Being Frugal

I love the challenge of being frugal. I don't consider it cheap. Which is why I get such a thrill out of playing this game. Since playing this game I have reduced my grocery bill by about 50%. This is a huge and incredible accomplishment especially considering that I have not given up the name brands that I was enjoying.

For example the other day I thoroughly enjoyed a really great meat sale at my local supermarket chain. Most meats were BOGO (buy one get one free). I bought the nicest top sirloin steaks that ended up being 5 for $10. They were really good and the whole family enjoyed them. I made a batch of rice pilaf. The rice was on sale $3 for a 20 lb bag! The fresh broccoli was buy a bunch get a bunch free. Total on that was $3. I figure that the steak dinner that my family enjoyed cost $10. If we were to have had the same meal in a restaurant, I estimate it would have cost us somewhere around $50-$60. That was a good day!

I have enjoyed many days like that. At the same meat sale, I got BOGO on boneless, skinless chicken breasts. A five pack of breasts cost $10. That is a total of $1 for each chicken breast. You can't even get that kind of deal at McDonalds. Their chicken sandwiches cost at least $4. We ate the chicken breast tonight and I made it with mac-n-cheese where I got the macaroni for BOGO and the cheese was also BOGO. We had it with frozen corn on sale for $1 each frozen package.

I just finished making tomorrow's lunches for everyone in the family with $1 jar of Peter Pan peanut butter and BOGO Smuckers grape jelly. In the lunch boxes they get Yoplait yogurt that was on sale 10 for $5. I also bag up cheerios in each lunch box with General Mills Cheerios that were BOGO and with sandwich bags that were also BOGO.

I am way too lazy to calculate the savings but I just know that they are there. I know that my better half was spending at least $7 a day on lunch. Now it is only costing what it takes to make the lunch....pennies compared to $7. That kind of savings adds up to $100+ a month!

Tonight I am doing laundry with name brand laundry detergent that I bought at CVS. It cost $3.99 for a concentrated 78 oz bottle. Since it was so cheap I decided to splurge on Snuggle to make the clothes smell good and feel soft. That cost me $4 for a 64 oz bottle.

One last splurge today....my better half's favorite hair gel....Garnier Fructis that I just bought for 99 cents a bottle. It just doesn't get any better than that.

So...now that I have peaked your curiosity, here is how you play the game.