Coupon Renaissance

I have been cruising blogland for a little bit now, and I am blown away by all of the mad skills people have.  One thing that I have been watching and wishing I could get in on, are the coupon and crazy grocery deals that some are getting.

Yesterday, I think I may have finally got in the game.  As I have mentioned, we are finally moving into our house this weekend.  I have had very little storage space to utilize for stocking up on great deals and have had to shop on a very limited basis.  We do however, have an upright freezer at my sisters house (our fourth storage place) lol.. she also is housing our hot tub, our motor home and one child.  She is also my post office.  Well after reading NW coupon lady's blog about Albertsons having their double coupon event ending yesterday and some other deals available there, I went down and grabbed a Sunday paper and got the insert and found some coupons for things we needed that we could double and also noticed that they had a buy one get one free meat sale.

Well... I grabbed the baby from daycare after work and went to Albertson's to see what I could do. 
Here is how I did:  (Sorry no pictures, I am still having to store things at sisters where I did not have a camera)

1 pkg Hamburger Buns
1 package of Kraft Natural Shredded Cheese
1 Freschetta Pizza
2 boxes Granola Bars (Nature Valley)
3 Boxes GM cereal
1.5 lb Hamburger
1 Package Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts (About 5 large)
2 Beef Roasts
2 pkgs Pork Chops
2 Large London Broil Steaks

Off the shelf price:  115.06
MY price with the double coupons for the Pizza, granola bars and Cereal, and the BYGO?
Yep.... 60.06!!!!  WOWSER

I LOVE that!!!!  I can't believe it!  I have makings for like 9 or 10 meals for our family for 60.00!!!  I still have items in the pantry for side dishes I can use all next week!  I will only have to get some basic supplies (Flour, Yeast, Sugar, Milk, Eggs and some Bread) and some lunch items and we are set for at least a week and a half.. How WONDERFUL!  I think I am so hooked now.  I can't wait to try this on a full scale and see what I can accomplish before Thanksgiving!

Happy Wednesday everyone.. and wish me luck.. we are signing our loan documents and papers today at 1pm!!  Whoooooo Hooooo!  And the other GREAT news?  It is supposed to be dry and clear alllll weekend.. which means we won't have to move in the RAIN!  We love this!

Moving Day?

Well... It looks like it is actually going to happen.  We are movin' on up... to a house!

The funny thing is... it is the house we originally wanted to buy back in May.  After some loopty loos and roundabouts, we are finally cleared for docs.  We should sign either tomorrow afternoon or Wednesday morning and be funded by Friday am!  This means that we can actually get some keys on Friday and start moving in this weekend!

I will take tons of before pictures.  The before pics will be prettttty scary.  This house has been vacant for over a year.  The whole reason we wanted this place is because of all the structures and the acreage this place has.  It is almost 5 acres with a house, an extra garage, a shop, a barn and even.... a covered arena!  The covered arena is the biggest bonus for me.  For someone who rides and is a fair weather rider like myself, having a covered arena is a huge deal.  This one is 60X60 and so it is not a big arena, but it is plenty big enough for me to ride in most of the time.  It allows me to work my horse even in the crappy rainy NW winters.  It also allows me to be able to turn my horse beast out even in the worst weather with no fear of mud!  The barn has four stalls, a tack room and electricity and Water.  These are huge expenses that are already finished for us!  The shop is a mechanics dream and my DH will really really enjoy it!

While there is mucho work to be done there, we know that it is a really really sound investment.  I will have lots and lots of before and after's to share in the coming months, and I cannot wait to have a place for my things again, and most of all for our family to be together again.

I also am so happy that the Dogs will have room to run, room to play and a house instead of being cooped up in a trailer all day long.  I don't think our Beagle really minds, but I know that our Jack Russell and our Lab will be very very happy to move around more again.

It has been such a long journey and we are not at the end yet, just at the beginning of the real hard work that will start this weekend.  I so dislike moving, but this move I am really looking forward to.  Mostly because it will signal the end of our Real Estate struggles this summer.  I am so thankful that Hubby and I have made it through this.. in fact, he remarked that it has made our marriage stronger and us closer.  Most folks we know that have gone through real estate goes through a strain on their marriage.  Maybe because we are united in this?  I am not entirely sure, but I know that I am so grateful that we are seeing the light at the end of this very long, dark tunnel!

This week will mark the end of my long commutes and I am thrilled about that.  I have three and a half days left of work this week and then will be off for 5 and a half days to get this done!

I hope all of you that come here have a most fabulous week, and I will post an update once we have our signing appointment and our actual date to get keys!

Saur-Kraut Band

DSCN0483, originally uploaded by mysticfish.

I had mentioned that I would tell you all about the funny thing that happened while McGyver and I were in the bar. We had sat down at a table near to the front and These folks in funny clothes kept coming in.. there must have been about twenty of them. They are a band that is comprised of the American Legion chapter there and they raise money for charity by selling buttons, pins, shirts and hats. They were Awesome. The look on McGyvers face though.. Priceless.. he actually ended up enjoying it.. these folks were really good.. but they played Right in Front of us the entire time. Talk about front row seats. We really enjoyed them. They played awhile and then wandered down the street to play somewhere else. That is what they do.. just pop in, play and then head out to play somewhere else during the festival. Pretty cool, I think.

Here is McGyver watching

 

I will finish up posting some of the other photos from our drive back today, I really hope you have enjoyed them!