Well, I've been slacking on the menu plans and it shows in my budget. I've been over my alloted funds in the grocery department for the last 2 months. Now, part of that is that I never allowed more money after we had the baby, so buying expensive formula is taking its toll. But also, a lot is because I'm making random runs to the store for random things. My organization went out the window and it has to stop!
For example, I would have been okay (just 35) over budget for October, except that this weekend, I spent 25 on batteries at CVS and 40 at Publix (for random things I wanted, not needed).
So I'm NOT going to the grocery store (or Sam's, or the drug store) until this weekend, unless our milk runs out, and this is what I'm going to make from the freezer/pantry to make that happen.
Monday: Ravioli with red sauce, garlic bread
Tuesday: baked Italian chicken, Asian broccoli slaw, baked potato
Wednesday: left overs or something boring like a can of soup
Thursday: Chicken, Black beans and rice
Friday: Black bean tostadas (need to buy 1 tomato and lettuce), leftover rice
Saturday: Baked potato soup (will need milk)
Sunday: Some big hunk of meat on sale this week (chicken, beef roast or pork roast)
with mashed potatoes and gravy and a green veggie on sale. (will buy meat
and veggie)
Monday, October 31, 2011
Wednesday, October 12, 2011
Cloth Diapers-IV
Paying for cloth diaper was really the last hurdle for me. I knew that our stash of gifted diapers would run out very quickly and that I would have to start buying disposables with in a month. Right now, we use about 8 diapers a day (at 3 months) which adds up to 240 diapers a month. That is roughly $80 worth of disposables.
Our first 6 diapers only cost us about $30 (saved $80), because I used the last of our Target gift cards from our shower. The next 6 cost us $75 (saved $40), because I used my stash of Amazon gift cards that I earned using swagbucks (click here to learn more/sign up---it's easy and awesome). And the last 5 cost us $54 (saved $54), because I ordered from Zulily who had there Fuzzi Bunz diapers on sale for 1/2 off. I spent a total of $159.00 (plus and extra $20 for the bag), which is roughly 2 months worth of disposables.
We expect to be able to use these diapers for years with our little one, and hopefully for years with our next one! If we have 2 kids and they each wear cloth diapers for 3 years, we would have saved about $5500!! That is savings that I can get on board with.
Our first 6 diapers only cost us about $30 (saved $80), because I used the last of our Target gift cards from our shower. The next 6 cost us $75 (saved $40), because I used my stash of Amazon gift cards that I earned using swagbucks (click here to learn more/sign up---it's easy and awesome). And the last 5 cost us $54 (saved $54), because I ordered from Zulily who had there Fuzzi Bunz diapers on sale for 1/2 off. I spent a total of $159.00 (plus and extra $20 for the bag), which is roughly 2 months worth of disposables.
We expect to be able to use these diapers for years with our little one, and hopefully for years with our next one! If we have 2 kids and they each wear cloth diapers for 3 years, we would have saved about $5500!! That is savings that I can get on board with.
Tuesday, October 11, 2011
Cloth Diapers-III
Laundering cloth diapers was by far the thing that made me most uneasy! I don't enjoy dealing with poo and pee (no big surprise), and I would prefer to keep my hands clean. But I realized, that whether I was using cloth or disposable, I was going to have to deal with these things anyway.
When we first started, we only had 6 diapers in the rotation, so we were doing a small load of diapers every night. We kept the dirty diapers in a bucket on the floor of the bathroom, and because it was emptied every night, we had no smell problems. I disliked having to run such a small load because it felt wasteful, and if I forgot to do the laundry we were out of luck (mainly because I prefer to air dry whenever possible). Now that we have 17 diapers, we run a load every 2-3 days. (It would be more, but we still use disposables occasionally-mostly when I bring her to work and rely on others to help take care of her...I feel guilty asking other people to deal with cloth diapers when we're not at home.)
It's really quite simple. Remove a dirty diaper, pull out the insert and place both in the pail/bag. If there are any solids in the diaper, just knock them into the toilet. I may occasionally rinse a very dirty diaper in our utility sink, but mostly I just knock out what I can and throw the rest into the bag. Usually, I can remove the dirty insert without soiling my hands at all, but occasionally, I have to touch a pee covered piece of cloth with my thumb and forefinger...really no big deal!
We use this AWESOME dirty diaper bag, and I find it very easy to use with a front loading washer. We just keep it on the door handle and have not had any smelling issues. I do use the "add essential oils" feature, but I'm not sure that really makes a difference one way or the other. I just happened to have oils on hand. So far, we have not had any staining problems...but I hear that leaving them out in the sun can "bleach" out any stubborn stains.
Just so you know, you do have to be careful cleaning the diapers. If you use too much soap, they will start to repel liquids, which is NOT what you want in a diaper! Use half of the recommended amount of soap, don't bleach, and don't use fabric softener. Click here to visit the Charlie Banana website and read more about cleaning these diapers.
When we first started, we only had 6 diapers in the rotation, so we were doing a small load of diapers every night. We kept the dirty diapers in a bucket on the floor of the bathroom, and because it was emptied every night, we had no smell problems. I disliked having to run such a small load because it felt wasteful, and if I forgot to do the laundry we were out of luck (mainly because I prefer to air dry whenever possible). Now that we have 17 diapers, we run a load every 2-3 days. (It would be more, but we still use disposables occasionally-mostly when I bring her to work and rely on others to help take care of her...I feel guilty asking other people to deal with cloth diapers when we're not at home.)
It's really quite simple. Remove a dirty diaper, pull out the insert and place both in the pail/bag. If there are any solids in the diaper, just knock them into the toilet. I may occasionally rinse a very dirty diaper in our utility sink, but mostly I just knock out what I can and throw the rest into the bag. Usually, I can remove the dirty insert without soiling my hands at all, but occasionally, I have to touch a pee covered piece of cloth with my thumb and forefinger...really no big deal!
We use this AWESOME dirty diaper bag, and I find it very easy to use with a front loading washer. We just keep it on the door handle and have not had any smelling issues. I do use the "add essential oils" feature, but I'm not sure that really makes a difference one way or the other. I just happened to have oils on hand. So far, we have not had any staining problems...but I hear that leaving them out in the sun can "bleach" out any stubborn stains.
Just so you know, you do have to be careful cleaning the diapers. If you use too much soap, they will start to repel liquids, which is NOT what you want in a diaper! Use half of the recommended amount of soap, don't bleach, and don't use fabric softener. Click here to visit the Charlie Banana website and read more about cleaning these diapers.
Monday, October 10, 2011
Menu Plan Monday
Monday: leftover tiropete casserole, spinach salad
Tuesday: buffalo stuffed chicken, roasted potatoes, tomatoes
Wednesday: leftovers
Thursday: grilled pizza (using fresh pesto and roasted veggies)
Friday: beef stew, yeast rolls, cut up veggies
Saturday: BBQ from our church festival
Sunday: Tortellini with fresh pesto, bruscetta
Sunday, October 9, 2011
Cloth Diapers-II
I began my cloth diapering journey by watching 'Frugal and Simple' tutorial videos. I stumbled upon her videos by accident and was instantly hooked on the idea.
After watching her effortlessly whip through a diaper change, I was ready to give it a try. I ended up first purchasing the 6-pack of Charlie Banana one-sized diapers.
I knew I was not interested in having to purchase multiple sizes, and I also knew I wanted to buy them from Target (because I had gift certificates). That is ultimatly how I landed on the Charlie Banana brand!
It has turned out to be SO SIMPLE! I didn't find the snaps at all confusing, and fitting my baby's little chubby legs was quick and easy. We have had a few minor leaks, but it didn't take long to iron out the details of fitting her. Each diaper has a way to adjust the leg hole elastic, so a snug fit is achievable.
Although we started out with only the 6-pack, we quickly graduated to a stash of 17 reusable diapers and a fabulous hang on the door cloth diaper laundry bag. Stay tuned for more on our cloth diapering expirience!
After watching her effortlessly whip through a diaper change, I was ready to give it a try. I ended up first purchasing the 6-pack of Charlie Banana one-sized diapers.
I knew I was not interested in having to purchase multiple sizes, and I also knew I wanted to buy them from Target (because I had gift certificates). That is ultimatly how I landed on the Charlie Banana brand!
It has turned out to be SO SIMPLE! I didn't find the snaps at all confusing, and fitting my baby's little chubby legs was quick and easy. We have had a few minor leaks, but it didn't take long to iron out the details of fitting her. Each diaper has a way to adjust the leg hole elastic, so a snug fit is achievable.
Although we started out with only the 6-pack, we quickly graduated to a stash of 17 reusable diapers and a fabulous hang on the door cloth diaper laundry bag. Stay tuned for more on our cloth diapering expirience!
Friday, October 7, 2011
Saved 50% at Publix
I had a pretty good/yet very random trip to Publix this week. A lot of things were on sale, but I didn't use a lot of coupons. Keeping this in mind, I am happy with my 50% savings.
I bought:
1 Natures Own English muffins (BOGO)
1 Publix WW bread
1 get well card
1 bag apple chips
3 Hunts chocolate pudding (used $.50/2 man Q and $1/2 Publix Q)
3 GG frozen veggies (used $.60/3 Q)
2 Pam sprays ( used 2 $.50/1 man Qs and 2 $1/1 Px Q)
2 Ragu pizza sauces (BOGO)
2 Ragu spaghetti sauces
1 Mueller lasagna noodles (used free wyb 2 Ragu Q)
4 Gulden mustard's (used 2 $1/2 Px Q)
4 8 O Clock coffees (used $2/2)
Spent $34.89 (saved $35.17)
Cloth Diapers-I
I always thought that I would be a cloth diapering person. Even before I met my husband, and even before I was sure I wanted to HAVE children, I knew that the wastefulness of diapers was not my thing.
But once I was pregnant, I wasn't so sure about it. We got a brand new puppy one month before I got pregnant, and I spent months cleaning up messes, preventing messes, following her around waiting for messes... I was overwhelmed! So I said no to cloth diapering and we loaded up on the disposable variety. The less contact I had with poo the better!
Now I should be honest, thanks to the generosity of friends and family we haven't spent a dime on disposable diapers. The baby is 3 months old and I've bought (maybe) two containers of wipes (only because they were super cheap).
But I see the end of our stash in sight, and I see the amount of plastic diapers filling up our plastic diaper pail bags. So I was ready to try cloth diapering.
Stay tuned to learn about my (very successful) cloth diapering experiences!
But once I was pregnant, I wasn't so sure about it. We got a brand new puppy one month before I got pregnant, and I spent months cleaning up messes, preventing messes, following her around waiting for messes... I was overwhelmed! So I said no to cloth diapering and we loaded up on the disposable variety. The less contact I had with poo the better!
Now I should be honest, thanks to the generosity of friends and family we haven't spent a dime on disposable diapers. The baby is 3 months old and I've bought (maybe) two containers of wipes (only because they were super cheap).
But I see the end of our stash in sight, and I see the amount of plastic diapers filling up our plastic diaper pail bags. So I was ready to try cloth diapering.
Stay tuned to learn about my (very successful) cloth diapering experiences!
Thursday, October 6, 2011
I saved big at Toys R Us this week!
I made a pretty significant effort at getting some Christmas shopping done this week.
I went to Toys R Us with my coupons in hand and did great!
I bought:
1 Strawberry Shortcake berry cruiser (on sale and $5 off Hasbro Q)
1 Strawberry Shortcake story in a box set
1 Elefun Ball Popper (on sale and $5 off Hasbro Q)
1 Girl Talk Game
1 Spider Ma web slinger (on sale and $5 off Hasbro Q)
1 Pictureka Disney board game (on clearance)
1 Pink Hair extension (I needed this to get my total above $75, after Qs)
-used the in ad spend $75 and get a $10 gift card
-so although my total was $76.86, I walked out with and extra $10.
So I spent $76.86, saved $33.25, and earned $10. This is a savings of 36%!
I went to Toys R Us with my coupons in hand and did great!
I bought:
1 Strawberry Shortcake berry cruiser (on sale and $5 off Hasbro Q)
1 Strawberry Shortcake story in a box set
1 Elefun Ball Popper (on sale and $5 off Hasbro Q)
1 Girl Talk Game
1 Spider Ma web slinger (on sale and $5 off Hasbro Q)
1 Pictureka Disney board game (on clearance)
1 Pink Hair extension (I needed this to get my total above $75, after Qs)
-used the in ad spend $75 and get a $10 gift card
-so although my total was $76.86, I walked out with and extra $10.
So I spent $76.86, saved $33.25, and earned $10. This is a savings of 36%!
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