The month was long and I fudged it

So near the end of September we were talking about some upcoming things in October and how we wanted to budget it.
October is the LDS General Conference, and since we are Mormon that is a thing for us. Our family started what we wanted to be a tradition almost 2 years ago is to have Eggs Benedict for Conference morning breakfast (one of the two mornings). Now from my last post I ranted about the price of eggs. Plus the extra cost in the budget of buying English Muffins and the sauce mix package (I have never successfully make good tasting hollandaise sauce).
Conference is the first weekend in October, and once it was "October" I wasn't going to have time to run to the grocery store and do even a short trip. So since the money was "already" in the account for the first half of October I wanted to "borrow" from October to do purchase the items for Conference weekend. He wanted Eggs Benedict, but he was uncomfortable with me "borrow" from the next month. With considering some other upcoming events, my husband agreed to let me "borrow" to pick up what we need to cover us until our next "once a month" shopping trip.

The eggs were costly. The hollandaise sauce was more than I remembered, I normally buy two packs for our family, and the English muffins just felt so costly... That all being said I decided to take some chances, I felt guilty that I was going to spend so much on one meal. I decided to try to get buy with only one pack of sauce, and to try making my own English Muffins from scratch. I have been watching a show that is new here in the States, but has been in Great Britian for a number of years now, The Great British Bake Off. I am in love with the show. It gives me hope that maybe one day I can be a baker too. I very much recommend watching it. It is fun and educational, and makes you so hungry. I have learned so much about baking and it has inspired me to try to make more things myself. It is available on PBS.org  To learn to make the English Muffins, I found this Youtube video from a Brit. She gives a nice step by step and you know what my muffins were so tasty. In addition, I love Alton Brown. He has an episode where he makes Eggs Benedict- I love Alton, but I have tried his recipes, and although they are not impossible, as a beginner I did not succeed.

So everything turned out great. Still used a ton of eggs. But I tried to stave and be creative in other ways- and my kids loved them! But now I start my month $60 down from what I normally have. 

We haven't Given Up!

The end of last month marked the end of 3 full month of us making over our money by making over how we deal with our money. When we realized that we celebrated by pulling out the bottle of Sparkling Cider we had saved for our anniversary but when we were both sick forgot that we had it. We celebrated that we had stuck with it, that it was getting easier, and that we were slowing changing our mindset and starting new habits.

So last month's grocery budget:
It was blown. I can't find all the receipts so I can't give you exact numbers (hence I didn't report at the time), but we decided to support a school fund raiser, that ended up costing us a lot more than we initially thought. Just about everyone in our family got sick, needed a doctor visit and a prescription, initially we budgeted that the random prescription would come out of the grocery/household budget, but this experience changed our minds. After everyone got their unexpected prescriptions we were down out of grocery a little over $20. That hurts when you're only doing $200 a month. Add to that our fund raising budget fiasco and our grocery budget was left to $140. Early in the month my parents stopped at Costco for me and we ended up having them pick up more than we should have given the big picture. Opps. I had gone shopping early in the month to pick up a couple "stock up" items we use constantly, store well, and were the best price I've seen in years. Oh and each trip to the pharmacy, also ensued an item or two to make life easier for all the sickies or on me making food for sickies. When all was said and done and I went to the store for my once a month shopping I had only $75. We upped the grocery budget for the month, taking from our snowball (and a few other places in our budget to give us $110, so I could get everything we needed for a full month. But I felt like a failure. How did it get so out of hand. How it all those things add up so fast? Why does living feel like it costs so much?
But we made it through the month. We've made it through 3 months. We've paid off my student loan and my mini van. We have made progress!

20 Ideas to Keep the Park Fun

Since we have been using public parks as a way to get out of the house and not spend money on entertainment here are some ideas for keeping the park fun- even when you are there a lot.

1.  Pack a Lunch- don't bring the same thing every time. Try to mix it up the best your budget allows. But just having the picnic can change it up from just going to play at the park.
2. Special Treat- we had a play group that for a while had snow cones at the park once a month. Don't go out and buy a snow cone machine, but there are homemade Popsicle, Otter pops, frozen fruit, cookies- lots of things that you don't give them all the time that you could bring to the park for a special treat. I actually find these the most fun when you bring plenty and encourage your kids to share with the other kids at the playground. 
3. Bring a blanket and lay out on the grass. Have everyone point out a cloud and what it looks like to them. Or bring some books and paper and encourage them to read or draw while on the blanket. Read a book to them, or sing some songs together.
4. Play games- tag, hide & seek, rhythm games (clap and pat games), mother may I, red light green light. Get other kids involved. Best part is if you get the game going with other kids you can normally sit out and no one cares.
5. Bubbles- make your own with water and dishsoap (search pinterest there are a ton of "bubble recipes" on there) or at the Dollar Store you can get a really big bottle for a dollar.
6. Sidewalk chalk- again at the Dollar Store, we also have buckets of the stuff around the house from kids birthdays (it is a very popular gift).
7. Take a Walk- if you live close enough to walk to the park- cool, if not or if you do that all the time, change it up by going to a park with a walking path. Walk around before you go to the playground. Use this time to point out plants and wildlife.
8. Bring your Bikes/wagon
9. Water guns/ water balloons, even a kiddie pool can be fun at a park. But be considerate of families at the park if it isn't a splash pad park. They may have chose the non-splash pad park because they didn't want to deal with wet children.
10. Bring a bag of balls- there was this dad who every time they came to the park he had a mess laundry bag full of different sized balls. He encouraged all the kids to play. It was awesome. Kids love balls and if it is a park with lots of running space they can throw, roll, run all over the place.
11.  Play dates. Invite new/different friends to join you at the park. If you invite people directly (phone call, facebook message, text message) they are more likely to join to over a general invite through a mass text or a facebook status. By changing up the friends your kids have to play with, they will get board much slower.
12. Change the park you go to- we all have the park that we like to go to because of whatever that reason is (clean bathrooms, walking distance, playground, grass, covered playground) but if you're going a lot -try a new park, it will help make it more exciting for your kids again.
13. Get out into Nature- whether it is at our normal park and having them draw or play bingo to find local wildlife (birds, squirrels, bugs) or go picnic in the wild, make the goal to experience what is around them. Hint: If you have toy magnify glasses or binoculars this is a great time to use them.
14. Buckets and shovels- my kids love the sand. I hate dealing with it in their shoes. But to change it up bring the digging stuff along and plan on them digging till their hearts are content. 
15. Farmers' Market Time- Sometimes I avoid the city park on the days the Farmers' Market is there.  But if you aren't doing it too often, or go with it in mind, the people watching can be fun. Play "I spy" with your kids. Our Farmers' Market often has live local performers, my twins love to dance and spin around to the music. Also with the increase people there are often more kids to play with and make new friends.
16. Scavenger Hunt- make a list of things to find, or do it like an egg hunt, bring the items, hide them and have the kids find them.
17. Fly a kite- make your own (again check out pinterest) or the Dollar store has decent kites. 
18. Make a tent- rope (laundry clothes lines work great) find to place to tie between tie it up cover it with the blanket you brought (sheet or tarp would work great too.
19. Get daddy to take them, or go as a whole family. Whenever my husband goes with us, it changes the whole dynamic of park play time.
20. Lastly, if you are going a lot, limit the time you spend physically at the park. Only stay an hour. If you are never there long enough for them to start getting tired of play at the park then they will still be excited to play there they next time they go.

Know your kids limits, but also don't limit yourself to how well that idea went last time. Your kids are growing up all the time, maybe this time...

Also I have seen parents try to do crafts at the park- I'm sure there are times it goes just fine, I have never seen it go over well. The closest was once when the craft was assembly of food, it didn't go great, but all the kids were super happy to eat their treat.

What things to ya'll do to keep the park new and fun?

Surviving Summer

Summer break can be hard keeping a balance. There is the pressure to make every moment of life a memory and count. This is unrealistic and most people will admit it to themselves but there is still that idea that we all feel the need to try to live up to. Now I've never been a super mom who even half way actually tries to live up to this ideal. But in the past I have done things that have in one way or another contributed to our debt. Even when I thought I was making safe and savvy choices, I was still probably adding to our debt. I'm not saying the choices I was making were directly contributing to our debt, but without trying to keep to a budget or even having a budget it was contributing.

What were some of the good/bad choices I was making:

We would go to the free/$1 summer movies at our local theater- but sometimes I'd fall in the pitfall of buying popcorn or candy. We plan on going to the park and having a picnic- but the downfall for me I would run out of time and we'd stop a fast food. We'd get discount coupons to go to the zoo, but in the end the cost of gas to Tucson and then all the passes even at a discount cost us a lot. We have also gone to stay with my parents to do swimming lessons up in the Phoenix Valley where swimming lessons through the city half the price per child's lesson. However, staying up at my parents we tended to eat out a lot and do activities that we can't do at home, but end up costing us a lot more- ie museums.

story time at our local library

Suggestions:

• Wherever you are going- bring cash for only how much you plan on spending. If that means you have to call ahead and ask some questions, plan ahead.
• Planning ahead! & Be prepared. I met a mom at a museum once that she always packs a lunch and snacks for the day. Even when the plan is to be home in time for lunch. If we are planning to go out for the day, I have started making lunch for all of us while making lunch in the morning for my husband. Also I have just started planning ahead to be out for lunch.
• Find out what summer activities and programs your library and city offer. 
• Budget it in. Its not that all those things that cost money are bad, but figure it out and plan it in the budget. If you have places you love to go and would enjoy going once a week or more and they offer a family pass, figure out the cost, you might need to budget it out for the whole year and then when the year is over you can buy your family pass. For example: we looked into the zoo for a family pass. With our family's size and the family pass price we'd have to go 2 1/2 times (so 3 times) in a year and the pass is paid for. We then have to decide if that is worth it to us- right now it is not.  But maybe someday in the future (when we are out of debt).
• Check out deal sites and ask at the grocery store. Deal sites like Living Social and GroupMe can be a great place to pick up deals to local museums and attractions. (I do this every time we are going on vacation, I watch to see what local things we can get deals). Also ask at the grocery store information counters. They sometimes have discount tickets to local attractions- check all year round some tickets are seasonal. Another place to ask is at the library youth desk.

I wasn't the only mom who was taking advantage of the cooler temperatures and the park shade

This summer with an entertainment budget of $0, we have spend lots of time at the park (we have been going at least twice a week and staying for an hour or two, each time I invite all our friends to join us), at story time, and at the free movies.

Water and Water Bottles

Every parent knows the frustration of having their child cry at you because the park's drinking fountain isn't working and you didn't bring water with you... or maybe that is just an Arizona problem for Arizona parents. But I'm pretty sure it is mostly a first world problem we can all relate to.
I hate standing at my water filter filling water bottle after water bottle- one for each child and one for myself. Takes forever. We have an in fridge water family size water pitcher. I know there are those of you out there thinking 'suck it up and use tap water'. This is true, it would save me tons of time and probably the money from buying the water filters. But the thing is we are on a well and our well water isn't filtered. It doesn't bother me to bathe in it or wash my clothes in it, but I have issues with drinking it. It may be fine, or it may not be. We have never had it tested. So until then I prefer to drink water I filtered.
We all have (or maybe its you) that friend who every time you turn around has bought a new bottle of water from some store. Last summer I started buying a gallons of water at the grocery store. Then I had the idea of re-filling the gallon jugs at the water kiosks. Now in Arizona they are everywhere. I don't know if it was just where I was but when we went to California on vacation I couldn't find them anywhere. For those of you who don't know what they are, they offer 1 gallon fill ups at a time for 25 cents or 5 gallons for $1. Lots of people use them to refill their freestanding water coolers. Yes that is 25 cents every time I refill it. But I use random change, and when I can remember I will refill the gallon jug from my filter at home. Some Kiosks even have chilled water. Those are my favorite.  I refill our gallon jug at least once a week during the hottest part of the summer. I bring it with us to the park (which is at least once a week, often twice or more). I keep a few cups or water bottles in the car and we fill them up from the gallon jug. When all is said and done it is only about $1 a month if I don't fill it at home at all. Yes its not freezing cold water. But it is water and most of the time it is just room temperature. The important part is that it is making my life easier and is a lot cheaper then buying new every time you are out and about.

Making Sacrifices: Giving up Netflix

We have decided that we need to make sacrifices in order to full commit to where we want to be.

One of the things we have decided to sacrifice is our Netflix account.

This was hard for us. We have loved Netflix. A few years ago we were unemployed for about 6 months and we cancelled our Netflix then and it was so sad. We missed it so much and it was the first thing to come back when we were employed again. It will be probably be one of the first things we put back into our budget when we are fully out of debt. It was also a hard choice for us to sacrifice because it is such a small amount out of our budget- Less than $10 a month for unlimited entertainment for our whole family. If we had only $10 for entertainment in our budget each month- it is the best value for that money.
We have been without cable for 6 years now- which was not an easy choice because we live in a rural community and there are no "local" tv channels with out cable. We watch everything online and don't feel like we're missing out on anything. Chromcast and Netflix have been wonderful to us. But we are cutting out anything that isn't necessary.
We own lots of DVDs. There are lots sites that we use to watch for free. We can do this.
Some of the online watching resources we use:
http://video.pbs.org/
http://pbskids.org/video/
http://www.hulu.com/
http://www.mylifetime.com/shows/
http://disneyjunior.com/
https://www.youtube.com/

pbskids is probably our favorite site to watch online

What are your favorite online places to view content?

If you in the cut the cord from cable boat to make sacrifices. If you don't already do Netflix consider it. Their selections of kids shows is awesome. They have a lot of shows of my husband and I want to watch, and their movie selection isn't bad and is constantly changing. The value of how many options you have is very reasonable. I look forward to the day we can put it back in our life.

Side Note- What I miss most about cable is the sporting events. I am a huge football fan and I miss my college football. Additionally I like turning on baseball games to occasionally watch. How do you give up cable when you want to watch sports?
Suggestions- Go to friend or family to watch the game. Sport events should be social anyway so make it social by watching it over there. Another suggestion is make it your date night (if your significant other likes sports too). ESPN online use to allow you to watch online if your internet was a participating company, but now it is only if you put in your cable information. Boo ESPN. Which leads me to the last method I use to watch sporting events. Bootleg TV. There are sites out there (very shady sites) that re-stream live TV. Due to their shadiness and ever changing locations I will not be sponsoring any of those sites on my blog. Needless to say, they exist and you can find them. Word of warning be careful where you click, don't let the moving or fake box closing x's to trick you. If you click wrong it will take you to sites you never wanted to see and can't un-see. I do not set up the sporting events in view of my children for this reason.

Good luck in all your efforts to live more thrifty lives. What sacrifices have ya'll made in getting out of debt or to live within your means?