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My best friend taught me how to make spaghetti which is definitely a meal that I can stretch. She is from Kentucky and the girl can cook. She agreed to come over and give me a few more lessons over the next few months. She understands what I am trying to do and is really very supportive. Love her!!! My grocery bill was a little higher this time around because I needed a few staples to cook the meal that I won't need the next time around.
I brought my breakfast and lunch today and I am going to cook something for dinner. I am also going to ask my mom to teach me how to make a few things like chicken salad and a turkey breast. Those are also meals that I can stretch.
I am overbudget and the excess came from savings. Anticipated expenses for the week are gas for my car (only the second fill up this month), parking for class on Wednesday night ($6) and maybe another 10-ride train pass which will be the last one for the month ($41).
I plan to bring my lunch all week and cook dinner. Then, I can make it through the rest of the month just needing about $100-$120 which will come from savings but will still leave my $2,000 efund in tact. Since I have one more month without paying all of my student loans, I should be able to put the $300 back into savings.
Lastly, I spoke with my Mom over the weekend. She and my Dad are probably going to help me with $300/month come June or July when my student loan payments increase. I told my Mom that I was thinking about getting a roomate and she was not pleased (I knew she wouldn't be) but I told her that I am running out of options. Mentally I am zapped from work and just thinking about having to get a second job makes me want to cry. She just said that I need to speak up and tell them I need help. So, I said I did and I will tell my Dad this week. He is going to agree with the snap of a finger which is just going to make me feel like crap too but oh well. I couldn't even go play golf with him this weekend because that was $40 I didn't have.
- Utilities are $105 higher due to my quarterly water bill.
- Transportation costs are $190 higher for parking passes.
- Medical bill from physical therapy is under misc/irregular expenses.
- My blow dryer died. I purchased a new one under personal care.
- Food& Dining and Groceries are my main focus right now to reduce.
2 comments:
WCB,
Great progress! This friend of yours sounds like she could be your ally in your debt reduction fight. Getting some basic recipes can be very helpful as can a slow cooker! Slow cooking provides a lot of meals that you can freeze for when you are just too tired to cook. There are a lot of blogs that have recommendations for frugal fast eating. Also nice in the summer as it does not increase the heat in the house like an oven.
I think you can have a lot of success with your eating out/grocery category. If you aren't going to get a roommate - this will be the category you have to cut back on. It can be done over time!
Also, go to ethnic grocery stores - they offer the best deals. Dominick's and Jewel are so expensive. You can get spices for cheap at CVS/Walgreens. Start paying attention to how much groceries cost. Keep your receipts - it gives you a record in case you can't remember.
I brought my grocery spending/dining out spending from 800/250 for 2 people. It didn't happen overnight, and I wasn't that much different from you when I started my debt reduction journey.
Just my $0.02.
Kris
Hi Kris!
I have a slow cooker app on my iPhone and I was taking a look at it yesterday and getting some ideas.
My sister uses hers often so she sent me some recipes as well. =)
I was just thinking this morning that if I can keep food & dining and groceries at $200/month then I could be making much better progress.
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