We were doing so well in the spring. We had our envelope system working. Our budget was on paper and discussed every month.
Then the summer came.
I guess we got cocky. We stopped writing out our budget. We were trying to keep up with money in our head. Game over - we lost.
This has been a difficult month money-wise, and we don't know why. Yes, there was the $200 a/c maintenance and freon bill that we didn't expect. It was money here, money there. When you're not keeping up with it, it will filter through your fingers in no time.
So, last night, we sat down and did our October budget. It's done. Supposedly, we'll be able to put a lot back into savings and still have some cushion. Which leads us to ask, "Where is our money going?" When we put it on paper, we have plenty. Why is there not plenty at the end of this month?
Hopefully, we'll get back on track this month. We've got some big stuff to take care of at the end of the year. I know we can do it, we just actually have to stick with it.
Monday, September 28, 2009
Saturday, September 26, 2009
Arts and Crafts
I sometimes still think I'm not a very crafty person. I don't know why I still have this thought in my head! I have absolutely no credibility on that. I scrapbook. I do rubber stamping. I now make items with a sewing machine. Yeah, I do crafts.
I sometimes have felt guilty that I didn't do more stuff like crafts with Little Man when he was small. At the time, though, I worked 20 - 30 hours a week from home. It was a nearly ideal working situation, but it was still working. But even if we I had been a full time SAHM, I'm not sure he would have liked the crafts. To this day, he has no time, no patience to do anything artful.
I recently got in with a small improptu buying club through my mom's group. I was able to snag more than a dozen seasonal craft kits for less than $12 from Oriental Trading Company. So far, E Belle and I have done two kits - a Johnny Appleseed puppet and a squirrel.
I sometimes have felt guilty that I didn't do more stuff like crafts with Little Man when he was small. At the time, though, I worked 20 - 30 hours a week from home. It was a nearly ideal working situation, but it was still working. But even if we I had been a full time SAHM, I'm not sure he would have liked the crafts. To this day, he has no time, no patience to do anything artful.
I recently got in with a small improptu buying club through my mom's group. I was able to snag more than a dozen seasonal craft kits for less than $12 from Oriental Trading Company. So far, E Belle and I have done two kits - a Johnny Appleseed puppet and a squirrel.
I wasn't sure at first what to do with our completed crafts. I ended up hanging a piece of hemp twine over our back windows, and I secured it with push pins in the top of the wood (no one will ever see those holes!). I then pinned the items to the twin with clothespins. As we do more items, we'll just keep adding!
Not only does this showcase E Belle's craftiness, but it also gives us a cheap decoration! And yes, these are E Belle's actual work. I did do some, but I had to let go and let her put things the way she thought they should. Thus, our squirrel has sideways teeth. But who cares, right!? It's my E Belle's.
The dress is FINISHED!
I did it!! I finished the dress!
Okay, so it wasn't as cheap as I was hoping. It cost about $35 when it was all said and done. I could have picked a cheaper fabric, as my fabric cost alone was nearly $20, and that was with a coupon. I used a minky dot-style fabric, which then necessitated the purchase of a walking foot to make sure the fabric didn't pucker when sewn. The pattern also called for the use of a double needle to finish the hems. That was at least inexpensive, and now I know a new technique!
Like anything else I ever do, I know where the imperfections are, and I hate that. But, it got lots of compliments today on its first wearing!
I paired it with a pair of white tights and black shoes. It was super cute!! E Belle seems to find it comfortable. When she first put it on, she just twirled around and around.
Now I can't wait to make something else!
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Another Disney frugal post - Dining!
Okay, so you're finally on your vacation at Disney. You've got your room, and you're heading to one of the parks. Then you realize you are hungry! That's when it hits you. Disney doesn't just want to take you out of the real world to play, they also want to take you out of the real world when it comes to food prices.
I'll be honest. We don't even BUDGET for food at Disney. We just have a spending money budget and go from there. But we've been enough times to know how to play the game.
1. The Disney Dining Plan - Ah, what a beautiful thing. Kind of. I love the idea of prepaying for your food, and Disney has started to provide more options for those who just want the quickie meals all the way up to those who want to have a sit down meal 3 times a day, every day.
We have been using the standard dining plan, which Disney calls Magic Your Way Plus Dining (you will learn that EVERYTHING has a Disney-fied name very quickly!). This currently includes 1 table service meal (entree, non-alcoholic beverage, dessert and tax), 1 counter service meal and 1 snack a day for each night of your stay for $40 per adult, $13 per child ages 3 - 9. While the prices haven't gone up on this much in the past several years, the value has declined. Three years ago, the table service credit included an appetizer, entree, dessert, non-alcoholic beverage, tip and taxes!! Then they dropped the tip, then this year, the appetizer. You can use them in any combination - if you have the credits and want to eat three table service meals in one day, that's fine! It's not a per day allotment, that's just how you buy the credits.
But still, we find it a very budget friendly option. I like knowing that I already have paid for a lot of my food prior to my trip. We like the table service options, and they can certainly add up. For example, my entree alone at Le Cellier (filet mignon with mushroom risotto) was $36. It's easy to get a good value for your money with little effort. You just have to make sure you actually use all of your credits!
2. Bring your own food - Sounds kind of obvious, but if you are flying, is this something you would do? We fly, and yes, we pack food and drinks for the kiddos. This year, I brought Capri Sun-style drink pouches, as well as just little snacks that fit great in both a suitcase and diaper bag and yet won't crush. When E Belle got thirsty in that hot Florida sun, I didn't always have to go run and get her a $2.50 bottle of Dasani. I just pulled out the drink pouch.
3. If on the dining plan, figure out what your cheapest meal of the day will be, then use cash - For us, this was almost ALWAYS breakfast. The exception was our character breakfast at Chef Mickey's. All other breakfasts were eaten at the quick service area in our resort. We're not big breakfast eaters anyway, so we were happy with things like bagels and a drink. Even so, breakfasts ran close to $15 just for simple breads.
4. Get the resort mugs - If you stay in property, get one for each member of your family who can drink from a cup (we didn't buy E Belle one). They're about $13 a piece, but you can use them to refill your drink the length of your stay in your resort's quick service area. When drinks are running $2+ a piece, this is a quick money saver. In the end, you take home the mug. I still have mugs from about 15 years ago when they were new and smaller. Technically, you aren't supposed to use these at different resorts, but I'll confess - when we were staying at the Polynesian, we did use our mugs at the Grand Floridian when we ate at their quick service one day for lunch. Disney's really made doing this pretty easy because the mugs no longer are resort specific, meaning the one you get at the Conteporary is the same that you get at Pop Century. I really hate this because I liked having the resort specific ones, and Disney's made it easier to abuse the system. Not promoting doing this, now, but it is possible. *Note* you cannot use these mugs in the Parks.
I'll be honest. We don't even BUDGET for food at Disney. We just have a spending money budget and go from there. But we've been enough times to know how to play the game.
1. The Disney Dining Plan - Ah, what a beautiful thing. Kind of. I love the idea of prepaying for your food, and Disney has started to provide more options for those who just want the quickie meals all the way up to those who want to have a sit down meal 3 times a day, every day.
We have been using the standard dining plan, which Disney calls Magic Your Way Plus Dining (you will learn that EVERYTHING has a Disney-fied name very quickly!). This currently includes 1 table service meal (entree, non-alcoholic beverage, dessert and tax), 1 counter service meal and 1 snack a day for each night of your stay for $40 per adult, $13 per child ages 3 - 9. While the prices haven't gone up on this much in the past several years, the value has declined. Three years ago, the table service credit included an appetizer, entree, dessert, non-alcoholic beverage, tip and taxes!! Then they dropped the tip, then this year, the appetizer. You can use them in any combination - if you have the credits and want to eat three table service meals in one day, that's fine! It's not a per day allotment, that's just how you buy the credits.
But still, we find it a very budget friendly option. I like knowing that I already have paid for a lot of my food prior to my trip. We like the table service options, and they can certainly add up. For example, my entree alone at Le Cellier (filet mignon with mushroom risotto) was $36. It's easy to get a good value for your money with little effort. You just have to make sure you actually use all of your credits!
2. Bring your own food - Sounds kind of obvious, but if you are flying, is this something you would do? We fly, and yes, we pack food and drinks for the kiddos. This year, I brought Capri Sun-style drink pouches, as well as just little snacks that fit great in both a suitcase and diaper bag and yet won't crush. When E Belle got thirsty in that hot Florida sun, I didn't always have to go run and get her a $2.50 bottle of Dasani. I just pulled out the drink pouch.
3. If on the dining plan, figure out what your cheapest meal of the day will be, then use cash - For us, this was almost ALWAYS breakfast. The exception was our character breakfast at Chef Mickey's. All other breakfasts were eaten at the quick service area in our resort. We're not big breakfast eaters anyway, so we were happy with things like bagels and a drink. Even so, breakfasts ran close to $15 just for simple breads.
4. Get the resort mugs - If you stay in property, get one for each member of your family who can drink from a cup (we didn't buy E Belle one). They're about $13 a piece, but you can use them to refill your drink the length of your stay in your resort's quick service area. When drinks are running $2+ a piece, this is a quick money saver. In the end, you take home the mug. I still have mugs from about 15 years ago when they were new and smaller. Technically, you aren't supposed to use these at different resorts, but I'll confess - when we were staying at the Polynesian, we did use our mugs at the Grand Floridian when we ate at their quick service one day for lunch. Disney's really made doing this pretty easy because the mugs no longer are resort specific, meaning the one you get at the Conteporary is the same that you get at Pop Century. I really hate this because I liked having the resort specific ones, and Disney's made it easier to abuse the system. Not promoting doing this, now, but it is possible. *Note* you cannot use these mugs in the Parks.
Disney on Ice discount code!!
I'm probably in Charlotte WAY too much, but I just love going down there. It's the benefits of living near a pretty big city without having to deal with the negatives, KWIM?
Anyway, I got this discount info for Disney on Ice for their 10/8 - 10/11 shows. If you think it's just for girls, you will be pleasantly surprised! Little Man went last year and had a blast. This version of the show also has a Halloween element as well!
Here's the 411:
**The coupon code is be ‘MOM’— four tickets for $44 for weekday shows Monday-Friday and $4 off all tickets for weekend shows. Any additional tickets beyond the 4-pack for shows during the week are still priced at $11.
**The tickets can be purchased from http://www.ticketmaster.com and by entering the MOM code in the “MC promotion” box when purchasing tickets.
**Offer not valid on Rinkside or VIP seating.
**Cannot be combined with other offers.
**Service Charges, facility & handling fees will apply.
Anyway, I got this discount info for Disney on Ice for their 10/8 - 10/11 shows. If you think it's just for girls, you will be pleasantly surprised! Little Man went last year and had a blast. This version of the show also has a Halloween element as well!
Here's the 411:
**The coupon code is be ‘MOM’— four tickets for $44 for weekday shows Monday-Friday and $4 off all tickets for weekend shows. Any additional tickets beyond the 4-pack for shows during the week are still priced at $11.
**The tickets can be purchased from http://www.ticketmaster.com and by entering the MOM code in the “MC promotion” box when purchasing tickets.
**Offer not valid on Rinkside or VIP seating.
**Cannot be combined with other offers.
**Service Charges, facility & handling fees will apply.
Friday, September 11, 2009
Making clothes
I like to shop. No, scratch that, I LOVE to shop. And I really like shopping for kids clothing! The downside - the price. Little Man's pretty much outgrown the good stuff at consignment sales, and he wears a husky size pant, so I almost always buy new for him now. E Belle is another story - I can't stop buying for her! But this season, I've only bought new if I have had a coupon, and I've managed to pick up a few cute used items along the way. Yet E Belle has managed to be short on dresses.
Last year, I bought several Chez Ami dresses. Once I got them, I noticed that they had a handmade feel to them. Not that that's bad - it's not! But it got me thinking, maybe I could do that?
So, I've learned to sew. I've made a few household items, and now I've moved on to clothes. I'm on PJ bottom pair #3. Next project - a minky dot swing dress for E Belle!! There's one very similar to it on the Chez Ami website for $60. My price today at Joann for the fabric, pattern, extra needles, interfacing and string - $28. Not a real cheap-o deal, but way cheaper than the boutique version!
I'll get some pictures going once the projects are completed.
Last year, I bought several Chez Ami dresses. Once I got them, I noticed that they had a handmade feel to them. Not that that's bad - it's not! But it got me thinking, maybe I could do that?
So, I've learned to sew. I've made a few household items, and now I've moved on to clothes. I'm on PJ bottom pair #3. Next project - a minky dot swing dress for E Belle!! There's one very similar to it on the Chez Ami website for $60. My price today at Joann for the fabric, pattern, extra needles, interfacing and string - $28. Not a real cheap-o deal, but way cheaper than the boutique version!
I'll get some pictures going once the projects are completed.
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