12/18 Tom Thumb Shopping Trip

(2) Cinnamon Toast Crunch $2.49 each
(2) Cocoa Puffs $2.49 each
Used (2) .50/2 printable
(2) Green Giant Green Beans .59 each
Resfresh Rootbeer 2 ltr .79
Used FREE Refresh 2lt catalina coupon (up to .69)
(2) Nestle Toll House Choc Chips $1.89 each
Used .50/2 printable
Gatorade Recover $1.99
Used FREE Gatorade Recover catalina coupon
Imperial Sugar $1.99
Used .50 MFQ
(2) Pillsbury Grands .75 each (on clearance)
Used .30/2 printable
(2) Pillsbury Cresent Rolls $1.49 each
Used .50/2 printable
(4) .50 e-coupons came off
(2) Lucerne Cheese $1.50 each
Used (2) .55 Real CA printable
Lucerne Sour Cream .99
(2) Blue Bell Ice Cream 2/$7
Digiorno Pizza $3.99 w/in-ad coupon
Used $1 MFQ
(2) Kings Hawaiian Rolls 2/$4
Used $1 MFQ
Chuck Pot Roast (2 in pkg) $8.64
4.23lb 90% Ground Sirloin $8.42
3.99lb 90% Ground Sirloin $7.80
10lb Russet Potatoes .88 each
$15 Starbucks Gift Card
tax -.14
= $72.07
Saved 50%

First of all, I took my husband and kids with me this time, which I don't normally do. We had some time to kill before we were going to eat and they were itching to get out of the house. I actually appreciated the help. My husband was my coupon holder & accountant. The boys just annoyed each other, as kids do. : )

I was expecting a $40 trip. I knew I was going to buy meat, and that always adds at least $20 to whatever else I had on my list. My husband was amazed that the total (he was calculating, remember) came out to exactly $40 as I put the last items (2 packages of ground sirloin) in the cart. I then decided to throw in another package of roast, which would bring it to around $49. It's closing in on the end of the year, and I'm feeling more generous these days I guess. : )

We checked out and my total was WAY over what I expected. I messed up thinking I had two $1 Blue Bell coupons, when in fact they were Blue Bunny coupons, so I didn't get to use them. Then I remembered $15 of it was for the Starbucks gift card. (My dad's wife needed an easy birthday gift.) Then I noticed I was overcharged for my cereal. They should have been $1.49 each when you buy 4. I bought 4 and they all rang up $2.49. I also noticed the in-ad coupon for the DiGiorno pizza didn't come off, so I was charged $5.99 instead of $3.99 for the pizza.

Of course I stopped at customer service, as I do every week, to get my refund. The guy noticed my e-coupons that came off and started to say that was the difference of the cereal price... I explained those were electronic coupons and it had nothing to with me being charged $2.49 for the cereal as it showed on my receipt. Suprisingly, this time I didn't need to remind the guy about their price-right guarantee. He gave me $6 cash back ($2.50 for the first cereal, .50 for the next 3, and $2 for the pizza). I thought it should have been $8, but he informed me that the DiGiorno pizza was a "cashier error" because the in-ad coupon didn't get scanned, it was not coming up as an incorrect price. I didn't argue.

So after it was all said and done, my actual total for the grocery items was $51.07. Close enough to the $49 I was expecting, with a new savings of 52%. I think. : )