Shop Smart and Stock Up

You'd think I would take my own advice from time to time, wouldn't you? I've said it several times that when there is a good deal that we should stock up on that item. For some odd reason this summer I didn't take my own advice.

This all changed about a month ago when I read one blog which mentioned really paying attention to the loss leaders each week and especially when Martha from The Path To Frugality mentioned the prices in her area were going up so that she was stocking up even more when she found rock bottom prices.

I did the big oops! lately by only buying what I needed when I needed it instead of watching for the rock bottom prices and stocking up for when I will need it. The past several weeks I have been watching sale prices, especially those loss leaders, and have been stocking up again. One week it was cans of vegetables on sale for 3/$1 so I bought 6...this week they were again on sale for the same price at a different store so I bought 6 again. One week Ultra laundry detergent was on sale for 5/$10 and my mom gave me 5 $1 coupons so I got each jug for just $1 each! I hope to find another rock bottom price and stock up on more before I run out of what I have.

Another thing Martha mentioned was that butter was getting much more expensive and was close to $2.99 at the store. I hadn't bought butter in awhile as I still had quite a bit in the fridge but also realized that when I needed butter I just bought it, without even looking at the price. I honestly had no idea how much butter was, but was shocked to learn that it was indeed around $2.99 a lb. Just this week I saw the average price was $3.39 at Hy-Vee (which is a little overpriced but great for sale items!). When I read about this and realized that my baking season is coming up and I will be using a lot of butter I remembered that our Kwik Star ad had something about butter being on sale. I checked and lo and behold it was on sale for $1.69 a lb. There was a limit of five per customer so one day I bought five and one day hubby bought 4 (all that was left). We now have 9 lbs. of butter in the freezer which will get us through the holiday season and then some...and hopefully I will run into a sale before we run out. :)

This whole episode has taught me to be aware of prices of items that I buy (my bad!) and to slowly stock up on the essentials when they are on sale so that hopefully I will be able to stop paying full price for these things...ever! Almost everything goes on sale at one point or another so the main thing is to be aware of what the non-sale price of an item is and to stock up on whatever amount you will need until you think the next sale will be (whether it is 3 frozen turkeys or 25 boxes of cereal!). Sales typically rotate about every 6 weeks or so, though the loss leaders you may never see again! Get as much as you need and will be able to use before it expires.

Any other tips for someone who has fallen off the wagon of shopping smart and stocking up?

Following Life As Mom

Does Trick-or-Treating Have An Age Limit?

While I understand that there are many Christians who do not celebrate Halloween (and I understand the reasoning behind it), we do go trick-or-treating with our children. I won't go into a debate about the actual holiday in itself...but this post is directed more towards those who do participate in trick-or-treating.

I remember well the excitement that Halloween would bring for my older brother and I. By the time we were 7 and 9 we were trick-or-treating in our neighborhood alone, not wanting our younger siblings to slow us down. We knew the best houses to hit and often got such a stash that our pillowcases were almost half filled. Our costumes weren't the most important part. Growing up with not a whole lot of money we often just threw together a costume at the last moment with a little face paint and odd clothing. It was the candy that we were excited about!

Looking back I also remember odd trick-or-treating experiences. One man had us come into his house while he went into a back room to bring us out a nickle a piece. I'm not sure if he wasn't prepared for trick-or-treaters (he did have his porch light on after all) or what. We were warned about not going into someone's house and I only went in because my older brother did. I remember asking my brother after we left why he went in when we weren't supposed to and he said "Didn't you see that old guy? I could have beaten him up!". Or the strange lady who had us stand still so she could take a photo of us...we didn't even know her so I wonder now what she did with those photos of the children. This was 20 years ago, no way would I let my 7 year old go trick-or-treating with a 9 year old now - with all the creepy people out there.

To get to the main point of this post: I remember when I was 11 and my brother was 13. All week before Halloween we planned our route and talked about our goals for Halloween. As it so happens, my mother gave birth to our younger brother a few days before Halloween (actually, as I write this it is my brother's birthday...so Happy 17th Birthday, Matt!). She ended up having a c-section and my Grandma came to stay to watch us kids for a few days. I recall very distinctly that on Halloween evening about an hour before trick-or-treat time my Grandma realized that my brother was intending to go along with and very matter-of-fact said "You are too old to go trick-or-treating". I remember seeing my brother's face change a bit but he didn't let on that he was disappointed. I knew, from all the talk previously, that he was just excited to go trick-or-treating as I was but he didn't debate it and instead went to his room before we left.

I hear of several people who won't give out candy to teenagers as they feel they are too old to be going around "begging" for candy. I remember the last year I went trick-or-treating was when I was 13 and I was stiffed at a couple doors myself, which was the deciding factor that it would indeed be the last year I went.

I personally feel that if it is a night for innocent fun and a teenager feels like dressing up with their friends or family and going out that it is perfectly fine. Last year we even had two ladies (who were in their 40's) come to our door. They were laughing and having fun and to me that is all that mattered...I threw a large handful of candy into each of their bags.

Can one ever really be too old for trick-or-treating? Why rush growing up if you don't have to?!

Your thoughts?

Plan Ahead

I didn't decide until late this morning whether I would be going to the homeschool picnic. My mom called to tell me that she was called into work this morning and could I bring my two younger sisters along with me to the picnic? She mentioned how it was going to be a beautiful day and near 75 degrees.

Having had a late start to the morning I rushed around getting us all ready and was about to make some sandwiches to take along when I realized all the bread was in the freezer. I could have zapped it in the microwave to thaw but was either feeling too lazy or rushed to do so (I think the word here is lazy) so we picked up some hamburgers on the way to the picnic. That was $6 that I needn't have spent had I just planned ahead and made sure we had everything for a picnic lunch beforehand.

We also ended up wearing t-shirts, which means that we were freezing at the park because it is indeed not 75 degrees out. Had I looked for the weather forecast I would have seen it would be windy and chilly today. We stayed for half an hour and then left. Luckily, no one else had shown up yet and I was able to call and cancel to the other family that I was sure was showing up.

Two weeks ago I didn't remember the phone bill until the very day that it was due. Our phone company tacks one another $10 if the bill is even just one day late so I called in to pay by phone and found out that there was a $2.95 fee for paying by phone. I went ahead and paid it considering that $2.95 is cheaper than $10 but I could have saved that $2.95 by being more aware of what was due when.

It just goes to show that a big sum of money can go towards something that wasn't necessary to begin with. Planning and being prepared can save you a lot of money in the end. Whether it is running out in the evening to pick up fast food because you are too tired to cook or have nothing in the house or being charged a late fee because you didn't pay a bill on time - it adds up.

Menu and Shopping

My menu for the week:
Cabbage Soup and cornbread
Meat Loaf and corn casserole
Sandwiches and soup
Minute steak and loaded mashed potatoes
Corn Quiche
Sausage Minestrone and homemade rolls

Everything is served with other sides to complete a balanced meal. It depends on what I have in the cupboards, fridge, and freezer at the time. Lunches and breakfasts are basics. Desserts for the week are Oatmeal chocolate chip cookies, Upside Down Chocolate Johnny Cake, Apple crisp, Cherry Crisp, and Brownies.

I spent $63.66 at the grocery store and ran to Kwik Star to stock up on three dozen eggs (at 79 cents a dozen), 1 lb. of butter ($1.69), and a gallon of milk...where I spent $6.79. Which means I have a total of $4.55 left for the week.

I agree with Dee who left a comment on my previous post (and who is also one of my best friends!). She mentioned that she does not have a set grocery budget and therefore sometimes spends very little at the store when she has a lot in her cupboards and sometimes spends a lot when it seems their food supply is low. I do try to stick to about $75 a week but some weeks are far less and some weeks I spend a lot more while trying to stock up on products that are at wonderful sale prices. My goal is to spend $300 or less a month on groceries...whether that ends up being $55 one week and $100 the next it doesn't matter, as long as it averages $300 for the month.

When I don't have this goal in mind and just randomly shop for items we end up spending a lot more. I do notice prices at the grocery store going up and what I've been doing about it; next week for Frugal Friday.

$75

I am going to withdraw $75 from the bank today and use that, and only that, for groceries for the next seven days.

I had been doing so well with menus and shopping lists this past summer. I was meeting my weekly $75 goal on groceries. Then my mind went blank this month. I stopped planning meals ahead of time and ran to the grocery store whenever I needed (or wanted) something. The grocery tab has not been good and the meals have been even worse!

It's time to get back in the saddle and round up this mess. Luckily, I spoke to my mother-in-law by phone today and she gave me several meal ideas. I will work on a menu and grocery list today and do my big shopping trip either this evening or tomorrow. And when the money is gone, it is gone and I will need to wait until next Friday for any other grocery shopping.

It's amazing how you can spend so much more at the store and get so much less when you don't have a list to go by. I have been wasting our hard earned money on stuff that we craved instead of stuff that we needed. This week hasn't been as bad since we have been doing a bit of pantry cooking and using up what we had. I think we've spent about $40 for a week's worth of groceries to supplement what we didn't already have on hand. But I would honestly be scared to add up what our total for groceries has been this month. Let's just say that I'm glad that I don't have to. :)

Wish me luck this week as I get back on the right track!

Savor the Sweetness

These are the moments that I lived for this summer:

I savored the moments when I could watch the kids enjoy the moment with wild abandon. I paused as I hung out my wash to snap the towels to release the wrinkles or smooth my husband's work shirts. I welcomed the warm sun beating on my back as I bent to pull the weeds in the garden or picked the warm raspberries fresh from the bushes.

These were the moments when I was completely at peace this summer...they were few and far between.

This has been one of the worst summers of my life...and one of the best. Best, because I became more aware of these sweet moments. I learned to just be.

Worst because so much happened. My dad lost his job this summer because his employer was not willing to work with the limitations that he has had since his cancer treatment four years ago. He also had skin cancer this summer (but thankfully that was a fairly quick fix with freezing the spot). Watching my parents struggle trying to keep his health insurance has been difficult.

My dear Grandmother was diagnosed this past August with lung cancer which has traveled to her brain. She just finished radiation of the brain to help try to slow that progression but there is no "fix" to this. The fact is, at 83 years of age, my Grandma is fighting this loosing battle and all I can do is watch...and pray. She has an awesome support system and I know that she is in the hands of very capable people but it is tough knowing that someone that I care deeply for may be scared...will be sick...and will be gone sooner rather than later. She is an amazing woman and there will be a big hole when she is gone. And yet, there are those sweet moments when I visit her and sit on the patio and we just talk and laugh and share that I wish I could grab the moment and bottle it up to pull out later when I need them. Because the Lord knows that I'm going to need them. I'm savoring these moments now.

Not to mention other personal issues that have arisen over the summer. Things that seem so trivial now but that looked so big then. This summer has been a whirlwind of stress and sadness.

Even within the darkest of moments there are sweet moments to savor. Friends rallying around you and holding you up, strangers stepping in to show you that good people do exist. This is what I continually try to remind myself...look for the sweetness and you will find it.

I'm still happy to see this summer come to end and hope to see brighter days ahead.

Is This What Happens?

Recently I have felt like an elderly grandmother. I've found myself telling my own children "When I was a child I would have been happy with just getting a treat" when they complain about not wanting what treat I picked out for them or "When I was little I had to do so much more than that" when they complain about picking up their toys.

My husband and I have also started to notice young people more and more lately. The clothes (or lack of) they wear, the makeup, the way they talk (shuddering at the thought of the language and crudeness of it!) and the basic lack of respect. It's funny because we are only about 10-15 years out of our own teenage years but it is a whole other generation now and I have to say that I'm terrified at what another 10 years will bring for my own children's sake.

My point is that I think parent's have become soft and that the coming generation is a "ME!" generation. When a child starts to complain that I didn't pick out the right treat for them at the store is when I need to step back and re-evaluate the path that we are leading them down. It's a small thing, really, but shows not only a sense of entitlement but also a basic lack of respect.

My oldest has only just turned 7 and I'm only just noticing the patterns that can make a parent turn their children down the wrong path. I haven't raised a teenager but can say that I'm terrified to in this day in age because I do not want my children to be typical teenagers, nor typical adults.

It's my fault that my children have a sense of entitlement. It is my fault that their selfish nature has grown. It is my fault that they don't respect their toys, their elders, or even their family as much as they should. These are all things that we (my husband and I) have noticed and that we have decided to nip in the bud. It is not a defect of my children, but rather a by-product of the generation. It doesn't have to be that way.

I just wonder what each older generation must think as they watch the new generation emerge. I'm only 8 years out of my generation and am shocked at the new one. Do you think each generation is getting better or worse? Can it be changed?