Frugal Friday in August

Hola friends! Hope everyone has a fantastic week! I feel so out of the loop with catching up with everyone because of going back to work. I only worked three days but am completely beat. I like to attribute some of my tiredness to my parents who are emotionally draining me by the minute but I digress…..

They do have some good characteristics and habits , like getting two or three newspapers on Sundays. You all can only imagine how elated I get when I wake up, have my coffee and breakfast and get to clipping! I take full advantage of the coupons by clipping them, alphabetizing them and scouring the ads to see if any items are sale that week (that I can use) and have a coupon for.

I combed the ads for CVS and Walgreens and found sales on a few items that I had coupons for which resulted in amazing savings! The best deal I got was at CVS:

All of this for $13.16! I had a BOGO coupon for the Clean & Clear and Dove products. I normally don’t buy men’s products but the coupon was a his and hers kind of coupon and it was free so why not?
At Walgreens I got these two items for $6 plus I received $3 off to use on my next purchase sop I like to think that’s like getting it for $3 something.

After CVS I went to Fresh Market. For those who don’t have FM, it’s like a smaller Whole Foods but without the made to order foods. I rarely buy anything there since it can pretty pricey after two or three items. So the real reason I go?
Free coffee.

Oh yeah.
They have sample cups for you to try and they always have interesting flavors on hand along with organic half and half and raw sugar, The other weekend they have Georgia Pecan and I kinda wished that I had brought along my coffee tumbler to fill up. After I had a few sample cups of coffee, I walked through the chip aisle and saw they have BOGO sale on Kettle Brand chips. I quickly remembered that I had a $1 off coupon for Kettle Brand because I somehow have a photographic memory when it comes to my coupons (I do NOT forget savings) Do I need potato chips? Hell to the no but if I can get a flavorful bag for $1.15, I’m not going to pass that up.

I was sad they didn’t have my favorite flavor, Spicy Thai but picked up two other solid choices instead.
When not working, my mom and I have been checking out thrift stores a couple of times a week. I like to take her with me on Wednesdays since all the Good Wills in the area offer 25% off to seniors. So I shop, give her money, have her purchase and save some dough. I am not looking forward to getting older but discounts at thrift stores and cheap coffee at McDonalds make it seem a little better. At the Goodwill we went to last week, it was not only senior citizens day but I also saw this beautiful sign right when we walked in

The thrift store is the main place I get books and now thanks to reading a post about books over at The Lofty Appetite , I have another avenue to find books. I got three books for $1.23 when at Goodwill and although I could have stayed there for hours looking through the titles, I kept it at a minimum because sometimes I buy too many books and never get to reading them.

Speaking of McDonalds, they have been sending mad coupons as of late. They send us two pamphlets of coupons featuring not only BOGO coupons but also coupons for free coffee, smoothies and sodas.

I tried the pineapple mango smoothie and even though it was free, it was pretty nasty. It was entirely too sweet for me and I winced when taking the three sips that I did because I felt if something tasted that bad, it should get me drunk.

  

I used this coupon for a free coffee regardless of size, this afternoon at the McDonalds near my temporary work

 

I found it highly amusing that when ordering, the cashier asked me if it was for there or to go. I tilted my head and stared at her and answered/asked “To go?” Not only free coffee but free entertainment as well. I dig.

What I don’t dig is that I’ve been trying so hard to save any money I can on the daily including not going to Starbucks everyday like I used to. I lived within walking distance of a Starbucks for six years and now the closest one is a few miles away….and nowhere on the way to work. So I’ve been drinking this:

Gag. I’m a coffee snob and feel like anytime I take a sip of this stuff, hair is going to pop up on my chest. It’s a step above car dealership coffee though, when I drink that I react as if I’m taking a shot of hooch. I would love to know who this Maxwell fellow is and why he likes such crappy coffee in his house.

Where do you buy books? If you don’t buy, do you go to the library or borrow from friends or just don’t read literature other than my blog?

What are your tips for making good coffee at home?