Eat from the Pantry Challenge: The final store trip.

I sent Ronnie to the grocery store Thursday on his way home from work. 

Let's be real, I'm not dragging three kids to the store in single digit weather if I don't have to.

It was a trade off.  I gave Ronnie my nice frugal list knowing full well that he would pick up some extra items.  It's OK.  It happens.

Here's what he picked up:

4 gallons of white milk (sale price $2.99 each)
1 gallon of chocolate milk (sale price $2.99)
2 loaves of bread
2 loaves of deli Italian bread ($0.98 each)
8 one pound butters (sale price $1.88 each)
And the extra:  3 bags of chips, 3 packs of Mountain dew, 1 box of Little Debbie brownies, and 1 tub of french onion dip.

Total spent:  $68.66  ($27.00 over what I had planned on spending).

This months grand total spent: $249.91. 

I'm almost $50 above my goal, but still not to shabby for a family of five for an entire month. 

All in all, I'm really pleased with this challenge.  I've used up quite a bit of food in the freezer and pantry and I've been able to rearrange some things so I can actually see what I have in there. 

I'm marking this one a success!

Check out good(cheap)eats to see how others did with their challenge.

Pantry Challenge: Shopping Trip #3.

Today's trip had quite a few unexpected purchases.  We seem to have picked up a stomach bug that is working it's way through the family. 

I am blessed with a wonderful pediatrician who loves nurses and was nice enough to call in Phenergan suppositories for us without having to drag everyone in for an office visit. 

This shopping trip was initially for just a few basics, but things change when kiddos (and parents) get sick.

Here's what I picked up this week:
4 gallons of milk
3 loaves of bread
5 dozen eggs
Large bag of organic apples
Large Colby jack cheese
Large bag Malt O Meal "cheerios"
3 pounds of bananas
Large grape juice
Large cranberry cherry juice
1 butter
6 pack cherry Pepsi bottles
3 large grape Gatorade
3 large pink Gatorade
2 packs fruit chillers
3 new toothbrushes
1 can Lysol
1 pack of Clorox redi-wipes
Probiotics
Prescription for phenergan

Total spent:  $83.31

This makes my overall total for the month $181.25.  Seeing how it's only the 19th, it's highly unlikely I'll make my goal of only spending $200 this month, but that's OK.  I'm still using up a lot of food from my freezer and pantry.  I could have cut out some money from this trip by using my homemade cleaners, but I was almost out.  And frankly, I'm not feeling the best yet either.  It's just easier to use the wipes and Lysol. 

The rest of the challenge is going well.  I've had my friend Tracey over for coffee and my Aunt Lynn is coming over on Monday for lunch.  That covers hospitality.
The boys have been making new recipes for treats which covers catching up on our cooking class.  We haven't eaten out at all this month - which is actually amazing.  We've picked out our three cows for this year and have the money set back to pay for them in February.  And lastly, I've been completely transparent with my spending, even though I'm not doing the best.  All in all, not to bad.

To see how others are doing with their pantry challenge, check out good (cheap) eats. 

Pantry Challenge Update: Week 2.

Week two is done.

I narrowly avoided eating out twice this week.  Both times we were hungry and on our way home from church.  I think this weekend I'm going to make some granola bars or grab some apples before we load up.  Then we can snack in the car before we get home.  Oh, and please don't think it's a long trek back home.  It's all of fifteen minutes.  With all the wailing and gnashing of teeth though, it can be a very long fifteen minutes. 

This week, I stayed under budget.  I'd love to tell you it's because I'm an awesome planner and I meticulously went through my menu and what was needed most.  But that's just not true.  At all.

I was exhausted last night and I ran to the store on the way home from work with no real plan.  I just had in my head what we needed - mostly milk and bread.  I think it will all work out.  I still have a pretty good stock pile to use up. 

Here's what I picked up this week:

4 gallons of milk
3 loaves of bread
1 large block of colby jack cheese
1 large sour cream
1 bag of frozen biscuits
6 pack of Mountain Dew (for Ronnie's lunch)
Bag of clementines

Grand total for week 2:  $39.13

Not to shabby. 

My total amount spent for the month is $97.94.  This leaves a little over $102 for the next twenty days. 

And that's why it's called a challenge, right?

Don't forget to head on over to good (cheap) eats to see what other bloggers are doing.

Pantry Challenge: Week One Shopping Trip.

After homeschool co-op today I ran into Walmart to pick up a few groceries.  I'm trying to keep my groceries under $200 for the month of January. 

Here's what I picked  up:
3 gallons of milk
1 small block pepper jack cheese
1 large block cheddar cheese
5 dozen eggs
2 loaves bread
1 package of hot dog buns
Mustard
Ketchup
1 can refried beans
2 fresh pineapple (price matched with Shop & Save at $0.99 each)
2 small caramel white chocolate Coffeemate creamers ($1 off coupon for each)
1 large coconut cream Coffeemate creamer ($0.75 off coupon)
Cascade rinse agent (free with coupon from new dishwasher)
1 box of Trix cereal - no coupon.  Reward for kids good behavior in store.

Total after coupons:  $44.36

I was pretty excited about staying in budget....until I got to the van and realized I forgot to get dog food.  Add another $14 to the total. 

I'm trying my best to keep a good attitude.  It just seems like every time I turn around there is another big repair.  $411 to fix the van, $68 for the freezer, $165 for the stove and today $135 for a new battery for my van.  All in the last thirty days.  Seriously?  I feel like all the hard work I did staying on budget for Christmas has just gone down the drain.  And while I know that's not true, I honestly felt like crying when I realized I forgot the dog food and would spend more than I wanted to spend. 

On a positive note, I made an awesome dinner tonight.  Loaded nachos.  I foolishly asked the boys as we were eating "Does anyone else think these are great, or just me?"  Josh answered "No.  Just you."  Funny!  They must have thought they were great too.....it was a clean plate club all around. 

Week one total:  $58.61.

Not to bad. 

Hop on over to good (cheap) eats to see how others are handling the challenge.

A pantry challenge....again.

I know.  I just did this in October. 

I really wasn't that successful then so I'm going to try again.

This time I'm joining up with Jessica at good (cheap) eats  as we try to "waste not, want not". 

Here's my goals for this time:

1.  Limit my grocery bill to $200 for January 2013.  This is going to include my groceries, toiletries, dog food....everything.  I know it's tight, but that's why it's called a challenge, right?

2.  Eat out only once in January.  OK, I'm really hoping to not eat out at all in January, but I'm trying to be realistic here.  We do budget for eating out, so that won't come out of my $200 grocery money.  I am however going to avoid the drive thru this month. 

3.  Save $100 for my chicken fund.  That's right.  Ronnie has finally wore me down about getting chickens.  Let's face it, he always gets his way eventually (goats? bees?).

4.  Save $100 towards the livestock auction.  We're considering buying two calves at auction this year and selling one to cover the cost of some of our beef.  Good in theory, until you realize it's big money up front.  We already have quite a bit saved for this project.  I'd just like to add a little to it. 

5.  Focus on hospitality.  I am going to have someone over to eat at our home, whether they like it or not!  OK.  That's a little aggressive.  I have gotten into the bad habit of being a bit of a hermit.  I'd like to have a game night with some friends and use what I have in the freezer or pantry to feed everyone. 

6.  Be transparent in my spending this month.  Last time I was able to blame hunting season and an unexpected snow storm for over spending.  This time I'm going to be hard core.  If I spend it - you'll know about it. 

7.  Start couponing and price matching again.  It really does save me money.  I just kinda got out of the habit, I guess. 

8.  Teach the boys two new recipes a week.  I started out the school year teaching them to cook using Cooking 101 for Kids by Lynn's Kitchen Adventures, but I keep pushing it to the back burner.  My plan was to do one recipe every two weeks......and so far I've done exactly one recipe.  No better time to play catch up than during a pantry challenge when I won't be buying extras. 

That's all.  And that's enough! 

Check in later this week to see how I'm doing.  The first week is always easy....

Adios Pantry Challenge!

Today wraps up my pantry challenge.  I have to say, with the exception of blowing it when the storm hit, it really wasn't that hard.

I was just telling my mom this week that it's nice to build up a little stockpile because then your grocery money can be spent less on things you need right now and more on buying things when they're priced at their lowest and using them in the future.  I don't have to spend all my grocery budget on items that I'll use this week.  I can use a portion of it to stock up on sale prices and save money.

I basically reached my goals on this challenge.  I was able to purchase/make all but six gifts for Christmas and I made enough room in my freezer to stock up on a couple hams or turkeys if they go on sale at a price I'm willing to pay. 

Another thing I've learned, well more remembered, is how much my family enjoys my baking - especially Ronnie.  I need to bake for him more often.  It makes him feel loved, warms up the kitchen and makes the house smell great.  All this and it's cheaper and slightly healthier than store bought treats.  Well, maybe not healthier.  Just less preservatives. 

So basically hooray, woohoo, yippee!  I'm done. 

Don't forget to check out Tracey at Building My House and see how she's wrapping things up.

Eat from the Pantry Challenge: Week 3 update.

 

 

Week three has gone better. 

 

I'm within budget AND I haven't eaten out all week.  Wait, that's not entirely true.  I did order wings for lunch at work on Tuesday.  And they were pretty great.

 

 

I took my mom for her first trip to Aldi's.  She was surprised at how clean it was and also by her total when she checked out.  I was too busy showing her stuff we use and like and amazingly enough ended up with three boxes of sugary cereal when I got home.  Those boys are like ninjas sometimes.

 

We've stayed to the menu plan this week.  I've made oatmeal, cocoa wheats and eggs for breakfast and sandwiches and leftovers for lunch.  I also made my pudding chip cookies and some banana bread for snacks. 

 

We're having a Pastor's appreciate dinner after church on Sunday evening and it turns out, I don't have to run to the store to pick anything up.  I have pantry goodies to use.

 

I have finally freed up some room in my big freezer.  Which is good since I picked up my last batch of chickens this week.  I cut these final ten whole chickens in to parts.  I froze the breast and wings and canned the remaining parts.  I'm hoping to have time this weekend to cook all the saved carcasses I have in the freezer and make, then can some chicken stock.  Once again, not a hard task, just time consuming.

 

This week has been a pantry challenge success.  I'm going to pick up a couple of gift cards for Christmas with my leftover grocery money.  Yeah me! 

 

Check in with Tracey and see how she's holding up with one week to go.

 



Eat from the Pantry challenge: The "not doing so well" edition.

Let me start by saying that Sandi was just an inconvenience for us.  I was watching the news last night, heartbroken for those people who have so many needs and so little left.  It's so overwhelming.

This week was essentially a big old bust with my pantry challenge.  Well, sorta.  I stayed within my $40 for food, but I had to spend extra money to make sure we had gas for the generator ($50) and I also had to buy a new nursing uniform because I fell in mine and ripped the entire hind end out of them.  ($45).  Nice. 

And since I'm an all or nothing kind of girl, I'm probably going to top it all off by eating dinner out tonight and going to see Wreck It Ralph with the family. 

Better luck next week, right?

Don't forget to check and see how Tracey is doing over at Building My House. 

Eat from the Pantry: Week one update.

Well, I've almost got one week down.  So far, so good.

Here's what I've made this week:

Breakfast:  Cocoa wheats x 2, oatmeal, eggs & fried potatoes
Lunch:  Veggie tray & baked potatoes, chicken salad, leftovers, PB&J.
Snacks:  Veggies & dip, apples, animal crackers, and popcorn
Dinners:  I stayed on my menu plan.

And here's what I've purchased at Walmart:
2 dozen eggs
2 loaves bread
2 gallons of milk
1 iron - my iron broke.
Total spent: $16.82

We also ate breakfast out as a family on Wednesday.  We went to Bob Evans and used my BOGO coupon, combined with a Birthday meal coupon.  With drinks and tip our bill was $25.68. 

My total spent for this week is $42.50.  Over by $2.50.  Still, not bad considering I had to get an iron.  I guess technically the iron doesn't count, but since the goal was to move grocery/household money to my Christmas money envelope, it kinda does count.  I mean, it is still less money I have to move over.  Still a pretty great start to the challenge. 

In the interest of total disclosure, I did have another unexpected trip to Walmart on Thursday.  Ronnie is taking the boys hunting Saturday and they needed new blaze orange gear and snacks, of course.  We actually have a "hunting" envelope for these things.  I'm not counting it because it was money already set aside for this purpose. 

Don't forget to hop over and check out Tracey at Building my House and see how she's doing.

Fall Eat from the Pantry Challenge.

Eat from the Pantry Fall Challenge

 

 



Some of you may remember my eat from the pantry challenge in January.  It's a way to use up all the deals you've purchased, as well as a great way to save some cash. 

Tracey from Building my House will be joining me on this challenge.  No better time to clear out the freezers for the sale turkeys and hams I'm hoping to get as well as save some cash to put toward Christmas gifts. 

Here are my goals for the next four weeks:

• Free up two shelves in my freezer
• Go to the grocery store no more than three times this month.
• Attempt to limit my purchases to produce, dairy, and eggs.
• Allow myself to stock up within budget on any sale/coupon match ups.
• Limit my grocery/household budget to $40 per week.

I'm going to use my remaining grocery money to hopefully finish buying my remaining Christmas gifts.

The challenge begins on Monday, October 22nd and will continue until November 16th.  That should be enough time to make a dent in the freezer and still have plenty of time to plan Thanksgiving dinner. 

I'll be updating you on Friday's to let you know about my shopping trips, victories, failures and any mental breakdowns I might be having. 

Interested in joining me?  Just link up below.

Eat from the Pantry Challenge: Wrapping it up.

I DID IT!! 
(Insert Rocky music here)

I made it through January shopping my pantry first. 

So, here's my goals and how I did.

1.  Lower my grocery bill.
       Yup.  Done.  Less than $200 for the entire month.

2.  Use up deals from the pantry.
       Check mark here too.  I've made room and I plan to reorganize the old pantry
       next week.  I've even made a dent in the freezers so that I can do a small amount
       of freezer cooking in February, if I so desire.

3.  Teach Josh to make one recipe a week.
       I'm a little lenient on this goal.  I mean, is heating up corn really a recipe?  No, but
       it's still a help at dinner time.  So he made pudding, corn, muffins, and measured
       ingredients and dropped the no bake cookies we made.  He did the stove top
       cooking only with my overprotective supervision.  Still, I think he did great.

4.  Put money in our emergency fund.
       This was a total failure.  But as I said before, it could have been much worse.
       That hot water tank coupled with losing our renter really took it's toll this month.
       But, we're not in debt over any of it.  So that's actually a pretty great thing.
       Maybe I'll change this to a minor failure instead.

So what I've learned is to be more diligent with using what I have.  To take the time to check and see if I need something before I run to the store and assume I'm out.  (Six bottles of cinnamon, I'm talking about you.)

I've also learned to plan for leftovers.  I'm not saving anything if I'm throwing out food each week.  I am still amazed that I did not throw away a single item of food in the past four weeks.  I figured out a way to use everything, whether for lunches or leftover night. 

I'm keeping leftover night.  One week we didn't really have enough for leftover night, so we made due with breakfast for dinner.  But in general, it's a great way to use up what you've already made and give yourself a little break as well.  That's a win-win in my book.

All in all, a great success.  Thanks to Jessica at Good(Cheap)Eats for this challenge.  It was fun!

Eat from the Pantry Challenge: Shopping Update.

Well, I got the shopping bug out of my system on Thursday.  I'm going to be totally honest with you and let you know I am straight out bragging in this post. 

I ran a ton of errands on Thursday with the boys.  This would usually consist of lots of money spent on both stuff and a trip to the drive thru.

Not this time.

We started out at The Shoe Story in Bridgeport where we used the $50 gift cards they each received from Aunt Lynn to buy new shoes.  Surprise, surprise.  Everyone's foot had grown! 
We picked out three pairs of shoes (and yes, they all picked the same shoe) for a grand total of $127.   Insert happy dance here.  We actually have a little bit of a balance left over. 

Then we ate our packed lunches in the van and proceeded to Aldi's. 

I love Aldi's.  Seriously.  I do. 

Here's what I picked up:
Dishwasher gel
Juice boxes
2 Spaghetti sauces
Parmesan cheese
Paper towels
Lettuce
Pepperoni
10 packs of Moo Tubes (like GoGurt)
Apple juice
Cereal (OK, this was a bribery item for good behavior)
3 gallons of milk
1 tub of oatmeal
2 loaves of Italian bread
Grand total:  $33.98

Do you see why I love that store?

We then went to the radio station to pick up a gift card.  I won a $10 gift card to BW3 by singing random 80's foolishness on the radio last week.  As a bonus, the nice lady there gave us an impromptu field trip of how a radio station works.

So here's a picture of everything I picked up on Thursday:

For a mere $33 out of my pocket. 



Bazinga!!

Eat from the Pantry Challenge Week 3.

I have an itch.  It's almost uncontrollable. 

An itch to go shopping! And here's the thing.... I still don't really need anything. 

I've sailed through the last two weeks of the pantry challenge without any desire to go to the store.  This week, I don't know why there's a difference.  I just know that there is a difference.  Don't worry though.  I have a plan.

I'm taking the boys to Stride Rite today to get them new shoes.  Their Aunt Lynn bought them gift cards for shoes for Christmas.  And yes, I know there are much cheaper places than Stride Rite to get their shoes, but my boys have feet like their Father....big & wide.  In the long run, it's just easier to get them good shoes to start with than to hear about feet hurting or having little piggies with blisters.  Anyway, I received an email about a clearance sale and I thought no better time get the most for my money.  Hopefully that will get my shopping desire out of my system.

This week, I need to stock up on a few necessities and that's it.

Here's the plan:
2 dozen eggs
4 gallons of milk
2 loaves of bread
2 large yogurts
2 blocks of cheese
Large bag of dog food

I can still make a full menu from my pantry and freezers.  If I find a good price on chicken, I'll probably pick it up.  I'm down to one bag and one whole chicken. 

I'm mostly on track with my goals for this challenge.

1.  Lower my grocery bill.
        I'm averaging around $50 a week.  Not bad at all for a family of 5 (and a dog)

2.  Use up deals from the pantry.
        I can actually see a dent in both my freezers and the pantry this week.  While
        there is still a lot there, I now have some room on the shelves.

3.  Teach Josh to make one recipe a week.
        He's made pudding and corn.  Week three we're going to make packaged muffins.

4.  Put money in our emergency fund.
       Well, if you read last week's update, you know things have been crazy tight for us.
       So, while I haven't put any money back yet, I also haven't had to dip into our stash
       that we have set back for property taxes.  I also managed to get some great deals
       around Christmas to cover the five (5!) family birthday's we have in February. 
       I'm not really doing well on this goal, but it could be worse.

One more week to go.....     

Week 2 of the Pantry challenge complete!

So, does it make me a big goon because I'm enjoying this challenge? 

I really like looking in my pantry and freezers and trying to come up with not only ideas of what I can make, but also what's the least amount of groceries I can buy. 

And let me tell you - this has been the perfect month for it! 

Between Ronnie & I both taking a day off work over the holidays, then unexpectedly losing one renter in our apartment (where my grocery money comes from) and an amazing amount of people not paying their rent this month with our storage units & mobile home park.....I needed to spend the least amount of money possible!  Oh, and don't forget the hot water tank that started off my new year by spewing water all over the kitchen. 

The key to remember, in all of this mess, is that this is why we try to live frugally and on a cash basis.  So yes, I may have spent this month "robbing Peter to pay Paul", but at least I had a back up to rob.  We paid cash for our hot water tank.  We have a nice little stock pile of food from taking the time to stock up with sales & coupons.  We have sweat equity involved in our cellar of canned goods and freezer full of beef.  And thank God that we are paid ahead on our rental mortgage until March.

So while the coffers are a little empty right now, I'm thankful.
. 
Thankful that we don't live a financed life anymore. 

Thankful that Ronnie pushed me to take those "boring" Larry Burkett budgeting classes, oh so many years ago, when we were both working full time at good jobs with no kids. 

Thankful that I have a husband who plans for our future (even if some of his schemes scare the pants right off me - like the first year we raised a cow).

Thankful that God always provides what we need.  This month, we were both provided with opportunities to earn extra at work - Ronnie with overtime and myself with taking call. 

Now, back to business:

Week 2 of the pantry challenge has gone great. 

Breakfasts have been a rotation of oatmeal, coco wheats or eggs in some form.

Lunches have been a lot of leftovers and sandwiches, as well as using up some frozen things - nuggets, corn dogs, even hot dogs with sauce that I froze on Labor Day. 

You can check out our dinners here, but it's all been very good and no one has complained. 

My only negative is that I think Ronnie is getting spoiled.  He likes to have a little something sweet each evening before bed.  I've been making more homemade goodies instead of his usual Oreo or Nutty Buddy and I think I may be creating a monster. 

I will have to admit to you that my Mom really can't handle me not buying groceries when I take her to the store on the weekend.  She ended up buying the boys donuts, drinkable yogurt, and a movie last Saturday.  And surprisingly enough, even though I had 4 gallons of milk in the fridge and another 2 in the freezer, she bought me a gallon of milk and a new coconut creamer for my coffee because "I don't want you to run out".  Too funny!

This week, I really don't need very much.

I'm going to price match at Walmart again to save gas from driving out of town.  Here's the plan:

2 gallons of Milk - price match with CVS @ $2.99 a gallon
1 bunch of bananas - price match with KMart @ $0.39/#
2 loaves of bread.

That's it.  I don't need anything else and I can't think of anything I have coupons for that are matching up with sales.  At least nothing I really need. 

I'll definitely hit my $50 goal this week.  And make up for last week's $13 overage (and check out line debate).

Two weeks down, two to go....

This week's shopping trip....and an update you don't want to miss.

Maybe I should have called this my plan for this week's shopping trip.  Ronnie has been taking my van to work because his heater is a little on the fritz, so we've been home bound all week.  No complaining here.  I've been a little wimpy about going out in the cold for no apparent reason. 

I've decided to try harder to pair sales with coupons this year to save more money.  So, while I'm still doing my Eat from the Pantry Challenge, I'm also going to stock up when I see good prices.  I'm going to price match at Walmart, saving gas and avoiding a trip out of town this week.

So here's the plan:

Price match from Target:

Pepsi 6 packs 4/$12
(Ronnie always has pop with lunch at work.  If I don't buy it, he will get one or two out of the machine at work for $1.25 each.  It's cheaper for me to just plan for it.)

Price match from Kroger:

The following sale requires 4 items for discount. 
2 Tide powder (31-40oz) @ $4.99 each
     pair with two $2 off one coupon = $2.99 each
2 Downey liquid (52-60oz) @ $3.99 each
     pair with $1.50 off 2 coupon = $3.24 each

Also, pears at $0.99 per pound, if I have money left over.

Lastly, price match at Walgreens:

1 Dawn 9oz dish detergent, blue @ $0.99
    pair with $0.25 coupon = $0.74
Nice & Easy foam hair color @ 7.99
    pair with $3 off coupon = $4.99

Other deals at WM according to Passion for Savings:

Oral B floss @ $0.97
     pair with $1 off coupon = free plus overage
Colgate toothpaste @ $0.94
     pair with $0.75 off coupon = $0.19

As always, I will make sure the WM price isn't less than the sale price at other places and adjust as needed.  All my coupons came out of Sunday's Clarksburg Exponent.  Unfortunately, our Times WV doesn't seem to get all the inserts.  Next Sunday's paper is supposed to have 6 inserts.  I'm going to check Pittsburgh's paper and compare the coupons before I buy.

As far as my actual groceries, all I need are my usual four gallons of milk, two brown sugars, two white sugars, and tea bags.  Everything else for next week will come out of the pantry, freezer or cellar.  I'd like to keep my total under $50.  If I have any money left over after my sales and stock ups, I'll pick up some salad fixins.  If not, no worries....I still have all my canned goodies from this summer and a freezer full of broccoli, zucchini, cauliflower and who knows what else. 

*Update:   I wrote this post on Thursday afternoon, planning on publishing it Friday morning and going to the store that afternoon on my way home from co-op.  But Ronnie had some prescriptions called in and I needed to go to the bank, so I decided to run by Walmart without the kiddos and pick up what I needed.  And that's when it happened. 

While I was waiting in line (and waiting...and waiting), this 20ish year old guy got in line behind me.  He noticed me going over my coupons and ads and asks me "Are you one of those extreme couponers?  I've seen that show!"  He gets so excited he starts telling people getting in line behind him to "pick another line - this lady is an extreme couponer".  I just laugh and tell him that no, I just have about 8 coupons and some price matches.

 I finally get to the front of the line and a young boy is ringing my groceries.  My new Walmart friend tells him "I think she's an extreme couponer...you know, like the show."  The cashier gets excited too and the two of them are adding up the retail price of my groceries before price matching.  Then they proceed to loudly call out the the value of each coupon.  I ended up picking up some Nyquil, three butters, lettuce, Always products and Crest toothpaste for the boys as well as what I listed above.  The total price before price matching and coupons was $93.  After coupons and price matching, i spent $63 and change. 

While I was very excited about my savings, my new friends were crushed.  My cashier was worried that my blog would be ruined because of my additional $13.  He and my new friend behind me then got into a debate about whether my hair color and laundry detergent should count.  As I thanked them both and walked away, the last thing I heard was one of them saying "You can't eat laundry detergent....so it doesn't count!"

Oh Walmart....how you entertain me!

January 2012 Eat from the Pantry Challenge

I'm joining Jessica over at Good (Cheap) Eats for the Eat from the Pantry challenge this month.  How's it work?  Easy.  You simply "shop" your pantry/freezer/cellar before you go to the store.  It really more about making a conscience effort to use what you have on hand, than completely avoiding the grocery store. 

My goals for this challenge are also simple:
           1.  Lower my grocery bill.
                    I don't have a concrete number in mind on this, but I do know that I'd like
                    to keep my monthly total below $200 to $300.
           2.  Use up some of my deals from the pantry. 
                    There's no savings in wasted food.  It doesn't matter what great price I got
                     on an item if it goes bad before I use it.
           3.  Teach Josh to make one recipe a week.
                     I want him to be able to independently make four simple items in the
                     kitchen - pudding, package muffins, salad and a fried egg.
           4.  Put money in our emergency fund.
                     I've been a little discouraged this week.  We're going back to the Dave
                     Ramsey's Total Money Makeover and the envelope system.  I had an
                     extra $500 saved up towards our goal.  Good right?  It was good, until
                     our hot water tank blew up - leaving water all over the kitchen.  Our new
                     hot water tank was $549.  I know I should be encouraged.  Seven years
                     ago we would have had to put an unexpected expense like this on a
                     credit card.  We've come a long way.  It's just still a little
                    disappointing.

 My menu plans will be from my pantry this month.  I went to WalMart on Saturday with my mom and by price matching, couponing and not buying pre packaged items, I spent $52 on 5 gallons of milk, 6 loaves of bread, 5 dozen eggs, dog food, fish food and turtle food, 2 large yogurts and (my favorite) coconut cream creamer.  I'm not planning on going to the store again for two weeks.  Mostly because I spent all my money on the hot water tank.

I'm looking forward to the challenge.  Interested in joining me?  Check out Good(Cheap) Eats link above. 

Eat from the Pantry Challenge Update

Things have gone really well with my Summer Eat from the Pantry Challenge.

Until now.

I have made due, gone without, and substituted without any complaints.  I have emptied a lot in my pantry and freezer and it feels great to know that the good deals I found aren't going to waste.

Today, however, is the last day I go without.  Why, you ask?  Why couldn't I stick with this challenge for a month?  What could be so difficult that it would make me run right back to the evil empire (WalMart) so soon?

This.

This beautiful liquid gold that makes my mornings just a little better.  It reminds me of all the good things about getting out of bed at 5am.  And trust me, I need reminded of that.  Every. Single. Day.

I have been out of my favorite creamer for three days now.  My coffee has been sad and lonely and unenjoyable with just skim milk.  My creamer is the best 2 WW points I spend all day.  By far. 

So, if you see me at the evil empire today, feel free to call me a loser.  I understand. 

I just don't care....because I'm off to have my coffee. 

Crock Pot Tilipia

What do you do when you get back from swim lessons at noon and realize that you forgot to thaw the chicken legs you were having for dinner?  Hypothetically, of course.  I would never forget anything.  Ever.

Well, first you pray as you open the freezer door that there are at least five pieces of fish left in the freezer.   

Then you make this:

Crock pot foil tilipia.

It's quick.  It's easy. It's inexpensive.  You know that's my perfect storm of a recipe.

Here's what you do.

 Mix together the following:
1/3 cup mayo
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese (the green can is fine)
3 TBSP lemon juice
1 1/2 TBSP minced garlic
Salt & Pepper to your liking

Then lay your fish on a sheet of foil and cover with the mayo mixture.

Wrap up the foil into packets.

Cook on low for four hours. 



I'm going to serve it with a can of corn from last year's garden and a salad. 

Wait,  I mean....who ever forgot to thaw dinner would probably serve it like that.

You know. 

Not me.

I'm perfection personified. 

Just go make the fish.

Summer Eat from the Pantry Challenge.

I usually join in with Good Cheap Eats for the eat from the pantry challenge in January.  It's always a great time to save a little money and eat up some of the stock pile.  It really helps to keep your food rotated so you don't find a ten year old box of Hamburger Helper in the back of your pantry.

I've decided to do the same thing this summer.  Ronnie bought another cow this Spring, which means I'll have a full freezer again this fall.  No better time to eat up what we have.  In past challenges, I would still go to the store for the basics like milk and eggs.  I've never counted those kind of staples in my challenge.  The point is to use what you have.  Take advantage of all those great sales by actually using what I bought.

I've decided to not be quite so militant about it this time.  If I find a great deal in the ads on Sundays, I'll probably still stock up.  But for the most part, I'm going to try to be creative and use what I have.  This should help me thin out the freezer for Lucy 2's big day (the cow) and as a nice bonus, I can shift some grocery money to help pay the $307.17 I owe UHC for all of Joshua's medical testing.  Ouch. 

I'm also going to try some freezer cooking with what I have on hand.  I was amazed at just how convenient having meals in the freezer really was.

I'll keep you updated on how it goes.