THE MARCH 2011 GROCERY CHALLENGE THREAD

[leanna]

Mar 28, 2011 14:11:31 GMT -5 dancinmama said:

Mar 28, 2011 13:18:52 GMT -5 leanna said:

I like what you shared DancinMama. Your strategy is very interesting about starting out when an item is totally free. I could see how that would positively impact the budget so much better.

I have an interesting thing going on with RR's that really helps me. My Safeway (grocery store) will take RR's, so that really helps me create mm's without having to roll at Wags.

Example: Last week with Almay - I could buy an Almay item for $3 OOP (after Wags coupon.) Then I would receive a $5 RR. I take that $5 RR and buy groceries at Safeway that I need. So I got to spend $3 for $5 of groceries AND I got a free Almay item. Not too shabby.

leanna: That is awesome!! There is NO WAY that my Safeway would take a WAGs RR. Occasionally, I still get the line about not being able to use the same coupon multiple times for multiple items in the same transaction. I thought that they would become more coupon friendly after they were featured in the Extreme Couponing show a while back, but nope.

suzi's Vons (Safeway) is even worse than mine.

If I COULD use RRs at Safeway, I'd ALWAYS be stopping in at WAGs first.

It is SO cool! I only found out about this maybe a month ago or so from a local frugal site. I was like "Whaaaaaaat?" I mainly shop at Safeway for my food, so talk about perfect! It's particularly helpful because, being in the test market area, they decided to "test" us by giving us no RR for about a month.

I have a Safeway question for you. Yesterday, they wouldn't let me use the BOGO Trident gum coupon on the Trident gum that was on sale for BOGO. I didn't know their coupon policy off the top of my head, so I just asked the gal to remove the Trident from order. (No big deal since I was just picking it up since it would be free - don't even chew gum really.) When I got home I pulled down the coupon policy, but frankly, I still couldn't tell what the answer was.

Have you been able to use BOGO Q's at Safeway on a BOGO sale?

[mandyms]

Mar 28, 2011 14:03:51 GMT -5 dancinmama said:

Mar 28, 2011 13:44:48 GMT -5 mandyms said:

I see other people are rolling RRs from WAGS during the following week...does that mean you wait until mid-week to go to WAGS to shop? My RR are only good for 5 days...is this the same for everyone?

mandyms: No, usually RRs are good for 14 days. Are you in one of the test areas?

I don't think so. I'm in Ohio...I haven't really double checked since I first started going to WAGS. I just remember my first RR received and thinking what a bummer it was that I couldn't even wait for the next ad to come out to use it. Maybe I misread it, but I vaguely remember when I lived in Cleveland that this was the case too...any other Ohio people care to weigh in?

[AJ CouponGG]

Mar 28, 2011 11:22:58 GMT -5 @mawmawandlovingit said:

Nag: I am soooo bummed......I just finished entering my monthly totals in my budget spreadsheet and I spent $1015.00 this month on groceries and there are only 2 of us in the house!! It's been a while since I spent this much, I usually spend $600 - $800 and this is WAY too much for two people. AJ: I really wish I could stick to your plan!!

I think the problems I am encountering are:

1) No double coupon stores in area
2) Chasing too many deals
3) Trying to use all the "good" coupons before they expire
4) Having the extra money in checking so not really monitoring spending.

I have enough groceries in my stockpile to last months, including meat. I have enough HBA in my stockpile to last at least a year. I AM NOT a horder, I am extremely organized and everything has its own place in the extra bedroom closet. I also try NOT to purchase many items that I will not use unless it is a HUGE money maker.

I have been doing this for about 2 years now and I feel that it is a game with me to see how much I can get for freap and the oop just adds up. I live in a 9.5% tax area so alot of the oop is taxes.

Now granted, I have given LOTS of things away to friends and family and I think that is why I have enjoyed doing this so much. My children haven't had to buy any HBA items, paper goods, or diapers/wipes in the last 2 years. They are totally spoiled and beg me not to stop ;D.

So, with all this being said, I think it is time that I seriously take a break and sit back and enjoy the stockpile and hopefully cut the grocery bill tremendously. I think I will miss this, and I'm sure I will be back into it in a few months, but it is consuming my thinking right now and I really need a break!! I will continue to lurk but might not be posting much. Thanks to all for all the great deals, love you all!!

Mawmaw-I know how you feel, I still struggle with I want to use the good coupons before they expire.....DH sometimes has to keep me in check. I also give tons of stuff away to friends/family and I agree they get spoiled. I take what I call sanity breaks-it's taken years for me to realize I will not get every single deal out there everytime. It's just not possible....even if I didn't work (and assuming we still didn't have kids) I still don't think there's enough tim in the day. I am lucky I get double coupons...the irony is about 45 mins south there is more than 1 chain of grocery and they don't double coupoons but I get better deals at Acme than my giant eagle because my Giant Eagle prices are higher than other areas with the same store. I have no proof but I believe it stems from lack of competition. My tax is only 6.25% so that does help. And I do stockup more in some months on certain items(we all know how baking products go down to their cheapest near holidays) but honestly there have been 2 things that have made the difference for me with working down to such a low budget-1) I leave DH at home no matter what when I go to store. I can't afford to take him honestly he'll pick up junk that is full price that he won't even eat all of before it goes bad but he "had to have it". 2) I made friends with the meat and produce managers so I get a text or phone call on the big markdown days and I can zoom over during lunch. I'm not sure if it's coupon ethical but my meat guy will hold back good discount steaks for me for a few hours til I get a break at work and can pop over that day. I make him cookies once a month and I give a note to his wife every week with coupons for items I know she uses and when/where the best sale will be. They are in their 60's, live in our condo community, and I know they have a fixed income. Since our condo requires shoveling and they are only a few units away DH does their sidewalks in winter. He does it for the exercise and he just likes to shovel snow. I think she helps push her husband to help me with sales.....killing them with kindness sort of thing.

[AJ CouponGG]

Mar 28, 2011 14:27:02 GMT -5 mandyms said:

Mar 28, 2011 14:03:51 GMT -5 dancinmama said:

mandyms: No, usually RRs are good for 14 days. Are you in one of the test areas?

I don't think so. I'm in Ohio...I haven't really double checked since I first started going to WAGS. I just remember my first RR received and thinking what a bummer it was that I couldn't even wait for the next ad to come out to use it. Maybe I misread it, but I vaguely remember when I lived in Cleveland that this was the case too...any other Ohio people care to weigh in?

I'm on east side of Cleveland and my RR's usually last 2 weeks I believe. Of course I just spent my last one in my purse this morning on the redbaron pizza for DH so I can't check. But I will let you know if I see anything funny on the RR's next time I get some.

[rubyslippers]

Mandyms, my RR that I got yesterday is good through April 10th.

I finally got my SCR from Rite Aid!

[4hatsandfrugal]

I have 2 20% off codes for amazon mom that expire on the 31st. If anyone wants them, shoot me a PM

[Frugal Nurse]

Mar 28, 2011 9:27:10 GMT -5 suziq38 said:

I feel so defeated... I had done so well at getting such great deals and DH ruined it. I know, I have to get over it. It is just that I worked so hard at saving all that $$ and *poof* it's gone.

We have all "been there" at some time or another.
Sometimes, it is fine to start over.

This is a great place to start.
Just think, spending $1.29 plus tax to get the Physicians Formula, then turning that EB into a Skintimate and Colgate deal.
4 things, plus you will still have $6.50 store credit for next time.

I forgot why you don't have any EB's? Did you run out, or did they get thrown away?
I have a short memory. Sorry.

Thanks for the deal ideas. I did do the physician's formula deals (one was $7.00 ECB wyb a 9.79 mascara, the other wa a $7.00 ECB wyb any PF makeup). So that got me started again a little. I don't realy need any more toothpaste (it's overflowing in my bathroom closet!) and I don't use shaving cream, so I skipped those, but thanks for the suggestions!

As for why I don't have any ECB's- DH is a genius amd threw them away when he was cleaning. I had like $50 worth of rewards dollars, plus several Rite Aid survey codes. Grrr...

[dancinmama]

Mar 28, 2011 14:23:20 GMT -5 leanna said:

Mar 28, 2011 14:11:31 GMT -5 dancinmama said:

leanna: That is awesome!! There is NO WAY that my Safeway would take a WAGs RR. Occasionally, I still get the line about not being able to use the same coupon multiple times for multiple items in the same transaction. I thought that they would become more coupon friendly after they were featured in the Extreme Couponing show a while back, but nope.

suzi's Vons (Safeway) is even worse than mine.

If I COULD use RRs at Safeway, I'd ALWAYS be stopping in at WAGs first.

It is SO cool! I only found out about this maybe a month ago or so from a local frugal site. I was like "Whaaaaaaat?" I mainly shop at Safeway for my food, so talk about perfect! It's particularly helpful because, being in the test market area, they decided to "test" us by giving us no RR for about a month.

I have a Safeway question for you. Yesterday, they wouldn't let me use the BOGO Trident gum coupon on the Trident gum that was on sale for BOGO. I didn't know their coupon policy off the top of my head, so I just asked the gal to remove the Trident from order. (No big deal since I was just picking it up since it would be free - don't even chew gum really.) When I got home I pulled down the coupon policy, but frankly, I still couldn't tell what the answer was.

Have you been able to use BOGO Q's at Safeway on a BOGO sale?

leanna: Quite frankly, I've rarely used a BOGO on a BOGO at Safeway. The last time I recall using a BOGO coupon on a BOGO sale was also a gum deal (Wrigley's Extra as I recall); but that was a while back. I guess it would depend on how the register looks at the coupon. Of course the coupon is going to beep to prompt the cashier for the price and I have a couple of cashiers that would then just punch in the price and move on - that is unless there is some new policy that disallows it.

In any case, I usually use those types of coupons at the drug chains cuz I KNOW that THEY will take them without a hassle.

Although Safeway is my "best" grocery store for hounding food, it still is pretty dismal. I really only go there to cherry pick the meat markdowns and any time there is something that is free or freap. We get almost all of our groceries elsewhere (dairy and most staples at the drug chains, fresh fruits and veggies from fresh fruit and veggies stands, bread from the outlet store, and fill in at Costco and occasionally Walart or Target, etc.).

[dancinmama]

Mar 28, 2011 14:52:49 GMT -5 AJ CouponGG said:

Mar 28, 2011 11:22:58 GMT -5 @mawmawandlovingit said:

Nag: I am soooo bummed......I just finished entering my monthly totals in my budget spreadsheet and I spent $1015.00 this month on groceries and there are only 2 of us in the house!! It's been a while since I spent this much, I usually spend $600 - $800 and this is WAY too much for two people. AJ: I really wish I could stick to your plan!!

I think the problems I am encountering are:

1) No double coupon stores in area
2) Chasing too many deals
3) Trying to use all the "good" coupons before they expire
4) Having the extra money in checking so not really monitoring spending.

I have enough groceries in my stockpile to last months, including meat. I have enough HBA in my stockpile to last at least a year. I AM NOT a horder, I am extremely organized and everything has its own place in the extra bedroom closet. I also try NOT to purchase many items that I will not use unless it is a HUGE money maker.

I have been doing this for about 2 years now and I feel that it is a game with me to see how much I can get for freap and the oop just adds up. I live in a 9.5% tax area so alot of the oop is taxes.

Now granted, I have given LOTS of things away to friends and family and I think that is why I have enjoyed doing this so much. My children haven't had to buy any HBA items, paper goods, or diapers/wipes in the last 2 years. They are totally spoiled and beg me not to stop ;D.

So, with all this being said, I think it is time that I seriously take a break and sit back and enjoy the stockpile and hopefully cut the grocery bill tremendously. I think I will miss this, and I'm sure I will be back into it in a few months, but it is consuming my thinking right now and I really need a break!! I will continue to lurk but might not be posting much. Thanks to all for all the great deals, love you all!!

Mawmaw-I know how you feel, I still struggle with I want to use the good coupons before they expire.....DH sometimes has to keep me in check. I also give tons of stuff away to friends/family and I agree they get spoiled. I take what I call sanity breaks-it's taken years for me to realize I will not get every single deal out there everytime. It's just not possible....even if I didn't work (and assuming we still didn't have kids) I still don't think there's enough tim in the day. I am lucky I get double coupons...the irony is about 45 mins south there is more than 1 chain of grocery and they don't double coupoons but I get better deals at Acme than my giant eagle because my Giant Eagle prices are higher than other areas with the same store. I have no proof but I believe it stems from lack of competition. My tax is only 6.25% so that does help. And I do stockup more in some months on certain items(we all know how baking products go down to their cheapest near holidays) but honestly there have been 2 things that have made the difference for me with working down to such a low budget-1) I leave DH at home no matter what when I go to store. I can't afford to take him honestly he'll pick up junk that is full price that he won't even eat all of before it goes bad but he "had to have it". 2) I made friends with the meat and produce managers so I get a text or phone call on the big markdown days and I can zoom over during lunch. I'm not sure if it's coupon ethical but my meat guy will hold back good discount steaks for me for a few hours til I get a break at work and can pop over that day. I make him cookies once a month and I give a note to his wife every week with coupons for items I know she uses and when/where the best sale will be. They are in their 60's, live in our condo community, and I know they have a fixed income. Since our condo requires shoveling and they are only a few units away DH does their sidewalks in winter. He does it for the exercise and he just likes to shovel snow. I think she helps push her husband to help me with sales.....killing them with kindness sort of thing.

AJ: The deal you have going with the meat/produce managers is great!! Just one little "connection" like that can make a HUGE difference. I know that the meat markdowns that I have gotten at my Safeway has saved us a boatload of money.

[princessleia]

This message has been deleted.

[princessleia]

Have you been able to use BOGO Q's at Safeway on a BOGO sale?

Leanna, try doing this - write down price of the item on the Qs yourself. This will save some work for the cashier having to check for the price of item. And then you shd be able to get away with 2 freebies.

[mawmawandlovingit]

One down, 2 to go......I just cashed in all my RR's so I am done for a while with Wags. DD will be excited because I was able to buy her 9 packs of diapers and several of the larger wipe packs. I also picked up some Easter things for DGD to go in her basket. Whew, feels good to know I don't have to go back to Wags for a while!! I guess I will try to finish up with RA and CVS sometime this week or next. Just need to look at the deals and see what I can come up with. I might do the PF deal on both cards at CVS and then just use the ECB's on things I will use (or at least something the kids will use). Haven't even look at RA this week but I only have $8 that I need to use before the 12th of April.

[constanz22]

Mar 28, 2011 15:00:20 GMT -5 rubyslippers said:

Mandyms, my RR that I got yesterday is good through April 10th.

I finally got my SCR from Rite Aid!

I just got mine today too! Rediculous! There is no way in H.ELL that those checks went out on March 9th, as they stated on the SCR page! I tried to call about mine after not receiving it Saturday, but they are only open M-F, so, I sent them an email, letting them know that I found the processing time unacceptable. Will see if I get any response...

[Deleted]

HOUND ALERT

I have 6 WAGS INFANT CARE COUPON BOOKLETS that I could mail out to anyone who needs them.


Also I can clip 3 sets of the AXE coupons if anyone wants those.

PM me.

[debinwa]

Mar 28, 2011 12:57:03 GMT -5 leanna said:

Mar 28, 2011 0:37:31 GMT -5 debinwa said:

dancin: oh, of course I wouldn't mind. I appreciate you getting them out!

I am heading to Rite Aid tomorrow and hope to find some goodies with those coupons. I bought a couple of items last week, but my daughter came over and snagged them! Gotta go back and see what else they have! Concealer is an old lady's best friend!!

Debinwa: If you really meant Rite Aid, I just want to let you know that next week (starting Sunday 4/3), Physicians Formula will be BOGO. I'm planning on using my Q's then - will make the concealer a MM and the mascara will be $1 for two after the Q's. My prices at my RA are about $6.79 for the concealer and $10.95 for the mascara.

leanna: Actually, I did really mean Rite Aid. There are no CVS's in the Seattle area, so I don't usually get to take advantage of the great deals there. Thanks for letting me know about the PF deal at RA next week. I haven't even looked at the ads for the next couple of weeks. They are b1g150% this week, so I was going to get a couple of items, but I got distracted with the Revlon and greetng cards. I'll wait and get my PF next week!

I don't remember exactly what prices I paid today at Rite Aid, but I got three American Greeting cards, a Revlon Ped-Expert (their version of the Ped-Egg), two packages of heavy nail files, and six packs of gum. I used three of the $2 Revlon tool printables, the in-ad coupon for the cards, three b1g1f coupons for gum, plus one Orbit vv and one Trident vv, and a $3/$15 survey coupon. Just paid tax. I was a bit short of the $4 Up for the Revlon, so I will get a couple more packs of nail files tomorrow and end up with a small MM. Woohoo!

[debinwa]

For those with a healthy cereal stockpile, Kellogg's and AARP have a $10 gas card giveaway if you send in ten UPC cards for selected Kellogg's cereals. The card is a prepaid Master Card, so maybe it can be used on other items too. Deal runs all year, and you can qualify for up to five cards per household.

Print the form out here: www2.kelloggs.com/AARP/rewards/

[debinwa]

Mar 28, 2011 13:49:26 GMT -5 princessleia said:

Let's see if my uploading the Physician's Formula pdf files worked

princessleia: Yay! It just took somebody brainy to figure out how to attach a file here! Now you gotta tell me how you did it. When I clicked on the 'insert image' button, it comes up with two sets of brackets, but I didn't know how to get the image there. And karma to you!

[rubyslippers]

CVS was out of the Stove Top Stuffing so I price matched at Walmart. I bought 5 and used 4 $.50 IPQ's and 1 B4GOF Q that I've had forever. I paid $1.08 for all 5 boxes. I use this when making my zucchini casserole, otherwise I wouldn't use it. Walmart was selling each box for $1.92, so I was pleased with my purchase.

At WAGs, I used my $4.00 RR to buy 2 Skintimates (no coupons LOCC) and used the $2.00 RR to buy 4 cans of mushrooms. I bought 14 chocolate Easter eggs for a total of $.06 after using 4 Mars $1/2 items. I spent $.32 OOP and saved $12.00.

[princessleia]

Mar 28, 2011 20:08:18 GMT -5 debinwa said:

Mar 28, 2011 13:49:26 GMT -5 princessleia said:

Let's see if my uploading the Physician's Formula pdf files worked

princessleia: Yay! It just took somebody brainy to figure out how to attach a file here! Now you gotta tell me how you did it. When I clicked on the 'insert image' button, it comes up with two sets of brackets, but I didn't know how to get the image there. And karma to you!

Oh, thank you, thank you but it was nothing - Dancinmama attached the grocery handbook here and it was from there I got the idea....when you are replying to any thread, look beneath the subject line. You will see the 'Attachment' and you just upload the file just like sending an email with attachment. This feature and the PM ability at here makes it definitely better than msn money bulletin boards. It's great to be able to stay truly anonymous without giving anybody our emails.

[mizbear]

upstatemom- I think the double posts are partly to do with the boards being a little slow right now- some of us clicking on our posts like if we were clicking on free samples!

skintimate qs- the ones I have gotten my hands on so far are $.55/1 and specifically say "includes 8.4 oz bonus cans and 7 oz cans... not valid on 2.75 oz cans" HTH

Supposed to help DB clean his car out (coupon inserts) tomorrow.

murphath you have PM

[princessleia]

Mar 28, 2011 20:02:26 GMT -5 debinwa said:

For those with a healthy cereal stockpile, Kellogg's and AARP have a $10 gas card giveaway if you send in ten UPC cards for selected Kellogg's cereals. The card is a prepaid Master Card, so maybe it can be used on other items too. Deal runs all year, and you can qualify for up to five cards per household.

Print the form out here: www2.kelloggs.com/AARP/rewards/

Thanks for this useful tip! I will definitely look into it....

[leanna]

Mar 28, 2011 14:11:31 GMT -5 dancinmama said:

It's all about patience and building your stockpiles SLOWLY, letting the great deals come to you instead of forcing an okay deal just so that you can have a stockpile.

I REALLY like this thought, DancinMama. I'm giving you karma for your wisdom.

[hinil]

Frugalnurse:
At one time, it was possible to log into your CVS extra care card online to see what EB you have and could print out from there. (They are individually coded so can't be reused, so this feature didn't allow people to cheat or anything). Not sure if they still have that, but might be worth a try to try to recover some of the $50 lost...yikes!

[pudgybunny]

i remembered seeing the deal for the mars eggs using the $1/2 or $2/2 and go figure... today at work (not a clue where they got them) was a big stack of $2/2 mars coupons!!! I grabbed 12 and I walked out of WAGS with about 84 eggs for only about $2! These will come in handy as little prizes/giveaways for my side job!

[suziq38]

Mar 28, 2011 20:02:26 GMT -5 debinwa said:

For those with a healthy cereal stockpile, Kellogg's and AARP have a $10 gas card giveaway if you send in ten UPC cards for selected Kellogg's cereals. The card is a prepaid Master Card, so maybe it can be used on other items too. Deal runs all year, and you can qualify for up to five cards per household.

Print the form out here: www2.kelloggs.com/AARP/rewards/

Hi Deb,
Thanks for the information and the link to the Kellogg's form.
This is great if I have to burn some EB's.

The Kelloggs are $1.87 at CVS right now. Usually they have $1.00 off of 2 boxes (just guessing)....processing.....$18.70 minus $4.00 off of $20.00 ( have to add $1.30 in fillers...(two cans of Campbells Chicken Noodle Soup)...brings this down to $16.24 minus $1.00 off of 2 coupons must use 5 coupons..minus $5.00 for the 5 coupons....=$11.24 is the balance. I could pay with EB's then patiently wait for the gas GC. I could also look at my stockpile to see if any other flavors qualify and NOT buy 10 boxes. The coupons have to be at least $1.00 off of 2, not $1.00 off of 3, or it is just way too much work.

I am going to check out the pantry and stockpile, LOL.
I also could ask a couple of friends if I could take a look in their pantry.
Maybe they have a few of the cereals on the list. Ditto for DD, my mother, and my sister, LOL.

Do I really want the gas card THAT bad?........"yes."

No receipts required.
Just 10 UPC's, fill out the form and mail it in.

[suziq38]

Mar 28, 2011 13:05:06 GMT -5 leanna said:

Mar 28, 2011 9:31:14 GMT -5 suziq38 said:

Have a great day, hounds.
Is there anything to buy at WAGS?

Yep, there's the Colgate Toothpaste and the Snickers eggs. I also bought the Skintimate.

Here's what my transaction looked like:

(2) Colgate TP $6
(2) Skintimate $4
(7) Snickers Eggs (.29 x7) = $2.03
Less:
(2) Colgate Coupons (SS - 3/27) ($1.50 x 2) = -($3)
(2) Skintimate Coupons (SS - 3/27) (.55 x 2) = -($1.10)
(2) Mars $1/2 Coupons (RP - 3/20) ($1 x 2) = -($2.00)
Total:
$5.93
Paid with:
$5 RR (Thank you Almay )
.93 OOP

Received:
$4 RR Colgate
$2 RR Skintimate

ETA: I count the Colgate as a MM, but there was just the interesting conversation about how one counts RR's - when you earn them or when you spend them. I count 'em when I earn 'em so Colgate Toothpaste was $6 less $3 in coupons less $4 in RR = $1 MM which I count towards making my Skintimate free.

Thank you, Leanna!

[suziq38]

Mar 28, 2011 16:57:38 GMT -5 @mawmawandlovingit said:

One down, 2 to go......I just cashed in all my RR's so I am done for a while with Wags. DD will be excited because I was able to buy her 9 packs of diapers and several of the larger wipe packs. I also picked up some Easter things for DGD to go in her basket. Whew, feels good to know I don't have to go back to Wags for a while!! I guess I will try to finish up with RA and CVS sometime this week or next. Just need to look at the deals and see what I can come up with. I might do the PF deal on both cards at CVS and then just use the ECB's on things I will use (or at least something the kids will use). Haven't even look at RA this week but I only have $8 that I need to use before the 12th of April.

Mawmaw,
I understand what you are going through.
If your stockpile is big enough, let it go!
There's always dairy and other food products to buy.
Remember that there is no tax on food, except in Hawaii.

[dancinmama]

Mar 28, 2011 21:52:31 GMT -5 pudgybunny said:

i remembered seeing the deal for the mars eggs using the $1/2 or $2/2 and go figure... today at work (not a clue where they got them) was a big stack of $2/2 mars coupons!!! I grabbed 12 and I walked out of WAGS with about 84 eggs for only about $2! These will come in handy as little prizes/giveaways for my side job!

pudgybunny: Awesome find!! Good job.

[dancinmama]

Mar 28, 2011 20:38:30 GMT -5 leanna said:

Mar 28, 2011 14:11:31 GMT -5 dancinmama said:

It's all about patience and building your stockpiles SLOWLY, letting the great deals come to you instead of forcing an okay deal just so that you can have a stockpile.

I REALLY like this thought, DancinMama. I'm giving you karma for your wisdom.

[Deleted]

Mar 28, 2011 6:38:15 GMT -5 upstatemom said:

Karma for you in your support of shelters. Did you see the great deals in the weekly Staples add, they are having their dollar days? I have a school bin for my sons, that I replenish during the year when I see these specials, you inspired me to buy extras to donate. Our School nurse is great at getting needed items to the kids who need them but I have not done this much recently.

Thanks for the love! Right back at you!

Every since I became a working adult, I have made it a point to support agencies that help those who cannot help themselves. I know what it is like to be poor and moving from one family member's house to another one because Mom had lost her job.

It's a shame that at a time when more people are going to need their services, fewer people are going to be able to donate.

Thanks for the reminder about Staples; one opened near us a few months ago. I took a look at their ad; I really want to pick up some of the 2 inch binders that are on sale. Those are pretty pricey normally and I just don't get by Walmart all that often to get the better deals.