Nervous? A little!
Excited? Absolutely!
Hubby is still not 100% on board with me, I don't think. Well, not that he's not on board, but the full understanding of what this really means. It could be tough for him at first, plus, he's not one to make spontaneous purchases, so to speak, but then again, when it comes to the boats or cars, he spares no expense. So...with that in mind:
What are we going to do about Vernors AND Arnold Palmer?? I suppose I'm going to have to keep them in for now. We did limit the number of ginger ales we were buying, more as an attempt to break his horrible ale habit (better than crack I suppose??) I will keep experimenting with the Arnold Palmer stuff. Just need to find the right mix.
I'm a little freaky that I might go hog wild this week with Christmas clearance AND stuff being on sale. New pots and pans? New dishes? How about a new electric frying pan? Oh and don't forget, those boots I've not gotten yet this year ... I may just have to stay OUT of the stores coming up this week just so I don't have to torture myself. What's worse, knowing WHAT I missed or NOT knowing what I missed??
I have 3 checks yet for the month. Well, really, only 2 as I'm putting the check that comes on the last day of the month to the first (by the time I get it deposited, it will be the new month, new year). So those 2 checks, $286 total, will be put in for any other straggler items that are out there. Then everything will be CLEARED out of my savings account and put into the NO TOUCH savings account. Huh. Pretty brutal, don't you think?
I will start the new year, January 2, with about $1400 in my account. No problem. Electric, cell phone, credit cards, $150 for food, and it just dawned on me that the Boy will need to buy some books for the new semester the 2nd week in July. Ok then. That 'may' create a small problem. But we'll see. It's a tight budget, and I'm up for the challenge!
We need to make a run to Costco. Should have done it Friday, but will probably do Monday. Hubby wants me to take our friend as he wants to check out the meat stuff. I want to get the TALL cat perch they have (condo thingy like) as I think BOTH cats would like that instead of having to hog the one single perch we currently have. It's something like $70 or so and I wanted to get it for Christmas, but that didn't work out that way.
Also need to get some salad stuff, spinach, eggs, milk, fruit, snacky crap for the kids, and this must all be under $150. Was considering buying some beef as I believe I'm out (need to do inventory on the freezers) and what kind of household are we without beef?
Yes, Costco will still stay on the list of stores I shop. I just won't be doing BIG shops like I've done in the past unless I want to borrow grocery funds from the next month. Um, no, I don't want to do that! I think Costco can be frugal IF you follow a list and a plan, don't get sidetracked, don't even LOOK at stuff outside the list (although, I've found some excellent deals by browsing BUT it puts me over the budget). I also am a firm believer that CASH is the way to do Costco otherwise, the debit card and/or american express get hit HARD.
I'm going to try very hard NOT to do a big shop this week in anticipation of the new challenge for 2012. That would sort of defeat the purpose IF I spent $500 on food this week, wouldn't it? OF course, if meat (ham and turkey) are at rock bottom prices, I will be stocking up on them, but only as much as I have room for in the freezer, which at the moment, is not much at all ... I really need to get them organized. So that's what's I'm off to do today.
So far this morning I've made the snowball cookies (using the Ande mints since it's what I have) and have the milk/oil/sugar mixture cooling to make the cinnamon rolls for neighbors delivery in the morning. The kitchen is a mess and I need to get that cleaned before I tackle the freezers.
Here's hoping that everyone is having a wonderful Christmas ... enjoy spending time with those you love!
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