Always Low Prices...

Okay...so every two weeks, we have the debate over where to shop for groceries...Walmart or Dillons.  Dillons is just an easier place to shop.  They have a nice, clean store and the people there are super helpful.  I love Market Place because it has such a nice feel to it.  Our hometown store (Mulvane Dillons) is a great place to shop too.  We know the people there by name and frequent it often when we need just a few things.  But our BIG shopping trips either happen at Walmart or Marketplace Dillons.

In the summer, our income decreases slightly and I find a need to save as much money as possible.  I have a coupon notebook (courtesy of my good friends April and Tamara) and am a coupon clipping fool.  I clip, organize and categorize each coupon by type.  Then I try my hardest to buy the right amount of what each coupon says...in order to get the most savings.  It used to not do me as much good to buy three soaps to get one free...but now that we have five bodies to wash, the buy three get one free thing is a sweet deal.  Not to mention, three of our bodies think they need more soap than the sponge can hold.  So we need more than we used to.  They have yet to master the concept of a little goes a long ways.

Anyway...back to low prices.  Today I decided to save money and shop at Walmart.  Big mistake.  HUGE.  Brady and I loaded up and headed to Walmart at 9:15 a.m.  We finished loading our cart around 10:00ish and proceeded to get in line.  I saw the woman...the check out woman that could make or break my day...and avoided her line like the plague.  This poor woman should not be a check out worker.  I am sure she has many gifts to offer the world, but check out girl is NOT one of them.  I went on to the next line and the woman that was checking that line out shouted..."You can go to the next line honey...she doesn't have anyone!" 

Ugh.

Okay...thank you very much.  So we proceed to "the line".  This line had one woman in front of me and I should have bailed then.  It took her so long to check out that I am pretty sure Brady fell asleep waiting there in the cart.  When she finally got to me, she carefully scanned each item...(121 to be exact)...one by one. 

Beep...
Beep...
Beep...

Slowly...carefully...one by one.

Then she double bagged everything...which I appreciated.  But she tied the first bag into a little bitty knot that I could NOT get undone to save my life.  (This will be relevant in the next chapter of this story)

I finally get to the front of the line and she scans my last item.  I proudly set my stack of what seemed like a million coupons up on the counter and she glared at me.  I smiled at the thought of saving money on the already rolled back prices of the always low price store.  She then lays each coupon out...one by one...checking the expiration date.

Starting to lose my patience.

Then she categorizes them by item.

Totally losing it here.

I finally say..."Is there anyone that might be able to help you speed up this process?"

She replies..."coupons take time dear.  I will have to go through some of your bags to make sure you got the items on the coupons".  In my head I was thinking..."you mean the bags you just tied into mini knots and double bagged that are stacked all around my child?  THOSE BAGS?!?!?!?!?!?!?

As the prices got lower on my 121 items, my blood pressure started to rise.  My body temperature started to rise.  My want to jump over the conveyor belt to do it myself started to rise...and then this sweet woman walked up and started taking pictures of my Brady.  I bet you are wondering why...

My little Husker was dressed from head to toe in his football gear.  This is how we went through the entire store.  I know this is hard for any of you who know me to believe, but this was what kept my smile through almost the entire trip.  Well this...and my new best friend Mary Lou...the Customer Service Manager that came to my rescue 35 minutes into my Walmart Line ordeal.  That's right...35 minutes.  Apparently there have been other issues with this check out person and they'd been watching the whole time.  She took my pile of coupons and scanned away.  She said..."Thank you for your patience" as I walked away.  

Well how do ya like that?  I was patient!!!  I mean I had a few ugly thoughts, but for the most part...I was patient. 

AND I SAVED $34.00 in coupons!  YAY ME!!!

Thought you might enjoy this story so have a wonderful day all!

Amy

ps~I am not hating on Walmart...or this particular woman.  As I said before...low prices are sweet and the woman has other talents...I am sure of it.  But it will be a while before me and the Husker go back.  :)