Friendly warning. Long post, so grab a drink.
I apologise that this post is so late. I've been under tremendous strain the past 2 months and the last few weeks have really taken a toll on me. About a month ago, I went to the dentist for a filling. She said it would hurt for a few days (it actually lasted 2 weeks, grrr). Then last week I started getting toothache (unusual for me). Not regular toothache, but the kind that shoots pain straight to your ear. I'm familiar with this pain, because I had abscess in my gums when I was about 7 and lived on antibiotics for months. The pain is so bad, that I haven't been able to sleep. I kept popping Tylenol, but nothing worked. One night I told DH to call the dentist the next day, because I just couldn't stand the pain anymore. The next morning I felt a bit better, so I cancelled the dentist. Then I started noticing that whenever I have high stress, the toothache would start. This is when I realised that it's caused by the stress, not the filling (to think I was going to give the dentist hell for giving me a bad filling...lol). Last night I had a full night's sleep for the first time in 2 weeks. Then when I washed my hair the other day, I noticed that my hair was falling out in clumps. This has never happened to me. Yep, definitely too much stress, but there's nothing I can do about it. This too shall pass. All I want to do is go lay on the beach (by the ocean of course), unplug from everything & everyone and just forget all my troubles. I just want to smell the salty ocean air, watch & listen to the waves crash and just enjoy being at my Happy Place. Maybe walk on the beach & collect some seashells too. Anyone who has lived or grew up by the ocean will understand. Okay, you all can throw in some cocktails and Krispy Kreme donuts too...lol. Or I can just get on a plane to go visit my family. They always pamper me when I visit. I'm the favorite child after all...lol (not just in my immediate family, but my extended family too).
Boy was Wags fun the past 2 weeks. It's been so long since we've seen a great sale, that I shopped till I dropped. Despite all the shopping wearing me out, I actually enjoyed it. It reminded me of the good old couponing days, when deals & steals were in abundance.
P&G had this big promo spend $15 get $5 RR and also many other sales on select PG items and you could double or triple dip. I can't remember how many years it's been since PG ran such a good sale. It started out with the Crest/Oral B deal, where you'd buy 5 items, use the $6.50 DQ and earn $19 RRs, which made it a huge MM. I don't need a 2nd invitation when it comes to MMs. Here's a list of what I did. Please bear with me, because there are many transactions. I'll provide totals for the entire trip at the end of the post.
Trans 1
3 x Oral B floss $12.00
2 x Scope mouthwash 9.98
Less Oral care DQ (6.50)
Tax 1.32
OOP $15.48
Earned $14 RR ($5 + $4 oral care, $5 WYS $15) + $5 WC (Booster $5 WYS $20)
Trans 2
3 x Old Spice b/w $19.47
Less WC (10.00)
Tax 1.17
OOP $10.64
Earned $10 RR ($5 Old Spice, $5 WYS $15)
Ugh, my $5 DQ didn't deduct, so CS added $5 WC to my account
Trans 3 (DH)
3 x Oral B floss $12.00
2 x Oral B floss 7.98
Less RR (5.00)
Tax 1.20
OOP : $16.18
Earned $14 RR ($5 + $4 oral care, $5 WYS $15 PG)
Of course the DQ didn't apply - Again (come on Wags), so they added $6.50 WC to DHs account
Trans 4 (DH)
3 x Old Spice b/w $19.47
Less DQ (5.00)
Less RR (5.00)
Tax 1.17
OOP $10.64
Earned $10 RR ($5 Old Spice, $5 WYS $15)
This is so weird. I did the transactions and 2 different stores. At one store my Old Spice DQ didn't apply and the other DH's Oral care DQ didn't apply. It just doesn't make sense.
Trans 5 (DH)
3 x Oral b floss $12.00
2 x Oral b floss 7.98
Less DQ (6.50)
Less WC (5.00)
Tax 1.20
OOP $9.68
Earned $14 RR (same as trans 1)
I figured that I'd take advantage of that DQs that didn't apply earlier in the week. The Qs are still available on your account until it's redeemed or expired.
Trans 6
3 x Loreal cleanser B2G1F $13.98
Less RRs (10.00)
Less WC (4.00)
Tax 0.54
OOP : $0.54
Trans 7
3 x Gillette deodorant $18.00
Less DQ (4.00)
Less DQ (2.00)
Tax 1.08
OOP $13.08
Earned $10 ($5 Gillette, $5 WYS $15)
Trans 8
3 x Old Spice b/w $19.47
Less DQ (5.00)
Less WC (5.00)
Tax 1.17
OOP : $10.64
Earned $5 RR (Old Spice). Mmmm, I wonder why I didn't get the extra one. This one was hit & miss with the Old Spice deals
Week 2
Trans 9
6 x Dove deodorant B1G50% off 2nd $39.54
2 x Colgate t/p 9.98
Less Colgate DQ (3.00)
Less RRs (23.00)
Tax 2.97
OOP $26.49
Earned $28 WC ($10 WYS $30 Dove, $9 WYS $40 Booster Q, I don't know where the rest came from. I think it's from another digital booster) + $4 RR (Colgate)
This was the mother of all clusters!!!! As the cashier was scanning, I'm wondering why my total is so high. So I start scrolling the screen and noticed that nothing rang up half price. Ugh, I've read that Wags has been experiencing lots of problems after updating their registers. So the cashier had to re-ring everything and manually adjust the prices. It was only when I got home that night (we were on our way out when I stopped at Wags) that I realised I paid full price for the Colgate. Their Live Chat wasn't available and by the next day, I didn't have the energy to fight over $2.
Trans 10
4 x Tide detergent $21.96
Less DQ (1.00)
Less RR (5.00)
Less WC (10.00)
Tax 1.32
OOP $7.28
Earned $11 RR ($6 Tide, $5 WYS $15)
Once again everything rang up full price, so cashier manually entered sale price. I'm glad I pay attention at the register, cause other couponers were talking about how they had to go back to the store to get a refund. It turns out that everything rang up full price nationwide on that Sunday.
Trans 11
3 x Crest t/p $12.00
2 x Crest t/p 6.00
Less DQ (6.00)
Less DQ (3.00)
Less RR (5.00)
Tax 1.08
OOP $5.08
Earned $14 RR (same as Trans 1)
I have no idea why I didn't just use WC to lower my OOP. I must've had a brain fart...lol. Too much shopping and too many deals to keep track of.
Trans 12
3 x Old Spice deodorant $19.47
Less DQ (5.00)
Less RR (5.00)
Less WC (10.00)
Tax 1.17
OOP $0.64
Earned $5 RR
Trans 13 (DH)
3 x Old spice deodorant $19.47
Less DQ (5.00)
Less WC (4.00)
Tax 1.17
OOP $11.64
Earned $5 RR
(*^#$%$ Wags! I'm bummed that I didn't get the bonus RRs on the Old Spice deals. I have to admit, that it's still a good price after reward & DQ.
Trans 14 (DH)
3 x Crest t/p $12.00
2 x Crest t/p 6.00
Less DQ (6.00)
Less DQ (3.000
Less RR (5.00)
Tax 1.08
OOP $5.08
Earned $14 RR (same as Trans 1)
Trans 15
4 x Old Spice deodorant $24.00
Less DQ (5.00)
Less RR (5.00)
Less WC (10.00)
Tax 1.44
OOP $5.44
Earned $5 RR. I especially bought 4 deodorants to see if the bonus RR will price, but no go :(
Trans 16
3 x Q-tips $10.50
2 x Garnier shampoo 7.00
2 x Softsoap b/w 10.00
Less Softsoap DQ (2.00)
Less RRs (20.00)
Tax 1.65
OOP $7.15
Earned $4 RR Garnier + $17.27 WC ($5 Q-tips, $12 Booster)
My Garnier DQ didn't apply, so CS added $3 to my account.
At this point I was just trying to burn RRs and turn it into deals that earned WC. At one stage I had $86 RRs!
Trans 17
4 x Softsoap b/w $20.00
Less RRs (20.00)
Tax 0.90
OOP $0.90
Earned $4 RR.
Ugh, this was totally my mistake. The Softsoap normally gives back WC, not RRs. So I figured I'd earn back $8. Well, it turns out it was part of the Weekly deal sale that normally produce a RR. Oh well, we do use Softsoap, so it's no big deal.
Trans 18
3 x Q tips $9.00
1 x Flawless Dermaplane 6.79
Less RRs (14.00)
Tax 1.79
OOP $2.44
Earned $5 WC (Q tips)
The Dermaplane should've given back $12 on Ibotta. Except, when I got home to scan my receipt, the offer was no longer available. I hate when Ibotta does this. Turns out it happened to everyone else too. If I return the item, then I'll only get back $4.64, not $6.79. Stores gypping us for using rewards we earned fair & square...smh
Trans 19
4 x Tide Simply $9.00
2 x Crest t/p 6.00
Less Crest DQ (1.00)
Less RRs (14.00)
Tax 0.90
OOP $0.90
Earned $9 RR ($4 Crest, $5 WYS $15)
Trans 20
4 x Tide Simply $9.00
2 x Crest t/p 6.00
Less RRs (13.00)
Tax 0.90
OOP $2.90
Earned $9 RR ($4 Crest, $5 WYS $15)
Silly me didn't even think to use WC to lower my OOP
Trans 21
4 x Tide Simply $9.00
2 x Crest t/p 6.00
Less RRs (9.00)
Less WC (5.00)
Tax 0.90
OOP $1.90
Earned $9 RR ($4 Crest, $5 WYS $15)
At this point I was outshopped. I just didn't have the energy to keep rolling RRs for more product
Trans 22
3 x Old Spice deodorant $18.00
Less DQ (5.00)
Less RR (4.00)
Tax 0.84
OOP $9.84
Earned $5 RR
Trans 23
3 x Q-tips $9.00
Less RRs (9.00)
Tax 0.30
OOP $0.30
Earned $5 WC
So to recap. I purchased
16 x Detergent
15 x B/wash
19 x Deodorant
18 x Toothpaste
13 x Floss
2 x Mouthwash
3 x Facial cleanser
1 x Dermaplane
9 x Q Tips
2 x Shampoo
Total items purchased : 98
Total OOP : $174.86
Total earned : Submitted for $15 PG rebate, $25 PG gcs (I have almost enough point for $25 gcs), $17.70 sold = $57.70
Total after earnings : $117.16 or $1.20 per item.
Total retail value : $584.20
Why on earth did I buy so much stuff? Firstly, we will Never Ever see a sale like this again. Trust me, I've been couponing long enough to know how this works. If we do get another great PG sale again, it will be a miracle. The prices of everything keep skyrocketing. I've noticed that it's no longer small increases at the grocery stores, it's now $1-2!! By shopping this way, I'm saving ourselves hundreds of $$$ that can be applied to grocery (food) items that we rarely see on sale anymore. I've saved $467.04 of the retail value in just 2 weeks.
The day before the Dove sale started, my last Dove deodorant broke. So yeah, I held that last little piece the next day to apply deodorant by hand...lol. Same with the Crest. I prefer the Crest 3D (the guys don't care what they use). A week before the sale, I thought that I was out, but managed to find 2 more tubes. Now I have 16 Crest 3D t/paste. That should last for months.
I've mentioned before that I use detergent for work purposes too, so I go through a lot of detergent.
I've also mentioned that I don't keep all items. I keep, sell & donate. As you can see above, I've already sold an item and made $17.70. I'll take it :) We now have enough HBA to last us 2 years or more. The only thing we still need, is Dial bar soap. It's on sale next week and I still have $15 RRs to pay for the soap.
Ugh, I was really disappointed. When I saw the b/w sale, I figured I'd get some more of the Captain b/w since the price is so great. I checked the locations that still showed this scent in stock and made a special trip to those locations only to find that they no longer carry it. Grrrrrr!!
Thankfully, Target saved the day. Their price is not as good as Wags, but it's the only store where you can find this scent and it had a GC offer - Buy 4 get $5 GC and I still had $15 gcs to use. I just keep rolling my gcs into new deals. I know, I know. I just bought a whole pile of Captain b/w recently. However, Target is now the only store that carries limited amounts of this product. When it's gone, it's gone for good. No way are we doing without our Captain products. The deodorants last much longer, so DS doesn't need as many as the b/w. I will gladly pay more for something we love, than do without it. So I'm stocking up while it's still available. I can sell the Wags ones and that will recoup some of our money.
I was going to place a different Target order online, but needed $5 to score free shipping. So I figured I'll add St Ives body lotion, because I opened my last bottle about 2 weeks ago. Target - sorry, OOS. WTH?! So I googled the St Ives oatmeal and this product is NLA. WTHHHHHHH!!! Walmart still has some available at almost $10 per bottle. I used to pay $3.99 for this stuff. I have sensitive skin and can't just use anything. The Aveeno positively radiant lotion that I used before, has been discontinued years ago. Now St Ives too (I'm guessing it's because the world is such a mess. If manufacturers can't get their hands on just one ingredient, then they can't manufacture the product). So I sucked it up and ordered 4 bottles from Walmart. I might as well buy enough until I can figure out what else to use. So this is why I stock up on our favorites when there's a good sale.
My favorite Walmart Bran flakes are non-existent too. There's nothing available in MI. When we went to Ohio 2 weeks ago, I stopped at the Walmart nearest to where we were and saw fully stocked shelves, so I bought 6 boxes. Then we went to Ohio again last weekend and I decided to get more Bran Flakes at that location. Except, they were totally wiped out too. I eat this cereal for health reasons. Yes, we have 20 boxes in our stockpile (thank goodness I used to buy 2 boxes at a time), but we finish a box in one week, so this won't last long. I do have a Plan B though. I'm going to buy the Raisin Bran and mix it with my Bran flakes. That way I still get a good amount of Iron. The raisin bran only contains 25% daily value, compared to Bran Flakes 100%.
I spent some RRs that were expiring on Arm & Hammer detergent ($1.99) & Colgate. It was slim pickings this week. I'll be glad when those RRs are all gone. I need a break from Wags.
It's late & I'm tired, so I apologise if there's any errors with the numbers. I just don't have the energy to do anything else right now.
When I get a chance, I'll write a post about why you shouldn't get rid of any old clothes & shoes right now.
Have a wonderful weekend everyone!
