I took a trip to Dollar Tree today. I have to admit that I think Dollar Tree is amazing. Here is what I got today:
2 liquid hand soaps
1 White Rain shampoo
1 White Rain conditioner
2 dish detergents
3 bottles of Mr. Plumber drain de-clogger
1 bottle of something called Awesome Cleaner that is supposed to remove calcium, lime, and rust
2 boxes of fabric softener (25 sheets in each)
3 bags of kitchen sponges (10 in each bag)
1 package of 6 razors (this may have been pushing it; I'm not always sure generic razors are such a wise choice)
2 bags of cotton balls
1 bottle of body wash
1 box of powder laundry detergent
I bought 20 items. With tax, it was $21.40. By the way, unlike Aldi, Dollar Tree does take a credit card. At the checkout, I heard the total, and I said to the employee, "Now I think this place is just amazing." She smacked her gum. I guess she wasn't as enamored with the Dollar Tree as I am.
I think Dollar Tree is the place to go to work on the stock up list. What, you may ask, is the stock up list? Well, the stock up list is something that I created that lists items that we may not need immediately but currently do not have a "back up" or "stock pile" of--so if we see a great deal, we should grab several. For instance, I still have about 3/4 of a bottle of laundry detergent at the house, but detergent was on the stock up list today. I didn't HAVE to have it, but if I found a great deal, I should take advantage.
Now, I would buy several to add to my basement stash, but I have never used this particular brand of detergent before, so I decided to stick with one for the time being. I made mistake with trash bags last week. I found a great deal for boxes of 24 bags. I bought 3 boxes--72 total bags. Well, the trash bags suck. They rip when I try to take the trash out, and I wish I would have only invested in one box. I won't throw them again, but I'll curse them every time I take the trash out for...at least 5 months. Lesson learned.
Toilet paper is currently on the stock up list. I have a few rolls left, but if I find a great deal, I will buy away and replenish the stash. I have decided that the stock up list is something I should keep with me when I leave the house. You never know when you might find yourself at Dollar Tree, Aldi, Walmart, or other stock up stations. You should also keep an eye out for coupons for things that are on your stock up list. I've got a system here, and I'm fairly impressed so far with how effective it is. I'm sure it will be tough at times to save money, but some of it really is easy. So easy that I should have been doing it for some time now.
If you don't have a stock up list, I recommend starting one. I like it because it gives me a mission. My goal is to find great deals on the stuff on the list. It's not like I have to have it right now. If I had to have it today, I'd just buy it at the first store I went to, but on stock up items I can wait until the best deal comes along before I purchase. And I buy enough for a while so I don't have to think about buying whatever it is for some time. Then I put new items on the stock up list. The one requirement for a stock up list is that you will have to have a place to stock pile some items. Fortunately, we have a basement. It wouldn't work so well if we lived in an apartment.
We are getting hit by a blizzard here. Of course, this is par for the course in Iowa. It wouldn't seem like winter without about ten worthy blizzards. We are supposed to get 14-18 inches of snow in the next couple of days.
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