Awesome CVS trip

Total spent including tax: 10.61, before tax I only spent $9.09 

Total saved:$82.61!! 

This week I used coupons from the Louisville paper- smart source and red plum and some from past papers as well as CVS coupons (they print when you scan your card at kiosk) 

I did about 5 transactions: 

1st: probiotics 9.99 but I got 9.99 back! I had a 1.50 coupon that printed and it was off a digestive product so it worked! Mammys printed a $3 off! So including tax I paid $9.09

My second transaction if got SEVEN things of garnier products! You had to spend $20 to get $5 back... That is before coupons :) they were on sale for 3/$9 and I had four $2 off coupons, two 1.50 off coupons and one $1 off coupon plus a cvs coupon of $2 off. I then got one thing of soft soap hand soap for 2.99 and I knew I would get $2ECB back. My total was a little over $10, which was perfect because I had $10 ECB from my last transaction!! 

Subtotal: .84!!!!!! (7 garnier shampoo and hairspray and soft soap) I saved 34.72 

Third transaction: 

I now have $7 ECB from the last transaction. So I got:

Two Colgate toothpaste for 2.99 I had a $1 off coupon and I got $2 ECB for each one! I also got bengay for $4.49 I had a $2 coupon and got $2 ECB! I also had $2 off pain reliever, CVS coupon so it worked for bengay! Plus I used my $5 ECB from the last transaction so I was able to keep my other $2 one :)

My subtotal for this was .13! Plus tax I had to pay .80 :) 

Last transaction: 

I had $2 ECB from a couple transactions ago that I haven't used, and I got $6 back from the last one so I was left with $8!! Woo hoo! I got three Purex, it was buy one get TWO free! And a thing of milk. Use my ECB and my subtotal was -.02 so with tax I paid .34!!! I saved 20.98 this transaction. 

 Then before I left I saw mentors gum was buy two for $3 and buy two get one free, so 3 for $3. Well I had $1 off each, so it was free!!!! Paid .18 sales tax :) 

The razors 4 packages and 6 packs of dog treats were bought at DG and were free! 

Razor coupon $3 off each, price is $3=free

Treats $1 each .. Coupon $3 off 3= free!

15 things of detergent for $4

Many have asked HOW IN THE WORLD?!? Let me tell ya, I surprised myself! Walgreens put the detergent on sale buy one get TWO free! So without coupons this is an awesome deal! It is typically $5.94 and was on sale for 4.94ish... I had coupons for $3 of 2 plus the deal... It worked out in my favor. Now, before coupons I bought 9 detergents and my total was $55 then she took the free ones off and it was only $15. Then I gave her my coupons which was $12 off that! 

It was very exciting to look in my back seat and see all this! Plus I did a good CVS trip with Scott paper towels so I was one happy girl yesterday! 

Warning: Walgreens was sold out last night and that was the first day of the deal. Even if you don't have coupons but want to stock up you can! Just ask for a rain check and get them later!! 

Happy couponing :) 

Stockpile is taking over and requiring expansion

I decided to work a ton of shifts in July plus take a week vacation so my couponing was severely neglected. I started getting back on track and working less overtime and because of this we are busting out of the seams in our stock pile closet! Our plans are to build some shelving in the laundry room and move items in the garage that wont matter with the weather.It is so much fun to coupon, especially for someone like me who loves to shop and can leave spending little to nothing. Cory has even caught on and is my coupon buddy, which makes it fun because we get to share this hobby together! I took some pictures to show you of our stock piles so far! We def have less than $200 in this and I would guess its worth well more than $1000.00; its exciting to look at this every day!!!

Ibotta

I use this in addition to coupons.. Download ibotta and get money back for items you buy !! Sign up for Ibotta here: http://ibotta.com/r/dU3pXA

Its really neat u just scan your receipt then the item and get money :)

I have it as an app on my phone and iPad!

The pups are gonna be excited!

Not only are Cory and I benefiting from our couponing love but so are the pups! We got 8 bags of fog treats for $2.48

Print off the $1.50/2 snaucages coupon from coupons.com (I had 4)

This makes them .25 each!!!
Happy couponing :)

90% savings!!!

My little cousin, Emma and I went to Kroger tonight to try another round of couponing since I still had shave cream as deodorant coupons. Luckily, the truck brought another shipment so we were able to make round 2!! This was one of the first trips that I felt like I was "Extreme couponing" because the cashier was nice enough to let me do it ALL in one transaction... I usually have to do multiple. Below is a photo of the register before coupons and Kroger plus card, then a pic of what I paid... I'll be honest, when I only took a $10 bill in and my total was $80 I got nervous haha!

Living like Martha Stuart

Recently on the Today Show there was an author that decided to live like Martha Stuart for a year. This may or may not be a surprise to you, but this inspired me! I may not be able to do exactly what she did but I decided to get started... She decorated (handmade) items for every holiday, hosted a huge Cinco De Mayo party and organized the whole house, I have begun this journey as of today. Step 1 for me: GET ORGANIZED! I am starting with my kitchen, closet, bathroom, then craft room. My goal is by the end of the week to have everything labeled, cleaned, and organized.

I wanted to share this year experience with you!! Hopefully, I can keep it up ;)

Where do I get the coupons?

So many people have asked me where I get my coupons... Multiple places! Every Sunday there are inserts: Red Plum, Smart Source, and P&G. Paducah sun is the worst and doesn't always have but I buy four papers on Sunday... I try to get Nashville papers from friends, Louisville papers ( you can get in eddy villa) and St Louis papers (you can get in mayfield) or the Paducah Sun. I do get coupons off eBay. For example, if I catch the deal early and see that something will be free with a coupon I'll order 20 off eBay and you only pay like $2!

I use couponmom.com to navigate my shopping trips and I print online coupons from coupons.com- limit of two like coupons per computer

I also have ibotta app on my phone and you get cash back via PayPal for buying products they post


Hope this helps :)

Did somebody say FREE?!?

That's right, folks! I got every one of these shave gels FREE! and the total for tax was only .39!!

How?

They were on sale for $1 at kroger
I had a .55 coupon (June Proctor and Gamble) (Remeber, Kroger doubles)

= FREE

Unfortunatley, between me, my mom and mammy we wiped Paducah out and the deal ends Tuesday so hopefully they get more before then!

$55 for less than $5

This was an EASY trip! Anyone can do it! Between buying newspapers and receiving inserts from Family and friends I had about 25 Proctor and Gambles for June! Thanks guys!!

The Crest toothpast is $1 at Kroger... My coupon was .50 off any crest toothpaste (REMEMBER THEY DOUBLE UP TO .55 AT KROGER) So, the toothpaste was FREEEEEEE!!!!!

The deodorant was on the buy 4 save $4. So, they were 2.29 each, if you bought four they ended up being $1.29 each. My coupon was in the PG and was $1 off ANY Old spice product... making them .29 EACH!!!!

The capri suns were also on the buy 4 save $4. So they were 2.29, only 1.29 after 4! I went to coupons.com and printed off $1/2 Capri suns! Therefore I paid $1.29 for 2 and only .29 for the other two! WOO HOO!

Kroger deals are Wed-Tues so these deals END tues night! at midnight!

Making meals for the week

I have had a lot of requests for recipes and tips for freezer meals. Once again, I cannot take credit. My mom got me started on them when she sold Homemade Gourmet and did her 4 meals in 4 minutes shows! Then of course Pinterest has done the rest. I used some homemade gourmet mixes that I had left and some others from a blog on Pinterest which I will post. All you do is get everythign ready, stick it in a freezer bag, label it then put it in the freezer. I always stick mine in the fridge the night before to kinda thaw then place it in the crock pot the following day! I am hooked on this now because I don't have to worry about dinner if I will be gone all day or if Cory has to go in at 4, but I am sleeping from a night shift. Here are some of the recipes I used from http://www.ringaroundtherosies.net/2012/02/freezer-cooking.html

I made this day of :4 thawed chicken breasts, 6oz. package of Stove Top stuffing mix, 1/2 cup sour cream, 1 can of cream of chicken soup. Chicken on bottom - Stove Top over chicken, Cream of Chicken/Sour Cream mix on top. Cover and cook for 4 hours on low.
 Here is the rest from her blog.. I highly recommend to repin my pin and follow her! Or go to the website

Savory Chicken 

Lazy Day Stew

Sweet and Tangy MeatballsSweet and Tangy Meatballs

Sausage and Peppers

Getting $25 at DG for free

Yes, I order coupons off ebay. I always get anywhere from 20-100 and I never pay more than $3.I will lookat sales ads the day they come out and if I see items on sale, or 10/$10 at Kroger, etc... I get on ebay to find coupons for the sale item. Keep in mind that there are a ton of tricks to couponing you just have to learn! For example, CVS and Publix... If you have a $2 off coupon for toothpaste you can use it AND you can use your $2 off manufacter coupon... that is called "stacking" coupons

Kroger will double anything up to .60 so you have have a coupon for .50 off then its actually a 1.00 off at kroger :)
 Here is my example. I saw Pizza rolls were ten for $10 at Kroger. I got on ebay and found 20 .50 off any pizza roll (remember, they double at Kroger so they would be $1 off) Yes, I got all 20 boxes for free!!!


Here is what I do at the DG EVERY Friday or sat.
All coupons are in the P&G and I order the $3 any bic disposable razor on ebay

I get 3 bounce dryer sheets $2 each
4 things of BIC dispoable razors $3 each
4 things of  Crest toothpaste $1 each
1 thing of peanut butter $2.75
1 piece of .25 candy
My total is $25

I use:
$5 off $25 or more first (They print this on your receipt or you can print online if you sign up for DG mailing list)
 my $3 off any 3 tide, bounce, etc.
4 $3 off any bic razors
4 $1 off crest toothpast
$1 off Planters peanut butter (got these off ebay)
= $25 in coupons...

I pay $1.07- SALES TAX!!! I do two transactions every weekend! 

MY $119 TRIP FOR $15

This trip was lucky haha.
I bought 20 $3 off poise coupons from ebay (I only paid 2.75 for all of them) I did this because I saw the kroger sale ad and saw they were on sale for $2.99... You're right.... they were FREE!!

The tought thing about couponing is that many times the stores are out of the item. They were out of poise so I got a raincheck for the price. My coupons were good for a month so I wasn't worried... well, tonight I had to go to both Krogers but I was able to get 20 for free!! They were originally $3.99 so that is $79.80 worth of product FREE! I highly doubt I will use a fourth of these, so these will def be an item I donate if I am able to go on the Haiti mission trip or to a local organization! Remember, do your best to make this a ministry and serve others :)

My next stop was CVS. I forgot to mention in the beginning.. Couponing is soooo much fun and addicting but it is VERY time consuming. I spend every moment of my free time doing it. And when I shop I go to a million different stores. That is why you have to plan every trip and have your coupons ready!

At CVS: My husband LOVES the febreeze car sticks, we usually get us both some and some for his cruiser at walmart and spend $12-15. I saw in the CVS ad that if you spent $20 on febreeze products you got $10 back in ECB! ahhhhh!!! The fun things about CVS is the $20 is BEFORE coupons. So I trotted my happy butt into CVS and got 5 car scents(3.79 each) and one room spray (3.59) and gave them 6 $1 off coupons (from todays paper) My total before tax was $14ish dollars. I paid and got $10 back in extra care bucks to use on anything I want! (I am saving it for next week's trip)

So far, I  have gotten $102.34 for $14.

My final stop was walgreens... Now, I have to admit I am not good in here and it is very difficult. They are more strict and confusing :S

I had a free peanut butter from a last purchase so I got that... that was a $4.99 value= FREE
I had $3 register rewards from my last purchase so I used it to get carpet spray for the puppies. We typically spend 5.99-6.99 on spray at walmart. Well, The Woolite was buy one get one free!! I had 2 .50 off coupons AND I used my register rewards of $3.. So I spent less than $2!!
That was $17 worth of items for $1.89!!

Saving money one penny at a time

I cannot take any credit for my new couponing hobby.. My mom taught me how to do it and introduced me to it and www.couponmom.com helps guide me if I want additional help! (Sign up for it! Its free and VERY helpful)

Anyways, this has been amazing. I am saving sooo much money for my family and its a GOOD shopping addiction! It has really helped me stay busy at home and keep my mind of things while still trying to cope with the loss of my grandma.Therefore, I amVERY thankful for this hobby and I hope I can share my tricks with ya!

I am stocking up but also plan to use this as a ministry and I hope you can too! Donate your items to local organizations that need them!

I will post after each trip to tell you what I did.. the first thing you need to do is to get an organizing coupon binder or whatever system works for you and get COUPONS!!! Youcan print them off couponmom.com and coupons.com and tons of other websites. My mom and I always get 4 sunday newspapers in order to get the P&g, red plum, and smartsource (these are the three main coupon inserts and they vary each sunday!) I have also found that my hometown newspaper The Crittenden Press sells papers for $1 and usually has the same coupons that the Paducah sun has so its half price to do it thatway... just get the inserts however you can! Heck, call some friends and get them from their paper!!

I also found that larger cities are better... which means I called my two best friends that live in Nashville and they are now getting me Sunday papers there every week!

Today: (this deal is good all week) If you need detergent, which we all do:
I went to the Dollar General and got 4 things of detergent (tide) on sale for $4.95.. I got a coupon out of todays paper and it is $3 off three!
Now, the thing to do is... if you spend $20 on P&G items then you get $10 back! So I also got two things of Charmin toilet paper (I got 2 .25 coupons from todays paper), four things of ivory soap (I had 4 .50 coupons from todays paper) and I think that is it. My total was almost $40.... I gave her my coupons and it brought it down to a little over $30. So I paid it (this is the most I have evre paid on a trip but I wanted to stock up on detergent)... She gave me $10 back so I bought 3 more things of detergent, used my $3 off coupon (this is why you want more than one coupon insert) and got the three free!!!

If you want to.. go to the DG and get 8 things of detergent, use 2 $3 off coupons and pay 33.60 then use your $10 back and get 3 more things of detergent and use 1 $3 off coupon and get it free! Therefore getting 11 things of Tide detergent for $33.. CAN YOU SAY AWESOME?!?

Quick breakfast?

O boy! Thanks to Pinterest I discovered the quickest way to make breakfast, especially if you have children. I was babysitting my cousins and we made cinnamon roles... in the WAFFLE MAKER! It took 1 min and 15 seconds and they were done!

I bought the pillsbury roll of cinnamon rolls and placed four in my waffle maker, shut it and in 1:15 they were done! Yes, they looked like waffles but of course you treat them like cinnamon rolls. So I put icing on them and the kids had them eaten within minutes! If I would have done the traditional oven way... the oven would not have been pre heated in the time we ate them!

When I make them again I will post pictures!

Forever Changed

I must say... I was worried growing up about my brother coming to Christ. I knew that it was my job to be a Godly role model, but other than witnessing to him it was all in God's hands. I prayed that it would happen before he went to college and got caught up in the "college life." Losing Jake Hodge changed my life and made me realize life is too short and you truly do not know when your last day will be... therefore, live it to the fullest and strive each and every day to be like Christ. I thought to myself... what will happen to Aaron (my brother) if he goes to college and gets in a crowd that doesn't make God first and he marries a girl that isn't a christian, etc. etc.... so I prayed... everyday.

I got a phone call one day and it was Aaron telling me that in the middle of class he realized his life could end today or could go on for another 100 years and he was not a Christian. I immediately cried and thanked God for answering one of my most important prayers. Since that day, he has impacted so many lives with a song he wrote. He claims he cannot sing but the boy can rap. So he created a Christian Rap that was from his heart and explaining how he is "Forever Changed." I encourage you to ask Aaron and Erin to come to your church and perform and hear this song in person and purchase a CD to help them financially spread the word and minister to teens and kids their age.

God is amazing,,, and he answers prayers! 

Gourmet dinner

This was the most work I have put into a dinner...ever. It was totally worth it and wasn't that bad! How yummy does this look?

Adding to the home

Cory and I were able to find a home that we saw ourselves staying in forever and raising a big happy family in ( including dogs and kiddos). We are slowly but surely getting it all decorated and where we want it to be. Cory had a great idea to put this cabinet behind the toilet and now the bathroom looks totally different! We found some neat decorations at Pier one and all we have left to do is find a matching vanity!

Easy pasta carbonara

I hosted a Pampered chef party recently and have been addicted to cooking ever since! Now that I have the time in the evenings and know how to cook more fresh and since I earned TONS of free kitchen utensils I am putting it all to work! Tonight I made this recipe from a pamperedchef cook book and it was SUPER easy and yummy!

Ingredients:
1/2 12 oz pkg of uncooked turkey bacon
1 med onion
4 garlic cloves
1 pkg uncooked multigrain bowtie pasta
1 carton of uncooked chicken stock
1 can fat free evaporated milk
1 oz fresh Parmesan cheese
4 oz cream cheese, softened and reduced fat
1 1/2 cups frozen peas

To cook:
Stack the bacon and cut in half into multiple pieces. I have a pampered chef utility knife that is the best knife a person could have

Cook bacon in a skillet (I also have their non cook 12 inch skillet and literally nothing sticks to it! ) on med heat for 4-5 min

Finely chop onion, of course I have a Pampered chef food chopper .. It's a kitchen must!

Add onion and pressed garlic to the skillet and cook another 4ish minutes until onion is tender

Add pasta, stock, and evaporated milk cover and simmer DON'T boil for 12-14 minutes or until pasta is still a little firm

Remove from skillet and stir in cheese, cream cheese and peas. I got their rotary grater and let me tell you.,, fresh cheese taste sooooo much better and it doesn't have that powder stuff that's unhealthy for you on it like packaged cheese has.

Let stand and cover for 5 min or until sauce is thick and creamy!

If you don't have the pampered chef items I highly recommend buying them or hosting a party and getting them free. I buy and do parties for Holly at 2703624377!!!

Happy eating :)

Breakfast casserole

Most of my recipes are from Pinterest and this is one that I loved making because I made it one evening and cut it into large pieces so Cory and I would have breakfast for a week! Here are the ingredients and instructions and I fortunately had them ALL in my cabinet!!

Ingredients
2 cups rolled oats
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup walnut pieces... Optional
1 cup raspberries {any berries work} I used strawberries
1/2 cup milk chocolate chips
2 cups milk
1 large egg
3 tablespoons butter, melted
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 ripe banana, peeled, 1/2-inch slices

Instructions
Preheat oven to 375°F and generously spray the inside of a 10-1/2 by 7 inch baking dish with cooking spray and place on a baking sheet.
In a large bowl, mix together the oats, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, salt, half the walnuts, half the strawberries and half the chocolate. (Save the other half of strawberries, walnuts and chocolate for the top of the oatmeal).
In another large bowl, whisk together the milk, egg, butter and vanilla extract.
Add the oat mixture to prepared baking dish. Arrange the remaining strawberries, walnuts and chocolate on top. Add the banana slices to the top then pour the milk mixture over everything. Gently shake the baking dish to help the milk mixture go throughout the oats.
Bake 35 to 40 minutes or until the top is nicely golden brown and the milk mixture has set. For an extra tasty top, sprinkle a tablespoon or so of extra brown sugar.


Read more http://www.pinfoody.com/baked-oatmeal-casserole-2/

Chocolate rocky road crock pot cake

This was super yummy! I found this on Pinterest as I was looking for new recipes for my crock pot! I was able to make this in place of a birthday cake for my papaws birthday and it was a hit! Here was the recipe:
1 box of German chocolate cake mix ( you can use devils food)
3 large eggs
1 cup of sour cream
1 tsp of vanilla
1 box instant chocolate pudding
3 1/4 cups of milk
Semi sweet chocolate morsels
1 bag mini marshmallows
1/3 cup butter, melted
Chopped pecans are optional
You may want to get some vanilla ice cream!
1 box Vanilla or chocolate cook and serve pudding mix (I used vanilla)

Mix first five ingredients and 1 1/4 cup of milk together in a bowl with a mixer then pour into lightly greased crock pot.

In another bowl mix the remaining 2 cups of Milk with cook n serve pudding then pour on top of cake mix in crock pot.

Turn on low for 3 1/2 hours then once it's done turn it off and sprinkle marshmallows and Choc chips on cake and let sit for 15 min until marshmallows melt... Then eat and be in love!!!

Just Living Life

I always stayed so busy in highschool with sports, club, and work but continued a busy life once I went to college. I decided to major in one of the most amazing careers a person could choose... NURSING. Yes, I am extremely happy I did it and made it through, but it was a very hard road. I sacrificed family and friendships to complete the important milestone in my life. Now that I have graduated, I have decided to take some time before I go back to school and enjoy not only being a nurse.. but everything else in life. I have learned to knit, cook different recipes, and now blogging. I love to share small things I do each day so I thought there was no better way than to set up a blog account and post all the different things I do! I have decided to sit back and "just enjoy life."

Cory, my high school sweetheart that I thank God for each and every day became my husband on May 26, 2012. We have decided to take a big vacation every year in order to achieve our goal of seeing the world. I hope you enjoy reading new recipes I try ( I want to share them so others can do them to! I also would love recipes sent to me), and reading about the new locations I encounter as well as my everyday attempt to grow more and more closer to my husband, family, and God :)