If you're a mom, especially a stay-at-home mom (SAHM) you're probably very aware of the coupon frenzy that is sweeping the nation. There have to be thousands (upon thousands) of blogs dedicated to the topic. At first glance you think - Hey, these people are saving huge amounts on their groceries just by clipping or printing some coupons... how hard can it be?
It's hard.
I've been trying to play the coupon game for almost a year now and I would say in that amount of time I've had one shopping trip that I would be willing to take a picture of to post on a blog somewhere (For those of you unfamiliar with frugal blogs, this is a common thing to do... yes, I realize taking pictures of your groceries is a little odd). Week after week, shopping trip after shopping trip, checkout after checkout has ended in disappointment. Sure, I've had the occasional freebie, but after still paying $100+ on groceries for the week, that freebie (which is usually something I could have done without in the first place) doesn't really seem to matter much (unless it's chocolate).
I've spent hours (please don't ask Dipal about it) trying to plan my grocery list around the best deals, searching the blogs, browsing the ads & inserts in the Sunday papers while always wondering if all of it was really worth it.
I'm starting to think it's not.
Yesterday I was somewhat excited for my grocery trip out as I had some rare coupons on Coca-Cola products and some Extra Credit Bucks built up at CVS. Combined with the sale CVS was running on sodas I thought I was in for some major moolah saving, but when doing the math with Dipal after I got home I realized that I had spent $.50 more at CVS than if I had bought everything at Walmart. Sure, money wise it's not a huge loss, but when you think about the time I spent reading the blogs, clipping the coupons, and towing 2 kids to the store to get my supposed "deal"(and I'm not even counting forgetting their stroller and having to turn around to come back home and get it as well as our car breaking down on me in the equation since it doesn't directly pertain to the couponing)... yeah, I wasn't too thrilled.
So why not so easily give up this couponista lifestyle? For one, there is a huge adrenaline rush when you're walking out of the store feeling like you just scored a bargain. The problem is, I could get these bargains every week, but most of the time I wouldn't be leaving the store with things I need, just things I got because they were a good deal. Second, when I read these blogs I see moms talking about only spending $75/week for a family of 4 with 2 kids in diapers and once again I think - If they can do it why can't I? I think the closest I've come to spending $75/week on groceries was before I ever seriously used coupons. Third, dwindling our grocery budget has been a challenge for me (obviously one I can't conquer) in a couple of ways: 1) Instead of making money for the family, my goal was to save it, in my own way contributing to the family budget. 2) It filled the void of not having a career - It was a task set for myself that I had interest in and a timeline to accomplish, my compensation being the saved money and feeling of success.
So, what is a girl to do?
For now, I'm thinking the couponing is going to be taking a bit of a break (if not gone forever). Am I going to go wild and crazy with our grocery budget? Yes!! (Just kidding Dipal) Absolutely not. I'll still make grocery lists and maybe even use the occasional coupon, like ones that come in the mail, through email, or received after a purchase (For example, at Babies R Us we received a 20% off coupon on any purchase the other day... considering we're about to purchase a car seat for Jackson it would be stupidity not to use it). The biggest difference will be no hours of frugal blogging, advertisement browsing and towing kids to the store to score a "hot deal."
As for those moms spending so little, I have to ask how much time they're putting into it to save so much. Most (if not all) the moms I read about that are couponing are SAHMs and I would think that's probably because a working mom would have no time to invest in it. Even so, SAHMs aren't just sitting around watching soaps (I'll be the first to fill you in on that - why do you think my blog posts are so far and few between even though it's something I love to do?). I could try to coupon during kiddie naps, but I'll probably only squeeze out an hour. I could do it after the kids go to bed (usually around 8), but by the end of the day I'm exhausted. I guess my point is - what are these moms replacing with time spent on coupons - Playing outside with the kids, cleaning the kitchen, working on the laundry? Replacing time spent on something else is the only way I would be able to have a chance at being successful with coupons and I'm not sure the pros outweigh the cons.
** This post is in no way a stab at those of you who may be able to coupon successfully and maintain a happy household. If you can do that, kudos to you (I seriously mean that)!! This is just the perspective of someone who doesn't have it that way.**
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