Tuesday Frugal Tip Because Spending Money Sucks!

Ok...this isn't a ground breaking, new way to save money.
And it won't save you A LOT of money all at once but if you do this and live to be oh....120, it might save you enough to pay for your trip to the Scooter Store for your motorized chair.

See this?

This is a mini Oreck Vacuum Cleaner called the Buster.  I got if for free when hubby bought me a big Oreck about 6 yrs ago.
I heart my baby vacuum.
It's highly portable & lightweight, not like the big vacuum cleaner.  It has a strap so you can wear it on your shoulder while you vacuum.
It's good for cleaning stairs, around the edges of the room or under/near furniture where the big vacuum can't go.
Since moving here 10 yrs. ago we have slowly reduced the number of rooms in the house that have carpeting to 4, so I don't use the big vacuum nearly as much as I use to, but I continue to use the baby vacuum a lot!

Vacuum cleaners are great.
But besides the electricity they draw to operate, there is another continuing cost associated with them....well, unless you bought one of those bagless Dyson ones.

Vacuum bags.

It's sort of like printers, you know?
The printers are cheap but the ink cartridges will bleed your wallet dry.
Vacuums are not too expensive but buying those vacuum bags for them every year is an annoying expense I'd rather do without.
And I do.....do without that expense.

See this?

It is my vacuum bag for my baby Oreck vacuum.
This is the last bag from the original set of 12 that came with the vacuum when we bought it new.
I have been using/reusing this bag for the last 3 yrs.
Yes, I said three years.

That was when I discovered we were on the last bag, three years ago, and told the kids NOT to throw out the bag when it was filled.
And I have been taking it out, emptying it out gently into the trash and reusing it ever since.

In the 1st three years we used/owned the vacuum we went through a bag every 3 months...4 bags a year.
A dozen new bags cost $15 and lasts us 3 years....for an expense breakdown of $5 a year for bags.

After 3 years of reuse my last bag has about had it and will need replacing soon.  I am coming around to facing the fact that I'm going to have to buy a new bag of bags soon.

$15.
Ok...$15 might not sound like much but I am sure you could think of things you'd rather spending $15 on or save $15 for, right?lol

Once I buy the new bags, it's the LAST TIME I plan on buying bags for this vacuum.
It will then be a contest to see what goes to it's reward first....me or my baby vacuum!
3 years out of 1 bag x 12 bags=36 years.
I'm pushing 51.
Let's hope the vacuum goes to Oreck Heaven before I do...because if this 86 yr old half-blind woman has to drive her motorized scooter to the Oreck store to buy more bags, it won't be pleasant!

Sluggy

What's Worth Buying this Week at Weis Markets...3/7-3/13

It's an interesting week at Weis.  Nothing free and not much cheap but interesting nonetheless.

MEAT
Perdue Frozen and Weis All Natural Fresh Chicken is 40% off.
Angus Top Round Roasts are BOGO. Reg. price is $5.29, so if you can find 2 Roasts that are about the same size, you'll pay $2.65 lb.
My meat pick of the week is the Catfish, Flounder or Tilapia Fillets for $3.99lb.  The best price/value item here is the Flounder, which you hardly ever see for less than $7 or $8 lb.  This Fish Special comes IQF in bags of around 2lb. each so you'll have to spend $8+ of your budget.  But you'll have 2 or more meals from each bag, depending on how big your eaters are at your house.  I've already picked 1 bag up and will have to stock up a bit more.

DAIRY
More yogurt...AGAIN!....Dannon for $2 a pack.  Various $1/1 ManuQs out there, so $1 yogurt.
Kraft Singles are $2, so if you found any $1/2 blinkies you can get them for $1.50 WYB2.
Laughing Cow Mini Cheeses are $2.50.  Use the $1/1 ManuQ and pay $1.50.

PRODUCE
Not much at a real good price this week.  Grapes are still $1.99lb., strawberries aren't quite seasonal yet so $2.50 lb.
My local store had a special on Empire Apples...$2 for a 3lb. bag so I picked that up.  Smaller apples in it which is good for the teens to take to school.
If your store has the loose mushrooms, they are a better deal at $2.99lb. than the packaged sliced ones on sale for $2 for 8oz.
You'll probably do better buying the Weis brand bags of veggies this week over in the frozen section.  Some of them are $1 per 1lb. bag.

BREAD
Sara Lee Bagels are BOGO($3.69).  There's a $.55/1 ManuQ in the 2/21 RP insert.  Use 2 and if your store doubles, pay $1.69 WYB2($2.69 WYB2 if your store won't take 2 Qs on a BOGO.

CATALINAS
There are FOUR Catalina Deals this week.   I've done some recon work for you on the 1st three Cat deals, so here are the Regular Shelf Prices so you can figure your scenarios.  REMEBER--Weis calculates off the reg. shelf price, not the sale price for purposes of seeing if you bought enough to trigger the catalina coupon.  In this way, "Spend $XX" means you don't necessarily have to spend that to qualify for the Catalina IF the item is on sale.  So you can get a deal even without a coupon...of course, coupons would make this better and cheaper!lol
Please keep in mind that the reg. prices at my local Weis make NOT be the exact same prices at your Weis.

#1  $3 Cat WYB $12/$7 Cat WYB $20 KELLOGG'S products
 Kellogg's Corn Pops/Apple Jacks/Froot Loops   Shelf $4.29/Sale $2.50 **Blinkie machine with $.70/1 on the shelf!
Pop-Tarts 12 ct.    Shelf $2.99/Sale$2.50
Kashi Hot Cereal    Shelf $3.19/Sale $2.50
Keebler Chips Deluxe or Fudge Shoppe  Shelf $3.59/Sale $2.50
Cheez-its Crackers    Shelf $4.19/Sale $2.50
Nutri-Grain Bars   Shelf $3.29/Sale $2.50
Fruit Snacks   Shelf $2.69/Sale $2.34

The items here are junk food...sugared cold cereal, pop-tarts, cookies, fruit snacks, though it does include Kashi Hot Cereal.
If you need the cold cereals in this Catalina, do this transaction....
5 x Corn Pops/Apple Jacks/Froot Loops  Shelf $21.45/Sale $12.50
Use 5 of the $.70/1 Qs from the Blinkie Machine...$12.50-$3.50=$9.00 and if you are rolling one the $7 Cats your total is $2.00 OOP!

#2  $3 Cat WYB $12/$7 Cat WYB $20 on Heinz Products
Smart Ones Entrees(smaller sizes)   Shelf $2.50/Sale $2.00
Smart Ones Entrees(6-11 oz.)   Shelf $3.33/Sale $2.50
Bagel Bites   Shelf $2.60/Sale $2.00
TGIF Appetizers or Poppers Stuffed Jalapenos  Shelf $3.79 or $3.49/Sale $3.00
Classico Sauces  Shelf $2.55/Sale $2.00
Heinz Ketchup 40oz.  Shelf $2.85/Sale $2.00
Ore-Ida Potatoes/Onion Rings  Shelf $2.89/Sale $2.50
Ore-Ida Steam and Mash   Shelf $3.89/Sale $2.50

Now is the time to stock up on your Heinz ketchup!  Coupons are non-existent on the ketchup but there are coupons floating around for most of the other items that qualify for this Cat.
I'll definitely be doing this Cat a couple of times.   Freezer space limits me on the frozen stuff however.

#3  $3 Cat WYB $12/$7 Cat WYB $20 on Clorox owned brands
Clorox Bleach 82-96 oz.   Shelf $1.99/Sale $1.79
Clorox 2 Color Safe Bleach   Shelf $5.29/Sale $4.49
Clorox Wipes   Shelf $2.89/Sale $2.50
409 or Clorox Anywhere   Shelf $2.79/Sale $2.50
Clorox Clean-Up or Pine Sol  Shelf $3.75/Sale $2.99
Brita Water Filters   25% off  Shelf price
Glad Trash Bags 14-35ct.   Shelf $4.39/Sale $3.50
Glad Pres N'Seal or Containers or Bags  Shelf $?/Sale $2.50
Fresh Step Cat Litter   Shelf $10.49 or $10.95/Sale $8.49
Kingsford or Match Light Charcoal   Shelf $11.99/Sale $8.99
KC Masterpiece BBQ or Marinade Sauce  Shelf $2.89 or $2.99/Sale $2.50
Hidden Valley Dressing   Shelf $3.65/Sale $3.00

Another Cat I'll be rolling.  If you are in need of Brita products, I found some packages of the faucet system had $10 MIR stickers on them($5 WYB the faucet system and $5 off WYB a replacment filter later on). There are coupons available online so the Cat with the 25% off makes this a possible good buy.  I'll be picking up loads of bleach here.

#4 $5 Cat WYB$25/$10 Cat WYB $35 on P&G products

I don't know about you but I am just about P&G'ed out!lol  There is nothing much I want/need here after getting tons of P&G at Rite-Aid over the past 2 months for almost zero OOP.  Unless there is an incredible deal(like the recent Gillette Body Wash and Deodorant Deal with great high value coupons), I don't buy toiletries at grocery stores so I didn't check the shelf prices on these items, sorry.

So what are you getting at Weis this week?
What great deals did you find that I didn't see?  Let us know!!

Sluggy

Amazon Gift Card Giveaway at Four Hats & Frugal

Amiyrah over at FOUR HATS & FRUGAL is having a Giveaway for a $20 Amazon Gift Card!

Go check it out HERE.

Sluggy

Meal Plan Monday.....March 8th....Spending Breakdown & 2 Recipes

Last Week's Menu Postmortem...
Everything was served as planned except the Crockpot Chicken. Weis had a special on fish fillets($3.99lb!) and I went and bought some flounder and we had a fried fish dinner last night instead of the chicken.  I just had a hankerin'!lol  Since I'm not in the mood for Crockpot Chicken this week, the chicken that's moving to this week will be a casserole dish instead.

Hubby won't be here for dinner 2 nights this week so the teens have convinced me to do Take-Out those evenings, which comes out of the Entertainment money.  It shouldn't be too much of a hit on the budget in this way....
1.We'll do chinese take-out but order it before 3pm so we get the lunch prices.
2. At Taco Bell they'll order off of the $1 menu and I'll just have something from home or a leftover.
These 2 things should keep the total under $20 for both nights for 3 people.


Here's what I will be serving our family of 4 this Week.....our household presently consists of 2 adults and 2 teens at home.  No children under 14.

This week is all about using what I have and incorporating leftovers as well. Since alot of what I am serving is stockpiled, I'm putting what  I paid for the ingredients that are on hand so you can see what I spend w/stockpiling & sales versus buying it weekly when it might not be on sale. If I use a leftover ingredient I won't add that cost as it was already figured into the previous meal's cost.

MONDAY--Taco Bell .89¢ Burritos for the teens($4), leftover Baked Ziti for me
TUESDAY--Chinese Take-Out($15 ordered at lunch prices)
WEDNESDAY--Crockpot Cheesy Chicken Broccoli Rice Casserole($4.50)-makes leftover for 1 additional meal
THURSDAY--Ham Slices($4), Green Beans(.50¢), Potato Skins($2)
FRIDAY--Corned Beef(need to buy), Cabbage(need to buy), Biscuits(.50¢)
SATURDAY--Leftovers
SUNDAY--Dutch Oven Pot Roast with Carrots, Mushrooms & Onions($5), Mashed Potatoes(free)
SNACKS/DESSERTS--Cantaloupe(leftover),cookies(.49¢), apples(.15¢)

I need to buy $10 worth of items for this menu. I'll pick up a small corned beef on sale for $1.29lb. this week plus cheap cabbage & a gallon of milk for drinking.

Adding up what has already been spent and what I need to spend for this week's menu, I can serve this menu of 5 meals(not including the take-out nights as that is on the entertainment dime) to a family of 4 adults/teens for a total of $30.14.

Leftover nights have no cost as they were already figured in when the meal was served the first time.  If you divide the meals and snacks cost by 5 nights, you get an average cost per night of $6.03.  That's $1.51 per person per night.  And this is mostly a cooking from scratch menu.  The only 'processed foods' are the can of soup and the roll of biscuits.  Who says you can't cook healthy on the cheap?

LAST WEEK'S FOOD SPENDING
$59.05 was spent on food/toiletries last week. $38.17 at Weis(and I received a $7 Catalina to roll this week), $.01 at CVS, $9.87 at Boyer's(on cheap tp and BOGO eggs), $9.00 at the Entenmann's Bread Outlet($3 bread and Hubby went and asked for donuts $6) and $2.00 at Rite-Aid on bunches of stuff.
$48.71 of the $59.05 of the spending was strictly on food.


FOOD WASTE REPORT
We still have Baked Ziti leftover but it will be eaten this week. The only food that was wasted was the slice of cheese I had to cut off block of cheddar that molded.
Cantaloupe rinds, potato peels and other clippings were composted.

Check out ORGANIZING JUNKIE to see what other Home Cooks are serving this week.

Sluggy

My 2 Scenarios for Rite-Aid for 3/7-3/13...$10.07 Moneymaker!

Here is what I'm getting this week at Rite-Aid....

Transaction #1
1 x Metamucil on sale=$9.99
2 x Cover Girl Face Product on sale BOGO=$9.99
1 x Crest Toothpaste on sale=$2.74
SubTotal....$22.72

Coupons Used
1 x $5/$20 purchase AdPerks IPQ=$5.00
1 x $3/1 Metamucil ManuQ=$3.00
1 x Cover Girl BOGO ManuQ=$9.99
1 x $1/1 Crest Toothpaste ManuQ=$1.00
Coupon Total....$18.99

$22.72-$18.99=$3.73 OOP

Transaction #2
1 x Always Pads on sale=$5.99
2 x Nyquil on sale $4.99=$9.98
1 x Puffs Tissue=$2.49
1 x Crest Toothpaste on sale=$2.74
2 x Almay Eye Shadow on sale BOGO=$7.49
SubTotal....$28.69

Coupons Used
1 x $5/$20 Purchase AdPerks IPQ=$5.00
1 x $1/1 Always ManuQ=$1.00
2 x $1.50/1 Nyquil ManuQ=$3.00
1 x $2/1 Any Cold/Cough OTC Meds Wellness CRT Q=$2.00
1 x Free Puffs WYB 2 Nyquil ManuQ=$2.49
1 x $1/1 Crest Toothpaste ManuQ=$1.00
2 x $2/1 Almay Makeup ManuQ=$4.00
Coupon Total....$18.49

$28.69-$18.49=$10.20 OOP

$3.73+$10.20=$13.93 OOP Total

SCRs qualified for....
$5 Metamucil
$1 Crest
$1 Always
$2 Nyquil
$5 Almay
SCR TOTAL....$14.00

$13.93OOP-$14.00SCRs=$.07 Moneymaker!

Plus....The Metamucil, 2 x Crest, Always, 2 x Nyquil are all qualifying items for the "Buy $30, Get a $10 Gift Card Deal"--SCR#18, and they total over the $30 threshold, so I also get a $10 Rite-Aid Gift Card.
I get over $50 worth of merchandise & I get paid .07¢ to take it all home and they give me a $10 Gift Card to boot.

Not bad, huh? ;-)

Sluggy

 

Vacation Planning......Decisions, Decisions, Decisions

Because of family stuff, we didn't get to take any kind of vacation last summer.  Well, if you don't count driving almost 1,000 miles in a big circle the week of the July 4th holiday to take care of family business and attend a funeral.
Nope, not what I'd call a fun trip.

The last summer vacation hubby & I took was 2 summers ago, to Maine.  #1 son was working all summer and daughter wanted to stay home instead, so it was just #2 son and us.  Oh, and we took along BIL and the nephew too.
When we vacation, we do it as frugally as possible.  Last trip, we rented trailers at a campground and made day trips to do/see stuff.
Here's a photo of #2 son and nephew in front of Steven King's house....

And here they are along the shoreline in a smal inlet near Bar Harbor....

I love Maine....every since I worked there in theatre for 2 summers while in college.  I still have a friend who lives up there I enjoy visiting when we get a chance to go.
I've told hubby that if we must retire someplace warm, I get to have a small cottage in Maine to escape the heat in the summer....I don't do 'heat' well....

Anyway, I am beginning the planning for this year's escape, er....I mean trip.  Because of Band Camp, we only have about a 2 week time frame the latter half of July when we can go. 
The only kid who will be accompanying us is #2 son, since both his older siblings will be working all summer at camp.
So I need to take into consideration destinations/activites that a 14 yr. old boy will like.  Well, maybe 'like' is too strong a word, since he is sullen and doesn't 'like' anything beyond his guitar, playing online games and texting his friends.  'Tolerate' might be a more appropriate word.....

So can anyone think of some place that isn't too hot & has nice scenery(for me), historical stuff and good food(for hubby)and won't annoy #2 son too badly-especially since he has to be there with his....sigh and eye roll....parents?

I know #2 son would probably enjoy an amusement park....but only if we take a friend of his as well and only if we drop him/them off for the day and don't go in with them.
Oh, and don't even mention disney anything to me....we don't do disney.

It has to be someplace we can drive to, as we don't fly.  We are open to driving to a destination that's more than 2 days away if there are things to see/do/stay along the way.
We like oddball stuff as well as going off the beaten path.
Hubby is 'into' native american stuff.
We are not big into shopping on vacation.
We've been to Maine and all of New England various time, Niagara area(both US and Canada), Ontario/Toronto, Maryland/Delaware beach areas, Virginia Beach, NC Outer Banks and the Crystal Coast, Myrtle Beach, Erie PA, a resort outside of St. Louis.  I've been to Minneapolis/St. Paul area on pleasure but w/out the family.

Anybody have any thoughts or ideas I can explore?
Please give them to me! ;-)

Sluggy

What to Do with Leftover Ground Beef Meals?...make Enchiladas!

So what do you do with leftover meatballs and a slice or two of leftover meatloaf?
That was my problem earlier this week, as we had both of these leftovers from last week's menu.

My solution was to make Beef Enchiladas.

First I took the meatballs and meatloaf leftovers and crumbled them up.  I took chopped onion(about 1/2 cup)and sweated them in some olive oil.  I had a can of chopped green chilles so I added that to the mix once the onions were translucent.

 Next I made the Enchilada Sauce.  You can see the recipe HERE.  You can also use a canned sauce if you prefer.
Take a large roasting pan and coat the bottom of the pan with the Enchilada Sauce.

Next I gathered the other ingredients I needed....flour tortillas, grated cheese(cheddar and montery jack), a can of refried beans, and the enchilada sauce and meat filling.

Then it was just a matter of plopping some meat, some beans and cheese onto a tortilla and rolling it up, placing it in the roasting pan.

Cover the enchiladas with sauce....

Top with grated cheese....

Cook in a 350 degree oven for 30 minutes and here's what comes out....

 Each enchilada serves 1 hungry person, so this pan served 5.  Young children would probably only eat 1/2 of an enchilada.  I usually make 6 in a pan but someone ate one of my tortillas.lol

Optional...Serve with lettuce, tomato, guacamole or sliced avocado and sour cream.

My Cost Breadown
enchilada sauce  $.80
tortillas   $1.00
meat filling  $0-leftovers
1 can green chillies  $.16
1 can refried beans  $.50
2 blocks of cheese  $2.50
Total....$4.96

Since I didn't use all the meat filling, the leftover meat is being reinvented Again tonight in Tacos!
Meatballs, Meatloaf, Enchiladas, Tacos....That's 4 meals out of 2.75lbs. of ground beef.

Sluggy