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Monday, March 28, 2011

Long Weekend Mondays

I don't know about you guys, but I sure wish it was camping season and there was a long weekend
Monday in it for me!  I so long for the sunshine time, hiking, swimming and of course the BBQ foods.
I know it's not even summertime, so what am I thinking of camping for?!!?
Well, I am starting to organize my camping gear and supplies now, and that being said, is a great time
to start purchasing things, looking out for sales.  If one waits until the last minute we end up spending top dollar on items we need to take on our camping experience.

Starting with such items like canned beans which can range from $0.89 cents- $1.79 each.  Campfire toasters can be around $4.00-$5.00 average and flashlights or batteries for your preexisting flashlights can be costly when not purchased regular prices.  Prices increase yearly though so if you can score items that have a long lasting expiration if on sale.  Also you should change up expiring items in the first aid kit and supplies,emergency water and I also have a good amount of toilet paper and some other paper products such as napkins, paper towel.  I find the dollar store has great prices for the napkins and $1 for the disposable plates.

 If you have a coupon or two for packs of batteries, most of the time they are mail in rebate ones, I determine if they will save me any money down the road ,but I may need batteries right away, so sometimes I have not used the coupons on time.  If I have time to send away for the rebate then after paying for postage to mail the coupon I would be no savings there with the price of postage.  But you can can buy a bulk package of batteries every year when they go on sale.  If you have a lot of toys for your children, you will find there are a lot of toys that require batteries.  Perhaps, plan ahead and buy a bulk package of batteries in advance.  ")

Making lists of items you would like to take this time on camping trips may be useful in remembering them when you see a sale for items.  I also suggest signing up for some of the flyers online to store sites that you use or to the stores you already shop at for camping supplies specifically.  This way you can price compare before purchasing all items in one place.  You can also stop en route to another store if there are significant savings to be had.  A great way for saving money is splitting the trips, tracking prices and checking off the deal and item on your list as you go.

Last year we all needed sleeping bags, I got mine on sale for $5, although if is not cold rated.  Regularly the sleeping bag is about $20-$30, for such a thin sleeping bag,  It is good for summer night sleeping.  There were also cold weather and brand name sleeping bags for $20.  Regularly around $60 that was over 50% savings. It is much warmer than the $5 sleeping bag.  So, on some deals if the store is selling quality then it can be worth the trip and perhaps replace everyone's sleeping bags if it is time to do so.

By the way, if you reprint printable coupons from the Internet for any camping supplies, it's my personal experience to not "clip" them out, but leave them completely printed on the full page of paper along with the website details.  I was told by the store manager at Wal-Mart that they need to see that it's not a photo-copy of a coupon.  Just a little tip folks.

If you have tents that need repairs or a motorhome such as I have, then certain repairs it may be good time to start now in case they are timely repairs.  Perhaps you can save time later so you don't miss out on camping.... I don't know about you, but when its camping season, I just want to go and not be worrying about repairs and fixing as much.  I also need to start sewing some new motorhome window curtains, of which I am replacing the mis-measured curtains that came with the unit.  I had taken the measurements in the fall, before the motorhome was winterized and parked, and now it's time to sew.  I will update you later on these.

Also, you might want to start digging up camping clothes and making sure they are suitable this year and fit you.  Nothing worse than a useless camping wardrobe.  It was pretty cold last year and I had way too many pairs of shorts.  Levi's jeans are super comfortable and you can find deals at Value Village, just right for camping if you don't mind that someone else wore them in first.

If you are wondering, I will try to go camping for free this year...... and if anyone knows a way I can coupon free gas for my mini motorhome, please let me know. That is why we work and save, so we can have the funds to get away from it all!





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