Propping up my eyelids with toothpicks...

I’m pooped. I should be in bed but tonight is our weekly watering night (thank you, city of San Antonio and your restrictions) and only from 8 to 10pm. So I have to stay up and move the sprinkler around. Avery is at an off-duty job until 10 anyway, so I’m going to try to stay awake until he gets home.

We’re getting our windows replaced in two weeks!!! You have no idea how thrilled I am about this. We have old, single-pane casement windows on our home. Half of them are painted shut, two are cracked, and several don’t have screens. But in two weeks we will have double-pane windows with screens that we can open…and just in time for the nice fall weather!

Today was my grocery shopping day plus coffee at my in-laws. I really enjoy getting out of the house but boy am I exhausted by the end of the day! Or, by 5-o-clock, I should say. The kids watched two VeggieTales videos this evening just so I could pick up the house in peace and get them straight to bed afterwards. Yes, I know I’m a bad mother.

Grocery shopping was successful though. I’ve been gradually trying to incorporate healthier food into our diets while still staying under budget. Things like cutting out high fructose corn syrup, buying more organic produce, and cutting out processed foods. This week I went to three stores and came home with this:

Target: $18 for lunch meat, Coke, Annie's mac n cheese, and ice for the cooler.
Sprouts: $20 for eggs, produce (minus bananas and lettuce), and trail mix.
H.E.B.: $47 for the rest of the produce and everything else pictured.

I haven’t even been couponing much recently because I don’t really have time for it. Plus the coupons for produce and organics are few and far between. Still, I used four coupons for this trip (guac, napkins, mayo, and Oxiclean) plus a $5 off total purchase at Sprouts. I mostly focused on shopping the sales. Aside from the wipes, trail mix, cheese, Triscuits, bread, tortillas, and C-Boost, everything I bought was on sale or I had a coupon for. The mac n cheese, oranges, apples, green onions, milk, and eggs are organic.

Tomorrow we’re having homemade fish sticks for dinner with the cubed potato/sweet potatoes that Jess recommended on Facebook and leftover broccoli. I have to remember to start dinner by 4 though because AWANA starts at 6-o-clock and we’ve been having a hard time getting out the door on time.

Well, that’s all the time we have for today, kids. Remember, God made you special and He loves you very much. Goodbye!

(See? I told you we watch too much VeggieTales!)

Weekly Savings #12

WALGREENS
- 2 packages of Huggies Snug & Dry diapers: $6.99 each (after two $2/1 mf coupons)
- 1 trial size package of Walgreens diapers: $2.79 (on sale from $3.99)
- 2 Glade scented oil candles: 50 cents each (after sale, two $1.50/1 coupons and a $1 RR)
Used $3 RRs on this transaction.

Total OOP = $17.05
Total Savings = $16.98
(RR Received = $1)

CVS
- 2 12-packs of Mountain Dew: $3 each (on sale 4/$12)
- 2 12-packs of Pepsi: $3 each (on sale 4/$12 with $3 ECBs WYB 4)
- honey roasted peanuts & roasted almonds: $6.20 (after $2/2 CVS coupon)
Used $10.99 in ECBs on this transaction. If I had been smart I would have rolled my ECBs and split this into two transactions, but I had Shiphrah with me and I never think well on my feet when I'm multi-tasking.

Total OOP = $7.29
Total Savings = $19.74
(ECBs Received = $3)

H.E.B.
We had some extra breathing room in our monthly grocery budget, so I spent a bit more than normal on this shopping trip. Still snagged some good deals though.
- 2.32 lbs. bananas: $0.90
- 8 jars Beachnut baby food: $0.64 (after 2FREE, and two $1/3 coupons)
- Cheerios: FREE (after GM voucher)
- HEB potato chips: $2.19
- HEB 25-count paper plates: $1.98
- 3 boxes Gerber organic oatmeal baby cereal: $2.13 (clearanced for 71 cents each)
- HEB 1/2 gallon whole milk: $1.99
- 2 Trop 50 Orange Juice: $4.98 (on sale for $2.99 each plus a yellow $1/2 coupon)
- 2 boxes Kraft Velveeta Shells & Cheese: $1.54 (after $1.50/2 mf coupon)
- 2 cans Old El Paso refried beans: $1.38 (after $0.60/2 mf coupon)
- 2-pack Wholly Guacamole: $2.69 (after $1.50/1 mf coupon) --> this is the BEST tasting store-bought guac EVER!
- Lawry's seasoned pepper: $2.66
- HCF onion powder: $1.13
- Van Camp pork & beans: $1.59
- Pace Picante sauce: $1.74
- HEB American cheese: $1.67
- HCF cat food: $5.88
- Angel Soft 12-double-roll toilet paper: $5.47 (after $0.50/1 mf coupon)
*HEB MEAL DEAL*
- Pre-cooked thick & tasty hamburgers: $8.99
- HEB tortilla chips: FREE
- HEB Cola: FREE

- HEB hamburger buns: FREE
- Kraft deli-sliced Swiss cheese: FREE
- HEB French Onion dip: FREE
*HEB COMBO LOCOS*
- Kraft shredded Parmesan: $3.59
- Barilla pasta: $0.30 (would have been free but I wanted the lasagna noodles)
- Barilla sauce: FREE
- HEB Premium mesquite bacon: $5.89
- Mission home style tortillas: FREE
- HCF shredded cheddar cheese: FREE

Total OOP = $60.92
Total Savings = $33.10

Total Weekly Grocery Spending = $62.69
($12.69 over budget)

Weekly Savings #11

WALGREENS
Nothing exciting this week, but I had Register Rewards that were expiring so I had to make a trip (it's annoying that RRs are only good for two weeks).
- True North Almond Crisps: $2 (after $1/1 mf coupon) plus $3 RR
- 4 cans Progresso Soup: $3.90 (after 4/$5 sale and $1.10/3 coupon)
- 12-count box of CankerMelts: FREE (after mf coupon)
- pencil case (for Shiph's crayons): $1.99
Used $6 RRs on this transaction.

Total OOP = $1.89
Total Savings = $19.95
RRs received = $3

CVS
Didn't have to hit CVS this week, but it's literally a block down from Walgreens, so I figured why not. :)
- pretty notebook: $1.25 (on sale 50% off)
- 3 bottles of Suave body wash: $4 (after Buy2Get1 mf coupon) plus $2 ECBs
Used $5 ECBs on this transaction.

Total OOP = $0.27
Total Savings = $10.01

ECBs received = $2
[YTD CVS Savings = $300.99]

H.E.B.
Still good on meat and most staples, so the list was short.
- 2 avocados: $1.58 (these aren't cheap, but I love them in my salads)
- green onions: $0.69
- bananas: $0.95
- 3 Roma tomatoes: $0.48
- Romaine lettuce: $1.79
- 1 cucumber: $0.50 (on sale 2/$1)
- 4-pack submarine sandwich rolls: $1.69
- HCF wheat bread: $0.94
- Trop 50 orange juice: $1.99 (after $1/1 mf coupon)
- HEB unsalted butter quarters: $1.99
- HCF country spread: $1.79
- Wholly guacamole: $0.50 (after 2/$4 sale and $1.50/1 mf coupon)
- Johnsons buddies soap bar: FREE plus 1 cent overage (after $1/1 mf coupon)
- Prego spaghetti sauce: $1.19 (after $0.75/1 HEB mf coupon)
- 2 cans HCF canned mushrooms: $1.18
- 2 cans Campbell's cream of mushroom soupon: $1 (after $1/2 coupon)
- Wacky Mac pasta: $0.54 (after $0.75/1 mf coupon)
(I also bought $24 worth of groceries from the Schwans' guy this week...frozen fruit, hash browns, mini cinnamon rolls, and a pie for our church dinner next week.)

Total OOP = $18.79
Total Savings = $6.28

Total Grocery Spending = $46.68
($3.32 under budget)

FALL/WINTER CLOTHES
Shiphrah and Kirk have both been blessed with family and friends who graciously have given them hand-me-downs. Unfortunately at the rate Shiph is growing, it'll be years before some of the clothes fit her and she's starting to get off-sync with sizes vs. seasons (most of the fall/winter clothes we have from her cousin Livi are 24 mos and Shiph is still barely fitting 18 mos clothing). Kirk has a few long-sleeved onesies and jackets for the fall but no pants. So I talked my wonderful hubby into making a trek to the San Marcos outlet mall to visit Children's Place and Old Navy. I wanted to end up with about a week's worth of outfits for each child. Shiphrah mainly needed shirts (she has plenty of jackets and jeans from last year that still fit) and a few Sunday dresses. Here's what I ended up with (and they should be set until April/May...Texas only has two seasons...Summer [April - September] and Fall/Winter/Spring [October - March]):

Shiphrah
4 long-sleeved shirts

1 sweater

2 dresses

1 pair of khaki pants

1 white shrug for Spring

Kirk
1 pair of shoes
2 pairs of pants
2 long-sleeved onesies
1 long sleeve shirt

Total Spent = $94.48

Weekly Savings #9

I could have skipped the trip to Walgreens again this week, but their Register Rewards expire about two weeks from printing, so I made a quick trip on Tuesday to use the $5 I had before they were no good.
- Pantene hair wax (for hubby) = $3.34
- 3 2-oz Glade soy candles = $2 (after $3/2 mf & 1 FREE mf coupons)
- Rembrandt canker sore whitening toothpaste = $4 (after $1/1 mf coupon)

Total OOP = $4.37
Total Savings = $14.52
(RRs Received = $6)

I headed out to CVS on Thursday and was excited to find them marking down all their summer merchandise! So I browsed those aisles for a bit and came away with two pairs of cute flip flops and some toys for the munchkins. I started off with $4 in ECBs and I also had a CVS coupon for $4/$20 purchase.
- sidewalk chalk = $1.25 (75% off)
- inflatable baby pool = $3.25 (75% off)
- 2 pairs fashion flip flops = $1.99 each (75% off)
- baby pool float = $2.49 (75% off)
- 64-count Crayola crayons = $2.99 (after $2 ECB reward)
- 2 bottles of Dawn dish washing soap = $0.47 each (after two $0.50/1 mf coupons)
- Glade soy candle = $4.99 (after $2/1 mf coupon + $6.99 ECB reward)
- 4 parfait cups = $0.50 each (75% off)

Total OOP = $17.20
Total Savings = $52.32
(ECBs Received = $8.99)

We still have a pretty stocked freezer and pantry, so my HEB shopping list was short. I also picked up a few extra items I had coupons for and some snack food.
- Hass avocados = $1.58 for 2
- Green onions = $0.69 for one bunch
- Bananas = $1.74 for 3.78 lbs.
- Matchstick carrots (because I always cut myself slicing them) = $1.49
- Greenhouse tomatoes = $1.61 for 0.9 lbs.
- Cucumbers = $0.50 for one
- Romaine lettuce = $1.79
- HEB magic erasers (I've discovered these are the ONLY things that will clean the lime build-up off the shower walls!) = $1
- HEB potato chips = $1.09
- Chock Full O Nuts coffee = $2.87
- HEB extra virgin olive oil = $4.79
- 2 bottles of HEB Quench (i.e. Gatorade) = $0.69 each
- Daisy cottage cheese = $1.84 (after $0.65/1 mf coupon)
- Yoplait fridge 8-pack = $2.97 (after $1/1 HEB yellow coupon)
- HCF (Hill Country Fair) hot dog buns = $0.99
- 100-count Vanity Fair napkins = $1.99
- HCF 18-count extra-large eggs = $1.49
- HCF wheat bread = $0.94
- Austin cheese & peanut butter crackers = $3.00 for two packs (after $1/2 HEB yellow coupon)
- Ken's tomato vinaigrette dressing = $1.26 (after $1/1 mf coupon)
- Ken's lite Caesar dressing = $1.26 (after $1/1 mf coupon)
- Simple Green all-purpose cleaner = $2.59 (after $1/1 mf coupon)
- 2 cans Grands biscuits = $0.45 each (after two $1/1 mf coupons)

Total OOP = $40.50
Total Savings = $12.89

Total Weekly Grocery Spending = $42.50
($17.50 under budget)

[Now that I have a good handle on this, starting next week I will be reducing our budgeted weekly grocery spending to $50.]

Weekly Savings - 8/16 thru 8/22

Four stores this week: CVS and Walgreens on Tuesday and HEB and Wal-Mart on Thursday.

CVS deals were a bit slim this week, but they were running an excellent Pepsi deal (an essential for a sleep-deprived mama) through Tuesday (buy 4/$12 get $4 ECBs, like paying $8 for 4 12-packs). I also had $4 ECBs from my purchases last week so I used those to purchase the sodas. After my purchase, two coupons printed with my receipt, a $2/1 Huggies wipes coupon and a $1/1 shaving cream coupon. I got a 64-count tub of wipes and Barbasol shaving cream (the cheapest they had there), used the coupons that had just printed plus a $0.75/1 Huggies wipes manufacturer's coupon.

Total OOP: $10.32
Total savings: $14.56

ECBs received: $4

[YTD CVS Savings: $234.16]

At Walgreens, on the other hand, the deals were a-hoppin'. :) I started with $4 in Register Rewards from last week's interesting trip. This week I went to a different store and it was so much easier. Here's the breakdown of what I got:

- 2 Super Stack cans of Pringles = $2 ($1/2 manufacturer's coupon + 2/$3 in-ad coupon)
- 4 Velveeta Shells & Cheese cups = FREE (after $1 RR, $1/4 store coupon, + 2 B1G1 coupons)
- Softsoap bodywash = FREE ($3.99 with $4 RR after purchase)
- Tub of Huggies wipes = 79 cents ($2/1 store coupon + $0.50/1 manufacturer's coupon)
- 2 Twix bars and 1 Snickers = 47 cents (49 cents ea. in-ad coupon + $1/2 manufacturer's coupon)

Total OOP: $3.77
Total savings: $14.59

RR received: $5

Shiphrah accompanied me to the stores on Tuesday and Kirk came with me on Thursday. This would have been fine except he was asleep when we got to HEB, so I put his carrier in his stroller and then tried to fit all the groceries in the basket under the stroller and in the reusable bag I brought. My arm was killing me by the time we were done. :) Once again, I didn't take a picture of everything I bought...mainly because it was so hot that I needed to get the cold stuff put away right away, but I did take a picture of all of the items I either had coupons for or got for free with a meal-deal (minus the ice cream, which was melting, and the ranch style beans). Here's the breakdown:

- Mott's applesauce = 79 cents (after $1/1 manufacturer's coupon)
- Velveeta Shells & Cheese = $1.02 each (after $1/2 manufacturer's coupon)
- Blue Bell cookies 'n' cream 1/2 gallon = $3.50 (after $5 sale + $1.50/1 manufacter's coupon)
- Kraft shredded cheese = FREE (after purchase of 2 packages of Oscar Meyer hot dogs)
- Knorr pasta side & Ranch Style beans = FREE (after purchase of Eckrich sausage)

I also picked up yogurt, eggs, bread, honey, salad fixings, bananas, lighter fluid, oregano, brown sugar, hot dogs, sausage, tortillas, italian salad dressing, coffee, and a few other random items.

Total OOP: $50.88
Total savings: $14.36

I also made a quick run to Wal-Mart because I noticed they had their Huggies Pure & Natural diapers for $9.72 (most places have them priced at least $3 or $4 above regular Huggies diapers). So I bought three Jumbo packs and used three $3/1 manufacturer's coupons to make them $6.72 a piece. I also found four jars of Beachnut Homestyle fruit and used four '1 free jar' coupons (most places are sold out of these because of the coupon...so far Wal-Mart is the only place I've been able to find them).

Total OOP: $21.80

Total savings: $12.25

Total Weekly Grocery Spending = $64.97

(And no, my numbers don't match up because diapers are in a different budget category. :) But other than that, all paper products and most personal care items are included in "grocery spending.")

Weekly Savings - 8/8 thru 8/15

While there weren't any especially amazing deals this week, I did find a few good buys. Of course, they were all at different stores so I actually went to five different stores this week. I don't usually do that, but Avery was gracious and the stores are all within a 5-minute drive so it's not too much extra gas (that's one of the great things about living in a big city).

I always do the bulk of my grocery shopping at the H.E.B. a few minutes from my house. Their deals run Wednesday-Tuesday though so I usually wait until mid-way through the week to do any shopping. With Avery's days off being Wed/Thurs this works out quite well for me...I usually go during the kids' nap time or take one kid with me and Avery watches the other. (I can take both babies with me, but it's exhausting and takes twice as long...especially when I'm trying to sort through coupons.) Anyway, since I had stocked up on meat last week, my HEB run was mostly made up of coffee, fruit, toilet paper, orange juice, and a few other essentials. My total was $30.73 and I saved $5.86 with coupons/sales. (Sorry, no picture.)

I actually took Kirk with me on that run (wore him in my Mei Tai) but brought him home before heading to Wal-Mart because he was getting too hot (that boy sweats like a little pig and hates being hot). I went to Wal-Mart for just two items: charcoal (we were out and I had a coupon) and Flintstones gummy vitamins (on sale for $5). The charcoal was $7.50 and I had a $4/1 coupon and I had three $1/1 coupons for the vitamins.

Total before coupons/sales: $22.50

Total OOP: $15.60

Total saved: $6.90

Those two trips were on Wednesday. Thursday we packed up the kids and headed out for shopping and lunch as a family. We went to Lowe's first where Avery picked up some sandpaper inserts for his sander (boat project) and then to Target. At Target I got a Jumbo pack of Pampers Sensitive diapers for $6.89 with a $2/1 Target coupon and a $1/1 manufacturer's coupon (it was supposed to be $2/1, but apparently it was coded wrong because it only rang up $1 off), ten boxes of PopTarts for $1.02 each with five $1/2 coupons (and I have submitted my receipt for the $10 Kellogg's Fuel for School rebate), two bottles of Coffeemate creamer for $2.29 each with two $0.50/1 coupons, and two bags of Kraft shredded cheddar cheese for 89 cents each with a Target $1/2 coupon and manufacturer's $1/2 coupon. We also picked up a loaf of bread, a bottle of 7-UP (for the punch for my sister's wedding shower), and a 12-pack of razor refills (I'm not including those though because my husband is picky and buys very expensive products...separate budget category anyway).

Total before coupons/sales: $43.33

Total OOP: $23.24

Total saved: $20.09

After lunch at Chili's, the kids went down for their naps and I headed out to CVS and Walgreens. I had a $5/$25 coupon for CVS that I wanted to use but other than their Huggies ECBs deal (buy 2 packs at 2/$18 get $4 ECBs), I wasn't sure what else I was going to buy to meet the $25 mark. No fear, CVS to the rescue again! I think Bounty is doing away with their Basic 8-packs of paper towels because everyone has them on sale this week. CVS blew away the competition though by pricing them at $1.99 each!!! (That's 25 cents a roll, y'all!) So I picked up four and that easily pushed me past the $25 for the coupon. I used two $1.50/1 Huggies coupons, $1 ECB, and the $5/$25 CVS coupon.

Total before coupons/sales: $57.32

Total OOP: $18.34
Total savings: $38.98

(ECBs received: $4)

[YTD CVS Savings: $195.18]

Finally, I headed over to Walgreens. I could have done without this trip, but we have a brand new store that opened a few minutes away and they mailed us a $3/$10 coupon that I wanted to use. Plus I had heard of a pretty great Huggies wipes deal that I wanted to try. This was my first couponing experience with Walgreens and I was a bit skeptical because I have heard of so many bad experiences with cashiers and such. Well, those fears were well-founded. Although I did score some pretty great deals, I had to convince the cashier to push through several coupons. She couldn't understand the whole free-after-coupon concept and the need to override the price UP so that the coupon would match (another cashier ended up doing it for me) and she was downright grumpy about the whole thing. They were also out of stock of a lot of the items I was looking for, and I hear this is pretty typical of Walgreens in general. (They were stocking when I got there though so at least now I know their stocking day is Thursday.) Anyway, the Campbell's soups were 29 cents each after a 1 @ 79 cents Walgreens coupon and $1/2 manufacturer's coupon, I bought 2 boxes of Bandaids at $1.99 each after a $1/1 manufacturer's coupon ($4 Register Rewards with purchase), one bottle of Women's One A Day for $3.49 and Flintstones vitamins for $2.89 after two $2/1 Walgreens coupons and a $3/2 manufacturer's coupon, and one package of Sharpie Accent highlighters for free after $1/1 manufacturer's coupon. They were all out of the 64-count of Huggies wipes, but I went ahead and got a refill pack because it was still a decent deal. (I say that, but now that I'm looking at the receipt, I think they left off the $2/1 Walgreens coupon, so nevermind, the wipes were $6.24 after a $0.75/1 manufacturer's coupon.)

Total before coupons/sales: $27.61

Total OOP: $15.44

Total saved: $12.17

(Register Rewards received: $4)

Taking out the non-grocery items like the vitamins and diaper products, that brings my total grocery spending for the week to $58.95, just under our $60 weekly budget amount.

And with that, both babies are being very fussy tonight so I think I'm going to put them (and myself!) to bed early tonight.

Cutting Costs 101: The Grocery Budget

In a day and age where the cost of living is rising and companies are making cuts in personnel and salaries, saving money is essential.

So you've dropped your cable subscription, sold one car, refinanced your house, sold some old clothes on eBay, and now might be thinking, "what else can I do? Everything else is a necessity!"

Have you looked at your grocery spending lately? Yes, it's vital to feed your family and that's definitely not discretionary spending, but do you really need to spend that much? According to the U.S. Census Bureau, in 2006 the average American family (2.5 people) spent $3,417 per year on food prepared at home. This averages to $285 per month or $66 a week. That may not seem like much at first glance but remember, that is $66 per week on food items: fresh produce, meat, dairy, etc. Don't include your household products or dining out when figuring your average spending.

Once you know how much you spend, analyze your shopping habits and see what can be changed. Depending on how much you spend, you can save up to 50% of your weekly grocery spending just by following some simple guidelines.

1. Never shop hungry! This may seem like a strange tip, but research shows that individuals will inevitably purchase more than they need when shopping on an empty stomach.


2. Make a list. Again, seems basic, but this simple step will save tens of dollars in unneeded food products.


3. Shop the deals. Take the time to peruse your local grocery ads before heading to the store. Find out what's on sale and see if you can't match those deals with coupons to save even more money. As a basic rule, see if you can't avoid buying anything unless it's on sale or you have a coupon (other than your basic items such as milk, eggs, bread, etc.).


4. Shop at multiple stores. Obviously this needs to be done within reason. If you're spending more on gas than you're saving, cut back on unnecessary trips. However, oftentimes by comparing prices and specials at several different stores, you can save even more. For instance, CVS Pharmacy regularly has milk on sale for $2.69 a gallon, which is much cheaper than you'll get at H.E.B.


5. Stock up. When you find a really good deal on something, buy as much as you can! Like I mentioned in my previous article, Stocking the Freezer 101, pretty much anything can be frozen and most foods can be frozen indefinitely. Steaks on sale for $2.88 a pound? Buy four, keep one in the fridge to use that week and freeze the rest.


6. Plan your menu after you shop. Planning a menu in general can help you save money, but believe it or not, you can save even more money by planning your menu after you go grocery shopping. If it helps to have an idea beforehand, check the grocery ads, make a list, and then plan a tentative menu based on the list and what you already have at home.


7. Avoid over-processed, pre-packaged foods. Sometimes you can find good deals on easy-prep foods, but for the most part you'll save more if you focus on fresh produce, raw meats, basic dairy, bread products, etc. Typically, the fewer the ingredients, the cheaper the product, and it's much healthier as well.


8. Don't buy what you don't need. Again, this seems simple enough, but even the most seasoned shoppers fall into the trap of buying something extra just because it appears to be a great deal. Remember, if you don't need it you're not saving money by buying it.


9. Freeze leftovers. If you cook too much in a meal, don't throw it out or give it to the dog, freeze it in single portions and save it for a "leftovers" night. This works especially well if you wait a couple of weeks to serve the leftovers because then it feels like a brand new meal (as opposed to serving it two nights later).


10. Drink water. Flavored drinks such as soda, juice, and alcoholic beverages are terribly expensive. Drink more water during the day and your grocery bill is sure to drop.

And that's just a few ways to lower your grocery spending. Find out what works for your family and put it into practice!

Stocking the Freezer 101: Meat

One of the best ways to stay within a monthly budget is by taking advantage of grocery sales and specials. To do this, you must be willing to buy ahead and store or freeze what you won't be able to use within a few days or weeks.

An experienced deal-shopper will be able to practice this on all types of items on her grocery list: paper goods, fruits, vegetables, dairy products, bread products, etc. However, if you are just delving into the world of "buying ahead" for the first time, one of the best (and easiest) items to start with is meat.

According the the United States Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service's fact sheet on safe food handling, most food products can be frozen indefinitely without any risk of spoilage. To retain the best flavor, freeze your raw meat as soon as you buy it and use it within 4 to 12 months. Again, frozen foods remain safe for an indefinite amount of time, so all you are really concerned with is quality of taste.

Meats can be frozen in the supermarket wrapping they are purchased in, but for best flavor retention freeze them in heavy-duty foil, plastic wrap, freezer paper, or freezer bags. Make sure to write the date frozen on the outside of the package as well as the type of meat packaged. It is also handy to freeze the meat in meal-sized amounts so it isn't necessary to thaw two pounds of ground beef if you only plan on using one. Unlike you may have heard, however; it is completely safe to re-freeze meat.

Now that you have a basic idea of what you're going to do, go put it into practice! This week in San Antonio, both H.E.B. Grocery and Sun Harvest are running some excellent deals on meat. Top sirloin steak is only $2.88/lb and boneless skinless chicken breasts are only $1.88/lb at Sun Harvest. H.E.B. has split chicken pieces in a 3-lb bag for only $0.99/lb and whole chickens for $0.79/lb. My freezer is full, what about yours?

This post is a part of LifeasMom's Frugal Friday.

Weekly Savings - CVS - 8/3/09

This is certainly the week of great grocery deals! I browsed through the circulars and coupon inserts last night and was thrilled with how much I found! This morning Shiphrah and I headed to CVS and I plan on making trips to Target and Walgreens later this week.

To see which deals you might be interested in, check out your local CVS store circular. They're usually in the Sunday edition of your local paper or you can find them on the CVS website.

CVS is running several great deals this week that I was able to take advantage of in three separate transactions. (If you're new to CVSing you don't have to do separate transactions but I choose to use my ECBs right away in case I don't go back before they expire.)

• Transaction #1: Bought two jumbo packs of Pampers diapers on sale for 2 for $20 and 1 roll of CVS quilted paper towels. Used 1 FREE CVS paper towels coupon (they are running a free gift with purchase special this week), 1 FREE voucher coupon from Pampers (received as a gift) and one $2/1 Pampers coupon from the August P&G coupon booklet. Used $1 ECB from previous week's purchase making OOP (out-of-pocket) expense $5.42. Received $5 ECBs after purchase.
• Transaction #2: Bought two boxes of Velveeta Shells and Cheese on sale for 2 for $6. Used $5 ECBs from previous transaction making OOP expense $1. Received $3 ECBs after purchase.
• Transaction #3: Bought 1 gallon of Oak Farms whole milk on sale for $2.69 and one 10.3 oz bottle of Dawn dishwashing soap on sale for 99 cents. Used $3 ECBs from previous transaction and a $0.25/1 coupon from the August P&G coupon insert for the Dawn making OOP expense $0.44. Received $1 ECB for milk purchase.

So all of this... ...cost me exactly $6.86.

Not bad, huh? How did you do this week?

Edited to add...
I guess I should have included my total savings as well. According to my receipts, I saved a total of $30.95. And before ECBs and coupons my total would have been $31.83, not counting the specials CVS was running (it would have been approximately $35 without the specials).

Number Crunching and Kid Question

Well, Avery's two days off didn't go quite like he planned it. For one thing, our toilet is becoming quite the project. We think now (after spending a chunk of change of cleaning chemicals and solvents and other random tools) that there's a clog or some kind of hard water buildup further down the sewer line. Avery spent hours trying to clean out the toilet with several different nasty-smelling chemicals and all he got for his labor was a clean toilet bowl (i.e. it still doesn't flush well). So by Thursday afternoon he was frustrated and overwhelmed. Poor guy can't ever seem to get caught up on things he wants to do around the house.

Okay, first for the Kid Question. Kirk is thisclose to outgrowing his bassinet. He's rolling and pushing up all the time and I keep worrying that one of these days he's going to push himself out of the bassinet. He also squirms and wiggles and wedges himself in weird positions that can't be comfortable. So why not just transfer him to his full-size crib? Problem #1: we live in a 2-bedroom house. Shiphrah lives in the other bedroom. Problem #2: Kirk isn't even close to sleeping through the night. In fact, most nights he's up and nursing every 3 hours. Problem #3: Shiphrah is the lightest sleeper in the world. So if she and Kirk were to share a room at this point he would wake her up constantly during the night. Problem #4: I would be fine with keeping Kirk in bed with us, but he hates being constricted and kicks me all the time (nighttime nursing is no longer very fun). Problem #5: we could put the full-size crib in our room...if our room was big enough. I honestly don't think we could fit in there without rendering one of the closets unreachable. So what do we do? I wasn't planning on having these problems because I honestly thought Kirk would be sleeping through the night at this point. Families with several kids lived in tiny houses for decades...the Duggars did it with 6 kids for goodness' sake...why is this so difficult??

Finances are beginning to be a bit of an issue again. Avery's salary has increased considerably since graduating from the Academy, but so have his expenses. The city deducts about $500 a month for his pension, plus all the other fees for the union and his retirement health insurance. Altogether it adds up to about $700 a month, which basically wipes out all but $100 of his raise. We desperately need to be saving towards the purchase of a new-to-us car, but we're finding that difficult since we're also trying to pay off our accumulated debt from having a baby and equipment expenses from Avery's change in career. We've also had a lot of unexpected expenses in the past few months like trying to fix the toilet and random gifts (wedding, birthdays, etc.) that have kept us from both saving and paying off the debt.

Ugh, I just got a call from one of those travel agencies wanting to give us "free gifts" in exchange for listening to their presentation. Thankfully we're not within their income requirements, but the guy actually told me to just lie on the application. What?!? And then AFTER they go through everything they say, "oh and by the way, NO KIDS ALLOWED." Gah, stupid call centers!

Anyway, where was I? Oh yes, money. :) On a positive note, we've been doing awesome with our grocery and eating out budgeting. I'm actually under budget by about $50 this month for groceries and right on budget for eating out. I know I've mentioned this before, but we budget $60 a week for groceries and $40 a week for eating out (this is because Avery eats out every night during work...he tries to at least find places that offer a uniformed officers discount, but it's still at least $15-$20 a week) for a total of about $400 a month on food (and household supplies like toilet paper and such, not including diapers). In fact, I only had about $25 worth of groceries to buy this week so I stocked up on a few things like napkins and toilet paper. If only I could stick to a budget this well in other areas! :)

Well, gotta go. As soon as Shiphrah's favorite movie is over ("MEENO!") it's bath time and then to bed for the babies. Then a 20-minute cleaning spree, dinner, laundry, and another 20-minute cleaning spree for Mama. Then if there's still time left I'll try to fit a 30-minute work out before Avery gets home.

(Ooooh I just sold 6 coupons on eBay for $3!! Yay!!!)

Dinner on a Budget: Steak and Potatoes

This is the first installment of a new blog series about planning meals on a budget. I’ll try to post one of these dinner ideas weekly, but no promises, I do have two kiddos under the age of two to look after as well. :)

Serving delicious, yet inexpensive meals for your family isn’t difficult. It just takes time and a little extra planning. However, sometimes it’s easy to get stuck in a rut with meal-planning. I know from time-to-time I like to serve slightly nicer meals, but don’t want to break the bank.

Steak dinners at most mid-range restaurants will run you anywhere from $10 to $20 a person. Serving a meal like that at home can seem daunting, especially when you check out the prices of steak at your local grocery store. However, if you plan ahead, you can serve a similar meal for a quarter of the cost. For example, Chili’s Grill and Bar has an 8-ounce top sirloin steak on their menu for $12.99. The steak comes with two sides and a piece of garlic toast. I will show you how you can serve a similar meal for around $3 a person.

First of all, scan your store circulars for deals on steak. If you have a Sun Harvest in your area, they regularly (about once a month) have top sirloin steak on sale for $2.99 a pound. I went last month and bought three steaks, each just under two pounds. (HEB Grocery also runs similar sales, but theirs are a bit less often.) If you do the math on price per ounce, an 8-ounce piece comes out to $1.50.

For my side dishes, I chose baked potatoes, sautéed peas and mushrooms, and dinner rolls. Instead of buying expensive baker’s potatoes, I opt to buy 5-pound bags of russet potatoes and specifically choose bags with several large potatoes in them. Russet potatoes vary in price from week to week (I’ve gotten them for as low as 99 cents), but for our purposes we’ll set the price at $2.49 for the bag. That’s about 25 cents per potato, give or take. The sautéed peas with mushrooms is one of my all-time favorite “gourmet” side dishes. Each serving of frozen peas is roughly 22 cents and a 4-ounce can of mushroom pieces is 59 cents, or about 30 cents a serving. Sauté the mushrooms in a little butter, boil the peas until they’re tender, combine, and season with salt and pepper to taste. Finally, I chose dinner rolls because we had previously bought a bag of Rhodes dinner rolls for $2.99 (roughly 10 cents a roll). These are basically just balls of dough, so they’d be easy enough to make on your own, but for me the convenience is definitely worth the added cost.

Then add about 40 cents a person for baked potato toppings (butter, shredded cheese, and sour cream) and about 25 cents a person for charcoal. And there you have it:

8-oz top sirloin steak = $1.50
Baked potato with toppings = $0.65
Peas ‘n’ mushrooms = $0.52
Dinner roll = $0.10
Charcoal = $0.25

Total cost = $3.02 a plate.

(And if you prefer T-bone over top sirloin, Sun Harvest and HEB occasionally have sales on T-bone steaks for $3.99 or $4.99 a pound, bringing the cost of your meal up a bit.)

And as an added bonus, if you grill extra steak you can use the leftovers to make a delicious beef stroganoff dinner. I found a recipe I loved here: http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Campbells-Kitchen-Beef-Stroganoff/Detail.aspx. Just slice the leftover steak and add it to the sauce at the end. Delicious!

Recap of a Lovely Weekend

I was all excited about blogging about our oh-so-lovely weekend last week and telling y'all how much I was looking forward to this weekend because Avery gets THREE whole days off...and then my phone rang. Hi, babe. Listen, my sergeant just told me that they switched my next FTO because the other one is going on vacation so my days off are Thurs/Fri instead. So I only get Friday off this weekend. *Sigh*

Anyway, at least last weekend was nice. We started off the weekend with a Date Night. Avery's sister had texted me on Thursday asking if we had plans for Friday. She was off and missed her niece and nephew and wanted to babysit for us. No need to ask us twice! :) So Aunt Lizzy came over to watch the kids around 4 and we headed over to the Quarry to see "Night at the Museum: Battle for the Smithsonian." It was cute...Avery probably liked it a bit more than I did...what is it with guys and their love for goofy, slapstick humor? (Last night he about fell out of his chair laughing when he was showing me a scene from "The Benchwarmers." I don't get it.) After the movie we walked over to Chili's for dinner and enjoyed all sorts of fattening foods like Texas Cheese Fries (love, love, LOVE!) with Ranch. Mmmmm, my mouth is watering just thinking about it! I also got a Chili's Classic Margarita which, if any of you drink margaritas, is absolutely AMAZING!! Seriously, the BEST 'rita I've EVER tasted! It's not too strong, has three different types of alcohol (I don't care for 'ritas with just tequila in them), and has fresh lime juice added. So delicious! Anyway, we also had a gift card to help with dinner, so the whole night ended up costing us a grand total of $28. Not bad considering we were extra generous with the tip too. :) By the time we were done with dinner it wasn't even 8-o-clock yet, so we were tempted to stay out longer since we had a babysitter. But Avery missed the kids (he doesn't get to spend much time with them) so we headed home, after stopping at the grocery store to pick up shaving cream, hair gel, and sodas.

Speaking of sodas, you will not believe what they had at the store! CODE RED MOUNTAIN DEW!!! You know, that stuff they stopped selling in grocery stores over a year ago and now you can only find it in 20 ounce bottles at Shell gas stations??? Oh my goodness, I was elated!!! I am in love with the cherry goodness of the smooth Mountain Dew! They had exactly TWO 12-packs on the shelf. I would have bought both, but Avery only had two arms (he had to have his Pepsi) and we didn't get a cart. Oh well, I was so stinkin' excited! It [literally] put the cherry on top of our amazing evening! :)

The next day (Saturday) we loaded up the kiddos and headed out to the Medina lake for a few hours. The San Antonio Police Department has a Benevolent Fund for injured/killed officers and whoever makes a monthly contribution gets free access to a 32-acre park on the lake. The park is super-nice: they have a big pavilion for parties and lots of camping sites with electrical hookup and water. Plus a nice new playground (in the sun, unfortunately...why do they always put those things in the hot sun??) and big bathrooms. Basically like a state park, but free and private! The water at the lake is really low this summer, so none of the campsites are exactly "waterfront" property anymore. You can see what I mean here...

(That "No swimming from boat dock" sign used to be right up by the water.)

Shiphrah had a lot of fun splashing in the water. Next time we'll all bring bathing suits and floaties and actually swim around some.

That night after we got home we all relaxed and after the kids were in bed, Avery and I watched "Quantum of Solace." Good movie (I have a weakness for James Bond movies and I love that the new ones are cleaner than the old ones) but so, so, so sad. It made me want to cry.

And that was our delightful weekend! And lest you think I lost one of my babies, here's a picture of Kirk, looking more and more like his daddy every day! :)

Weekly Savings - Target - 5/13

If you haven't spent all of your grocery budget for the month, go HERE and then click on the links to print some super-duper coupons and then run to Target to stock up on some goodies! (For a list of the best deals, click HERE.) Target has a bunch of store coupons that you can match with manufacturer's coupons for some really great steals. (You can find all of the current Target coupons HERE.)

I headed out this afternoon with Kirk after Shiphrah went down for her afternoon nap. The shopping itself took me about 45 minutes, but it took the poor cashier 20 minutes to finish ringing me up. (I had at least one coupon per item.) In my defense, the cashier was extremely particular about checking and rechecking every single coupon. She'd look at each coupon carefully, check to make sure I had the correct items, scroll back up on the computer to make sure the coupons weren't worth more than the items, and then scan each coupon. So I had to tell about half a dozen people or so that they might want to try another line because I was going to be slow. Still, it was worth it to get the great deals!

Total spent = $36.75
Total saved = $80.53

I won't break down each item and price, but to sum it up I purchased a total of 42 items which comes out to about 87 cents a piece. That's INCREDIBLE considering the high value of a lot of the items (four 12-packs of soda, a family pack of chicken thighs, etc.). I did have two $5 gift cards from last week's deals, so that helped bring down the total too. (And I know I promised Avery I wouldn't buy any more cereal, but after a coupon the Rice Krispies were only 99 cents a box! So I told him I'd make Rice Krispie treats with them. )

And now my pantry...

...and my freezer...

...are completely STUFFED. So for the next two weeks or so I'm going to do my best to avoid buying things that must fit in either of those two places. It's become addicting though...saving money is so much fun!!! (Avery asked me the other night if I was actually saving money by doing all this coupon-shopping. I checked our budget and I'm still staying well under the allotted amount. Yay!)

Oh, and Shiphrah wanted to help me sort my coupons today. I think we have another couponer in the making!