Spendaholic!

[jen143]

I agree with coupons, rebates, etc. I do a list for my shopping with my local ads. If I find an amazing sale I get whatever it is and look for the store with a sale on items I need. I have a data base of all our usual shopping items on it that I hang on the fridge. I check something off that we need on one line and then when it's time to do shopping, I find the store that has the sale and put an initial down with the date of the sale. This has helped alot, especially if I have a coupon for a sale item. Don't limit yourself to one store. Use all your area stores. Often non-perishables can be purchased at other stores cheaper than at your local grocery store. Try Walmart, Target, K-mart, the Dollar stores, etc. Drug stores can have good sales too. And name brands aren't usually necessary. With the exception of certain foods, store brands or "non-mainstream" brands are just as good and a lot cheaper. I, personally find the exceptions to be cheeses for melting and meats. Lesser qualilty meats are fattier and not as good for you health. And I cannot find a Cheerios "no-name" brand that I like as well as the true Cheerios. All other cereal I get at Aldi or a store brand. Occasionally K-mart or Target if they're having a great discount, often during their dollar day sales. Try cooking more and bagging lunches with homemade goodies and stop buying conveniece items. They are expensive and not as healthy as anything you could make. Have you and your hubby cook together with your child and it could become a great family night activity! Make cookies for lunch treats and muffins or breads for great breakfasts and sides to lunches. Invest in some segregated containers and make your own "kids meals" to take to school. Make them up using left overs and freeze. Then they can have their own special meals for lunches. It takes some time to get used to the idea and some creativity, but after a while it's great fun and you don't know why you waited so long to try it! My dh loves leftovers and homemade lunches that his co-workers have started it to - they were envious! Good luck!!! And don't give up!!!

[Darla253]

During the winter I made a huge pot of stew, we call it "stewp" since I make it real spicy with extra hot rotel tomatoes and tabasco. I use those glad containers and then freeze it all in separate dishes so that my husband can take five a week to work and he just microwaves it there and in the summer I try to fry him chicken every Sunday so that he's got two pieces for each day of the week to take. He likes his treats so I do spend a lot on those but he now takes them to work so I only have to bring them as far as the front door and that way I won't dig into them. I was buying the Jimmy Dean breakfast sandwiches which has the sausage, egg and cheese in them but went and got everything and made up my own for about half the price so I now do that on Sunday's too. Yes, Sunday is a cooking day. Ugh. So glad it's Tuesday..........

[beckie]

Amen to making stuff at home. We love the McDonalds sausage/egg/mcmuffin, so, I too, went and bought all the stuff to make them at home. English muffins (6/$.99), sausage patties(walmart has a two pound bag of sausage patties for $3.00, very good deal), eggs, and cheese. Toast the muffins, brown the sausages,hard fry the eggs(when turning them over, double over the edges so they will be smaller) top with cheese, and whala! At $2.79 each at McDee's, plus tax, HOW MUCH are we saving!

Be blessed,
Beckie