Nothing beats FREE chocolate - (even on a D-I-E-T)

After seeing this post on Mrs. January's Blog, I ran to my coupon binder to see if I had any coupons left... and I did.  In fact I had 4 of them.


So off I went to RCSS today to get my F-R-E-E chocolate. ( The flyer sale is Buy one get one free of M&M's stand-up pouch.)

The conversation with the cashier went something like this after I handed her my 4 coupons from save.ca for receive a M&M’s pretzel stand up pouch FREE when you purchase any M&M’s (no longer available)

Cashier :  "But you are already getting 4 for free"
Me: "Yes, I know, that's your flyer sale.  And I have 4 coupons I would like to use too please."
Cashier: "But you can't get all 8 for free."
Me: "Yes I can, because I'm combining a sale with a coupon."
Cashier: "But-you-can't-get-all-8-for-free."
Me: " Can you double check with Customer Service Please?"

(Remained calm & polite the entire time, even though Little A was determined to make the conveyor belt GO FASTER)

Head Cashier : " She's not doing anything wrong. Actually she's doing everything right." (wink, wink)
Me: "Thank-you."
Cashier: "But she can't get all 8 for free."
Head Cashier: "It's not her fault, someone programmed the sale wrong into the system. Enjoy your chocolate."
Cashier: Shakes her head...
Me: "Thank-you."

So, each one had been priced for $3.79.  The store flyer stated, buy one get one free.  With my coupon I got the other one for FREE.  Buy using my coupons and coming with the sale I saved $30.32 on these chocolates.
I like having these around for bribery ice cream/dessert toppings for the kids.  I probably won't eat any of it.

Thank-you Mrs. January (you should check out her blog)
So do you have any around?  I think they expire January 31, 2011

Never bypass Clearance items at your grocery store!!

Wow that is a long title! But I'm trying to get my point accross. :-)

I went off to nearby grocery store (No Frills) to pick up some items that are on sale and that I wanted to combine with a coupon to get my best price and from accross the 3 or 4 other shoppers buggies I saw a 50%PINK Sticker!
 (What happens next, is a bit of a blur.  I may or may not have pushed my away over, and trampled a 80 yr old in the process.  Just joking about the trampling.)

This is what I picked up for $5.76

Cost Break down:

2 Minigo - $1.00 - minus 2 @ .50 cent coupon from here - $1.00

Dr. Oetker Mouse - Free from this promotion

4 French's mustard - $1.00 each - minues 2 coupons @ $1.50 when you buy 2 from here = $1.00

4 Danone Crush @ 4.89 each - minus 50% sticker - minus 4 coupons @ 1.50 each from Here =$3.76

The mustard will be going to the food bank, cause I already have enough.

And for .25 cents a piece I can share.

The yogurt will be for my kids school lunches. They've been begging me for these yogurts for a while (cause of a cool commercial on tv), but I was  too cheap frugal to buy them. But for less than a dollar a piece... they will be the coolest kids in the cafeteria at school. lol

By the way, the reason they are on clearance, is because they expire on January 27th. I'm pretty sure they will be all gone by then... All four containers.

So, do you ever check the clearance items or marked down items at your store?

Are coupons worth it?

Have you seen the TLC show "Extreme Couponing" that aired a few weeks ago? I have mixed feelings about the show as I think these extreme couponers were used for ratings.  Of course the coupon rules in the U.S. are different than here in Canada (at least in my province), but their shopping trips were quite exagerated.

As I'm sure I've mentioned before, I am an avid coupon user.  Although I am not "extreme" by an means, I do try to make the best use of my coupons by combining sales with coupons. I have a set price that I will pay for an item, unless I don't have it in stock and I'm desperate to have it... that day.

After I noticed this morning on a thread on this Forum that Walmart had a sale on an item that I had a few coupons for, I went out and braved the snow and cold weather.

This is what I came home with.

The pasta was on sale for $1.00 and I had 8 coupons @ $1.00. = FREE

Lean Cuisine was $1.97 and I had another Free Product coupon from this facebook promo = FREE

1 head of Romaine lettuce = $1.00

Bag of Spinach = $1.47

Bananas @ .67cents/lb $1.50 - $1.00 (from back of cereal box) = .50cents

2 Oasis juice @ 2.97 - 2@ .75cent coupon = $4.44

Total for shopping trip is $7.41

Total Coupon Savings = $ 12.47

(The Savings is not taking into account the fact that all these items were on sale to begin with)

I'm obviously not done my shopping for the week, but I would say I don't have to buy pasta for awhile.

So, what do you think?

Are coupons worth it?