First Week of May - Saved $231.76

In an effort to help point beginning couponers in the right direction, I have decided to change up my blog format a bit! I have been approached by quite a few people about couponing and I'd love to not only encourage you with pictures of what coupons can buy, but show you where I am finding my deals every week. If you're new to couponing and would like to learn, be sure to check out The Coupon Project's "Coupons 101" series! This series was how I learned to coupon and a great resource for all beginners!!

This Week's Shopping Trips

Shelf cost: $257.75

What I paid: $35.50 (plus I have a $5 Target card left)
Saved 90%

Walgreens

I found my deals through Fabulessly Frugal's Walgreens matchup. These deals (and a bunch more!) are good through Saturday, May 7th.

2 - 12 roll packs of Cottonelle toilet paper ($2 each!)
2 boxes of Tylenol Precise heat patches (free!)
1 Gillette ProGlide Razor starter kit (free! - normally $.89 right now, but I got a special P&G mailer with a $5 off coupon!)

Target

For this deal and more, check out Thrifty and Thriving's Target deals. These deals are good through Saturday, May 7th.

1 can of Sauve Professionals Hairspray (free! - got a free coupon in the mail, no longer available)
2 boxes of John Frieda Precision Foam Hair Color (These are on a gift card deal: buy 2 get a $5 gift card back, plus there are some awesome coupons to pair with them! I have been rolling my gift card deals, which means I took the gift card I earned from a different sale a few weeks ago and used it to pay for this deal, earning back another $5 gift card to replace the one I used to pay for the hair color.)

Walmart

I originally went to Walmart looking for some very specific deals, none of which I could find (don't yuh hate it when that happens?) Sooo I decided not to make it a totally wasted trip and pick up a few free or essential items.

1 package of Starkist Tuna (used $.50/1 coupon from Starkist facebook page, available every Friday)

1 bottle of Lysol dual sided wipes (used $1.50/1 coupon from Lysol facebook page - NLA)

2 boxes of Ziploc evolve sandwich bags (used $1/2 coupon from the 4/3 smartsource insert) (I didn't realize how low we were and totally ran out before I could find a good sale, so I figured Walmart would be one of the cheapest places to buy them. The evolve bags were cheaper than the normal kind!)

1 bag of Uncle Ben's Ready Rice (used a free coupon I got in the mail - NLA)

1 pack of Jello Temptations (used a free coupon I got in the mail from Kraft First Taste- not sure if it's still available)

1 Glade Spring Collection candle (used a free coupon I got in the mail - NLA)

Fred Meyer

For these and other great Fred Meyer deals, check out The Coupon Project's Fred Meyer deals. The sales are available through Saturday, May 7th.

2 bottles of Purex laundry detergent ($.99 each!)

2 boxes of Purina One Beyond cat food ($.49 each!)

2 boxes of Baby Swiss Cheez-Its ($.67 each! find the $1/1 coupon here)

1 bottle of Lysol Wipes (this kind was on sale for $1.99 at my store, I combined that with the $1.50/1 facebook coupon to make them $.49! Make sure that they ring up as the sales price though, because mine did not automatically!)

1 box of plastic spoons

Albertsons

These Albertsons doubler deals ended on Tuesday (5-3). If you don't know what Albertsons doublers are (also called Twice the Value coupons) or how they work, click the link above to find out! I generally find the best lists of doubler ideas from Fabulessly Frugal and Happy Money Saver.

2 - 1/2 gallons of Horizon Organic DHA Omega-3 Chocolate Milk (Found these on bonus buy and combined it with a coupon+doubler. This is a great example of why I carry my coupon binder with me while I go shopping! You never know what you're going to find on unadvertised sale or clearance!)

2 - 1/2 gallons of Newman's Own Virgin Lemonade ($.49 each!)

2 bags of Santitas tortilla chips
1 bag of Tostitos Hint of Lime tortilla chips

2 - 20 oz boxes of Bisquick (had a rain check from a previous sale)

2 boxes of Ronzoni Healthy Harvest whole grain pasta

2 boxes of Better Oats blueberry oatmeal (free!)

1 - 6 pack of Propel ($.50!)

4 Tony's Pizzas (free! Plus 3 of them have an offer for 20 free prints from Snapfish!)

3 - 5 count boxes of Allegra Allergy medicine (free! - had a rain check from a previous sale)

10 pouches of Idahoan potatoes ($.04 each! - had a rain check from a previous sale. We've never tried these, but I figured if we don't like them, I'll give the rest to my brother or a food pantry. Definitely worth the $.40 either way!)

QFC

I found these deals on The Coupon Project's QFC matchup. The sale runs through Tuesday, May 10th!

5 boxes of Ronzoni Smart Taste pasta ($.25 each!)

4 boxes of Ronzoni Healthy Harvest pasta ($.25 each!)

2 boxes of Mom's Naturals cereal ($.24 each!)

2 bags of Quaker Quakes ($.48 each!)

1 bottle of Kraft BBQ sauce (free with manufacture's coupon on the back of the Albertsons ad!)

6 bottles of Men's Nivea body wash ($.49 each! - what can I say, hubby loves body wash, lol!)

Happy shopping!!