4 Paws for Damien

My son Damien will be nine on May 9, 2011. He is a compassionate, loving, and smart boy who also loves animals. He just so happens to have PDD-NOS (pervasive developmental disorder-not otherwise specified, form of autism), Tourette Syndrome (motor and vocal tic disorder), dysgraphia (neurological disorder dealing with the function of writing), generalized anxiety, obsessive compulsive symptoms, ADHD, and weaknesses in executive functioning along with sensory processing at times. All of this put together leaves Damien feeling scared, stressed, over-sensitive, angry, and alone.

Even though Damien is high functioning autistic, he still has issues going though every day life. He still has episodes of meltdowns where he can not verbalize or be calmed. During these meltdowns, he tends to want to run away and isolate himself. This causes concern for his safety for so many different reasons. To have a service dog trained in search and rescue would be very reassuring to us as we know he can always be found and even tethered to the dog to hinder him from darting off in the first place. He looks like a “normal” kid but does not perform at the same socially acceptable ways that come naturally to most. He has a difficult time making or keeping friends. He still likes to do all the things that other kids like such as swimming, painting, watching movies, and going on family vacations.

By getting a service dog for Damien, we hope that it will alleviate his stress and frustration with everyday tasks such as getting dressed, brushing his teeth, and even playing. We hope that the service dog will be able to prevent any future meltdowns before they occur with the behavior disruption training. This service dog will make Damien’s confidence go up, help socialize and make friends easier, as well as getting the attention of the public to see there can be a disability there even when someone looks “normal”. Right now his interactions with the public are generally negative as he appears to be a healthy child with behavior issues, the service dog will also act as an ambassador prompting questions and conversations instead of stares and snide comments. Which will be of great benefit to the low self-esteem that accompanies most of these disorders.
http://www.causes.com/causes/596547-4-paws-4-damien

3/6 Rite Aid .. Spent $24.95 ... Saved $100.92

1st Transaction

Raincheck Items:

3 Rite Aid Tissue: FREE

+Up Items:

10 Dove: $2.99 each used 10 $1 off 1 manuf coupons and 5 $1 off 2 store coupons got 10 $1 +Up

1 Snickers: $0.79 got $0.88 +Up

Sub-Total: $15.69 also used $5 off $20 Rite Aid coupon and $1 +Up making the sub-total $9.69.  There is a $0.90 charge that we missed so final subtotal was $10.59 with $3.06tax for a total of $13.65.  We got back $10.88 in +Up Rewards.

2nd Transaction

Raincheck Items:
8 Dixie Paper Plates:  BOGO @ $3.59 used 2 $5 off 3 store coupons and 1 $5 off 3 video value coupon

Sale Items:
3 Boxes Valentines: $0.74 each
1 Ladybug Bear: $0.59
2 Dentek Filling/Cap Repair: $1.24 each

Single Check Rebate Items:
Tavist Allergy: $6.99 will get $6 rebate
Keri Lotion: $6.99 used $2 coupon will get $6 rebate

Sub-Total: $16.63 also used the $10.88 +Up Rewards from first transaction making sub-total $5.75 with $3.36tax for a total of $9.11.

3rd Transaction:
We saw it on 75% clearance so went home to check for coupons.
Orabase Tooth Painrelief Gel: $1.99

Sub-Total:$1.99 with $.20tax for a total of $2.19.

What's it mean?
We spent $18.33 with $6.62tax and will be getting a $12 Rebate check for future purchases, and saved $100.92 off of the items at full price.

First Year Results ... Spent $5,916.10 ... Saved $17,612.93

One year ago we started using the super couponing method hoping to save a little bit of money but skeptical that it would be really worth it.  One year later we are believers.  As I look over the results page from my spreadsheet I am torn between amazement at how much we saved, and wondering how much better the next year will be.  Blank version of my Receipt Log can be downloaded here to track couponing for yourself.

Using our budget from before coupons one year should cost $9,125 last year we spent $5,916.10.  That means we saved over $3,200 last year that was cash in our pocket, which averages to saving $266 per month.  Now consider we also had savings from the coupons that basically count as free product, which for the year added up to $14,404.03.  So our total combined savings for one year is $17,612.93.  


Savings Percentage shows well you are doing, the higher the percentage the less you spent and the more free stuff you got.  Looking at the chart we increased our percentage every month except for 2.  It improved by almost 20 points from our first month (March 59%) to the last (February 78%).  For the year our average was 71%.

As far as stores go, Publix was the store we spent the most at $2,194.25 and saved the most $4,624.84.  CVS was our most consistent pharmacy spending $855.03 and saving $2,955.40 for 78%.  However Rite Aid made some changes to their policies and how they operate so we barely used them until September.  So Rite Aid's totals (spent $593.32 saved $2,769.58 for 82%) is basically from just the last 6 months.  We used Walmart, Winn Dixie, and Walgreens less and less as time went by.

Our results could be even better but we are limited by the amount of space we have to store our stockpile.  We can't stock up on items with a great sale and coupons as much as we would like.  Overall though our first year has far exceeded what we thought was possible and with as much as we improved as we went on we look forward to an even better year to come.