March $100 Grocery Budget 2021

 

I think I did really well this month to spend as little as possible on groceries.  Once again we headed into the month with a well stocked pantry, freezers and refrigerator so the first two weeks of March I didn't do much in the way of grocery shopping.  By the middle of the month I was ready to shop a bit and by week three the sales in the ads were better so I made a few trips to the stores.  The majority of what I purchased in March was a lot of fresh produce and just a handful of pantry items we were low on.

 

A large produce haul with a few pantry items, cheese & bacon

Since I hadn't spent all of my budget last month I used some of that extra money to stock up on Keto bread at the Franz bakery outlet as well as to pick up a couple whole roasting chickens on sale for 77¢ a pound at Fred Meyer.  I already had one in the freezer which I plan to use for our Easter dinner and now I have two more, one of which is earmarked for Thanksgiving this year.  Yes, I am already thinking that far ahead believe it or not.

 

A little Dollar Tree shopping
My daughter really loves these cookies

With my $25 non food budget I purchased a jug of laundry detergent, a jug of liquid fabric softener, shampoo and conditioner (we didn't really need it but my daughter really liked the scent), a couple cans of cat food and some Pounce treats At Dollar Tree.  Our Benedryl had expired so I tossed it out an replaced it and used a $1.50 OFF digital coupon to pick up an extra bag of dry cat food that was on already on sale.  My grand total for nonfood items came to only $15.48.  So far all of the extra money I am not spending on non food items has been going into savings.

 

I stocked up on yogurt and whole chickens on sale plus I had a coupon!

I began my $100 grocery budget this month with $147.57 because I didn't spend my total budgeted amount in February and I rolled it over and added it to my new budgeted amount.  After everything was totaled up for the month of March I came in right at $105.13.  This leaves me with $42.44 still left and I plan to roll that amount over and add it to my $100 budget for April.  That is a pretty good amount to start off with next month and I am really pleased with how well we are doing with our grocery and non food spending so far this year.

 

These markdown items made for a special lunch treat one day

So good!

I haven't felt at all that we are depriving ourselves of anything either.  We've had loads of produce to enjoy.  Lots of healthy main courses with plenty of leftovers for our lunches each day and we are pretty much eating the meals we want to eat with lots of good variety.  I call that a win!

 

Working My Way Toward Early Retirement

 

I have had a projected retirement date of August 31^st 2023 for quite some now and I have eagerly been anticipating its arrival.  To some it may seem like I have a fair bit of time left, but to me not so much.  Time flies, it really does, and I know it will be upon me in an instant.  Looking back at the last few years I feel time has gone by very fast.  My youngest will be graduating high school next year and my oldest will graduate college the year after that.  I will soon be on my own and while it does tug at my heart a little bit I am also extremely excited about it too.  A brand new chapter will unfold and I want to make sure I am ready.

 

I have been steadily making my way through my home and really evaluating the things I have and what items are most important to me.  I am quickly coming to realize that very little of what I own now needs to go with me which will make moving that much nicer when the time comes.  A lot of items will be handed down to my girls to use to make their own homes with and together we are making some of those decisions now.  In fact, I’ve already started packing up some things for my youngest and given several items to my oldest.  Whatever they don’t take and I don’t want will be sold, offered for free or donated.

 

Laverne is still getting worked on and has been a much loved restoration project for me.  I am super excited to finally be able to put some miles on her and have some adventures.  I have outfitted her well on the inside and I am almost done with the improvements on the outside.  New tires, new batteries and a few mechanical upgrades and we’ll be pretty much ready to go.  I can hardly wait.

 

I have been a super saver this past year since clearing my debts and refinancing my house with a much lower interest rate than I had previously.  That lower payment has freed me up far more than I could've anticipated and allowed me to really focus on savings and investing.  In January and again in March the U.S. government issued stimulus payments to taxpayers and I had pushed both of those directly into my savings accounts along with my annual bonus at work.  Additionally I've been funneling more money into my 401k and HSA accounts as well as reallocated some of my investments for better returns which has been doing quite well.  It has been a commitment of time, thought and careful planning and it is paying off.

 

As a result of all that I have done this past year I have had the unexpected pleasure of being able to push up my timeline from August 31, 2023 to January 13, 2023.  Shaving off 7 1/2 months!  Will I do it?  I am leaning really hard in that directions folks.  I think I'm going to do it.  As long as I stick to what I've been doing and don't veer off course it just may come to fruition.  If you don't think I'm over the moon about this you'd be quite mistaken.  I am thrilled beyond measure.  The relief and peace of mind I have right now knowing I'm going to be able to retire, travel, do some of the things I've always wanted to do and not have to worry is incredible.

 

If you have a dream or a goal that you want to attain my advice is to go after it with everything you have inside.  Do every single thing you can to make it happen and do not give up.  You can do it!  I know this because I can too.

 

 

Last Week's Thrifty Moves

 

Sunday I had the unexpected pleasure of my oldest daughter coming over to have brunch with me.  I told her I wanted to cut a few inches off the length of my hair and she got super excited and offered to do it for me.  She did a fantastic job too!  I am so pleased with my new haircut.

 

My oldest daughter took these 3 peace lilies home with her and re-homed them

After she left I got outdoors for some fresh air and sunshine and was able to finish up burning the final remnants of last fall's pruning project.  I am very happy to finally have that all done and over with.

 

This pile is GONE!

Monday I had the day off from work, the end of my four day weekend, so my youngest and I decided to run some errands.  I needed to drop off a package at the post office and pick up a few things on sale at Fred Meyer and she needed to go to the bank and drop off books at the library.  It rained almost the entire day so we got our errands done, came home and ate a good lunch (buffalo chicken wings on markdown at the deli) and then we watched the first DVD of Lord Of The Rings trilogy from our home movie collection.

 

Wednesday I met one of my girlfriends after work for a beer.  That is something I haven't done in quite a while.  Definitely pre-COVID.  It felt good to get out and do something completely "normal" for a change.

 

Before - a cluttered mess

I had a Saturday project which was to go through and purge, re-home and declutter our games (including video games) and puzzles.  I divided up what we wanted to keep amongst the three of us girls and we donated the rest.  I am keeping very few items myself - pinochle & playing cards, a cribbage board, Uno, Bananagrams, a small puzzle and a homemade Farkle & Yahtzee game as well as the Sega Genesis.  The girls have an even split of their favorites and the Wii (up to them to figure out the split on that 😉).  I also started to go through some DVDs that were mixed in amongst our games and plan to sell a set of Ninja Turtle movies on eBay.

 

After - much, much better!

I cleaned up some bins and lids I had stored in the garage that were a bit dusty so I can reorganize the games I am keeping into one small bin.  I am feeling pretty good about this little bit of progress I made.

 

I wasn't sad to see all of this old paperwork go

Another bit part of my day was spent pulling out more old paperwork I no longer need and getting it all shredded.  I poured myself a glass of wine and sat on the floor in front of the shredder and had myself a little party.  I am very happy to have all of that out of the house now.  Those do projects have got me energized to keep on going.

 

THINGS WE ATE LAST WEEK:  Spanish rice casserole, pork chops & steamed asparagus, blueberry waffles & sausage, chicken wings, pizza grilledcheese.

 

THINGS I CLEANED IN 15 MINUTES OR LESS: 

Laundry Room & Half Bathroom - Scrubbed sink & toilet, cleaned mirrors vacuumed floors.  Daily swish & swipe. 

Kitchen & Dining Room - Vacuumed & spot mopped floors, scrubbed & bleached sink.  Daily swish & swipe. 

Bedrooms & Main Bathroom - Vacuumed & dusted, cleaned bathroom mirror, scrubbed toilet.  Daily swish & swipe. 

Other - three large loads of laundry.  Vacuumed & dusted living room, hallway & both entryways, cleaned mirror.

 

THINGS I DID TO SAVE A SMALL BUNDLE OF $$:  I let my oldest daughter give me a haircut.  I washed out a gallon sized Ziploc bag so I can reuse it.  I made some foaming hand soap solution and refilled two of our dispensers.  We ate up all our leftovers and kept our food waste to a minimum.  We gave the chickens our kitchen scraps.

 

These are now on eBay

THINGS I DID TO EARN EXTRA $$:  I listed four more items for sale on eBay.  I sold a vintage reproduction cookbook from my Etsy shop.  Yay!  I have loads of vintage cookbooks up for sale right now.  I just love them.

 

More plant starts

Another simple, yet productive week is in the books.  How was your thrifty week?

 

Revisiting An Old Post - Things I Don't Spend $ On

 

Several years ago I wrote a few posts listing all of the things I don’t spend my hard earned cash on.  I thought it would be good for me to review those and see what, if anything, has changed after all these years.  Well, guess what?  With one notable exception, I no longer have to pay for childcare as I stated in my first post on the subject, those lists still hold true.  I still don’t spend my money on those things.  And I don’t feel like I’m missing out on anything either.  Click on any of the titles listed below to access those old posts if you too would like a quick trip down memory lane:

 

This one

This one

And this one

 

What are some things you refuse to spend your hard earned $$ on?

 

I Was Tailor Made For Pandemics

 

I think the reason I did so well during the Coronavirus pandemic is simply because so many facets of it really appealed to me.  I truly do think I was tailor made for pandemics and I will tell you why.

 

#1 Social Distancing – heck yeah! 

Stay away from people?  No problem!  Having to stay 6 feet apart meant no hugging (I am NOT a hugger), fist bumps or awkward hand shaking (why do some people think women need a limp fish handshake?).  I have not missed having people in my personal space bubble one iota.  In fact, I am all for ongoing social distancing for a good long time (oh yeah baby!). 😄

 

#2 Clean Up Your $h#t! 

Pretty sad that it took a mandate from the government and the health departments to get people to do what they should’ve been doing all along (really?), but so be it.  I am thrilled to pieces that the shopping carts are finally clean, public restrooms don’t look like a warzone and most people make a conscious effort wash their hands and cover their mouths when they cough or sneeze.  And outside it is much, much cleaner with far less trash on the ground.  We all seem to be a lot more mindful.  Let’s keep it up people!

 

#3 Stay Home. - OK! 

I like (love!) my home and I am more than happy to spend time there.  I have never quite fully understood the need to constantly be on the go all the time.  What a rat race!  The pandemic really forced people to slow down and spend a lot of time together as a family.  It also had the added benefit of making people take stock of their lives and realize what is truly most important.  And we got a lot of really great parodies on Youtube out of the deal too.  People seem to be taking more pride in their homes as well by cleaning, purging, organizing and doing more home improvement projects.  Preparing and eating your meals at home, eating at the table as a family (what the?) watching movies and playing games together.  Hanging out and having conversations (whoa! teenagers talking to their parents?).  Fantastic!

 

#4 Re-introduction To Polite Behavior

 

Another thing I’ve noticed is people seem to behave much better.  Since the pandemic no one has shoved my grocery cart out of the way to get what they wanted off a shelf.  I am very rarely even bumped into.  No one has reached over the top of me to grab the butter at the same time I was because their need was suddenly more important than mine.  And because of masks I rarely have to listen to other people yammering away on their cell phones while they mindlessly crowd me out of the way to shop.  People seem to be much more patient and willing to wait their turn too.  Proving once again that good manners are never out of style!

 

#5 Crowd Control

 

Since I’m not a big fan of traffic congestion, large groups or crowds I have to say it has really been nice to go places and not have to navigate a lot of cars or people.  We’ve all managed to find alternatives.  Our parks and trail systems are getting well used for their intended purposes which is a benefit to all of us for fresh air and exercise.  There is plenty of space for all us too.  The air is really fresh and no one is in a great big rush.  I love the new atmosphere and energy we all seem to have now.

 

#6 Life Lessons

 

This pandemic has forced many of us to really think outside the box.  A lot of people learned how to work from home (Zoom meetings with or without pants on) and our children learned how to go to school and college online (in their pajamas).  Many had to learn to shop online (grocery pickup anyone?), cook, do their own repairs, sew on a button, make stuff and even give themselves a haircut.  I personally feel I’ve learned a lot as a result of this pandemic and I think a lot of other people have to.  I am hopeful these lessons won’t be lost once things begin to return to “normal”.

 

#7 Masks – the best part!

 

No ugly mugs!  Because of masks I am drop dead gorgeous every single day.  Even if I have a big gob spinach stuck in my teeth.  And so is everybody else!  Plus!  I always know what my breath smells like (now I only offend myself) and forget about rose colored glasses.  Who needs those when you have foggy ones!  Let’s face it, the world always looks phenomenal through a soft lens and now we have our very own pair at any given moment.  No extra charge!  Masks are so much more than just mere protection.  They are amazing.

 

So, all joking aside (or not), I’d like to know.  What are your thoughts?  How do you plan to move forward once this pandemic is over?  What are some of the lessons you have learned that you will carry forward?  What are your greatest concerns?

 

 

Produce On A Budget

 

I have never bought the excuse that “eating healthy is too expensive”.  A healthy diet has never been out of reach for our family regardless of how much or how little we had to spend.  Sometimes you just have to put a little effort into it, but in this country, good food is available and very affordable.  We are quite blessed with that fact.

 

Part of living well within an extreme grocery budget means that we don’t always get what we want, but rather what is available at a reasonable price.  When it comes to produce I shop seasonally meaning I buy what is typically in season for a particular time of the year.  Fresh plums and peaches in the middle of winter or citrus fruits in the middle of summer are not likely to be on my shopping list.  Not only is shopping seasonally more affordable, but the produce is a much better quality too.

 

Not all produce needs to be fresh.  I purchase a lot of frozen items, especially vegetables.  Not only am I able to prepare a larger variety of vegetables throughout the year, but they last much longer then fresh and the quality is top notch.  Frozen berries are another favorite of mine too and they are available year round as well.  Again the quality of frozen berries is excellent.  I have no problems using frozen fruits and vegetables as a regular part of our everyday meal preparations.

 

To make produce the most affordable I buy fresh when it is on sale and frequently when I find it in the markdown bin.  Items to fix salads, bananas, apples, oranges, potatoes and onions are my most common purchases.  I love spring when asparagus and strawberries are readily available and low priced.  I find frozen veggies go on sale for around a dollar a bag quite regularly and when they do I stock up the freezer with broccoli spears, cauliflower, green beans, peas & carrots and corn.  Frozen veggies are quick and easy to prepare too and virtually no waste either.

 

I do keep some canned vegetables on hand as well.  Not a lot, but some.  My girls like canned green beans and corn and I enjoy canned beets, especially on a salad.  I keep a small supply of canned pineapple, mandarin oranges, peaches and pears.  Canned tomatoes and tomato sauce are the main canned item I stock and I use those a lot in many different recipes.  I try to replace those items as I use them and stock up when they go on sale, which I find they do quite a bit.

I keep it simple, try not to overbuy, especially the fresh stuff and use up what we have so it doesn’t go bad or get freezer burnt.  We eat a lot of produce and are able to keep a nice supply of fruits and veggies on hand at all times.

 

 

Downsizing - Should You Close Your Credit Accounts

 

It really depends on your credit goals as to whether or not one should close an account or not.  If you are planning on making a major purchase, for instance, buying a house, then probably not.  If you are trying to improve your credit score then definitely not as this will have a negative impact on your score for a certain period of time.  If you have more open accounts than you need or can easily manage, then yes, consider closing some of them.  If you lack self-control and find yourself charging up those accounts on a regular basis, then definitely close them, pay them off and wait it out for your credit score to improve.

 

If you are like me with no intention of purchasing another home right away, have no credit issues, and are just looking to streamline your finances then it may be a good time to do some housekeeping.  I have a couple credit cards out there that I do not use at all and have no plans to use them in the future.  However, my credit card company offers me the option to lock those accounts so I am able to keep them open, but they are secured so no charges can be made against them.  I locked those accounts with the idea that I may go ahead and close one of them simply because I really don’t need it.  It has a small credit limit and likely won’t make much of an impact to my overall credit score.  And if it does I’ve got the time for it to recover so I’m not all that concerned about it.

 

I use credit quite a bit, but only if it benefits me.  I have one major credit card I use for small purchases like gas for our cars, some online bill payments, Amazon purchasing, groceries and small miscellaneous purchases.  I use it because I earn rewards points that I redeem at the end of the year for gift cards.  I also have a PayPal account, Home Depot account and recently a tire store account that offers six months same as cash on certain purchases.  With all of these accounts I am very careful to make sure I pay them all off so I do not accrue any interest charges.

 

While it may seem like I have a lot of open credit accounts, you are correct.  I do.  I personally do not have a problem managing them and I regularly check them and keep track of them.  The ones I don’t use are locked.  It is a process and it does require some of my time to do this, but I consider it prudent and a regular part of managing my finances.

 

As time goes on I know it will be a wise idea for me to streamline this process even more and I plan to start closing some of these accounts I no longer need or use.  In order to minimize the impact to my overall credit score I plan to start closing the accounts with the smallest credit limits first at about one account per year.  I do not plan to apply for a mortgage again nor do I plan to make any other major purchases in the near future so having a perfect credit score, although still important, is a little less important to me than it might be to someone else.  Streamlining my finances and protecting my credit will be my ultimate goal as I age.

 

Last Week's Thrifty Moves

 

I awoke to another gorgeous spring morning last Sunday so I was up and at it as soon as the sun was up.  Daylight savings time began and although we lose an hour I am always very happy for its arrival.  I love when it stays lighter later in the evenings and I'd be quite happy if we could just keep it this way all year long.

 

Carne Asada

I started the laundry, fixed myself a coffee and settled in for some writing and financial planning to get my week ahead started off on the right foot.  A quick look in the fridge, freezers and pantry let me know that I did not need to dash off and do any grocery shopping which meant my day was free and clear.  My daughter had to work so I gave her a couple bucks to pick up a bundle of asparagus they have on sale where she works and that took care of that.  I set out meat to defrost for some afternoon meal prepping and in the meantime finished up the load of laundry I had started and then did some crafting.  It has been a very long time since I've been able to spend time in my craft room and I really needed it.

 

Wednesday evening I decluttered the medicine cabinet in our downstairs bathroom.  I tossed out expired cold medicine and items we no longer want, need or used and moved a few items to a better location in our upstairs linen closet.  It was pretty crowded in there before but functions much nicer now.

 

I took Friday off of work to begin a long four day weekend.  My first task that day was an early morning appointment at the DMV to update my drivers license to a  STAR card.  Next, because I was in the area, was to stop in at Wal-Mart on the way home and return a rug I'd bought last month for our downstairs bathroom that was way too big.  I found a replacement, picked up a few more items including three more gallons of water to add to the prepper pantry.  Every time I see jugs of water for a good price I am planning to pick up two or three to add to it until I meet my goal.  FEMA says one gallon per person per day and that we should have a two week supply on hand.  I agree with that but I want to have a bit more on hand to be better prepared.

 

While at Wal-Mart I finally found plastic lids for my mason jars in stock.  I've needed another package of these ever since I started dehydrating food last year but no luck.  I grabbed one for the kitchen and one for the prepper pantry.  I shouldn't need to buy anymore of these lids.  Now to find the flat canning lids in the regular size.  I'm still on the hunt.

 

I still use the lids from parmesan cheese containers on my mason jars too.  In fact I just happened to save one this week.  They are perfect for spices and the jars of dehydrated foods I happen to be using.  They fit perfectly and are really handy.

 

I was planning to use some of my pocket money to buy a few bars of dark chocolate I like, but Wal-Mart was out.  Instead I picked up three packages of pork rinds and a container of my favorite green chile dip.  A great Keto snack and one I will share with Jack.  That kitty loves pork rinds and will actually beg for them.  I also treated myself to a new candle in my favorite hazelnut cream scent.

 

Saturday morning I was able to get a big project off my plate which was to subdivide two peace lilies, mine and one from work, and get them repotted.  I ended up with 7 plants once all was said and done.  I kept two plants (one for me and one for my youngest), re-homed three (my oldest daughter and her roommates) and took one back to work.  The one extra will likely end up back at work once it is done sitting in water for awhile until the roots are stronger and it is ready to pot in soil.

 

All the extra pots I needed came from the dollar store and my garage.  I had picked up a large bag of potting soil at Fred Meyer sometime in December or January so this project has been in the works for a bit of time.  I'm really glad to have it finished up finally.

 

Taco salad

THINGS WE ATE LAST WEEK:  Carne asada & rice, eggroll in a bowl, grilled chicken sandwiches, baked gnocchi, taco salad.

 

THINGS I CLEANED IN 15 MINUTES OR LESS: 

Laundry Room & Half Bathroom -  Scrubbed toilet, vacuumed & mopped floors.  Daily swish & swipe. 

Kitchen & Dining Room -  Vacuumed & mopped floors. Cleaned stove, range hood & microwave. Scrubbed & bleached sink.  Cleaned dining room walls & ceiling, cleaned table & chairs.  Daily swish & swipe. 

Bedrooms & Main Bathroom - Cleaned sink, vacuumed & dusted, mopped bathroom floor.  Daily swish & swipe. 

Other - two large loads of laundry.  Vacuumed & dusted living room, hallway & both entryways.  Cleaned entry way & hallway walls & ceiling, cleaned light fixtures.

 

THINGS I DID TO SAVE A SMALL BUNDLE OF $$:  I returned an item to the store that we didn't need.  I turned off our central heating source and we are now using just the fireplace and our infrared heater set on low as we need.  I did very little grocery shopping so hardly anything was spent of food.  We also ate all of our leftovers so no food was wasted.  We fed some stale bread to the chickens which thrilled them quite a bit too.

 

THINGS I DID TO EARN EXTRA $$:  I moved our latest stimulus payment to my savings account where it will earn some interest.  I had done the same with the one we got at the first of January.  I received my annual bonus at work as well last week and immediately deposited it into savings.  I sold something on eBay.

 

All in all, I had a fairly lucrative and productive week.  I am quite pleased with all that I was able to accomplish.  How was your thrifty week?