This Week + on The Dining Table....Dec. 15th to Dec. 29th

 The "Christmas Ornament" Edition........

Here is one of the splurge purchased I made during the After Christmas sales.  It's a Cheetos bag ornament.  When I was a kid I loved Cheetos.  Recently, Flavorwiki had me taste test Flamin' Hot Cheetos.  I have never been one for "hot" food so I don't know why they picked me to do that survey.  Do you want to guess whether I gave them the thumbs up or down? lol

Onward to the meal planning!

Here is what was planned for the last week I did a meal plan.....

1. Sunday--Cod, Squash and Onions

2. Monday--Cheeseburgers(bun optional), Leftover Green Beans

3. Tuesday--Whatever needs using up(soup, squash, green beans, etc.)

4. Wednesday--Whatever else needs using up

5. Thursday--?

6. Friday--?

7. Saturday--?

8. Sunday--?

9. Monday--?

10. Tuesday--Fajita Bar at friend's house

11. Wednesday--Turkey

12. Thursday--?

13. Friday--Cracker Barrel

14. Saturday--Chili's

15. Sunday--?

And here's what actually happened....

1. Sunday--Cod, Squash and Onions

2. Monday--Cheeseburger(no bun), Leftover 

Green Beans

3. Tuesday--Don't Remember

4. Wednesday--Used by what was left

5. Thursday--Cracker Barrel

6. Friday--Cracker Barrel

7. Saturday--Golden Corral

8. Sunday--Chick fil-A

9. Monday--Don't remember

10. Tuesday--Fajita Bar at friend's house

11. Wednesday--Turkey and lots of sides

12. Thursday--Standing Prime 

Rib, Salad

13. Friday--Cracker Barrel

14. Saturday--Chili's

15. Sunday--McDonald's

What got taken out of the freezer last week....

*  2 pieces of Cod

*  Hamburger Meat

*  2 Chicken Biscuits(breakfast)

What got put into the freezer last week....

*  Nothing  

                   

Last week we spent $227.37 grocery shopping.

There are 0 shopping days left in December.

Rebate monies earned in December.....

I've earned $201.96 on Ibotta in December.

I've earned $9.50 on Checkout51 in December.

I've earned $190.72 on Aisle, TaDa, SwagBucks, Flavorwiki, etc. in December. 

I've earned 7,760 points on Fetch from food shopping in December.

I've earned 17,925 points from food shopping on Shop Kick in December.($71.70)

I've earned 865 points on My Points in December.(not sure what the conversion rate is here)

That is $402.18 in rebates(not counting Shop Kick/Fetch/MyPoints where I earn gift cards or send $$ to my Paypal account and count it at the end of the year)on $432.66 of grocery spending so in reality it's $40.38 in food spending after the rebate apps I count. I now separate out the Food Bank donations and don't count those in the grocery spending(but I do count any rebates on those items) so it's a win/win--the food bank gets a large donation of goods and I get a lower grocery bill.

My savings percentage for the last week was 42.48% and the monthly savings total for 50.49%.

Leftovers going into next week.....nothing

Here is this week's food plan.....

1. Sunday--Zalads from Zaxby's(using gift card)

2. Monday--Cheeseburgers, saute Cabbage

3. Tuesday--Shrimp, Baked Sweet Potato Fries

4. Wednesday--TV dinners

5. Thursday--Pasta, Salad

6. Friday--Chicken Tenders, Veg TBD

7. Saturday--Pork Tenderloin Sandwich, Saute Yellow Squash

Nothing inspiring here.  Just trying to eat what is here,

What is getting fixed and served at your house this week?

Was last week's plan successful, did you go off plan or did you not even plan what was going to be eaten last week? 

Sluggy 

Frugal Friday.....the Jan. 3rd Edition

Here are our frugal wins for this past week(and the week before while traveling).....

*  I love finding marked down foods at Kroger(this really doesn't happen at Walmart).  We bought salads, hummus, tuna salad and crackers on clearance to eat.  And I did a little Ibotta shopping too. 8-)

*  We also had no food waste last week.   It's hard to have food waste when you aren't cooking. lol

* I cashed out a total of $167.18 between Checkout 51 and Ibotta last week.

*  We bought gas at Kroger, using my points, when possible.

*  We used gift cards when we had to dine out when traveling.  There was one exception-we went to Cracker Barrel and Hubs had the gift card in his pocket and forgot to use it. 8-(  So instead of eating at CB twice, we had to eat there 3 times. ugh

*  I used credit card points to get free or reduced hotel rooms when we weren't staying with family.

*  Entertainment last week was free tv or socializing with family.

*  I found money! 

I found a dime and a penny when we stopped at a Buc-ee's in Georgia on 12/28.

I found a penny when we stopped at a Chili's for dinner on 12/28 in Alabama.

I found a total of .36¢ at Walmart on 12/30-a quarter, a dime and a penny at different parts of the store.

                          

I found .25¢ at Aldi on 12/31 when we went to pick up fresh produce and fruit.

And I found a fuzzy Geo. Washington .25¢ at Walmart by the pharmacy counter on 12/31 when went to pick up an Rx.

Grand Total Found this Year.......$10.70 & 5.30 Euros  I had a strong finish with a found coins streak the last week of 2024.

(And I just counted up my coinage and it came to $12 even.  I must have missed writing down $1.30 of my stash somewhere in 2024.)

That's all I got.

Any frugal wins in your neck of the woods?  Let's hear all about them!

Sluggy