Well-Trained Wallets - Week 2 of 5

[EmilyGF]

We're almost a quarter of the way through January! Keep up the good work!

Post goals, wins, difficulties, etc.

For me:

I've avoided most credit card spending, but had to pay a fee for the CSS profile earlier today (argh) and the term's cost for basketball on Thursday. We're eating up pantry and freezer food. I've had friends over rather than going out.

Two kids now having checking accounts. I need to make an appointment this week for the third high schooler to open one. I'm holding off on a credit card for ds17 until he turns 18 next month.

I've posted things to sell on craigslist and found a lot of toiletries while cleaning out a hall closet. I have a full trunk of stuff for Goodwill, too, which gets me the usage of two closets that were storing things I couldn't make my mind up about, LOL.

Goals this week:

- One grocery trip later in the week and keep it under $50 and cash

- No spending on the CC this week

- Keep up on the cleaning and decluttering so that we can better use what we have. You can't use what you can't find!

- Make an appiontment for dd16 to get a checking account

- Set up dd14's Zelle account

- Find a good substitute for New Wash by Hairstory (it costs $100/bottle but is literally the only shampoo I've used my whole life that doesn't make my scalp itch. My mom bugged me about scratching my scalp, a "bad habit," as a 9-year-old, but now I know it was a reaction to shampoo).

Emily

[Serenade]

I didn't do as well this past week as I had hoped.

I have two meat things I want to buy this week, which will cost me about $22 total, and maybe I'll buy another gallon of milk, but mostly I hope not to buy any other groceries.  If I'm very careful this week, maybe I can get back on track for this month.  I'm trying to keep my expenses for the month to $500.

[Brittany1116]

So far I have not purchased any clothes for the kids. ✔

If I make it through the week not needing any more groceries, I have hit 38/100$ off grocery budget for month. 

Using gift cards to keep restaurant spending down. I have a free Dunkin tea in app for tomorrow and kids each have a GC. ✔

[Brittany1116]

1/8 $44.31

40 gas, 4.31 half gallon store brand organic whole milk

1/9 $0

Edited January 10, 2023 by Brittany1116

[Soror]

I didn't see this thread this morning, oops!

I'm pleased with spending last week. The only frivolous unneeded thing I can think of is $3 something for candy for the movies. I'd call that a win. 

Dh will be gone from Tuesday til Saturday so we'll save on gas and food.

We shifted a bit and am laser focused on the loan pay-off. Doing one goal at a time works better. I'd love some paint for the living room but even if I can sell some things I think that will just go towards the loan. Maybe this summer?

I'm considering subbing twice a month. It is peanuts but at this point would help give some wiggle room if needed and if not pay off the loan quicker. I've not got further than thinking about it. I can't commit to anything much now until dd1 gets her license. With dh in school FT and working my schedule is going to be wonky. I also still have to school the younger 2. IDK still considering. Maybe I should go ahead and go through the process and then it is an option.

I- I didn't sell anything this week but I did lower prices on a few things listed and get some more nibbles. I plan to get at least 1 more thing listed this week.

- I've been really focused on food waste. I had a bit at the beginning of the week but IIRC it would be less than $1. I'm most proud of re purposing rolls that didn't quite turn out into little pizzas. Sunday I made a turkey and will be stretching that thing like crazy. Everything chicken this week will be turkey instead. I'm keeping an eye on all of the things so I can catch them before they go bad. People aren't always happy to hear nope you can't have that because we need to eat this first but they're adjusting.

I made it to the bread outlet (not sure if I mentioned). It isn't worthwhile. I hope to catch the salvage store sometime this week to see if they've improved from my last visit (I used to go regularly but they sold to another and they weren't worth it any more).

[73349]

The family we help needs something today, so I probably will have to do a very minimal little free pantry drop-off later in the month. Now my Giving Week category is slightly underfunded, but I should be able to make up for it next month. (Giving Week is in the summer.)

Curbside grocery order for tomorrow focuses on meal ingredients; no snacks/sweets for me and only ice cream for DS.

I snoozed some FB accounts that tend to show me things I will want.

[Serenade]

22 hours ago, Serenade said:

I didn't do as well this past week as I had hoped.

I have two meat things I want to buy this week, which will cost me about $22 total, and maybe I'll buy another gallon of milk, but mostly I hope not to buy any other groceries.  If I'm very careful this week, maybe I can get back on track for this month.  I'm trying to keep my expenses for the month to $500.

I ended up spending $32 instead of $22, but I got a 9.3 pound pork butt, a 3 pound chuck roast, 3 jars of pickled banana peppers to cook with the pork, 2 cucumbers and a bag of shredded cabbage for slaw.  So not too bad for $32.  We will get a ton of meals from all that meat.

[Brittany1116]

22 minutes ago, Serenade said:

I ended up spending $32 instead of $22, but I got a 9.3 pound pork butt, a 3 pound chuck roast, 3 jars of pickled banana peppers to cook with the pork, 2 cucumbers and a bag of shredded cabbage for slaw.  So not too bad for $32.  We will get a ton of meals from all that meat.

Nice. That would be about 10 dinners worth of meat for us, and it would have cost $32 for the meat alone here. 

[historically accurate]

1/9: DH got DD french fries since she was on the verge of fainting (and he got himself a meal): $10ish - it hasn't come through on the card yet, so I don't know the actual amount. Gas for one car: $27.98. I worked all day, and then ran the kids to an activity last night. I was pretty much gone from 8 am to 8 pm - came home and essentially went to bed.

1/10: I don't want to think about it! $2400+ - we have a multi-week stay coming up at Mayo Clinic in Feb/Mar and I booked the hotel today. I got one with a kitchenette w/ full sized fridge/freezer so I can cook/take freezer meals while we're there. This Mayo trip is actually the reason I am doing this WTW challenge in January. Also $20 copay for dr. appointment and another round PT today - both of which will be on the FSA card. 

[JennyD]

We are doing quite well with food waste, I think.   I have rearranged the fridge so things are more visible, which helps.   And I'm definitely using the credit card far less frequently than I was.

 

[Brittany1116]

1/8 $44.31

40 gas, 4.31 half gallon store brand organic whole milk

1/9 $0

1/10 $0 (husband got gas but it was necessary and he isn't the spendy one so I don't track him)

[Soror]

1/9: Walmart- $35.x- groceries

1/10- Kroger- $37.x - groceries; $1.x - drive through drink for dd after her meet; $119.x- shoes ds- he's not bought any shoes in 1.5 yrs! His had holes in them. I've been after him for ages to replace them. He didn't get any new clothes or shoes for school this year so I had some set aside for him.

I had to go to town anyway so I got supplies I needed from Walmart yesterday and then Kroger sale items today. Kroger is my new favorite place for produce. I need to check there first for markdowns to see what I can find before hitting Aldi's. Tomorrow I'm going to hit Aldi's for the rest of the list when I go to pick up dd1 from swim. I'm hoping to also check out the discount store.

Food Waste update;

Still doing well using up things. I split the turkey breast and made half with taco seasoning and the other half I have in the marinade for tomorrow's dinner. Dd's thought it was chicken 🙂 I've still got to bone the rest of the turkey I cooked and freeze for future meals and make some broth with the bones- planning to do that tomorrow.

 

 

Edited January 11, 2023 by Soror

[itsheresomewhere]

1/10

Local store for stock up on their 10 for 10 mix and match sale, a new grocery tote that looks exactly like the one I loved for years and it broke, cheese and fresh baguette as it smelled great coming out of the oven- 26.33

 

 

[EmilyGF]

1/9 $10 (exactly!) for produce at a Mexican market

1/10 $15 for a large pack of garbage bags and $9.60 for two gallons of milk and a discounted box of ds11's favorite tea

I think I may be thinking about this too much. I woke up Monday night from a nightmare that I had bought a dress for dd6 that she didn't need and it was going to cost more to send it back than to keep it!

Emily

[Soror]

At the swim meet, I got to talk to an old friend. She had this PT job last year putting out flowers and trees for a local hardware store. She's working on getting on with the government and not planning on doing it this year. There are lots of pluses- you are working outside, you have no direct supervision day by day, and most all of it you can flex around you own schedule- no set hours- you just have certain tasks to do. The cons are that it starts in March and it is PT. It starts earlier than I planned but the way she talked it wouldn't be a big deal to work around my schedule since I'm in town most every day I could run over after I drop off dd for school or before I pick her up until she could drive. It is mostly busier in the spring and lightens up in the summer so I could also look at getting another PT job in the summer. So, I'm considering it. She told me how much she made last year and it would be enough to pay off the loan with a bit extra. It is not guaranteed I would get it but a real good shot. 

[ScoutTN]

Hotel bills for college scholarship events are an expense I had not foreseen. Dd’s  schools are not too far away, but when the event begins at 8:00 am we do need to stay the night before. Two of these coming in February. With gas and meals, probably close to $500. 
 

1/9 Registered/paid for church youth retreat for my kids, $189. 

I am doing well keeping up with YNAB, but not so well finding time to learn it better.

1/10 Trader Joe’s $82.89. A bit of splurge as their items are generally treats and extras. But the prices are reasonable for the food quality and their items fill some holes for us. 
 

Today I will spend $7 on raw milk and let the kids use my card to eat out burgers with youth group friends.

Already paid for next Weds midweek meal at church. I eat free bc I’m staff. $20 for three adult meals for my family. Not cheap, but good food and I do zero work. 
 

Edited January 11, 2023 by ScoutTN

[Serenade]

11 hours ago, JennyD said:

   I have rearranged the fridge so things are more visible, which helps.  .

 

Good for you!  This is so hard to do when your fridge is stuffed, like ours always seems to be.  Although our fridge died last night. 😥I am committed to keeping the new fridge in better order. Although dang, we did not need the fridge to die right now.  We were able to save our food by using a smaller outside fridge we have, turning on the camper fridge, using my older son's college fridge and plugging in a couple of coolers. The fridge is 12 years old, so not super old, and DH has fixed it several times already, but this time he can't.  The compressor died and it is not easily and affordably replaceable. So we'll be hunting for a new fridge this week. Sometimes it feels like we just can't get ahead.

Edited January 11, 2023 by Serenade

[Serenade]

42 minutes ago, ScoutTN said:

Hotel bills for college scholarship events are an expense I had not foreseen. Dd’s  schools are not too far away, but when the event begins at 8:00 am we do need to stay the night before. Two of these coming in February. With gas and meals, probably close to $500. 

 

Traveling to my son's college was a huge expense for us, too.  We naively thought when he enrolled, that we'd have a great excuse to camp in the mountains, and we'd go up often.  HAHAHAHA!  Campgrounds in the mountains are generally not cheap, and we'd have to rent a car if we wanted to go sightseeing because we have a motorhome, and the gas to haul the camper up the mountains was a formidable expense as well. When the pandemic hit, many of the small car rental places closed, campground fees shot up, and that was about the end of any fun times in the mountains, except when strictly necessary.  We always had to weigh whether it was cheaper to go up there and visit with him or bring him home (two round trips).

Edited January 11, 2023 by Serenade

[73349]

Got a credit back on something & was able to adjust my categories so they look better again.

I maybe need to try making school lunches ahead on the weekends.

[Carrie12345]

So far this week:

$210 Ortho-vet consult. 
$55 gas. 
$64 vet x 2. 
$36 Bark Box (yeah, yeah, yeah). 
$16 Audible.  
and $9 in snacks at BK because dd and I had rough days yesterday.

Also paid my tuition. 🤮

[Soror]

1/11- $6.x- for pencils, paper, and Rolaids- all things I have at home but dh forgot to take for training- sigh

$156 electric

$125 cell phones

Dh's college reimbursement goes through tomorrow with his paycheck. We're at $397+ but he still has books to buy. We'll bank the rest for summer/fall. Looking back to this past fall I think we'll need 200-300. It's hard to say as financial aid changes yearly and he will also have different hours.

I did no go to the grocery store since dd stayed home from school I didn't want to make a special trip as I already do plenty of driving to town.

So today's plan-- go to Aldi's to get most of the rest of my list, Asian store for noodles, and Kroger for a couple of new sale items. Maybe I'll get to the discount store if we leave early enough.

Food waste:

Alas-- 2 slices of pepperjack cheese were found moldy 😞 Another causality of me going dairy free. I need to check the cheddar slices dd had me buy those for breakfast sandwiches and then decided she was in the mood for oats. I already froze the rest of the English muffins (no one else likes them).

I boned the rest of the cooked turkey and put it in the freezer for upcoming soup and potpie recipes. I made one batch of broth with part of the turkey bones and veggie scraps and put the rest in a freezer bad to make another time.

Edited January 12, 2023 by Soror

[historically accurate]

1/9: DH got DD french fries since she was on the verge of fainting (and he got himself a meal): $10ish - it hasn't come through on the card yet, so I don't know the actual amount. Gas for one car: $27.98. I worked all day, and then ran the kids to an activity last night. I was pretty much gone from 8 am to 8 pm - came home and essentially went to bed.

1/10: I don't want to think about it! $2400+ - we have a multi-week stay coming up at Mayo Clinic in Feb/Mar and I booked the hotel today. I got one with a kitchenette w/ full sized fridge/freezer so I can cook/take freezer meals while we're there. This Mayo trip is actually the reason I am doing this WTW challenge in January. Also $20 copay for dr. appointment and another round PT today - both of which will be on the FSA card. 

1/11: Worked in the morning, ran errands, 1 specialist appt ($40 paid on FSA card). Ate one of the meals prepped this past weekend. Received the ebay money from the sale and replenished the phone replacement fund. I try to keep 1 phone's worth of $$ in a savings account to cover a loss. DH called TMobile Internet which just moved into our area and signed up. If it works (2 people work from home at least part time and 2 students have 2 online classes each), it'll save us $30 a month. We'll also get Paramount+ free with TMobile.

[Soror]

23 minutes ago, historically accurate said:

1/11: Worked in the morning, ran errands, 1 specialist appt ($40 paid on FSA card). Ate one of the meals prepped this past weekend. Received the ebay money from the sale and replenished the phone replacement fund. I try to keep 1 phone's worth of $$ in a savings account to cover a loss. DH called TMobile Internet which just moved into our area and signed up. If it works (2 people work from home at least part time and 2 students have 2 online classes each), it'll save us $30 a month. We'll also get Paramount+ free with TMobile.

I hear you on phones. We used to get by with tracphone but with dh's new job and 2 kids in PS- who use a ton of data and have no wifi at school it wasn't feasible anymore. We moved to unlimited at Cricket and have been very happy. I had to replace my phone this fall because it crapped out. We've got a electronics fund too. I wish it was bigger for other things but it's at least a headstart. Great job on the sell. I've still not sold anything. I need to get more listed. 

[itsheresomewhere]

1/12 $24.00at Goodwill.  Did I need it? Not really but picked up some stuff to sell.  Fenton vase and Spode glass mugs for me.  Some McCoy pottery, Lord Nelson pottery and Lifton china to sell.  

  156.32 at the Asian Market.  I go there a couple of times a year. Picked up several 15 and 30 lbs bags of rice ( fantastic sale), some daikon radishes, Japanese curry mixes, and other goodies I can’t buy at the regular grocery store including Barley tea.  Last I bought rice like this was June or July.  
 

[ScoutTN]

Sold books for $40. Glad to have them out of my house and my car!

$100 on clothes for Dd, for a musical theater performance and a costume dance. The skirt and top she’ll wear to other things, the mermaid skirt and purple wig, probably not! She paid part of the cost. 
 

Bought bagels and paid for a meal at a school sports function. 
 

[historically accurate]

1/9: DH got DD french fries since she was on the verge of fainting (and he got himself a meal): $10ish - it hasn't come through on the card yet, so I don't know the actual amount. Gas for one car: $27.98. I worked all day, and then ran the kids to an activity last night. I was pretty much gone from 8 am to 8 pm - came home and essentially went to bed.

1/10: I don't want to think about it! $2400+ - we have a multi-week stay coming up at Mayo Clinic in Feb/Mar and I booked the hotel today. I got one with a kitchenette w/ full sized fridge/freezer so I can cook/take freezer meals while we're there. This Mayo trip is actually the reason I am doing this WTW challenge in January. Also $20 copay for dr. appointment and another round PT today - both of which will be on the FSA card. 

1/11: Worked in the morning, ran errands, 1 specialist appt ($40 paid on FSA card). Ate one of the meals prepped this past weekend. Received the ebay money from the sale and replenished the phone replacement fund. I try to keep 1 phone's worth of $$ in a savings account to cover a loss. DH called TMobile Internet which just moved into our area and signed up. If it works (2 people work from home at least part time and 2 students have 2 online classes each), it'll save us $30 a month. We'll also get Paramount+ free with TMobile.

1/12: $0. Ate a meal prepped this past weekend - it was fair, not great. Worked the morning, more errands. Have to go back to the store for a refund as they couldn't do it today *sigh!*. Round of PT today. Got some new cookbooks from the library; hoping to keep those grocery costs down. 

[Brittany1116]

$0 yesterday

Today... 

$15 on teas and donuts, $120 at the vet for the cat we rescued from a hoarder

[Soror]

1/12- $9.x- dd- food away at Swim Meet; (poor kiddo was going to wait until she got home but they were 1.5 hours away and didn't even finish until 7pm. She was understandably starving after leaving for school before 7 am. She didn't pack herself a big enough lunch either. We'll have to make sure she packs more when she's got afternoon away meets. She's got less than a month to go now.)

$37.x Aldis

$12.x personal money me- pickleball play and indoor balls (I only have outdoor)

-------------------------------

Today I'm taking dd2 and 3 for some returns and giftcard shopping when I go pick up dd. I have a couple of grocery items to get while at Wal-Mart and if I have time I'll get some ice cream and raspberries at Kroger- they're having a sale and I have coupons. I'd hoped to keep it to 113 this week but it looks like I'll be about $3 over- must stay on list!

[historically accurate]

10 hours ago, Brittany1116 said:

$0 yesterday

Today... 

$15 on teas and donuts, $120 at the vet for the cat we rescued from a hoarder

Kitty pics, please.

[EmilyGF]

I'm a mom of five, and this weekend, DH plus four of the kids will be out of town (two different places)!. It'll only be me and DD6, so super sweet since she's the youngest and rarely gets one-on-one time.

She asked me to take her to fast food, which I won't, but I may take her to Chinatown for dumplings or something. I've kept under budget and have the wiggle room this week. We also are having a friend over for breakfast Saturday morning, so that'll be special and without being an extra expense.

DS17 is asking for a new shaver and complaining that his old one is lousy, so I think I'm going to have him price compare a few and decide whether he wants to kick in a few dollars for the "perfect" one or just get another cheap one. He's generally frugal, but sometimes can be demanding without realizing it.

I have about 8 lbs of yellow split peas and recently found a great recipe for them. I love split pea soup, but I also have 10 lbs of normal split peas.

[historically accurate]

Finished up the Walmart grocery order this morning. Stayed under my $180/wk budget even with doing some freezer meals. Hopefully, it'll work. Family member sent in a (large) grocery order - no car to pick up - so I ordered that. I will have to get reimbursed since it all went on my card. Working all day so I'm using a crockpot meal made up last weekend this evening. I'll gonna try to make up a coffee cake tonight for tomorrow's breakfast; otherwise, DH will go and get donuts - and I spent the whole grocery budget this morning. 

[mommyoffive]

53 minutes ago, historically accurate said:

Finished up the Walmart grocery order this morning. Stayed under my $180/wk budget even with doing some freezer meals. Hopefully, it'll work. Family member sent in a (large) grocery order - no car to pick up - so I ordered that. I will have to get reimbursed since it all went on my card. Working all day so I'm using a crockpot meal made up last weekend this evening. I'll gonna try to make up a coffee cake tonight for tomorrow's breakfast; otherwise, DH will go and get donuts - and I spent the whole grocery budget this morning. 

What crockpot meal are you using?  

[Carrie12345]

I went over on groceries again today! (That is, over my January goals, but not over my normal budget.)

It’s the ShopRite Can-Can sale right now, so I did grab a few deals. Nothing I wouldn’t normally buy at higher prices.  Still, I felt a little bummed walking out at over $180 instead of under $100.

[Soror]

2 hours ago, historically accurate said:

Finished up the Walmart grocery order this morning. Stayed under my $180/wk budget even with doing some freezer meals. Hopefully, it'll work. Family member sent in a (large) grocery order - no car to pick up - so I ordered that. I will have to get reimbursed since it all went on my card. Working all day so I'm using a crockpot meal made up last weekend this evening. I'll gonna try to make up a coffee cake tonight for tomorrow's breakfast; otherwise, DH will go and get donuts - and I spent the whole grocery budget this morning. 

I was thinking you might be gf or on a special diet but if not this is the coffee cake recipe I made for my family last weekend and they loved it- 

https://www.kingarthurbaking.com/recipes/our-favorite-sour-cream-coffee-cake-recipe

I'm gf/df so I couldn't eat it but they polished it off easily.

You'll have to share your freezer meals that are the biggest hits.

2 hours ago, EmilyGF said:

I'm a mom of five, and this weekend, DH plus four of the kids will be out of town (two different places)!. It'll only be me and DD6, so super sweet since she's the youngest and rarely gets one-on-one time.

She asked me to take her to fast food, which I won't, but I may take her to Chinatown for dumplings or something. I've kept under budget and have the wiggle room this week. We also are having a friend over for breakfast Saturday morning, so that'll be special and without being an extra expense.

DS17 is asking for a new shaver and complaining that his old one is lousy, so I think I'm going to have him price compare a few and decide whether he wants to kick in a few dollars for the "perfect" one or just get another cheap one. He's generally frugal, but sometimes can be demanding without realizing it.

I have about 8 lbs of yellow split peas and recently found a great recipe for them. I love split pea soup, but I also have 10 lbs of normal split peas.

I've only tried split peas a few times and did not care for them. What are your favorite recipes? I do love lentils and most other beans but found myself trudging through them.

---------------------------------

I'm not going to make it in budget this week for groceries. Sigh. But... I stopped by Krogers after I dropped dd off to get the couple of items I needed from there and lo and behold they had eggs marked at $3.19. Now, Aldi's here had them last night at $4.89 and I reluctantly bought a carton as I was down to 1 egg and had been rationing them. I went ahead and bought 6 dozen. I just have 1 or 2 things left to get at Walmart this afternoon but that shouldn't be too much- maybe $3-$5.

Also bought gas for my car- $37.5

food waste- 

The girls polished off some slightly stale cereal and I finished off forgotten brown rice cakes. I also ate the rest of the mixed nuts. No one hardly likes them but I couldn't find the nuts I needed one week and got them instead. Note to self don't buy them again! I tried some of the buckwheat I wasn't paying enough attention and didn't do well cooking it. I thought it was ok and managed to eat it all. Next time I will have to pay more attention to see if I actually like it if it is cooked right.

We had the turkey breast I'd marinated last night and it was delicious and honestly I could tell little difference between it and chicken breast. I have a turkey breast I got on sale ages ago so it is good to know I can put it to use. (It was one of those things dh was supposed to pick up a turkey and accidentally bought a breast). If I catch any on sale I'll have to grab it.

I need to come up with a use for the cheddar cheese slices before they go bad. DD used one for the sandwich she packed for lunch but there are still quite a few left. Maybe I could make some grilled cheese for the girls with it.

------------------------------------------

I talked to my friend more and am going to go for the PT temp job. I think it will be a good fit- especially for me easing back into working outside the home it won't be as jarring. Then depending on how finances look I'll likely look for another job come summer and maybe further if both girls go to school and stay there.

--------------------

Have a guy supposedly coming to look at tables for sale- fingers crossed.

[historically accurate]

11 hours ago, mommyoffive said:

What crockpot meal are you using?  

I cooked Spicy Garlic  Chicken. However, I wasn't home and so it went a little long. It was a little dry, but edible. DH and I ate it; the kids ate cereal/hot dogs/etc.

@Soror thanks for the coffee cake recipe. It's actually very similar to my usual one. I didn't get it made though. I do have one family member who is gluten free, but other family members eat it occasionally.

[EmilyGF]

@Soror I grew up in California with a grandma at the other end of the state, and every once in a while we'd go to Pea Soup Anderson's. Then, as a young mom, I got a crock pot cookbook (Not You Mother's Slow Cooker Cookbook) with a recipe like theirs in it. I was hooked. So easy, so yummy, so many memories. One of the keys is that you serve it, almost like chili, with lots of toppings. We put out croutons, chopped ham, shredded cheddar, and chopped green onions. We serve it alongside cornbread or pretzel buns. I think this soup is sort of sweet because of all the carrots, which I love.

The recipe is so easy; I usually multiply by 4ish. The sage is absolutely necessary.:

• 1 C dried split peas
• 1 C diced carrots
• 1 C celery
• 1/2 C diced onion
• 1/2 tsp dried sage
• pinch cayenne
• Bay leaf
• chicken or veggie bouillon to taste

Dump it in the crock pot. Fill up with water to an inch or so above the food. Cook all day. Use immersion blender at the end to make smooth. Check for salt. Eat with toppings!

You can also add a bag of frozen peas 20 min from the end if you like that added taste (one bag of frozen peas for 4 C split peas).

 

[Kalmia]

Not regular monthly expenses: 

Setbacks include the annual reset on the health insurance deductible ($15,000 family) and so husband's visit to the orthopedist, X-ray and MRI to show no actionable tear or damage will cost us $1300. Sigh. Next month, there will be another $400 for a second member of the family with a bad knee who just went in to the orthopedist. 

Our evil foreign-owned power company got delivery rates approved basically doubling our electric bill for no additional services. $270 Grr.

Tuition was expected (leftover balance after loans) $805. 

Unexpected earnings:

Sold two of my photographs in a show at the local gallery: + 160.00! 

Savings:

I answered Azure Standard's customer survey and got a $25 promo code off minimum $100 purchase, will use this to buy bulk butter to freeze.

One cat suddenly started refusing Fancy Feast. To test whether it had changed flavor or he was ill, I bought the significantly cheaper Friskies for a week and he gobbled that down. Tiny can of Fancy Feast is .89 (up from .69 before it became so scarce on the shelves during the pandemic) and larger can of Friskies is .57. Trying to decide if I should just switch the other cats over too. Historically lesser quality food has been their taste preference. Not that Fancy Feast is high quality, but the all-meat pate did put our old cat into diabetes remission after his diet of dry food gave him diabetes, so I have some positive feelings about it.

Switched to store brands: soap, laundry detergent, hydrogen peroxide, Brillo-type pads, sliced cheese, and canned black beans. Lots of people have store brands in their carts these days. Don't know all the exact savings, but laundry detergent was a $3 savings per same-size bottle.

Stopped eating Green & Black's dark chocolate after reading Consumer Reports article about it having high levels of cadmium and lead (like many other brands--cadmium from soils it is grown in and lead from site contamination). 

Financial:

Got my daughter a checking and savings account at our bank for easy transfers of money between accounts.

 

 

 

 

 

[Soror]

@EmilyGF thanks for the recipe

1/13- $37.x - gas- my car;

$27.x Groceries- Kroger;

$8.x- Walmart- undergarments and toiletries for dd2 for dance- she paid for most but I picked up the rest;

I also bought about $5 in groceries at Walmart that I paid for with my personal gift card (from Christmas).

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Food waste-

1/2 ish c. mashed potatoes- these have dairy or I would eat them no one else wanted them and as they have dairy I don't want to just through them into family meals I'm eating. The animals will enjoy them!

[historically accurate]

1/9: DH got DD french fries since she was on the verge of fainting (and he got himself a meal): $10ish - it hasn't come through on the card yet, so I don't know the actual amount. Gas for one car: $27.98. I worked all day, and then ran the kids to an activity last night. I was pretty much gone from 8 am to 8 pm - came home and essentially went to bed.

1/10: I don't want to think about it! $2400+ - we have a multi-week stay coming up at Mayo Clinic in Feb/Mar and I booked the hotel today. I got one with a kitchenette w/ full sized fridge/freezer so I can cook/take freezer meals while we're there. This Mayo trip is actually the reason I am doing this WTW challenge in January. Also $20 copay for dr. appointment and another round PT today - both of which will be on the FSA card. 

1/11: Worked in the morning, ran errands, 1 specialist appt ($40 paid on FSA card). Ate one of the meals prepped this past weekend. Received the ebay money from the sale and replenished the phone replacement fund. I try to keep 1 phone's worth of $$ in a savings account to cover a loss. DH called TMobile Internet which just moved into our area and signed up. If it works (2 people work from home at least part time and 2 students have 2 online classes each), it'll save us $30 a month. We'll also get Paramount+ free with TMobile.

1/12: $0. Ate a meal prepped this past weekend - it was fair, not great. Worked the morning, more errands. Have to go back to the store for a refund as they couldn't do it today *sigh!*. Round of PT today. Got some new cookbooks from the library; hoping to keep those grocery costs down. 

1/13: Worked all day. Gas for one car & another round of PT.

1/14: Dh bought breakfast - about 10 dollars (he had a gift card from a return at Walmart). I did freezer cooking today after grocery pickup. They pulled one of my 5 lb ground beefs so I didn't double most of the items. Made a huge batch of chili, taco meat for DH's lunches, sloppy joes for later this week, and 2 taco pies for the freezer. I made up some BBQ chicken which we ate for dinner with the last of the lettuce for wraps. I'll wrap the leftover in a tortilla for lunch later this week. I have a few things on the docket cooking wise for tomorrow too. 

[Soror]

@historically accurate you are killing it on the meal prep-- Awesome!

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1/14- $6.x- dh spending money- snacks on the way home from trip

$20- dd2 for dance- her first dance- awww- it is a hs dance but 1.5 hours away as we don't have that stuff local- they went out to eat beforehand and the admission is $5- not sure how much of the $20 she spent as she stay with friend overnight.

The guy did not show for the tables- surprise! But now there is another guy who says he's coming Wednesday and someone else supposedly buying another thing I have for sale. I'll believe when I have cash on hand! Fingers Crossed.

ETA: also paid 6 months of insurance and last CC bill (again everything was budgeted for when we bought it so already accounted for)- insurance I save every month and then pay 6 months at a time. Ds pays for his part and it's about half of the bill. 

 

Edited January 15, 2023 by Soror

[historically accurate]

Finally got the mattress returned - money went back on credit card - it'll help pay for the hotel I just put on there (every little bit counts, right?). Purchased some AA batteries with some store credit we had, so $0 out of pocket. Middle DD babysat early, early this morning, so she's already made some cash on this Sunday LOL!

 

[Carrie12345]

My round up for last week:

$182.74 groceries. 
$54.65 gas. 
66.45 dog food. 
337.60 vet bills. 
180.75 textbooks. 
141.97 for dog stuff, skin care, snacks, and home organization.  
And I got slapped with $52.99 for Ancestry.com that I haven’t had time to play with. The cancellation process isn’t going well and will cost me $25 to do!!!

Plus I paid my tuition.

That week hurt!

This week I have to pay an unexpected balance that brings my OOP to $280.90 for ds’s two small fillings, one in a tooth that’s soon to be pulled. Yes, we have dental insurance. Double you tee eff?!?!?!

 

[Brittany1116]

my week was gas and milk on Sunday, $0 Mon-Wed, vet and coffees on Thursday, then $4 for museum parking and $30 at CFA for lunch on Friday (field trip day).

[historically accurate]

1/16: Gas for one car. And, amazingly, that was it for today.