Casa Petrie

Why do I spend so much time trying to save us money?  Well, we have other expenses and goals that require our resources.  For example, my graduate school tuition is due next month.  And we purchased uniforms for Miss Petrie this month.  I believe these expenses are worth saving for and will pay us back tenfold in what we gain from the effort.  But to be able to afford these bills I have to trim expenses in other areas.

I cooked a big pot of beans in the Crockpot.  Each one pound bag of beans ($1/bag) yields about 12 servings of beans.  That’s $0.08 per serving.  A cheap can of beans is about $0.75 and serves about 2 servings of beans.  Big price difference and cooking beans in the Crockpot is practically effortless.

Using our homemade yogurt and cherry sauce, I made yogurt cups.  I did purchase small containers, but pre-portioning food is a good way to make sure we eat what we have.  Wasting food is expensive.

We happily accepted food from family.  We were given hot dogs, pork loin, ribs, jam, popcorn, fruit treats and pudding.  Our family knows we appreciate getting food as a gift, as opposed to nonperishable items.

While I love a good deal, this week we found our food supply replenished, so I had no further need of shopping for food.  It’s important to know when to stop bargain shopping.

I found a good deal on uniform pants for Miss Petrie.  I’ve been checking uniform (skirts, pants, shorts) prices and $9.99 is reasonable.  I bought her two pairs.

We enjoyed an afternoon at the pool for free because a friend payed for us with her summer pool pass.

I accepted clothes for Miss PD.  They were in great condition.

I am re-evaluating where we can continue to whittle away at our food budget.  I am reading a book about saving on groceries by America’s Cheapest Family, The Economides.  While reading through the first few chapters, I realized I am shopping too often, which can be a big budget inflator.  I plan to cut my shopping down to once a week, to start.

I made salsa, which costs about $1.25 and makes about 1.5 cups.  It will be even more inexpensive to make when we can use our own tomatoes.

We ate two meals based on our garden bounty.

Any frugality tips for me?