Page 18 of 100

Re: Our 2019 No Spend Challenge

Posted: Sat Feb 09, 2019 12:27 pm
by 2dogs+someCats
Janet, LOVE reading through your inspirational updates!! Not a lot to report here. I went on a "big" grocery shop last week. Total at the "regular" grocery store was $147.07. Then I handed over my store card and coupons and ended up paying $51.20!!! So I was HAPPY about that!! Spent an additional $16 at Save A Lot and $2.00 at Dollar Tree - and that should be my whole food budget for February.

I need dog food this week - I have a coupon for FREE Purina up to $9.99 - so will look for the biggest bag I can find for that (probably won't be very big what with the high prices but we'll make it work).

I have also "camped out" in my bedroom a time or two this winter. It is right off my kitchen & bathroom and nice and cozy. Have been walking to and from work every day - even in the very coldest weather. I have the proper outer wear and those stretchy things that go on the bottom of boots to keep from slipping on snow and ice. I haven't had any issues. I have some coworkers who want to pitch a fit about me walking in the cold. I am a grown adult woman and can make that decision and I've about had it with the comments!!

I am off to do some surveys. Take care friend! Hugs to you and Teddy!

Re: Our 2019 No Spend Challenge

Posted: Sat Feb 09, 2019 5:25 pm
by floridacatlover
alliesmama4 wrote: Sat Feb 09, 2019 10:31 am Yesterday I took Teddi to the vet. It was $232.00 for exam, x-ray, and medication. He has a slight subluxation of his back left knee. He is on doggie IBP for 7 days. I am going to start him on doggie glucosamine and chondrotin which is for arthritis. He does not have arthritis yet but in doggie years he is 40 y/o and with a joint problem this might delay any kind of problem in the future. My brother always had a working pair of Great Pyrenees dogs on his farm for over 25 years. They are huge dogs and as they aged their joints were starting to show wear and tear and he put the last pair of dogs on glucosamine when they started to show a problem and it helped immensely. So he suggested I try it with Teddi and the vet agreed it was a good idea. It is pricey so I will have to shop around to find the one that is the best in a decent price range. However as they say an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

I have just been eating leftovers so nothing exciting to report. Tomorrow I plan on making a pork chop casserole that was a favorite one of my Dad's. I will be using the free pork chops from my gift box. The most expensive item will be the cream of mushroom soup. I cannot believe had much it cos. It was $1.25 on sale. Regular price $1.50.. It has been a very long time since I bought cream of mushroom soup.. I usually make mine from scratch using a gluten free recipe but feeling rather tired lately decided to buy some.. Also I needed cream of potato soup for another recipe and it was the same price on sale. Crazy prices if you ask me. I will have to get busy and make some basic gf soup base to keep on hand for future recipes.

I still have a little bit of money leftover so I can mark it as emergency fund. I have gone through my slush fund and have about 25.00 in it. The slush fund is money that has been saved from other categories ie my water bill I saved almost $8.00 from it last month so it goes in to the slush fund which is usually money used for food or if I go over budget in another area.

We are expecting a wintry mix around midnight but due to staying well stocked I do not have to go to the grocery store and face the madness that a lot of people will be dealing with as the store shelves empty out fast with bread, milk and eggs. I do have to pick up a medication some time today but after I get home can settle down to having movie and pizza night. Dish TV is giving us free Showtime and some other channels with movies this week as well as week-end and I tape movies that I would like to watch for later on. I have cut my programming to what they call a welcome package. It is $38.02 a month and every month they offer different channels for free hoping you will want to upgrade. I am content with what I have but I do enjoy some of the occasional free channels. However not enough to upgrade.
Janet, I’m glad that there is nothing seriously wrong with Teddi. I’ve heard of other people giving their pups glucosamine so that is a good idea.

You do far better than I do with groceries, but I have one bargain tip for you. If you want to keep a can or two of cream of mushroom soup on hand, watch for deals at Easter. I always stock up on a few cans at Christmas because I often see it on sale B1G1 aimed a those (including me) who make green bean casserole. I think there will be sales at Easter, too. I used to get it for .75/can but this year it was .90-$1. I like to keep about four cans on hand. I’ve never made homemade cream of mushroom (and mom did not make it either) but as far as the canned soup, that is one product where I think Campbell’s is better than the store brand.

Hope it does not get too cold in your area tonight.

Re: Our 2019 No Spend Challenge

Posted: Sat Feb 09, 2019 6:03 pm
by alliesmama4
2dogs+someCats wrote: Sat Feb 09, 2019 12:27 pm Janet, LOVE reading through your inspirational updates!! Not a lot to report here. I went on a "big" grocery shop last week. Total at the "regular" grocery store was $147.07. Then I handed over my store card and coupons and ended up paying $51.20!!! So I was HAPPY about that!! Spent an additional $16 at Save A Lot and $2.00 at Dollar Tree - and that should be my whole food budget for February.

I need dog food this week - I have a coupon for FREE Purina up to $9.99 - so will look for the biggest bag I can find for that (probably won't be very big what with the high prices but we'll make it work).

I have also "camped out" in my bedroom a time or two this winter. It is right off my kitchen & bathroom and nice and cozy. Have been walking to and from work every day - even in the very coldest weather. I have the proper outer wear and those stretchy things that go on the bottom of boots to keep from slipping on snow and ice. I haven't had any issues. I have some coworkers who want to pitch a fit about me walking in the cold. I am a grown adult woman and can make that decision and I've about had it with the comments!!

I am off to do some surveys. Take care friend! Hugs to you and Teddy!
Thank you Sheila. You have always been an inspiration to me too going back to when you were living in the woods in your trailer.. It was always amazing to me how you managed to take in one more abandoned critter and do the right thing for them despite your needs. I think you did a great job with your most recent shopping trip being a big winner.

Bummer on people telling you what to do.. I have had to tell several of my aides current and past to turn off their mommy mode when they come here. They are here to help me with household things and they are not in charge of my life or decision making. It is not in their job description. I know what I can and cannot do. Good luck with your group.

Thanks for the hugs for Teddi and me. We are sending some right back to you and your fur babies.

Re: Our 2019 No Spend Challenge

Posted: Sat Feb 09, 2019 6:13 pm
by alliesmama4
floridacatlover wrote: Sat Feb 09, 2019 5:25 pm Janet, I’m glad that there is nothing seriously wrong with Teddi. I’ve heard of other people giving their pups glucosamine so that is a good idea.

You do far better than I do with groceries, but I have one bargain tip for you. If you want to keep a can or two of cream of mushroom soup on hand, watch for deals at Easter. I always stock up on a few cans at Christmas because I often see it on sale B1G1 aimed a those (including me) who make green bean casserole. I think there will be sales at Easter, too. I used to get it for .75/can but this year it was .90-$1. I like to keep about four cans on hand. I’ve never made homemade cream of mushroom (and mom did not make it either) but as far as the canned soup, that is one product where I think Campbell’s is better than the store brand.

Hope it does not get too cold in your area tonight.
Florida cat. Thank you for the idea of stocking up around Easter. I really should not use canned soup due to gluten however I cheat on other things so why not a minor stock up on the soup while it it on sale. I have been going through a lot of recipes clipped from various magazines over the years to give me inspiration on how to use up the ingredients I already have. Some of them do use the canned cream of whatever soup. I usually do a minor stock-up around the holidays on things that are too pricey the rest of the year ie Philly cream cheese, butter. I have found there are just enough holidays to buy things at a cheaper price and they last until the next holiday sale.

Re: Our 2019 No Spend Challenge

Posted: Sun Feb 10, 2019 9:20 am
by alliesmama4
Last night I used two small red potatoes. I cut them in to a small dice and nuked them then added the last half packet of paneer and peas. The potatoes took the place of rice and really made it a much bigger and tasty meal. I sliced the leftover meatless meatballs and fried them. They were ok but were not deep fried just sauteed. The jury is still out on them. I might try them again some other time and try deep frying them before I make a final decision. I had half of a bottle of grape juice diluted with a large amount of water. The juice was free from Amazon. It had too many carbs to drink it straight. Since I am not a big alcohol drinker it tasted somewhat like wine to me. It has been a couple of years since I had any kind of wine so I might be delusional lol..

Breakfast this morning was a bacon and egg sandwich. The bacon was free and the egg was about .06 cents. The bread was from Big Lots. It is a whole grain bread from Germany for $2.30. I still need to break it down in price per slice. I used one slice but it is very long and thin. Coffee with milk. The coffee is still free and the milk is from Dollar Tree $1.00 for a quart of whole milk. I needed to use it up since the best by date was the end of January. Not sure yet what lunch will be.. Dinner will be a pork chop casserole made with pork chops, onions, and potatoes topped with the expensive cream of mushroom soup. The pork chops (4) are free from my brothers birthday gift box. I will have the last of the canned peaches for dessert.

Re: Our 2019 No Spend Challenge

Posted: Sun Feb 10, 2019 9:23 am
by Dgflorida
What an inspiration you are! Great to read about your efforts. Very motivational.