August frugalistas

[SamanthaCarter]

It’s August, where everything everywhere is all about back to school. I haven’t even gotten my curriculum sorted yet. I’ll have to buy stuff for co-op classes, and several things for home use, especially the oldest. We probably use too many consumables. 

[Megs]

The shoes my son wanted for school (Nike precision's) were $70 in store. They didn't have his size, so I told him I would order them. I got an email that I had a $25 credit at Zappos, and I found the shoes he wanted at Zappos for $52.50 on sale. With the $25 credit, it made the shoes less than $30 with tax. I was pretty pleased with a $40 savings!

 I also found two pair of Motherhood Maternity jeans at the Goodwill store for $5 each. That was my first Goodwill clothing purchase, and I'm pretty pleased! I almost ordered the same jeans for about $40 each. 

I found my oldest daughter's Adidas backpack at Marshall's for $35. The exact same one was on sale at Kohl's for $49. My youngest daughter also got an Adidas backpack for $25. The exact same one was at Kohl's for $40. I also got an Adidas duffle bag for my daughter for $17 at Marshall's. 

I've had quite a bit of luck at Marshall's for name brand items the past month or so. Maybe not toally frugal, but I was happy with it all.

[hjffkj]

1 hour ago, SamanthaCarter said:

It’s August, where everything everywhere is all about back to school. I haven’t even gotten my curriculum sorted yet. I’ll have to buy stuff for co-op classes, and several things for home use, especially the oldest. We probably use too many consumables. 

 

I was just starting my planning last night.  We thankfully don't use any consumables and most of our stuff comes from the library.  Our library has a new educator's card that allows you to take books out for 6 weeks instead of 3, has no fines, dvds are 2 week checkouts instead of 1, and the number of books you can take out is even more.  So I utilize that for most of our homeschooling except for math and writing so far.

I really don't know what school things I'll need yet but I'm sure we are lacking in the supplies department.

[hjffkj]

August starts the major savings months that are ahead.  This month is a three paycheck month so I'm aiming to 60% of our income in savings.  I already have that set to go into savings with each paycheck but this will be the test run to see if we can actually swing it.  30% will go into my RothIRA, dh's is already fully funded, and 30% will go towards the new house fund.

Our biggest expense this month will be our beach trip this weekend. I'm setting aside $200 for fun, food and whatever.  I plan on bringing food for breakfast and lunch so we'll only have to worry about dinners and fun boardwalk foods.

There shouldn't be any other big expenses this month. We'll see how that plays out.

Edited to add:  I forgot that I have $500 of pet sitting lined up for the month! 

Edited August 1, 2018 by hjffkj

[frogger]

 

Yay for 3 paycheck months. DH is also paid biweekly. Our extra paycheck is mostly going to vehicles as our vehicle savings was moved over to house work but still no debt so I'm happy. 

 

One vehicle just needs new tires and oil change and has a radiator leak. Well, unless we get body work done on it. The weather stripping needs fixed too. 

The other needs brakes and rotars, tires, new seat belt, and we are trying to figure out why it overheats. 

After all that is done, I'm hoping to wiggle in a car payment somehow into our budget that we will pay to ourselves for a car in the semi near future if that's what you call a couple years. 

It's also time to get back into actually sticking to the grocery budget! Sometimes I feel like it would be easier to increase it by a hundred bucks or so and maybe I'd be successful even when busy but this is doable. I can do it this month despite camping!  

Hoping everyone has a successful August.

[ksr5377]

We met my mom at our State Fair on Monday for their Kid's Day, so all 4 kids got in for free and we received free parking. We never do rides there except for the Sky Glider - basically a ski lift that takes you from one end to the other, so I wasn't too worried about that.  We took a wagon so I could bring the cooler that I packed with lunch, we did a scavenger hunt which earned all the kids a free ice cream cone and my mom bought them lemonade twice.  Other than that we stuck to all the Ag buildings and the Natural Resources area, where everything was free!  They were able to go kayaking, won a water bottle at the FFA both, got to make paracord bracelets (thank you LL Bean), played a variety of games where they won little prizes and had their picture taken in a photo booth.  I basically made it a point to say yes to everything free they wanted to try, and they had a blast.  The best part though was that I won $40 in Kroger gift cards!  So even after my admission and the Sky Glider tickets, I made $20 by going to the fair!

One of biggest concerns about going very frugal was how it would impact the kids.  We're not doing a lot of the things we would usually do like an amusement park or vacation and I have to put a bit more effort in to finding activities and taking lunches etc.....but three months in and there hasn't been any major whining because we are still able to do things that are fun, just different!  

I'm hoping to be able to carry that through the fall and winter.  We just aren't going to be able to swing dance lessons and karate this year.  There's a part of me that wants to ask grandparents if they would be willing, and they probably would be, but the other part of me says that a 4, 7 and 10 year old can go one year without a bunch of outside activities.  We will still be doing swim and our homeschool co-op and I'm hoping to make it a point to do a lot of the free or low cost library activities, which always seem wonderful but that we're too busy to fit in.  I'm also hoping to go to the science museum or history center once a month, which we have memberships for but usually only get to 3 times a year or so.  As long as we go twice it's worth it to have the membership, but without all the other running around maybe we'll utilize them more.  

Within the next two months we'll have DD's braces paid off which will give us a bit more cushion in our budget.  Despite that, I'm fairly certain I'll be getting a part-time job soon. I'm hoping to be able to bring in about $500 a month.  That would allow us to save what we need to for some projects and then if I continue working, we could pick up the extra classes again next year.  

[BarbecueMom]

I was all excited about my Frugal Food August personal challenge, but then DH and I both came down with cases of acute stress this morning.  I ended up running over to the shop down the street to get “prescriptions” from “Dr. Pepper”.  And a bag of ice, to use in a drink or hit something with I haven’t decided yet.  Maybe this is good that I got the unhealthy splurge out of the way early.

I have $12 of school supplies to return to Target this week that we didn’t need after all.

We finally turned the A/C back on, but a few days without it should help the electric bill.  Even though the temps are still nice, it’s humid again.

[Soror]

hey all!

Lots of good deals being found! Ds is starting to need new shoes so I'll have to look out for that. Speaking of which my Mom told me that she wants to take my son back to school shopping. She is afraid he is going to get made fun of... sigh. As I told her just b/c we shop Goodwill doesn't mean he is a hobo, he has name brand clothes in good condition. I told her that is fine if she wants to. Part of me feels some weird guilt, like she doesn't feel he is taken care of well enough so she has to step in, the other parts says I'm not going to let that guilt trip me. He has more than enough clothes and is far from looking like the poor kid. I think my parents, who both grew up very poor, have some residual childhood issues having to wear hand me downs. When I told my Mom that I hated highschool and didn't feel like I fit in, her comment was, "We made sure you always had nice clothes!" Seriously, like that is the only thing that matters. 

It's starting to heat up here too. We never turned the air completely off but it's only running a bit at night. I *think* I finally got the grocery list done, woot! I'll be shopping tomorrow and Friday. Kroger's has cereal $1 a box (General Mills) this week, limit 5 (Fri & Sat only). So, I'll be picking up some for sure. They also have Brats on sale, not a super cheap price (2 for $5) but dh has been dying to have some so I've got to get some. I picked up my Azure order today so I have 50# of gf oats now :0 I need to make some bread but am having a hard time motivating. I've been busy- cleaning house, cleaning outside (taking advantage of the weather), prepping for VIPKID, and hs'ing, I'm enjoying some lazyness.

[Garga]

Well, I'm having to spend buckets of money on outsourced classes because I never took pre-calc or physics and I honestly barely know anything techy, so there's a Computer Applications class to pay for as well. For two of the three classes, I can pay monthly for them instead of all in one lump sum, so I'm glad about that--spread out the hit to the bank account. 

I'm spending my normal amount on non-outsourced curriculum and am doing a good job of being sensible. I'm well past the days of seeing all the glittery homeschool stuff and wanting it all.  I buy exactly what we need and not a single item above that and that makes me happy.

As far as school supplies, the only supply we need this year was a pack of graph paper, and we might be getting low on college-ruled paper which is required for the pre-calc class.  I have to check my supply of college-ruled paper.  Pencils, pens, glue, binders, etc, are all leftover from previous years. 

For clothing...yeah the boys grow.  They'll need new clothes.  Fortunately we homeschool, so we can get away with a minimal amount of items.  But I do tend to buy new clothes for them.  It's hard to find anything decent for boys in the thrift stores, plus they're getting to ages where they want to be a bit more fashionable, and it's hard for me (and them) to tell which thrift store clothes are "in" and which are "out."  We'll be hitting the back to school sales and saving what we can that way.  

I was tickled to see my grocery bill be small because we didn't need much meat last time I went.  Yay!

Otherwise, the car needed a $515 repair. That wasn't fun, but cars do need repairs from time to time, so that's just part of owning a car. 

 

[prairiewindmomma]

I'd like to join in.  

I've been working on stocking the freezer.  We were supposed to be getting 80# of chicken from Zaycon, but that isn't happening. I've been shopping the produce sales and if it's freezable (onions, peppers, etc.), I've been stocking up as budget allows. 

We hit Goodwill first before shopping elsewhere.  We saved some by doing this, but not as much as we would hope. (Goodwill jeans start at $6.99 here. New Cat and Jack jeans at Target are $8.)

We have almost all of our school supplies and materials in place.

I really need to work on:

1. Budget conscious healthy meals at home

2. Doing more car repairs via Youtube.

3. Homemade/tight budget Christmas and birthday season

I can't control a lot of the other big hits happening to our budget right now.  It's been brutal.

[Soror]

I'm earning $400 today ?

We have health screenings at dh's work and I get $400 for the HSA for passing. Dh is eligble for up to $800 but I'm worried he won't get the full amount this year, his screening is Friday, we'll see. That money really comes in handy, we will just finish it off this month. We would have finished it off a lot sooner had I realized we could use it for braces. We've got enough left for one more braces payment and I think an August scrip for dh. For the rest of the year dh will have $240 in prescriptions, I will have maybe $150. I need to do another consult $75 and we have bills coming for fillings for the kids and a dr. visit for dh $100. Oh, and 1 more braces payment (woohoo!). It could be worse though! 

I'm working out w/ Mom afterwards and then hitting Aldi's and 10 Box. 10 Box has Chicken breast for $1.15 (w/ the 10%) we'll see how they look and potatoes for 18c a pound. (And very cheap and delicious salt water taffy!) I need to sell more stuff but I don't think I've got the brain space for it right now, hopefully, this weekend. Dh is taking some scrap in tomorrow but it is the cheap stuff, he won't get but a couple of bucks but at least he'll be rid of it.

Edited August 2, 2018 by soror

[BarbecueMom]

3 minutes ago, soror said:

I'm earning $400 today ?

We have health screenings at dh's work and I get $400 for the HSA for passing. Dh is eligble for up to $800 but I'm worried he won't get the full amount this year, his screening is Friday, we'll see. That money really comes in handy, we will just finish it off this month. We would have finished it off a lot sooner had I realized we could use it for braces. We've got enough left for one more braces payment and I think an August scrip for dh. For the rest of the year dh will have $240 in prescriptions, I will have maybe $150. I need to do another consult $75 and we have bills coming for fillings for the kids and a dr. visit for dh $100. Oh, and 1 more braces payment (woohoo!). It could be worse though! 

I'm working out w/ Mom afterwards and then hitting Aldi's and 10 Box. 10 Box has Chicken breast for $1.15 (w/ the 10%) we'll see how they look and potatoes for 18c a pound. (And very cheap and delicious salt water taffy!) I need to sell more stuff but I don't think I've got the brain space for it right now, hopefully, this weekend. Dh is taking some scrap in tomorrow but it is the cheap stuff, he won't get but a couple of bucks but at least he'll be rid of it.

Yay free money!  I can never get DH to do those health rebate things.  And I can never find where we put the little pamphlet until the appointments are over.  I’m usually a really organized person, but keeping track of that thing for a whole year seems to be beyond me, even for free money.  Sigh.

What’s this 10Box like?  There’s one in my state, although not really close to me, but if I ever end up nearby I’d like to check it out.

Also, how much are the GF oats from Azure Standard?  There’s finally a drop near me!  I’ve been waiting years for this!  This month I’ve put Bakery on Main brand on my Amazon Subscribe and Save (~$1.66/lb this month with a one-time coupon), but if there’s a regularly cheaper option I’ll try it!  

[Soror]

5 hours ago, BarbecueMom said:

Yay free money!  I can never get DH to do those health rebate things.  And I can never find where we put the little pamphlet until the appointments are over.  I’m usually a really organized person, but keeping track of that thing for a whole year seems to be beyond me, even for free money.  Sigh.

What’s this 10Box like?  There’s one in my state, although not really close to me, but if I ever end up nearby I’d like to check it out.

Also, how much are the GF oats from Azure Standard?  There’s finally a drop near me!  I’ve been waiting years for this!  This month I’ve put Bakery on Main brand on my Amazon Subscribe and Save (~$1.66/lb this month with a one-time coupon), but if there’s a regularly cheaper option I’ll try it!  

The 50# bag of GF Oats from Azure works out to $1.36 lb- that is cheaper if you are closer to Oregon (we've got a 8.5% extra for delivery)- I believe we are in the same state though.

Our 10 Box is ok-the quality is not as good as Aldi, Wal-Mart, & Kroger(at ours anyway). The best deals are on meat and produce but you need to watch both. As of late I've had really good luck w/ produce but I went in before and things were on the edge of going bad. Their prices are not always better- watching sales at Krogers and Aldi's I can still beat them a lot of time. I've been just running in there catching a few things that were a good deal. Watch name brand items- for the stuff I've priced they were nearly always more expensive. They sale massive cuts of meats that are super cheap- I wasn't impressed w/ the pork roast I got but have been wanting to try it again, my aunt seems to rave about their meat. I checked out their leg quarters today and I'd rather get them at Aldi's about the same price and it looked better.

Edited August 2, 2018 by soror

[mommyoffive]

5 hours ago, soror said:

I'm earning $400 today ?

We have health screenings at dh's work and I get $400 for the HSA for passing. Dh is eligble for up to $800 but I'm worried he won't get the full amount this year, his screening is Friday, we'll see. That money really comes in handy, we will just finish it off this month. We would have finished it off a lot sooner had I realized we could use it for braces. We've got enough left for one more braces payment and I think an August scrip for dh. For the rest of the year dh will have $240 in prescriptions, I will have maybe $150. I need to do another consult $75 and we have bills coming for fillings for the kids and a dr. visit for dh $100. Oh, and 1 more braces payment (woohoo!). It could be worse though! 

I'm working out w/ Mom afterwards and then hitting Aldi's and 10 Box. 10 Box has Chicken breast for $1.15 (w/ the 10%) we'll see how they look and potatoes for 18c a pound. (And very cheap and delicious salt water taffy!) I need to sell more stuff but I don't think I've got the brain space for it right now, hopefully, this weekend. Dh is taking some scrap in tomorrow but it is the cheap stuff, he won't get but a couple of bucks but at least he'll be rid of it.

 

That is so awesome!  I hope your dh passes too. 

[Ravin]

DD is starting public high school on Monday. She went to Orientation yesterday and there were no supply lists given out, which means they are waiting on that until the first day of school...meaning DD won't have any supplies until the 2nd week of school other than a notebook and a planner. Grr. I wanted to take her shopping THIS weekend.

I did figure out that DD's district charges "convenience fees" for adding money to lunch accounts online. School lunches are expensive enough without this added hassle! So, I will be sending cash or checks with her to school to pay for lunches. DS's district (elementary and high school are separate districts here) doesn't charge the convenience fees, so I have his account set up to automatically add a week's worth of lunch money when it hits the low balance point ($5 I think).

[Soror]

39 minutes ago, mommyoffive said:

 

That is so awesome!  I hope your dh passes too. 

Looking at my sheet it looks like he can still get the max value he'll just have to jump through some extra hoops since he is overweight and won't get points for that.

[mommyoffive]

1 minute ago, soror said:

Looking at my sheet it looks like he can still get the max value he'll just have to jump through some extra hoops since he is overweight and won't get points for that.

 

Wow great news!!

[readinmom]

I've already ruined set budget. Dd fell down the stairs, broke her glasses, can't be repaired.  She is not due for another pair through insurance until next year.  Had to purchase two pairs...ouch.  Ds has tuition/books due for cc, and dh's birthday is Saturday.  And...need to set up savings envelopes for Christmas.  

I've made a commitment to cooking every night, even with this heat, and it's gone well.  I'm using the weekly ads to plan lunches, dinners, avoiding Target except for prescriptions.  

I've listed curriculum for sale on Craigslist, on WTM Classifieds, but stuff is not moving.  Depressing, because my alternative is to donate it to the local library.  It just seems like wasted money!  

Edited August 2, 2018 by readinmom

[frogger]

Frugal fail was I took a large trailer load of brush to the dump. Only after I was on the scale did I find out that they only take brush on Friday and Saturday so I needed to pay the trash rate. We really need the trailer today and there was no way we were unloading it at home and loading it again. Especially branches as they tangle together.

 

Another fail was not getting my chili made for the weekend. I'm sure I could have made some for a lot cheaper than canned. Also, snacks! Oy, I'm a sucker for all the food I never buy at home like chips, crackers, s'mores. 

 

Would love to mention a fabulous deal but I don't have one. Maybe next time.

[hjffkj]

1 hour ago, readinmom said:

 

I've listed curriculum for sale on Craigslist, on WTM Classifieds, but stuff is not moving.  Depressing, because my alternative is to donate it to the local library.  It just seems like wasted money!  

Have you tried selling on Facebook? There a plenty of used curriculum groups on there that might move things better. It is the only reason I still have a Facebook account

[readinmom]

I applied to two, haven't been accepted yet.  Thank you!  I really want these to go to a good home...

[frogger]

People tend to look for larger items that one might sell locally on craigslist. I find Ebay us my best bet for curriculum. My second best place is facebook pages that are local. There is no ratings on facebook so people like to see things in person, at least a lot of them. I have shipped a few things to Facebook buyers but just a few.

[SamanthaCarter]

3 hours ago, readinmom said:

I've listed curriculum for sale on Craigslist, on WTM Classifieds, but stuff is not moving.  Depressing, because my alternative is to donate it to the local library.  It just seems like wasted money!  

 

Readinmom, I went to look to see what you had posted for sale and all I could find was one ad marked “completed.”

[readinmom]

2 hours ago, SamanthaCarter said:

 

Readinmom, I went to look to see what you had posted for sale and all I could find was one ad marked “completed.”

It's a problem with the classifieds.  I know that someone is working on it because people have mentioned it on other boards.  Some people are just listing curriculum in the K-8, High School boards.  Thanks for letting me know!

[Soror]

Meeting my Mom today for her to buy clothes for the kids.  It feels utterly weird, neither of our parents has helped out like this aside from holidays or buying stuff for ec fundraisers here and there. 

Just had an uber frugal and super yummy breakfast- homemade yogurt, w/ homemade jam, and homemade granola (with my bulk gf oats)- Woot, woot!

I saw that Kroger had Classico Spaghetti Sauce for $1 a jar yesterday and you could get up to 5 jars so I had to get some, that's cheaper than just buying tomato puree and making it myself. I'm already wondering if I can make my budget this month, with having 5 shopping trips instead of 4 it's a lot tighter. We'll see- gotta focus!

[hippiemamato3]

23 hours ago, Ravin said:

DD is starting public high school on Monday. She went to Orientation yesterday and there were no supply lists given out, which means they are waiting on that until the first day of school...meaning DD won't have any supplies until the 2nd week of school other than a notebook and a planner. Grr. I wanted to take her shopping THIS weekend.

 

DS15 never really got a supply list for high school. I guess the teachers figured by high school that they would know what they need or what worked best for them. We just had to wing it, which meant that I bought a lot of things that were never really used.

[BarbecueMom]

Food expenses are going well.  So far, no waste.  Leftovers are being eaten or frozen.  The only things left after tonight should be two baked potatoes, crumbled sausage and bacon, and a couple tablespoons of homemade cheese sauce.  I’m going to make twice-baked breakfast potatoes tomorrow morning with those.

I stopped at Costco yesterday for frozen pizzas (Friday is always “frozen junk food night” for dinner) and at a local store that I usually don’t stop at for some great sales.  I needed a $25 minimum purchase, and the total ended up being under $30 after tax.  Stocked up on bacon, ground sausage, apple juice (six kids here next week, popsicle time!), corn on the cob, and DH’s junk food night selection.

I need to cook some dry beans so i can make baked beans for a party this weekend.  I should already have the ingredients for a triple batch on hand.

I’m still trying to figure out what to feed the extra kids next week.  They ask for food about every 10-15 minutes, but usually throw out most of what they are served.  Not fans of homemade alternatives, gluten free alternatives, or drinking water to see if they are actually thirsty instead of hungry.  I certainly don’t want to starve them, but I don’t want to completely blow the budget or poison DH in the process.  They like fruit, but if there’s fruit available, it generally ends up the only thing they’ll eat, and will be devoured until it’s gone.    And I can’t easily go to the store to replenish the fruit supply daily right now.  Oh well, better than candy and chips!

Any ideas on feeding a crowd of sorta picky kids on a budget?

[hjffkj]

So we almost had a huge unexpected expense today. My oldest split his chin open falling of his bike today. It was bad. We took him to the walk-in to have it stitched up not knowing if he had insurance or not. I know, that is probably something we should know, but we're currently dealing with many errors at the Medicaid office. Last week we got multiple notices that so and so was losing coverage but another letter saying they were renewed. When we went in they couldn't confirm either way who was covered or not. It is a big mess.

Luckily, the walk-in confirmed he is one of those us that have coverage so there will be no charge for the 9 stitches, prescription, etc.

[hjffkj]

66% of dh's paycheck today went straight to savings! Half to my retirement account and half to the house fund. This weekend with be a bit spendy because dh and I are going to the beach but after that we're buckling down for the month

[SamanthaCarter]

4 hours ago, BarbecueMom said:

Food expenses are going well.  So far, no waste.  Leftovers are being eaten or frozen.  The only things left after tonight should be two baked potatoes, crumbled sausage and bacon, and a couple tablespoons of homemade cheese sauce.  I’m going to make twice-baked breakfast potatoes tomorrow morning with those.

I stopped at Costco yesterday for frozen pizzas (Friday is always “frozen junk food night” for dinner) and at a local store that I usually don’t stop at for some great sales.  I needed a $25 minimum purchase, and the total ended up being under $30 after tax.  Stocked up on bacon, ground sausage, apple juice (six kids here next week, popsicle time!), corn on the cob, and DH’s junk food night selection.

I need to cook some dry beans so i can make baked beans for a party this weekend.  I should already have the ingredients for a triple batch on hand.

I’m still trying to figure out what to feed the extra kids next week.  They ask for food about every 10-15 minutes, but usually throw out most of what they are served.  Not fans of homemade alternatives, gluten free alternatives, or drinking water to see if they are actually thirsty instead of hungry.  I certainly don’t want to starve them, but I don’t want to completely blow the budget or poison DH in the process.  They like fruit, but if there’s fruit available, it generally ends up the only thing they’ll eat, and will be devoured until it’s gone.    And I can’t easily go to the store to replenish the fruit supply daily right now.  Oh well, better than candy and chips!

Any ideas on feeding a crowd of sorta picky kids on a budget?

Popcorn and popsicles. Wal-mart is practically giving away thier popsicle molds from the summertime at $.50 for a six popsicle mold. $2.00 Simply fruit punch, Simply mango pineapple or Simply raspberry lemonade makes a tasty and semi-nutritious popsicle and goes a long way. 

[Soror]

Shopping done- Mom bought ds a new pair of shoes (boy has to stop growing it hasn't been that long since I bought him some), a pair of athletic pants, t-shirt, socks, and jeans. She got an outfit each for the girls too. 

I went by Big Lots and used my coupon and by Kroger to hit the Fri/Sat sale. I bought 5 boxes of $1 cereal, woot! In lieu of dinner out we used coupons for frozen pizza. Ds has a friend over for his bday and I don't want to have to cook with my interview tonight. We've not ate out since early June when we went to the city.

I'm sooooo nervous about my interview but I don't think I can prep anymore. I'm just ready to get it done and over with and know one way or another. I hope I don't get all nervous and bomb it and let my nerves get to me. Cross your fingers for me.

[BarbecueMom]

16 minutes ago, SamanthaCarter said:

Popcorn and popsicles. Wal-mart is practically giving away thier popsicle molds from the summertime at $.50 for a six popsicle mold. $2.00 Simply fruit punch, Simply mango pineapple or Simply raspberry lemonade makes a tasty and semi-nutritious popsicle and goes a long way. 

Popcorn’s one of the sticking points.  For just our family, I buy kernels in bulk and make it on the stove, but the kids didn’t like it at all.  I ended up buying microwave popcorn the next time.  We still have 8 bags of that left.

Now I want kettle corn... mmm...

I’ll look for popsicle molds.  If nothing else I have some small paper cups and sticks from craft projects and can try homemade pudding pops.  Maybe with enough chocolate they’d go for it.

[Soror]

Crushing disappointment.... I had 552 technical problems and could not do my Mock Class ? ? WE worked on it for 1.5 HOURS. Dh is on the phone with the internet company again!!! He thinks I'll have to buy a webcam as the browser won't recognize my microphone. I wanted to hold off on that until I (hopefully) got hired. Ds' has an awesome headset for gaming, why it won't work in the browser is a mystery. I had tested it 2 DAYS ago, UGH, sooo very upsetting. I can reschedule but have to get everything sorted first. I was sooo incredibly ready to be done! And my evaluator seemed really nice (I finally got to where I could see and hear her but she couldn't hear me). I've been so nervous about who I would get.

Edited August 4, 2018 by soror

[prairiewindmomma]

We use frozen blueberries in muffins, smoothies, and salads.  If you can't find your blender, make muffins!

We used to use a freezer inventory sheet. I didn't keep it updated. Now I just have dedicated shelves for things.  The top shelf is for frozen berries and veg. The next one is for meals.  The third shelf alternates between meals and meats depending on how much of one thing v. the other I have. The bottom shelf is for meats (because if you've ever had a freezer break down---losing everything else because meat dripped on it is heart breaking!)  The door holds butter and things that can handle getting a bit warmer.  We normally keep frozen jugs of water (take a few inches out before freezing for expansion!) to help keep things cold should we lose power for a period of time.

[prairiewindmomma]

My frugal win for the week:  I have been checking out recipe books from the library. I found one that intrigued me enough that I really wanted to buy it (King Arthur Flour whole grains).  I went to their website and I was able to download recipes into my paprika app.  I don't have to buy or store a cookbook or create a huge binder of recipes!  

I'm still trying to track down a 25# bag of whole wheat kernels.  I finally purchased some kernels from the bulk bins at a local grocery store, but at .59/lb., I'm paying a premium price.

This week: working on my pizza dough recipe.  I need to do a cost analysis of how much it costs for me to make a pizza v. just picking one up at Costco.  I'm going to weigh out cheese and meat and calculate sauce + dough and make it official.  My time is worth something---and I don't want to spin my wheels trying to save pennies when I can use my energy elsewhere to save dollars.

[HomeAgain]

Our August started off with 4 days of camping.  DH thought my menu was odd, but he went for it, and other than one meal that drowned in the cooler it went off without a hitch. We ended up buying hot dogs and buns for that night. ? For the rest, he was really glad to have "real food" with minimal clean up. Camping isn't really his thing, but he's trying to make it so.
Today I'm putting off meal planning and grocery shopping.  I know, I know, I just don't really want to go to the store today.  There's still a ton to do around here now that we're back.  Maybe I can get by with only buying for 3 days and doing the rest on Tues/Weds, when the crowds will be gone.

 

11 minutes ago, prairiewindmomma said:

 

This week: working on my pizza dough recipe.  I need to do a cost analysis of how much it costs for me to make a pizza v. just picking one up at Costco.  I'm going to weigh out cheese and meat and calculate sauce + dough and make it official.  My time is worth something---and I don't want to spin my wheels trying to save pennies when I can use my energy elsewhere to save dollars.

 

We calculated it here.  It was about $1 cheaper than the store brand frozen pizza, but it was healthier overall.  It took some trial and error to get to the point of "same or better", though.  Little tricks like brushing the crust first with garlic oil and cranking the oven up to 475 with the pizza tray already in helped.  And everyone got to have what they liked on a personal sized pizza, which was nice.  That said, I don't feel bad about having 2 frozen pizzas in my freezer right now.  There were 3 before we got home yesterday and were just worn out.  A frozen pizza on a night like that is a good thing.

[Soror]

ITA it's always good to have some frozen food for emergencies, still MUCH cheaper than take-out.

 

 

 

 

Dh got my mic working and I'm rescheduled for Wed am, heaven help me though if things screw up again I might have a nervous breakdown. We've got the internet guy coming back out tomorrow to hopefully get it straightened out, why it's suddenly going it in and out. That is so not going to work at all. 

My frugal wins this weekend aren't anything fancy. I've been making a lot homemade. I made a few jars of peach jam b/c the kids weren't eating the peaches I bought (it is SOO) good we've already went through 1 little jam jar on the homemade biscuits I made this am. I also made a loaf of gf bread it's ok but won't work for sandwiches like I'd hoped. I've got yogurt going now b/c we finished what I'd made. I've got clothes hanging on the line and cleaned the van and truck at home (not that I'd pay to have it done but it is still a savings). Dh worked 7. 25 hours yesterday, OT woot. I somehow forgot to make a menu this week but we've just used what we had. We're grilling brats and pork chops tonight, yummy!

 

[prairiewindmomma]

Antimo Caputo 00 flour is really great (it's very finely ground, and 12.5% protein content) but even if you bulk buy off of amazon, it's $2.27/lb. I don't mind adjusting the water level and I enjoy the chewier nature of a bread flour.  I use just regular KAF bread flour (12.7% protein) which is well under $1/lb. 

[Soror]

re: blueberries- we do muffins, sometimes the kids just thaw them out and eat them plain, they are great w/ yogurt too, MMM! I'd be cautious about throwing frozen strawberries into muffins unless they are chopped up, freezing changes the texture, I don't think big chunks would be that appetizing.

Yogurt is done, this time I measured it out so I would know the protein content. My homemade Greek Yogurt has 24 g. of protein per cup, woot! I'm having a parfait for breakfast. The question- do I use strawberry jam or my new peach one.... Must get more peaches to make more jam- low sugar peach jam is incredible! (and we aren't even big peach eaters here)

Wheat flour as expensive (or more so) than gluten-free flour, learn something new every day!

I did a cost analysis on our homemade pizza and it was considerably cheaper I can't remember the exact numbers right now. I believe it was a solid $2 cheaper for a much larger pizza. The big store bought GF ones are about the size of my pizza stone, my homemade ones fill my entire cookie sheet which is half the size of my oven rack (2 fit on there perfectly.

I've got to make 2 trips into town today for meetings, I was hoping to coincide them but that isn't going to work, unfortunately. 

Edited August 6, 2018 by soror

[Soror]

heartlikealion- the muffins look great, fwiw I never cut up blueberries either no matter the size. Good luck to your boy! I hope he has a great year!

[BarbecueMom]

Hope your DS has a great first day of the school year, @heartlikealion!  I always loved the first day and the smell of fresh pencils with unused erasers, lol.

Grocery total for the first 1/3 of the month is $200, which included spending the $25 minimum twice at a store I rarely go to that had can't-pass-up sales.  I probably have enough to make it through until the 15th, except for birthday party ice cream and fresh produce.  I think I've only cooked 4 or 5 meals this month, the rest of the meals have been leftovers.  And some of those new meals were made using leftovers.  No one has been hungry lately, must be the heat and humidity.  A bowl of chicken fried rice ended up trashed because no one had the appetite to finish it, but other than that no waste.

I've been making homemade yogurt, ricotta (using the whey from the yogurt), vanilla syrup, and coffee creamer (using the vanilla syrup).  Used up the zucchini and a couple small bars of dark chocolate in some zucchini bread.  DH made strawberry banana "ice cream" using frozen overripe bananas for dinner last night, as no one wanted to eat anything substantial after a hot baseball practice.  I haven't decided if I'm going to use the overripe bananas we have now to replenish the frozen banana container or bake some muffins.  It's probably too hot for muffins.

 

 

[Soror]

1 hour ago, BarbecueMom said:

Hope your DS has a great first day of the school year, @heartlikealion!  I always loved the first day and the smell of fresh pencils with unused erasers, lol.

Grocery total for the first 1/3 of the month is $200, which included spending the $25 minimum twice at a store I rarely go to that had can't-pass-up sales.  I probably have enough to make it through until the 15th, except for birthday party ice cream and fresh produce.  I think I've only cooked 4 or 5 meals this month, the rest of the meals have been leftovers.  And some of those new meals were made using leftovers.  No one has been hungry lately, must be the heat and humidity.  A bowl of chicken fried rice ended up trashed because no one had the appetite to finish it, but other than that no waste.

I've been making homemade yogurt, ricotta (using the whey from the yogurt), vanilla syrup, and coffee creamer (using the vanilla syrup).  Used up the zucchini and a couple small bars of dark chocolate in some zucchini bread.  DH made strawberry banana "ice cream" using frozen overripe bananas for dinner last night, as no one wanted to eat anything substantial after a hot baseball practice.  I haven't decided if I'm going to use the overripe bananas we have now to replenish the frozen banana container or bake some muffins.  It's probably too hot for muffins.

 

 

Homemade ricotta, brilliant, I've not done that in years. Homemade greek yogurt makes soooo much whey. We don't eat a lot of ricotta but love it in lasagna. dark choc zucchini bread, yum!!! Waste has been pretty good but I did just throw out a 1/2 c. each of mashed potatoes and green beans that were forgotten in the frig. 

 

I now have a new modem, fingers crossed ladies it's holding good so far, let's hope it is now fixed.

 

[BarbecueMom]

11 minutes ago, soror said:

Homemade ricotta, brilliant, I've not done that in years. Homemade greek yogurt makes soooo much whey. We don't eat a lot of ricotta but love it in lasagna. dark choc zucchini bread, yum!!! Waste has been pretty good but I did just throw out a 1/2 c. each of mashed potatoes and green beans that were forgotten in the frig. 

 

I now have a new modem, fingers crossed ladies it's holding good so far, let's hope it is now fixed.

 

I know, I’m running out of jars to fill with whey!  I’ve used it before as the liquid in mashed potatoes or smoothies instead of milk.  Maybe in refried beans, too?

I made the ricotta for the Spinach Ricotta Pasta from Budget Bytes.  Homemade ricotta, GF pasta that was a markdown deal last month, the extra baby spinach I froze before it went bad, and a little garlic and Parmesan.  It was pretty tasty, pretty cheap, and not as offensive to my digestive system as alfredo sauce.

[SKL]

I managed to spend a rather large amount of money on school stuff during "tax-free weekend."  I don't really want to know just how much money I spent in order to save money, LOL.  (It included supplies, clothes, shoes, and a few learning aids.)  I generally don't buy stuff we don't need - I kept stuff left over from last year & only bought what we didn't already have, except that I did allow a little frivolity.  It's exciting to buy school supplies, after all.  I gave the kids 4 things they were allowed to choose for themselves at WalMart:  2 spiral notebooks, a pencil case, pens, and a locker decoration.  They talked me into a couple other things, LOL, but the damage was fairly modest.

We may need to buy a new coat and/or boots this year, but I will cross that bridge when I come to it.  At the rate they are growing, I don't want to risk buying too small.

[prairiewindmomma]

Great job on the muffins!

[Soror]

15 minutes ago, BarbecueMom said:

I know, I’m running out of jars to fill with whey!  I’ve used it before as the liquid in mashed potatoes or smoothies instead of milk.  Maybe in refried beans, too?

I made the ricotta for the Spinach Ricotta Pasta from Budget Bytes.  Homemade ricotta, GF pasta that was a markdown deal last month, the extra baby spinach I froze before it went bad, and a little garlic and Parmesan.  It was pretty tasty, pretty cheap, and not as offensive to my digestive system as alfredo sauce.

sounds yummy! 

I forgot to mention (because it's been chaos here and my brain is going crazy) that I've had about $100 of expenses for TKD- sparring gear. I had never bought the girls any and they didn't need it so much for lower belts and ds is getting too big for his. So, $40 for everything for dd2, $26 for dd2 and she'll take ds' chest protector, $25 for ds who still needs a new chest protector, and $10 for a sword for ds' red belt form (it was $20 but I had a $10 Amazon credit from prime day). 

[mommyoffive]

1 hour ago, SKL said:

I managed to spend a rather large amount of money on school stuff during "tax-free weekend."  I don't really want to know just how much money I spent in order to save money, LOL.  (It included supplies, clothes, shoes, and a few learning aids.)  I generally don't buy stuff we don't need - I kept stuff left over from last year & only bought what we didn't already have, except that I did allow a little frivolity.  It's exciting to buy school supplies, after all.  I gave the kids 4 things they were allowed to choose for themselves at WalMart:  2 spiral notebooks, a pencil case, pens, and a locker decoration.  They talked me into a couple other things, LOL, but the damage was fairly modest.

We may need to buy a new coat and/or boots this year, but I will cross that bridge when I come to it.  At the rate they are growing, I don't want to risk buying too small.

 

Isn't it though?  I love fresh school supplies.  Brand new notebook.  Brand new crayons.  Love it all. 

 

I have done the school supply thing too.  We could order it all through the charter but I usually save the funds for lessons.  

Got all the kids new shoes and supplies.  I will probably pick up some more supplies too. Just because I like them. 

 

Lots of money still be spent on intensives, pointe shoes, new leos, tights,  for auditions..........

It never ends in dance.  Money will be spent as soon as the year starts for ballet school and if we do the other studio too. 

 

A few good things.  Ended up going to a town's Night out and it was awesome.  Tons of free things for the kids to do and free dinner!  Score.  The final prize for the kids finishing the summer reading program was getting a ticket for them and a parent to go to the movies.  plus popcorn. 

Lots of money getting spent on our upcoming trip. 

I need to take the dog to the vet for shots that I guess were not given when we adopted, but we need for boarding.  

2 kids to the dentist today.  None of my kids have ever had a cavity.  One basically does although it isn't through the enamel all the way.  I am upset because this kid is old enough to take care of their own teeth, but I KNOW has been utterly lazy and not done it.   I am just so pissed. ARGGGHHHHHHHHH

Plus a suggestion to go get checked for braces.  This is my kid who has the best teeth.  Just for looks. 

So yeah.  I really need to get a little job. 

 

[SKL]

Oh I have lots of spending coming up, but I am trying not to completely eclipse the little bit of saving I manage to do, LOL.

I haven't said too much about summer camps and sports and the school tuition that was just paid ... I generally don't try to economize in those areas.  I don't want to feel like I regret doing what seems good for my kids.  Plus, as a single mom, I have to put them somewhere in the summer.  Next year I will try to cut the camps by about 50% as they will be 12yo.  More on that come February.

I think I will stop Sylvan at least for the school year.  It was largely a logistical solution last year - the kids had no time to come home and do homework on Wednesdays due to multiple distant activities.  This year's schedule looks better so far, and my kids and I would all rather do homework at home.  (Psst I will try to use additional materials I have as well.)  I may also be able to get the school to do some real tutoring this year - we're supposed to meet on that in August.  I assume the cost would be paid by the public schools.

Yesterday my kid had a horse show, cost $250 (not including the $$$ lease that I pay throughout the year), and my kid won $25, LOL.  OK not the best return, unless you consider the smile and the confidence that a hard-earned blue ribbon generates.

Next week is my kids' black belt test.  There went another $250 (plus the various fees paid over the years to get to this point).  If they pass, they will have to pay something to be able to continue in TKD - I have not yet looked into that yet.  Myself, I have not been attending, but I am still not sure whether I want to complete my black belt or not.  I'm 50/50 on it.

My kids will continue to do horse riding / gymnastics 3 days a week.  Those are the only 2 major extracurricular expenses going into the school year.  They will participate in school sports and scouts and running, but the cost of those is very low.  Next year my kid will age out of The Little Gym and we'll see how far we want to go at the more serious gym.  Team?  We'll discuss that later.

We've gotten the kids' sports physicals, chiropractic adjustments, and immunizations done for the summer.  Pretty cheap since we used the chiropractor for what wasn't 100% covered.  Coming up in August are one eye appointment (included in vision therapy) and 2 dental appointments (theoretically covered).  As for cavities, I am afraid to say it out loud, but so far they haven't had any except for some congenital pits on the sides of one kid's new molars.  My kids are not the most fastidious about their teeth, though they do brush at least once a day.  ?

I need to make a fairly significant annual donation this month, for food baskets to a family in my kids' birth country.

Oh, and we have booked our next vacation.  We are going to Hawaii in December.  No, I've never been there.  I thought it used to be a relatively cheap vacation (considering the distance), but no longer.  The less said about that, the better.  ?

So in short, I spend a lot, but I don't want to get kicked out of the frugal threads....

Edited August 6, 2018 by SKL

[SamanthaCarter]

I worked today and dh took a “mental health” day and came and relieved the sitter about halfway through the day. That means we get to keep more of my paycheck!

DH wants me to take over the budget. It’s probably about time, but I distrust myself to make time for it. 

[ms. pacman]

Hello! I hope you don't mind if I join in the conversation.  I am always trying to figure out ways to be more frugal, but it's hard!  We moved from an old house to a not-quite-so-old house in Maine 2 years ago, and the expenses are neverending.  Our most recent expense was $4000 to have some rotten clapboards repaired on the house exterior.  We are also saving for braces and exterior painting, and a thousand other things.

I am going to try that muffin recipe!  I just got some frozen berries yesterday.  

@soror I started working for VIPKID last September and it felt like I did nothing but prepare for a solid week!  It was worth it though.  I'm about to go teach a class now. Good luck with your Mock class!