What and How I Spent My Week

Well I can tell you what I didn't do this week......I didn't spend much money on anything other than food/paper goods! lol

I went to Rite-Aid early in the week, but that doesn't count because I don't actually spend money there, do I?
Hubs and I went to Big Lots last Sunday, as they had their 20% off Everything in the Store Day.
We stocked up on some food/paper goods, as they were cheaper there than even when they go on sale at the grocery stores around here.
That came out to $67.12.

Napkins(because we always need those), brown sugar(holiday baking ahead), and some canned goods.
I make no secret that I am not a big fan of canned foods, at least not canned veggies outside of corn and water chestnuts.  But tomato products, olives and green chilies are another story!  I like to keep these 3 types of products stockpiled.
Especially in the tomato arena, I love to keep paste on hand.  It's so handy...duh...on hand, handy...lol  I find tomato paste is the jack-of-all-trades in the kitchen.  It can be used in so many ways in so many dishes.  Why pay more for pizza sauce.....you've got a can of paste, garlic and spices and access to water?....you've got pizza sauce.  You need an easy sauce thickener?...tomato paste.  Need to extent a sauce to feed more?.....tomato paste.  Need to help or fix a meatloaf and out of tomato sauce?.....dilute some tomato paste and cover that ugly meatloaf.
If tomato paste was a person, I'd marry it. 8-)
I also love green chiles when I do Mexican style dishes(and even beyond Mexican).  But access to fresh chiles here in PA?  Not happening.  And those tiny cans in the grocery store?....You'd think they were filled with gold instead with what they charge.  So any time I can find them cheaply, I buy them.
I also picked up some cornbread mix and pancake mix cheap.  I know I can make my own mix just as cheaply, if not cheaper.  I buy these for my family to use or for when I am rushed to get something on the table.  I try to encourage the kids to cook things for themselves and if I have a box with directions on it that's already to pour out and use, they are more likely to cook it if they are hungry.  I should make up batches of my own pancake mix and such but as soon as I do it, the kids will never eat another pancake.
Seriously.....they would do that!  They drive me crazy that way.


I also picked up a few Christmas presents at Big Lots.  Now I need to spend some time going through what I have picked up through the year and start calculating where we stand with the Christmas budget for 2012.  That should keep me busy and out of the stores wandering around, being tempted to buy crap I don't need NEXT week.

I took #2 Son driving a bit this week, since he still needs hours of practice before he can take his driver's test for his license.  Of course we hit some cemeteries while we were out and I got some Find A Grave photo requests fulfilled and took some extra shots of headstones to pass along to other memorials on that site.
The only spending(other than on gas)was $3.39 for fast food for a starving 16 year old.  We justified it by calling it Drive-Thru Window practice.......

We got Chinese take-out on Thursday night for dinner.  There was $34 out of our Eating Out part of the budget.

Besides the Usual daily stuff I do, there was some working on stockpile organizing and some changing out the wardrobe to the Fall/Winter clothing.  Still have some items to go through with that.

We finished pulling up the garden this morning.  We had a severe frost last night so many of my Collards didn't survive but I was able to harvest a shopping bag full of the smaller leaves.

 I gleaned some Morning Glory seed pods that had dried out already, off those flower vines before Hubs yanked it from the deck railing too.
If I can get these seeds to germinate next Spring, that's a money savings.  Yay!

We'll be attending a local Church auction this afternoon.  I talked about that last year HERE.  I'm hoping to get some more goodies this year.  Wish us luck bidding! 8-)

Other than a quart of milk I had Hubs bring home, I've spent $0 at the grocery stores this week.  And we've eaten at home 6 out of 7 days.  Tonight is a frugal pasta and sauce dinner plus leftover veggies in the fridge.  The Collards are on the menu for Sunday dinner but I'm still undecided on what to fix with them.....maybe a pork chop or two?

Oh, I almost forgot to add that I bought gas this week.  I drive so few miles that I can usually fill my minivan tank once a month(unless Hubs or the Daughter uses my car for work that month).  I had 80 gas points from Weis PMITA Markets that had to be used this week.  The timing was right so I filled up on Sunday.  I saved $12.42 on my gas fill-up.  Go me!

I'm off to get ready for the auction now.

Sluggy