Know What You Use

I spent my morning shopping today, using coupons for each purchase.  I only purchased things that my family uses, and "saved" roughly $100.00 or so together with the sale price plus coupons.  I won't bore you with all the details, but I think it is important to know what items you use regularly.  That way, when something you use on a regular basis goes on sale for a fantastic price, you can grab that opportunity and purchase as much as you think you will use in a 2, 4, 6, or even a 12 months period.  We've all noticed the prices of just about everything keeps going up, so a savings today will pay you back in multiples in the future.

Today, I purchased 12 Starkist  tuna pouches for 65 cents each. I've been looking for tuna to go on sale, and while these were not on sale, I came across some "75 cents off 2" coupons, so I decided to stock up before they expired.  I also purchased 3 Abreva cold sore treatments for $11.00 each. I used a manufacturer's $3.00 off coupon plus a Walgreens in-store coupon for another $3.00 off.  Regularly, these sell for $22.00, but it was on sale for $16.99, so it was quite a savings in conjunction with the coupons. My husband buys about 3 or 4 of these a year, so I wanted to grab them when the price was marked down so that I would not have to run into the store when he needed one and have to pay full price for it.

I will not go through every item I purchased, but you get the point. Know what you use, and how much they normally are. Then, if it goes on sale, take that opportunity to stock up.  Buying things when you need it is the most expensive way to shop and is not a good use of one's limited resources.