One of our favorite excursions as a family is heading to Costco. Yup, you read it correctly…. My family goes to Costco for fun.
For me, it’s all about what new items do they have that I can get my hands on. To my husband, it’s all about can we get out of there for less than $200. And for my kids, it’s all about the snack section, the book section, the toy section, and of course the samples.
We start on the right side of the store to move along with traffic. (Costco actually created the layout of their store to create a flow for the consumer experience….like Disneyland). I look at my list to see if any of the sale items are placed right when you walk in (mmm…croissants) and then we proceed to the snack aisle. The kids’ favorite people greet them with snack samples, protein bars, cookies, chocolate, fruit snacks, and then some.
Next we hit up the clothes. Carter, Matty, Calvin, Gloria…all my favorite people are there. I rummage through to see if I can find my size and into the cart it goes. The books are right next door so we browse through some of the kids books because, let’s face it, I read those more than my own books.
And if a Disney movie is on sale you better believe that is placed in the cart.
We continue to move on and approach the wine/beer/liquor “must go down” aisle. We seek out some new bottles to add to the open slots in our wine rack at home and fill up on some liquor that we are low on. Right next to this aisle is our chips, baked goods, and more friends handing us samples that my kids happily take on.
From there we cruise down the refrigerated and freezer aisles sampling, eating, trying to figure out what dinners we can make that won’t take long. Our go to..the rotisserie chicken! Then it is off to get our toilet paper, paper towels, Ziploc bags, cat litter…not fun but essentials.
Our favorite aisle we hit up is the seasonal aisle. Just recently the best part of our trip to Costco was when the kids played in the wood playhouse that was on display. My husband and I sat while the kids played…pure joy.
The last walk through entails the dry goods, vitamins, and diapers. I would like to say that I browse the beauty products but the only thing I am putting on these days are lotion and mascara.
I have learned several things on these many trips when my family goes to Costco:
- No, you can’t leave there for less than $200
- Don’t ignore the electronics or house items…your next vacuum could be there.
- Go around lunch time…free lunch (or a $1.50 hotdog)
- I am going to start feeding my kids in sample cups and bite sizes because then they will eat it
- Make a list and then toss it out because you know you are going to buy more than what is on that list
This is how my family goes to Costco. How about yours?
