More Saving, More Doing

Ah.  It's January.  And I feel like I can breathe again.  Don't get me wrong, I loved the hustle and bustle of the holidays combined with an extremely busy photography season.  But I'm absolutely just loving now.  January and February tend to be my down time for photography, and the past week was gloriously un-busy, as school was off and most of our ministries were also off for the break.  I spent a good chunk of time relaxing and a good chunk of time getting more organized.  I cleaned out a few of the rooms in our house that were probably borderline "Hoarders" show eligible.  I've been catching up on laundry, being reminded once again that we all have a ton of clothes, save for white socks that seem to be magically disappearing.  And...  (drumroll please) I've finally had time to start couponing again.

Granted, I'm not extreme.  But I do love a good deal.  And since couponing takes a bit of time and effort, I haven't had much time to commit over the past few months.  Today however, I got my act together and made a fun couponing purchase at Rite Aid.  

I'm pretty simple, as far as retail products go.  I don't mind buying the store brands (except for Oreos... sorry, but no store brand that I know of can compare).  But I am more than happy to buy the real deal, when I can get it for a good price.  Case in point, each of the Pantene shampoos and conditioners turned out to be $1 each, after the sale, register rewards and coupons that I used.  And I got my favorite hair spray for $1.50, when it regularly retails for $4.99.  Not bad at all.  There were also a few extras that we picked up, mostly because we needed them (the aluminum foil) or just wanted to please our gum-loving girl (the extra gum).  

Total retail value with tax:  $59.89

Total that I paid:  $20.91

Total percent saved:  About 65%

Although, it probably wouldn't get me on the show, Extreme Couponing.  But I was pretty pleased with myself.  And quite a bit of the items that I got, were ones that we actually need right now.  I'm looking forward to continuing to find ways to save this year.  There is an amazing website that I use called Hip 2 Save, where this phenomenal woman Colin, does most of the hard work for you!  Each week, she shares the best possible ways to save at stores like Rite Aid and Target.  I discovered her website last year, and have most definitely saved quite a bit of money using some of the deals that she shares.  

Thanks to the Home Depot's slogan, I have a general resolution for 2012...  More Saving, More Doing.

I'm looking forward to seeing how many ways that I can do both of these, this year.