Coupon addiction

Hello, my name is Angie, and I am a coupon addict. It started out, like any other addiction, as not a big deal. I went to a free workshop on how to use coupons to save money on groceries - who doesn't want to do that? Especially with 3 growing kids that seem to eat constantly. And was intrigued by what I heard at the workshop. It made me want to try couponing, just a little, to see what it was like. I had never bought 6 Sunday newspapers at a time before, and I have to say, it was kind of intimidating. Especially when the guy at the gas station asked, "So did you have a kid in there this week or what?" and all I had the lame response of, "No, just need them for the coupons." Afraid of any other, more complicated questions, I got out quick. I nervously followed the directions exactly, copied the list of upcoming sales and cut out the corresponding coupons. And then I was ready do actually do it. Look out Publix, here I come!

Now, you have to understand that up until this point in time, I grocery shopped exclusively at Wal-Mart (where I dread shopping) and Aldi's (which doesn't have everything), with an occasional run to SweetBay in a pinch. I could count on one hand the number of times I had actually set foot in a Publix. Not because it wasn't good; on the contrary, it's really nice but way too expensive to shop there on a regular basis - or so I had thought. So, here I am, Wal-Mart girl, going to shop for the next week at Publix with a handful of coupons that is supposed to make it possible for me to do this on a regular basis. Could it really be?

It was true! I saved $76 and spent $87 on that first venture. But it wasn't just the money I saved that got me hooked, it was the whole experience. It was clean, it wasn't crowded, the people who worked there were friendly and helpful, the people who shopped there were polite, I didn't have to wait in line to check out (!) and a very nice young man bagged my groceries AND pushed them out to the van AND put them in the van for me. I was completely hooked after that first time. And it wasn't a fluke, I have spent less money and gotten more food for that money every time using this coupon system. Some might think me crazy, but do they get free toilet paper, Crest toothpaste for 30 cents a tube, and Ragu spaghetti sauce for 35 cents a jar? I didn't think so...

So, here I am, three months later, and I can't seem to stomach paying full price for anything anymore (except for a $4 bag of Flipz pretzels this past weekend, but that is a story for another day). I will go to Staples for copy paper and rulers, Walgreens for sandwich bags and dish soap, and CVS for milk just because they have the best deal to go with my coupons. There's nothing like the rush of a good deal!

So, in conclusion, please join with me in saying: God grant me the serenity to accept the pricing I cannot change; courage to use stacked coupons on the things I can; and wisdom to know the difference. Amen.