CVS for the week of 6/28 and another money-saving tip

My trip this week was awesome! I wanted to share. *grin*

• 2 bounty 8-pack paper towels (only one pictured--I couldn't fit the other one in!)+
• 1 pack Orbit gum+
• 2 packs new pretzel peanut M&M's

(gross to me--hate the sweet/salty combo--but a good treat for the boys!) +

• 2 Banana boat sunscreens ($7 ECB back)+
• 1 Ziploc sandwich baggies+
• 1 Ziploc quart freezer baggies+
• 6 Ziploc Gallon freezer baggies

($5 ECB back for each purchase of four Ziplock = $10 back)+

• 2 Stayfree

*********************************************************************

3 transactions-- two on my card, and one on Shane's.

I did Shane's transaction first, and here is the breakdown:
4 Ziplock
Total merchandise? $15.56 plus tax
Subtotal with sale prices: $10 plus tax
Used (2) $1 off coupons and $4 ECB from last week
New total: $4.65
with $5 ECB back!
They paid me for shopping.

Then mine:
1 Bounty
2 M&M
2 Banana Boat
minus coupons:
$5 off $25
$2 and $.25 Bounty
BOGO M&M (they were BOGO at CVS which = 2 free!)
(2) $1 Banana Boat
minus $10 and $5 ECB from last week
$27.85 worth of merchandise for an out of pocket total of:
$2.02
AND
$7 in ECB back!
Yay! Paid again.

Then:
4 Ziploc
1 Bounty
2 Stayfree
1 Orbit (needed a cheap filler to put me over $25--clearance gum is always a great option!)
minus coupons:
$5 off $25
(2) $1 Ziploc
$2 and $.25 Bounty
(1) BOGO Stayfree (worth 6.99--and Stayfree was BOGO so they were both free again)
minus:
$3 ECB and $1 ECB from last week
$39.02 worth of merchandise for a total of:
$4.61
with $5 ECB back!!
Paid. Again.

$82.43 worth of merchandise
for
$11.28 out of pocket
and
$17 Extra Care bucks back in my pocket.
A $5.72 moneymaking trip!

And here is the ultimate kicker:
SC Johnson had a mail in rebate (ended 6/30) worth $5 on the purchase of three of their products--Ziplock included. I will apply twice more for the Ziplock I purchased (rebate is good up to three times and I already sent one in for three Windex I bought) and will receive a check in the mail for $10.

Meaning: between CVS and SC Johnson, I will be paid $15.72 for taking the above merchandise home.

CAN YOU BELIEVE IT?

I can't. I still can't believe I can shop like this!

"But what on earth do you do with all those baggies?"

Baggies get major use at our house. I choose to use the good ones for the freezer--and they are not cheap. I need them constantly for my baking and my meat storage.

My garden is starting to produce the first zucchini of the season (yay!) and soon I will be baking my zucchini bread. When all is said and done, I usually bake somewhere in the neighborhood of 70 loaves.

{Yes, I know that seems crazy...but between Shane and my three boys, we can go through one and a half loaves just in one breakfast! I freeze my loaves and we eat it all year round. }

I wrap the bread well in foil and then store two loaves in one gallon Ziploc bag.

Also, I always, always stock up when meat is on sale. Seems like a "duh", right? But this one actually took me a little while to figure out. Buying the family pack always seemed like too much meat--and I felt like it would be a waste. Here's how I make it work for our family:

I bring the meat home, fillet the breasts, divide it all up between freezer baggies, add marinade according to my menu if necessary, seal them up and freeze them.

The breasts below made one meal of Italian marinated breasts for the grill, one bag of regular, and one smaller bag of diced chicken for a casserole. Also pictured are my clearance legs--one BBQ and one marinated in Balsamic vinegar, both for the grill. All this meat (five meals worth) cost me a little less than $10--less than $2 per meal, for a family of five eaters.




I seal out all the air, and freeze them flat to save room in my freezer. You can see the ones that are already frozen on the bottom, below the marinated ones. I pull them out the night before, and as they defrost, they marinate. Saves time when you need something quick to grab for a dinner prep.



This tip works great for us, and really saves big money when I stock up at the sale price.

What about you--are you CVSing yet? What is your BEST money-saving tip??