mamabear
08-05-2007, 09:36 AM
Post yours!
***
Mine are:
*Eat out of the pantry and from the CSA as much as possible. Lots of grilled veggies, salads, beans and rice and Highland beef from the freezer. I really need to keep grocery costs low this month.
*Get the Great Basement Cleanup of 2007 finished. I have four or five large tubs of small to medium toys and parts to sort through and I would like to list a large box of fabric FS.
*Focus on canning, freezing and preserving garden and CSA foods for winter.
*Pick 40 lb of blueberries and freeze them.
*Cheap entertainment: our pool! :D Yay! Also trying to hack out a few trails through our woods until sweaty and exhausted, then returning to jump in the pool. Picking wild raspberries (we picked and ate several pints yesterday, a good few hours' entertainment, we are lucky enough to have huge stands of raspberry vines all over our property).
*Back to Not Buying It/Compacting. Although I haven't bought much that hasn't been strictly necessity or some need of the kids (like stuff for Katie's camp), I haven't always been as careful as I can be with the non-necessary items, to get them free or used. Mainly because of poor planning. An example is Katie's riding boots and pants. I could have found them cheaper somehow, at a garage sale, out of the trader, or from an acquaintance, if only I had planned a bit better and been looking for them in the Spring. I'm still weighing every decision carefully but sometimes have bought new anyway. I'm going to read up a bit on Compacting and try to go back to making lists of things that are "wants" and setting that list aside instead of acting on it instantly.
*Related to that, I need to do back to school as cheaply as possible. The kids are pretty much set as far as early school clothes, while it's still warm, but I need to start thinking about winter clothes again! Ugh! I would like to go thrifting a few times once school starts. I hate that everything is such a far drive. :( Every thrift store is 30 min to 1.5 hrs away in different directions! And I rarely find decent kids' clothes in the bigger sizes. (Related to that maybe we should start a back to school ISO thread...?)
*Birthdays. Going to try to do this as cheaply as possible. My suggestion to K that the pool be their main present was actually received quite well. I am going to take herc's advice and get them each a small Playmobil set as well. I will let Katie save for her bike and Jake will get his when she gets hers. Right now I'm thinking we'll wait until the first weekend in May when Earl's has that bike swap, unless she's just dying for one immediately and has enough money...I figure we'll visit Earl's to look at styles/sizes when we pick Matt up from the airport on Saturday. I think that will help us decide what to do and give us a price point for her saving.
***
Mine are:
*Eat out of the pantry and from the CSA as much as possible. Lots of grilled veggies, salads, beans and rice and Highland beef from the freezer. I really need to keep grocery costs low this month.
*Get the Great Basement Cleanup of 2007 finished. I have four or five large tubs of small to medium toys and parts to sort through and I would like to list a large box of fabric FS.
*Focus on canning, freezing and preserving garden and CSA foods for winter.
*Pick 40 lb of blueberries and freeze them.
*Cheap entertainment: our pool! :D Yay! Also trying to hack out a few trails through our woods until sweaty and exhausted, then returning to jump in the pool. Picking wild raspberries (we picked and ate several pints yesterday, a good few hours' entertainment, we are lucky enough to have huge stands of raspberry vines all over our property).
*Back to Not Buying It/Compacting. Although I haven't bought much that hasn't been strictly necessity or some need of the kids (like stuff for Katie's camp), I haven't always been as careful as I can be with the non-necessary items, to get them free or used. Mainly because of poor planning. An example is Katie's riding boots and pants. I could have found them cheaper somehow, at a garage sale, out of the trader, or from an acquaintance, if only I had planned a bit better and been looking for them in the Spring. I'm still weighing every decision carefully but sometimes have bought new anyway. I'm going to read up a bit on Compacting and try to go back to making lists of things that are "wants" and setting that list aside instead of acting on it instantly.
*Related to that, I need to do back to school as cheaply as possible. The kids are pretty much set as far as early school clothes, while it's still warm, but I need to start thinking about winter clothes again! Ugh! I would like to go thrifting a few times once school starts. I hate that everything is such a far drive. :( Every thrift store is 30 min to 1.5 hrs away in different directions! And I rarely find decent kids' clothes in the bigger sizes. (Related to that maybe we should start a back to school ISO thread...?)
*Birthdays. Going to try to do this as cheaply as possible. My suggestion to K that the pool be their main present was actually received quite well. I am going to take herc's advice and get them each a small Playmobil set as well. I will let Katie save for her bike and Jake will get his when she gets hers. Right now I'm thinking we'll wait until the first weekend in May when Earl's has that bike swap, unless she's just dying for one immediately and has enough money...I figure we'll visit Earl's to look at styles/sizes when we pick Matt up from the airport on Saturday. I think that will help us decide what to do and give us a price point for her saving.