Thrifty Thursday: Day After Christmas Shopping

A family tradition for my family has been the day after Christmas shopping.  It is almost as big as Black Friday except luckily the stores don't open until the morning.  This year was no exception.  We were out in full force to get the wrapping paper and other Christmas things half off.

First stop, Target!  It is hard to be prepared for these sales except to say that you need to get all your coupons organized and know where some of the key coupons are for things that you think that you want.  I really wanted to get the holiday ziploc bags and containers which I had lots of $1/2 coupons set aside.  Sadly, only one was found so I didn't get any! 

I did get a bunch of toys to keep for throughout the year and next Christmas.  I got three Disney Memory Match sets which I will save until next Christmas but great news is that they are good for a boy or a girl.  A box of Hot Wheel cars which was only winter in the snowflakes on the box and I used last years box for incentives through the year.  I got a green yoyo ball which will be for my little man's birthday.  A Frosty the Snowman coloring book for either a gift or my little man for next year.  I grabbed two more Christmas presents for my mother in law (who reads this blog so I won't give it away).  I also grabbed foam alphabet stickers.  There were tons of toys that were considered stocking stuffers and were half off. 

I went on to the food section to see what I could find for a steal.  They have Mint Chocolate Chip Cookies and Snickerdoodles cookie mix on clearance for $1.04.  These were considered holiday so they were 50% off!!

I just happened to have FIVE $0.60 coupons so I got five of them for $0.44.  This isn't something that I normally buy until they are free or nearly free so I decided that this was a good price to get a few to have in case of emergencies.

I found the Pillsbury frosting which was green with the holiday sprinkles on the top.  I decided that it would be good to use for my son's birthday cupcakes for school because it is his favorite color. I might add a little more dye to see if it will turn more green but it seemed like a easy way out for his birthday treat.  Since I got two, it might also be for his family birthday.  They were on sale half off and I had a $1/2 which made them $0.44 each.  I also found the Chocolate Peppermint cookie mix which looked super yummy (although my husband won't like them).  They were on sale for $0.99 so after $1/2 coupon for $0.49.



Then, my favorite find of the day was the Winter Oreos which I had a coupon that was expiring that day for two of them!!!  They were on sale for $1.44 and I used the $0.50 coupon to get them for $0.94  Oreos are my son's favorite so getting them for super cheap is always a good deal because he had asked for them earlier in the season and I told him that they were too expensive!!  I guess we are going to break them out soon and have our super cheap winter cookies.

Overall, shopping ahead to get the essentials such as Christmas wrapping paper, tissue paper, and gift bags (which I am totally stocked up on from previous years).  You can grab red plates and napkins to use for Valentine's Day or green plates and napkins for St. Patrick's Day and Halloween.  I have heard of people getting the holiday M & Ms to use the red for Valentine's and the green for St. Patrick's Day but they don't usually last that long at our house so I try to avoid the temptation. 

The great thing is to look for Christmas packaged things that can be used for any type of gift.  I saw a travel size lotion and shower gel that would have been great for a end of year teacher gift (which of course I didn't think of while I was there).  There were cookie presses that were in a box with Christmas decorations but could easily be taken out and put in a basket with cookie ingredients.  It would be perfect to save until next Christmas or use for birthday presents for someone that you think will love it!!

But remember that you can also get food and other things for your family at the after Christmas sale to save some money so keep your eyes open for the clearance at your local stores to see what deals that you can get.  Are there any after holiday deals that you can't pass up???