<$Thursday, February 7, 2008$>
The food problem: still a problem
| Okay, I've tried to make peace with how much we spend on groceries by rationalizing about how we're foodies and we don't get out that much anyway, but the hard cold fact is that we still spend way more on groceries than two people should. For the last several months we've been going over our already substantial grocery budget, to the point that we spend more on food, alcohol, toiletries, supplements, pet supplies, et al each month than we spend on rent. Sure, our rent's cheap, but still: something is very, very wrong there. As of this writing, though, we're beginning to make some progress. Part of the problem is that I got lazy about hunting down bargains and clipping coupons, and that part's easily fixable. Last night I went to the store armed with a wallet full of coupons matched to advertised store specials, and while I didn't necessarily come out spending less than I normally do on the first grocery trip of the pay period, I did come out with substantially more food to show for it. That should help with the second part of our problem--making our food last longer. We've been in the bad, bad habit of stopping by the store any time we run out of something, instead of seeing what else we can eat instead until the next payday. I've been carping at Husband about how this practice really needs to stop, and he's trying his best to cooperate and eat what's on hand instead of immediately replacing something he's run out of. He's also trying to be more cost conscious when he makes his list, as am I. I think (hope) this is a pretty good recipe for finally getting our grocery budget under control. If we can learn to eat within our budget, then we'll have no trouble living beneath our means and building up our wealth. Labels: marriage, money management, personal, spending |
<$Monday, October 29, 2007$>
Happy Date-iversary
| Today is the third anniversary of the semi-blind date that formally introduced me to my husband. It's a strange realization... on the one hand, it's like, "Wow, we've known each other three whole years now. That sure went fast." On the other, it's like, "Wow, I can't believe we've only known each other three years. It seems like we've known each other forever." A trippy feeling, that. I wonder if it will still feel this way in thirty. |