Showing posts with label no spend challenge. Show all posts
Showing posts with label no spend challenge. Show all posts

Coupon Rant

I've stockpiled coupons for our Frugal Living undertaking. My husband even goes to Menards on Sunday morn and picks up 2 more Tribs so I have more coupons. After having watched Supercouponing by Jill Cataldo I have an even stronger drive to Save, Save, Save! I think I've crossed the line though. Now, when I look at the sales papers I am only looking at what I can get for Free!

Here's my gripe though. I am an Aldi shopper. Aldi is and has always been my numero uno store for basic goods. So, I tend to compare product prices from the name-brand stores to Aldi prices. Even if I've got a coupon, if the product isn't cheaper than Aldi, then I buy Aldi's brand.  Now, Aldi I've noticed has a regional pricing structure. Each one has slightly different pricing for the same items. That being said I understand the difficulty in trying to compile a list of general prices. BUT I still want to complain (I've only had one cup of joe this morn so I'm still a bit grumpy) that all these bargain/deals/couponing blogs do not take Aldi into consideration. I want to know if I use the 12 coupons on the 12 items you state will the price, if not Free, still be cheaper than the comparable product at Aldi.

Ok, I'm off that ugly soap box.

FruGal is Freedom


I know August is not over, but it's darn near close. Month number 2 of our No Spend Challenge has gone quite well. Here are some of the highlights:

Overall cash spent outside of utilities and mortgage, we are going to finish about $200 less than July! High Five to us!

We did eat out a few times this month, I will admit...but we had coupons for everything! The 3 of us ate lunch at Steak and Shake, during their happy hour- half priced drinks, and with our 3 coupons we ended up saving over $6.00 off the total bill...that's an entire meal there! We walked out of there paying $11.00. Sweet!

Dryer? I have one? I've plumb forgot about having an electric dryer in the basement next to the washer. Everything gets line-dried...even socks now! Am I going overboard yet?

"Do you have your coupons mommy?" This is the question B asks before we leave the house now. She's my little FruGirl.

The only major hurdle is getting my husband to get receipts for things he purchases, no matter how small the bill. Today he said "Oh, I forgot. I did good the first two weeks." Well sweetie, those first 2 weeks were SIX weeks ago. Get with the program my dear Hubby; consider this your verbal warning. ;-)

My mind set has gone from "I'm doing this 'cause I ain't bringing home the bacon anymore and the baby needs a new pair of shoes" to "I'm doing this out of love for my family and myself."

This ethereality hit me yesterday while B played in her sandbox and I sat on the patio removing oregano leaves from their stems to dry them for the winter. It was a long, tedious task but I was enjoying the outdoors, the quiet, and my daughter building birthday cakes in the sand.

Frugal is freeing causing fear to be fleeting.
I'm on top of the world!

Executive Homemaker Series: Do You Have a Mission?

Holy Crap! We spent money like drunken sailors in port!

I have had 7 months to get a feel for my new position as COO of D&F, Inc. A few changes have been implemented here and there, but nothing drastic to cause a mutiny.

As a Chief Executive in the business world it took quite a while to take inventory of the situation I was entering, the people I was working with, the back office health and the front office image. This step was the hardest part, but because of the invested time in the beginning, implementing the plan went smooth, quick and successful.


Here is the main inventory list I've compiled:
1. 50% loss of household revenue
2. Poor stewardship of money, no definitive monetary goals
3. No "department" plans or objectives
4. Seat of the pants training of new recruits
5. Ill defined job descriptions
6. Building needs maintenance
7. Enthusiastic co-CEO, willing to do whatever it takes to succeed.
If you are an avid reader of The Mom Standard (Of course you are!), you know that we have started addressing 1 and 2. Our No Spend Challenge for August is going much better than July and I anticipate the remainder months of the year to only be better. No department is authorized to purchase anything that is not needed nor on sale. Expense receipts are collected daily down to the penny and "attaboys" are given when we save money on our needed purchases.

By the end of the year we will be better equipped to define our present and future monetary goals and how we are going to meet them. We will also be better equipped at knowing what truly is important to our family!

What's next for KimD, Executive Homemaker?
Marriage is a contract, a covenant. Family & household functioning should be one too. This is where I believe people tend to get stuck.

Entering marriage in most cases is pretty formal...meeting with ministers, pre-marriage counseling, etc. The focus was so much on the candidates that the positions and the goals of the "company" were not well defined nor detailed in how to attain them. "Oh we want to have kids in a few years, a house, and a dog one day" is NOT a detailed, orchestrated plan! Operating procedures are needed for our family to run like a well oiled machine.

Our Family Mission Statement is what's next on my to-do list.


What do you think? Do you have a well defined plan for your family? Do you have a family mission statement?

I'd really love to hear thoughts on this!


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Executive Homemaker

The past 7 months of my role as a SWAHM have been a struggle. I have struggled with my preconceptions of being a stay at home, what my former colleagues think of me pseudo opting-out,  a 50% decrease in household income, and trying to get into a "groove" at home.

Structure is key for me. I can do a million things at once as long as I have it all structured out, better yet, planned out. A goal.

The other night it hit me. I will approach my new role of SWAHM as a career. For 10 years I ran two re-manufacturing businesses.  They went from on the verge of bankruptcy to pulling profits and positioned to expand. It took 6 years to get to that point but the whole way I had a plan and goals-I had a passion and hunger to succeed. My mother would refer to herself as a Domestic Engineer. That seems so middle management. I am an Executive Homemaker! I am COO and co-CEO of  Demetrio & Family, Inc. Now it's time to start acting like it.

Ahh, I feel so much better having now made this decision. Time to work on my business model, do a SWAT analysis, and implement a business plan!
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Free is better than Frugal!

Once again another Free is better than Frugal Blessing shout-out!

Our 100 year old house does not have central air-conditioning. The 30+ year old window unit it came with works enough, but it started to smell moldy and the electric bill nearly put me in the ER.

Last night my husband and his brother installed a less than 1 year old energy efficient unit that 1. looks nice 2. doesn't smell like 30 years of ick and 3. WAS FREE! Yes, it was given to us!

My husband's work policy is if it'll take more money to fix something than to get a new one, they get rid of the old one. So, because it was under warranty he got the new part it needed and during his off the clock time he got it up and running and brought it home yesterday!

My financial fears keep trying to come to the forefront but then something like this happens and gives me a sense of calm and lets me know that we are going to be just fine!
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FruGal August Update

We are into Day 5 6 of our August No Spend Challenge and I think we have the hang of it now. Only took a full month but hey, we're learning. The biggest thing we have a grip on is telling people "No, we can't go out to eat, we'll gladly have you over or vice versa for a homemade meal."

Couponing is going well. The issue is I don't buy most of the products there are coupons for. I'm a big advocate for store brands/generics and shop mostly at Aldi. Shoot, I'm the girl who while single ate yogurt for breakfast, salad for lunch, ramen for dinner, and a skinny cow ice cream sandwich for a nightly snack...for a year! Can someone say creature of habit? The lure of the  products with coupons is tempting, but I just cannot justify buying something just because there's a good deal. Am I thinking wrong?

Our Farmers Market is still going on but we have noticed the prices are not very good and our favorite stand isn't there anymore. Luckily, our garden is starting to birth some good produce so we're making up for the FM's slack.

I have been making some killer (as in good, not lethal) frugal "gourmet" meals! My culinary prowess astonishes me! Our kitchen does a happy dance when I make a dinner $8.00 or less for the three of us! Oh wait, it's not dancing, that's just the 100 year old floors creaking. I'll still think its celebrating with me.

Today we are utilizing our zoo membership with our sack lunches in tow. Another Free day for Me!

Swordfish Delish Dish!

The Mom Standard is not turning into a food blog, but since I make the rules I'll allow awesome recipes that are easy to prepare, delicious, and for the most part-inexpensive!

Here's another delish dish taken from

Istanbul's Pandeli Restaurant Fish Packets
1.5 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 1/4 pound piece of swordfish or boneless fillet of sea bass, snapper, or haddock (I used swordfish steaks)
2 or 3 small potatoes, peeled, or 1 medium potato peeled and cut into 3 or 4 pieces
2 or 3 pearl onions. (I used a regular white onion 'cause that was all we had in the house)
1 thick slice of tomato, diced (I used a small can of diced tomatoes)
3 or 4 strips of green bell pepper
salt and pepper to taste
pinch of sweet paprika mixed with a pinch of cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
-Makes 1 serving

Pull out a square of heavy-duty foil or parchment large enough to make a loose packet around the fish and the vegetables.. Smear half of the olive oil on the foil and set the fish in the middle.

Parboil the potatoes for about 4 or 5 minutes

Pile the parboiled potatoes, onions, tomato, and pepper strips on top of the fish.  Sprinkle with salt, pepper, and the paprika/cayenne mixture. Drizzle the remaining oil and the lemon juice over the top.

Bake in a 425 degree oven for 20-25 minutes or until the fish and vegetables are cooked all the way through. (I cooked them for 40 minutes).

The FruGAL in me wants to let you know that the swordfish steaks were from Trader Joe's and cost about $7.00. The rest of the ingredients we had in our kitchen. So for frugal meal planning, this one fed 3 for about $8.00! We would pay closer to $45 or $50 at the local Mediterranean restaurant we frequent!

My daughter insisted I photograph her plate of food as well. Yep, she ate this dish and liked it!

P.S. If you're starting to like my cooking too, you can check out other recipes I've made on my blog Becoming Italian!

Frugal Confession

Yes, we are getting more Frugal everyday. I'm enjoying everything about trying to cut costs. The elephant in the room though is starting to make some noise.


I must confess that I'd cut back on groceries, cable, phone, gas, clothing, whatever, in order to continue the following:

  • I cannot give up getting my hair cut & colored monthly. Nope, can't do it. This expense, which for many people would be seem quite lofty, $600+ a year has to be budgeted in to our Frugal Lifestyle. Even if no one sees me, I still must be well coifed.
  • Once a month Date Night. Me and the Hubs need some time to date each other. We plan on being wise with our date night choices but we still have to do it! So, this too must be budgeted into our Frugal plan.
  • Our annual weekend away in December. Each year we stay at a hotel in Chicago and go to the Christkindlmarket and some fine dining locale. This is also my Godson's Christmas gift from us...an annual experience. Fortunately for us, the Hilton offers Christmas in July specials so we book the hotel for dirt cheap in July and enjoy it in December.
There. The elephant has left the building and I feel repentant and ready to charge ahead..as in a battle cry to attack,  not charge as in charge card.

What things can't you give up for the sake of Frugality?

July Wrap Up

Tomorrow our No Spend July Challenge comes to an end. What an eye opening, liberating, and shameful experience it's been! We are starting the No Spend August Challenge now that we have a feel for things, and we really want to do better than we did this month.


July Wrap Up:

1. We haven't a clue what we spent all our money on before and are quite embarrassed by this.

2. It was nice spending more time as a family and focusing on us.

3. I received my FIL's yummy pizza dough recipe!

4. I still haven't fully decluttered the basement!

5. No one wants to buy our stuff.

6. My daughter will eat anything we put in front of her! (tonight she ate shark)

7. My daughter gets excited about broccoli!

8. We still spent too much $

9. I'm starting to feel like I live in Italy with my clothesline outside my kitchen window

10. We have all we need

11. It feels great to be in control of our lives

12. I'm starting to become a good cook

13. I've been keeping up with my blogging!!!!!!


I'm excited to start August! I'll keep you updated on how we are doing!
Frugal is the new Black baby!


Work, Mom, Guilt

OK! Hi, I'm KimD and I am a Full-time, Stay-at-home-Mom who is also a Work-at-home-mom. There, I said it.

Back Note: Let's learn another KimD created word: SWAHM: Stay Work At Home Mom-an "in limbo" mom trying to balance both staying and working!

Here's the deal, I get a little nauseous when I say it. Yes, there are some "issues" about this that I'm addressing with my Happy Helper and I have the utmost respect and awe for the women who from the gate chose to be SAHMs, but just me calling myself a SAHM makes me disappointed in myself! Mind you, I had a SAH mom growing up and couldn't imagine life without one. I know, f'd up, right?

Work. I love it. I love anything and everything having to do with business. I have 2 degrees in business and will one day have my doctorate in business administration. I do have an at-home biz that I envision growing gangbusters and not actually be out of my home. I get a warm fuzzy feeling thinking about getting back out there in my expensive business attire, having meetings, closing deals, forecasting, planning, and implementing. I miss wheeling and dealing. I  miss the challenge. I miss the money!

Mom. I love it. I love stopping everything I'm doing when I hear her feet hit the floor in the morning to get ready for our "Good morning baby girl. Did you sleep well? Did you have any dreams?" conversation.   Our morning cuddle makes whatever crap is in store for the day a bit more bearable. I love being here when she delights in something new. I love being here when she gets hurt and needs a hero. I love being her best girlfriend. I love the giggle-fests we have daily. I love hearing her say "Mommy".

Guilt. I've got it! When I first transitioned into being unemployed (back in January) I focused obsessively on Shortycake Creations...like 24/7. My husband almost held an intervention! For those weeks B was a cranky mess and it's because I didn't give her the attention she needed. So, I sat down and marked off blocks of time that are work hours and family hours. I've stuck to it mostly, but as B is getting more and more interested in things the guilt of me sitting here at my computer creating promotions, editing pictures, returning emails, confirming orders is growing larger than my business! I can't even get into the guilt of not contributing to the family finances...that's a whole other gotta-get-a-grip-around-it-with-my-Happy-Helper issue!

So, it's Wednesday. It's supposed to be my No work, all about B day. I have orders that need to be finished by tomorrow night. I have a cupcake promotion I need to work on and get it ready for August 1st. I have another business op I want to get up and running. I have a zoo membership that has not been used much this summer. I have bills that need to be paid. I have dishes that need to be washed. I have a 2 year old who needs lots of lovin. I have a headache!

Am I the only SWAHM out here? Is this just a phase I'm going through? Somebody PLEASE intervene and put me on the straight and narrow!

I hear footsteps, gotta go!

Cumin Get Happy!

My culinary adventures are usually documented in my other blog, Becoming Italian, but I had to share this one! OMG!

Pretty much 90% of the food we cook is of some Mediterranean influence, with about 98% of that being Italian. Well, tonight I pulled out my bible of Med cooking, "The Mediterranean Diet Cookbook" by Nancy Harmon Jenkins and made the most delish meal so far to date!

Seriously, we are adding it to our weekly meal plan, it's that good! Let me share it with you!

Kousbariya-A Lebanese fish baked in a tomato-cilantro sauce


OK, seeing it in a picture makes it look a bit scary, but from my mouth to G_d's ear it is good!

Want to try it yourself?
Here's the recipe (page 259)
2 pounds firm-textured white fish (I used cod)
a little flour for dusting the fish
1/4 cup olive oil
1 medium onion, halved and thinly sliced
1 garlic clove, chopped
3 very ripe tomatoes, seeded and chopped (I used one 28oz can of diced tomatoes)
1 tablespoon ground Cumin
1 cup minced cilantro
salt and pepper to taste
Cut the fish into serving size pieces about 1 inch thick.  Lightly dust the fish pieces with flour.  Heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a heavy saute pan over medium to high heat and, when it is almost smoking, add the pieces of fish.  /saute the fish, a few pieces at a time, for 2 or 3 minutes to a side.

When all the fish is done, discard the frying fat, wipe the pan clean.  Add the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil to the pan and over medium-low heat gently saute the onion and garlic until soft but not brown-about 10-15 minutes.  Add the tomatoes and cook, stirring occasionally, until the tomatoes have given off their juices and started to thicken-about 10 minutes.  Stir in the cumin and cilantro.  Taste for seasoning and add salt and pepper if necessary.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Arrange the fish pieces in a shallow baking or gratin dish and cover them with sauce.  Bake for about 20 minutes or until the fish is thoroughly cooked and the sauce is bubbling.
Then dig in!

As a side my husband made Bruschetta on French bread that I made yesterday. All ingredients from our garden...can't get any fresher!


KitchenAid & Oster Love!

Two appliances I have strong, teetering on creepy, feelings for: My Kitchen Aid Professional 600 stand mixer and my Oster bread machine.  Why the love?

I have been spending more and more time in my kitchen...cooking, baking, cleaning, repeat. Our No Spend Challenge this month has helped increase my quality time in front of the stove and Shortycake Creations creations are in more demand (yeah for me!). Back when I first started dabbling in Shortycake Creations I was burning through 1 hand-mixer monthly and it took 4-ever to make royal icing. That stand mixer cut my time by 75% at least, saved on me stockpiling hand mixers in the basement, and gave me time while it is running to change out the garbage bag. (see below about that one). 

The bread machine. LUV it! I hate buying bread...I'm an ingredients reader and if there are more than 5 ingredients that don't include chocolate, pudding, or ice-cream, then I cringe and get all OCD about buying it. The bread machine has freed me of my freakness. Flour, water, oil-I never use butter, just good ole Olive Oil, sugar, yeast. That's it. Dump it in, push the button and 3 hours later a 2 pound freshly baked loaf is ready to be devoured! Yum. (I actually made 2 loaves today: Cinnamon Raisin and a French Loaf.)

Let me tell you the things I hate in my kitchen. I'm sure you are on the edge of your seat waiting for this. The very pricey (thank heavens we got it as a wedding gift) food processor-yuck, double yuck. It's way too difficult to clean and in all honesty, operate. Too many pieces for me. My hubs uses it a ton more than me...but I'm the one washing it after every use! My other hatred is for my garbage can. "What? How can you hate your garbage can?" you ask? It's a love-hate. I've had it since 1993 and it's still in great shape.  It's also one of the last kitchen items remaining from my undergraduate days.

The hate part comes in here: the lid mysteriously disappeared (OK, I know my hubs may have 'accidently' thrown it away), it always has to have the bag changed...like at least once a day I'm filling that thing up, and it has to sit out in the open in the kitchen. My kitchen is about the size of a shoebox...really, not exaggerating on this one. Almost 100 year old brick bungalow-kitchens were an afterthought. So that's why I hate my garbage can.

As I was typing this non-contributing-to-the-wellness-of-society post, that Swiffer commercial with the ousted brooms and mops sadly looking in at their replacements started ringing through my head. Now I'll be singing "love stinks" in my dreams!

Day 23: Adding up the savings!

Today we saved 83% on our purchases!



Riding the high of coupon success I came home and added up our receipt savings for the month so far: $70! Wow, had I not become so obsessed with couponing we would be out that coin!
High Five to me!

Taking the time: Our Frugal Challenge Update

Nineteen days into the challenge. Seems like it's been a full month already! We've surpassed the naive initial budget I had set, but when we continue this challenge next month (yep, we are doing this again in August)  we know our needs better and can make a realistic budget that won't break the bank!


The biggest eye opener so far has been that being a good steward means taking the time. No matter what we do, there will always be 24 hours in the day, the quality of the time spent is the key! I used to think that going out to eat or ordering in saved us time and let us get to more important things quicker. What was so important? Sitting our butts on the couch watching "our" TV shows everyday! How sad. Today one of the important things is deciding when we are going to start cooking dinner and what is on the menu. I still don't have a good grip on menu creating but I'll get there.

The past 18 days we have missed many of our shows on TV, but we've spent more quality time together even if it was while drying the dishes, hanging the clothes on the line, or having a toy instrument parade through the house.

Some goals for the next couple weeks:
  • Keep stockpiling coupons and getting awesome deals on necessities
  • Use the dryer no more than 2 times
  • Freeze our debit cards so we can't use them last minute-which we've done a few times so far
  • Look into our cell phone and cable/Internet plans so we can lower those bills.
  • Drink more coffee and eat less sweets! Being in the kitchen more has made access to sweets too easy!

Now this is how to be frugal!

We have friends in from Texas and we needed to replenish some of our libations. Not budgeted. Well, it just so worked out that we had to return something to Menard's-got $29.94 back and our Libations bill: $29.57. That's right, essentially, for accounting purposes we didn't spend a thing! Then I noticed some salad dressing on sale with a save now coupon on it AND I remembered I had a coupon for it...we got it for free. Yep, they technically should have paid me a penny but I didn't push the issue.

Oh how I love this. When I was at the family business my first few years was spent trying to save every penny I could find and cut every expense...which I did by over 30%. My accountant loved me.

Frugal Reality is Setting In!

Wow! Day 7 of our challenge and things are looking way uphill! After tallying all the cash we've spent in just 1 week and what we have left from the cash budget, the next three weeks are going to be FUN, with an F'n in front of the fun. 

What am I going to do this week to keep us on track? Tonight I'll work on our meal inventory and actually create a menu for the remainder of the month (sooooo not fun).  I'll also add more stuff to our online garage sale www.joliet.bookoo.com and I'll stop by Goodwill on Friday to drop off some things.

Maybe I'll find an extra $5 to buy a MegaMillions ticket for Friday's drawing....winning that would help with this frugal challenge 4sure!

Day 3: A new clothesline & family time

We're starting day three of our No Spend Challenge having already spent $125! Seriously, right out of the gate we had to fork over some dough. But, I will say that we made this amount stretch much further than we would have before.  (Read the following using the voice of the dude from the Price is Right, the one who makes the Showcase of a ceramic Dalmatian sound like a pot of gold!)
Tell them what $125 gets them Kim
  • A full tank of gas ($30)
  • $60 dollars worth of groceries for $34--I  love coupons & sales!
  • A Doctor's appointment ($35 a pop)
  • A refill of prescriptions ($4 a month)
  • Birthday gifts for 2 little boys ($20)
  • Anchors to hang our new clothesline ($2)
You're thinking...you still spent a good amount of money is 2 days, Kim. What makes this different? The difference is we are actually thinking about our needs and planning on how to spend the money. Last month, $125 would have been spent in about 2 hours for dinner & "something cool" we should get for the house, kid, yard, etc. And, $125 is all the cash we took out. The cash is gone until next Friday when we'll take another $125 to last us hopefully to the end of the month (but I do have budgeted an extra $100 just in case).

Other "frugal" things we've done or are planning on doing:
  • Transferred our credit card balance to our no-balance one that was offering 0% interest for 6 months-saving us up to $300!
  • hanging 99% of our laundry out to dry instead of using our electric dryer.
  • keeping the ceiling fans going to circulate the air in the house to keep it cool...turning on the AC only when extremely necessary.
  • freezing half of all the fruits and freezable veggies we've been buying-this cuts down on throwing out anything when it goes bad from us not using it!
  • Making homemade pizza dough this weekend to freeze
  • And I'm most excited about: figuring out how to 'can' my famous Vodka Sauce so I can make a big vat of it and not have to freeze it...our freezer hasn't any more room!

This "No Spend Challenge" (NSC) is not just about not spending money, its also about saving on utilities, enjoying what we already have, getting closer as a family, and taking the time and effort to stop-look-listen to the present...stop rushing for tomorrow and looking back on yesterday asking "Where did it go" and answering "I can't remember".

Yep, this NSC is about living today for today and making every action count!

Now I'm off to make some cookie dough for a few orders I have!

Have a great holiday weekend!



Big Girl Bed Blessing

What is this feeling I've got going on? By gollie it's excitement!

July 1 is just around the corner and let the challenge begin.  This weekend we kicked off the challenge with decluttering. The things we had collecting dust in the basement were picked up yesterday by some folks that were looking for exactly what we were offering. 

Everything happens for a reason. Yesterday it felt great to give our things to others who will be good stewards of them.

So what happened? Just as soon as we committed our things to their new owners a close family friend came over with a beautiful daybed and trundle, mattresses and all, for B's room. Toddler-bed, schmoddler-bed, we've got a twin bed as her "Big Girl Bed" and she loves it!

Just as we were passing on our possessions and decluttering our lives, so too was this close friend.  It's a circle of giving to give and being blessed with unexpected receipts!

FromTheFarm.com


FromTheFarm.com
I'm all stoked about our July No Spend Challenge. One of our new directives is to go to the Farmer's Market here in town on Monday nights.

Well, it's Monday night and I completely forgot about it! Seeing that I was lucky enough to just brush my teeth today all other hygiene postponed, the market will not be graced with my presence.

BUT, I found a virtual Farmer's Market,  FromTheFarm.com that sells seasonal produce, meats, flowers, all things farmer markety and ships it to you whenever you want it! From the luxury of my bedhead I can order what we need at Farmer's Market prices!

Check out their Weekly Specials! I'll post their specials regularly too!

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