Ok.... I could see getting a little addicted to this whole bargain shopping thing!!! I have been known to clip a coupon or two in my life...mostly because it seems like the thing to do on a Sunday morning. You know so June Cleaver like.... Jed sits and reads the sports page while eating the big beautiful breakfast that I cooked him (listen...as far as I am concerned adding milk to cereal is cooking! and it is a big breakfast... you should see the size of the bowl!) We both sip our coffee. It just seems like I should be clipping and dreaming of all that I could save our family.
But one of two things usually happens next.
1- I lose the coupons in a paper pile and do not find them again until they have expired
or
2- I get so excited about all that I could save that I buy everything that I clipped a coupon for and end up with the most random stuff that we will never use..so really I didn't save Jack squat!
So I promised to stop "clipping"..... until a few months ago. I saw an Oparh about how to get a lot for little and was up for the challenge! I have been slow going. Occasionally I will do really well...other times not so great!
But baby oh baby did I work the system today!!!!
After I finished checking out I told Madison and Olivia that there was something very exciting I wanted to tell them when we got to the car. They begged me to tell them the whole way out. Once we were at the car I said..."girls come look at all of this stuff back here. How much do you think this cost?" They could have cared less and where interested ONLY in what the exciting news was that I had promised to share. I explode with excitement..... "FREE... it did not cost me anything...thats the exciting news!" Madison looked at me and said. "you have got to be kidding me if that is the exciting news" I guess I need to work on teaching the value of a getting the cow and the milk for free!!!!
So I know you are dying to know how I did it!
CVS sent me 2 coupons in the mail. If you transferred a prescription or filled a new one you would get a 25.oo gift card. I was motivated...however just needed some prescriptions to fill....I immediately began checking old bottles to see if any of them where eligible for refills...all narcotics, no refills allowed.... I did find a bottle of codeine from my surgery last month that I was able to refill..BINGO on prescription #1!
Olivia has been sick the last few days. On Sunday she had a real flare up with her eyes... couldn't open them, swollen, itchy. Everyone tried to tell me that it was pinkeye. I was sure that it was not...her eyes were not pink at all... I was sure pink eye meant "pink" eye! This morning it was a little better...so I debated what to do. Take her or not. I caved and made the appointment to see Dr. Bennett. Jackpot...she has pink eye and Dr. Bennett wrote a prescription!!! He said that he did not want me to start it for her because it looked like it was getting better everyday but wanted me to have the prescription as insurance "in case" we needed it! What he didn't know was that he just gave me "insurance" to work the system!!!!
So off we went to CVS on a mission. An empty bottle of codeine in the purse ( I dumped the 30 pills that where still in the bottle in a plastic bag!) and a new prescription that I needed as "insurance"!
Here is the breakdown....
.
10 dollars for both prescriptions and they hand me a $50.00 gift card!
4-12 packs of Diet coke - 4 for 13.00 PLUS 3.00 cash back
3 boxes General Mills cereal 10.00 PLUS 5.00 cash back
buy one get one free arm and hammer laundry soap 6.99
buy one get one free toothbrushes 2.99
buy one get one free toothpaste 2.99
(by the way it is the ONLY sponge bob square pants thing i have EVER allowed my kids to buy.. I was so distracted by the sale that I allowed my moral conviction about a freaky pants wearing sponge sneak through
buy one get one free 12 pack AA batteries 6.49
2 bottles of dish soap - 1.49 each PLUS $2.oo cash back
cough drops 2.59 ( no good deal we just needed them!)
hand sanitizer pen, chapstick, q-tips and Kleenex...free goodies for being new pharmacy clients!!!
I paid 10.oo for the prescription, my total for all of the products was 49.62. I used the 50.00 gift card and they had to issue me 10 dollars in CVS cash back coupons...which means I literally got all of this for FREE!!!! not to mention 30 more codenine and a prescription for pink eye that i will sell to the highest bidder!! ( totally kidding... I know how illegal tha is. BTW....Lauren when you have a chance can you bring back the muscle relaxers and pain killers that I loaned you!)
I was so excited! So go find a reason to get medicine... and save a ton!!!!
June Cleaver would be proud!!! And now I have 3 boxes of cereal to keep up the cycle...."cook" a "big" breakfast, clip and save!!!!
We had soooo much fun!! Jed had to be in Chicago on the night of Olivia's birthday for work. We decided that the girls and I would tag along and make it a special birthday celebration for Olivia. She LOVES her American Girl Bitty Baby. We made reservations for a lunch at the Cafe for the six of us! (the four living Smiths plus Taylor & Emma - pictured above!). We loved every minute that we had with the girls. There was no one there but us!!! Olivia was in awe of everything! We spent several hours cruising the store and then headed down Michigan Avenue to look some more. Then back to the hotel to swim and eat Chicago style pizza in bed while watching American Idol! What a great day! The girls and I met Auntie Aimee, my good friend from design school, and headed to the Shedds Aquarium for the day! 
