Frugal Friday......The March 14th Edition

 

Frugal Friday....the March 7th Edition

Here are our frugal wins for this past week....

*  I love finding marked down foods at Kroger(this really doesn't happen at Walmart).  I found some lo-cal Swoon drinks, some Perfect bars on sale that also had Ibotta rebates, some marked down salads and Brussels Sprouts.

*  We used up some pantry items as well.  Had to buy Marsala wine for a dish I made but that will be used up before we leave here.

*  We also had food waste last week.   I went against my instincts and bought a large sweet potato at a store I don't trust to have the freshest produce.  Well I went to pick that tater up last week to peel it and my hand nearly went right through it, it was so rotten.  Lesson learned.

*  There was no eating out this past week.

*  While grocery shopping I picked up some items for the food bank we donate to.  It wasn't much cash out of hand but helps folks struggling here out and makes us feel good.

Spending money on groceries not for us isn't frugal but it certainly is frugal for others.  Especially if it's toiletries or paper goods which they can't use EBT/Snap benefits on.

* It's been warm here so the heat has been off during the day.  We even had the a/c on one day it was so warm.

*  Entertainment last week was free tv, YouTube watching, doing genealogy or reading.

*  I found money! 

I found a penny in my pants pocket.

While at Walmart on Wednesday I  kept finding change in the store.  A penny here, a dime there, 2 pennies at a self-checkout nobody was using, another penny at yet another checkout and then 2 more pennies in the vestibule when I was leaving.

                

Then a quarter at Aldi's under where the carts are parked outside.

          

Found Money This Week.....42¢

Grand Total Found this Year.......$1.11

That's all I got.

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

Sluggy   

And the Winner Is....

And the Random Generator picked this comment--

AnonymousMarch 10, 2025 at 1:42 PM

Took my dad out to eat at a great Chinese take out place over the weekend. Needed to get him out of the house. He’s been recovering after a heart cath procedure that went sideways. Ended up in ICU a few days.-Tammy

Congratulations Tammy!!

Please email me at slugmama@yahoo.com with your full name and address so I can get this box out to you.

And as an aside, Wendy G I have great respect for you!

Sluggy

This Week on the Dining Table.....March 9 to 15th

"Do Not Eat This"

Saw this container of broken glass pieces for sale, on clearance, at Walmart awhile back.  I guess you are suppose to use this with a gas fireplace set up but it reminded me of an old SNL skit where Dan 

Akroyd was a lethal toy manufacturer(The Mainway Toy Co.)and guest star Candice Bergen was an investigative reporter interviewing him.  One of his products was "Bag O Glass".  IYKYK. lolz

And really?  $10 for clear glass shards?  I've got a Bridge in Brooklyn to sell the person who buys that!

Onward to the meal planning!

Here is what was planned for the last week.....

1. Sunday--Chicken Parm, Asparagus

2. Monday---Leftover Meatloaf, Yellow Squash

3. Tuesday--Shrimp, Broccoli

4. Wednesday--Rigatoni w/Mushroom Sauce, Green Beans

5. Thursday--Pot Pies(Chicken or Turkey)

6. Friday--Leftovers

7. Saturday--Leftovers 

And here's what actually happened....

1. Sunday--Chicken Parm, Asparagus

2. Monday---Leftover Meatloaf, Yellow Squash

3. Tuesday--Shrimp, Roasted Broccoli

4. Wednesday--Fend for Yourself(I had a Salad)

5. Thursday--Cheeseburgers(bun optional), Leftover Green Beans

6. Friday--Rigatoni with Mushroom Sauce and Meatballs, Caesar Salad

7. Saturday--Leftovers (Beef & Broccoli + Green Beans

Sunday to Wednesday basically happened but not necessarily on the day it was planned.

Leftover hamburgers got cheesed, leftovers got eaten and Wednesday was a Fend for Yourself night.

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

*  Chicken Parm

*  Shrimp

*  Meatballs

Last week we spent $67.99 on groceries and the savings rate came in at 55.94%. Spending for the month is $67.99 and the savings rate is 55.94% for March before rebate monies are added in.

Rebates earned in February-

$25.38 on Ibotta

$10.00 on Checkout51

$0 on Aisle and Misc.

$35.38 Total in $$

Total spent after rebates is $57.99

2,100 Pts. on Fetch

1,909 Pts. on SwagBucks

0 Pts. on My Points

361 Pts. on ShopKick

0 Pts. on TaDa

(I don't count these until I cash out for a gift card or cash.)

Before AND after rebates we had a low spend month for groceries at least for us.

Leftovers going into next week...1 slice of meatloaf, roasted broccoli, yellow squash and tons of rigatoni and meatballs.

Here is what was planned for this week.....

1. Sunday--Catfish, Teriyaki Green Beans

2. Monday---Pork Tenderloin Sandwich, Leftover Yellow Squash

3. Tuesday--Chicken Marsala, Mashed Potatoes(optional), Leftover Broccoli

4. Wednesday--Beef, Stir-Fry Veggies

5. Thursday--Pot Pies(Chicken or Turkey)

6. Friday--Leftovers

7. Saturday--Leftovers(if no leftovers, we'll think up something else)

Just trying to eat down what is here when I'm not getting great deals.  I chose my meals by cherry picking the deals and building meals around those items, combined with what is in my freezer.

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? 

Today is the last day to enter the giveaway.  Go HERE.  8-)

Sluggy   

Don't Forget to Enter the Giveaway!

The Sluggy's Boring Blog Giveaway is still running.

Monday is the last day to enter it HERE and this the last reminder about it.

No jumping through hoops, just let me know in your entry what you have done for someone else lately.  It can be something big or small, just something you've done to help someone, make them smile or made their day better.

That's all.

The winner will be picked Tuesday evening.

Sluggy

Frugal Friday....the March 7th Edition

Here are our frugal wins for this past week....

*  I love finding marked down foods at Kroger(this really doesn't happen at Walmart).  Got some Burger meat on clearance, some veggies on sale, bagged salad on clearance, more strawberries for $1.88 lb., Greek yogurt on sale, and got 4lb. of Catfish fillets for $9.95 at a different store.

*  We used up some pantry items as well.

*  We also had no food waste last week.   We cooked at home and then ate some leftovers this past week. There was no eating out.

*  While grocery shopping I picked up some items for the food bank we donate to.  It wasn't much cash out of hand but helps folks struggling here out and makes us feel good.

Spending money on groceries not for us isn't frugal but it certainly is frugal for others.  Especially if it's toiletries or paper goods which they can't use EBT/Snap benefits on.

* It's been warm here so the heat has been off during the day.  Not "hang your laundry out to dry warm" but warm enough not to need the furnace days.

*  Entertainment last week was free tv, YouTube watching, doing genealogy or reading.

*  I found money! 

                    

              

Between Walmart and Kroger I found .12¢ total-a dime and 2 pennies last week.

Found Money This Week.... .12¢

Grand Total Found this Year....... .69¢

That's all I got.

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

Sluggy   

Democrat Leaders Displaying Disgusting Behavior

I know I'm going to get hate for this but it has to be said.............I don't care what side you are on the fact the Democrats didn't stand up for that 13 year old boy with brain cancer when he was introduced last night is disgusting!

And those little signs they were holding, one political commentator said it remembered her of when Democrats in the 1800's held paddles up to bid in a slave auction.  Because if you are not aware of history, the Republican party freed the slaves and the majority of Southern slave holders were Democrats.

Is there any stunt these people won't pull?  Attacking the people who are finding the graft and waste instead of applauding the finds that will save our country's treasury??  Just how unbalanced are these Democrat leaders?

Sluggy

Income & Spending.....the February Report

Now that we are living on an annuity, 401K$ withdrawals, personal savings and social security payments, I am still going to keep track of our monthly spending and income, and hopefully we'll still be able to live BELOW our means and I'll have some leftover monies each month to tuck aside.

We went into retirement in June of 2017 with no debt, no mortgage nor a car payment.

I am trying to be as transparent as I can with how much is coming in and how much is going out. 8-)

On to the February report--

I have 2 goals for February....

The 1st is to actually finish the month in the black and not the red.

The 2nd is to try to have a little cash leftover at the end of the previous month to tuck back into a slush fund.  This slush fund may be applied toward unforeseen bills that are coming due in subsequent months, to spend on "extras/wants" during the year or to just sit there and grow until the end of 2025.

*  I do not include/report on our retirement accounts here, just the non-retirement ones.

I'm happy to report that we finished up February in the black.

The amount extra we ended the month of February with?....$2,723.72

Income or FundFebrs We Can Access

The "income" in February---

*  Monthly annuity payment of $2,530.11

*  SS income of $3,906.60

*  Interest earned on non-retirement accounts of $1356.03

*  Rebating Cash-out  $389.82

*  USPS Refund  $8.40

Total "Income" for February....$8,190.96

Expenses in February---

*  Irregular bills in February were $595.58

*  Variable expenses in February came to $4,237.25

*  Medical Premiums in February were $634.41

Total Expenses....$5,467.24

$8,190.96-$5,467.24=$2,723.72

Slush Fund coming into February of $83,904.58 and the addition of $2,723.72 in February, our end of February 2025 Slush Fund comes to $86,628.30. 

The Slush Fund, on it's own page(tab at the top of the blog), shows an addition of $2,723.72.

Outgo

As for the variable expenses this February, here are the good and bad side of things.....

Here are the GOOD THINGS

*  The water bill and the WAM were the same as last month.

*  The Mastercard bill went down $37.77 in February.

*  Hubs Amazon card was $444.33 less than the previous month.

*  The Cellphone bill went down by $86.33 in February.  We changed carriers.

*  My Aviator c/c was $732.96 less than in January.

HERE are the BAD THINGS

*  The electric bill went up by $79.14 in February.

*  My Amazon c/c was $46.14 higher than last month.

*  Hubs Aviator c/c was $1,960.16 more in February due mostly to the deposit we had to pay to the moving company.

And we had some "one off" bills in February--

*  Doc Co-Pay of $20.00
*  Vet Bill of $116.19
*  Hubs paid off his cellphone because we changed carriers so that was $459.39

The Food Budget costs for February are in another post HERE. Food costs are included in my credit card payments(mainly because I buy the food but sometimes these costs come out of our WAM cash too).

FINAL THOUGHTS for February 2025---

GOING FORWARD INTO March 2025--The cruise payment is due in March. ouch  We'll probably be in the negative in March because of that but we have the cash to pay it so no worries there.  Other than that the rest of the bills should be about the same, except the heat may be off more days than on because March is deep Spring here in the deep South so the electric bill should be less. 8-)

Here's hoping 2025 treats us all even better financially! 8-))

So how was your February financially?

Did you spend less than the income you had in February?

Did you stay within your budget or not?

What did you do with any money leftover at the end of the month?

Did you pay down/off any debts or put extra toward your mortgage principle or into savings, in an emergency fund or retirement account?

Or did you blow all your excess monies after bills were paid on a "want"?

If you post your financial progress on your own blog, leave a link in the comments so we can  go check out your progress too and celebrate or commiserate with you!

Sluggy 

Gutfeld Show

 

Sluggy

This Week on the Dining Table....March 2 to March 8 2025

The "Crazy Bird" Edition........

I hope you can make out the bit of red in the middle of the tree trunk in the photo.  That's the crazy cardinal we've had hanging around the house since we got back from our Christmas trip at the end of December.  He keeps dive bombing the window of Hubs study every day.  We think he sees his reflection and assumes it's another cardinal in "his territory " so is attacking it.  We have put a black garbage bag over the window, tried decals and also tried hanging my large windchimes in the tree to scare him off.  The only thing that works is the windchime, but only when the wind is blowing enough to make them chime.

I guess we are going to have to live with this until we leave.

Here's a short video where I finally caught the bird in action banging his beak into the window.

Onward to the meal planning!

Here is what was planned for the last week.....

1. Sunday--Cheeseburgers, Sweet Potato Fries

2. Monday---Chicken w/Stir-Fry Veggies

3. Tuesday--Meatloaf, Green Beans

4. Wednesday--Beef & Broccoli Stir-Fry

5. Thursday--Leftovers

6. Friday--Leftovers

7. Saturday--Leftovers 

And here's what actually happened....

1. Sunday--Cheeseburgers, Sweet Potato Fries

2. Monday---Chicken w/Stir-Fry Veggies

3. Tuesday--Meatloaf, Green Beans

4. Wednesday--Beef & Broccoli Stir-Fry

5. Thursday--Salmon, Brussels Sprouts

6. Friday--Strawberries & Greek Yogurt

7. Saturday--Leftover Chicken Veggie Stir-Fry

Sunday to Wednesday basically happened as planned.  Then we had some 

brussels sprouts we paired with 

salmon on Thursday so it worked with that night.  Then Friday to Saturday it was Fend for Yourself which was a-ok in my book.

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

*  Chicken

*  Beef, thin sliced

*  Salmon

*  4 Hamburgers that had been bought and stuck in the freeze and had to be used or frozen.

Last week we spent $71.45 on groceries and the savings rate came in at 46.26%. Spending for the month is $363.62 and the savings rate is 43.417% for February before rebate monies are added in.

Rebates earned in February-

$108.14 on Ibotta

$9.50 on Checkout51

$20.73 on Aisle and Misc.

$138.37 Total in $$

Total spent after rebates is $225.2

9,998 Pts. on Fetch

674 Pts. on SwagBucks

783 Pts. on My Points

81 Pts. on ShopKick

0 Pts. on TaDa

(I don't count these until I cash out for a gift card or cash.)

Before AND after rebates we had a low spend month for groceries at least for us.

Leftovers going into next week...4 slices of meatloaf, green beans, sweet potato fries, pizza, a Portabello Mushroom Parm, 2 Hamburger patties, Beef and Broccoli.  Most of this will be lunches for someone(probably Hubs as I have  chicken salad and bags of salad to eat.

Here is what was planned for this week.....

1. Sunday--Chicken Parm, Asparagus

2. Monday---Leftover Meatloaf, Yellow Squash

3. Tuesday--Shrimp, Broccoli

4. Wednesday--Rigatoni w/Mushroom Sauce, Green Beans

5. Thursday--Pot Pies(Chicken or Turkey)

6. Friday--Leftovers

7. Saturday--Leftovers 

Just trying to eat down what is here when I'm not getting great deals.  I chose my meals by cherry picking the deals and building meals around those items, combined with what is in my freezer.

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  

Food Spending.....the February 2025 Edition

Onward to February's Food Spending Report.....

Here are my FOOD BUDGET spending totals for February 2025.

I have posted February's totals on the Total Grocery Savings Page located  and have updated the Totals there. 
I am listing subtotals for each store I purchased from in February.  If you aren't interested in that much detail, just skip to the bottom for the Totals Sum.  My spending includes Food, Toiletries/HBA, Cleaning Products, Paper Goods, Pet Food. We are a family of 2(and 2 dogs).
****************

ALDI

OOP  $16.30

Sales  $7.75

Value  $24.05

Savings  32.20%

BROOKSHIRE'S

OOP  $2.79

Sales  $1.71

Value  $4.50

Savings  38.00%

KROGER

OOP  $234.63

Qs/Gift Cards  $223.28

Value $457.91

Savings  48.76%

SHOPPER'S VALU

OOP  $41.77

Value  $58.89

Savings  29.17%

WALMART

OOP  $63.13

Qs/Gift Cards $25.24

Value  $88.37

Savings  28.56%

********************
My best Store Savings Total was at Kroger with a savings of 48.76% and most of the grocery dollars were spent at that store.  My worse rate was at Walmart with 28.56%, unfortunately Walmart was where I spent the second most of my grocery dollars.  Not a bad savings rate average overall though.

I shopped at 5 different stores in FEBRUARY.  

TOTAL Spent in February.....$358.62

TOTAL Coupons/Sales/Gift Cards....$278.10

TOTAL Value of Items Purchased.....$633.72

TOTAL Savings of........43.41%

This closes out the February food/toiletries/etc. spending.

THOUGHTS & COMMENTS for this month....Nice job this month.  Didn't spend a lot, for us, in our situation, but got some good deals and lots of savings.

The Monthly food spending savings percentage went DOWN by .73% in February to 43.41% compared to January's 42.68% savings average.  When savings percentage goes down it's a good thing.

Since we have an adequate income and food should be a pleasure in life(no way am I going to eat unseasoned rice and beans for my remaining days like some people-because I don't have to). I will buy quality food and pay the price at the register.  I may not like the price but I will deal with it.

With 2 months accounted for, I have spent a Total of $759.05 on groceries/HBA/paper goods/etc. in 2025.  Food prices have gotten to the ridiculous level, haven't they?  And it will be awhile until they come down as we recover from Bidenomics.

2025 Yearly Total Value of Items  $1,332.43

2025 Total Saved   $573.38

2025 Yearly Total Spent  $759.05

2025 Yearly Savings Total of  43.03%

The average per month amount spent is $379.25 in 2025 so far but that's before all the rebate monies are added in.

Remember that I withdraw all my cash rebate monies(Ibotta, Shopmium, TaDa, Checkout 51, Swag Bucks, My Points and other miscellaneous rebates-Aisle, Tremendous, Sampoll  etc. and have it sent to my Paypal)at the end of the year and add it back into my food budget, so at the end of the year my food spending will go down.  I don't add in all the cashed out savings until the end of the year,

The other savings apps like Fetch, Shop Kick, Kroger Cash Back that let us get free gift cards(or $ off your grocery total-Kroger Cash Back), those are added back in when I cash those points in along the way.  Alexa app gave me Amazon credit onto my account but I don't buy food on Amazon(sometimes I buy dog food there)so I really don't know how to count that and it's defunct now so I won't worry about that bit.

Because I don't like to let money sit in these rebate accounts and Paypal, I send $$ to my bank account throughout the year.  So far I have sent $489.82 from various rebating programs and through Paypal to my bank.  If you add in all that my food spending at the 2 month point in 2025 comes in at $269.23 or $134.62 per month.

Besides all I sent to my bank account I have more $ sitting in these various rebating programs as well as in Paypal.  This is not counting Alexa, ShopKick or Fetch, which all comes out in gift cards or Amazon credit.

LOOKING AHEAD TO MARCH 2025....

I will continue to be using up what is here.  We have 2+ months to get all this food gone(not counting what I donate to the local church's food bank).  Mostly for personal use, we'll be buying fresh vegetables and fruits.  But that's just us as we continue to empty the freezer and pantry ahead of the move.  Other than fresh foods this will mean a lower grocery bill until we get out of Dodge.

If you have other ideas or guidelines you follow please leave a comment and share your thoughts with us all.

*  How much did you spend on food/toiletries in February?

*  Do you track your yearly food spending?  It's really not that hard or time consuming; just keep your receipts and either track it in a notebook or on a spreadsheet.

*  What was your savings percentage buying on sale and/or with coupons versus buying at regular retail price last month, if you track that sort of thing?

*  What are your methods for keeping your food spending in check?

*  Is anyone out there up for tracking expenditures and trying to spend less but still eat well?

Sluggy

  

The Return of the Sluggy's Boring Blog Giveaway!

I have decided to start up the Giveaways I used to do.  Some of you seemed to enjoy them so. ;-)

Here's what's in the current box of goodies......

And some close up photos...........

12 packets of Skittles

1 Bueno Kinder chocolate bar

1 Airwick Warmer w/the light

1 pack of Orbit gum

1 Jamaica bracelet

1 pack of Boiscoff cookies

1 pack of Clorox wipes

1  NCL belt clip

1 Bactine liquid bandage

1 Cover Girl eye shadow palette(235 Pure Radiance)

1 Cover Girl liquid foundation

1 NCL cellphone stand

1 tube of Tylenol

1 wooden NCL ink pen

1 thin plastic case(or pencils, pens or coupons and such)

1 pack of notes that are cat themed

1 pack of playing card from NCL

1 oven mitt

3 travel size tubes of Neutrogena

1 travel size tube of La Roche Hydrating Gentle Cleanser

1 twin pack of Febreeze car clips

1 reuseable plastic grocery bag

1 pair of slipper sox with grippy things on them

1 Lip Smacker strawberry lip gloss

1 Carmex lip balm

All this can be yours if you are chosen the winner.

You can enter once per day until Monday, March 10th at 11:59pm.

Please let me know in your entry what you have done for someone else lately.  It can be something big or small, just something you've done to help someone, make them smile or made their day better.

That's all.

Winner will be announced on the evening of March 11th.

Have a good weekend!

Sluggy