My first goal was to spend money on only essential items
to restock my pantry.
Except for two cartons (they aren’t gallons anymore) of
ice-cream, I stayed on task.
The second goal was to spend only $100 of my $160 budget
on groceries, HBA and food. I wanted to see if I could carry over $60 and move that money forward for a future month.
To that end, I rang up $100 worth of goods but missed
buying a few items: black beans, red beans, celery and yellow cornmeal.
Had I not bought the ice-cream, I may have been able to
use that $5.50 on those items. It would have been close.
Yet, I don’t find that to be a failed challenge. The ice-cream
was on sale and I could not find the four mentioned items on sale this month. Waiting
another week to incorporate them into the August budget was not austere on my
meal preparations. And I have $60 to carry forward.
With that thought, it brought me to my next challenge:
Austerity August.
As I evaluate my pantry moving into August, I seem to be
in good shape to start the month. No meat or fish were purchased in July as my
freezer pantry was well stocked. Heading into August, that inventory still
looks good.
As a weekend shopper, August is going to be a big
challenge for austerity. There are five weekends of shopping. If anyone is up
to the challenge, that would be me! Stay tuned!
SOUND
THE BUGLE! Today’s tip: For parents that are preparing
children for back-to-school, August can be an expensive month. Set aside a
designated amount of money for your back-to-school shopping whether it is
clothing, mandatory school supplies, snack items or after-school activities. If
you live in a state that has “tax-free” shopping weekend before school begins,
it may be a good time for savings. If you can endure the crowds!
MAKE YOUR OWN BEAN SOUP MIX
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