Okay, one thing to know going into this story. I have the worst luck. Like, catastrophically bad. If I had $1 for every time someone said to me, “Wow, that’s rotten luck. What are the odds?” I wouldn’t be here, blogging about Saving to Disney. I’d already be at Disney, having paid for Happily Ever After Dessert Party with all my bad luck dollars.
For a change, we did a full family grocery trip to Kroger on Thursday evening. I was feeling a little bummed about this trip because my coupon game wasn’t strong, there weren’t any great in-store sales, and I was worried all the good produce would be gone because it was such a late trip. I live in a small town, ya’ll. Our Kroger has been known to sell out of berries in an hour.
But then, something crazy happened. As we were wrangling the littles Bs into various carts, a woman approached me, hands outstretched. “Here you go. It looks like you might have quite a big trip ahead of you. Have a great night.” Then, like an angel, she disappeared into the night. And in my hands was a $5 off your entire purchase Catalina. First of all, what, Kroger? You have been holding out on me. My Catalinas are always for .67 off 19 boxes of Cereal. Second of all, what, nice lady? Thank you so much.
Then the grapes weren’t sold out! Did I take Felix Felicis this morning and forget? (Shout out to my fellow Potterheads!) Then, we were rounding the bakery corner and I hear, “Pssssst. Pssssst. Do your little girls like donuts?” Um, yes. Because what kid is like “Ew, donuts, gross.” Then, this sweet gal hands each of my girls a donut and says “Ya’ll just made my night a little easier.” We thanked her and continued on our way.
Our trip was turning out to be surprisingly light. As you may remember, the Bs are moving in a little less than two months, so we’re trying to make our way through our freezer and pantry stores. Luckily for me, there weren’t any great meat sales that made it hard to fight the stockpile instinct.
Finally, we’re at the checkout. The cashier strikes up a conversation with the littlest B, whose face is still covered in donut. I hand her my $5 off coupon, suddenly nervous it won’t work. That’s what my bad luck has conditioned me for. I was ready for that coupon to not scan, have the cashier tell me it was a stolen coupon, and I was going to grocery jail. But it worked. Phewf. A sigh of relief. Then a weird buzz. I look at the screen. She looks at the screen. The coupon has doubled. She looks back to me, cheerily tells me my total. “Erm, I think my coupon double scanned?” She smiles at me. “Did it? Oh well, the system has been acting up all day.” And repeats the total.
All that to say, this week’s totals are…unexpected. And I definitely don’t consider this a Bargain Brag, as much as a Bargain Thank You to Super Kind Individuals.
- A1 Steak Sauce-$3.39.
- Bananas, 2.02 lb-$1.11.
- Bell Peppers, (3)-$3.75.
- Heritage Farm Chicken Breasts, 5.71 lbs-$11.38.
- Kroger Bakery Croissants, 4ct-$1.69. Marked 50% off for Bakery clearance.
- Kroger Cream Cheese-$1.19.
- Mediterranean Gouda-$5.10.
- Private Selection Sliced Pepperoni, .5 lb-$3.70.
- Red Grapes, 2.24 lb-$2.20.
- Roma Tomatoes, 1.42 lb-$1.41.
- Vidal Onions, 2.69 lb-$2.66.
- Whole Pineapple (2)-$1.96. Normally $2.59, they were marked down to .99 each.
- Apps I’ll submit to- Fetch Rewards, Ibotta (.25 off Any Item)
Total Budget: $73.60
Total Spent: $31.03
Total Saved: $16.28
Rolled Over to Next Trip: $42.75
And there you have it, friends. Even the losers get lucky sometimes. (RIP, Tom Petty.) I rolled over more to the next trip than I spent on this one. It’s too good to last, but not too good to enjoy! How about you? How’s your luck? Any grocery angels in your path lately? Tell me all about it in the comment.
Kristen B. is wife to the best Prince around, mama to the spunkiest little princesses, and lover of all things Disney. She started her savings journey three years ago and is now dedicated to making her family’s wishes come true one coupon at a time. She is so excited to take her love of saving to the next level and share her journey with you! Click here to catch up on Kristen’s Savings and join in on your own savings adventure!