Saying goodbye to September...

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Wow, I can't believe it's the first of October already. September just flew by! I guess, the weather does remind us that winter is right around the corner. It will be 39 here tonight - time to change that furnace filter already... sigh... glad not to have summer heat any more but so not ready for cold weather...

September was also full of all kinds of doctor's appointments for me. I gave up on trying to stay within our medical budget. We get some sort of bills it seems like every other day. Anywhere between $12 and $1200. The good thing is that it's slowly chipping off of the big sum at the end when the babies are here. The bad is that it's all new for us. With both of our boys, we would get one global bill at the end with another one from the anesthesiologist. Now I just keep writing checks...

On a good note, the babies are growing and very active. They measure about a week ahead and are gaining weight steadily. I, on the other hand, have lost two pounds since my last appointment. So far I only gained 18 pounds with this pregnancy which is way less than it was with my boys by now. Granted, I started a little bit on the heavier side and my doctor is not concerned but it still feels weird to lose while the babies are gaining... I told you this GD diet is kicking my tush... And I'm measuring as if I'm 38 weeks (with a singleton pregnancy) at not even 30. That's kind of crazy!! I know I have 2 growing there but it's scary to think how big I'm going to get...

We decided to increase our grocery budget at least for the month of October to accommodate my new needs and also meal freezing. Last month we added just $50 to shop for freezer meal ingredients. I don't know who I was kidding! Meat alone costs so much more than that! I comfort myself with the fact that if I'm prepared, we won't need to shop much in November or December. Because I doubt we will have time for that :) 

Otherwise, I'll be taking it easy and slow in October. No big goals here. That feels weird! I'll be packing a hospital bag, finishing the little things in the babies' room and working as much as I can since it might be my last paycheck for a while...

And what are your goals for the next few upcoming months?
 

The Frugal Friday.

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Apparently yesterday was National Siblings Day. Did you know? My Facebook timeline has exploded with friends' pictures of their rocking siblings, so I thought I'd share mine:

Say hello to my amazing sister Olya. She's a mother of two beautiful kids, she's smart and awesome, and also a natural blonde. Oh, and she's extremely frugal too (OK, I had to tie it somehow to a Frugal Friday :) But she really is very thrifty, resourceful and great at stretching what she has in the fridge).

So how was your week?? Was it frugal, or not so much?

I myself had a first this week! I only went grocery shopping once. Yep, you heard it right. Seriously, never happened before (I'm not going to mention that I spent 1/5 of our monthly budget in one trip. Let's just let it slide...). I blame it all on the beautiful weather outside :) Seriously, who wants to go shopping when its 70+ degrees outside, right??

I also finally got to balance all of our accounts and put another $150 into savings. Again, it's not much but since my husband doesn't get bonuses any more (like he used to at his old place), I have to pinch here and there to boost our savings. Isn't it insane how when you make a little more money, it's so easy to absorb that difference with all the "needs"???

Another frugal thing from this week that comes to mind is saving an unfortunate chicken. Last week we stopped at Smiths (Kroger chain) store, and they had some rotisserie chicken on clearance for only $2.50. Plus, I had a coupon to take another dollar off. We got one but when we brought it home, we quickly realized why it was on sale. Let's just say they reheated it way too many times... It kind of reminded me of munching on an old shoe, you know. I almost took it back. But then talked myself out of it because, well, I only spent $1.50 for it. So I boiled it and shredded the now soft meat, then strained and froze the broth. It's a little cloudy so might not work as well for soups but perfect for casseroles and such. In fact,  I used some of both broth and chicken to make this delicious rice on Monday. And I have enough chicken for another meal and plenty of broth left.

OK, now your turn :) What were your frugal achievements this week? Please, share!

Why your budget might not work in my kitchen...

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Have you ever had a moment when you do Google search for ideas on how to lower your grocery budget only to end up biting your nails in frustration when you read how some people feed their families on like $30 a week, and others spend only $200 a month on food for a family of six? Do you second-guess yourself wondering why, no matter how hard you try, you just can't achieve numbers as low as some other frugality ninjas?

The truth is, you cannot use somebody else's finances towards your own family, and it applies to your groceries too. There are many reasons for it. I want to talk about a few today:

 Location, location, location. Food is expensive! But in some areas of the country it's even more bank-breaking than in others. The amount of money you spend on food varies from location to location going from a few cents to a very significant amount. For example, the average price of 1qt of whole milk in NY (according to Expatistan) is $2.97. For this price, I can buy a whole gallon and throw in a pint of cream too if I find both on sale. I can definitely stretch my hard-earned dollar much further (Granted, my salary cannot compare to the average income in NY either. But that's a whole other topic...). Proximity to the stores also plays a huge role in creating a budget. Businesses tend to have a competition to lure the most clients in, and if you have plenty of stores close by, you can use it to your advantage by shopping only for loss items. But if your closest store is about 20 minute drive, it will be much harder to find the same nice deals and sales. Again, it all comes back to the location.

 Your preferences and needs. Your diet plays a huge role in how you calculate your monthly expenses. One of the best ways to cut on groceries is go meatless a few times a week. With that said, being vegetarian or vegan doesn't always mean that you will spend significantly less. The most important part of our nourishment is to have nutritional balance. If you replace animal products with expensive processed vegan food, you, probably will spend the same if not more. No matter what our preferences are, it's important to have nutrients, carbs, vitamins and minerals in our diet in a good, healthy proportion. Hence, the best way to cut on expenses is to eat whole foods on sale like seasonal fruit and vegetables, dried beans instead of canned, real meat opposed to over processed hot dogs or chicken nuggets. Eating organic will also bump the price ticket but with using less, buying local and cooking at home you can definitely lower that number. Not even mentioning the health benefits...

Another important thing to remember are your needs. I'm talking mostly about health needs. For example, if you have food allergies or intolerances, no matter how hard you try, some things are just going to be more expensive then the others.  Again, shopping sales can help some but, more than likely, your budget will be higher than for most people who don't have to face the same issues you do.

Size, gender and age of the family members. I can just see some of you, mothers of teenagers, chuckling out there. We all know that teenage girls usually eat slightly more than a duckling, and boys are just bottomless pits. The size, gender and age of your family's members play a huge roll on how you calculate your expenses. The level of activity can also be a determining factor. A few years ago I read an article about a Polynesian family who had two high-school age sons who played for their local football teams and were drafted by some prestigious colleges. Among other things their Mom mentioned that they go through at least 4 gallons of milk every week trying to keep up with boys' needs and necessary calorie intake. I remember giving an extra long look at my baby boy I was cradling  in my arms back then, mentally calculating how many part-time jobs I would need to land by the time he hits high school.

Your own resources and circumstances. One of my most favorite parts of our back yard is our garden. I spend countless hours in there happily digging through piles of dirt and spreading beautiful manure everywhere while constantly working on creative plans on how to lower the amount of weeds that tend to grow overnight and are not scared of anything. But even though it really helps with our expenses over summer, gardening takes time and space that many of us don't have. We can definitely take advantage of buying from farmers or trading help for produce with friends but if you live somewhere in the middle of Manhattan, even these options are very limited. Knowing what is available to you will really help to make the right estimation of what you might need and how much it would cost you monthly. Other circumstances like working long hours can also be a determining factor. I do believe that even if you have to work like crazy, there are many ways to avoid going for fast food (like cooking in bulk once a week or using a slow cooker, to name a few). The previous generations did not have the luxury of food prepared for them, and they were healthier than we are right now. There is something we can learn from them, that's for sure :)

In the end, the most important thing to remember is that even though the quote "much to learn you still have" (in the words of ever-inspiring Yoda)applies to most of us, we need to find what works and stick to it. You and your family is what really matters, and there is no reason to be upset that you cannot go as low as some others if you do your personal best (the last phrase might or might not have been inspired by me braking a promise to myself not to watch too much Olympics :)

What are your thoughts?

A few ways to save some money on grocery shopping.

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A couple of days ago a friend contacted me asking for some advice on how to lower their spending on groceries. Their family had to go on a bare-bone budget, and she was wondering if I had any tips and tricks up my sleeve.

Food is an absolute necessity in our life. There are many things we can live without but we all have to eat. Yet what we consume doesn't have to break the bank. When my friend wrote to me, I immediately came up with these 13 ideas that hopefully could help her and, maybe, somebody else too :)

1. Shop less! This might just be the easiest way to save. The less we go to the store, the less we put in our cart. Seriously! For some people, once a month shopping works the best, others -like me - prefer weekly trips. But if we shop daily, more than likely we will buy many things that we want but not necessarily need. So before you go shopping, take a full inventory of what you have. And yes, it does include the very back of your freezer. Then try to keep track of everything or at least the things you use on a weekly basis (I have this printable pdf freezer inventory list here to get you started). 

2. Create a menu. Now that you know what you already have on hand, try to create a menu to use things up. A weekly (or even monthly) menu plan allows you to, again, use up what you have on hand and also to avoid buying duplicates or unnecessary things in a store. It might seem a little intimidating at first but when you know your stock, creating a menu will be a very quick process. And it will save you not just money but also time in the future. When dinner is planned, you can avoid that 5 pm "what to do, what to do" feeling. And remember, your menu doesn't have to be very structured. Be flexible with it to suit your family's needs better. I post our menu plan here every week but to be honest, I tend to mix days all the time depending on what's happening that day. Menu plan should be used as a tool, not a limitation.

3. Make a list, check it twice. And no, I'm not talking about your Christmas wants here:) One of the best ways to avoid overspending at the grocery store is to go with a list of what you actually need. Again, when you follow the two steps above, it's easier to know what ingredients are missing in this week's menu plan. And if you go to the store already knowing what you need, you will not waste countless hours wandering the isles in search of the illusive ingredients for a possible dinner (while grabbing tons of other things that you think you will 'need' along the way).

4. Avoid food waste. Another great way to stretch your budget is to not throw away food. When I create my weekly menu, I leave at least one day to use up leftovers. There are many ways not to waste food, and I shared some of them before in this series of posts here and here.

5. Keep track of what you spend. Save every receipt and scrutinize them at least once a week. When you track your out-of-pocket expenses, you can see how much money you have left for the rest of the month, where your hard earned pennies went and where to cut back. It will also help to create and follow a realistic budget that works for your family.

6. Study store ads. Every week your local stores publish ads to entice you to come shop with them. In order to do that they mark down some merchandise at a loss for them in hopes that you will spend money on other things that are not on sale. One of the best ways to know what is a good deal is to create a price book. I found a great article on how you can do it here. But there might be other ways that would work for you. The bottom line is when you know the best price, you will know when to take advantage of a great sale. Thus said, I don't have a physical price book. After many years of thriftiness and couponing, I just know what price I'm willing to pay for most of the merchandise we use regularly. But for the beginners, it might be the best way.

7. Take advantage of grocery cycles.  When I plan our budget every month, I set aside a certain amount for stocking up. Almost everything in the store follows a six week cycle. It means that if something goes on sale, more then likely it will be discounted once more within 6 weeks or so. Again, when you have a price book, it helps to see those cycles. But there are also seasonal savings you can take advantage of. For example, right now is the best time to stock up on baking supplies or pick up an extra turkey or ham for your freezer. Likewise, in summer is the perfect time to enjoy and preserve fresh produce for the upcoming months.

8. Use coupons wisely. Coupons can be a great way to save on your groceries but only buy what you need and will use. If you are using a 75c cent coupon on a a $2 box of crackers that you don't like, you essentially waste both money and food when you through away that box of stale snacks. There is a misconception that coupons are only for unhealthy stuff but it's not true. I've used multiple coupons for milk, cheese, pasta and produce before. And toilet paper... who doesn't use toilet paper (well, there are some people who rely on reusable but I doubt you are one of them, right?)

9. Big or small - just watch your wallet! You often hear that buying in bulk saves you money. And it's true in most cases. For example, if you buy a big container of yogurt, you save almost twice comparing with buying it in portion cups. Same applies to the prices of flour, sugar, rice and other staples. But when you have a coupon and an item is on sale, choosing a smaller box might save you more per ounce. Be sure to watch your prices. And don't be brand loyal unless the price per unit on sale is better than the store brand's.

10. Shop in season and locally. I mentioned above that different merchandise goes on sale at different times. Take advantage of those seasonal prices and stock up. Also be sure to incorporate those seasonal items into your menu. Shopping local is another great way to save. It especially applies if you try to eat healthy and organic. Local farmers will often give you the best price, especially if you buy in bigger amounts (that you can preserve later). Farmers markets can also be a great way to get a nice price, especially if you go there at the end of the day. Over the years I found a few locals that I buy produce from on a regular basis on classifieds (for example, cucumbers for pickling). In our classifieds I regularly see items like, for example, eggs from cage-free chickens for 1/3 or so less than what grocery stores asks ($2-2.50 as opposed to $4 or more in a store). And if nothing else, you also help your local economy, and that's always a plus too.

11. Look for food in unexpected places. You can buy food in other places, not just in groceries stores.  Drug stores or Big Lots immediately come to mind. But be sure to buy only what goes on sale, otherwise more than likely it will be overpriced. Recent example of a good deal? Just a month ago a 6 oz.package of butterball turkey bacon went on sale in Walgreens for $1. I had a coupon for $1, so I took it home for free. And also in drug stores you can find some amazing steals on non-food items like toilet paper, tooth paste and other personal hygiene items when they go on sale (often combined with a coupon but it's not always the case). I also like to go to bakery outlets and stores that sell merchandise close to the expiration date. You can score some great deals there for items you need to use up soon.

12. Stretch. Another great way to save on groceries is to stretch what you already have. Adding less meat to a casserole will not be noticeable to most members of your family but will provide just as much flavor. Or use that inexpensive piece of meat that you scored on markdown in multiple meals - make a main dish, add leftovers to the soup and make extra broth from a bone. You can also stretch your budget by using frozen fruit and veggies in cooking. They are usually picked flash-frozen at the peak of freshness and cost much less than regular produce. Another thing that I like to do is diluting milk. If you like to drink 1% or 2%, buy whole milk and dilute it in a cup to your liking. It's a great way to stretch that gallon much longer.

13. Substitute. You can substitute many items on your menu for other things you already have in stock. For example, ground turkey or chicken makes a great swap for ground beef in many recipes, its healthier for you and actually costs less per pound (where we live, the regular price of 16oz. ground turkey is about $2.20 but I stock up when it goes on sale for $1.69-1.79. The cheapest 20/80 ground beef that I've seen recently was $2.69). Substitution is a big topic and I think I will leave it for another post.

But I believe there are many ways to lower your budget and still have a balanced and nutritious diet.

What are your tips and tricks?

Asian-inspired Mahi-Mahi

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I mentioned before that I scored some mahi-mahi for just $3.99 a pound! We love fish but rarely buy anything but tilapia or salmon when it goes on sale. So this was a real treat for us.

I decided to make it with some Asian flare using ingredients I already had on hand:

 INGREDIENTS:

3-4 mahi mahi fish fillets
1/3 cup teriyaki sauce ( I used Kikkoman)
3 T. brown sugar
2 T. apple cider vinegar
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
3 small garlic cloves, minced
pinch of cayenne pepper (optional)
cooking spray

HOW-TO:

Combine all the ingredients but fish and cooking spray and whisk together really well. Pour 2/3 of prepared sauce in a ziploc bag, add mahi mahi and marinate in the fridge for at least an hour.

Preheat your oven to 350F. Spray a baking dish with cooking spray. Put fish in with skin side down add baste with leftover marinade from the ziploc bag (not the 1/3 you reserved!!). Cook for about 15-20 min., depending on the thickness of your fish.

In the meantime, reheat 1/3 cup marinade on the stove or in the microwave. Serve fish with brown or wild rice and your choice of veggies. Garnish with diced tomatoes and pour marinade over right before serving.

I shared this recipe with these awesome parties:
The Mandatory Mooch 
Hookin Up with HoH 
I should be mopping the floor 
Clean and Scentsible 

Wrapping up the first week of April...

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One week down, three more to go! I thought I would write a small update. One of our goals this month was to finish four projects around the house here. I'm happy to say that we are done with the biggest one of the four - we painted our living room!

It wasn't a bad color to begin with:

I took this picture in the middle of the painting process, hence all the mess. I promise, it's usually cleaner and less cluttered :) This color was natural and pretty, just too dark. We only have one window in this room, and no ceiling light. So it would get SO dark in the evenings. The new color works so much better:

It's not a big reveal :) It's just a little sneak peak into our living room :) Lots of things still need to be changed here. But this is Valspar Polar Star color. It's such a pretty, very light grey - it's not white. If you look at the border with the ceiling you'll see the difference.

It makes our living room so much brighter and lighter. I'm in love with this color!

But we spent the WHOLE day yesterday moving furniture back and forth, patching walls, sanding, taping and then painting, painting, painting...I saw somewhere that if you paint for 3 hours, you burn 725 calories. I think I burnt all 2000 yesterday!! My body is still aching today as if I did a triathlon or something...

But I'm happy to be done! We want to eventually install crown molding in this room (That's why we didn't tape the top when we painted). Our house value went up significantly in the last few months, and even though we are not going anywhere, we want this place to be in top shape when the time comes. And little changes make a huge difference!

Other than that, this week I went grocery shopping and bought tons. I stocked up on necessities and some canned and frozen foods. I think, I will skip grocery stores next week. I might need milk though. Oh, and diapers...Potty training really drives me crazy...I might just give up and let him pee his underwear until he's in high school...Ugh...He's in his underwear all day long but I put a diaper back on for the night. Twenty pairs of undies don't last long...So far he peed in the toilet once. And he hates it...

Oh well, I know you are so excited to read about our bathroom adventures :) Sorry, I just needed to let off some steam :) How was your week? Anything exciting happened? 

A grocery shopping post!

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 I know I haven't had a post about grocery shopping trips in a looong long time. The truth is, I don't get deals as much anymore. I kind of slowly almost stopped couponing, etc...altogether. I still do price-matching though.

But I'm thinking it's going to be one of my goals next year to go back to couponing again. Nothing extreme! I just saved quite a bit of money before by clipping coupons but, mostly out of pure laziness, I don't do it as much right now. I haven't organized my coupons in months...But I still pay for a newspaper subscription...Not good.

So today I went for some deals :) Here's how I got all of this for only $6.56:



 First, this is what I got:

2 8lbs. hams
1 rotisserie chicken
1 sour cream
1 cream cheese
1 1/2 lbs block mozarella cheese
1 package sliced sandwich cheese
4 boxes of fruit snacks
2 salad dressings
1 big can of pickles
1 bag of powdered sugar
1 bottle of sparkling cider

Santa cookie jar was not included :)

So I went to two stores today. First was Maceys. They are running a promotion that if you buy $100 in gift cards, you get  $10 off your purchase. We are going to buy some wood from Lowes tomorrow (another project we are working on, more on this later), so I just bought gift cards and the $10 discount paid for our grocery shopping (we bought cider, sugar, pickles and chicken), total paid was $1.82 but I will send for a $5 rebate for chicken, so I will make money on this transaction. Then I bought two hams in two separate transactions- one was $10.19 with tax, another one was $10.55. But I have a $5 and a $6 rebates off ham that I will mail tomorrow.

Then we went to Smiths (local Kroger). Smiths right now is running a promotion that if you transfer your prescription, you get a $25 gift card. I needed to refill Baby's constipation meds (yes, he still struggles :( so it was a perfect opportunity. After the refill, all my groceries in Smiths (cheese, sour cream, cream cheese, fruit snacks and dressings) were free. I actually had some coupons too that I used before the RX discount that brought this number down. I still have a little over $13 to spend on my Smiths card.

So after all the discounts, coupons, rebates and promotions I ended up spending only $6.56. Sorry for this bragging post :) I just don't remember the last time I was so excited to go shopping :) And now we are pretty set with ham and some other things for a while.

So this is the excitement of my day :) But before I sign out, I want to let you know that Cindy and Carla both have fun giveaways happening right now. Be sure to go and enter  HERE and HERE. And be sure to check out the blogs of these lovely ladies and follow them if you aren't already. They are both wonderful and I learn every day from them!

OK, now I better go to bed...Have a good night, everyone!

Spending, fiscal fast, menu and food waste

Pin It I never got to post our grocery spending last week but we spent quite a bit. I had a great beer rebate that I wanted to use before the end of the month:

   Basically, I would get back $25 via mail-in rebate if I spend $40 on Beef, chicken, seafood in one transaction. I just didn't want this rebate to expire. So I bought enough chicken and seafood to last us for the next 3-4 weeks. I also bought lots of fruit and veggies, more diapers (yes, I know, I'm hoping Baby is really considering to start potty training very soon :), toilet paper, condiments, you name it:

   I didn't get all of the pictures of what I bought last week but I spent tons. We actually only have $6.75 left from our grocery budget plus $3 RR from Walgreens. Hence, FISCAL FAST is coming this week! I'm a little scared with just 9 dollars left for the rest of the month but technically we shouldn't really need anything but bread and milk, and maybe, bananas. So it should work. I hope... And overall, we decided to stay away from  the stores this week and spend as little as possible.Maybe, I can do something more useful this week and work on some projects around the house:)

  On a good note, this is my food waste this week:

   Yep, I have none! I'm really happy with it. Kids were actually eating pretty well, and  there was no more spilled cereal anywhere :)

   As for menu for this week, that's what we are eating:

Mon.-crock pot chicken stroganoff, mashed potatoes, broccoli
Tues.-basil pasta, salad
Wed.- salmon, rice, green beans
Thurs.- soup of some sort
Fr.-leftovers
Sat.- potatoes, crock pot ribs, corn
Sun.- Hub's choice for lunch, dinner with a family (Hubby's Birthday)

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Total spent this month :$273.25
Total saved: $107.47 (plus about $45 in rebates)
Left to spend this month: $6.75
YTD spending: $1406.46
YTD savings: $774.27
YTD coupons used: 175
YTD waste: $30.92

Sunny Arizona, here we come...

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 It's finally here!! We are going away for a weekend getaway with Hubby. We really need it, just two of us. My amazing MIL and some other family members will watch kiddos here while we are gone. It will be a 6.5-7 hour drive one way, so I really hope Antelope Canyon is really worth and that it's as beautiful as it looks on the pictures:

   Can't wait to take my own photos!
   I won't be posting in the next couple of days, so a quick look at my grocery shopping this week. We did not spend much:

   I actually wanted to stay under $25 but then I realized that I can't leave family here with no food plus we decided to take sandwiches with us while in a car (this way we wouldn't have to buy dinner tonight). So I got tons of salad, fruit and veggies, lunch meat, cheese and bread. I also got raisins and prunes for the baby 'cause he's been pretty constipated lately (pardon all these details) Oh, and I got yogurt (not pictured) for kids.

So total spent :$29.55 ( and I will grab couple more cucumbers today too. They are on sale 8/99c!!!)
Total saved: $6.76
Coupons used: 1

Total spent this month :$161.94
Total saved: $53.36
Left to spend this month: $118.06
YTD spending: $1295.15
 YTD savings: $720.16
 YTD coupons used: 161
 YTD waste: $30.42

I hope, everyone has a wonderful weekend!!

Food waste Monday and a menu, week 5/7-5/13

Pin It    Ugh...My Internet has been acting up all day again...More on this tomorrow. Today I'm going to try to post but we'll see if it happens. So it's going to be a very short post.
   My food waste for this week:

      I was so close, so close to not having any waste this week until I found this 1/3 of a mango that kids never finished. It's just sad because it's such a small piece that could easily be avoided...Oh, well. I spent, 15c tops on it (the whole mango was on sale for 50c.).
   Talking about the sales, I've never posted my shopping trips from last week but we actually spent pretty much half of our grocery budget in one week. $132.39 to be exact. But I have an excuse-we did spend about $40 on diapers alone but we should be set for a couple of months (there is going to be another promotion in Smiths for diapers in the middle of May, so I will buy more but I will not spent nearly as much). Oh, and I will get almost $50 in different beer rebates. I do love beer rebates! They save us quite a bit of money every month!
   As for our menu this week, it's going to be very simple. We will be gone for 2 days, so we will mostly eat out of a fridge/pantry this week. I do need to buy some raisins and fruits. Baby has been pretty constipated in the last few days, so he needs more fiber in hid diet :)
   So here's our menu:

Mon- leftover beef stir-fry (see picture above), brown rice
Tues.- borcsht (Russian beet soup, read, more fiber for the baby :)
Wed.-Zucchini pasta
Thurs.-chicken Caesar salad
Fr.-out of town (will take some sandwiches with us for the road)
Sat.-out of town
Sun.-pizza, carrots, dessert (Mama-is-not-cooking Day)

Total spent this month :$132.39
Total saved: $46.60
Left to spend this month: $147.61
YTD spending: $1265.60
YTD savings: $713.40
YTD coupons used: 160
YTD waste: $30.42

Shopping trips this week...weeks?

Pin It    I just realized that I haven't posted any shopping trips in a few weeks. I still have all my numbers just not the pictures. We actually overspent this month but I feel OK about it. We got some canned stuff, a 5 lbs. bag of cheese, lots of other stuff we needed and, best of all, I went to the Russian store and got some of my native food. So as of  Apr. 23rd (Monday of this week) we spent $240.88, saved $88.96 and used 31 coupon. This week we went to Walmart and Smiths. We actually went to Smiths 3 times. here's why- this week Smiths is running a great General Mills cereal sale-if you buy for, you get it for $1.49 each. In reality, not all of the cereal was $1.49-some were more, some (like Honey nut cheerios) were less. And here we were down to 2 boxes of cerel, one opened. So this was a great cereal for us.At first, I only wanted to buy 4 boxes but then I decided to go back and buy more. Also one of my friends from MO sent me 3 amazing coupons for $3 off any beef,ham,chicken that were expiring 04/30/12, so I wanted to take advantage of them too. So these are my trips:

 Walmart trip #1:

   Had free coupons for any dole salad and Coffee-Mate (I use it with my PERO drink...Yum!). I also did plenty of price-matching (don't remember all of the details right now).
Total spent : $ 9.82
Total saved: $ 9.40
Coupons used: 4

Smiths trip #1:

   I had some good coupons for cereal  so I spent 49c-75c per box. Juice was $1.24-1.49 ea after some Smiths coupons.

Total spent: $9.76
Total saved: $16.16
Coupons used: 5

Smiths trip #2:

   This time cereal was a little more expensive (was out of all very good coupons) but still no more than $1. I also got Clausen pickles for $1.99 on clearance (my favorite) and some chicken tenders for $3.29- $3 chicken coupon=29c!!!

Total spent : $10.46
Total saved: 15.99
Coupons used: 3

Smiths trip #3 and Walmart trip #2 (combined picture):

  
   I really wanted to use my last meat coupon from my friend, so I stopped by Smiths again (we were in that area) and they had some steak on clearance for $3.86 down from $6.83, used $3 coupon=86c for almost 2 lbs of nice thin steak!! I also noticed a couple more things on clearance rack.

So total spent: $3.52
Total saved: $9.40
Coupons used: 2

   And at Walmart I went specifically for some feminine stuff. I cleaned my coupons yesterday and found 1 Carefree $1/1 coupon and 1 $2/2 Stayfree coupon that were expiring on Monday. I also have a $5 rebate of any 2 Stayfree packs.
So I got 1 carefree- 94c-$1 c=6 c MM
2 Stayfree- 2.86 ea-$2/2 c=$3.72- $5 rebate=$1.28 MM
I also used my last meat coupon and got more chicken for 49c. I have friends over tonight so it was perfect timing for some meat here :). And I got yet another cereal box :) Rancho Market had Honey Bunches of oats on sale for $1.99, used $1 c from Facebook=99c. Now we should be set with cereal for 6 months or so (hopefully!!). And I price-matched some produce:
oranges-6lbs/99c (price-m. to Rancho Market)
cucumbers- 8 $99c (price-m. to Rancho too)
watermelon- 4lbs/99c, seedless( also Rancho)-for dinner with friends

Total spent: $16.90
Total saved; $19.04
Coupons used: 6

So here's what the damage is this week:
Total spent this week-$50.46
Total saved this week-$69.99!!
Coupons used- 20

   Total spent this month : $291.34 ($34.34 over budget-still had $7 from last month)
Total saved: $158.95
Left to spend this month: $0
YTD spending: $1133.21
YTD savings: $666.88
YTD coupons used: 145
YTD waste: $29.77

   We decided to increase our grocery budget to $280 again for May. We need to stock up on meat (I have some great rebates that I want to take advantage of), want to buy more fresh produce and we NEED diapers (very-very soon!!)

Shopping trips this week...or how to blow a hundred bucks in one week!

Pin It    We surely did it! We spent about $100 this week. We actually started last Saturday which technically was still March but we already started our new monthly budget. We will go on a shopping freeze next week with a budget of $25 for all 7 days- basically for milk, bread,fruits and veggies.
   So here is what we bought this week. We went to Walmart and Smiths (both a few times) and Winco. In Winco Hubby grabbed a pizza for I-really-don't-want to cook night on Friday. It was $6.98 for 14" Hawaiian(my favorite) but I have a beer rebate for  $5 back any pizza. I don't count beer rebates as savings because when we get the money back, I just put them away for the canning season this year. I have almost $100 in this envelope right now. I'm excited to try some new canning recipes in summer.
   OK, back to our shopping.
   Walmart trip #1:

   Not much special about this trip. I got Activia for 99c (bought 4, price-matched to $1.99 in Macey's and used $1 coupons), cucumbers -20c ea (price-matched to Rancho Market), radishes-25c/bunch (price-matched to Rancho), green grapes-$1.29/lb (pr-m. to Smiths). I bought some other stuff, not pictured here And I got these Mama's Tortillas for $1 but I will never get them again. They were absolutely terrible! They were so stuck to each and just falling apart.

Anyway, total spent: $18.41
Total saved: $9.52
Coupons used: 4

   Smiths trip #1. That's where I spent the most money:

  I got a case of corn and a case of stewed sliced tomatoes. I like Kroger stewed tomatoes. I can  literally eat them out of the can, maybe, with a pinch of salt :). I saved about 25c per can. I also got Ronzoni pasta for 75c after sale and Catalina. Not the best price but we are down to 1 box at home. I got Dole Ceaser salad, clearanced to $1, 2 packs cream cheese for $1 ea, boca meatless burgers for $1.99 after sale and $1 e-coupon. And I got a 5lb bag of Tillamook shredded medium cheddar for $9.99 after sale and $1 cheese coupon. I got some other things but they are not really worth mentioning.

Total spent: $44.87
Total saved :$22.27
Coupons used: 2

   Walmart trip #2:

   Highlights: I got 2 dozen eggs-price-matched to 88c in Reams and used 55c/2 coupon that was available on Facebook a week or so ago= 61c ea!! Also got Kraft Fresh Take meat coating mix (free with a homemailer coupon), Bush's grilling beans (free with homemailer coupon), more cucumbers for 20c ea ( we had lots of salads this week :), oranges- 6lbs/99c (price-matched to Rancho), 1 avocado for 25c (price-matched to Rancho) Sarah Lee 100% whole wheat bread- $1.68 after $1 coupon on a package, 1 box barilla pasta-28c after $1/1 coupon.

Total spent: $12.86
Total saved: $15.08
Coupons used: 6

   Smiths trip #2
I sent my Hubby to grab us a ham for Easter dinner but turned out that we will have dinner with in-laws.So ham will go to a freezer for now:

   I'm not sure how much of a sale was the ham but it was $1.29/lb. Butter was $1.67 (will freeze), and ICBINB was on sale for $1.99, and I used $1.25 =74c ea. Also got a pack of Twizzlers (not pictured)-10 for $10.

So total spent: $14.45
Total saved: $4.71
Coupons used: 2

Smiths shopping #3

   When Hubby got all the stuff above, he also got a Catalina for some Kroger baby stuff. It had 3 coupons on it. So today I went to look for beer rebates (didn't find any new ones :( , and decided to use these coupons. Here is what I got:

   But I also had some e-coupons that were loaded on my card. Usually they do not allow combining of both e-coupons and manufacture coupons but this time both were discounted ( I'll take it!! I didn't even remember I had e-coupons loaded, so it was a nice surprise when I saw a receipt):
Kroger diapers- usually $6.21, used $2 manufacture coupon off catalina and $1 e-coupon= $3.21
2 packs 40count Kroger wipes- usually $1 each, used $1.50/2 catalina coupon+ 2 60c e-coupons= 70c MM!!
2 cans baby snacks- on sale for $1.50 ea, used BOGO catalina coupon=75c ea

Total spent: $4.23
Total saved: $7.38 
Coupons and e-coupons used: 6

   Not bad for a pack of diapers, 2 packs wipes and 2 cans of snacks!!

   So these are my shopping trips for this week. We got quite a bit of food, so I want to try to make a two-week menu plan on Monday. We'll see how that will work ...

Total spent this month (in one week): $99.05
Total saved: $58.96
Left to spend this month: $150.95+$7 from last month= $157.95
YTD spending: $822.97
YTD savings: $566.89
YTD coupons used: 125
YTD waste: $28.07

Shopping trips this week.

Pin It On Monday I  only had $59 left for the rest of the month, so I really tried to be frugal this week. I went to Walmart and Reams:

Walmart trip:

We actually went to Walmart twice this week but my husband did the first trip, and it was in the middle of all of us being sick, so I don't even remember what he bought other than rotisserie chicken and vanilla pound cake ( I was craving it!!) but total spent was $15.40, total saved-??? ( I just hope, there was something saved :)) 

Second trip:

As you can see from the picture, I REALLY needed some produce!! We have a bowl for fruit on our island, and I try to always have apples and pears there for kids. So here's what I bought:
1 salad-49c (price-matched to Rancho Market)
Roma tomatoes-2lbs/99c (price-matched to Rancho Market)
3 cukes- 6/99c (price-matched to Rancho Market)+ 50c
Fuji apples- 2lbs/99c (price-matched to Rancho Market)
1 bunch cilantro-33c (price-matched to Macey's)
 Sarah Lee 24oz 10% whole bread, Hearty and Delicious-$2.68 plus used $1 off the package=$1.68
I also got 1lb baby carrots,red apples, pears and 1 green pepper and 1 greek yogurt.

Total spent: $10.22
Total saved: $5.81
Coupons used: 1

Reams trip:

Sorry, I don't have a picture :( I made it but for some reason I can't find it on my camera. I wonder if I accidentally deleted it. But here's what I bought:

Boneless chicken- $1.69/lb
2 16oz. Big Buy  bacon- $1.89/ea
1 bunch bananas-49c/lb
1 package reduced green grapes-$1 (2.5 lbs)

Total spent: $12.72
Total saved: $ 4.20
No coupons used.

It's definitely a quite week here.  We will have a couple of friends from Russia spend two days with us next week, so I bought chicken to make something quick.

Total spent this month: $230.31
 Total saved: $438.96 (plus I will get $14.97 in rebates)
Left to spend this month: $19.69
YTD spending: $723.92
 YTD savings: $507.93
 YTD coupons used : 105
YTD waste: $28.07
 

Have a wonderful weekend, everyone!

Shopping trips this week...oh, a disaster!!

Pin It Most of the people don't shop when they are sick. Apparently, not us!!! I swear, we went to every grocery store in the area this week. There is no way I could make pictures of my every shopping trip, so I only we'll post a couple.

My big Smiths shopping trip. We still had some discount from filling the prescription there, so we used this money to cover some of our expences. Some highlights of this trip:
4 Activia -49c ea after 50c sale discount and $1 coupon
2 Van de Kamps fish items- $2.99 after $1 coupon
2 packs of diapers- $5.99 ea after 50c sale discount and $3 peelies (from big boxes, my friend sent me a couple)
 2 Lays chips(for future family get togethers)- $1.99 ea after 50c discount- I forgot a coupon for it at home but I will send my receipt for $4 back via beer MIR for $4/$4 on Salty snacks, so they will be free anyway.
Breyers ice-cream-$1.99 after $1 e-coupon.
Medium eggs-85c!!! No coupons used, that's their usual price, apparently. Even large eggs are only $1.10!! Now I know where I'm getting all my Easter eggs.

Anyway, total items purchased: 33
Total spent: $21.07 (after prescription discount, sales and coupons)
Total saved: $93.55!!- and will get $4 back after rebate
Coupons used: 16 (including 1 e-coupon)

I have another picture for you. This was my Winco trip. I got just a few items:

 I love bulk area at Winco! I got some couscous, quinoa, old fashioned onions and onion powder. I really wanted to get some turmeric but they were out. I also got Parmesan for $1.78 and 1 cucumber for 49c. I didn't use any coupons but even without the use of coupons, I feel I still get great deals at Winco. Their spices' prices in bulk are unbeatable!!

Total spent : $5.99

I was also in Harmons at the beginning of the week for some more frozen veggies (75c  steamfresh ones after sale and coupon), Smiths( 3 California pizzas, I'll tell you more about this particular purchase next week. You'll see why...) and bunch of trips to Walmart for gas drops, pedialyte, apples, more apples and some other fruits and veggies, 3 packs Bar-S bacon for $1.99!! (price-matched to Kmart) and zillion more little things that are supposed to help you better when everyone is sick in the household.

So total spent between all these trips: $43.86
Total saved: $15.60
Coupons used: 6

 Total spent this month: $191.97
  Total saved: $238.95 (plus I will get $6.97 in rebates)
  Left to spend this month: $58.03
 YTD spending: $685.58
  YTD savings: $497.92
  YTD coupons used : 104
  YTD waste: $27.18 

Ouch, we have just a little over $50 left in our food budget! That will be tough...But at least, we have plenty of food. But that Smith prescription discount really helped...

Shopping trips this week.

Pin It    I really wanted to keep our spending low this week but it didn't happen. I did get some deals that I'm happy about, though. We went to Macey's, Walmart and Harmons.

Macey's trip:

 
    My Hubby stopped by Macey's on Monday for their cheese sale. They had 2 lbs for $3.99. We got 2 Mozarella loaves and 1 Colby Jack. Hubby also grabbed some egg rolls for $1.99

Total spent: $14.38
Total saved: $13.30
No coupons used.

   Then on Wednesday we had our usual trip. First we went to Harmons:

    It's a frozen food month. And we love the convenience of steam bags but don't get them very often. So I got 5 bags of different veggies in Steam bags and 1 chopped spinach. I also got 2 frozen Langer's orange juice.

Total spent: $8.75
Total saved: $3.20
No coupons used

   Last trip was Walmart:

   I had a couple of coupons that were expiring, and I wanted to use them. Highlights of the trip:
8 cans corn-2/89c(price-matched to Rancho Market)
Bosc pears-3lbs/99c (price-matched to Rancho Market)
1 bunch radishes-5/99c (price-matched to Rancho)
3 Eggos waffles-99c ea (price-matched to Reams)
2 lbs bag carrots-89c (price-matched to Reams)
2 Jenni-O turkey sausages -$1.99 ea, used $1 off 2 coupon on a package
I also got free Suave product (from a Facebook promotion couple of months ago) and some baby wipes (had 2 $1 coupons of Huggies that I got from a manufacture last year and 1 75c of Pampers)

So total spent: $24.56
Total saved: $13.31
Coupons used: 5

  I feel like everything is going up on price. I bought hardly anything and spent $24!!! Today is the 10th of March, and we already spent almost half of our food budget...sigh...

 Total spent this month: $121.05
 Total saved: $129.80 (plus I will get $6.97 in rebates)
  Left to spend this month: $128.45
 YTD spending: $614.66
 YTD savings: $388.77
 YTD coupons used : 82
 YTD waste: $27.18 

Shopping trips this week.

Pin It This week we spent a lot more than I wanted but our refrigerator was  completely bare. And we need to eat!! I hope, everything we bought will last us for two weeks. I went to Walmart, Target ,Smiths, bread store and Reams this week.
My Walmart trip #1:

Highlights of this trip:
2 Eggo waffles-99c ea (price-matched to Maceys)
1 SeaPak jumbo coconut shrimp(BIG box, they are our favorite)-$5.99- price-matched to Maceys
broccoli-3lbs/99c-price-matched to Rancho Market
cucumbers-7/99c (got 5)- price-matched to Rancho Market
pork chops-$1.49/lb- price-matched to Rancho Market.
3 Activia-$1.98 plus used $1 coupons

I also bought lots of other produce, especially apples. Apples are fairly cheap right now, and my kids love them. So I try to buy as much as we can. I also realized that I NEED to organize my coupons. There were a few out there(like SeaPak) that would work for what I bought. I just couldn't find it...
So total spent: $38.69
Total saved: $19.82
Coupons used: 4

My Target trip:

 Well, first I have some cheese on the picture that is not from Target(obviously!!) . Hubby stopped by Walmart before work and grabbed it for me. There is a 3-day sale in Fresh Market with 2lbs loaf of cheese for $4.50 ea. We are completely out of cheese, so we got two.

Total spent: $9.27
Total saved: $ 8.98
No coupons used.

And now to my Target trip. I rarely go to Target but I had a doctor's appointment that was close to our store, and I had some really nice coupons that I wanted to use.So here's what I got:
1 box envelopes- cleranced to 68c (cheaper than a Dollar store)
2 Activia (more yogurt for us!!)- used $2/2 Target coupon plus $1/1 Manufacture coupons= 19c ea
1 pack Pampers and 1 pack wipes- used $3 off Target coupon if you buy diapers and wipes (came with a sample), $2 off Pampers (from P&G homemailer) and 75c of wipes printable.

Total spent: $7.25
Total saved: $10.06!!!
Coupons used: 6

And on today I made an even bigger trip. I had a $25 credit at Smiths for filling in the prescription, and there were a few things I wanted to pick up there. I also stopped by Reams and grabbed a couple more things in Walmart. I have 1 picture of all my trips today (minus a bag of potatoes):

Reams trip:
I got some veggies, more bananas,3 1 lb Norbest ground Turkey-$1.69/ea, a bag of potatoes for $1.79. 
Total spent: $12.08 but I will send for $3/$6 beer rebate for potatoes and ground meat
Total saved:$3.65(plus $3 in rebate)
No coupons used

Walmart trip #3(yuck...)
Whole milk for the Baby- $1.99 (price-matched with Rancho Market, Saturday deal)
2 Challenge Tuscan butter-$1.98, used  2 $2 off printable coupons
Oxy clean dishwasher booster- $3.97 (had a try-me-free rebate on it)
5 20c seed coupons (yeah, they are back!!)

Total spent: $7.44
Total saved: $4.44 (plus $3.97 in TMF rebate)
Coupons used: 2

And I had a pretty big trip at Smiths. The highlights of this trip:
grapes-$1.29/lb
2.5 bag of salmon- on sale for $9.99 plus used $1 coupon (homemailer)
3 lbs Bag of apples, clearanced to $1
Tide -on sale for $4.99, plus used $2.50 e-coupon
Kroger salad-clearanced to 50c, used 50c coupon (homemailer)

I also got bunch of canned fruit salad discounted 50-60% and some other stuff.

Total spent: $4.28
Total saved(including $25 credit): $50.02!!!
Coupons used: 6

And at the bread store I bought some bread (duh...) and whole wheat cinnamon mini-bagels. I really need to start baking my own bread again...
Total spent: $3.35
Total saved :appr. $3
No coupons used.

               ---------------------------------------------------------------

Total spent this month: $82.36
 Total saved: $99.99 (plus I will get $6.97 in rebates)
Left to spend this month: $167.64
YTD spending: $567.47
YTD savings: $358.96
YTD coupons used : 77
YTD waste: $27.18

Shopping trips from last week(very quick update)

Pin It    I was working on  the final numbers for the double challenge and just realized that I never posted shopping trips from last week. I just had a very crazy weekend. So here's a very short version:

    I went to Walmart on Friday. I usually shop on Wednesdays and Saturdays but last week it was Friday and Saturday too. I'm not going into much details but total spent was $25.73, total saved- $8.09, coupons used- 2.

   I also stopped by Reams really quick (no picture) but I grabbed  more milk, blackberries, a yellow and red pepper (69c each), string cheese. Total spent: $6.05, total saved- $3.34, no coupons used. Or and I sent my Hubby to grab another gallon of milk on Monday. Totals spent:$2.25 . I've been doing some baking on Sunday for Baby's Birthday , and we when kids are here, we usually go through about 2 gallons a week. Luckily, this week my sister will give me some milk that she got for free.

   So these are my numbers for the this week. I was hoping to save a little more this month but I'm pretty pleased with these numbers:

Total spent this month: $207.65
Total saved: $107.76
Left to spend this month: $72.35
YTD spending: $482.86
YTD savings: $258.87
 YTD coupons used : 59
YTD waste: $27.18

Shopping trips this week

Pin It This week I went to Walmart, as usual, and also Walgreens to get some diapers. When I was pregnant with my second, there were so many diaper deals that I would never pay more than $5 per pack. Now $5.99 is a deal for me! I can't wait until my baby is finally potty-trained. He already recognizes when he has a #2 and tells me about it but making him sit on a potty is a whole other story...

Anyway, this is what I got this week:

Walgreens:

   I bought 3 packs of Huggies diapers- 2 little movers, size 5 and 1 Snug and Dry, size 4. Size 4 is a little too small for my kid but I still use them during the day.Used 1 $3 off coupon (from a diaper box that I got from Amazon months ago), then 1 Walgreens baby book coupon for $2/2 and 2 manufacture coupons for $2 off Little Movers from Sunday paper. I also got Tide 32 loads, on sale for $4.99, and I had a coupon for $2 off (from Vocalpoint??).
So total spent: $23.15
Total saved(Walgreens prices): $21
Coupons used: 5

Wednesday Walmart shopping trip:

    Highlights of this trip:
2 gallons milk- $1.99, price-matched to Rancho Market, plus used 2 75 c milk coupons
1 pound of strawberries-99c, price-matched to Rancho Market
1 red pepper-49c, price-matched to Reams
Zucchini-59c/lb, price-matched to Reams
1 Avocado-20c, price-matched to Rancho Market
red grapes-$1.29/lb, price-matched to Smiths
big sliced tomatoes-59c/lb, price-matched to Reams

So total spent: $19.83
Total saved:$12.31
Coupons used: 4

Shopping trip at Walmart on Saturday(just a couple of things):

 Got cucumbers-7 for 99c, price-matched to Rancho Market Saturday deal
More tomatoes for 59c/lb, Activia-$1.98 minus $1 coupon( we've been having some tummy issues n the house this week), Equate version of Immodium. I also got 3 Hallmark 97c cards and used $2/3 coupon.

Total spent: $6.96
Total saved: $ 6.42
Coupons used: 2


UPDATE on 2/22: I completely forgot that we spent $4.74 on a box of ice-cream cones on Friday. I'll add it to my total.

Total spent this month: $173.62
Total saved: $96.33
Left to spend this month:$106.38
YTD spending: $448.83
YTD savings: $247.54
YTD coupons used : 57
YTD waste: $26.68

Shopping trips this week.

Pin It

  I went to a few stores this week. First, we went to Walmart on Wednesday with my Mom and got quite a bit of stuff for my Birthday party tomorrow and overall for the rest of the week. Highlights of this trip:
1 White cloud toilet paper- $5.97 plus used a $2 coupon(not available any more)=$3.97
2 Bear creek soups- price-matched to 2/$5 at Maceys plus used $1 of 1 coupon=$1.50 each
Green peppers-29c, price-matched to Reams
Asparagus-1.49, price-matched to Reams
4 Betty Crocker fruit snacks- 89c/ea, price-matched to Fresh Market.
2 Kraft dressings-$1.88, price-matched to Maceys, used 2 50c/1 blinkies plus $1 off produce if you buy 2=$1.38/ea plus $1 worth of produce free

Total spent in Walmart: $58.88 (but I will get $5 in Bud beer rebate for paper plates-my friend sent me that one)
Total saved: $13.72
Coupons used: 6

I also went to Smiths and Reams this week but forgot to get pictures. At Reams I got 3 6oz boxes of blueberries for $1.25 ea (gave one to my Mother-in-law. She babysat for us while we spent some time with my parents) and 1 orange pepper for 99c
Total spent: $4.88
Total saved: $2.85
No coupons used

At Smith we got Cottage cheese on sale, some discounted produce, big thing of hand soap( we completely ran out here!!Never happened to me before) and some other stuff.
Total spent: $13.53
Total saved: appr. $5 (can't find the receipt but it's pretty close estimation)
Coupons used: 1 (for cottage cheese)
 
We also went to the Russian store this week but my parents paid for this trip.

Total spent this month: $118.94
Total saved: $56.60
Left to spend this month: $161.06
YTD spending: $394.15
YTD savings: $207.81
YTD coupons used : 46
YTD waste: $26.63

My parents are here edition!!! And shopping trips this week

Pin It

                                      Moscow Sheremetyevo Airport


   Well, my parents are here!! They barely made it to the airport in Moscow. They had a pretty nasty snow storm, and the traffic was so bad that it took them  5 HOURS!!! to get there. They were the last passengers to get on the airplane but they did it! The whole trip took about 20 hours (with a 4-hour layover in NY). So they are tired and sleep-deprived. We have 10-hour time difference with Moscow. We are going to have a quiet weekend with long walks, some shopping and Church on Sunday. The kiddos are extremely happy to see Grandparents, and both of my boys have been jumping on Grandpa all morning :).

                          Kiddos with a very tired Dedushka (aka Grandpa)

   I did my usual shopping trip on Wednesday. I went to Walmart and Harmons.
Highlights of these trips:
 3 Lawry's Marinade-99c/ea (price-matched with Macey's) plus used $1 coupon=0.01 overage
2 lb cheese loaf-$4.99 (price-matched with Macey's) plus used $1 coupon=$3.99
Chicken $1.59/lb -price-matched with Fresh Market
Tomatoes-4lbs/99c
3 Boost Kid's Essentials-$4.98 (usual price) plus used $3 coupons found at the doc's office- $1.98

Our baby doesn't want to eat at all lately. All he wants are carbs (pasta,bread...)and milk!!! So I got Boost just to make him drink some vitamins. And I'll probably just get some baby vitamins next week (didn't have any in our Walmart). He was such a good eater before! I don't know what happened.

Anyway,I also stopped by Walmart on Saturday and grabbed some grapes (89c/lb,price-matched to Rancho Market)
So total spent in Walmart: $37.52
Total saved: $31.85 (!!!)
Coupons used: 7


   And at Harmons I got some cukes (they didn't have any at Walmart), and I also grabbed a loaf of bread.
Total spent: $4.13
Total saved: appr. $3
Coupons used : 0

  So these are the numbers so far:


Total spent this month: $41.65
Total saved: $34.85
Left to spend this month: $238.35
YTD spending: $275.21
YTD savings: $196.06
YTD coupons used : 39
YTD waste: $26.33