Budget – A penny pinched

Category : Budget

March 2011: How did we do?

April 3rd 2011 Posted at Budget, Kitchen equipment, Pinching penies
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This month’s groceries, personal care items, and cleaning supplies cost a grand total of $233.52, which is $91.48 under my monthly budget of $325. It was a 5-week month, so perhaps that accounts for the slightly higher spending, but it will all even out in the end. I’m not very good about tracking my savings, but the numbers I did write down total up to $139.25. This number would be quite a bit higher if I were a bit more diligent in recording the savings shown on every receipt, and also if I bothered to figure out just how much I’m saving on the items I buy at Costco.

I wish I could say all this extra cash went straight into the savings account, but where’s the fun in that? I treated myself to a few kitchen toys that set me back around $200. I snagged a shiny new All-Clad 12-Inch Fry Pan on eBay. Then I started obsessing about Le Creuset. Unfortunately, I understand that the Le Creuset outlet store in Kansas City closed a while back, and the eBay deals weren’t all that hot. I finally realized how ridiculous I was and settled for a much more budget-friendly Lodge 6-Quart Dutch Oven in emerald green. Of course, I needed the Le Creuset Stainless Steel Knob if I wanted to bake bread in it. At this point, what’s a couple more things, right? A T-Fal Professional Total Nonstick 12-1/2-Inch Fry Pan and a Lodge Logic 12-Inch Pre-Seasoned Skillet rounded out my order. The total damage was $200.12, which was then slightly reduced by an Amazon gift card from Opinion Outpost and by last week’s eBay Groupon. Whew!

Now you may be wondering how I can write about All-Clad and Le Creuset on a blog titled “A penny pinched.” It seems counter-intuitive, doesn’t it? I personally believe in pinching pennies wherever I can so that I can spend on the things that really matter to me. Donate, save, yes, bot don’t live like a miser. Treat yourself once in a while.

Delegating

April 2nd 2011 Posted at Budget, Cleaning supplies, Costco, Coupons, CVS, Groceries, Hen House, Personal care, Price Chopper, Walgreens, Walmart
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I was busy this past week, so I delegated the grocery shopping. All in all, it wasn’t too bad, although a few small mistakes were made. I’m such a control freak, and this was a good experience in letting go and learning to be appreciative.

Walmart
Ken’s salad dressing, 16 oz: $2.24 – $1.00 coupon = $1.24 (this is what happens when you delegate)
Yakisoba noodles: $0.62 – $0.50 coupon = $0.12
Degree travel size deodorant: $0.97 (coupon didn’t scan. grrr!!)
Spent: $2.67

Walgreens
Walgreens aluminum foil, 20 sq ft: $0.69 – 20% off coupon = $0.55
2 bottles Renuzit, 13 oz each: $2.99 – 15% off coupon – two $1.00 coupons = $0.54
Spent: $1.37
Saved: $5.44

Hen House
Post Honey Bunches of Oats Raisin Medley, 17 oz: $2.00 – $1.00 coupon = $1.00
Lipton tea, 29 ct: $3.99 – $0.60 coupon = $3.39 (messed up)
Spent: $4.87
Saved: $3.29

CVS
5 Pepsi bottles, 2 liters each: $4.40
Skintimate shaving gel, 7 oz: $3.49 – $0.55 coupon = $2.94 (generated $2.50 ECB)
2 Clean & Clear shower gels, 16 oz each: (2 x $2.99) – BOGO coupon – $2.00 coupon = $0.99
Used $7.99 ECB from a previous transaction
Spent: $2.06
Saved: $24.69

Price Chopper
2 Tony’s four cheese pizzas: ($1.69 x 2) – $1.00 = $2.38
2 mangoes: 2 x $0.69 = $1.38
Green Giant Valley Fresh Steamers: $$0.69
2 Yoplait Greek yogurts: (2 x $0.99) – $0.60 = $1.38
4 lbs oranges: $1.69
0.77 lbs green beans: $0.77
1.06 lbs asparagus: $1.05
Spent: $10.24
Saved: $10.16

Costco
36 flour tortillas, 63 oz: $3.99
Skinny Cow ice cream sandwiches, 20 ct: $9.45 – $2.75 coupon = $6.70
Organic baby spring mix, 1 lb: $4.29
Kirkland Signature Parmigiano Reggiano, 1 lb: $14.99
Kirkland Signature wheat bread, 4 lbs: $3.79
Spent: $37.01

GRAND TOTAL: $58.22
TOTAL SAVED: $43.58

Groceries 3/27/11 and weekly recap

March 27th 2011 Posted at Budget, Costco, Coupons, CVS, Groceries, Hen House, Hy-Vee, Personal care, Price Chopper, Walgreens
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Hy-Vee
Peter Pan peanut butter, 3 pack, 48.9 oz total: $2.98
Spent: $3.25

Hen House
2 lbs strawberries: $1.38
Green Giant honey glazed carrots, 10 oz: $1.25 – $0.50 coupon (doubled) = $0.25
Roberts sour cream, 16 oz: $1.29 – $0.30 coupon (doubled) = $0.69
Spent: $2.60
Saved: $9.63

TOTAL: $5.85

All I really needed at Hy-Vee this week was the 3-pack of peanut butter, but I made up for it with a quick trip to Hen House. I love shopping at Hen House, and I get some of my best deals there. I should make more of an effort to pay attention to the sales they’re having because I don’t shop there nearly enough.

I also got a couple of things at CVS and Walgreens earlier this week.

CVS
Head & Shoulders shampoo, 14.2 oz: $4.99 – $1.00 coupon = $3.99 (generated $2.50 ECB)
Spent: 3.44
Saved: $2.89

Walgreens
2 Dove chocolates, 1.3 oz each: $0.98 – $0.75 coupon = $0.23
Spent: $0.32

TOTAL: $3.76

GRAND TOTAL FOR THE WEEK: $18.81 (including my earlier trip to Price Chopper and Costco)

That’s a pretty low total. I’ll gladly pocket the difference or use it to stock up next week.

Week ending on 3/20/11

March 20th 2011 Posted at ALDI, Budget, Cleaning supplies, Costco, Coupons, CVS, Groceries, Hen House, Hy-Vee, Pinching penies, Price Chopper, Walgreens
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This past week I shopped at SEVEN stores on two different days. I’m crazy, I know.

First, I ran to Walgreens and CVS last Sunday, and those were by far my most impressive shopping trips of the week. I’m pretty well stocked up, and I don’t need lots of things from the drugstores anymore, so I’d forgotten just how great it can be to walk out of there with a cart full of things for which you paid only a couple of dollars. It’s even better when the cashier can’t believe you’re getting such a good deal, and she asks to see the flyer before she lets you walk out of there with all those things.

Friday was my regular shopping day, and I went to Hen House, Hy-Vee, Price Chopper, Aldi, and Costco. I could’ve skipped Hen House and Aldi since I only went to each of them for a single item. Sometimes it makes sense to go a little out of your way if the savings are worth your time and money, but not always. Even when the savings justify it, make sure you grab the right item so that you don’t wipe your savings by overpaying.

All in all it was a great week. I was only slightly over my initial budget of $50/week, which I have actually upgraded to a more realistic $75/week. I figured that $50 was much too restrictive, especially since I use that money not only for groceries but also for cleaning supplies and personal care items. Moreover, even the thrifty USDA food plan for a family of 2 is $82.60/week as of January 2011. More often than not, I hover around $50/week anyway, but I no longer feel like I’m constantly failing whenever I go above.

Walgreens

Spent: $0.40
Saved: $8.98

CVS

Spent: $3.93
Saved: $42.42

Costco

Spent: $26.03
Saved: $3.00

Price Chopper

Spent: $12.98
Saved: $16.40

Hy-Vee, Hen House, and Aldi

Spent: $10.08
Saved: $9.36

GRAND TOTAL: $53.42
TOTAL SAVINGS: $80.16

Week ending on 3/13/11

March 11th 2011 Posted at Budget, Costco, Coupons, Groceries, Hy-Vee, Price Chopper
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I spent a very small amount of money on groceries last week. As expected, I made up for it this week. Overall, I’m still within budget for this month, but I’ll do a recap at the end. This week I shopped at Costco, Hy-Vee, and Price Chopper. I made a somewhat costly mistake at Hy-Vee when I bought the corned beef brisket. My excuse is that I know very little about meat cuts, but maybe I should educate myself about it and expand my horizons.

Costco

Quaker Chewy Granola Bars, 60 ct – $7.74 after $3.25 coupon
2 lbs sliced Tillamook cheddar cheese – $6.99
5 lbs shredded mild cheddar cheese – $10.99
SunChips variety pack, 24 ct – $6.75 after $2.00 coupon
4 lbs Mountain High low fat yogurt – $3.99
Apple strudel, 8 ct, 38 oz – $5.49 after $1.50 coupon

Total: $46.15

Price Chopper

5.38 lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts – $6.40
4 boxes Kellogg’s Raisin Bran, 20 oz each – $4.76 after two $1.00 coupons
1.04 lbs green beans – $1.03
1 lb strawberries – $1.49

Total: $15.00

Hy-Vee

2.68 lbs organic Granny Smith apples – $2.36
4.48 lbs cabbage – $0.85
4.16 lbs red seedless grapes – $4.12
1/2 gallon Hy-Vee orange juice – $0.99
2 jars Skippy natural peanut butter, 15 oz each – $1.98
3 pouches StarKist chunk light tuna, 2.6 oz each – $1.50 after $1.50 coupon
2 cans StarKist chunk light tuna, 5 oz each – $0.78
Colgate toothpaste, 4.6 oz – $0.13 after $0.75 coupon
Louis Kemp imitation crab, 8 oz – $1.00
Louis Kemp imitation lobster, 8 oz – $1.00
Van de Kamp’s frozen crispy fish fillets, 19.44 oz – $3.34
2.84 lbs Buckley Farms corned beef brisket, flat cut – $8.49 (I should’ve grabbed the point cut at $1.99/lb. Live and learn.)

Total: $29.10

GRAND TOTAL: $90.25

Week ending on 3/6/11

March 6th 2011 Posted at Budget, Costco, Groceries, Pinching penies, Price Chopper
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As I mentioned in a previous post, this was a very light week for me. Most of the deals didn’t really appeal to me, so I decided to only go out for the bare necessities, such as milk, lettuce, and fruit. I also got some fresh yeast because the little that I still had left was a bit too old, and my bread dough wasn’t rising properly. Here’s what I got this week:

Costco
1 lb organic baby spring mix – $3.99
1 gallon skim milk – $2.15
2 lbs Red Star active dry yeast – $3.99
Total: $11.03

Price Chopper
4 lbs navel oranges – $1.69
Total: $1.79

GRAND TOTAL: $12.82

You don’t have to shop

March 3rd 2011 Posted at Budget, Groceries
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One of the most important lessons I’ve learned since I started couponing was knowing when to stop. It’s so easy to get carried away and buy all these fantastic deals without stopping to think that maybe they’re not something you’ll use, that you already have 23 of the same item stocked up at home, or that your budget simply won’t allow it. Maybe, like in my situation today, the deals are simply not all that great, but it’s your shopping day and you have to buy something. Here’s why you should take a step back and ask yourself if you really need to buy an item, or if you need to go shopping at all.

1. You won’t use it. It’s a great deal, I get it. Maybe it’s even free. Your family won’t use it, but you tell yourself that you’ll donate it. That’s great, but make sure it’s something you can actually donate and that you will follow through. It won’t do anyone any good if it sits forgotten in a box of items to be donated.

2. You already have enough of it. I really struggled with this one for a long time. I had to experience several sale cycles before I was confident that I would be able to come across a great deal again, and that I didn’t need to stock up my closets with 20 boxes of cereal. It’s not a bargain if it goes bad before you can use it, and it certainly won’t help your budget if you keep buying deeply discounted cereal week after week.

3. You can’t afford it. This is pretty self-explanatory. If it doesn’t fit into your budget, you have to walk away. As you build your stockpile and you no longer have to pay full price for everything, you’ll have more wiggle room in your grocery budget. In the meantime, work with what you have.

4. It’s not that great of a deal. Don’t feel like you have to shop just because it’s your shopping day. If you’ve been doing this for a while, you have enough in your stockpile to last you a week or even longer. For example, I’m only going to buy milk, lettuce, oranges, and a box of cereal in a new flavor this week. Yes, I felt a twinge of regret that my shopping trip won’t be all that impressive, and that I won’t have much to post and brag about. Then I got over it when I realized how much I’d be saving.

Pinching pennies on cable TV

March 1st 2011 Posted at Budget, Pinching penies
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When moving here almost a year ago, I signed up for a TV and internet package with AT&T U-verse. It wasn’t cheap, but it wasn’t expensive, either. Or so I thought. A friend had suggested using an antenna, but I wasn’t about to be that old-school and stoop to that level of pinching pennies. I was above that. I could afford better. I’d insert an eye-rolling smiley right now if I knew how to.

It turns out that I don’t watch nearly enough TV to justify the cost. My first cost-cutting move was to downgrade the TV plan to the most basic one offered by the company, but it was still a whopping $44!!! Does that sound basic to you? It was $19 for the TV service, $15 for the DVR, and $10 for the HD service. I felt nickeled and dimed, so I finally got over myself and ordered a set of rabbit ears.

Well, what do you know? The rabbit ears allowed me to receive the same exact channels I was paying $19 for, for FREE. I was even getting HD channels, although the AT&T rep tried to convince me otherwise when I called to cancel my service. The only problem was that canceling the TV service meant losing the DVR, and I’m absolutely horrible at remembering when my shows are on. Moreover, it’s so much more convenient to watch them when I want to instead of being a slave to their schedule.

TiVo to the rescue! Yes, I had to spend money to save money, but I am convinced it will be worth it in the long run. I bought a refurbished TiVo Premiere unit directly from TiVo for a mere $99.99. The beauty of it is that this way they don’t consider the unit to be subsidized, so you’re eligible for the lower subscription prices. Instead of being locked in at $19.99/month for a year if you had bought a brand new unit at a discounted price, you are now eligible for the discounted price of $12.95/month. Even better, you can lower that to $10.75/month if you sign up for the yearly plan.

Let’s look at the final numbers. I was paying $44 plus tax for AT&T U-verse TV. I am now paying $10.75/month, and I will have covered the cost of the DVR in a little over 3 months. Over the course of a year, that’s $399 that I get to keep. I’d say the rabbit ears are a small sacrifice for that, wouldn’t you?

February 2011: How did we do?

February 27th 2011 Posted at Budget, Cleaning supplies, Groceries, Personal care
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We were well under budget this month, with only $176.91 spent on groceries, household supplies, and personal care items. As if that’s not good enough already, $25 of it went to a subscription to The Grocery Game. Yes, *gasp*, I pay for something I could get for free on a multitude of websites. I may write about it more in another post, but it works for me and it makes my life easier.

I’m missing one week of photos, but here’s what $124.00 buys you. I know it’s not as impressive as the Target deals some people have been getting this past week, but my freezer is already stuffed, and I have nowhere to put an upright or a chest freezer. I’ll keep dreaming of one.

Week ending on 2/27/11

February 26th 2011 Posted at Budget, Costco, Coupons, Groceries, Hy-Vee, Price Chopper
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Wow, it’s been a LONG time since I last updated. Let’s pick up where we left off. Here’s this week’s haul from Costco, Price Chopper, and Hy-Vee. Please excuse the quality.

Costco
Laughing Cow spreadable cheese, 32 wedges, 24 oz total – $8.19
Teriyaki chicken, 40 oz – $7.14 after $2.25 coupon
KS wheat bread, 4 lbs – $3.79
Total: $21.02

Price Chopper
1.88 lbs red grapes – $1.86
Texas Toast croutons, 5 oz – $0.50 after $0.50 coupon
4 cans Progresso soup – $3.00 after $1.00 coupon
3 lbs ground turkey – $3.00
Total: $9.21

Hy-Vee
2 cans Campbell’s Healthy Request condensed soup – $1.36 after $0.40 coupon
4 cans Campbell’s condensed soup – $3.12
4 cans Campbell’s condensed tomato soup – $1.56
4 packages Buddig thin sliced meats, 2 oz each – $1.25 after $0.75 coupon
Pagoda Express egg rolls, 4 rolls, 12.27 oz – $0.92 after $0.75 coupon
1/2 gallon Hy-Vee orange juice – $0.99
Total: $10.22

GRAND TOTAL: $40.45