Guest post from Alison of Experimental Wifery
Call me naïve, but in almost six years of running a household for my family, I have never come in under budget for household goods.
It's a conundrum. A good budgeter doesn't spend money she doesn't have… right? But laundry detergent and Band-Aids are staples, the things I need to keep my home clean and family life running smoothly. How can I not buy them when I need them?
I chock my problem up to optimism. After all, who wants to admit that their family of four — one of whom isn't even potty trained — really goes through more than ten rolls of toilet paper a month?
I knew that I needed to find a way to keep track of what I actually needed each month (and how much that actually cost) if I wanted to get control of my budget.
I've known about Amazon Subscribe & Save for a while now, but it is only in the last few months that I've used it to take charge of my spending on staple household goods. Believe it or not, I'm spending less than 75% of what I used to spend on these items each month!
Here's how:
1. No More Budget Surprises
Before I started using Subscribe & Save, I consistently under-budgeted for staples like diapers, toothpaste, and hand soap.
Now I know exactly how much I pay for those things every month so I can easily budget for them in advance. For bigger purchases, like our once-every-three-months case of toilet paper, I can break the amount down into monthly installments that I set aside for later.
2. No More Blind Eyes to How Much We Actually Use
When I pick up a refill on dishwasher soap here and a box of diaper wipes there, it's easy to lose track of how much I'm actually buying.
By buying most of household staples in advance and in bulk, I have to face the reality that our daughter really does go through about 150 diapers a month! Because I see the cold-hard facts, I have to budget pragmatically instead of optimistically.
3. No More Big-Box Runs
Every woman knows that it is almost impossible to walk into a Target to buy one thing without coming out with a full shopping cart. By making my normal big-box purchases online, I keep myself out of budget-busting temptation.
4. No More Wasted Gas
Even though gas is surprisingly inexpensive these days, last-minute trips to the store really add up. The pre-scheduled deliveries from Amazon save me from unplanned shopping trips.
5. More Fun Time with My Children
No, time with my children isn't really a money-saving advantage. But that time is priceless. Shopping with a toddler is stressful for everyone — at least in our family.
Because I shop online, we get to spend our time together doing things we both want to do!
This are just a few of the many reasons I love using Amazon Subscribe & Save to… SAVE! If you’re a Subscribe & Save user, I’d love to hear your thoughts as well.
Alison blogs about learning to be a better woman and wife at Experimental Wifery. She's a wife, mommy, and high school English teacher. She signs for her Amazon.com packages near Washington, DC.
