Kroger Loss Leaders and Highlights Week of October 5

Prices and scenarios are based on the Metro Atlanta sales circular. Our sales week runs from Sunday-Saturday. To find the ad for your store click here. Manufacturer coupons with a face value of .50 or less double. When items are on sale BOGO you only have to buy one to receive the 50% discount. If the sale is 10 for $10 you can buy just one for $1.

I try to only focus on the best deals each week. For a complete list of sales with coupon matchups from the Sunday coupon inserts visit Coupon Mom's website during the week of the sale.

There are several FREE and cheap after coupon items this week so be sure not to miss those deals!

The Best of the Loss Leaders:

Kroger Value White or Wheat Bread .89

Anjou Pears $1/lb

Kroger Mini Carrots $1/lb bag

Eggs $1.28/dozen

Gala Apples $1/lb

Ground Beef 73% lean $1.59/lb

Perdue Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast $1.99/lb

Tangerines $2.99 3 pound bag

Orange Juice $2.99/gallon - ~.50 increase over last weeks price

Kroger 16 oz cheese $2.99 WOW! I know cheese is expensive, but it has been a while since I have seen it for this price. If you didn't stock up last week, now is the time. It can be frozen in the bag and is great to use for casseroles. Stockpiling cheese is especially helpful if you cook casseroles for multiple meals at once like I do on occasion.

The Best of the Sales With Coupons:

Celestial Seasonings Tea Bags 20 count $1
FREE after $1/1 (10/5 S1)

Mojo Bars (Often found in the health/organic section) $1
FREE after .50/1 doubled (Mambo Sprouts Book)

Nesquik Milk or Milkshakes $1/1
FREE after $.50/1 doubled (9/14 RP)

Totinos Pizza Rolls 15 count $1
FREE after $1/1 printable coupon OR
.30/1 after .35/1 doubled (8/10 GM or 10/5 GM)

Fresh Express Cole Slaw $1
.25/1 after .75/1 blinkie found next to product

Green Giant Vegetables $1
.50/1 after .50/1 Shortcuts coupon.
.25/1 after .50/1 OR .50/2 Shortcuts coupon AND .50/2 doubled (9/7 GM OR 10/5 GM).

Betty Crocker Cake Mix $1
.50 after .50/1 Shortcuts coupon This coupon is one of the "package deal" coupons. You will have to load all 4 coupons on to your card; however, you don't have to buy the other items to get the coupon to work. However, remember you can only have 25 e-coupons loaded to your card at once so be sure to check to see if want different e-coupons loaded to your card before selecting the mulitiple offer coupons.

Sunny D $1
.50 after .25/1 doubled (8/17 RP)

Non-Sale FREE Items After Coupons:

Kiwi Shoelaces
$1/1 Kiwi coupons (10/5 RP)
The .99 shoelaces make great FREE filler items if you are using $/$ coupons.
The shoelaces are great to donate especially if you are sending care packages through the mail. Also, you could get a pair to throw in as an extra stocking stuffer.

Cottonelle 4 Pack Single Roll Toilet Paper
Shortcuts has a NEW Cottonelle .50/1 coupon.
FREE after .50/1 doubled (9/21 S - expires 10/25) Maybe there will be a new one in next week's paper.
.50 Profit after both insert coupon and Shortcuts coupon.

Hunts Tomato Sauce/Products
Here is a $1/2 Hunts Tomato Product printable coupon.
You can print this coupon twice per computer.
This should make the tomato sauce FREE or very cheap.
(Thanks, Slickdeals)

Try Me Free Rebate Form Found:

I found a Try Mee Free Rebate on the bottles of Arm & Hammer Carpet and Fabric Odor Eliminator. The sale price for these bottles was $2 last week. There is a $1/1 coupon that can be found here. Tip: Using a coupon for mail in rebate items helps to cover the cost of the stamp and any taxes that you may have. Most companies will reimburse you for the full purchase price even if you used a coupon.

Don't Forget $/$ Coupons:

Don't forget to use your 2008 Entertainment Book Kroger coupons if you still have any left. (The 2009 Entertainment Books do not have Kroger coupons.) The October coupon is $5/$25 purchase. There is also a $5/$50 purchase that was good for the entire year that expires on October 31. If you do the majority of your shopping at Publix they will accept these as competitor coupons. See my Publix weekly ad posts here to find some of their best deals.

For more Kroger deals be sure to check out my current posts here. Have a great day!

Publix Yellow Advantage Buys Advertisement October 11 - November 7

The Yellow Advantage Buys are additional sales that Publix runs in addition to the weekly ad. These sales run for four weeks. Typically these deals are not as good as the weekly sales, but there is usually at least one or two good deals to be found.

Fall Savings October 11 - November 7:

Sobe Life Water 20 oz. $1
FREE after .50/1 doubled (tearpad)
If you live in FL, GA, NC, SC, TN be sure to save the entire labels from your Sobe bottles for free Sobe items. For more details see the thread here. Post number 5 provides a phone number to obtain the form. I must admit I am disappointed that the promotion for the Southeast did not include the free movie tickets which some areas got.

The following is only a deal if you were planning to buy a deli or bakery item anyway. If you are paying more or buying something that you had not planned to buy then it isn't a deal.

8 Pack Selected Coca-Cola Products 12 oz. bottles
3/$10.00 - I know this is not a deal
$1.33/8 pack after $2 coupon for Deli or Bakery item
Equivalent to paying $1.99 for a 12 pack of 12 oz Cokes. - Which is a good deal.
Note: According to the Rules at MyCokeRewards these packages do not contain points.

Manufacturer's coupons:

There were an above average number of manufuacturer's coupons included in this edition. These coupons say Redeem at Publix because Publix wants to encourage you to use them at their store, but you should be able to use them at any store that accepts manufacturer's coupons. These coupons will not be listed in the Coupon Mom Database or most subscription coupon sales matching services so be sure to add them to your personal database.

$1/1 Gatorade Tiger 8 Pack
.55/2 Hunt's Diced Tomatoes 14.5-28 oz. (if your store doubles the .40/2 coupon (9/21 S) is better as it would be .80/2) Seeing this coupon makes me think that we will not be seeing the BOGO sale I was hoping for.
.55/2 Hunt's Tomato Sauce 15-29 oz.
$1.00/3 Hunt's Tomato Paste 6-12 oz.
$1/2 Hillshire Farm Smoked Sausages
.55/2 Silver Floss Krrrrisp Kraut
$1/1 Ball Park Beef Franks
.75/1 Super Pretzels

Publix Coupon and Rebate:

$1/1 Arm & Hammer Degreaser/Multi surface Cleaner 32 oz or Essentials Cleaner or Multi Refill 2.4 oz - Publix in ad coupon
Try Me Free Rebate for Essentials Cleaners can be found here.
$1/1 manufacturer's coupon can be found here if you are planning to buy it at another store or do not have the Publix coupon. My store will not let me use a Publix coupon and a Manufacturer's coupon together if the Publix coupon states that it may not be used in conjunction with any other coupon. It is my understanding that Publix is refunded by the manufacturer for Publix coupons that have that wording. Not all Publix coupons say that so be sure to check.

For more current Publix deals please check my other Publix posts here.

Publix Highlights for the Week of October 8

Please remember that my ad week begins on Wednesday; however, some areas begin on Thursday. Please check your local ad to verify your ad schedule. These sales and prices are in the Metro Atlanta area where manufacturer coupons with a face value of .50 or less are doubled. For items that are on sale Buy One Get One Free (BOGO) you only have to buy one to get the item 50% off. Be sure to take full advantage of the sales by pairing them with competitor's coupons including $/$ purchase when applicable. I try to find the best deals to post here, but for a complete match up of this week's sale items with coupons from the inserts visit Coupon Mom starting on Thursday.

The Best of the Loss Leaders Without Coupons:

California Bartlett Pears .69/lb

Lettuce .79 - Limit 4

Bosc Pears .99/lb

Publix Classic Salad Mix 16 oz. $1.99 BOGO

Eggplant $1.29/lb - Check back later this week for a couple of my favorite eggplant recipes

Eggs $1.29/dozen - Limit 4

Publix Butter 1 pound $2.00 - Consider stocking up. Recently saw that Wal-Mart had their brand for ~$2.50/lb

Apples 3 pound bag - $2.99

Milk $3.39/gallon - Limit 4
Note: Aldi still has milk advertised for $2.49/gallon - which is a terrific deal currently.

Sales With Competitor Coupon:

California Seedless Grapes $1.69
$.69 for the first pound after $1/1 lb or more Target Printable Coupon

Nestle Coffee-mate Non-Dairy Creamer 16 oz. $1.66
.66 after $1/1 FLIP

Best of the Sales With Coupons:

Lysol Trigger Spray Cleaners $2.69 BOGO
.35/1 after .50/1 doubled (9/1 S1)
If you have children be sure to buy 2 different products (i.e. Kitchen Cleaner and All Purpose Cleaner) to qualify for the $5 Lysol Pediatrician MIR

Lawry's Marinate $2.85 BOGO
.43/1 after .50/1 doubled (8/17 RP)
- Sometimes we can get these for free at Kroger. At Publix they used to run .25/1 after coupons. Apparently they have raised their price.

Progresso Bread Crumbs $1.93 BOGO
.47/1 after $1/2 printable coupon

Wishbone Dressing $2.69 BOGO
.60/1 after .75/1 (10/5 RP)
- Prices really are going up. These used to be .25/1 after coupons too.

Old El Paso Salsa $16 oz $2.39 BOGO
.70/1 after $1/2 (GM Dollar Days Book)

Barber Stuffed Chicken Breasts $4.99 BOGO
$1.50/1 after $1/1 (9/7 S1) OR $1/1 Printable Coupon
- Price Increase from $4.49 since last BOGO
- When compared to chicken breasts at $1.99/lb these are more expensive especially since some of the weight is not chicken, but they have been prepared so all you have to do is thaw and cook in the oven. You are paying for the convenience of minimal preparation, but it is cheaper than the alternative of eating out if you are busy.

Seapak $7.89 BOGO
$2.94/1 after $1/1 (Publix Fresh, Frozen, Flavorful Book)

Coupon Preview September 21

Tonight I discovered that The Coupon Clippers has a calendar with the coupon previews listed by insert. The coupons she lists are from her paper in Central Florida. coupons in your inserts may vary by value or sometimes by brand.

Only three things that really stuck out to me as being good deals, but maybe there are some hidden gems if there is an ECB deal or rebate. Be sure to look at the preview before you buy your papers to decide how many copies to buy as you may be spending more on the paper than the coupons that you are getting out of it. It isn't a good deal to spend $2.00 on extra copies of the paper that you are only getting a value of $1.80 in coupons.

It looks like we will be getting more free Cottonelle (.50/1). I'm glad I like this brand.

Hunt's Canned Tomatoes (.40/2) Sometimes these will go on sale BOGO making these fairly inexpensive.

There is also a new Mail in Rebate for the Scrubbing Bubbles Action Scrubber Starter Kit with CRT dated from 9/21/08 to 11/16/08. This is a new rebate so even if you have gotten a free kit with a previous rebate you can get another free kit. If you haven't used all of your printable coupons you will profit $2.75 (before tax and stamp).

Publix Highlights for the Week of September 17

Just a reminder that my ad week starts on Wednesday, but some areas start on Thursday. Check your local ad to verify your schedule. I live in the Metro Atlanta Area where coupons double up to .50 face value, and when an item is BOGO you only have to buy one in order to get an item 1/2 price. Seniors get an additional 5% off of their order on Wednesdays. Look for the Penny Item coupons in the Publix ad in Sunday's paper to use on Monday. I try to list the best deals for the week, but for a complete list of sales and insert coupons visit Coupon Mom who will have the weekly ad posted on Thursday.

Don't forget to use competitor's coupons if you have them! After being told no several years ago I didn't ask again until a few weeks ago when I kept reading posts that Publix accepts them. Since then they have made a huge difference in my grocery bill.

The Best of the Loss Leaders without coupons:

Bartlett Pears .99/lb.

Orange Juice $2.49/gallon

Ground Chuck $1.97/pound

Publix Salad Mix BOGO $2.99 ($1.50/1)

The Best of the Sales with Coupons:

Pompeian Extra Virgin Olive Oil 32 oz. BOGO $11.99
$5.00 after $1/1 printable coupon - I know this isn't cheap, but it is a great price for what it is! Compare the price to the Aldi brand 16 oz bottle at $3.99 the last time I checked, so it is like getting the second 16 oz for $1. If you need this, but you have a tight budget be sure to use a $/$ competitor's coupon to help defray some of the expense. I'm hopeful that Walgreen's will put out another $/$ coupon this weekend.

V8 Splash BOGO $2.99
.50/1 after $1/2 (Yellow Advantage Buys Book) AND .50/2 (doubled) (8/17 S)

Arnold Bread BOGO $2.79
$.90/1 after .50/1 printable coupon that reads do not double; however, it is up to the store if they double it so .40/1 if doubled. I know that this coupon is in a PDF format which is usually a warning sign for printable coupons; however, it does appear to be legit and has been approved by HCW.

Duncan Hines Moist Deluxe Cake Mix BOGO $1.59
Rumor is there is a $1/2 printable coupon, but I'm unable to find it.
However, I did find $1/1 carrot cake mix coupon which is excluded from the sale.

Huggies Bath Products BOGO $3.29
.65/1 after $1/1 (home mailer)
Maybe some new coupons will come out in the Sunday inserts.

Special Situations:

Huggies Box Diapers $5/1 coupon found in the Publix ad. I did the math on the cost per diaper on the boxes vs the jumbo packs. I would have to get the price of the box down to $15 or less for this to be a deal for me. However, this may not be impossible to do if you stack your coupons. Keep in mind the boxes do not qualify for the Caregivers Rebate.
Let's assume a shelf price of $25-$26 I'm not sure of the actual price, but it is a best guess.
Use $5.00 coupon from ad
Use $1.00 (8/24 S) OR $1.50/1 (home mailer)
Use $4/$20 Competitor's coupon OR higher value Competior's coupon (maybe Walgreen's will have another one out this weekend).
With the coupons I currently have my goal of $15/box is doable if the shelf price is $25.50 or less. Maybe Walgreen's will have another high value coupon this weekend to sweeten the deal.

Centrum Multivitamin Multimineral Vitamins - $10.99
IF Cardio Vitamins are included it will be a $2 money maker after
$3/1 coupon and $10/1 rebate (9/7 RP) - Good to use with $/$ competitor's coupon

Del Monte Vegetables, Tomatoes, and Cottege Inn items are BOGO - I think that it is about time for the fall Del Monte Coupons to come out soon. These items are not a deal unless these coupons come out with a high face value. Generic brands tend to run .42 - .50 can for vegetables and tomatoes.

Remember to check the current Advantage Buys ad for some great sales too!

Later I will be posting links to the Current Food Lion Printable coupons. If you have a Food Lion in your area you will be able to use these at Publix as a competitor's coupon.

CVS National Ad Week of September 14

After such a great week at CVS last week this week looks kind of slim. Remember, these are the National Ad Deals. The Test Markets (including Metro Atlanta) may not have the same sales.

ECB Deals:

Excedrin Express Gels $3.99 Get $3.99 in ECBs Limit 1
FREE after ECBs
It appears that the coupon is only for Excedrine Migraine, but you can check here for Excedrin coupons.

Aleve D $3.99 Get $3 ECBs Limit 1
Use $1/1 printable coupon
FREE after ECBs and coupon; however, I only recommend getting this if your family will use it because of the legal restrictions placed on this product.

Non ECB Deals:

Revlon BOGO starting at $3.49
Less expensive items will be FREE if you use 2 $2/1 coupons (7/20 S or 8/24 S)

Revlon Beauty Tools Buy One Get One 50% starting at $1.29
Less expensive items (emery boards and nail clippers) will be FREE or cheap after 2 $1/1 coupons (5/18 S2 or 9/14 S)

Other ECB Deals - Special Situations:

Only a deal if you have not done this rebate:
Just for Men $7.99 Get $2 ECBs Limit 1
Use $2/1 Printable coupon
Request rebate of $7.99 (currently 2 available for different products)
Profit of $4 after ECBs, Coupons, and Rebate
Details and links for coupons and rebates can be found here. If you have not done either one start with the one that expires December 2008. The second rebate expires December 2009 and we are likely to see more deals on this product in the future.

Reader Request:

The following is not a hot deal for most bargain hunters, but I had a request to look for deals on toothbrushes. Coupon shoppers can regularly get adult toothbrushes for free and sometimes even get paid to take them off of the shelf, but toothbrushes for children are much harder to find for free/cheap. However, most dentists will give your child a toothbrush when they go for a cleaning so be sure to ask. The dentist office is also a great place to look for coupons.

GUM Toothbrushes Twin Pack (picture shows Crayola toothbrushes) 2/$5
Get $1 ECB when you buy 2 Limit 5 offers (10 packages, 20 toothbrushes)
Use 2 .75/1 GUM (6/29 RP or 8/3 RP)
Final Cost after Coupons and ECBs $2.50 for 4 toothbrushes = .63/each

Using the Walgreen's $10/$40 at Publix

I'm sure by now most of you have seen the Walgreen's $10/$40 coupon, but how many of you have thought about using it at Publix? Several locations have been honoring the Walgreen's coupons as a competitor's coupon.

The only catch is that unlike many of the $/$ coupons, your AFTER coupon total has to be over $40. So unfortunately your scenario can't have the help of free filler items to get your total up to $40. If you don't usually use coupons, are new to couponing and haven't established a nice supply of food, or have been wanting to get items that are not usually on sale this is a good opportunity to easily save some money.

Keep in mind if you are planning on spending $30 or more, go ahead and get a few more items to reach your $40 total. If you are already spending $30 it is like getting the final $10 of items for free!

But what about the rest of us? This is especially rough because Publix doesn't have a super ad week this week for bargain hunters. My best suggestion is to combine the best of the weekly deals with a high dollar value rebate.

The 50% off BirdsEye Vegetables could be a better deal than I originally expected if you combine the $1/3 Manufacturer's Coupon with the $1/2 Publix Pyramid Coupon.

I am unsure of the price of the Centrum Cardio Vitamins, but the $3 coupon (9/7 RP) combined with the $10 Rebate (9/7 RP) could make this a money maker item, but even if you just break even it would definately help to bump up your total. Remember to only do one rebate per receipt because most rebates require the original receipt.

For those of us with children in diapers this would be a good way to get approximately $2.50 off a pack ($10 prorated based on a shelf price of $10) and the Huggies jumbo packs would also qualify for the Caregivers Rebate OR the Publix/Kimberly Clark Rebate. However, I'm unsure of Publix's shelf price per pack to determine if this would be a good deal. If you don't have any of the Huggies $1.50 or $2 off coupons, Food Lion also has the $1.50/pack printable coupon (limit one per transaction and the print cycle can only be initiated once per computer) that can be used as a competitor coupon.

Another option that came to mind is stocking up on some of the ground chuck that is on sale or other meat that has been marked down.

My one last thought is that you can use the Free Kraft Products When You Buy 3 coupons from the August All You Magazine. I know that you are thinking that the free product will not boost your total, but the qualifying items will. I am still undecided about the use of these coupons with the small Kool-Aid packets so I have been using Kraft items that have been on sale and that I would have been buying anyway instead. Which, since I was planning on buying them anyway and I don't use Kool-Aid it comes out cheaper for me.

Please leave a comment or a link to your blog post with your scenario. I'm still looking for good ideas to decide if I want to make the trip or just wait for Monday's Penny Item.

Two Great Publix Trips this Week!

I had two great shopping trips to Publix this week!

My first trip on first trip was on Friday. I bought:

1 Gallon Publix Orange Juice
1 Gallon Publix Milk ($1/1 Dairy from Publix Baby Club)
1 Sara Lee Soft and Smooth Bread (Coupon for a Free Loaf - Expired 9/7)
2 Just Bunches Boxes of Cereal (2 $1/1 - Expired 9/7)
1 Ore Idea Tater Tots ($2/1 Food Lion Printable Coupon)
8 Old El Paso Jars of Salsa (3 $1/2 - I forgot to cut out the 4th)
1 Gerber Graduates Diced Peaches ($1/1 Food Lion Printable)
6 Packages Chinet Casuals Plates - Advantage Buy not the ones that are BOGO (5 $1/1 and 1 $3/$15 Target Printable)
1 3 piece set Gerber Cutlery ($2/1 Food Lion Printable)
2 Egglands Best (2 .35/1 Doubled)
43 Boxes of Hamburger Helper (43 $1/1 - Peelies on the box found at the store) I was so excited about this I called one of my readers from the store to tell her the deal. Even though I bought a large quantity in three different flavors I probably left a few hundred more of these on the shelves. Most of these will be donated. This free item is a terrific example of how you can donate items even if you are on a tight budget.

I used 63 coupons total including a competitor's $10/$50 coupon that totaled $75.64 in coupons. My combined savings was $130.52. My OOP was $8.77 including $2.16 in tax.

If I can locate a form, the paper plates should qualify for part of a $15/$30 purchase rebate. Please let me know if you find one of these.

The children of a couple of families that I know had a great time playing with the receipt that was longer than they are tall!



My Second trip was on Monday. I try to stop by for a small trip each Monday to get the penny item, deals that have coupons in the Sunday paper, any other deals that I hear about, and any needs that I may have.

1 Ore Ida French Fries ($2/1 Food Lion Printable)
1 Gerber Graduates Tossable Utensils ($2/1 Food Lion Printable)
2 Quaker Oatmeals (2 .50/1 doubled)
1 GE 4 Pack Lightbulbs (1 $1/1 from Rite Aid Weekly Ad)
1 Clif Kids Bar (.50/1 doubled)
1 Gerber Graduates Diced Peaches ($1/1 Food Lion Printable)
2 Buitoni Linguine (Free after $1/1 Printable and $1/1 Target Printable)
4 Tomatoes .99/lb.
4 Bananas .64/lb.
1 Publix Green Bag (Penny Item)
1 Pack of Gum (Quick .67 filler item because I relized I was going to go negative if I used my $2/$10 competitor coupon.)

Total OOP .50 including .15 tax.

Unfortunately, I forgot to pick up a raincheck for the Green Giant Steamers. Maybe they will be included in the Kroger sale.

JUMPING UP AND DOWN!!

When I walked into CVS to do my weekly shopping trip today I saw 2 buggies marked Clearance 90%. Usually when clearance gets to this point at my store it is basically junk. However, upon closer inspection, one of the buggies was FULL of Huggies Little Swimmers Swim Pants and Pampers Splashers!

So here is how my shopping trip went:

9 Packages of Huggies Little Swimmers .89 each + I had a few coupons!
5 Right Guard Deodorants
3 Revlon Nail Polishes
1 Loreal Skin Genesis
1 Contour Meter with 10 test strips!

Paid with $18.99 in ECBs and $3.32 cash. I had an ECB about to expire that caused me not be able to get the OOP down lower. I should have bought a couple of more packages of Swim Pants to bring my total up, but I'm not complaining. Got back $29.99 in ECBs. An earning of $7.68 ECBs.

Just for the record, I did leave several packages of Swim Pants in the buggy.

This is the best part. I saved it for you to see if you were still reading. When I was going over my receipt tonight, I was thinking to myself too bad nothing on this receipt counts towards a rebate. Then it occurred to me that there was a possibility that each of the Huggies Swim Pants would count towards the Caregivers Marketplace Rebate. I ran to find my binder with the form in it and literally started jumping up and down (sorry no video) when I saw that each package would qualify for a $1 rebate. According to HCW people have gotten back the full $1 amount on clearance swim pants.

Now, I just need the Little Man's skin sensitivities to go away and to ask his Daddy for a beach vacation next year.

Target Kellogg's/Keebler Deal

Buy any combination of 4 of the participating products for $9. you will instantly receive a $5 gift card.

Kellogg's Pop Tarts (12 ct)
Select Keebler Cookies
Cheez-It Crackers (10 oz)
Kellogg's Rice Krispies Treats (8 count)

Use the $1/2 coupons from the Kellogg's/Keebler insert (8/3). The Pop-Tarts also have a Printable Target Coupon for .50/1 making them FREE!

If you do three sets (12 products) on one receipt you will immediately get $15 in Target gift cards. You will also qualify for the Kellogg's Back To School $10 rebate (8/3 KL).