Estimated reading time: 13 minutes
I read through each store’s sale flyer each week to make a list of what we need to shop for. However, this can get confusing for shoppers.
Today, I will explore with you all of the reasons why a sale flyer might trip shoppers up, costing them money.
Rushing Through A Store’s Sale Flyer Is Costly
I have probably told you repeatedly how important a list is because, without it, I’d likely deviate and buy all sorts we probably didn’t need or could do without.
There are times when a great deal is before you, and you have to make that split-second decision, yes or no, like we did this week, as you will read in our grocery shop.
Making sure you have the funds in your budget is imperative, though.
How many of you can relate? Probably lots, but that’s not what I’m here to discuss today.
I always tell you to read your receipt before you leave the store just in case there is an error either made by the computer or the cashier, which does happen.
I should also add to that to ensure you are not in a huge rush when shopping because that is when you make more errors or maybe miss a mistake.
We were in a rush, and we misread or misunderstood. It is more likely a better choice of words how a sale flyer with limits works at Shoppers Drug Mart.
We all know mistakes happen, but some stores have the scanning code of practice, which you can read if you are unfamiliar, and others don’t.
If you don’t catch a manual error, you are out that cash, depending on whether it was in your favor, but we should still be honest either way.
Bulking Up Rewards Points
My wife has to attend a family baby shower next month, so we’ve watched a baby sale flyer at Shoppers Drug Mart to see if we can match some great baby deals with our Shoppers Optimum Points coupons.
We have almost 400,000 Shoppers Optimum Points over the past year.
They email us coupons for 20x the points or get x points if you spend a specified amount.
(Note: The Shoppers Optimum Rewards Plan has slightly changed since I wrote this post, as they now have a mobile app.)
We like to use them only if we need to pick up items or if the math means it’s in our favor paired with a sale flyer.
This was a great week to use our printable Shoppers Drug Mart 20x point coupon.
If you spent $50 because the sale flyer stated that Johnson’s Baby products were on sale for $2.99 on Sunday and Monday with a limit of 4.
For the rest of the week, the baby products would cost $3.99 with a limit of 4.
There’s a catch, though, to this type of sale flyer ad. Maybe it’s obvious to some, but for us, it’s not so obvious.
At $3.99, that’s still a decent price after we compared prices at many other stores ranging from $5.99 and up.
So we needed to spend $50, which was reasonable since we needed to pick up two bags of milk, which would cost us just under $8.00.
We went to the baby section, and seeing so many products on Sale for $2.99 was great.
It was like hitting the baby shower jackpot.
We would pick up a lovely basket at Value Village and some clear cellophane from the dollar store and jazz up the basket with bits and bobs for the mom-to-be for her baby.
While at Shoppers, my wife left me in charge of picking out baby products, and all she said was to get one of everything that was on Sale so we could hit the $50 mark.
She ran off to the pharmacy to order a prescription she needed and to chat with her friend who was working, who also gave her a bonus 3000 points coupon with the prescription beeper.
This was an unplanned shower, so the expense is going under miscellaneous this month, but we needed to make a lovely gift.
We went to check out and to be honest, we were paying attention, but the sales didn’t factor in until the end on the new cash registers, so nothing registered in our minds until after we left the store.
I read over the receipt and thought the flyer sale said that select Johnson’s baby products were on Sale for $2.99, but we were charged $3.99 for many of them.
I went back into the store with Johnson’s baby products, and I’m already dealing with a 3-day migraine, and I’m almost late for an appointment with my real estate agent.
We supposedly bought everything from baby shampoo, baby wash, baby powder, Vaseline, etc., for $2.99.
I talked to a cashier who said we weren’t the only ones who had noticed this.
Understanding Sale Flyer Limits
However, lately, Shoppers Drug Mart has been advertising products in the sale flyer with a limit.
The catch is that the limit may include the entire line of products, even if they are all different UPCs.
He said we have to watch the limits and what products the sale flyer describes; otherwise, you pay the regular price after you reach the limit on any of the products.
The confusing part is that Johnson’s entire product line is on sale but not just per product, i.e., baby wash, baby shampoo, or UPC.
I thought that was odd since they were all different products, but that’s what he says they do now.
So, even though each shelf price tag has a sale price and limit of 4, it’s not just for that one product; it’s for the entire line on sale.
I hope that makes sense.
We thought it was per product as the sales tag read limit 4, which confused us.
Marketing Sale Flyer Products
I’m sure there must be an easier way to market the Sale so it’s not confusing to customers like us, although we get it now.
If you are reading the flyer sales, be warned that what you see in that little box may mean a limit of four on all those products, not per product.
When you read the shelf price, it says the product name, the sale price, and a limit of four, and that may mean more than just the product you are buying.
We don’t usually buy lots of products like this, so it was a bit new to us, and maybe for you seasoned Shoppers Drug Mart shoppers, you caught on to this faster than we did, and that’s great.
Multi-Buy Sale Flyer Prices
It’s no different from a multi-buy sale flyer, and if you don’t buy the 2/$5.00 and only buy 1, you pay a regular price of, let’s say, $3.99 if that’s what the flyer sale states.
It’s essential to read that fine print so you don’t get confused at the cash like we did.
If you believe you were getting all those products for $2.99 and are someone who doesn’t read their receipts, you likely just paid $1.00 more per product than you thought if you went over that 4-product limit.
As I said, $3.99 is still a great deal, so we didn’t bother returning the products. It’s just something to be aware of, and I thought I would let you know how we handled it.
Have you ever paid more for a product because of a product limit on a line of different products and UPCs or a multi-buy where you only purchased one item?
February Grocery Shopping Blog Posts
If you missed any grocery game posts for the month, I will post the line-up for the month each week here in this section.
Grocery Saving Tips
Free Money Saving Downloads are fantastic lists created to get us on track to reach our budgeting goals, and now we are sharing them with you.
I hope you take the time to get back on track and start the saving process in your grocery budget today.
Get organized with a FREE freezer inventory, meal plan, shopping list, price comparison list, and much more, all for FREE.
CLICK HERE to download all the free lists and even our family budget spreadsheet for FREE.
NEW!! You can now download the Canadian Budget Binder Budget Spreadsheet in Excel.
Grab it while you can.
It’s FREE! We use it to budget.. check it out!
Ultimate Grocery Shopping Guide
Everything you want to know about grocery shopping in Canada is below, with new information added monthly.
If you missed a Grocery Game Challenge post, some of the most popular posts are listed below.
You can now find over 300 grocery-saving posts at The Ultimate Grocery Shopping Guide.
If you know a topic that should be discussed, email me and let me know.
- Let Your Coupons Expire And Save Money
- Welfare Food Challenge $26 Per Week In The Grocery Budget
- What A No-Shop Week Means
- Should You Buy It Now Or Buy It Later?
- Stock Up On Items When You Can
- The Cost Of Organic Food
- What Foods You Should Not Eat and Organic Gardening
- Knowing Your Prices Is The Key To Saving Money In The Grocery Budget
- Product Price Adjustments Don’t Miss The Savings
- Scanning Code of Practice In Canada (SCOP)
- How To Start Saving Money On Groceries In Canada?
- How Much Should My Grocery Budget Be?
- Top Ten Ways To Cut Your Grocery Budget
- Meal Planning For The Budget
Even More Grocery-Saving Posts
- The Grocery Game Challenge and Our Grocery Budget
- Food Shopping On A Budget
- How To Grocery Shop
- Grocery Store Self-Scanners
- Food and Vegetable Preparation
- Best Time To Grocery Shop
- Organic Food Costs
- Why Shopping Hungry Is Not A Smart Idea
- Are We Eating Too Much Food?
- Discount Days and Rewards Programs
- Getting Back On Track With Food Budgeting
- Why You Should Ignore Your Grocery Flyers
- The Low-GI Diet and Your Budget
- How To Track Grocery Expenses
- Comparing Prices With a Price Comparison List
- Why Too Much Salt Is Not Good For Us
- Shopping More Than Once Per Week
- Food Samples When Shopping
- Food Waste In Canada
- Go on vacation and save on groceries
- Grocery Store Activities For Kids
- Buying When There Is A Limit
- How do you like your bread?
- Holiday Baking On A Budget
- International Grocery Store Shopping
- Back To Basics More For Less
- How often do you shop for groceries?
- How not to miss in-store or unadvertised sales
- Who does the grocery shopping in your house?
- Does a product name entice you to buy?
- Are you supermarket loyal?
- Supermarket abuse that costs money.
Grocery Shopping Expenses
Below is a list of the grocery stores we visited over the past week and our expenses.
Walmart
- Premium plus crackers whole wheat $2.50
- Split pea beans $2.76
- Celery- $1.27
- 4 x chunk light tuna $1.07
- Tomatoes $1.77
- 6 x Grapefruit Sale $0.47 each $2.82
- Mini Carrots Sale $2.00
- Bag of coleslaw $1.47
- Bag of yellow onions 3lb $1.00
- Bag of carrots 3lb $1.00
Total out-of-pocket $ 21.87
Food Basics
- Panko Bread Crumbs Sale $1.50
- Bean Sprouts $1.50
- Light Rye Bread Sale $1.99
- Beef cubes $1.00
- Red Peppers Sweet $1.87
- Anjou pears $0.91
- Bosc pears $1.12
- 2 x White mushrooms 1lb Sale $1.97 each
- Romaine hearts $1.97
- Asparagus x2 bunches Sale $4.30
- Red onions $1.97
- 2 x Axe Body Spray minus coupon BOGO $4.47
Total out-of-pocket $28.71
Shoppers Drug Mart
- 2 x 4 L Neilson Milk $7.94
Total out-of-pocket $7.94
Zehrs
- President’s Choice fruit condiment $0.44 (blowout not on the list)
- Raspberry and Strawberry jam $0.97 (blowout not on the list)
- Green Giant green cut beans Sale $2.49
- 2 x bags of shredded mozzarella with flax Sale $2.99 (reg $8.99)
- 2 x Dempsters whole grains bread $3.79-pink stickers $1.90 each
- Pillers Knackwurst sausages Sale $2.99
- Pillers Bratwurst sausages Sale $3.99
Total out-of-pocket $21.52
Yearly Grocery Budget For Two Adults: $2820
(The above total does not include the stockpile budget of $240 per year or $20 per month.)
- Total Grocery Budget for the Month: $235.00 or $78.33 per week with potentially one no-shop week or $58.75 for four weeks per month. (During the months with five weeks, we make it work.)
- Total Budget for February $235.00-$7.66 overspend in January =$227.34
- Total Coupons Used this Week: $4.94
- Total Coupons Used to date: $21.25
- Total Discounts this Week: $3.80
- Total Discounts Used to date: $5.54
- Total Gift Cards Used to date: $33.18
- Total Rewards Points Used: $0
- Total Rewards Points Used to date: $0
- Stockpile Budget ($20.00): $0
- Stockpile Budget Used to Date: $20.00
- Total Spent This Week: $80.04
- Total Spent So Far February: $7.66 over budget January+$25.97+$80.04
- Total Over/Under spent on this shop: $0
- Total Over/Under spent for the month: $0
- Total Left to Spend for the Month: $227.34-$25.97-$80.04=$121.33
- Total to Carry Over Next Month: $0
- Total Spent To Date This Year: Jan $242.66 (does not include stockpile budget)
- Weekly Overview: Not too bad of a week as we found a few items on blow-out that weren’t on our list, but the price was too good to pass up.
Canadian Coupons Food This Week
Frequently Asked Questions
Read the rules first, and if you have any questions, email me or comment on this post with your questions, and someone will answer you as soon as possible.
- How Do I Know what stores accept coupons?
You can find all your store coupon policies here.
If unsure, it’s always best to call the store and ask.
Over time, you will gradually learn where you should and shouldn’t go in the grocery store or how to say no, I’m on a budget; I need to buy this or that.
You may also substitute items to stick to your grocery budget to make it work.
Nobody is perfect. We struggle with this part of our budget, as many people do.
This is why the grocery game challenge was created to show you that we are like everyone else and to bring us all together to work as a team to get our budgets on track.
If you have just joined The Grocery Game Challenge 2014, get ready to dive deep into your grocery budget and learn where you are spending, how much you are spending, and what you are saving.
Feel free to read all the posts I linked to above, which are relevant to learning about the grocery budget and shopping.
You’ve decided to take control of your grocery budget. Now show me your shops and let’s get saving!
Welcome to The Grocery Game Challenge Canada!
-Mr.CBB
I’ve fought SDM on this in the past, to no avail. I was so miffed about it because I was buying 4 boxes of tissues and 4 packages of toilet paper. Not the same thing whatsoever! The register is much smarter than I give it credit for when it knows all the UPCs for ALL the products at that price. 🙂
It did seem a bit odd to me and confusing at the same time but if that’s what they plan to do you can easily just price match. 🙂
FEBRUARY – Week #2 of 4- February 10-16, 2014
2014 GROCERY BUDGET / STOCKPILE BUDGET AND US RESERVE:
•Total Grocery Budgeted For Year: $142.50 x 12 = $1,710.00 for 2 adults
•Total Stockpile Budgeted For Year: $47.50 x 12 = $570.00 for 2 adults
•Combined Grocery Budget for 2013: $190.00 x 12 = $2,280.00
=========================================================================================
REMARKS FOR THE WEEK:
The neighbor repaid $80.00 cash to me for items purchased on her behalf, so I am adding that to my Cash Hiding Spot.
I found amazing Air Miles deals this week though so that hiding spot cash did not even survive the week. In fact… I am in back the hole again but not by much! 🙁
=========================================================================================
OUR “CANADIAN” SHOPPING THIS WEEK:
Save On Foods – Maple Ridge – Feb 5
1 x 10 lbs Onions ($5.99-$3.00 Loyalty Savings) = $2.99
•Total OOP: $2.99
• Grocery Budget OOP: $2.99
• Stockpile Budget OOP: $0.00
• Cash Hiding Spot: $0.00
** Earned 5 MORE Points on this shop **
** USED $0.00 in Coupons **
** SAVED $3.00 Loyalty Savings on this shop **
—————————————————————–
Safeway – Maple Ridge – Feb 8 #1
1 Black & Deck Sharp Cheddar 500g
( $8.99 – $3.00 Loyalty Savings – $1.00 Coupon) = $4.99
•Total OOP: $4.99
• Safeway Gift Card OOP: $4.99
• Grocery Budget OOP: $0.00
• Stockpile Budget OOP: $0.00
• Cash Hiding Spot: $0.00
** Earned 0 Air Miles on this shop **
** USED $1.00 in Coupons on this shop **
** SAVED $3.00 Loyalty Savings on this shop **
—————————————————————–
Safeway – Maple Ridge – Feb 8 #2
1 Classico Pasta Sauce $4.24
1 Safeway Liquid Honey $10.87
2 Ferraro Rocher 18-Heart Chocolates
( $15.98 – $4.00 Loyalty Savings) = $11.98
1 Campbell’s Chicken Broth $3.09
2 Old Dutch Potato Chips
( $5.60 – $0.30 Loyalty Savings) = $5.30
2 Sprite Zero
( $5.38-$1.38 Loyalty Savings+$0.40 Deposit+$0.10 Recycling) = $4.50
4 Unico Diced Tomatoes – 28 oz
( $9.96-$1.96 Loyalty Savings) = $8.00
4 Unico Kidney Beans – 28 oz
( $9.96-$2.96 Loyalty Savings) = $7.00
2 x 2L Chocolate Milk
( $8.48-$4.48 Loyalty Savings) = $4.00
2 x Safeway Thick Cut Raisin Bread
( $6.98-$1.98 Loyalty Savings) = $5.00
4 x Maple Leaf Bacon
( $15.98-$5.00 Loyalty Savings) = $10.98
2 x Family Size Johnsonville Mild Italian Sausages
( $28.78-$8.80 Loyalty Savings) = $19.98
1 Party Pack Honey Garlic Chicken Wings = $13.99
GST $1.07
•Total OOP: $110.00
• Safeway Gift Card OOP: $1.49
• Grocery Budget OOP: $28.51
• Stockpile Budget OOP: $0.00
• Cash Hiding Spot: $80.00
This is a breakdown of all the Air Miles we chocked up this week:
Grocery Base Offer 5
Maple Leaf Bacon 10
Classico Pasta Sauce 10
Old Dutch Potato Chips 10
Coca Cola Products 10
Johnsonville Sausages 20
Unico Beans 20
Unico Tomatoes 20
Campbell Tetra Broth 20
Ferrero Rocher Chocolates 25
Spend $100 get 100 AM – 100
Total Air Miles = 250
** This brings us to 7 vendors & over 1,200 air miles in 2014 so we’ll retain our Gold status for another year. Now we switch back to using our Starwood AMEX and collecting our SPG points for our vacations for the balance of the year. **
** Earned 250 Air Miles on this shop **
** USED $0.00 in Coupons on this shop **
** SAVED $30.86 Loyalty Savings on this shop **
=========================================================================================
OUR “US RESERVE” SHOPPING THIS WEEK:
NO FURTHER US SHOPS UNTIL MARCH 22ND
=========================================================================================
2014 Y-T-D GROCERY SAVINGS:
•Total Loyalty Card Price Reductions This Year:
Jan ($81.89) + Feb ($43.16) = $125.05
•Total Coupons Used This Year:
Jan ($2.58) + Feb ($7.18) = $9.76
•Total More Points Earned This Year:
Jan (0) + Feb (0) = 0 Points
•Total Air Miles Earned This Year:
Jan (456) + Feb (241+250 = 491) = 947 Air Miles
•Total Thrifty’s Points Earned This Year:
Jan (25) + Feb (15) = 40 Points
•Total PC PLUS Points Earned This Year:
Jan (0) + Feb (0) = 0 Points
=========================================================================================
•Total Grocery OOP Spent So Far This Year:
Jan ($167.06) + Feb ($12.50 Borscht Reserve+$20.00 Holiday Season Reserve+$5.98+$56.05+$10.00+$2.99+$28.51 = $136.03) = $303.09
•Total YTD Grocery Budget So Far:
Jan $142.50+ Feb $142.50 = $285.00
•Total Over/Under on the YTD Grocery Budget: ($18.09) AVAILABLE
===========================================================================================
2014 Y-T-D STOCKPILE SPENDING:
•Total Stockpile OOP Spent So Far This Year:
Jan ($47.50)+ Feb ($17.50 to restocking reserve+$30.00 to US Reserve = $47.50) = $95.00
•Total YTD Stockpile Budget:
Jan $47.50 + Feb $47.50 = $95.00
•Total Over/Under YTD Stockpile Budget: $0.00 AVAILABLE
===========================================================================================
2014 RE-STOCKING RESERVE:
•Total 2014 Re-Stocking Budget:
2013 Fwd $125.00+Jan $17.50+Feb $17.50= $160.00 AVAILABLE
===========================================================================================
2014 Y-T-D BORSCHT RESERVE:
•Total 2014 Borscht Stockpile Budget:
2013 Fwd $275.00+Jan $12.50+Feb $12.50= $300.00 AVAILABLE
===========================================================================================
2014 Y-T-D HOLIDAY SEASON RESERVE:
•Total 2014 Borscht Stockpile Budget:
2013 Fwd $0.00+Jan $20.00 + Feb $20.00= $40.00 AVAILABLE
===========================================================================================
• TOTAL Y-T-D FUNDS SPENT IN 2014:
$303.09 Grocery Budget
$95.00 Stockpile Budget
$80.00 Cash Repayment from neighbor
$24.27 Costco Rebate Cheque
$250.00 Safeway Gift Card =
$752.36
$380 may have been budgeted for JAN+FEB ‘2014 but we have these funds already accounted for and not yet spent:
$160.00 Freezer Re-Stocking Fund
$300.00 Borscht Fund
$40.00 Holiday Season Fund
Total Reserves $500.00
===========================================================================================
REMAINING GROCERY FUNDS FOR FEBRUARY:
CANADIAN $’s
Groceries: ($18.09)
Stockpile: $0.00
Cash Hiding Spot: $0.00
Safeway Gift Card $0.00
US $’s
Our Reserve: $180.54
US Cash Hiding Spot: $0.00
===========================================================================================
The valid rain checks I hold are as follows:
Safeway:
4 Butcher’s Cut Side Bacon @ $8.99 (Good until Feb 20th)
4 Butcher’s Cut Boneless Honey Dinner Ham 1 Kg @ $8.49
(Good to Feb 26th)
4 Butcher’s Cut Side Bacon @ $8.99 (Good until March 19th) – SECOND RAIN CHECK!!!!
4 Butcher’s Cut Boneless Honey Dinner Ham 1 Kg @ $10.99
(Good to May 4th)
4 Mann’s Broccoslaw – Buy 2 or more @ $1.45
(Good to May 4th)
Thrifty Foods:
6 loaves @ $1.00 (Good until April 28th)
4 China Lily @ $2.50 each (Good Until April 30th)
Save On Foods:
1 x 10 lb bag onions @ $2.99 (Good until May 4th)
===========================================================================================
Hi MARY,
I finally made it to the top of the pile. It’s awesome how you make such great use of those rain checks. What’s that saying, in one door out the other with money lol. At least you picked up lots of Air Miles. Wow 250 Air Miles in one shop is insane. I pray for 1 Air Mile when we go to Metro because it’s so expensive in there. It’s the only store that offers Air Miles that I know of. Well you reached your Gold Status, good for you. It’s so early in the game you have plenty of time to keep adding to the points. What does a Gold status in Air Miles get you? Keep up the amazing work. You get ballot 9. MR.CBB
It will save me 25-35% on the number of miles I need to use for our airfare next year. My 28,000 miles will buy a lot more trips that way. Now, the miles only buy me an “economy” seat so… I still pay cash to upgrade us to first class. The base fare is paid though. 🙂 I just can’t handle the sardines in a can method of air travel. LOL
I know what you mean and don’t blame you. It makes for a long flight when you feel like a sardine.
I’m still ticked off that we don’t get the flyers from Shopper’s!!! But I think that when it just says J&J products with out specifying the exact product to buy within the limits I’d question things in the store a little more….before I bought a pile of product…. I guess it’s live and learn..
Ya we should have BUT it never said anything on the sale tag but $2.99 limit 4 after limit $3.99 so one would assume it’s per product. Live and learn, you are right.
I had to chuckle when you said to get all these baby products. My daughter had a baby last January (2013) and will be using baby products for the rest of its life, she got so much. Lots of people think like you! I love Shoppers and always check my receipt for errors. You are right about the limit number, but our stores clearly state the limit at the item. This week through email I had a spend $50.. get 8000 points. I needed more then $50. worth of items so this worked well for me. I now am up to the next level.
Wow Mary with AirMiles. I only get 1 here and there too. Christine, I wasn’t getting Shopper’s flyers for the whole of last year and now we get them again. Guess they didn’t buy into the advertising for our local paper since we are over 50+km away from any Shoppers. I do not get Metro and a lot of times not NoFrills. But I get Basic which is about 80+ km away!!!
My shop this week was small.
* Total Grocery Budget for the Month: $340.00 per month or $85.00 for 4 weeks per month. ( for six people)
* Total Budget For February $340.00
* Total Coupons Used this Week : 0
* Total Discounts this Week: $0
* Total Gift Cards Given Used this Week: $0
* Total Rewards Points Used: $20.00
* Total Spent This Week: $46.69
* Total Spent So Far for February: $77.65+46.69=$124.38
* Total Over/Under spend this shop: $38.31 under
* Total Over/Under spend for the month: over $7.35+38.31=45.66 under
* Total Left to Spend for the Month: $215.62
* Total Coupons Used This Month:0
* Total to Carry Over Next Month:n/a
* Total Spent To Date This Year: $313.89+ 124.38=$438.27
* Weekly Overview: Ran out of 1% milk on the weekend and had to go to the local grocery store. What a shock! $5.27 a bag when I am use to getting it at Shoppers for $3.97 a bag. That said I did get some freebies of off the shelf products ready to head to a farm. Just because it is best before date doesn’t mean it isn’t still good to consume. I blanched the carrots coins for future stews and soups.
* I used $20.00 of my PC points this week. I needed fruit but was low on cash, so this worked out great. Bad news is I bought a lot at Shoppers, but had an email coupon for 8000 pts if you buy $50.00 worth. I now have $75.oo in points there to use.
* Other bad news was our Shoppers was out of sugar which I wanted for jam canning season. But I know from my price book that other stores will soon have a competitive sale. Anyone who is canning this spring look for the deals now. Superstore had freezer jam mix on half price this week. I do the old fashioned method without pectin.
Superstore
—————
Chocolate chips 1kg 7.49
apples 4lbs 4.97
grapes 2.68
cucumber 1.28
Clementine 4lbs 5.98
carrots 3lbs 1.68
banana 1.20
PC points -20.00
Shoppers
————-
milk 2×3.97 7.94
Ice creme 2x 2.99 5.98
yogurt 3.99
tissues 4x .69 2.76
Bathroom tissues 7.99
Foodland
————-
chips 1.66
Pork tenderloin 2 5.82
milk 5.27
Carrots coins 7 bags free
mushrooms 2 free
Romaine lettuce 3 free
Jim’s
——
Raisin buns 6 free
Chelsea buns free
jam 250ml free
Total 46.69
Hi Lynaka,
Wow, you got some free items I see. That’s great. Oh I know milk is crazy expensive. I was talking to a manager the other day and he said they lose $1.00 per bag on the milk. It’s what drives traffic in the door and it sure does. That’s also why they put the limit of 4 because businesses were coming in and wiping them out because it was cheaper to buy from them. Not that they can’t go to multiple stores and get the limit if it’s worth it to them. We have about 400,000 points but will certainly be using them up. Great shop… keep at it. You get ballot 11. Mr.CBB
OK my shops for the week… I picked up a few things at Canadian Tire but the rest was Foodland…
Foodland, Feb 7
Sliced ham from deli- 1.94
2 bagels @2.29- 4.58
1 cranberry cocktail- 2.98
1 doz eggs- 2.99
1 yogurt- 3.49, 1.00 coupon
1 cider mix- 3.99
3 blocks cheese @4.77- 14.31
2 4l milk @4.79- 9.58
1 jug water- 5.49
1 green pepper- 1.25
Tax-..52
Total- $55.11, 1.00 coupon
Canadian Tire, Feb 9
1 Whiskas cat food- 6.89, 2.00 coupon
1 pack light bulbs(for ceiling fan) -5.99
1 A&H cat litter- 7.99
2 dawn dish soap @1.99- 3.98, $2 WUB2 coupon
Tax- 3.23
Total- $25.08
Foodland, Feb 11
bananas- .84
1 unsweetened apple sauce- 1.98
2 bagels @2.29- 4.58
1 icing sugar- 2.99
1 yogurt- 3.49, 1.00 coupon
1lb butter- 3.99
1 parmesan cheese, grated- 4.34
1 block cheese- 4.77
1 4l milk- 4.79
1 jug water- 5.49
Total- $36.26
Total budget for month- $650.00
Total coupons this week- $5.00, no discounts
Total spent this week- $116.45
Total spent for month- $271.67
Total over/under for week- ($162.50,4 weeks) under $46.05
Total over/under for month- N/A
Left for month- $378.33
Total coupons/discounts this month- $9.50Total YTD- J$653.06+F$271.67=$924.73
Stockpile for month- 0
So I am well under for this week, even with a birthday in there. A very good week! I have plenty of room for any deals in the next two weeks for Feb.!! Haven’t spent any of this months stockpile budget either so that is still there. All in all I am very pleased with this weeks shops…..I even have room if I happen to go over for a week but I will be trying to not do that. I am hoping I have enough room by June to pay for my strawberries for jam without messing up the budget in June….
Hi Christine,
You are doing so well going under budget each shop, good for you. The price of eggs and milk are pretty high these days but also bread seems to be going up. What are your thoughts on those 3 products? Just when you think you come under budget though… a great sale pops up lol… you watch and see. You get ballot 12. Mr.CBB
I shop for 2 adults and a 3 year old boy. Our budget is $85/week or $340 for this month and includes laundry, health/beauty, etc.
RCSS
Almond Fresh 4 x $3.50 – 4 x $1.00 coupons (earned 3200 PCplus points)
Brown sugar $2.17
Water (30) $2.47
Nutella (PM FC) $2.99
Nutella (larger jar) $4.98 – $1.00 CartSmart
Hershey’s Nuggets 2 x $3.00 – $4.00 CO51
Cat litter 18kg $7.98 (earned 500 PCplus points)
Natura soy milk 8 x $2.19 – 8 x $.75 coupons (earned 4000 PCplus points)
Coconut yogurt $4.59
Salsa $3.67 – FPC
Kraft Dinner (PM WM) 2 x $.50 – $1.00 coupon
Barilla plus pasta 2 x $1.00 – 2 x $1.00 coupons
Planter’s cashews (PM NF) $3.00 – $1.00 SnapSaves
Vitality bread (PM NF) 4 x $1.77
Wonderbread $2.18
ML bacon (PM Fortinos) $2.99
Mushrooms (PM NF) $.97
Strawberries 2lbs $3.98 – $1.00 coupon
Oranges $5.30
Carrots (PM NF) 2 x $.97
Bananas $2.21 (earned 400 PCplus points)
Magazine $3.49
I also earned 6000 PCplus points for spending $30 or more in the Natural Value dept
Coupons $17.67
Rebates $6.00
Tax free $2.66
OOP $78.84
RCSS
M&M’s $1.19 – FPC
Coupon $1.19
OOP $0
Target
Royale Mega $9.14 – $2.00 coupon
Tuna $2.47 – FPC
Coupons $4.47
OOP $8.32
Walmart
Tide (PM FB) 8 x $3.97 – 8 x $1.00
Coupons $8.00
OOP $27.89 ($.08 per load for Tide is a great deal!)
Total Grocery Amount Budgeted For the Year : $4,420 ($85/week) + Meat order $172.85/month for 9 months $1555.65=$5975.65 for the year including the meat order.
•Total Grocery Budget for the Month: $340 -$13.58 (over last month)=$326.42
•Total Coupons Used this Week : $31.33
•Total Coupons Used This Month : $81.51
• Total Coupons Used this Year: $147.48
• Total rebates this week (Checkout 51, Snapsaves, CartSmart): $6.00
• Total rebates this month (Checkout 51, Snapsaves, CartSmart): $19.00
• Total rebates this year (Checkout 51, Snapsaves, CartSmart): $36.00
• Total SCOP this week: $0
• Total SCOP this month: $0
• Total SCOP this year: $0
•Total Gift Cards Given Used this Week: $0
• Total Gift Cards Used this year: $24.59
• Total Reward Points Used this week: 0
• Total Reward Points Used this year: 0
• Total tax free day this week: $2.66
• Total tax free day this month: $2.66
• Total tax free day this year: $7.60
•Total Spent This Week: $115.05
•Total Spent So Far for February: $280.64
•Total Over/Under spent for the month: N/A
•Total Left to Spend for the Month: $45.78
•Total to Carry over Next Month: N/A
•Total Spent To Date This Year: $634.22
•Weekly overview: Well this month is going down the tubes pretty fast! Perhaps I can rescue it by cutting back next week and using some gift certificates or PC points. The stocking up on Tide killed me this week but I couldn’t resist such a great deal for Tide! I also wouldn’t have done so badly if I didn’t stock up on almond and soy milk but I couldn’t resist the sale price combined with earning over $13 in PC points! It was like getting all of the soy milk plus a bit more for free 🙂
Hey Jen!
OH Oh…. what have you been up to. Time for some grocery budget damage control lol. It’s normally those great deals that bust that budget and sometimes hard to resist. I’m sure you will be able to get back on track with the points and gift cards. Great deal on the soy milk you are on your game with points these days. Keep up the great work. You get ballot 15. Mr.CBB
Our weekly budget is $100 a week making this month $400.
$1.67 carrots
$1.67 onions
.97 iceburg lettuce
$1.86 green peppers
.97 cucumber
$2.19 red pepper
$1×2 rice cakes
$5.77 2 think slices of ham
$9.67 lotion -special stuff for Chloe’s dry skin
$2.47×3 bistros
$2×2 chilli
$1.37 chiplote canned beans
$4.24 parmesan cheese
.50×12 frozen juice
$52.84 total oop
Superstore
$2.38 red cabbage
.85 jalapenos
$10.90 cooks bone in ham -8lbs!!!
$2.04×2-.50Cx2 coffee creamer
Sobeys
$3.99×3 international creamer
$1.99×2 international creamer
$2.29×2 salad mixings
$1.76 tomatoes
$2 pesto sauce
$1.61×2 2L pop
$27.65 total oop
$97.80 weekly total oop
$1 weekly total coupons
$223.68 monthly total oop
$17 monthly total coupons
Hi Juanita,
You know I read this thing on Facebook the other day about the nutrients in iceburg and romaine lettuce. Needless to say I won’t be buying iceburg any longer as it’s pretty much nothing in comparison to what you get in Romaine lettuce. Things you learn on FB lol… Great deals this week and just in under budget, good for you!!! You get ballot 20 Mr.CBB
Weekly Grocery Game Challenge Results
Total Grocery Budget for the Month: 240 including adding to stockpile ($60 per week)
Total Coupons Used this Week : $4
Total Discounts this Week: .03 bag credit + 1.98
Total Checkout 51 cheques this Week: 0
Total Gift Cards Given Used this Week: 0
Total Rewards Points Used: 0
Total SCOP: 0
Total Spent This Week: 82.80 – over spent the $60 by $22.80, it will be deducted from next week
Total Spent So Far for February: 133.04
Total Left to Spend for the Month: 106.96
Total Coupons Used This Month : 0
Total added to emergency/carry over jar : 0
Total Spent To Date This Year: 428.43
Total Grocery Gift card used this year: 25
Weekly Overview:
Giant Tiger: 2 bottles of Heinz @ 2.97 each – bag credit = $5.90 (rounded down 1 cent)
RCSS shop 1: NN chicken soup . 99, 2% milk $3.97, skim milk $3.97, Pogos $3.97, Carnation canned milk x 6 @ $1.00 each – $2 in coupons, PC cookies x 2 discounted 3.96 – 1.98, Premium plus saltines $2.48, Cheesestrings $4.97 – $1.50 coupon, lettuce $1.17 = $26
RCSS shop 2: So juicy packet $1.50 – .50 coupon, PC granola bars $1.77, Bagel crisps $2, top sirloin roast $9.11, bananas $1.75 = $15.85 (rounded down 1 cent) + separate receipt at cash for 2Kg Kraft peanut butter $6.97 and 2 bags alb carrots at $1.67 each =$10.30 (rounded down 1 cent)
RCSS shop 3: 3 Lysol soap dispenser refills $4.73 each, 2 Crest ProHealth 8+ $2.28 each – $2.44 for no tax day = $18.75
Food Basics: 3 dozen eggs at 3/$5.00 = $5.00
It was a super expensive week this week. We separated one of our shops into two receipts at RCSS to take advantage of bonus points available on each PC Plus card and still have the value round down. However, with a hockey tournament that was coming up that weekend, snack food became a priority when it normally is not like the granola bars, cheese strings, bagel crisps, saltines. The roast was on sale and was our Valentine’s supper and was a bigger one than we normally buy. And, we were out of a bunch of basics. No tax day was an add in for stuff we like to have on hand or I am out of and didn’t have coupons. Kids toothpaste was a stock up and the hand soap we were out of. It’s expensive, but the only liquid soap we can find my son isn’t allergic to. He is basically allergic to cheap ingredients which is why most liquid soaps can go on sale for great prices. The ingredients he is ok with are more expensive to use in manufacturing so it costs us more in the long run (based on info from allergist and research). I would use something cheaper if we could. When we have to buy shampoo, the weekly budget will take a huge hit, fortunately I think that’s about a month away. Ketchup was a stock up price for us at this time of year, we didn’t have a single unopened bottle in our pantry, we’ve been buying it as needed. For $2.97 for 1 Litre Heinz is stock up enough for us. We normally buy this in the U.S., but crazy winter weather and hockey schedules have prevented us from even looking at our U.S. shops. Our goal next week is to need very little or nothing if at all possible. But, even though we intend a no shop week, we usually find something we need, so I’m crossing my fingers.
Hi Angela,
That was smart to do separate bills to take advantage of the deals at the grocery store. The no-tax days are a great time to take advantage of all the items you need to get that cost you tax. If you add health and beauty in the grocery budget it can certainly add up so it’s great to use coupons and watch for sales when possible. I know what you mean about the no-shop week, it’s tough but try to stick to it. Good going. You get ballot 22. Mr.CBB
Wow that is crazy about shoppers drug mart…i would be so angry :S….but that is just me. Still a good deal on the baby products as johnson and johnson can be quite expensive!! Here is my shop for this week.
Shoppers drug mart
Candy 1.00
Candy 1.00
milk 3.97
coke 3.30
valentines plush rose 2.49
total=12.77
Zehrs
croutons 1.99
milk 2×3.97=7.94
organic strawberry jam 2.99
fries 2×1.99=3.98 (400 PC points)
yogurt 2.99
black diamond cheese spread 2.99-1.00=1.99
Black forest ham 5.43-2.72=2.71
hot dog buns 3.09-1.55=1.54 (400 Points)
Brizzoliu buns 2.50 (357 points)
whole wheat bread 2×2.50=5.00-1.25=3.75 (714 and 800 points…800 for d’italino and 1000 in total for spending 10$ on bread)
country harvest quinoa bread 2.50-1.25=1.25(357 points)
whole wheat english muffins 2.69-1.35=1.34(357 points)
ciabatta sausage buns 3.59-1.80=1.79 (358 points)
bologna 4.79-1.44=3.35
steak 5.12-1.54=3.58
steak 4.68-1.40=3.28
lean ground beef 4.31-1.29=3.02
lean ground beef 4.31-1.29=3.02
pork roast 5.73
pears 2.65
blackberries 2.00
romaine lettuce 1.79
baby carrots 2.29
bananas 2.38
total=69.85
Total points earner 4500
Walmart
doritos 3.17
tostitos 3.27
doritos 3.17
chicken nuggets 7.97
apples 2.97
pudding cup 0.88
tapioca pudding .88
apple sauce 2.00
kd smart 1.87
kd smart 1.87
cookies 1.67
cookies 1.67
fruit punch 0.50
fruitopia 1.17
fruit punch 0.50
peach punch 0.50
whole wheat macaroni 1.87
red rain energy drinks 4.97
pancake syrup 3.97
vinegar 1.00
teriyaki sauce 3.00
orange juice 3.97
brown rice 2.97
crackers 2.77
chocolate pudding 0.88
goldfish crackers 2.97
blueberrues 2.47
kolbasa 3.10
hot dogs 2.47
hot dogs 2.47
baby wipes 6.93-0.50=6.43
fruit loops 4.00-1.50=2.50\
cat food 6.93
Total=107.63
Total Grocery Amount Budgeted For the Year : $9,100 ($175/week) I shop for two adults, a five year, two year old, 2 dogs, 1 cat. Our budget includes food, toiletries, pet food, diapers and vitamins 🙂
•Total Grocery Budget for the Month: $700
•Total Coupons Used this Week : $3.00
•Total Coupons Used This Month : $10.00
• Total Coupons Used this Year: $18.50
• Total Checkout 51 rebates this week: 0
• Total Checkout 51 rebates this month: 0
• Total Checkout 51 rebates this year: 0
• Total SCOP this week: $0
• Total SCOP this month: $0
• Total SCOP this year: $0
•Total Gift Cards Given Used this Week: $0
•Total Spent This Week: $=190.25
•Total Spent So Far for february: $265.01
•Total Left to Spend for the Month: $434.99
•Total to Carry over Next Month: N/A
Hey Joanne,
Either way it was a great deal because now we see them on sale for $4.99 so no complaining here. You did really well this week and the beef was a great price. I love how you are tracking your PC points. We do but not to the extent you and Jen both do. It’s smart though. Mary even does well with her Air Miles tracking. What do you use your plush rose for lol? I had to ask…. keep at it. Mr.CBB you get ballot 25
I was off in lala land when i posted i think. the plush rose was an extremely large stuffed rose that i got for my daughter on clearance! It was on the bill and didnt even think anything of it….totally thought it was a grocery item! :S Oops!!