Well $250 is going to be a lot harder than I anticipated. I managed to forget about provisioning berries for the year, and with the late spring, all the mid-June strawberries ripened in early-July. I’m looking at blueberries and raspberries coming down the line in the next few weeks and I’m wondering if I blow my budget, forgo provisioning and rely on tons of (free) wild blackberries, or somehow – somehow – manage to eek out enough money to buy berries without screwing over the challenge.
That said, because of a large strawberry purchase, this is the worst 1st Week of a No Spend Month Challenge I’ve ever had:
$3 – cookie for daughter on special field trip to University
$4 – parking on special field trip to University
(relatedly, daughter fascinated and amazed by giant Foucault pendulum in the University physics building: priceless)
$5 – 30 new-to-me cafe wear glasses sold by a friend
$71.76 – strawberries for jamming, freezing, and devouring by the pound while fresh
TOTAL: $95.76
REMAINING: $154.24
How’s your No Spend Month coming?
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7/1 – $4.49 – Tillamook Black Cherry Ice Cream on sale – cuz they only make it one month of the year! And it's my fav. (OK, I blew it! ) It's ok!
7/5 – $5.25 – Veggie transplants, replacements.
7/5 – $28.44 Fresh Veggies & Fruits, Yogurt, Cheeses on 1st Tuesday of the Month 10% discount day at Freddies for Seniors (0ver 55)
Subtotal: $38.18
7/5 $21.99 – Replacement Canner Gauge. While I consider this a necessity as the other one broke, I'm still including it in the list.
Total: $62.19
I didn't have an actual number – just keeping track of what I do for the month. Gas tanks over 1/2 and 3/4 still.
I would exclude annual purchases from my list… maybe that's the enabler in me. If you're canning for the year, then put that in your annual budget, or at least divide by 12… Just a thought. We spent $25 on 18 pounds of Upick organic last week. Going to make 20 pints. Not bad.
$74.74 groceries 7-6-11 . $25 of this was a Strbx gift card to restock my Gold Card and and $23.76 was frozen Minute Maid lemon juice. They were discontinuing it and selling half price so bought all 24 bottles. A fresh lemon here is $0.69 EACH. Each bottle is the equivalent of 7 lemons.
$5.25 on Thai spring rolls (4) to go with last nights homemade stir fry. I don't do deep frying.
$8.45 8 bags of red cedar mulch reg $4.49 ea on
clearance.
I am afraid most of my allotment will go to gas. Husband has on call job. Back and forth across town and from office and house multiple times a day. Also I need to take my daughter once a week 40 mile round trip to a Dr appt (not available closer!!) We have very fuel efficient cars but gas going back up here. I can cut back, way back as I have before. I do all the time because we don't have insurance so have to pay medical bills ourself.
Sinfonian – where do you pick? That's a great price for organic especially!
*sigh* this cannot be a no-spend month for us, but hope to try that soon. Here in western Kentucky, Hubby managed to pick a gallon of wild blackberries yesterday…gotta love it when nature adds to the table!