We’ve been so very fortunate lately to have such great coupon sales.  This week, Kmart is doubling coupons of up to $2.  Visit Kmart’s website and type in your zip code to see if your store is participating.  Also, when I clicked on the Kmart link, it had an offer to get two $5 Kmart coupons when you sign up for their email alerts.  These are probably emailed to you.

Of course, there are a few rules to this coupon sale:

• You must purchase $25 or more of merchandise in order to get your coupons doubled.
• There is a limit of 10 doubled coupons per trip.
• Coupons of up to $2 will be doubled.  No overage will be given.
• Limit 4 like items per trip.
• Internet coupons will be accepted.
• Kmart store coupons do not apply to this offer.

Since there is a limit of 10 coupons per trip, this may not be worth your while.  The value of this deal will depend upon your time and gas involved.  If you live or work near Kmart, you could make several small trips and have a lot of savings.

Good luck!

We went to our Super Target yesterday and they had sweet ears of corn 10 for $1.  Ten cents an ear is a really great price!  I cooked some on the grill tonight and it was so good and sweet.

There is a limit of 50 ears of corn per person.  I bought some for us to eat this week, some to put in the freezer, and also some to share with the neighbors. 

As always, I recommend calling to see if your store is running the same sale.

Enjoy the savings!

image from sxc.hu

I try not to toot my own horn, but I have to let you all know that it was such an honor to be on the list of the 30 Deal Hunters to Follow on Twitter.  This list was compiled by Savings.com.

You can follow me (thriftymommy) on twitter @thriftymommy, Jennifer Chait @jenniferchait, and you can also follow Savings.com @Savings.

Harris Teeter is having a super double coupon sale. They will double coupons with a face value of $1.98 or less.

I went shopping yesterday with a 3 and 5-year-old. Yay, me!  I made it out alive and with some bargains as well.  I hope to make it back in before the sale goes off, but here’s what I got today:

Starbucks 4 pk Frappuccinos (mommy’s splurge item)
7.19 reg price, 6.49 sale price
$1 coupon
$4.49 final

Hefty one zip bags
2.99 reg price, 2.50 sale price
$1 coupon
$.50 final

Kraft dressing
$2.82 regular price, $2.50 sale price
$1 coupon
$.50 final

100 calorie packs
$2.29 reg price, $2 sale price
$.55 coupon
$.90 final

Ocean Spray Cranberry Grape juice (bought 2)
$3.19 regular, buy 1 get 1 free sale
$.55 coupon (only had 1 coupon)
$2.09 final for 2

Smart Balance peanut butter
$3.29 reg
$1 coupon
$1.29 final

Pringles canister (bought 2)
$2.15 each reg
$1 coupon off 2
$2.30 for 2

French’s Mustard (specialty mustard)
$3.29 reg, $3 sale
$1 coupon
$1 final

Beechnut DHA baby cereal, 7 oz (bought 2)
$3.29 each reg
$1 coupon on each
$1.29 each final

Dr Pepper ice cream topping
$2.99 reg, $2 sale
$1 coupon
FREE

Gold Bond baby powder
$3.49 reg, $2.49 sale
$1 coupon
$.49 final

Suave lotion
$2.97 reg
$1 coupon
$.97 final

Vaseline lotion
$3.49 reg
$1.25 coupon
$.99 final

Activia 4 pk yogurt (bought 2, had 2 coupons)
$2.50 reg, $2 sale
$1 coupon
FREE x2

Bayer Caplets
$7.59 reg, bogo sale for $3.80 (bought 1)
$1 coupon
$1.80 final (for 1)

I got all of these groceries for around $20. It would have been less, but I was supposed to get the 4 oz baby cereals. I don’t need them, but was anticipating buying them for $.39 and donating them to the church food bank. They were stocked in the wrong place. This could have happened with several other items, but I noticed it myself. It seems the people that stock the shelves put things in other areas when they run out of room. It is annoying, but seems to happen at every store, so be careful.

I’m pleased with my deals, but feel like I could have done better if I wasn’t trying to shop with two children. I hope to share some more bargains with you later in the week.

Have you been to Harris Teeter for their super double coupon sale? What kind of bargains did you find?

image (c) Karen Weideman

For quite a while now I’ve been using the same coupon organization system. I was using The Grocery Game to help me find deals on groceries. The Grocery Game tells you which week of the paper to pull the coupons from so that you don’t need to clip the coupons until you need them.

The filing system shown above a great system to use if you’re only using The Grocery Game.  I definitely like the convenience of the system.  The big problem is, I’m missing out on saving money on unadvertised specials, close-outs, and triple coupon sales.  I can’t tell you the number of times I’ve been in a store and seen an advertised special or close-out item.  I know I have a coupon for the item, but since the coupons are not clipped, I have to search through all the inserts and hope to find what I need.

Finally I have switched to a new coupon organizing system!

I am now using the coupon organizer inserts from Smart Spending Resources.  The coupon organizer inserts fit into a regular 3-ring binder which sits on your grocery cart allowing you to flip through the binder and find the coupons you need.  A few things I like about this system from Smart Spending Resources:

1)  The coupons can be easily viewed.
2) The tabs are neat and professionally printed.
3) You can easily find coupons you need for unadvertised specials, close-outs, and triple coupon deals.
4) The system is neat and keeps loose coupons under control.
5) The system is expandable. More pages can easily be added to each section as needed.

A few tips for those who are interested in this system:
1) Be sure to buy an oversized 3-ring binder. I bought a regular binder and I mine is slipping around on the cart. I plan to pick up a larger binder the next time I go to the store. It will make couponing so much easier.
2) I would recommend purchases extra insert pages.
3) You might want to consider buying a zipper pencil pouch for your binder. I purchased one and will use it to put coupons I know that I will be using or to store my pen and calculator.

As always, I try to provide an honest product review, so I will tell you that this system is a lot more time consuming than my previous method.  I feel that the savings will be worth my time though.  As I’ve told you all before . . . Time is Money but Money is Time.

Have you tried the binder organizing system?

top image (c) Karen Weideman, bottom image (c) Smart Spending Resources

Right now Restaurant.com has 70% off their gift certificates.  Get a $25 dining certificate for only $3.  Simply enter the code TASTY at the checkout and hit “apply”.

This sale ends Saturday, May 16, 2009.

image from restaurant.com

As I mentioned a few weeks ago, I was challenged to use A Full Cup to see how much money I could save and how much I could get for $50.  Well, take a look at these pictures!

A Full Cup is a free online forum where others write about deals, coupons, and savings.  You can find coupon match-ups, printable coupons, and lots of information on saving money.

All of the items here were purchased from Harris Teeter using buy 1 get 1 free sales, coupons, and triple coupon deals.  The items were purchased during two separate visits to the store.

With my experience, everything went pretty smoothly.  There were a few disappointments with my transactions.  1)  I purchased the three boxes of Jose Ole’ products because they were buy 1 get 2 free.  I was really excited about getting three boxes for about $6 and my husband enjoys eating the taquitos. I bought the boxes and then in the Sunday paper there was two coupons for the products.  I didn’t have room in my freezer to go back and get more.  Oh well.  2)  The other disappointment was with Harris Teeter’s coupon policies.  They are only accepting two printable coupons for like products.  I had to put back some of my cereal and All detergent.  Boo! 

I probably could have gotten more for the money, BUT sometimes you have to weigh things.  I asked myself, ‘Would I rather get the small French’s mustard for free just so that I could say it was free . . . or would I rather get the large French’s mustard with a bonus 40% more for $.50?’.  I had to make this decision on several items.  Sometimes it is worth it to pay a little more for the better deal.

The bottom line:  Yes, there is some junk food here (please don’t cast stones), but it will be consumed in moderation.  Overall, I got things that our family can use and I was able to get a lot of groceries for about $51-52.  All of this would have cost me about $140 without the coupons and sales.  I’m pleased with my bargains.

Have you tried A Full Cup?

image (c) Karen Weideman

Guest post by Katie.

*Lowes Foods always Doubles Coupons up to .99, so the price reflects the doubled coupons.
Also - On Buy 1 Get 1 Free Items, you only have to purchase one and it will ring up at half price. If you buy 2, you can use 2 coupons!

All of the following are a part of the 4 packages for 20.00:
Center Cut Bone In Pork Chops
Center Cut Thick Sliced Boneless Pork Chops
Boneless Blade End Pork Roast
5 ct. Bone In Pork Chops Family Pack
Bone-In Pork Steaks
Boneless Beef Top Sirloin Steaks
Family Pack Beef
Boneless Cube Steaks
Perdue Fresh Chicken - Value Pack Leg Quarters, Drumsticks or Thighs Sanderson Farms Boneless Chicken Breast, Chicken Breast Tenderloins or Whole Cut-Up Chickens
Shady Brook Farms 99% Lean Ground Turkey Breast
80% Lean Premium Ground Beef (2 lb. pkgs.)
80% Lean Ground Beef Patties- sold in pkgs. of four (4) 6 oz. patties
2 lb. Steak-Umm Burgers
3 lb. Jennie-O Turkey Burgers
3 lb. Valleydale Franks
Curly’s Pulled Pork Barbecue
Fast Fixins Italian or Beef Meatballs
.75q from All You Magazine
Fast Fixins Popcorn Chicken Nuggets or Strips T
.75q from All You Magazine
Tennessee Pride Breakfast Sandwiches
1.00q from 2/18 SS
Swaggerty’s Sausage Patties
1.00q printable
Foster Farms Corn Dogs

3 Day Sale! Valid May 1st, 2nd & 3rd ONLY!!
Lowes Foods Large Eggs .99 ea. (limit 2)
Cabot Salted Butter $1.99 (limit 4)
Lowes Foods Apple Juice (64 oz.) .99 (limit 4)
Fresh Express Iceberg Garden .99 (limit 2)
Bounty Paper Towels (8 giant rolls) $8.49 (limit 2)
1.00q 4/5 P & G
.25q 4/5 P & G
Gain 2x Detergent (100 oz.) $8.49 (limit 2)
1.00q 3/15 P & G
.25q 1/18 P & G

Buy One Get One Free Deals
Russet Potatoes 5 lb. - Makes it 2.24 ea
Edy’s Ice Cream - Makes it 2.69 ea
Lowes Foods Macaroni & Cheese - Makes it .44 ea
Star’s Pimento Spread - Makes it .74 ea

Other Sales:
Hormel Pork Roast 4.99
House of Raeford Chicken Drummettes (2.5 lb.) 5.99
Gwaltney Ham Slice (smoked center cut) 3.49/lb.
Smithfield Smoked Sausage 2/5.00
John Morrell Off The Bone 2/6.00
Oscar Mayer Lunchables 2/3.00
Weight Watchers Yogurt 10/5.00
Borden Cheese Singles 2/4.00
California Pizza Kitchens 2/10.00
Yo Crunch Yogurt 10/6.00
Eggland’s Best Large White Eggs 2/4.00
Totino’s Pizza Rolls 2/6.00
.35q 1/11 SS
General Mills Cereals: Total Whole Grain, Raisin Nut Brand, Cinnamon Toast Crunch, Honey Nut Cheerios 2/$6
1.00 Coupon Booklet
Dole Fruitbowls 5/10.00
1.00/2 4/26 SS - Makes it 2/3.00
Jiffy Corn Muffin Mix 2/0.90
Fiber One Toaster Pastries 2/4.00
1.00q 2/22 SS - Makes it 2/3.00
Nutri-Grain Cereal Bars 2/5.00
Chef Boyardee Pasta Bowls 5/5.00
Success White Rice 2/4.00
1.00q 2/8 SS - Makes it 2/3.00
Bertolli Pasta Sauce 2/5.00
1.00q 4/5 SS - Makes it 2/3.00
Lowes Foods Salt & Pepper Set 2/2.00
Van Camp’s Baked Beans (28 oz.) 4/5.00
Betty Crocker Browines (family size) 4/5.00
Furmano’s Tomatoes (28 oz.) 2/3.00
Miracle Whip or Kraft Real Mayo 2.99
Fritos Dip 2/5.00
Sunshine Cheez-Its 2/5.00
Kool-Aid Jammers (10 packs) 2/4.00
Gatorade (64 oz) 1.66
Welch’s Grape Juice (64 oz) 2.99
Spray n’ Wash 2/4.00
Glad Cling Wrap 2/4.00
Crystal Light Drink Mixes 2.99
Use Buy 2, Get 1 Freeq Makes it 5.98/3

Produce
Hass Avocados 3/5.00
Concord Guacamole Mix 0.99
Mangos 5/5.00
Vidalia Onions 0.99/lb.
Fresh Express Shredded Lettuce (8 oz.) 3/5.00

Katie is a blogger and married mom with two kids. You can find her at Coupon Queens of Laurel Run.

A Full Cup is a FREE online forum with printable coupons and the latest information on money saving deals.  You can click on links to find sale and coupon information for just about any store.   They are celebrating the new look and enhanced features by offering giveaways on their site and one here at Thrifty Mommy.

I have been challenged to see how much I can save by using A Full Cup.  I am excited about using the online printable coupons and the information on coupon match-ups to find the most savings.  It’s a thrill to find food and toiletries for almost free!  I will be posting my A Full Cup savings later this week, so stay tuned for that.

Here’s a YouTube video that explains a little bit about how the site works. I found it to be beneficial.

Save Green and Go Green with AFullCup.com Giveaway - A Full Cup is sponsoring a Thrifty Mommy giveaway with an A Full Cup reusable shopping bag and a $25 prepaid American Express card!  Woohoo!

Ways to enter the giveaway:

Please leave a comment for each one.  It just makes it easier when choosing a winner.

1)  Register at A Full Cup using the referral link here at Thrifty Mommy.  Leave me your AFullCup name.

2)  Be an active member at A Full Cup.  After you have registered using the referral link, to become an active member you need to post five or more times on the forum.  Leave me your AFullCup name.

3)  Check out A Full Cup and leave a comment below telling me your favorite features of the online forum.

4)  Take the A Full Cup savings challenge.  Since you have to shop for groceries anyway, see how much you can purchase with $25 or $50 while using A Full Cup.  Post your savings on your blog and leave a link here or let us know in the comments.  We’d really enjoy hearing how you did.

5)  Follow @thriftymommy on Twitter.  Leave a comment with your Twitter name.

6)  Tweet this post and leave your Twitter name or status url. To retrieve your Twitter status url, simply click on the timestamp of your tweet. It will say something like, “5 seconds ago from the web”. You can earn 3 twitter entries each day for each time you tweet this giveaway. You must leave a comment for each tweet.

7)  Give the post a thumbs up on Stumble Upon and leave your Stumble name.

8)  Blog about this giveaway and leave a direct link to your post.

9)  Mention this giveaway on any forums or message boards and leave me a link.

10)  Add Thrifty Mommy and/or Keeping the Castle and/or to your blogroll.  You can earn a separate entry for each one.

This contest ends Thursday, April 23, 2009 and is available to those with a U.S. shipping address (no P.O. boxes please). The winner will be contacted by email and will have only24 hours to respond or another winner will be chosen so be sure to check your email. You will not be put on a mailing list, but you must include your email address in the second box under your name (not in comment box).

Good luck everyone and thanks for playing!

Michael’s just sent me an email with a printable coupon for 40% off.  The coupon requires a minimum purchase of $5.  These coupons are a great way to purchase things at a fraction of the cost.  Sometimes I use my coupons to get Crayola Wonder pads or other gifts for the kids.

I’m not sure how many times this coupon will print, so hurry!  The coupon is good Monday, April 13 through Saturday, April 18.  Print the coupon here.

image from michaels