Today I did my first couponing shopping trip of the year! I just want to add really quick that I was still sales shopping and trying to buy in bulk when something we use regularly was on sale, but coupons and cash back apps went out the window right after Christmas. One of the sales that I've been taking advantage of lately are diapers at Albertson's. Diapers are always cheapest between February and July in my experience. Not at Albertson's, but just in general. Anyway, Albertson's has a deal where you automatically get $5 off when you spend $40 or more in baby products. There is also a digital coupon on their Albertson's "Just4U" app where you get $5 off any purchase of $25 or more.
So basically if you qualify for the $40 deal and you use the app, you automatically get $10 off. Well the Mom to Mom brand of diapers (sold only at Albertson's as far as I can tell) works fantastic for my kids. Levi has sensitive skin, and these don't leave rashes, so since they are cheap, I've been stocking up. The large boxes are usually $25 for anywhere between 120 and 180 diapers depending on the size. The months of March, April, and May they have been on sale for $21 each. So I bought a box of size 3 and a box of size 5 (the sizes we currently use) and it rings up around $42 at the register, and then $10 gets taken off because of the stacked promotions. I end up with almost 350 diapers for $32, making them $0.09/each, which is a killer deal. You can only do this once a week, because the digital coupon for $5 off a purchase of $25 or more is a once a week kind of thing (although the $5 off a baby products purchase of $40 or more is all the time). Of course, if you want to download the app to your spouse's phone and do it twice in a week, but use the separate accounts, you could get around that because they link to different phone numbers.
That is about the extent of the frugal shopping I've done in the last 5 months (gross I know). But today I remedied that!
So my shopping trip today was at Albertson's.
First off, I bought Bushes Black Beans (because that's the variety we are currently lowest on). They were on sale for $1 a can. This last Sunday there was a coupon for $1 off 2 cans of Bushes beans in the paper (I get several copies of the Sunday paper with the coupon deal from Idaho Press Tribune). Checkout 51 has a rebate (usable 5 times in a week) for $1 off 2 cans of Bushes beans. This made them free! I bought 10 cans and restocked my pantry for the cost of the sales tax. (If you aren't familiar with Checkout 51, check out the post here)
Next item on my list, Tillamook Ice Cream. A 1.75qt of Tillamook ice cream usually costs close to $6.50 at Albertson's. It is on sale this week for $2.50. There was a $1 off coupon on the Albertson's app for Tillamook ice cream, so I only paid $1.50 at the register for it, but there is also a $1 rebate on Ibotta for Tillamook ice cream at Albertson's. I paid $0.50 for a $6.50 carton of ice cream! (If you're unfamiliar with Ibotta, check out the post here)
The next thing I needed was Axe deodorant for my hubby. I wasn't anticipating a killer deal with this, because I was only buying it because he's out, not because of a great deal. There were 2 coupons in the Alberton's app (one for any brand of deodorant and one specifically for Axe, and they both apply for the same purchase), and so I figured I would grab him one. When I walked down the aisle looking for his deodorant, I found a clearance sticker on the exact fragrance of Axe deodorant that I was planning to purchase. None of the other fragrances were on clearance, just the one I needed. And not on sale, I mean CLEARANCE! They usually cost between $3-$4 a stick, and after the clearance deal and digital coupons, I paid $1.10 each. I cleared the shelf (bought the rest of their stock of it) because it's such a good deal, and now I won't have to worry about buying deodorant for the rest of the year! This is just one of those examples of God helping me be frugal that inspired me to start this blog in the first place. He's totally watching out for me and helping me get what I need to care for my family without breaking the bank.
I also bought a few other small items that we needed and used a coupon or rebate (yogurt, butter, some other canned veggies, cream cheese), and did just enough to qualify for a bonus rebate on Ibotta, so in addition to the money I'm already getting back for making those purchases, I'm getting an extra $5 in my account.
The one thing I didn't get on my list that I need to do this week (my kids needed to get home for naps and this would have required an extra stop at a different store) was Oxiclean laundry detergent. It's on sale right now at both Walgreens and RiteAid for $3.99, and there is a printable coupon for $3 off one bottle of Oxiclean laundry detergent. That makes it only $1 a 40oz bottle. This is the cheapest it ever gets, and it usually only goes that cheap this time of year. I need to stock up! I'll be making another trip for that later :)
Also, if anyone is interested, toothpaste can be purchased at RiteAid for free this week! Check their ad for details, and be aware that you have to use a printable coupon and have a RiteAid card for this deal (it's one of those "rolling rewards" deals).
Anyway, that's all for now! Happy frugal shopping!
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