I had a bunch of coupons to use up so went deal hunting today. I had the Pullups $3/1 coupons to use, expiring today, and found some 15% off at Target. Not a great deal, but we needed them and I had the $3 coupons, which are not that common (they usually put out the $2 coupons).
I had the Electrasol $2.50/1 coupons to use also, expiring tomorrow. I checked the Wal-Mart and three Targets, all in about a 10 mile radius thankfully. The prices of Targets within a couple miles of each other do vary. At the last one I found the Electrasol on 15% off clearance for $3.64 a box so that is what I went with, using my $2.50 off coupons and getting it for $1.14 per box of 20 tabs.
I had one $1 off Post Trail Mix crunch. Target had it for $3.34, so $2.34 for the box. More than I EVER pay for cereal, but DH loves that brand and that brand only the best. I can't deny our breadwinner his Trail Mix Crunch. He takes one box a week to work for breakfast and it lasts a week perfectly per him, with one carton of soymilk to go with it ($1.04 for the soymilk at Costco). So total then is $3.38 for one week of breakfasts for DH. Pretty darn good when I look at it that way.
My BEST deal today though I owe to Jane4girls. If you don't read her blog and are a deal hunter, you need to check it out. She put a heads up that the Kashi GoLean waffles at Target were $1.79 per box and there were $1.50/1 printable coupons, making them 29 cents a box!!! I checked, and mine actually locally were down to $1.77 per box. I used the printables and some Vocalpoint coupons for $1.50/1 and got 6 boxes at 27 cents per box. What a deal! The kids love those.
Vitaminwater 10 is $1 at Target, and I had one more $1 off coupon to use up, so that just cost me the 5 cent CRV and tax.
I found some Yoplait Go-Gurts on clearance with soon dates for $1.88 each, and I had a coupon $1/1 coupons I got from a coupon trading buddy. Score! on the 88 cent Go-Gurts, again something the boys love and rarely get. Our newspaper gives the measley $0.75 off when you buy 2 boxes, so I don't buy them. At $1 off one box from her newspaper plus the clearance price, the boys got two boxes of those.
Revlon nail files are 1.29, and you can use the $1 off 1 Revlon tool coupons, making them 29 cents each. To make it better though I got a $1 off Revlon Target coupon in the mail and stacked that on since you can use a Target and manufacturer together. So I got 5 packages of nail files free.
Lastly, I have a $4 rebate, again from my generous trading buddy, when you buy 1 Softsoap Ensembles pump plus the refill. The pump was $5.99 and the refill was $2.89 (OUCH regular price), for a total of $8.88, but of course I had coupons too. I had a manufacturer coupon of $1.50 off the pump set and $0.75 off the refill and a Target mailer $2 off Ensembles to bring the total down to $4.63, and then I will send in for the $4 rebate, so final cost is $0.63 plus tax and the $0.44 stamp, so a little over $1. I'll pay that for the pump and refill. :)
A GREAT couponing day at Target.
Saturday, May 16, 2009
Friday, May 08, 2009
Review: Gooney Bird Greene
We are still working along on Sonlight Core 1 with Zach. This week we finished up Gooney Bird Greene by Lois Lowry. I was a little worried honestly about this one. First of all it has a picture of a little girl on the front in a pink tutu. That just isn't a cover that catches Zach's attention honestly. Thankfully though, it was a read-aloud rather than a reader, and hence he didn't have a choice.
It started a little slow and seemed a little bland in the first part. Zach, however, did start to enjoy it rather quickly, enjoying the funny tales Gooney Bird had to tell. He seemed to easily find the humor in the wording, and grasp why it was funny.
I honestly still didn't particularly like it through the middle of the book. This book is better for an independent reader than a read-aloud, as is scheduled in Sonlight. I can perhaps see why it is scheduled as a read-aloud, as the parent can be sure the student fully grasps the humor and why, and perhaps use it is a leap-off discussion of how to write a good story. However, the font changes and so forth that are used to indicate to the reader that what is a "Gooney Bird Story" from regular text are completely lost when done orally. That alone made it a bit of a problem for a read-aloud.
By the end of the story, I too was sad to see it end though. Zach, and even Noah, were enjoying the book. As it wrapped up, I really saw it's value as we read the last chapter. That chapter talks about how each of us has stories to tell and how to find them, using specific concrete examples from the stories Gooney has already told so well. So, a young reader is left with the message that he/she has stories in her own life to tell, and reminded that there are specific storytelling techniques to utilize that will make it the most interesting it can be for the audience. That is a great message to leave with the reader.
Now that we have read it as scheduled, my own independent reader will get a chance to reread it and see the written techniques used as well. He loves to reread, thankfully. I'm very glad we had exposure to this through our curriculum, because honestly I would not have picked it out for my son, nor would he have chosen it for himself, based on the cover art or description on the cover. It really was an excellent book though.
It started a little slow and seemed a little bland in the first part. Zach, however, did start to enjoy it rather quickly, enjoying the funny tales Gooney Bird had to tell. He seemed to easily find the humor in the wording, and grasp why it was funny.
I honestly still didn't particularly like it through the middle of the book. This book is better for an independent reader than a read-aloud, as is scheduled in Sonlight. I can perhaps see why it is scheduled as a read-aloud, as the parent can be sure the student fully grasps the humor and why, and perhaps use it is a leap-off discussion of how to write a good story. However, the font changes and so forth that are used to indicate to the reader that what is a "Gooney Bird Story" from regular text are completely lost when done orally. That alone made it a bit of a problem for a read-aloud.
By the end of the story, I too was sad to see it end though. Zach, and even Noah, were enjoying the book. As it wrapped up, I really saw it's value as we read the last chapter. That chapter talks about how each of us has stories to tell and how to find them, using specific concrete examples from the stories Gooney has already told so well. So, a young reader is left with the message that he/she has stories in her own life to tell, and reminded that there are specific storytelling techniques to utilize that will make it the most interesting it can be for the audience. That is a great message to leave with the reader.
Now that we have read it as scheduled, my own independent reader will get a chance to reread it and see the written techniques used as well. He loves to reread, thankfully. I'm very glad we had exposure to this through our curriculum, because honestly I would not have picked it out for my son, nor would he have chosen it for himself, based on the cover art or description on the cover. It really was an excellent book though.
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