Alright!
We made it through Week 2!
This week was a little more because of gas and different things, but here's the rundown:
$4.86- on foil (I ran out last minute!)
$4.54- on fish food (I guess they need to eat too...)
$10.00- on 5 loaves of Bread from Bountiful Baskets. *(see below)
$31.79- tank of gas for Jeff's car- He commutes to Kanab.
$0.99- for 50 pictures printed *(see below)
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I still can't tell you enough how much planning my meals has helped us. I have so much stuff here that I can use! :) Making meals and helpers beforehand to freeze is also a lifesaver! One of the easiest things to do is when you're making a meal, just up the ingredients a tad and make enough to eat that night, and to freeze for later. I made a batch of Taco Soup for Taco Tuesday this week, and just one batch made enough for three meals plus lunches for Jeff. So after dinner, I let it cool and separated the rest into two big bags for later meals. Totally easy. And while I was at it with browning the meal for the soup, I went ahead and browned another 1 1/2 lbs, and separated it in freezer bags for spaghetti. I found this website called FreezerDinner.com that has lots of great recipes just for the freezer. I can't wait to try this one out for Pizza! I would love to hear any ideas that you do to cut down time at dinner time! Any tried and true freezer meals? Or any tips for saving money?
SOOO many temptations came up this week! It's amazing to see what I WOULD have spent if I didn't have this goal. Also- It made for a GREAT excuse when the Kirby salesman wouldn't leave- haha. I'm excited for Week 3... Jeff thinks that the month is going by really slow, but I just think of it in Meals, and it doesn't seem as long. :) It really has been a great thing!
And I'm excited for all of you that are doing it with me!! :) How are you doing?? It's been great to have the comments and support too! So THANK YOU! :)
A sample of what you would get when you order! It's different every time. :) And with crops winding down soon- This is so nice in the winter!
This week was a little more because of gas and different things, but here's the rundown:
********************
$16.76- on cheese and a few dinner ingredients$4.86- on foil (I ran out last minute!)
$4.54- on fish food (I guess they need to eat too...)
$10.00- on 5 loaves of Bread from Bountiful Baskets. *(see below)
$31.79- tank of gas for Jeff's car- He commutes to Kanab.
$0.99- for 50 pictures printed *(see below)
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$68.94
Considering all things, I thought we still did really well this week.
And just for a running total, for two weeks this month is: $87.05! :)
And just for a running total, for two weeks this month is: $87.05! :)
I still can't tell you enough how much planning my meals has helped us. I have so much stuff here that I can use! :) Making meals and helpers beforehand to freeze is also a lifesaver! One of the easiest things to do is when you're making a meal, just up the ingredients a tad and make enough to eat that night, and to freeze for later. I made a batch of Taco Soup for Taco Tuesday this week, and just one batch made enough for three meals plus lunches for Jeff. So after dinner, I let it cool and separated the rest into two big bags for later meals. Totally easy. And while I was at it with browning the meal for the soup, I went ahead and browned another 1 1/2 lbs, and separated it in freezer bags for spaghetti. I found this website called FreezerDinner.com that has lots of great recipes just for the freezer. I can't wait to try this one out for Pizza! I would love to hear any ideas that you do to cut down time at dinner time! Any tried and true freezer meals? Or any tips for saving money?
SOOO many temptations came up this week! It's amazing to see what I WOULD have spent if I didn't have this goal. Also- It made for a GREAT excuse when the Kirby salesman wouldn't leave- haha. I'm excited for Week 3... Jeff thinks that the month is going by really slow, but I just think of it in Meals, and it doesn't seem as long. :) It really has been a great thing!
And I'm excited for all of you that are doing it with me!! :) How are you doing?? It's been great to have the comments and support too! So THANK YOU! :)
Here we Go- on to WEEK 3!
*************************
So- on a different note-
Now too explain a few subjects above-
*A little about Bountiful Baskets: It's a great co-op organization where you purchase a "basket" of fruit and veggies for $15.00. It's 6 different fruits and 6 different veggies every week. You can order your basket on Monday night at 8:00 (Utah time) or all day Tuesday. A few areas have a little bit of a different order time- so just check the site periodically Monday night-Wednesday. You can go pick up your basket on Saturday Morning (the site will tell you what time), or go volunteer and help divide all of the produce! It's a lot of fun and a great way to get to know people in your community. I run the site with Autumn here in Orderville, so I get a free basket! A great incentive to start a site guys! :) There are always GREAT extras you can add on to your order- like the bread for example. There are also other things like tortillas, other kinds of bread, granola, treats, and cases of fruit and veggies to use for bottling or whatever. Check to see if it's in your area! It's a super co-op and is spreading everywhere!So- on a different note-
Now too explain a few subjects above-
A sample of what you would get when you order! It's different every time. :) And with crops winding down soon- This is so nice in the winter!
*And the printing I did? I got a deal for 50 prints for free with .99 shipping at Artscow.com. I couldn't pass it up. :) As a new member- after signing up for free- you receive 1,200 free photo credits and 3 8"x8" photo books! With the 1,200 free photo credits, you get to print 100 4x6's or 50 5x7's a month for a whole year- for free! It's awesome. And once you sign up, they send you a lot of coupon codes for other great deals! It has tons of options for printing besides pictures and photo books. It's perfect for Christmas gifts coming up! You can use your free print credits for Christmas cards too! Anyway- If you sign up, sign up under the link above... and I get some free credits too!! :)
6 comments:
I've never seen that freezerdinner site before--I'll have to check that out. Great job on Week 2!
Wow! I feel like I just learned a LOT from your post! I will definitely look into bountiful baskets and artscow. Thanks for sharing!
I love the no spending thing you are doing. We just started Dave Ramsey's book "Total Money Makeover" and it is amazing if you haven't read it. We are trying to keep envelopes of cash assigned for different things rather than swiping the debit card for every purchase. We are already saving so much!
Thanks again for sharing all the great info!
good job again! i really need to be better about planning meals ahead. let us know what freezer meals taste good, i'd like to try that.
Very inspiring. I feel like I need to do more to cut costs around our house. I like to cook a meal for eight and freeze half of it for later. Even if it is only two servings left that is two lunches. For a while we were throwing out lots of leftovers that we were just sick of.
You are so dedicated!!! I have been doing a meal calendar for about the past year and it is one of the best things I have ever done for us! Keeping a budget is a pretty close second.
Glad to hear you are doing so well with your goal!
I love bountiful baskets too! It is a great way to eat more healthy! I wanted to ask you before I ordered from artscow, are the pictures good quality and everuthing. I have lots of pictures I was just going to get printed at Walmart but it looks like artscow is a better deal.
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