Everyday Savings: Have a Plan

The most important way we save money each week is through planning before hitting the grocery store. Without this I would simply wander through the store, pick a few things that look like we would use them for dinner, spend way more than I need to and then go back again several more times during the week because of all the things I forgot It'd be crazy! And expensive.

Instead I follow this careful planning process.

On Sunday afternoon I go through our local paper for coupons, cutting out the ones that I think I may possibly use. Even if it's something I might buy but don't normally buy, I keep it ... if I find the item on a really good sale I WILL buy it and make it work in a upcoming meal.

Next I look over the sales list on commissaries.com. Since we are military we shop at the commissary. Instead of having weekly ads, they run two-week sales and post all sales items, the price and percentage off on that Web site. Largely based on that list and any coupons I have that match up to make things even cheaper, I decide what we will eat the upcoming week. For example, this week Zatarains rice is on sale as is Hillshire smoked sausage. Since I had a coupon for both I found a recipe for jambalaya.

I don't plan lunches (Luke takes a sandwich to work and I eat some fruit, hummus and wheat thins and maybe cheese each day) or breakfast (I eat yogurt every day and Luke sometimes eats cereal which I stock up on when it's on sale) so I only have to worry about dinner.

If what Im cooking with isn't based on that list it is based off coupons or what is in my pantry or freezer. Another example: blocks of cheese were on sale a few weeks ago, plus I had some great coupons. I bought about 10 or 12 blocks and put them in the freezer so we are well set in that area. I also had a coupon for hormel pepperonis ... and thus we are eating homemade calzones! Delicious. Last week I had $32 in coupons. That's $32 more I would've spent whether that day or another day on this we need for our home and meals.

Now bring on the list. I could be far more organized about this step, putting things into narrow categories. Instead I break it down into "dry," "meat," "dairy," and "veggies." The problem with this method is that it lumps an incredibly large number of things in "dry" in no particular order so they are easy to overlook. But let's not dwell on that, OK?

My list consists of things we need for the week (including cleaning supplies and hygiene products) and things that are on a great sale but we will use in a future week. I've learned recently the dangers of stocking up TOO much, but there are some things I know we use regularly enough to buy multiples of when on discount. Examples: cereal, black beans and cheese.

In the store itself I start at the one end and go to the other, using a pen to cross things off my list (so I don't forget anything).

Towards the end, before I hit the checkout, I go through my coupons to make sure I have the ones I plan to use separated out and ready to give to the checker.

The art of the coupon is a story for another post, but let me just say here as far as in the store is concerned -- Know Thy Checker. I don't care if it's the next one available -- let someone else deal with the Crazy Mean Coupon Checkers. Pick one that looks nice, young and like they don't care and regardless always hand them the coupons first. This will save you the trouble of dealing with someone who insists on going back through your groceries to find the 6 yogurts required for the $1 off 6 coupon. It is absolutely beyond me why some of these checkers care SO MUCH about your coupons. The coupon means the manufacturer is giving money back to the store for giving me a discount ... meaning there's no skin off the store's nose for giving me money off. And I KNOW they saw a bunch of yogurts go by because they JUST SCANNED THEM ... what gives?!

But like I said -- a discussions for later. And believe me, I will discuss it. You can count on it.

Magically Growing Groceries

Once again I managed to spend $10 more than what I had hoped at the commissary. HOW does this happen?

I'll tell you!

(Isn't it so handy that instead of making you answer my questions, I answer them for you?)

It's the little things that I realize we need or are low on as I walk out the door on my way to the store. For example, this week I realized that Dave, purveyor of 3.5 teeth (if you'll recall), is low on infant pain meds. And that's something we DEFINITELY do not want to run out of.

But that stuff is expensive! And so even though I used a $3 off 2 coupon, I still spent almost $6 that I hadn't taken into account.

(It occurs to me now, many hours later, that I probably should've waited and gone to Target for the store brand -- no doubt cheaper than the name brands even WITH my coupon. Fail.)

This week was also time to restock our laundry detergent supply. I was fortunately armed with several high value (considering laundry coupons are usually really LOW value) coupons for the task received in the mail over the last several weeks (remember how I said "always register for snail mail samples and coupons?" This is why) ... but that stuff adds up. Almost $13 ($8.75ish after coupons) was spent on detergent, stain removal booster and fabric softener.

This brings me to something that dawned (Dawn ... haha ... soap pun. sorry) on me on the way home: while stain removal will be needed once in a while, softener is really a complete luxery item and, sometimes, waste of money. It makes clothes wear out faster. In fact, the towels we just bought from costco (to replace the ones we've worn out since the wedding ... or rather I ruined somehow with renegade bleach use) specifically instruct you to AVOID softeners.

My mother, in fact, NEVER used softener. It was too expensive. I think that I'm going to cut back and put it only in select loads, like our bed sheets (because who doesn't love suuuuuper soft bed sheets? I mean really, some things are worth the splurge).

I do feel I should be congratulated, by the way, for resisting the $2 for one Super Delicious Looking chocolate dipped biscotti by the register. I would note that I had not been paying for my groceries with cash I probably would've caved.

Frugal Fail: Expiration Dates

This may be brand new information to you. I hope it is not.

Nonperishable food is NOT nonperishable.

I'm not sure where the myth started. As I was blogging this in my head early this morning in between husband leaving and Amy going back to sleep time (think: about 5 a.m.) it occurred to me that I could probably blame this on public school.

Leave it a homeschooler, right? Hahahaha. Ahem.

What I mean is: because of the very real earthquake threat we were required to pack and bring an emergency kit to school each year. It was stored in this giant bin in the corner of the room. Each bag was to contain nonperishable snacks, a flash light, blah, blah, blah. Let's focus on the snacks. My mom always put in some sort of nut thing (like trail mix), a few handy snacks, more crackers, that sort of thing. Nonperishable.

I realize now that what they meant by "nonperishable" was really "won't perish between now and when we get rid of your kid next June." Not so much "survive until the end of time."

I am your messenger of sad news, my friends. (That, or I'm a moron for not knowing this and you are all very smart). ... food expires. Pretty much all food. Including rice a roni. And chocolate chips. And boxed pudding. Yes, I just double checked. Pretty much the only thing I located in my pantry without a best if used by date on it was a can of creamed corn (which makes not want to eat it) and some rice.

Brutal.

So brutal, in fact, that I just cleaned out my pantry so I can show you all the things I now get to throw away. And let's remember that I only started collecting this stuff like a year ago. So pretty much this stuff only lasted a year! Nonperishable? Bah.

First, my pantry. Just because I know you're wondering. It's not terribly clean. Don't judge.

Then I went through it and looked at expiration dates on everything. Here is the giant stack that I now have to throw out. Just picture it as a stack of money because that's how I feel.

Sigh.

Who knew POPCORN expired?! Seriously folks. This is shocking.

And final confession for this post that demonstrates just how ... silly ... and naive I am. Remember how I said I was going to clean out the freezer this week by serving some stir fry meals? Well they werent Birds Eye, they were Green Giant. Whatever. The point is that when I was practically STARVING TO DEATH after my workout at the Y and dumped the contents into my wok I realized that perhaps this bag had expired too. Long, long ago.

As in last May. Sure enough.

We'll be figuring out something else to eat on Thursday. Luke rescued last night by making me an omelet and salvaging the chicken I had planned to use in the stir fry. In other news, the second bag of stir fry made an excellent ice pack when Luke accidentally smashed my toes in the recliner on our couch.

Success! (and $20).

We'll call it making up for the pine nuts.

Today I got rid of our giant rocking chair. It was wonderful that Luke wanted it and all, but then he left and it didn't really get used. And it started taking up lots of space. At Christmas it was relocated to Dave's room to make way for our tree. It's been in there since, just sitting in the middle of everything collecting dust.

And today I convinced some Fort Lewis Army wife to give me $20 for it and TAKE IT AWAY.

I consider this a major win. I'm also in the process of getting rid of a few bottles I've never used and don't plan to use but somehow manage to own anyway. That will be another win.

Both of these things are making up for the fact that yesterday I bought pine nuts. Dear readers, if you see me post a recipe that contains an expensive ingredient that is not necessary and I don't comment about it, please, save me from myself and point it out! I am a cheap eater, not a foodie ... so how was I to know that pine nuts are like $4 for this little tiny bottle? And since I did not know anything about pine nuts I did not know that they can easily be substituted with something very cheap, like sunflower seeds. Man alive. I feel like a moron.

Between that and a few other unexpected purchases yesterday (like the bag of cookies that literally JUMPED into my basket from the shelf. What is the world coming to?!) I went $10 over what I had hoped to spend on groceries this week, considering that (minus the stupid nuts) I already have everything on hand for everything I'm making for dinner.

I did manage to resist the on sale Ben and Jerrys. I should be congratulated.

In other news, I think it's going to rain just in time for my run with Alisha. Fantastic. HOW will I fetch my cupcake from her if I do not go over there to run!?!?

Sundry Stuff

A spattering of sundry information for your ... well, unclear what it's for. But here it is:

-- Got on the bike for the first time. Yes, I've owned it two weeks. But alas it was raining and then I had The Disease ... so I couldn't ride it. But today I did! It was beautiful outside, so I took the bike onto post and rode the triathlon course. 14 miles. And I didn't die. But it did take me just under an hour. So I need to cut down on that.

-- My back is now hurting from the bike riding. Yowee. I also learned that biking and the running is hard. So that's another thing to work on.

-- After many moons of resisting I've decided to give cloth diapers a try. I just can't get past the idea that at our current rate I will spend at LEAST $700 on diapers this year, and that's only if he remains the same size ... which he won't ... so it will be way more because the bigger they are, the more they cost. So despite our retarded washer/dryer and despite the fact that the concept kind of grosses me out, I'm going to try it. So at least I can say "I tried."

-- Closing ceremonies? Stupid. I want to watch more ski jumping!! A conversation that Luke and I just had about the closing ceremonies:

Us: watching opera singing guy

Luke: Is that the Prime Minister?

Me: Singing?

Luke: Yes.

Me: Why did you think that was him singing?

Luke: I didn't.

Me: I'm confused

Now there is a lady in a pant suit. Whoa crazy times here.

-- Tomorrow we are going to the commissary. We need like 10 things. It's going to be a good week for the Grocery Envelope. No wait, I lied. There are 15 things on my list. Whatever. I'm cleaning out the freezer and pantry this week (thus the stir fry and rice a roni), so here are the things I am making for dinner:

- Spaghetti Squash Spaghetti (and rice a roni)

- Birds Eye Stir Fry

- Butternut Squash Flatbread (new recipe from Real Simple)

- More Birds Eye Stir Fry

- Tilapia

- BBQ chicken (more rice a roni)

-- Speaking of envelopes, this is the first month on full time budgetness. I already mentioned above that I'd love love to eliminate that diaper line item. Stupid expensive diapers. Seriously! It's like highway robbery. Or ... armed robbery. Or something bad like that. You HAVE to have a diaper on your kid (because the alternative is not acceptable) and they are at LEAST .20 cents each ... and thats the really cheap ones! It's making me mad just typing about it. Meh.

-- A new delicious vegetarian recipe I used last week that was SO GOOD: find it here ... seriously, SO GOOD. (and cheap!)

Budget Eating

It's been about a year since I started couponing. And it's been a great year! I'm not sure I've actually saved any money, but I definitely have felt good about myself, so that's something.

The goal for this coming year, as I mentioned a few days ago, is to ACTUALLY save money. I know, crazy talk.

A major part of this, I feel, is saving on our groceries by eating low-cost meals. I am trying to serve at least one vegetarian meal a week. I used to think this required either using cheap, highly-processed canned food OR very expensive fresh vegetables and tofu.

Alas, it is not so.

It takes some hard core deliciousness to convince Luke that a meal without meat is good. I don't know how it happened, but he has been super excited about most of the vegetarian meals I've made in the last few weeks.

And if they are THAT awesome, I should share them. So here they are:

Spaghetti Squash Spaghetti

Cheesy Beans and Rice

Butternut Squash Ravioli (from costco... yummy!)

And, a recipe I couldn't find linked but we LOVE:

Black Bean Taco Pizza:


-- tbps cornmeal
-- 1 refrigerated pizza crust (or make your own)
-- 1 bottle taco sacue
--2 medium tomatoes, seeded and chopped
-- 3/4 c. canned black beans
-- 1/2 cup frozen corn
-- 1 can (4 oz) chopped green chilies
-- 2 green onions, chopped
-- 1-1/2 c. (6 oz) shredded reduced-fat Colby-Monterrey Jack Cheese
-- shredded lettuce
-- Reduced fat sour cream

1. Coat a 12-in pan with cooking spray; sprinkle with corn meal. Prepare pizza dough according to package directions. With floured hands, press dough onto pan. Bake at 450 for 7 minutes or until lightly browned.
2. Spread with taco sauce. Top with tomatoes, beans, corn, chilies, onions and cheese. Bake for 10 minutes or until cheese is melted and crust is golden. Serve topped with shredded lettuce and/or sour cream if desired.


This coming week we're going to have more bean recipes because they are on sale at the commissary.

Eating From Pantry Challenge

I'm going to join in on this because it is kind of fun and because I had already decided to do it before everyone else did, therefore, I'm not on any sort of band wagon. I'm anti band wagon.

So this challenge started last week. The idea is that you attempt to diminish your stock pile of random canned goods and freezer food over the month while buying as little as possible at the grocery store. This is a good time for me to start this since I just now got a husband back to eat food and, when Karissa moved, it all of the sudden hit me that the Army probably WON'T move my giant pile of canned food on behalf.

So I trotted back to my food shelf and checked what I had. Here is a list of the stuff I wanted to make dent in of over the next few weeks:

5 cans of chicken broth

5 cans of beef broth

4 cans of pumpkin

3 cans of yams

2 cans of mushrooms stems and pieces

2 cans of diced tomatoes and green peppers

2 cans of diced green chilies

1 jar of banana peppers

2 cans of black beans

1 can blackeyed peas

1 can tomato paste

4 cans cream of mushroom

1 can cream of chicken

1 can evaporated milk

3 cake mixes

2 can crushed pineapple

2 cans cream of potato

1 cream of celery

1 can refried beans

2 boxes vanilla pudding

3 boxes jello

A variety of canned veggies

Jar of taco sauce

Wow that was a boring read.

Now, because Luke heads of to work in the deep darkness of the early morning and because Dave is still a baby cereal kind of guy, we don't really do breakfast and lunch around here. My menu plan is basically all dinners. The panty challenge therefore started with New Years dinner:

Ham

Sweet potato casserole

"Pink stuff" (pineapple/cottage cheese/cool whip creation)

Pumpkin pie

... bye bye 2 cans of yam, one can of pumpkin, one crushed pineapple and one box of jello.

Last week I made:

Pumpkin sausage noodles (NOT delicious so no link for you)

Texas ranch chicken casserole (totally delicious -- but no link available -- and made a TON, so we ate this pretty much off and on the rest of the week)

Pumpkin dessert bars

... bye bye 2 more cans of pumpkin, 2 cans of chicken broth, a can of diced tomatoes and green peppers, a can of diced green chilies, one cream of chicken and one cake mix.

Now, this week's plan:

Shrimp fettucini

Mexican chicken skillet (baked into tortillas), (can of corn, can of black beans)

Black bean taco pizza (taco sauce, can of black beans, diced green chilies)

Pumpkin lasagna (that final can of pumpkin)

Eclairs (both vanilla pudding boxes)

And next week, so far:

Chicken pot pie (one cream of potato and the cream of celery)

Chili (remaining diced tomatoes and tomato paste and chicken broth)

mushroom chicken noodles

So! My list should look more like:

3 cans of chicken broth

5 cans of beef broth

1 cans of yams

1 jar of banana peppers

1 can blackeyed peas

4 cans cream of mushroom

1 can evaporated milk

2 cake mixes

1 can crushed pineapple

1 can cream of potato

1 cream of celery

1 can refried beans

2 boxes jello

A variety of canned veggies

So that was a terribly boring post. Sorry about that.