Money and coupons

[same_sky]

I don't know if you remember, but I have mentioned my budgety spreadsheet in the past. A while back... eek. Over two years ago, I started tracking all our receipts. It's a pain in the ass, but I can tell you how much we spent on things in any given month (with a tiny bit of error, of course, for things like missing receipts and typing errors.) I will sometimes be lazy about it and then I have to do two or three months worth of receipts all at once, but I have kept at it all this time and yes, I go through every receipt item by item to calculate the different categories. Because we are nerds, we have set up our own spreadsheet to do this, loosely based on one that I downloaded in the beginning. Truthfully, we barely use the summary functions like we thought we would, but knowing that I am going to have to enter that amount into the spreadsheet does rather help keep me honest when I am trying to talk myself into buying something stupid. In any case, I have recently had to add a new category for "Deals", or my new couponing hobby. It's a whole new way of doing math, buying these things. For example, I recently bought a box (on two occasions) of hemorrhoid medication. I don't have hemorrhoids, but they were free plus a dollar of profit. That dollar of profit, along with a ten dollar coupon emailed to me from the store, along with a three dollar profit on a free-after-rebate shampoo and similar transactions, goes towards paying for other things I bought. That's how you can walk out of a store with free stuff that you didn't necessarily have a coupon for. Then you have the items you pay out of pocket for but then receive rebates the next month. You have NO idea how messy it is making my accounting. I try to put things in their proper categories but sometimes it is just too much for my feeble brain. It is driving me batty.

I am just a little anal about my spreadsheets.

I feel certain that I could make a joke about that and having purchased hemorrhoid medication but I won't. Too tired to pull that one together correctly.

Kmart is doing this new experimental promotion in certain locations where they are doubling coupons up to $2 this weekend. I spent $8.46 and bought three deodorants, Garnier Fructis shampoo and conditioner, pantiliners, paper towels, a pack of fancy gum, a bottle of Advil, two cleaning sprays, and one completely not-on-sale can of fruit puffs for my darling screaming child so I could become that mother who opens packages in a store to feed their kid. (I found the container of food that I usually have with us at all times hiding gleefully in the corner of our computer room this morning, taunting me.) So, take $2.29 off that total, and I bought all that other stuff for about six dollars. Not too bad! I should also have had two packages of Rolaids but the coupons wouldn't scan.


Toilet paper - $3. Shampoo, conditioner, Ban deodorant, 2 Greased Lightning cleaners, pantiliners, gum - free. 2 Sure deodorants, $0.29/each.


After rebates, coupons, etc, I think I have $1.88 in this stuff. I would have actually made a few pennies in profit but they didn't take my second Lifesavers coupon and so I had to actually pay for one (they were buy one, get one free). The toothpaste was free, and the box also had a free mouthwash and travel toothpaste attached.


This was probably my best trip yet, though. There were five cases of Pepsi, and in total, I have about two dollars in the whole lot. There was at least $7 worth of coupon overage, plus a $10/40 coupon, and that pretty much covered the difference for the items not purchased on super-sale or free. And most of it is actually useful stuff! Will wonders never cease! :)
I am thinking seriously of starting a new blog for this particular hobby because I get this feeling that no one really wants to see my bargains. I am having so much fun with it, though. Not only is it saving us money, it's also giving me and Evelyn places to GO. She likes to go bye-bye and I really dislike aimless wandering around stores while not spending money, and you know I really dislike stepping out of my comfort zone and like, trying to find local people to be friends with. The playgroup scene I fear is just not for me. (It is scary, and I am antisocial.) I am thinking that (like all my other little hobbies) I will probably lose interest in it and stop posting to said hypothetical new blog before the shiny even wears off of it so that is keeping me from biting the bullet and doing it. Also, I'm a bit lazy to be doing picture posts all the time (as a new blog of that type would require) so that might kill my motivation. And yes, there is a couponing blog community. It's so funny because they seem to be just about the least crunchy group of women I've ever mingled with online. Not that I am mingling anyway. I have a bad case of lurkitis.

Now if only I didn't feel so bad about buying newspapers and throwing it all away unread for the coupon inserts only...

Comments

[reebert.livejournal.com]

I am fascinated by this. Really. I just wish I could do it here!

[same-sky.livejournal.com]

It's too bad you can't do anything like this in Sweden! Or at least not that I know of. It's awesome. :) Well, I guess you could pick up some free stuff on your next visit home because surely you won't be busy doing anything else like showing off your adorable baby to your family and friends! ;)

[courtesy.livejournal.com]

Your dedication scares me :)

[same-sky.livejournal.com]

I know, it's creepy, isn't it? :)

[dbrus.livejournal.com]

Have you thought of using Quicken instead of spreadsheets? We've been using it for 15 years and track everything (dwon to the pennies in our wallets)! It is really easy and the reports are great.

Your coupon thing is inspiring. Makes me almost want to start clipping. Unfortunately (or fortunately) I do most of our shopping, including groceries online and no coupons are taken by the stores I use.

[ms-jacket.livejournal.com]

Just another shout out for Quicken. D is right!

[same-sky.livejournal.com]

I might try it again. I know that I've tried it in the past but I don't remember why I didn't keep going with it. I really didn't keep with any of my attempts at budgeting until this time, though, so maybe it would be better for me now.

[same-sky.livejournal.com]

I think I've tried Quicken a long time ago. I might try it again. I don't think it did things the way I wanted them done, or... something. I don't know. It's been a while. I know that I couldn't hack MS Money to do what I wanted it to do but it's been a while. :)

[e11en.livejournal.com]

What do you do with all that shampoo and deodorant? It's a fascinating hobby, I think, I just wouldn't have the time to keep it up.

[same-sky.livejournal.com]

Well, since I just started, so far I have just been collecting the shampoo and deodorant and toothpaste (another big big one to get for free.) However, my plan is to start giving the extras away, starting with Christmas stocking stuffers for my family. My parents do this giant stocking thing where they wrap up lots of tiny little gifts, often toiletry-related. Last year I told M that we should add stuff to the stockings so that they would have surprises to open too. (They do wrap things up for each other, and for themselves, too, but it's rarely a surprise.) So I am REALLY looking forward to that. Then I will probably give some away to my family. If I have anything left that no one I know needs, I intend to find myself a donation drive of some sort and donate it. It will feel pretty good to be able to donate stuff. Oh, and I sold one item at our yard sale this summer. ;)

I have thought about the time issue and that I probably wouldn't be able to do this that much if I was still working so I do understand that. I mean, I would have time to do the shopping and maybe pick up the easy stuff (the list of free after rebate stuff every month, for example.) If nothing else, I could go out during my breaks and pick up the stuff. I am not so sure I'd have enough time to really plan the shopping trips, though. It does takes up a good chunk of time. It's getting faster, though. And speaking of which, I need to go organize some stuff for this afternoon's adventures in retailing before E wakes up. ;)