This Week on the Dining Table

The "It's Going" Edition........

Another typical plate of food for me on this Elimination Diet last week.
ugh.
I am so over potatoes now. lolz
Except for that lunch out last Thursday we have stuck to this plan.  Except I can't just eat potatoes after three days as they give me diarhhea(TMI, sorry).

We are up to adding in potatoes, sweet potatoes, carrots, cucumber, onion, corn, lettuce, tomatoes, sugar snap peas, cantaloupe, mushrooms, hummus, olive oil, tuna, chicken(white meat)and beef(ground and steak).  I ate some crackers the other day too but that was "my bad".
So far nothing is making my HS flare, even the tomatoes(nightshade).  Adding back bread and pasta will be a test for the HS symptoms.
Adding in cabbage later today.
Oh goody!

Moving On....

Onward to the meal planning!

This is what was planned--

1. Sunday--Brats w/Onions, Corn on Cob, Cukes in Vinegar, Potato Salad, Peach Cobbler

2. Monday--Steak, Grilled Asparagus, leftover Potato Salad

3. Tuesday--Fettuccine Alfredo w/Chicken(I'll have Chicken on Salad)

4. Wednesday--Corned Beef, Cabbage, Potatoes

5. Thursday--Sourdough Grilled Sandwiches, leftover sides

6. Friday--Roasted Turkey Breast, Stuffing or Potatoes, Green Veggie TBD
7. Saturday--?

And this is what actually happened--(everyone else here not me after Tuesday)

1. Sunday--Brats w/Onions, Corn on Cob, Cukes in Vinegar, Potato Salad, Peach Cobbler

2. Monday--Steak, Grilled Asparagus, leftover Potato Salad

3. Tuesday--Fettuccine Alfredo w/Chicken(I had Salad w/Chicken)

4. Wednesday--FFY(I had leftover Steak and Salad)

5. Thursday--FFY(I had Hummus, Crackers, Cukes)

6. Friday--Meatloaf, Sugar Snap Peas, (Hubs had Mac and Cheese too)
7. Saturday--FFY(I had Salad)

Last week saw 4 nights of home cooked dinners, 3 nights of leftovers/fend for yourself, 0 nights of Eating Out/Take-Out. 
With EX-CB working again he hasn't been eating much here and I've been doing my Elimination Diet thing so Hubs still has tons of leftovers this week.  We didn't need to make the corned beef or the roast turkey yet so those move to this coming week(or will stay in the freezer a bit longer).

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

* 7.21 lbs. ground beef
* 1 pack of brats

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

* bag of roast chicken strips

* 2 lbs. ground beef

* 2 steaks

* 1 pack of brats

* 1 box of corn dogs(Ex-CB)

A small trip to Weis  and a trip to Maines brought the food/toiletries spending last week to $77.39 and my June total to $77.39.

My savings percentage last week was 49.66%(without Rite-Aid trips)and June's monthly savings total came to 49.66%(w/out R-A). 

I have 27 more food shopping/spending days in June.

Leftovers going into this week.....fettuccine Alfredo w/chicken.

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

1. Sunday--FFY

2. Monday--Corned Beef, Cabbage, Potatoes

3. Tuesday--Beef Pie

4. Wednesday--Roasted Turkey Breast, Stuffing or Potatoes, Broccoli

5. Thursday--Sourdough Grilled Sandwiches(cheese, blt, Rueben or turkey)and ?

6. Friday--Tacos
7. Saturday--Leftovers

This week will see 5 new meals cooked(if I feel like it), 2 nights of leftovers/FFY, and 0 nights of Take-Out/Eating Out.

What needs buying for this menu? Nothing at all.  I loaded up on fresh veg last week at the restaurant supply store and I am trying to eat down the freezer/pantry 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?

Any great deals on food at your stores this week? 

Sluggy  

2019 Income & Spending Report.....the May Edition

Now that we are living on an annuity and 401K$ withdrawals, 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.

Two changes we implemented for 2019 at our financial meeting in Jan.--

* Hubs wants to take $150 per person WAM(aka Walking Around Money)in 2019.  I found last year's $100 per month adequate but Hubs chafed at that little so we are upping it this year to $150 per person per month.
                                                                                                                                                     
*As for our 2018 Slush Fund, this is how we are going to handle it in 2019......
We won't be taking a quarterly 401K withdrawal in 2019 until we "need" to, instead of taking one each quarter as we had planned back in 2017 when Hubs retired.  Why pull 401K monies out when they are earning more than our other regular bank funds?  Use those instead for now!

Since the Slush Fund ended 2018 with $23,164.17 in it and the Sinking Fund ended 2018 with $468.37 in it, we are, for now at least, not taking any more 401K withdrawals and using what is in the Sinking Fund and/or Slush Fund to cover all irregular bills that come up in 2019.

I have set up a page to track the Slush Fund.  Click on the tab marked "Slush Fund 2018-2019" at the top of the blog.

  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 May report---

I had 2 goals for May......
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 fun may be to apply 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 2019.

I can report that we finished up May in the BLACK!
The amount we ended the month of May with?.....$788.85

Income or Funds We Can Access

The "income" in May---

* Monthly annuity payment of $3222.24(after tax withholding)
* RMSA(Healthcare account)reimbursement of $1848.67
* Interest earned on non-retirement accounts of $595.77
Total "Income" for May....$5666.68

Expenses in May---

* Healthcare Premium for May was $1,848.67(paid for with RMSA reimbursement)
* Variable Expenses in May came to $2356.00
* Irregular Expenses in May came to $673.16(car insurance)
Total Expenses....$4877.83

Outgo

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

HERE are the GOOD THINGS

*  Phone charges and internet were approximately the same as last month.(Within $2 or so).
* The c/c bill was $951.93 less than in April.
*  The electric bill was $61.54 lower than last month.
*  The health insurance premium was the same as in April.
*  The WAM/cash withdrawals were the same as last month.

HERE are the BAD THINGS

*  The water bill was $10.27 higher than in April.
*  There was a $13.11 higher charge on the gasoline credit card.
*  We paid semi-annual car insurance of $673.16.
*  I had $78.23 in charges on my Amazon card(filters and such).
*  I had a $122.41 charge paid on my Kohl's card(luggage).
*  I had a $37.00 charge for Chester's heartworm pills(6 mos. worth).
*  We gifted the Daughter a fat check for her graduation.

The Food Budget costs for May are in another post, which is located HERE.  Food costs are included in the credit card payment(mainly but sometimes our WAM cash too).

So we end May in the black with a $788.85 leftover.  Added to the Slush Fund going into May at $21,087.57 makes it go into June at $21, 876.42.

The Sinking Fund goes into June 2019 standing at $468.37 since nothing was paid out of it in May.

FINAL THOUGHTS on May---
It was a good, lower spending month.  We mostly sat home(other than Graduation)and didn't spend out of the ordinary this month.  Sort of stayed on budget for food/toiletries and didn't put a ton of charges on the credit card.

THOUGHTS going forward into June 2019----
We have the Long Term Care quarterly premiums to pay in June but that's the only irregular bill coming due this month.
We'll have some other not-normal bills too; boarding for Chester, a dental bill, trip bills(though most of those bills will be on the c/c due in July). I suspect the electric bill will go up a tad as a/c use begins.

On the good side of things, there will also be more on the income side in June; two dividend checks and I hear rumors of an eye doctor refund due us. ;-)

So how was your May financially?
  

Did you spend less than the income you had in May?
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 off any debts or put extra toward your mortgage principle or into savings, in an emergency fund or a retirement account?
Or did you blow it on a want?

If you posted 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

And the Winner Is.........

There were 10 valid entries on the May Giveaway.

I used Random dotorg to pick the winning entry.

And the Winner is.........

Sue L!!!

AnonymousMay 23, 2019 at 4:41 PM

My son said to me the other day "you know you are an adult when you want socks for your birthday" - I guess I'm and adult because although I will certainly EAT the candy, my eyes went directly to the toilet cleaner and toothpaste :) No big plans for this month - school is ending and my volunteer time is over for summer, LOVE to garden but really can't until I get my knee replacement...guess it will be getting stuff done around the house and working on Christmas gifts. I did get a good buy at Smart & Final today - a big pack of pork chops for 99 cents a pound - too bad they only had 1 left, and a HUGE seedless watermelon for $2.99.....if it were by the pound it probably would have been $30 :).
Sue L.

Congratulations Sue L!

You have 48 hours from when this post goes live Sue to email me your complete name and mailing address and I'll get your box of goodies out to you asap.

Thanks to everyone who entered and the June giveaway will go live in a week or so.

Stay tuned.........

Sluggy

2019 Food & Toiletries Spending.....the May Report

Onward to May's food spending report.......

Here are my FOOD BUDGET spending totals for MAY 2019.

I have posted May'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 May.  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 & tax where applicable. We are a family of 4-5(3-4 at home this month). No "kids" under 23.
*****************

CVS
OOP  $.88
Ads/Qs  $16.68
Value  $17.56
Savings  94.99%

DOLLAR GENERAL
OOP  $32.18
Ads/Qs  $49.07
Value  $81.25
Savings  60.39%

GROCERY OUTLET
OOP  $47.27
Value  $103.29
Savings  54.24%

PRICE CHOPPER
OOP  $39.88
Ads/Qs  $14.85
Value  $54.73
Savings   27.13%

RITE-AID
OOP  $0.00
Qs/Ads/BC/Visa Prepaid Rewards  $55.89
Value  $55.89
Savings  100%

WEGMAN'S

OOP  $43.39

Value  $44.89

Savings  3.34%

WEIS
OOP  $244.12
QsAds  $213.94
Value  $458.06
Savings  46.71%

*********************
My best 3 Store Savings Totals were Rite-Aid at 100%, the CVS at 94.99% and Dollar General at 60.39%.  My worst savings rate was at Wegman's with 3.34%.

I shopped at 7 different stores this past month.  

TOTAL Out of Pocket for May.........$407.72

TOTAL Coupons/Store Sales.................$352.06

TOTAL Value of Items Purchased.........$759.78

TOTAL Savings of ................................46.34%

TOTAL Out of Pocket for May w/R-A.............$407.72
TOTAL Coupons/Store Sales w/R-A...................$407.95
TOTAL Value of Items Purchased w/Rite-Aid....$815.67
TOTAL Savings with Rite-Aid items.....................50.01%

This closes out the May food/toiletries spending.

THOUGHTS & COMMENTS for this month.....
Well we went over the $400 budget by $7.72 so I am calling this a win. 
Even with feeding more folks with the Graduation and all I did well sticking to a budget.

The monthly food spending savings percentage went DOWN by 4.05% in May 2019 to 50.01% compared to the April 54.06% savings average.
The Rite-Aid haul in April was quite small so that kept my savings percentage down too.


With 5 months accounted for, I have spent a Year-To-Date Total of $1941.75 on food/toiletries in 2018.


2019 Yearly Total Spent To Date....................$1941.75

2019 Yearly Total Value of Items To Date....$8970.12

2019 Total Saved To Date...............................$7028.37

2019 Yearly Savings Total To Date of............78.35%

The average per month amount spent so far is $388.35 in 2019.

LOOKING AHEAD To June 2019.......

Let's see....we have a trip mid-month so no food shopping for a couple of weeks perhaps?  We are still figuring out how meal planning is going to go around here with Ex-College Boy's new work schedule plus what I want to/need to do for meals.
I think June will see us eating down some pantry and freezer items.  Between that and the trip it should be a lower grocery spending month.
Fingers crossed!!

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

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

*  Do you track your yearly food spending?

*  What was your savings percentage buying on sale and/or with coupons vs. 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

Frugal Friday............the May 31st Edition

Not much going on around here this week except lots of storms and rain.

Oh, and two days of tornado warnings...eek!

We didn't go much of anywhere(Rite-Aid, Ollie's, Weis, Red Robin and meet-ups with buyers)and spent the week cleaning and decluttering mostly but we still had a few wins........


* Hubs picked up the Friday Freebie last week at Weis(PMITA)Markets.....

a can of wet dog food.
Whoopee....but still something Chester might enjoy. ;-)

* I found money!

.06¢ at Rite-Aid when I went in to pick up an Rx.

And .03¢ at Ollie's by the bubble gum machines on my way out.

*  I sold more diapers this past week......

6 more packages last Friday............

And 4 more packages on Tuesday.
That makes $50 this past week, $30 the week before and $35 the week before that one so $115 in sales for May for things I got for free at Rite-Aid.

I don't put these sales toward the grocery spending for the year like my other "small economies" but put it aside to use at my discretion.
Woot!

* Hubs went on Monday and used my .30¢ worth of gas points and filled up his car.

*  I used some cheap canned peaches and pantry items I had to make a Peach Cobbler for Memorial Day dinner.............

*  Hubs and I hadn't been out to eat in awhile so we went to Red Robin when running errands on Thursday.

We got that tower of onion rings something we've never gotten there but have wanted to try.  It was yummy.
Thursdays in May at Red Robin have been Throwback Prices meaning select items on their menu were 1990's pricing.  The onion rings were part of the pricing so now you know why we finally got those. lolz

The onion rings were $3 off, the RR beer Hubs ordered was $3.99 off and the Bacon Cheeseburger I ordered was $3.99 off.  Of course Hubs had to be a jerk and order a burger that was regular price because I was paying. lolz

Here's what our bill came to before the Throwback Thursday discounts.  It was over $38 for 2 burgers, a beer and onion rings.......eek!

And here's what we paid.............

$10.98(plus the tax on that amount)less due to the sale so $27.43.
And I used a gift card bought last year or the year before(I can't remember which)to pay.

That's about it from here.

What frugal wins did y'all have this week?



Sluggy