Yay!! It's a Give-away!!!

Congrats to Victoria! You won!

Have you heard about Yoplait's new Greek Style Yogurt yet? I was checking it out in the store and was quite tempted to grab it, but then Yoplait and My Blog Spark contacted me and offered to give me some to try for free!!

Happy day!!

Not only did they send me coupons to try 2 cups for free, I also got a very cute little spa style robe, (which I think will work out wonderfully as a swim suit cover-up) a gigantic pair of slippers (something for the DH), and some new bathtime accessories in which I can pamper myself with while I indulge in Yoplait's Greek yogurt:)

Ok folks, best part here! My Blog Spark and Yoplait are giving the Spa set and 2 coupons for free Yoplait Greek Yogurt to one of my lucky readers!

*This coupon offer for a free cup of Yoplait Greek yogurt is not valid in some states, including California, Idaho, Louisiana, Minnesota, New Jersey, North Dakota, and Tennessee. Otherwise, is open to Residents of the USA only.

Bummer for my Idaho and California friends, but you can still get the cool bath goodies :) The coupons are valid until Febuary 2012 so just save them for a vacation in a state that doesn't prohibit free item coupons - who's idea was that anyway?

So, I am celebrating my 1 year blogging aniversary with this give-away and making it easy to get in on it! You know the drill, just leave a comment! Include your email address in this format: email at server dot com. If you have tried Yoplait Greek Yogurt, let us know what you think about it or what your favorite flavor is. If not, just say you want to win! That gets you one entry.

Get another by becoming a follower of La Vida Cheapo! All of my current followers automatically get this entry :) Please let me know that you are a new follower in the comments and then just make sure to check back on May 26, 2010 to see if you have won!

Good Luck everyone!!

Hello Almost Frugal!

Hello Almost Frugal readers and Thank you for stopping by!

A few months ago, I was interviewed by Kelli Rigotti, writer and publisher for the website Almost Frugal, learning about Frugality. The interview contained 4 questions about What Frugal Looks Like.

4 questions, but during the process of answering them I realized something:

Frugality is not second nature....It's something you have to learn and work at every day!

When that sunk in, I was rather intimidated and started wondering if I was even qualified to answer these 4 questions. It took me a few days of thinking before I could respond and those questions, 1 in particular have been on my mind every since, and I am curious about what other people would say.

What are your long term goals that being frugal will help you accomplish?

Are you frugal to help yourself and your family? Can you do something to help your friends and community? Can your frugal ways help the environment? All of these questions were inspired by that 1 question, and I have been thinking long and hard on how to answer them, because Frugality is not second nature, it is something I am still learning and working at every day.

Many Thanks to Kelli Rigotti for the opportunity to contribute to Almost Frugal!

Thanks again from stopping by, here are some of my favorite posts from the past that have a frugal focus.

The Penny Experiment - Giving back to my community

Keeping It Together! - How I wrangle my coupons :)

Growing our own - preserving food for the winter.

Yokes 5/5 - 5/11

Free Breakfast voucher when you spend $50.00.

Voucher Includes:

12 oz. Western Family Orange Juice
Western Family English Muffins
1 dozen Large Eggs
11 oz. Western Family Sausage Links
24 - 32 oz. Mr. Dells Hash Browns

Coupons for free items must be used between 5/5/10 and 5/22/10.

Divine Ribeye Roasts or Steaks, $6.97/lb.

Boneless Fryer Breast, $1.99/lb.

Longhorn Spriral cut Ham, $1.98/lb.

Western Family Potato Chips, $1.67 each

Kelloggs Mini-Wheats Cereal, $2.50 each
- $1.50/2 PRINTABLE
= $1.75 each wyb 2

Buy 4 and get a gallon of milk free!

Tony's single serve Pizza, $1.00 each
- $1.00/2 MFR (blinkies in Fred Meyer and Safeway)
= .50 cents each wyb 2

Pillsbury Refrigerator Rolls, $2.00 each
- .70 cents PRINTABLE
= $1.30 each

Rosauers 5/5 - 5/11

Draper Valley Farms Whole Fryers, .99 cents/lb.

Bandon Medium Cheddar Cheese, 2 ob., $4.79 each

Tyson Chicken Wings, Patties, Tenders or Nuggets, (10-13 oz) $2.79 each
- .55/1 MFR (3/7 SS, exp. 6/30)
= $2.22 each

Freschetta Frozen Pizza, (12-28)oz., $3.99 each
- $1.25/1 MFR (3/7 SS, exp. 5.31)
= $2.74 each

Hillshire Farm Smoked Rope Sausage, $2.50 each
- $1.00/2 MFR (4/18 RP, exp. 5/16)
= $2.00 each wyb 2

Nabisco 100 Cal Snack Packs, $1.79 each
- $1.00/2 MFR (yellow school bus booklet, exp. 5/31 and 6/30)
= $1.29 each

Check out the full Ad HERE :)

Menu Plan Monday

Happy May!

As this is the first week of the month, my mom and I are planning on cooking extra this week and stock up on some freezer meals and dishes again. She is going to be going back over to the coast during this month and we like to send over freezer meals for my grama and grampa. They are getting up there in years and are in questionable health so we send over what ever we think we can pack into their freezer to help them through the weeks that we aren't there and that way they don't feel well enough to shop or cook they still have a good meal available.

So, here is the plan this week:

Monday - go shopping for the remaining ingredients needed to Power out some freezer meals!

Chicken Pattie Sandwitches
Oven baked home fries
Corn

Tuesday - power cooking 2 whole chickens in the Pressure Cooker and prepping it for Wendesday.

triple batch of Homemade Mac-n-cheese (one for tonight and 2 for the freezer)
Green beans

Wendesday -

Chicken Enchilada Marathon! Scored real nice and got 60 flour torillas for .24 cents, so we will put as many together as we have chicken and trays for.
Green Salad
Cottage Cheese

Thursday -

Double batch of Maryanns Baked Beans. I keep forgetting to ask her if I can share the recipe and they are so darn good. It is kind of a combination of this recipeand this recipe and they freeze really well. I am going to make them in the crockpot.

Pulled Pork sandwitches (from the freezer)
Left over green salad

Friday -

Left overs if any, snacky foods otherwise. We have alot of appetizers in the freezer that will suffice.

Saturday -

Mashed Potato casserole marathon

A version of Smoked Sausage Bake only with real mashed potatoes and smoked sausage for dinner.
Mixed Vegetables

Sunday - Mother's day :)

I am not going to make a menu for this day. Mom and I are going to be worn out by all the extra cooking we have done so the plan is, once the boys realize there is no dinner on the menu that they will panick and propose eating out!

LOL :) Maybe The Mustard Seed? Maybe I should make reservations....

Check out what everyone else is having for dinner this week at The Orgjunkie's MPM!

I could have spent $99.02...

But I didn't, of course!

Ok, 2 days, 2 stores, 4 transactions:

Transaction #1: Safeway

9 cans of Seattle's Best Coffee = $13.41
- $4.41 Club Card Discount = $9.00
- $1.00 Seattle's Best Coffee MFR (3/28 SS, exp. 4/30) x 9 = $0.00
Thanks for the heads up on this one JoDee and for all the extra coupons Joelle!

Transaction #2: Safeway

1 Heinz 57 Sauce = $4.35
- .50 Club Card Discount = $3.85
- $2.00 PRINTABLE MFR (NLA) = $1.85
- $2.00 Safeway E-coupon (NLA) = +.15 overage

1 Betty Crocker Warm Delights = $1.69
- $1.00 Cellfire ecoupon = .69
- .50 Shortcuts e-coupon = .19
- .75 cent MFR (3/28 SS, exp. 5/22) = +.56 Overage

Yuban Coffee = $7.99
- $4.00 Cellfire e-coupons ($2.00 x 2) = $3.99
- $2.00 MFR (2010 Earth day booklet) = $1.99

2 Pillsbury Toaster Strudels @ $2.50 each = $5.00
- .55/2 PRINTABLE MFR = $4.45

3 Sargento Shredded cheese @ $3.49 each = $10.47
- $5.40 Store coupon = $5.07
- $1.00 PRINTABLE x 3 (used zip code 20772 - TY Karissa!) = $2.07

4 Windex Anti-bacterial = $14.00
- $6.04 Club Card discount = $7.96
- $1.00 x 4 MFR (3/21 SS, exp. 5/16) or PRINTABLE = (-$4.00) = $3.96
- $1.00 Safeway e-coupon = $2.96 for 4 AND I GOT BACK $4.00 IN CATALINAS!

1 51/60 ct. 2 lb. Raw Shrimp = $ $12.98
- 7.00 Club Card Discount = $5.98

Tax = .69 cents

Total spent at Safeway = $17.43!!

Unless you count the $4.00 in cats then its $13.43 but I didn't use them on this trip (saving for next week.)

Transaction #3: Fred Meyer

3 boxes of Rice Krispies and 1 box of Frosted Flakes @ $1.97 each = $7.88
- $1.50/2 Rice Krispies coupons (3/28 RP exp. 5/9)= $6.38
- $1.00 Rice Krispies MFR (was in a specially marked box I bought last winter) = $5.38
- .05 bag credit = $5.33 and I got a $3.00 catalina for purchasing 4 boxes (Thanks for the info on this one Crystal!)

Transaction #4: Fred Meyer

6 Mission Flour Tortillas (FM price 3 for $5.00) = $10.00
- $5.26 Albertsons store coupon (.79 cents each x 6) = $4.74
- .75 x 6 PRINTABLE MFR (NLA?) = (-$4.50) = .24 cents!

4 KC Masterpiece BBQ sauce @ $1.75 each = $7.00
- $1.00 FM Store coupon
- $1.00 x 4 PRINTABLE MFR = (- $4.00) = $2.00

1 Lea and Perrins Worcestershire sauce = $2.27
- $2.00 PRINTABLE (NLA) = .27 cents

1 package of of Hamburger buns = $1.09
1 package of Hoagie buns = .89 cents

- $3.00 cat from previous transaction
- .05 bag credit

Total for order = $1.44

Total Spent at Fred Meyer = $6.77

Total for all before sales, discounts and coupons = $99.02 :(

Total after sales, discounts and coupons = $24.20!! And I got $4.00 in Catalinas for next week :)