frugal friday: reiteration of everything you've already heard

meaning, energy savings. go green, save green, right?

*be purposeful about output. most things that plug in to the wall suck energy even when they're not in use. coffeemakers, cell phone chargers, electric toothbrush chargers - everything. unplug them when they're not in use. the BIGGEST wasters of energy are things on "stand-by" power: things that can be controlled with a remote. put these things on a surge strip that can be turned on and off. we put our TV, VCR, DVD player and stereo on a single surge strip, turned the whole thing off when not in use, and saved like 15 bucks the first month.(granted, none of our things were energy-star rated; savings would've been less if our stuff was newer/more efficient to begin with.) turn off your computer when it's not in use, and put all computer-related electronics (printer, speakers, etc) on a surge strip and turn off when not in use.

*think a tiny bit harder about laundry. not much, just a tiny bit. wash WHATEVER you can in cold water (i'd say 99% of our laundry is washed in cold water only - even baby stains come out if i "shout" them first). do consecutive loads - the dryer doesn't have to work as hard to dry the second load, since it has already been warmed up by the first. run your loads after 9:00 whenever possible - you can save 50%-75% on water and energy after 9 pm.

*think a tiny bit less about dishes. don't do them very often - or TOO often, really. only run the dishwasher when it's full. don't rinse them if it isn't necessary (depending on the dish and your dishwasher). if you follow these rules, you actually can end up using LESS water and energy than if you did them by hand after meals. only run the dishwasher after 9 pm. only use half the detergent the dishwasher can hold- it still works as well. use the normal or light cycles, and don't use the heat dry.

*cook creatively. if you can cook two meals at a time, or use leftovers, the stove/oven only has to be on once rather than twice. the smaller the appliance the less energy it uses, so consider that when cooking. (grill>toaster oven>microwave>range>oven). use the smallest pot necessary, since it takes more energy to heat a larger pot, and use the right-sized burner (don't put little pots on big burners, or vice versa).

then there are the standards:
.dust lightbulbs - it makes them more efficient.
.don't set your fridge/freezer too cold (but obviously cold enough!)
.turn off lights when not in use.
.turn down heat at night.
.turn off water when not in use.
.take quicker, cooler showers.
.turn thermostat down and dress in layers instead.
.turn a/c to higher temp and open windows/run fans instead.
.close north-facing shades in winter and south-facing shades in summer. (open them in opposite seasons.)

if you live in ames, you can call the electric department and request a free conservation packet (515-239-5120; ask for steve). it has TONS of information, audit sheets, fridge and freezer thermometers, and tons more stuff. it's really interesting, and FREE. it can't hurt to call!!!

frugal friday: cost of food and others

what does the average american family spend on groceries per month? check it out here and see where you fall in comparison!

some other tiny tidbits to tack on to the frugal friday post about cleaning:

1. use a microfiber cloth to clean with! seriously, these are pretty much the greatest technology developed in the cleaning world (maybe)...i got an eight-pack in the auto department for five bucks. dry, they dust like a pro without any cleaning solution. damp, they clean glass and countertops (even greasy surfaces) - i just dampen mine with water or a little rubbing alcohol for glass. then they just go in the washer and can be used again and again!

2. attach a microfiber cloth to your swiffer sweeper so you don't have to keep buying those RIDICULOUSLY expensive disposable refills.

that's all. have fun saving money!

frugal friday: the basics.

go here to watch and learn all you need to know about getting - and staying - out of debt.

all i need to know about money management i learned from steve martin.

frugal friday: the spiritual gift of poverty.

i don't have it. but todd does. it's his primary spiritual gift (followed closely by the gift of giving). he looks for ways to make more money for the purpose of giving it away, he looks for things he can go without in order to be able to give more to the church. whenever he receives anything (a gift or unexpected income), his first thought is about how he can give some of it back in gratitude. it's so inspiring to see that he truly understands that it has never been his money; it has only ever been God's money, and that he has been entrusted with stewarding it.

that being said, i mentioned that i don't have this gift. and i don't say that to fault myself - i have been given gifts that aren't todd's strong suit. that's the beauty of gifts. we've all been gifted differently so that we can each contribute something valuable and unique to the body of believers.

however, it should be pretty easy to see how it might be difficult for someone without the gift of poverty to be married to someone with this gift (and vice versa, if you think about it). people have asked me on multiple occassions, after learning that this is todd's gifting, if it's difficult for me. and my answer is "yes and no."

yes, because i'm a spender. well, not so much a spender as much as someone who values getting new or nicer stuff...and you usually have to spend money to get that stuff. which makes me a spender. when we first got married, this was one of only a couple big things that i struggled with. i had never had to be accountable for my spending before, much less to someone who saw money totally differently than i did. it meant that there were no impromptu cruises through the drivethru, fewer impulse buys at the store, fewer shopping trips to buy yet another shirt or whatever.

but the interesting thing is, it has made my life so much simpler in a way, too. i find myself wanting less, and the things i DO want, i weigh much more seriously before getting. and if i do decide something is worth getting, i actually enjoy looking for ways to get it cheaper (or best, free!). i love being able to tell todd about ways in which i saved us money. and at the end of it all, i find myself enjoying and valuing the things i have much more than i did, because so much thought and energy went into each thing.

mostly though, i love the fact that i can get truly EXCITED to hear todd say that he wants to give that hard-saved money away. when my income was nearly completely disposable, i thought in terms of how much makeup/clothing/mcdonalds a certain amount of money could get for me, or shuddered at the thought of buying off-brand velveeta (which i still do - some things don't change). it made it hard for me to joyfully give even the most basic amounts, and i found myself making all kinds of excuses for why i "just couldn't afford it."

but now, it's so much fun to hear about new giving opportunities and to frequently say "yes" without hesitation. and it's really exciting to see how much joy it brings todd to be able to do those things, and to come alongside him in doing the thing that brings him so close to God. and to be honest, todd does a great job of making sure our needs are beyond met, which makes it much easier for me to feel comfortable with the level of giving he is so passionate about.

so, yes, it's hard sometimes when i think about all of the things i could be getting if we gave less of our money away, and if we saved less of the money we keep. but more than anything, i'm grateful for the opportunity to give, to grow in a way that made me uncomfortable at first, to become a person i never thought i could be, and to submit to my husband wholeheartedly. god apparently had bigger plans for me than i had for myself, because i definitely didn't see this coming! but it has just been so awesome to see how todd's gift set has edified me so much in ways i couldn't have even imagined, and i'm beyond blessed.

(todd and i took this spiritual gifts inventory to help us identify our gifts, although todd's gifts of poverty and giving were pretty obvious before he even took this! mine were not so obvious, so i found it really helpful. do not be deceived by the eighth-grade-computer-class graphics.)

sweet deal.

just a quickie....

last night, todd and i each got a sandwich from quiznos, a fountain drink to share (aka, a soda for me to drink by myself) from kum 'n go, and two like-it sized ice creams from coldstone for $1.87 out of pocket. how did we do it, you say?

go here to sign up your family for free subs from quiznos - you can sign up each person in your household as long as you have a different email address for each one. note: you have to have a photo id in order to redeem each coupon, so signing up, say, a three-month-old infant doesn't work.

buy gas at kum 'n go and keep your receipt. (bonus: buy at least 12 bucks of gas on a sunday and get the sunday paper - including coupons - for free.) then go here to take the survey - they'll give you a free 32 oz drink.

and as for coldstone, we got a 2-for-$5 coupon from the paper and used a gift card for all but the remaining 1.87, so i have no links to help you out on this one. but if you sign up on their website, they'll give you a free ice cream on your birthday- so sign up everyone in your house!

okay, that's all. just thought i'd share the awesome deals!

frugal friday: laundry

so, i used to make my own laundry detergent, but have kind of fallen out of the habit recently since store bought is a (tiny) bit easier. also, since i wash all of our clothes together - including atticus' - i decided to use store-bought rather than homemade, since homemade is soap-based and they don't recommend that for use on baby clothes (i guess it messes with the flame-retardant stuff on kiddo pjs). however, i think if done a certain way, storebought can come pretty close to homemade in terms of price.

(the only thing that creeps me out about it is that it has a ton of unrecognizable chemicals in it, and thinking about having residue of that stuff on our baby clothes or my underwear is kind of gross.)

anyway, here's the best cost analysis i could come up with. i'm not the greatest at math, but i dedicate myself in the name of saving money, so i think this is right:

homemade detergent:
ivory soap: 3.79 for 10 bars (.02 per load)
borax: 2.89 for 76 oz (.01 per load)
washing soda: 2.38 for 55 oz (.01 per load)

homemade rinse (fabric softener/residue remover):
vinegar: 1.99 for 2 gallons (.02 per load)

total cost of one load: .06 (+ the cost of water and energy, obviously, but that will be true regardless of the type of detergent you use.)


here's the clincher for store-bought: only use half of what they tell you. i was talking to our appliance guy, and he said that it's better for your washer and your clothes to only use half the recommended amount, unless your clothes are really dirty. the only reason they recommend using as much as they do is because it makes you use more and therefore buy more.

storebought detergent options:
xtra liquid: 5.86 for 96 loads/192 half-soap loads (.03 per half-soap load)
arm and hammer liquid: 8.49 for 96 loads/192 half-soap loads (.05 per half-soap load)
arm and hammer powder: 11.86 for 145 loads/290 half-soap loads (.04 per half-soap load)

so, for the actual cleaning product, arm and hammer powder costs the same as homemade, and xtra actually costs less, as long as you only use half the amount of detergent. not to mention, both are (only a tiny bit) more convenient than having to make your own.

storebought softener options:
target brand fabric softener liquid: 3.29 for 60 loads (i don't know if you can halve this or not) (.06 per load)
target brand softener sheets: 6.49 for 240 sheets (you can use each sheet twice) (.01 per load)

so, for softener options, vinegar is less expensive than storebought, but if you want to buy softener, sheets are way less expensive than liquid.

so there you have it. i've decided to use arm and hammer powder detergent and vinegar, so my total cost-per-load is about 6 cents. i do 3-4 loads per week (avg: 3.5), which means i'll spend about 11 bucks a year to wash our clothes.

if i didn't halve our detergent, and used both liquid and sheet softeners, i'd be spending around 15 cents per load, or about 27 bucks a year. and that's only using the cheapest-of-cheap products. other products could make it WAY more expensive than that even.

so i save 16 bucks a year, which doesn't sound like much, but it's like getting nearly a year and a half of laundry for FREE, if you think about it.

not to shabby. and hopefully not too boring.

frugal friday: groceries

hello all. i've been thinking about it, and i think i'm going to start doing weekly posts about my favorite thing - saving money. this week: grocery basics. i've found that implementing just a few basic things can really save a lot of money in the long run. while i kind of go all-out in my grocery shopping attempts, i think if i only implemented a few basic principles that would save the most time and money overall, they would be the following:

1. menu plan. i put together a monthly menu plan (dinners only), but you could even do a weekly or bi-weekly plan. you could plan a dinner for each specific day (i.e., lasagna monday, salmon tuesday, etc.) or you could just plan seven different meals for the week, then decide each day which one you want to make.

i find this saves a bunch of money because i buy "focused ingredients" - stuff that i know i'll use and i know will actually provide me with everything i need to make a given meal. i can also schedule things like BLTs and tacos together because they both use lettuce and tomato, so I know I'll use these things before they go bad.

you can plan your meals based around stuff you already have and then fill in the holes. you could also plan them based on the sale ads from your cheapest grocery store (if you're only going to one store). i try to plan meals with simple ingredients - the higher the number or more expensive/unusual the ingredients, the higher your grocery bill will be. use your menu plan to help you create your shopping list.

2. take a list. i put together my grocery list based on my menu plan as well as the dry-erase list we keep on the fridge of anything we run out of or would like to get this week. i try to never get anything that isn't on the list, although i might just put "snacks" or "fruit" or even "impulse" on it, then decide exactly what i want once i'm at the store.

3. estimate and take cash. once i put together my list, i estimate how much it will cost. i know that milk is 2.50 at ALDI, so i write that next to "milk" on my list. then i add all my estimates up to see about how much my shopping trip will cost. because we limit ourselves to $80 every two weeks, if my estimate goes over this, i figure out what on my list isn't absolutely necessary, or i plan in a cheaper meal to get the cost to fit into what we've budgeted.

take cash! take cash! take cash! if there's one thing that i think will help more than anything else, it's this. i think it's really easy (for me, at least) to spend a little more than i had wanted if it's coming from our debit card/checking account, but if i take cash there is an absolute limit to what i can spend. it forces me to look for better deals and keep track of how much i'm spending as i go so that i don't get to the line and find out i have to put something back (i try to avoid this at all costs by adding up the total in my head or on a calculator). so, once you've figured out your estimate, take cash based on this amount (i sometimes add a couple bucks to the total, just in case something is more expensive than i thought, or there's a really great deal on something i don't have on the list, or there's something i forgot to add to the list.)

4. double the time between trips. if you currently go twice a week, try to stretch it to once. if you go once a week, try to stretch it to once every two weeks. and try and plan for anything you'd make a special trip for - milk, bread, etc. - and get enough to last you the whole time. that way you won't find yourself at the grocery store after work to pick up a gallon of milk, hungry and rushed, and end up buying more than you had planned or getting something different for dinner than you had planned for.

5. buy cheaper proteins. protein is usually the biggest part of most grocery budgets because it tends to be pretty expensive. ground beef is cheaper than steak, white meat chicken is cheaper still, ground turkey (from ALDI) is cheaper still, dark meat or bone-in chicken is cheaper still, eggs are cheaper still, beans are cheaper still, etc. while cheese and dairy can be somewhat expensive, pound-for-pound they go farther than meat, as do beans, which means they can actually cost less in terms of how much an entire meal costs. get creative with meals to stretch your protein as far as it will go. also, fruits and veggies are cheaper per pound than most proteins, so if you can include more of these and less protein, it will be even cheaper. (most americans get WAYYYY more protein than necessary, so cutting back won't be a negative step nutritionally.)


see, nothing too involved or anything. while meal planning and list writing take time, i like to look at it like this: if it helps you double the time between grocery trips, it actually saves you time, since you won't spend as much time at the grocery store. also, i like to think of it more like earning money: if an extra hour of planning every two weeks saves me $40 each shopping trip, that's like $40/hr. sweet gig.

i do love me a deal.

so, it's grocery shopping weekend in the van voorst house, which makes for an interesting few days. i go once every two weeks, so every other wednesday/thursday i spend time looking through the grocery ads, my coupons, online coupons/deals, and my menu plan for the next two weeks and put together my shopping list. we limit our grocery/household items budget to $80 every two weeks (not including baby stuff like diapers), which has seemed to work well for us. then i try my darndest to squeeze every little bit out of that budget as i can, which has actually become really fun; like a brain teaser or something!

the only downside to the whole process is the amount of time it takes, but i'd personally spend the time than the extra money - but that's just me, and it works well since i stay home and have more time to spend on stuff like this. (it has become a little more complicated with atticus, though, i'm not going to lie.)

so, this week i'm feeling very accomplished. i haven't yet made it to hyvee yet, but between walgreen's, fareway, walmart, and aldi, i got the following table-full of food/etc. for just under $49, with over $34 in coupon savings:

and my proudest purchases: the following stuff (which was all included above) was all bought for less than $3 total. nice.
on an unrelated note, atticus has been knocking his goals out of the park like a champ. (he's on a 3-hour schedule and has taken four crib naps and only 2 bouncy-chair-sans-vibration naps in the last 2 days. score.) so now i think we're going to tackle nighttime feedings. right now he's eating at 10:30 pm, 2:15 am, 5 am, then when he wakes up at 7. however, i was talking to allison and she said that sometimes makenna wakes up, not because she's hungry but because she's transitioning between sleep cycles and just needs a little help getting back to sleep. i have no idea if this is the case for kiddo v.v., but i thought i might try tonight to see whether he is actually hungry or just in need of a little extra help falling back to sleep.
i think atticus was trying to get back at me for waking him up at 7 the last two mornings, because he was up and at 'em at 6 this morning. thrilling. so we hit walmart, target, and salvation army, and made it home by 9:30. not too shabby.

random

okay, i have to blog about this. i've been going back and forth about it since last friday, but it's something i've decided i just have to brag about. prepare yourself.

so, fridays are my grocery days, and i usually go through coupons on thursday. i figured out (via the flyer) that yeast at aldi was .79 for three packets. yeast at fareway was .99 for three packets. HOWEVER, i decided to buy it at fareway because i had a couple coupons. when i got there, i found out that for every three packets you buy, you get a fourth one for free in a little strip. my coupons were for "buy one strip, get one free" and "save .65 on one strip." SO, that being said, i ended up getting eight packets of yeast for .34 at fareway, where it would've been .79 for three at aldi.

man, i love a deal.

i know most of you probably find that boring, but that's pretty much the best couponing deal i've ever gotten and i'm feeling pretty proud. (except for that one time i had to buy concealer, and i saved a dollar AND got a free bottle of foundation in the process. that was a pretty good time.) i love the adrenaline rush of saving money on groceries.

other ways we save money around the house:
-our electronics are on surge strips (saved about $20 bucks on our electric bill the first month we did this)
-i make our laundry detergent and cleaning supplies (cheap AND green!)
-meal planning, couponing, grocery shopping with cash, buying/freezing in bulk when there's a really good sale, shopping at a couple different stores, etc.
-only washing laundry in cold water

hmmm...todd, can you think of any more?

i love saving money on stuff we use anyway...it's like a riddle; how to get the same stuff for less.

anyway. that was a random rant. and speaking of random, more tales from fellows elementary!!

**john: are there some colleges with scorpions?
me: maybe, i'm not sure. (i really didn't have any idea what he meant.)
john: if you go to college where there are scorpions, you have to sleep with your shoes ON.

**me: hans! you look all bundled up and warm in your big coat! all i can see is your eyes - i hardly recognized you!
hans: barak obama and john mccain.

**amanda: mrs. van voorst, are you excited for your baby to come?
me: yes! i'm really excited. but i'm a little scared, too.
amanda: yeah, that makes sense. i bet your baby's scared too. i know i was.
(i started laughing, and amanda kind of made a funny face). mrs. van voorst, your belly looks weird when you laugh.

FINALLY, i had a really weird dream last night that we had our baby, but then went on a date, forgetting atticus at home. halfway through the date, todd remembered him and we rushed home, only to find atticus missing. i started freaking out, not because our baby was missing, but because it had been like 5.5 hours since i last fed him and i thought he might be hungry (um, duh). then we found out that my grandma noel had stolen him because we hadn't voted for barak obama. also, our baby was born with a FULL mouth of teeth. gross.