October BUDGET RESULTS-Food & Toiletries Spending

Here are my FOOD BUDGET spending totals for OCTOBER 2009.
I am listing subtotals for each store I purchased from in October.
These Totals include Food, Toiletries/HBA, Pet Supplies, Cleaning Products & tax where applicable.We are a family of 5(4 at home)& 3 dogs. No kids under 13.

AMELIA'S (Discount Outlet)
OOP $32.32
Ads/Sales $37.18
Value $69.50
Savings 53.50%

CARONE'S(local Independent Grocery that doesn't take IP Qs)
OOP $23.42
Qs/Ads $13.13
Value $36.55
Savings  36%

CVS
OOP $1.06
Qs/Ads $80.94
Value $82.00
Savings 98.70%

ENTENMANN'S OUTLET
OOP $16.78
Ads/Sales $31.22
Value $32.00
Savings 47.50%

FARM STAND(I use local retail grocery prices to figure Value)
OOP $26.50
Qs/Ads $00
Value $70.00
Savings 62.15%

FLEA MARKET(items bought from farm vendor-figure Value same as Farm Stand entry)
OOP $17.25
Qs/Ads $00
Value $23.50
Savings 26.60%

KMART(1 round of double coupons this month)
OOP $81.28
Qs/Ads $470.60
Value $551.88
Savings 85.25%

OLLIE'S (local Discount chain Store that doesn't take coupons)
OOP $2.46
Qs/Ads $1.04
Value $3.50
Savings 29.70%

RITE AID
OOP $188.93(before rebates)
Qs/Ads $357.10
Value $546.03
Savings 65.40%(100% after rebates of $229.13 due)

TARGET
OOP $23.35
Qs/Ads $102.36
Value $125.71
Savings 81.50%

WALGREEN'S
OOP $13.76
Qs/Ads $111.95
Value $125.71
Savings 89.05%

WEIS (local chain Grocery store that doesn't take IP Qs in my town)
OOP $175.73
Qs/Ads $289.56
Value $465.29
Savings 62.24%

I've decided NOT to 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' & go toward Food/Toiletries budget purchases, 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 SEPTEMBER

CVS Lamp Rebates....$8.00
Dove Hair Repair...$5.00
Goody Headband...$3.99
Kellogg's Fuel for School...$10.00
Kraft/Super Valu....$20.00
Pinecone Research....$3.00
Rite-Aid SCR........$155.42(counting old rebate check lost in mail reissued)
Snapple......$11.98
Zantac........$5.00
Subtotal........$222.39

FREE ITEMS

Betty Crocker Garlic Mashed Potatoes(full sized!)
Chik-Fila Sandwich

Secret Deodorant Sample

COUPONS

Kashi Go Lean-Vocalpoint

GIFT CARDS & STORE CHECKS
Rite Aid  $40.00
Staples  $30.00 Visa Card
Staples  $24.00 (ink rewards)
SubTotal...$94.00

TOTAL Value of Cash/Store Checks/Gift Card Rebates Received..$316.39

My best 3 Store Savings Totals were from CVS at 98.70%, Walgreen's at 89.05% and K-Mart at 85.25%.

TOTAL Out of Pocket...............................$602.84
TOTAL of Rebates...................................$222.39

TOTAL OOP After  Rebates....................$380.45

TOTAL Coupons & Store Sales Savings...$1751.22
TOTAL Value of Items Purchased.............$2131.67

BUT....I have additional income this month to put into the Food Budget!
Remember I sold a bunch of stockpile items in Oct. at the flea market.  $600 of the $932.25 net made was put toward the $60K Savings Challenge and the rest, $332.25, was put into the Food Budget to offset any OOP spending in October.  So my OOP becomes.....

$380.45-$332.25=$48.20


$48.20 OOP
Value of Items remains at $2131.67

Amount of Savings becomes $2083.47
Bringing the TOTAL Savings % for OCTOBER to...............97.74% (71.70% before the flea market $)

This closes out the October spending.

THOUGHTS & COMMENTS for this month-
With the high amount of income from Rebates And the Flea Market income received I was able to have a tremendously low out of pocket for this month. Though I initially spent well above what I had planned for the Food Budget, having the extra income streams this month helped me take advantage of a lot of unexpected stock-up opportunities on in season farm produce to freeze and meat buys at the store and still come in under budget.
Outside of Rite-Aid, which I practically lived at in Oct. I was there so much this month, I made very few trips to drugstores.

What's ahead for November.....
I'm going to keep the Food/Toiletries Budget at $250 for November.  I may make 1 trip to the Discount Grocery Outlet this month for cheap dairy/frozen chicken and any special deals I may find.  There is nothing we need at the moment in the way of Toiletries.  The only Drugstore trips will be for any freebies at Rite-Aid and to roll ECBs and RRs at CVS & WAGS or to spend Gift Cards. I'll be picking up the seasonal cheap items this month.....cranberries, canned pumpkin, sugar, flour, etc.  The things I won't be buying are cold cereal, granola bars and pop-tarts...I don't care how cheap they are, I am overrun with those things!lol

How did you do in October 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

Rite-Aid run for FAR Items week of 10/25-10/31

Did a quick run to Rite-Aid to pick up the weekly FAR(=Free after Rebate) items.

1 x Scope Mouthwash FREE WYB Crest Toothpaste=$0.00
1 x Crest Toothpaste  on sale $3.99 WYB Scope Mouthwash=$3.99
1 x St. Ives Scrub temp price reduction=$3.59
1 x Finesse Shampoo on sale=$2.99
1 x Febreeze Odor Eliminator=$4.29
2 x GE Soft White Lightbulb Packs on sale @$1.00=$2.00 **Not Pictured**
2 x Hall's Refresh Drops @$2.49=$4.98
SubTotal=$21.84

Coupons Used
1 x $4 off $20 Rite-Aid Q(from coupons.com)=$4.00
1 x $1/1 Scope Mouthwash(P and G insert Q)=$1.00
1 x $1/1 Crest Toothpaste(P and G insert Q)=$1.00
1 x $1/1 Finesse Shampoo(10/18 insert Q)=$1.00
1 x $1/1 Febreeze Odor Eliminator(insert Q week of ?)=$1.00
1 x BOGO Hall's Refresh Drop Q(Rite-Aid ad Q)=$2.49
1 x BOGO Hall's Refresh Drop Q(Tearpad from grocery store-limit of $2.29 off)=$2.29
Coupon Total=$12.78

$21.84-$12.78=$9.06+$tax=$9.68 OOP
Value of Items $38.71.

I'll receive $7.00 back in SCRebates($2 lightbulbs/$2 Febreeze/$3 St. Ives).
Plus there is a Finesse MIR to the company for $2.
This totals rebates of $9.00, reducing my 'spending' to .68¢

Or so I thought!  Seems I bought the wrong St. Ives....my 6oz. container doesn't have a rebate, as it's the 10 oz. jar only, WHICH they were out of....grrr.
My store also doesn't carry the new Vaseline that I had a $1.50 Q for and had a $4 SCRebate....double grrr.

So my SCRebates are only $4 for this transaction, but I still can send for the Finesse $2 rebate, making rebate refund total $6.
So the effective OOP spending is $3.68  I might just have to return that St. Ives product, since I didn't even have a coupon for it.
**sigh**

Sluggy

Ghosts of Halloween Past

I have just returned from the grocery store where I was in the checkout line with Harry Potter and Buzz Lightyear.
Yes, all the little kids were dressed up today in the grocery store!lol

 As I begin to spend the day preparing for the onslaught of miniature ghosts and goblins this evening, I harken back to memories of Halloweens past.
I found these couple of photos in my family albums from when my kids were wee little ones.

From 1995......

My almost 3 yr. old daughter as Tigger and my 4+ yr. old son as Casper the Friendly Ghost.

And from 1999.....

My 3.5 yr. old son.  He's the one in the middle in the shot.....dressed as Kimberly, the PINK Power Ranger.  That was just one of quite a few years he decided to be the Pink Ranger.  

Oh, the laughter & the looks he was responsible for the other moms giving me at his preschool.

Who says parents can only be the ones to embarrass their kids?
It's a two-way street!lolol


I am not one to stifle my kids' creativity and personalities, unlike my own parents.  The Pink Ranger now lives on in our family lore.


This will be the first year since 1990 I do not have a child dressing up to Trick or Treat for Halloween. 
The #2 son has hit the age when it's 'not cool' to Trick or Treat.
That may have something to do with the fact that he was invited to a Boy/Girl Party this evening.
I guess when you are 13, GIRLS trump CANDY! lol


It marks the end of a phase of my life I suppose.
And it has me feeling a bit blue today.


Here's hoping you get more Treats than Tricks tonight....


Sluggy

It's Almost Time for the End of Month Totals....

There's one more day in October and that means 2 things.
1-Get all your online coupons printed off now before they go away, or are reset for November.
2-Time to get the old calculator and spreadsheet out to see how you did financially in October.

I've started running some numbers here and it's looking mighty fine at Chez Sluggy!
After the disaster September turned out to be, we can sure use a Good Month here.

So, how about you?  Are you looking forward to seeing how you did overall for the month?
Or are you going to go hide under the covers and wish the month's outcome will just go away??

Sluggy

What Do You Do.....

...when it's less than a week until Halloween, you have 53 jars of  FREE peanut butter from Acme and still have 2 bags of Candy Corn(ok, "Autumn Mix")that was cheap from CVS and you are sick of eating it?

You make Candy Corn Fudge!

So I grabbed what looked like a quick and easy recipe from online and gave it a go.


Here's what you need.....

2 Tablespoons Butter + enough Butter to butter your pan
3 Cups Miniature Marshmallows
1 Cup Peanut Butter
1/2 Cup Powdered Sugar
20 ounces Candy Corn(I had to bags totaling 18 ounces)
2 Cups Roasted Peanuts(I didn't add this)

Butter a 9x9 pan.  I only had a 9x13 pan available.

In a skillet over LOW heat, melt butter and marshmallows, until marshmallows melt.
(You can also do this in a Double Boiler.  It would probably turn out better in one.)

Stir it until your hand wants to fall off, or it looks like this....

Add the peanut butter.

Stir until it's mixed in.

Then add the powdered sugar....

Stir until smooth.

Then fold in candy corn and peanuts...

In my case, I overheated the marshmallows so once I added the peanut butter AND sugar, the mixture had tightened up a lot to the firmness of taffy!  Folding in became "using my hands and kneeding in the candy corn".  It's a good thing I wasn't putting peanuts in because they never would have folded in.lolol
And I had LESS candy corn than the recipe called for and it was waaaay too much for the amount of 'batter'.
At this point, once you have 'folded' in your candy corn and peanuts, you are suppose to POUR the mixture into your buttered pan.
'Pouring' became ' placing solid lump of fudge into the buttered pan and pressing it down flat and evenly into pan'. lolol  This was difficult to do, as the fudge was very HOT!  I'd suggest you wear rubber gloves.

Let the fudge cool, then cut and serve.

Here's my finished product....

The family says it's tasty though it doesn't seem very sweet to me...until you bite into some candy corn.lol

Next time I'll do this differently....
1. Turn off the heat once the marshmallows melt.  There should be enough residual heat in the mix to melt the peanut butter in.   My heat setting was low enough but it didn't need the continual heating once the marshmallows got to the melting point.  The heat tightened up the mix too much after that.
2.  Use more peanut butter and marshmallows to the amount of candy corn.  The ratio of mix to candy was off.
3. And make sure the peanut butter is chunky, not creamy.  The chunky thing is just a personal preference. 
4. Work quicker once the marshmallows melt.  Hard to do when following a recipe for the first time AND you have to stop every few minutes to take a photo for your blog. 8-))

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!
Sluggy

Rebate Information Page is now UP!....Check it out!

Per popular request, I have started a REBATE PAGE.
To get to it, look on the right hand side of the blog.  Right under my amazing Followers is a clickable Link titled, "REBATE CENTRAL".  Just click on that and it will take you to the List of Currently Available Rebates out in Rebateland.  There isn't alot there now as it's new, but I'll be adding to it as time goes on.  You may want to bookmark that page for easy access in the future.

This REBATE PAGE will list current rebates. If there is a downloadable form or a website for the offer, I'll make the Link clickable.  I'll also list the major points, like what you need to buy, what you get & any deadline or expiration dates.   I'll be concentrating on food and toiletry rebates but may throw in other good offers as I find them.  I am only one woman though, so if you find a current rebate that I haven't posted, I'd appreciate an email(slugmamaATyahooDOTCOM)with the information so I can add it to the Rebate List.  If you also see anything that needs correction on the list, please let me know that too.
I will clean the list up each month and remove any rebate offers that have expired.

In addition, if anyone does send for any rebate on the list and experiences a problem or has a tip on how to make  the submission process go smoother, let me know and I can post a "hint" with the rebate.

Please feel free to spread the word about the Rebate Central Page.  The more Couponers and Hounders we can help, the better! ;-)

Sluggy

Apples for Days....

So what do you do when you go to the farmstand and there's a half bushel of homely apples priced at only $5.00 calling your name?

You buy them!
And that is just what I did.
I brought home a huge sack of Ugly Apples last week.
These are the less than perfect looking apples that nobody wants in their Peck or half Peck Bag of apples.  You know....scarred skins, not quite the perfect color, not quite the perfect shape &/or bruised.  The kid working at the stand said that after you picked over them and got rid of the bad ones,  at least they would be good for one pot of applesauce.
Ha!....little did he know!!

So I set to peeling and coring these babies to make some applesauce.  Making homemade applesauce it so easy too!
First thing is to select your apples and wash them thoroughly. I chose enough apples to fill my crockpot...about 17 apples.

Next you peel(if you want to peel them)and core them.

Since my ugly apples might have been riddled with bad spots, bruises, I chose to peel them first.
After about half I realized that my ugly babies did NOT have any bad spots. They were just "skin challenged" with ugly scarred peels. So I didn't peel the last part of the batch.  It's better if you leave the skins on, as most of the vitamins and "stuff that is good for you" is just under the peel.  Your applesauce will pack a bigger nutritional punch this way.

Then came the coring...

I LOVE my little apple corer. It cost me $1.00 at the discount outlet.  It makes this job go so quickly too!

After coring/peeling, put your apple slices in a bowl in which you've put some water and lemon juice(you can used bottle juice, it doesn't have to be fresh squeezed).  The lemon water helps them not to brown while waiting to go into the crockpot.  Actually, since it really doesn't matter if the slices brown, you don't have to put lemon on them.  It's just a force of habit for me to lemon the apples. lol

Spray your crockpot with a spray oil.  This helps with cleaning up later.
Then drain the lemon water off and put your apples in the crockpot, put on the lid and turn it on.
Don't add water!
That's it.....just walk away!

Now you can cook them down on LOW or HIGH.  Low will take about 5 hours, while High will cook them into sauce in about 2-3 hours.

You'll know when they are done when the house smells heavenly and they look like this....

(The large pieces in the photo are peel, not apple.)

When your apples are finished cooking, turn off the crockpot, stir it up and taste for sweetness.  If it's a bit tart for your taste, you can add some sugar or other sweetner at this point.  Also add cinnamon now if you want some in your batch.

If you didn't peel your apples and don't want the peels in the finished product, just fish them out after your applesauce cools.  Your applesauce at this point will be a bit chunky.
If you want it fine and smooth, get out a food mill.

Pour the sauce in and start milling into a bowl or pan.  If you are going to mill, don't bother fishing out your peels beforehand.  The mill will keep your peels from winding up in your finished product.
And speaking of finished product, here it is....

Ready for eating!
If you make a lot you can water bath can applesauce or put into freezer-safe containers and freeze any excess for later.
It will keep in the refrigerator for about a month.

My 17 medium-sized apples made a 6 Cup container(48 oz.)of applesauce.

I'll get out both Crockpots & do another 2 batches tomorrow of Chunky Applesauce.  That should keep us in applesauce for a couple of months.
The rest of the apples will be made into Apple Pie Filling later this week.

Sluggy