CVS update

I promise I'm not going to turn this into a blog about budgeting and grocery shopping, but I wanted to do a follow-up to my previous post about the Money-Saving Mom website. I have learned a lot from this website about how to get great deals at CVS, along with other grocery and department stores. Several women have been interested in how the whole CVS-scheme works so I thought I'd post the deals I've done the last few weeks and show everyone how it works. It's not difficult at all. I take about 5-10 minutes each week and figure out my deals. If you haven't been to the Money-Saving Mom website yet, you need to go there and read her "CVS for Beginners" link on the left-hand side of the page. If you haven't read that the rest of this post will make no sense.

Here's the deals I have done for the last few weeks:

Week #1 (Keep in mind that your first visit is your "investment" trip, after this trip you should always have ECB's to spend.)

Chex Mix $1.00
Dawn Dish Soap $2.00 each
Tampax Pearl 36ct. (Qty.2) $4.50 each
Charmin 9-pk. TP (Qty.2) $4.99 each
Secret Deodorant $3.99
Duracell Batteries (Qty.2) $5.79 each

Total Before Coupons
$43.54

Coupons
.25 off Charmin
$1.00 off Secret Deodorant
$1.00 off Chex Mix
.50 off Tampax
.25 off Dawn Dish Soap

Total After Coupons
$37.89

ECB's earned
$10 from Charmin
$1 from Secret
$3 from Tampax
$1 from Dawn

Total ECB's for next purchase
$15

I made a mistake my first visit that I won't make again! There is a coupon machine in every CVS where you scan your CVS card and it prints off 3 coupons. One of these coupons is a $3 off a $15 purchase coupon that can go toward your purchase that day. (Each cardholder is allowed one of these a day. You can't go into CVS ten times in one day and print ten of these coupons.) If I had done this the first time it would have brought my total down even lower. Live and learn!

My second visit (This is where it gets fun because you get to start using your ECB's.)

Folgers 39 oz. coffee 2 @ $10 each
Powerade 32 oz. 1 @ $1

Total before Coupons and ECB's:
$21 (before tax)

Coupons
$3 off $15 purchase
.25 off Folgers
.75 off Powerade

Total after Coupons
$17

ECB's
$15 (from previous visit)

Total after ECB's
$2.18

ECB's earned $10

I walked out of that store so excited when I had paid $2 out of my pocket for over $20 worth of groceries and had earned $10 to spend next time!

Here's my third visit:

4-pack light bulbs (Qty.6) .77 cents each
Colgate Toothpaste $1.99
Gummy Worms (35 oz.) (Qty.2) $5.00 each
Gallon 2% milk $3.69

Total before Coupons and ECB's:
$20.30

Coupons:
$3/$15 CVS coupon
$1 off Gummy Worms
$.50 off Colgate
$10 ECB's

Total after Coupons and ECB's:
$5.62

ECB's earned
$5

Once again, I walked out of CVS with a lot of groceries/household items and only had to spend a few dollars out of my pocket! This really works! It may seem a bit confusing, but once you do it it will make more sense. The two things you have to remember are to buy items that generate ECB's and use coupons! CVS allows you to "stack coupons" by using store coupons and manufacturer's coupons. This is where Money-Saving Mom helps. She will list links to coupons for CVS each week that can be used with their current sales. She does most of the work, you just print the coupons you need. This may sound like a lot of work, but it has taken me very little time and I have saved a lot on groceries the last few weeks!

For all of you budget-conscious moms out there, I hope this helps!