Schnucks Super Double Coupons

So, yesterday, today and tomorrow Schnucks Markets have Super double coupons.

Before I tell you about my trip from this evening, I must first tell you about a CVS deal that ran back in October.
 If you coupon, I'm sure you remember it. They had a deal going where when you spent $30 in select P&G products, you got a $10 ECB back. This ran two weeks in a row, with a limit of one per card holder each week.

I happened to have been fortunate enough to have a LOT of coupons that worked with it, as I spent some Register Rewards at Walgreens for 5 or 6 Sunday papers the week the P&G insert was in there, plus the 2 I got at home...and a friend brought me a few more.
Almost my entire $30 P&G purchase was on Herbal Essences. They were on sale those weeks for $2.99, and I had the P&G coupon for a free conditioner or styler with shampoo purchase, making them $1.50 each after coupon.   
I had to buy 12 at a time, so total out of pocket was $18. Already a good deal....but then I got back a $10 ECB!
The next week, I did basically the same thing, only using my $10 ECB from the week before also, so it was about $8 pre-tax.
 If you figure the total minus the $10 ECB, this makes the Herbal Essences about 67 cents each.
But wait! There's more!
P&G also happened to be running a mail in rebate! $50 in P&G products got you a $15 gift card by mail, about 2 months later.
I got mine last week, which brings us to why I am telling you about the past CVS deal.
Tonight at Schnucks, I got groceries, specifically tailored to the super double coupon thing.
This is all stuff we will use, and probably in the very immediate future.
My total before coupons was $45.26.
After coupons, my total was $16.26. So I used my $15 gift card from my P&G rebate.
I paid $1.26 out of pocket. Here is what I got for $1.26 this evening:

 

CVS this week

The CVS ad was pretty slim this week, but I did manage to put together one good deal.
The Gain dishwashing soap that I love was on sale for $0.99 for the  9 oz. bottle.
The coupon from the 5/31 P&G insert for $0.50 off made them just $0.49.
A pretty good deal on it's own, however, when you look closely at the ad, you will see that you earn $10 on Extra Care Bucks when you spend $30 on select P&G items. The Gain happens to be included, so I traded and wheeled and dealed, and managed to come up with 47 of those coupons.
Yes, I got 47 9 oz. bottles of Gain dishwashing soap.
I spent a total of $22.76 because I had a couple ECB's to spend, one $2 and 1 $1, otherwise it would have been $25.76.
When you include the $10 EBC I got back, I spent a whopping total of $0.34 each on them.

I made a cookie monster cake

I really did it.
I made something I saw on pinterest and it didn't turn out looking like crap!
Not that I used the exact Pinterest pin, but it did give me my inspiration.
Perhaps that is why it actually turned out! lol

So here is my finished cake.
I did this for my son's birthday. He might be 17 now, but he loves Cookie Monster. Heck, I still love Cookie Monster, so it was really a fun project to do.
I stuck to simplicity when I did this one.
I just made the yellow cake in a pie pan, and the first step, after letting it cool of course, was the mouth and eyes. I made a stencil for the mouth using a sheet of computer paper, and put down just a little vanilla frosting and coated that with crushed Oreo cookies. Same for the eyes, just white frosting with a bit of the cookies for eyeballs.
Then I used the frosting that comes in a can, already colored blue, to do the icing that looks like fur.
The finishing touch was the bite size Chips a Hoy falling out of his mouth.
All in all, pretty darn easy to do :)

Totally off topic, but need to vent about the IRS

I know, everyone is having this problem, but I just need to vent for a minute to make myself feel better.
Our Federal return was filed Mid April.
We mailed in a paper return instead of E-Filing this year, due in part to the "issues" the IRS was having in Feb, and partly due to trying to save a little money.

At first, the "Where's my refund" status was showing up as your return has been received and is being processed.
Then, as expected, changed to You should have your refund by June 5.
Well, June 5 has come and gone, no refund, and now the status has changed back to has been received and is being processed.

As I said, I know A LOT of people are having this problem, and it's not like I think I should be immune to the issues everyone else is dealing with.

My points are:
We aren't getting a big refund. The refund basically covers what we had to pay out to Illinois (Much more than usual thanks to the almost doubling of individual taxes from last year to this year) and more importantly, if we owed them, and told them we mailed them a check, which they didn't get for months after we said we mailed it, do you think we wouldn't be in jail or at the very least court?

I know there is nothing I can do, and no real reason to yell to the heavens, but as I said, I feel a little better now after venting.

Wish I could have found one that said I want you to forget that we can't do our jobs.

Walgreen's trips this week

I know, I'm slacking again.
I should be posting more. I'm sorry.
However, I do have my Walgreen's transactions for you for this week.

Transaction #1.)
 1 Omega Smart Ultimate Fish oil, on sale for $10, and prints $10 in Register Rewards.
(I had a $7RR left from last week that I used, so my total will be $7 less than yours. Total: $3.12)

Transaction #2.)
1 Brainstrong kids DHA supplement Gummies, on sale for $10, and prints $10 Register Rewards.
 Use $10 Register Reward from #1.
(Total: $0.13)

Transaction #3.)
 1 Goody ouchless headband, on sale for $2, prints $2 RR
1 Walgreens brand Lansoprazole, 14 count, on sale $6, prints $6 RR,
 1 Reach toothbrush, on sale for $2.99, prints $2 RR.
 Use $10 RR from #2.
(Total:$1.55)

Transaction #4.)
2 Trident Layers gum, in ad coupon makes them $0.99, and one printable B1G1 Free coupon
2 Thermacare heat wraps, on sale $11/2, use $3 off any 1 printable coupon, and prints $3RR WYB 2.
3 Milky Way candy Bars, on sale for $0.59, use $0.75 off 2 printable AND buy 2 get 1 free printable
You have to be a Savings club member for that last printable. 
4 Nice! brand Jell-o as filler items, on sale 4 for $1
1 2 Liter 7-Up, on sale for $1
Use $6RR and $2RR from #3.
(Total:$1.00)
 This is the only one I snapped a picture of, sorry.

Transaction #5.
1 Glade Sense & Spray starter kit, on sale for $7.99, prints $2RR
2 Snickers candy bars (for filler items), on sale for $0.59
Use $3RR from #4 and $2RR from #3.
(Total:$2.00)

Transaction #6.
1 Reach toothbrush, on sale for $2.99, prints $2 RR.
Use $2RR from #5.
(Total:$1.26)

Transaction #7 (Last one I promise!)
 1 Goody ouchless headband, on sale for $2, prints $2 RR
Use $2RR from #6.
(Total:$0.18)

You will have 1 $2 RR left over, but don't worry, you can use it however you see fit, or save it and buy a Sunday paper with it so you get your coupons free!

My combined total for all items listed above: $9.24!  And I still have $2RR to use.

P&G Rebate

I finally hit $50 in P&G products!
Here is a link to the rebate: http://www.pgbeautyolympics.com/OlympicRebate.pdf

Get a $10 pre-paid Visa card when you spend $50 on P&G products, many of which have or had coupons available.
Most of my $50 was from Pantene, thanks to the $3 off 2 and the buy 1 get 1 free coupons.

I will let you all know when it arrives!

Family Dollar trip 5/20/12

This was my other trip today, as the Hubby was almost out of coffee (Gasp!)
Since I had a $5 off $25 coupon for Family Dollar, there are a few things in this trip I didn't have coupons for, which are in this trip only because of either the dog we are dog sitting right now, or the 16 year old helping me shop.

I got:
2 Folgers Country Roast ($7.75)
I had one Family Dollar coupon that ended today for $1 off, and 2 $1 off that Folgers sent me.

2 Pantene conditioners, which I lucked out on because they were in the clearance isle for $1.20!
I used my $3 off two Pantene items, which of course had to be adjusted down to $2.40, but hey...free is free.

3 Secret deodorants ($1.50)
I had 3 $1 off 1 Secret.

2 Johnson and Johnson medical tape, which were also in the clearance isle for $1.80.
I had a $1.50 off 2 J&J red cross items.

2 Reach toothbrushes ($1.00 each)
I had 2 $1 off 1 Reach toothbrush.

The dog treats you see I didn't have any coupons for, but we're dog sitting and he's such a cute little guy.

See? Told ya.

Also, the Skittles candle...no coupon, but the 16 year old (also kind of in the picture) has a skittles fetish(lol)
The gum was also his pick, but that was because we were $4 short of the $25 net needed to get $5 off.

Total for all listed above, after tax: $21.64.
Still all in all I think a pretty good trip. 

Wal-Mart trip 5/20/12

This was my Wal-Mart trip today.
I know, very small...BUT...I spent $0.21 for all of this.

The cards, I can't take credit for...there was a tear pad at Wal-Mart for $2 off a 3 card purchase, and the only restrictions were the total had to be at least $2.
So I got 2 $0.97 cent cards and 1 $0.47 card.
You can use this more than one of this coupon, you just have to have 3 cards per coupon.
Last week I got 12 cards for $2.50.

The lightbulbs were from this coupon. The energy efficient soft white were $1.68, making that $2 off coupon a $0.32 money maker.
Since I have 3 computers at my house, I printed the allowable 2 coupons per computer.
I had already used 2 before this shopping trip.

The Candles you see are the Cutter citronella candles. These are in the isle with the Tiki torches and Off stuff. They are $0.97 at my Wal-Mart, and using this coupon on them will make you $0.03 on each.
Again, I printed 2 per computer, and then found if you "like" Cutter on Facebook, you get this coupon. Just make sure to click the $1 off any cutter product, not the $2 off the backyard cutter.

So, this is how I paid $0.20 for all that you see above today at Wal-Mart.

Check back later this week to see my CVS, Walgreens and possibly a target trip.
I will now be adding pictures of the entire trip on here, as well as explaining how to do it.

Responses from emails

Most of the responses I have gotten from Companies were the Sorry, please look for coupons in your local paper.
Some however, did send me a nice letter and some coupons.
So far, these were:
Heinz, Smuckers, Welches and Farm Rich.

I know, I've been slacking.

I've been pretty busy lately.
I have recently started couponing. Yes, coupons. I have, in fact, become the crazy coupon lady. And I love it.

I have started building a stockpile, which is very small right now, as I have just started, but I plan on having much much more within the next 6 months or so. 
Keep in mind, all that you see on that shelf, I got for maybe $30. Yes, all of it, and those are just my extras.
So, today's experiment is to contact companies and see if they will send coupons for feedback.
I have seen where others have tried this, with great success, and the coupons they send are far more valuable than those you get in the Sunday paper. 
I will keep you updated on the responses as I get them, and I may even start posting my weekly finds, deals and hauls.
SO far as of this morning as I write this, here is my list of Companies I have contacted.

Hungry Jack

Betty Crocker

Pepsi

Folgers

General Mills

Prairie Farms

Frito Lay

Cooking party-My lasagna muffins

So, as I reported earlier this week, Saturday was my cooking/recipe party.
It went well. We had a lot of fun, and everyone learned a new recipe or two.
I picked lasagna muffins, which tasted delicious! Way easier than making a pan of lasagna too, and easier to warm up.
Here's a pic and the recipe.

Prep time: 15 minutes
Servings: 6 muffins
total time: 40 minutes

Ingredients:

1 Cup spaghetti sauce
3/4 pound ground beef
12 Wonton wrappers
8 oz. shredded Mozzarella
3 ox. Parmesan cheese
4 oz. Ricotta cheese

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375.
Grease muffin pan
Brown beef - season to taste (or not)
Cut wonton wrappers into circle shapes (you can use a biscuit cutter, glass, or my personal favorite...a cleaned out can)
Reserve 6 Tablespoons each of the Mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses for the top of the muffins.
Start layering the muffins. Begin with the wonton wrapper, sprinkle a little parmesan cheese, then ricotta cheese, then Mozzarella. Top with a little ground beef and spaghetti sauce. Use 1-2 Tsp. of all the igredients...depending on your preference and size of your muffin pan.

Repeat layers ending in spaghetti sauce. Top with the reserved cheeses.

Bake for 18-20 minutes or until edges are brown.
Remove from oven and let cool for 5 minutes.
Use a knife to loosen the edges, and pop them out.

You can garnish with basil if you're using for appetizers at a party.

That's it! :)

Creamy corn chowder with potatoes and bacon

This is one of those still in progress recipes.
I'm trying to get it to taste like Bully's Cowboy choder..it's so nummy!
But, here is the work in progress.

Ingredients:
10-15 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
1/2 an onion, chopped
2-3 potatoes, peeled and cubed
1/2 Cup water
2 Cups milk
3 cans cream corn
1/2 tsp salt
Pepper (to taste)

Directions:

Fry bacon until crisp. Reserve 2-3 Tablespoons drippings. Crumble bacon and set aside.

Saute onion in bacon drippings until tender. Add potatoes and water. Cover (this is important) and simmer 15-20 minutes, or until potatoes are tender.

Stir in milk, corn, salt, and pepper, and 3/4 of the bacon.

Continue to cook, stirring frequently. Thicken with flour when boiling to desired consistency.
Sprinkle remaining bacon on top as a garnish. (I use cheese sometimes too.)

Tonight is the cooking/Recipe party!

I will post pictures tomorrow.
Some of us girls are getting together tonight for a recipe/cooking party.
Should be fun.
The idea is to help out our non-cooking friends, and try a recipe that we haven't tried yet.
The line up so far includes an Orange Julius knock off smoothie, Irish soda bread and either Lasagna cupcakes or pizza monkey bread (I can't decide between the two).
I'll also post last night's dinner tomorrow...which was corn chowder with bacon and potatoes.
It was nummy!
Here's a picture of some of what is to come tomorrow tho :)

Reuben Pizza

I made this about a month ago, but I didn't have this blog up then, so I will post it now.

My husband and I were recently watching "Man Vs. Food" and they were at a pizza place that made specialty pizzas. They were showcasing their Reuben pizza...I thought my husband was going to drool all over himself.
So, I decided to try to make this.
Here's my journey in gourmet pizza making.

I made my homemade pizza dough, (I'm sure I will put up the recipe in due time)...
I then covered the dough to the crust with 1000 Island dressing. I used Kraft, but you can use your favorite if you have one.
I then sprinkled the dressing with caraway seeds (To give the illusion of rye bread taste).
Next, place Swiss cheese  slices in a cross pattern, mine took three slices down and two out. For the corners, fold the slice in half to form a triangle, break and put point in facing the cross shape to fill in the circle.
Next comes the sauerkraut layer. Be generous, as the strong taste will cook off a bit in the oven.
Next comes the Corned Beef layer. I just bought it from the deli, and ripped it into smaller pieces.   
By this time, you should have something that looks like this:

Now, because this is a pizza, and you will need some type of "glue" to hold it all together, cover that baby in mozzarella. I use the finely shredded, because I think it melts better and more evenly...but the regular shredded (or shred yourself) will work just fine too.
Bake at 350 until the cheese is melty and starting to brown.
This was my finished product:

The bread stick experiment

Well, last night I made chicken bacon ranch pasts and a recipe for bread sticks that were supposed to be Olive Garden knock offs.
While they didn't turn out exactly like Olive Gardens, they were still very yummy.
Here is the recipe for the bread sticks:

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups warm water
2 Tbs. Sugar
1Tbs. yeast
1Tbs Salt
2 Tbs butter, softened
4-5 Cups flour

Topping:
3 Tbs butter, melted
sea salt
1/4 Tsp garlic powder

Directions:

For the dough, pour the water into a stand mixer with the sugar and yeast. Let that sit for about 10 minutes.
Add salt, butter, and 2 cups of the flour. Mix the dough on low. Add the rest of the flour 1/2 cup at a time, until dough scrapes the sides of the bowl clean.
Mix the dough about 5 minutes on medium speed, until it's soft and easy to work with.

*Note: If you don't have a stand mixer, you can still do this by hand, it's just going to take much longer. The stand mixer just saves you the kneading time. I would say about 15 minutes of kneading if doing by hand.

Roll the dough out to a long log, and cut into 12-14 pieces. Roll those pieces into about 6 inch long snakes.
place on foil lined cookie sheets (you'll need at least 2)

Place in 170 degree oven for about 15 minutes (or let sit at room temperature) until doubled in size (or at least close) Once they are risen, brush them with the melted butter (not the garlic powder butter mix) Bake at 350 degrees about 12-15 minutes, or until golden.

While they are baking, combine the topping. When they are hot out of the oven, brush them with the topping.
*Note* I did this with the first batch...the second batch I brushed with just melted butter, let that dry, then brushed with the topping.

I'll also throw in the recipe for the Chicken bacon ranch pasta, but trust me, I can't give exact measurements as this was a throw together with no recipe thing.

Chicken bacon ranch pasta:

1 box bow tie (or shell) pasta
1 envelope dry ranch mix
Miracle whip (or mayo)
about 6-8 strips of bacon
1/2 a tomato (or can of diced tomatoes)
Chicken breasts-about 2

Boil pasta. While water is boiling, cook chicken. You can fry or bake, it's really your preference.
In large bowl, combine dry ranch mix with enough Miracle Whip (or mayo) to make it creamy and cover all your pasta. You'll have to guesstimate, and taste test until you like the results.

After the mix is to your liking, put in cooked and drained (I sometimes rinse) pasta, and crumble the cooked bacon and dice the cooked chicken. Add all this in.

Carefully stir in the tomato, and you're done.

It's filling, and awesome...at least if you're like me. I love ranch, and I <3 bacon.