Frugal Friday....the October 7th Edition

Welcome to Frugal Friday!   

There are a few Frugal wins this past week so here goes....

*  Grocery shopping this past week........

This is what got bought at Walmart last Friday with Ibotta rebates, the Kraft boxed mac/cheese went to the son in-law and the coffee drink to my daughter.  I spent $70.40 OOP on what is pictured and got back $35.12 on Ibotta plus another $5 for hitting the Weekend Bonus and another $1.25 in various bonuses.

And I received $11.00 on Shopmium and $5.75 on Alexa so $19.15 OOP in the end on all this. (I also earned $5.20 worth of Shop Kicks too but those get counted once I cash out on that platform.)

Then I went to Kroger and a different Walmart on Tuesday and got this Ibotta valid stuff(plus 2 Two Good Yogurt Shakes not in the photo).....

This(plus the yogurt)all cost me $52.15 OOP.  I got back $16.50 on Ibotta, $11.50 on Shopmium, 775 Fetch Points, 801 Swag Bucks and 1,065 Shop Kicks(or $4.26).  So $24.15 after rebates but before cashing in on Fetch, Swag and Shop Kick eventually.

And this stuff that was a good price but didn't have Ibotta rebates on it.....

The soup and cake mix were part of the .99¢ sale at Kroger.  I picked up the wet dog food at Walmart as it's marked down from $1.99 each to $1.28 each.  I also got 340 Shop Kicks on the dog food so $1.36 back once I redeem those SK points for a gift card.

I also got 4 Ibotta rebates on Wednesday for these 3 items(the Spray n' Wash qualified for 2 different rebates).  This above cost me $14.99 OOP. I got $6.60 for these on Ibotta plus another $5 for hitting the Midweek bonus, so $11.60 in rebates.  Then $5 from Shopmium so $16.60 back on $14.99 spent.  Nice.

I also got 10 Shop Kicks on this trip and earned $5.01 on Swag bucks for the TruSkin product and $8 worth of points on Fetch for same TruSkin item.  8-))

So in total I spent $154.35 so far this week OOP on everything and got back $61.22 on Ibotta, $27.50 on Shopmium, $5.75 on Alexa so $101.47 back on $154.35 spent.

Add in the Fetch Points of 9,071(which puts me just shy of a $10 Kroger gift card), Shop Kicks worth $10.86, $10.83 worth of Swag Bucks and my Kroger Cash Back which came to $1.40 this past week and once I cash all that out(it's $33.09), my OOP on everything bought this week so are will cost me $19.79 in the end.

I am 9 items away from earning a big $10 Bonus on Ibotta so I'll be picking up 9 more items later today before we leave town.  I probably won't have time to add those into my totals but it will be items we can use(or I can give to my daughter for her use).

*  I also found a discarded receipt outside of Walmart on Wednesday.  I scanned it into Ibotta and got .60¢ for free!  I think of this as finding money on the ground because it IS money and I only had to pick up a receipt laying on the ground. lolz

*  My new bras arrived this week.  I will not be showing those off(because really, who wants to see an old, short, fat lady in her unmentionables).lol  I will say that I had to order ones that are 10 band sizes smaller than what I had been wearing and that they were on sale and when you bought at least 2 you received free shipping.  8-))

* My stipend arrived to pay for rides, food, incidentals on our trip to Ohio for surgery.  I am so thankful for this program we were able to participate in through Hubs old work insurance.  Once I have to have my other knee done I have a problem getting it done here which I'll talk about later.  

*  Since we now have a significant amount sitting in the checking account which earns close to zippo I finally went and bought a CD and moved about half of what was in checking into that.  The CD is with the same bank but it earns 5% for a 12 month instrument.  Putting that money to work to earn some passive income is definitely a win! ;-)

*  We didn't eat out a single meal this week.  I figured we were going to be doing nothing but eating out(or ordering in)once we got to Columbus.  Anybody in the Columbus area want to meet up?  I'll have a little bit of free time Sunday, Monday afternoon and a bit on Tuesday.  Of course we won't have a car so you may have to come to us or meet us somewhere our hotel. Just shoot me an email if interested. 8-)

*  I found money! 

I went with Hubs to his eye exam at a Walmart that is not our usual location and found this shiny penny by a register.

Total Found in last Week.... .01¢
Total Found this Year.......$3.11

*  As I was getting clothes ready to pack into my suitcase I checked the pockets of the jacket I took on the cruise in May.  I found all this.....

A fiver in one pocket.......

And 3 singles and the free unused headphones Air Canada gave out on our flight from London to Montreal.  I probably jammed these bills into my jacket pockets in case I needed to tip someone at one of the airports we flew out of/into.

I LOVE finding money, don't you?  But I am not going to count this toward my Found Money Goal for 2023....though the Challenge sure could use this boost as finding money around here has been fairly rare as finding hen's teeth as the expression goes. ;-)

That's all I got. 

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

Hopefully all goes well and according to plan and I'll be back blogging next weekend unless I can figure out how to post from my phone while in Ohio.  If you don't mind, I'd appreciate if you can keep good thoughts for me, especially this coming Wednesday. ;-)

Sluggy   

To-Do List....September 2023

 Here's what was on the list to get done in September.......

*  Pay Bills  DONE  Always the #1 thing I do every month no matter what.

*  Go to in-person DR appointments  DONE  Had an appointment with the PCP's nurse to have an EKG and blood work done, another blood work appointment for the Neurologist and a consult and 4 cardiac tests with a cardiologist in September.

*  Submit all Pre-Op test results to Surgeon  DONE  We had a last minute situation come up due to my now ex-PCP.  Instead of conducting a cardiac clearance which was needed for the surgery she had her nurse do an unacceptable EKG.  I'm not blaming anyone, but it didn't give a acceptable read out/tracing so we had to scramble to find a cardiologist who could squeeze me in for a consult and then a stress test and echo.  He also did a pet scan of my heart.  I passed with flying colors. 8-)

*  Clean and Organize Stuff in House  IN PROGRESS  We are still arranging stuff, moving stuff around here trying to make this house work for us.  

*  Buy Stuff for House  DONE  Mostly this has involved buying kitchen counter tops, end splashes and some other back splash things(you can tell I am well verse in the contractor language here).  Hubs has been picking up drips and drabs and we are still waiting to hear back when the handyman is going to start work on this all.  In the meantime, our dishwasher died and rather than using the home warranty that is going to run out the end of October(and pay a $100 deductible charge)we'll just get a new appliance once the counter top work is completed, whenever that turns out to be.  In the meantime, we'll be hand washing the dishes.

*  Clean out Inserts/Coupon Envie  DONE  Not really much to do here each month anymore as I no longer print coupons and rarely get any coupon inserts.  The "game" has changed and I'll be removing this item from my To-Do List going forward.

*  Edit More Photos  DONE  I slowed down the rate of photo editing in September.  I still have photos from older trips that need editing but I've just been reoccupied with other things.  After the knee surgery I suppose I'll do more of this since I won't be as mobile for awhile.

*  Post About Old Trips  DONE  I posted 4 installments from our Western Trip in 2017 in September.  I've still got a little less than half of that trip to blog about.  And then all the other trips since then.  Yep, that will keep me busy for awhile. lol

*  Work on Genealogy  DONE  Did a few things, nothing big and then worked on a post or two but didn't finish anything.

*  Move Video Files onto New Computer  FAIL  This was not a priority in September and just fell to the bottom of the pile.  I'll get it done....some day. ;-)

Did you have a To-Do List in September?
Did you get stuff done on your list?

Sluggy

Income & Spending for September 2023

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

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 September report--

I had 2 goals for September....

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 2023.  

 

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

The amount extra we ended the month of September with?....$2,154.62

Income or Funds We Can Access

The "income" in September---

*  Monthly annuity payment of $2,608.66(after tax withholding)

*  SS income of $3878.950

*  Interest earned on non-retirement accounts of $804.63

*  Stock Dividend of $19.11

*  Blog Revenue of $101.65

Total "Income" for August....$7,248.05

Expenses in September---

*  Irregular bills in September were $3,184.55

*  Variable Expenses in September came to $737.69

*  Health insurance premiums totaling $1,171.19*

Total Expenses....$5,093.43

$7,248.05-$5,093.43=$2,154.62

* Now that Hubs is on Medicare, I include his Vision Care, and his Medicare supplement in this number with my Healthcare Premium.  His Part B comes directly out of his SS check before we get it.

Slush into September of $70,796.85 and the addition of $2,154.62, October's 2023 Slush Fund comes to $72,951.47

The Slush Fund on it's own page(tab at the top of the blog)shows an addition of $2,154.62.

Outgo

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

HERE are the GOOD THINGS

*  The WAM, the water bill, Health Insurance premium, vision care, Hubs supplement plan and internet were the same as last month.

*  There were no charges on my Amazon and Bank of America c/c's in September

*  The Mastercard c/c was $1,012.16 less than last month.

*  The Aviator c/c was $1,255.25 lower in September(We paid it ahead in August so no payment in Sept).

HERE are the BAD THINGS

*  The electric bill was $23.44 higher than in August.

*  The cellphone bill was $8.46 higher than last month.

*  Hubs Amazon c/c was $39.15 higher than in August.

*  We had an irregular bill for the lawyer consult and legal forms of $2,400.00

*  We had irregular bills for long term care premiums of $784.55

The Food Budget costs for September are in another post HERE.  Food costs are included in the credit card payments(mainly but sometimes our WAM cash too).

FINAL THOUGHTS for September 2023---While we paid some credit card charges in August that would have been due in September I forgot about the Long Term Care Premiums would be due in September. duh.  And then we finally got all that legal paperwork taken care of so that was a massive irregular bill that hopefully we will NEVER have again. ;-)

THOUGHTS going forward into OCTOBER 2023---Well we still haven't heard back on when our kitchen sink and countertops are getting replaced. sigh.  It should have been done well before now but you know handymen in a state where the motto is "Let the good times roll!" 24/7 all. year. long.  Seriously, never move here and try to get anything business wise done in a timely manner.

We have home insurance due in October. ouch  Then just the usual suspects--electric, water, cell, WAM cash, credit card charges.  We do have our 4th quarterly 401K withdrawal coming in October so if we do make any plans to travel to see our son and his fiancé during the holidays we've got some extra for that trip.

So how was your September financially?

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

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 a retirement account?

Or did you blow all your excess monies after bills were paid 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

This Week on the Dining Table

 The "Dead People Running for Office" Edition.....  

Saw this political sign a few weeks ago then more began appearing.  I did a double take, then had to laugh thinking that a long dead VP and POTUS from Texas got dug up, taken across the state line and is now running for State Representative in Louisiana.  Hey, if political parties can have dead people on their voting rolls, why not a dead man running for office?  Oh, and LBJ changed ethnicity since the last election he won in 1964. 8-)

This is day 113 of the "diet".  Yay!

My PCP is on board with this way of eating to reach a short term goal so no unsolicited advice on this eating plan please.  While I appreciate the concerns I am fine and I am losing weight.  I haven't had any sugar nor any white food(mostly).....bread, potatoes, rice, pasta since returning from the cruise on June 4th.  But I am holding fast to my plan anyway.....so far.  I am down an additional 40 lbs. since starting this eating plan(not counting the 8 lbs. I gained on the cruise and then dropped after coming home).

Onward to the meal planning!

This is what was planned for last week.......

1. Sunday--Tacos or Taco Salad

2. Monday--Chicken Quesadilla, some Veggie TBD

3. Tuesday--Cheeseburger, Corn on Cob

4  Wednesday--Lasagna, Salad

5. Thursday--Leftovers

6.  Friday--Leftovers

7. Saturday--Leftovers or FFY

And here's what actually happened........

1. Sunday--Tacos or Taco Salad

2. Monday--bad Chimichanga out

3. Tuesday--Yogurt cup w/Flaxseed, Chicken Quesadilla

4  Wednesday--Stir-Fry Veggies with Cashews

5. Thursday--Lasagna, Salad

6.  Friday--Cheese and Crackers

7. Saturday--Cranberry/Walnut/Feta Salad, 2 Chicken Strips, Broccoli in Cheese Sauce

Most of the plan happened but not necessarily when it was planned to happen.  I made the Quesadilla(using some leftover roast chicken and the rest went into the freezer), the Lasagna and the Chicken strips meals.  Hubs was responsible for making the Tacos and his own dinners beyond the ones I cooked and any leftover meals.

No going back to old habits and eating patterns for me!

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

*  2 bags of Ground Beef

*  Chicken Strips

*  2 boxes of Veggies 

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

* 3 bags of Chicken Strips

* 3 bags of Veggies

* Frozen Pizza(Hubs)

* 1 roll of Sausage

* 1 rope of Boudin(Hubs)

Last week we spent $67.42 on grocery shopping for September.  

Grand Total shopping comes to $508.12 for September.   

There are 29 shopping days left in October and I posted September's grocery totals on the blog already..

I've earned $135.10 on Ibotta in September.

I've earned $32.00 on Shopmium in September.

I've earned $0 on Coupons dotcom in September.

I've earned $8.00 on Alexa app in September.

I've earned $1.60 on Kroger Cash Back in September.

I've earned $0 on Checkout 51 in September.

I've earned 1,497 points from food shopping on Fetch in September.

I've earned 1,933 points from food shopping on Shop Kick in September.

I've earned 35 SB from food shopping on Swag Bucks in September.

That is $176.70 in rebates(not counting the Shop Kick/Swag Bucks/Fetch)on $508.12 of grocery spending so in reality it's $331.42.00 in food spending after the 6 rebate apps I count. 

My savings percentage for the last week was 35.20% and the monthly savings total for September comes in at 36.61% spent.  

Leftovers going into this week...taco meat, lasagna.

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

1. Sunday--Spaghetti and Meatballs, Salad

2. Monday--Grilled Salmon, Sautèed Cabbage

3. Tuesday--Cheeseburgers, Baked Sweet Potato Fries

4  Wednesday--Leftovers or Fend for Yourself

5. Thursday--Leftovers(Lasagna, etc.)

6.  Friday--No Clue

7. Saturday--No Clue

I'll cook the Spaghetti, Salmon and Cheeseburger meals.  He'll eat and do his own thing on other days or have leftovers from those meals. 

What do I need to buy to fix everything on this menu?  I need nothing to fix the meals on the plan.  I may still do a little loss leader/stocking up shopping at Kroger this week but it shouldn't cost much.

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 deals on food at your stores this week?  

Sluggy   

Food Spending.....the September 2023 Report

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

Here are my FOOD BUDGET spending totals for September 2023.

I have posted September's totals on the Total Grocery Savings Page located HERE and have updated the Totals there.
I am listing subtotals for each store I purchased from in September.  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. We are a family of 2(and 2 dogs).
****************

DOLLAR GENERAL

OOP  $1.75

VALUE  $2.99 

Savings  41.47%

KROGER

OOP  $248.50

Qs/Gift Cards $200.96

Value $449.46

Savings  44.71%

SUPER 1 FOODS

OOP  $67.42

Value  $104.03

Savings  35.20%

WALMART

OOP  $145.12

Qs/Gift Cards $29.85

Value  $174.97

Savings  17.06%

********************
My best Store Savings Total was at Kroger with a savings of 44.71%.  My worse rate was at Walmart with 17.06%.  

I shopped at 4 different stores in SEPTEMBER.

TOTAL Spent in September......$508.12

TOTAL Coupons/Sales/Gift Cards....$293.52

TOTAL Value of Items Purchased.....$801.64

TOTAL Savings of........36.61%

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

THOUGHTS & COMMENTS for this month....Well I didn't keep spending at $350 or less as I had liked to.  Blame Ibotta, store deals(I'm looking at you Kroger!), inflation and being hungry when I shop(well, nowadays it doesn't matter when I shop, I am ALWAYS hungry!lol).  I can't believe what things cost so I tend to want to stockpile when I see something we use on special(because in this economy you know the price is only going to increase with time).  I also can't believe with how little I eat since June that it costs so much to buy food(see comment above about inflation).  Plus I think Hubs is taking up the slack in the eating department. ;-)  I am just glad I don't have three ravenous children at home to feed anymore!

The Monthly food spending savings percentage went DOWN by 3.85% in September to 36.61% compared to August's 40.46% savings average.  Between all factors(and no Rite-Aid where I use to get "paid" to bring things home from there)it's nearly impossible to have a savings rate of more than 30%....and achieving that 30% is with trying very hard!  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)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 9 months accounted for, I have spent a Total of $3,774.20 on groceries/HBA/paper goods/etc. in 2023.

2023 Yearly Grand Total Spent....................$3,774.20

2023 Yearly Grand Total Value of Items.....$6,286.93

2023 Grand Total Saved...............................$2,512.73

2023 Yearly Savings Total..............................39.97%

The average per month amount spent is $419.36 in 2023 at this point.

LOOKING AHEAD TO OCTOBER......

Not predicting what I will spend but I'll be keeping tabs on the grocery bills in October. We'll be gone for a week this month and I won't be up to cooking much the week we get back(and maybe the following week).  Not sure if Hubs is up to filling in as cook or if we'll be getting takeout instead.  We'll see how much is spent on food this month.  I hope to have a low spending month, even with the crazy inflation these days.

Remember that I withdraw all my cash rebate monies(Ibotta, Coupons dotcom, Shopmium, Checkout 51 and other miscellaneous rebates 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.  The other savings apps like Fetch, Shop Kick, Kroger Cash Back that let us get free gift cards(or $ off your grocery total-Kroger), those are added back in when I cash those points in along the way.  Alexa app gives 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.

At the end of the third quarter of the year, I've accumulated--$962.99 in Ibotta(most in my bank account as I don't like to leave Ibotta monies on the platform), $309.40 in Paypal from Shopmium ,Coupons dotcom as well as an odd rebate or two from another source, $43.35 in Kroger Cash Back I haven't spent, $36.78 in Shop Kick, $62.20 in Swag Bucks to redeem, $16.75 on Alexa for Amazon gift cards and some points on Fetch that aren't even worth considering at this point.  Without counting the Fetch that's $1,431.47 in cash or scrip total to put toward the grocery spending in 2023 which lowers my OOP on food spending to $2,342.73 give or take at this point in time.

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 September?

*  Do you track your yearly food spending?  It's really not that hard or time consuming; just have 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