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Archive for September, 2018

Shopping on and off list

September 29th, 2018 at 08:10 pm

We went on to Target today - dangerous place because of possible impulse purchases.

On the list:
- Birthday present for F's friend K
- 2 pairs black leggings (on sale $4 each!) for F
- watch for F to replace hers that broke (they didn't have what she wanted; I just ordered it online)
- ziplocs
- eye stuff for dry eyes (I couldn't figure out what to get, so I didn't get anything, then I called my brother and he said "just saline solution" so I'll have to pick that up later)

Not on the list:
- a bag of candy corn. I have a candy corn obsession; I only eat it once a year, but I know it's awful stuff. I got the real-sugar-not-corn-syrup variety, and I'm bagging half for my friend M who has the same problem I do! I'm having lunch with her on Tuesday, so I can give it to her then.

Found a gift bag that someone gave us (we save those) to put K's present in, and we'll leave in half an hour for the party.

Overspending in September; ugh.

September 25th, 2018 at 04:03 am

I have not written in a LONG time. Have been super busy!

I will now report on our recent money-wasting behavior (I am very ashamed, but in the interest of accountability, here goes):

- We spent sooo much money on groceries this month. I have no idea why; I thought my meals were frugal. I think F is eating a lot now that she's playing in 2-3 soccer games a week and practicing every day except Wednesday and Sunday. I have $65 left for our next grocery shopping (Sunday). I am going to move $ from another category and increase the budget through soccer season!

- We went to a concert for our anniversary last weekend. It was a waste of money. The music was good (New Orleans, Trombone Shorty!), but it was too loud, and I didn't think it'd be loud so I didn't bring earplugs. It was up in Taos and all the old hippies were blowing pot smoke in our faces, so we left early. We had to get a hotel room because it's too far to drive back. And they didn't let you bring in food, so we had to eat there. We had to pay for petsitting. I feel like we shouldn't have gone.

- We are not able to go to my niece's wedding in two weeks; we need to switch the tickets to some time in January (my niece is going to tell us when is a good time to come out so we can hang out with her and her new husband), but we have one leg on Southwest and another on Alaska Airlines. I know you can change Southwest. We can't look into the Alaska Air flight until we know the new dates! And I don't want to harass the bride!!

- D had an evening lecture he was organizing for work and spent almost $23 on dinner! They do not reimburse. I can't really be angry since he makes more than he used to at this job and he's entitled to a meal out every so often, but $23 for one person!

- Because of the trip to Taos and the lecture series and driving to the middle of nowhere for a soccer game, we've spent a lot on gas this month.

- D bought hubcaps for my car. It was only $28 for four of them, and I did need them (I was missing two). It's justified, but I'm still wondering - are hubcaps just cosmetic?

- I got our booster membership for this year for the school's athletics; it is still a lot cheaper than club soccer. It's budgeted for, so I shouldn't even be worried about it.

- My sneakers were slipping all over the floor when I was teaching lunges (and had a big hole in the top), so I had to get new sneakers. I used the money I get for teaching.

So, there you go... A month of overspending.

Plan for next month:
- careful meal planning (with a bit bigger budget for food)
- pay down categories where we overspent

Some Very Specific Thoughts about Food

September 2nd, 2018 at 06:34 pm

Labor Day weekend! We are getting together with friends tonight at our house, and tomorrow night at our neighbor's house.

Tonight - I have a huge crockpot of chili bubbling away. My friend is bringing a salad and cupcakes. I'll have tortilla chips and sour cream and cheese. I figure I spent $30 on all of the ingredients, and the sour cream and cheese will be used for other things as well. We should also have at least one more meal for the freezer out of this depending on how much we eat.

Tomorrow night - Not sure what I'm bringing, but I always have the ingredients for a nice Mary Berry Tunis Cake on hand.

The rest of the week:

Tuesday - F is leaving for her class trip on Wednesday, so she requested Stir Fried Cauliflower and Rice for Tuesday night (she is afraid there won't be much to eat on the trip that she likes, and that is probably true, but they've already talked to her about her GF diet and there are two GF teachers). Anyway, the ingredients for this recipe totaled $5.62. I already have ginger, garlic, green onions.

Wednesday - F will be on her trip (eating frito pies; they told her the menu) so we'll have frito pies, too. We'll use some of the sour cream and cheese from chili night, some of the green onions we already have. We have all of the ingredients for red chili sauce on hand (we do live in NM afterall!) and probably have a side salad with it. Total $3.78.

Thursday - F still on her trip (by this point I will be missing her so much!). She is having pasta that night (they are buying GF pasta for the three of them since the others are having pasta), and so are we. We already have peas and pasta, lemons and garlic. Just needed bacon, goat cheese. So $5.48, and the remaining goat cheese and bacon can be used for other meals.

Friday - F requested kebabs for when she gets back. We have chipotle kebabs with chicken, courgettes, red pepper and mushrooms and a really yummy yoghurt sauce. Ingredients totaled $5.80 because we already have plain yoghurt and other ingredients for the marinade and sauce. We just needed veggies and a lime.

Saturday - We're having tortilla espanola. We have a housewarming party to go to, so we may put this off to Sunday if there's enough to eat there. We will probably bring a salad. So... maybe this is Sunday. Anyway, I bought more mayo for the sauce, but obviously we only use a little bit. Half a thing of eggs, and three potatoes. $8 (and that includes the entire jar of mayo).

I still spent a ton on groceries this week even though are dinners aren't super expensive. I had to get F snacks for the trip because the other kids will be given things she probably can't eat. Also bought GF graham crackers so she can participate in s'mores. They told me no nuts of any kind (there is a severe nut allergy) so I opted for chickpeas, dried fruit, and a fruit/chia bar. I spent a lot on snacks.

Total grocery bill this week is $141 which is a lot more than usual, probably due to the snacks for the trip. And some staples. And feeding chili to everyone tonight! But it's so worth it to hang out with our friends!