How many times have you heard this from me: I love coffee. Enough to make your eyes roll, right? I have such a craving for creamy, delicious coffee that my husband rolled his eyes too….about the price. So, I learned how to save money one frap at a time with International Delight.

Starbucks has been my guilty pleasure since the first one was constructed near my home town in Florida. I still remember being so disappointed because it would be a 30 minute drive to get there, but knowing I’d drive it anyway. I’d think up excuses just to go into town so I could swing into the location, take in the deep brown, green and plumb decor…and then pretend to look at the menu. I say pretend because, as you can guess, I know what I want the minute I walk in: Venti Mocha Frap, double shot, no whip. Please and thank you! Sometimes I’d cheat on Frappuccino and get something a little smoother (Caramel Macchiato, anyone?). I’d go to WalMart afterwards, swirling those ice cubes around while I shopped. I did this a lot. Especially when we moved to an area that has a Starbucks on every corner. Every day – had to get my lovely cup of satisfaction. Unfortunately, I wasn’t always satisfied with my wallet at the end of the week.

I was paying around $5 each for something that, honestly, lasted me 20 minutes. (I know…I drink fast) So by the end of the week my ‘little treat’ was costing me over $25.  That’s $100 a month, people! Then I found out that they will be raising their prices this spring in the Northeast. Okay…time for a change.

I told my husband, “I need more International Delight Iced Coffee.” Until that point I’d been buying it in addition to my Starbucks runs. I love my “SB” ….but my finances demanded a major switch. My husband, the sweetheart that he is, offered to pick up another carton so I wouldn’t run out.

This is what he brought me:

Okay. He got the right brand – 10 points for that.
But…that’s a whole lotta creamer and no coffee.
I sent him out again (I’m SO mean).

Ahhhhh…much better. He even remembered Mocha is my favorite. I have to give him props, though. Turns out he got the creamer because the Walmart closest to us was completely out of the International Delight Iced Coffee – so he got what he thought was the next best thing. The poor guy had to drive an extra 35 minutes to get these for me. Now that, my friends, is love (either love, or he remembers how cranky I get without my coffee).

When I found out that International Delight had a widget that would let me keep track of how much money I’d saved I thought it was a very clever idea. It’s easy to lose track of a few dollars here and there; you don’t realize how much it adds up. Now with my new, shiny widget I know exactly how good of a choice I made. The dollars are piling up! Now we just had to give our new found savings a goal.

Meet the Sugar Jar:

I started putting the extra change I had left over from each run to the grocery store into this giant jar we have. Instead of a Sugar Daddy, I have a Sugar Jar. In addition to my normal grocery change I’m now going to start putting in $5.00 twice a week. It’s not nearly as much as I spent on SB coffee runs, but this change is going to our teen son for his summer trip to Florida and well, let’s get real —  He’s not getting $100 a month from me.

My next move is going to be creating my own frozen coffees with the International Delight Iced Coffee. There’s no telling how many cartons I’ll drink every week then. But… it will still be cheaper than my SB coffee runs! For now I’m content with my huge, filled tumbler that I always have sitting at my desk while I work.

Doesn’t that look delicious? As you can see, I don’t even put ice in it. Straight up for me! Speaking of…that cup is now empty. It’s time for a refill. Keep an eye out for my updates in the next few weeks – I’ll share with you just how much money I’m saving with International Delights #IcedCoffee. Don’t forget to check out the widget when you visit too!

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This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias. #CBias All opinions expressed are my own.