Plan Ahead a Little... and Help Someone Else Out

You know I am a big supporter of donating most of the free deals I find (and post here). It is my way of giving back when my family is like many of yours - on a tight budget.

I just wanted to take a minute and talk about the idea of planning ahead a bit. Although I haven't been the best poster child for this idea, I took about 30 minutes just now (maybe an hour) and looked at the upcoming weekly ads for CVS and Walgreens (leave me a comment if you want to know how) to see what I could get for free. Then I put in an order at Coupons by Dede for a few extra coupons to use not only at the drugstores (Gilette Fusion, Huggies, Reach toothbrushes) next week, but also for Degree at Target, Tide at Vons, and a few other things that I needed or wanted to buy in order to give away.

On Sunday my church was bringing attention to the needs of the congregation and items they were looking to collect and I was convicted. I had been really good in the past about focusing on collecting the free items in order to donate them, but I have been slacking. So I decided to jump back into the thick of things.

By planning ahead a little I think I can make a big impact in others lives through donating items I have learned to get for free. I can also try and anticipate some needs, such as school supplies. You and I both know the time is coming when all the kids will need to start gathering materials for the upcoming school year. So I am planning on starting to collect those supplies now, when the back-to-school savings are in the upswing.

So please keep this idea in mind. If planning ahead is just too much for you to accomplish right now, no worries. But perhaps you can pop into one of the back-to-school sales and add a few extra things to your basket in order to donate. I have every confidence that many, many people will benefit from our forethought. Good luck!