Spending ~ to aid the children...

Yeah, I can justify $70 spent at the school fete. It's the other spending which is getting a bit ridiculous...

After twelve months of penny-pinching and stretching everything as far as possible (plus a little bit more), our move has resulted in an extra $100 a week available in our budget. And we've been using it on silly things, like $10+ bubbles, chocolate, new books (as in full price, not op shop) and take away coffee to the tune of $50 a week. Ridiculous and frivolous and not really within our spending/income capacity.

We knew upon arrival we would have some outstanding bills regarding the tenants and the need to restock the pantry ~ arriving with nothing food-wise meant a few hundred dollars would be required.

I think we are now at the point we can reign in the spending, return to a weekly budget of about $250 and use the rest to pay down the debts. Time to head back into the Simple Savings Vault and refresh ourselves on some of the great ways to make do without missing out. It's definitely time to get back into baking and making our own repairs on clothes. Most importantly, its time to get back on track with menu planning and grocery shops.

Our principal ~ the queue for this was enormous! 

(as for the $70 at the fete, no ~ I can't really justify $70. Had it stayed at the planned $30 it would have been reasonable, or if we'd won something in one of the raffles maybe, but as neither happened I guess I have to put it down to a 'we've never been able to do that before' experience and never do it again...)

Menu planning miracles 

I have been menu planning now for well over a year although I must admit to being a little lax over the last month while settling in often changing our minds on a whim, or even worse taking the lazy way and getting take-away. So its time to get back to the way I was before we left Victoria!

Meal planning has transformed the kitchen into an organised place where all kinds of delicious aromas float about and mouth-watering meals appear with minimum stress, fuss or panic. No 'its six o'clock and I have no idea what we are having for dinner' in this house.  Even better, they arrive on the table with little or no impact to the bank balance. I can't believe how much I can save on our food bill while our family get to eat better than some of the local restaurants and hotels. All it takes is a piece of paper stuck to my fridge!

I never thought I would be the kind of person to follow a meal regime having been an ad hoc dinner preparer for decades, but the results are so startling that I am a total convert. I've always enjoyed cooking; I just saw it as something I never had enough time to do for every meal, every day, especially when we all worked or studied full time. My collection of recipe books had been neglected, even those I picked up at the OpShop with good intentions of picking one new recipe to try every week. Tipping that goes for a lot of people :D

After stopping work and waiting for spinal surgery (and more so when back on my feet), there had to be a way to ensure good meals would be made, especially if I was to run out of oomfph and Hubby was picking up the slack. I reviewed what was on hand, had a look through my good old 'Cookery the Australian Way' school book and other simple meal type recipe books, drew up a menu plan and straight away couldn't believe how quick and easy it was to jot a menu plan to paper. Here's how I do it:

Step 1: Food on hand:
Have a look through the fridge, freezer and pantry. What staples are there? What meats are in the freezer? What vegetables have I got in the crisper (or garden) to use? Do these form an entire meal or what extras do I need to make the meal? Is there something here (say with mince, or chicken) that I can base a new/untried recipe around? Is there a recipe I have been wanting to try? Can you make one meal stretch out into two? Pies are our usual stretch meal ~ making the Sunday roast return later in the week. Or if there is only a little left over, its a pasta sauce or weekend toasties.

Step 2: Choose some recipes:
Check recipe books, go online, ask a friend for that delicious meal. No doubt you'll have your stock standards and your favourite weekly/fortnightly recipes, and a couple of bulk recipes that get made every few weeks to stock up ready for quick meals or lazy brain days (also known as 'ooops - forgot to take the meal out of the freezer' days).
When you find a recipe you'd like to add to the week's dinner repertoire, pick a day on your menu planner and write it down. I write the name of recipe book and page number, or the website address and recipe name on the menu plan. As well as making it easier to re-find when the time comes to cook, it ensures that Husband knows where to look in case I am having a 'medication' day, or muscle spasms and finding it hard to manage on the day.

Step 3: Check your schedule:
You do need to bear in mind what your commitments are for the week - if Tuesday night is training night meaning you're home later than usual, that is not the best night to schedule making roast pork marinaded in an orange and ginger demi-glaze, with perfectly crispy crackling for the first time! But its the perfect night to schedule the slow cooker meal this night, or use a portion of bulk cooked bolognese and simply prepare the pasta.

And menu planning is not just the dinner schedule, think about some baking to cut the cost of store bought snacks or work day muffins. I've got into the habit of adding one biscuit recipe and one cake, slice or muffin recipe to make per week and this gives us enough for the week's lunches and afternoon teas. Home baking alone has saved a small fortune on snacks and lunchtime treats.

Step 4: Write the shopping list.
While you're filling in your planner, write down any of the recipe ingredients you don't have or need to check the cupboards to see if you've got enough. While finalising your meal plan, you get to start your shopping list for the week. I try to have planned my menu on Sunday, buy everything on my shopping list on Monday or Tuesday when mark downs seem to more available and I'm done. Being prepared with the shopping means I don't end up popping back for 'one more thing' and walk out with 10 or so 'great buys'. It's not a great buy if it blows the shopping budget, is it?

Step 5: Put it up!
My planner is on the freezer or fridge where everyone can see it every time they go to the big white box in the kitchen. I look at it each morning and go straight to the freezer to take out any meat that needs defrosting and I am half way there to being ready. Hubby and I know exactly what is on for dinner and how long it will take. It really is that easy!

We eat consistently on time at a suitably appropriate hour because I'm not fluffing around trying to think what to cook. Being organised is much better than throwing any old thing together for the sake of a meal - dinner is a great time to sit talk, enjoy a meal and wind down after a busy day.

I'm enjoying cooking new things and the family is enjoying eating them. Because the meals are balanced, it's much easier to adapt them to suit everyone's preferences or tweak to work in with what we have on hand. It has also helping me to restock our pantry from scratch without the need to spend $100s immediately on all the herbs, spices, oils, flours, sugars and tinned items like tomatoes and tuna I had accumulated over the years for daily, weekly and occasional use. Meal planning ensures I know what is in the cupboards and I can get new, fresh goods as the need becomes apparent.

Use any recipes you like for your menu planner - you know what your family will eat! Our meals look as if you have spent ages preparing them but they are so quick! The meals look as good as those we've had at restaurants, often taste better and certainly cost a heck of a lot less.  With the majority of ingredients used being items you already have in the pantry,  primarily Home Brand and generic ingredients, I can usually have the evening meal budget come in around $2per head. It's sitting around $2.50 at the moment as we find all the bargain spots and wait for our first veggies to grow ~ but it means a weekly shop of $50 is not unrealistic and the odd bottle of bubbles can make it into the trolley. *grins*

This weeks menu is/was:

Sunday: Roast Chicken (Tandoori) and veg
Monday: BBQ T-Bone steak and salad
Tuesday: Veal Tortellini with tomato and basil sauce
Wednesday: Tandoori chicken and veg pie
Thursday: Roasted pumpkin soup with Turkish pida bread
Friday: Fish patties and chips
Saturday: Baked beans, Bacon and eggs on toasted grainy bread
Sunday: Roast something - probably lamb or chicken (in the freezer)

The tortellini was one of those fresh deli packs, servings for four, marked down to $3.03 from $5,90; bought 2 and froze them. I am making the soup this afternoon, using the remaining pumpkin bought for $2 from the Shalom Market trip 3-4 weeks ago, and will share the recipe on FaceBook. The fish patties will use up the left over rice frozen from last week's stir fry and a tin of homebrand tuna.

If you are interested in seeing and using the menu plan, or my shopping list / pantry stock take sheet ~ leave a comment and I'll work out how this can be made available for followers to use. I've used google docs previously, however any suggestions would be welcome.

Time to get ready for the school walk ~ hope to catch up with you all during the day and I'll get that pumpkin soup made and the recipe posted on FaceBook.  Enjoy your day and let's lower that debt and increase those savings together.

Money Saving Markets...

All it takes is sticking to the list ~ and adhering gaffer tape or some other sealant across the mouths of 11yo boys who want this, need that and plead for those as well... *sighs*

SmallBoy was reasonably good to be honest ~ but there were so many objects of desire he will be saving lots of pocket money to obtain some extravagant items . . . or blowing it every week at the Markets. As for the produce available ~ this little chickie babe was in fresh, organic food heaven! For the princely sum of $31.20, we purchased broccoli, cauliflower, pumpkin, sweet potato, parsnip, zucchini, radish, tomatoes, snow peas, beans, bok choy, coz & mixed lettuce, cucumber, pink lady apples, pineapple, grapefruit, strawberries and, the diamond of them all, bananas! 

This is only half of the booty from Shalom Markets

Bananas have not been on the shopping list for months due to the ridiculous charge of $15+ per kilo. Blow me over if we didn't find them for $6 per kilo. Our new neighbour Bob said not to buy anything until we'd done a lap of the market and, knock me over one more time, we found three stalls selling them for $5 per kilo. It was like winning the lottery only so much sweeter!

Can you see the strawberries in the photo? We bought two packs of those for $7 and let me tell you we have never eaten such big, juicy, sweet-smelling berries ever! Using a little over half the pack for dessert tonight (dusted with caster sugar and decorated with a big dollop of cream) and felt like we were on millionaire's row! How the little things can mean so much ~ especially when you've not had them for so long. Yes, it was a splurge - $1.50 each on dessert when our dinners work out to cost roughly the same!

This Week's Menu 

It's back to being a lot more accountable with our budget. Because we plan to purchase a few (dozen) acres of land in the next three-four years, the savings need to start as soon as possible. As food is a major part of our expenses, we have allowed a weekly budget of $100. Spending $30 at the market on fruit and veg means we will have about $70 for "everything else" ~ meat, cleaning items, cat needs and personal hygiene products. We don't have a well stocked pantry or freezer at this stage and will be buying as much marked down, close to use-by foods as possible. 

Tonight's meal of BBQ pork loin in plum and ginger marinade was a $19 piece marked down to $12. Not only did it provide a delicious dinner (with all the fresh veggies from the Market), about a third was saved to become a pie for tomorrow night's meal. Cooking up extra vegetables tonight means all the filling is pre-prepared and only the pastry needs to be made. Even the water used for steaming the veggies was kept as this is more flavoursome than water for the pie filling's roux. For under $21 ($12 pork, $6 veg, $2 pastry), we will have two main meals for three hearty eaters ~ at $3.50 per head it is a little more than the budgeted $2-$3 per head I aim for, but by week's end it should average out.

So this week's menu is set as follows:

Sunday: BBQ Pork and Roast Veg  ~ $3.50pp

Monday: Pork and Veg pie ~ $3.50pp

Tuesday: Sausages and salad ~ $2.00pp

Wednesday: Beef Stir Fry ~ $2.00pp

Thursday: Sticky Chicken Drumsticks and rice ~ $1.50pp

Friday: Nachos ~ $1.00pp

Saturday: Fish Patties and salad ~ $1.50pp

Sunday: Roast Lamb and veg ~ $2.50pp

Tomorrow I am off to my first chiropractic session in sunny Queensland. This first appointment is a little pricey ~ but the x-rays are bulk billed and I am keen to see how the ol' back is looking. I am confident my surgeon's forecast will be spot-on. He is, after all, the one medically trained and surgically experienced to provide such input and judgement - and I feel I might even be a little ahead of the schedule. The pain meds have been re-reduced now the trauma of the travel is easing and a little click'n'pop to compliment the acupuncture should iron out some of those remaining niggles.

Not 'perfect' yet ~ but I feel I am ahead of his five-year estimate on recovery. To quote Craig Ferguson from the Late Late Show: ~ "In Your Face!" *laughs* ~ I think I got a little touch of the sun today ~ hot, flushed and a little sandy. Now who would have dreamed I get to say that in winter!?!

Competition Reminder 

Don't forget to post the following statement (exactly) either in the blog comments below, on the facebook page or via twitter.to get your chance to win this gorgeous plush Koala and a tube of EukyBearub courtesy of my friends at EukyBear and Bosistos! 

I'm going to snuggle up with #EukyBearub when I have a cold ~ Thanks @MandsMission

Each mention gets you an entry and, if you get a friend to follow the blog or facebook (I'd like to include Twitter but it confuses me still and would hate to miss someone by accident) - get your friend to include "my friend (your name) suggested I follow" and you can have an extra entry.

PLUS: I have a special referral prize to be given to a current follower who has at least one friend join the Mands On A Mission facebook page. To be in the running to receive a gorgeous Angel pin, make sure your friend includes your name in the comment along with the all important EukyBearub entry statement.

Entries close Sunday 31 July 2011 at 5pm with the winner announced the following week. Every entrant will be listed below so please let me know if you've not seen your name appear within 24hrs of your entry. 

Let me know if you'd like any information, recipes or details on how we are reducing our debt you think might help you save a little more or rid a debt burden. We might not have the answers for everyone, but we can always suggest what we would do if it was us in the same position.

Until tomorrow...

Life really is a beach ~ especially where we live now

Three Jars of Apples

I bottled three jars of apples ~ successfully!

What's more - I winged it!

Before I started out I jumped on to Simple Savings (my most favourite savings website) and searched for methods to do this. I searched 'bottling', 'preserving', 'canning' and, while there were plenty of methods and descriptions, when you've never done this before using old pasta or jam jars and lids, it can be a little daunting. I've made pate, using butter to seal in the meat paste and stored them in the fridge, and I've cooked up sauces and beetroot with a friend, using one of those Vacola steamer things and all the new bottles and seals.  I've even made jams using wax top seals. However, I've not done it solo alone.

And I've never used recycled jars, old lids and the oven alone. So I was a little daunted by the prospect. Reviewing some suggested links about 'how to' water bath, vacuum seal and other such techniques, I read up on various methods of how to boil water, put in a rack and get the lids to seal. I looked at diagrams with explanations which, by the end of it all, had me more confused than when I first decided this would be a good idea for storing apples, pears, tomatoes and ratatouille - considering there is no room left in the freezer due to frozen versions of these, and meat, potatoes, etc and more!

Mostly I kinda made it up and took pictures as I went to help determine any errors made along the way. Best news is, there were no mistakes and the pop-up buttons all sucked back in with a resounding 'thunk' - eventually. Ahhh - patience - I am glad I was *grins*

First I grabbed half a dozen glass jars and the matching metal lids. I knew they had to be metal and these all had that rubber inner rim already adhered to the top - this apparently means its limited to reuse opportunities but didn't effect the outcome this time. The jars and lids went into the sink, covered and filled with hot water. 

I left them soaking while I peeled the apples (16-20) and then grabbed a scourer and went back to scrub the jars to ensure all the paper and sticky gum from the old labels were removed. 

The jars (not the lids) sat in the oven - set to 160C - to dry and sterilise. You need to have the glass quite hot when it comes to putting the food inside, so always remember to use mitts or a folded tea-towel when handling them. 

While the jars sterilised, I made the stewed apples. I cut and quartered the apples, then cut just over half into chunks - because this is for apple crumble, I wanted to keep some of the apples as pieces and not have it like a puree or sauce. 

Placing all the apple into a pot with about 1/3 cup of hot water, I added 20 cloves, a teaspoon of mixed spice,  and a tablespoon of brown sugar. If the apples were tart or granny smiths, I'd probably have added double the brown sugar. Constantly stirring and mixing the apples, they softened and mooshied down nicely. Once happy with the consistency, I removed all the cloves from the pot. 

Before getting the hot jars from the oven, a clean tea towel was laid onto the side of the sink. If using a wooden chopping board, I'd probably do the same - you don't want hot glass in contact with a cold surface and risk cracking. The jars were filled with apple and the syrup/juice to about a finger width from the top of the lip and, wiping away any drips of apple from the rim, the lid screwed onto the jar as tight as possible. Again, as the jar is hot and filled with hot apples, its best to use a tea towel to avoid burning hands and fingers.

After the lids are screwed on nice and tight, you wait for the button to suck back in. This took about 30minutes ~ and all the will power in the world to not press it down, fiddle with it, check it over and over while waiting. You know that watching a kettle doesn't make it boil faster right? Well, neither does watching for vacuum seal buttons to suck back in. In fact, it was when I turned around the first one sucked in with a resounding 'thunk'.

Talk about excitement ~ you'd think something miracualous had occurred ~ this was the first bit of bottling I had undertaken solo alone in my life and I am SO proud it worked out so well. With no room left in the freezer for keeping foods stored, I can now get more out of (or in to) the pantry.

The Week Ahead

Sadly the forecast is for rain, rain and possible rain. We might get to top temperatures of 15, however 12 and 13 degrees seem to be the average expectation. *sobs* So, the fire is blazing, the house is warm and once we know what SmallBoy's options are after seeing the surgeon tomorrow, it's going to be a cooking and cleaning kind-of week methinks!!

Preserving wise ~ With new found confidence to push me on, I've got about 3 dozen pears to get bottled.  I've also got zucchini, tomatoes and onions for a ratatouille type mix to bottle. I might even give green tomato pickles and something spicy with leftover cabbage. If you've got any suggestions, please feel free to contribute *hint*

Money wise ~ We've made an enormous dent into the debt with the paying down of one account completely and finalising the outstanding balance of another. This week is 'poor' week when talking about income - but horribly expensive week with the mortgage, personal loan, credit card and 'all' the technology payments. I'm considering putting my mobile on a low pre-paid account, I don't use it terribly much and can link into Internet through the wireless when home for no charge - that should suit me fine. 

Entertainment wise ~ I've got some really cool stuff planned for the first week of the school holiday ~ if a trip into surgery is not required (can't give you any hints in case 'someone' reads this online *grins*). SmallBoy is a little sad, bored and disappointed he can't do things - not even simple activities like going on a tractor ride, exploring the junk store, climbing a tree. He is over playing on the computer, using the Xbox and reading books. *sighs* 

That's it for tonight. We've still got $11-$12 in the budget for this weeks groceries and milk will be needed tomorrow. Husband's mum has been up and left a few bananas for us ~ better than chocolate and definitely more expensive! I've not got a lot of fresh green vegetables left however there is broccoli, spinach, peas and beans in the freezer - some bought frozen plus some I've frozen. These will go into a pie during the week, no doubt. Possibly a big pot of vegetable soup is on the cards to use lentils and other dried beans I've discovered in the pantry.

Will let you know as the week goes on ~ its a real case of how low can we go. I'll be making savoury muffins and scones for some yummy lunches in lieu of sandwiches as we are out of bread. Personally, I am grateful for the opportunity to introduce alternatives to Husband and SmallBoy, alternatives that can be included in the lunch box on a regular basis. This should be fun *cheers*

Night y'all xx

New month, new budget sheet

Oh it's April - 

First important issue is SmallBoy ~ he is doing ok at the moment. He has knocked his broken foot going to the toilet and the pain sent him to tears and raised his temperature quite a bit. A quick call to the hospital and a re-visit to Emergency was required but all seems to be OK. A stronger pain medication dose is now in place and fingers-crossed nothing moved. We are not mentioning anything about operations, likely or not. I forgot to include the required purchase of a new ice pack ($11.95), an additional bandage ($12.50) and the 'hire' of two movies for SmallBoy's entertainment (free - only because the staff felt sorry for hubby when he was advised we had, and paid, $26 in late fees for a movie hired in July last year). 

I popped into school to collect SmallBoy's netbook to enable him to connect into school for work assignments, his 'publishing' book for project notes, his pencil case and a few library books. As mum is a teacher, she had previously suggested a few programmes school may be using. We have now linked into a comprehension programme, the Mathletics website and hope to connect to a few more so he does not fall behind with school work. 

It might sound odd we are doing this ~ however less than two hours before he fell, we had parent/teacher interviews where we leant SmallBoy was top of his class in comprehension and math, doing work at a level assigned to 13/14 year olds and discussed letting teachers know if he was bored or unstimulated by the class work so more challenging lessons could be given. He was on top of the world to hear only his handwriting needed improvement - one thing we have been working for several years with continuous, albeit slow, progress. Knowing that, its obvious he enjoys learning and we certainly don't want his injury to disrupt what seems to be a keen student.

Back to Budgeting...

Friday is 'pay day'. I went to the supermarket. Coles has Whiskas cat food on special for 77c a can - half price - so I bought 30 cans of various flavours to keep the pussy-cats happy for a month! More than half of the final bill ($54.53) was cat food ~ the rest was spent on specials including Turkish rolls and pida breads, some triple choc chip biscuits marked down to .99c - usually around $4 and I cant make them as good as these ones! - yoghurt, corn chips (for nachos), fruit juice, milk and a wee splurge on a bottle of Coke! Should get us through until mid month and, fingers crossed, only milk will be required around then. Regardless, I've allowed $21 for groceries each week for the next three weeks.

Also needed a petrol station stop - filled the car from empty for $49. I had a myotherapy appointment and had my neck, shoulder and back worked on which was another $55. At the moment, these appointments are weekly and do need to be maintained. Considering the past two weeks have been the first in four years I have been able to look over my right shoulder, the therapy is definitely worth it! Forfeiting my acupuncture for the next few months to allow me to attend myotherapy on a weekly basis, sorry Peter - I do miss the appointments.

Husband did a little work for his former employer - only a few days over the past fortnight which brings an extra $200 to the budget this month. Straight onto VISA. Sure, I'd love to use it to get the blackberries dug out by someone other than me! But I'll call it exercise therapy - save another $50 (in my head) and aim to strengthen my right side, stretch my upper body and work on my more muscles. It's time to be more dedicated to health and fitness while still lowering the grocery costs.

According to 'Bill's Budget' - my monthly budget spreadsheet - we've got $2970 in this month and expenses of $2725 leaving about $240 for extra payments on debt accounts. When you compare the outgoings of the past few months, we are getting ahead with steady little amounts. I've budgeted $50 a week for fuel, but suspect this will be lower with SmallyBoy not being able to go to school next week and the school holidays. Plans to go away to the family holiday house are off - can't afford to get sand into a plaster cast - we'll just find fun things to do closer to home. 

Our outgoings this month are the mortgage (2x 596.06), Fuel ($200), Therapy ($220), Personal Loan ($397.86), Insurances ($125.35), Phones/Internet ($173.60), Water ($25), Gas and Elec ($100), VISA interest ($45), Groceries ($120) - oh and the obligatory $2 for the Home Help bill. Plus I've budgeted $50 for Easter as our gift giving here has always involved winter pyjamas and one chocolate bunny or bilby.

Bartering eggs during the week next week ~ hoping to get some corn, pumpkin and maybe some asian greens. We'll have our own potatoes soon and I gave some tomatoes and eggs to the neighbours knowing they are both on pensions themselves and no longer able to keep a vegetable garden growing. It's what you do when you've got neighbours - well, it should be :D

Chat tomorrow...

This Week Marks Changes

SmallBoy in the newly discovered creek - pic by Husband

I think life is settling into a semblance of order.

There is a flow I've not experienced before ~ and I think I am liking it a lot. When MudGuts was little and it was just me and him, three weekends of the month were spent cooking and playing board games as I worked while I was a single mum. MudGuts only had home made meals - as far as he knew McDonalds only served chips on special occasions and you had to be invited. Worked for years. SmallBoy thought the only drinks offered were fizzy so McDonalds held no interest - until he discovered you could get juice and thick shakes.

This weekend clothes were washed, dried and put away. A big hunt for eggs was conducted, no - not early easter eggs! Chook eggs - and I found a dozen in the blackberries - however these were very VERY old eggs and all ended up in the bin or over the fence. Somewhere on this property are another dozen recently laid. The lounge room got a tidy up and SmallBoy cleaned his room (as much as any 10year old can) so when his friend invited himself over there was no issue. Pie was made, lights went out for Earth Hour and on Sunday we explored nearby and found the creek pictured above. It looks beautiful and ideal for summer splashing or picnics.

We've got enough MrCentrelink income to pay the mortgage, bills and diddly squat for food. As you probably know by now, I put an ad up to trade eggs for fruit & veg. Brilliant idea really - been getting some great home grown goodies - stewed up apples, pears and about to do more. Plus with a huge bag of tomatoes picked up this weekend, I need to make up some chunky tomato salsa for nachos or pasta or something :D

What to do with an eggplant? I'm going to do an Simple Savings recipe search and let you know what I find. Remember if you join Simple Savings - mention I referred you so I get $10 through the affiliate link. I put it on the LOC.  And I've just got a heap of mint - some with roots to put in the ground so I plan to be making the zucchini & mint soup during the week. Must note that having so much more veggies in the diet has made us the greatest stinky bums *pee-eew* - Husband blames the spinach and pumpkin... and beans and spicy marked down sausages! I can't say its not me ~ because those have made me choke! Oh the joy of farts!!  SmallBoy blames the cats but I don't know how that will fly at school *laughs* 

The last shop was 2 March - there are few things we will need but I just got called to do a mystery shop so picked up some fish, flour, juice, yoghurt, sour cream and - oh too excitement - two blocks of Cadbury chocolate (on special for $5). That was a total splurge, but it was a bonus urgent shop with $20 to spend and we are due for a reward. There is no better reward than chocolate!!

I reckon I will get by with a month of $21 shops for the bare basics of milk and water. Yes - we must buy water. You try drinking the tap water here *blergh* and the council has shut off the spring tap due to e-coli or something. Its probably a bit of cow poop has run into the waters with recent rain - its happened before so I hope it gets reopened soon. Otherwise I need to find a new water supply.

Actually, that no spend is a bit of a furphy - I did get a great deal from an online butcher on chicken breasts fillets ($5.99pk - 4kg) and mince beef ($5.99pk - 2kg) and some chicken keiv (2 for $8) and spending over $50 meant free delivery. As breast fillets have been over $12pk here the past few months we've only been getting thigh fillets when marked down by 33% or more. Even drumsticks have been on the pricey side lately and I just cant do wings unless really cheap. As it gets colder, marylands and pieces are great in the casserole - got some already in the freezer.

Yes, it was a little 'frivolous' when there are other meats in the freezer at the moment. Still I believe this a really good deal which will last for a few months. One breast fillet will feed us all when made into a stir fry or other such meal as I am one for putting in double the vegetables and using rice or a noodle to keep the meal filling. Honestly, changing the balance of meat to vegetable is not only better for the purse, I think its better for our health. I'm pleased SmallBoy is beginning to try different veggies and enjoy them.

SCORPIO (28 March NZ/Australia) ~ Move into your day aware that there is pressure and of the need to respect and work with it. Where it’s likely to be affecting you is where there is a conflict between a need to be busy and get things done and your body or circumstances disagreeing with you. Jupiter and Saturn are now in opposition, with one wanting you to speed up and play the super hero while the other wants you to slow down, pace yourself and take time to hear yourself think.

Now to strive for simplicity. I must get rid of the 'stuff' we have accumulated. There is just SO much and I've been struggling to get things gone. It's hard for a hoarder to just stop and get rid of years of 'things'. Might deal with that - tomorrow or Wednesday depending on how I go. And deal with procrastination at the same time :D

Last night's pork pie :D

This Week's Menu

I found some pepper pate in the freezer, so I thought Beef Wellington would be a nice change. I've got three lovely pieces of steak that were under $1 each, spread on some pate, fill with silver beet and wrap in pastry. How swish does it sound - and for once there is a nice selection of meat and vegetables we can use.

Monday - Fish, cous cous and salad

Tuesday - Pasta carbonara

Wednesday - Chicken kebabs and salad

Thursday - Beef Wellington

Friday - Home made pizza

Saturday - not sure yet

Sunday - Chicken Keiv, chips and salad

I'm off to Melbourne tomorrow ~ physio, scans in the morning, catching up with other bloggers and staying with my dear Mother in Law in the evening - which will mean I can collect the meat too. I  hope to catch up with a girlfriend on Wednesday for a $10 counter lunch before heading back home. Because the main appointment is medical - the train ticket is provided although I could have taken the NEPT ambulance or got a driver through medical services. I just feel there are others who could better use the services and I can sit on the train, enjoy the sights, arrive without having had to be up by 630 when the pick-ups occur and sit in a waiting room for hours.

Don't forget to have a look at the Mands on a Mission Bosisto's give away ~ the give away page is here and we've had some great tips in the blog comments and on FaceBook. I am truly impressed with all of your ideas!

Wednesday Waffle

Why would you pay more??
When you can effectively pay nothing at all? Or ensure you buy Australian Made (especially if you are in Australia!)  This past week has enlightened me to a few 'hello what the..' concepts which really are beyond ridiculous. The first one is apples ~ $12pkg. That is the first 'What the...' - but when you take into consideration these are in season and locally grown (for me at least) how can a supermarket charge this much?

There is news about a blockade outside McCains because the potato farmers, who have had less produce grown this year are being told they are going to be paid less for their potatoes. Before passing judgement on the farmers greed for more money for spuds, know this:

Western Victoria had about 200 growers in 1990, 90 growers in 2000 and 43 growers in 2011 - who will be growing our potatoes in 2020?? 

January floods reduced crop levels by about 20 to 30 per cent.  Many farmers have 1000-5000 tonnes LESS potatoes than last year. What will fund the new years crop??

McCains wants local producers to compete with overseas producers. Simplot (BirdsEye) is paying its Tasmanian producers MORE to ensure the local economy, community and farmers benefit.

The Ballarat potato industry is worth about $20 million, most of which is poured back into the local community. Lower prices mean corners get cut, potato quality and quantity suffers. Local families will suffer, so will the schools, the sporting group and then the overall quality of life. 

There is more information at the Herald-Sun with an article and please know I do not know anything about the business dealings, the costs of manufacture or the costs of potato production. Heck, I'm hardly what you'd call politically minded - I still confuse which party is which (and haven't really ever known except for Pauline Hanson and the One Nation Party, only because of Pauline Pants-Down's "I Don't Like It").

All I know is if ALL Australian produce was to be managed this way, why would farmers of crops, orchards, beasts, wool or any other item bother to put in the effort, time and devotion on the land to earn nothing but bankruptcy? If you must know - yes - I have done something about it. We buy our potatoes direct from one of the grower/packers because $3.50 for 5kg of brushed potatoes is a great price. I can only assume this is still more than what the manufacturers pay - so its a pittance. 

Then comes the news a chap in Melbourne has been charged on summons to appear in court for 'stealing' roadside rubbish - a vacuum cleaner, possibly broken. If that isn't a "What The.." I don't know what is.  Oh how I WISH for hard rubbish collections where I live. Apparantly the (by-)law is the items on the nature strip become the property of council. Um - what? Does council send out a mowing crew to mow its property? No - it sends the home owner a fine for failing to maintain the area. When strangers dump items on the nature-strip, it is the home owner who receives notification to dispose of the rubbish or risk a penalty. True dinks! And tell me, what does council do with its 'new' property after leaving it on kerbs for weeks on end? Clean it and sell it? Use it to help those struggling within its community? No - it trashes it - breaks it and piffs it.

It got me thinking about those people who cultivate kerbside gardens - do those plants belong to council and what about the drive to encourage nature-strip veggie beds for the community? What mixed messages are being sent? I get the police felt the chap was behaving suspiciously, and they did the right thing to stop, check and suss it out - but surely it could have been settled quickly & appropriately without the fuss of alleging theft. Yes there are those who rummage and make a mess, yes there are those who take to profit - but I'd suspect this is the minority. Those who trade from hard rubbish need a license, well that's how I understand it. Does this mean if you put something out with a 'for free' sign you need to have a traders license? It's just crazy how we are unable to just be..?

Back to Normal Waffle
About the bartering - I am really impressed with how well advertising through some local forums really pulled a result which will enable us to have good, healthy food without the associated costs - especially when we can't afford them at a retail level. Knowing we have $10 per week for food this month could have been a disaster had we not had the staples in the pantry. Husband just said we need to do a shop soon. I asked what did we need to get? Thinking for a moment he replied there was nothing he could think of, it "just seems so long since we've done any shopping"... I think this is why many set a budget to shop each week out of habit ~ rather than shopping each week for what is required.

There is the challenge ~ see if you can work out what you NEED rather than get those items you purchase out of habit. I am sure milk, bread, pet food, nappies, juice are some items which end up as regular needs - but do you buy tuna each week out of habit (I did), or baked beans and spaghetti. I really do suggest giving a week to try a $21 Challenge and only use what you already have in the pantry and forego one shop.

Now I need to get a few things done so it doesn't go to waste. I've been scouring Simple Savings, blah and other such blogs/forums for recipes and ideas. We've had a rhubarb and apple crumble dessert fest - made a crumble mix which is now in the fridge so all I need to do is get it and sprinkle on the fruit - that's making dessert easier to prepare and will go down a treat now its getting cold. Stoopid weather...

It's raining - SmallBoy is back from camp - bruised and cuts on each arm and leg indicating he has a great, wild time in the bush. He was licked by a dingo called Huey, had two serves of chocolate pudding one night, ate porridge for breakfast and then bacon and eggs. He climbed a mountain, trekked through the bush at night spotting possums, bats, frogs but sadly no one saw the elusive puma! War wounds came from the rock climbing wall, a rope ladder and the apple coring machine. Day at home tomorrow is permitted for all - or go to school for a movie marathon. Oh the dilemma of choices!!

Dinner tonight is was sage, pork and veal sausages, mashed potato, silver beet with ham and nuts ~ total cost $3.03 for the snags, rest is bartered produce or leftover bits loitering in the fridge. Loving it!

Chat tomorrow ~ oh ~ and if you've got a few bob spare, happy for you to chuck it in our Spare Change Jar or the Treasure Chest at the top of the page *hint*

Clever Shopping and Cyber Bullies

I am so clever ~ if I can say so myself.

Of course I can - its my blog, my meanderings about my Mission! Plus I just filled the freezer and fridge with fresh meat, bakery, diary and vegetables for $39! Six stuffed full bags of groceries. And not crappy cruddy stuff either. We've got steak (marinade, porterhouse and scotch fillet), chorizo, chicken pieces, ham, sausages (pork/veal, sage; turkey; spicy), lamb, corn, yoghurt, hommus, avocado dip, cream, celery, spinach, stirfry veg mix, lettuce mix, milk, fresh oregano, mushrooms, icypoles and pastry. Plus there was a roast chicken marked down to $4.59 - SmallBoy took a drumstick for lunch today and the rest has been divided into four bags for pie, sauce, a chicken ceasar salad with the cos and small pieces for toasted sandwiches over the weekend or a lazy dinner in turkish rolls! 

The total of the docket was $59.21 - but $20 of that was mystery shop money and adding the original prices up the value is just over $130 of groceries!! The actually spending from my pocket was $39.20.

So we ate some of the kanga sangas the other night and tonight we had the stirfry mix ($1.49) with a peanut sauce I made using - Peanut butter, Soy sauce, Sweet chilli sauce, Coriander and a little hot water. SmallBoy was not impressed he had to eat a whole meal which contained no meat, had capsicum and the carrot was cooked. Still, aside from the capsicum, he ate the lot so another meal for under $1 per head! 

And we were stuffed full at the end ~ it was delicious! 

It's been a long time since the fridge has had such a variety of fresh foods and the freezer is jammed packed with meat of different types so its not going to be boring at all. All the spinach has been briefly blanched and frozen, one of the yoghurt is now a frozen berry dessert (using some frozen raspberries I've not known what to do with!) I've put everything into Tupperware FridgeSmarts because I know it makes food last longer. Back when I was a demonstrator I proved carrots could be stored for 11 weeks without going mouldy or 'off' and I know lettuce leaves last almost a fortnight when kept in a properly set FridgeSmart. 

There are so many meal options for March and I plan to share all the meals we can make this '$40' shop create over the following weeks. I do plan to have $5 each week for milk and fruit. Plus I hope to do some dumpster diving for fruit and veg ~ especially know most produce comes wrapped in plastic and cant really be contaminated by rotted or dirty things in the bins. 

I'm creating a recipe with spinach, eggs, pastry, zucchini, spicy sausage and hoping it works out. The yoghurt berry dessert did, so that made me confident. Plus I have sorted out the freezer and know there are four pieces of pie from different pies had over the past few months and we are going to have leftover surprise pies with the ability to swap with another if so wanted (or needed should SmallBoy find his piece too spicy). I'm also going to make something with tortillas because there was a packet in the freezer, same as a packet of spring roll wrappers - but I have no idea what to do with them - yet. *grins*

What's the world coming to?

There has been some terrible responses to a baby competition - one run almost every year by Bonds Australia. This year, parents are the ones doing the cyber attacking and bullying. More about it here via MamaMia's website. And we wonder (and condemn) younger people for being rude, uncouth, violent and being a 'me me me' or 'I want it' generation. I think people in general have just forgotten how to share, care and respect others. I don't think people care enough to look after their extended families, their neighbours, their community or their world.

Yes - a bit statement - and in my late teens I knew more than my parent, but this is not a case of learning independence or understanding limits. Look at what the drought taught us about how people waste/abuse water and took to 'sneaking' after dark to water gardens - instilling into their children it was ok for them to do it if it was discrete or only a few times, even as the kids reminded their parents there was supposed to be no watering. I know some children were cussed and cursed, told to mind their own business in their own homes when saying to mum, nana or the neighbour it was not the right watering day. It was against the law and subsequently water costs are up almost 150% in Victoria this year. Our water bill has gone from $40 a quarter to $50 a month. Seriously - I've been trying to work out how to budget for our water these past few weeks.

One thing which is surprising is that washing seems to be a chore undertaken daily, often several times a day, and I can only surmise clothes worn once or for a short period of time are no longer rehung in the wardrobe or aired outside prior to going back in the drawer but put in the washing basket with the dirty clothes to be washed unnecessarily. I might be 'doing' it wrong but I was always one to wash linen one day a week, school and work uniform another and then a white wash when there were sufficient dirty whites, a light coloured wash when there were sufficient dirty light coloured clothes and darks in the same manner. It could be a month before there were enough white items and, if something was wanted desperately it could be washed with the white bed sheets or towels. 

And running the washing machine ~ why all day and not one load at night when electricity is at its cheapest allowing for washing to be put on the line first thing in the morning to dry? If the sun is out, is the dryer needed? A full load of washing takes under 10mins to hang out - its not rocket science...

Boy that sounded like a whinge - but I am sick of hearing machines going throughout the day in an area which is semi-rural. If it was a tractor, I could understand and honestly enjoy that sound - but the dryer? After the third washing machine load? And a call out from the fire brigade because a short caused a fire in the laundry?? No - not my home - next door. And they didn't realise it was happening because the dryer was just left running on a timer... grrr!!

OK ~ another day ~ thanks to Sue for another $1. It was cool to see another coin in our Spare Change Jar up at the top of the page. I'm looking for one of those widgets so we can be transparent with the donations received. All go onto debt and just the debt - nothing donated goes on food, petrol or the mortgage. Any food vouchers received allow us to put the same dollar value onto our debt - and I can make a $10 voucher cover a week! As you can see :D

Chat tomorrow...

Journey to financial freedom...

I do so despise crushed muesli and cereal dregs...

And weet-bix. Seeing as these were the only initial options for breakfast, I almost decided to skip it ~ but having had enough problems trying to gain weight over the past decade, this really is not a good habit for me to get back into. While SmallBoy happily hoed into weet-bix and milk, I made myself a breakfast shake. Bit 'made up' but damn fine and filling.

1 egg

1 heaped tsp milk powder

1 heaped tsp Sustegen HS dutch chocolate

1/2 tsp vanilla essence

2 frozen bananas

4 small strawberries

250-300ml iced water

Blended

SmallBoy decided he'd like to take strawberries for his fruit snack at school today so we went out in the morning drizzle and picked about a dozen red berries. A few were a little bruised or 'bugged' - perfect for whizzing up in the shake. If you've ever picked strawberries or tomatoes off the vine, you'll know the smell the ripe fruit leaves on your hands ~ well SmallBoy used that sweet smell as a reason for going to school with dirty hands, bringing his palms up to his nose gave him the greatest pleasure and no-way was he getting rid of the smell.

"A bank is a place which gives you money if you can prove you don't need it"

Thank goodness the RBA decided no rate rises were to happen ~ I know it will be amazing if the same happens in April, but we could not manage even a weeny increase on the mortgage at the moment. Not unless CPI increases came along and matched on a similar amount. Who would have thought those sort of things would sit on my mind all the time. Still - all up we are coping better today than we did six months ago!

But how about those who 'scored free money' from the CBA teller machines last night! As much as I wish I could be 'so lucky', I really do think customer records need to be reviewed and all persons withdrawing from effected machines be ordered to return the excess dollars received in error or risk being questioned about obtaining funds that are not their own. How would customers be treating the issue if, when trying to withdraw $500 the receipt said those funds were issued but you only received $50 from the slot? There would be means to verify if this occurred, so the same can/should happen for the overpayments. It's almost the same as finding a wallet with $500 and keeping the cash when the honest thing to do is hand it into police or authorities so it can be returned to its rightful owner or given to you once ownership cannot be determined or however that works with the police.

Tonight SmallBoy and I enjoyed a delicious dinner which cost .25c a plate. We got some fresh corn on the cob for free because it had manky ends and I got a packet of kangaroo sausages for $1. We had two each, leaving four snags for another time, and I used the last of the zucchini given to us. Seriously yummy and how low cost was that!?! I am more than set food wise for the week and with several mystery shops at the supermarkets for next week, there is going to be almost $30 available for groceries.

Oh ~ here's a tip ~ I've noticed the supermarkets are marking down meat in the afternoon on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. I am not sure if it just here in regional Victoria, but it has been great to see a semi regular day to allow for some bargain hunting without needing to walk into shops day after day. This also means double the bargains when mystery shopping as a minimum buy is usually requested or quantity of items required to be purchased. I know I can get 5-6 items for $10 and that's dairy, bakery, meat and veg in most cases. I am almost excited about shopping... 

Having some major computer problems ~ it has been a wonderful laptop for the past five-six years, but it really does seem to be getting confused with itself (if that makes sense when referring to a machine). Currently it can't seem to work out which screen is the one being typed in and subsequently I can't get eBay items loaded and could not even type a post last night. For some reason the cursor works in Twitter but now we are here and able to update *grins*

Not the most interesting post - I know - but please please PLEASE enter the Coles "We Love Pets" pack offer here as the more entries, the more chance further competitions and offers can be made available. I've received no payment for promoting these products and the reported review are my own opinions based on how my animals have reacted - and that truly is with gusto - but receiving items like food, toiletries and such help us redirect cash into our debt.

Remember - we really appreciate any assistance readers can offer. If you want to donate to our Treasure Chest via PayPal, the link is there at the top right or left of the blog page. There are items appearing on eBay ~ although while the laptop is playing up, this is a bit hard. On the Q+A page are other ways you can contribute and if sending supermarket vouchers is a preferred method, please leave a comment and I can contact you directly and won't publish your personal details for all and sundry. *smiles*

Thanks again ~ loving the feedback, the comments and support from everyone. Got my first 'rude spam' but the filter kept it away from the screen (thank goodness) so please keep it nice. We're not here to scam anyone, we've reduced the debt as much as we can without help but any assistance goes toward the debt and any vouchers provided means the same amount in cash goes onto the debt and not a splurge. Oh for chocolate, oh for biscuits, oh for a bottle of wine ~ but its not happening until the debt comes down!

Chat again soon *waves*

Summarising Stuff on Sunday

Oh yay ~ I ventured inside a supermarket!

And I got to spend some money ~ milk, meat, bakery and more! Shopping between the two major supermarkets I was able to walk away with four full bags of groceries to add some variety to the week's dinners and lunches.

Using a $20 voucher received from Coles as part of a gift pack from the Salvation Army at Christmas, I picked up 4litres of fruit juice $5, 3litres of milk $3, 700g of chicken thighs $5.39, 1kg of bananas (5) $5.70, 2 cantelope $2.50, 250g Lettuce mix $1.23, 6 cinnamon donuts .90c, 4 marinade sachets .40c and 200g crunchy sprouts .99c - total paid was $5.11

Popping past the other supermarket I scavenged around the meat section and found 8 peppered beef steaks (1.5kg) $8.05 and 8 turkish rolls $6 so picking up marked down produce and putting it straight into the freezer means we have several meat dinners to enjoy in the weeks ahead. We had some of the chicken for dinner in a mango/curry type sauce with salad and leftovers will be for lunch tomorrow in a roll. Yummy!!

The week ahead

The menu did change a little this week - the roast we were going to have tonight is now for tomorrow so the food plan is as follows:

Monday ~ roast beef and vegetables; leftover chicken in rolls for lunch

Tuesday ~ roast beef and vegetable pasties; salad and crackers for lunch

Wednesday ~ pasta with a tomato/herb sauce; should be enough pasties leftover, otherwise sandwiches

Thursday ~ egg and chips; sandwiches for lunch

Friday ~ savoury mince in turkish rolls with salad and chips; not sure about lunch

Saturday ~ dinner with Mum in Melbourne

Sunday ~ spaghetti bolognes 

There's a cinnamon donut each day for SmallBoy's lunchbox and his choice of cantelope, banana, apples or strawberries for fruit snacks. Plus I am making muesli bites with the crushed bits from the bottom of a few packets and making something out of one of the left over Christmas cakes. It's the first one coming up to its best before date, so waste not - want not!!

Only one medical appointment requiring payment this week ~ the myotherapy sessions are relieving and helping me move more freely so its $50 out of the budget but its valuable in my rehabilitation. Hydrotherapy sessions are still available on my 'exercise therapy' card so I don't need to pay for another month for those and walking each day will help build up strength in my legs again - especially the right side which is 'struggling' to regain some movement. At least I don't need to use the cane so much any more - just when its raining or if I am feeling tired or a little wobbly on my feet.

More eBay items coming, another giveaway coming this week and a special freebie for a few followers in the Ballarat area ~ if you know anyone in Ballarat, please ask them to follow along and maybe they will be one of six people to receive one of these freebies. Loving the feedback and looking forward to seeing more submissions for the Coles 'We Love Pets' pack being given away. The cats are certainly enjoying tasting the treats so I am sure other dogs and cats will love this too! Head over to FaceBook to leave your message or pop your pet's hints in the comment section below.

Things are looking less cluttered, more in order and a heck of a lot tidier so something is going right around the house for once! Keep your fingers crossed Husband gets one of the jobs he has applied for and any donations to the Treasure Chest or Spare Change Jar are appreciated greatly. It should be an interesting update tomorrow on the budget and debt payments ~ it actually feels like we are staying on track and not falling behind further for the first time in a long time. That alone is a huge relief and great stress reducer!! 

Until tomorrow...

Monday Mayhem

Summer ~ where for art thou?
Believe it or not, it's summer. I keep hearing some parts of NSW have 35 degrees, parts of QLD are sweltering in mid 30 humid temperatures and WA is boiling under hot sun. It's topped at 14 here and the fire had to be started this morning. The house was like an ice-block!

We've avoided turning on the heating ~ much as some savers have avoided turning on the air conditioning ~ and had jumpers, layers of clothing, thick Explorer socks on. I've even had my beanie on to avoid losing body heat - just like a baby! Apparently the weekend is supposed to be warmer and I am really hoping so because Saturday is our Yard Sale. Oh ~ and we sold a dozen eggs. $4 is in our Spare Change Jar for banking! Woo Hoo!!


Starving the Supermarket
It's been another day of no spending. Since having next to nothing for a grocery budget, I have had to be a little creative at times - substituting items I'd regularly use or looking for a lower cost option. The last few days I've looked at what we use and what we could be making from scratch for less. Some things are easy to spot but as we run out of items (like dishwasher tablets - bought several sample boxes last year while 36 for $3 introduction price) what can we do instead?

Breadcrumbs - yesterday I mentioned saving the crusts from bread and crumbing them in the blender. If there isn't enough crusts - adding crushed weetbix or cornflakes helps make the breadcrumbs go further.
Custard powder - eggs, milk, cornflour, sugar, vanilla - when you've got it all why use a packet?
Mint sauce - mint, vinegar, sugar - too easy
Muesli bars - Muesli bites n bars recipe
Paper towel - we use napkins, serviettes or facewashers for hands; old cotton t-shirts or shirts cut to various sizes for drying off things; newspaper for absorption.
Tissues - we use hankies
Cling wrap - lunch-boxes, containers with lids. I have a caterers pack of cling wrap which is 8years old in June every so often it is used on the kids paints.
Dish Tablet - back to the sink wash
Laundry powder - natural alternative like bi-carb and vinegar
Garbage liners - plastic bags (found several dozen during the de-clutter!!)
'Jar' Sauces - no chicken-tonight here
Cleaners - been using our home mix

Now the goal is to see what else we can change. The biscuits, cakes and muffins are already in process ~ although sometimes you cant beat a bought Arnotts Mint Slice biscuit. But its been months since that's been in the house so I might try to make them. Got the recipe, got the ingredients, gotta try it out.

Not much else happening really. There is some Tupperware up on eBay for sale - as always, more coming. Husband has taken some cool pics of some Country Road items which will be up for sale in the next few days - just trying to find the cable to fit the laptop. And all systems are go for the Yard Sale ~ with the advertisement ready to go in! Not sure how much the ad is yet - hopefully its under $20 but somehow I doubt it.

Heading to Melbourne to see Motherhood the Musical tomorrow ~ free tickets and off-peak travel make for some very inexpensive 'me' time. My first outing in I dont know how long! Of course it ties in with a physical check and other timely medical stuff but hey, I am going to the theatre for the first time in years! I can't wait.

So off to bed I go ~
Here's hoping your tomorrow will be as good as mine *cheers*

Bill and 'his' budget

Sunday ~ the day of rest...

Hardly! Not when Monday brings a multitude of payments. How is it that so many bills fall due on the same dates? I've noticed the 7th and 15th are very popular days in the way of accounting or computer billing cycles!

Tonight and tomorrow the internet payment ($49), the gas and electricity instalment ($50), Husband's mobile payment ($59), the personal loan ($336) and the house insurance ($62) automatically whiz off to their respective 'owners' to maintain connectivity. Ooo-rah!  As noted yesterday ~ all funds are eagerly awaiting their journey. To have it all available is an achievement on our part as it totals my fortnightly income entirely. Thank goodness for 'Bill's Budget in a Box'.

When Our Mission commenced, I decided keeping our budget under control was a huge struggle so I pretended the whole lot belonged to a bloke called "Bill" and any spare money was our 'pay' and put on the debt. Huge success when you see we usually come in under budget living on $600 a week.  "Bill" has a mortgage, phones and internet expenses, a personal loan and a credit card ~ just like we do!! Funny that *grins* "Bill" budgets about $100-$150 a week on food, groceries and other bits for himself, his wife, the kids and a menagerie of animals ~ just like us!!

If you haven't twigged - "Bill" is really us. 

Have you ever noticed how easy it is to help another person get their budget, their schedule and their life together but how difficult it is to do for yourself sometimes? This is why we invented 'Bill' and how we have paid down so much over the past six months. Staying on top of our obligations has been a huge success ~ bringing down the debt has been mammoth. All of "Bill's" accounts go into a box ~ the information is listed on forms I made up to show a period of four weeks with the cash flowing in and expenses due to go out. It shows weeks which might have less outgoing but a need to not spend much because the next week less comes in while more is going out on payments. Quite simple really.

Shopping Under $100 a week for Four

My menu for this next fortnight for dinners has been written to use only items on hand so we can spend less than $50 over this fortnight on items - I hope to do two $21 Challenge weeks picking up only milk and some vegetables late in the week or next week if possible.  Wish me luck - anything we spend will be listed. How low can we go?!!

We used to have a weekly shopping budget of $300 a week ~ this including all food, toiletries, animal needs, personal needs and cleaning products. If it could be bought at the stoopermarket - it was in this budget. Now we spend about $100 and make it a game to come under the total. 

One essential action to achieve this is to check what is in your fridge, freezer and pantry before shopping day, make a menu plan around what you have in the house already and only buy items to replenish those which are low or finished and those to complete the menu for the week/fortnight.

I also set limits ~ no meat purchased can be over $10pkg. No vegetables can be over $6pkg and fruit is around the same. Wherever possible, buy the marked down items and make sure you need it. Using tonights Honey Soy Marinaded Lamb Roast as an example ~ this was priced at $15.95pk at a cost of $22. However it was marked down to $14, making it under $10pk and was put in the freezer for 'Ron - later 'on. We will have it for dinner with roast potatoes and carrots and steamed broccoli and cauliflower about to cark it, then leftovers will be had in a pie for dinner tomorrow. More will be kept aside to be used for lunches ~ put into sandwiches, toasties or roll-ups during the week. Two dinners for 4, a few days lunches for 4 ~ it should work out to about $1 per head per meal. Sweet!!

In short: 

1.  Review your pantry, freezer, fridge (stock take)
2.  List items low or empty on shopping list (shopping list)
3.  Plan meals around what you have on hand (menu plan)
4.  Substitute ingredients where possible (menu plan)
5.  Add any additional items required to shopping list (shopping list)
6.  Set limits on how much you are prepared to pay (costings)
7.  Use left overs for lunch or another dinner (creative)

The week ahead

And its the start of the first full week of school ~ SmallBoy is so happy to be back at school. It think it was just starting to get boring being at home. Personally, given we were not able to do the usual movies, adventure park or holiday away, this holiday break would have to have been the most active, entertaining and adventurous holiday period in years!  Seriously ~ SmallBoy and Husband went riding on their bikes together, lots of friends came for sleep overs, we had some great movie nights and visited more friends than we ever had. We've made yummy desserts, muesli creations, pies and had popcorn many times. *grins* Popcorn with butter and icing sugar is really yummy and a great change from the salty variety. SmallBoy has decided the reason bought popcorn and chips are so salty is to make you buy the expensive drinks ~ I think he is very smart and quite correct!

Husband has his second last dental appointment and he is looking forward to the last one. I've got several appointments and will be volunteering at the kids refuge and hoping to get to be one of the volunteers at the food co-op about to be started up nearby. Its all home grown or home made produce and I would love to be involved. Might learn some great tips about what grows well in the region. We've really got to pull our proverbial fingers out and get this garden happening.

SCORPIO (07 February NZ/Australia) 
That the Moon should divide his time between a very playful part of your chart and a very work focused part of your chart today is symbolic of where you're at just now, bringing home both the need and the ability you have to create a balance between work and play. Just before leaving your romantic and creative sector the Moon aligns with Uranus, but just after moving into your work sector he aligns with Jupiter, with your intuition picking up on the importance of both.

Looking forward to some romance ~ 

One Day at a Time

Watching the sun rise in the morning

Clearing your head as the new day's dawning

Notice the colours

Aren't they divine

Setting things going for the new day ahead

Wishing you really could climb back in bed

Hearing the birds

Singing their rhyme

To finish this journey I must start off alone

Removing the poison stopping my groans

Hoping you're near

Watching the time

Once it's removed my head will be clear

I hope to be free of the dependence I fear

Out from the dark

And starting to shine

Just a personal note: 

Finally, after 4 years, spinal and related surgeries, this week marks the withdrawal from narcotic pain medication via a fortnight 'wean' then nothing. Today's poem is how I am feeling ~ onward and upward!!