Target and CVS Trips

So I haven't gone grocery shopping yet (there are NOT enough hours in a Sunday!) but I did go out to grab some deals at CVS and Target yesterday.

Target always has these promotions where you buy a select number or value of specific items and you can get a bonus gift card (usually $5 or $10).  I've never bought anything because usually I don't need more paper towels or toilet paper, but this week one of their promotions is Glade holiday scents.  If you buy 5, you get a $5 gift card.  I love Glade candles so I decided to splurge a little.  I bought two oil candles and three 4 oz. jar candles.  Each item was on sale for $2.50.  I had a coupon for $1 off two oil products and another for $1.50 off two jars.  After using my coupons, I spent $10.38 and got the $5 gift card, so really it's like I spent $5.38 on five Glade candle products.  Pretty excited....now I've got all these great Christmas scents to try!

Next I went to Michael's...no crazy great deals there, but I really needed a small basket for our bathroom.  Billy and I have a few toiletry items we use daily and don't have enough space for in the cabinet (without making everything fall out every time we open the cabinet).  These few items take up the very small amount of space on our bathroom sink, and also get wet on the bottoms and just make a huge mess on the sink, which I then have to clean constantly.  I'm all about organization (Ellie has at least 7 baskets/containers in her room to keep things under control) so I decided to get a basket for our bathroom.  Went to Michael's, and it just so happened that baskets were on sale (I think 40% off).  So I spent about $3.50 on a perfectly-sized basket for our bathroom.  And it matches with our decor (what little we have going on in there) =).  So excited!

Lastly, I went to CVS.  No major amazing deals, but I definitely got some things I needed and saved quite a bit of money.  According to the CVS receipt, I saved $23.59 (but you can never really trust those things, since drugstores have big markups on items compared to places like Wal-Mart).  Anyway, first I bought a big Colgate toothpaste ($4.99) and did Buy One, Get One Free plus a $1 off coupon on 1.  Then, I bought Right Guard deodorant ($2.99) and got $1 back in Extra Bucks, plus used a BOGO coupon.  Then, I bought 4 jars of Ragu, 1 Skippy peanut butter, and 1 jar of Bertolli alfredo sauce (if you spent $10 in select items, you got $3 in Extra Bucks).  At checkout, my total before coupons came to $21.  Then I used a CVS coupon for $4 off a $20 purchase (got this for signing up for ExtraCare emails).  Then I used my other coupons and ended up spending $11.53, so I saved $10 in coupons and got the $4 in Extra Bucks....so really it was like spending $7.53 on 2 Colgate toothpastes, 2 Right Guard deodorants, 4 jars of Ragu, 1 jar of Bertolli, and 1 Skippy peanut butter.  Pretty exciting, it was definitely a big purchase for me at a drugstore compared to other times I've shopped (buying 1 or 2 items at a time).  Now I am better stocked on toiletries and pasta sauce (which we use constantly...and I never buy Ragu, it's considered a splurge).

I've made my grocery list for the week, but just didn't have the time to go out to Kroger yesterday.  It's so hard for me to take Ellie shopping...every now and then she'll sleep through the whole trip, but that is not the norm and she usually ends up crying a lot if I stop to look at something.  Usually I have to try to continually move the stroller or cart while trying to read the label on something or look for my coupons, which is just a major hassle.  Billy watched Ellie yesterday while I went out, which was a huge blessing because I was able to make very quick runs into the stores without have to bust out the stroller and all that.  I'll probably go to Kroger tonight (MUST go before Tuesday, which is senior citizen's day, where they buy out everything that is on sale and nothing is left for Wednesday).  Hoping to not spend over $50!

I've been thinking a lot about my current stage of life and how I was really dreading staying at home this year.  It sounds terrible, but my image of a stay at home mom's life was not a pretty one....never getting a shower, staying in pj's all day, cleaning 24/7...it was a bad assumption, but mine nonetheless.  Before Ellie was born, I actually cried a little about not have a teaching position this year.  I spent 4 years of my life preparing for teaching, and in my last semester found out that I would be having a baby instead (in September of all times, which would mean that I would never find a school that would hire me).  But I sucked it up and figured, "I can get a job next year, it's only one year at home."  I am happy to say that God has really worked on my heart and completely changed my thoughts and feelings on this subject.  I now LOVE being a stay at home mom...it's not all roses and rainbows, but it's the best thing I've ever done and definitely the most rewarding time of my life.  I thought I would miss teaching....but I don't.  I'm actually starting to battle with my emotions about having to find a job next year....I sometimes think, "Can't I just stay home again?"  So far, I don't think that's in God's plan, but God surprises us all of the time (staying in Lynchburg, Ellie, Billy's job....etc.).  Who knows what we'll be doing next year, but I am so grateful that God has changed my heart and taught me how to find fulfillment as a stay at home mom.  I have a whole year to raise Ellie and watch her grow, and in my spare time I can accomplish tasks I thought I would never have time for (couponing, blogging, making my homemaking tasks more organized and manageable).  This time last year, we usually had a sink full of dishes, dog hair EVERYWHERE (considering we had 2 dogs at that time), laundry piled up and nothing to wear...etc.  Now, there's maybe a bowl and a bottle in the sink, a blanket in the hamper, and hardly any dog hair (I can't completely eradicate it!).  I've had the time to make my house a home I can be proud of, and I've found a way to use my teaching skills so that I still feel fulfilled and proud of what I've done at home.  I've learned to praise the Lord and thank Him for this amazing opportunity.  This is certainly the most rewarding and fulfilling time of my life!


Blessings to you and yours....Kristen