Fabulous CVS week

I didn't keep my receipts so I can't tell you to the penny, but here's how this week went at CVS. Remember that I use one account for me and one account for the husband. Also note that because the Right Guard wasn't printing out the ECBs until today, I got a gift card for the first 2 I bought ($14) and was still able to go ahead and get 10 today. I also spent $4.50 on Chanukah supplies that caught my eye - no coupons! Ack!



Price on everything before ECBs and coupons: $330.54 + aprox $5 in sales tax.

Net cost after ECBs and coupons: EARNED $30.77

Details:

• Right Guard - pay $7.99, get 7 ecbs. I bought 12 and used 10 $1/manus and 2 $2/manus. Earned $2.12 on this portion.
  
• Complete contact lens solution - pay $8.99, get $8.99 ecbs. I bought 10 and used 9 $2/manus. Earned $18 on this portion.
• Maybelline makeup - pay $8.99, get $8.99 ecbs. I bought 4 and used 4 $3/manus. Earned $12 on this portion.
• American Express gift cards - buy 3, get $10 ecbs. I bought 3 at a cost of $86.85 (including a service fee). I earned $10 ecbs and will send away for a $15 gas card. Counting the gas card, I earned $13.15 on this portion.
• Crest - pay $3.49, get $3.49 ecbs. I bought the last 5 I was eligible for and used 5 $1/manus. Earned $5 on this portion.
• Chanukah supplies - paid $4.50.

Have I said before how much I love CVS?

Pillaging CVS

I had to post about today's CVS trip. Remember that I use two accounts (approved by CVS managers) - one for me and one for Stewart. I don't remember which inserts I pulled the coupons from, so just post a comment if you need any help.



Net cost including tax: 50 cents. FIFTY CENTS.

In two big transactions (one on each account), I got a total of:

Glaceau Smart water x 2 (pay $1.59, get $1.59 in ECBs) = FREE

Listerine Agent Cool Blue mouthwash x 6 (pay $3.99, get 3 ECBS. Used two $1/internet coupons and four $.50/manufacturer coupons) = $1.98

St. Ives Bodywash x 8 (pay $3.99, get 3 ECBs. Used six $1/manufacturer coupons) = FREE

L'Oreal Advanced RevitaLift x 2 (pay $11.99, get $11.99 in ECBs. Used two $1/manufacturer coupons) = earn $2

Palmolive dish soap x 8 (pay $1.49, get $1 ECB. Used four $1/2 manufacturer coupons) = FREE

Garnier Fructis x 2 (pay $2.99, get $2 ECBs. Used two $1/manufacturer coupons) = FREE

Colgate Total x 14 (BOGO at $2.29. Used fourteen $1/manufacturer coupons) = $2.03

I'm still eligible to get four more mouthwashes and unlimited Colgates if more coupons appear. I'll keep a few of each for our stockpile and drop the rest at Bread for the City on Tuesday. The anti-wrinkle stuff is mine. Goodness knows I need it.

My first bento!

I've been totally inspired by Lunch in a Box. Preparing meals in Bento boxes appeals to my anal side, my artsy-food-prep-side, and my desire to feed my kids healthy, fun meals. And since I'm trying to make our house more vegan, there's a lot of pre-prepped healthy food around (since I can't just grab a hot dog for lunch!)

I ordered a bunch of Bento boxes from Ichiban Kan, but they haven't come yet. Today I had my first good opportunity to use a Bento - we have a dentist appointment for Nate at 11:45. He'll definitely be hungry, so I needed to pack a lunch to take with us (especially since we're walking the 30 minutes each way).

Thus, my first Bento. I just used a lunch-sized Gladware and some ceramic dishes inside. To keep the almonds from moving around, I wadded up a small piece of tin foil and put it on top - the lid of the Gladware keeps it pressed in place and no almonds escape. Grapes, red pepper slices, celery, raw almonds, and hummus/cucumber "sandwiches." Fun!

Fake it, Don't Make it!

I love the "fake it, don't make it" cooking philosophy. Semi-homemade cooking. Whatever you want to call it.

Friend Dave and I tried this Samosa recipe from Real Simple magazine, and it turned out wonderfully. (This is Real Simple's photo - ours actually looked better!)



Easy, fun to make, pretty to look at, delicious, and vegetarian to boot. Nice way to use up whatever veggies are in the fridge. When Nate's a little older, I think he'll have a lot of fun making these with me.

You can find all of their Fake it recipes here. I've tried the lasagne before and it was fun and easy.

Got any other good ones to share?

A [hopefully] short hiatus

I'm going to take a break from blogging for a while; Jack still isn't sleeping through the night and I'm just stretched too thin right now. I've got to concentrate on the necessities, with a little CVS shopping thrown in for mental health. I'll post sporadically, and when I've got the boy trained and sleeping, and I've caught up and gotten sane again, I'll be back. Promise.

CVS plan for August 3

Here's what I'm eyeing for August 3:

• Revlon BOGO - find items for $4 and under and use the $2/coupons from the 7/20 SS to make this a freebie. Last time I could only find eye-pencil sharpeners under $4, but maybe another CVS will have something fun. This is a sale item, so no limits apply!
  
• Colgate Total is $2.99 and generating $2 ECBs. I'm using a $1/coupon from the 7/27 SS to make this a freebie (limit 1).
• Orajel toddler toothpaste is BOGO, and that's a great deal without any coupons. However, there is a fun catch: The August monthly deals include a Orajel Healthy Kid Kit when you purchase the toddler toothpaste. I haven't seen the August book in person so I can't give any more details; I'll update as soon as I know exactly how this works!
• Crest toothpaste is $2.49 and generating $1.50 ECBs. I'm using a $1/coupon from the 7/6 P&G to make this a freebie (limit 5).
• Extreme Energy Drink is a freebie after ECBs.
• Powerade is on sale for $1, and I'm using a $1/coupon from the 6/8 SS to make this a `. No limit on sales items!

Anything I missed?


I may have some ECBs to burn up before they expire, so I'll get some 12-packs of Caffeine Free Diet Pepsi (buy 4 at $2.40, get a 12-pack of Mountain Dew free)

CVS Plan for July 27

Not sure how this week will go, but here are the things I'm checking out:

• Schick Intuition Plus is on sale for $3.99. I have several coupons for BOGO, and several for $2/off Schick disposable razors. I'll have to visit my favorite cashier and see if she can make anything out of them! (No limit on
  
• There's a freebie Revlon Limited Edition item this week, and I plan to use the $2/Revlon coupon from the 7/20 SS to make it a moneymaker (limit 1)
  
• Band-aids are on sale for $2.99 and generating $2 ECBs (limit 1). I'll use a $1/off from the 6/15 SS to make it a freebie.
• One-Touch Ultra Mini diabetes meters are on sale for $19.99 and there was a $20/off coupon in the 7/27 SS, making this another freebie. I have four coupons, and there are no limits on sales items, so this will make a great donation item this week!

I'm not getting the freebie Kodak DVD - I just don't have the time to work on it this week, and can't really see how we'd use it.

Did I miss anything good? Let me know!