Just call me over budget Betty.
Two weeks in a row I am OVER budget!
Maybe I wasn't realistic with this goal, but I am pressing on and going to try to finish the whole 40 days under $300!
I guess I should stop getting my hair done and going to 90% off sales at the thrift store?! (um no way)
Here's my last week:
Neighborhood Club Thrift Store: $9.42
90% off all winter items!! I bought two huge bags of stuff for $9!! For myself alone I got an awesome purse, 3 belts, 3 pairs of jeans (two of which I have already cut into adorable shorts for summer!) and a brand new dress with the TJ Maxx tags for $34,99 still attached!
I also got my nieces some adorable skinny jeans, a jcrew outfit, a couple hoodies, my dad a sweater, my sister 3 maternity items, and a pair of tiny baby boots!!
favorite. store. ever. I can't wait until summer items are 90% off :)
Hair Salon: $30 + $10 tip
My friend from high school does my hair, she cut and highlighted it for $30 bucks. amazing!! So I shouldn't complain about being over budget because I could have easily spent $100...
Red Box Movies: $5.14
Red Box is only $1 right? lol. Yes, but if you don't take them back you get charged another dollar! I rented two movies for my nieces to watch on Friday night and forgot to take them back on Saturday. dummy.
Parking lot: $3
I met my sister and her three kiddos at the Columbus airport on Thursday night and had to pay to park. totally worth it to see those 3 cuties running to me from across the airport.... :)
Jet's Pizza: $8.35
Monday night after getting home from the weekend and having an excruciatingly long day at work I could not think about cooking and we didn't have anything easy to fix in the fridge (it's been over a week since I've been to the store!) and I had a coupon! haha
Total: $65.91
So this week was way, way over budget.
but I had to get my hair done this weekend because I was going home, and I had to take advantage of the 90% off sale! haha. I could have skipped the pizza and the movies and been closer to my target.
My sister also gave me $20 as a - thanks for driving down and buying my kids some stuff at the thrift store, I know you're poor kinda thing, so if you take that into account then I'm under by $4, right?! RIGHT! :)
okay
Try, try, try again!
Showing posts with label shopping. Show all posts
Showing posts with label shopping. Show all posts
Wednesday, March 6, 2013
Tuesday, February 26, 2013
Lent - Week 2
Preface: I wrote the italicized portion of this on Friday 2/22... the rest is the real story on Tuesday 2/26. lol.
I am so glad I chose to do this for Lent.
I has really kept me thinking before I make unnecessary purchases!
I have consciously avoided the thrift stores and have been re-wearing some of my favorite clothes. I know this sounds terrible and vain and extremely wasteful, but I don't like to re-wear things. I re-wear pants and skirts and dresses I guess, but tops..... they typically get worn like once every 6 months and I never re-wear complete outfits. I don't know what it is. It's not that I think I'm so cool or that I'm going to get a full page spread in Life and Style if I'm caught re-wearing something.
So this is why I LOVE thrifting! I can get a couple new shirts every single week for a few dollars and never have to re-wear what I've got.
How dumb is that?!
I must stop!
I've been doing really good with groceries, only buying what we need and no extras.
I've been creative with my meals using up what we have in our freezer and pantry. I have all this stuff that I no longer deem as "healthy" but we're too poor to throw it out! So I've been trying to make it as healthy as possible. For instance that big box of pancake mix that I will never buy again.... but we already have... I made strawberry, blueberry, banana pancakes! All 3 in one!
And those two big bags of tortilla chips I've been eating with some healthy, yummy salsa and made taco salad with ground turkey and lots of veggies the other day.
And then I asked Lee to go to the store with me after church on Sunday.................dun dun dun.
I heard things like:
"wow! didn't know black berries were so cheap!"
"let's buy the really BIG thing of coffee, we'll save money in the long run"
"Vodka sauce?! I love vodka sauce!"
"oooh spices for meat rubs are on sale"
and when I reminded him of the budget he said "well that'll teach you to take me to the store again!"
He's so cute, and doesn't ask for much and never gets anything for himself.... so I let him get the spices and pasta sauce :)
I went over budget :/ but since we bought a lot of stuff on Sunday I shouldn't have to go to the store much this coming week! It'll balance out. At the end of the 40 days I'll do a total amount I've spent and if it's less than $300 I'll consider it a win. right?
Here are my purchases for the week:
Kroger - $9.44 - I went in for cheese (for taco salad) but found so many great deals I didn't have to shop again for a few days! My best purchase was a whole roasted turkey breast for $2.99! We ate that thing for DAYS! Turkey on salad, turkey quesadillas (with spinach and tomatoes, so good!), turkey sandwiches...
Aldi's - $40.58 - the shopping list included: coffee, tomatoes, banana, lettuce, milk, almond milk, cereal, bread, and spinach. we also bought - 2 things of pasta sauce, blackberries and blueberries, spices, olive oil, and guacamole.
Wendy's - $5.15 - this was an impulse stop... should have skipped it, but I didn't and it put me over budget. Lee and I did a lock-in with the teens Friday night and I stayed up from 7am on Friday till about 1 pm on Saturday and on my way home I was starving and there was traffic and Wendy's was there calling my name! Stop it Wendy's!
Kmart - $4.47- yes I went back to Kmart, like I said I wouldn't, but they had donuts on sale for $3.49! a $1.50 cheaper than Kroger! and I bought some clearance Hershey's hearts. sue me. The Sunday School kids are like way too happy when there are donuts that I can't bear to disappoint them now. They really are a sweet group of teenagers. I'll do a post about them soon. (oh and I saved the milk and oj I bought last week in the church fridge so I didn't have to buy that again!)
Total: $59.64
$9.64 over! so disappointed... but I'll only spend $40 next week. or attempt to. I'm going home this weekend and getting my hair done, but my beautiful, sweet friend from high school does it and sometimes I don't even think she charges me enough to cover the supplies she uses, so I may just make it under $40!
I am so glad I chose to do this for Lent.
I has really kept me thinking before I make unnecessary purchases!
I have consciously avoided the thrift stores and have been re-wearing some of my favorite clothes. I know this sounds terrible and vain and extremely wasteful, but I don't like to re-wear things. I re-wear pants and skirts and dresses I guess, but tops..... they typically get worn like once every 6 months and I never re-wear complete outfits. I don't know what it is. It's not that I think I'm so cool or that I'm going to get a full page spread in Life and Style if I'm caught re-wearing something.
So this is why I LOVE thrifting! I can get a couple new shirts every single week for a few dollars and never have to re-wear what I've got.
How dumb is that?!
I must stop!
I've been doing really good with groceries, only buying what we need and no extras.
I've been creative with my meals using up what we have in our freezer and pantry. I have all this stuff that I no longer deem as "healthy" but we're too poor to throw it out! So I've been trying to make it as healthy as possible. For instance that big box of pancake mix that I will never buy again.... but we already have... I made strawberry, blueberry, banana pancakes! All 3 in one!
And those two big bags of tortilla chips I've been eating with some healthy, yummy salsa and made taco salad with ground turkey and lots of veggies the other day.
And then I asked Lee to go to the store with me after church on Sunday.................dun dun dun.
I heard things like:
"wow! didn't know black berries were so cheap!"
"let's buy the really BIG thing of coffee, we'll save money in the long run"
"Vodka sauce?! I love vodka sauce!"
"oooh spices for meat rubs are on sale"
and when I reminded him of the budget he said "well that'll teach you to take me to the store again!"
He's so cute, and doesn't ask for much and never gets anything for himself.... so I let him get the spices and pasta sauce :)
I went over budget :/ but since we bought a lot of stuff on Sunday I shouldn't have to go to the store much this coming week! It'll balance out. At the end of the 40 days I'll do a total amount I've spent and if it's less than $300 I'll consider it a win. right?
Here are my purchases for the week:
Kroger - $9.44 - I went in for cheese (for taco salad) but found so many great deals I didn't have to shop again for a few days! My best purchase was a whole roasted turkey breast for $2.99! We ate that thing for DAYS! Turkey on salad, turkey quesadillas (with spinach and tomatoes, so good!), turkey sandwiches...
Aldi's - $40.58 - the shopping list included: coffee, tomatoes, banana, lettuce, milk, almond milk, cereal, bread, and spinach. we also bought - 2 things of pasta sauce, blackberries and blueberries, spices, olive oil, and guacamole.
Wendy's - $5.15 - this was an impulse stop... should have skipped it, but I didn't and it put me over budget. Lee and I did a lock-in with the teens Friday night and I stayed up from 7am on Friday till about 1 pm on Saturday and on my way home I was starving and there was traffic and Wendy's was there calling my name! Stop it Wendy's!
Kmart - $4.47- yes I went back to Kmart, like I said I wouldn't, but they had donuts on sale for $3.49! a $1.50 cheaper than Kroger! and I bought some clearance Hershey's hearts. sue me. The Sunday School kids are like way too happy when there are donuts that I can't bear to disappoint them now. They really are a sweet group of teenagers. I'll do a post about them soon. (oh and I saved the milk and oj I bought last week in the church fridge so I didn't have to buy that again!)
Total: $59.64
$9.64 over! so disappointed... but I'll only spend $40 next week. or attempt to. I'm going home this weekend and getting my hair done, but my beautiful, sweet friend from high school does it and sometimes I don't even think she charges me enough to cover the supplies she uses, so I may just make it under $40!
Saturday, September 17, 2011
Crafting in Grenada
It's about time I do this post.
If I had a dollar for every time someone asked me where the craft store is Lee and I could pay for medical school!
ok just kidding.... but I could buy more crafting stuff!
I finally took pictures the "craft" stores where I get my supplies!
I found out about the craft store in CK's Super Value one day when a lady asked about my EC Earrings. I told her I made them myself and she asked if I got the stuff from her store? and I said no, I brought it with me, I didn't know there was a place to buy that stuff here!
She told me where to go, as if it was going to be an easy place to find... and off I went into the city in search of this craft store!
All I knew was it was near First Caribbean Bank.
Well I didn't know where that was either. So being the way that I am I wandered around the city for an hour before I asked a police office where it was.
It is on Church Street.
You know the steep hill with the traffic light you go up to leave the city? 1st Caribbean Bank is on the left hand side at the light.
The craft store is across the street. The sign out front is for a doctor's office. Go upstairs and go through the door on the left, and then you'll see the store, but you have to go through another door. (easy right?)
In this store they sell jewelry making supplies - earring hooks, clasps, wire, beads, etc. Floral arranging supplies, yarn and knitting tools, felt, hot glue guns, balloons, embroidery floss, and lots more.
If you can't find what you're looking for here you probably want to go to Purcell's.
Purcell's is mainly a fabric & sewing store. They have pretty much anything you're looking for when it comes to sewing.
My favorite thing here is the vintage buttons!
They also sell a wide variety of ribbon, contact paper, and in the back they sell home wares.
Purcell's is much easier to find. It is located opposite of the Spice Market! One block up from the Digicel Store and KFC.
Other places to keep in mind for crafting purposes:
Ace Hardware & Creative Do It Best Hardware - twine, paint chips, spray paint, and chain.
Bryden and Minor's Stationary Store ( in Spiceland Mall and if you want a bigger selection they have a store by the market in St. George's and on on Lagoon Road, just past Port Louis) - they have lots of art supplies, paint, oil pastels, crayons, colored pencils, scissors, glue, etc.
If you want some ideas for stuff you can craft in Grenada check out my blog Kelsey Inspired & this list of stuff you can make out of recycled goods!
Happy crafting!
If I had a dollar for every time someone asked me where the craft store is Lee and I could pay for medical school!
ok just kidding.... but I could buy more crafting stuff!
I finally took pictures the "craft" stores where I get my supplies!
I found out about the craft store in CK's Super Value one day when a lady asked about my EC Earrings. I told her I made them myself and she asked if I got the stuff from her store? and I said no, I brought it with me, I didn't know there was a place to buy that stuff here!
She told me where to go, as if it was going to be an easy place to find... and off I went into the city in search of this craft store!
All I knew was it was near First Caribbean Bank.
Well I didn't know where that was either. So being the way that I am I wandered around the city for an hour before I asked a police office where it was.
It is on Church Street.
You know the steep hill with the traffic light you go up to leave the city? 1st Caribbean Bank is on the left hand side at the light.
The craft store is across the street. The sign out front is for a doctor's office. Go upstairs and go through the door on the left, and then you'll see the store, but you have to go through another door. (easy right?)
 |
| The outside of the building |
 | |
| Crafts & Crafts etc. It's about the size of my closet at home (ok not really... but it's small) |
If you can't find what you're looking for here you probably want to go to Purcell's.
Purcell's is mainly a fabric & sewing store. They have pretty much anything you're looking for when it comes to sewing.
My favorite thing here is the vintage buttons!
They also sell a wide variety of ribbon, contact paper, and in the back they sell home wares.
Purcell's is much easier to find. It is located opposite of the Spice Market! One block up from the Digicel Store and KFC.
 |
| check out all that contact paper! |
Other places to keep in mind for crafting purposes:
Ace Hardware & Creative Do It Best Hardware - twine, paint chips, spray paint, and chain.
Bryden and Minor's Stationary Store ( in Spiceland Mall and if you want a bigger selection they have a store by the market in St. George's and on on Lagoon Road, just past Port Louis) - they have lots of art supplies, paint, oil pastels, crayons, colored pencils, scissors, glue, etc.
If you want some ideas for stuff you can craft in Grenada check out my blog Kelsey Inspired & this list of stuff you can make out of recycled goods!
Happy crafting!
Saturday, August 6, 2011
Sample Grocery List
A few people have asked how I save money at the grocery store and what types of things I buy, so I thought I'd show you an example of a weekly grocery list for Lee and I.
Typical IGA Grocery List:
*all prices in EC dollars
Those are things that I might buy every week.. with the exception of the sugar and a few other things like salsa, rice, & 5lbs of potatoes that last a while.
About once a month I buy other things like peanut butter, cooking oil, salad dressing, laundry detergent, dish soap, paper towels... etc.
And occasionally we buy pop, chips, ice cream, or some other junk.
Its fairly easy to maintain a shopping list like this once you have the basics: spices, condiments, baking essentials etc, and I just never buy the stuff I feel is too expensive.
Typical meals for us are:
Basically we have learned to eat less (which is not only good for our budget but great for our health and waistlines) and to be creative with our meals within the range of foods we can afford at the grocery. I like to bake a lot so I never feel deprived of snacks or if I am craving something I will just learn how to make it!
So there it is, no big secrets or tricks....
and I'm usually taking the bus so you can't buy more than you can carry! :)
Typical IGA Grocery List:
*all prices in EC dollars
- bananas - $4 (I buy bananas every single time I walk through IGA's doors)
- 5lb bag of potatoes - $8
- 4 Apples - $10
- lettuce - $9
- onion - $2
- cucumber - $3
- carrots - $5
- Hunt's pasta sauce - $6
- pasta - $3-7
- IGA macaroni and cheese - $4
- can of black beans - $3
- can tomato soup - $5 (I am recently obsessed with grilled cheese and tomato soup. in the caribbean? weird)
- Carlita salsa - $8
- chicken breast - $10-15 (if I am making soup or something I will buy thighs b/c they are cheaper)
- hamburger - $7-10
- 2lb bag of rice - $3
- 2lb bag of sugar - $3
- IGA brand cereal - $10-12 (favorites include : honey oats and flakes, magic stars, and the cinnamon toast crunch knockoff)
- IGA frozen peas - $6
- IGA frozen corn - $6
- Toufayan bagels - $7
- local bread - $4
- Shoppers Value tortilla chips - $8
- NewZealand Cheddar cheese - $4-6
- cream cheese - $6
- dozen eggs - $9
- butter - $3
- Toufayan wraps - $6 (garlic pesto is our favorite!)
- 4 yogurts - $10 (black berry pomegranate is my favorite!)
- half gallon milk - $9
Those are things that I might buy every week.. with the exception of the sugar and a few other things like salsa, rice, & 5lbs of potatoes that last a while.
About once a month I buy other things like peanut butter, cooking oil, salad dressing, laundry detergent, dish soap, paper towels... etc.
And occasionally we buy pop, chips, ice cream, or some other junk.
Its fairly easy to maintain a shopping list like this once you have the basics: spices, condiments, baking essentials etc, and I just never buy the stuff I feel is too expensive.
Typical meals for us are:
- spaghetti (I could eat it every single day)
- quesadillas
- tacos
- stir fry
- hamburgers
- grilled chicken
- soup of all kinds & always with grilled cheese
- breakfast for dinner (yum! omelets, french toast, pancakes)
- chicken and dumplings
- alfredo
- homemade pizza
- mexican casserole (tortillas, black beans, corn, and cheese)
- salad
- whatever crazy recipe I find online and want to try :)
Basically we have learned to eat less (which is not only good for our budget but great for our health and waistlines) and to be creative with our meals within the range of foods we can afford at the grocery. I like to bake a lot so I never feel deprived of snacks or if I am craving something I will just learn how to make it!
So there it is, no big secrets or tricks....
and I'm usually taking the bus so you can't buy more than you can carry! :)
Saturday, May 22, 2010
Ooooooooh Canada.
we've been here 4 days..... and only 11 weeks until we go back to Grenada!!!
things have been going well... I've gotten my shopping fix with $2.50 tank tops from Forever21 in a rainbow of colors & this morning at Old Navy's $1 flip flop sale!!
I've also bought 2 magazines. I missed magazines so much!!!
and sour gummy worms & Doritos.
but now I'm done with shopping. I'm ready to go see my parents & family & then go home....... to Grenada!
I'm surprised by how cold I am.... we're staying in the basement & it's freezing! It's warm outside during the day, when you're standing in the sun, otherwise I wear a sweater.
Lee's dad is working on the pool today to have it open soon, but I can't imagine swimming in it, it will be so cold!! but it will look nice & I can spend my afternoons sitting around it in the sun, pretending I'm at the University Club. lol.
Lee has worked every single day since we've been here and will up until Friday when we leave for my parents... I'm staying home for 2 weeks, but Lee will only be there for 4 days & I dread the thought of being apart!!! haha today is our 9 month wedding anniversary :) luckily he gets off at 5 today!! yay Saturday night with nothing to do!
Yesterday I signed up with this website called canadiannanny.com so maybe I'll get some babysitting jobs... something to do with my time! TV during the day suuuuuucks.
I think I'm going to start blogging about all the "Canadian" things I see & experience........ such as milk in a bag.......and for some reason the past 2 days I've gotten lucky enough to have to change the bag. it's weird.
I'll take pictures sometime.
things have been going well... I've gotten my shopping fix with $2.50 tank tops from Forever21 in a rainbow of colors & this morning at Old Navy's $1 flip flop sale!!
I've also bought 2 magazines. I missed magazines so much!!!
and sour gummy worms & Doritos.
but now I'm done with shopping. I'm ready to go see my parents & family & then go home....... to Grenada!
I'm surprised by how cold I am.... we're staying in the basement & it's freezing! It's warm outside during the day, when you're standing in the sun, otherwise I wear a sweater.
Lee's dad is working on the pool today to have it open soon, but I can't imagine swimming in it, it will be so cold!! but it will look nice & I can spend my afternoons sitting around it in the sun, pretending I'm at the University Club. lol.
Lee has worked every single day since we've been here and will up until Friday when we leave for my parents... I'm staying home for 2 weeks, but Lee will only be there for 4 days & I dread the thought of being apart!!! haha today is our 9 month wedding anniversary :) luckily he gets off at 5 today!! yay Saturday night with nothing to do!
Yesterday I signed up with this website called canadiannanny.com so maybe I'll get some babysitting jobs... something to do with my time! TV during the day suuuuuucks.
I think I'm going to start blogging about all the "Canadian" things I see & experience........ such as milk in a bag.......and for some reason the past 2 days I've gotten lucky enough to have to change the bag. it's weird.
I'll take pictures sometime.
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