Category Archives: Savings

Apr 15

Let’s Give It A Try: Puppy Grooming

Miss Mia was getting a bit shaggy…

She had her full Winter coat, and she was in need of a bath, and claw trim too.

I thought about scheduling her for a full groom, and the I thought about the cost. I wondered if I could do it on my own. I have been bathing her, and trimming her claws since she was a little pup, but I had never attempted a hair cut.

I made some homemade Dog Shampoo, and prepped the bathroom for Miss Mia. I brought her leash upstairs, and secured if safely to the towel rack. I clipped her claws as usual, and then I put her on her leash for the haircut. I selected a 5 on the clipper set that I have, and it worked out well. I started at her shoulders, and worked my way back. I used scissors to trim some unruly leg hair, and fur around her ears.

She wasn’t too happy about having the clippers any where near her head, so I used the scissors only. Once we were all a mess, and covered in fur, I ran her bath. She got a double scrub, and a towel dry too.

It isn’t perfect, but I think she feels better after the haircut and bath.

I think I did pretty good too for my first doggy haircut.

We even took the pup along to pick-up the kiddos after school. She liked the car ride.

It did take a bit of time, but I bet a few more puppy grooming sessions, and I’ll have the hang of it. It was a good savings too. It would have cost me $30-$40 to have Mia fully groomed, and Agnes thought it was funny that Mia needed a haircut too. I’ll be keeping up on the at home puppy grooming, but I don’t know that Mia will be happy about it.

Dec 12

Considering Couponing (again)

I tend to go back and forth on this one… I need to seriously start saving on my monthly grocery budget, and I’m thinking about coupon clipping again.

I’ve been out of the coupon game for a long time though. I’ve cleaned out my binder, and resorted what I have. I need to get a budget together of how much to spend on weekly newspapers, and check on the local stores coupon policies too.

Do you have any tips to share? How much are you saving with coupons?

 

 

 

May 25

More Books

It’s hard for me to pass up books… When we were visiting Thade’s school for the talent show I noticed two large tables filled with books, and they were free. I stopped one of the teachers, and she said take as many as you want.

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I’ve made it a habit of mine to carry along a re-useable shopping bag in my bag, and I was happy to have it with me.

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I think we ended up bringing home twenty books. Dylan was really excited. Between the book sale  at the library, and the free sale at the school, his library at home is really growing.

The “new” books kept Agnes entertained for a bit at the talent show too. I found one all about firetrucks, which are her favorite at the moment.

So what freebies are too good for you to pass up?

Dec 4

Finally, Frugality Has A Win

I’ve come to the end of my obsessive math experiment of Coupons vs. Frugal Shopping. Finally in November frugality had a win. I had planned on making a big stockpile trip to Aldi, but the month got away from me, so I used just about everything from my stockpile. When I totaled it all up. I was $30.00 less per week than in August. I also had 9 fewer shopping trips.

Since I wasn’t able to shop out of town I utilized my local discount shops. That has helped the grocery budget a lot.  A few of my favorites are Dollar General for milk, laundry supplies, and paper products. I’ve found bulk-buy paper towels, and toilet paper that are always at a great price. Family Dollar is the best place locally to stock up on tissues, trash bags,  and they always have great deals on cleaning products too.

I have tried my best to keep my trips very limited at Wal-Mart, this one is tough. They are the lowest locally when it comes to groceries, but the over-abundance of Christmas crowds has me making fewer outings out there. I try to avoid Wal-Mart on the weekends altogether, and I like to go when the oldest kids are at school.

I’m happy that my experiment has come to an end, it was fun, but my head hurts from the obsessive tracking. I’m going to take December off, and try to keep up with the frugal shopping, and making as much as possible from scratch.

Nov 2

The Coupons Strike Again

Maybe it was because October was such a long month. Maybe it was because October was filled with holidays and birthday celebrations. After I did the shopping and crunched the numbers the coupons won again!

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I had three more shopping trips in October than I had in July. Grocery prices have also increased a lot since July, so that is a bit of a bummer too. I have one more month left on my project. I’ve already decided that December is stressful enough, I’m taking that month off from obsessive spreadsheet work.

I would like to see frugality reign supreme for at least one month of my project, so I’m going to see if this works. I’m stocking up at Family Dollar, and Dollar General for paper goods, and planning a monthly run to Aldi. I have a big list planned, and I hope that this will help me save a bit. We’ll see what happens though, November is a long month filled with more celebrating…

Wish me luck!