Four days to go

The receipts are piling up fast and furious as we try to make it through these last few days. We're having to buy pretty much everything we put in our mouths because the fridge, freezer and pantry are bare. Even the lemons are gone. We had spaghetti with a jar of pizza sauce because that's what we had.

Went to Target for the first time all month - bananas, milk, eggs, cheese, coffee and 1 package of chicken thighs, discounted $2 for having a close expiration date: $32.38. Got a $5 gift card for buying 2 bags of coffee, and that's fair game for spending. Had to avoid the Evil Eye of Target.

Courtesy www.crappypictures.com

Hubby made a comfort food run for cereal, cookies and ice cream, $17.38. Pasta and bread, $4.78, Carrots, milk, peanuts for more peanut butter, orange juice, and a bottle of wine, $23.54. We have $60.22 remaining.

Breaking the Rules

Tonight we made another meal for our neighbors who are in a time of need. We might not make it through February on the money we have left but we went ahead and bought the ingredients needed to make a turkey, mashed potatoes, cranberry, green beans and home-baked cookies meal for them. If it puts us over budget, it puts us over budget. The Frugal February rules say "Don't spend!" but our hearts say "Give!" and we know which to heed.

So grocery totals for yesterday and today: yesterday, $39.39 sin run (coffee, wine and a few other things like a whole chicken for soup for $5.19) and $6.53 bulk items from the Co-op, mostly noodles and spices to go with the chicken soup, plus today's shopping for the meal (only item already on hand was the cranberries), $29.62 = $261.70

FF thought I had today: You don't realize how much stuff you have until you stop buying more. We have been able to 'make do' through an amazing number of situations over these Frugal Februaries with the things we have and a little creativity. Really, what was I saving the leftover wedding decorations for?

Other FF thought I had today: Imperial margarine is totally gross. But really cheap.

A Peanut Sat on the Railroad Track

The list of things we're out of is growing at a dizzying rate. Coffee, wine, cheese sticks (heck, we're out of cheese), butter, sliced turkey (a staple for kid lunch), and it goes on. Today we remedied the peanut butter situation, buying a pound of bulk peanuts for $3.08, and turning them into a pound of home made peanut butter ... which probably would have cost us $3.08 to buy, but hey, it was fun. We usually buy the natural "peanuts only" brands anyway so we're all happy with the results.

Skinning the peanuts was the hardest part. After trying a few things we resorted to rubbing them in a colander, outside so the skins could blow away. Messy!

Then we dumped them in the food processor with a little salt and a tsp of honey (that we can't taste so I'd either up it next time or forget about it), ran it for a while, then drizzled in a tablespoon of oil.

Lousy picture via my lovely assistant's iPad because my hands were busy, one with salt and one with, well, hanging around.

Then you just let the processor run, and it all balls up and the ball just kind of rolls around making you think you wasted your Frugal February money making a large ball of useless peanut meal. Then you let it go a little longer and then - toot toot - peanut butter! The ball just flattens out and the peanut butter gets pretty smooth and creamy. Not like store bought but pretty good.

It's all uphill from here

More than halfway done with Frugal February, but I know the hardest part has just begun. We were coasting by supplementing the food we had in the house with some fresh food, but are out of everything now - no more meat, nothing stored away in the freezer, cocoa powder and peanut butter gone, out of cereal. No, you can't leave any of those things on my doorstep. But thanks if you thought of it. Now the grocery money we have left has some work to do! I need to do some smart shopping.

We made it through Valentine's day with computer-printed Valentines that we cut into puzzles with the Sizzix, then tucked into gift bags with miscellaneous goodies from my craft box - silk petals, red curling ribbon, sparkly stickers and little bits of a plastic pearl trim. My daughter closed her bags with wired silver leaves left from our wedding over 13 years ago!

I sewed into the wee hours and made the big kids flannel lounge pants and the little guy another pair of training pants (nothing like hearing a sincere, "Yay, underwear!").

We voted that we needed a treat last night and pooled our funds to buy pizza for dinner. The big kids each put in $3 from their Valentine's cash from Grandma (unsolicited gift!), the little kid insisted he wanted to give me a buck too so I didn't refuse, and the grocery fund put in $3.80, and we got two cheap pizzas, enough for dinner and lunch leftovers for the big kids.

So adding $3.80 plus $21.91 for more milk (seriously!), yogurt and butter, grand total $183.08.

Day 11

Did the next week's shopping today instead of tomorrow because it was looking pretty sparse around here, adding $44.54 to our total. Not much to report really. I think we are used to Frugal Februaries by now. The kids haven't asked for a thing. Well, the 2 year old had a fit because we were out of Wheat Thins but he got over it. And I found this recipe that I might try.

Making things from scratch is an everyday occurrence now, not so much in the name of being frugal, but it tastes better and I know what's in it. Biscuits, waffles, mac & cheese, taco seasoning, hamburger and hot dog buns, chocolate pudding, chocolate frosting - all things I would have bought in the past. We love to count the number of ingredients in the store-bought and the homemade versions. (Home made frosting, 4. Canned frosting, 20, including deliciousness like distilled monoglycerides and sodium stearoyl lactylate.).

Loving the Little House on the Prairie feel of this month. Simple cooking, trading lemons for home made hummus, a spontaneous exchange of handmade gifts, everyone checking in on each others' welfare. Remind me I said I love this when I am helping make Valentines for 60 children tomorrow.

Total to date, including 2 more gallons of milk (why don't we just get a faucet!) and a tub of sour cream hubby is bringing to a party at work: $157.37.

Day 9

I'm out of shampoo this morning and hubby's is running low so I don't want to borrow his. I'm not quite ready to join the no poo movement (though if you want to take that idea and go viral with it, be my guest) so remembered we had some Dr. Bronner's baby soap that I got in bulk from the Co-op. This is the kind of stuff you can wash your body with, or your hair, your laundry, your teeth, your dog, your floor, etc. Really. It's unscented so I added a few drops of essential oils to it, and some tea tree cause that seems like the right thing to do.

Running total update: bought a lime 2/7, .50 and milk and 3 gallons of bulk water yesterday, $4.98 = $102.46.

And in other news, apparently I don't actually like coffee, just Coffeemate.

Nothing says February like homemade underwear

The good news: My 2 year old is potty training! He's only using diapers at night, which is good news not only for February but for the rest of my life. The complication: We only have 3 pairs of training pants for him, a gift from my Mom over a year ago. I may have even rolled my eyes a teeny bit when we got them, since he was still so far from being able to use them. But once again, my Mom saves the day. Moms are like that.

This mom sprang into action today and sewed the little tyke a few more pairs of unders. I used this pattern by that*darn*kat for them, which I had in my stash from the time I test-sewed it for You Can Make This. (I had to laugh looking at that link, my test pair (pink/green/light blue) made more than 3 years ago looks suspiciously like the pair I just made. I never throw away fabric.) I sized up to the size 4, interlined the center panel with organic cotton fleece to make them training pants, and omitted the fly.

Someday, he'll tell people about his home made underwear. Hopefully it won't be his therapist.