Rite-Aid on Thursday 7/15/10 & What to Buy This Week for FREE!

I had a $20 Allergy Rewards Gift Certificate that was expiring on 7/15, so I HAD to head out to Rite-Aid this past Thursday or lose it.
Perish THAT thought!lol
There wasn't much I wanted but the Planters nuts were on sale so here is what I bought....

5 x assorted Planters Nuts(l like the Nut*rition with the cashews/almonds/macadamias) $3.99=$19.95
2 x Hershey's 8 pack of mini bars on sale BOGO=$1.99
2 x Sobe $1.49, $1.19 with 20% wellness discount=$2.38 *Not Pictured
2 x Almond Joy Candy Bar on sale $.50=$1.00 *Not Pictured
1 x Magnifying Glass w/20% off Wellness Discount=$6.39 *Not Pictured
1 x Lypsyl Lip Balm w/20% off Wellness Discount=$2.39
SubTotal....$34.10

Coupons Used
1 x $5 off $25 Purchase RedPlum IPQ=$5.00
2 x $1/1 Hershey's 8 Pack AdPerks Q=$2.00
1 x Sobe BOGO IPQ=$1.19
1 x $.50/2 Almond Joy Bars AdPerks Q=$.50
Coupon Total....$8.69

$34.10-$8.69=$25.41
I used the $20 Allergy Rewards Gift Certificate....
$25.41-$20.00=$5.41

Then I used $5 in +Up Reward Qs....
$5.41-$5.00=$.41 OOP put on Rite-Aid Gift Card so ZERO Out of Pocket

I earned $1 +Up Rewards for the Planters Nuts.
The Lypsyl had a TRY ME FREE sticker on it, so I can send for a $2.39 rebate for what I paid after my Wellness discount.

And the Magnifying Glass was included in my order at the behest of #2 son and his friend who are paying me back, so I'll be $6.39 back as well.  It's the least they can do since I bought them each a Sobe drink and a candy bar(that's why they aren't pictured above).lol

This Trip....
Total Spent...$.41 put on Gift Card
Value of Items purchased...$49.66
SCRs earned....$1(Lypsyl)

MONTHLY TOTALS-JULY Rebate Period

Number of Transactions......9
Total Spent....$7.05--all put on free Gift Cards/Certificates 
Value of Items purchased....$369.06
SCR qualified for....$22.98 in cash and $30 in Gift Cards & free diapers
Other Cash....$7.65
Additional Non-Cash Rewards....$0
+Up Rewards earned=$13.00

Total Cash I'm getting Back=$29.63
Total Gift Cards I'm getting=$30
+Up Rewards left to spend=$1.00


As for Rite-Aid this week.....
There is not much I need that is a good deal but there are quite a few freebie or almost freebie opportunities this week.

The Duracell Batteries are a good buy if you use batteries.
8 count packs are $4.99 and if you can find the ones with $1 Peelies on them(or have the $1/1 Qs from the last P&G insert) AND there is a $10 SCR when you buy $20 worth of more, so do this....
Buy 5 packs for $24.95 and a very cheap filler item to put you over the $25 mark(like a candy bar on sale this week for .50¢). Total $25.45.
Then use 5 of the $1/1 Peelies, 1 of the $5 off $25 purchase Qs=$10.00 off.
$25.45-$10=$15.45 plus tax if applicable in your state.

Submit for SCR #10 for $10.
After the rebate you will have paid $5.45 for 40 batteries and a candy bar.

There are also 3 "regular" full purchase price SCRs available this week that will keep you "moving along", if you know what I mean.....plus a hemorrhoid med, what with all that sitting you'll be doing....lol
#14 CryoSTAT
#17 Colon aide
#18 Ducolax Balance
#23 Traditional Medicinals Smooth Move Tea

The Motrin PM is a good deal as well.  20ct. avg. $5.99 a bottle.
There is a $3 in-ad Q, which makes this $2.99 a bottle.
Stack a Manu. Q from today's paper $1/1 and pay $1.99, or stack the older Manu. Q that is $3/1 and get it free.  You also will get $2 in +Up Rewards for buying this product.
And if you have earned a Wellness discount your price starts at either $5.39 or $4.79 before coupons so even if you don't have both the $3/1 ManuQ & the in-Ad $3/1 Q, you still will do well here.

Finesse is a great deal this week.  It's on sale for $2.50 and if you buy 2 in a single purchase you get a $1 +Up Reward.  There is also a $1 SCR on the purchase of 1 bottle this month.  In addition, there is a rebate offer for Finesse in the 5/16SS coupon insert(up to $3).
So buy 2 Finesse for $5.
Used 2 of the $1/1 ManuQs, makes it $3.00
Get a $1 +Up Reward.
Submit for the SCR for $1.
Then mail in for the Finesse Rebate for $2.50.
After rebates you will get paid $.50 to buy 2 bottles & get a $1 +Up Reward to use!
As Adam Sandler might say, "Not too shabby!"

Then there is the Zegerid OTC.  With your wellness card it is $10 for a 14ct.
Use the In-Ad Q $3/1 and you pay $7.00.
Go watch the AdPerks video fo Zegerid and you can get another $3/1 Q there to stack.
Use both $3 Qs and you pay $4.00.
Go to the Zegerid OTC Website to get a $3/1 Q.
Stack all 3 Qs and pay $1.00!
And then you get a $7 +Up Reward back!!

Of course all these deals will be even sweeter if you combine them into 1 big transaction and can use a $5 off $20 or $5 off $25 Purchase Q as well.

Here's a scenario to try....
1 x Zegerid OTC=$10.00
1 x Motrin PM=$5.99
2 x Finesse Shampoo=$5.00
SubTotal...$20.99

Coupons to Use
1 x $5/$20=$5.00
1 x Zegerid $3/1 ManuQ
1 x Zegerid $3/1 In-Ad Q
1 x Zegerid $3/1 AdPerks Q
1 x Motrin $1/1 ManuQ
1 x Motrin $3/ In-Ad Q
2 x Finesse $1/1 ManuQ
Coupon Total....$19.00

$20.99-$19.00=$1.99 + tax OOP.
Receive $10 in +Up Rewards($7 Zegerid,$2 Motrin PM, $1 Finesse).

Then buy 5 packs of Duracell batteries & the candy bar filler...use 5 x $1/1 Peelies, a $5 off $25 Q and the $10 in +Up Rewards to pay.
$25.45-$10 in Qs-$10 in +Ups=$5.45 + tax OOP.
Receive $1 in +Ups.
Submit for SCR#115(Finesse)& #10(Duracell) and receive $10 back.
Submit for Finesse Rebate from manufacturer and receive $2.50 back.

OOP total before rebates...$7.44 + tax.
Cash back for rebates....$12.50.
Profit of $5.06 plus $1 in +Ups and you got 1 Zegerid, 2 Finesse, 1 Motrin PM, 1 Candy Bar and 5 packs of Batteries for free!

One last thing.....don't forget that there are TWO MORE FREE $25 Gift Card when you transfer a Prescription to Rite-Aid Coupons in this week's R-A sales flyer!  They are good until July 31st so plenty of time to find an rx to transfer.  (Forget it though in NY or NJ(if you are under 60) as state law prohibits it.)
I found an older arthritis rx I needed to refill that I had at Kmart pharmacy and took it up to transfer on Thursday when I did my shopping at Rite-Aid.  $25 more in free credit to get stuff at Rite-Aid....woohoo!

Sluggy

It's All I Can Stands, I Can't Stands No More!

The other day #2 son came downstairs at the crack of noon and asked me what was for dinner.  He's not one to wait until the last minute to find out vital information like that, ya know?!

When I told him I was yet again, making dinner from scratch, he got a look on his face and asked me if we could ride up to Burger King so he could get some burgers for dinner instead.

When I nixed this idea, a dark cloud descended over him and his long face got even longer.
Sensing this was more than the usual teen-hormone surge I am use to at home, I pressed him as to his response to me. 
I thought my no to the burger plan was just the last straw on a day that was difficult for him emotionally or something.
Nope....it wasn't that.
He finally opened up and the truth came tumbling out.

He has had enough!
Enough of all the nourishing home cooking.
For the last 18+ months I've been cooking from scratch(or something approaching it)and he is FED UP with eating healthily so much!

The poor thing.....I've cut down on his junk food to a point that he is longing for that fat, sodium, sugar, chemical laden stuff from the House of Ronald and the King, and the Bell of Taco & the Hut of Pizzas.
He misses the tasty poison and I am a bad, bad mom for denying him his minimum daily requirement of crap.

The horror.....the anguish......the Woe is Me!

Yah, I can live with it.....and so can he.  ;-)

Sluggy

July Food Shopping....15 Days Down

In order to make pickles with my pickling cukes I got at the farm on Sunday I needed to get some vinegar and mustard seeds at the grocery store.

 I picked up...
1 gallon of white vinegar on sale for $1.99
1 jar of mustard seeds for $2.19
1 package of ground beef on sale for $3.73
2 bags of frozen veggies on sale for $2($1 each)
1 gallon of milk for $3.32
3 frozen lasagna on sale B1G2free so $3.59 for 3
2 bags of chips on BOGO sale for $3.78

Total was $20.60.
Retail Value of $34.75.
Saved $14.15.
40.72% saved.

So $12.55 at the farm and stand & $20.60 on Tuesday.

July Food Spending to Date....$150.90

How is your food budget holding up for July?

Sluggy

Picking Time!

I actually got myself and #2 son up and out in the yard while it was still relatively cool this morning(relatively=82 degrees + 90% humidity).

So we picked collards......and picked......and picked......and picked.......you get the idea.
We made some space in the bed so that the winter squash has room now and the marigolds can see the light of day.  There are still shoots coming off & more growing out of the collard plants, as we just 'thinned the herd' and didn't pull up the plants.

Then we moved on to the leaf lettuce......this photo is about a week old so imagine even MORE lettuce.lol

And here is what we picked....

We don't use any pesticides here(except for the soapy/garlic water spray)so my collard leaves may not be pretty but they are organic and healthy, bug holes and all!lol

I'm going to attempt to keep track of what we get out of the garden this year so I'll be keeping a running tally on the blog here.

1st Collards harvest(a couple weeks ago)was 13oz.-it was only 8 leaves.
Today's Collards harvest was 9lb. 15.8oz!
The leaf lettuce today weighed in at 1lb. 1.6oz.

Garden Harvest Weight Total to date....11 lb. 14.4 oz.

Sluggy

DeCluttering and Donating....#1 Trip for JULY

We just keep chugging away with decluttering and donating here at Chez Sluggy.
Here is what left my house this week.....

ALL NEW ITEMS
2 Postcard Books
1 Hello Kitty Puppet
1 Mens T-Shirt
2 Power Rangers Bop Bags
1 Trinket Box
1 Kid’s Toiletry Set
1 Star Trek Trading Cards Box
USED ITEMS
5 Chess Books
1 Hand Vac
1 Vintage Photo
1 Pfaltzgraff Cookie Jar
2 Kiddie Puzzles
1 Kid’s Hooded jacket
3 Boy’s Shorts
2 Pillowcases
1 Bath Towel
1 Glasses Case


And these.....

18 Cherished Teddies Figurines
  (Thelma, 2 x Wally, Sheep/Donkey, Japan, Tiny Ted-Bear, Jeffrey, Angela, Grace, Ted,
   Winnie, Ryan, Ronnie, Suzanne, Mitch, Lindsey & Lyndon, Penny Chandler & Boots,
   Strawberry Lane Accessories)

Total Items for this Donation....45

April Total....96
May Total....72
June Total....45
July Total....45
Yearly Total to Date....258 Items.

Yearly Food Bank Donation Total....78

Yearly Total for all Donations so far.....336

In other news......I am working on a food stockpile donation as well but that's not going to happen until the heatwave breaks and I can stand to be in the garage for longer than 5 minutes.  I've got the JFSC check ready to go for that as well.


Sluggy

Is It Christmas in July?.....Sort of....

I am a bad bad mommy I guess.
I am 2 days late in wishing my oldest son a Happy Birthday.
Plus the most recent photo I have of him is from Christmas.....lol

He's 19 yrs. old now so I guess he survived growing up with an inept old mom in spite of himself.

Happy Birthday Matt!!

And don't do anything I wouldn't do....er, maybe just go with the Happy Birthday part on second thought....  ;-)
See you next month!

Sluggy aka MOM

Go Win Something from Marilyn!

My blogging buddy Marilyn over at Marilyns Money is holding a Giveaway for a $60 Gift Certificate to
CSN Stores .  Marilyn blogged about the cool Upholstered Headboards she found when she went poking around their site
But you can use the Gift Certificate on anything they sell....if you win it! ;-)
Go enter HERE.
And tell Marilyn I sent ya!

And don't forget to enter my Cheerios Giveaway too....just click on the link in the right side bar.

Sluggy

CHEERIOS "Love What You Do" Giveaway!

First off let me say, we are not a big cold cereal family.  My kids are teens now and really don't care much for those sugar-coated cereals they use to beg me to buy for them in their younger days.

We have become a family of FLAVORFUL CEREAL Lovers instead.  Flavorful meaning NOT filled with sugar so you can actually taste the grains that make up the cereal. We do like to eat oat cereals, both cold and hot types.

One of our favorite cereals is Cheerios. They taste good plus Oats are good for you, so it's a win/win in my book.
#1 son and I adore the Multi-Grain variety of Cheerios.  Hubs prefers the classic Regular Cheerios, the Daughter likes the Cheerios with the Yogurt Bursts and #2 son will eat whatever variety is in the house, as long as I have plenty of ice cold milk to drown it in. lol

So when MyBlogSpark offered me the opportunity to review Cheerios and tell my readers about a FAN-tastic Contest, I was all like, "sign me up!"  ;-)
If you are a country music FAN &/or a baseball FAN, listen up!
*****************
Cheerios is partnering with country music superstar Martina McBride and professional athlete Cal Ripken, Jr. for the “Do What You Love” Contest. McBride and Ripken will recognize two lucky people with prizes that will make their hearts race.

One music lover (and a guest) will tour the Country Music Hall of Fame^® and Museum with McBride, hang out with her in her recording studio – the world famous Blackbird Studio in Nashville, Tenn. – and even get VIP tickets to one of her upcoming concerts.

Another lucky baseball enthusiast (and a guest) will have the chance to hang out and play catch with Ripken and to tour the Ripken Youth Baseball Academy in Aberdeen, Md., with the “Iron Man” of baseball himself. In addition, the winner will throw out the first pitch at the Cal Ripken World Series and sit in Ripken’s reserved seats at a Baltimore baseball game.
**DH's second most favorite baseball team is the Orioles and we went to college in Baltimore during the same time that Cal's career with the O's was beginning, so I KNOW hubs would LOVE to win this prize!!

Now through July 23, 2010, you can submit your 150-250 word original story and photo, showcasing what they love to do. For a chance to win the experience of a lifetime with McBride and Ripken, visit http://www.cheerios.com/love today.
***************
So get yourself a piece of pencil and a paper and go win that bad boy!

And while you are working on your story, take a few minutes to enter my Giveaway for a Cheerios "Do What You Love" Prize Pack, just like the one I received from Cheerios and MyBlogSpark.

This prize pack includes one box of Cheerios and a $25 American Express^® Gift Card that you can use towards doing what you love.
Food & Money......need I say more?!?!

Wanna Win It?
If you would like to win this prize pack just leave a comment about what your most favorite thing to do is,  along with your email address. 

Receive Additional entries by....
1. subscribing to my blog(if you already subscribe just tell me that)and leave an additional comment for this entry.
2. follow my blog-click on the "follow button" on the right sidebar and leave an additional comment for this entry. (If you already follow just tell me that in an additional entry/comment.)
3. Post on your blog about this giveaway and leave a link to that post, then leave 2 additional comments for 2 more entries.

This Giveaway ends on July 20th(Tuesday) at 11:59pm Eastern Daylight Savings Time.  This Giveaway is open to US residents only.
I'll post the winners name on July 21st(Wednesday) and contact them via email. If they fail to respond within 48 hours, a new winner will be selected.
Good Luck!

Hey!.....You can also check out Cheerios on Facebook! Visit Cheerios on Facebook to “Like” the brand and keep up with the latest news from Cheerios.

***Disclaimer***
This Giveaway was sponsored by General Mills/CHEERIOS and MyBlogSpark. I was supplied with product and encouraged to blog about the product and offered an identical product to give away to someone in my readership.  The opinion of the product expressed here is my own and I was not paid for endorsing this product.

Sluggy

Sunday at the Farm & In the Garden

It was a beautiful day on Sunday so DH & I took a ride to a couple of farm stands I like.

I got....
6 ears of corn
6 pickling cukes
5 yellow squash
3 large tomatoes
2 bell peppers
2 zucchini
2 onions
1 patty pan squash
1 qt. of wax beans

I paid $12.55 for this local goodness.

Other than the corn which I grilled already for Sunday's dinner & the tomato I used for the BLTs at lunch, here are my plans for it all....
*make a batch of bread & butter pickles to eat off of all week
*make fried zucchini
*make squash casserole
*make stuffed peppers-I have half a leftover red bell pepper I'll stuff for my portion that night since I don't care for the green kind
*mix green beans with the wax beans for a simple side dish one night/blanch & freeze the rest of the wax beans
*not sure about the patty pan yet
*sliced tomato for Caprese Salad-it's not a roma tomato but it will have to do

That's a whole week's worth of side dishes and then some.

I talked to the woman who runs the small family farm nearby on Sunday.  She said the last week's heat spell and lack of rain is nothing but bad news for them.  Everything is drying out.  Her son dug down 4 feet and there is no moisture in the soil to that point.  Wells are drying up too.  I hope we get some good soaking rains soon!  I've got an order in for a bushel of beans, roma tomatoes, red peppers and dozens of ears of corn to put up for fall but this won't happen if the rains don't come soon. 8-(

I am getting very impatient with my own garden here.  I need to go harvest more collards and the lettuce is big enough to pick too but nothing else is ready to pick. 

The peppers & green beans are finally budding though....yah!

And we have golf ball sized maters now!!  No sign of the late blight so far.....crossing fingers this year!

I took some photos of the garden on the 2nd but I guess everyone is pretty bored with this kind of stuff so I won't share them.  But I do have to share these.....

This is the barrel by the back deck where I put kitchen compost-ables in the winter, when it's took bitter outside to walk all the way back to the compost pile.  About a month ago these 2 volunteer tomato plants shot up!lol  So I stopped dumping kitchen waste in there for now.  I just continued to put grass clippings in to act as a mulch, as things in containers tend to dry out so fast, and I don't want to have to water these constantly.
And over by the back deck fencing these volunteers starting growing.....

I had Morning Glories here last year.  When the vines died I just left them on the fencing until winter and pulled them down and threw them into the garden bed to compost.  I guess there were some seed pods left on that vine, huh?lol

I'd better get outside now and cut those collards before I have to go to pick up one of the doggies from the vet's office.

Sluggy

Are You a Curator?

When I was in high school....10th grade I believe....the guidance counselor had us all take a career test. By answering about 100 questions this test would be able to tell you what vocations you would be well suited for in your working life.
Among what seemed like a very strange mix of careers, the test indicated that I would make a very fine Curator.
Though I believe the test meant that to be a Museum Curator, I do believe that old test did nail down my life's work!
Though the National Gallery of Art doesn't sign my paychecks, I look around me here and yes, I have become a Curator.

A curator of stuff.
My stuff....
my hubs stuff....
my kids' stuff.....

 
(Not a picture of our actual stuff.)

Not only do we all collect stuff(or did), but I started collecting MORE stuff to sell.
I got bit by the beanie baby craze over 10 yrs. ago.....and I started collecting extras to sell or trade.  The beanie buying branched out into 'collectibles' buying too.

Then I started buying old out of production toys since with 3 kids under the age of 5, I found myself in toy stores quite a bit, so 'in the day' I was one of those rare grownups who knew waaaay too much about Power Rangers, Thomas the Tank Engine, and Pokemon.

The buying to resell worked out pretty well....between my 'geiger counter hands'(I had an uncanny nack  of being able to feel that a particular toy would be worth selling, just by the vibrations it gave off when I held it)and having kids who could tip me off to what was or would be a 'hot' toy(since nobody knows these things like a kid does), I could buy low and sell high.
Yes, I was the Charles Schwab of the toy market.....a day trader of toys when I wasn't toting kids to practices, breaking up fights or sorting laundry.

And where has this brought me to today?

Well, I still have boxes of toys to dispose of.
Seems I was much better at buying the toys than selling them off in a timely manner, what with all my other jobs as a mom that took precedence.
And now with shipping costs having more than doubled since I began this hobby, it's not worth my time to try to sell some of this stuff anymore.

So not only do I have stuff like regular people that they need to get rid of having grown out of the need for it, I have all this toy stuff to let go of.

Plus I have hubs stuff......and the kids' stuff like I mentioned before.

But.....
I am making some headway in reducing the piles of stuff here.
But it's slow going.....
And sometimes I look around and get so impatient with myself and the stuff.

Because I don't want to be a Curator!

I don't want a house filled with Stuff!!

I don't want to spend my days dusting tchatchkes(that's nicknacks to some of you).

I don't want to spend my days changing decor according to the seasons from the stash of boxes piled in a closet marked summer, winter, spring or fall.

I don't want to spend my days worrying about the color scheme of a room or having to search for months or years to find just the right 'thing' that is missing to make this room feel like home.

I want to feel at peace and serene and not have all this stuff surrounding me.
I want to get rid of all the visual clutter and have just a few special things or furniture pieces accenting each room.
I want to be able to open my front door at any time to anyone and not be embarrassed at the mess because of all the stuff.
I want to be able to enjoy family and friends in my home and be able to have people in because it's empty of stuff and there is plenty of room for them.

So tell me.....are you are Curator?
Is your home filled with objects and you are the caretaker of stuff?

Do you enjoy being a Curator of things?
Or do you want to change like me?

It's never too late(or too early)to start!
Start small with something easy.
How about letting go of some old collection you have shoved in an attic, garage or closet?
If it sits untouched or unappreciated, why hang onto it?
Anything you bought and hang onto because it's going to appreciate in value and be worth a bazillion dollars?.....it's NOT!.....well unless you have gold, money or real estate shoved in a closet.
 
Let it go!

Here is a cute video I found on YouTube that humorously talks about the difference between a Collection and Clutter.
Have a look and then get busy making the changes in your life that you want to see!

If this inspires you, leave a comment and tell us all about it....



FYI--I do think Marc should NOT ditch that Dark Shadows record album....

Sluggy

Go Enter this Food Giveaway!

Go on over and see my bloggy buddy Ann Marie.  She is having a giveaway for a Suddenly Salad Prize Pack.
The link to enter  is HERE.
You'd better hurry though since the contest ends on July 12th!!

When you enter, be sure and mention that you were referred by Sluggy at Don't Read This; It's Boring!
That gives me an extra entry too.   ;-)

It sounds like a Yummy prize, doesn't it?

Sluggy

She Started this HeatWave......Finish the Lyric

I spent summers in New England slaving in various theaters' costume shops during college.   One theater in particular use to play muzak the hour or so before the performances.  The costume shop was in the basement of the theater so every evening while we worked we were forced to listen to this looped muzak tape.  Mostly, it was old numbers from old musical films(think 1940's thru 1960's).
One of the songs was the old classic "Heatwave" from the even more classic movie musical from 1954 "There's No Business Like Show Business", staring Ethel Merman, Dan Dailey, Mitzi Gaynor & Donald O'Connor.  Also featured in the film was Marilyn Monroe and she performed the Heatwave number.

Have a look at it if you like this sort of thing....



Us Costume shop folks use to put on our own impromptu performances of these songs when they played. 
I can tell you only that they were not as well choreographed but just as cheesy as this one with alot more 'camp'.

This is what happens after you've been awake for 3 days straight trying to get the costumes done for opening night.....


I'm off to go spend time with my #2 BFF before I start my own personal heatwave meltdown.
I will say #2 BFF's  personality is all wet and she has a wickedly cold sense of humour but I wouldn't trade her for all the SmartSource coupons in the world....

Sluggy

July Food Shopping....9 Days Down **Amended**

I was finally able to go to Ollie's again since the June Food Stamp Challenge is over.  Remember, Ollie's doesn't accept EBT so that is why I hadn't gone in June.
They still had some of the Olive Oil I wanted to get......so I got some!lol

3 x EVOO from California $1.99=$5.97
2 x Enchilada Sauce $.79=$1.58
1 x Juicy Juice (cherry)=$1.69
1 x Act II Popcorn=$2.29
SubTotal.....$11.53

Everything in the store was on sale the week of July 4th for 15% off so I got a $1.73 discount off the already discounted prices! 8-))
$11.53-$1.73=$9.80 OOP
Reg.Retail Value....$21.33

I also went to Price Chopper(NE) last week.  I had 9 doubler coupons from the Sunday paper(you could only use 3 per trip).
I had a very hard time finding stuff I wanted that was cheapish that would be free or cheap after coupons were doubled.  You could only use sunday insert or magazine/etc. coupons with the doublers not Internet printed coupons so that cut down even more on what I had to pick from to buy.
The 3 things I planned on buying with the doublers were either out of stock or they didn't carry to begin with....crap!
So I ended up with....
1 bag of Herr's chips...used a $1/1 Q+a doubler=$1.49
2 containers of BestLife Butter Spread(for daughter)...used 2 $1/1 Qs+2 doublers=$.29 ea.=$.58
1 can of Chef Michael Dog Food...used free item Q=$.00
2 tubs of Grands(on sale $1.91)....used 2 $1/1 instant dairy store Q=$.91 ea.=$1.82
2 packs of AlFresco Chicken Sausage(on sale $3.50)...used 2 $2/1 Qs=$1.50 ea.=$3.00
SubTotal...$6.89+$.06 tax=$6.95 OOP
Reg. Retail Value...$23.88

I hit the Bakery Outlet as well...
Total....$10.00 OOP
Reg. Retail Value...$39.70 + a free loaf of bread for spending $10=$42.69


This week I picked up a few things Tuesday when I took the nephew up to the grocery store....
6 x jars of organic applesauce on sale $1 ea.=$6.00
1 x Cantaloupe on sale=$1.98
1 x Iceberg Lettuce on sale=$.98
1/2 lb. of Turkey Pastrami on sale=$1.90
1 Gallon of Milk=$3.32
3 Cream Cheese on sale $.99=$2.97
2 x TV Dinners(for #2 son)on sale $1.25=$2.50
Total....$19.65 OOP
No coupons used.
Reg. Retail Value....$28.25


On Wednesday I hit up Weis checking for clearance meats....

14lbs. chicken breast=$33.31
4.96lb. steak/stew beef=$28.90
1.58lb. pork chops=$6.30
1lb. ham slices=$1.98 marked down already
SubTotal....$70.49
DISCOUNTS
BOGO on the chicken -$16.52 & Instant Meat Dept. Discounts  -$18.75=$35.27
$70.49-$35.27=$35.22 for 21.54lbs. of meat

I also bought a 2lb. bag of Shrimp on sale for $13.98($6.99lb.)
I also used a Free DiGiorno Pizza($3.00) and a Free McCormick Spice Sensations Q($1.99).
#2 son needed a pack of tiny spiral notepads for Band Camp...$.99

Total....$50.19 + $.06 tax=$50.25 OOP
Reg. Retail Value...$88.70


Then I hit Family Dollar for junk food/drinks for #2 son.  We had gotten a flyer in the mail with coupons and a $5 off a $25 order coupon too.

4 x 12pk. soda  w/Q $2.50ea.=$10.00
3 x Koolaid Mix w/sugar w/Q $2ea.=$6.00
1 x Lipton Tea Bags $2.00--there was a $.50/1 ManuQ tearpad next to the bags but the cashier somehow rang it up twice so they ended up=$1.00 instead of $1.50
2 x Cornbread Mix $.45=$.90
1 x Gravy Train Dog Food=$5.25  went looking for the larger bags on sale for $8...
1 x Ramen Noodles=$1.00 the kid lives on these in the summer...I need to buy stock in the company!
1 x Small Spiral Notepads (3 pack)=$1.15
After discounts and coupons total came to....$21.10 w/tax
Reg. Retail Value....$31.80


July Food Spending to Date....$117.75

Sluggy

Rite-Aid this Week......

Here's my haul from Rite-Aid this week....













What do you mean you don't see anything???
Could it be?
You don't mean that........Sluggy hasn't GONE TO RITE-AID THIS WEEK?!?!?!

Contrary to what you may think, the Earth has NOT spun off it's axis!

I still have tons of gift cards and an allergy gift certificate that expires on the 15th so I WILL have to go to Rite-Aid before then to use it.

But I still have those 7 boxes of leftovers from the flea market in May.
And just doing some moderate Rite-Aid shopping here and there since then here is what I've accumulated in the last 2 months......

Except for the dark milk crate under the front Rite-Aid bag(that's my glade oil refills/candle stash), I've got 6 more boxes & 2 bags full.  And this is all HBA, not counting the food I bought there in the last 2 months.

So no Rite-Aid for me this week....

Sluggy

It's "Time" To Win Stuff!

Have you got a minute to spare?
How about a minute....to win something??

My blogging buddy, ANNIE JONES is having a Giveaway for a $60 CSN Stores Gift Certificate.
Go check out the details HERE.

Then check out all the neat stuff over on CSN STORES.  
Did you see something you would like?

But time waits for no man(or woman!) so you'd better hurry on over HERE because the 'sun sets' on this Giveaway on July 13th.

I'm sorry this post is so lame......it's about as creative as I am capable of today....lol

Sluggy

Trying to Get Back into a Groove

I've been all out of whack lately.

Besides the July 4th holiday weekend, it's also the 1st anniversary of my oldest brother's death.  Last 4th of July was spent driving a 1000 mile triangular route in the span of 3 days from NE PA to VA to NW PA back to NE PA and included a funeral and picking up #2 son up from summer camp.  It was like a high speed rollercoaster ride through an emotional amusement park those 3 days.
Long story short, my brother had been in a vegetative state since Jan. '08 after suffering a hemorrhagic stroke.
His body gave out last June 29th, 18 months after the stroke, without him ever regaining consciousness.
Needless to say, we didn't feel much like partying this year either and I've felt a tad not myself.

This 4th of July weekend involved trips across the state to pick up a kid from summer camp and trips to the ER at 3am.  BIL's foot will be fine btw.....  Now we are into the July pre-Band Camp rehearsal season. 

Between feeling out of sorts and this unseasonably hot weather I am finding it difficult to get anything accomplished.  I start plenty of stuff but I just don't have any 'umph' to follow through to the end lately.
Plus I've been cranky and irritable.....not that DH or the teens will say they can NOTICE a difference there. ;-)

I just don't feel like doing anything.
And everything & everyone annoys me.
About the only thing I can concentrate on is whining to you all.....aren't you lucky??lol

I'm trying to find my groove again.  Maybe tomorrow will be better...

Sluggy

The 1st Harvest.....Ahead of Schedule

Well I ventured into the outdoor oven yesterday(aka the backyard) and harvested our 1st veggies from the garden.

I had brought the nephew over to swim so he helped me cut the stalks I couldn't reach....

A pile of Collards!
Pretty meager for our 1st harvest but it's a start.....
I've never picked anything this early in the growing season but the extra warm weather all of June has hurried things along in the garden this year.  This is my first year growing Collards.
The smallest of the leaves was well over 18 inches long.

I had bought a bag of Collards to augment this batch since I knew I wouldn't have enough to cook a whole pot this time.  They were mighty good and if the bugs don't eat too much before I need to pick them again, I'll have another large pot worth to cook.

My mom loved her some collards.  My father hated the smell so she was forced to wait until he went out of town on business overnight to cook them.  She cooked them old school with fatback, potatoes and cornmeal dumplings, like her mother had fixed them.  I never developed a taste for cornmeal dumplings so I cook them with bacon inside of fatback and leave out the potatoes too.

I saw Paula Deen make fried wontons stuffed with cream cheese and collards a couple of weeks ago.  Now the frying part makes me drool but collards and cream cheese?!?!
Doesn't quite sound right to me.....lol

So what has your garden produced this week?


Sluggy

Meet my BFF!

Yes, here is my best friend forever......

The poor old girl.....if it ever cools off here I'll be able to clean her filters.

I *heart* my BFF.......

Today was Cooler!!
A mere 94 degrees......yes, I am typing this WITHOUT laughing...barely!


Yesterday was 96 degrees with a heat index or some such nonsense of 102 degrees.

We are in DAY FOUR of this Heat Wave.
I left southern Virginia to get away from this kind of shit!
Seriously.
WTF??

If you live on a mountain top in northeast Pennsylvania you should NOT see 4 days in a row of mid to high 90 Degree weather......
EVER!

That daydream of going up to Maine and finding a summer camp to buy may actually happen if this keeps up....
Because that is where I'm going to have to go to get some relief!


Sluggy

And the GOOD EARTH Winner is......

 I plugged the number of comments for the Good Earth Giveaway into Random.org's Number Generator and it spit out..........

Result: 6 Powered by RANDOM.ORG

And comment #6 was.......ANNIE JONES!

Annie Jones said...

I blogged about it! http://livinglifereal.blogspot.com/2010/06/win-free-stuff.html

June 29, 2010 6:47 PM 

 

Congratulations Annie J.!

 

Please email me(the link is on my blogger contact page)your snail mail addy along with your telephone # so I can forward the info. to MyBlogSpark and your prize package can wing it's way to you soon.

I have another fine Giveaway up on deck so stay tuned later this week.....

Sluggy

Last Chance to Enter the Good Earth GIVEAWAY...ends TUESDAY Night!

Today is the last chance to enter my current giveaway for the Good Earth products so go on over  HERE now.  It closes at midnight tonight so hurry!!

**Well I must have heat stroke because I am a day ahead......the Giveaway closes TUESDAY night, not Monday night!
So you have until midnight July 6th to enter.
Sorry for the confusion.

I'm off to get some stuff done today.  It's suppose to be 98 degrees here so in between I'll be submerged in the pool trying to avoid heat stroke! 8-P

Sluggy

Do You Want to Be "H-O-T"?

Do you know what is "In" nowadays?
It's spelled F-R-U-G-A-L.

Yes, Frugal is the new black.

Who would have ever thought that Sluggy would be part of a trend.....a movement......one of the beautiful people?!?!

And do you know who else is trendy, moving and beautiful?

Lisa B. over at her blog  Easy Frugal Living.

And Lisa B. is holding a Giveaway for this....

Yes, it's a book about being thrifty...aka frugal....and just might help you achieve hot & trendy status like us!

So go on over and enter her giveaway at this link HERE.  Don't wait because it ends on July 5th.

You can thank me later.....in a hot  & trendy way......or with cash.....I'm easy...... ;-)

Sluggy

Store Bought VS Home Made....Finding a Balance

It's an age old debate.....which is better--to buy from a store or to make it yourself?

My feeling is, it depends.

In our mother's and grandmother's generations, you either had to make it yourself or you did without. Buying ready made anything was not an option or it was an expen$ive option. Women use to make everything from scratch....meals, cleaning products and even their own clothing. If you had an income producing job(or your husband did), you had the option to hire someone else to make your meals, clean your home/make the cleaning products and make your clothing.

When technologies took off after WWII, companies began marketing more convenience food/HBA products to the American public. Those items were NOT cheap! Being able to afford Swanson TV Dinners & Cokes & Mac and Pizza Kits in a Box were a status symbol of their day.
Can you imagine.......being able to afford Kraft Mac & Cheese being a status symbol?!?lol

As technology advanced & factory farms grew, the relative price of those new processed foods came down to where it was cheaper now to buy those than to make food from scratch using farm fresh ingredients. People over the last few generations have gotten disconnected from the earth, from growing food.
People moved away from the farm and rural areas.

Nowadays it's not uncommon to find urban children who have never seem a farm animal or food growing in the ground in person.
And if you were to survey American adults you would find that a surprising number of them don't know how to cook at all.....even the basics!  Their cooking skills span from "open the box and remove item" to "press the ON button on the microwave".....or even sadder, "pick up the phone and make a reservation".

People don't know how to prepare food from scratch and the really sad part is that they don't care to learn! They would rather buy processed foods they can stick in a microwave and eat NOW, because god forbid they have to wait 30 minutes for something to cook in a 'real' oven. And even sadder, the fact that they don't use coupons or wait for sales to at least get their food for the best possible price.

Enough of my rant.....basically I believe that home-made anything gives you more control over your life. Yes, it takes more of your time but it's time well spent.

You can make food just how you like. Leave out ingredients you don't want or like, put in healthier ones. High Fructose Corn Syrup is hidden in so much processed foods nowadays, as are other unhealthy chemicals. It's difficult to avoid the bad stuff unless you diligently read your product labels.

I think you can balance using Store Bought & using Home Made things. Both have their place in my life. Some processed foods are ok and even better when you can get them cheaper w/coupons. And anyone should & can teach themselves basic cooking skills.

We must go back to previous generations' times, when being self-sufficient was important. The more life skills you have, the better you are equipped to handle situations that may come up in your life.

Personally, we garden each year and raise as many vegetables as we can. We freeze &/or can what we don't eat and share with our neighbors. We also either join a CSA and/or frequent farmer's markets for what we don't grow ourselves. We buy some local farm meat/dairy as well when the budget allows, as we aren't in a place where we can have chickens or cows. We buy from the store when we can't obtain food from these other sources. And we use coupons whenever possible.

I don't use many commercially made cleaning products. You'll find few scented this and that sprays/etc. in my home. Ok, I do have a few candles and simple deodorizers(Renuzits)but that is all.

Why pay all that money for chemicals when you can clean most anything without all the 'fragrance air pollution' using baking soda, vinegar, bleach and lemon?

And most of the new 'green' cleaners are just water, baking soda & vinegar anyway! You are paying a premium price for those pretty colored plastic bottles it comes in. Save the bottles and refill them with your own homemade cleaners!  You'll cut down on the cost to you and the amount of plastic that needs to be manufactured and then dealt with when the product is gone.

Sluggy

The Last of the Rite-Aid Trips for this Week

 I had $5 off $25 coupons that were expiring on June 30th so I made 4 more trips to Rite-Aid earlier this week to use them up.

2 x Stayfree pads
1 x Coppertone Sun Screen
1 x Veet hair remover
1 x small Aveeno Lotion
1 x Venus razors

Total OOP after coupons/sales/+Ups....$.68 put on a gift card
$11.34 more toward the Skin Care SCR#555
SCR earned....$2 for Venus razors on BIL's account
+Ups earned....$2 for the Venus razors

1 x Tresemme
2 x Coppertone Sun Screen
2 x Carefree liners
2 x Folger's coffee
2 x Mounds candy bars

Total OOP after coupons/sales/+Ups....$.85 put on a gift card
$16.38 more toward the Skin Care SCR#555
+Ups earned....$1 for Tresemme

2 x Huggies diapers
1 x Tresemme
1 x Veet
1 x small Aveeno lotion
1 x Sure deodorant

Total OOP after coupons/sales/+Ups....$.40 put on a gift card
+Ups earned....$1 for Tresemme
SCR earned....$1 for Sure, $2 for Huggies & 1 package of FREE Diapers(for buying 5 packs over the last couple of months-I bought 3 packs in June on that receipt I forgot about I talked about in an earlier post.).

2 x Welch's juice
2 x Dr. Pepper soda(the cashier forgot to put 1 of them in my bag).
2 x Folger's coffee
1 x Sure deodorant
1 x Veet
1 x small Aveeno lotion

Total OOP after coupons/sales/+Ups....$.59 put on a gift card
$11.34 more toward the Skin Care SCR#555
SCR earned....$1 for Sure on BIL's account
The Sure deodorants also have a TRY ME FREE rebate on them.   After Wellness discount I 'paid' $2.63 each(before coupons), so I can submit for a rebate for myself and the BIL, bringing my additional rebates to $5.26.

4 transactions
$2.52 'spent' put on free gift cards
SCRs=$6 + free diapers + $25 skin care gift card & bonus $5 gift card
$5.26 in additional cash rebates(Sure deos)


MONTHLY TOTALS-JULY Rebate Period

Number of Transactions......8
Total Spent....$6.64--all put on free Gift Cards/Certificates 
Value of Items purchased....$319.40
SCR qualified for....$21.98 in cash and $30 in Gift Cards & free diapers
Other Cash....$5.26
Additional Non-Cash Rewards....$0
+Up Rewards earned=$12.00

Total Cash I'm getting Back=$21.98
Total Gift Cards I'm getting=$25
+Up Rewards left to spend=$5.00


Sluggy

$30K Savings Challenge JUNE 2010 Totals.....Treading Water this Month!

I have posted my JUNE End of Month $30K $AVING$ CHALLENGE Totals.
Check out the side bar to your right for the specific numbers.

I have to report that we finished up June in the black....just BARELY!

The extra cash amount we ended the month of June with was.......$547.73.

Income
We had $260.53 left over of DH's salary after expenses were deducted. Add in some rolled coins amounting to $10.50, $44.00 in Rebates &, along with a $276.70 business expense voucher for Hubs and you have a deposit of $547.73 toward the Savings Challenge!

Seeing as our monthly target is $2,500.00 to reach our Year End Goal, we are waaaaay short again this month.

Outgo
As for the expenses in June.....it was our most expensive month so far this year!

The water bill almost doubled(extra showers/laundry/dishes for extra people here + the pool) and the electric bill went up about $12(extra hot June=a/c on a few days).

 The credit card bill(paid off each month)was over $1700. 
$750 of that was a car repair & car related expenses(besides gas). 
$200 of the $1700 was pool chemicals & $120 for assorted teens' clothing needs. 
$70 went for Hubs internet chess club dues.  
The rest was gas and some eating out charges and was within our normal range of expenses.

Out-of-the-ordinary expenses in June besides the CC Bill ones.....
There were people Dr. visits and follow-up dog Dr. visits for assorted people and dogs here, respectively.
There was another car repair to the tune of $775+. 
And then there was the camp payment for #2 son....2 weeks of fun doesn't come cheap at $945.
So basically we had $2600+/- in out-of-the-ordinary expenses this month.


The Food Budget costs for June are in another post, which is located HERE.  Food/Toiletries spending in June was $77.26 under the budgeted $250.00 amount and our Savings percentage was 89.30% which is awesome.

Looking Ahead to July....
I'll only be feeding 3 people for most of this month & the garden should start producing, so I am hoping for lower food spending.
The Credit Card bill is at $400 for the next statement period with 9 days left until it closes.  I'm hoping we can keep it around $500 and only put some gas purchases on it.
We'll try to lower the electric usage.  I don't have high hopes for containing the water costs since the pool is in operation.

I am determined to get through July frugally(barely some financial emergency)with only 1 child at home and to meet our monthly goal of $2,500 saved this month.

YTD Standings....
We have a Year To Date Total of $16,621.47 in Savings.  To save $30K for the year, we need to put away $2,500 per month average.  With our expensive June, we are now just barely ahead of schedule at this point in the year.

So how was your June financially?  Leave a comment and share with us what you did with your money, both the good and not-so good.   Do you have any tricks or tips that help you to end your month before the money runs out?    Let us know!
If you posted your financial progress on your own blog, leave a link in the comments so we can go check you out too!


Sluggy

JUNE Budget Results......Food & Toiletries Spending

Here are my FOOD BUDGET spending totals for JUNE 2010.
I am listing subtotals for each store I purchased from in June.
These Totals include Food, Toiletries/HBA, Pet Supplies, Cleaning Products, Paper Goods & tax where applicable.We are a family of 5(between 5 & 2 at home this month) & 3 dogs. No kids under 14.

BAKERY OUTLET
OOP $1.99
Value $8.97
Savings  77.81%

BOYER'S(small independent store in neighboring town)
OOP $7.36
Qs/Ads $20.95
Value $28.31
Savings  74%

CARONE'S(small local independent store)
OOP $75.33
Qs/Ads $44.91
Value $120.24
Savings  37.35%

PRODUCE MARKET

OOP  $11.68
Value  $28.37
Savings  58.83%

RITE AID
OOP $39.42 (whole amount put on Rite-Aid Gift Cards)=$.00 actual OOP
Qs/Ads $950.69
Value $990.11
Savings 96.02% before gift cards/ 100% savings after gift cards

WEIS (local chain Grocery store that doesn't take IP Qs in my town)
OOP $76.38
Qs/Ads $121.93
Value $198.31
Savings  61.50%

I don't track CVS's ECBs & Walgreen's RRs. They will be included when used on purchases under "Coupons".   I'll keep track of what rebates are received monthly.  Rebate money/gift cards will be considered 'income' & will go into the Food/Toiletries budget, offsetting the Out of Pocket. Cash will go immediately into the Budget kitty, while Gift Cards will be calculated in when spent.

REBATE CHECKS RECV'D. IN JUNE

Hood Milk....$5.00
Pinecone Research....$3.00
Rite-Aid SCR....$36.00
Subtotal........$44.00

GIFT CARDS and CERTIFICATES
Rite-Aid Allergy SCR $25 Gift Card
Rite-Aid P&G $35 Prepaid Visa Card
Rite-Aid Allergy $20 Gift Certificates x 2=$40

Subtotal....$100.00

TOTAL Value of Cash/Store Checks/Gift Card Rebates Received..$144.00

FREE ITEMS
Dole Free Fruit Cup Packs x 4
Juicy Juice 

Hershey's Chocolate Milk single bottle

McCormick Spice Pack

Pantene Shampoo Samples

COUPONS

$.75/1 Juicy Juice
Various Pantene Coupons(Vocalpoint)

My best 3 Store Savings Totals were from Rite-Aid at 100%, Boyer's  at 77.81% and the Bakery Outlet at 74%.

TOTAL Out of Pocket...............................$172.74
TOTAL Coupons & Store Sales Savings...$1201.57
TOTAL Value of Items Purchased.............$1374.31
TOTAL Savings of..........87.44%

TOTAL of CASH Rebates........................$44.00
TOTAL OOP After  Rebates....................$128.74
TOTAL Savings of..................................89.30%

This closes out the June spending.

THOUGHTS & COMMENTS for this month-
I stayed under my $250 budgeted amount....even before rebates, I was $77.26 under.  I didn't do much stocking up at all.

What's ahead for July 2010.....

The July 2010 Food/Toiletries Budget is set at $200 cash out of pocket since we will only be feeding 3 for the entire month of July.  Depending on how many times I will be feeding the neighborhood kids and the local relatives when they drop by, expenses could change but this should be enough to cover us for July unless I find some great 'stock-up'ortunities.  I reserve the right to go over budget for those..... ;-)

Any rebates received this month will be added to the food budget spending.  I'm hoping this rebate money will cover any stocking up I do so I can stick to that $200 figure.

With half of the year behind us, we have averaged $165.56 per MONTH after rebates on food/toiletries spending for 2010 for a family of 4-5 adults/teens.

How did you do in June with your Food Budget?  Leave a comment or link to your post and let us hear!  By sharing our struggles and efforts we can help each other stick to our budgets and learn to be better guardians of our resources.

Sluggy

JUNE Food Stamp Challenge......Things I've Learned

*This post is part of the June Food Stamp Challenge which is located over HERE.*


My Final Thoughts on the JFSC.....

The past 30 days have been challenging.
Not so challenging personally in trying to stay within a $373.70 food budget for the month.
I keep myself on a rather tight food budget and lay my purchases out for inspection online and blog about being frugal throughout the year.

I did however, feel added pressure to stay within that arbitrary amount.  Since we don't depend on EBT to eat here(not that that couldn't change in a heartbeat tho!)staying within that budget wasn't a life or death situation.  If you really are on food stamps, there are real consequences to running out of benefits & not having enough to eat.
Imagine if when my allotted food budget money ran out it Really ran out!  That thought was in the back of my mind all month.

I realized that I am lucky in that I don't have a spouse or significant other torpedoing my efforts to live within a food budget.
1-I have a Hubs would loves to eat leftovers.
2-I have a Hubs who is more than happy to leave all the decisions about meal planning & food shopping to me.
Not everyone is this lucky.  Many have their spouse or SO or even their kids with their hands on the helm of this food ship too.  This can mean they are going out and spending precious food dollars on sodas or other junk foods or buying expensive meats or already-made convenience foods.  Or they are refusing to eat meals that get prepared and then place a call to Domino's for a 'cardboard w/sauce' pie at 4 times the cost of a homemade pizza.  Just 1 week of that kind of thing can lead any food budget commander spiraling down into a deep budgeting dispair!

I also am a "seasoned" cook who doesn't have to rely on pre-made, heat & eat or convenience foods to feed her family.  While I'm not a gourmet cook, I can make just about anything the family would care to eat.  Being able to cook-from-scratch a wide variety of dishes means for the most part, I can keep my costs down because I don't have to buy pricier convenience foods &  no one here gets bored with the offerings and resorts to buying take-out on a regular basis.

I am also blessed in that I have the extra storage space in my home to shop when food items are at a rock bottom price.  I can stockpile shelf stable items as well as those needing freezing temps. until the cows come home.  Not having to pay full retail price at the grocery store makes my food dollars stretch much further than someone who has little or no space to store food.

But I have learned some things along the way that I'd like to share with you all.

On the History....
The food stamp program did NOT begin as an altruistic crusade by your government to help it's citizens...it was an idea to help food producers and manufacturers.
The forerunner of the food stamp program ran from 1939-1943 at the tail end of the Great Depression.  It was different in that people purchased stamps, so it was more of a discount program giving you 100% more purchasing power for your dollars and ANYONE could participate!  It was brought about in part to use up surplus supplies of certain foods during a time of economic need and ended when the surpluses and the unemployment stats dwindled.

Though the Eisenhower administration possessed the legislation for a food stamp program,  it never enacted it in the late 1950's.  The Kennedy administration did and began the pilot program to fulfill a campaign promise.  The having to purchase certain surplus foods component was dropped but participants still had to pay for the food stamps so it was still a discount program only.

The food stamp program didn't become permanent until 1964, under Lyndon Johnson.  Shortly after, the program began to focus more extending it's benefits to the neediest citizens.
The purchasing requirement went away in 1977, meaning that this is when food stamps truly became 'charity'.

There have been many changes to the system since the 1960's, both good and not-so good.  Today, calculating who is eligible and how much someone gets is convoluted and difficult to follow for someone who doesn't work in that system.  It was so hard just trying to make heads or tails of what I was reading that it frankly made my head hurt.  I do feel that there is a lot of bloat in the system and a simplified and streamlined program would go a long way to giving more equitable benefits to all who are in need as well as save a hefty amount of tax dollars in administering the program.

On Food Access....
Being on Food Stamps can limit your shopping options.

The first thing I became cognizant of in the past 30 days has been how finding sources from which to buy food using EBT can be difficult.  I generally utilize many resources available to me from which to purchase groceries.  I frequent not just grocery and drug stores, but bakery outlets, discount stores, in addition to farm stands, and farmer's markets in season.
While I don't use convenience stores, those are yet another source of groceries....albeit a higher priced(dare I say usury price?)option for purchasing food.
Not every food store source accepts EBT/Food Stamps.  Not only does a store have to qualify to participate in this federal program but the store has to feel that accepting EBT will be in their bottom line's best interest to jump through those government hoops.

Limited personal resources can limit your access to food.
I live in a small town outside of a major metro area in PA.  We have limited grocery purchasing sources in my small town.  There are a wider array of sources down in the city.  While public transportation is regular and available in the city, it's practically nonexistent here.  Someone on EBT in my town would have a rough time sourcing food stores locally unless they lived close enough to walk or bike and not at all the sources in the city if they relied on mass transit.  Unless you are disabled or elderly and qualify to use the county's aging dept. bus you would have to have access to a car(either your own or your friend's)to get to the store.  There are taxis but the cost would be out of most EBT users' league.
I am blessed in that I have access to a vehicle so I can go to wherever I need to for food.

On The Numbers...
Did you know that over half(61% as of this writing)of the population in the USA on Food Stamps are women and children?  Only 9% of the recipients are elderly.

The people who require the best and most nutritious food we can source--our children--are in large part not getting it because of financial reasons and require help from the federal government.  Isn't that sad....that the adults caring for and responsible for our nation's future generation are unable to feed them?!

I suspect that many of these households with children are headed by single parents who either are unable to work due to caring fulltime for these children or are disabled in some way.  And the ones who can/do work must pay childcare costs to another while they are at their jobs, which again, is an added expense along with the usual rent, utilities, other payments and groceries.  The food budget is usually the only area where a parent can exercise any kind of discretion over the spending once you are living a bare bones existence.  The landlord or mortgage company wants their FULL amount due so after that's paid you may have to buy the boxed mac and cheese for 30¢ instead of the organic pasta and real cheese for $1.50 to make your own.

Now I am NOT going to get into a political/social debate about having children you can't afford or having children while you are in an unstable marriage or unmarried.  I am sure there are numbers of people in these situations in that 61% figure.  But I am equally sure that there are moms & dads who weren't always single parents, as well as couples with children who work hard and also can't afford to feed themselves w/out the government's help due to financial setbacks, bad planning, poor education, or unexpected or catastrophic health issues.  The old saying, "There but for the grace of God, go I" should remind you that no matter what your economic, health or social status, YOUR circumstances could change in the blink of an eye.
So the next time you find yourself in line at the grocery store behind that person using a EBT card to pay for their food and you are looking down your nose at them, remember that YOU might end up standing in their shoes someday, no matter how fortunate your circumstance today.

Sluggy

JUNE Food Stamp Challenge....Final Numbers

 *This post is part of the June Food Stamp Challenge which is located over HERE.*

To being with, the last 3 days(the 28th-30th) meals were.....
Monday....breakfast-oatmeal/lunch-leftover potato salad & romaine salad/dinner-soup & fried squash
Tuesday....breakfast-cantaloupe & tea/lunch-raw carrots & celery w/dressing/dinner-Turkey Club Sandwiches w/leftover pasta salad
Wednesday....breakfast-a bagel/lunch-way old leftover bbq pork and coleslaw on leftover roll/dinner-clam chowder & garlic bread

Additional cost of foods bought before June....$1.55.

When I dragged out my grocery receipts to do my usual end of the month blog post about my food spending for June I discovered I had gone to the grocery store on June 1st but my JFSC total doesn't reflect that spending.  The total was $14.50.
So my last spending addition for the JFSC amounts to $16.05.

June Food Stamp Challenge Totals
Starting Food Budget...$373.70
Spent....$315.98
June Food Budget Left....$57.72
Days of Challenge Left....00


Next week, I'll get together a donation from my stockpile and take that along with a check for $100.00 up to the local food bank. (I've added the extra $42 to atone for our eating out goof-ups during the month.)

Part II to follow momentarily....

Sluggy

Good Earth Review and GIVEAWAY TIME! CLOSED!!!

**This Giveaway is now Closed.**

I am a tad late in getting around to posting this review since the kit arrived while the relatives where staying here and 2 of the teens were finishing up school for the year.

In early June(or was it late May? geez....)the fine folks at MyBlogSpark and General Mills sent me a package including a new dry dinner kit that is hitting your grocery store shelves this month.  These new dinner kits are marketed under the GOOD EARTH brand.

Here is a blurb from MyBlogSpark about GOOD EARTH......
"When dinner means tons of pots and pans and mixing or chopping for hours, sometimes dining out seems tempting. Now with new Good Earth ^TM dry dinner kits, you can have restaurant taste without the restaurant wait and still have a wholesome dinner."
General Mills use to own a chain of restaurants by the Good Earth name by the way.  Being in the east, I had never heard of them.  I looked it up as I was curious.  You can look them up too if you are curious. 8-)

Anyway, one night a few weeks ago we set out to prepare our Mediterranean Chicken with Angel Hair Pasta.   Everything you need to make this dish is in the box, except for the chicken, which we bought and added ourselves.
Daughter and I followed the directions on the box and it was ready to eat pretty quickly. 
We did a bit of improvising by adding some extra finely diced tomatoes and red peppers, because....well, we LIKE tomatoes and red peppers!
We like our pasta with tomato-y sauces usually but this was a cream based sauce, but it was not a heavy cream sauce so all the veggie flavors all came through in the dish.  It was a nice change from our usual fare at Chez Sluggy.

The flavor is good without the expense of eating out.  Being frugal but still eating tasty food is always a good thing.

The GOOD EARTH box states that this line is made with 100% whole grain, no trans fats, or artificial flavors or preservatives & no MSG.  Not eating artificial stuff is also a good thing.

Other varieties in this line besides the Mediterranean Chicken with Angel Hair Pasta, are the Spicy Citrus Glazed Shrimp with Angel Hair Pasta, Herb Crusted Chicken with Mushroom Risotto and Tuscan Chicken with Penne Pasta.

Along with the GOOD EARTH dry dinner kit I received a set of bamboo dishes and flatware, a small bamboo cutting/serving board along with a reusable market bag.  I am sure the bag will be getting some use out in my garden when we start to harvest the veggies there.

Wanna Win It?
 MyBlogSpark and Good Earth/General Mills are providing me with an additional Good Earth gift pack that includes a boxed dry dinner kit, two sets of bamboo flatware and dishes & a utility board, as well as a 100% recyclable grocery tote to give away to one of my readers.

If you would like to win this prize pack just leave a comment about your favorite healthy dish along with your email address.  It can be a dish you make or a dish you just like to eat.

Receive Additional entries by....
1. subscribing to my blog(if you already subscribe just tell me that)and leave an additional comment for this entry.
2. follow my blog-click on the "follow button" on the right sidebar and leave an additional comment for this entry. (If you already follow just tell me that in an additional entry/comment.)
3. Post on your blog about this giveaway and leave a link to that post, then leave 2 additional comments for 2 more entries.

This Giveaway ends on July 6th(Tuesday) at 12 am(midnight) Eastern Daylight Savings Time.
I'll post the winners name on July 7th(Wednesday) and contact them via email. If they fail to respond within 48 hours, a new winner will be selected.
Good Luck!

***Disclaimer***This Giveaway was sponsored by General Mills/GOOD EARTH and MyBlogSpark. I was supplied with product and encouraged to blog about the product and offered an identical product to give away to someone in my readership.  The opinion of the product expressed here is my own and I was not paid for endorsing this product.

Sluggy

What?....More Rite-Aid??!!

Ok, I know most of you are sooo over all these Rite-Aid trip posts, so unless someone ASKS me to do the play-by-play breakdown, I will forego it.

I made 2 trips to Rite-Aid on Sunday and 2 more on Monday.  All the stores were out of the Crest Whitestrips  and very low on the John Frieda that gave the $10 +Ups(tho I am not planning on doing the JF this go round).  I did want to do the Duracell SCR and any of the FAR items(like the toothpaste), as well as work on BIL's Skin Care Rebate.

Add in 2 Sunday papers to this photo.

Besides $5 off $20 & AdPerks/In-ads and ManuQs, I used $9 in +Up Rewards for a grand total of $2.98 OOP(put on free RA gift card).
SCR qualified for...$2.99 CREST and Duracell purchase toward $10 SCR=$2.99
+Ups earned...$2 Duracell, $2 VENUS(it didn't print! so cashier just took $2 off my next purchase).

Besides $5 off $20 & Adperks/In-Ad and ManuQs, I used $4 in +Ups for a grand total of $.34 OOP(put on free RA Gift Card).
SCR qualified for...$10 DURACELL
+Ups earned...$1 Tresemme & $2 Duracell.

Besides $5 off $25 & Adperks/In-Ad and ManuQs, I used $4 in +Ups for a grand total of $.62 OOP(put on free RA Gift Card).
SCR qualified for....$10.78 toward BIL's Skin Care rebate.

+Ups earned...$1 Tresemme.

Besides $5 off $25 & Adperks/In-Ad and ManuQs, I used $4 in +Ups for a grand total of $.18 OOP(put on free RA Gift Card).
SCR qualified for...$2.99 CREST(BIL), $11.34 toward BIL's Skin Care rebate(subtotal-$22.12/$27.88 to go).


 MONTHLY TOTALS-JULY Rebate Period

Number of Transactions......4
Total Spent....$4.12--all put on free Gift Cards/Certificates 
Value of Items purchased....$151.62
SCR qualified for....$15.98 in cash and $0 in Gift Cards
Other Cash....$0
Additional Non-Cash Rewards....$0
+Up Rewards earned=$8.00
+Up Rewards spent=$17.00

Total Cash I'm getting Back=$0
Total Gift Cards I'm getting=$0
+Up Rewards left to spend=$22.00


Sluggy