Grocery Challenge Day #4

Today is day #4 of the grocery challenge. Oops. Madison and I didn't eat breakfast. Lunch today was tomato soup. Tonight for dinner is bbq chicken, corn, tomatoes, yogurt and biscuits. I didn't spend any money on food today. I am going to have to buy some milk soon and other groceries so I can "stock up" on food for the upcoming weeks. Dillons has a pretty good ad this week.

Grocery Challenge Day #3

Yesterday was day #3 of the grocery challenge. One thing I didn't post was that my husband and 3 of our kids were trail bike riding for four days and 3 nights. They rented a cabin which had a kitchenette. I packed food for them so they wouldn't have to eat out. So, when you see I had frozen pizza or something so simple, that was because it was either just me or my daughter and me. Otherwise, I would have cooked a better meal for the 6 of us. Last night I only snacked for dinner because I took Madison out to a movie and we bought a $5 bag of popcorn. That brings my total to $22.56 out of my $50 grocery spending for the week. Not bad. For lunch yesterday Madison and I had pizza rolls.

Grocery Challenge Day #2

Today I spent $2.55 on food. I am up to $17.56. Remember, I already have some food at home. I am 'cleaning out food'. I did go to Dillons and saved 86% of my bill. I spent $9.82 and saved $44.75. I will post a picture of what I purchased. There are items such as: Dawn, Tampax, Crest, etc. You can see the rest in the picture. I spent $1.02 at Walgreens. My total BEFORE tax was actually .16 cents!! I will post a picture of those items as well. I purchased items such as deodorant and wipes. For lunch today was frozen pizza and sandwiches and the same items were for dinner. So far, so good. I think I can spend $50 or less for 7 days of eating for 6 people. We'll see!

Grocery Challenge Day #1

Yesterday was the first day of the grocery challenge. Remember, I am going to use what I already have as well. So, I am guessing the first week will be the least expensive. However, I spent $15.01 on baking items and I baked for six hours yesterday. I mad a double batch of chocolate chip cookies, double batch of peanut butter cookies, four boxes of corn bread muffins, a batch of biscuits, and I browned six pounds of deer meat. Today my mom and Rick took Madison and me out-to-eat for my mom's birthday so I didn't spend money on dinner. For breakfast my family ate a combination of foods. We ate either toast, toast with peanut butter, cereal, or yogurt. Lunch was pizza rolls. Today for breakfast was either toast, apple sauce, or health bars. I only have $35 dollars left for the week. I think I can do it!

Grocery Challenge

Okay. So this isn't something exciting to post on this blog I actually created for my kids. However, I don't want to start an additional blog just for me. I am going to try a grocery challenge for our family. I now know how much money I saved in June and July. In June, I saved $700 at the grocery store and in July I saved $813. That doesn't mean I actually would have spent that. I would NEVER buy 25 packages of razors in one shopping trip. However, they were free. So, I am stockpiling a lot of items if they are rock bottom cheap or free. In August, I am going to see how much money I spend on JUST groceries for our family of six. I am actually going to separate the groceries from beauty products, cleaning products, etc. I am hoping we will eat out less and spend less. I will buy what is on sale and cook with that. We have a lot of deer meat in our deep freeze which I haven't used in awhile and I really need to. I am going to try and 'clean out' what we already have. It always seems like there is never anything to eat that I want t cook but I am really going to try and use everything we have. I just have to look around and be creative. My goal is to spend no more than $50 a week on groceries. That would be great considering we spend about $35 if we go out to eat. I will try and post how I am doing. I hope my kids will eat Pop Tarts and cereal because I have stockpiled that in the last two months. I sort of have a menu prepared for 14 days of dinners using mostly what I already have. Hamburger Helper will be making its way to the dinner table made with deer meat. I am going to be able to use some vegetables from a friend's garden for free. That will help. So, here I go!!!

More Pics

These are random pics of this summer. Some pictures are at Steve's pitt. There is a picture of Brett and Braden doing straw painting at the library. There is also a picture of Braden at Kiddie Land. McKenzie is fishing at a nearby pitt.

Catching Up Again!

I have been having problems with the background. The company that I had my original background from had to redo some things and my background was just gone one day. I have been trying to figure out how to get a new one. I have one for now but I don't really like it because it is hard to read. I will change it later.

Just Adding More Pics

Here are some more pictures from the previous blog.

Camera on the Fritz!

My camera hasn't been working for a few days. I finally figured out how to fix it tonight. This post is actually from several days. My Aunt Mary and Uncle Chris and their two sons, Nick and Joe were in town from Colorado. We had a nice visit for two days. We went to the Deli 2 times. My dad, Katie, and Holly joined us as well. One of the days Amy Bruce Smith and Angela Awad Abbott met us too. I also took some pictures of the girls' softball team. One night the kids, Mike and I met up with Steve, Julie, Austin, and Sierra at the Dixie Stampede in Branson, MO. It was a blast. The food was delicious and the show was great. I highly recommend this!

Shooting and a Carnival

McKenzie, Brett, and Braden decided it was time to start shooting. (sorry for the poor quality picture) McKenzie used a pellet gun and the boys used sling shots. They were shooting at cans in the yard. Madison was not up to that today.....or ever! This evening I took the boys to their VBS program and carnival. It was a hot one but they sure had a blast.

Swimming and a Wedding Reception

I took the boys swimming at the Country Club with Terri and her boys. They had so much fun playing together. In the evening, I took the girls to the Country Club for Phil and Shelley Minton's wedding reception. It was a great day!

SAVINGS!!!!!!!! I did this shopping with the boys to show them how to do it. The girls went shopping with my mom in Joplin.

6 -Right Guards, 2 Glade Air Spray, 2 boxes of Zip Lock bags, 2 big boxes of Jello, and 1 bottle of French's Dipping Sauce.....total....$2.04......SAVINGS.....$19.08

Going to the Park

Today I took the boys to Lakeside Park and Lincoln Park. They had a fun time playing on the equipment. This was also their last day of VBS. I helped out by leading a group of kids. It was a lot of fun.

MEOW

I totally forget to post this from a couple of days ago. I took the boys to the Humane Society to LOOK at the animals.

What Do I "Sea"?

I took the boys to the library to learn about animals in the sea. They had a great time learning about bullfrogs, minnows, crayfish, and more. They also went to VBS and the girls won their second fast pitch ball game. Grandma and Grandpa watched them, too.

VBS

Countryside Christian Church welcomed us with their first day of Vacation Bible School. Both Braden and Brett attended the second session from 2-5. There were about 400 kids total today!! They had so much fun. I am also attaching a picture that shows the great savings I received at Dollar General using coupons. Here is the scenario:

4 boxes of laundry detergent, 7 bottles of Glade air freshener, 9 rolls of Rolaids(how do you spell that?), 2 Old Spice Men's deodorants, 4 Woman's Secret deodorants, 3 bottles of Dawn dish detergent, 1 bottle of Shout laundry stain remover, 1 bottle of Mr. Clean cleaner, and 3, 6 packs of Mando drinks...all for $12. 48 ...using coupons at Dollar General!!!! So exciting!

Trampoline and a Cookout

There wasn't a lot on the agenda today. The boys had Lucas over to jump on the trampoline. He lives next door. We grilled out again tonight. The girls had softball practice for two hours. We rode the rhino around the yard.

One Fish, Two Fish

Wow! It is so hot today. Mike, the boys, and I went fishing early in the morning at a nearby pit. Braden and Mike each caught one fish.

Ribbon Cutting, Humane Society, and the Museum

To begin the day the boys and I went to a ribbon cutting ceremony at the Pittsburg Public Library. There is an addition and a new entrance. We enjoyed cookies and punch after the ceremony. Then we went to the Humane Society to visit the cats and dogs. After that we visited the Crawford County Museum. Braden opened a drawer to an old desk and found a mouse. YUCK! We were able to visit the old grocery store and the one room school house, too.

Dad's Birthday and Summer Youth Progam at the Library

Today Mike turned, well, it wasn't 32! We all went to El Charro to celebrate. Braden had a winning ballgame tonight. In the morning we went to the library to learn about animals that live in the ocean. The boys painted different sea animals that will later be hung on a mural.