Savings back on track! April 28

Over the past two weekends, I was able to get back on track after all the drama with my husband's surgery.

We FINALLY got carpet in Austin's room and got his decorations hung up and toys moved back in.  Ryan couldn't lift anything for 2 weeks, so we were blessed to have some family members and our home teacher from church help us get the heavy stuff in after the carpet install.  We found a desk we liked for the room on Walmart.com, then looked on Amazon and found it cheaper there.  By the time it arrived, Ryan was released from restrictions so he put it together.  Austin loves his new room!

I made granola bars and 4 large loaves a french bread the past two weekends.

I made a double batch of buttermilk pancakes and applesauce oatmeal cookies for quick breakfasts.

I made a beef roast in the crockpot last weekend.  I used the leftovers to make a beef stew for the following night and also set aside some of the meat for 2 lunches at work.  I pureed the leftover stew and froze it in cubes for baby food dinners.

I cooked a pork roast for dinner and added BBQ sauce to the leftovers for pulled pork sandwiches the next day.

A friend gave me some lettuce from her garden which we ate with several meals over the past two weeks.

I had several opportunities to serve this week which was such a blessing after the service we received while Ryan was recovering.  We had the missionaries over for dinner this week and I brought a meal over to one of the sisters I visit teach.  I baked a vanilla sheet cake for a surprise baby shower for a coworker.

I made baby food peaches, pears, carrots, and potatoes.

Ryan doesn't like the homemade dishwasher detergent I made so I tried another variation.  Hoping this one will be better.  This time I am using washing soda instead of regular baking soda with equal parts Borax and then half parts epsom salt. If anyone out there has a good recipe they use, please share!  I am on my second one found on Pinterest.  You're also supposed to add Lemon Shine, but I don't have that so will also try that next time I go shopping.

I used a regular garbage bag to line the Diaper Genie instead of paying a fortune for the refill packs.  I sprayed the bottom with Lysol and put a cup of baking soda in the bag to absorb odors.

Please share what you have done to save money!

Shopping deals April 27 weekend

Grocery ads weren't that impressive this week, so I returned to Winco for my groceries and discovered a few of my beloved "everyday low price items" have gone up.  Still decent, but I was a little bummed.  However, I got some nice thick asparagus 98 cents a pound, broccoli crowns 88 cents a pound, and a 5 lb bag of potatoes for 98 cents.  They had Santitas tortilla chips for 98 cents a bag and avocados were 39 cents each, so I got a few and made guacamole this weekend!  I needed several baking supplies along with my other weekly staples but still came out spending only $46.

It was an open house weekend at Sam's Club so I got a free temporary membership and went in to check things out.  I got laminating sheets for school and a 48 piece flatwear set (I was down to 4 spoons, I think someone is throwing them away at my house).  Both were a great price.  I got a few other little things and came out spending about $60.

I had $40 in Staples rewards to spend, so I got a chair mat for Austin's desk, dry erase markers, push pins, and tags for free with my rewards for recyling ink cartridges.

I got the shadow box for Austin's room at Michaels for 40% off plus my teacher discount.

Not so much saving this week April 14th

We had a scare this week with my husband needing to go to the hospital for tests after he had been experiencing some abdominal pain for a few days (which he didn't tell me) and then was admitted for emergency surgery to remove his appendix!!

So the kids and I had some fast food, cookies and blended ice beverages with white chocolate cream and mint syrup (yummy) bought at the hospital snack shop for me, and extra gas used to drive to and from the hospital mulitple times over three days.

Well he's home now and hopefully on the mend, but in the meantime, he can't carry the baby or really hold her or feed her.  While he was resting Saturday, I took the kids to this Discover the Dinosaurs event which was very fun and Austin loved it, but pricey!

On the up side...

We were blessed with food from coworkers and family over the weekend.

I made a chocolate cake from scratch for Ryan's birthday which was today.

Austin and I both made cards for him instead of purchasing them.

Another week not shopping at Winco! April 14th

There was a great coupon in the ads for Fresh and Easy $5 off a $25 purchase and also a coupon for a free canvas shopping bag.  So I decided to go off the beaten path and head on over to F&E for some produce and pasta sales along with their lower priced items of things I needed for the week and spent $21 and got my free canvas bag!

I hit Albertson's on the way home to get their Hunt's pasta sauce which was 68 cents a can along with a few other things that were higher at F&E and spent $14 there.  So my total grocery bill for the week: $35!!

Had a 20% off coupon for Kohl's and went there for pants for Austin but they had nothing priced low enough for the 20% to even make a difference.  Went to TJ Maxx to get myself some new sunglasses and some clothes for Ryan for his birthday, I got two shirts and board shorts and spent $45.

Austin needed pants for church and he really needed something with an elastic waist so I stopped by Children's Place and found just what he needed for $12 a pair.

Shopping this weekend was a bit hectic with both kids tagging along since my husband is out of commission for awhile!

Jackpot savings Extreme Room Makeover Edition, April 7th!

My son is in his room!  We are just waiting on the carpet so we moved his bed in there so he can at least have his own space again.  Fingers crossed that the carpet will be installed this week.  Note: if you are getting carpet and want it in a timely manner, I would recommend first asking where the carpet comes from before ordering it.  Home Depot gets their carpet from Delaware!!!!  So it takes over a week just to ship.

This bed was Ryan's as a child, his parents let us have it.  It was repainted, it will also have drawers but we are letting them dry a little longer before putting them in.  Ausin loves two things: orange and Mickey.  So that is our room concept.  Mickey comforter sets go for over $90, so instead, I spent $50 on fabric to make a tie fleece bed spread.  There is enough leftover to make two square throw pillows which I will work on next weekend.  The navy blue sheets he already had and my sister in law made him a Mickey pillow case and throw blanket that he's had for a few years already.

 Purchased two wood frames for $4 each and painted them white.  JoAnn's had cotton fabric that matched the fleece design so I got 2 yards of it for about $12 to use for anything else to tie the room all together.  Placed the fabric on the frame back and placed vinyl stickers on top of the fabric.  The stickers are from a large set that I got for $10 at Kohl's, so there are several leftover to place around the room.

Used spray adhesive to attach some of the fabric to a cork board that was $10 at Walmart.  I also got an $8 white board that will be mounted to the wall by his desk.  My decor budget was $200 so I have $74 left to get a white desk (checking out craigslist/consignment places) and get a shadow box with a Michael's coupon to put his Mickey ear hat from Disneyland and other memorbilia.  Ryan is going make two Mickey head silhouettes and paint them black to put on one wall.  

Other savings this week....

It was the LDS General Conference, so we stayed home most of the weekend and enjoyed watching conference on TV. I left once to run an errand on Saturday and Ryan went to the priesthood session at the church that night.  He went to an activity with some guys afterward, so I enjoyed listening to my Lady Antebellum station on Pandora while I finished the fleece tie blanket after the baby went to bed.

We did eat out this week, once with family in town who treated us and we covered the tip and one night did take out because I had stayed late at work.  Austin was good all week, so he wanted to go to Taco Bell.  He likes the Dorito's tacos!  I took him there for an early dinner Friday afterschool then he got to go to JoAnn's to pick out his fabric.

I cooked 4 chicken breasts in the crockpot, shredded it and used it in stir fry Saturday night, made chicken noodle soup for Sunday night, and made 6 2 oz baggies of it to make chicken wraps for my work lunches.  

I took the leftover chicken soup and pureed it in the blender to freeze into baby food cubes for the baby to try some meat which yielded 24 cubes.  I also made baby food peaches 16 servings for $2.48.

Made a batch of granola bars and 4 large loaves of french bread.

Trimmed my own bangs and waxed my facial hair.

Ryan cut his hair and Austin's this week. 

I made a sugar scrub with 2 1/2 c sugar, 1 c olive oil, and 5 T lemon juice (yes, it's from Pinterest).  Shaved then exfoliated with this stuff and now my chunky stubbs are the smoothest in town!

Repurposing formula containers

What to do with those empty formula tubs?

I have several tubs of Enfamil that I couldn't bring myself to toss or recycle.  I saw an idea on Pinterest to cover with paper or fabric but then I saw my son's orange duct tape and it came to me!  You can use any color or design of duct tape to easily wrap around the tubs then decorate with stickers or labels of some sort.  These are going to go in my son's room to hold art supplies, little toys, etc but you could fill them with candies, cookies, or other goodies to give as gifts.

Shopping trip April 5th

Did my Friday night shopping and I didn't go to Winco this week (gasp!).  I decided that since I already needed to go to Smith's caselot sale and to Walmart, I did not need to go to a third store.

Smith's- the caselot sale is going on now, so I shopped there for the first time in several months.  None of the canned goods on case sale are a good deal, these are cheaper at Winco with their everyday prices.  The only canned goods I usually get at Smith's caselot are the cream of ___ soups and they didn't have that offered this time!  So the good deals in my opinion are: Kroger peanut butter for $1.65 (I use alot of PB and it is an easy emergency food storage item), Kroger apple juice for $1.65 and 5 lb bags of flour for $1.69.  The flour is about the same price per pound as I can get at Costco, but easier to store in the smaller bags.  The sugar on sale is not a good deal, can get this much cheaper at Costco.  I bought my stock up items and a few Easter candy on clearance and spent just over $20 thanks to an additional $5 off coupon my hubby gave me from this Boy Scout discout card he got.  I realized I had a bunch of points racked up that I didn't redeem, so I applied them to get my gas 30 cents off per gallon!

Walmart- I can't stand this place, I forgot something and had to go again on Saturday and it was not fun.  However, it is the closest store to my house and since I can get the price match it's easier to go here.

Food 4 Less has Betty Crocker fruit snacks 10 packs for 98 cents a box when you buy 4!  Coupons.com has a coupon 50 cents off when you buy 2 so they are 73 cents a box, you can print 2.  Show the add to the clerk at Walmart and then use the coupons.  My son was excited to have fruit snacks because I only buy them when they are this cheap!  I bought the rest of my groceries here and including baby formula, I spent $40 on food for the week.  I also purchased some non-food items separately for things I need for Austin's new room.

JoAnn's- bought fabric for Austin's room which was all on sale, plus I got 15% off from their teacher discount!