Budget Revamp

In May I realized our budget was in trouble. In our family I handle the finances, with support from my husband. I am the more organized one which helps me handle the budget. However, in May, I realized I needed help. I needed my husband to step in and be a second brain. So we looked, and crunched and looked some more. At the end I felt much better about everything and we had a new plan. The new plan has been working so well!

Let me tell you about our old budget first. I had tons of categories and I would have a piece of paper in a binder for each one. Then, I would take every receipt and calculate how much money of each category had been spent. Then I would write that amount on each corresponding page. Confused? Yeah I know. It was incredibly time consuming and very hard to keep up with spending. I found myself over spending in almost every category on a monthly basis. I was so disappointed in myself an overly frustrated that I was not being a good steward. I even felt belittled by my husband a few times when he would make comments about the bank account (he did not realize that it was bothering me, so don't worry. He was only making general comments but since I was already insecure about the budget it made me feel attacked.

So the budget now? Simplified by a million! I combined most of the categories and narrowed them down to the basic. The kicker? We are on the cash system now! Oh my goodness, if you have never done it.... you should! It has been the best budget system for us yet! Each week I get out our set amount of cash, then once it is gone.... we are done spending! This system does require more planing with my shopping but that has been helpful to me. It has shown me how careless I was before. It has also shown me how little we really need to be happy. I am enjoying this new system for lots of reasons!

So what do you and your family do to help with your budget? 

Downgrade

In December our contract with Direct TV is up (Woo Hoo!). This is one time that I am like, "Come on December! Hurry it up!". Father Time please don't take that literally, okay? Today I called and downgraded our package to help lower the bill. Canceling our service before the contract is up would cost us about $500 so we are just trying to ride out our contract as cheaply as we can. I was hesitant to downgrade though, I will be honest. There is only one show my husband watches... River Monsters. There is also only one show I watch (when there is a new season on).... 19 Kids and Counting with the Duggars. The package that I wanted to downgrade to, that just happened to be the most basic package they offer, would mean dropping both of the channels that these shows came on. I didn't know what my husband would say, so I brought it up to him and to my surprise he was all for the downgrade. I wish I could be more like him sometimes. I wish I could just say "that doesn't matter at all" the way he can. I am working on it though. I grew up, not spoiled per say, but fortunate. I kinda want my kids to live a bit more primitive than I did. I don't want them to think that TV is everything, I want them to see TV as a privilege they get. I always thought I could never live without TV, but I am learning that I really really can, and that I really really want to. Cable is just so expensive and just feels like a huge waste to me. I like having PBS and Disney Junior, but I know I can find little clips for the kids to watch on the internet too. Plus we have DVDs that the kids love, and we have Netflix so we can keep new DVDs coming that we think are appropriate for them. So why be tied down to a bill! I feel good about our downgrade, but I really can't wait to be able to cancel our service all together.

I am slowly, and I mean s-l-o-w-l-y, learning that less is more. I am learning that we need to lead a more simple life because it is biblical. At the same time, I am learning how hard living simply can be. Funny how God does that, huh? Making things that are so necessary seem so impossible. When I see my daughter satisfied with the simplest things (empty paper towel roll, a few books, junk mail, crayons and paper, a bowl and a wooden spoon) and my son satisfied with just having my attention and a hand full of toys.... I know living a simple life is necessary and so incredibly possible.

What do you do to help you live a simpler life? Any tips?

No AC In April: Update

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Ya' know how the Bible says "be hot for me or cold for me. Do not be lukewarm for me".... well apparently picking a mild month to sacrifice our air was a bit of a "lukewarm" decisions. God seems to have turned up the heat, so to speak, to help us come out of our comfort zone. I can tell He wants us to sacrifice more than we feel comfortable. Here in the south it has been pretty warm these days. I'm talking 85 degrees inside the house. We are sticking to our plan as much as we can and I think we are doing a pretty good job. We have cheated though (hangs head in shame) and turned on the air a hand full of times. On the nights where it is 80 degrees or higher we run the air for one hour right around the kids bedtime. I just hated to see them sweaty and miserable as they tried to go to sleep. After an hour the house is so nice and cool and stays that way through the night. Also, we have had to turn in on a couple of other times. We had my uncle and aunt come and watch the kids for about an hour one night while we went out to eat. I hate to see other people suffer when they are doing a huge favor for us. I would say we have turned the air on for about 10 hours total this month. Overall I would say that is not too bad.

Here is the kicker though. We got our power bill and it was WAY more than I expected, considering our limited air usage. I would have hated to see what the bill was if we would have been letting it run all day and all night. Ouch!

I think this challenge is helping us see that the air does not have to run much to keep us comfortable. I think the rest of the summer will be much more aware of how often the air is on. To us, 75 feels pretty cool, if you can believe it. I can't wait to go on vacation though.... I plan on enjoying the air thoroughly while we are in Florida!

3M Challenge

Money Making March
3M Challenge

Today begins the month of March which, in turn, begins my budget challenge! I am so ready! I hope some of you will join me (so I don't feel like a big old loser having no one link up!) and so that we can encourage each other through this. The purpose of this challenge is to help me get my budget on track. I want my budget I have laid out so nicely on paper to be what I figure up at the end of the month. Plain and simple. First things first! I need to show you the breakdown of my month. Days that are left blank are days where miscellaneous trips my be made.

March
1st No Spending
2nd Necessities trip
3rd
4th No spending
5th
6th No Spending (check budget)
7th Grocery Trip/ Baby Trip
8th
9th No Spending
10th
11th (check budget)
12th No Spending
13th
14th No Spending
15th
16th (Check budget)
17th No Spending
18th
19th Grocery trip
20th No Spending
21st Necessities trip (check budget)
22nd No Spending
23rd
24th No Spending
25th
26th No Spending (check budget)
27th
28th No Spending
29th
30th No Spending
31st No Spending (check budget)

The next step for me is to go by the ATM and take out our miscellaneous spending cash out. Then, I have to run to Wal-Mart and get my gas card for the month. There's a quick tip for you. I buy Wal-Mart gift cards to get my gas with because it gives me .03 off per gallon. Seems like it may not be worth it.... but in this house, every little bit helps! I am hopeful that this month makes a big difference in how I budget for my family. I want to do a better job. I will be back in a week to give you an update! Be sure to blog about how you are going to save money this month and link up! You know you want to! (Please somebody do it so I feel just a little bit of bloggy love.... just a little bitty bit..... just one person is all I'm asking.... talk amongst yourselves and decide who it's gonna be..... flip a coin or something!)

Money Making March

Money Making March
3M Challenge

Google Image

Feburary was a tough month budget wise for me. I have phases with my budget. For a while I will be totally on top of things and really do great. Then we hit a slump where it seems like we are just unable to keep our budget in the front of our mind. Are we the only ones? Please tell we aren't alone.... anybody else out there wishing their budget was closer to what it is on your monthly outline?

Well coming in March I am doing something drastic with my budget. Not so much drastic, more challenging really. I am not changing anything on my outline. I am not switching over to an envelope system (quite yet) I am simply going to use cash only for my miscellaneous category. That is the one category that I have the most trouble with (big surprise!). The other thing I am going to do is have a calender with a spending schedule on it. I want to have it outlined when I will do what shopping for the month. Along with this schedule there will be mandatory 'no spend' days. That means on those days, unless it is a medical emergency needing medication or something major like that or my husband needing gas for his vehicle to get to and from work, no money will be spent.
This is my blank slate (sorry it's a little grainy). On March 1st I will post my filled out calender. Then throughout March I will post updates to how I am doing. I will let you know if I think these few changes are making a difference. My goal is to do a better job of spending the money God is blessing my family with. I fail over and over again to do a good job with our money and I desperately need to do better. These few changes should change our budget by $300 in the positive direction of done correctly. If I can do this for 3 months I will have positively increased our bank account by $900.00! WOW! Then, if I can do it for 6 months you're talking $1800.00! This is a big deal my friends! But let's not put the cart before the horse though.

Do you need to buckle down and get better grip on your money? Don't be afraid to join me! Perhaps just adopt the mandatory 'no spend' days and scheduled shopping trips. Make Money Making March work for you! Grab a calender and fill it out! Don't want to fill out a calender, then just post about how you plan to save money in March. I'm not picky, I simply want to see what ideas you have about getting a better handle on your budget. Post about it on your blog and give your readers updates on your progress! Lets encourage each other this March! What do you have to loose? Each Friday I will have a Money Making March post with a link tool. If at any point during this challenge you want to join in on the fun, please do!

200 Challengs Finale!

If you have been reading my blog long, you know I have been doing The 200 Challenge. Well, it is time to recap all of 2010. Are you ready to see just how much I saved on groceries in 2010? Let the fun begin!

Total spent in 2010
$2066.24
Spending an average of $172.19 a month


Total spent in 2009
$2833.78
Spending and average of $236.15


Total saved being part of The 200 Challenge

***Drum roll, please!!!***


$767.54

Wow!!!!!!!!!!! Let just say I need to take Sarah, the host of The 200 Challenge, out for a very nice meal at a very nice restaurant for saving me this much money! No, really!

So what does that mean for 2011? I plan on keeping my grocery budget the same so it should be a good year. I plan on tweaking a few of my other budget categories to save even more money this year than last year. I will let be sure to update you on how I plan on doing that! God is providing for us, and He always will. I hope that my 2011 budget will bring glory to Him because that is what it should do. Everything we do should bring Him glory!

So what are your tricks for saving money? Tell me what works for you! I would love to know for the new year!

200 Challenge Update

I haven't done a 200 Challenge in forever. I figured at this point I shouldn't try to back track and breakdown each month, but I thought giving you my overall totals would be a good idea.

August $204.53

September $197.52

October $193.48

November $208.69

Are wondering what The 200 Challenge is? Well then you haven't been reading my blog long enough now have you... shame on you! No, I'm kidding! A friend of mine and fellow blogger started a grocery challenge at the beginning of this year to try and see if she could spend $200 or less each month. I joined in, since I am always in for saving money! All in all I have done well and really enjoyed this challenge. I will be continuing to use this budget in 2011. It has really saved us a lot and I am grateful for Sarah putting this challenge together and teaching me how to better budget my finances. Her challenge sparked something major in me. I wanted to do better in all categories, not just groceries. My budget has not been the same (in a good way). In January I will post how much I spent on groceries for the year, along with how much I would have spent had I not joined the challenge. I will let you be the judge of whether is was worth it.

I Can't Resist ...

50% Off

I mean, can you? Today I am loading a few pictures onto Walgreens that I need to have printed. When I say "a few" I really mean an obscene ridiculous amount. I am loading 423 pictures. Catch your breath. Are you okay? I know, it's a shocker. In my defense, I have not printed pictures in a very long time. It is time to catch up the photo albums. Right now Walgreens online is offering 50% off all prints until Nov. 6. So basically I am getting $80.00 worth of pictures for $40.00. I love a good deal! So, if you are needing to print pictures, perhaps for the holidays, you should check out Walgreens online. I love them! They always have coupon codes and great gift deals.

Note: loading 400 plus pictures takes ........ FOREVER!!!!!!!!!!! Not the best idea I have ever had.

Who Loves A Good Deal?

I love a good deal! It makes me happy to even save .10! No joke! If I can save a few cents here, a few cents there I am thrilled! Lots of people look at how I save money and say, "well for that small of a savings it seems like too much work. It can't really be worth it.". To each his own I guess. My thought process on it is that if I take all those ways to save a little bit of money, then they will add up to be a big savings! So all my "little" things turn into a HUGE savings at the end of the month! Plus, my husband works very, very hard so that I am able to stay home and take care of our children. It is my duty to make his money go as far as it possibly can.

My friend Heather and I had been wanting to go check out this place called "Dented Deals" in a town close to ours. So on Friday we set off on a money saving adventure! I will say, we had to check some expiration dates, but other than that it was great. I don't mind one bit if the package is crunched or ripped or dirty! I will buy it just the same... only WAY cheaper! Here is what I got....

St. Ives face wash $1.85 / covered in soap
Pull Ups $5.99 / package was taped up but none missing
Overnight Diapers $6.35 / package was taped up but none missing

All of these prices are much cheaper than what I would have paid at Wal-Mart. Even with coupons! I was pretty happy!

Rice $2.99 / dented
Dukes $2.39 / label was torn (notice that it is a GIANT jar!!!)
Granola Bars $1.25 / dented
Peaches $.99 / packaging taped up
Applesauce $.85 / packaging taped up
Ritz Crackers $.50 / one month past date

Salad Dressing $.50

This was the deal of all deals! Biltmore salad dressing for less than $1.00!!!! That is CRAZY!!!! If you don't know what Biltmore is.... shame on you!!! Get to Googling!!!!

Well Heather also wanted to take me to a neat little place run by Mennonites called The Pantry. Folks, I am in love. Deep, deep love! The atmosphere was great, for one thing. It was so nice and tidy. So peaceful and quiet (other than my daughter who talks non stop). The have homemade anything! Organic and natural galore! It really was neat and I will be shopping there once a month for a few things! I have to say, the prices are what I loved the best! Look at what I got...

Spinach Pasta $2.21
Italian Seasoning $.82
Whole Wheat Flour $2.53 (3.95 lbs.)
Carob Drops $2.80 (1.3 lbs.)
Flax Seed Meal $1.92 (1 lb.)
Fresh Sour Dough Bread $2.75

The bread was to die for folks. Really, some of the best bread I have ever had. The spices are so cheap you jaw would drop! And I can't wait to make some healthier muffins and pancakes with my flax seed and whole wheat flour! I am telling you, I could live back in the old days no problem!

I encourage you to search for local shops like these in your area. Find out where you can get local, homemade products. Find out where you can get grass feed beef, organic eggs and milk. Not only is it better for you, but it supports local business. It is also lots more fun than shopping at Wal-Mart. You will find some really neat things at shops like this. Stuff you would never see in any Wal-Mart, K-Mart, Target or Bi-Lo. I promise!

Saving On Shaving!

I must admit, I have been keeping something from you. It's a biggie too. I am so sorry that I have neglected to tell you about my fantastic money saving product. I have to say, I am a pretty big skeptic. I never believe all the "as seen on TV" stuff. I think it is all junk and just somebody trying to get rich. I mean come on, Mighty Putty? Really? (sorry to anyone who bought Mighty Putty!!!!) Well, after Christmas Charlie and I were walking around Walgreens and saw the "as seen on TV" section so we stopped by to laugh at all the over priced junk. And then, it happened.

There is was.

Staring us in the face with a discounted price we couldn't resist.

Should we try it?

Would we really use it?

Could it really work?

Well since we had some extra Christmas money we decided to buy it.

Yep we bought...................



Yes folks, we are the proud owners of the Save A Blade. My hubby is a military man so he shaves at least 5 days a week.... on drill weekend it jumps up to 7. Needless to say, we go through a lot of blades! Plus, although not very often, I shave too. So that is 2 adults buying razor blades. We both can't use cheap disposables so we have to spend a little more on nicer cartridges.

So, want to know how long I used one blade? 6 months! Yep! Half of a year on one blade! It really was amazing! That is savings folks! On average I would spend about $170 on blades (just for me!) a year. Now I spend roughly $14.00! I can last an entire year on one box of refills! WOW!

But here is the thing.... It didn't work so great for Charlie. I am not sure sure it is a great buy for men since they are shaving their face. The skin on my legs is much tougher than the skin on a mans face, I am sure of that! But Charlie can sharpen his blade once with the Save A Blade and get at least 3 more shaves out of a razor. So I guess It cuts down a little bit on his part.

Overall, I say this product works.... for us. I can't say it will be great for you, but it may be worth a shot! We save A LOT with it! Lots of people say it is junk and it doesn't work at all. I think it depends on your skin, really. If you have a few extra bucks in your budget, you may want to invest in a Save A Blade, just to give it a shot! You never know until you try, right? Plus if you don't like it you can always sell it on ebay :-) If you put "free shipping" somebody will buy it, I promise!

One more tip for saving on shaving.... look around at different stores for "off brand" razors and refills. I just bought Charlie a razor from Food Lion (Healthy Choice brand) that is the same thing as a Gillette Fusion razor. The only difference is that the refills are only $5.99 for 4, instead of $14.99 for 4. It makes a big difference in our budget! The only thing Charlie doesn't like about the new razor is that it doesn't have a "trimming blade" on the end of it. You know, the fancy blade on the back of the razor that they use to get up close to their nose and stuff? So, he misses that, but that is his only complaint so far! So go shop around for a cheaper solution that will work for you and your hubby!

Happy Wednesday everyone!



******I was not paid by anyone to review Save A Blade. I really did try it! My results are only my results, I have no idea how it works for anyone else! Just so you know! ******

Easily Excited

I am a terrible shopper... for myself at least. I am a sucker for clothes for my kids though. I try to just stay out of stores. That seems to be the best way for me not to buy stuff. I don't think kids need tons of clothes and I really try not to over do it. I have done very well since Jayce was born. He only has one drawer of clothes. Lula Mae had 4 at his age! Yes, I went overboard with her since she was my first... and she is a girl and we all know girl clothes are just way cuter! Anyhoo, JCPenny's sent out their $10 off coupon last week so I went to take a look. I got Lula Mae a new, thick jean skirt for the fall and winter. It is a staple for a little girl! One skirt can make TONS of outfits. I also found this...

...and I had to get it. I knew she had tons of summer clothes at home, but this was too cute! Plus it was marked down to $4.00! My total for the skirt and this was $4.81. I really can't feel too bad about that! It is soooooooo cute. I know she is 2 but I still love seeing her in these romper type outfits!
Oh! I just want to eat her up!!! I think I am going to take this outfit when it get cool and cut the bottom off. Then I can sew it into a shirt and she can wear it over long sleeves through the winter. Oh yes! It is going to be great! (Am I really this excited about an outfit? Man, I don't get out much anymore!) Ok, one more picture of that precious bargain of an outfit!

As you can see, Lula Mae is helping us to beast those Wii scores. Yep. We are even have our toddler in on it!

The Adventure Begins!

I made the decision a few weeks ago to start using cloth diapers during the day with Jayce. After lots of research and reading I made the plunge! I ordered some diaper covers, got my 5 gallon bucket ready and mentally prepared myself for the challenge. Once the diaper covers arrived I was so excited to get started. So far we have been using the cloth diapers during just Jayce's awake time and it has been great. He has been very nice to me though. Every time he poops it is right after a nap (right before I change him into a cloth diaper) in his regular disposable diaper. I am sure that the first time he poops in the cloth diaper I am probably going to be asking myself "Why did I think this would be a good idea????" but we will burn that bridge when we get to it. We have not had any messes or disasters yet so I am still excited and motivated. We typically change any where from 10 to 12 disposable diapers a day. With the cloth diapers in full swing we are down to only using 4 or 5 disposables a day. Not only is it saving us money, it is making less waste! Your welcome Earth! It really is a win-win situation! All the little things we do, to save the environment and money, really add up to BIG things!

Just a few FYI things about cloth diapers for anyone thinking about trying them out....

• They are very bulky and don't fit well under outfits
• They are a big cost upfront (more then just disposables)
• You have to change them more frequently because they don't hold what a disposable will
• You have to touch lots of bodily fluids
• You have to wash diapers every day
  

Give them a try! When I think about all the little things we do around our house to save money and the environment I feel good about making decision like this one. If we all do the little things we can really make a difference! Check out the little man!

This is the diaper cover. It is really neat! No more rubber pants or pins! You put the cloth diaper inside of this and then put it on baby just like a disposable! It makes it soooooo easy!

Jayce hanging out in his cloth diaper!

200 Challenge: May

Check out how everyone else is doing on The 200 Challenge at Clay In His Hands

May has been quite a month! I gave birth to a healthy baby boy, celebrated my 3 year wedding anniversary with my amazing husband, celebrated my wonderful daughters 2nd birthday, and enjoyed my second Mother's Day. We have been a bit busy, to say the least! Even though it has been busy, it has been so much fun! I love where God is leading me! What a life! We have amazing family and friends who have brought us meals which has helped out grocery budget A LOT! During my first 2 week trip I spent $87.08. Not too bad! I was worried that having to buy lots of lunch stuff for Charlie and I would bump up our total much more than usual. Charlie had 10 days of leave after Jayce was born and then took a few extra days on top of that (he was home a total of 17 days :-) which was a HUGE help to me!) so lunches would be our biggest change for the month. Luckily it didn't change anything! On our second grocery trip I spent $79.97 which was really good since I went to Food Lion instead of Aldi. I got tons of good deals with the sales they had and coupons! Probably one of the most rewarding trips I have taken in quite some time! That brings our grand total to $167.05. I'm very happy with that after the overage we had in April! We are +$32.95 for the month which feels so much better than being in the negative. I hope that I can keep up the good work in June! With a new baby, a busy 2 year old, lots of house work, Family time and tons of other things I need to get done... I won't be posting a menu this month! You can be sure though that it will include lots of quick and simple meals! Good Luck in June ladies! Can't wait to see how everyone else did this month!

Previous Months: Feburary March April May

200 Challenge: May

Can you believe that we are almost halfway through the year already? If you are like me you are begging 2010 to please slow down! We are still going strong with The 200 Challenge and are very focused on saving money this year. Well, April did not go so great with the challenge. It wasn't impulse buying, luxury items or bad planning, but we still didn't do well. Unfortunately when we run out of staple items it seems to come all at once. This past month I had to pretty much stock up on much needed items (olive oil, flour, sugar, several spices, etc.) It just seemed like half of our budget went to "stocking" instead of to "food". But, life goes on. We are going to buckle down in May and do a much better job. Also, I need to be more aware of when we are going to need to "restock" and look for coupons and sales. Even if it is time consuming, I know it is well worth it! Anyway, our grand total for the month of April was $226.73. Yuck :-( You can't expect to do well every month I guess. Still, I'm a little bit disappointing in myself for going so far over budget this month. Even though we went over, I know we still are spending much less on groceries than the average family. May is a new start! I hope this month goes well for all of you doing the challenge! I am going to stay focused and try and make up for the overage from April... not sure how low we can get it, but we are going to give it a try!

Previous Months: Feburary, March, April

Since Jayce will be here any day now, I have planned on making lots of easy meals through May. Charlie is a great cook so he will also be helping out with the cooking more and more. This is a list of my ideas for May... although I have not yet made a full menu yet... I am waiting until nap time so that I can enjoy lots of one on one time with Lula Mae! Good Luck in May everyone!

Cheesy Chicken & Rice with veggie (2)
Shepard's Pie with veggie (2)
Taco's with chips and salsa
Brinner (Pancakes and Bacon) (2)
Brinner (Biscuits and Gravy) (2)
BBQ Chicken with Mashed Potatoes and veggie
Chicken Fingers with Mac-n-cheese and veggie
Pigs in a blanket with tater tots
Tater Tot casserole
French Bread Pizza
Shrimp and Pasta Salad
Buffalo Chicken Sandwiches with Fries
Mexican Pizza
Pork Chops with Mashed Potatoes and Veggie
Baked Chicken with Baked Potatoes and Baked Beans
Crock Pot Stew over Rice
Hot Dogs with Slaw and Deviled Eggs

200 Challenge: April

Oh my, it is already April! Wow! I cannot tell you how fast time is flying these days! It is a little scary actually. Well, March went well on the 200 Challenge, but not as well as the month before. Our grand total for March was $191.23. Our main goal is $190.00 a month (so technically we went over just a bit...) but our secondary goal is to be under $200.00. I like the $10.00 wiggle room. It makes you hold an item in your hand and say "is this worth going over my top goal?". Yet, it also helps me feel like if we needed something desperately we could stand to go out and grab it. So, yes we went over this month, but it is still a HUGE improvement from what we were spending before this challenge started! I hope all of you who are doing this challenge did well this month! I can't wait to see everyone's progress! Charlie and I are going this evening to get our first 2 weeks worth of groceries for April and I can't wait to see our savings!

Previous months: Feburary, March

200 Challenge: March

It is amazing how fast this year is going by! March is here! Wow! Well, Feburary was the first month of The 200 Challenge and it went really well! It was lots of fun and very motivating! My goal is $190.00 a month. Ready for the grand total? We spent $138.45! It sounds impressive, even to me, until I think about the fact that the other folks in this challenge are using this budget to buy paper towels, dish soap, diapers, wipes, shampoo, etc.!!! So when I look at it that way I don't think we did that great considering out grocery budget it just food. We are still proud and happy about our savings though. Before this challenge we were spending roughly $225.00 on groceries a month. I feel like we were being so frivolous before! I also feel like we took A LOT for granted. This challenge has really opened my eyes to how wasteful and ungrateful we were.

I hope to do just as well with the challenge this month. We have already done our first two week trip and came in under budget, so it is looking good so far! We are learning how to make things last, and how to be creative with our meals (and not so picky!). I think this is a great thing for Charlie and myself. Plus, it is a good example for us to set as parents.

Our Menu

1: Baked Potato Soup with rolls (didn't get to make it last week)
2: Chicken fingers, mac-n-cheese, veggie
3: Left overs
4: Hot dogs with curly fries
5: Tacos
6: Shepard's pie, veggie
7: Salmon, rice, veggie
8: Left overs
9: Alfredo, garlic bread
10: Homemade pizza
11: Brinner (pancakes with sausage)
12: BBQ Chicken, mashed potatoes, veggie
13: Lasagna, garlic bread, veggie
14: Garlic breaded chicken, cornbread casserole, veggie
15: Left overs
16: Pigs in a blanket, curly fries, fruit
17: Cheesy chicken and rice, veggie
18: Chicken salad sandwiches, baked potatoes
19: Left overs
20: Burritos, chips and salsa
21: Brinner (French toast with bacon)
22: Chili with cornbread muffins
23: Herb rubbed chicken, mac-n-cheese, veggie
24: Left overs
25: Shepard's pie, veggie
26: Cube steak, rice and gravy, veggie
27: Homemade pizza pockets
28: Left overs
29: Brinner (biscuits and gravy)
30: Shrimp and pasta salad
31: Out To Eat :-)

Not the most creative menu this month, but it is all stuff we really enjoy. We are having a few things twice, but that's ok. We may not want those things next month, but I am sure we will be fine for now :-) I hope everyone else enjoyed the challenge as much as I did! It has inspired me to cut others areas of our budget too! I will post more on that later :-) Good luck to all of you in March!

Previous Months: Feburary

200 Challenge: February

Our Menu

2/15: Out to Eat (buy one get one free coupon for Ruby Tuesday's)
2/16: Chicken quesadilla pizza
2/17: Shrimp, pasta salad
2/18: Brinner (biscuits and gravy)
2/19: Date Night!!!
2/20: Chili, corn bread
2/21: Asian Chicken Dinner
2/22: Left Overs
2/23: Pigs in a blanket, tator tots, baked apples
2/24: Cheesy chicken and rice, veggie
2/25: Zesty chicken, potatoes Au gratin, veggie
2/26: Left Overs
2/27: Baked potato soup, rolls
2/28: Brinner (pancakes, sausage)

Several of these meals are things that I need to use out of my pantry, which will cut down on our total cost this month. Also, we typically would not have two out to eat nights like this, but since Charlie has been gone for 3 weeks we are going on a nice date night :-) We have used the Ruby Tuesday's coupon before and spent right at $12.00 for both of us to eat (after tip) so it is well worth it for us to use that coupon and enjoy a night without cooking! I shopped at Aldi first and got all but a few things on my list (Yay!) and our total was $58.71. I got the other items at Wal-Mart and spent $19.62. Charlie was gone the first 2 weeks of February so I spent $51.73 on things for me to eat and stocked up on Charlie's Diet Mountain Dews for the month while they were on sale. I am guessing that we will need to go to the store one more time to get milk before the month is up, but our total for this month so far is $130.06. Looks like we will make it under budget this month! Good thing too because Charlie needed a new battery for his car so it will more than cover that. I will update my post with my final total on March 1st! Can't wait to see how we all did this month!

The 200 Challenge

Sarah at Clay In His Hands has inspired me to cut my grocery budget with a challenge! I just can't resist a challenge! You can click on the link to read up on how Sarah is going about this challenge. To sum it up, she is going to spend $200.00 a month or less on groceries and she is looking for other frugal folks to join in! Well who can say no to that? We all want to find ways to cut our budget each month and this sounds like a great way to me! Right now I typically spend $225.00 a month on groceries. When I say "groceries" I am meaning only food products for us. Charlie and I have another category in our budget for our trash bags, dish soap, paper towels and toilet paper. Actually I have to admit that our grocery budget is only for food for Charlie and myself, not our daughter. She still is not eating what we eat so I also have another category for her groceries as well. Now that I think about it I am going to tweak my challenge.... $190.00 a month! I know it is only $10.00 difference, but that will add up to an extra $120 for the year! My biggest money saver on groceries is Aldi. I have tried shopping at every store out there with more coupons than you can imagine and Aldi is my best bet. I do shop at Bi-Lo and Food Lion from time to time when I see a specific sale or have a specific coupon. I also shop at Wal-Mart from time to time and do okay there, but just not as good as I do at Aldi. Wal-Mart has a great variety of generic items now which does make Wal-Mart my second choice. That's my first tip of advice.... try Aldi! Now, I will not have to do any grocery shopping until the 15th so that is when I will post my menu and total I spent on my groceries this month. I am very excited about this month because it is going to be very under budget because I am only technically cooking half of the month. I am hopping this will give me a good boost to this challenge! Check back on the 15th to see how the challenge is going! Good luck to all of you who give this challenge a try yourself!

I Love A Good Deal!

Today we went shopping for new shoes for Lula Mae. I have looked several times at The Salvation Army for second hand shoes and am just not satisfied with what I have seen. I have never been able to find any gently used shoes in thrift stores here in Greenwood. I am sure that perhaps in bigger cities with nicer thrift stores it is possible to find nice shoes, but I have just found it impossible here in Greenwood. Charlie and I took Lula Mae to Rack Room this afternoon in hopes of finding something to fit her very wide foot. Well, we were quite successful! Lula Mae is the proud new owner of a pair of pink New Balances! And boy were they a HUGE bargain! The original price of the shoes was $34.99 (I can't believe people really pay that much for a one year old's shoes!). Then they were marked down to $30.00 (Wow, $4.99 off.... no better really.). Then they were marked down to $15.00. We tried them on her and let her walk around the store. They are a size too big, but that is how I prefer to buy shoes for her so that they last longer. They may look a little clunky but she walks just fine in them. We took the shoes to the register only to notice a sign that said "Military Discount 10% Off". YAY! We purchased Lula Mae's new shoes for $14.00 and some change! She was so excited that she wore them out of the store! I love to look at a receipt that shows that you saved more than you spent! I felt like $14.00 was still a little high for shoes, but all the "cheaper" shoes were $20.00. So I guess $14.00 for New Balances is a pretty great deal! Plus, New Balances is one of the only brands that we are able to find wide shoes in. Our poor child just can't squeeze into regular shoes!

Baby On A Budget

Today Heather and I went out to do some thrift store shopping for the new baby. Baby stuff is not cheap when you buy new things from retail stores, that's for sure! What's wrong with buying used? Will the baby enjoy a swing more if it is new? Will he or she cry less if the mobile in the crib is new? Nope! I agree with the Duggar's philosophy of "buy used, save the difference", especially on baby stuff! Now, when I shop at thrift stores I am a little bit critical. I don't want to buy something that doesn't work, looks stained or is torn. Buying used does not have to mean buying junk. Heather and I found a great consignment store in Simpsonville today that had great quality baby items with great prices! This store had a huge variety of things! Everything you could possibly need for baby! I have to say that this will not be my last trip to this store! When we get our crib I will be going back to this store for the mattress. They had mattresses ranging from $20.00 to $80.00. A price to fit any budget! Look at what I got today!

Kiddopotamus Swaddling Blanket (New, never washed)
Retail Price: $10.99 at Babies-R-Us
Thrift Store Price: $5.99

Lamaze Car Seat Toy (Used I'm sure but seems new)
Retail Price: $14.99 at Babies-R-Us
Thrift Store Price: $4.99

Ocean Wonders Crib Soother (Older model but in great condition)
Retail Price: $47.49 at Babies-R-Us
Thrift Store Price: $10.99

Fisher Price Rainforest Mobile (Used in great condition)
Retail Price: $49.99 at Babies-R-Us
Thrift Store Price: $24.99

Today I spent $46.96 (before tax) on these items! At Babies-R-Us I would have spent $123.46 (before tax) which gives me a savings of... drum roll please.... $76.50! So I saved more than I spent! I was thrilled leaving that store today! If you are interested, this is the store that we went to today to do our shopping:

All About Kids Consignment & Resale
604 NE Main Street
Simpsonville, SC 29681
Owner: Brenda Hinsley

I am challenging myself to "Thrift Before Buying" with this baby (and any babies after this one too!). Anytime I think of something we may need I am going to check thrift stores first before just going to Wal-Mart and buying it off the shelf. I know it is going to save us tons of money and will be a great running project for me!