Shopping With Purpose And Not For Fun

This is going to be a long year.  I have a bit of a bargain store shopping addiction. 

My daughter needed a present for a birthday party.  In December we donated our cache of sale toys for Toys4Tots.  I did manage to scrounge up a new card and gift wrap from my stockpile but I still needed to buy some gifts.  We stopped at 5 Below.  All I bought for myself was a 50 cent bottle of water. 

Soon that won't seem like a big deal.  Right?

A Better Philosophy For Holiday Shopping

I wish I had read Libby Balke's of Bargain Babe Christmas shopping post earlier this year. 

It's too late for me to stick to only three gifts but I definitely think it will be something I do next year. 

This is her variation of the Three Gift Rule:

1. An educational gift
2. An “experiential” gift
3. A “want” gift (this is the wild card, to make sure someone’s top “must have” doesn’t fall through the cracks)

Happy Birthday To My Husband!

This woman knows she's blessed with an excellent life partner. I couldn't ask for a better husband or father for my children.

We've got a nice pile of presents for him to unwrap. I don't think he'll mind that my daughter chose an Aldi advertisement and an old scrap of wedding paper for wrapping paper.

Hopefully the "sausage" gravy I have to make with powdered milk and tvp will be palatable too.
This is my first year attempting to make my own coconut pecan frosting too. Can you really mess up homemade frosting though? Fat and sugar, so what's not to like?
I've got groupon coupons set aside for lunch/dinner too.

Happy Birthday, Sugar! I see Monty Python and video games in your future.

Overstuffed- I Bought Too Much For the Kids

After I had sorted through all the toys and stocking stuffers, it seems I have a wee bit too much.

I decided to save half the stocking stuffers for Easter Baskets and part of the big toys for their birthdays in February rather than give them too much right now.
I'm still working on giving them the right amount that makes for a good Christmas without overdoing it.
It's just so hard when I see so much I'd like to give them. Especially when it's a good deal.

Stocking Stuffer Ideas

I've been squirrelling away stocking stuffers for months. My favorite part of Christmas morning is watching everyone dump their stockings and go through the goodies. I love getting stuff in my stocking too and Hubby and the kids are really good at shopping for me.

Candy (Walgreens had some chocolate figurines on sale for .29 cents in their ad)
Gum
Pens/Pencils/Markers
Scotch Tape (if you have a little girl like mine who likes to "invent")
Mini staplers/staples
Super Glue- My Hubby loves Lock Tite
String/Twine (for the handy type guy or the inventing child)
Nail Polish
Nail Files
Sharpies (I asked for sharpies this year)
Mini bottles of lotion and bath gel
Batteries
Hot Wheels or Match Box cars
Polly Pockets (great use of gently used yard sale purchased dolls- bonus is they come with shoes)
Stockpiled McDonalds toys
Lip Balm (plain flavor non shiny for the guys)
Cartoon Band Aids
Stickers
Tooth brushes
Socks
Nuts (my daughter loves pistachios)
Mini liquor bottles (for the adults only, ahem)
Eye glass repair kit
Bubbles
Homemade Scribble Cookies
Homemade Bean Bags
Cd and Dvds (bonus if thrifted, swapa dvd'd, or garage saled)
Hair Clips and Pony Tail Holders
Aquarium stuff like fish pellets, weekend feeder, or chlorine remover for those who have fish
Plant Food Sticks
Seeds for the gardener
Mini Sewing Kits (even the ones you get at nicer hotels)
Laundry Detergent Samples (great for college students)
Favorite Fruit- My Hubby loves mangoes
Pet Nail Clippers for your animal lover


What else could you put in a stocking? Feel free to comment.

I should just do all my Christmas Shopping Online and In Thrift Stores

The title pretty much sums everything up.

Oh, and Walgreens for stocking candy. Because you know, you really can't find good candy at the thrift store. At least not the disgusting Sponge Bob gummy thing I bought for Big Girl.

Anyway, Hubby took the kids to a pajama party Christmas thing at church this morning so Mom and I ducked out for some super not-so-retail therapy.

Our first stop was the Goodwill. All Christmas was half off so naturally I picked up some wrapping paper that I don't really need but I guess wrapping paper is a Christmas gazingus pin for me. I also picked up a few kids books and a Starbucks coffee mug for a quarter. Mom was in the market for a new book or two to read so she picked up two hardbacks. What I really enjoyed was seeing people obviously shopping for presents in the toy and doo dad aisles. One lady in particular was gingerly picking up things and looking them over really well before she placed them in her cart. See, you can be a thoughtful thrift store gifter too!

Then we decided to check out the Feed My People thrift store which is a little country thrift store where volunteers sort and price the merchandise. You can find a lot of needle pointed pillow cases and bits and bobs of ribbon ends bagged together for a quarter. Today they had books for a nickle apiece. And then they rolled out a cart of Sara Lee bread for everyone to take a loaf or two since the pantry had extra bread. It was like we won the lottery! I bought new packages of Christmas ribbon and stocking stuffers of new glitter and a tonka truck for a quarter a apiece.
I picked up a copy of The Tao of Physics for my nerd husband or one of his nerd friends. For a Nickel! I passed by a complete set of Hot Wheels track, a bag full of Noah's Ark figurines, and other great toys. I just didn't need any more big presents. I spent about $7 but bought a lot of stuff. I could have bought our kids entire Christmas (minus gross Sponge Bob candy) for less than $20 today.
My Mom spent 45 cents on book and left with two loaves of bread. I think she was quite tickled.

Maybe next year I'll do the bulk of my shopping at Goodwill and Feed My People.

Sitting here alone with my cocoa

Hubby and I share most everything. And now he has passed down his nasty virus that kept him home from work all of last week. Yay!

I'm feeling a bit better little by little. Being home with the four year old was beginning to wear me thin though. I sent Hubby and the kids out for dinner tonight. And now I am missing my family and don't feel good enough to do any chores that have been piling up or any Christmas cards or present wrapping. I did about three Christmas cards today before I gave up because it was making me snarly. Not the right mood to address Christmas cards.

I'm hoping tomorrow is better. I plan on sleeping in tomorrow. The past two nights I have been up between 4:30 and 5:00 feeling miserable. I'd take a pill and then fall blissfully back asleep for half an hour before the dingity danged alarm clock went off and ruined my happiness. Children must be fed and sent to school no matter how crumby I feel. But, tomorrow morning is mine! Muahhahhhha.

I'm glad I did a shop till you drop earlier in the week right now. We have plenty of food and I am done shopping for gifts. I ended up just buying Little Debbie holiday cakes for the trash and recycling guys but since I don't actually know who they are or have a personal relationship with them, I feel that is acceptable.

I haven't heard back from the food pantry about adopting a family yet and I'm starting to worry. I started stockpiling food stuffs. If I don't hear back by next week I'll just make a lump donation to them and consider that my holiday good deed. I also have a lot of donations to make to their thrift store. So, they can make a bit of money from my donations and get out the food that I bought for the adopted family.

My kids have a date with Santa tomorrow morning. I guess I do need to get up early enough to comb the snarls out of Big Girls hair and put a bow in for her. I'm hoping they don't ask for something that I haven't already bought for them because they won't get it because I am done done done shopping.

Today I did find out that I have to bring a new ornament for a gift exchange at the next Brownie meeting. The kids got their yearly ornaments from Cracker Barrel this year for .99 cents. They have free gift wrapping so maybe I'll take Big Girl there to check them out. The ornaments have to be new with tags so I can't gift one of the cute salt dough ornaments that we made in November. They are now gracing our Christmas tree.

And now I'm going to lay on the couch like a slug and think about all the chores that are going undone and wishing my annoying wonderful family would come back because I miss them.
Tomorrow is a new day, dang it.

Handmade Christmas Journals and Gift Tags

One of my favorite bloggers, Katie from Making This Home is living her dream of supporting herself and her husband by selling her handmade journals and other items. I love them all!
Check out Gadanke.com to see what I'm talking about.

I bought myself the Love Where We Live mini book. It's just precious. Every time I see it I get excited about the possibility of making my home a haven.

She just came out with the cutest Christmas tags. That made me think that her handmade journals would be a great Christmas gift for someone who loves handmade items or who loves to journal. I think she also sells gift certificates.

If you're interested in simple living you might just want to read her blog for inspiration.

Pantry Challenge Day 19

Pantry Challenge-

Breakfast- Kids had the last of the instant oatmeal and shared a breakfast sausage. Hubby had a veggie burger. I had a piece of toast. (I'm doing much better at eating breakfast!)
Lunch- Little Guy and I had scrambled eggs with cheese and buttered toast. Apple Juice.
Dinner- I am seriously craving take out Chinese food. And I can never manage to recreate the same dishes when I try at home. So, I don't know if I'll end up having Hubby pick up dinner or not. Maybe we have a coupon. Maybe I'll just cook some noodles and throw some broccoli, peanuts and hoisin sauce on them and pretend.

(p.s. I made dinner after all. This is the end product.)



Whew. Tired after multiple errand stops this morning. I don't have my receipts handy so I'll have to guess at how much I spent.

Shop N Save- spent about $34 on the gift card we bought last November with our Entertainment guide coupons. Bought eggs, milk, clearance apple sauce, cheese, Gatorade, light bulbs, pain reliever, bread, a sale book for a gift, contact lens solution, and a new contact case. I had coupons for the pain reliever, Gatorade and contact solution.

Deal$- two bags of candy for b-day goody bags and a pack of Diego sandwich bags for the lunch box- Spent $3

Famous Footwear- We had our first desire for a popular fad clothing item- Skechers Twinkle Toes shoes. While I don't think I need to buy my child everything she wants (in fact I plan not to) I made a decision to please her. I spent part of yesterday shopping online doing research on prices and I checked our shoe inventory to see if we needed shoes. She asked at the right time as she is starting to outgrow the shoes we bought her for the beginning of the school year. So, I handed over my rewards card and spent 29.00 on her new shoes. I hope she likes them.
Michaels- Another birthday party invitation came this week. My budget limit for kid's birthday party gifts is $10. I typically spend around $7.50. I put my 40% store coupon in my pocket and went in search of a present or goody bag favors. I found a toob of pirates and a copy of Robinson Crusoe for the birthday boy, two plain gold after Christmas clearance baskets (for Easter), a .50 cent fridge magnet to do list/calendar for me, and a $1 clearance flash light for Little Guy's Easter basket. I love the "Toob" toys. I found Jamestown settlers along with Egyptian Pharaohs. I'll be going back with another 40% off coupon to get some for Big Girl's Easter basket.

Library- Our standard books and dvds for the weeks entertainment. I also spent $3 on books and magazines from the sale table to give as a gift.

And now we're home and I plan on doing some housework before I settle down with a fresh library book.

Target Toy Clearance Again- Stock up on toys

I took the kids through Target today to check out their toy clearance. Right now in my store it looks like select toys are 50% off.
We walked every aisle to make sure that there was indeed a toy clearance going on. The pickings are getting slimmer and all clearance Thomas die casts were already gone. It was really hard to leave the last GeoTrax train set there but I've promised myself to let Hubby have the big present shopping this year which will probably be put off until the week of Christmas because that's how he rolls.

I did get some Tonka truck sets for 2.98 to put back for Christmas and birthdays. Big Girl has another birthday party to attend this weekend so I let her pick out two presents to take. She picked out a Hello Kitty puzzle (3.99) and a Beach Ken doll (5.44) for less than $10 combined (neither on sale).
Lately I have flat out refused to spend more than ten dollars on a kid's birthday party present. With my stockpile of wrappings and cards we stick to this pretty well.

I did buy some clearance summer clothes for both kids. The 75% off rack produced a t-shirt and shorts for Little Guy's storage drawer at .75 cents each. I scored some pretty Big girl summer tops for next year for 1.75 each.

Now we're going to settle in and enjoy our one week this summer that isn't crazy with activity. It's also the last week of the library reading challenge and we've got a lot of books to read.

Yesterdays Grocery Receipt Tally

My fridge was looking strangely bare after trying to clean it out. It's not anymore.


Sappington Farmer's Market (make sure to print the online coupon for $10 off Thursday)

Fig Bars- 1.00
Home Pride Wheat- 1.99
Farmer's sliced white cheese- 2.70
Trix Yogurt cups- 3.29 (had coupon)
DanActive yogurt- 2.99 (had coupon)
Coffeemate liquid creamer- 2.59 (had coupon)
Dozen local eggs x 2- 2.00
Gallon of skim milk- 2.25
Always Save Quesadilla pizza- .79
Boca Grilled Veggie patties- 3.79
Reeses Puffs cereal x 2- 5.00 (had coupons)
Always Save Ginger Snaps- 1.19
Best Choice Light Microwave popcorn- 1.69
XL Hershey's Bar- 1.59 (b-day gift for Mom)
Ronnoco Coffee Beans .58 pounds- 5.21 (b-day gift for Mom)
Lavender Hand Soap- 1.00
Funny teeth- 1.00 (that's what happens when you shop with a 3 year old)
Homegrown local tomatoes ($1 a pound)- 1.11
Package of garlic bulbs- 1.20
2 pound Bag of green grapes- 3.03
Small head of Boston lettuce- .60
2 yellow onions- 1.03
Package of local plums- 3.88

Original total- 53.86 After store coupon and MFR coupons- 41.01

Wonder Hostess Bread Thrift

2 loaves of wheat bread- 1.58
1 box of Ding Dongs- 1.59
3 cans of Vess pop- 1.17
2 large clearance bags of seasoned stuffing- 1.00
5.53

I 44 Surplus Discount Groceries in Rolla

Bottle of 100% Juice- 1.00
2 big boxes of raisins- 1.00
Dunkin' Donuts coffee- 4.75
4 boxes of Morning Star mini corn dogs- 7.96
Pepsodent Toothpaste- .79
Minute Maid OJ juice boxes- 2.25
11 assorted granola bars and power bars- 1.35
4 boxes of Stash White Christmas tea- 7.00 (to save for neighbor gift baskets)
Reallime lime juice- 1.25
Big can of Bush's vegetarian baked beans- 1.19
Theraflu caplets- 1.25
Children's Advil- 1.50
Tylenol Go Tabs- .20
2 bags of Nestle Butterscotch chips- 1.98

Total 33.29

Total Spending for Yesterday- 79.83

I also brought home a bag of school supplies that my Mom bought from Staples and a bag of garden produce from her garden. I feel like I made the most of our money and time yesterday.

Been on "Becation"

Ahh, sweet summer time. Time for vacations and family.

Not really anything especially frugal about it but we did have good family fun.
And no tv for almost a whole week. Yay!

Big Girl and I went to a few garage sales this morning. We found a nice basket to pack a wedding gift of kitchen towels and sale/coupon purchased spices. She also got a hand sewn princess gown for next Halloween. Other than that, not many deals and that is -ok- with me. Especially after I spent time working in the kids room sorting and putting away clothes. We've got a big tub full of old clothes for a start on a garage sale pile.

Big Girl has a birthday party to attend later so we went to the basement and found a $2 garage sale purchased paint set (with $14.99 price tag still attached- I removed it) in my gift tub. I wrapped it in Dollar Store paper and a recycled bow. We still have to make the card. My current goal is to spend no more than $7 on a friend's gift without being chintzy.

We're getting back in the groove working on chores around the house.
Right now, Hubby is steam cleaning the toy room and I'm making whole grain blueberry pancakes. Aldi had good blueberries yesterday so I bought two containers and spent $50 on this week's groceries. I did miss my own cooking even though the Lodge's buffet food was fairly decent.

Back to my pancakes.

Flours For Valentines Day and Reduced Food Buget this Week.

photo from Amazon.com.
We spent $45 at Goodwill today buying school clothes, Disney videos, educational computer games, birthday presents (NIP) and Easter basket fillers. My favorite purchase was is a copy of the Fix-It and Forget-It Cookbook.

So, that leaves me with $15 in grocery and household money if I don't want to cheat this week.
All I really need is milk and fruit anyway so I think we're good.

On a sweet note: Hubby was hinting that we wanted to get me special flowers for Valentine's Day and we should stop at Whole Foods (lovingly referred to as Whole Paycheck in our house). I said, "Don't go to Whole Foods, go to Aldis. They have cheap flowers." Then he admitted that he wanted to buy me specialty "flours" like kamut and spelt so I could expand my bread making repertoire. He must know I was bemoaning my ability to splurge on those. Yay! That's a gift I'll love. I'm sure that he wasn't thinking at all about how nice it will be to have all those fresh loaves of bread to try. Not all all. ; ) Now I just have to get out my bread machine books and write down a list of ingredients for him to purchase. It feels like Christmas. Nothing like buckwheat flour in your stocking.

What am I getting Hubby for Valentine's Day? A box of after Christmas chocolate with a big old Christmas tree on the front and a new car.

A royal wardrobe on a peasant budget.

Add another $13.69 to my negative budget balance. But, I couldn't resist splurging on a new Princess dress for Big Girls birthday present next month.

She received a whole wardrobe of dress up shoes for Christmas and has been clomping around in them every day in the same tired too small and ripped dress. I let her choose her favorite from the $7.99 set of dresses on etoys.com clearance. Now all I have to do is bake a cake.

Birthday Presents for the Frugal Party Invitee

I don't agree that you have to spend a lot of money to attend a child's birthday party- no matter what the party may have cost the parents.

The present my daughter and I just wrapped was less than $6. I spent $5 (not on sale) on a fairy Barbie and .50 cents on a clearance Barbie dress. We made the card with stuff from the Art of Childhood Crayola kit I received from a rebate. The wrapping paper came from my Grandma's stash. I'm lucky (or pack ratty) enough to have a collection of gift wrapping paraphernalia and card making material. But, you can always wrap your present in child decorated paper bags, Sunday comics, or a clean potato chip bag turned so the silver side shows. Even if you go the more expensive route of buying a .50 cent card and gift bag or roll of paper (my favorite) from Dollar tree you're still only spending $1.50. Find a nice $5 gift at a discount store and you're done.

When I was kid I was more than happy to receive a package of dress up jewelry that probably only cost $2-$3. And that was when we did have a birthday party. I think I'd like to return to that simpler time when gift giving wasn't a stressful, expensive endeavor. And if my gifts are too humble for the recipient- I will never know and quite frankly, why should it bother me? That's just not where my priorities lie.

In a month I will be hosting a joint birthday party for my own children and I'm not quite sure of the proper etiquette to let people know that small inexpensive gifts (or even none at all) are very welcome. After all, we aren't having a party to get a lot of loot.

Birthday Gifts for Dad

My Dad's birthday was this last week. He's a man of few hobbies and needs. So, I made him his favorite cake, Hubby bought him some scratchers and lotto, and Big Girl made him a card.

The price for all of this: $5.67.

The cake was free after rebate and I used a coupon for the frosting.

Ideas for Christmas: 72 Hour Kits as Gifts

I have two brothers and every year I find it harder and harder to buy gifts for them.

These 72 Hour Kits would be great gifts. Thanks Joys of Home!

Father's Day and Hospitality

I always wonder how I should be/treat people who come to work on projects at our home. In the past two years we've had a slew of them through our yard. Today our play land was delivered and installed in our backyard.

I was inspired by Monica of the homespun heart to show my gratitude to the young men installing our children's new plaything. While I was making pizza for lunch out of Matzos, I decided to make extra so we'd have some to share. I took out a plate and some soft drinks while they were finishing up. It was a small thing and had I planned ahead of time I probably would have whipped up some cookies. But, I feel better for having done it.

And you know what? Those matzos make a nice thin pizza crust and went together so quickly. I topped them with sauce, white cheese, parmesan cheese, tomato slices and a sprinkle of Paul Prudhomme's Herbal Pizza & Pasta Magic Seasoning.

This year I have a blank where father's day is concerned. My father is on dialysis and not in good health. His hobbies are few and he takes care of them himself. And he needs nothing. So, I'm making pumpkin pie for him. It does not require a trip to the grocery store. Pumpkin pie is not his very favorite but I think he'll like it just the same.

*The Paul Prudhomme's seasoning is wonderful but a little goes a long way. I try to buy it on sale and like to include it with the other herbs and season for wedding gifts.*

Recycling Thomas

I did a major splurge ($15) on a fleece blanket for my Thomas the Train loving boy. The nice paper wrapper was too good to throw in the recycling bin just yet. I know two little boys turning 2 this month so I'm making my own cards.

Shopping Finds

Michaels still has some Christmas mark downs. I found a few soaps like this one for .20 cents apiece. This one has a small color bleed so I'm keeping it. I have five others. I bought five small red and white baskets for .99 apiece. I'm getting a head start on the neighbor's gift bags for next year.



One of my favorite things about living near a city is the International grocery stores. Through trial and error (read the ingredients on the packaging so you won't be like me and bite into a delicious looking onion flavored cookie- gah!) we have found our favorite soy sauce and hoisin sauce. The Nestle hot chocolate looked so inviting that I had to bring it home. And it is delicious- it's a very dark brew with just a hint of sweetness. I add sugar and a bit of milk to make it creamy. So good!