My sister definitely got my share of the creative genes

Take a look at this amazing cake my sister made for my birthday. Isn't this so cool??

Yes, that's right - she made me an Extra Care Bucks cake! Its complete with CVS's slogan, an expiration date and even a bar code! And wouldn't we all love to have a $28 ECB to spend. :)

And here's a closeup shot of the CVS card.

Don't miss the coupons lining the base of the cake. She nabbed these expired coupons from me the other day and I've been wondering what on earth she had in mind for them.
This is the card my parents got me - aren't the kitties adorable? This one looks just like my Gigi:

See the resemblance? Those bright open eyes? The slightly disapproving look? Yup, that's my Gigi to a tee.

And let's zoom in on this unfortunate kitty. What's up with this little guy? Why is he/she stuck in that little pouch? How did he get in there in the first place? Why is no one helping him? The black kitty on the right is certainly no help, she's just practicing her posing.
HELP! I'm stuck!

Monthly Totals - November

This month, after all the rebates and rewards are taken into account, I only spent $1.73 on $1,722.45 worth of merchandise! This has definitely been my best month to date.

Merchandise Total (before coupons): $1,722.45
Value of Coupons & Store Sales: $927.94
Tax: $41.35
Average % Saved: 56.13%
Rewards/Gift Cards/ECB's Used: $564.97
Rewards/Gift Cards/ECB's Earned: $320.89
Rebates: $118.04
Total Cost to me (after rewards earned and rebates): $1.73
Total Profit: $154.13
# of Items: 485
# of Free Items: 369

Triples, again? I can't believe it!

A&P - triple coupons this week (again!) I was almost not going to bother, but I saw some great deals online and just had to run in for a quick trip.

• 6 bags A&P brand shredded cheese three for $4 = $1.33 each = $8 - I know, I know, you're thinking - more cheese? Seriously? Well, don't say I didn't warn you! :)
• 4 loaves Arnold 100% Natural soft bread $1.99 each, used $0.55 coupon (10/12 or 11/9 SS, tripled to $1.65 each) so $0.34 each
• Ronzoni Smart Taste pasta $1.50, used $1 coupon (10/5 SS) = $0.50
• 8 Knorr sides $1 each, used four $0.75 off 2 coupons (11/16 RP, tripled to $2.25 each, profit of $0.25 for every two) and got back $1.50 catalina for next shopping trip = $2.50 profit
• 4 Del Monte grapefruit cups $1 each, used four $1 coupons (11/9 RP - sorry, these are for the wrong size, you need the ones from the 9/21 Parade magazine) = FREE
• Rayovac batteries $0.99, used $1 coupon (10/12 or 11/23 SS) = FREE
• 3 Marcal toilet papers $0.99 each, used three freebie coupons (11/9 SS) = FREE
• After DBF's mom's discount, total was $8.22

CVS

• 6 papers $12, used $6 ECB and $6 ECB = zero OOP

Oh my Gosh, Oh my Gosh!

My wonderful, darling, thoughtful boyfriend gave me my birthday/Christmas present today. My birthday is actually on Tuesday, but since we don't typically get to see each other during the week, we celebrated early. I still am in total shock over the amazing gift he got me. Look! Its a Nikon! Oh my gosh! I've wanted to take better pictures forever but a Nikon was a bit over my budget. He saved up for this beauty for the last year and a half and even used a coupon to buy it (but he won't tell me how much he spent and that's probably best - I think I might faint! lol). I've been taking pictures of things around my apartment all day. Let's take a look, shall we?

Say hello to my little piggie! Old camera:

New camera:Isn't the difference amazing?!? And keep in mind I know how to use about 4 of the 400 buttons/settings/speeds on this camera. :) And it has lenses! That you can change! That take different kinds of pictures! Oh my goodness, this is so cool.

Mousse playing with a part from the camera box (he liked it too!):

Gigi posing (she looks like this a lot, a bit surprised, a bit annoyed):

A leaf from my plastic plant - my, it looks a tad dusty doesn't it? Where's that maid?

Taking pictures is thirsty work!
Isn't this sweet? My boyfriend bought this and hung it in my bedroom (all in secret). Yup, he's a keeper. :)
Fair warning - expect lots of pictures of weird stuff in the near future! :)

Coupon Clean-out

EDIT - oops, forgot to include instructions. Take a look at this previous post for details on sending Q's overseas.

Here's my latest batch of expired coupons to be sent overseas to the military. I really just could not be bothered counting up every single coupon in the batch, so I just estimated their values based on previous envelopes I've sent out. Do they really care if its an exact value anyway? I wonder. Food items - $1,000, non-food items - $5,000.

YTD Coupon Value: $14,510.71

Round Two

CVS

• 3 Coast soaps $1.99, got back $1 for each (Limit 5) = $2.98
• Playtex Gentle Glide Tampons $3.99, used $1 coupon (10/5 SS or here) and got back $3 ECB (Limit 2 ) = FREE
• Johnson's Soft Lotion $5.69, used $1 coupon (or 11/2 RP) and got back $5.69 ECB (Limit 1) = $1 profit
• Schick Quattro Razor or Trimmer $7.99, used $2 coupon and got back $6 ECB (Limit 2) = FREE
• Used $1 ECB, $4.47 ECB and $13.98 ECB, total was $0.19

Second Transaction

• Loreal Anti-Wrinkle concentrate $16.99, used raincheck = FREE
• Playtex Gentle Glide Tampons $3.99, used $1 coupon (10/5 SS or here) and got back $3 ECB (Limit 2 ) = FREE
• $1 St. Judes donation
• Total was $0.99

Rite Aid

• Valid Today Only (11/28): Garnier Fructis Conditioner $2.99, used $1 coupon (5/4, 6/22, 8/24, 9/14 or 10/5 RP) and will get back $2.99 SCR (#138) = $1 profit
• Super secret Christmas present for my sister $13.99 - had a $1 coupon of course :)
• Total was $16.17

Second transaction rinse & repeat (to be done in DBF's name)

RA Gift of Savings Progress: $34.94 in my name - up to $5 reward, $34.94 in DBF's name - up to $5 reward

Walgreens - just realized I bought the foam instead of the gel shaving cream, so two of them weren't free. I'm going to take these back.

• 3 Gillette Series shaving creams $0.99 with in-circular coupon, used three $1 coupons (11/2 P&G) = FREE
• Colgate Total Advanced Whitening toothpaste 4 oz. $3.49, used $1.50 coupon and got back $3.50 RR = $1.50 profit
• 4 Sure deodorants $1.99, used four $1 coupons (10/19 SS) and $1.50 December Easy Saver coupon (scanned four times automatically) = $2.04 profit
• Total was $6.41, paid with gift card so zero OOP

Second Transaction

• 2 Gillette Series shaving creams $0.99 with in-circular coupon, used two $1 coupons (11/2 P&G) = FREE
• Gillette Venus razor $9.49, used $4 coupon (Vocalpoint mailer) and got back $6 RR = FREE
• Total was $6.27, paid with gift card so zero OOP