• You Never Know….What You Might Find!

    You never know what you may find in the clearance section at a store.  During a quick trip to BiLo (a local grocery store) to grab a gallon of milk I noticed these two chairs sitting up in the front of the store.  As I was speed walking past them to get the milk and I thought to myself that’s an odd place for two chairs and the second thought was those chairs are pretty cute!  While standing in line waiting to check out they caught my attention again so I got out of line, went over to them and found out they were marked down to $2 (originally priced over $20).  They were the last two chairs and the store was trying to move the final pieces of their seasonal stock.  These are the only 2 chairs I have ever bought in a grocery store but it goes to show you never know what you may find when you go out to get a gallon of milk!

    When the girls got home from school that day I had the two chairs set up in their room.  They were excited and gushing over how “cute” the chairs were.  I didn’t have to ask or tell them which chair was for who they knew instantly, that’s one of the joys of having twins with two very different personalities.  Since then the chairs have been used for reading, watching TV, playing school and many other fun activities.  Each girl has their own chair so their is no disagreements on who got the chair first or who has been sitting in it the longest…..do those types of conversations take place at your house too?!

    The chairs are big enough the girls are comfortable, but small enough they can carry them from room to room.  I love that they have so much personality with the smiling frog and cheerful ladybug!  Sometimes it is worth it to take the extra minute to glance at the clearance section, you might find a something you need or a fun treasure.  Although their favorite place to sit when we read a book together is still on our laps, which is fine with me because someday soon these precious days of them being little girls will be a thing of the past!

  • Living on a Budget: Groceries $40 for 4

    School is continuing at full throttle and we are finding ways to stay busy, ha!   I was able to get some great items on clearance and stock up on some lunch box items.  Here is my weekly update on our Groceries $40 for 4.

    Groceries from Aldi's and Walgreens
    Aldi Groceries:
    • $48.39 at Aldi’s for 4 boxes Macaroni & Cheese, 1 bag Cinnamon Bagels, 2 boxes Moo Tube Yogurts, 1 box refrigerator Pie Crusts, 4 bags Cheese Sticks, 2 boxes Seasoned Potatoes, 1 three pound bag Chicken, 1 bag White Tortilla Chips, 1 bag Sugar Wafers, 1 bag Cheddar Nuggets, 1 box Oatmeal, 2 packs Taco Seasoning, 1 box Butter, 2 blocks Cheddar Cheese, 4 boxes Vanilla Pudding, 1 container Light Sour Cream, 1 bag Granulated Sugar, 2 Blueberry Pancake Mixes, 5 boxes Tropical Fruit Rolls, 1 bag Carrots, and 2 containers fresh Mushrooms (I was able to get several of these items marked down at Ali’s, which is rare for me, yay!)

    Walgreen Groceries:

    • $1.21 at Walmart for 4 boxes Baking Soda, 3 bags Disney Car Marshmallows, 1 two liter Lemon Lime and 2 gallons Milk (the Baking Soda & Milk was on sale and the Marshmallows & Lemon Lime was on clearance.  I used a couple Register Rewards towards the purchase.)

    This week I spent $49.60 on groceries.  Even though I was only a little over on my budgeted amount for the week I was able to stock up on several items.     Thankfully I had extra in the grocery wallet to cover the expense.  I hope that next week is an even better week and we can come under budget for the week.

    It is my goal to give you regular updates on this budget section so you can celebrate the good weeks with me and thump me on the bad weeks!  As always you are welcomed to join the journey with me.  I would love to hear your story and how you are doing too.  The purpose of our family doing this it to watch our grocery spending while allowing us to feed our family, enjoy life, share with others, and yet stay on track with our budget.

    Living on a Budget is a series of ways our family uses a budget to help keep us accountable with our finances.  Life doesn’t always go as planned.  We have used some of the ideas I will be sharing for years while others are ones we are just starting to implement as we continue finding ways to be creative and have fun with what we have been given.  Having a plan in place allows us the freedom to be smart with what we have been given, get more creative when it is a tight (week, month, year or a season) and when necessary live a much more simplified life.  A budget helps us stay on track so we have more opportunities to enjoy the many blessings we have been given as well as share what we have with others.  There is so much more to life than having all the stuff.  We may not have the newest or greatest items in our house, we drive used cars, and wear hand-me-down clothing…..however, if our family is taken care of and have love for each other and others we have more than all the riches in the world.