Saturday, November 3, 2007

Me, Liberal???

This week, Sweet Hubby and I had a discussion. That did not sound bad did it? It is the same discussion we have every week. Money. Primarily, grocery money. Sweet Hubby is a tightwad frugal. I, on the other hand was raised to believe if there is a check in the checkbook, there is money to be spent. Now I have over the years matured in this area. I am not nearly the spendthrift I use to be. Groceries, however, have been an area of contention between us. We have tried everything. He gives me cash..I get 1/2 the groceries needed. He gives me my own account and more money...I get 3/4 the groceries needed. I try doing the Grocery store shop hop...finding all the sale items. I do well dollar wise, but it is way too stressful. I immensely dislike to grocery shop, so doing it 3 or 4 times is not appealing. Super Wal Mart is the way to go, I hear. I go and spend MORE because I wander in to the DVD's, crafts, or clothing departments. I generally shop at our Hilander store..a Kroger store. I really like the people and I LOVE it when they scan my card and it says I saved $42.36 on my weekly bill. Still my bill is well over the budget every week. Hence the weekly "discussions". While reading Coppers Wife this morning, she gave a link to a USDA site that shows a schedule which gives you an idea of where you fit in the grocery shopping category. There is Thrifty, Low Cost, and Liberal. I was pretty excited as I could show Sweet Hubby that I am doing well. I was sure I would be in the Low Cost. Cheryl and Niki were both in the Thrifty category and they eat very well!!! Better than we do here. I was SHOCKED that I was $100 a week OVER liberal. I have some work to do!! How about some help here! I need a personal shopper. I bet if I hired Cheryl or Niki to do my shopping for me AND paid them to do it, I could still save quite a bit of money! I expect my comment box and e-mail to be filled with tips to help me bring down my grocery cost. I do not have a freezer (other than the one in my side by side) as I gave it to my kids. I have no room to store lots of bulk items, though if it was a priority I could find it. I think I could save enough on my grocery bill to buy another freezer also...no excuses.Here is a recipe the kids and I are going to try. They don't sound as good as a Tollhouse, but it would be fun for them to make.

Scripture Cookies

In a bowl, combine:
1 cup ___________ (2 Kings 4:41)
1/2 cup dry powdered ______ (Leviticus 20:24)
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
2 Tablespoons cocoa powder

In another bowl, combine
1/4 cup_____ (Exodus 29:7)
1 Tablespoon_____ (Psalm 119:103)
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1_______ (Luke 11:12)
1 Tablespoon_______ (Isaiah 12:3)
Add the dry mixture to the wet ingredients. Mix thoroughly; the batter will be very stiff.
Drop teaspoons of batter onto a greased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for about 15 minutes. Be careful not to over bake, or they will come out hard. (yields approx. 24 cookies)
Sounds like fun!! I will let you know how that turns out. I know what you are thinking, Niki!

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I did make some headway on my embroidery project last night. I could have gotten more done had I not sewn it to my night gown! My list of sewing projects is stressing me out. For this month alone, actually before Thanksgiving, I need 24 napkins and a matching table runner made, and 2 aprons. That does not include Christmas projects. I better get busy! Hope you all have a wonderful weekend!!

15 comments:

Lib said...

Hi Bren,
It is hard to think about grocery savings with everything but pay checks seems to be going up.I can, dry or freeze alot of our food. I don't want to beat up Grocery stores as our son is Produce manager at one of our locals, and Dh works out of another. "BUT" they do try to get you to spend extra.I buy in bulk, and we have outlet groceries and that helps keep cost down.
When I first started on the frugal lifestyle, one week I bought meat the next canned veggies,and fruits after I got a good stockpile I'd buy specials only. My son tells me I'm called a "CHERRY PICKER" to buy specials only LOL He does the same. I looked up all the frugal websites I could find ,there some good dry mix recipes etc.I am a veggie fruit person Dh&Son are meat lovers. But having 1 or 2 night of veggies helps.Its not always easy and can become overwhelming until you adjust or find what works best for you. Hope these hints helped.
Have agreat wk.end.
Blessins',Lib

Solstitches said...

I hate grocery shopping and DH loves it so I just tell him what I need and he brings it back to me.
I love your stitchery project.
Like you I am in panic mode when I think of the list of projects I need to do before Christmas.
I daren't write them down but I know there are a lot!

Margaret

Mamabeanof4 said...

You crack me up Bren! You sewed your project to yourself?!?
Maybe Cheryl could give us private lessons on bulk buying and scratch cooking-a vacation to Cheryl's!! Yeah! That sounds good. Wonder if we could convince our hubbies we could save money if they paid our way there?! Hee! Hee!

copperswife said...

Vacationing at my house, eh???? I might need to buy more groceries!!! I need to keep better track of you two, Bren and Amy, you are dangerous!! ;)

I'll try to post some ideas for what I do that works, as well as the things I do that throw me off track, which happens far too frequently!

Bren - I laughed out loud about your stitching your project to your gown! Been there, done that!!! LOL!! It's coming right along, though, and it looks beautiful! ~ God bless you as you look well to the ways of your household!

Niki said...

LOL...I have to think about this one....I would never have thought you were Liberal....maybe you miscalculated???? LOL... Ok...gimme some time and tell sweet hubby I will try to come up with some $$ saver tips...hmmmm, how bout you come on up here and we'll grow you a pig and some chickens??? I will email you my serious stuff ;)
I'm also a member in good standing of sewing the project to the nightie and I had an audience, kids and hubby who all had a big laugh...LOL
big hugs

Kairle Oaks said...

I really hate grocery shopping, Bren, but try to shop the sales when possible. DH was commenting on how much I had paid for a couple of wedding gifts last month that showed up on the credit card. I told him it would be his turn to buy the gifts next time. LOL! He pays all of the utilities bills and such, but I don't think he has any idea what the day to day things really cost.

Debbie J said...

Thanks for the sweet comment on my blog Bren. I appreciate it. Some good blogs for saving money are moneysavingmom and biblicalwomanhood. (on my side bar) You may have already been there, but anyway, I and my daughter have learned so much there. My daughter took the E-course Crystal offers there called Supermarket Savings. I have so much to learn too!

Anonymous said...

Hi Bren,
Oh sister we are in this together. I don't like the hopping around either. I have some ideals to cut our food cost that I will be sharing over the next few weeks on my blog. One thing that so many of the really really cheap ladies do is buy marked down meat ,produce and dairy. My dh has put his foot down to that. No way he says. He wants fresh foods. Stick with Cheryl and we will learn alot. She feeds her family well and frugal. Not cheap. There is a big difference.
Debbie J is a good place to go too.
I laughed about you sewing stitchery to your gown. That sounds like something I would do. LOL
I sent you an email last night.
Hugs,
Elizabeth

Darlene said...

First I need to say that your stitchery is darling! Enjoy!

I wish I could help you with grocery savings - grrrrrr - I hate/detest/dislike/disdain/abhor, etc grocery shopping! I don't want to spend time clipping coupons, no do I want to compare the sale papers every week - there's too much sewing to be done! LOL

I'll be back to see what tips you might get from others! :-)

Jeanne said...

Hi Bren, I hate to grocery shop. Funny, it used to be one of the highlights of my week when we were first married. Do you use coupons? Do you plan your meals ahead of time? I think the latter helps a lot, although I'm not claiming to be practicing the concept here. We love casseroles here. They are pretty easy on the budget and usually give you leftovers for lunch the next day.

Anonymous said...

Excellent post! I have been reading your blog for about one month. May I link to your blog? I just began yesterday!

Unknown said...

Oh dear Bren soulnds like a bit of a problem. I don't know that I can give you any great tips as there's only the 2 of us here, but I do shop in bulk, it saves so much $$ in the long run. Shop at Sam's Club for the bulk items and then shop at a grocery store where you bag your own items. Prices there are quilte a lot lower than at Walmart. As you know we purchased a freezer not too long ago and that makes the world of difference when it comes to buying meats and bread. The initial outlay wasn't too bad and it's worth it in the end.

Just Melody said...

Hi. I found you from copperswife's blog.

Have you ever read the Tightwad Gazette? Your local library should have copies in book form. Its by Amy Dacyczyn.

Do you plan menu's for the week/month? That helps me stay on budget. I have to go to a regular grocery store or I fall prey to Wal-mart's draw of other things to see/buy.

Hope that helps some.
Blessings
Melody (frugalmel)

Unknown said...

Send your DH to shop that is what I do, he always goes on Saturdays and shops for the week.

Knit-Wit said...

We have been doing the beans and rice/rice and beans diet from Dave Ramsey - People on his site recommend $100 per person per month for groceries/dining out. We have 6 people in our family so we spend $600 per month. It makes for a tight budget -but it is doable.