How much is your time worth?

I think many people on this page are pretty well sold on the notion that there is legitimate money to be saved on couponing. Just to clarify, the term itself, for me, embodies the whole idea of where you can get the best product for the least damage to your wallet. So, essentially the value of the products in your home vs. the time it takes to find the savings and the money you ultimately pay. Quite the formula! Some people however, are not really sold. Or maybe they pick and choose a few coupons for a few products, but ultimately feel they don’t have the time to devote to a larger scale of couponing. This is what I figure:

How much is your time worth? A good gauge of this would be how much money you make at work. If you devote 5 hours a week to reading flyers, cutting applicable coupons, organizing your shopping trips, and renegotiating where it is you buy certain things, and that 5 hours saves you $75 a week, that is $15/hour. How much is your hourly rate at work? Is it worth it for you now?

I do home parties, and have weekly classes. Feel free to inquire, or refer a friend.

Help me name my post.

Alright guys, I need help. I would like to create a weekly “what and where” post that consolidates “healthful” food choices that can be couponed to a much more affordable level than the average retail price. I want to comprise this list so that people know where to make a pit stop if they are in that location, or organize their weekly shopping run to include a couple valuable stops.

First order of business: Do you think it would fly?

Second question order of business: Help me name my post.

Saving Bacon on bacon!! (TY Denise M.L.)

This might not be on everyone’s list, but it sure is on mine. Bacon is usually pretty expensive, even the store brand is about $3. Hatfield Bacon is on sale for $3.99 this week at Shaw’s. There is a $2 coupon on their site for any one product. Hatfield is a private company out of Philadelphia that began in 1895 by purchasing their pork from the local farmers markets. They maintain that is their standard still today. This product is normally $6.50. I couponed it down to $1.99 each, and I got 4. I will not do better than this any time soon. It is hard enough to do that with Oscar Mayer. I also bought 2 Philadelphia cooking creams on sale for 2/$5. Using last month’s printed and stored $.75 coupon from coupons.com, after those doubled, they were $1 each. Today’s savings including sales and coupons is over 70%. Again, this might not be your list, but it is mine. 3 packages of bacon are in the freezer, and tonight I am making Alfredo with the cooking cream.

These savings are real people. This is what couponing has done for me. It allows me to buy a bigger bulk (albeit not shelf clearing) of many products at a fraction of the cost. If I were to continue shopping they way I used to, my weekly bill would be about $125 (being meager for 4 people) on a weekly basis. Now, I am actually ahead of the game, purchasing weekly the types of things by which I am either running low, or trying things I could not afford. And my weekly bill is $75 MAX!!

This is how I coupon. I am not trying to buy 100 cans or boxes of anything. This is real money, and it is my money baby, and I want to keep it in my pocket!

That is what they are for.

Although I was hoping the Mexican food would cure her ailments, my daughter is getting sick. Not a tissue to be had in this house. SHAME ON THE COUPONER!!! So, Kleenex sale at Rite Aid. I also have a majorly nasty job to do tomorrow, (don’t want to talk about it BLAAAAAHHHHKKKKK) and I am out of gloves. SHAME ON THE COUPONER!!! And I am about down to my last few pieces of pet hair tape on my roller. Luckily, that was on sale too, and I got the 20% off the gloves for having 1000 points or more on my card. What I am saying is, NO, I did not coupon this transaction down to pennies. I got stuck tonight on things I did not have. So, with previous rewards, sales and coupons, I did manage to cut it half (actually more). Not the ideal use of a couponers rewards, but 50% is 50%, and that is what they are there for.

Healthier Choices.

Again, it is harder to coupon food items that are better for you, than the Pop Tarts of the world. Nothing personal Pop Tarts, I grew up on you J But it can be done. Kashi is one of the most recognizable names in the mass produced health food industry. Comparing prices across the board with $3.50 a dinner being the median, Market Basket wins this week with the 2/$5 sale. Coupled with the $.75 coupon from coupons.com, this makes 2/$3.50. That is half off. I was lucky enough to have a friend print me 2 more, scoring 4/$7. P.S. The new black bean enchilada is delicious!


PPS. I want to acknowledge that almost every energy snack bar, Kashi and the like, are coagulated by some type of sugar syrup, thereby making the sugar content higher than what it should be for a "healthy" snack. Just putting it out there.

New Deals and freebies.

Bath and Body works free mini candle with $10 purchase.

http://www.bathandbodyworks.com/category/index.jsp?categoryId=11400494&cp=4090263&cm_mmc=CH-_-20110907RDMWEB-_-01109786-_-m1PCfreecd&cm_lm=

Wii games BOGO on Amazon

http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html/ref=as_li_ss_sm_fb_us_ndp_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=coupo04-20&linkCode=shr&camp=213733&creative=399841&plgroup=4&ref_=br_lf_m_1000717351_grlink_4&docId=1000717351

Kohl’s additional 20% off online purchase. Enter code “TWENTY4ME” at checkout. Tons of clearance!!

http://www.kohls.com/?prtID=pfx&src=k130727&cm_mmc=Performics-_-Affiliate-_-www.coupondivas.com-_-Get%2020%25%20off%20your%20entire%20purchase!%20Enter%20code%20TWENTY4ME%20-%209%2F7%20-%209%2F11

Radio Flyer “My first scooter” half off at Amazon.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000Z4PX7Q?tag=savin05d-20

Free sample Infusium Leave in Treatment on FB page

https://www.facebook.com/infusium?sk=app_243900285654652#_=_

Free samples of Playtex Sport tampons

http://playtex.rewardpromo.com/september2011/


BOGO Yankee Candle coupon

http://www.yankeecandle.com/assets/email/sep08b1g1/coupon_b1g1September.html

Free Sample Ojon Restorative Serum on FB page

http://www.facebook.com/OfficialOjon

Free Trilipiderm Retention Cream sample

http://www.trilipiderm.com/pages/contact

Shaw's 9/9-9/15

First thing’s first.  Look for Shaw’s Fresh For Fall coupon book in stores THIS week.

*Fresh Express Salads BOGO

*New Crop Eastern Apples $.69lb.

*Boneless Chicken $1.99lb.

*Fresh Wild Gulf of Maine Haddock Fillets $5.99lb. (Friday only)

*Shady Brook Farms Ground Turkey BOGO

*Hatfield Bacon $3.99- Use $2 Q on site 

http://www.hatfieldqualitymeats.com/

*Shaw’s deli salads 12-16oz BOGO

*Tribe Hummus BOGO

*Philadelphia cooking cream 2/$5 use previously available (not there that I can see) $.75 printable doubler from coupons.com. Will double making the $1 each.

*General Mills select cereals 2/$4- Use $1.50/2 printable Q (print 2),  Or  $1/2 Q (print 2). If you got any Shaw’s $2 off 5 Q’s you can stack those w/ man Q’s but you must meet the larger criteria, and there is a 50 cent Cheerios Q on Coupon network. That will double. Total potential, 5 for  $4.

$1.50/2 Q

http://bricks.coupons.com/Start.asp?bt=vg&tqnm=yfdqbbf349610&o=87243&pt=&lang=&ws=&ct=&ci=1&cl=&cp=&eb=1&c=GM&p=5a2b11a8-bed6-4ca5-8f04-80df031ef737&z=&r=&pc=&tc=

$1/2 Q

http://bricks.coupons.com/Start.asp?bt=vg&tqnm=yhkrfew31806179&o=88934&pt=&lang=&ws=&ct=&ci=1&cl=&cp=&eb=1&c=GM&p=8729e57b-923a-4318-b323-6845cb537e8f&z=&r=&pc=&tc=

*Pepridge Farm cookies 2/$5- If you still have the $1/2 Q from June, it expires 9/18

*Cains dressing 2/$3 Use $1/2 printable site Q

http://www.cainsfoods.com/cainscoupon/coupon.php

*Tetley Tea 2/$5 – Use $.50 printable doubler. Print 2

http://www.tetleyusa.com/Promotions_Coupons.php

*Emerald Breakfast on the Go 2/$5 –Use $1/1 Q on site. Print 2.

http://www.emeraldbreakfastonthego.com/

*Minute Maid juice boxes 2/$6 Use 1/$1 printable Q (print 2) and stack with Shaw’s 1/$1 Q in Fall booklet. Total cost $3 (maybe $2 if the Shaw’s Q is accommodated twice, IDK)

http://bricks.coupons.com/Start.asp?bt=vg&tqnm=yhxwbmt93555467&o=91059&c=MM&p=xyzeCgMh

*Birds Eye Veggies BOGO*Ono Deep Dish Pizza BOGO

*Ono Deep Dish Pizza BOGO

*Kellogg’s Ego waffles 2/$4 Use Previous RP 1/$2 Q