Lynnea -

If you have a CVS in your area, definitely try there. I do both the Walgreens Register Rewards and the CVS Extra Care Bucks. The CVS deals are definitely MUCH better and a lot less difficult to figure out. I discovered these deals only in February and I now have enough toothpaste, toothbrushes, soap, shampoo, razors, deoderant, etc. to last me about a year! And all of it I got free or close to free.

Try this page for an intro about CVS shopping.....

http://www.moneysavingmom.com/2007/09/cvs-101.html

God bless,

Julie

Dare I mention I also have a gift stash, a rubbermaid bin in my bedroom and a spot on a shelf in the basement, for gifts I collect through the year?  The basement spot is for my kids for Christmas, mostly, kind of longer term.  The rubbermaid bin in my closet is for birthday parties, relatives, etc.

in there now- candy, soap, a few books, a few plastic toys for Christmas.  A few beanie babies from friends that look like new.

I have a gift stash too. in a basement closet with all types of gifts. plus gifts that the kids got but either it is too old for them, not their type of toy or saving for another day.

Baking Supplies

baking powder

 baking soda

 chocolate chips

 cocoa

 coconut

 cornstarch eggs  ( powdered whole , and egg whites )

 food coloring

 lemon juice

 salt

 unflavored gelatin

 jello

 vinegar ( apple cider , white vinegar)

 yeast

 Beverages

coffee

flavored drink mix

 Orange juice

 tea

Bread croutons ( we make our own )

 graham crackers

saltines

Cereals

 Cream of wheat

 grits

oatmeal

Cooking oil

 cooking spray

 olive oil

 shortening

 vegetable

oil

 lard

 dairy

Evaporated milk

 powdered milk

powdered butter milk

sweetened condensed milk

powdered cheese

fruit

apples

grapefruits

oranges

 Peaches ( fresh and canned )

pears ( fresh and canned )

 pineapple ( canned )

raisins regular and golden seasonal

fruit on sale /on the tree

Grains cornmeal ( white and yellow )

 popcorn ( not mirco wave )

Flour , AP , regular ,bread whole wheat, rye

white rice

 brown rice

Vegetables

 Broccoli (frozen )

carrotts corn ( canned and frozen)

 green beans ( canned)

green peppers

 instant potatoes

lettuce

mushrooms Fresh and canned

 onions

potatoes white Idaho and Sweet potatoes fresh and canned

. tomatoes , dice

whole paste and sauce Pasta egg noodles macaroni spaghetti

 Misc. Canned goods

coffee creamer

dried beans

peanut butter

 pork and beans

 pumpkin

ramen noodles

 spaghetti sauce

soup , Cream of Mushroom cream of Chicken soup tomato soup

sugar brown corn syrup

 light and dark honey

powdered sugar white

 Condiments BBQ sauce

ketchup

jelly

mayonaise

 mustard

 pickles

olives

salad dressings

 salsa

Seasonings

Bouillon chicken, beef , ham ,vegetable

 Maple extract peppermint

 extract vanilla

 almond

spices and herb

allspice

 basil

 chili

 powder

 cinnamon powder and stick cloves,ground and whole

 cream of tartar

 cumin

 garlic powder and salt

ginger powder

marjorim

meat tenderizer

 nutmeg whole and ground

 Onion dried , powder and salt

 oregano

 pepper whole peppercorn 

 ground and white rosemary

thyme

soy sauce

hot sauce

worcestershire sauce

nuts  pecan , walnut , mixed nuts

seeds - pumpkin, sesame, pine nuts

 pudding

boxed whipped toppping

 chicken broth

 shelf sable milk

 bacon

 spam

tuna

powdered

sour cream

 Rennet

I have a freezer full of beef

I have a freezer full of chicken

a freezer with Pork and other .

2 jugs of laundry soap (more this week at albertsons, i buy for my neighbors laundry too because they let us use thier washer and dryer without charging us) 2 is kinda low for us, as i usually have 3 or 4(but again buying for the neighbors, so i have given them 3 bottles of laundry soap in the last 2 months? i think they use WAY WAY too much soap as i have gone threw 1 and a half bottles ----one bottle to wash and rewash and rewash again clothes that an attempted to adopt cat peed all over)

4 bottles of dish soap ( we use about 1 bottle every 4-6 weeks, depends on if i or my frankenstein does dishes)

an entire shoe box full of deodorant(most of it is the girly stuff, but there are some mens in there for frankenstein)

12 bottles of shampoo and conditioner (shampoo often gets used as handsoap in the bathrooms, and conditioner for shaving legs)

6 bottles of body wash(we have 2 bathrooms, so we always have body wash in both)

small shoebox full of trial sized bodywashes, shampoos and lotions, these are used for kids bday gifts with a body sponge and playdoh

16 4-packs of scotts toilet paper

4 charmin wipes tubs (these are good for when im babysitting, and for hands and faces in the car---lately ive been able to get them cheaper then babywipes)

12 things of lysol wipes(i hate being sick, these are used on my doorknobs and lightswitches and knobs i go threw 1 every 2 or 3 weeks, more so lately with babysitting as the kids i babysit for apparently dont wash their hands so im constantly running after them getting anything they touched)

4 boxes of valentines day cards

2 assorted boxes with xmas gifts for others outside of my house

1 box of assorted gifts for my kids

3 toilet bowl cleaners

food wise? i have to oranize my cupboards but off hand?
a dozen bottles of bbq sauce(we like bbq pulled pork and bbq pulled chicken sammiches---we use a bottle every 6 weeks or so)

half a dozen bottles of ranch(we like ranch a LOT)

4 bottles of mustard

4 marinades

a bag full of country gravy mixes, taco seasoning mixes, brown gravy mixes(i keep trying to make some of them and they end up being wasted, if i just get the packets there is no waste)

6 things of frostings(i dont make frosting because it costs more to make then it does to buy it---and i only use half a can thing a time, so one can frosts 2 cakes, or 1 cake and 24 grham cracker sandwiches)

10 cans of tomatoes

4 canisters of oatmeal(1 is mixed with blueberry instant oatmeal, 1 is open used for adding to breads and pancakes, the otehr 2 are unopened)

2 jars of peanut butter(this is about 4 jars less then i normally have, but i only like 1 kind so i wait until it goes on sale)

1 unopened bag of flour

6 cans of diced jalepenos

10 things of pasta sauce (alfredo/red sauce all in jars, i cant make cheap alfredo sauce--i tried a mix it was edible, but kinda gross cause its not the same as REAL alfredo sauce, and i save the jars for bulk ingrediants, for leftovers, for crafts for storage, so in jars for me is cheaper then cans because of the re-useable value to me)

thats what i know off the top of my head, im not organized enough to know everything else we have right now

Julie,

Thanks for the link.  I have to go out of my way to get to CVS, which is the only reason I haven't jumped on to the ECB program they have.  My friend and I were comparing items in the ads this weekend, and some of them did look good.  I usually only go over that way when I also need to go to Marc's to get a prepaid gas card for Speedway ($0.10 less per gallon).  I am just getting reorganized with my coupons and the Walgreens fliers/rebates/RRs.  When I get a handle on all of that, I can expand to include another program, if appropriate.  :-)

latte4me2day:

one bottle to wash and rewash and rewash again clothes that an attempted to adopt cat peed all over

Latte,

For this type of problem, Odoban is really wonderful in place of laundry detergent.  I have four dogs at my house and it gets good use.  It comes in a gallon jug at Sam's Club with a spray bottle attached.  Initially expensive, but it can be used in laundry, on surfaces, and to freshen the air.  HTH

Lynnea Berr:

Julie,

Thanks for the link.  I have to go out of my way to get to CVS, which is the only reason I haven't jumped on to the ECB program they have.  My friend and I were comparing items in the ads this weekend, and some of them did look good.  I usually only go over that way when I also need to go to Marc's to get a prepaid gas card for Speedway ($0.10 less per gallon).  I am just getting reorganized with my coupons and the Walgreens fliers/rebates/RRs.  When I get a handle on all of that, I can expand to include another program, if appropriate.  :-)

 Just as an FYI: For CVS, the best deals are found in their monthly sales paper which is found in the front of the store (i.e. not in your newspaper). For instance, this month they have the CVS brand of allergy medicine for free, 2 different types of Aquaclean toothpaste for free, a toothbrush for free, etc. They also have smaller things that may earn $1 or $2 in Extra bucks (which, if you combine with coupons, often turns out free too). Each month they have a new book. So, that's where you find a lot of the big scores.

If CVS was always fully stocked, I would say that it was worth it for you and your friend to car-pool and go to CVS once a month to stock up on the freebies. But that just isn't the case. I have 2 CVS that are on my way home and sometimes I have to stop 3 times to get an item that's on sale and sometimes I can't get it at all because people wipe out the sales items. So, it just depends.

God bless,

Julie

juju_mommy:

I have 2 CVS that are on my way home and sometimes I have to stop 3 times to get an item that's on sale and sometimes I can't get it at all because people wipe out the sales items.

Julie,

I think convenience is the key, and reduced gas.  :-)  While you have 2 CVS on your way home, I have a single Walgreens midway between home and work.  Walgreens puts out their EasySaver, with cpns good for the month, rebates in the back.  My friend's ddil (dxdil?) just told her about the monthly flier, so that is some new information with which to work.  Right now all the ads seem to have items on which I am well-stocked.  This late in the month, I think we will pass, but have a mental note to pick up one of those CVS monthly fliers June 1.  In fact, I will mark it on my calendar, as well.