Rite Aid

Thanks to Hip2Save, I was able to get a start on the $25.00 Rite Aid GC SCR and the Bonus $ 5.00 Rite Aid GC SCR. I will finish both giftcard SCR's next week. I did two separate transactions:

Transaction #1:

1 Coppertone Sunscreen - $ 9.99 - minus 20% Wellness( my discount was greater than the discounted sale price) =  $7.99 - Used $  2.00 Rite Aid In Ad Cpn =$ 5.99 - Used $ 3.00 Rite Aid VV Cpn = $ 2.99 - Used $  1./1  Mfrs. Cpn = $ 1.99

3 Vaseline Sheer Infusion Lotion 6.8 oz - $ 4.99  each = $14.97 -  Used (3) $ 2./1 Mfrs. Cpn =$ 8.97

Used $ 5./20. Rite Aid VV Cpn

Total was $ 6.76 including tax but nothing OOP because I paid with a  Visa Giftcard that was Free.


Transaction #2:

1 Pair of Kids Style Science Barbie Sunglasses - $ 7.99 - minus 20% Wellness Discount = $ 6.39 - Used $ 4./1 Rite Aid VV Cpn  =$ 2.39

6 Ziploc Slider Bag Freezer Bags$ 2.99 each - on sale B1G1F -  Used (3) B1G1F Mfrs. Cpns(these beeped but the cashier just entered the price)  = All Free  and I am sending for the SC Johnson $ 5.00 Rebate

Total  was  $ 3.75 including tax. I paid $ 1.76  using the Free Visa GC and $ 1.99 OOP! 

I want to thank all of our servicemen and women out there who keep this country free. I hope everyone is enjoying their Memorial Day as we did. It's a great weekend to just enjoy family and great food!

Spending Money To Save Money!

A few days ago, Slugmama, whose blog is here:  Don't Read This; It's Boring!  left this comment on my blog...............

Here's what I did to save money today....I hate buying 'things' but I broke down this morning and bought a cheese slicer at the restaurant supply house near here. It was $10(ouch) but it's much sturdier than the ones they sell in the kitchen departments of places like Target or Walmart for cheap.

I can buy Cooper sharp cheese(our splurge brand)at the wholesale/restaurant supply store for $15 in 5lb. blocks and slice it myself. That's $3 a lb. as opposed to paying $6.99 (or $4.99 when it's on sale) in the deli at the grocery store. It is something I can't NOT buy even if it's not on sale.
We go through 1-2 lbs. a week with the kids here so over the course of a month, we use 5-8lbs. of sliced cheese. Buying and slicing it myself takes a little extra time but will save me between $16 & $10 a month.....that's $120-$192 a year saved! 
 
That got me thinking about all of the things that we spend money on that save us money down the  road.  Her example of the cheese slicer is a perfect one. So I will attempt to list three of the things that we have purchased that have saved us many, many dollars over years. There are many others. 
 
- My chicken rotisserie only cost me $ 30. about 15 years ago. I would buy chickens when they were on sale for $ .69 a lb. and rotisserie them myself. Buying one already prepared in the market would usually cost me $ 6.99 - $ 8.99 a lb. I never saw one for $ 4.99 until I moved here. Since we love rotisserie chicken,  I would do one twice a month. The chickens would cost me approximately  $ 2.75 - $ 3.00 each to buy them on sale. My rotisserie died last year so I used it for  14 years. At an average of $ 2.87 a chicken for me to buy and an average of buying one prepared at $ 7.99 a lb, I saved $ 122.88  a year times 14 years = $ 1720.32 minus the $ 30. I paid for it and the little bit of electricity the rotisserie took. I am on the lookout to buy a cheap new or used rotisserie again!
 
- My breadmaker cost me approximately  $ 64. I can make a loaf of bread depending on whether it is white bread or a fruit bread like cinnamon raisin for between $ .75 and $ 1.37 a loaf.  Store bought bread costs me anywhere from $ 1.89 - $ 3.99 a loaf.   I have had my breadmaker for about 10 years. Using  an average of $ 2.00 a loaf if I buy bread and $ 1.06  a loaf if I make bread, if I make a loaf 26 times  a year, I save $ 24.44. After about 3 years, I have paid for the breadmaker and have saved $ 171.08 over the other 7 years.
 
- Our Bissell ProHeat Steam Cleaner is about 15 years old and cost us $ 189. to purchase. We have had white or light beige carpets in our last two homes. It would have cost us approximatley $ 200. each time we wanted them steam cleaned if we hired a Stanley Steamer type company.  I have  no idea what it would have cost me to rent  a machine. We would clean our carpets twice a year and then we have also used it many times when there has been spills. This machine payed for itself the first time we used it.  Over the 15 years it saved us $ 5800. minus the cost of cleaning solution and that  doesn't even  count the times we used it for spills. We just saved  our white carpet in the great room a week or so ago and  our new ulpholstered chair when a glass of white zinfandel was accidentally spilled  on them. It took every bit of the wine out. Unfortunately, right after that it stopped working properly. DH will be taking it apart and trying to repair it next week. If  he can't, you can bet we will buy another one.  

I also know how to save on groceries, cleaning products, HBA and meds, so that I don't pay full  hardly ever.

And I know that if I put in a high efficiency gas furnace or two stage air conditioner that I will save megabucks over the initial cost.  The same  goes for a tankless water heater, gas stove  and HE washer and  dryer. I know that I will save money on my plumbing, shampoos and soap  products if I install a water softener. These are all expensive items.

How do you save by spending money on the cheaper products like  the three I mentioned above  or the one that Slugmama  mentioned? I am always open  to hearing  your ideas and I  am sure that the people who read my blog would be too.  So please leave  a comment and  share your spending to save stories with us!       

Saving Money Challenge- May 30th

These are the few things I have done today to save money:

- 30 minutes on the treadmill ( saves on joining a gym and on my health bills)

- Breakfast was cold cereal and bananas, oj and coffee ( cheap and nutritious)

- DH had 2- 81 mg. baby aspirin left. I purchased 2 - 45 ct. bottles of  Ecotrin and made $ 4.00.( I love moneymakers.)

- Used the $ 4.00 in Register Rewards towards buying Ducolax SS and 2 Milky Ways that are now in the freezer to put in homemade cookies.( cheap med and cheap add in's for those cookies)    

- The vet wants my cat to eat canned food to get the extra water  so I  picked up 2 cans of Fancy Feast for  just tax of $ .04 a can.( almost free cat  food)

- Earned 200 gasoline points at Tops purchasing Lipton Side Dishes that I needed. Added to the points I already had, I purchased 14 gallons of gasoline at $ .40  off a gallon this morning or $2.479 per gallon.( saving on the high cost of gasoline)

- Purchased ground chuck in bulk this morning at a good price- $ 10.01 for 5.05  lbs. I used my Tilia Foodsaver to package and freeze it  in approximate 8 oz. packages. This will provide DH and I - 10 meals of meat. ( cheap protein for meals and keeping it from freezer burn)   

- I washed and sliced all 4 lbs. of strawberries. I put 2 lbs. in the refrigerator to use this week. I  put the other 2 lbs. in freezer bags and froze them for later in the  year. ( cheap fresh fruit) 

- I  washed and dried the blueberries so they are ready to put in pancakes and on cereal this week for breakfast. ( more cheap fresh fruit)

- Since I already had a new container of milk  in  the fridge, I froze the gallon of  milk  for future use. It was too good a price to pass up! (stocking on milk when the price is right)

-  One package of Tortillas went into the fridge and one into the  freezer. I  bought 2 in order to use the  coupon.( coupon savings)

- I cut the few General Mills coupons and the  $ 5.00 Prilosec coupon that came in today's paper and put them in my binder.( staying organized saves money)

- Made chicken sandwiches for lunch.( nice homemade lunch)

- Dinner will be grilled NY Strip Steaks.  I don't have an  outdoor grill yet but I do have an indoor one. We will have cream cheese mashed potatoes from the batch that I froze in the freezer the beginning  of the week. Veggie will be steamed broccoli and dessert will be sliced strawberries. ( Steak was $ 6.99 a lb on sale; potatoes were cheap and getting  soft when I made them for the freezer. Broccoli was cooked and frozen from fresh when  it was on sale, a while ago. This dinner will be as good if not better than eating  out.  That is a huge moneysaver!)  

- We had to  put the A/C back on because it is supposed to be in the  high 80's today. However ,we do have the ceiling fans running so that we can keep it at 76. It isn't the  temperature that I can't tolerate. I am used to much higher in AZ.  But the humidity is ugly! ( saving my good mood)

- I am still working on gathering a few more things for the garage sale at my son's house.( ready to make  a few bucks)

- Tonight DH and I will watch a movie.( free from Netflix trial)

Please feel free to  leave a comment  and let us know what you did to save money today!

Sunday Shopping!

I did a little shopping this morning for things that were and were not desperately needed. Thanks to KC whose blog  is here:  Desert Deals Diva I was alerted to  the 81 mg. aspirin deal at Walgreens that started today. I was going to buy it last week because DH was running out. She  left me  a comment letting me know that it would be a money maker this week. Thanks KC!  I got enough for 90 days for  DH which leaves me enough time to look for another deal with coupons.   So I made 3 separate trips in and out of Walgreens this morning:

Walgreens Trip # 1:

1 -  45 ct. 81 mg.  Ecotrin - $ 2.00 - Used $ 2.00 Mfrs. Cpn = Free

Total OOP was $ .00 ( no tax on medications in NY)  and I received a $ 2.00  Register Reward


Walgreens Trip #2:

1 - 45 Ct. 81 mg. Ecotrin - $ 2.00 - Used $ 2.00 Mfrs. Cpn = Free

Total OOP was $ .00 and I received another $ 2.00 Register Reward

Walgreens Trip  # 3:

1 Ducolax SS  - $ 6.99 - Used $ 1./1 Mfrs.  Cpn = $ 5.99
2 Milky Ways - 2 for $ 1.59

Used $ 4.00 in Register Rewards

Total OOP was $ 3.71


Rite Aid:

2  cans of Fancy Feast - .50 each - Used $ 1./2  Mfrs. Cpn = Free

Total  OOP was $ .08 tax.


Tops:

9 Pkgs of Knorr Side Dishes ( not  all in pic) - $ 1.00 each = $ 9.00 - Used (3) $ 1.00/3 Mfrs. Cpns = $ 6.00 and I received a gas  reward for 200 points equal to $ .20 off a gallon added to what I had already  earned.

5.05 lbs.  of Ground Chuck on sale  at $ 1.99 a lb.  = $ 10.01

4 - 1 lb. Pkgs  of Fresh Strawberries - $ 1.39 each

1 Pint of Fresh Blueberries - $ 1.49 with Tops Super Coupon

1 Gallon of FF Tops Milk  - $ 1.49 with Tops Super Coupon

1 Pkg. of Sliced Mushrooms - $ 1.79

1 can of Spot Shot - $ 4.59 - Used $ 2.00/1 Mfrs. Cpn = $ 2.59

2 Chi Chi's Soft Tortillas - $ 2.19 each = $ 4.38 - Used $ 1./2 Mfrs. Cpn = $ 3.38

2 Breyers Ice Cream ( Limit 2) - $ 1.99 each - $ 1./2 Mfrs. Cpn = $ 1.49 each

Total OOP  was $ 35.50 and I received 200 gasoline points!

Money Saving Challenge - May 29th

I woke up this morning to the birds singing. It is such a beautiful sound! DH woke up ahead of me,  turned off the a/c and opened all the windows since it cooled off last night. I am hoping that we don't have to turn it back on later. Our cat is enjoying watching the mallard ducks in the pond while sitting in the window sill. She is chattering at them!

DH made  a pot of Tim Hortons coffee so I am having a cup while my body wakes up. Then I am off to do my 30 minutes on the treadmill.  Since  it is a holiday weekend, the scenery is different though. No "hot" construction workers to watch working across the street. And you wondered why I kept doing the treadmill every morning? :-)

Treadmill is now done and I have taken my navy shower and dressed in some old shorts and a shirt to hang around the house today. 

I served bacon and eggs and orange juice for breakfast and put the dishes in the dishwasher. Next I made out my Kraft $ 10. Rebate and scanned a copy of everything into my computer in case it gets lost in the mail. I also did a  survey for the apartment  complex and put both envelopes out in my mailbox for the mailman to pick up. The survey came with a postage paid envelope so that was a bonus. We also got a survey from the corporate headquarters of the builder. That one can be done online so DH will do it.

Next it was time to clean out my pocketbook. I hate when it gets messy with receipts, coupons, etc. I used to have a plastic envelope that I corraled everything in but it got lost during the move. So I  will have to make a note to get  another one the next time I am at an office supply store. I found a Visa giftcard that I wasn't sure whether there was a balance on. So I  called and found out there is $ 8.52 left on it. I will find a way to use that up  this week.  I also have a store credit  for Famous Footwear. I will have to locate a store here to see if I can use it or not since I got the credit in AZ.  I put my other giftcards that haven't been used yet in my wallet where they will be handy when I need them. If giftcards are just sitting around with balances, you risk being charged a non use fee and worst of all you forget them and waste that money. I like to use them asap. 

Today I am cleaning out drawers in furniture in various rooms. I have not had time to go through them since we packed and we used them for a lot of different things. So I am organizing and finding places for all of those items. This way if I come upon something that we can no longer use, I can put it in the garage sale pile for next weekend.  

While cleaning out an extra dresser we have, our cat decided the top drawer was now hers. As you can see, she is very comfy. She was not happy when I moved her so that I could clean the bottom two drawers! I am finding a number of things that we no longer need, so I am putting pricing stickers on them as I go.

I fixed DH 2 hotdogs for lunch. I was not hungry!

The mail today brought a $ 3.00 Pinecone check. 

I have 2 rooms of drawers and a closet cleaned out. We have a big pile of stuff just from those spaces to put in the garage sale. I should have done one in Arizona while we were still there. But it was too  hot when we were packing plus until I got moved in here and started tryed to organize and  decorate, I didn't know that I didn't need those items.

Needing to take a break, I enjoyed reading in the nook in the master bedroom that DH made me. He knows  that I love to read. I  would rather do that than watch TV any day. It's just a corner of the  room with a beautiful recliner, a nice window and  a lamp. I do need to look for a small table to hold a couple of books.

I also took the time to file the few coupons that I have printed this week to keep my binder up to date. It's hard to save money when you can't find the coupons, so I like to stay current. 

Dinner tonight will be the leftover ground turkey dish that I made last night and a tossed salad. For dessert, I made some SF cherry jello. 

We have not had to put on the A/C because the temperature has stayed in the 70's and with all of the windows open, we have quite a breeze today. It is actually beautiful here.

I have one load of sheets to wash and dry tonight in the HE's while I read. Prior to that DH and I will go for our nightly walk.     

I hope  you all are having a great weekend. We are enjoying the quiet here!

Feel free to leave a comment and share with all of us what you did today to save money.

Money Saving Challenge - May 28th

Our cat is doing a little better so I can get back to the business of saving money.

- I exercised for 30 minutes on the treadmill this morning. ( Saves on my health and gasoline because I  don't have to go anywhere.)

- Scooped the  cat's litter box. ( Saves on litter.)

- Checked both my Best Buy and Dicks Rewards to make sure the points  were there.  They are and the Best Buy's rewards are printable. Dick's certificates I expect in the mail anyday.( Value for my dollar) 

-  Did points programs and 4 surveys.( earning cash and gift certificates)

- Took a  CVS Advisor survey for $ 10.00 in ECB's. ( I will use this the next time I have to go down that way for other errands.)

- Breakfast was oatmeal and a banana.( cheap and nutritious)

- Did two loads of laundry  with minimal  detergent. I have cut back the amount  of HE detergent to  about  1/8 of a cup and it is working well. I  have been hanging the heavy jeans and  bulky items to dry. ( saves on soap and electricity)

- Called the garbage service because they neglected to pick up our recyclables yesterday. They will  try to pick  them up today. ( Getting the service that you pay for.)

- Received our electric bill  for an entire month. It was $ 117.17 which is about $ 17. less than last month. The difference is probably because the heat was off for 3 days. I examined the bill very carefully  and saw that about $11.00 of it is  NYS and county taxes.  I am still not happy with our usage even though I do realize that this is a very big house  with very high ceilings and it will not be cheap  to air condition or heat it. The bill will be up this month due to A/C but I hope it will be less for laundry now that  all of our storage things are washed. I  also will be using more small appliances to cook with and will put them on the porch or in the garage now that A/C  is running. I  want to keep the heat out  of the house. Also small appliances use much less energy to cook with. We may have to go and buy our outdoor grill  soon even though we don't have a patio. We can grill  in the driveway. I miss grilling outside and it does save on energy. ( saving on energy)

- Received our full deposit plus interest for the apartment back in the mail today.  I took that check and 6 others to the bank  to deposit in our high interest savings account.  Checks sitting on my desk for days at a time do not earn  interest. Wegmans is in the same  shopping center so  I stopped in to buy romaine lettuce that we needed.( earning interest and combining trips )

- DH and I met  with the  contractor who we are going to hire to do the entire outside at his nursery this  morning. We looked at trees and bushes and made some changes. We should meet with him again on Tuesday to get the final change numbers and put 1/3 down. He also is arranging for us to get an estimate for a sprinkler system. Meanwhile we  will get an estimate for a temporary system while the grass is coming in.  That way we can decide  which way we are  going to go. This will in no way be  money  saving but hopefully it will be the last chunk of thousands of dollars that we have to put out except for the  riding lawn mower.( This money is already set aside and earmarked for these things.)

- I made hot dogs for lunch.( almost free lunch)

- Received two free magazines in the mail today. ( free reading over the weekend)

- Chatted with my son just before he, my DIL, and my grandson boarded a plane to Boston to visit with relatives for the long weekend. ( Priceless)

- We did not have the planned pork tenderloins, apples and onions for dinner. DH wanted me to make a ground turkey recipe. So I made my ground turkey, raisins, sliced green olives, stewed tomatoes, tomato  paste, cumin and Frank's hot sauce recipe. It was so good.( using a recipe that I have all the ingredients on hand saves money by not running out to buy them and saving on gasoline)   

- DH and I are going for a walk  when I sign off here. ( free exercise)

- We have  a free trial for a month with Netflix so will  watch  a movie tonight.( free entertainment)  

I hope all of you who have big plans for the Holiday weekend a safe and happy one! I will be around and posting most of the weekend for those  of you staying home. 

What did you  do to save money today? Please feel free to leave a comment and share with all  of us.        

Have You Ever Had A Day When Things Seem To Not Go According to Your Plan?

Well, I have had two of them. While my grandaughter and DIL were here I became convinced that my cat was sick again. So  yesterday, DH took her to the vet. She had to stay overnight for tests plus  they did an ultrasound on her. I picked her up about noontime today. The vet says she has another bacterial infection and she is dehydrated. This is the second time that she has had one since we moved into the new house.  The vet is also convinced that she is stressed...most likely from  the cross country move into the  apartment and then into the house.  She  also has had to deal with workmen in and out of the house for almost 8 weeks. Then we had company for 6 days. She also has had the alarm system go off twice when we have not been home. All of that is enough to make the poor cat neurotic!  So they  gave her an antibiotic shot today that will last 14 days. She does not take pills well. We will bring her back to the vet at the end of 14 days to see if the  infection is gone. If her stress level is still up they will  put her on a mild dose of prozac. I feel so bad because I feel like it is my fault that she was so contented for 6 years and then I turned her world upside down. 

The vet  wants me to start feeding her wet canned food. So I will start having to collect coupons for those.  I always  gave them away or threw them out because she did so well on Iams Or Science Diet dry food.  I also am looking into getting one of those circulating water fountains made for cats so that she will  drink more water and not keep getting these infections.  She can still have dry food also but I have to mix it with water. Today's vet bill was for $201.00.  Fortunately we budget yearly for vet bills so they don't take  us by surprise. The one the end of March was for $ 111.96 and we aren't done yet.      

So after I brought her home, I went and got  a few cans of wet food to hold me until  I find coupons. While I was out,  I went to Dollar General and picked up 2 picnic tablecloths that I needed at  $4.00  each. The other dollar stores that I checked over the past few weeks only had too small for me tablecloths and at Walmart they were $ 5.00 each.

I got home to find out that we each got a letter from the medical  practice that we go to telling  us that our primary care physician is leaving the  practice on June 7th. We were shocked! It took us 4  months to find  a Doctor who not only took our insurance but who we really liked. So we are going to have to check out a new physician.  UGH!

We have had some good mail the past few days. Pictured are the 2 boxes of Bob's Red Mill Wheat Free, Gluten Free, Dairy Free Pancake Mix that I ordered using subscribe and save at Amazon.com. Each box holds 4 - 22 oz. packages. These should last us for the year.   Of course, once they shipped, I cancelled the subscribe and save.  After the promotional code, they cost me a total of $ 7.04 which of course was paid with gift certificates earned by searching through SwagBucks  

I also received a refund check from National Fuel for a $ 21.38 overpayment and two rebate checks totaling  $ 9.00.   

Not much  else has been done around here except laundry the past few days. And we are eating our leftovers like I posted earlier in the week.    

Hopefully now that the cat is home and getting well, I can start planning my days again and actually having the plans work.  I don't do well in chaos! 

I Did Shop Today!

I hadn't planned on doing much shopping this week.  However you know what they say about the best laid plans.  My son talked me into getting the spareribs that are on sale at Tops and I also had to make a run to Walmart which is right next door to get labels to mark our items at my  son's garage sale in about 11 days.  DH also reminded me of the mini- family reunion that we are going to this weekend at Canandaigua Lake if NYS reopens the parks. I had planned on taking a large pasta  salad to share.  It's easy!  It's just cooked shells, diced fresh tomatoes, sliced pitted black olives, diced cheddar cheese, diced pepperoni and Zesty Italian Dressing. It's always a big hit when I share it . So I needed a few things to be able to make that. 

 So this is what I purchased:

Walmart:

1 -34 Ounce GV Can of Cashews  - $ 8.78

1- 6 oz. can of GV Pitted Black Olives- $  1.48

1 Bag  of GV Corn Chips - $ 1.50

1- 360 Pkg.  of Sticker Labels for the garage sale  - $ 1.88

1 Pkg. of GV Hot Dog Rolls - $1.00

Total was $ 14.79


Tops:

14.28 lbs. of Smithfield Spareribs at  $ 1.69 per lb = $ 24.13

2  Pkgs. of Barilla Shells - $ 1. each  = $ 2.00

1 Michelina Lean Gourmet Snackers  - $ 1.59 -  Used $ .50/1 Mfrs. Cpn Dbled = $ .59

1 Uncle Ben's Ready Rice Whole  Grain Chicken Medley - $ 2.29 - Used Free Mfrs. Cpn = Free

1 Oscar Mayer Hot Dogs - $ 3.49 - Used Free Mfrs. Cpn  = Free

1 Uncle Ben's Ready Rice - $ 2.29 - Used $ .75/1 Mfrs. Cpn Dbled = $ .79

1 Bull's Eye Kansas City BBQ Sauce - $ 2.39 - Used Free Mfrs. Cpn = Free

1 Bison French  Onion Dip - $ .99 with  Tops Super Cpn - Used $ .35/1 Mfrs. Cpn Dbled = $ .29

Total was  $ 27.80


ANALYSIS:

These cashews are the cheapest I have found when they aren't on sale. We eat a handful for a snack every day.  I needed another can of black olives and the shells for the reunion salad.  The corn chips and dip are a treat for DH while he watches the French Open Tennis. The labels are for the garage sale.  Since I was getting free hotdogs,  I needed rolls.  Walmart had them the cheapest.

My son makes  these spareribs in his crockpot with BBQ sauce and he says they are delicious. This package had 3 large spareribs  which I cut in half and froze. So we will get at least 6 meals out of them. The  BBQ sauce was free and I will use it for the 1st batch of spareribs. I usually make my DH's mothers' homemade BBQ sauce recipe so will make that for the other sparerib meals.  The snackers are for a quick cheap breakfast this week when DH has to get up very early for a Doctor's appt. The  ready rices were free and cheap and DH loves rice.

The hot dogs and  BBQ sauce will be used toward the Kraft $ 10.00 Rebate.

The Leftovers Must Get Used!

My grandaughter and DIL have left and are on their 5 hour journey to get home. I am always sad when they leave but I know that I will see them in a few weeks. We had such a great time!

So between doing loads of laundry and filing a claim on a class action suit for being overcharged by our healthcare company on our out of network bills over the past few years, I am perusing the refrigerator to see what leftovers we have and how we can use them up. The one thing I always try to avoid is throwing food away. It is such a waste of money. I don't plan on going out today because it is so hot and humid. Our bodies are not adjusted to the humidity yet, so we have had the air conditioning on for the past two days.

We have just a little bit of turkey left from dinner last night.  There is leftover stuffing, gravy, sweet potatoes, roasted potatoes, whole cranberry sauce, corn and broccoli with cheese sauce.  We also have one and 1/2 chicken cordon bleu chicken breasts. Leftovers also include Silk Milk, apple juice, and chicken herb soup. 

Perusing the deli drawer, I see leftover ham, bacon, roast beef, swiss  cheese and bits and pieces of cheddar, parm, and mozzarella. The produce  drawer has tomatoes, onions, potatoes and lettuce that need to be used soon.  

Since there are only two of us eating here most  of the time, it will take a while to use this. So I need a plan so that this food will not go bad. 

Tonight we will eat the chicken cordon bleu, stuffing with gravy, cranberry sauce, roasted potatoes, sweet potatoes and  broccoli with cheese sauce. After dinner, I will save any leftover potatoes and gravy to make stew on Wednesday. 

The leftover corn will get put in the soup freezer bag for turkey soup that I will make tomorrow using the leftover turkey, some diced onions and celery, and the sliced carrots and rice that were frozen the other night after dinner. I will add the 1/2 cup of chicken herb soup that is leftover to the turkey soup. 

My grandaughter drinks soy milk but DH does not  like it. So I will drink it with my meals until it is gone. I  will also drink the leftover apple juice for breakfasts and use it to make pork tenderloins with apples and onions on Friday. YUM!

The bacon will keep for bacon and eggs this weekend. I  just froze the ham to use in a casserole next week. The roast beef, swiss cheese, lettuce and tomatoes will make lunches for the next couple of days. The bits and pieces of cheddar, parm and mozzarella will get used on a homemade pizza this weekend.

This afternoon I will dice all of the onions that are getting old and freeze them to use  in the stew and soup and other dishes in the next few weeks. DH also loves them in his omelets.  I will also cook all of the potatoes and make two portion containers of mashed potatoes to freeze for  future meals. In those mashed potatoes will go about 1/2 container of chive cream cheese that needs to be used. 

Lastly, we have almost a full loaf of white bread and a loaf of whole grain wheat bread that needs to be frozen and used a few slices at a time so that it won't go bad.

Now that I have my plan on paper, it will be easy to put it into action and make sure that we are not wasting any dollars by throwing food out.  I have known so many people over the years who always threw their leftovers out. That just never made sense to me. You can use the leftovers up in so many ways that are  not boring for your families!  People have said to me " We don't eat leftovers!" My question to them would be: " Why are you cooking so much food that you have leftovers?" Waste is waste, whether you throw the leftovers out after a meal or let then languish in the refrigerator  and then throw them out. You might as well, just save your time and take that money and burn it before you grocery shop and cook. I hate it when I forget something and have to throw it out but that  is  a rarity around here. It is easy to check out what is in your fridge  once or twice a week and make a plan. I  like to do it on a Sunday or Monday when I am making grocery lists and wiping down the inside of the refrigerator.

So do you use up your leftovers or do you just make meal size portions? Feel free to leave a comment and share with all of us your ideas. 

Why Would I Buy Something Just Because I Can?

Grandpa just went with my DIL and grandaughter to the park playground while I get everything ready for our big family turkey dinner tonight. My son, other DIL, and grandson will be here too!  I am so happy! These get togethers are just what I moved 3000 miles for. I just wish my other son was here! But we will see him in a few weeks.   

So I have the table set and all of my serving dishes and pots and pans ready. Since I have some time till they return, I thought I would blog about my plan for grocery shopping this week.   

While they were watching cartoons this morning, I quickly looked at the ads.  They basically stink. The only thing I saw was 81 mg. aspirin at Walgreens which we are running out  of. But I am not sure that  it is a good price, so I will be checking the price at Tops also.   There is a good but not  great Noxema disposable razor deal this week also; however since I have a stockpile of over 200 razors, I just can't justify spending $ .99 for it. 

Tops does have St Louis Style Spareribs which are the real meaty ones for $2.49 a lb. but I have so many pork products in the freezer right now that I will have to think long and  hard about getting those.  They would be so yummy though cooked in BBQ sauce in the crockpot which I would put in the garage so as to not heat up the house. 

Wegmans again has corn on the cob on sale for $ .25 an ear. However I can't justify the gasoline to just go for that.  If I have to go down that way for something else this week, then I will stop and get some. 

I really need nothing this week except the aspirin, so I am not going to spend the money just to spend it. I have plenty of money left this month from our grocery budget but I would rather just put it into savings and investments and let it make more money. We have 2 freezers full of meat and many frozen veggies. So we will be eating out of the pantries and freezers. Last night, we had a nice dinner of chicken cordon bleu, corn, chicken and wild rice, broccoli, cauliflower and carrots.  I had veggies and rice leftover so they went into a freezer bag to use in my soup which I will make later this week using leftover turkey from dinner tonight. I hate throwing out leftovers because that is wasted money.  

So unless the sales get so much better over the next few weeks, I will  not be shopping just because I can. If there is a great sale and I can stock on something we love, I will! My time and money can be put to better use. Especially since DH purchased our water softener on sale at Sears yesterday. I have a feeling that he and I will be installing that in the basement this week. We saved $ 120. on the cost of the water softener and will save a couple of hundred by installing it ourselves. We have done it before and will do it this time.

So really think about your shopping lists this week. Are you shopping just to shop or do you really need those items? Can you substitute something else or make it from scratch? I know I will get back to bread making for DH this week. Bread is so expensive in the market. Is the item such a rock bottom price that by stocking you will save many dollars later on?

I would love to hear your thoughts on this! What are you going to do with that grocery money this week? Buy things you absolutely have to have or waste it on items that you really could do without? Would it be put to better use by paying off some debt or saving or investing it?

The Poll

I was happy to see that the poll I put up on this blog showed that the majority of you like all of the things that I am doing with it. Since this is the content you  are looking for, I will continue in that direction.

I  especially will continue with the frugality side because I will really be concentrating to put away as much money as possible to replace the money we spent for the house and all of the purchases for it. So look for more content to come for this and you will see that I will be rachetting it up a bit.

When my grandaughter and DIL go  back to Albany, there will be many more posts. So be patient and I will see you on Tuesday.

In the meantime, we are having a ball. We have been  going out to dinner, up to Lake Ontario where my grandaughter loved the playground in Krull Park, taking walks, exercising with my grandaughter ( who is so cute when she does this) and going to  the Buffalo Zoo.

Enjoy your weekend!

Never Pay More Than $ .01 a Square Foot!

Many years ago a wise neighbor told me never to pay more than  $ .01 a  sq. ft. for toilet paper. I am  starting to see this tip again out in cyberspace. So for those of you who have never heard of this formula, I  will  explain.

Pictured is a package of Scott Toilet Paper with 1382.4 sq.  ft.  total  in the  package. When  I am shopping if I  want to pay  $ .01 a sq. ft. or less,  I would move the decimal  point over two places to the left. That tells me that this  package would  cost $ .01 or less a sq.  ft. if  it costs $ 13.82 or less for the package. I  paid $6.99 for this  package using ECB's, so I  know I got a great deal - almost 1/2 cent a sq. ft. This is  a stock up  price  and after I get my pantry replenished,  I will  be looking for this great deal again to stock up on. 

The  other package in the picture is of Cottonelle with 363.6 sq. ft. which  at $ .01 a sq. ft. would  need to cost $ 3.63 or less per package. This package after coupon cost me $ 5.99 which was not a good deal but I was desperate.   

When I was  in Arizona,  I could get packages of Cottonelle for free after coupon. That is not usually the case here in New York. A lot  of you have been able  to stock  for free with the Small  Steps coupon. That is terrific. I have not been able to do that  here. My store does not carry the  single rolls.   I can  probably only get the  1/2  cent per sq. ft.  price a few times a year, so I  will be stocking up on at least 6 months worth when I see that  price or less again.  

Of course,  you can  always stock up on this with ECB's, RR's and  overage.

How do you save on toilet  paper?  

May 18 - Money Saving Challenge

DH is now joining me in the exercise room every morning. He does the recumbent bike while I do my treadmill time.

Yesterday, the workmen finally  finished all the little things that I wanted fixed inside the  house. Yeah, no one in  and out of my house anymore!  Today the  masons are here(full  crew) to start installing  the stacked  stone on  the front  of the house . I have full faith in the people doing it and know that it will be done right and certainly much  better than the first company that did  it. The head guy is going to arch it over our windows and I am thrilled. I will take pictures next week. 

DH and I hung a few  pieces of artwork yesterday but we believe that we are at a point that we need to bring the interior designer in to pull it all together. So I will be calling her today. We also  plan on going back down to the fabric store today to look at material for the valances. 

Finally we feel like the end of all of this work is near and we can just starting enjoying our home and the surrounding area where we now live.  Once all of the outside lawn and landscaping is in, we will feel like we have a home. It has been a long time since we started this  process by contracting to have this home built last September.

Last night after a long day of having people here,  I enjoyed a dozen and half clams and DH had  lots of shrimp and cocktail sauce. We called that dinner and will have the same tonight. We rarely found good fish or seafood in AZ unless I spent  $40. on one piece of fish at AJ's.  So I am  loving all  of the great fish and seafood especially the clams that we now have access to. 

Last week, I bought two pillows  for the sofa and chair in the great  room and a cover for my stand mixer. We have decided we hate all of it so if I have time today,  I will return them to Kohl's. I was hesitant when I purchased them and should have gone with my first instinct and left them in  the store.  I  also need to go to the bank to deposit about 16 checks that have come since the last time we went there. 

This morning I mailed  $ 24.00 in rebates out  - $ 8.00 in liquor rebates, the $6.00 Seafood one and for a $10.00 Prepaid Mastercard -  P& G Rebate. I am loving rebates more and more everyday and just love it when those checks appear in my mailbox. 

Yesterday I did my shopping at Tops and Rite Aid for the week. If I happen to get back over Rite Aid's direction, I probably will do the Bic Soleil deal and pick up some more Renpure for the TMF rebates.

I have a couple of really expensive wool blazers that need dry cleaning and I did not trust to do them with the Dryel. I have  been watching for a deal and saw that Tops is running a get one item dry cleaned and the second is free. This is good through May 31.  So I will be taking advantage of that.   

Breakfast this morning was bacon and eggs. Lunch will be turkey sandwiches and dinner will be the clams and shrimp again.  

I have one load of laundry to do today in the HE's using minimal drying time and minimal detergent. I also will run the dishwasher on a quick  cycle.   

I  read both the electric and gas meters and submitted the  readings to NYSEG.  I hate paying estimated bills. I am hoping that we did really well this month but with the heat on most of the month and doing so many loads of laundry, I am not counting on it.

This morning I added my Swagbuck Amazon gift certificates to my Amazon account.  I did my points programs and  a couple of surveys.  While  I was on the computer, I RSVP'ed a  cousin who has invited us to attend a mini  family reunion in a few weeks at Canandaigua Lake. I am loving living here because we have so much family so close.  This mini reunion was one that we have missed in prior years. 

The mail today was a $ 32.50 check from Ebates and the stuff in the picture from Kraft!

Most of my afternoon will be spent dusting, vaccuming and cleaning hardwood and tile floors now that  the workmen are out of my house. I also plan on cleaning bathrooms and the kitchen. The rest of the day I will make my returns and anything else that comes up errandwise. 

My grandaughter and DIL are arriving tomorrow for a visit and will be here until Monday. DH and I are so excited!  We haven't seen them since February. I miss them so much! We plan on just enjoying their company and doing some special things to spoil them. In other words, we are going to have a great time! :-)

So after they arrive tomorrow,  I will be absent from the computer for the duration of their stay. If you see a post from me, know that  it was written  before they arrived and scheduled to post while they are here. Enjoy the rest of your week and I will be back late Monday or early Tuesday.            

Tops and Rite Aid

Since I was up early this morning because of workmen inside and outside the  house, I went to Rite Aid and Tops and got that out of the way. 

Rite Aid Trip 1:

2 Natures Bounty Fish Oil on sale B1G1F - $10.99 -  Used (2) IP $ 5.00 coupons from Natures Bounty Rewards = $ .99 - Used $ 1./10. Wellness Vitamin coupon = Free

Total was $ .00 and it gives me two more codes to enter for more rewards. I did this separate because my 20% Wellness Discount seems to interfere with the B1G1F's and I was hoping I wouldn't get a negative balance which I didn't. I thought I didn't use my card but it shows I did????

Rite Aid Trip 2:

1 pair of Foster Grants Kids Sunglasses - $ 6.99 -  20% Wellness Rewards = $ 5.59 - Used $ 5.00 Foster Grant Coupon for watching the Ad Perk Video on Rite Aid's Site = $ .59 plus this qualifies for a $2.00 Single Check Rebate. I love moneymakers!

1 Reeses Peanut Butter Cups - $ .50 - 20% Wellness Rewards  = $ .40 - Used $ .55/1 Mfrs. Cpn = made $ .15( not in picture because I gave it to Jeff, our project manager) - why  the cashier didn't adjust this coupon when she adjusted the others, I have no idea.

1 Bandaids - $ 1.99 - 20% Wellness Rewards = $ 1.59 - Used $ 1./1 Mfrs. Cpn and $ 1./1 Wellness Cpn = Free

Total was $ .44 plus $ .60 in tax = $ 1.04.

Tops:

1 - 20 oz. Diet Coke - $ 1.39 - Used Free Coke Rewards Cpn  = Free

1 Kraft Mac n Cheese Explosion - $ 1.09 - Used Free Mfrs. Cpn from Facebook = Free
   
2 Marcal Small Steps Facial Tissue - $ 1. 29 - Used $ 1./1 Mfrs. Cpns = $ .29 each

3 Dozen CherryStone Clams - $ 4.99 a dozen = $ 13.47 - I  will send for the Michelob Ultra Seafood Rebate - No Beer Purchase Needed in NYS - of $ 6.00. 

Total was  $ 14.16 including tax and bottle deposit and I will get a $ 6.00 Rebate back. 

May 16- Money Saving Challenge

- 30 minutes on the treadmill

- cereal for breakfast

- Scored a Free Neti  Pot via Facebook

- Signed up for Free Arm & Hammer Toothpaste

- Working on my shopping lists for tomorrow- Rite Aid and Tops

- Updated my Pampers To Grow Rewards with codes

- Looks like I scored a free gate for the top of my basement stairs for when my grandson and granddaughter are visiting

- Lunch was cheddar cheese and crackers

- Ordered 2 - 4 packs of Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free Pancake Mix - 22 oz. from Amazon.com. Cost was $ 7.04 and free shipping using Subscribe and Save. Of course I will cancel the subscribe and save before my next order ships. Cost to me was $ .00 using gift certificates earned through SwagBucks

- My grandson and son came to visit for a little while again today- Priceless

- We had hot turkey sandwiches for dinner. DH  wanted dessert so he made banana pudding with chocolate chips.

- Entertainment tonight will be Desperate Housewives and Brothers and Sisters finales.

I really didn't do too much because I was feeling a little under the weather. Please feel free to comment on what you did today  to save money.

May 15 - Yeah!

Yeah!  DH and I finally finished getting enough things out of the garage and unpacked that we can now park the car in it where it belongs! It only took a little less  than 7 weeks from the time that the movers brought our things. That took about an hour of our time today but it was well worth it. This saves money in the long run. It  keeps your car from being broken into overnight if there is even the remote chance that that could happen. But more importantly it protects our car from the elements which will make the car and it's finish last longer. We love to keep our cars as long as possible.    

This morning, I did 30 minutes on the treadmill. I am just loving the exercise and it is becoming addictive because it makes me feel so good all day! Afterwards, DH and  I had breakfast. He had cereal and  a sliced banana with oj. I  had cottage cheese with pineapple.  

DH finally found  the screw that we need to put the drawer back in the HE washer. He went to Home Depot for that and  some other items this morning and used a 10% off Lowes coupon.

After getting the car in the garage, it was lunchtime.  We each had a small cup of Healthy Harvest Light Soup.

Our son and grandson came to visit this  afternoon. So we played for a long time. I would much rather do that than anything else. While  they were here, I put a turkey breast in my gas range oven and roasted it using convection which not only makes the turkey juicier but saves 25% in energy  costs over what it would cost to  roast it  just in the oven without convection. Not only did it save energy but the turkey was so moist that it was like cutting butter. You could  cut it with  a fork. I will be using  the convection for all my roasts from now on! We had turkey sandwiches for dinner.

I  ran a  very full dishwasher on the save energy  cycle using 1/2 a Cascade tablet.

We still have  our heat on here. It has been so cold and damp all week. However, since we now have the furnace humidifier installed, we can keep the  temperature down  a degree to two. Humidified air feels warmer. It is also so much better for my dry skin. It looks like it will warm  up into the 70's this week and be sunny  so I  probably will be able  to turn it off.       

The mail brought a $  7.00 check and our PC Magazine.

My DIL picked me up to go to the Niagara Falls Outlets about 5:30. The pictures above are of the clothes I purchased for my grandaughter at Gymboree. My grandson got lots too but his mommy took those home. I spent so much( Yes,  I like to spoil  my grandchildren!) that I earned $ 75.00 in Gymbucks  to spend in July to get more clothes  for each of them. The sneakers were purchased at  Carters and  are the  ones that light up when you walk. I had a coupon  for $10./50. off those and some clothes  that I bought  my grandson there. We also made purchases at  Osh Kosh B Gosh where I used my mall discount card to get 10% off. And we made a purchase at Childrens  Place using a 15% off coupon. 

Afterwards, my DIL and I went  to Pour Boyz  and enjoyed a beer and some appetizers. I had a great time and hope we can do it again.

Sure I spent some money today but the grandchildrens clothes always come out of the gift budget and the food and beer out of the  entertainment. DH and I always have them funded in advance. 

Please  feel  free to leave a comment and share with us what you did to save money  today.        

May 13 & 14 - Money Saving Challenge

I am  combining  the last two days. I have been so tired with all the running around the last two days that I didn't even have the energy to turn on the computer to post.

- Exercised both days for 30 minutes each on the treadmill and spent 20 minutes working out with the hand weights.

- Breakfast yesterday was homemade bacon and egg Mcmuffins again. Today was cereal with sliced bananas.

- No lunch for me yesterday or today. I get  so busy lately that I forget to eat!

- Dinner yesterday was leftover Chinese. Tonight was submarine sandwiches. Too many carbs this week. I have to cut back.

- I shopped at Kohl's yesterday and purchased 2 really nice pillows for my sofa and chair on a B1G1F sale. I also purchased a Kitchen Aid cover for my  Kitchen Aid Mixer. It was expensive and I got it home and hated it so it is going back. I also picked up a few other odds and ends that we needed. I earned $ 10.00 in  Kohl's cash.

-  I went to Michael's, Pier One, T J Maxx, Marshalls, and Lowes looking for some nice artificial  plants.  I am beginning to think there is no such thing in the area. They were all awful looking. But no money spent.

- I went  to Wegmans and picked up 10 packages of Keebler Shortbread Sandies that were on sale for $ 1.99 each. Tenney sent me 10 coupons for $ .55/1 so I made a number of trips into the store so that I could  get them all  doubled and spend just $ .89 a package. These freeze well and now I have cookies for my grandaughter when she comes to visit next week. Thanks Tenney for helping me out.
While I was there I found a $ 6.00 Rebate form for Michelob Ultra and Seafood. No beer purchase is necessary so I will buy seafood and get the $ 6.00. I  love this NBPN in NY!  

- At Marshalls I  found a silicone splatter cover for my large frypan. I have been  looking for one for ages so that I keep the grease in the pan when I fry bacon. It was only $12.99!  

- I had a list of food items to buy at Tops for when my grandaughter comes to visit next week so the $5.00/50.00 coupon that was stuck to the front of Sunday's newpaper came in handy.

- I found a big Fabric Warehouse on Transit Road. I stopped there today to look at their huge bolts of fabric to see if they had a good selection of designer ones to make valances out of.  I  was thrilled with the  selection here and have decided to drag DH in to help me pick out the pattern. I did bring one sample home to give him an idea. We are going to attempt to make our own. Since the material  runs $ 20. - $35. a yard and we have so many windows, this  will at least save us the labor costs.  I made all  of the curtains, floor to ceiling, behind  the altar in our church a number of years back so these can't be as difficult.

- We got two bills in the mail from our town. One was for garbage service for the 9 months this year that we will be living in this house. Next January it will be be included in our property taxes for  the year. It was only $ 135. which I didn't feel was too bad for 9 months worth of garbage and recyclable  pickup once a week. It cost us that much for two months in Arizona. So I dropped the payment off at the town offices on my way to run errands. That saved me a stamp. 

The other was a sewer bill for $ 180. that we felt was in error. DH called and got nowhere with that department. So he called the Town Attorney and questioned it. Today we got a letter from the Town advising us that the bill was sent in error and to disregard it. It pays to know what you have already paid at closing and what bills should be coming that were not paid at closing and what the  town can and can't do legally. Never be afraid to question even if it is a municipality. If we hadn't posed the question, we would have paid $ 180. that we did not owe.  

- I received in the mail my Rite Aid SCR for last month and a rebate totaling $ 12.00. I also received my free Entertainment Weekly Magazine.   

- I lost a screw to the drawer in my HE washer. Long story, don't ask! So I have been on the hunt to  find one. I spent 20 minutes in the Sears Hardware store today trying to find the particular one I need to no avail.   I will  have to send DH on the hunt to Home Depot.

- DH built a rack and some shelves in the garage over the past week or so. The rack is holding the  last row seats from our minivan which we decided to leave out unless we need them. This gives us more room to carry things. The third shelf in the rack is holding our snow tires. This rack fits nicely  in a corner and gets all of these items up off the floor. The shelves on the back wall that he built is  holding other odds and ends that are necessary in a garage. This is just an example of  money that we have saved over the years not having to hire people because DH is so handy! 

- My DIL and I are going shopping tomorrow night to the Niagara Falls Outlets( Love having these so close!) and then out for an appetizer and drink. My DIL is looking for clothes for my grandson.  He is outgrowing clothes like crazy. So I also got a list of things that my grandaughter needs over the next few months and her sizes and will be looking for things for her too. Maybe I can find artificial plants there....fingers crossed!  So tonight I printed out a few coupons for the baby and childrens  stores there.  I also made sure that my discount card for there is in my wallet. So the grandchildren get new things at great prices and my DIL and I get "some get to know each other time". 

- I  found very nice $ 3.00 black frames so that I could frame my grandson's picture that I received as a Mother's Day gift. I also picked one up so that DH can  print out a recent picture of my grandaughter on our photo printer. I love having a collection of the family pictures on my dresser.  

- DH is washing two loads of clothes in the HE washer and dryer. To me that is PRICELESS! :-)

- We both have been enjoying lighting candles every night in our home. We must have 50 candles that we have accumulated over the last few years. Many that were purchased from the Yankee Candle store when  my DIL worked there and the rest were gifts. It is nice to have this stockpile and not have to buy any for a long time.   

Please  feel  free to leave a comment and  let me know what you have done  to  save money. 

May 12- Money Saving Challenge

- We  made homemade egg and  bacon mcmuffins for breakfast.

- I exercised on the treadmill for 30 minutes.

- I  went shopping to  pick up some Thomas the Train things and Dr.  Seuss books for my grandaughter's and DIL's visit next week. I used a $ 25. Giftcard that I have had for months to help defray the cost. 

- The  mail today was a Free 20 oz. Coke coupon from Coke  Rewards, a $10.00 Rebate check and a Free Kraft Mac  & Cheese coupon.

- I  am doing so well  on my eating plan and on the  treadmill that I was able to fit into  a  pair of jeans that have not fit me in 9 years. I am glad I saved some of these smaller clothes so I don't have to buy all new.

- Filled the van  up with gasoline and got $ .30 off per gallon using my Top's card. Every little bit helps! 

- DH  and  I got so busy with  contractors doing outside work today that we forgot all about eating  lunch.

- DH and  I  are looking over all  the estimates trying to decide what company to award the  contract to for all of our outside work. We are not only looking at price but licensing, bonding and references.  All of  the estimates so far are within a couple thousand. When you are spending many thousands of dollars, you want to make sure you hire the right people.   

- We  got Chinese Take Out food for dinner. We have been craving it and I was so tired that I didn't feel like making my own.  So we checked for coupons and  to see who had the best in  the area.  No coupons but great references. The portions were huge so we have dinner for tomorrow evening also.
Since I didn't get to go shopping  for plants and  decorative  things today due to  too many contractors here, I plan to make a day of  it tomorrow. So coming home and just having  to reheat dinner will be a plus!

- Entertainment  tonight will just be some TV watching. 

Feel free to comment and  tell us what you have been doing to save money today.  

I Need Your Decorating Expertise!

The picture is of the decorating that I am doing on top of my small wall  of  cupboards on the end and right side of my kitchen. Please ignore what is on the countertops. I haven't even  begun to arrange  those yet. Things have just been set there after they were unboxed. I am starting to decorate from the top down. The decorating is the fun part. We plan on doing what we can and if we get  stumped we will bring  in the interior decorator who we have a referral for. I loved my house in AZ and enjoyed living every moment in it and I want to feel the same about this house when it is done.  

Looking at this picture, I am  going to move  the  small candle over  a little more  into the plate- just a bit. We have 10 ft. ceilings in this room and very tall cupboards so we have 22 inches between the cupboards and the ceiling. The green plant that is up there now takes up almost every inch of that 22 inches. It doesn't look like it because I took the picture while I was standing on the floor. Things are actually bigger than they look in the picture. Perhaps double clicking on the pic will show it better.

But anyhow, you see the empty space up there? I think I need another green plant of some kind that is big like the one in the corner.  What do you think?  Have any other  ideas? Also I was thinking I might take a run down to  Pier One in the morning and  perhaps Michaels. Is there  any other chain stores that you can think of where I might find large artificial plants? There is no way that I am climbing  up on a ladder every time that real plants would need to be watered. 

I have double this amount of cupboards on the north wall of the kitchen so I  have all of that space to fill also.    

I would appreciate any of you who have decorating expertise giving me your ideas by leaving a comment. Help!

May 10- Money Saving Challenge

This is  what I did today to save a buck:

- Took a navy shower ( saves on water)

- Used Dryel to  dry clean our coats and some other wool items ( saves on expensive dry  cleaning)

- Exercised  on the treadmill for 30  minutes ( saves on gym fees and gasoline to get there and on health costs)

- Cereal and fruit, oj and coffee at home  for breakfast

- Lunch were roast beef sandwiches

- Got another estimate for outside work; one  more tomorrow and we should be able to make a decision on what company  gets the job

- Received a couple  of cards in  the mail  from my grandaughter, son and DIL (priceless)

- Received the sample pack  from P&G and my Architectural Digest  Magazine( free subscription for airline miles)

- Received a $10. Amazon GC from doing surveys

- Did 2 loads of wash in the HE's with 1 tbsp.  of detergent each and 1/2 dryer sheet  each

-  DH went to Home Depot and got wood to make shelving in the basement. He used a $ 10. off competitor's coupon and a Free Home Depot GC to help pay the bill

- Dinner will be chicken leftovers from Mothers Day dinner

- Entertainment tonight will be reading in the new sitting area DH set  up  for me  today in the Master Bedroom.    

Please feel free to share with all  of us  what you did to save money today by leaving a comment. 

May 9th- Happy Mother's Day!

 I hope everyone is having a Happy Mother's Day today. I know I have. I heard from both my sons and nothing makes me happier. :-)  They both made beautiful meals for their wives and that makes me happy for my DIL's because they deserve a wonderful Mother's Day also.

We have had a very quiet day with the exception of  the water line freezing up on the ice maker in the freezer. But DH was able to unfreeze it using a blow dryer so that is a service call that we saved on.

The picture is leftovers from the wonderful dinner DH cooked tonight. It was absolutely delicious and I am happy that there is enough left  for  dinner tomorrow night. These were 11 oz. chicken breasts so DH and I just split them into two. This is the recipe he followed except he used boneless chicken breasts instead  of drumsticks.  Yummie Baked Chicken Drummies . We had sweet potatoes, broccoli and champagne to round  the meal out. I loved it!   

I have taken the day off since it is Mother's Day but I will be back with the money saving tomorrow. In the  meantime I am thinking about taking the blog in a different direction and that depends on your responses to the poll on the right side bar at the top. So be sure to vote your opinion!

May 8 - Do What Needs To Be Done To Save a Buck!

It was a pretty quiet day here. This is what we did:

- 30 minutes on the treadmill

- Navy shower and get dressed to go out.

- We took the plastic off the sidewalk that the concrete people covered it with when they poured it yesterday.

- Then we went to my son and DIL's for an early weekend Mother's Day breakfast. My son greeted me at the door with a Mimosa. My DIL cooked a fabulous breakfast. First course was melted brie, bacon and mushroom whole wheat crepes. Second course was 3 whole wheat crepes on our plates: first was fresh sliced strawberries with strawberry whipped cream; the second was real maple syrup with whipped cream and the third was sliced bananas and melted chocolate with whipped cream. Everything was homemade and decadent.  It was absolutely delicious and we came home stuffed. They sent home the orange juice and champagne also- More mimosas! They also gave me two beautiful pictures - one of my grandson and one of my son and grandson. My favorite gift anytime is pictures. I just love them. Thanks to both my son and DIL for making this so special!

- It was so windy when we came home that the screens on the house were really rattling. I decided I better check to see if they were all locked down tight. Well, only 1/2 the screen on each window was locked, so I went around the  house and locked all of them. I don't want to have to replace expensive screens because they blow away.   

- The mailman brought a wonderful present from my other son, DIL and granddaughter.  It is the most beautiful photo mug with a picture of my granddaughter and I and two more pictures of my granddaughter. I just love it and now I can see my granddaughter every morning when  I have my coffee. Thanks to all  of you for always knowing what I like. 

- I also received in the mail today a free magazine subscription and a very nice envelope of coupons from hitenney! I can use them all and my DIL and son will be most appreciative of all the baby coupons you sent. Thanks so much for thinking of us.

- Our soon to be neighbor came and took the rest of our moving boxes. I  can't tell you how happy DH is that they are all out of the garage. Now within a day or two he may be able to get our van in the garage.

- Neither DH nor I needed lunch after the wonderful breakfast.

- Since we now have all of our artwork unpacked and into the rooms where we think we want it hung, DH had a question on how high we should hang it since we have either 10 ft. or 12 ft. ceilings in each room. I did some research and determined that no matter what the height of the ceiling,the artwork should always be hung at museum gallery height which is 57 inches.

- I am keeping my eyes wide open for a great deal on two items: CFL's because we had them in the AZ house and they made a big difference in our electric bill and rechargeable batteries since mine are not holding the charge for long. 

- I am starting to make a pile of items that do not fit into this new house like our huge coffee table. My son's neighorhood is having a big garage sale the first weekend in June so we will take them to  my sons and try to sell them.  

- We had a roll of masking tape that wouldn't stick so I  zapped it for a few seconds in the microwave. It nows sticks great. Sure beats throwing it away and buying new.

- DH and I have each had a laser printer. The cartridges are expensive to buy but a lot cheaper in the long run than buying ink jet cartridges. Since I now have the HP All in One Computer for my kitchen desk area and a wireless mouse, I want to continue to keep those neat clean lines. So I have connected my computer to DH's color laser printer in the office and I  will get rid of mine. 

- We have the Rinnai Tankless Water Heater set at 120 degrees because that is hot enough for washing dishes and clothes. I feel  if you set it higher, it just wastes money.

- DH picked up the town newsletter. There are some great coupons for cruises on the canal and other events in the area.

-We are again having Chicken Caesar Salad for dinner tonight. I have one cooked chicken breast left from the other night. We love this salad, don't mind eating it two nights in a row and waste not want not.

- My son gave us a coupon for a free month's Netflix trial online - no strings attached so we will be looking to see if there is something we want to watch tonight.

Feel free to leave a comment and share with all of us what you did today to save money today!      

May 7th - Do What Needs To Be Done to Save a Buck!

This is what I did  to today  to save  a buck:

- My usual morning exercise routine (saving on healthcare in the future)

- 2  more loads of laundry in the HE's -I think we finally have all laundry washed that was in storage. Today I am just fluffing the rest of the pillows in the dryer with a dryer sheet to get the musty smell of storage out of  them.

-  Breakfast was sausage( $1.00 a box) and omelets( on sale eggs and cheese)

- Sending DH to his favorite place- Home Depot to get Bonikemi Hardwood Floor Cleaner, a good mop  to  use for cleaning the floors ( both will keep my floors looking new ) and a very long hose so that I can wash the car. DH took all the stuff from when we moved out of the car which gets rid of the excess weight and saves on gasoline ( which I expect to skyrocket  not only because of summer coming but because of  the  oil spill and the refinery  fire).  DH will use a $ 10./ 25. Ace coupon( they take competitors).

- DH wants to cook dinner for me on Sunday. We needed a few things for this recipe: Yummy Chicken Drummies He  will substitute boneless chicken breasts for the drumsticks. So I ran to Tops for a few ingredients( bought all Tops brands because I didn't have any coupons for them) that we didn't have and to the Wine and Liquor Outlet for a cheap bottle of rum ( it will only get used in recipes around  here). YUM! I love it when DH cooks!

Contractors are back fixing some more things and the concrete people are here pouring my front sidewalk today. So DH and I have been busy dealing with those things.

For lunch, I made roast beef, lettuce and tomato sandwiches on whole grain rolls.

We had to turn the heat back on this morning although I hated to do it. However, I have all the energy saving shades down to keep the cold out. But it is very cold here today and  it  is supposed to be even colder, windy and rainy over the weekend. It will be a nice weekend to just stay indoors and have some homemade hot chocolate.

I paid some bills today including our rather large CC bill that had 1/3  of the cost( storage and delivery) of the cross country move charged to it. We are allergic to paying interest in this household.

I took two surveys today which will pay me in cash.

The mail brought our final bill for electric at the apartment so we are now done with bills for there. We are just awaiting the return of our deposit on the apartment.  I also received $ 11.00 in rebate checks today. My table leaf cover that I ordered from Bed Bath and Beyond came via UPS. I used a 20% off coupon on that.

Instead of using the extra chicken from dinner last night for lunch, I sliced it and used it to make Chicken Caesar Salads for dinner tonight. We added a nice glass of red wine, set the table with candles and enjoyed a nice dinner.

Tonight I will be catching up on some reading.

Please feel free to share what you did today to save a buck by leaving a comment!

  

May 6th - Doing Whatever is Possible to Save a Buck!

It's 7:00  AM and I have already done 30 minutes on the treadmill( exercise for  health - will save on future medical bills) and 10 reps each with the weights. I have had my navy shower(saved on water and electricity) and am dressed with my makeup( free) on. I also have washed a load of laundry and it is in the dryer. Of course I used 1 Tbsp. of detergent (saves money and doesn't glom up the machine)  along with cold water( saves on electricity) in  the HE washer. The dryer is on express dry( saves on electricity).

As soon as I finish updating this post and check my e-mail, I will make bacon( free on B1G1F) and easy over eggs  for DH and I. Then after I do the dishes, I will be cleaning and organizing the 2nd bedroom. I need to get that organized so that my DIL and grandaughter can come and visit later in the month. I  miss them so much. My DIL has been so busy because they moved  last month too and in the middle of it she got sick. Now that she is feeling better, I told her to come visit and take a break while we pamper her. We get to enjoy my grandaughter and my DIL gets a break from her routine. She is such a good mom and wife that she deserves some time to relax. My son is very  capable while he is working of taking care of himself.  :-) 

Well, you know what they say about the best laid plans! I had forgotten that we were going to have workmen here all day to fix odds and ends on our list that the builder takes care of. Plus we have had the worst luck with the very expensive stacked stone that we had put on the front of the house. We paid a small fortune for it and we noticed a week or so ago that pieces here and there started to fall off the house. I don't know whether the contractor installed it badly or they didn't keep it  warm enough in the winter when they put it up. So the company will be here all next week. They will be tearing all of stone off the house which will take 2 days and then it will take another 3 days or so  to install all new stone. Pain in the b*** but we paid thousands of  dollars for this and we want it right.

I just had to make a trip to Tops to  get  sale bacon ( $1.98), butter ( $ 1.79), Thomas English Muffins ( $ 1.50 - Used $ 1.1 Mfrs. Cpn and Super Doubler = made $ .50), 3 Dozen Large Eggs ( $ .79 each)
and I picked up the last two turkey breasts that I am going to buy. I think 14 is enough!

I have washed all the bedding for the guest room this afternoon and fluffed all of the pillows in the dryer. I also have done 3 other loads of laundry of clothes and blankets from storage. I love my HE washer and dryer and feel like they are saving me money. It is hard to tell until I have a month of just regular wash. I hope I am coming to the end of the laundry. After the workmen left, I got  most of the guest room pulled together. I will finish it tomorrow! 

The mail today was another $ 3.00 Pinecone check and a $4.99 check from Jennie- O!

The man who bought my dishwasher just came, picked it up and paid for it. So all the appliances are now gone out of the garage which is making DH very happy. He  is now out there unpacking all of our artwork and bringing it into the house and placing it in the rooms where he thinks it might go. We will decide when the interior decorator comes.

I baked chicken(  $ 1.99 a lb.)  in the oven tonight and made homemade spanish rice and a tossed salad. There is enough  chicken left to make chicken salad for lunch tomorrow.   

Tonight our grandaughter, DIL and son will  be calling us on the webcam. We are so looking forward to that. Between our move and their move, it has been a while since we chatted with  our grandaughter!    Later we will watch CSI and the Mentalist for entertainment!

I feel like today is one of those days where it was crazy here but I didn't accomplish all I wanted to!

Please feel free to leave a comment and share with all of us what you did to save money today!  

With Mothers Day Coming...On Being a Mom!

My DIL, Michelle posted this on her facebook account. I loved it so much that I am passing it on:

I traded eyeliner for dark circles, salon haircuts for ponytails, long showers for 10 minute ones with the door

open, late nights for early mornings, designer purses for diaper bags, and I wouldn't change a thing!! With

Mothers Day drawing near, let's see how many mom's repost this. We don't care what we gave up, and will

continue to give up willingly for our children!
 
For all the Mom's out there, have a wonderful Mothers Day on Sunday! 

May 5 - Doing What I Can to Save a Buck!

Today was a very slow day because I didn't get out of bed until 10:40 AM. Yes, you heard me right. Our dear kitty cat woke me up at 3:00 AM and I didn't fall back to sleep until 6:00 AM. Darn cat! If we hadn't gotten a phone call, I would still be sleeping.

So I jumped out of bed and did my treadmill for 30 minutes and then had cantaloupe, water and coffee for breakfast. DH had fixed the cantaloupe for  me when he ate hours earlier. Such a great DH to be so quiet and let me sleep. :-) DH dug my weights out of a box in the garage today  so tomorrow I can do the weights along with the treadmill.

After my navy shower, I took some paperwork that the town assessors office sent me back to  their office. It was basically an inventory of our home and an application to apply for the Star Rebate for Sept. of 2011. DH and I closed on our home 26 days too late to get the Star Rebate for this September. So our school taxes in September will be astronomical but it is what it is and we have planned for it.   

Then I continued to Top's where I purchased 2 more turkey breasts, milk,  swiss cheese, Grande Tortilla chips( all in the picture) with manufacturers coupons and Tops Doubler Coupons. I now have 12 turkey breasts in the freezer which will give me one a month to roast for the next  year. I am not quite sure that I am done buying them yet since we like to just roast them up for turkey for sandwiches and salads for lunches. We will see.     

I am doing pretty good with meat since I now have 12 turkey breasts, 8 lbs. of  chicken breasts, 7 lbs. of Italian and Al Fresco Sausages, 2 sirloin steaks, 2 pork tenderloins, 1 lb. of turkey franks, 2 lbs. of salmon, 5 tuna steaks , 2  New York Strip Steaks, 1 lb. of ground chuck, 1 lb. of bacon, 1 lb. of ground turkey, a roasting chicken and 2 lbs. of stew beef in my freezers. I also have a lot of anytizers and tons of frozen veggies and fruits. We are mainly on a protein, fruit and veggie plan around here so we are in pretty good shape for that. I only started stockpiling meats after we moved into the house so I  have done pretty well in a little over 5 weeks.         

DH and I are waiting right now for a contractor who says he can do all the work we want done outside...the final grading, the lawn, the landscaping and our patio, wall and column. I am hoping his estimate is good. Meanwhile we are watching a dump truck being pulled out of the lot next to us. He tried to get in to dump a load of dirt and got buried up to his axle. They unloaded the truck with a machine that scoops dirt and a bulldozer is now trying to pull the truck out.

About 10 minutes after I placed our ad on Craiglist yesterday, I sold our washer and dryer and the unboxed brand new dishwasher that the builder made us buy to 2 different people. I  got my price for  all of them. The couple that bought the washer and dryer is picking them up tonight. My son will come down to help put them on their truck. The dishwasher gets picked up tomorrow night. DH found the manuals for the washer and dryer for the people.

The only mail today was a Pinecone survey check for $ 3.00!

I am just going to be making chefs salads for dinner tonight with sliced bananas and strawberries for dessert.   Tonight we will watch CSI NY. I  know I said it was on last night, but I had my days mixed up. :-) My son visited last night so I was happier to  spend my time with him than watch TV anyhow.

The rest of the afternoon, I will be dealing with the landscaper and cleaning. So a quiet, light work day!

Please feel free to share with all of us what you did to save money today. We can all learn from each  other.