Saving on Saturday

I have said before that either by force or by choice saving money becomesa way of life. My day on Saturday (5/5/12) is a excellent example of this.

First, because of my over zealous to plant a garden this year, I lost all my plants in the last two weeks except for 2 tomato plants.  The debate has been whether to purchase more live plants or attempt to grow most from the seeds that I have been saving for a couple of years. I decided on Friday night to go ahead and give the growing from seeds a try. I did not have seeds for Jalapeno peppers or zucchini squash, so these I ended up purchasing for $3.75 at the nursery where we pick up our produce box. Total Saving $5

I noticed that one of the neighborhoods on the main road was having a couple of yard sales this weekend since it was still fairly early, we decided to stop at a couple. I was able to purchase Lily: a pair of jeans, a jean skirt, two shirts and a sweater and Zach a sweater and outfit for $10. A conservative estimate of the Total Savings $60.

Next, we had been hanging on to an empty gas cylinder, for almost 6 months now. The reason is that I recalled last year the electric company having an event where you could fill the cylinder for $5. Matt and I both noticed that this event was taking place on Saturday. An added bonus was the free lunch that was being offered at well. We managed to time our trip at around 11:30 so all 5 of us ate for FREE! Total Savings $35

After lunch and naps, Zach and Kendall had a birthday party to attend.  We love Mexican Food around here and because it was Cinco De Mayo, I knew we would want to celebrate. So I made our favorite dip, Mexican rice and soft tacos from left over taco meat. We had all the needed ingredients so the meal that would have cost $40 was free. We did add to our celebration by heading out for Ice Cream as a special treat. Total Saving $30.

Finally, I am focused on making sure that none of our produce box gets wasted this year. So I went ahead and steamed up the broccoli, used left over rice and shredded chicken from the freezer to make a casserole for lunch on Sunday.  I also went ahead and froze half of the strawberries as well. Total savings $35, based on cost of lunch alone.

Just by making a couple of choices and spending the extra time to prepare food ahead, I was able to save $170 this weekend.