Day #19...Cha-ching!

Things have been a little tight around here lately. Ok, they've been tight around here for years, but especially lately. We have been on a strict budget for a long time...no vacations, no camp for the kids, we rarely eat out, we only hit movies when we have a gift card, etc. I have become adept at clipping coupons and timing sales.

Thanks to Crystal Paine and her awesome website, I have recently been introduced to the fine art of "CVSing" (that's actually a verb in the penny-pinching blogosphere). I won't even begin to try and explain it. Crystal does a great job at that, so go check out her site if you want to learn all about how this works.

I just had to post about it today because I hit CVS last night with one of my daughters and had a true epiphany. It works. It works, it works, it works!!!

We came home with over $30 worth of name brand items we really needed for 54 cents. Yes, that's $0.54! And it gets even better...

I earned $11 in Extra Care Bucks (just like cash at CVS), a $3/$15 coupon, and I have a rebate for $4.79 on one of the items we bought. When I did the math, I realized CVS and the makers of the products I bought basically paid me $18.25 to buy this stuff!

Here's what I bought and how it breaks down:

• Excedrin Back & Body- $4.79
• Benadryl Cream- $5.49
• Benefiber Chewables- $6.79
• Benefiber- $8.99
• Schick ST Women Disposable Razor 2 pack (x2)- $0.99 each
• Glide Floss-$3.49

I used two $2 coupons for the Benefiber, a $1 coupon for the Benadryl, a BOGO (99 cents) coupon for the razors, $16.50 in ECB's from previous purchases, and three $3/$15 coupons.

I love this program! We are stocking up on things we use and need and pay just a few cents each time. I have a huge box under our bathroom sink that is now overflowing with toothpaste, soap, razors, bandaids, "girl" stuff and other things we use on a regular basis. I think we need to come up with a new storage plan...at this rate we're going to run out of room! We are even looking at starting to make regular donations to some local organizations. It feels so good to be able to do that when our budget doesn't have an available line for charitable giving.

LOVE IT!!!