Archive for the ‘saving money’ Category

Hot Momma Monday: Off on the right foot

Jan 23rd, 12 / 5 Comments

Last week I set some pretty lofty goals for myself to push off on my quest to become an All Around Hot Momma. I think that I actually did a pretty decent job of following through on some of my ideas and I think I’ve started off on the right foot.

One of the best things I did this past week was either cook dinner or heat leftovers for dinner every single night. Even Friday night, when Tim was gone and it was just Aric and I, instead of going out for burgers like I’d originally planned, we stayed home, make a pizza, and had a picnic in the living room while watching Tangled. WE MADE MEMORIES!! YAYZERS!!

But seriously, it ended up being a really fun night, and we didn’t even leave the house (never mind that it was also below zero and I lost all desire to do anything but curl up on the couch and watch TV).

I will admit that this past weekend we had fast food twice: Mickey D’s breakfast on Saturday and Chipotle on Sunday. However, I paid for it with a surprise $80 check that came on Friday. So thank you, stupid oral surgeon’s office, for making me pay my ENTIRE bill up front before even charging my insurance. That extra money was super neato!

I also cooked up some tasty new meals! One night (I think it was Tuesday, but I honestly cannot remember) I made breaded chicken cutlets.

So crunchy, so yummy!

These were SUPER easy! I just a couple tablespoons of melted butter and mixed it with some garlic herb bread crumbs I found in the pantry. You know when you make a graham cracker crust with the graham cracker bits and butter? Same concept for this. I then coated some boneless, skinless chicken thighs with it, then baked it at 400* for about 20 minutes or so. I’m sure this would have tasted just as awesome with chicken breasts, but I had thighs available, and thighs I used!

The last night I made chili for the first time ever! I know, I know. It’s completely crazy that I have never in my life made a batch of chili. But I did it. And I mixed it with crushed Fritos, sour cream, and lots of shredded cheddar. It was the greatest bowl of warm happiness I have ever had!

…… until I ate a bean.

I must have a sensory disorder or SOMETHING when it comes to food. I cannot eat food that feels weird, so matter how tasty it might be. Mushrooms? Nope. Oysters? Hellz no. Any kind of bean? Kill me.

So when I took a bit with few Fritos, I felt the bean mushing itself through my mouth. And it was all over. I picked my way through the rest of the bowl, but it was ruined for me. Which really REALLY sucks cause it was SO GOOD for so long. Then that one, tiny bean had to come and ruin the party.

Jerk.

On a completely unrelated note: I made a discovery this week. Actually, saying that is like saying Columbus discovered America even though he didn’t and the vikings were there before him and the native Americans were there even before that. But that “discovery?”

Trader Joe’s.

I’ve long heard tales of this “Trader Joe’s.” The organic food. The ease in which one could find vegetarian, gluten free, and even vegan food. I’d heard all about it. There are several in the Twin Cities area, and lots of people in my office bring lunches from Trader Joe’s that look and smell so darn yummy.

But my brain went like this: Trader Joe’s = Whole Foods. Whole Foods = $$$$$$$$$$. Thus, Trader Joe’s = $$$$$$$$$.

But Friday afternoon, I’d had enough with all the talk. I had to see it for myself. I let Tim know of my quest. His response? “Isn’t that place really expensive?”

But I went. And oh man. Man oh man oh man. I must have looked like a darn FOOL in that store! I think I went up and down every single aisle three or four times, picking things up, looking at ingredients, then picking my jaw up off the ground when I saw the prices. I could not believe my eyes.

After loading up my cart with about a week or so worth of groceries and lots of snacks I went to the check out. The damage??

LESS THAN THE NORMAL COST OF A WEEK OF FOOD FROM OUR LOCAL GROCERY STORE.

Let that sink in for a second.

Less. Than what I normally spend. For a week. Plus lots of snacks (which I don’t usually buy that much of). Including meats. And produce. And several “heat and eat” dinner choices for quick meals. (Though to be fair, I chose the non-organic options, although the organic options of everything weren’t really all that much more expensive)

I’m pretty sure I left brain matter at the check out from my mind blowing into a billion pieces.

Trader Joe’s? WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN ALL MY LIFE?!?!?! I’m so, SO sorry I misjudged you so. I’m sure many people have the same common misconceptions that I once did, so can you find it in your heart to forgive me?

Judging by the taste of this Joe Joe I’m cramming down my face hole, I’m thinking he HAS forgiven me.

With one, simple trip to Trader Joe’s, I’ve worked on both my “STOP SPENDING SO MUCH MONEY” goal and my “COOK MOAR FOODS” goal. I call that a win.

How was your week? Make any cool discoveries or cook any yummy meals?

Hot Momma Monday, recipes, saving money

Saving Money this Holiday Season

Dec 8th, 11 / 8 Comments

It’s Christmas time, which means it’s time to spend exorbitant amounts of money to prove how much we love each other.

Actually, that’s not true. I LOVE giving gifts at Christmas. I stress myself to the MAX trying to find the PERFECT Christmas gifts for my family. They always give me such wonderful gifts, I want to do the same :)

But, back to the money part, sometimes that perfect gift can be spendy! So we need to tighten our belts a little this time of year to make that happen. A month or so ago, I started getting another new parenting magazine. I have no idea why. I didn’t sign up for it and I don’t know how I get it! Maybe it’s like Parenting or American Baby … they just come to your house and you just don’t know why!

Anyway, there was a section about saving money to do more fun things, etc. I’m always looking to do fun things, so any tips on how to save money while doing it, I’m all about it! One of the suggestions was for men. For example, if your husband likes to spend time on the golf course, he should thinking about doing his laundry at home instead of having it dry cleaned and pressed. That way he’ll have that extra money to spend on greens fees!

Um, what?

First of all, who sends ALL their laundry out? Maybe high powered corporate execs, but then again, they’d ALSO have the disposable income handy for those greens fees. Shoot, I bet they could expense it and call it a meeting!

Second of all, let’s be honest. If your husband is cutting out his dry cleaning so he’ll have more money for golfing, that means he won’t be home to actually WASH his clothes, much less iron them, which leaves that mess up to you. How is this a marriage money saving option?

The next tip was to stop buying your grande latte from Starbucks every morning. Look, I love my $5 lattes just as much as everyone else, ESPECIALLY during pumpkin spice latte season. But do I love them $5 a day? $20 a week (for just the week days)? $80-100 a MONTH?!?! I wouldn’t even DREAM of starting a habit like this! I get a fancy latte twice a month … on pay day. So, magazine writer, I’m ALREADY saving this money! What now?!

There’s the tip to buy regular unleaded instead of premium. At over $3 a gallon for regular, you REALLY think I want to spend that much more on premium? NEXT SUGGESTION.

During the winter, keep your heat at 74 instead of 76. That two degree difference will add up on your bill! Um, we top out at 72, but that’s only on super cold nights. It’s usually 70 when we’re home and 65 when we’re at work. NEXT SUGGESTION.

Bring your own lunch to work a few times a week! You can save $20 or more a week! Um, yeah. It’s a special treat when I DON’T get to brown bag it. NEXT!

Bottle your own water instead of buying it! Yeah, I’m fortunate enough to have great tasting city water that I already pay a monthly fee for. NEXT!

The best part about these tips? They were followed by a little “disclaimer” that said something along the lines of “Living frugally can be hard! Take it one step at a time! Find one or 2 tips that work for you, and start there!” BUT THIS IS ALREADY HOW I LIVE MY LIFE!!!! If ONLY I had such problems as affording Starbucks every day, going golfing, dry cleaning my clothes. For people who DO live like that, what are they trying to save money for? That $4,000 bottle of scotch?

So I came up with my own ways to save money this holiday season that even us poor folk can benefit from:

1. Lists, lists, lists. Make lists. Check them twice. It works for Santa, it can work for you, too! I make the mistake every year of forgetting that I already bought someone their gift. In fact, this year I completely forgot one of the gifts I bought for Tim, thought I had more money in my budget, and went out and bought something else. And these are things that can’t be returned. OOPS!

2. Shop around for the best deal. When you finally figure out that PERFECT gift to give someone, see if you can find it somewhere else for less. Amazon is usually a pretty good place to find great deals. In fact, I got a fantastic deal on the gift I got for my step-dad. I could have gotten it directly from the company’s website, instead I got a deal on Amazon on three times as much for the same price as one on the company website!

3. This is Tim’s favorite: Plan ahead. Tim spends much of November and December deciding what he wants and where he’s going to get it. Then on one day, he hits the stores he needs to hit, grabs what he needs, and he’s done. No wandering around filling up the cart at Target with useless crap (ahem). No thinking, “Should I get this or this? Or maybe I’ll get both and return one when I decide?”

4. Cut back on the dinners out this month. For each $40 dinner out, you could have bought someone 2 presents.

5. Cut back on the number of gifts you give. This is the hardest one for me to follow. Look, if you’re like me, you find 17 PERFECT gifts for someone (and ZERO for someone else, depending on the year). It’s hard for me to put down another gift that I find awesome even though I’ve already finished with someone. We all say “it’s the thought that counts,” so MAKE it be the thought that counts. Give a simple sweater. An ornament. A book. Whomever you give the gift to, I’m sure they will appreciate it just as much as the $100 designer sunglasses.

Of course, there’s always the option to NOT give out gifts, but I’ll never take that option. I love giving gifts to those I love. I just don’t want to break the bank doing it :)

What are your practical ways to save money this time of year?

christmas, help needed, money woes, saving money, working mom