Last Week's Thrifty Moves

 

Last Sunday morning I woke up plenty early to begin my day.  Everything outside was soaking wet after a much awaited and appreciated rainstorm hit the night before.  Rain continued off and on throughout the day and I was thrilled.  I opened up all the doors and windows, set box fans at the front and back doors and blew in all that wonderful smelling fresh air.  It was a big slice of heaven, let me tell you.  We have had one hot and dry summer this year.

 

August is the time of year when I begin to prepare for the upcoming winter.  We like to make sure the chest freezer is full, the pantry is stocked and the shelves in our garage where we keep our pet food is filled.  It occurred to me that I haven't done much in the way of grocery shopping this year and haven't stocked up much at all since I got out of the hospital back in April.  When the new month beginning I had an extra $104.82 to roll over from previous months and add to this month's $100 grocery budget.  Not a bad amount to start out with and my youngest and I were determined to make every one of those dollars count.  We really did too!  And!  I still have over $30 to use for extra produce as the month progresses.

 

First thing we mapped out a route and made a list of all the things we wanted to make sure we got.  At the supermarket she works at we picked up ten pounds of boneless skinless chicken breasts and four packages of different flavored grated cheeses.  She used her employee discount to shave even more off the final price.  Thank you very much my dear!

 

Next we headed down the hill to Winco to pick up produce, a few canned goods to top up the pantry and a big bag of kitty food.  Mission accomplished.  We moved onto Cash & Carry (or whatever the heck it is called now) to pick up a large supply of rice noodles (they have the best price) and most importantly the pork and Italian sausage they have on sale.  We picked up two of each.  We also picked up five pounds of grated cheese, five pounds of fresh grated parmesan cheese and a half gallon of cream (gotta keep me in Keto coffees).

 

Next was a trip to the Grocery Outlet store for bacon and whatever else was a super good deal that would add nicely to our pantry.  And since we were in the neighborhood we popped into Wal-Mart (hate that store) real quick to stock up on cream cheese since they have the best price.  Then it was home to unload and put everything away.  Phew!  That was a 2 hour marathon but well worth it.  We have loads of plans for the items we purchased and I'll share all of that with you as we get it all done.

 

I put the onions in an ice cream bucket to corral the loose skins

Not only did I have a great helper along for the ride, but she did all the driving and it was a great life lesson overall.  She came home filled with a sense of pride not only with her improved driving skills, but as a fantastic helper too.  And I could tell she was really soaking up my strategies for super thrifty shopping.  She also had a lot of really great input to add to the process.  I have no doubts she will make a terrific adult.  And she is actually quite excited to help me with the next set of winter preparation plans.

 

Our Friday Albertson's & Fred Meyer haul

I worked all week and on Friday evening the young one and I were back to winter preparations.  I had a short list for the latest sales items at Albertson's and Fred Meyer.  When I got home my  daughter was ready to go!  We headed off right away to pick up the items on my list and she drove.  We got home with several more bags of meat (bone-in chicken breasts 99¢/lb & pork chops 95¢/lb) and pantry items as well as some toilet paper, tissues and dish soap.  It was a good haul and we were ready after it was all put away to get started on some food prep the next day.  I will do an entire post on what we ended up doing.  It was awesome.

 

THINGS WE ATE LAST WEEK:  Keto Crackpot Chicken (w/rice for my daughter), chicken egg drop soup (keto), salmon cobb salad (keto), grilled cheese sandwich (keto), nachos.

 

THINGS I CLEANED IN 15 MINUTES OR LESS: 

Laundry Room & Half Bathroom - Vacuumed floors.  Daily swish & swipe. 

Kitchen & Dining Room - Vacuumed & spot mopped floors, wiped out the microwave.  Daily swish & swipe. 

Bedrooms & Main Bathroom - Vacuumed & dusted.  Daily swish & swipe. 

Other - One large load of laundry.  Vacuumed & dusted living room, hallway & both entryways.

 

THINGS I DID TO SAVE A SMALL BUNDLE OF $$:  I washed out a few Ziploc bags to reuse.  We went through the refrigerator and freezer using up odds and ends as well as ate up our leftovers.  I used one of my Albertson's gift cards to pay for our second grocery trip there last week.

 

Stocked up on some non food items on sale & I had coupons!
The package of wipes was a FREE offer

THINGS I DID TO EARN EXTRA $$:  I worked full time plus two hours of overtime (ssshh! don't tell anyone).  I wanted to try it and see how I did and I did just fine.  We are taking it one day at a time as far as how many hours I feel I can work each day with no expectations.  I just need to get back to normal.

 

Markdown items

How was your thrifty week?