I'm posting this entry with the hope that if I write it down, I won't be so mad at myself. First of all you have to understand that when I do my frugal shopping, I usually do so with three kids in tow since my husband works long hours. Now, I could go on the weekend, and sometimes do, but that's our only time to spend as a family and I do think that's more important than shopping -- shocking, I know!
So, I had to go to Walgreens today to pick up a prescription so I decided to pick up some things while I was there. I take the time to write down everything I'm going to buy because if not, I always forget. Here's how it went:
1. Glade PlugIns Refills, B1G1 - now, the only reason I purchased 4 of these is because I had a B1G1 coupon and thought they'd all be free. Well, the coupon wasn't B1G1, but rather B1 and get a warmer free! So, yes I got 2 free warmers, but paid $10.09 for 8 refills which although that may not be a bad price - it was really something I didn't need.
2. Sambucol cold medicine - not something we needed but because I could buy it for $10.19 and use the Wags coupon for $10 off plus a manufacturer's coupon for another $4 off, I decided to buy it since it was a money maker. Nice thought, but I forgot to give the cashier my $4 off coupon. Yea, I know it was still a good deal since I only paid $.19 for it, but it's just the idea!
3. Campbell's soups - Wags has a coupon in their ad for 3/$3. I bought 4 cans and had two $.40 coupons which I used, but I forgot to give the cashier the Wags coupon and ended up paying this much for each can: $1.27, $1.27, $1.35 and $1.20 - UGH!!!
I guess those were the only things I tecnically "screwed up" on, but I'm so mad at myself. My bill ended up totalling $30.12 - a lot more than I intended to spend. Some of that was also because we needed some things that I just had to purchase without coupons - oh, how I hate that!
Oh, one last screw up - I forgot my coupons for True North and was so excited to see if my Walgreens had them on clearance like someone else in cyberspace reported.
I'm still fairly new to this frugal way of shopping and its just such a learning curve - I never expected that. That and the fact that I have to shop with three kids in tow makes it especially difficult. Anyone else feeling my frustration? Anyone else on a learning curve? Please post your comments and make me feel better....
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I too shop with three kids "in tow" (mine are all ages 4 and under) and am new to the coupon way of things and have definitely felt the "learning curve"! You're not alone! Because of my husband's work, we have a very limited income. The whole stockpiling idea is good, except that some weeks we only have enough money to by the basic weekly musts (milk, eggs, fruits, veggies). So this adds a frustration for me as well.
ReplyDeleteThanks Lydia! I think this way of shopping and couponing will definitely pay off and hopefully soon it will just become second nature to us. I'm glad to know I'm not the only one frustrated. A lot of the blogs I read are from veteran coupon queens and they are so great at doing all of this - it's really inspiring and usually quite different from my experiences. Thanks for reading!
ReplyDeleteI am in the same boat as you when it comes to being new at the coupon game. This is actually my first week with Walgreens.I hope it gets better for both of us!
ReplyDeleteI've just been "couponing" since Jan. and it has really been fun and frustrating at the same time. I just have to go alone...I have a 9-yr-old who's just not into shopping and I always get confused and forget coupons or pay with RR's and don't get the RR's I'm supposed to get. But I'm still saving a lot of money and that's the goal, after all. I think as time goes by I am getting better at remembering it all, but it really helps to make a list and write down the Wags coupons I need to be sure to give them (or I've even cut them out and put them with my other coupons so I wouldn't forget them.)
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