .84 each (HUGE savings with rebate checks)

Baby Bottles

2 Baby Cereals

32 Babyfoods (Earth's Best & Gerber) ~.64 each

Copps:

14 Skippy Peanut Butters $1.20 each

8 Gerber Babyfoods $2.00 for all

17 Beechnut Baby Foods $1.65 for all

27 Beechnut Baby Cereals .50 to .75 each [One store had only a few of the type on sale left, but they said they were fine with what we were doing & brought out a box from the back of a different flavor for us to use]

Overall this was a learning experience on the prices of baby food, it was shocking on how high the prices were--and how much they varied from store-to-store (Sometimes over twice the price, which seems inappropriate for a product meant for babies).

The deals this week were not so hot at any store, but since we had the time we thought we would explore around some different stores and spend the money as best we could!

As the next week of deals begins, you can expect more posts from me, Mister Deals

Free Chocolate Friday

Just a friendly reminder, this week you can still register for free chocolate from Mars (There is a limit of 4 per household during this promotion).

Head over here to sign up & enjoy!

I Got Paid to Buy Cheerios! $14 for $1.88 OOP

Wow, I am really amazed at the deal I got at Copps this week. I don't usually get this excited about a deal... ok, maybe sometimes ;) but this deal is really amazing!

It's one of those times when several good deals combine to make a truly remarkable, unprecedented deal! Here are some of the factors that contributed to it:

• Cheerios deal at Copps: buy 6, get $10 off instantly plus 2 coupons for a free gallon of milk
• Those great $1/1 and $1/2 coupons that general mills has been emailing to me
• Double Coupon day at Copps, which makes each of those $1 coupons = $2 off

Here are the 2 transactions I did:

Transaction 1

(6) Cheerios 14 oz ($3.49)

(3) Dan Active Yogurt 4-packs (on sale for $2/each)

Total before coupons and instant rebates = $26.94, which is good, because it's above the $25 needed for coupons to double!

Coupons applied:

$10 off instantly for buying 6 cereals

(5) Doubled $1 Cheerios coupons = $10 off

(3) $1/1 Dan Active coupons = $3 off

Total Coupons = $23

OOP = $3.94

But wait, there's more! I also received back (2) "Free Milk Coupons" Something that was not advertised is that the Milk coupons, which say they are good "up to $3.50" actually take $3.50 off of your total when they scan. So, for the milk I buy, which is $2.59, that means a free gallon plus 91 cents overage!

Final cost = -$3.06 (3.94 - $7 in future savings)

Transaction 2

(6) Cheerios 14 oz ($3.49)

(5) Pepsi products 12 packs ($3.99 or $1.77 when you buy 5)

Total before coupons and instant rebates = $40.89

Coupons applied:

$11.10 off instantly for buying 5 Pepsi products

(1) Buy 4 get 1 Free Pepsi coupon = $1.77 off

$10 off instantly for buying 6 cereals

(5) Doubled $1 Cheerios coupons = $10 off

Total Coupons = $32.87

Tax = .49

OOP = $8.51

Again, I received 2 more Free Milk Coupons, so another $7.00 in future savings!

Final cost = $1.51 (8.51 - $7 in future savings)

Total for both transactions = -$1.55 I literally got paid to shop this week!

With a deal this good, I just wish I had more cheerios coupons so I could have done it some more.

Another way to look at this deal, not that it isn't amazing enough already, is to just look at the cost of the cereal, which ended up at $0.94 for 6 boxes, so $1.88 for both transactions, and yet I got back $14 in coupons. In other words, General Mills just paid me $1 per box for buying Cheerios. Now that's my kind of job!

Less than $5 = More Great Target Savings

Target is quickly becoming my favorite place to shop. Especially now that I have been going there for a few weeks, I feel like I know the store - I can find items easily, and when I can't I can always find a friendly "Target Team Member" to help me out. This makes my shopping trips quick and easy - like today. My fiancee helped me put these deals together last night, and today after work I just popped in, grabbed all the items, and only checked out once - I separated my items on the belt and asked them to bag it together but ring it up separately. The cashier was happy to do so, and it saved me a lot of time from having to wait in line again, or worse - go and reshop to get the items for the second transaction.

Here's the breakdown:
Transaction 1

• (1) Kraft Salad Dressing -$0.11
        sale price 1.89 minus (2) stacked $1/1 coupons
  
• (1) Kashi Waffles $0.29
        sale price $1.79 minus (1) $1.50/1 coupon
  
• (1) Degree Deodorant $0.47
        sale price 1.97 minus (1) $1.50/1 coupon
  
• (2) A1 Steak Sauce $0.99 each
        regular price 2.99 minus (2) $2/1 coupons
  

Total = $2.63 + tax (a whopping 3 cents)

OOP = $0.00 ! (thanks to the Target gift card I got last time)

Transaction 2

• (1) Kraft Miracle Whip $0.14
        regular price 2.14 minus (2) stacked $1/1 coupons
  
• (1) Degree Deodorant $0.47
        sale price 1.97 minus (1) $1.50/1 coupon
  
• (2) A1 Steak Sauce $0.99 each
        regular price 2.99 minus (2) $2/1 coupon
  

Total = $1.59 + tax

OOP = $0.00 *used gift card again :)


So, for less than $5 I'd say I did pretty good. The deodorants will get donated, possibly to our service men & women overseas, or to the usual food pantry. The A1, dressing, and Miracle Whip will be used for our bachelor/bachelorette party. And the waffles? Those are breakfast! My fiancee and I just love them - not sure what we'll do when they aren't 29 cents any more. I guess it will be time to invest in a waffle iron :)

- Mister Deals

Copps Shopping Trip 2

• (6) Wacky Mac ($0.25)
  
• (4) Honey Maid Graham Crackers ($2.50)
  
• (2) Ritz Crackers (1.75)
  
• (6) Tuna Helper ($1)
  
• (6) Clif / Luna Bars (FREE! plus $0.12 overage)
  
• (2) Wheat Thins (FREE! plus $1 overage)
• (6) Colgate Toothpaste (FREE!)

Total OOP = $12.98

Almost everything in this shopping trip (except for the toothpaste, which will be donated) is going to used as part of the combined bachelor/bachelorette party we are having a couple of days before our wedding. We are going to have a big meal for everyone, and by buying things now at the best possible prices, we are saving a ton of money. We're planning to do a big post about it soon to tell you the whole menu and how little it all cost!

- Mister Deals

Free Chocolate

Hershey's is running a promotion where you can register for free chocolate.  The limit is one per person/per Friday and throughout the promotion there is a limit of four coupons for a household.  

https://secure.realchocolate.com/default.aspx?ar=1

So head to this link and fill out your form fast (you have a five minute limit for filling it out).

Also, I would recommend bookmarking this site so you can come back to it easily next Friday!

-Mister Deals

Copps Shopping Trip 1

Due to my recent traveling, I haven't really been buying a lot of groceries; however, this week I am planning to spend right around $50. Usually I would be okay with missing a week, but with the upcoming wedding there are a few items we still need and planning this far ahead allows me to find great deals on most of the products. With a majority of my kraft coupons expiring today, I knew it was a use them or lose them situation, so I decided this month it was worth going over the weekly allowance. I know I won't have time for deal hunting during the weeks surrounding the wedding, so to prevent a store run where I end up paying full price for a meal to serve a large group of people, my fiancee and I sat down and planned out a rough menu (I'll post more about that later). Overall, this week is filled with a lot of staples for ourselves and party hosting, along with a few items pegged for donation.

Transaction 1:

(2) Fiber One 4-pack Yogurts 2/$4.00 minus a B1G1F coupon so $2/2

(2) Land O' Lake Butter $2.50 each (No coupons)

(1) Ritz Cracker $2.75 minus a $1/1 coupon doubled so .75 cents

(1) Wheat Thin $2.50 Free after purchasing the Ritz

(4) Colgate Toothpastes .99 cents minus (4) $1/1 coupons doubled so -$4.04

(9) Tuna Helper Box Meals $9.00 minus (3) .75/3 coupons so $6.75

My total came out to $10.60 and I used a $7 gift card from a previous promotion

Paid out: $3.60

Transaction 2:

(1) Ritz Cracker $2.75 minus a $1/1 coupon doubled so .75 cents

(1) Wheat Thin $2.50 Free after purchasing the Ritz

(1) Puffs Plus Tissue $1.25

(9) Dawn Pure Dish Soaps $2.50ea minus (9) $1.50/1 coupons so $9.00

(8) Pringles $12 minus (4) $1/2 coupons doubled so $4.00

The last 3 lines were a part of the P&G promotion, which gave me $10.00 back for a future meat purchase. I plan to use this during next weeks sales.

Total came to: $16.33

Transaction 3:

(9) Tuna Helper Box Meals $9.00 minus (3) .75/3 coupons so $6.75

(6) Colgate Toothpastes .99 ea minus (1) $1/1 coupon doubled and (5) .75 ea so $0.19

(12) Clif/Luna Bars .88 ea minus (4) $1/3 coupon doubled so $2.56

Total: $9.77

My total out of pocket for these 3 transactions: $29.70

And I got back a coupon for $10.00 off for a future meat department purchase (I'm planning on chicken breasts)

**I also got .40/gal off of my next fill up, which saves me about $5.60 (I need to do fill up before I go in for more deals tonight, so I can rack up more savings for the next time)**

A picture will come later, I just wanted to take some time out to post this deal.

Best of luck with your own deal hunting too!

General Mills Cereal Brands on Sale at Copps 5/$10

Once again Copps grocery store has General Mills cereal on sale, this time the sale price is even better: 5 / $10 (last time it was 4 / $10), but note that it is limited to 5 per transaction. I stopped in to see which varieties are actually on sale at my Copps, and what they are regularly priced at:

• Reese's Puffs 13oz ($3.69)
  
• Wheaties 10.9oz ($3.35)
• Chocolate Lucky Charms 12oz ($3.39)
• Oatmeal Crisp Almond 17oz ($3.85)
• Oatmeal Crisp Raisin 18oz ($3.85)
• Multi-Grain Cheerios 9oz ($3.39)
• Cinnamon Toast Crunch 12.8oz ($3.19)

As you can see, these are an ok deal at $2 per box. On the other hand, if you have some good coupons for any of these varieties and can double them, then it could be a great deal! Personally, I am going to pass on this deal, as I don't have any matching coupons. Of course, it is much easier to pass up considering I just got so much cereal a few weeks ago for 50 cents per box or less.

Hope this post is helpful to my fellow Copps shoppers :)

- Mister Deals