More Grocery Savings....

Wow... another fabulous weekend at Walgreens (Friday) and Meijer (Saturday)!

15 boxes of Pierogies = 40.80 after sale and coupons $5.40
a bunch of freebies from Walgreens after sales and coupons
a bunch of almost freebies at Walgreens & Meijer.

There was a mad gathering around the meat section at Meijer today as they had a ton of 40% off stickers on just about anything -- plus .99 per pound on Ground Sirloin. It was gone instantly. One lady - I was impressed had about 20 packages in her cart!

I saved $86 at Walgreens - OOP $11.00 (rounded to the nearest dollar) and $120 at Meijer - OOP $92.00. I went over for the week a touch, but I won't need meat next week so next week I won't need so much grocery money.

We went to Home Depot today to buy a HUGE shelving unit. I needed more space for my stock-ups! Now I have a mission: Fill a 48"H x 24 D 5 shelf storage unit! That can go with my already stocked pantry, linen closet, basement, and closet!!

I can't believe the good fortune I've had shopping lately.

Get your Printer Ready - Coupons on the Web!

I stumbled upon a great resource for printable coupons!
The web is such a wonderful thing - I really wish this was around (in this state) back when I first got married and had my ds. OH THE MONEY I COULD HAVE SAVED!

A Full Cup - Printables - You'll want to bookmark this one!

Memorial Day -- A Day of Remembering

A Day of Remembering.....

My dad -- has been gone since 1994. He was only 55 years old and was just starting to take advantage of the "life" he worked so hard for. He always said the restaurant was going to kill him. He was right. Well, that and cigarettes, fatty food and no exercise, I suppose.

My dad and I didn't have the most spectacular of relationships. I spent most of my life fearing him and seeking his approval. It was near the end of his life that we were breaking that wall and getting to understand each other. I have that to hold onto.

My grandparents -- My mother's parents were the most incredible people I have ever met. I can't even get into what a blessing they both were to my life. They were very generous with their time and love. My grandma had a frugal nature that I used to poke fun of, but now live myself. They were both hard working and lived a wholesome life. My dad's dad passed away long before I was ever born. In fact he died while my father was a young boy. I wish with my whole heart that he lived a lot longer, because I feel my dad would have been a whole different person if he had - and in doing so - we would have had a much better relationship from the get go. My dad's mother - I have resentment towards her. She tried - but ultimately I think her well being came before those of her kids and I don't agree with that.

A lost love, Bob -- You never forget your first love. Not that I have a whole whirlwind romance story to tell you about Bob, because I don't. I have just always felt that by something bigger than he and I, that we were destined to have our paths crossed. Even though our lives took turns away from each other, for some reason Memorial Day was a day we would reconnect. I have no idea why. Bob passed away at the age of 24 (in 1992) - and it broke my heart.....into a million little pieces. And because history dictates that I should - I visit his grave every Memorial Day Weekend. To the old times!

Baby Boy -- Anytime a child dies - it breaks your heart. In our neighborhood, a young 2 year old angel of light was killed accidentally by his next door neighbor. My note to everybody: Teach your children to ALWAYS watch for cars -- and ALWAYS make sure your driveway is clear of children when you are backing out (even if you don't have any). SUVs are so high up, she never even saw him.... Any loss of a child would be a shame, but this child was a bright light. His smile was constant and his heart huge! I often said I couldn't wait to see the man he grew to be. Sad.

June Budget

June Budget

No big changes here except for that mighty fine payment to Bank of America (thanks to some overtime!)

We'll be changing cell phone plans this month and DS will be picking up more of the tab on that.

Looking for a bit more approved overtime in June from my job because of the training season - and then things should level out. My amazing dh, on the otherhand, should be seeing overtime for awhile!

Let the Summer Begin!

Random Updates of Debt and Grocery Shopping

Keeping up with the Plan

Extra Money
We've been very lucky to have the hours we both do right now - and we've been making the best of it. Our budget goes a month ahead meaning last month's income pays for this month's bills. We changed over to that style budget last year as a part of our BS1. Our hours fluctuate somewhat and I was never quite sure on how much to figure on. (Got off track a little - sorry) We have $940 extra in the budget due to the overtime that was worked which means that the Bank of America will be seeing a little extra money from me. Also means that Bank of America total due will drop under $10K.

Still love the Envelopes
My bank teller ladies are always so nice to me when I come in for my monthly CASH to stuff envelopes with. I always leave a nice little note explaining what and how many bills I need. We are entering Month 11 of our Total Money Makeover and I still get the same rush when I fill my monthly envelopes!

Mazda3
The story of the new car has been put on the back burner on a very low simmer. I'm happy the process came to a halt. I think my stress that week was 100% contributed to my two selves battling -- The Inner Brat and the Responsible Adult. Oh, when those two go at it -- LOOK OUT! The things you can rationalize in your mind when the inner brat is throwing a tantrum is amazing. No wonder so many people are in debt.

All Aboard
So many times when going through a process like this, it's hard to get the husband and wife on the same page of what has to happen. At first when we started this plan, I know my dh was just appeasing me. I have a habit of starting things and not finishing them - so he thought of it as one of my half baked ideas that will last a weekend and he didn't put a whole lot of thought into it.
Eleven months later - he's on board (at least until BS4) and even has the lingo down. I thought I would share a funny conversation we had while watching tv the other night:
There was a commercial on tv about this great new bra that Victoria Secret has out. I said, "Look, honey. Victoria Secret's got a fancy new bra! Do you want me to spend $60 on a pretty new bra?" "As long as you are using your share of the blow money because I don't want to spend my blow money for it!" LOL.

Grocery Store Guru Strikes Again
I don't know if the deals are just getting better lately or if I'm just getting back into the stock up mode - but I've been finding killer deals!

Last week, my pile of FREE things was almost as big as the pile I paid for.
This week, my grocery receipt said SAVINGS: $73.00 and my total out of pocket was only $35.00. I got $108 worth of stuff for only $35.00.

I took advantage of Friday's $5 off $20 at Walgreens and my little rebate card to help out with some deals there.

If you haven't been to HOT COUPON WORLD I strongly you diving into that site and take a poke around. They post deals, sales fliers ahead of time, and scenarios to save the most money. It's incredible!

Needless to say, I need another shelving unit - my stocking up is seriously getting nuts!!!