When I lived in an apartment in a city, the idea of buying stuff in bulk sounded cool (look – 250 rolls of toilette paper!) but was completely impractical. Then when I moved to a house in “suburbia” I could indulge all those paper towel and frozen food fantasies, but it was more about fun than saving money. Now I’m a dad, there are a few things that I’ve found shopping at Costco indispensable for.
Gas – Gas costs around $2.30 per gallon at normal stations where I live these days (I know, ouch), and I can get it at Costco for $2.17.
Diapers – I tried a bunch of different brands and they are all pretty much the same, so we go with the Huggies in the huge box.
Baby Wipes – Again, all pretty much the same, so I get the big box of their “Kirkland” brand.
Formula – Big can of Similac for $25.
Bottled Water – I can remember watching Seinfeld back in the early 90’s and thinking how funny it was to pull a bottle out of your refrigerator if you wanted a drink of water. Now I live in the desert and I generally don’t leave the house without one.
There is one thing though that I hate about Costco. I hate having to show my card to the busy-body at the door before I’m allowed to enter. I can’t buy anything without it anyway, so what does it hurt to let people in who aren’t “members” yet? Other than that, I have to say that now it's worth the membership.