Wednesday Stuff

Well I finally got around to paying the February bills. Let's just say for now that my Feb. totals are NOT going to be pretty. ;-)
Last week put me off my game a bit so I am behind doing lots of paperwork.  At least with so few trips to the grocery store, I have less paperwork to get to, right?
You would think.....
But Oh NOOOOOOOOO!
All that free time this month was taken up with the TONS of extra paperwork thanks to Uncle Sam x 9 filings, plus FAFSA......and then plus PHEAA(for PA state grants)for Daughter.

For her to attend her 1st choice school she is going to be around $12 thousand.....yes I just said 12 THOUSAND!!! dollars short for the academic year AFTER we pay what we have allocated for her.  We are crossing our fingers for lots of scholarship money from the University to take up a heap of the shortfall.  I doubt it will be enough to cover it all so we are applying for whatever aid we can find.  The PA state grants are limited to around $4500 a year so that won't be enough even if she gets a full grant from them.  I see many Many private loan dollars in her future.....  It will be her choice and her burden to bear moving forward but I still worry because that's what us Moms do. ;-)

My youngest turned 15 years old yesterday too.  He's firmly entrenched in full blown Teenager-itis now!
When did my always happy little man who loved to cuddle, suck his thumb and carry his blankie everywhere and would watch Blue's Clues and play with his Power Rangers grow into the surly lifeform who feels that grunting is a sufficient form of communication?!
And who gave him permission to transform into this, because I certainly did not!

I am having a hard time concentrating and getting things done this week.  I just want to crawl back into bed and hide from the world.
I guess I am just dog tired....or is that tired of the dogs?
I'm dwelling in a full-on state of Ennui....


Sluggy

No Spend February.....Not Going as Planned

Well I was doing fairly well on trying to only spend HALF of my usual $250 Food/Toiletries Budget in February.

The 1st week of Feb. I did great until I took the BIL to the grocery store and went inside.lol  I only spent about $83 that week total.
The 2nd week of Feb. I did GREAT!  I didn't spend a penny of the budgeted $!!
The 3rd week the funeral happened so I broke down and bought some hot foods and baked goods at the grocery store to serve while Hub's family was here.  I consider this week unusual circumstances but I still spent about $60 on food.
For the 4th week I am trying to stay out of the grocery store again to salvage my $125 goal.  At the moment I am at $115.27 spent on food in February.  So I have just over $9 left in the budget.
Saturday we are eating out for #2 son's Birthday so I only have 6 days to meal plan.

MEAL PLAN  Feb. 20th-Feb. 26th

Sunday--BAKED ZITI & SALAD  *This used up stockpiled cheese, pasta, sauce and sour cream I had gotten on dairy dept. clearance a few weeks ago.  I also added some ground beef(stockpiled in the freezer)to the sauce. I make a double batch so we'll be eating this another meal too.
Monday--LEFTOVERS  *We finished up some Chili, some had more of last night's meal, and some leftover Chinese take-out from the weekend
Tuesday--CHICKEN AND DUMPLINGS   *I'll be using up the leftover Baked Chicken Hubs bought at WeisMarkets that we served on Wednesday to the relatives before the funeral.  I'll add some more stockpiled chicken to make this dish and make the Dumplings from scratch.  We'll have enough for another meal or for leftovers.
Wednesday--BOSTON BAKED BEANS AND CORNBREAD  *One of my crockpot meals that makes more than 1 meal's worth.
Thursday--LEFTOVERS
Friday--FISH, FRIED ZUCCHINI, FRENCH FRIES  *Using up some potatoes, stockpiled frozen fish and digging into a large bag of breaded zuke rounds.
Saturday--Birthday meal out for #2 son

Lots of filling, hearty comfort foods due to the weather here and the apres funeral comforting needs of my family. ;-)
The only item that I need to buy for these meals is some carrots for the Chicken and Dumplings.  I'll probably buy some salad greens as I like to have them on hand and some lunch meat for sandwiches.
That will take care of my $9 that is left.

As for not spending on non-food items, all the toiletries have been free from Rite-Aid, as I've been using my +Up Rewards and free gift cards there.
I am not one to shop for non food/toiletries much so I don't have a problem staying out of those kinds of stores.  Except, with the funeral we had to buy #1 son some dress slacks and #2 son some slacks and a dress shirt, since they didn't have anything appropriate to wear to the service.  We did do some shoe borrowing so nothing was spent on footwear, but we did spend $60 on the clothes.  If I had had more time to find the stuff, I would have hit the thrift store and saved money of these things.  Oh well.....sometimes you have to spend in an emergency.

So are you doing a No Spend or Low Spend February?
How is it working out for you?
Has it been easy or difficult to stay the course?
Leave a comment and let us know!

Sluggy

About Last Week.....

First off I'd like to thank everyone who sent condolences for my Mother-in-Law's passing.
This past week was difficult.  Between all the in-laws descending on us for the funeral, Hubs having to drive across the state to fetch #1 son so he could be with the family here during this period of mourning and Hubs having to handle the bulk of the business stuff that needed doing because face it, half of his family is totally worthless when it comes to stepping up to the plate, it has been mighty stressful for us personally.

While my Hubs adored his mother, I had a contentious relationship with her at best.  At first I think she felt that being involved with me, kept her 'baby' from achieving more in life.  Eventually she got use to the idea that I wasn't going away and we settled into a relationship that worked for us, mostly because she kept her distance and was very hands off. 

I think in a way we were very much alike in so many areas and that is why we butted heads. 
I appreciate her for raising her kids to be decent human beings.  She was the original Frugalista too, living through the Depression as one of a large family.  She was very smart and graduated with honors from high school.  She could have gone to college if they had had the money for it.  Instead she fell in love, went to secretary school and worked until WWII was over and then married her soldier and raised a family.  She passed on that thirst for knowledge to her kids.  Her and my FIL were very poor starting out and suffered many injustices at the hands of my FIL's bigoted Italian-American family.  They survived and flourished in spite of it.
She was always reading(and I'm not talking romance novels)and questioning authority and societal norms. She was not afraid to stand up to anyone, no matter their position in life. Quiet yet outspoken.
When her oldest son asked an African American woman to be his wife, she was the first person to welcome her with open arms into the family. 

MIL has really been 'gone' for about 6 years due to advanced Alzheimer's. With the quality of her intellect, I was very sad to see that happen.   I am sure that if she had been aware of what was actually happening to her, she would have been devastated.
My mother on the other hand went quickly from physical ailments.  Having gone through both of their final years, I sure hope my body gives out before my mind does. 8-(

The actual service was brief but then there was the 2 hour drive, EACH WAY, to the cemetery in NJ and back here.  And when going to or leaving metro NY area of NJ, you always have to consider rush hour traffic issues.  Luckily, things timed out rather well so we weren't on the road during either rush hour periods.
And I was able to provide some comic relief to all who gathered at the cemetery.  Last Thursday was exceptionally warm in our area, about 58 degrees in Jersey.  The cemetery was still blanketed in a foot or so of snow.  We had to walk about 500 yds. in about 6 inches of a melting, slushy, muddy mess of a half-assed shoveled pathway to get to the gravesite.  I hadn't even considered this possibility when picking out my footwear!
So I was in a pair of purple low cut low heeled flats, tromping through the snow/slush/mud.
Ugh! 
My feet were soaked to the bone by the time I took my 4th step.....
So I sucked it up and just soldiered on.  On the way back to the road, I misstepped into a mud hole and turned my ankle.  I pitched forward and went down headfirst into a foot of snow/slush, using my right hand/arm to catch myself from splaying out face down in the snow.  Of course, everyone was already way ahead of me, including my Hubs, so when I yelled for him to help me, nobody came, let alone heard me.  Oldest BIL's wife was still graveside snapping photos on her cellphone and she eventually saw me in my graceful position and came over.  By then I had taken matters into my own hands and crawled a couple of feet to the left, like a half-human/half-crab and used a headstone to steady myself and get upright.  I will always be grateful to Archie and Lucille for being there for me.   Sorry but I didn't catch the last name or the dates. ;-)
Leave it to me to make a Grand Exit.......

Now that things have settled back into their usual chaotic routine, I hope to get back to blogging and visiting around the blogosphere to catch up with my bloggy friends in the coming days.

Sluggy

Rite-Aid....End of last Week and Sunday's Trip

I was able to hop over to Rite-Aid a few times during this past week while the out of town relatives where here. I needed to get some fresh air anyway, so why not bring home free stuff, right?lol

Since these deals are past here are the highlights....

2 boxes of cereal *after Qs, sales and +Up Rewards generated, they were .72¢ a box.
2 candy bars *after Qs, wellness discount, they were .35¢ each.
2 candy bars *after Qs and sale, they were .25¢ each.
2 Fritos corn chips *after sale and +Ups generated, they were $1.89 each.
1 Brach's Valentines candy *after clearance sale, they were .79¢.
2 Stax chips *after wellness discount and +Ups generated they were .43¢ each.
2 Dixie plates *after raincheck and Qs, they were .49¢ each.
1 Ben-Gay massage tube *after sale and Qs, it was .79¢
2 Ziploc bags *after sale, Q and +Ups generated, they were $1 a box.
2 Almay eye shadow *after clearance sale and $2 SCR, they were .24¢ each.
6 sticks of Degree Deodorant *after sale, Qs and +Ups generated, they were free.
1 bottle of Excedrin pain reliever *after free item Q, it was free.
6 bags of Chex Mix *after Qs, sales, +Ups generated, they were free.
2 boxes of facial tissue *after raincheck, they were free.
1 Gain dish soap *after sale and Q, it was -.13¢
4 Hormel chili *after sale, Qs and +Ups generated, they were -.375¢ each.
8 boxes of Motrin PM and 2 boxes of Precise Cream pain reliever *after rainchecks, sales, Qs, +Ups generated, they were -$1.39 each.
2 tubes of Colgate toothpaste *after sale, Qs and +Ups generated, they were -$1.00 each.

I spent $36 in +Up Rewards on all this and received back $40 in +Up Rewards & $4 in SCRs.
$1.41 OOP was put on my Rite-Aid gift card.
The value of this haul was $172.88.


Here is what I brought home on Sunday, the start of the new sales week.....

1 x Gallon Milk=$3.31
2 x Jif PButter raincheck price $1.99=$3.98
2 x Hormel Compleat on sale $1.99=$3.98
1 x Sucrets on sale=$2.99
4 x Desitin on sale $2.99=$11.96
2 x Oreo Cookies on sale $3.00=$6.00
5 x Reach Toothbrushes on sale $3.43(wellness disc. lower than sale price)=$17.15
1 x Reach Toothbrush on sale $3.83(wellness disc. lower than sale price)=$3.83
SubTotal...$53.20

Coupons Used

1 x $1/2 Jif PButter AdPerks/VVQ=$1.00
1 x $1/2 Hormel Compleat Blinkie Q(pinched from Weis)=$1.00
1 x $1.5/1 Sucrets ManuQ=$1.50
1 x $1/1 Desitin IPQ=$1.00
1 x $3/3 Desitin/JJ 'Poo/Head to Toe Wash IPQ=$3.00
1 x $1/2 Oreo Cookies IPQ=$1.00
1 x $1/2 Oreo Cookies AdPerks/VVQ=$1.00
1 x $1/1 Oreo wyb Gal. Milk IPQ(facebook)=$1.00
3 x BOGO Reach Toothbrushes ManuQ=$10.29
1 x $2/2 Reach Toothbrushes IPQ=$2.00
1 x $1/1 Reach Toothbrush Tearpad(from Dentist office)=$1.00
1 x $1/1 Reach/Listerine item AdPerks/VVQ=$1.00
Coupon Total....$24.79

$53.20-$24.79=$28.41
I used $28 +Up Rewards and put the .41¢ on my gift card.
I received $23 in +Up Rewards....4 x $2 Desitin, 6 x $1 Reach, $2 Sucrets, $1 Oreos and $1 Month long food +Up for each Hormel, Oreos and Jif(6 in total).
So in the end, this trip cost me .41¢ on my gift card and $5 in +Ups.  Considering the milk alone was $3.31, this wasn't too bad a haul.lol

**Two bags of Oreos are giving 3 $1 Ups....1 per bag for a monthlong deal and this week's $1 wyb 2 bags +Up.
I had wanted to pick up some J&J No More Tears shampoo but my store was clean out.  Someone also came in between Sat. afternoon and when I got there Sunday and pinched all the $1 peelie Qs off of the Right Guard Body Wash so instead of free after that peelie Q and $3 +Ups they would cost $.99 per bottle.  I wanted them free after Qs/+Ups to roll my +Ups that expire this week.  So I'll poke around for some more peelies elsewhere or just burn some +Ups this week on stuff like tp or trash bags since there is nothing else I really need/want at Rite-Aid right now.

Anybody get to Rite-Aid this week yet?
How did your shopping go?


THESE TRIPS
Number of Transactions.....3
Total Spent....$1.82(put on free Rite-Aid gift card)
Value of Items....$251.61 SCR qualified for...$4.00
Other Rebates earned...$0.00
Gift Cards earned....$00.00
Resolution Reward....$00.00
+Up Rewards earned...$63.00
+Up Rewards spent...$64.00
+Up Rewards left to spend....$161.99 

GRAND TOTALS--February Rebate Period so far

Number of Transactions......23
Total Spent....$10.31 put on free Gift Cards/Certificates so ZERO OOP
Value of Items purchased....$1,483.48
SCR qualified for....$69.97
Other Cash....$0.00
Additional Rebates....$0.00
Additional Non-Cash Rewards....$0.00

+UPS Totals for Feb. SCR period
+Up Rewards carryover from 2/8.....$162.99
+Up Rewards spent....$421.94
+Up Rewards earned....$427.93
+Up Rewards left....$161.99 includes ALL +Ups not just ones from this SCR period

Sluggy

Sluggy's Birthday Boring Blog Giveaway Winner!

Like all good things, my Birthday too, must come to an end.
Yes, it does seem like we've been celebrating this occasion for oh....6 months or so.
But I know y'all are anxious to get it over with and see who won the Box of Personalized Awesomeness!

There were 146 valid giveaway entries over the course of 9 blog posts.
I assigned a number to each valid entry and then used Random.Org to assist me in finding the worthy winner.
And to show you that persistence pays off, the Winner was someone who saw it through to the bitter end and entered on every blog post.  Either they are persistent or they have alot of free time on their hands.....lol

Without further ado, the winning entry was this one.....

Lulu T. said...  

 #1! I would love to tame my frizziness! :D

 January 28, 2011 4:17 PM

Congratulations to Lulu T!!!

Lulu T. you have 48 hours from the time stamp on this post to contact me with your mailing address.

My contact email is on my Blogger profile page.  Please use that email to contact me and don't put your info. in the comments section for the whole world to see....unless you would like all the spam attention that might garner you.  Hey, that might appeal to some people, I'm just sayin..... ;-)

Again, I want to thank everyone of you wonderful people for playing along with my crazy giveaway ideas.
I had fun....until I had to write all these entries down and number them......lol

Sluggy