The Low Life

Wow!  Is it week 8 already?  Well, the month of February got away from me.  Two weekends out of town, and lots of kids’ activities (Science Fair, Ballet Evaluations…I’m not really sure what else.  Maybe that isn’t as much as I think it is.)  

So, February has turned out to be easy-peasy.  In fact, thanx to all of our “rewards” coupons and points, I would say we have been living the High Life this month.  Turns out, I had racked up enough points to convert to a $21 credit at fresh & easy, so I was able to pick up a few more groceries over the weekend (for all of ninety-two cents).  

I think Shane and I need to get on the same page with groceries.  I left him a little cash while I was gone, but I am not 100% certain he didn’t overspend…or use the money for something other than groceries.  If you are confused about where I got grocery money after I had already said I was over for the month, I understand your confusion.  When I used my Costco rewards coupon last week, I got about $40 cash in change.  I decided that Kaia’s $18 Easter dress (so, so pretty ~ and, being #3, the kid hardly ever gets brand new clothes), purchased with the coupon, offset our previous overages, since it wasn’t really groceries, and that coupon was pretty much free grocery money.  So…well, technically, we have acquired more than $200 worth of groceries this month, but we didn’t spend over $200 on it, if that makes sense (because a great deal of it was purchased with rewards points and coupons).

So, my advice:  Find out how to work those rewards points.  We love fresh & easy:  good prices, products we like and excellent rewards.  I have a friend who loves Ralph’s.  They don’t carry a lot of the things we prefer, so we hardly ever go there.  For her family, however, it works.  So, figure out where you shop, then figure out how their system works.  Do you get more points for purchasing certain products at cretin times?  If so, go ahead and try different brands, so you can collect points.  Can you use your store discounts and register-generated coupons in conjunction with manufacturer’s coupons?  Even better!  I find we also don’t use a lot of manufacturer’s coupons, because we simply don’t use many of the products for which they are offered.  Once in a blue moon, I will find coupons for things like pasta or Morningstar Farms or Boca products, but not as often as I would like.  Trying to work the printable online coupon angle, but haven’t found a site that works well for me yet.  I know a number of people who regularly stage a coup at the grocery store.  I had a friend who used to walk out with groceries and change because, by the time she was done, the store owed her money (not sure they do that, anymore, but it was entertaining to watch).

I am a little bit disappointed that I didn’t work the fresh & easy reward to its greatest advantage.  Discovered too late that I had a “$3 off a $30  purchase coupon.”  Had I known that, I could have picked up some beer and mayonnaise (forgot I needed them).  That would have brought my total to just about $30, then I could have used my coupon, bringing the total down to $27, applied my rewards points and ended up paying about six bucks for the whole shebang.  Ah, well, live and learn.

We did get a little “vacation-y” this month.  Spent a little money on things like ordering in dinner (twice) and travel (but tried to keep it reasonable).  It’s okay.  We’ve been doing a good job of playing it close to our chests for almost two months, and an occasional splurge is okay.  

So, one more week to get through on this plan.  I think I have about six bucks in my wallet, but I am not worried.  We have TONS of food.  I just bought a dozen and a half eggs and a half gallon each of 2% milk and coconut milk beverage.  I have flour, sugar, coffee, potatoes, fruit, pasta, rice, beans, veggies, tofu…we’ll be fine.  In fact, we’ll probably be fine for more than just a week.  

Next month, we start our new plan of setting aside $100 for staples and $50/week for incidentals.  Interested to see how much more freedom this plan allows us to use some of our favourite grocery items that have been off the list for some time.    Here’s hoping!

Duuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuude!!!

Just got my Costco Wholesale Cash reward Coupon from American Express: $125.62!  

Nevermind what I said about being overbudget for the month ~ this will totally save us!

Here’s how it works:

STEP 1: Get the Costco Amex Card.  Yeah, you have to get the Costco membership, too, but it is totally worth it, IMO, because the cash reward you will earn covers the annual membership fee and then some.  

STEP 2: Find out how your cash reward plan works, so you can plan your card use.  Mine earns me 3% cash back for gasoline purchases, 2% at restaurants, 2% for travel and 1% everywhere else.  

STEP 3: Make a spending plan.  I always use my Costco AmEx for gas, at restaurants and for travel, because those purchases earn me the highest possible reward.  I also tend to use it when I make a purchase at Costco, just because it is convenient to do so.  Your agreement might be different than mine, so figure out how you can earn the most cash back.  I never use my credit cards to make impulse purchases ~ just what I would be spending regularly, anyway.

STEP 4: Always pay your card in full (I do this online) before it is due, so you don’t accumulate interest on your debt.  If you do this religiously, using your credit card will cost you no more than using cash would.

STEP 5: Sit back and wait for your Cash Reward check to arrive.  

Hurrah!  This will get us easily through the end of the month, and I can probably even spring for that cute little Easter dress Kaia was eyeing last time she went to Costco with me.  What a great surprise.  Oh, happy day!

Dude.  

I completely lost Week 6.  No, I don’t mean I wrote about it and lost the document.  I actually lost the week.  Have no idea where it went.  I do know, however, that it took our money with it.

So.

The new monthly grocery budget plan is not a bad plan, from a money management standpoint.  I was able to stock up on staples like flour, for instance, that will get us through more than a month, so that is good.  Nevertheless, I think we need to increase our budget.  After working with the $50/week grocery budget for almost two months, we have come to a few important realizations:

1. When the cupboards are already stocked with staples like flour, dried beans, pasta, rice, sugar and spices, it is easy to “fill in the blanks” with about $50/week.   Eventually, those supplies will be exhausted, and will need to be replenished.  This will NOT fit into the $50/week budget very well.

2. We could feed our family on $50/week, if we had to, but we would not be able to feed them the brands of eggs and milk (both with Omega-3 fatty acids, of which our children do not get much in their diet), organic fruits and veggies ~ or even just as many fresh fruits and veggies as we would like.  

3. There are a few convenience foods and specialty items that would fit into a modest (but slightly increased) budget and make our lives a bit easier, more pleasant, and probably even healthier (i.e., Hallie likes Greek style yogurt, but I haven’t been able to buy it often,  because it is not cheap).  There are products we rely upon due to dietary restrictions and/or preferences to keep our family healthy (ground flax seeds to add to baked goods, nutritional yeast, Kaia’s favorite “green juice,”…).  I would like to be able to get those things on the table again, for the sake of my family’s health.

4, We can save a LOT of money by comparison shopping, keeping an eye out for sales, coupons and other special deals (like that $5 gift card w/ purchase from Target).  It is always a good idea to check the 99-cents and dollar stores first, to see if they have what we’re looking for at a lower price, but it is important to keep in mind that they do not always have the best price on everything.  For instance, a multipack of pasta might cost less on sale elsewhere, or a larger container of mayonnaise might save us money in the long run.  

At the moment, I think I am already about $3 over budget for the month, and I have this week and next to go, so I suspect I will go quite a lot more over budget.  On the up side, I can make a lot of biscuits and pancakes with my 25lbs of flour, and I have veggie burgers and mixed vegetables in the freezer.   From a strictly practical standpoint, I could feed my family what we have on hand and probably not spend another cent this month, but I am not sure how healthy the offerings would be. However, I suspect we will pick up some fruits and veggies, and maybe a few eggs.

So, with all of this in mind, I am proposing a new plan:

I would like to suggest we consider a $100 monthly budget for our staple items (multipacks of pasta, large bottles of olive oil, rice, beans, canned tomatoes, flour, dried fruits and nuts, etc.) + $50/week for fresh fruits and veggies, eggs, milk and other things that will need to be replenished weekly.  This would up our monthly budget for groceries to $300, which is a huge leap, I know, but I feel this would still be a very frugal budget for a family of 5, and would allow us to feed ourselves and our children the healthy foods we prefer.  It is amazing to me how easy and inexpensive it would be to feed the children junk all the time.  We could totally live on things like ramen noodles if we had to, but, luckily, we don’t.  And yes, I will still try to save as much as possible.  I think, if everyone agrees to the new revised budget plan, I will get through the next couple of weeks as best I can, given the restrictions I already set for this month, and start the new plan the week after next.  

Hoping, by the end of next month, to have the grocery budget under control enough that we can focus our attention elsewhere and start finding other ways to cut costs.  Already, I called and switched our internet service provider (having it bundled with our home telephone service, saving us about $30/month).  I also put our YMCA membership on hold until April, thinking that I was going to have knee surgery and would not be able to use the gym until after that time (that’s a savings of about $50/month).  Since then, I saved the family $9,000 by consulting with the orthopedic surgeon and discovering that I do not, in fact, require surgery after all.  Yeah, I did a little dance.  

Not a lot more to report on my end this week.  I have had acute laryngitis for 5 days, had to teach four classes with absolutely no voice.  That’s about as exciting as it has been.  Spent $59 on an appointment with my doctor, and another thirty or so on meds.  

So, I thought I would devote this post to sharing some of our money-saving household hints.  Years ago, Shane and I decided that a) we didn’t like the idea of exposing our children to a lot of nasty chemicals b) we didn’t think the world needed more nasty chemicals floating around in it, and c) the nasty chemicals marketed as commercial cleaners are really, really expensive.  

For a while, we bought the safer natural cleaners that are commercially available, but the price tags were hefty.  Wanting to keep our lives simple, avoid buying and throwing out a bunch of plastic containers and (always, always, always) save a buck or two, I went in search of natural, homemade alternatives.  

For most of my household cleaning needs, I rely upon the following items:

White Vinegar

Baking Soda

Dr. Bronner’s Soaps (liquid and bars)

Washing Soda

Borax

Lemon Juice

Tea Tree Oil

If you do an internet search, you will find all sorts of ideas for making your own homemade cleaners.  Here, I can share with you some things that have worked for us.  I’m not going to lie, we still buy some cleaning products.  When we do, we try to buy the safer, more natural ones.  I have never found a good recipe for homemade dishwashing liquid (for handwashing or automatic dishwasher), so we buy that.  

Here are some ways you can use the above ingredients to clean your home safely and cheaply.  

Vinegar has natural disinfecting properties, so I add it to most of my cleaning solutions for household use.  

To make a “soft scrub” cleanser alternative, make a paste of baking soda, a few drops of liquid soap and a little hot water.  Scrub, let sit for a few moments and then rinse.  If desired, before rinsing, pour a little vinegar over the scrub solution and give it another quick scrub.  

To clean the toilet bowl, sprinkle baking soda into the bowl and around the rim of your toilet.  Add vinegar to the bowl, and use a spray bottle to apply it to the rim as well.  Let sit 10 minutes, scrub well and flush.

To clear a sluggish drain, pour 1 cup of baking soda down the drain, followed by 1 cup of vinegar (it will foam up).  Let sit for 20 minutes or so, then flush with very hot water.  

To make a very effective all-purpose cleaner: In a large spray bottle, mix vinegar, hot water, and a few drops of Dr,  Bronner’s liquid soap.  Go easy on the soap (it is very concentrated), or you will have to rinse.  If desired, add essential oils to boost the fragrance (Dr. Bronner’s soaps are available in many varieties ~ choose your favorite).  Also, try not to worry about the smell of the vinegar.  It dissipates after a time, and, IMO, it’s not as bad as those chemical cleaners, so I can totally deal with it.  

I have found that lemon juice can be added to the dishwasher (I put a little in that extra soap cup intended for larger loads) to boost cleaning/rinsing.  I find I use less detergent, and as an added bonus, it leaves the dishwasher itself sparkling clean.  

Lemon juice can also be added to laundry to boost whitening/brightening.  

By far, the most effective natural mold killer I have found is tea tree oil.  It smells, in my opinion, positively horrific.  I don’t know what to tell you about that.  Mold is dangerous.  So are most commercially available mold killers.  Throw open the windows and deal.  Try this:  In a spray bottle, combine 2 cups of water and about 2 teaspoons tea tree oil.  Hold your nose.  Spray on moldy areas.  Do not rinse.  leave the windows open.  Keep holding your nose.  The smell will dissipate eventually, and you won’t have mold.  

Vinegar can also be applied directly to mold and will likely kill most of it.  It smells like vinegar.  And it might not be as effective as the tea tree oil solution.  Take your pick.

To clean kitchen & bathroom floors, make a solution of hot water, just a tiny bit of Dr. Bronner’s liquid soap, and (you guessed it) vinegar.  Mop away!  

To clean windows, make a solution of vinegar, water and a few drops of liquid dish soap.  You can also try washing your windows with straight vinegar and crumpled newspaper.  Be forewarned, if you have been using commercial cleaners, there may be residue left behind that will not be removed by vinegar alone, so, at least the first couple of times, you might want to add the soap.

Lastly, I make my own laundry detergent.  This saves us so much money.  I  find that our detergent is gentle and mild (we have allergies, asthma and the usual allergy/asthma-related sensitive skin) and does an excellent job of cleaning our grubby duds.  I have refined the recipe over the years.  I have provide the original recipe, as well as all of our adaptations.  Read on to find out what works for us.  Then, do your own experiments and find out what works for you:

Years ago, I found this recipe:

Liquid Laundry Detergent

3 Pints Water

1/3 Bar Fels Naptha* Soap, Grated

1/2 Cup Washing Soda

1/2 Cup Borax

2 Gallon Bucket

1 Quart Hot Water

Hot Water

Mix soap in a saucepan with 3 pints of water, and heat on low until dissolved. Stir in Washing Soda and Borax. Stir until thickened, and remove from heat. Add 1 Quart Hot Water to 2 Gallon Bucket. Add soap mixture, and mix well. Fill bucket with hot water, and mix well. Set aside for 24 hours, or until mixture thickens. Use 1/2 cup of mixture per load.  Shake gently before using.  

Now, here is what my experience has taught me:

*You can use any soap you choose.  I find that half a bar of Dr. Bronner’s soap works well, and is very gentle on our skin (I like the Baby-Mild variety best).  I also like Kirk’s Castille Soap a lot. If you have sensitive skin, it is a great idea to use a bar soap that you already know your skin tolerates well ~ so, use whatever you use when you bathe.  Fels Naptha cleans very well, but I am not a huge fan of it.  I find it is a bit on the harsh side, and has a heavy fragrance, which is not great for our family.  Fels Naptha also comes in huge bars.  If you use a regular-sized bar of soap, use about half of the bar.

Over the years, I have made adjustments to the above recipe, as follow:

-  I find that I add a little extra washing soda and borax.  We’re dirty.  We need a little extra clean. 

-  I add maybe 20 (or more) drops of essential oils for fragrance, if I feel like it.  I like to mix orange and clove, or lavender and rose.  The scent doesn’t really stay with the clothes long, but it makes the laundry room smell nice. 

-  Instead of a bucket, I divide the detergent between two old Seventh Generation laundry detergent bottles that I have saved for years, just for this purpose.  The still have traces of label and glue on them, and are marked with permanent marker: “Laundry Detergent,” just in case we forget.  ooh…fancy.

-  We have an H/E washer, and use only about 1/4 cup per load (this stuff lasts us FOREVER).

There is so much more information to be had out there.  Really, what I have posted here is a mere drop in the bucket.

Here are some resources we have found helpful:  

http://www.realsimple.com/home-organizing/cleaning/all-natural-cleaning-solutions-00000000011547/index.html

http://www.care2.com/find/site#q=homemade+household+cleaners - Lots of great ideas for making your own natural, homemade household cleaners.  Lots more for us to try ~ maybe we’ll finally find that homemade dish detergent that actually does the job.

http://www.soapsgonebuy.com/ - This is where I get my washing soda.  I have stopped using Fels Naptha soap in favor of Dr. Bronner’s or Kirk’s, but, if you want it, you can get it here, too.  

You know, years ago, I had a friend and neighbor who used only a tiny bit of Dr. Bronner’s liquid soap as her laundry detergent.  That’s it.  Nothing else.  She swore by this method, and it certainly is simple and natural.  When I tried it, I found our clothes seemed a little dingy.  It didn’t clean to my satisfaction, but we all have our own comfort levels.  I certainly never thought my friend and her family didn’t look clean, so it was obviously working for them.

I  have another friend who never buys kleenex.  She keeps handkerchiefs in boxes around her home for her family.  This might work for your family, too.  My family is riddled with allergies, and I just couldn’t keep up with that much laundry.  I feel bad using all of that kleenex, but I hope that we live gently in so many other areas that we can sort of make up for it. 

Eh, week 4 was weird.  We stayed within our grocery budget, but then Hallie and I went off for the weekend with her Girl Scout troop, and Shane stayed home with the other girls.  I don’t think I left much for them (meant to plan ahead and leave a couple of meals in the fridge, but time got away from me ~ still learning to balance work and…you know…life), so I heard he ordered pizza one night.  Oh!  I did leave chili for him and Justice one night.  Actually, I made a huge pot for a Super Bowl Party on Sunday after we returned.  I mean, I made it Friday, before we left, but I made it FOR Sunday.  Anyway, Hal and I were up in Lake Arrowhead, and I allowed a little entertainment budget for our weekend, so I think Shane and the girls did the same.  You know, I splurged for a treat on the way up the mountain, and he ordered pizza.  That’s all good.  Gotta have a little fun :)  

So, I didn’t keep a lot of notes last week.  

This week has been interesting so far.  The family talked and decided it would be best to switch to a monthly grocery budget, which we started this week (it is the first full week in the month).  We are going with $200/month for the time being, to see if shopping monthly instead of weekly will help us stretch our dollars.  If we need to adjust (especially for longer months) we will.  This is a trial run.  

Monthly shopping is so much different from weekly shopping, but more focussed than the way I used to shop (just buying whatever we decided we needed, without giving it much thought besides, “What am I in the mood to eat right now?”).  I can see how it would be very easy to get carried away and buy up huge quantities of everything.  The first day, I went to Costco and the 99¢ store and spent almost $100!  Wow!  That’s half of our monthly budget.  Yikes!  But I got a lot of stuff that will last:  25lbs of flour (how am I going to store all of that flour?!), an 8-pack of canned garbanzos, 16 Boca Burgers (which I debated, because I make my own burgers and we don’t use them often, but they keep in the freezer for ages and cost, like, 62¢/ burger, so I decided they are a  good thing to have around ~ something easy for Shane or the kids to cook) , two separately packaged logs of fresh mozzarella… 

I did actually pause to think about whether things were really a better deal purchased in bulk before I tossed them in the cart.  There I was at Costco, calculator in hand, obsessively calculating the cost of each individual unit in every multipack.  I splurged on chocolate milk boxes and juice boxes for the kids’ lunches.  I want to get in to the habit of packing our own in reusable containers.  It would be cheaper, and better for the environment.  Unfortunately, we have a history of trying that and then having things (like, say, a gallon of milk) go bad before we use it all.  In that case, it actually wastes money.  We’ll have to work on that.  In the meantime, I feel good about sending my kid to school with organic milk and, if I buy in bulk, I think I can afford to do it.  I am getting even better at bargain hunting, and honing my shop-fu skills.  For instance, I almost bought a 2-lb package of assorted sliced cheeses, before I found the 2-lb block of cheddar.  Advantage?  I know they all like cheddar (wasn’t so sure about the colby jack).  Oh, and it was a couple of dollars less expensive. 

After that, I had approximately $100 for incidentals during the rest of the month.  I had this noble idea that I would ration myself $25/week for things like fresh fruit and veggies, milk and eggs.  You know, the stuff we will run out of each week.  That was a fabulous plan, huh? 

Then, today, I went out and blew a bunch more money.  Hah.  Well, you know what they say about the “best laid plans of mice and men.”  *sigh*  

Oh!  But then, I staged kind of a coup at Target.  I needed kleenex (we have allergies…lots and lots of allergies.  We are keeping the kleenex people in business) and there was this deal today: Buy two multipacks of a certain brand of facial tissue (it was on sale, too), and get a $5 Target gift card.  I looked at all that tissue.  For a moment, I thought, “Geez.  How long would it take us to use all that?”  Then, I came to my senses, thought, “Who am I kidding?” and picked it up.  So, I am now the proud possessor of a shiny, new $5 Target gift card!  Ooooooh!  Could I use it to buy some of the coveted Morningstar Farms chicken nuggets or veggie sausage or something?  Would that be cheating?  I mean, it’s free money, right, so I should be able to use it, I think.  I’ll ask Shane and the kids what they think about this.  I could use it for household expenses, too.  

So, it is likely to be an interesting month.  Hope I don’t totally fail.  Wish me luck.  Could take me a while to hit my stride here.

Today was especially hectic.  All kids were home sick, and Justice had to go see the doctor about a sprained ankle that will not heal.  Diagnosis?  Chronically sprained ankle.  You don’t say.  Got everyone settled at home, then made a quick run to the 99¢ store.  I spent $23.10.  Picked up a lot of fresh fruits and veggies, so I am feeling good about my purchases so far this week.  This week, I want to see how many dinners I can make with ingredients from the 99¢ store.  I have decided, for the purpose of this experiment, the use of herbs and spices already in my cupboards, and anything growing in my own garden, is permissible.  

Today’s dinner was a rousing success.  I had to make something before leaving for work, so, using a bit of the olive oil Shane and picked up at the 99¢ store last week, lots of fresh (and a few frozen) veggies, a can of diced tomatoes and a few sprinkles of various herbs and spices, I threw together a HUGE pot of very tasty vegetable soup (perfect for the sick people) for under $5.  I added up the cost of all ingredients and it came to $3.24.  Most were purchased at the 99¢, and, in most cases, I didn’t use the entire amount I purchased, so I did some math. Here’s the cost breakdown:

1 TBS olive oil — 10¢

1/2 large onion—  25¢

3 stalks celery —   25¢

1/2 bag frozen mixed vegetables — 50¢

4 cloves garlic — 10¢

1 can diced tomatoes — 79¢

6 cans water — nc (no charge)

2 potatoes (pkg. of 8) — 25¢

1/2 head cabbage — 50¢

1/2 bag baby carrots — 50¢

herbs (sage, oregano, thyme, parsley, rosemary), salt & pepper

1 spoonful bouillon (not sure of cost ~ was already in my cupboard)

Because I didn’t know what value to put on the herbs, spices and spoonful of bouillon I used, I didn’t include that in the total.  I am guessing about a dollar (??).  The bouillon is optional, so I figure its cost isn’t all that important.  Frankly, I could have done without it.  I think a couple of people had a dinner roll with theirs, but, even with that, it was a pretty cheap meal.   The really nice thing is we have leftovers, so Shane can take some for lunch tomorrow.  Not bad.  Now, I might go make myself an iced coffee.  

Week three sucks.  We have totally blown the budget ~ roughly $11 over, and will probably go beyond that in the next couple of days.  

More than half of the family is sick this week, so nothing I had planned to cook is working out for them, and school lunches have been a real challenge, too.  People have sore throats, so, instead of a couple of the dinners I had planned, they can pretty much only eat stuff like soup, smoothies, pudding…  Unfortunately, I didn’t have the stuff to make those things, so I had to go shopping.  Then, Kaia had her braces adjusted on Wednesday and hasn’t been able to chew since.  She went on a field trip on Friday, and I had planned to send her some veggie turkey, a corn muffin, maybe raisins or a banana…but the child could not chew.  *sigh*  So, I had to go out and buy yogurt and fig bars (they’re pretty soft).  

Last night, in desperation to avoid spending even more money, I went ahead and made the tofu, steamed veggies and fried rice I had planned, but I also made a pot of miso broth, so people who couldn’t chew and swallow could chop up everything and make it into soup.  That seemed to work pretty well.  No idea what I will do tonight.  Honestly, I feel like people need a big pot of soup, so I might just bite the bullet and go buy soup ingredients.  

I am so grateful that we can make that choice.  Part of this experiment was to give us pause to think about how lucky we are and how difficult it would be to live on such a limited budget.  Certainly, I am feeling that now.  If we HAD to live on $50 worth of groceries per week, we could, and we would.  I have found that I feel bad ~ like I am cheating ~ when I go over-budget.  On the other hand, I do appreciate that I am able to make that choice.  We’ll see how this day pans out.  I would really like to find some creative way to get through without going further over budget, but I am not sure I can swing it.  

And I want an iced coffee.  And I forgot to make ice last night.  Damnit.

Lots of challenges this week.  I started teaching two afterschool drama programs, so I am now working Mondays, 2-5:30pm and Wednesdays 2-3:30.  I am also volunteering in two 5th grade classrooms on Thursdays, and might be picking up some more work during the school days as the year progresses.  I know that doesn’t sound like a lot, but there is prep work for all of the classes, and a little bit of paperwork, too, so it has been a bit of an adjustment.  The biggest challenge will be finding a way to get dinner made on Monday, when I work until 5:30 and two of the girls have dance classes at 6:30.  I like them to eat before dance.  Unfortunately, quick and easy options aren’t always the least expensive.  This week, I made red beans and rice, finishing the beans in the crockpot and storing the cooked rice in the fridge until we needed it.  It has been very helpful that a friend of mine has been able to help get kids from school and to dance.  I don’t know how I would swing it without her help, given our schedule.  Hallie has both drumming and dance on Tuesdays, so that’s a rough one, too.  

To further complicate matters this week, Shane, Justice and Hallie have all been sick, and Kaia had some major orthodontic work done ~ all of which limited what people could eat.  I have designated one night a week (it is usually either Monday or Tuesday) as sandwich night, which makes things easier (and fairly inexpensive), so there was one crockpot  meal, one sandwich meal and then, last night, I was going to use some of the ravioli I had in the freezer, but no one was up to it.  Instead, I threw together a vegetarian chicken noodle style soup and biscuits.   Lunches have been hard to pack, too.  I have kids who don’t want to chew things, but not many things that don’t need to be chewed to offer.  Today, I think we sent two off with buttered noodles and yogurt and one with a peanut butter sandwich.  

So, it is day 4, and I am not only out of money, but I have gone $1.49 over budget.  I am almost out of milk again, but, other than that, I have plenty to get by on…assuming people can eat what I have,  The plan for tonight was stir fried veggies, tofu, fried rice and/or noodles.  I have some miso in the fridge, so maybe I can make a broth with that and anyone who doesn’t feel up to a big meal can chop up the tofu and veggies and throw them into the broth with some noodles.  That sounds workable.  

Aside from groceries, I will admit I cheated and had a Starbucks green tea latte this week.  Kaia had a 1 hour and 40 minute wait at her orthodontist yesterday.  Then, the appointment lasted another 40 minutes.  She had left her lunch at school because we were sure that, with a 10:15 appointment, she would be back in time for lunch.  As it turned out, she didn’t make it back to school until 1:15…and she was starving.  And irritated.  She asked if she could please get a doughnut and chocolate milk at Starbucks.  I know, I know…WAAAAAAAYYYYY too much sugar!  But she was a real trooper at the orthodontist, and her mouth hadn’t started to ache yet, so I thought we should fill her up before it did.  I said yes,  And, of course, once we were there… I’ll admit, my  latte was really, really good.  And, of course, I am craving another today.  One in a week is plenty.  I seem to be averaging one Starbucks stop/week, and I guess that’s okay.  Better than the 3-5 I had been averaging (yeah, I know ~ I’m a junkie!).

I talked to Shane, and we agreed we will stick it out with the $50/week grocery budget through the month of January.  In February, I think we will try doing a monthly budget.  It might be the same amount, but I think having the money to spend monthly will work out better.  For instance, I can buy a gallon of milk for $2.99 and it will last a while instead of buying a quart of milk for 99¢ and running out halfway through the week.  Just like, last week, I spent a lot of soy turkey, which will last at least through the end of this week.  See, when I am working with a weekly budget, a purchase like that might mean I can’t buy, say, eggs, milk or flour in a given week, even if I have run out, whereas, a monthly budget works better with the way we actually use food.  A big bag of potatoes and a bigger carton of eggs will get us through a couple of weeks and, in the long run, cost us less.  

Three days to get through now.  hmmm…We can do it, I think.  One more batch of school lunches to fix, and few more dinners and leftovers at home for weekend lunches.  Should be okay.  

I need some new slacks for work.  Think I will make a run to the bank to deposit funds, pay a few bills and then, maybe, hit the thrift stores.  Wish me luck!  I could use a few good bargains. 

Forgot to mention in my last entry:  decided to dye my hair.  Last time I had it done at a salon, it cost me $60+tip, so I had put it off as long as I could, but it had faded to a very unflattering shade of orange, and the colored streaks in the front (which had been a lovely bright red) were brassy yellow.  Not a good look, and I will be teaching an after school drama program at two schools starting next week, so I needed something a little more professional and polished.  

I colour my own hair often, but the streaks complicate things a bit.  That’s why I went to the salon last time.  It’s just easier to let someone else separate it and colour most of the hair, leaving out the few bleached strands.  Then, I put colour in the bleached strands at home.  This time, I figured it might be worth the little bit of extra time and trouble to do it at home.  I bought a medium ash brown dye for the majority of my hair and a kit with three small packets of colour for the streaks.  I settled on the colour that was called something like “Ruby” ~ a deep sort of purplish-pink.  It was kind of a pain to separate the strands and wrap them so they wouldn’t be dyed brown, and then to dye them with the other colour, but it wasn’t that bad.  Of course, it’s always messy.  The whole thing cost me about twenty bucks (instead of $72), so I think it was worth it.  I think it looks great.  Still a little edgy, but also slick and professional.  

The school dinner-night-out fundraiser worked out well for us.  Kids enjoyed the treat of eating carry-out for the first time in a few weeks, and, because we are vegetarian, we pretty much put a meal together with side dishes, so it was cheap.  We got chow mien, fried rice, two vegetable side dishes (one included tofu), crispy noodles and white rice.  Our total was $17.66 for dinner for 5, AND we had some left over today for lunches.  Usually, when we got out (or order in) we end up spending at least $50 (often more), so this was not bad at all.  We have learned that, at restaurants, it’s best to just drink water.  The other drinks really drive up the cost of a meal for five.  Five soft drinks?  That’s another ten bucks.  If Shane and I have a beer or a cocktail, the price can go up another ten or fifteen.  Our rule has always been not to keep sodas in the house, and the kids can have them as a special treat when we eat out, but, from a budgetary standpoint, that logic is flawed.  From a health standpoint, it still makes sense.  I have found that I can get large-sized Hansen’s sodas for 59¢ at the 99¢ store, and the kids can share.  So, for now, we will get those for occasional treats at home (like the day we had root beer floats) and skip sodas at the restaurants…most of the time.  

I got my grocery money for next week today, but will try not to spend any until I have to.  Also, made homemade all-purpose cleaner, using water, vinegar and Dr. Bronner’s rose-scented soap.  Works very well, and costs far less (and is better for us and the environment) than commercial cleaners.  

Kids finally finished the pumpkin muffins I made during week one.  Well, they finished the ones I had left out for them to finish.  I still have a dozen in the freezer, but I think they are probably ready for a change.  Before school starts for the week, I will whip up a batch of some other kind of muffins.  I am thinking peanut butter with chocolate chip.  

This week, I did not plan our meals as well as I did the week before.  I stayed within the budget, but could have made better choices when I was shopping.  Got some things I didn’t need, and ran out of some things we needed.  Going to work on that.  My goal this week is more fresh fruits and veggies.  

Day 4, and I am already completely out of cash.  That means no more grocery shopping for the week.  I am also completely out of milk ~ both dairy and almond.  Not good.  Justice likes to have cereal and almond milk for breakfast, and we have no milk.  So, now, I have a choice to make: bite the bullet and buy milk, going over budget for the week, or bite the bullet and live without milk for the rest of the week.  I am inclined to do the latter, just because part of the point of this experiment is for us to see how it would be if we had to live on such a limited budget.  I mean, the main point is to re-examine our spending habits and get them under control so we can save money; but another important component is to give us a glimpse into a different way of living and maybe help us learn to appreciate what we do have a little more.  So.  Decision time.

I think I can get through the next couple of days with things like pancakes (I have a little mix left), eggs, toast, etc., so I think we can make it.  This morning, however, I discovered that the soy creamer I had put in my iced coffee was bad, so I had to throw out the creamer and the coffee.  Sad.  Inconvenient, too.  I woke up with a headache, and needed the caffeine, because I have to work at 9:30, headache or not.  I’ll admit it, I cheated a little.  I had said I would not set foot in a Starbucks all month, so, after I dropped off kids, I went through the drive-through for an iced green tea latte.  Technically, I didn’t set foot in Starbucks.  I know, I know.  Excuses, excuses!  I used a gift card someone had given me, so it didn’t come out of the budget, but, in retrospect, I could have made coffee or tea at home, and just had it without cream.  It was a comfort thing.  I was weak.  Trying to break that habit, and I can’t do that if I keep having it.  Ultimately, once in a while as a treat will be fine, but I was going to Starbucks an average of three times per week, and that is way too much for our budget.  For me, cold turkey is the best way to go, but I am doing a lot better than I was, and I suppose any progress is good.  

Tomorrow, there is a dinner night out fundraiser for Kaia’s school.  We will participate, but we won’t go all crazy.  It’s at a Chinese restaurant, so we will probably just get a couple of dishes to share, carry out, and supplement with what we have at home.  This comes out of the education or entertainment budget (feels like entertainment, but it is a school fundraiser, so…hmmm…).  I guess, in the long run, that helps me in the grocery department, since I don’t have to make dinner that night. 

On Saturday, we will be going to see the girls’ friend Makenzie in a production of Bye Bye, Birdie.  Prices are reasonable, so it is a great way for us to have a fun night out with the family without breaking the bank.  Instead of buying flowers, I am going to suggest to the girls that we cut a few of our birds of paradise, which are in full bloom and absolutely gorgeous at the moment.  We can tie them with a pretty ribbon and make it very special.  

Two important things I learned this week:

1) We can get our family of five fed on $50/week, but we might not always be able to afford the organic milk, flour, veggies and fruits I would prefer.

2) A monthly budget might be more reasonable than a weekly budget.

Next week, I am not doing a big shopping trip on Monday as soon as kids head to school.  Instead, I will see how far into the week I can get with what we have on hand.  I will buy only what we need, as we go along, and not arbitrarily make a menu at the beginning of the week.  When we do need something, I will head to the store first to see what is on sale ~ for instance,  what fruits and veggies are cheapest that week ~ and then make a plan.  

We will stick with the weekly budget through January, but might switch to a monthly budget for February and see if that works better.

Wish us luck!

One of my favorite things this week were caramel, chocolate swirl, and cookie dough granola bars. My favorite was caramel. I like the cookie dough flavor alot, too. Heres a picture of it. 

The only thing I wasn’t TOO crazy about was the message from Nick Jonas! ;)

The caramel is kinda dark brown and has caramel chips. Chocolate swirl is the same color only it has chips of white and milk chocolate fused together. cookie dough is,again, the same color only it just tastes like cookie dough.

My mom said the usual granola bars are $2-3, but at the 99 cents (only!) store(s), they have them for only about $1! I hope we will buy them again.