Spectacular Savings: I haven't disappeared and I haven't stopped shopping

Well, many areas of the Hudson Valley were affected by Hurricane Irene.  We were lucky to have almost no damage to our home, but we did lose power and services.  They were initially restored, but then we lost internet again.  So, I haven't been blogging but I have been shopping and much of that shopping has been needs not deals. Don't get me wrong, I've been shopping for bargains, but after losing most of my freezer stock after the storm, I needed to re-stock.

Here's my recent shopping:

Total Spent: $40.87
Total Saved: $52.50 or 56% Savings

Total Spending September (September 3- 30)= $40.87
Total Savings September = $52.50 or 56% Savings
Total Remaining September = $119.13

Since I was offline I didn't post my month end totals for August.
I only made one trip that last week spending $7.82 and saving $24.01 which makes these my totals for the month...
Total Spending August= $112.05
Total Savings August = $369.51 or 77% Savings
Remember, I've trimmed my August budget to account for July's overspending. $175 for the month (July 30th- September 2).
Under budget by $62.95. I have a feeling I'll use that up in September to re-stock my freezer!

Spectacular Savings: A Storm is on the horizon!

Well, I splurged on some more treats this week as well as some much needed produce.  I was planning to pick-up a bit of meat/poultry as we have very little on hand, but with the possibility of Hurricane Irene causing power outages I decided to skip that.  I did buy some matches and a few gallons of water to help with peace

of mind!

Total Spent: $43.58
Total Saved: $90.77 or 67% Savings

Total Spending August= $104.23
Total Savings August = $345.50 or 77% Savings
Remember, I've trimmed my August budget to account for July's overspending. $175 for the month (July 30th- September 2).
Total Remaining August: $70.77

That's a lot to spend this week, but since we're low on proteins, I may just spend it!

Using overage to buy shoes and the buy ahead principle

When it comes to saving money anyone will tell you it's all in the planning.  And a big part of planning is buying something when you don't need it, but it's at rock bottom $$$.  We save a ton of money on shoes this way.

These are from a recent sale at Sears.  They are a size or two larger than DD5 wears now, but they are pretty close to classic in style and I know she'll need dress shoes and maryjanes.  Well, these were a steal at around $4.99 a pair, so they can sit in the closet and wait for her feet to grow.

On this trip to Walmart, I used overage from the floss and Bengay to help pay for a pair of clearance slip ons for DD3.  While most of her clothing comes from her big sister, shoes are often worn out or wear out quick, so she needed to get in on the shoe action!  The shoes were around $7 and after overage I paid just $2.56 including tax!

Buying ahead and planning wisely with overage are great ways to save on items that you don't have a coupon for!

Spectacular Savings: August's first real week of spending money

The past two weeks have been real low OOP weeks.  This week I finally spent some money.  In fact, I even splurged on a few things.  I had a few coupons and CATS to use up and then I grabbed a few things that were needed and not likely to come up in any great sales in the next few weeks.
 

Here's my shopping:



Look at those treats from Adams (yum!)!!!

Total Spent: $41.79
Total Saved: $108.50 or 72% Savings

Total Spending August= $60.65
Total Savings August = $254.73 or 81% Savings
Remember, I've trimmed my August budget to account for July's overspending. $175 for the month (July 30th- September 2).
Total Remaining August: $114.35

Spectacular Savings: Under $5 this week!

I hardly shopped at all this week and it felt good!
Here's what I bought in 3 quick trips to Aldi, Adams, and Shoprite.

Total Spent: $4.28
Total Saved: $16.34 or 80% Savings

Total Spending August= $18.86

Total Savings August = $146.23 or 88% Savings

Remember, I've trimmed my August budget to account for July's overspending. $175 for the month (July 30th- September 2). 

Total Remaining August: $156.14

I have (4) $5 CATS for Shoprite that expire on the 20th, so I'll have to do a little more shopping!

Spectacular Savings: $15 to start off August!

This was a week of using up catalinas and rolling a few of them, too!

This first group of pictures are from Shoprite where I spent just $3.70 this week after catalinas.  The best part is that with all of the rolling cats for Marcal, I have more to use in the coming weeks!

This was a quick stop into Aldi and my biggest OOP of the week at $6.81

These are from spending my viva paper towel catalinas at Stop & Shop.   I grabbed a few things we needed (milk, lettuce) and also one treat...the instant Indian meal looked too good to pass up!  I spent a total of $4.07 at Stop & Shop.

Total Spending this week = $14.58

Total Savings this week = $129.89 or 90% Savings

I was over budget by $49 last month, so I'm going to trim my August budget to $35/week average or a total of $175 for the month (July 30th- September 2).

Ending the Month on a good note even if I am WAY over budget!

Well, I finally had an easier shopping week and that also meant an easier week on my wallet.

Here's what I purchased this week:

One final round of transactions at Shoprite to finish off my Snackwell Qs! $4.39

A bunch of quick stops including Dollar Tree, a Bread Outlet, Aldi and Stop & Shop. $8.93

Shoprite for some odds and ends and Free Italian Ice! $7.08

I also stopped at Target for a few deals and purchased coupons for next week's Marcal sale at Shoprite.

Total Spending this week = $28.07

Total Savings this week = $116.95 or 80% Savings

Total Spending this month = $249.05

Total Savings this month = $862.07 or 78% Savings

$49 over budget!

I'm going to trim my August budget to $35/week average or a total of $175 for the month (July 30th- September 2). That should help put me back on track!!!

How was your shopping this week?

Saturday's Savings Summary: Oops, did I do that?

Well, it was quite the busy week of lots of small transactions in order to keep my OOP low and roll Catalinas.  These weeks often creep up in cost without me realizing I've gone way over budget.

CVS: $1.18
Aldi: $14.05
Shoprite: $1.62

Adams: $8.94
Stop & Shop: -$0.19 (There was a problem with the Cat machine and the store gave cash back instead of CATS.  I've credited the $8 refunded directly to this order.)

Stop & Shop: $4.16
Walmart: $12.93 (We really needed the Iron Out!)

Shoprite: $3.35

Stop & Shop: $4.16

Shoprite: $1.56
Adams: $4.24

I spent about 30c at RiteAid and a whopping $17 on purchasing coupons which brings my weekly total up a bit.  Now, for every 4 rolls of Viva I received a $2.50 CAT (except the two orders that were a problem).  I also have about $15 in CATS from the Snackwell and Sundown deals.  So, while I did go over budget I have about $35 in CATS and I'm well stocked on many things.

Total Spending this week = $72.81

Total Savings this week = $325.70 or 82% Savings

Total Spending this month = $220.98

Total Savings this month = $745.12 or 77% Savings

I'm definitely going to have to trim the budget for August to make up for this extra spending!

Saturday Shopping-rolling catalinas to keep my OOP low!

Well, I managed to keep my out-of-pocket costs lower this week than the past two weeks.  This was, in part, due to some planned rolling of catalinas at Shoprite.  Hooray for a MM CAT deal on the Snackwell bars.
Here's what I bought this week:

The training pants were a steal at just 15c!  I was near Toys R'Us and stopped in thinking I might use a $2 IP for Seventh Generation on some refill packs of wipes.  Much to my surprise, the only Seventh Generation item in the whole store was this package of training pants.  Luck was on my side though.  When I asked about the line of products the cashier said she wasn't sure of the store's plan, but items had been ringing up on clearance.  I grabbed the pack and sure enough, they rang up on clearance.  I was able to use a $2 Store Q with my IP and score these for 15c!

Total Spending this week = $27.64 (including the extra coupons I purchased for the Snackwell deal)

Total Savings this week = $234.60 or 89% Savings

Total Spending this month = $148.17

Total Savings this week = $419.42 or 74% Savings

That leaves just $51.83  to last through the29th of July.  I'm thinking I can do it!

Great Thrift Store Finds!

It's not often that I have a lot of extra time to hunt for thrift store goodies.  Taking the kiddos to a grocery store or big box with a shopping cart for containment is one thing, but hunting through the racks at a thrift store with the kiddos is quite another!
Well, I had a little extra time last week and stopped by a great little thrift store in a nearby town. My timing was excellent!  They were having a B1G1 sale on most clothes and when their kids' clothes run around 50c and adult items around 75c this is a steal.  I spent a total of $12 for 22 items of clothing (and my total was only that high because I spent $3 on one of the few dresses that wasn't part of the sale, but was brand new with tags)!

These are the clothes I found for myself.
1 jacket
3 tops
2 pants
4 dresses
1 sweater

These were all great brand name items, too!  Ann Taylor, Jones NY...you get the idea!

These are the clothes for DD5.  They are great additions to her collection of clothes for the next size up.
By keeping an eye out for deals on the next size, we save money on clothing our growing girl!
1 sweatshirt
2 bathing suits (Lands End)
4 shirts
1 skirt
2 pants
2 dresses

Do you have a favorite thrift store?

Budget Blown for the second week in a row!

Well, this month could be totally bust!  I've set aside the usual $40/week or $200 for the month and after this week's shopping I've blown through $120.53 of that budget.  It's going to be super tight to try and squeeze by on $89.47 for the next three weeks, but I'll give it my all! On the other hand, I have finally managed to really get into some better eating habits and that might mean a necessary increase in the budget to accommodate the healthier habits.  We'll have to see how this trends.

Aldi, Dollar Tree and Lowes.
A big part of my budget went to the Fish Fertilizer pictured here for $11.xx.
I'm tracking all garden expenses associated with my veggie garden since it will hopefully reduce my food budget when it begins producing.

 Some needs from Aldi and dusters on clearance from Staples.

 Shoprite and Hannaford

The rest of my Shoprite groceries.

Total Spending this week = $64.38
Total Savings this week = $106.49 or 62% Savings

Total Spending this month = $120.53
Total Savings this week = $184.82 or 60% Savings

Berries and more!

Well, we spent more than the $40 budgeted for the week, which is why it's good we take the average!  Most of the money this week was spent on re-stocking things we needed.  You'll also notice a few "extras", like the beets, which are for a July 4th BBQ and were not a great bargain.  Hey, we all need a few treats here and there! I grabbed a few great sales along the way, but nothing remarkable.  This coming sales week isn't looking to be anything special, but I am excited about blueberries at Shoprite.  Aldi had them for $1.29 this week, but Shoprite's 6/$6.99 is a few cents cheaper next week and we all know that every penny counts! We're pretty well stocked, so other than the blueberries and a few other fresh items, next week should be light.

Total Spending this week = $56.15
Total Savings this week = $78.33 or 58% Savings

Our budget for the month (June 25-July 29) will be the usual $40/week.

Happy BBQ season!