Shopping at Publix: Coupon Stacking

At a recent shopping trip at Publix, I was looking for 2 products. The 2 products were to be stacked with manufacturer coupons, an ibotta rebate, a MobiSave rebate, and a Checkout51 rebate.

The goal? Enjoy life products and Simply Good Jell-O.

The Enjoy life cookies are $4.99 per box and the manufacturer coupon is $1.50 off 2 boxes. I will pay $8.48 out of pocket.

After the purchase, I will stack the savings from the manufacturer coupon with the rebates. I am adding the manufacturer to the MobiSave rebate ($1.50 off 2 boxes) and ibotta rebate ($2 off 2 boxes).

Here is the breakdown: 

$9.98

-$1.50 manufacturer coupon

= $8.48

-$2 ibotta rebate

=$6.48

-$1.50 MobiSave rebate

=$4.98 for 2 boxes (or $2.49 each after rebates)

There is a sale on Simply Good Jello-O is typically $1.49 each and on sale for $1 each.

Checkout51 has a rebate for 75¢ off 1 package. 

Here is the breakdown: 

$1 out of pocket

- 75¢ Checkout51 rebate

= 25¢ after rebate

Bonus from ibotta! Any rebate redeemed on a brand name item (as opposed to generic) is rewarded with $5! My total for the cookies and the pudding was $5.23. Adding the $5 bonus into the mix, it is like the entire shopping trip was only 23¢!

Sandal Season Sighting

While at my husband's soccer game, it was apparent that sandal season is upon us in Florida. The temperatures are rising and becoming warmer every day. 

This poor gal has an unwanted ankle accessory. I was sad for her as I watched her take care of her small child at the game. She did not strike me to be someone that would act contrary to the law. 

Things that make ya go hmmmm.

Homemade Latte

Calling all latte lovers! This deal is for you!

International Delight has a new product called One Touch Latte. With a flick of the wrist, you can have instantly have a caffè latte without needing a cappuccino maker!

The deal is at Target using a manufacturer coupon and a discount from the Target Cartwheel app (see more about the app here). There are 2 manufacturer coupons in this scenario: one from the paper ($1.50 off) and the other on the Cartwheel app ($1.05 off). I used the $1.50 off. 

Here is the breakdown:

$3.79 for 1 One Touch Latte
- 15% Cartwheel discount
= $3.22
-  $1.50 coupon
= $1.72 (approximately a 55% savings)

Not a terrible addition to coffee!

Shaving Cream Explosion

I'm not sure what happened here. 

I went to turn on the water in the shower and realized that the corner of the tub was covered in shaving cream. 

I'm not sure how this happened. 

I looked at the bottom of the can of shaving cream hoping to see an obvious cause. 

I'm not sure when this happened. 

The can is now empty when it had been half full. It was fine yesterday morning when I showered. This morning the tables turned. 

I'm not sure why this happened. 

Upon closer inspection, my husband was able to sleuth until he reached an explanation. There is a slight hole in the bottom rim of the can. It was so slight that it was not very visible to the naked eye. 

Good thing I have a stash of shaving cream, like so many items I've gathered from couponing. 

Sales & Coupons at Publix

Target has coupons in their weekly ad that are accepted at our regional Publix stores (see more on tricks with competitor coupons here). This time around Target was featuring $5 off a $15 purchase of Pepsi products. Good time to stock up!

In addition to this great coupon is the Publix sale on Pepsi 12 packs. The sale is Buy 2 Get 1 Free (B2G1). Each 12 pack is $5.29. With the sale, we will stack the sale and the Target coupon. Not a bad start!

A competitor coupon like this would be counted after sale prices. 3 packs would normally get us to the $15 requirement to use this coupon. Because the sale is B2G1, we arrive at $10.58 for 3 packs. I made an executive decision to purchase 6 packs total (2 of which will be free with the sale).

Publix also has a coupon for $2 off any 2 12 packs of Dr Pepper. In our region, Pepsi distributes Dr Pepper making it a "Pepsi product" in the coupon world. 

Since I committed to buying 6 packs to take advantage of the sale and the Target coupon, I used 2 of the Publix coupons (see photo below). I chose 4 packs of Dr Pepper to use the Publix coupon. 

Checkout 51 (previous post here) has a rebate for 50¢ a single 12 pack of Diet Pepsi. 

That adds up to a quadruple stack (Publix sale + Target coupon + Publix coupon + Checkout 51 rebate). Now we're talkin'!

Here is the soft drink breakdown: 

$21.16 (quantity 6 of 12 packs at sale price after B2G1)

- $4 (quantity 2 of the Publix coupon)

- $5 (Target coupon)

= $12.16 for 6 12 packs (or $2.03 for each 12 pack)

- $0.50 Checkout 51 rebate

= $11.66

Quadruple stacked deal!

The other Publix coupon in the photo above is for Dannon Greek yogurt. These yogurts were on sale also with the price set at 10 for $10. I used a manufacturer coupon that was $1 off 5 single Greek yogurts. The bummer of the situation is that I only had 1 of those manufacturer coupons. 

Here is the yogurt breakdown: 

$10 (for 10 on sale)

- $3 Publix coupon

- $1 manufacturer coupon

= $6 for 10 (or 60¢ each)

Double stacked deal!

I had a coupon for a free Old Orchard juice. Single stack and free!

The retail value of this shopping trip would have been $46.43. After sales, competitor coupons, manufacturer coupons, and Publix coupons, I paid $18.16 + tax. 

I always feel like I win the capitalist game when I save more than I actually pay. This outing was definitely a winner!

Scalloped Potatoes

Comfort food is the delicious. It can be nostalgic and instantly transport you to a time gone by just by the smell alone. 

I had a craving for scalloped potatoes and realized it had been years since I have had it.  Fortunately, it was one of those times that I had all the ingredients for this sudden inspiration. 

I found the recipe posted on Gimme Some Oven. There are certain elements of a recipe post that appeal to me. First, the simplicity of the preparation. Second, the ingredients are known and not obscure. Finally, where the recipe is posted aka street cred. The preparation and ingredients are basic. The name of the site, Gimme Some Oven, is clever. I was sold!

Easy enough recipe with sequential steps. 

Bake for 1 hour and serve!

It could have used a tad more salt given the large amount of potatoes I used. 

Creamy + bubbly = delicious

Shopping at Walgreens

Shopping at drug stores can be just as much savings as grocery stores or other box stores. As always, you must know prices to detect a true deal. 

I had a list of things I wanted to purchase at Walgreens because I had coupons and they had sales. What a dynamic duo! 

I wanted to get Dawn dish liquid, Scotch Brite scrubbers, and Cottonelle wipes. 

I use the Walgreens app to help me organize my shopping trip. From the app, the weekly ad is available. Each item in the ad can be added to the shopping list feature by a quick tap. 

Dawn dish liquid was on sale for 99¢ with the Walgreens app. I had a 25¢ off coupon and paid 74¢ total. 

The Scotch Brite products were BOGO. I had a $1 off coupon on 2 products. I paid $1.99 for 2 products after the combination of the sale and the coupon. $1 per package! The Cottonelle box of wipes was on sale for $1.99. No coupons. Just a sale. 

There is always an item you don't have on your list that ends up in your cart. This was a deal that was too good to refuse! The offer? Crest Sensi-Repair & Prevent toothpaste. Normally priced at $4.79 per box, this item was on clearance for $1.19! That's a 75% savings with NO coupons! Yes, please! I'll take 4!

The total for this Walgreens trip is $12.96 and a total savings of $23.49. 

Disclaimer: one of the items on the receipt is a furry friend for my niece! See more here.