My Favorite Stores to Shop

We are currently in a "busy" season of life in my household.  I have been extremely busy at work which has included some extra hours and travel.  This has its positives (we are obviously busy at work = sales!) however it also has its negatives (less time with my family).  The kids have also been busy with various activities, swimming, soccer, karate, and now T-ball.  With all this "busy-ness", we have had to adjust our shopping style lately. 

I have not been doing as much bargain/coupon shopping as I normally like, but we have found some new ways to save money which is currently working for us.  Here is my list of our top stores that we have been frequently lately:

1.  Costco - this one is new to us.  We put off getting a member for so long because I doubted we would use it.  Well I was wrong, my husband and I love this store and all it offers!  There prices on a lot of items can't be beat!  However we are still being very careful comparing prices and not just buying something because it "appears" to be a great deal.  They are the cheapest in town right now on milk ($2.28 per gallon) and eggs ($3.19 for 3 dozen).

2.  Aldi - this is always one of our favorite stores.  We continue to get a lot of our staples at Aldi's including fruits, canned goods, cereals, frozen items, and boxed snacks.  They have raised prices on milk (not happy) but are still the cheapest in town for bananas ($0.44/#), chicken noodle soup ($0.49 per can) and small cans of tomato sauce ($0.25/can).  They have also ran some $10 off a $40 purchase coupons in our Sunday ads (love them - more please?)

3.  Giant Eagle - my favorite store to coupon.  Lately, the coupon deals have been, uh SLOW!  I only shopped twice this past month.  The first time was to use 10% in Food Perks and the second time to use the catalinas from the first trip.  There truly have not been any great sales worth a stop.  I hope this changes!

4.  CVS - my favorite drug store!  I use to make weekly trips during my lunch break at work.  Lately the trips have been every other week.  Again the sales have been mediocre.  I have only been going when I truly see the value.  I will continue to work my Extra Care Bucks however!

5.  Walgreens - they are falling on my list!  Too many new rules with coupons!  I have had several instances where my Register Rewards failed to print and I had to return items because management would not honor.  I will still shop there if there are some good freebies, but they are not top on my weekly shopping list anymore!

Well, that will do it!  These are the stores I been shopping at most lately.  As with life, things change quickly and we have to change are shopping habits to adjust to our current lifestyle!

Christmas Shopping Season

It’s November, and yes time to start Christmas shopping if you haven’t started already! We also have a lot of winter birthdays in our family also, so we are buying birthday gifts normally at the same time! Here are a few ways/rules which I use to tackle the holiday shopping.


1. Determine you total amount to spend on gifts and begin saving 6 months to a year in advance. If not this year, start in January for 2011! It is a lot less stressful not having January bills after the holiday is over!

2. Make a list of who you are buying for, your budget for each person, and potential gift ideas. Once you buy their gift(s) update your list and the amount spent.

3. Slow and Steady and Start Now. I found that mini trips are the best way to shop. Have a list and go and get what is on that list. Frustration sets in when you wander aimlessly around the store trying to find out what to get a person. You also get worn out when you go to store after store after store!

4. Never enter Toys R Us on the weekend or in the month of December! I do mini Toys R Us trips on my lunch hour throughout November! I find it is less crowded and a more pleasant experience. Toys R Us sends out loads of coupons and I utilize them as they come!

5. Utilize Amazon and other online coupons & free shipping offers! Nothing makes a more pleasant shopping experience then never having to leave the comfort of my office chair!

6. Maximize your online savings by using Amazon gift cards earned through Swagbucks and shopping through EBATES first!

7. Use those JCPenney coupons! I have a $10 off a $10 purchase coupon right now sitting on my counter. I will go in and buy 1 or 2 items to get the total right over ten dollars and that’s it. This is the perfect time to buy socks, hair accessories, and tights for stocking stuffers!