Warehouse Junkie

For those of you who have been around me anytime in the last few years, know that I am a self proclaimed "Warehouse Junkie". I just can't help myself. It all started at Sam's and then on to Costco (an "executive" member I might add). Why I am drawn to these stores, I do not know, but let me tell you about some of the best deals we have had and why you should check them out yourself.

1. Milk. In our house, we drink milk like water. At its peak, we were drinking 4 gallons a week (you read that right). We are down to just over 2 gallons a week now. At typically $1 less a gallon than most grocery stores, this easily pays for our (OK, my) warehouse habit.
2. Clothing. I can not resist the children's clothing at these fine establishments. At $5 - $7 for Carters outfits and pajamas compared to $10-$12 at other stores, who can pass up the opportunity to buy a new one every time you go to the store? As long as I don't buy twice as many, I'm saving money, right?
3. Costco diapers. Easily the best "store-brand" diapers out there. If you haven't tried them, do. You can thank me later.
4. Gas. While occasionally under-cut by our local Kangaroos, consistently the cheapest in town.
5. Flooring. You might have recalled me mentioning our 3 month flooring expedition. It is still-ongoing (although the last pieces were clicked in last night!) - updates soon. Anyway, we got an amazing deal on laminate for $23/box (including foam). We were crazy not to give this flooring a try - by the way, we love it.
6. Tires. I must admit that we did not shop around on this, but we got a new set of tires on my CR-V for what seemed like a reasonable price. A few months later, we got a flat on the way to Nashville. We took the car in to Sam's and they replaced the tire free of charge. WOW! This might happen other places, but it impressed me.
7. Pictures. If you are willing to stand in the store and order your pictures, Sam's has the best price - I've shopped around. However, their on-line program stinks and I don't have time to stand in the store with two kids. So, I recently switched to Snapfish because they store your pictures indefinitely. It was a hard break-up though.
8. Weight Benches. I know nothing about this other than Garet said we got a great deal on this.
9. Books & Cd's - Rarely can you find a better deal if they have what you are looking for.
10. Camera. I blink in almost every picture I take. So, this past Christmas, we were on a quest to find a camera where I wouldn't blink. We searched and searched and finally found one. It was a little more than we wanted to spend, but at least we would have a memory that I existed with my eyes open (seriously). Sam's camera was $70 cheaper than the closest competitor! I thought it had to be a different camera, but it wasn't!
11. Prescriptions. If you haven't tried out the pharmacy, you are spending too much money.
12. Food Court. $2 buys you pizza and a drink. Enough said.
13. Shampoo & Soap. Sure it takes up half of the shower in the extra-large containers, but oh, what a deal!
14. Grapes. Love those Sam's Grapes! Really, fruit in general.
15. Costco Cakes. Mmmmmm
16. Beach umbrella. If you have been to the beach with us in the past few years, you know this is the best umbrella out there...and only $15 I might add.
17. Formula. As long as your kids don't need special stuff, Sam's formula is sooooo cheap. ($20 for a double can!) I just bought some Costco formula (same price) for Kara as we are transitioning to formula. I'll have to let you know my thoughts on this later.
18. Extra-large carts. If you have 2 or more children, this is self-explanatory. You can contain them and still have room to put things!
19. Fertilizer. Again, I know nothing about this, but apparently we save money here.
20. Flowers. Men, you have no excuse here. Flowers are dirt cheap (and amazingly beautiful) - bring your wife home some tonight. It will make your house (and your wife) happy.
21. UPDATE: How could I forget the amazing deal I got on a rental car last month?!?! My mom decided to rent a mini van for our recent 13 hour trip up to Maryland. I shopped around and they ran from $500 - $600 for the week (yikes). At the last minute, I thought to try Costco's travel department. We got the exact same mini van from the exact same supplier (Alamo) for only $300. Can you believe that? $200+ saved. Sweet. Before you go on your next trip, shop Costco Travel.
22. One last one. We used Sam's car buying program to find our used (1 year old) CR-V. We were able to get an extra $500 off the price because we were members. Very nice.

I could go on and on, but those are the first things that came to my mind. In closing, there are a few things that I have not been impressed with in all fairness. They can't seem to keep fresh bread and their Pampers and Cokes are not discounted. Also, as mentioned above, Sam's online photo program stinks. I've only met one other person with a love for Sam's and Costco like myself. Thanks Dustin for defending my love of what might arguably be the best places to shop in the world! Although, IKEA is a challenger.