12. Buy in Bulk?

Yes, you can save money by buying in bulk. But, and I must say BUT!!! You have to store things properly and you have to be able to keep track of when things expire so they can be used up and rotated forward in your pantry or storage area. AND you have to know your prices!! Just because a store sells in bulk does not mean it’s cheaper. You have to divide out your total cost into cost per serving or cost per ounce and compare with smaller packaged items and other stores.

I seriously doubt that buying premade products in bulk will save you much money in the long run. A 10 lb bag of frozen chicken nuggets might cost 3 cents cheaper per serving than a 2 lb bag. But cutting up chicken (that you bought on sale) into bite size boneless pieces of meat, dipping them in milk, flour, milk again, and then cornflake or bread crumbs will ALWAYS be cheaper than buying the premade ones.

Buying in bulk, to me, means the basics should be bought in bulk. Things like flour, sugar, tea, coffee, dry beans, etc. Educate yourself on where these things are cheapest (comparison shopping is the only way to know for sure and be sure to include shipping vs. fuel for driving into your calculation).

Also- Educate yourself on how to store them long term so that they don’t spoil and critters can’t break in! Make a system of some kind to help you know when the stuff stored in the basement or long term storage needs to be brought to the kitchen for use and replaced in the basement with new product. A good source for this kind of information is www.millenium-ark.net

perfection

Did you know that insisting on perfection actually inhibits success? Why is perfection engrained into so many of our minds? Why do so many of us self-talk ourselves into thinking we’re failures because our homes are not perfect or our kids can’t behave or our latest project turned out less than we expected?

Our family is involved in 4-H and a few years back I entered homemade biscuits into the adult exhibits. I decided on biscuits because my time was running short and I did not have time to make my favorite exhibit- pie. I didn’t want to not do something because the adult exhibit area had been decreasing in popularity and I was involved in the home extension (organizers of the event). So I made my biscuits. I couldn’t get them to look exactly alike in size or height but I picked the best ones and took them to the fair.

I didn’t even stay for the judging because I doubted that my, as I perceived them, crooked and uneven biscuits would not get very far in the contest. I took the kids to walk around the fair and before we left I was stopped by lady after lady asking me how I made my biscuits!!! Finally, I asked someone I knew well what the deal was about my biscuits and she informed me that not only had I won in the quick bread division but I had one best of show over all the other baked goods! Crooked and uneven biscuits!!!

Now if I could only take my biscuit lesson and transfer it to my home!!! Getting rid of the “perfection” is harder when it’s only me that is counting on my getting something done. Granted, I have a husband and kids but still- if I can’t keep the house at least imperfectly straightened up for me it won’t make any difference to them.

So, I’m off once again to see what I can accomplish in 2 hours time to give my home a WHBH (weekly home blessing hour). As the Flylady says, “Housework done incorrectly still blesses your home!” As I work, I will be praying for all of the other perfectionists out there that all of us will be able to do something to show signs of improvement instead of doing nothing because we can’t do it perfectly.

Remember the biscuits!!!

11. Keep tabs on your health insurance claims/ don’t be afraid to ask for a discount

I learned something the other day.  My son had a bad ear infection that did not want to heal and so we ended up going to a specialist.  (Only to discover that his ear had healed from the time he saw his regular dr. until we saw the specialist 2 weeks later!!! GRRR!!!). 

Because of our high deductible, my husband and I have gotten into the habit of asking doctors offices and hospitals for discounts if we pay our bill at the time of service or as soon as the bill is totalled.  We had no maternity insurance for one baby and received a 20% discount for the hospital stay.  We agreed to pay in full within 7 days of the phone conversation in order to get that big of a break.  Our family practitioner gives us a 20% discount on office visits if we pay at the time of service.  In exchange, I keep track or our family’s claims from his office and his staff does not have to mail those in on our behalf. 

Anyway, back to the specialist appt.  When the appt was over, I asked the office gal if there were any discounts available for patients who paid at the time of service.  Yes, a 25% discount and you could use a credit card!  So, I happily handed over my Mastercard and got my 25% off.

A couple weeks later, I received a letter from my insurance company that said I may have overpaid the doctor’s office and that I should pay close attention to my explanation of benefits (EOB) when it arrives.  If I had overpaid, I was entitled to a refund!  Sure enough, my EOB arrived on Friday and I had paid over $100 more than the re-negotiated fee through the insurance company!  I will not get on my soap box of how ridiculous this is but I will tell you that I called the specialist’s accounting dept. this morning!!!  They have not received their EOB yet but will be within the week (I checked with my insurance co. to be sure!).  I will be calling them again next week to be sure I get my refund!!!

Anyway, my point being. . . . . pay close attention to those EOB’s!!!  If they show a different total than what your checkbook shows you paid- make a few phone calls and see if you can get your money back!!!  AND don’t be afraid to ask for discounts from medical agencies!!!  There is so much out right non-payment in their field that most are ready and willing to give you a break by helping them out!!  Just keep your end of the agreement or they will string you up for sure!!!

10. Don’t be afraid to try a discount or scratch/dent grocery store

I don’t know what kind of discount/ scratch and dent stores you guys have in your neck of the woods.  We have 3 within 25 miles of us.  2 of them are owned by the same people and they get overstocks, local stuff, and damaged goods.  The other one is considered a bulk foods store. 

The damaged goods are things that were in a truck that lost its load or was in an accident.  These items cannot be sold in regular stores but are perfectly fine.  The boxes may be damaged slightly.  Sometimes, for example, one end of a case box has been smashed but the other end is perfectly fine, including the goods inside!  These stores sort out the good from the bad and the ugly.  The good stuff (undamaged and in date) are priced similarly to the supermarket.  The bad (open packages or spoiled) are thrown out.  The ugly (damaged packaging but content is fine) are priced at reduced prices. 

Overstock items might be produce that needs eaten very soon or other items that are nearly out of date or just expired that a supermarket may have ordered too much of.  Many foods are fine past their expiration date (for a period of time depending on the food).  Example: yogurt, snack cakes, candy, cereal, crackers, soda, drink mixes, etc.  Because their shelf-life is so short the prices are greatly reduced.  I bought a wonderful pineapple last winter for .99- they are usually 3.99 around here!

As for locally produced products, well that would depend on where you live of course.  We have a lot of amish in our community and so there are often hand-crafted items like baby clothes, embroidered stuff, quilts, etc.  We also have a pretty wide variety of home remedy products too.  We also have a popcorn plant in our area, many meat processing plants, a cheese factory, and the oldest working water-powered grist mill.  So popcorn and specialty products relating to it are available at these stores.  The grist mill produces several types of flour, buckwheat, and hearts of wheat cereal (like cream of wheat- gone whole grain). 

The bulk foods store carries products just like the overstocks store but also stocks flours, sugars, whole grains, nuts, dried fruit, bakery mixes, tea, cheese, noodles, spices, nut butters, etc.  Most of these items come to the store in bulk and are packaged on the premises and priced by the pound or ounce. 

So not only can you find good deals on things you buy at the supermarket, you might also find that particular ingredient to some specialty recipe or some health food that you have been wanting to add to your diet! 

Let me tell you about my bargains I got today at the overstock store.  I’ll put my guess at regular grocery store prices for my area in parentheses.

• Keebler cookies 1.49, (2/$4 -regular sale price)
• Cheezits large box 1.49, (2.69)
• 100 count bandaids 1.29, (1.99- 2.50)
• Poptarts .99, (2/$4)
• evaporated milk .69, (1.29)
• oyster crackers .99, (1.29)
• multipack box of Club crackers w/ cheese sandwich crackers 2.50, (3.49)
• Kashi individual bars 4/$1  (.75- 1.29)

These were all in date.  Some packages were crushed so you had to dig for decent looking stuff for part of it but I thought I found some real deals today!  If you have a discount grocery in your areas, I challenge you to be brave and check it out!!  

To shop successfully at these stores you have to know what you pay at the supermarket.  This comes with practice or you could just go to the supermarket some time and take notes of regular cost of things you buy often, things you buy generic but love name brand, etc.  Keep these notes with you when you shop the discount store.  You also want to know about dented cans.  Cans that have sharp dents or creases, bulges, or give slightly when squeezed should not be purchased.    They may have slight holes in the metal that may have allowed bacteria in.  Also familiarize yourself with where to look for the expiration date on products and how to read them.  Each manufacturere does it slightly different.  The inventory at these stores is constantly changing so putting them on your calendar for a regular periodic visit would be a good idea.

Happy shopping!

Men are Different from Women

A friends husband recently became laid off from his job and has been helping around the house.  His help has been much appreciated but has left my friend feeling guilty that he is able to get soooooo much done yet she feels she can’t do things as well as he does (she works away from home with different hours).  I sent her the following sermon. . . . . Well, not exactly a sermon but an example of the difference between men and women and how we think. 

When DH (darling husband) was working full time, how much help was he really?  Right now his mind has one less thing to worry about (his job) and this frees him up to be helpful (even if he hands out sly comments here and there- LOL)  You still have your job, you still have to make sure the kids clothes match, you still have to make sure the meals are at least slightly healthy, you still have to deal with keeping your internal calendar of events current and up to date as well as remember what’s on it.  I’m going to guess that the following is your typical schedule (besides the fact that this is basically me, just re-tweeked a little):

 

Work until the middle of the night

Get up at the crack of dawn

Try to get a walk in- and while walking your mind goes between intermittent prayers of be with so and so and help me with this and that to “I’ve got this, this, this, this, and this to do and oh crap I’ve got to make this for a,b,or c child’s class” etc.

Get home by 7

Get the kids dressed, fed, and to school by 8- while doing this you also are breaking up bickering fights and saying “you can’t wear that” and “just do it because I need to you to” etc.

Get back home in time to take the youngest to preschool

Perhaps run and errand or two after you drop youngest off.

You get home by lunch time, shove some food in your face and either get ready for another work day or try to regain some rest that you lost by working late the night before.  While trying to recooperate from your previous work-day with a cat nap or a good book or an email, your mind wanders off to the back entrance of your subconscious and you accidentally let the father of guilt and lies into your head and let him beat you up for trying to have some me time.  This bothers you to the point that you either give up completely or decide you better do something before DH notices that you are sitting around still in your sweats from your morning walk.  If you do manage to get something done around the house, your mind again wanders off to whisper in your ear that the laundry is not folded nice enough and washing one dishwasher load and leaving the rest is not good enough.  Not to mention the whole time this is going on you are also reviewing that calendar in your head again trying to remember when you work next, who has what practice, when DH needs those dress pants cleaned, where your uniforms are, do the kids have clean undies, is there enough milk in the fridge.  Then all of the sudden you glance up at the clock just in time to realize that the kids will be home from school in about 10 min and you feel like you still haven’t accomplished anything or gotten a real rest in!  The kids come home bickering about the day, telling you how starved they are and how much homework has to be done.  All the sudden it’s 5:00 and your supper is still frozen and you have to be somewhere by 6:00.  You throw some grilled cheese onto the skillet and shove it down everyone’s throats as your race out the door only to get there with moment’s to spare.  By the time your appt is over, it’s after 8:00 and the homework is only half completed and the kids are exhausted.  You write some lame excuse to the teachers about an emergency at home to get the kids off the hook for their homework and put them to bed.  You plop down for 1 meesly hour of t.v. before dropping into bed. . . . . Need I say more!?  Yes, I do- I forgot DH

 

When DH was working this was probably his day:

Get up at the crack of dawn and get ready for work.  Hollers “where’s my socks?” and “where’s those pants I needed?” despite the fact that they are in plain sight to the woman of the house- he can’t see them

He shoves some breakfast in his face and goes to work and wonders to himself “geez DW (Darling Wife)  looked awfully grouchy this morning- must be PMS again- YIKES!”

He puts in his 8 hours at the  plant and jokes around with his co-workers all day (or argues with them, depending on the day).On the drive back home he remembers that he has practice tonight.

He comes in the house and looks around and says to himself, “what does she do all day long, nothing? I better not say much though with that PMS that seems to last 3 weeks out of the month”

He tells DW he has  practice, changes his clothes, grabs a snack, perhaps reads the mail, says hello to the kids and then yells at them for getting all wound up (despite the fact that he has just tickled or teased them for 5 minutes straight)

He heads out the door with perhaps an “I love you”

He comes home after DW has left with the kids for their appt and wanders around the house trying to figure out what his wife has doing all day. 

It’s not quite dark so he goes out and tinkers in the garage on this “important” project and then plops down with the remote to wait till everyone comes home.

When the door opens, the kids are fighting because they are over-tired and he yells from the couch, “keep it down out there! I can’t hear the t.v.!”

When DW finally joins him on the couch, she falls asleep and he gets upset because once again, “she’s tooooooo tired for it again- I swear she just makes up excuses to get out of it – obviously she shouldn’t be tired- nothing got done today anyway!”

 

If you noticed, I kept referring to how our brains are constantly swirling with thoughts and plans etc.  Men do not do this!  They put work in the work compartment and kids in the kid compartment and don’t mix the two.  We women multi-task everything!!!  This puts increased stress and exhirts more energy on us.  Now with him not working, he is just filling his time up with stuff around the house.  Your shedule and multi-tasking has not changed!!!  Be thankful for the help, even if it includes off-handed comments.  If you have to,  repeat the following out loud, “I am lovable and capable.  Satan, you must leave my brain!  In the name of Jesus, get out of my head!  I am worthy of Jesus love and grace and I am worthy of the help my husband is giving me!  I am lovable and capable!!!”