Bloom to do Double Coupons in September, up to $0.99 in value

Reader Amy followed up (thanks, Amy!) to let us know that Bloom is making good on the rumor. Looks like September it will double coupons up to $0.99 in value. (Note that - as far as I can recall, anyway - Shopper's Food Warehouse, Safeway, Giant, and other area stores already do this all the time.)

If you have any hot deals or freebies that you snag at Bloom using doubled coupons, be sure to post a comment!

FREE 100 Business Cards via Zazzle - Ship free, too!

I just tried out the deal via Money Saving Mom (thanks, Crystal!) on getting 100 business cards for free - shipped free, too! - from Zazzle.com. Jump on this deal and be sure to choose economy shipping to get the whole shebang FREE!

If you don't need business cards, make mommy calling cards, fancy "To/From" Christmas gift tags...be creative! This freebie won't last long.

Menu Plan Monday

Monday:
Breakfast - Fried eggs, warm banana pudding for my girls
Lunch - Blueberry coconut smoothies, loaded salads
Dinner - Steaks, salsa guacamole (steaks and avocados are on sale at Giant, woo!)

Tuesday:
Breakfast - Sauteed kale with bacon and mushrooms
Lunch - Peach coconut smoothies, apple slices with almond butter, cheese slices (peaches on sale at Giant this week!)
Dinner - Shrimp, Sausage, and Summer Squash casserole - a new recipe from Mark's Daily Apple (Shrimp on sale at Giant this week!)

Wednesday:
Breakfast - Mashed boiled eggs
Lunch - Lime cilantro coconut smoothies, baked sweet potatoes
Dinner - Crock pot pork ribs, salads

Thursday:
Breakfast - Scrambled eggs
Lunch - Nectarine coconut smoothies, nuts (Nectarines on sale at Giant this week!)
Dinner - Whole roasted chicken, baked Brussels sprouts, baked parsnips

Friday:
Breakfast - Fat guacamole devils
Lunch - Coconut curry chicken spinach soup using leftover chicken
Dinner - Leftovers

Alert: Bloom Double Coupons Likely Later This Week!

We got a tip from reader Amy via email. She says,

"...my favorite check out person at Bloom that starting Wednesday they will be doubling up to $0.99 (manufacturers coupons only). She said she thinks it is going to last the entire month. I'm in Fredericksburg and heard this at the Bloom on Rt. 2. :-)"

SWEEEET. If Amy's tip works out, it would be an ideal time to shuffle through your coupon envelopes and flag the hot ones under $0.99. Bloom typically limits to 20 in one transaction, so to max out your trip it would be great to have those 20 ready to go - could get you in and out fairly quickly!

Thanks so much, Amy, for your email! :-D

5 Reasons to Visit Giant This Week, 08/27-09/02

September is upon us!! I love September - my favorite month of the year. Cooler weather, autumn produce, warming spices - I am definitely an autumn girl.

1. Eastern Apples, $0.88/lb. (Save at least $0.11/lb.)
   This is rock-bottom for fresh apples this time of year - it rarely drops below $0.99/lb., even in the fall. Consider applesauce made in your own kitchen! Here's a recipe that does not use sugar.
   
2. New York Strip Steak, $4.99/lb. (Save $5/lb.)
   
3. SUPER G Chicken Drumsticks or Thighs or SUPER G Whole Chicken, $0.99/lb. (Save at least $0.50/lb.) This is a stock-up price on these as the price is rarely lower!
   
4. Kellogg's Cereal, select varieties, 4/$6 (Must buy 4)
   See 08/01 and 08/08 RP inserts for coupons - likely $1/3 to apply best
   Final price: $1.17/box
   
5. Pepperidge Farm Cookies, Crackers, Breads, 33% off
   $0.75/1 Pepperidge Farm Chocolate Chunk or Soft Baked Cookies, 08/01
   $0.60/1 Pepperidge Farm Deli Thin Flat Rolls, 06/27 SS
   $1/1 Pepperidge Farm Baked Naturals Snack Crackers
   Final price: Varies, but pretty good deals when combo'ed with 33% off!
   

Other reasons to visit Giant this week:

Fresh Pork Tenderloin, $3.99/lb. (Save at least $2/lb.)

Country Style Pork Ribs, $1.69/lb. (Save at least $1.30/lb.)

Nathan's Beef Franks, BOGO

Medium Raw Gulf Shrimp, wild caught, $5.99/lb.

Orchard Perfect Ripe Avocados, 10/$10

All Purpose Potatoes 5 lb. Bag, $1.88 (Save at least $0.91)

Giant Grape Tomatoes, $1.88/pint (Save at least $0.91)

Orchard Perfect Peaches or Nectarines, $0.99/lb. (Save at least $1/lb.)

Goya Beans, 15.5 oz. cans, all varieties, 3/$2 ($0.66/ea.)

Smart Ones Classic Favorites or Desserts, 8/$10 (Must buy 8)
$2/8, $4/10,
Final price: Varies

Crisco Vegetable Oil, $5.99

Lay's Potato Chips, BOGO

Gatorade, $0.88 (Save at least $0.37)

Coke 12-pack, must buy 4, 4/$10

Deer Park Spring Water 24-Pack, 3/$10 (Must buy 3)

Bounty Paper Towels, $9.99 (Save at least $3.50)
$1/1, 08/01 P&G
Final price: $8.99 (Compare with retail of $13.49)

***

This post is part of BeCentsAble's Grocery Gathering

What other Giant coupon matchups and deals did you spot for the coming week? Did we make any deal-calculating hiccups? Post a comment to let us know!

30% Off Through Sunday: Gap, Old Navy, Banana Republic, Gap Outlet and Banana Republic Outlet

Use this coupon to get 30% off in-store at Gap, Old Navy, Banana Republic, Gap Outlet and Banana Republic Outlet. It is good through Sunday. 5% of purchases associated with this coupon will also go to Feeding America. (Thanks Crystal and Lisa for this link.) If you receive Gap or Old Navy or BR emails, you are likely to have this coupon sitting in your inbox, which has a one time use only online shopping coupon code. Flat rate shipping for shopping from all three sites is $7. Going through ebates will save you an additional 2% off at these stores in the form of cash back when you're shopping on line.

I managed a trip to Potomac Mills with this very coupon, and the Gap outlet store was hoppin'. The clearance racks for each sections were kind of minimized and there was a LOT of new merchandise on display, nearly all of which was marked as being 20-40% off the lowest ticketed price. (Then I was mentally subtracting about another third off the discounted price for the coupon burnin' a hole in the bottom basket of our stroller.)

Here's a very rough price guidelines for the price after coupon. I didn't hit the men or boys' sections because my husband doesn't need anything and I don't have boys. If anybody wants to comment with pricing on these, though, go ahead!

• Women's sweaters and cardigans: $15-$25
• Women's light-tissue tees in a wide variety of colors, including many with embellished necklines: $10-$20
• Women's denim: ~$20-$25 (Most priced at $45 with 20-30% off the lowest ticketed price, then subtract the coupon) - there is a LARGE selection
• Women's wrap dresses, around $20-$25 after all discounts
• Long-sleeved v-neck shirts on the clearance rack, $4.99, minus 30% for the coupon, down to $3.50!
  

Girls' section:

• Short and long-sleeved T-shirts starting from around $6 through $12, so more like $4.20 thorugh $8.40
• New not-yet-marked-down girls' skinny jeans are $24.99, so after coupon, $17.50ish. Other girls' jeans and pants will go down as low as $10ish with coupon.
  
• Capri leggings in a wide variety of colors (shown layered under a denim skirt as a wearing option) are $9.99 - so $7 after coupon
• Girls' fall shoes mostly marked $16-$20ish, so $11.20ish is as low as most will get (unless you buy shoes on clearance). This is comparable with Target's shoe prices for young girls.
  

So, you will definitely get cheap-for-Gap prices with it, and if you snag something from the clearance racks you will do that much better. Me? I was trying to resist the urge to purchase the entire girls' back-to-school section. ;)

As a disclaimer, if you sign up for ebates under our ebates link (here), we will receive cash back thanks to you. You'll receive a starting bonus, too

Consignment Sale TOMORROW 8/28: Fairfax United Methodist Church

Just a reminder!

I'm hoping to go through my son's clothes and make it to the half-price sale at the end of this one. He has gone through a major growth spurt and will definitely need some new clothes & shoes for the fall.

The Little Angel Consignment Sale
For children’s clothing, shoes, equipment and toys

Saturday, August 28th
8:30 AM to 12:00 PM
There will be a half price sale from 11:30 – noon

Fairfax United Methodist Church
10300 Stratford Avenue, Fairfax VA

Located at the intersection of University Dr. and Stratford Ave., one block off Lee Highway (Route 50).

To consign or volunteer at the sale call: (703)591-3120.

Donations of children’s FALL/WINTER clothing and other items are gladly accepted and are tax
deductible.

Restaurant.com: 80% off + 15% cash back through Ebates!

It's the end of the month, so once again Restaurant.com gift certificates can be had for 80% off plus an additional 15% cash back if you make the purchase through Ebates.

Enter code CLEARANCE at checkout. Expires 8/31/10.

I have a lot of family in town this week, and I'm out of cooking ideas! I'm glad to have a few of these Restaurant.com gift certificates in my account from previous sales as a backup plan.

As a disclaimer, if you sign up for ebates under our ebates link (here), we will receive cash back thanks to you. You'll receive a starting bonus, too!.

Weecycled Wardrobe Fall Sale Starts This Weekend!

Weecycled Wardrobe's Fall Sale begins this weekend in Fredericksburg. (Thanks also to reader Amy who had emailed us about this!) There's a reason it was voted Fredericksburg's best place to buy second-hand clothing; in my past experience shopping WW, the sale is a well-oiled bar-coded credit-card accepting machine. The sale will also be taking place in North Stafford and Alexandria, so stay tuned if you're near those areas!

Details on the Fredericksburg sale - August 28 - September 1 at the EXPO center - here.

Happy second-hand shoppin'! :)

5 Reasons to Visit Safeway This Week, 8/25 - 8/31

Here are 5 Reasons to Visit Safeway this week 8/25 - 8/31:

1. Cheap produce!
Dole Golden Ripe Bananas, 2 lbs. for $.88
Jumbo cantaloupe, $1.88
Jumbo Keitt Mangos, 10 for $10
Fresh Express Salads, $.99

2. Saturday & Sunday specials for the "RED HOT WEEKEND":
Wish-Bone Salad Dressing, $.99 - use printable $.50 coupon here to get it free!
Cheez-it Crackers, $1.25
Safeway Select or Minute Maid Orange Juice, $1.99
Lucerne Shredded or Chunk Cheese, 3 for $5
Safeway Select Artisan Angel Food Cake, $1.49
waterfront BISTRO Medium Raw Shrimp, $3.77/lb., sold in 2-lb. bag

3. Lucerne Large Eggs, 18-ct., $1.49 with Super Coupon

4. Kraft singles, $1.49 with Super Coupon


5. Edge or Skintimate Shaving Gel, BOGO
Use $0.75/1 Skintimate Moisturizing Cream Shave or Shave Gel (excludes 2.75 oz cans) from 08/01/10 SS to get 2 cans for $1!

Consignment Sale Saturday 8/28: Fairfax United Methodist Church

This just in: likely the first consignment sale of the fall season... woot!

The Little Angel Consignment Sale
For children’s clothing, shoes, equipment and toys

Saturday, August 28th
8:30 AM to 12:00 PM
There will be a half price sale from 11:30 – noon

Fairfax United Methodist Church
10300 Stratford Avenue, Fairfax VA

Located at the intersection of University Dr. and Stratford Ave., one block off Lee Highway (Route 50).

To consign or volunteer at the sale call: (703)591-3120.

Donations of children’s FALL/WINTER clothing and other items are gladly accepted and are tax
deductible.

Ruby Tuesday: BOGO coupon in 8/25 Washington Post

On page A4 of today's Washington Post (8/25/10), there's a BOGO Ruby Tuesday coupon.

Purchase a seafood, steaks & chicken, ribs & platters, pasta or brunch entree receive any entree of your choice FREE of equal or lesser value (up to $10).

Valid August 24 - August 31, 2010.

5 Reasons to Visit Giant This Week, 08/20-08/26

I (A.) am away on vacation this week with family - so this week's Giant post is abbreviated.

1. Strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, and raspberries, 2/$4
   Smoothie time!
   
   
2. Chicken breasts, $1.99/lb. (Stock-up/freezer price!)
   
   
3. Whole Boneless Pork Loin, half price at $1.99/lb. (Save $2/lb.)
   
   
4. Pepsi 12-packs, 5/$12 ($2.40/12-pack, Must buy 5)
   
   
5. Select Kellogg's Cereals, 3/$5 ($1.66/ea., Must buy 3)
   $1/3, 08/01 RP - final price: $1.33/box
   
   
6. Bonus Reason: In-ad coupon for $0.99 jar of Jiff peanut butter with any $15 purchase!

***

This post is part of BeCentsAble's Grocery Gathering

What other Giant coupon matchups and deals did you spot for the coming week? Did we make any deal-calculating hiccups? Post a comment to let us know!

Shoppers Food Warehouse Coupon Mania Update!

Thanks to our readers who have written in with deals they've found at the double/triple coupon event at Shoppers Food Warehouse this week!

Neither A. nor I have made it there yet, and I haven't even gone through my coupons. Yikes! You can bet I'll be doing so today in preparation for a weekend trip. In the meantime, check out our readers' comments here for ideas on the cheapies & freebies. I could use some cheap tortillas to make a round of breakfast burritos!

Capitally Frugal has a great list of coupon matchups, so check that out!

Frugal Friday: Running!

Though it's not my favorite form of exercise, I have to say that running is by far the most frugal form of exercise! All you need is a pair of running shoes (running clothes optional, we all know that!) and you can run anywhere. Maybe it's not that easy, but it is a whole lot cheaper than the annual gym membership I let lapse at the beginning of the summer.

You may have read that I recently ran a half marathon. I used a Hal Higdon half marathon training schedule to get myself in shape. It was a lot easier to train knowing that many have gone through this type of schedule before me. Having a one-page printout on my fridge kept me accountable and also gave me a place to take notes on runs and keep track of where I was going to run certain distances.

Click here for Hal Higdon's 12-week half-marathon training program.

For more Frugal Friday tips, head over to Life as Mom.

It's Friday: Earn Mega Swag Bucks Today!

Every Friday is Mega Swag Bucks Day!

Never heard of Swagbucks? It's one of our favorite websites because it's easy to earn free prizes by using the Swagbucks search engine. And on Fridays, users have better chances of winning Mega Swagbucks denominations.

The way it works:

• Go to Swagbucks through our referral link by clicking here.
  
• Sign up and create a new profile for yourself.
  
• Search a few times a day, and you'll start seeing points accumulate.

I use Swagbucks to search 2-3 times a day, 3-4 days a week for things I would normally research. I usually cash out my Swagbucks for Starbucks gift cards, but there are lots of other cool prizes in the Swagbucks store.

As a disclaimer, if you sign up under our referral link, we will receive Swagbucks thanks to you.

5 Reasons to Visit Safeway this week, 8/18 - 8/24

Here are 5 Reasons to Visit Safeway this week, 8/18 - 8/24:

1. Cheap produce!
Tender green beans, $.99/lb.
Bartlett pears, $.99/lb.

2. Cheap peanut butter!
Use Super Coupon in ad to get Skippy for $1.49 each, Limit 4
Use $0.75/2 Skippy Peanut Butter, 15 oz MFC from 08/01/2010 RP1
Total: $1.49 for 2 jars of peanut butter!

3. Cheap Kleenex!
Use Super Coupon in ad to get 110-ct. box for $.79, Limit 1

4. Sandwich makings!
Primo Taglio pan roasted turkey or Black Forest ham in the deli, $5.99/lb.
Wonder Bread, 2 for $3
Arnold Sandwich Thins, 2 for $5
Safeway Split Top Bread, white or wheat, $1.39
Safeway mustard, $1.49

5. Lunch items!
Hostess Multi Packs, $1.69 each with Super Coupon in ad
Del Monte Fruit Cups, 4-pack, $1.49 with Super Coupon in ad, Limit 4
Nabisco 100-Calorie Packs, $1.65 with Super Coupon in ad, Limit 6

Shoppers Food Warehouse: Double/Triple Manufacturers' Coupons!

I was pleasantly surprised to see this morning that Shoppers Food Warehouse is doing 8 full days of coupon tripling & doubling. It has been a long time since they've done this, and you can bet I'll be culling through stacks and stacks of uncut coupons to find some deals.

Here we go!
8 FULL DAYS - Wed., Aug. 18th through Wed., Aug. 25th

DOUBLE Manufacturers' Coupons up to $1.00 - please limit four(4) identical manufacturers' coupons. No other restrictions apply.

TRIPLE Manufacturers' Coupons up to $.50 - please limit four(4) identical manufacturers' coupons. No other restrictions apply.

Stay tuned!

Summer goal met: I ran a half marathon!

This summer I(Mel) set a goal for myself that wasn't easy to meet:

I ran a half marathon!

I spent a lot of time on athletics while growing up and all through college, even until I got married. I've been able to continue working out since I like exercise, but I've never been a runner. So when my brother encouraged me to run a summer half marathon, I had to do some serious thinking. Wait, I don't like running?! In August?! my mind screamed.

Yet I realized it would be a character building experience to train for a half-marathon. Even if it was boring. And hard. Particularly difficult to train around a husband's work travel. Despite the summer heat and humidity. So I committed.

That's right, for 3 and a half long months, I ran and ran and ran. There were many hurdles. It was as boring as I thought. It was time consuming, and I had a lot of early mornings getting runs in before my husband went to work. And then he'd go out of town and I couldn't run!

My toughest distance was 3 miles. There are a lot of 3-milers in a half marathon training regimen! I fell hard on a sidewalk just under a month from the race date, then my wounds got infected. I used a lot of ice, bandages, ibuprofen, and neosporin. My legs still look colorful from the fall, but I have to say it was all worth it.

Hebrews 12:1 spoke to me the whole time: Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.

Why was it worth it, you might ask?
Most people think I'm crazy for doing it, but it was very satisfying to set a seemingly unattainable goal and then meet it. As the race date neared, I realized that I wouldn't really care about my time or how I ran it; I just felt so blessed to be able to complete the race physically, even if it involved walking!

How did it go, you wonder?
It was a lot more fun than I expected! My precious, fun brother & sister-in-law ran with me the whole time and encouraged me along the way. The day was overcast and only 73 degrees. In August! At about the fifth mile after a big hill I was ready to quit, but I'm so glad my family encouraged me to keep going. And I was pleased with my time of 2 hours and 21 minutes. I'm no speed runner, but the fact that I broke 2:30 was a miracle. I think the last mile took me nearly 20 minutes!

My husband wanted me to blog about this because he thinks I found a deal. So funny. The race registration was only $20 (most half marathons cost at least $45!) and we received $25 Adidas shirts as you'll see in the photo. He thought it was remarkable that I found such a deal at my first half marathon. I think it's funny that he thinks that!

What about you, what goals have you set for yourself lately? Or what goal might you try to accomplish this fall?

As for me, I'm contemplating finding a fall race. Since I'm in running shape it seems like a shame to let all that training go so soon!

Menu Plan Monday

We're spending the last half of the week with my folks on vacation! Breakfasts and lunches are more informally arranged, so I'm planning primal meals for just my family for four then. Dinners will be planned with everyone in mind.

Monday
Breakfast - Warm blackberries, whipped cream
Lunch - Chicken leek soup, made with fresh leeks and spinach and frozen pieces of roasted chicken
Dinner - Fried eggs, mashed sweet potatoes, spinach salad

Tuesday
Breakfast - Warm banana pudding
Lunch - Omelets, stir-fried sesame ginger bok choy
Dinner - Company! Roasted chickens, romaine salad

Wednesday
Breakfast - Almond meal pancakes, fruit
Lunch - Leftover chicken on veggie-loaded salad (I will freeze whatever is left for future use after this)
Dinner - Prepared by my mom - Unknown

Thursday
Breakfast - Curried egg salad, fruit
Lunch - Shrimp scampi on greens (Shrimp is on sale at Giant this week!)
Dinner - Cooking for my parents, my brother and his wife, and us: Eggplant lasagna with meat sauce (at everyone else's request), salad

Friday
Breakfast - Bacon and fried eggs
Lunch - Primal trail mix (macadamia nuts, walnuts, dried fruit)
Dinner - Prepared by my sister-in-law - lamb kebabs!

I am really lucky that I have a mom (on a low-fat low-calorie diet) and sister-in-law (also conscious of fat grams consumed) who are willing to humor me and my grain-free eating on our vacation by not planning to cook meals that revolve around carbs (spaghetti and garlic bread, anyone?). Meanwhile I will be making efforts to make my cooking more flexible - sometimes adding fat after the fact, etc. so that they can eat how they like, as well.

5 Reasons to Visit Giant This Week, 08/13-08/19

1. SUPER G Drumsticks or Thighs, or SUPER G Whole Chicken, $0.99/lb. (Save at least $0.50/lb.)
   This is a stock-up price.
   
   
2. Red Seedless Grapes, $0.99/lb. About as cheap as grapes get!
   
   
3. Pasta for dinner!
   Barilla Pasta, 10/$10
   Francesco Rinaldi Pasta Sauce, 10/$10
   
   
4. *COUPON IN-AD*: 10-pack Capri Suns for $0.99 with a minimum $15 dollar purchase.
   
   
5. Giant Ham or Turkey Lunchmeat, $1.69 (Save $0.80)

Other Reasons to Visit Giant This Week:

Boneless Beef Chuck Steak, $1.99/lb. (Save at least $2.30/lb.)

Top Round London Broil, $1.99/lb. (Save at least $2.30/lb.)

SUPER G Italian Dinner Links or Brats, $1.99/lb.

Extra Large Easy Peel Shrimp or Pacific Dungeness Crab (both previously frozen), $7.99/lb.

Sweet Red Peppers, $1.88/lb.

Mott's Red or Green Apple Slices, $3.49 (Save at least $0.50)

Giant European Salads and Dole Salad Blends, 2/$5 (Save at least $0.49)

Turkey Hill Ice Cream or Kemps Frozen Yoghurt, 2/$5

Healthy Choice Entrees, 5/$10

Oscar Mayer Beef Franks

Nabisco Single Serve 12-Packs, $3.99

Nabisco Chips Ahoy!, 2/$5

Pepsi 6-Pack, 5/$11

Bounty Paper Towels 15 Roll, $10.99 (Save at least $1)

Scott Bath Tissue 20-Pack, $11.99

***

Save $5 off your order instantly when you use your Giant card and purchase $15 worth (after coupons and savings) of participating Alberto brand products shown in-ad.

St. Ives Body Wash, 2/$5

Tresemme Shampoo or Styling Products, 3/$10

VO5 Shampoo, $0.88

Nexxus Hair Care, Save $1

Noxzema Skin Care, 3/$10

St. Ives Skin Care, 3/$10

***

FREE LashBlast Mascara when you purchase $25 worth (after coupons and savings) of any Olay Skin Care or CoverGirl Cosmetics. All items must be purchased in one transaction.

***

Maybelline Deals: Buy 2 Maybelline items, receive a $3 Checkout Coupon, buy 3 items, get a $5 Checkout Coupon.

***

This post is part of BeCentsAble's Grocery Gathering

What other Giant coupon matchups and deals did you spot for the coming week? Did we make any deal-calculating hiccups? Post a comment to let us know!

5 Reasons to Visit Safeway This Week, 8/11 - 8/17

Here are 5 Reasons to Visit Safeway this week, 8/11 - 8/17:

1. Cheap produce!
Midnight beauty black seedless grapes, $.99/lb.
Santa Sweets Grape Tomatoes, $.99/10 oz. container
Broccoli crowns, $.99/lb.
Whole red seedless watermeon, $3.99 each

2. Cheap meat & seafood!
Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts or Thighs, $1.98/lb.
Fresh 80% lean ground beef, $1.78/lb.
waterfront Bistro Large Raw Shrimp in a 2-lb. bag, $4.99/lb.
Fresh Jumbo Sea Scallops, $6.99/lb.

3. Cheap milk!
Lucerne Milk Gallon. Whole, 2%, 1%, Skim Supreme or Fat Free. Limit 2. $2.69

4. Back-to-school lunch type snacks & weekend sale! (Saturday & Sunday only)
Nabisco Tray Packs, 12 to 15 ct., selected varieties, limit 5, $2.99
Doritos Tortilla Chips, $1.88
Hostess Multi Pack Sale, 2 for $4
Betty Crccker Cake or Brownie Mix, $.79

5. Super Coupons!
Pillsbury Crescent or Cinnamon Rolls, $1.49. Limit 4.
General Mills Honey Nut Cheerios or Lucky Charms, $2.49. Limit 4.
Safeway Mayonnaise, $1.88. Limit 3.
Eating Right Kids Fruit or Apple Sauce Cups, $1.49. Limit 4.
Frito Lay Variety Pack, $5.49.
Wish Bone Salad Dressing, $.99. Limit 4.
Deer Park Water, 8 or 12-pack, $1.99. Limit 4.
Colgate Toothpaste, $1.99. Limit 4.
Slim-Fast Shakes, $4.99. Limit 4.
Safeway Storage or Freezer Bags, $1.99. Limit 1.
Lucerne Flavored Creamer, $1.49. Limit 3.
Safeway Pasta, $.59. Limit 6.
Tide Laundry Detergent or Stain Release, $5.99. Limit 3.
Freschetta Pizza, $3.99. Limit 3.
General Mills Cookie Crisp, $1.49. Limit 4.
Arm & Hammer Scoop Litter, $5.99. Limit 3.
Lucerne Large Eggs, 18-ct., $1.49. Limit 2.
General Mills MultiGrain, Banana Nut, Chocolate or Fruity Cheerios, $1.99. Limit 4.
Mr. Clean Cleaners, $2.49. Limit 2.
Safeway Frozen Vegetables, $1.25. Limit 4.
General Mills Fiber One Cereal, $1.99. Limit 4.
24-pack Pepsi, $4.99. Limit 4.
Gatorade All-Stars, $2.49. Limit 4.
Keebler Chips Deluxe or Sandies, $1.99. Limit 4.

Freezer Cooking - Roast Chicken and Slow-Cooked Pork with Veggies

Just because I'm eating primally doesn't mean that I can't still do a freezer cooking day every so often. One of the easiest ways for me to relieve my kitchen duties is to have cooked, frozen pieces of animal protein (poultry, meat, etc.) ready to rewarm and incorporate into soups, salads, etc.

I recently came up with 10 lbs. of slow-cooked pork carnitas. I sauteed some heartier veggies (squash, onions, mushrooms), and combined them with pieces of the pork in a ziploc bag for the freezer. I'll use them to make pork soup on short notice with chicken broth for lunches.

This past week, I made a lot of shredded leftover chicken from roasting two chickens - about as much as I can handle at one go. I also like the economies of scale offered by roasting two whole chickens. This is for many factors:

1) Whole chickens are the cheapest per lb.,
2) Cooking a whole chicken takes about 90 minutes (two chickens about two hours) at 350 F, so I can throw them in the oven and forget about them - not a precise operation!
3) Cooking two at once saves me on oven time, about $0.50/hour to run.
4) It is only one extra moment to save the chicken fat from your roasting chickens to freeze so that you can have a stable cooking fat on hand.
5) A couple of chickens yields an entire gallon freezer bag's worth of shredded chicken meat, which is great reheated for a quick protein topping on salads - or, you can divide it into smaller servings in smaller bags.
6) Once the chickens have been stripped, you can make homemade chicken stock with the bones. Yum!

Have you been freezer cooking this week? What have you made lately?

Check out the rest of the August Freezer Cooking Day linkups at Money Saving Mom!

Necessity = Mother of Invention, When Eating and Couponing Primally

As you may recall, I (A.) have been eating a "caveman-style" diet since mid-June in a bid to manage my insulin levels. That is, no processed foods, no sugar, no grains. While the new lifestyle has been a boon to my energy levels, and has enabled me to lose a significant amount of baby weight with minimal hunger, it has really put the brakes on my couponing abilities!

I used to coupon with the best of them, even once hauling in over $40 in free yoghurt over the course of a Shopper's Food Warehouse double/triple couponing event (yes, we were eating free yoghurt for weeks). It was routine for me to pay pennies on the dollar for my breakfast cereal, yoghurts, condiments, snack foods, and so on.

But now, I'm discovering that almost all of the foods that I'm eating - fresh fruit and vegetables, eggs, full-fat organic dairy products, seafood, animal protein like poultry, pork, and beef, and nuts (excluding peanuts) - have little-to-no coupon offerings. That's not to say no couponing exists for these categories; it's just that manufacturer coupons for such things are rarely offered, and I think that this is because whole roasting chickens are not exactly something that a manufacturer yearns to incentivize. Why? What is more profitable for a manufacturer: getting me initially hooked and then paying retail on nonperishable toastable breakfast pastries, or a perishable, minimally processed hunk'o'poultry?

*Sigh* So our food budget has been going through a few spasms. By no means am I planning on giving up my current eating lifestyle; I've gained too much energy and lost too much baby weight to go back to processed carbs, which just seem to wreak havoc on my system. We have also saved a significant amount of money in that we are no longer buying a lot of snack food and soda. But I am definitely going to have to get a lot more creative if this lifestyle will become a sustainable line item in our budget.

So here is my game plan for the future as I try to get our food budget lean:

1. Buy and freeze animal protein at a discount, when possible. This is a tactic that I've been using for years, anyway. For me, the cheapest that animal protein gets gets is omega-3 organic eggs (I buy these in bulk at Sam's Club) and Nature's Promise whole chickens (~$1.89/lb. retail at Giant).
   
   
2. Find the few coupons out there that enable whole foods eating: Cascadian Farms and Muir Glen coupons, produce coupons (though rare they still exist), organic dairy coupons via Mambo Sprouts. If I can apply $1 coupons during doubling, I could get a deep discount on bags of Cascadian Farms frozen fruits or veggies, or free or near-free Muir Glen canned tomato products. Other items that I could still coupon would be coconut milk, nuts (excluding peanuts), dried (no-sugar-added) fruits, and Eggland's Best eggs.
   
   
3. Research price points at Whole Foods and Trader Joe's on organic dairy and other items. Though I don't live all that near to either one of these, my parents and inlaws do, and we see each other every weekend or so. Though WF and TJ's are often maligned for their expense, the fact is that their organic dairy prices are competitive or even well below those of organic dairy as sold at mainstream chains like Giant. Also, if you buy a case of anything at Whole Foods, you get a 10% discount. So, I could probably save up to about 20% or more by buying my organic dairy products from Whole Foods. My new favorite grassfed butter - Kerrygold - is $2.69/pack at TJ's, but $3.99/pack at Giant! That's a huge difference, especially for something that keeps as well as butter does. (Also, on a related note, Bloom has some of the cheapest half-gallons of organic milk out there, at $2.99/ea.)
   
   Whole Foods' produce is often competitive as well. This past Friday, for example, they were doing BOGO on $5.99 watermelons, making them about $3/ea., cheaper than Giant has ever offered this summer!
   
   
4. Think seafood. I'm slowly gaining an appreciation of price points for fish, scallops, shrimp, and so on. The more I monitor prices on these, the more I become aware of when a truly great sale price comes up in a weekly ad, so I can take advantage. Bummer, though, that most of Giant's seafood is thawed; you're not supposed to refreeze seafood or animal protein that has been already frozen! So while it's often true that I can't stock up for the freezer, I can plan to make a couple of meals in a week from a thawed well-priced seafood product that is on sale.
   
   
5. Buy produce on sale. Again, a tactic that I've been using for years. I think that, more than ever, we will be eating seasonally in conjunction with what's fresh and on sale.
   
   
6. Eye toward next year's produce. I'm mulling options to make produce even more affordable for us - maybe a CSA, maybe some square-food gardening (as many frugal bloggers do), or maybe a bit of both. Of course, the plants by my kitchen sink are about 2% alive right now, so a venture in home gardening may take a few seasons before I've got a workable harvest. ;-)
   
   
7. Source specialty items from Amazon via monthly deals and Subscribe and Save. This way, I can usually save 25, 30, even 40 percent if I watch the deals carefully. (And by specialty items, I mean things such as coconut oil, which is much cheaper from Amazon than from Giant.)
   

Do you have an eating lifestyle that precludes most couponed food items? If so, how are you still managing to trim your food budget?

Menu Plan Monday

Monday:
Breakfast - Strawberries and cream dusted with cocoa powder
Lunch - Salads with chicken, walnuts, papaya, raspberry vinaigrette
Dinner - Scrambled eggs, sauteed squash and scallions

Tuesday:
Breakfast - Nutmeg ginger banana pudding, almond butter smoothies
Lunch - Spinach gorgonzola omelets, sauteed mushrooms and onions
Dinner - Baked chicken (Nature's Promise whole chickens on sale @$1.69/lb. at Giant this week! Retails $1.89/lb.), brussels sprouts, salads

Wednesday:
Breakfast - Cottage cheese, fresh berries
Lunch - Nectarine slices (nectarines $0.99/lb. at Giant this week!) broiled with cheddar cheese
Dinner - London Broil roast beef (one sale at Giant @$1.99/lb.) in the crock pot with carrots, mashed parsnips

Thursday:
Breakfast - Fried eggs
Lunch - Pork and vegetable soup (ingredients cooked and ready in the freezer)
Dinner - Broiled fish, sweet potato fries

Friday:
Breakfast - Papaya coconut smoothies
Lunch - Scrambled eggs, guacamole
Dinner - Grilled brats, salad, watermelon

5 Reasons to Giant This Week, 08/06-08/12

Unfortunately my husband has been sick this week, so this post is going to be abbreviated.

1. Orchard Perfect Peaches or Nectarines, $0.99/lb. This is rock-bottom price on these! Buy some for fresh eating, and if you're inclined, freeze some in chunks for smoothies. I like to cut a nectarine in little pieces, microwave with a bit of butter, ground nutmeg, and ground ginger for 1 minute. Decadence, fast!
   
   
2. Pick your own Sweet White Corn, 12/$1.99. This is also rock-bottom on fresh ears of corn. Long live summer produce deals, am I right?
   
   
3. Center Cut Pork Loin Chops, $1.99/lb. This is half price! I think actually made these in the slow cooker since I am not very good at pan-cooking cuts of pork without drying them out.
   
   
4. Giant Butter, $1.99/lb. You know, for the corn. Or the nectarines.
   
   
5. Coke products, 4/$10 (one must be Coke Zero)
   
   This post is part of BeCentsAble's Grocery Gathering
   
   What other Giant coupon matchups and deals did you spot for the coming week? Did we make any deal-calculating hiccups? Post a comment to let us know!
   

5 Reasons to Visit Safeway this week 8/4 - 8/10

Here are 5 Reasons to Visit Safeway this week 8/4 - 8/10:

1. Cheap produce!
Tuscan Cantaloupe, 2 for $4
5-lb. box Clementines, $5.99
Eating Right bagged salads, BOGO
Blueberries, dry quart, $2.99 *Saturday & Sunday only

2. Lunch snacks sale! *stock up for lunches to pack in the fall!
TastyKake multi pack sale, $1.98
Yoplait Yogurt, 1o for $4
Nabisco Oreo Cookies or Honey Maid, 2 for $5
Nabisco 100 calorie packs or SnackWell's, $2.75
Mott's Apple Sauce Cups, 6-pack, 2 for $5

3. Meat & Seafood Sale!
Boneless loin pork chops, $1.99/lb. in the extreme value pack
Rancher's Reserve beef t-bone or Porterhouse Steaks, $4.99/lb. in the extreme value pack
93% lean ground beef, $2.49/lb.
Fresh Scottish Salmon Fillets, $6.88/lb. in the extreme value pack
Waterfront Bistro Jumbo Raw Shrimp, $4.99/lb., sold in 2-lb. bag *Saturday & Sunday only

4. 50% off Beverages & Snacks Sale!
Participating products include:
Pepsi 12-packs of cans
Pepsi 2-liters
Pepsi 24-packs of cans
Pepsi 6-packs of cans
Lay's Potato Chips
Tostitos Tortilla Chips
Rold Gold Pretzels

5. Buy and 10, get $10 off your next shopping visit promotion through 8/10
Participating items include selected varieties of Kellogg's Pop-tarts, Apple Jacks, Frosted Flakes, Corn Flakes, Froot Loops, Eggo Waffles, Fiber Plus, Special K Cereal, Special K Bars, Nutri-Grain Bars, Raisin Bran, Frosted Mini-Wheats, Mother's Cookies, Sunshine Cheez-it Crackers, Keebler Club and Town House Crackers, Keebler Chips Deluxe and Sandies Cookies, Keebler Fudge Shoppe Cookies and many more.

There are a number of Super Coupons in this week's ad, very similar to what was in last week's. The O Organics Milk coupon for a 64-oz. container for $2.99, Limit 2, is new.

Works for Me Wednesday: Shredder in the Kitchen

It's Wednesday, and that means it's time for another "Works for Me Wednesday" tip, as hosted by the blog carnival at We Are THAT Family. See this week's Works for Me Wednesday here.

A few months ago, I decided to be more proactive about protecting my family's identity. To do so, I realized that I needed to shred as much personal paper mail as possible. Because our hometown has a great, integrated recycling program, it's easy to recycle paper. And because we have a recycling bin in our kitchen, I have no excuse!

What works for me is keeping a shredder in the kitchen. It's nothing expensive, just a portable 6-page shredder that I can easily store in a kitchen drawer. [I think I spent around $20 on it 5 years ago.] When I have a stack of paper that has filled that same drawer, I put my toddler to work. After months of instruction, he can now safely shred, keeping his fingers away from the cutter. Believe me, I don't leave the room when he's doing it, but I've found it's a great activity for him to do while I'm preparing a meal.

Works for me!

SWEET Deal on Lands' End: 20%+2% Off Any Item, + Free Shipping!

Sweet poplin blouses, this is a good deal: get 20% off your Lands' End item of your choice (the highest priced item in your order), plus free shipping, when you enter the Promotion Code AUG5 and PIN 168850043 Edit to add: so sorry - unlike past Lands' End promos, this one turns out to be a one-time-use only code. D'oh! I didn't even get to use my own code, I was in such a hurry to share the deal with you all. But for those of you who have signed up to receive Lands' End emails, you'll have one of your own in your email box! Many thanks to the reader who commented to alert me to this.

Go to the Lands' End site through ebates and you'll receive 2% cash back, as well! This offer is good through August 5.

This is a terrific example of a rare promo where free shipping and a discount intersect - making a chance to freshen up your wardrobe for a fraction of the price. Think ahead to fall and winter. Lands' End is a great source for outerwear, especially high quality, warm winter jackets that your kids can wear for a season or two and then pass along to someone else for additional wear! Also think through Christmas possibilities - even if you don't know someone's size, the home section offers some ideas for cozy gifts.

Here are some ideas of the bargains you can get by shopping through the Overstocks section of the Lands' End site:

Women:

• Layering V-Neck Short Sleeve T-Shirts, many colors, $4.99, $3.91 after 20% discount and 2% ebates cash back
• Layering V-Neck Long Sleeve T-Shirts, black and white, $4.99, $3.91 after 20% discount and 2% ebates cash back
• Jeans starting from $9.99, including boot cut, curvy fit, wide leg, and lots of other cuts! $7.83 after 20% discount and 2% ebates cash back.
• Outerwear, including fleece jackets, winter coats, and accessories like hats and gloves, starting from $2.99, or $2.34 after 20% discount and 2% ebates cash back.
• Shoes and slippers starting from $5.99, or $4.69 after 20% discount and 2% ebates cash back.
  

Girls:

• Skirts and dresses from $3.99, or $3.12 after 20% discount and 2% ebates cash back.
• Girls' Outerwear, including fleece jackets, winter coats, and accessories like hats and gloves, starting from $2.99, or $2.34 after 20% discount and 2% ebates cash back.

Men:

• Dress shirts from $9.99, or $7.83 after 20% discount and 2% ebates cash back.
• Men's outerwear and accessories from $5.99, or $4.69 after 20% discount and 2% ebates cash back.

Boys:

• Shoes, including athletic tennis shoes, starting at $5.99, or $4.69 after 20% discount and 2% ebates cash back.
• Shirts from $4.99, though the site says that you can save $2.50 each when you buy three. If this is stackable with the 20%, you'd get two shirts for $2.49 and one for $2, with free shipping, 2% cash back not even included in this calculation!
  

Home:

• Bedding from $4.99, $3.91 after 20% discount and 2% ebates cash back
• Home accents like throw pillows from $12.99, or $10.18 after 20% discount and 2% ebates cash back
• Bags and totes starting at $9.00, or $7.05 after 20% discount and 2% ebates cash back

As a disclaimer, if you sign up for ebates under our ebates link (here), we will receive cash back thanks to you. You'll receive a starting bonus, too!.

Menu Plan Monday

I'm learning a whole lot about new ways to prepare foods, particularly vegetables and seafood. I got over my childhood-associated Brussels sprouts phobia with terrific results - now we eat them about once weekly, we like them so much.

I think this week I will try to breach another, bigger childhood-associated veggie phobia - beets. (*Shudder*) I think that perhaps the one and only time I tried beets as a child, they were pickled. Either way I have a bit of a mental gag reflex when beets are even mentioned. So they're the perfect item to tackle next, right? ;-p But this time the ones in my fridge are fresh, and I'm going to slow bake them. Give them one more chance.

Monday:

Breakfast: Banana custards with cacao nibs
Lunch: Bacon cheese miniquiches, salad with cherry tomatoes
Dinner: Baked chicken, roasted beets with feta

Tuesday:

Breakfast: Scrambled eggs, watermelon
Lunch: Banana almond butter smoothies
Dinner: Fried lemon tilapia (on sale at Giant), avocado, salad

Wednesday:
Breakfast: Cottage cheese, watermelon (on sale at Giant @$3.88/ea!)
Lunch: Eggplant French-toast style, sliced cheese
Dinner: Sliced steak over kale salad

Thursday:

Breakfast: Trail mix
Lunch: With a friend - crock pot chicken and veggies, watermelon
Dinner: Leftover chicken, cobb salads

Friday:

Breakfast: Banana coconut smoothies
Lunch: Mushroom onion omelettes
Dinner: BLT salads