Well, I think its safe to say that we’re all ordering a little more often from Amazon now that we’re self-quarantining. Am I right? Before we find out ALL the things I ordered in March (and it feels like I ordered ALL THE THINGS), let’s see what I ordered from Amazon in February 2020. Also, because it’s April today. Sorry, still trying to figure out the whole Homeschooling schedule thing.
If you missed it last time, you can see what I ordered from Amazon in January by clicking here.
Amazon can be a real time saver, but it can also get out of control quickly. If you’ve been reading the blog for a while, you know I have a pretty detailed household budget that I manage through You Need A Budget (YNAB). My YNAB Budget keeps me on track for my goals. Checking it before making a purchase means that I make smart decisions when it comes to spending.
How I Save When Shopping Amazon
I’m not always spending money from the budget when I shop on Amazon. I use Swagbucks to earn FREE amazon gift cards and they really help to have extra “fun money” to shop on Amazon. Now that we’re all home looking for something to do, why not check out Swagbucks and earn some extra cash from your couch? Click here to learn more about how I use Swagbucks every day to earn over $300 in Free Amazon Gift Cards each year!
I also use the Chase Amazon Prime Credit Card to make purchases when I’m not using my gift cards. The Chase Amazon Prime Card gives you the option to earn 5% on your purchase or use your points to pay on Amazon.com. I always select the 5% cash back option when I order, and then I will redeem the cash back as a statement credit on my credit card to save money. That way, each purchase earns me the 5% cash back, and I can choose to erase certain purchases with my cash back through the Chase website.
I tend to save up our cash back for the holidays, but sometimes if the budget is lean and we NEED something, I will use the cash back to reimburse the purchase. All of the money spent is budgeted for in our YNAB budget. We pay the card off the day before payday just like all of our other cards. We never carry a balance.
Amazon February 2020 Purchases
First up for February are new jeans for Doug. Doug needed new jeans really badly. His favorite AG Denim are expensive, and they don’t make them anymore. They are really hard to find. I decided to try some Amazon Essentials Brand jeans to see if he liked them, and he did! These are the Athletic Fit, which is sort of a relaxed/straight leg. They come in a ton of colors, and the best part is that they are super affordable. I paid less than $30 per pair. That’s right. Under $30! They ship via Amazon Prime.
We have one project left to finish in the kitchen, and that’s painting & installing the barn door for the pantry. I found this budget friendly barn door hardware option on Amazon in the exact size I needed. Barn Door equipment can be expensive, so thankfully, I found this. It also ships via Amazon Prime. I don’t have it installed yet, but when I do. I’ll take a picture for you.
In February, organizing the kitchen cabinets was a top priority, so I started with the coffee mug shelf. I only needed one thing to maximize the space in there, and that was this clear turntable. Its super smooth and is perfect for what we need in here. I have my collagen that I add to my coffee every morning, any syrups that we have on hand, and the creamer that goes with our everyday plates that we never use. This turntable is perfect for organizing in any room in the house!
The one tool that we didn’t have that we’ve needed about 865,000 times over the last 6 years is a multi-tool. This tool can do all kinds of things and comes in really handy for cutting shims or trim. We’ve been borrowing a friend’s for a while, and I decided for Doug’s birthday it was time to get our own. This one comes with 30 pieces and was under $100 when I purchased it with Prime.
Back in February, organizing the laundry room was also a project I wanted to do. Little did I know that I would have some downtime and complete that job less than a month later. Wait until you see my March Amazon post. Anyway, I got these Command Broom Holders because the pantry cabinet in the laundry room was out of control. These are fantastic! I got 2 for under $10 Prime.
I’ve been working on a little Play Kitchen Refresh, and I wanted a way to hang some of the tiny pots and pans. I didn’t want to put any holes in the kitchen, so I decided to find a spring rod. Unfortunately, our space is small, like 16″, and it was hard to find one that size. Amazon to the rescue! This black spring rod was under $10 Prime and works perfectly! I ended up using hooks from IKEA to hang the pots and pans.
I’ve got one little project left to do on that refresh before I show you. Stay tuned!
The last random thing I ordered in February was additional Wall Control garage system pieces. We have the original combo pack and love it, but I wanted to expand it. I ordered 5 more boards and hooks for the power tools. Luckily, I have some time on my hands and am hoping to get started installing those this week!
For our monthly Subscribe & Save order, we all got our monthly vitamins, and I added something new to the mix. Doug got his SmartyPants Men’s Complete. I got my Smartypants Women’s Complete, the kids got a bottle of Smartypants Kids Formula & Fiber. I also got my Olly Sleep and Olly Skin Supplements and my Renew Life Women’s Probiotics.
Total Spent on Amazon February 2020
In February 2020, I spent $656.19 on Amazon. $646.67 of that was on our Amazon Prime Credit Card that earns 5% cash back. I used $9.52 of my Gift Card Balance that I earned from Swagbucks. I chose not to redeem any of our points for cash back on our Amazon Prime Credit Card.
Did you know I have an Amazon Storefront? I do! Check it out if you want to see the things I’m loving on Amazon! It’s fun for me to “windowshop”. I just started loading up the Women’s Fashion list with items for an upcoming tropical vacation! I’ve also been updating the Cleaning & Organizing list because that’s what I’m doing during the quarantine.
Just a few weeks until the onslaught of March Amazon orders. Wowza!
Did you order anything fun from Amazon this month that you absolutely love? Tell me in the comments! Check back next month to see what I ordered in March, just make sure you have time to read it because it’s going to be long!
Take care & stay safe!
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