DH decided he would take sandwiches for lunch the rest of the week, so I went to Ingles to get him some ham. My favorite low carb ice cream was almost half off and I had a coupon for the only food my dog has ever like, beneful.
so I saved almost $4 at the store, plus $1 for walking at least 30 minutes yesterday. Another $5 for my challenge money.
prev total. $5837.00
today 5.00
new total $5842.00

I am trying to track my electric use by reading my meter everyday. So today, I paid attention when I started the hot water heater and the dishwasher. During the time the dishwasher and hot water ran, it used 6 kwh's for a cost of 54 cents. Of course that does not count anything else that was pulling electricity like the refrigerator, so the cost is actually less. Not bad!

I got my electric bill yesterday and was very happy to see that it was still under $100. I budget $160 a month for it, but because there was an extra payday last month (5 fridays) I had $200 in my electric bill envelope. Therefore, I have $100 to add to my challenge money.
prev. total $5737.00
today 100.00
new total $5837.00

I found some extra money in one of the envelopes It is actually an expense that has been discontinued, but if I have extra money, I will put $10 in that envelope. So I now have an extra $50 to put in my challenge money.
Prev. total $5687.00
today 50.00
new totl $5737.00

Ok, it is 76 here in my exercise room. This is where I spend most of my day. The computer is in here too. I am going to try and do better about my elec. bill cause every dollar I save from my monthly budget of $160 is money I can put in my challenge. This room needs a/c on all day, to make it bearable. I have a big floor fan on right now, and it is helping! Of course this room is upstairs (heat rises) and my treadmill is right in front of the window and gets the afternoon son.
If I ever move, I will plan a cooler place to put my treadmill.

I love Mondays!! That is my payday!! I love bringing home all that cash, getting out all my little envelopes and putting it all away. Especially, when there is enough money for ALL the envelopes. I list my envelopes in the order of importance, the bills that must get paid come first.
There are a few envelopes that I can miss if I am running short of money. For example, christmas fund, van fund (van is already paid for, so I add this to my fund to pay off car)medical fund (maybe we won't get sick) etc. Of course,I can always cut down on the groceries or going out to eat.

I wish I could be like frugal chick, open the windows and turn on the fans, but I cannot stand hot weather. It is hot today and the meter is spinning cause both of the airconditioners are running!!

We always cook on Sundays, no restaurants open in our area, except fast food.
I asked my husband what he wanted to cook tonight. (He does all the cooking and cleaning, plus works 7 days a week)
He wanted steak, but if they did not have what we wanted hamburgers would be ok.
You see, he likes rib eye steak and I like N.Y. strip, but we can never find just 1 of each. So we settle for porter house, if they have them.
Yesterday, they were out and I was kind of hoping they would be out of porterhouse again, so I could save money and buy hamburger.
Well, they had 3 left, so i got two steaks, almost $20. Just what I paid for my meal last night with enough leftovers for two lunches.
Well, it is father's day, he works hard, he deserves steak!!
I only saved $1 using my advantage card today and $1 for walking 30 minutes on the treadmill.
So I will add that $2 to my challenge.

Prev. total $5685.00
today 2.00
new total $5687.00

Happy Father's Day to all you guys, whether you are a father or not.
We don't spend much on gifts anymore, but my little Holly puppy did get her daddy some candy he really likes!!

It really is a boring day. I was invited to a cookout this afternoon, but it was mostly young women with children, plus my husband wanted to work.
I definatly had a no spend day, cash wise, although I did charge my qvc purchase on my credit card.
I saved $1 on potato chips last night and used no gas today, so I will add $2 to my challenge money.
Prev. total $5683.00
today 2.00
new total $5685.00

That is my downfall. I watch tv when I walk on my treadmill. Since there is nothing I really like to watch, I tend to turn on QVC and Home Shopping. I just ordered a really cute solar powered butterfly to put out on the deck over the creek! Bad , Bad!!

Let's all have a real great weekend!!

My dh called and asked me to come to his job. He is doing the electrical work and needs advice on where to put light fixtures, plugs, extra.
I always enjoy going over to the spec house cause it has a beautiful mountain view.
However that means I did not get much exercise in today, so no challenge money to add. This has been a slow week, savings wise.

I am so happy! I got to eat and sleep again!! Why are all commercials about food, when you are on a medical fast?? 35 hours and only 3 popcicles!! Hey, I did lose 2 pounds!

My two day ordeal is over and I feel good. They found and removed 2 polyps and found I had diverticulosis. I wasn't given anything for it, so I assume it was not serious.
I have a no spend day except for the bill I occured and have slept most of the afternoon.

I am having a terrible day. I have to drink a gallon of stuff and I have been trying for over 4 hours and only have half down.
The main problem was the first glass was not cold enough and it made me sick. That made every other glass make me sick.
If you ever have to do this, chill the gallon container in the freezer to get it really cold. Also put 2 glasses in the freezer to make it even colder.

Well, I did 30 minutes on the treadmill so i can add $1 to my challenge plus I am definately going out to eat tonight, so that is another $20 to add to the challenge money.
prev. total $5662.00
today 21.00
new total $5683.00

I am preparing myself for a bad day today. First of all,nothing to eat but popcicles today and then a gallon of that awful liquid to drink.
The last time I was told to drink it all in 2 hours, but I couldn't do it.
Today, I am going to start at noon (instead of 2) and drink it for 5 hours. There is no need to make myself sick and throw it up!
I will be glad when it is lunchtime tomorrow, I know I won't sleep at all tonight!

Since i can't eat tomorrow all day, I am planning on splurging tonight at dinner. I also allowed myself some cookies with icing on them today. I bought myself a treat. I love anything with icing, cause I love icing! Whatever I gain today, I will lose tomorrow.

I haven't added anything in a couple of days. I did use a coupon that saved me $2 on dog food today, so I will add it to the challenge.
prev. total $5660.00
today 2.00
new total $5662.00

I just got back from the hospital. I am going in for a colonoscopy on Thurs. morning so I had to go and pick up the prep kit for it. Do you guys know how much i am going to have to drink tomorrow?
I know it is a smart thing to do, but it is expensive and I have no insurance. I had it done 2 years ago and it was $400 for the hospital. Today it is $900 and that does not count the doctor fee.
I put $500 on my credit card, but I used the wrong card. I am so mad at myself. I just got a new card with 0 interest and 1% cash back, but I pulled out my old card by mistake. Darn!!

We went to our usual place to eat last night. i almost always order the same thing every night.
The restaurant just switched to a computer system where each waitress punches in the order they just took.
To my surprise, they had put me on the computer.
My ticket last night read "Julie's usual" Pretty neat, huh??

Ray does a lot better with her mail than i do. All I got was junk and a check for 29 cents. I don't know why I get these tiny checks once in a while. It is from a company I once owned some stock in, but I sold it all. It is Food Lion!!

My little poodle, Holly, needed to go out to potty. I usually just open the door and let her go!!
Today, I did not notice there was a ground hog out by the porch, feeding on the corn I put on the ground.
Holly chased the groundhog and I chased Holly. I am so glad she did not catch the ground hog cause it was much bigger than her.
I got my dh paycheck and cashed it, then did the envelope method. I am so happy when there is enough money for ALL the envelopes.

Today is payday, so that is always a day to look forward to. I make out my husband's check based on the number of hours he has put in during the week. I need to make a trip to North Carolina today to the liquor store too. I have not been for a while! So, it looks like a busy day.

Looking forward to going outside and cooking hamburgers on the grill. Get to sit outside and just listen to the creek ripple by and watch the fire flies!! Have a nice evening! (a frugal one too)

I just got back from seeing how the other half lives. We got a call from a couple wanting to build a new house. They want to down size. Their house now is on about 20 acres. Big long drive way. Lushly planted yard. Fancy pool in the backyard.

They showed us all thru the house but although the rooms were big, i was not that impressed. The house was too dark for me. I don't like real dark houses or real dark wood.

My white, bright, house looks good to me! We figured out who they were. They own a huge beverage supply house right in the center of town. We are talking about some big $$$ here.

But we told them we could not take anything for about a year. My dh is a one man show and does all the work himself, so it takes a while to build a house!

i went grocery shopping today. Now that I have stocked up on major items, I don't seem to spend very much, under $35 today. I was craving low carb ice cream and it was on sale and I saved $2. I will add that to my challenge money, bringing my new total to $5660.00

We went to a dinner party last night. Since we usually eat out on Sat. night, I thought I would add some of the money we saved last night to my challenge money. I had to bring bread for the 20 plus guests, so spent about $8.
But I saved at least $10 for dinner, plus I walked for 30 minutes and had a no gas day yesterday, so I will add $12 to the challenge money.
Prev. total $5646.00
today 12.00
new total $5658.00

We had a wonderful time at the dinner party last night. The food was great, but it was a bit hot. She wanted the whole party outside, but until the sun set about 8:30, it was pretty warm.
I knew none of the ladies would wear shorts, and I was right!
So we were pretty warm, but the food was great. I really went off my diet and had cheese and crackers and a few bites of chocolate cheesecake!