Wednesday, December 17, 2008
Sunday, December 14, 2008
Frugal Meals
A few weeks ago, I watched on the news as 2 people went to the store, and spent 20$ or less and fed their family of four for the entire day. I was amazed! Looking back before my son was born, my boyfriend and I were going to the store weekly, and spending about 100$ each time. HORRIBLE! Now I'm amazed we can go every 2 weeks and we've cut our bill by about half. But, its kind of simple for us. My boyfriend is one VERY picky eater. All the things that he eats fits on a post it note. This is what I form our meals around! Good thing hes picky for simple things like burritos with NO veggies and quesidillas. I eat different things then he does because I'm very very VERY tired of eating pizza!
A Favorite Frugal Recipe of Mine:
I LOVE beans! Not to mention they fill you up, but you can get them very inexpecivly. My mom had seen this on a cooking show...you know they ones they show on Saturday mornings? YUM!!
She calls it Black Bean soup, but I just call it Bean Soup.
2 cans of each: Black Beans, Kidney Beans, and Refried Beans and a batch of fresh Salsa.
Pour all the beans into a pot on the stovetop and turn it to medium/high. Then in a skillet, pour the salsa and simmer that until its cooked. Pour the salsa in with the beans and enjoy! Make sure to kick it down to low so the beans don't burn!
Can't beat fast meals. You can always add some broth in with it if its too thick.
Price: 5.04$
Check out these Frugal Meal websites!
http://www.5dollardinners.com/
http://www.frugalrecipes.com/
http://www.betterbudgeting.com/frugalrecipelist.htm
A Favorite Frugal Recipe of Mine:
I LOVE beans! Not to mention they fill you up, but you can get them very inexpecivly. My mom had seen this on a cooking show...you know they ones they show on Saturday mornings? YUM!!
She calls it Black Bean soup, but I just call it Bean Soup.
2 cans of each: Black Beans, Kidney Beans, and Refried Beans and a batch of fresh Salsa.
Pour all the beans into a pot on the stovetop and turn it to medium/high. Then in a skillet, pour the salsa and simmer that until its cooked. Pour the salsa in with the beans and enjoy! Make sure to kick it down to low so the beans don't burn!
Can't beat fast meals. You can always add some broth in with it if its too thick.
Price: 5.04$
Check out these Frugal Meal websites!
http://www.5dollardinners.com/
http://www.frugalrecipes.com/
http://www.betterbudgeting.com/frugalrecipelist.htm
Saturday, December 13, 2008
Coupon Trains
Ever heard of a coupon train? Well, I'm addicted to them. A coupon train is a envelope mailed to each rider full of coupons! Sometimes you hit gold in these things! I've participated in a few, and these go all over the United States, so you collect coupons that your local Sunday paper may not offer to you. Simpley amazing! Often, you post what you need, and what you dont need, and the others help you out, and you do the same for them. :)
Looking for a place to jump on a coupon train? Check out these! Choo Choo!!!
www.mommysavers.com - great place all around!! You can also just do coupon trades.
www.whattoexpect.com - I joined the site when I found out I was pregnant, and a few of us jumped on for a coupon train!
Looking for a place to jump on a coupon train? Check out these! Choo Choo!!!
www.mommysavers.com - great place all around!! You can also just do coupon trades.
www.whattoexpect.com - I joined the site when I found out I was pregnant, and a few of us jumped on for a coupon train!
Friday, December 12, 2008
Price Book!
Have you thought you'd gotten a good deal on an item then realized you didn't?
I have just started my own price book. I already love it! Never heard of one? A price book is a book you use to track prices for items you purchace regularly like milk, eggs, and items along those lines that you and your family eats every day.
To start, find out what you want to keep your price book in. Mine is in a little notebook that fits in my purse and planner. Next, if you save your recent recipts, take a look at those. If you can remember, also write down the ounces, gallons, count, and liters that were in the product. To make sure your getting a great price, you will want to check the unit price. This is the price of the item divided by the amount.
Your job is next time you go to the store, check the price of the items and the amount in the item and write it down. You can either write it in pencil so its able to be eraced everytime you find a better price, or like me, I write it in pen so I can see if its going up and down, expecially in this time right now.
I also made a few codes to write next to the items in my price book such has stores I go to. My price book is also divided by sections.
:) Enjoy watching your grocery bill go down and down!!
I have just started my own price book. I already love it! Never heard of one? A price book is a book you use to track prices for items you purchace regularly like milk, eggs, and items along those lines that you and your family eats every day.
To start, find out what you want to keep your price book in. Mine is in a little notebook that fits in my purse and planner. Next, if you save your recent recipts, take a look at those. If you can remember, also write down the ounces, gallons, count, and liters that were in the product. To make sure your getting a great price, you will want to check the unit price. This is the price of the item divided by the amount.
Your job is next time you go to the store, check the price of the items and the amount in the item and write it down. You can either write it in pencil so its able to be eraced everytime you find a better price, or like me, I write it in pen so I can see if its going up and down, expecially in this time right now.
I also made a few codes to write next to the items in my price book such has stores I go to. My price book is also divided by sections.
:) Enjoy watching your grocery bill go down and down!!
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
December 4 Recipt!
My December Budget: $275
Spent at Smiths: 116.87$
Saved 47.06$ (6.85$ coupons, 40.21$ store card)
What I got:
5- Gatorades 32oz
3-Refried Beans
2-Kidney Beans
2-Black Beans
Ocean Spray Cran/grape juice
Pop Tarts
3-Hamburger helper microwave cups
Honey Bunches of oats (2$ a box)
Rice Crispy Treats
Folgers coffee
Dish Soap
2 Packages of shreded cheese
2-pillsberry cookie dough
Tampax
Gillette Body Wash (1.99$-had 2$ off coupon)
Salsa
Eggs - Large (.99 cents..woo!)
6-ind. pints ice cream
2-ground beef
3-2 liter diet cokes
Digiorno pizza for one
Hot pockets
bag of frozen corn
tombstone pizza
kroger waffles
pizza rolls (90 count for 6$)
Tostitos chips
Doritos single packs
2-cups of cookies
2 boxes of townhouse flip chips (3.36$ -had 1$ coupon)
9 jars of beechnut baby food
4 bottles of beechnut applejuice
4 loafs of Sara Lee White Bread (buy one get one free...comes out to 1.58$ per loaf)
Mission Tortillas (i found out what I paid for these where a horrible price...shame on me! They are half the price at walmart!)
Smiths had some deals going on this day, and I picked up these: 25% off ALL frozen foods, saved 5.84$ on that, the eggs, saved .53 cents, and the tostitos chips, saved 2.08$
Budget left for dec. 158.13$
note: I wish I would have had time to go to multiple stores! I didnt this trip, but next time I will.
Spent at Smiths: 116.87$
Saved 47.06$ (6.85$ coupons, 40.21$ store card)
What I got:
5- Gatorades 32oz
3-Refried Beans
2-Kidney Beans
2-Black Beans
Ocean Spray Cran/grape juice
Pop Tarts
3-Hamburger helper microwave cups
Honey Bunches of oats (2$ a box)
Rice Crispy Treats
Folgers coffee
Dish Soap
2 Packages of shreded cheese
2-pillsberry cookie dough
Tampax
Gillette Body Wash (1.99$-had 2$ off coupon)
Salsa
Eggs - Large (.99 cents..woo!)
6-ind. pints ice cream
2-ground beef
3-2 liter diet cokes
Digiorno pizza for one
Hot pockets
bag of frozen corn
tombstone pizza
kroger waffles
pizza rolls (90 count for 6$)
Tostitos chips
Doritos single packs
2-cups of cookies
2 boxes of townhouse flip chips (3.36$ -had 1$ coupon)
9 jars of beechnut baby food
4 bottles of beechnut applejuice
4 loafs of Sara Lee White Bread (buy one get one free...comes out to 1.58$ per loaf)
Mission Tortillas (i found out what I paid for these where a horrible price...shame on me! They are half the price at walmart!)
Smiths had some deals going on this day, and I picked up these: 25% off ALL frozen foods, saved 5.84$ on that, the eggs, saved .53 cents, and the tostitos chips, saved 2.08$
Budget left for dec. 158.13$
note: I wish I would have had time to go to multiple stores! I didnt this trip, but next time I will.
Sunday, December 7, 2008
Great Frugal Books!
Since I've become addicted, I decided to read about more ways to find how to save more and more money on everyday things. So far, I've found:
- Frugal Living For Dummies - Who can go wrong with the Dummies series? It had ways to save on family things to finding things for your house to what to stock up on during the year depending whats in season!
- Cheap Talk with the Frugal Friends, By Angie Zalewski and Denna Ricks. - I just received this book in the mail, and thumbed through it a bit. I love reading on how different people save their ways. Maybe its something I can use myself!
I know theres so many books out there on the subject, so if you have found a great one, please leave me a comment or drop me an email! I'm always looking for recommendations!!
Friday, December 5, 2008
My First Post!
I started keeping my recipts and also started doing a price book from them. I didnt take a picture of what I have gotten, but I thought I'd share my Thanksgiving shopping trip with you!
This at Smiths' Food and Drug:
Total Savings(Including store card and coupons): 78.70$ (23.75$ COUPONS & 54.95$ STORE SAVINGS)
Total spent: 119.04$
Top Savings:
This at Smiths' Food and Drug:
Total Savings(Including store card and coupons): 78.70$ (23.75$ COUPONS & 54.95$ STORE SAVINGS)
Total spent: 119.04$
Top Savings:
- FREE Butterball TURKEY (from boyfriends work) Saved 17.11$
- My boyfriend goes though Gatorades like crazy..just the G2's! The Fruit Punch G2's we're marked 3/1.00$. .33 cents each when they are usually 1.09, and last trip to the store, they had rasied them 10 cents!
- The stores brand of broth was 3/1.00 :)
- Bryers(is that the correct name...something around there!) Ice Cream were 2/5$ plus a free A&W Rootbeer. I had a store coupon for 1.50$ off TWO of the Ice Creams.
- Cottonelle TP-12 pk double roll was on sale for 5.99, had a coupon for 1$ off. .42 cents a roll. TP's about the only thing I splurge on!
That was my top savings. The boyfriend was just as excited as I was for saving 78$.
My December total savings post will be more accurate. I'm making sure to save EVERY recipt, and to follow my budget of 275$ a month for food and baby supplies strictly!
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