Back to Basics

This year the focus is on saving money.  Now that we are both self-employed I find it is more necessary than ever to keep a close eye on our spending and look for ways to cut back.

I baked bread!  This is something I used to do on a weekly basis.  I simply must make time for that again as it is a big money saver.  I am just going to have to take two days a week to do the extra baking/cooking to help with the grocery budget.

I needed to order some yarn to use for a baby mobile.  I tried everything to make the thicker yarn work, but it just was not happening.  I did find a coupon code that took off 20% on top of the sale prices.  It saved more than the free shipping code I was planning to use.  I also ordered a few small things of yarn for making baby shoes.

We ate leftovers.  It is not the most exciting thing and something many people turn up their nose at.  I love it for two reasons.  1) It is like having a free meal.  2) It is a meal that generally requires warming and not cooking from the start.  Many of our leftovers go into the freezer either for single serve meals or an entire meal.  In fact many of the meals on my upcoming weekly menu are from the freezer.  It is great for those times when I am especially busy.

I applied our credit card rewards to the bill.  Every penny helps as we work to pay it off this year.

I got my secret sister at church Valentine gifts on clearance.  I found air plants in fancy containers marked down and picked out the best one. It is living in my kitchen window until this weekend.  I also got a box of candy on clearance.  It was in with the Christmas candy even though the packaging does not hint at Christmas at all.