Publix Trip April 29th

Just got back from Publix. I went to the Dale Mabry location next to Tijuana Flats(one of my fave restaurants!). I didn't need much, wanted to take advantage of a few sales and we are mostly "shopping from the stash" this week.

I did pretty well, Paid $10.96 after coupons, Saved $39.10
So, about a 79% savings!

For $10.96 I got:

6 Chobani Greek Yogurts
B2G1 Chobani Greek Yogurt *printable*

2 McCormick Garlic Powders
BOGO combined with
$1/1 Mccormick seasoning coup- 04-25-10 RP
Plus $.55/1 Publix *printable*
Use two of each to make both free!

3 Giant Organic Tomatoes(on sale for $1.99 lb this week!)

2 Fresh Express salad blends
BOGO combined with $1/2 coup from Publix Family Style Magazine

4 Vitamin Waters
$1/2 in last week's paper, combined with $.50/1 *printable* Whole Foods Coup

2 Mission Tortillas(10pks)
$.75/1 *printable* Looks like a Kroger coup but prints as a manufacturers- Click the "coupons" link

2 Sambuchan Drinks(acai berry, very yummy!)
BOGO combined with
$1/2 hangtag manufacturer coup
$1/2 Publix coupon from Family Style Magazine

1 bag of Mahatma rice
$.50/1 peelie found at store

1 Mazola oil
$.50/1 hangtag

1 Cascadian Farms frozen peas
$1/1 *printable*

Not bad, I was saying to mike on the way out, we would have easily paid $6 for the two Acai drinks a few months ago. It's amazing what a little information can do for you!

Feingold Finds

If you are not familiar with the Feingold diet, check out this link.

Or, the short version is that Feingold makes my life so much better. And it can help you avoid unnecessary chemicals and additives in your diet. The major things being eliminated on the Feingold diet are artificial colors, flavors & preservatives, all things that have been proven to cause behavioral or learning difficulties in children. And in my experience, even an adult can react to foods with these ingredients. Also, in the first stage of the diet all natural Salicylates are removed and then slowly reintroduced.

In my family we have not yet been able to reintroduce those foods. It seemed like a challenge at first but compared to the challenges we face when Maya eats those things, it's small fries.

So, these items may not seem like health food, and many of them are not that at all. But you can be assured that they are free of synthetic colors, flavors, BHA, BHT, TBHQ, and synthetic sweeteners. Sometimes these items are not listed in the ingredients of a product, so having my Feingold Foodlist has been priceless.
I can't specifically list which items are feingold approved so you will need to refer back to your food list.

Current Deals at Publix:

Kashi Crackers 2/$5
Kashi TLC Honey Sesame Crackers
There are a ton of Kashi coups going around, peelies on many items in the store. Publix has a Kashi coupon booklet with $1/1 Kashi Crackers, and many of the cereal boxes have a $3 coupon booklet peelie which has a $1/1 coup in it for crackers.

Kashi Cereal $2/5
Go Lean Crunch, Go Lean original, Honey Puffed Kashi, Puffed Kashi

Tostitos Tortilla Chips
Check your foodlist for approved types.
Buy one Get one Free
There have been a variety of coupons available for these lately including peelies on the bags themselves-- be on the lookout!

Mazola Corn Oil 2/$5
Remember than many oils are preserved! Always use an approved oil.

Kelloggs Crispix 2/$5

Let me know if you see anything else! I'll keep adding/updating after my shopping trip today if I see anything else!
I'm off to shop!

Publix Healthy Highlights

4/29-5/5

Juicy Juice All Natural 100% Juice, 64 oz BOGO $3.65
-$1/2 Juicy Juice *printable* you must register

Fage Authentic Greek Yogurt $1.25
-.50/1 off any Fage product *printable*
OR become a fan of Fage on Facebook and save $1/1
With the Facebook coupon you are getting yogurt that is normally $1.66 for $.25!!


Chobani Greek Yogurt $1.00
B2G1 Chobani Greek Yogurt *printable*
This will make yogurt which is usually $1.33 cost $.66 each!!

Glaceau Vitaminwater 20 oz bottle $1.00
-$1/2 Vitaminwater 20 oz. SS 4/11, 4/25

Fresh Express Salad Blends, 4.5-12 oz BOGO $3.99
-$1/2 Fresh Express Salads “Family Style Magazine” Publix Coupon
-$1.50/2 Fresh Express Blends SS 2/21


Not too much is on sale this week that I could even pretend to call healthy.
But I noticed at my store that there were a lot of really great items on clearance, including some Avalon Organics shampoos and conditioners. These often retail for $8-10 bottle. They were priced at 2 for $6.49 and 2 for $9 I believe.
At any rate it was a great price for a really nice product. They also had some Gaia baby items, Badger sunscreen for $3.50( an awesome price for this chemical free sunscreen!), and a lot more.

So search your store for a clearance table, it's not all junk!!

In the meantime I will keep updating whenever I see a deal worth mentioning!

Getting Started

One of the first things you will need to know as a beginning couponer is where to shop. I typically shop in three stores on any given week: Publix, Target, & CVS.

Before I started couponing I hadn't set foot in a CVS for years-- it was a money-suck for me, I'd go in there and suddenly lose half an hour and $40. I could spend $10 on hair dye, because the box was pretty, never even checking the clearance section or the store flyer. So I quit going in an effort to reduce my habit of shopping just to shop.
Well, couponing feeds that same need for me to browse and spend time shopping, it's just that I do the majority of it at home, in flyers and online. I have discovered that between these three stores I can get most of my needs met for the least amount of money-- be patient, I will get to the "how" of it eventually.

I chose Publix as my primary grocery store for one main reason- the coupon policy is very flexible. In fact, although the overall company policy is good, much of the decision making is left up to the manager in each store. So my first step was to find out directly from customer service desk & the store manager exactly which coupons my Publix takes and how I can use coupons and still be within the rules.
My publix rocks because:

They accept competitor coupons(and they consider every single other grocery store a competitor!)
They accept both a store and a manufacturers coupon on each item purchased.
When you are getting a BOGO(buy one get one) deal, you can use coupons on both items, YES, you can use a coupon on the item you are getting free!
The publish a lot of store coupons.

So, if you won't be going to Publix, look for a store with similar policies. Often times it will be one of the more expensive stores.
The other reason I love Publix is that for a mainstream grocery they have a large selection of natural and organic products, and they also have Greenwise stores, which are like the health food store version of Publix, and which have the same coupon policy as regular Publix. We are lucky enough to have one in driving distance.
I'll touch on my reasons for visiting both Target and CVS in future posts, in the meantime start thinking about this: if you plan to use coupons you will probably start using more and more of them(it's very rewarding!). So choose a place to shop that will welcome your coupons and make it easy for you. My choice in Tampa is definitely Publix, but remember also that it depends quite a lot on the manager in your location.
So ask some questions and you will be much better prepared when you're at the checkout.

Last Minute Publix Healthy Highlights

So, one of the things I intend to post here on Purely Saving is a shortened version of the Publix weekly ad, focusing on super deals for healthy products. Publix ads switch over on Thursdays(wednesdays in some areas), so you just have one day to take advantage of these deals.
If you are new to couponing, look for my upcoming posts on couponing basics, organization & getting started. In the meantime, stick to easy things like printable coupons and buy one get one free deals. I will write a post detailing the Publix coupon policy as soon as I can.
SS refers to the Smart Source booklet in your Sunday newspaper, RP refers to the Red Plum booklet.

Deals end 4-28

Ronzoni Healthy Harvest Pasta, Assorted Varieties, 12 to 16 oz pkg, BOGO $1.79
-$1/.2 Healthy Harvest *printable* you must register
-$.75/1 Ronzoni Healthy Harvest, Any – 04-11-10 SS

Pompeian Olive Oil, Classic Mediterranean or Extra Light Tasting, 32 oz bot, BOGO $10.99
-$1/1 Hangtag
-$1/1 Pompeian *printable*

Whole Fruit Sorbet, Assorted Varieties BOGO $2.89
-$.50/1 Whole Fruit Sorbet – 03-28-10 RP

Silk Soymilk, half gallon, 2/$5
-$.55/1 Publix coupon *printable*
-$.75/1 Silk Soymilk *printable*
-B1G1 Silk Soymilk – 04-11-10 SS
Buy two, use one buy one get one coupon, one $.75/1 coupon, and two publix coupons!!

Horizon Organic Milk, half gallon, 2/$7
-$.55/1 *printable* you must register

Cascadian Farm Frozen Fruit, Vegetables, or Potatoes
OR Cascadian Farm Granola Bars or Cereal, $1.99
-$1/1 Cascadian Farm *printable*
-$2/3 Cascadian Farm Fruit/veg Publix coupon *printable*
-$2/3 Cascadian Farm Cereal/Granola bars Publix Coupon *printable*

Kashi Cereal or Granola 7.5 to 17.5 oz box, 2/$5
Kashi coupon book in stores has $1/1 coupons for just about every Kashi product-- mine was located near the Kashi bars. Also look for peelies on Kashi cereal boxes

Snyder’s of Hanover Organic Pretzels, 8 oz bag, 2/$4
-$.50/1 Snyder’s Oganic Publix coupon *printable*
-$1/1 Snyder’s of Hanover Organic Pretzel Sticks - 04-11-10 SS

There were a lot of organic & healthy deals this week around Earth Day.
Good luck going out & getting some last minute deals!!